Louis C.K. Brings His Non-Apology Tour to Hilarities Next Week

1. Laura, did you read the initial NYT report prior to submitting this article? He asked, the women said ok. That’s not permission? I can’t deny that there was a power dynamic (although the allegations did occur prior to his breaking out as a comedian) or that the behavior was inappropriate, but you’re LYING when you suggest that he did not have permission. Please please please be a better journalist, WE NEED YOU.

2. He did get permission from the girls. Although it was creepy he did get permission. Why are journalists lying about this constantly?

3. “Non-apology tour?” Just to remind you, below I have copy/pasted Louis C.K.’s full apology. If this is a “non-apology”, what counts as a ‘real” apology”? Seems like there’s nothing he could say or do for these losers to accept his apology as genuine.

   >”I want to address the stories told to the New York Times by five women named Abby, Rebecca, Dana, Julia who felt able to name themselves and one who did not.
   These stories are true. At the time, I said to myself that what I did was okay because I never showed a woman my dick without asking first, which is also true. But what I learned later in life, too late, is that when you have power over another person, asking them to look at your dick isn’t a question. It’s a predicament for them. The power I had over these women is that they admired me. And I wielded that power irresponsibly.
   I have been remorseful of my actions. And I’ve tried to learn from them. And run from them. Now I’m aware of the extent of the impact of my actions. I learned yesterday the extent to which I left these women who admired me feeling badly about themselves and cautious around other men who would never have put them in that position.
   I also took advantage of the fact that I was widely admired in my and their community, which disabled them from sharing their story and brought hardship to them when they tried because people who look up to me didn’t want to hear it. I didn’t think that I was doing any of that because my position allowed me not to think about it.
   There is nothing about this that I forgive myself for. And I have to reconcile it with who I am. Which is nothing compared to the task I left them with.
   I wish I had reacted to their admiration of me by being a good example to them as a man and given them some guidance as a comedian, including because I admired their work.
   The hardest regret to live with is what you’ve done to hurt someone else. And I can hardly wrap my head around the scope of hurt I brought on them. I’d be remiss to exclude the hurt that I’ve brought on people who I work with and have worked with who’s [sic] professional and personal lives have been impacted by all of this, including projects currently in production: the cast and crew of ‘Better Things,’ ‘Baskets,’ ‘The Cops,’ ‘One Mississippi,’ and ‘I Love You Daddy.’ I deeply regret that this has brought negative attention to my manager Dave Becky who only tried to mediate a situation that I caused. I’ve brought anguish and hardship to the people at FX who have given me so much The Orchard who took a chance on my movie and every other entity that has bet on me through the years.
   I’ve brought pain to my family, my friends, my children and their mother. I have spent my long and lucky career talking and saying anything I want. I will now step back and take a long time to listen.
   Thank you for reading.”

4. I think the people suggesting that Louis CK always asked for permission need to read the NYT article again. The two women in the story’s lede said they thought he was joking and laughed it off, but he did it anyway. That is absolutely NOT the same as receiving permission. One woman even says that he started masturbating while he was on the phone with her and definitely did NOT ask for permission, others said they felt like they needed to say yes. And in his own statement he acknowledges that he took advantage of his position of power over these women. Additionally, if asking for permission made everything okay, then why was his manager going around trying to get people to stop talking about it? You can’t just hand wave away this stuff because he asked nicely.

   And yeah, he apologized in one statement. And then went on a comeback tour consisting of transphobic shows in which he mocks school shooting survivors. Beyond one conciliatory statement to the Times (which reads like it was penned by his PR flak) he’s done nothing to prove that he understands the consequences of his actions, or shown that he’s tried to better himself, or tried to make show business safer for women. Take a look at the leaked clips. If anything, he’s regressed.

5. Okay, so, somebody tell me WHERE in that “apology” does he say the words “I am sorry” or “I apologize.” WHERE. SHOW ME. He NEVER apologizes in that statement at all — not to anyone! Saying “I caused pain” is a statement of fact, NOT an apology.

   Also, GO BACK TO THE NYT story. He did NOT always get permission, he did NOT always ask. HE claims he did, but the women say he didn’t. In one case he masturbated over the phone with a woman without telling her at all. In other cases, the women thought he was joking and did NOT say “yes.” Note that Louis himself says “I always asked first” but he does NOT say the women always said “yes” first — because they didn’t. If I ask you whether I can stab you in your eyeball, and you don’t say yes, do I have permission? I mean, I ASKED, DIDN’T I? Go to the original story: the women did NOT all say yes.

   Also “joseph” can we not call grown women “girls?” THANKS

6. It wasn’t his “directorial debut.”

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