I didn’t particularly enjoy the movie “Conair,” but there is one memorable quote from Steve Buscemi’s character that has always stayed with me. As airborne prisoners rock out to “Sweet Home Alabama,” Garland Green observes: “Define irony — a bunch of idiots dancing around on a plane to a song made famous by a band that died in a plane crash.”
I’ll confess I’ve often struggled with the concept of irony. A lot of things that are deemed “ironic” actually aren’t. And a clear definition of it eludes me. It’s a bit like obscenity — I think I know it when I see it. But Greene’s definition of it helps clarify it somewhat. At least his example nails it better than most of the ones offered by Alanis Morissette in her iconic (but maybe not ironic) song.
So it occurred to me, as I wrote an article Tuesday about the latest order issued in former President Donald Trump’s upcoming criminal trial in New York, that perhaps I’d stumbled across some legal irony. I mean, isn’t it ironic that a “gag order” has now been issued in a “hush money” case? Or is that maybe just a bad dad joke dressed up in legalese?
This “Moore to the Point” commentary aired on NewsTalkSTL on Wednesday, March 27th. Audio included below.
