Define Roast

 You know it's bad when Comedy Central has to censor an event.  This time it's Jeff Ross, who pushed the line too far, more than once.

Ross -- who came to the event dressed like Joe Paterno, accompanied by two young topless boys -- has been under fire for cracking the following zinger, directed at Seth Green:

“Seth, congratulations. This is actually a great night for you ... you haven’t gotten this much attention since you shot all those people in Aurora. ... I’m kidding. You are not like James Holmes. At least he did something in a movie theater that people remember!”

After the taping, one of the producers announced that the joke would be cut from the August 12 broadcast. 

His response?  That's what a roast is for.

Well, not really.  See, I grew up in the days of the real roasts.  When Dean Martin and company would bring out their best jokes, set each other up to have a rollicking good time, and yes... poke fun at the guest of honor.  But there was never a declaration that roasts exist so that comedians can go as low as they can think of.  First of all, dressing like Paterno in the company of half-naked boys is as ignorant as it is tasteless.  Making jokes about the slaughter of innocent people is never in taste.  It's not a matter of "too soon" as it is "too much" and he wasn't that funny to begin with.

There are comedians and acts that you go into knowing boundaries would be pushed.  I get that.  But you should also get that if you push boundaries, this is the fallout when you find the line.  I tell the kids the same thing, if you insist on pushing to find where the line is... when you find out it will be because you get smacked down.

I know readers are going to have differing opinions, and I welcome them.  This is mine, and it didn't come without some soul searching and finding internal vs. external lines of decency.