Danbury, a city in Connecticut state of the United States, has renamed a sewage plant after John Oliver following a spat between the comedian and the town’s mayor.
The Danbury Wastewater Treatment Plant was officially rechristened to the John Oliver Memorial Sewer Plant after the citizens of the city weighed in their support and the Danbury City Council voted 18-1 to rename the sewage plant last week. The sewage plant was renamed in opposition to the comedian’s insulting remarks for the town on his show “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver”.
“Yup.. It’s official the Danbury Sewer Plant is now the John Oliver Memorial Sewer Plant. – Your move John. Bam!” the mayor of Danbury, Mark Boughton tweeted after the sewage plant was renamed to John Oliver Memorial Sewer Plant.
Yup.. It’s official the Danbury Sewer Plant is now the John Oliver Memorial Sewer Plant. – You’re move John. Bam! #DanburyPride https://t.co/ieHJiG0vQa
— Mayor Mark Boughton (@MayorMark) October 9, 2020
With the rechristening of the sewage plant, comedian John Oliver will also donate $50,000 to the local charities, keeping up the promise he made if the city went ahead with actually renaming the sewer after him.
“I will happily donate an amount of $50,000 and do all of that if and only if your mayor makes good on his promise to officially rename the sewage after me because I want this,” Oliver had said.
Boughton had announced on social media platforms that the city was planning to name the plant after Oliver after he criticised the town on his show last month. On being asked why the sewage is being renamed, Boughton had responded, “Because it’s full of crap, just like you, John.”
The comedian had initially expressed his elation over the idea but then fulminated against the city for not immediately renaming the sewage.
When the mayor had earlier said that he had simply suggested the idea of renaming the sewage in jest, Oliver said, “What? So you’re not doing it? You had one good idea in your city’s history, and you chickened out on the follow through. What a classic Danbury move. Listen, I didn’t know that I wanted my name on your shit factory, but now that you floated it as an option, it is all that I want.”
Oliver had even gave a deadline to the city to rename the sewer treatment plant, saying that if the same is not implemented, he will donate the money to “one of the (better) towns in Connecticut”.
Following the outburst and offer of the donation from the comedian, Mark Boughton posted a video on September 6, saying that the city is actually going ahead to rename the sewer plant.
He said that they thought about the offer, and took the decision. However, he placed a condition, saying that John Oliver will have to be present at the time of cutting the ribbon at the sewer plant with the brand new name. The mayor had also added that if John disagrees with the offer, they will name public toilets in the city as “The John **** House”.
John Oliver criticises Danbury in one of the segments of his show in August
In one of the segments of his show on August 16, Oliver was discussing about the racial imbalance in jury selection, and said that the residents of Hartford and New Britain were excluded from selection.
Oliver then went on to make a rude and mean-spirited comment on Danbury, saying, “From its charming railway museum to its historic Hearthstone Castle, Danbury, Conn., can eat my whole a**.”
“If you are going to forget one town in Connecticut, why not Danbury?” he asked.
John Oliver peddled lies and anti-India fake news on his show
This is certainly not the first time that John Oliver had found himself in the centre of a controversy. Earlier too, the British comedian had made the headlines because of his motivated and misinformed tirade against India and his utter disregard for facts. During this show, he also presented an incorrect map of India with a part of Kashmir illegally occupied by Pakistan cut off.
In his show Last Week Tonight in February 2020, Oliver indulged in peddling lies, fake narratives and rumour-mongering about the Citizenship Amendment Act, NRC, PM Modi and RSS. He had said then that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was a “controversial” figure in India due to the “steadily escalating” persecution of religious minorities.
In an attempt to whitewash the Anti-CAA rioters fuelled by Islamic Supremacy, he claimed that the motivated protests were a result of the “persecution.” The host also reiterated the deeply flawed argument peddled ad nauseam by the anti-CAA, anti-NRC lobby to instil fear among the minorities. Oliver raised aspersions that a combination of NRC and CAA would make the “poor” and “illiterate” Muslims Stateless.
While criticising RSS, Oliver claimed that the second RSS Sarsangchalak, Golwalkar, was inspired by Adolf Hitler. This is the same lie that has been repeatedly peddled in India and has now found takers in international circles.
Oliver also criticised PM Modi over the Gujarat riots, saying that Modi was denied a visa by the United Kingdom and the USA because of his role in instigating the riots. However, he conveniently ignored mentioning the findings by the independent SIT constituted by the Supreme Court of India. He also failed to mention that the United States revoked its visa ban following which the Indian Prime Minister addressed the Congress after he was exonerated by the apex Court.
