Whitworth welcomed self-proclaimed comedian therapist Dan Packard on Monday Feb. 22. Packard has been named National College Speaker of the year and is known for his "Live Group Sex Therapy" act. However, more than therapy, Packard doled out hypocritical advice to an audience of students he knew very little about.
Packard was brought to Whitworth by cultural events coordinator, Jaquette Easterlin. Easterlin went to a campus activities leadership fair called National Association for Campus Activities (NACA). There, she saw various speakers and artists give short previews. Easterlin was impressed with Packard’s presentation.
“He used real life situations and comedy to capture the audience,” Easterlin said. “I nodded the whole time because I agreed a lot with what he said, and it’s funny.”
Students received a questionnaire as they entered the room. It asked for their name, a cool talent, a problem with relationships, why it was a problem and how it could be fixed.
“I hope people are able to take in his real life scenarios and learn from them,” Easterlin said. “His question and answer session should be really helpful.”
Freshman Katie Traylor was excited for the show to begin.
“I’m just hoping it will make people more comfortable with sex and sexuality since it’s such a touchy subject here at Whitworth,” Traylor said.
Packard may have helped Traylor’s hopes come true, but be careful what you wish for. It seemed that Packard was able to encourage those in the audience who have had sex, while discriminating against those who have not.
Packard addressed a list of disclaimers at the start of the show. He admitted he was not worried with political correctness, that his humor would be crude, and his advice was just his opinion. He also admitted to using gross generalizations and stereotypes to make some points, while not believing in them all. Immediately following this, Packard started throwing out statements of jaw-dropping bad advice.
“Guys like easy girls,” Packard said. “We like easy.”
Along with this was the idea that the word "sluts" is only something jealous women call other women. Packard said that men never call girls sluts, so really it is something a woman should never be worried about. This, from a man who has been recorded calling himself "The Whore Whisperer."
During the question-and-answer portion of the evening, Packard became excessively more invasive than would be expected in a large crowd setting. He only ended up answering three questions.
Fear was a major theme of Packard’s act. It seemed that anyone and everyone in the audience was battling fear of some sort. Whether he was discussing casual drinking, judging others or sex, everyone was apparently fearful of something.
Moments of interesting ideas or snippets of good advice did flare up in his act. He asked the audience to always be sure and be themeselves, noting that they should never change for someone else.
Packard encouraged the women in the audience to welcome that life is unpredictable, make the first move in a relationship and don't just believe you're entitled to love. He referred to it as killing the princess and raising the queen.
At the end of the two and a half hour show, the crowd seemed to be at odds on their view of the performance.
"I thought he was funny,” said sophomore Michael Taylor. “But, there was stuff I definitely didn’t agree with. He definitely didn’t change my worldview.”
When I went to interview Packard about the show, I ended up being the one in the hot seat. He asked what I had learned. I said I learned to consider why I do the things I do and see who I make my choices for.
I did not know when I came to the show that I would need a problem to discuss. I’m in a very healthy, happy, two and a half year relationship that really needs no psychoanalysis. Packard still tried to figure me out and pretend that he knew everything about me.
When Packard I didn’t like about the show, I said I initially felt like he was telling the audience to go out and be promiscuous. While I admitted that I recognized that was not his intention, he paused.
“Why would that be a bad thing?” Packard asked.
I explained I've chosen to not have sex, so it made me uncomfortable. However, if anyone else has different lifestyle choices in that area, I don’t judge them differently. It is just my personal preference.
His response floored me to a point where I had to end the interview.
“So you’re a liar,” Packard said.
This is where I felt Packard went too far, both in our interview, and while he was on stage. He assumes he is able to delve instantaneously into anyone’s psyche and know them as though they were best friends. He knows nothing of me and assumes I’m another of the two-sided personality women he talks about on stage.
While many in the audience enjoyed his show, anyone who raised their hands with questions that did not agree with Packard’s teaching were immediately shut down, spun into a tangled web of questions or made to start crying in front of an audience of 100 people.
When one woman in the audience asked about values in sex, or waiting until marriage, Packard quickly wore her down.
“Do you have friends?” Packard said. “Do you hug your friends?...Then what makes that any different than sex?”
After the show, when a group of the audience stayed behind to ask him questions, many praised Packard for freeing them and making them feel enlightened.
“I have had sex and I just feel so much freer; I don’t care what anyone else thinks now, I shouldn’t hide it,” said a woman in the group.
Packard congratulated her on her journey of self-discovery.
“Watch out for those virgins though, they’ll try and bring you down in any way they can,” Packard said.
Congratulations to all who enjoyed Packard’s show; I know it was split for those who did and did not. I did not and would not recommend him to anyone just hoping for a night of laughs.
Contact Sophie Sestero at sophie.sestero@whitworthian.com.
27 comments
I was not addressing my judgement statement to Sophie directly, I was however addressing it to anyone who judges others on campus. Just like Ms. Maguire stated, Whitworth seems to pride itself on an open mind and heart and yet it feels awful close mided to those who don't fit (or don't want to fit in) the exact Whitworth mold. Sophie did a good job of expressing her opinions and I am terribly sorry he called her a liar. That was completly innapropriate and ignorant of him. But I 100% believe that censorship is something that needs to be backed off around here. We're adults and should be able to handle adult situations. We all have the free will to go to the show or not. It sounds like you're basing your judgement off of heresay but perhaps you should attend the show before you make comments about what took place and how people felt about it. From what I could tell and from the very loud applause at the end, Daniel was received well even if the students didn't agree with everything that was said.