"People are going to tell me that Democrats are laughing about the Madison Cawthorn video because it's hypocritical of him to be both gay and homophobic/transphobic but 1) this isn’t a video of Cawthorn being gay and 2) that's not why you're laughing. Come on. You're making jokes about how gross it is. You're making fun of his body and the noises he makes. If you actually think this is his sexuality you're being incredibly fucking gross about it."
I haven't seen the video but I don't need to. That was basically like... 85% of male humor in the 90's and early 2000's between men. My particular friend circle got weird after the early aughts and became a toxic mix of Whedon-esque snark and pseudo-Elizabethan era puns so like the bro shit thing kind of wasn't neck deep in my particular corner of the world. However, even without seeing the video I bet I could perfectly envision his facial expression, the exaggeration of his body language, all of it.
But by laughing at Cawthorn, even at him as "ha ha he's being gross and hypocritical" is literally taking his side. It's meant to gross you out. Not in that what he does is offensive. You can find it offensive, but the more you freak out at it, the bigger the win is. The whole performance is "look how shocking and transgressive I'm being!" and saying "why yes, yes you are being shocking and transgressive!" doesn't help.
And ultimately, this kind of feels like watching the left call Donald Trump fat and stopping there. Like... hey... I'm fat too. Do you really think that of me too? Donald Trump is a walking encyclopedia of shitty things you can take potshots at, and you choose to freak out about his weight?
I think it's bad that we reflexively attack our enemies with any weapon anyone hands us, even if it's bullshit, because we think the ends justify the means. Means themselves lead to their own ends, and they often aren’t the ends we intended. Why should anyone take you seriously when you admit outright you'll say anything to hurt your foes, even if it isn't true? Why should anyone believe anything you say? That's straight-up war, and if we keep acting this way then war is exactly what we'll get.
If you stand up for what’s right even when the people involved are scum, on the other hand, people will take you more seriously when you point out the scummy parts. Sometimes morality is practical too.
“”
The means usually are the ends, even when we don’t intend them that way.
I have to thank you for clarifying what the video shows. I did not not look for it and mistakenly assumed it was more explicit, because that’s how the internet was describing it. The people shaming Cawthorn are leaving out important details. You’ve nailed it. This is bro shenanigans.
Brutally honest.
Extra points for using "wayward privates" in most prosaic/HR way possible.
Damn! Thank you so much for this!!
"People are going to tell me that Democrats are laughing about the Madison Cawthorn video because it's hypocritical of him to be both gay and homophobic/transphobic but 1) this isn’t a video of Cawthorn being gay and 2) that's not why you're laughing. Come on. You're making jokes about how gross it is. You're making fun of his body and the noises he makes. If you actually think this is his sexuality you're being incredibly fucking gross about it."
I haven't seen the video but I don't need to. That was basically like... 85% of male humor in the 90's and early 2000's between men. My particular friend circle got weird after the early aughts and became a toxic mix of Whedon-esque snark and pseudo-Elizabethan era puns so like the bro shit thing kind of wasn't neck deep in my particular corner of the world. However, even without seeing the video I bet I could perfectly envision his facial expression, the exaggeration of his body language, all of it.
But by laughing at Cawthorn, even at him as "ha ha he's being gross and hypocritical" is literally taking his side. It's meant to gross you out. Not in that what he does is offensive. You can find it offensive, but the more you freak out at it, the bigger the win is. The whole performance is "look how shocking and transgressive I'm being!" and saying "why yes, yes you are being shocking and transgressive!" doesn't help.
And ultimately, this kind of feels like watching the left call Donald Trump fat and stopping there. Like... hey... I'm fat too. Do you really think that of me too? Donald Trump is a walking encyclopedia of shitty things you can take potshots at, and you choose to freak out about his weight?
This is so eye-opening and fascinating. Publish this with The Guardian or NYT.
“”
I think it's bad that we reflexively attack our enemies with any weapon anyone hands us, even if it's bullshit, because we think the ends justify the means. Means themselves lead to their own ends, and they often aren’t the ends we intended. Why should anyone take you seriously when you admit outright you'll say anything to hurt your foes, even if it isn't true? Why should anyone believe anything you say? That's straight-up war, and if we keep acting this way then war is exactly what we'll get.
If you stand up for what’s right even when the people involved are scum, on the other hand, people will take you more seriously when you point out the scummy parts. Sometimes morality is practical too.
“”
The means usually are the ends, even when we don’t intend them that way.
I have to thank you for clarifying what the video shows. I did not not look for it and mistakenly assumed it was more explicit, because that’s how the internet was describing it. The people shaming Cawthorn are leaving out important details. You’ve nailed it. This is bro shenanigans.
And great writing too.