No MAGA Hats in the Opinion Workers Union Hall
"This week there was a rare celestial convergence: A Super Moon, a Blood Wolf Moon, and a Lunar Eclipse.
On earth there were also some noteworthy events: 1000 reporters lost their jobs, Mueller jumped the shark in arresting Roger Stone in the middle of the night, and the President moved on to another stage of the long Build the Wall battle.
The Opinion Workers Union Hall
Riffing on the loss of jobs by 1000 reporters, most especially those who’d been tapping away at Huffington Post and Buzz Feed spewing hateful, ill-informed nonsense, Iowahawk, had fun in a three-part tweet:
I was havin' beers with the fellas down at the Opinion Workers Union hall, and they're all itchin' for a strike. Let's see how long these management bastards last when the hot take warehouse goes empty.
But Al the union steward said it was only "temporary" and that we shouldn't rile up nothin' less'n they start bussin' in a bunch of damn Twitter scabs. Sometimes I think that sumbitch is in management's pocket, and it's time for a wildcat vote.
I spent the best 2 years of my life dragging randos and chasing hashtags, and what do I get? Carpal tunnel and goddamn pink slip. Brooklyn used to be filled with clickbait factories, now it's just busted dreams, UHauls, and opioid addicts.
The news of the discharges came after days of coverage respecting the confrontation between a make-believe Vietnam veteran and some Catholic school boys who did not take the bait to respond to his aggressive moves and were nevertheless falsely accused of the left’s favorite sin -- racism.
After a series of hoaxes in which white males were proven to have been unfairly accused of racism and sexism and such we were naturally skeptical. There was the Trayvon Martin (“white Hispanic”) nonsense, the Ferguson (“hands up, don’t shoot’) lies, the Duke Lacrosse Team hoax, the UVA fraternity debacle and the Judge Kavanaugh hokum, to name some of the publicized libels and defamations in the left’s quiver against straight white males.
To belabor the obvious, how will the media come out in a showdown between Evil White Christian Trump-loving Anti-Abortions Sons of the Oppressive Patriarchy and a beloved minority? My goodness, those high schoolers might even include a young Brett Kavanaugh!
The narrative writes itself (aided by Nathan Phillips, the Native Elder, activist and provocateur), as anyone familiar with the Duke lacrosse or UVA rape fantasies has learned.
Well. Just to pick out one "journalist" as an example, Sarah Mervosh of the flailing NY Times had a choice to throw in with the Feel Great, Feel the Hate viral mob, or actually dig for some facts and perspective. Her choice was utterly predictable; her original fan fiction submission was headlined "Viral Video Shows Boys in ‘Make America Great Again’ Hats Mob Native Elder".
That was walked back slightly to "Viral Video Shows Boys in ‘Make America Great Again’ Hats Surrounding Native Elder". Closer! Even the original video suggested something that longer video makes obvious -- these students "surrounded" Phillips by the clever tactic of standing around while he pushed into the center of their group. We all know corrections are emotionally challenging at the Times so there were a few hours of suspense while we wondered if Times would fly even closer to reality or simply Move On. Somewhat surprisingly, cooler heads prevailed.
The Walkback of Shame continued with this follow-up piece:
Fuller Picture Emerges of Viral Video Between Native American Man and Catholic Students
A fuller and more complicated picture emerged on Sunday of the videotaped encounter between a Native American man and a throng of high school boys wearing “Make America Great Again” gear outside the Lincoln Memorial in Washington.
Interviews and additional video footage suggest that an explosive convergence of race, religion and ideological beliefs -- against a national backdrop of political tension -- set the stage for the viral moment. Early video excerpts from the encounter obscured the larger context, inflaming outrage.
So actual reporting, fact-gathering and interviewing led to a new perspective? Looking at two minutes of video and asking a longtime activist for his take on events is not reliable? Who could have guessed?
Robby Soave of Reason stared at the replays and delivered an invaluable booth review (Spoiler: the ruling on the field was overturned). CNN and USA Today are rethinking their reflexive response. As to Truth and Justice? We'll have to wait and see.
As to Lessons Learned, it's hardly news that certain stories, especially with Trump bashing, male-bashing, and Christian bashing themes, are catnip to the media and, like cats, they lose their minds. Sometimes they manage to sober up in a day or two, so giving these outrages time to breathe is a good idea. Of course, sometimes they simply move on without owning up to their deplorable instincts. Will any "journalist" lose their job over this? Don't be silly.
As Maguire notes, it’s all about money.
With print subscriptions and ad dollars shrinking, there’s money in peddling hate..."
Read on.
The course description says it will help educators "combat toxic masculinity."
"False charges of homophobia only diminish the real and serious struggles of those who have had to be subjected to it.
What Warren failed to mention is that although he certainly spent a fair amount on his “superyacht,” Snyder has donated millions to charitable causes over the years — from disaster relief efforts after Hurricane Katrina and the tsunami in Indonesia to community-based organizations such as Youth For Tomorrow, a residential facility for at-risk kids in Manassas, Virginia.
(3) Fans of Best of the Web Today-Chris Botkin
