On Nuance and Cancel Culture
A somewhat well-known progressive commentator sent out a tweet last week that started a firestorm. David Pakman of the David Pakman show sent out a tweet that has since been taken down. Of course, the tweet will live on forever as the far right has receipts. In the meantime, the whole incident is a nice focal point for any number of issues/lines of battle. The tweet and the response are tremendous examples of the lack of nuance in our modern politics as well as the overwhelming effect that social media has on the political debate. Finally, we get to the great hypocrisy machine that is cancel culture. The controversial tweet is below.
I’ve discussed religion and politics before. So, depending on your point of view I am either the perfect guy for this message or the last guy for this message. I have also received slings and arrows for being longwinded. I could throw out excuses for all of that, but this tweet is an example of why. Pakman is attempting to use 280 characters or less to throw out a nuanced argument and fails miserably. Naturally, the failure is not all on him. We can control our intention and we can control our execution, but we cannot control how anything is received. At any rate, I could launch a whole critique of what is wrong or not wrong with this tweet, but that’s really not the point.
As someone that enjoys sarcasm, I can certainly appreciate that here. Pakman certainly isn’t denying the existence of God or the power that God possesses. At least he isn’t doing it in this tweet. He simply is pointing out that thoughts and prayers haven’t done a damn thing to prevent school shootings and that Godlessness had little to no impact on a Christian school becoming the latest in a long line of schools that have suffered this fate.
Perhaps, the overarching point of the whole exercise was the right wing response to this tweet. Fox News and several other television, radio, and online media sources descended on Pakman like a plague of locusts. They pressured advertisers. They made him a household name in conservative circles for all of the worst reasons. In short, they attempted to cancel him. Naturally, they proved a point I have been making repeatedly in this place and others: free speech and expression is a powerful thing and it encompasses far more than simply a back and forth on ideas. Pakman is not the first progressive to suffer the slings and arrows of right wing outrage. In point of fact, one could very credibly claim that the right wing created cancel culture in the first place.
We can certainly go as far back as the Dixie Chicks or even John Lennon when firing up our examples. People have destroyed albums, burned clothes, and smashed televisions in the name of cancel culture. If you want to buy stuff only to destroy it be my guest. That’s your money you’re flushing down the toilet. If you want to try to cancel someone you are free to try. What you cannot do is decry cancel culture and then turn around and use it for your own benefit. Pakman certainly could have worded this better, but he is not wrong. It’s just a message that a lot of people are not ready to hear.
Self reflection has never been a strong point with the right wing. Personally, I think he nailed it.
1Facts and events escape conservatives. Shot square in the butt, yet Steve Scalise remains square in the NRA pocket. That one of their schools was attacked? meh Conservatives seriously do NOT care.
2In 1981 when the GOP worshipped St. Ronald, they were for gun control. By 2010 and Citizens United they were against it, why? M O N E Y. WaPo had a great follow up article about Sutherland Springs – remember them? A central TX church shot up five years ago. They are still, unsurprisingly, suffering with some mental health issues. The one very serious health issue that seems to affect those who were injured yet lived, is debilitating lead poisoning. Some had gun fragments which could not be removed, but most had hundreds of little bullet fragments in their skin and couldn’t be removed. How long before we hear these things from other survivors of mass shoot8ngs?
3My daughter sings in one of the church choirs. So, yesterday she sends a text from her practice asking me what she should do in the case of an emergency. Apparently, since she is a minor we can specify what she should do in an emergency. I couldn’t answer her right away. It took me a moment to process what I was hearing.
Then, she specified. Let’s say a shooter comes into the church during mass. Should she seek us out or escape with the choir? Of course, the natural answer was for her to be safe no matter how that happens. The next thought was seething rage. Why in the hell should we be forced to plan for this? I know it’s a liability thing for the church. I’m not mad at them. Every public entity has to deal with the new reality the best way they can. Why in the hell does this have to be our new reality? What have we done? What are we doing?
4David Pakman words were right on, that’s why it hurt the poor little snowflakes feelings.
But,
“Fox News and several other television, radio, and online media sources descended on Pakman like a plague of locusts.”
It’s important to understand the CONSTANT right wing bullying, attacking, and demonizing of Liberals is working as planned. Liberals are in a constant battered wife syndrome, afraid to speak their mind or fight back for FEAR of being badgered by the right wing ‘plague of locusts’. tRump and wingnuts can threaten violence and harm without any repercussions or accountability yet a Liberal gets subjected to constant dangerous threats. Remember when tRump posted a violent attack against Hillary by showing him hitting her with a golf ball??? That’s insane and sick,yet he’s running for president again!!!! And that’s only one of hundreds of malignant narcissist asshole threats he’s done. And that’s one major reason we have to handle him and his ilk with kid gloves. We’re suffering from the damaging psychological fear of being hit, of being harmed. Time to take off the gloves, expose the right wing ‘Hate’ machine and fight back.
Lock em up!
‘Donald Trump golf swing that hits Hillary Clinton’
5https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aOV7QiKLIg8
I agree with lex. Some will not like what I’m going to say, but I’m sick of the thoughts and prayers in response to mass killings at schools, churches or the mall, etc. I think Mr Parkman was calling that out. No offense to anyone here.
6No offense taken here. I think what is unfortunate is that we have collectively been unable or unwilling to recognize nuance. One can question the fidelity of God in these specific moments without questioning the existence of God in general or God’s power to do anything.
Clearly, God has chosen not to intervene in these events as is true throughout most of human history. Prayer probably doesn’t work that way anyway. I’m guessing if Pakman had more than 280 characters he would be able to make that distinction more clearly. Unfortunately, he didn’t.
7“Is it possible they weren’t praying
enough, or correctly, despite being a Christian ”
It’s clearly a question, without the nuance of a question mark. I haven’t read the right wing comments or replies, but I wonder how many attempted to answer the question? As Nick did. With thoughtfulness.
8As soon as prayers bring a murdered child back to life, I’ll pay attention to the believers’ distress. Till then, I just laugh at their gullibility.
9Pakman didn’t say anything I wasn’t thinking and I strongly doubt I was alone in that.
10Pakman simply put into print/text what many if not all of us have been saying forever. He didn’t need 280 characters. I don’t really know of him but I’m distressed that he felt the need to acquiesce. The right-wing crybabies are simply disgusting, miserable assholes without the faintest hint of self-awareness or introspection. Every goddamned one of us ought to have this statement plastered everywhere so that it’s in their faces, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days every damned year!
11Being a xtian school will at least make the rePUKEian ‘thoughts & prayers’ appropriate!
12As a person of strong religious faith I have struggled for at least
1370 years with the question “why do bad things happen to good people?” I have even led discussion forums on the question. The easiest answer, and therefore probably the wrong one is “there are no good people”. But, looking deeper, and not quite answering the question, are three conclusions: 1. God does not and will not cause evil; 2. God is able to prevent evil; 3. In his [or her?] wisdom, God finds that there are times when in the cosmic picture it is better to allow evil to exist. He/she is giving us the responsibility to do something about it. That’s why we build dams and levees to prevent floods, have fire prevention measures, and so on. Don’t expect God to do everything.
Or the power that God possesses.
14Says who?
Sorry buddy, but the christo-fascists see sarcasm designed
to get people to question their ultimate moral authority as treason.
Although the points are very valid Charles, I really hadn’t intended to do that kind of a deep dive into theology here. My sense is that most people around here are like P.P. and I have no issue with that. Moreover, the issue is that I shouldn’t rush to quash that which I inherently disagree with. If that’s my impulse than I am either threatened by the notion or can’t defend my own.
Seems to me that conservatives have been canceling people for centuries. That’s why I find their protesting over “cancel culture” to be so rich with irony. I did accidentally cut off one word (Church) from Pakman’s quote. I fundamentally agree with the sentiment but for different reasons than I suspect he or some people here agree. I am probably more in line with Charles, but either way if a tweet triggers you then you need to reconsider a few things.
15PRAISE THE LORD! HALLELUJAH! LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT MY JESUS!
Jesus F Christ! It’s the first thing they say when something even marginally positive happens to THEM! Even if it destroys a neighbor.
But what happens when something unpleasant happens… crickets! It’s as though god is just sitting around on a rock, out there in space, smoking cigarettes and picking his nose when all the bad shit happens. Then suddenly: “Opps! Bob caught pneumonia from somewhere! I wonder how that happened. Guess I better look into it!”
Where’s all the praise of the greatness of god when it turns an entire continent upside down with a hurricane or earthquake?! Especially if it happens to happen in our neighborhood?
16Thanks Nick! To me it was clear his sarcastic nuance was directed at the Religious Right because they’re the only Christians that weaponize Christianity to justify their ‘Hate’.
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