Is someone announcing they’ve bifurcated PENIS?

The latest from TNC is frigging righteous. I wish he had written it earlier, the accusations that whichever minority group clamoring for basic human dignity or some outspoken SJWs or whatever is “why Trump won” have died down – so there’s less opportunity to slap idiots in the face with this.

DKW, very nice to see your bad self around…I have that one opened in another tab for perusal after dinner…I love the title of the piece and look forward to getting into it…plus it looks like pup has penis…So life is decent or end times are a coming, not sure which yet myself…

Hey ho Provider.

So apparently the TNC piece has ruffled some feathers. Talking Pants Marshall and the War Criminal Post’s Greg Sargent are all #NotAllWypipo

Dudes. That this is your response says it all.

Here’s the shape of their argument – yes TNC is right about a lot of things. Yes the Pussy Grabber was elected on white identity politics. Yes the “it’s class based and not racism” argument is bullshit. Yes this was a racist backlash against Obama and the need for white supremacy to reassert itself after the indignity of a black president was a primary motivating factor. Yes the fact that a white supremacist sits it into the Oval Office speaks volumes about how racist America is. And yes this was all enabled and helped along by racist media that is existentially dependent on white supremacy. But not us – it wasn’t all media, some of us white journos aren’t closeted Grand Wizards.

FFS. I’ve seen some white fragility but this is pretty fucking astonishing. The proper response isn’t “well we did what we could, sometimes the Nazi sympathizer is just popular enough to take the electoral college”. Really? Fucking hell. How about “the election of Donald Trump represents a huge and massive failure of the free press. We suck at our jobs and should probably do some introspection about how we failed so badly.”

This isn’t about individual journalists being racists – it’s about how journalism as a fucking whole is racist. Marshall for example writes off TNC’s examples as being just single individuals and that their white supremacy apologia is expected from the particular strain of journalism he calls “David Brooksism”. Well no fucking shit – David Brooks and people like him suck sweaty donkey balls. But here is the thing – the actual indictment – these folks are also highly revered. They are prominent figures in journalism and media. Mark Lilla is not a nobody. Nick Kristof has two fucking Pulitzer Prizes. And both seen as progressives or liberals in our current media landscape. It’s not like TNC went for Little Tommy “Suck on This” Friedman or the David Brooks of “David Brooksism” (i.e. David Brooks).

Here’s the indictment – white supremacy in America is a fact. It’s pervasive. It is the foundation of much of its institutions, which has very real consequences. It is very real. And yet unless people are literally waving Nazi flags, unless the actual KKK is marching, no one is allowed to speak its name. In fact the mainstream position is that we should be apologizing to the racist whites who voted Trump for their feefees getting hurt when they were called “deplorables”. Fuck. That. Noise. Racists need to be called out, and the silencing of people calling out racists needs to be called out.

I wonder if Marshall or Sargent responded more to TNC’s article than they did to the countless bullshit “it’s the neglected working class” garbage that dominated coverage for so long. It’s pretty clear that they agree more with this Coates article than with the Kristof article cited but which of those articles spurred a response? And Sargent’s warning about accepting Coates’ criticism opening the door to bad arguments – really? Worse than the bullshit that gets a pass from you and the rest of the white progressive media JournoListers every single fucking day?

To be clear – I do still like and respect both Marshall and Sargent for the work that they do. They are progressive voices and they have managed to claim influential positions in an environment where condemnation and oppobrium escalates exponentially as you move leftwards. But they are so off here. Donald fucking Trump is the god damned President of the United States. That represents as massive a failure of the media, and the progressive media in particular, as W’s adventure in Iraq.

That represents as massive a failure of the media, and the progressive media in particular, as W’s adventure in Iraq.

I agree with this completely with the possible exception that you might be being a little too generous…While I have thought of similar parrallels myself, I think this one might ultimately be worse than even that, which is easy for me to say as the jury will not be in on that decision for a number of years out, long enough for me to find a hidey hole should I need one.

The difference between Dubya’s folly and the result of this theft in the sight of plain daylight, is that when shit gets real, it will be doing so in my back yard and not several thousand miles away….Though wars of distraction become a very real possibility as well, unfortunately…

Super long ass diatribe ahead, even by my long-winded standards.

George Packer responds. Exactly true to form – #NotAllWypipo and #ItsClassismNotRacism.

George Packer – first you are wrong. And full of shit. And if you weren’t such a privileged crybaby you’d have known that.

Did the white working class vote for Trump more than the white not-working class? Yes they did. BUT not by even as close a margin as they did over the non-white working class. Non-white no college degree went for Hillary 76-20. Race is the dominant factor.

Packer appeals to the sexism argument against Trump. That lambasting Pussy Grabber for being a racist fuckwit somehow disappears his gross misogyny. White women actually voted 52-43 for Trump. Because even when dealing with this chauvinist who under the most generous interpretation of events is someone who enjoys joking about rape – even here whiteness is more important.

Trump won because he is white. Aggressively white. Which is what America needed to reaffirm white supremacy after having a black president.

And he’s blaming TNC for focusing too much on the whiteness of it all, even though that is literally and objectively the single greatest predictor of Trump support. “It’s classism”. Sure, maybe in some limited degree it’s about class – but it is predominantly about race. It is about whiteness more than anything else. And yet none of these progressive journalists had the balls to come out and say the obvious – that America is racist af. I mean they all acknowledge it – they all say how terrible and awful it is that he won, and that he still enjoys support in the thirties. Even after comforting literal Nazis.

America is racist. White people voted Trump into office – not “white working class” or “white without degrees” or “white men”. White people. Every single way you slice the demographics – white women, white without degrees, every single fucking age group had whites voting Trump and non whites voting Clinton. Every. Group.

But here’s George Packer and his “it’s about class” and “it’s sexism” and whatever fucking bullshit he needs to tell himself so that he can continue believing that he’s not racist. He doesn’t even recognize that he’s still writing apologia for white supremacists with this article. PROTIP – there’s other types of racism – they don’t all wear sheets and burn crosses.

Even his point about white people dropping their support of him from 2/3 down to 43% – FFS, this is normal. All presidents experience a slide in approval after they take office. For white people, this disastrous presidency with investigations into Russian tampering, Nazi attacks on US soil, a renewed threat of nuclear annihilation, a completely stalled legislative agenda – this is “normal”. Not much worse than usual.

That “hideous enough” fact that a literal Nazi sympathizer is supported by 1 in 3 Americans – isn’t that all that needs to be said? Fuck your “razor thin margins” – if you spot me 1/3 of the electorate, I’m going to win the election. It’s not about “total vindication” – it’s about you fragile fucking white assholes who are totally fine with downplaying the whiteness of Trump’s presidency. About covering it from every other fucking angle despite race being blatantly the dominant factor. And now your shushig TNC for laying it out. For pointing at the elephant in the room and saying “holy shit look at how white that thing is”. And it is fucking white.

This article was brought to my attention by Talking Pants. This post is better – Marshall isn’t making the “classism” excuse – he is fully on board with the fact of Trump’s racist win. That Trump won first and foremost because racism. And he says that the TNC article makes him uncomfortable. There’s an implication that it makes him uncomfortable because of it’s impact on discourse on some stupid shit. That’s not it. Let me quote Josh’s closer:

But no unitary explanation can ever capture the fullness or messiness or simply the complexity of human societies. There are exceptions and contradictions and complexities that get crushed by any totalizing narrative, perhaps especially by those which are largely true, precisely because they have so much accuracy, coherence and emotive and explanatory force.

You guys dropped the fucking ball. Racist as fuck – but we all had to talk about classism for fucking months. Clearly the whitey part of this situation is the biggest, but you gutless cowards couldn’t call it out. It’s not unitary and totalizing because TNC is pointing out that whiteness is the primary reason Trump won. It’s truth, and it’s been suppressed even by you progressive types, because of your fragility.

That’s probably why Josh Marshall is “uncomfortable”. He failed and badly. It’s an obvious story – the president is a racist white supremacist – a literal Nazi sympathizer for fuck’s sake. Also, I’m no newsbro, but this seems like a pretty fucking big deal. It’s also a powerful story that’s characterized by its “accuracy, coherence and emotive and explanatory force”. Seems like the kind of story that newsmen cream themselves over, but everyone’s been pussy footing around it for half a fucking year. Why is that? Because racism. Because White Fragility. Maybe that’s what all us progressive allies should be thinking about – not the “quite articulate young man” stating the goddamned obvious but why the fuck did it take until now for someone to speak up.

Thanks, DKW.

This: “It’s not unitary and totalizing because TNC is pointing out that whiteness is the primary reason Trump won.”

And this: “It’s an obvious story – the president is a racist white supremacist . . . this seems like a pretty fucking big deal. It’s also a powerful story that’s characterized by its “accuracy, coherence and emotive and explanatory force” . . . everyone’s been pussy footing around it for half a fucking year. Why is that? Because racism . . .”

Yup, TNC pretty much nailed it and Packer is not only wrong in the specifics, he’s missed the story altogether. As for Marshall, well, yeah, his response is somewhat better but he’s got a funny feeling, the kind of funny feeling my cat yowls about before he decides it’s time to try out the litter box.

What I find wrenching about TNC’s recent writing is that he’s largely non-prescriptive about progress. What will make the world better? Marshall and Packer can answer that question at length, TNC not so much. Sadly, I think it’s TNC’s lack of faith that that world will get better that makes his recent work more accurate than that of Marshall or Parker.

DKW, That might be the best commentary on the subject that I have read all year, certainly better than any I have managed, not for lack of trying, but I was mostly out of commission for most of the year leading up to the election…yadda yad…

….I must have gotten distracted before I could post this comment some half a day ago or so….It has been one of those days…
..

What I find wrenching about TNC’s recent writing is that he’s largely non-prescriptive about progress. What will make the world better?

I Presume you are talking about his post election writing…I will have to admit to not giving his work the same attention that I have previously, but I might be able to offer a clue about why there might be a lack of a sense of progress and working on a better world vibe to his writing…And while he might come right out and say it, and hell, I might simply be projecting my own reaction to the Gut Punch that was the Donald on to Coates…

As a black person (penised division) I have had a tremendously difficult time in not only dealing with the shithead in chief and the band of barking harpy shitheads that support his ass, but a return to a sense of a whole lotta fucking racist backlash is going on…And by backlash, I don’t necessarily mean klansman and lynchings as much as a bit more of an open demonstration of ‘Pride.’

To put it plainlier, I do not feel quite as safe as I used to and I live in a nominally progressive place (a college town with a Big Ten school attached) but one that is surrounded by Rednex and the headquarters of the state Klan just 30 miles up the road…

Marshall and Packer can answer that question at length, TNC not so much. Sadly, I think it’s TNC’s lack of faith that that world will get better that makes his recent work more accurate than that of Marshall or Parker.

I would be inclined to agree. About this lack of faith, but TNC can obviously speak for himself.

To be honest I have been dealing with some difficulties lately on top of the garden variety of nonsense to be dealt with in the “Post Racial” /cough bullshit, /cough “Amercia”

It is to early or late to really get into it, *it* being worthy of a post of its own..

Wuzza-wuzzup, loony libs? The funky fact of the matter is, ya silly socialists, that Terrific Trump is unleashing a SPREAD of TRUTH all of you dorkus malorkuses! Colin Crappernick can’t stand it, so he kneels like a big loser! Badoodle boo yeah, ya freaks!

Urban out.

DKW, exceptionally pleasant to see your awful self around… I have that one opened in another tab for examination after supper… I adore the title of the piece and anticipate getting into it… in addition to it would seem that pup has penis… So life is conventional or end times are a coming, not certain which yet myself…

I concur with this totally with the conceivable special case that you may be excessively liberal… While I have thought of comparative parrallels myself, I figure this one may eventually be more terrible than even that, which is simple for me to state as the jury won’t be in on that choice for various years out, sufficiently long for me to discover a hidey opening should I require one.

The distinction between Dubya’s indiscretion and the consequence of this burglary in seeing plain sunlight, is that when poo gets genuine, it will do as such in my back yard and not a few thousand miles away… .Though wars of diversion turn into an undeniable probability also, lamentably…

Oh, hai…i’ve been gone a long time! FYI, hubbkf and I did the eclipse. Coolest thing I’ve ever done to date. 2024!!!

Oh, hai…i’ve been gone a long time! FYI, hubbkf and I did the eclipse. Coolest thing I’ve ever done to date. 2024!!!

Coolest thing I’ve ever done to date.

I can imagine….An eclipse has been on my bucket list from the moment I became aware of them, and I had hoped to catch this one, but circumstances, yadda yadda, and yadda…Nonetheless, I am so very pleased that you managed to grace that lovely shadow with your presence, and then come back to share the news with us….

Good to see you old friend!
😉
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