There are a lot of things on Twitter that even as a Twitchy editor, I don’t get. Take, for example, The Church of Satan Twitter where Satanists claim they don’t worship Satan. No really, they say he doesn’t exist.
And of course, that other Twitter that shall not be named where people talk about a certain procedure young men have at birth.
Trust me, you do not want to debate either of those groups.
And while Elie Mystal is not quite as insane as the ‘there is no Satan but we worship Satan’ people who named their church after a dude they don’t believe in, he’s out there.
So I tried to engage him … you know, talk about why he thinks the Rittenhouse case is racist and that if ‘white gunman Kyle Rittenhourse walks free, it foreshadows a dark cycle’.
Take a watch:
Lol. Amy Goodman tricked me into expressing how I really feel. https://t.co/WiQEBg12lP
— Elie Mystal (@ElieNYC) November 11, 2021
Yeah, still don’t get it.
So I reached out …
Elie, help me understand why you think Rittenhouse shooting two other white guys who may have been trying to hurt or even kill him is racist. Seriously. Why would Black people protest? I'm not being snarky, I legitimately don't understand.
— The🐰FOO (@PolitiBunny) November 11, 2021
See? I’m being helpful, not snarking, totally nice, and stuff?
Unlike my usual self, see?
It took so much effort, just so you all know.
Without snark:
A: Because Rittenhouse is enjoying the gifts of white privilege which Black defendants do not get.
B: Because armed white boys roving the streets with court endorsed licenses to kill *usually* doesn't turn out too well for us.— Elie Mystal (@ElieNYC) November 11, 2021
So I responded:
Ok, so if Rittenhouse were Black you believe he’d already be found guilty? What exactly is privileged for him right now?
Also, isn’t gun violence already an issue regardless of color? Take Chicago, for example. What’s the difference here?
— The🐰FOO (@PolitiBunny) November 11, 2021
And his reply?
If Rittenhouse was black the cops would have shot him in the street.
— Elie Mystal (@ElieNYC) November 11, 2021
*sigh*
Yeah, I really didn’t get very far here, but I kept trying because I’m stubborn like that.
How many Black people did cops shoot in the streets in Kenosha during the 'protests'?
Look, I'm not trying to crap on your beliefs, but sometimes don't you ever wonder if looking at things in only one light is a disservice to yourself?
— The🐰FOO (@PolitiBunny) November 11, 2021
Yes, he totally ignored my question about looking at things in only one way.
In his case, the ‘everything is racist’ way.
How many black people do you know who have showed up at a MAGA rally, shot two people "in self defense" and lived?
— Elie Mystal (@ElieNYC) November 11, 2021
Ok, so at this point, I was pretty sure it was a lesson in futility, but I tried some humor and then a little reality.
I've never been to a MAGA rally so I can't say.
I'm kidding, you get that, right?
I mean I haven't been to one but … never mind.This wasn't a rally in Kenosha, Elie. It wasn't even a protest. It was a riot.
— The🐰FOO (@PolitiBunny) November 11, 2021
And then he got all fussy with me.
And here I thought you were arguing in good faith.
Oh well. Please go back to using your dog whistle language on people who pretend to not hear it.
— Elie Mystal (@ElieNYC) November 11, 2021
Being who I am, I couldn’t let Elie have the last word so I did respond …
I am absolutely arguing in good faith, Elie. We both know this was no protest – when people start destroying property, setting fires, it stops being a protest.
I'm not the one blowing a dog whistle here.
— The🐰FOO (@PolitiBunny) November 11, 2021
But as you likely knew before you even got this far, VIP member, it didn’t work out so hot.
There is no dialogue with someone who is so wrapped up in their own belief system that they are incapable of seeing the world around them in any other light. No matter what I said, no matter what point I brought up to negate his original argument, he was determined to make this about racism.
Yay Twitter.
Yay 2021.
…
Note, this is something new I’m going to try for our VIP members, writing in the first person and talking directly to you. If you are reading this, please let me know your thoughts about a more personal tone in these pieces and if this is something you’d like to continue seeing from me. Thank you! – sj
