CANCEL CULTURE

A friend of mine last year un-friended a friend on Facebook. They had been acquainted for a long time. His worldviews based on a long career spanning the media and tech industries, she, holds a kind of more hippyish blend of counterculture and social justice perspective according to him.    

My friend admitted that 30 years ago he would have been considered a right wing radical bordering on conspiracy theorist. He used to publish a newsletter for a real life Jerry Fletcher like character from the Richard Donner political action film Conspiracy Theory. But these days has set all that aside to just watch from the sidelines. Concerned of course, but what can one person do?    

So when his friend started bombarding social media with anti vax and pro Trump rhetoric interspersed with deep bunker, celebrity pedophilia, deep state, qanon stuff he tried to ‘cool her jets’.   But the couple of comments made to this end were rallied with intolerant indignation.   And so my friend indulged in the woke, Cancel Culture in social media of un-friending.     

These people aren’t teenagers and they’ll get over it as do the celebrities whose lives have been affected by the media culpability in cancel culture. I mean, who has not slagged off some time after a few too many and wished they could rant at the police when pulled over. But we ordinary people aren’t subject to the scrutiny and media attention, bias and distortion celebrities endure. What the hell did Alex Baldwin do or say to invoke the ire of whomever that justifies attacking his wife? I mean, Hollywood is all about make belief and people who are good at it practice it all the time. So what’s wrong with someone having an alter ego and acting it out in real life? Just asking.    

It’s just not about people being ostracized by peers for real or perceived infractions of social mores, but fear of being ousted from the group for not conforming to the popular narrative.    

Many people, who should be speaking out, don’t for fear of rebuke from a media brainwashed posse that can’t see the wood for the trees.    

The year 2020 saw this understanding of cancelling as a very powerful means of forcing compliance transcend to the general population in the western world. 

Nobody ever used to talk about ‘normal’ before. But suddenly our normal lives were cancelled; we were sent home and told to stay there until we behaved. And, we complied like a child being sent to their room. This was not about making an example. It seems that this state of affairs will continue until there is complete capitulation.  And then when we come out of the naughty corner there will be a new covid normal, and we will be happy. The new cowering normal will be interspersed with prods of reminders of the pandemic to keep us contrite.    

What do you think: Should one be able to speak out and/or refuse to comply? Or is it OK under the dire circumstances to call out those who don't social distance, wear masks and/or object to getting vaccinated?

ENJOY - Cancel Culture Satire