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News & ArtsMonday, November 28, 2011
The Ladies / Teh Internets Bad Internet Comedy Is Not an Excuse for Casual Misogyny
Posted by Paul Constant on Mon, Nov 28, 2011 at 2:44 PM
A few weeks ago, this video made the rounds on the internet:
Today, The Hairpin features an essay written by the, uh, lead rapper in the video. She's from Seattle, her name is Emily Teachout, and she's learned a few lessons from going viral:
It’s surreal to think that over 140,000 people have seen me rap, and they all have drawn a collective conclusion about what kind of person I am: a dumb, annoying, slutty white person. The horror!
There are only three things that honestly bother me:
1. The weird level of misogyny.
“Shut up and show us your boobs already.”
“holy shit! STFU!!! Make me a sandwich, show me your tits, and again, just STFU!!!”
“This is what happens when you trap 4 strippers in a room and pay them NOT to take off their clothes.”Apparently, an accepted default insult is to call girls strippers. You can also say a lot of detailed things about their bodies and what you would like to do to them in lieu of any relevant criticism.
The essay is very funny and well worth your time. I'm not a supporter of the video—Teachout explains how it came about like this: A "social media contractor at my advertising agency was charged with making a viral video to acquire more Twitter followers for one of our clients," which is an explanation that makes me want to light myself on fire—but the commenters are really over the top. Sexist men on the internet need to STFU and show us their cocks already.
4
Paul, even jokingly asking men on the internet to show you their cocks seems like feeding the trolls. That's exactly what the commenters want to do anyway!
12
Internet commenters trolling for reaction? Who knew?
All it did was make me think of this:
http://www.hulu.com/watch/284937/saturda…
All it did was make me think of this:
http://www.hulu.com/watch/284937/saturda…
13
This isn't terribly well related.
Perhaps there is good reason to condemn those who sell themselves--heart, body, or soul--in exchange for physical compensation and social privilege. It is the servant, after all, who accepts payment.
Distaste for a whore is no different than distaste for an office-wage-slave, save the whore is typically better compensated. But I suppose there is actually a difference; the wage slave sells merely his soul while the whore sells away her body and soul.
If the common polity of the world were to rise up as one and refuse submission, this sort of exploitation would no longer remain possible. In the mean-time, all those who sell themselves should be seen as no better than scabs.
Starving, freezing, perhaps even young, a long life is very little different from a short one; they all seem equally eternal. But not until people show themselves ready to give up their lives dearly will any of this change. The desire for immediate safety, the desire to go on living, is so abominable as to beyond the parlance of mixed company.
Perhaps there is good reason to condemn those who sell themselves--heart, body, or soul--in exchange for physical compensation and social privilege. It is the servant, after all, who accepts payment.
Distaste for a whore is no different than distaste for an office-wage-slave, save the whore is typically better compensated. But I suppose there is actually a difference; the wage slave sells merely his soul while the whore sells away her body and soul.
If the common polity of the world were to rise up as one and refuse submission, this sort of exploitation would no longer remain possible. In the mean-time, all those who sell themselves should be seen as no better than scabs.
Starving, freezing, perhaps even young, a long life is very little different from a short one; they all seem equally eternal. But not until people show themselves ready to give up their lives dearly will any of this change. The desire for immediate safety, the desire to go on living, is so abominable as to beyond the parlance of mixed company.
14
Yo, jackhole!
We males already humor the females waaaay too much:
http://io9.com/5862898/male-guppies-have…
(And I would much rather both hear Lindy West rap, and see Lindy West's tits!)
We males already humor the females waaaay too much:
Male guppies have kept the same color for half a million years just to keep females happy
http://io9.com/5862898/male-guppies-have…
(And I would much rather both hear Lindy West rap, and see Lindy West's tits!)
16
Dear sexist troll: Please show me your cock so I can castrate you. If you'd like, I will gladly make you a sandwich with the resulting flaccid object. Bon appetit!
17
Honestly I think reactions to exploitative, vapid, sex-sells bullshit like this is probably the only place where the internet's jaded misogyny is really appropriate.
The entire point of the video is to exploit us, the audience, by taking advantage of our sexuality. Why do we need to respect that? Why should we treat something that's that prurient and dishonest - or anyone in it - with dignity?
I'm not really defending the commenters. Most of them actually are misogynist dickholes. I just think that if ever there's a subject that deserved internet commenters, it's probably astroturfed faux-viral marketing videos.
The entire point of the video is to exploit us, the audience, by taking advantage of our sexuality. Why do we need to respect that? Why should we treat something that's that prurient and dishonest - or anyone in it - with dignity?
I'm not really defending the commenters. Most of them actually are misogynist dickholes. I just think that if ever there's a subject that deserved internet commenters, it's probably astroturfed faux-viral marketing videos.
18
"Sexist men on the internet need to STFU and show us their cocks already."
Apparently you've never heard of chatroulette. You can't keep some people from showing their (unimpressive) weaslecocks off on their internet.
But yeah, youtube comments are horrible.
Apparently you've never heard of chatroulette. You can't keep some people from showing their (unimpressive) weaslecocks off on their internet.
But yeah, youtube comments are horrible.
19
I watched the video and I DON'T THINK YOU GIRLS ARE SLUTS...your just making a "freestyle" rap video and just being yourself ...I'm shocked and disturbed at how the public taunted you...most rap videos in this time and age ARE ABSOLUTELY FULL of sexually charged language and behavior...ESPECIALLY HIP-HOP...it is very unfortunate that society is brought up not just watching and listening to hip-hop BUT THEY ARE WATCHING PORN VIDEOS AS WELL...this is UNFORTUNATELY what many people on YouTube and on the internet in general are doing in their spare time...and they frown upon people who don't follow their logical way of thinking...when you step online,you are constantly attacked for any reason...in your case,the men giving your video bad ratings and telling you to show your tits and pussy are sexually driven men who watch PORN as well as YouTube...I myself have to sometimes focus on PORN sometimes just to get people's focus and attention...it's degrading to me,personally...but people on the internet have short attention spans...and respond to words and pictures that are vulgar and sexually driven...it's a part of society now...even this paper pushes and peddles it to the public ...
20
I think people who take every internet commenter seriously are missing the point. These people do it because they think they're anonymous and they want a reaction (thanks for giving them a larger voice than they deserve). Take a page from the any news is good news playbook and remember that this is a term of endearment for them. It may be crude, unwelcomed and even counter productive on every possible level but a term of endearment it remains. They wouldn't say these things if they didn't care enough and the fact that they cares matter. Sure their energy is negative but it's a fairly horrible video. I would say these commenters represent a .01% that the rest of the 99.99% won't ever recover from. Words don't matter to these people, they just use the most hateful, or one's they think are more hateful. Ignore them or just delete them, they serve no other purpose and in fact giving them this much credit IS EXACTLY WHAT THEY WANT. If we acted like they never existed (which is ironically what their comments make you think they want of you) they would lose. They wouldn't think that their hateful words had the meaning they once had. I'm a guy though I will admit, and to have similar things thrown at me it's impossible for me to think my reaction would be nill, but it should be. If you don't have nothing nice to say don't say nothing at all, cause I won't be giving you the time you're not worth.
21
I'm astonished at how stupid the commenters are. It's pretty obvious that they weren't being serious, and this video isn't so horrible that people need to get so worked up about it. Sensitive much?
22
@19: "I myself have to sometimes focus on PORN sometimes just to get people's focus and attention...it's degrading to me,personally..."
You've got a bookshelf full of issues, dude.
You've got a bookshelf full of issues, dude.
23
I can assure you, the last thing any sane person wants to see is the miniaturized cocks of the Keyboard Commandos. Which is why they're frustrated, misogynistic morons.
24
@23: It's not lack of sex and affection that makes them misogynistic. That's what they *blame*, but they'd be just as sleazeball if they were getting laid.
25
i think the commenters on this article need to get a grip and let go of the whole "show us your cocks" comment. it was clearly a joke, you don't need to come out in full force and make this a discussion on dicks.
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