Baying for Blood: Liberal Outrage and the Internet

You may have read the rumours surrounding writer and director, and all around Nerd Overlord, Joss Whedon's departure from Twitter. Though likely coincidental, Whedon's exit occurred in the midst of some pretty disturbing vitriol from some incredibly upset SJWs over his apparent sexism (and, more bizarrely, racism). That anyone could accuse Joss Whedon, a man whose work consistently reveals nothing short of an obsession with strong, independent women, of being sexist is quite remarkable, but then again a Progressive mind and a strong attachment to reality have ne'er made particularly good bedfellows.

Many have noted Patton Oswalt's response to Whedon's perceived Twitter exit at the hands of angry progressives. Oswalt would have you believe that the average overzealous SJW is the equivalent of a member of the Tea Party, but the truth is that, in terms of real world consequences, an angry leftist with a computer and an internet connection is a far more sinister prospect than a cranky grandmother who attends Glen Beck rallies and rants on Facebook about being taxed too much. 

If one fact has become clear in the last few years, it is that lefty activists, especially the SJWs lurking throughout the world wide interweb, absolutely relish the opportunity to destroy the lives and livelihoods of any heretic who dares question the tenants of the Progressive faith. From organizing boycotts, to GamerGate, to demanding the resignation of CEOs who donate to organizations that support the traditional definition of marriage, and bankrupting businesses that refuse to accept anything other than that definition, the conclusion is inescapable. It is not enough that dissenters must be forced to assent to the Progressive worldview, they must be punished for their initial dissent as well. And the left has made the internet into a brutally efficient tool for exacting that punishment. 

Enter Exhibit A. I recently encountered what is perhaps one of the most sinister websites I have ever come across. Called Racists Getting Fired, it is a site on which SJWs display screenshots of alleged online racist speech, identify the supposed racists, provide personal information, and encourage the online legions of lefty harridans and effeminate man-children to hound these folks' employers into terminating their employment. Whilst most of the dunces featured on the site are possibly slightly racist, and undoubtedly stupid, some are not evidently racist. At all.

Take Lauryn Freburger, a young model who was driven from the internet and lost an important modeling gig for two - yes, a mere two - tweets which can by no reasonable stretch of the imagination be called racist: 

If the phrase "pieces of shit" is a racist euphemism for black people, it's news to me. While certainly vulgar, it is hardly a clarion call for white supremacy, and the context of the tweets should make it obvious to a reasonable, grounded adult that she is referring to rioters. I realize the left loves to redefine words, but if "piece of shit" is no longer an apt, albeit crude, term for a knavish miscreant who assaults police officers, destroys businesses and community centers in his own neighborhood, and shows a general disregard for the lives and property of other human beings, then I am truly at a loss.

If liberals are willing to destroy people's lives for merely saying, writing, or tweeting things they perceive as being offensive, then honest debate in society is dead. While the internet is a brilliant tool for facilitating the free exchange of ideas, its near total presence in everyday life and the extent to which it is relied upon by commercial interests make it a potentially dangerous weapon for suppressing those who challenge liberal orthodoxy.