An Open Letter to Angry Humans

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

Is it time to get my Angry Black Woman on?

'cause I'm fucking pissed too, Dok, and I've found that I have less and less patience for the STUPID THINGS PEOPLE SAY.

WHAT WOULD ANGELA DAVIS DO?

Pedophilic, homophobic, misogynist, racist "jokes" that seemed over-the-top and funny in the nineties aren't fucking funny anymore. Not in an era when public figures are calling law students sluts and prostitutes because they want access to birth control. Not when there are articles on staying safe from Darkies being widely read and publicized.

Shit just doesn't seem ironic the way it used to. I'm not talking about political correctness, I'm talking about waking the fuck up and paying attention to the stupidity instead of mindlessly participating in it.

I've found that the best way to respond to a guy who tries to be "edgy" like that is to slap the living Blue Jesus out of him, either verbally or (occasionally) physically.  It's the only way they learn.  I've only ever had one woman try that shit, and I went the verbal route (Somehow, slapping women physically is an exception to my rule about treating people equally...Probably because I out-mass most women by 2:1).  Some trustafarian college student who was having a grand old time with Daddy's Amex telling me how "Liberals talk, but never DO anything".  I asked her if that applied to Jefferson, Madison, or Franklin, then asked her when she planned to enlist.  Her comments about "Welfare Queens" (read:  The obvioously poor Black lady who had just walked by on the sidewalk outside) led to hilarity.  I haven't seen her since.

FUCKING HELL YES.

I've never physically slapped anyone in my adult life (the last time I slapped a person, it was The Last Showdown with my mother when I was 13. I think I told that story) but the next time someone pulls that shit I will not hesitate to give the verbal smackdown.

But I am not graced with my Dark Empress's even-tempered disposition, so I slap the dogshit out of people when they come to me demanding it.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

^^^^ What Dok said. When I called my Congress critter about NDAA and told his poor intern it was traitorous and he should be removed from office, I got a rather anxious "THAT'S NOT WHAT IT'S ABOUT PLEASE VOTE FOR ME! letter.

That's fun, and I plan to do likewise...But I also plan to attend city hall meetings and make everyones' day that much longer.

Hmm, see, my city AND Fresno are pretty much Oro Valley, seething with retarded teabaggers and Blue Dogs. Also, Fresno's mayor reminds me of a shrike.

"Why the fuck do you think it's okay to say that" usually works pretty well.

My variant:  "What the hell is wrong with you?" with a look of contempt on my face.

Yep. Or just a contemptuous, you-just-stepped-in-dog-shit look followed by, "Really?"

I usually go with a disbelieving stare, or sarcasm. I think I need to step it up to something with more sting.

[Doktor Howl]

However, even Seguin has Stella, so the Redneckass gene isn't totally dominant, right?

I wasn't born here, I just landed here. 

Doesn't matter.  Those people will stain your genes like a microscope slide.

[Doktor Howl]

Yep. Or just a contemptuous, you-just-stepped-in-dog-shit look followed by, "Really?"

Yeah, that works pretty well...Especially when delivered to a guy by a good-looking woman.

There's two basic responses, in that situation.

1.  Backpedal like a mad bastard, because your lizard brain just told you that you fucked up a chance to breed (silly as hell, but true).

2.  Dig in and go all Rush Limbaugh.

Either way is funny.

[LMNO]

However, even Seguin has Stella, so the Redneckass gene isn't totally dominant, right?

I wasn't born here, I just landed here. 

Doesn't matter.  Those people will stain your genes like a microscope slide.

That is a brilliant turn of phrase.

[Freeky]

^^^^ What Dok said. When I called my Congress critter about NDAA and told his poor intern it was traitorous and he should be removed from office, I got a rather anxious "THAT'S NOT WHAT IT'S ABOUT PLEASE VOTE FOR ME! letter.

That's fun, and I plan to do likewise...But I also plan to attend city hall meetings and make everyones' day that much longer.

I, too, feel like I should attend these meetings.

[Doktor Howl]

However, even Seguin has Stella, so the Redneckass gene isn't totally dominant, right?

I wasn't born here, I just landed here. 

Doesn't matter.  Those people will stain your genes like a microscope slide.

That is a brilliant turn of phrase.

Thanks.  I figured I'd avoid the obvious stained jeans joke.

[Juana]

Yep. Or just a contemptuous, you-just-stepped-in-dog-shit look followed by, "Really?"

Yeah, that works pretty well...Especially when delivered to a guy by a good-looking woman.

There's two basic responses, in that situation.

1.  Backpedal like a mad bastard, because your lizard brain just told you that you fucked up a chance to breed (silly as hell, but true).

2.  Dig in and go all Rush Limbaugh.

Either way is funny.

Aww, I don't get that reaction. They stutter and go quiet, and then disappear as soon as is socially acceptable.
But I'm told I'm kind of scary, so.

[navkat]

The point of the "Poisonous Righteous" series I'm writing is an intellectual experiment exploring what happens when you let every motherfucker with an opinion absolute free-range to express, teach and push those opinions and pretty much do whatever they want under any banner they choose. The consequences and desensitization that comes with absolutely, 100% free speech.

I feel like there's a balance there. On one hand, limiting expression and censoring the people is dangerous and my "assumed truth" (there's a bar in the cell again) has been placed firmly in the concept that free speech sometimes means putting up with shit you don't want to hear from cracked motherfuckers who really need to have an Egyptian Brain Enema. That censoring any speech or expression is a slippery-slope and once you shut up David Duke, you're opening the door to have yourself shut up too.

But what would happen if we took what's going on now: Racial-branded humor ("it's funny cuz it's a little bit true!), Family Guy-esque potty humor, massive overdose of rule 34 (WTF was that insect-pr0n shit ECH had posted in his sig when I lurked here about a year ago?!?) and letting every batshit theory have a fertile place to roam, get a cult-following, grow and HORRORS! corner for itself a little home, firmly embedded in the pop-culture consciousness? Even when we're laughing at them, there's a dark, creepy side to the fact that...well take furries, for instance: people who get off on dressing like and having sex with anthropomorphic, cartoonish animals. And pushed that to the absolute bitter end of the line to the shore of sanity?

Now, I love a good dead hooker joke as much as anyone and fucked if I don't occasionally throw out some humor about Korean child sex workers but to me, there's an obvious but subtle difference between, say, laughing in the face of racial stereotypes in an effort to pour sunshine into dark places and people who laugh because they're genuinely amused. I'm beginning to see that not everyone who's calling it "irony" really knows what the fuck "irony" means.

Are we really worse as a society because we're sort of numb and okay with people dressing up in diapers and fantasize about infant rape? I don't know. I think most of us run on the belief that that's all they're doing: two consenting adults, playacting. But what happens when you push it a bit? When you consider that we all laughed and shook our heads at the "shake that bear" video without much outrage? What happens when that attitude of "let the crazies have their place in the woods" carries over and covers people who fantasize about killing black people and fucking on the body?

Someone mentioned Prussian Blue recently. We allow people to raise their children to hate whomever they choose. What happens when these homeschool motherfuckers are allowed to teach their sons about their fetishes? That fornicating on top of a bear, a "nigger," a child is a beautiful and pure act that was robbed them by an overbearing government?

What I mean is: how slippery is this slope? Free speech is free speech, right? If it's all universal then the principle stays the same, even when it's abhorrent. And if it's not universal, it occurs to me, we'd better, all of us (YOU TOO, ARE YOU READING ME? NOW!) start thinking and considering where those lines belong while we're calm and cognizant before we allow this to be pushed to a point where we're likely to react broadly and extremely in a state of total backlash.

I need to keep writing that story.

[ñͤͣ̄ͦ̌̑͗͊͛͂͗ ̸̨̨̣̺̼̣̜͙͈͕̮̊̈́̈͂͛̽͊ͭ̓͆ͅé ̰̓̓́ͯ́́͞]

In my experience, these types of jokes are told between 2-3 people behind closed doors who know each other quite well. So, the issues of re-traumatizing victims or condoning depravity both don't seem to apply. Maybe a friend of mine just tells higher quality transgressive jokes, or something, because I always get the sense we're laughing AT the people who really think that way. I feel like I understand his intent quite well—it's always in the vein of black comedy and satire.

When it happens outside of a closed door context or around people I don't know very well I wrinkle my nose in disgust, shake my head, and look directly at the person who said it. That's usually enough for people to change the subject. Lately, I've been more outspoken about it, especially since reading and mulling over the rape thread.

It's a very case-by-case kind of judgment for me. It seems to boil down to the context in which these jokes are told and what the intent or point of it was.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

There is a huge difference between the jokes that are told to mock people's prejudices and the jokes that are told to mock, say, Jews. For example, my housemate and I, ever since that article the other day, have a running joke about how she can protect herself from "the Coloreds". An outsider might be horrified to hear us bantering back and forth about it, but we think it's funny because we know that the origin is rooted in making fun of people who say shit like that in seriousness.

[Anna Mae Bollocks]

However, even Seguin has Stella, so the Redneckass gene isn't totally dominant, right?

I wasn't born here, I just landed here. 

Doesn't matter.  Those people will stain your genes like a microscope slide.

That is a brilliant turn of phrase.

Thanks.  I figured I'd avoid the obvious stained jeans joke.

It's horrifying enough on its own.
The stains...oh, the stains...

[Anna Mae Bollocks]

There is a huge difference between the jokes that are told to mock people's prejudices and the jokes that are told to mock, say, Jews. For example, my housemate and I, ever since that article the other day, have a running joke about how she can protect herself from "the Coloreds". An outsider might be horrified to hear us bantering back and forth about it, but we think it's funny because we know that the origin is rooted in making fun of people who say shit like that in seriousness.

Yeah, people like the ones in that article definitely need to be mocked and derided, the tricky part is finding ways to do it publicly around people who don't know you well.

[Cainad (dec.)]

I think there's also a point to be made about how not to react to nasty statements.

The oversensitive "that's offensive!" reactionary is a stereotype all its own, and part of the reason that some people get off on saying foul things. It has, perversely, acquired a sort of rebelliousness to be "politically incorrect."

People ITT are on the correct motorcycle, but I felt it was worth pointing out. Reacting with disgust or contempt is less typical of Political Correctness ninnies, and probably more effective.

[navkat]

In my experience, these types of jokes are told between 2-3 people behind closed doors who know each other quite well. So, the issues of re-traumatizing victims or condoning depravity both don't seem to apply. Maybe a friend of mine just tells higher quality transgressive jokes, or something, because I always get the sense we're laughing AT the people who really think that way. I feel like I understand his intent quite well—it's always in the vein of black comedy and satire.

When it happens outside of a closed door context or around people I don't know very well I wrinkle my nose in disgust, shake my head, and look directly at the person who said it. That's usually enough for people to change the subject. Lately, I've been more outspoken about it, especially since reading and mulling over the rape thread.

It's a very case-by-case kind of judgment for me. It seems to boil down to the context in which these jokes are told and what the intent or point of it was.

I don't know. I laugh, but it's a whistling in the dark type of laugh. There's an untold exhaustion between survivors: we're grateful for the raised awareness, we're happy to be part of the solutions but we're also tired of it. Tired of connecting to it, tired of talking about it, tired of screaming and lamenting about it. I honestly don't know why there are some black people who get annoyed about white people joining their fight because fuck, I'm glad I don't have to be alone in this shit. I'm so grateful for all the other voices and all the silly "No means no" campaigns and Ani DiFranco and Tori Amos and Michael Stipe and all the other Lilith shit I make fun of because in reality, I would have been too tired to do it myself.

I do get annoyed with people who haven't been through that shit assuming they know how I feel or even worse: bringing up words like "shame" and "debased" and "cheap" (WTF is it about "clean people" trying to empathize with YOUR humiliation that brings on fresh waves of humiliation?) when I wasn't even going there, but I'm thankful they're there. I could never see human beings as all shit because I've seen far too much kindness out of people willing to break their backs to fix something that doesn't even affect them.

What is a problem for me is what lies in the direction of the original discussion: people are getting far too comfortable being entitled to being assholes. It used to be the rarity that some Westboro crazies who were featured on "A Current Affair" made a fantastic show of being assholes and the rest of us shrugging our shoulders in unison saying "They're nuts. Of course they're nuts but hey, free speech! Whaddya gonna do about it?" Now, it seems like we legitimately have a good reason to look around and see who in our company might or might not agree with them just a little bit. Why are we even indulging this shit? When did we start being so fucking disconnected from each other? When did watered, watered, watered, watered, watered down Westboro or racism start becoming "well, they have a poiiiint..."???

NO! THEY ARE NUTS! DON'T BUY THAT SHIT FOR A SECOND!