History repeats itself. In September 1939, Hitler launched World War II by blocking Poland on Twitter. In December 1941, the United States entered into the war after Japan subtweeted the American naval base at Pearl Harbor.
This past Friday, according to Breitbart, Twitter “declar[ed] war on conservative media” by taking away the little blue checkmark that used to run next to Breitbart “journalist” Milo Yiannopoulos’ name on Twitter, verifying that he is indeed the real Milo Yiannopoulos.
No, really. Here’s the headline of the piece that ran in Breitbart’s tech section on the terrible injustice done to young Mr. Yiannopoulos, who coincidentally just happens to run Breitbart’s tech section.
Now, Milo hasn’t actually been banned from Twitter. Twitter simply informed him that “due to [his] recent violations of the Twitter Rules” — he’s a bit of a bully — they were taking away his little blue checkmark. So now he has to navigate Twitter without a little blue checkmark, like the overwhelming majority of Twitter users.
Naturally, Milo’s army of fans has responded to this terrible tragedy with wisdom and restraint.
JUST KIDDING! They’re crying bloody murder on Twitter and harassing anyone they can blame for Milo’s de-checkmarking.
Referencing a slogan formerly used to honor journalists and others literally murdered by terrorists, Milo’s Twitter fans launched the hashtag #JeSuisMilo. It was ugly
Here are some scenes from the ongoing debacle that is that hashtag.
https://twitter.com/TheAmazingPleb/status/685651751685341184
https://twitter.com/rstafford9/status/685635514481786880
https://twitter.com/AlHolmes66/status/685863515916115969
https://twitter.com/GBedecker/status/686036916744097796
#JeSuisMilo
SJWs suck TwatLord anus at Twitter.— Rapier Half-Witt (@br549q) January 9, 2016
Naturally, there were rape jokes.
#jesuismilo Haters are going to hate, Salt is going to flow, Spread your butt cheeks darling and prepare for Milo
— Tengu Manz (@Tengumanz) January 9, 2016
https://twitter.com/MikeRotondo86/status/685666046443823104
In a variation on the old “I’m Spartacus” ploy, many of Milo’s fans pretended to be him. (The real Milo posts as @Nero)
https://twitter.com/MiloYiannopoul2/status/685699475290091520
#JeSuisMilo suck it, bitches.
— Ryuuko Matoi 🇷🇺 (@dustinherrick1) January 9, 2016
https://twitter.com/Nuclearcherries/status/685698288864079873
https://twitter.com/dunnolol4/status/685735953072193536
It didn’t take long for the Milovians to find women to blame for Milo’s plight. Many — including some of the fake Milos — went after Huffington Post writer Jessie Thompson, who wrote a piece defending Twitter’s actions. Many of her, er, critics seem to be big fans of the c-word.
https://twitter.com/QuintusMetellus/status/685867151060766722
https://twitter.com/PillboxHill/status/685927247581085696
https://twitter.com/JRocca26/status/685916008561963008
https://twitter.com/Jew_Banker/status/685901724180037636
https://twitter.com/goodboygreg/status/685845870336708608
https://twitter.com/herpefeminist/status/685849987230597121
But she wasn’t the only woman to draw the fire of the Milovians. Some used the hashtag as an excuse to attack familiar #GamerGate targets.
#JeSuisMilo Randi Harper is a fat wanna be whore who can get a man. She is repulsive and ugly.
— Evandros Vanderbilt Kensington (@evandrus33) January 9, 2016
@m55244084 Whores get paid though… Zoe does it for free .. sex I mean, She plays victim for Money though #JeSuisMilo
— The King of Worms Mannimarco (@AKingOfWorms) January 9, 2016
Others — again, including some fake Milos — used the hashtag to promote their own agendas — some silly, some horrific, some a mixture of the two.
#rape #meninism #feminismiscancer #jesuismilo #financialrape #misandry pic.twitter.com/h3gKvnRTgn
— a boy has no soul (@saumyajit_) January 10, 2016
https://twitter.com/fiendeJ/status/685643144076083201
https://twitter.com/Qildaen/status/685938406929481728
https://twitter.com/gazetchic/status/686237395893776386
#JeSuisMilo Asia for the Asians, Africa for the Africans, White nations for EVERYONE! It's #WhiteGenocide.
— ProWhitesUnite (@prowhitesunite) January 9, 2016
#MisceGenocide is genocidal, so promoting it is racist & offensive. #WhiteGenocide #Trump2016 #JeSuisMilo #tcot https://t.co/Ct2vusC8oK
— Ben L. ن⚡️🐸👌🏻 🙏🏻 RIP Ashli Babbitt 🙏🏻 (@BNLieb) January 9, 2016
@AntiMarxistMilo #JeSuisMilo #CulturalMarxism pic.twitter.com/A8l8Iisyv8
— Milo Yiannopoulos (@AntiMarxistMilo) January 9, 2016
https://twitter.com/_simpa_/status/685993767007088640
One fellow thought he knew the real reason feminists hate Milo.
#JeSuisMilo @Nero You know what? Every feminist should admit one thing: They are crazy about you. And you are unattainable. That hurts them.
— Jeff Goldblum FAN (@Super_Slav_KEK) January 9, 2016
A few even managed to work their “cuck” obsession into their Tweets.
First the Gamers rose up with #Gamergate
Now everyone that isn't an Beta cuck or Brainwashed Feminist is rising up with #JeSuisMilo— EVEILCHARM (@EveilCharm) January 9, 2016
In the news: Twitter went full cuck, Adolf Merkel gets more laws for something her immigrants did, and Milo reings supreme. #JeSuisMilo
— Jeff Goldblum FAN (@Super_Slav_KEK) January 9, 2016
https://twitter.com/Ideo_Vames/status/685659660104368129
You can tell something about writers by the fans they attract. Milo’ fans prove with every terrible tweet of their what a wretched bunch of bullies and bigots they are — and why Twitter needs to do more to crack down on the abuse that its platform enables.
Congratulations, Milo defenders, for own-goaling yourself so magnificently.
@Shaenon
Thanks! I enjoyed that 😀
If they’re freaking out over a teeny little blue checkmark, imagine what would happen if the dude got banned. Heads will ROLL!
…but not my head, because I’ll be too busy making stovetop popcorn and sharing it with you fellow Mammothers. 🙂
Oh man, same here. I was like an hour late today, too, so they were pretty damn dramatic about it.
N-no. On no level is that true. Attraction is mostly a personality thing for me (not least of which because I am a kinky sonofabeesh), and he is a repulsive human being with whom I share no interests. Even on the physical level he looks like every bit the tool I know he is.
“The salt must flow.”
Don’t they realize that they’re the ones sobbing about nothing?
Other issues aside Twitter really should be more specific as to what triggered the unverification. And anyway as a sanction, it doesn’t make sense. Is Milo now less Milo than he was before?
If Milo’s done something sanction worthy he should be either banned or suspended and the reason should be made clear.
Also critiquing the use of the JeSuis prefix…well that’s kind of selective on David’s part. This isn’t the first, or even close to the first, trivial movement to hijack it.
Let’s not forget that bastion of ethical “journalism” Milo, ran his own tech news site into the ground and left many (if not all) it’s writers out of pocket for months until the bailiffs came. Frankly, the story should be why twitter is only now doing something about Milo, and why it hasn’t banned him already.
After a zillion attempts, I now answer the Star Wars meme with a TOR GIF:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v113/mizanchan/7hu9k_zpsogpbuhgp.gif
I also find it amusingly irritating how none of Milo’s followers will broker the idea that he’s a Grade-A asshole. Nope, but be the evil wimmenz and Twitterz keepin’ him down.
@ Lester Bangs
David shouldn’t ‘critique’ a thing unless he’s ‘critiqued’ any similar things that came before?
Anyone want more fennec/cat action?
http://33.media.tumblr.com/7f474460ee4fc2acf92b3d363ff21410/tumblr_inline_mu4j7gi8Qa1r3j9mm.gif
http://33.media.tumblr.com/3f35b0481f7be7497acfdfbcc9aa7fc4/tumblr_inline_mu4j8xGDSf1r3j9mm.gif
Baby fennecs look like they’re half-kitten/half-chihuahua:
http://38.media.tumblr.com/885dc89e1be005a2342a0333806f58fb/tumblr_inline_mu4jaccfHa1r3j9mm.gif
Hey, it’s No-Pants Day!
This has got to be misandry in some way:
http://enews.earthlink.net/article/top?guid=20160110/403b5c77-eac0-4e79-9026-e8a45723c9f4
I know I’ve said this many times before, but I’m loving the random post feature. Not only did I find the genesis of SCENTED FUCKING CANDLES, Peter Andrew Nolan does a drive by in the comments!
https://www.wehuntedthemammoth.com/2012/06/02/scented-candles-oppress-men-the-spearhead-at-its-self-proclaimed-best/comment-page-4/#comments
O/T again but timely:
As I write this, all across the manosphere, heads are exploding at the sight of the latest Google Doodle, which arrived half an hour ago. It celebrates the 131st birthday of US suffragist Alice Paul. “Votes for Women!” a sign says.
Hapless MRAs are frothing at the mouth. PUAs’ eyes are bulging out of their heads. MGTOWs are tugging at their collars: Air! I need air!
lmao, is this because he’s gay? I’m not too interested in men, and gay men would be incompatible with me, for I am not a man, so I do not give a single fuck.
He looks super douchey, too.
I have a fennec disguising itself as a cat
But remember, folks, it’s us liberals who overreact to the tiniest, most trivial perceived offences. (#Sarcasm).
This statement is stunning. No, not the message. It’s standard-issue manospherian idiocy.
It’s the colon! A manospherian used a colon correctly!
I am awestruck.
Well, it depends how you look at it. Verification isn’t just a matter of being who you say you are — Twitter says it verifies “highly sought users in music, acting, fashion, government, politics, religion, journalism, media, sports, business and other key interest areas,” so verification is to some degree an endorsement by Twitter that you’re a possibly interesting person.
But yes; it’s also a stupid sanction. If they don’t want people behaving that way on Twitter, they should ban or suspend offenders, not take away their checkmarks.
I wish these guys would emulate their founder, Andrew Breitbart, more.
And by “emulate” I mean “die sooner rather than later of booze- and coke-induced heart attacks.”
Nequam, no.
@LindsayIrene:
“Clever” graphics aside, If you read carefully you’ll note I did not say what David should or should not do. However I do think the critique is impotent. #JeSuis____ has moved so far beyond its origins as to be almost completely dissociated from them.
You know, I wasn’t sure I was one Mr. Yiannopoulos’ side, but that “C**t fart” tweet from his follower really showed me the light.
– No One Ever
David,
I realize you don’t like Milo, but is it really fair to take away his verification? His verification prevents people from confusing him with his various impostors like “Anti-Marxist Milo.”
Ben Garrison’s reputation was seriously damaged by neo-nazi trolls who vandalized his cartoons.
http://www.breitbart.com/tech/2015/12/22/ben-garrison-how-the-internet-made-a-fake-white-supremacist/
Even if you dislike Milo he doesn’t deserve that.
-Ben
I don’t think he need to worry about neo-nazis ruining his reputation.
“Clever” graphics aside, If you read carefully you’ll note I did not say what David should or should not do. However I do think the critique is impotent. #JeSuis____ has moved so far beyond its origins as to be almost completely dissociated from them.
No. The Charlie Hebdo massacre was a horrific attack on the free press and global human rights. I’m aware there are human beings so self-absorbed and callous that, less than a year later, they can blithely co-op the murders of journalists to whine about getting spanked on Twitter, but believe me, they are a tiny minority.