By David Futrelle
See correction at end of post.
The neo-Nazi internet tip sheet The Daily Stormer is warning CNN employees that itstroll army will “track down” their parents, siblings, spouses and children in an act of revenge against the network for its reporting on the racist and anti-Semitic Reddit memester who made a gif depicting Donald Trump body-slamming a man with a CNN logo for a head that achieved internet infamy after Trump himself retweeted it a few days ago.
What’s pissing off the Stormers, and the all-too-familiar assortment of internet deplorables (and bots) behind the #CNNBlackmail hashtag, is that CNN, which hasn’t publicly named the memester, says that as a news organization it retains the right to publicly identify him in the future.
Yep, that’s right: a bunch of dudes who have no problem doxxing or threatening to dox people they don’t like is mad at CNN for not actually doxxing someone. And neo-Nazi hacker Andrew Auernheimer, aka weev, seems to be the angriest of the bunch, his fury initially driven in part by false reports that the memester was 15 years old. (He is in fact an adult.) And so in a post on the Daily Stormer he rallied the troops for what he sees as a righteous campaign to force CNN “to taste their own medicine.” Although it isn’t the “same medicine” at all.
After presenting CNN with a list of ridiculous demands that no real news organization would ever meet — including firing all the journalists vaguely connected to the CNN story and setting up a $50,000 college scholarship for the racist memester — weev declares
If you do not do this, we are going to be tracking you down just like you tracked him down.
You are fake news, and we are the real media. As journalists, we have the right to track people down and seek comment on your criminal associations. We now have jackboots on the ground in every major metro area in the world.
We are going to track down your parents.
We are going to track down your siblings.
We are going to track down your spouses.
We are going to track down your children. Because hey, that’s what you guys get to do, right? We’re going to see how you like it when our reporters are hunting down your children.We are going to seek comment from them all, because you are fake news terrorists engaged in a seditious plot to undermine our President and the 63 million people who voted for him. HanAssholeSolo was a private citizen, but none of you are. We are going to see you brought to account for this, because that’s what real media does: expose criminals.
The difference being that when real real reporters “seek comment” from someone, they literally seek comment from them. When Stormers and their alt-right pals “seek comment” from people it usually means the targets of their “questioning” get sent a lot of death threats and oven memes, an impression Daily Stormer publisher Andrew Anglin doesn’t exactly dispel with his own post filled with an assortment of violent anti-CNN memes, including one featuring the heads of assorted CNN journalists pasted onto photos of Jews in a concentration camp and another one of CNN’s Andrew Kaczynski, the author of the offending story, warning him to “sleep with one eye open.”
Weev goes on to inform
Any CNN employee that does not want to be tracked down alongside their families will have one additional week to quit CNN and denounce their act of blackmail against a private citizen. After that, it is game on.
Do you understand what is coming? This is going to be ironic punishment. You are going to have the exact thing done to you that you’ve been doing to us for ages. You have an easy chance to stop this, so don’t say that we don’t play fair, and don’t pretend you didn’t have it coming.
We didn’t make these rules – you did – and now we’re going to force you to play by them. Hope you enjoy what is coming, you filthy rat kike bastards.
Kill yourselves, kike news fakers. You deserve every single bit of what you are about to get.
Lovely.
CORRECTION: This story originally attributed a Daily Stormer post to the site’s publisher Andrew Anglin; it was actually written for the Daily Stormer by neo-Nazi hacker Andrew Auernheimer, aka weev. Anglin posted his own threatening post later.
@Schild
“You’re a clever egg, and creative!
I think I can actually hear you giggling. 😉
“As to the general, you inappropriately separate circumstance and income! These are deeply linked and cannot be properly distinguished in this manner.
They are linked, but not one in the same. Like for example, it takes a family with small kids 75K a year to meet all basic needs in DC. If that family brings in only 50K, well fuck them, especially since benefits are often determined on what would be the national poverty line.
On the other hand, a family making 50K in Nowhere N. Dakota is probably not worrying too much about basic needs. And a single person is practically swimming in his or her gold vault. (Joke i joke).
[Edit…]
@mrex,
I do protest, sir. I do not giggle. I titter.
http://i2.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/955/225/70f.gif
As to your latter comment, certainly true. that is in fact the very definition of correlation – linked but distinct. (this link may not be real, instead an artifact of chance. Chance may link that which is otherwise unrelated.) So your argument against my position does not stand!
Specifically, income and “circumstance” are covariates in their relationship to “economic anxiety”. They are connected to one another and to the variable of inquiry in a manner which is not easily found. One might use factor analysis or propensity score matching in order to determine the depth of their connection, but by and large they are related, yet distinct.
And yet you still cannot distinguish between them! Not because they’re the same, but because their level of distinctiveness is unknown! It is a fundamental rule of science and reason that There is no distinction without difference, or otherwise, you cannot separate things without identifying that which distinguishes them. It is the Law of Identity, which is why x = x, or 2 = 2. Without this, all reason collapses.
You may be right or wrong in this, but you should not assume it. This is an error.
What does this abstract gobbledygook have to do with your statement, you might ask? That you are trying to oppose it with anecdote, for the first, and that you interpret the “republicans earn more” as a universal statement without nuance. You protest that there is more to say than raw income, and no one has said that isn’t the case. These are general statistics and trends, filled with nuance – at the edges. If you’d like to suggest that the broad, general trends of “republicans earn more” are wrong, you need to provide evidence that “circumstance” and “raw income” are not covariates, or that their covariation is not significant to the variable of interest.
Sorry for the science ramble! It’s all rather mumbo-jumbo to be honest. Short form is: if you wanna knock over a broad trend line you gotta bring some big guns.
@JS, I am feeling exceptionally wordy tonight. I’m glad that you are enjoying it! I feel as if I am doing a violence to the English language :s
@JS,
Yep! Everything is a skill, everything improves with practice. If you practice defending your ideas against things you encounter, you’ll soon find that your ideas will never be able to escape you, even if those you encounter in your life are better. Your mind is a castle, but you should keep the gates open, and should surrender quickly.
@Scild
http://i3.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/original/000/196/943/why_can__t_i_hold_all_these_ponies__by_angeomgwtfbbq-d4f96y3.jpg
eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
“but it doesn’t seem reasonable to be upset at a major news network for not publishing the name of someone whose work has made national level news out of compassion for that individual.”
I can’t say it’s really compassion so much as it seemed like an abuse of power on CNNs part. I would have more compassion for him if he hadn’t gone out of his way to ID himself as the meme-maker. As it stands, he did something newsworthy, bragged about it and made sure everyone knew, and then was shocked that the internet isn’t anonymous when he linked all kinds of personal information to his “anonymous” account.
But I also think there’s a difference between reporting someone’s name and doxxing. To me, CNN crossed that line when they went out of their way to acknowledge that he was scared for his and family’s safety, but that he would be safe if he behaved a certain way. But guess that’s me.
“Good luck and have fun with it!”
I have no idea what you’re talking about! Glad you’re having fun though. It’s rather funny, even if I think you’re making fun of me. 🙂
I already know my problem. I have BPD, and the BPD makes me depressed and anxious. Partially because I’m selfish as fuck, and partially just because I’m just that toxic individual that will burn everything I touch and ruin every relationship. Common sense is; stop doing dumb shit. And yes, that is very sensible, but here I am.
Oh thank fuck, Scild’s back. @_@
*curls up behind Scild and falls asleep* Safe now.
@Schild
” I’m glad that you are enjoying it! I feel as if I am doing a violence to the English language :s”
Nah it’s ultra-violence. It’s sexy. 🙂
And awesome.
@Scildfreja Unnyðnes
/ inappropriate squeals of happiness and blabbering
It’s been far too long, it’s so good to see you back!
@Bina
And you’re back too! It’s so good to see you again(^^)
Yey, Scildfreja’s back!
Re: Media Naming
A lot of the issues around this subject were discussed over here in something called the Hutton Enquiry. It’s a somewhat Brit-centric view obviously; but the general themes are explored in some depth.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hutton_Inquiry
There’s a link at the bottom of that to the enquiry website. On that site you can get all the evidence and transcripts. A lot of the evidence was specific to particular circumstances the enquiry was investigating; but there’s also some interesting stuff about identifying people generally.
Scildfreja, it’s wonderful to see you again! You’ve been sorely missed, and it’s honestly just brilliant to see your name back. ::confetti-sparklers-drinks with little bubbles in::
Hope you are well (you sound it!) and that things are good with you 🙂
Hah hah hah hah! So you honestly believe that you are taking the path of greatest resistance here?
You need to separate your beliefs from reality. Including the belief you seem to have that you are the only person here who has experienced this and that I can’t possibly know what you’re going through.
I’d suggest therapy but I’m sure you’d interpret that as LET THEM EAT CAKE yet again, even though there are plenty of resources that are free or low cost and the only thing you need to do is go out and research them. But that is telling you to eat cake, I’m sure.
Here is some free therapy for you then: Just. Stop. Posting. It will be uncomfortable for you to sit with the feeling of MUST POST, and the unwillingness to experience that feeling is what compels you to post. Just fucking live with it. Sit with that feeling, stop refreshing the page, close the tab. Go have a little sleep. Fret and fidget. The feeling will eventually go away. It’s a learned skill to be uncomfortable for a while and if you want to learn it you can. What you’ve really learned is to render yourself helpless in literally all aspects of your life, and that’s something you need to unlearn.
” Including the belief you seem to have that you are the only person here who has experienced this and that I can’t possibly know what you’re going through.”
I have never said this, or even hinted towards it. I don’t believe it’s true at all.
” But that is telling you to eat cake, I’m sure.”
Ah, I see we’re back here.
I actually posted in that thread again, but it had been a week or so. And yeah, those resources for therapy are there. I’ve used them in the past, and I will be using rhem again.
“It’s a learned skill to be uncomfortable for a while and if you want to learn it you can.”
Nah that’s a skill I learned long ago as I tend to get tons of violent compulsions that are obviously shit. The problem isn’t locking that feeling up inside and dealing with the discomfort, the problem is that doing that is like trying to hold onto water. It’s eventually going to find some sort of crack to leak out.
But, more and more it’s looking like posting here is shitty behavior in itself since I can’t keep myself from getting into arguments.
For anyone who suffers from an insatiable need to social media, even when it might not be healthy, LauraKBuzz did a piece about Binky.
Binky is a fake social media account. You don’t interact with anyone, no-one can see your posts; you just work out your social media need in a completely private space.
That might be the solution to this situation. Idunno though
…
Well that’s the best idea I’ve ever heard. A way to shout whatever I want into the ether, getting shit off my chest or babbling about fandoms, without the risk of being harassed on Twitter or annoying you guys here? YES PLEASE WHERE IS IT?
So, next time we get a visit from MRAL/Miggy we can recommend that he gets a binky and it would work on so many levels.
@SFHC
Just went and looked it up. Unfortunately, for me, looks like its an app, and for iOS only. If you have something Apple, it’s free though.
But Sailor actually gave me an idea. I used to spend a lot of time playing with chatbots online. I actually forgot about them.
@Sailor
Hey! //hugs// for you.
From the KFILE story:
Bearing in mind that r/The_Donald deleted his apology before CNN’s story even ran, and CNN declined to publish his name, it seems a bit odd that one would take away that CNN is at fault (crossed that line) for NOT naming him; further, I feel that this man was nervous about the embarrassment because he had fully participated in doing so to others.
People are named in news stories all the time. The only difference that I can see is that this putz was a netizen, so that is supposed to somehow be So Much More Egregious because of “muh anonymity”! that these people suddenly forget all about when sending their hoards of harrassers to another individual they target…see this guy knew. He knew what world of hurt he would have experienced because he has read what harrassed people go through.
Turns out, Kaczynski didn’t put that line about reserved rights in, anyhow.
@SFHC,
http://www.animateit.net/data/media/april2014/boop.gif
@Ooglyboggles, I have missed you too! It has been far too long!
@Alan,
@opposablethumbs,
I wanted to find a fun confetti-sparkler-drink gif but couldn’t find one in a reasonable amount of time! My google-fu has failed me! Shame! I’ve missed you too.
@mrex,
Regarding the CNN thing, consider that CNN as an entity must make statements to protect itself legally. That’s what this reads as to me. If they were to leave him anonymous, then reveal him later, the meme-maker could have grounds for some sort of legal action. If they make it clear that their decision to leave him anonymous is not a guarantee, they protect themselves if he does something else newsworthy later on. Purely precautionary, driven by an interest in protecting CNN. I think that’s a far more reasonable interpretation of why they would write it that way than blackmail or malice.
As to the rest, I would like to clarify for you – I’m not making fun of you, and am being nothing but sincere! I want you to improve yourself, for your life to get better and happier and less stressful. I want you to understand those parts of you which are mysterious, and to change those parts of you which you don’t like. I think you can do it!
BPD is a tricky pickle – brains are testy things and are not at all fair to us in life. You know that quite well. From your description of your issues, it sounds like your problem is in empathy. That’s okay, it’s understandable – empathy is tough and it’s not at all taught in schools or in life. The good news is that it’s a skill, and can be approached in the same way as learning any other skill. Practice, practice, practice.
When was the last time you went to a website and just gushed positivity? For no good reason! Just because! Go to a thread and listen to other peoples’ issues, and talk about them – positively! Not just vapid “i hope you do well!” but actual engagement. Talk about your own experiences in that area, ask questions for the other person to share more details. Get to know the experiences that the other people are having and live them from the inside.
Practice it! This will feel weird, stupid, and ineffectual at first. This may be your neocortical mirror neurons experiencing fatigue, and should be expected (No solid evidence on this yet, but there’s a tantalizing amount of evidence building up). Take a break when this happens, then come back and keep trying. It’ll feel more comfortable with time, once those neurons have increased in the number of synaptic vesicles and neurotransmitter reuptake transpoters they have embedded in the neuron walls. (Some drugs will help in the process of reuptake and synaptic transmission, but they aren’t strictly required).
Before long this practice will become habit, and you should come to enjoy it. I have less evidence on this, but I’m fairly sure the activity involves the dopaminergic pathway? It certainly involves the ACC and the prefrontal cortex, and those are connected to both the dopaminergic and serotonin pathways. Mood, happiness, etc. So you can expect that, if it’s working properly, you’ll find that you sleep better and more regularly, your mood will be more even, and you will generally improve your “resting state” mood.
Practice empathy – start on things that don’t mean much to you. Set time aside to socialize and just listen to other people, and try to fit in their shoes. You’ll feel happier, feel more connected, and feel like you relate with others a bit more. Your depression will evaporate a bit – you’ll probably still carry it with you, but it’ll be a separate thing – not actually you, just something you’re dealing with. And as an added bonus, you’ll be able to jump into the perspectives of other people, making it easier to understand why they take actions that you think are silly or wrong. And you can use that to see how you’re being silly or wrong!
Practice empathy! If you do it here, I’m sure everyone will go along. If you can do this in other places as well, or in real life (that’s the best), you’ll see a marked improvement before long. I guarantee!
Brains are made of clay. So are people. Decide on the shape you’d like to have, and get sculpting!
mrex said
The fact that the guy’s gif was retweeted by POTUS doesn’t tip that balance just a tad? Also, the fact that the fashy goon squad was making/carrying out threats against CNN reporters and CNN has a responsibility to at least try to protect their employees.
I guess what I’m trying to say is that I can’t really see it as one lone guy vs. big bad media company when lone guy has POTUS and an angry swarm of perpetually angry fascist internet hornets on his side.
I’ll allow that I could very well be wrong, but it seems fair to me that CNN reserves the right to publish lone guy’s name.
Took too long looking for gifs and missed the edit window, bah!
I’m also very happy to see Scildfreya back again!
Anyone seen Fran lately?
Scildfreja is back, yay! It will be nice to read your posts again, I always learn something. 😀
yay! I’m glad to be back, @Rhuu! \o/
Then stop ‘splaining the concept to me like I’ve never encountered it before, ever.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learned_helplessness
Given that she and KatieKitten420 were flirting pretty hard, and then discovered that they lived near one another, I think it’s unsurprising that both of them went quiet at the same time. Let’s wish them the best of happiness.