By David Futrelle
You may have noticed a strange explosion of highly surreal memes hitting your Twitter home page of late. Blame the Artificial Intelligence-powered meme generator that you can find here, which will happily generate as many weird and baffling memes as you could ever want.
Now, the meme generator is a fairly basic thing, in principle: it takes in hundreds (thousands?) of human-generated memes in a variety of formats before pooping out something it doesn’t understand, but that we humans might.
Given that the AI-meme-generator literally doesn’t know what it’s saying, most of the memes it puts out tend to be a bit puzzling:
And sometimes it doesn’t seem to understand the meme format at all:
But alongside the surreal memes, the AI-meme-generator somehow manages to spit out others that make perfect (or at least only slightly imperfect) sense. I’ve been fiddling around with it for awhile and have been surprised and intrigued by these memes, which seem very much like the memes an actual human might produce on their own.
Indeed, these memes make a lot more sense than many if not most of the Men’s Rights memes I’ve run across (and written about) over the years — despite the fact that the MRA memes were generated by actual human beings who, at least in theory, should know what they’re saying.
Let’s look at examples from both genres — contrasting some of my, er, favorite MRA memes with memes the AI-meme-generator made for me.
Let’s start with this authentic MRA meme:
Apparently the thought process behind this, er, hilarity is: “Women are stupid! And rape is funny! Sharks!”
This AI-generated meme makes a lot more sense:
I mean, who doesn’t enjoy a nice hot dog once in a while?
Here’s an MRA meme taking aim at women in the military:
Contrast that with this cheerful and wholesome AI-generated meme:
Again, the AI hits the nail on the head. Everyone loves to see people talking about their cool stuff.
Here’s a dark and bewildering MRA meme:
I suppose the message here is supposed to be “even if she says she’s not a feminist, she might secretly be one, and falsely accuse you of rape.” But I’m not sure anyone not steeped in MRA-talk could discern that.
Also, why is “radical/white” in ironic quotes?
By contrast, this next AI-generated meme, while admittedly rude and perhaps a bit sexist, is as clear as a (school) bell.
This MRA meme may leave you scratching at your head as you try to puzzle out its strange “logic.”
This AI meme, by contrast, makes so much sense it hurts.
In the world we live in today, who has the patience to wait until you get home to get sloshed?
So why are MRA memes so illogical and incomprehensible? Part of the problem is that reality is not on their side, and so many of their memes only make sense if you’re already living in the imaginary world of the Men’s Rights movement, where black is white and mean, bitchy women rule over all. I know enough about this world from the many years I’ve spent doing this blog that I can usually make some sort of sense of most of their memes, but I still struggle with some of them. It doesn’t help much that many MRAs are bitter bastards choking on their own aggrieved entitlement; their attempts at jokes are undercut by their meanness and their barely developed sense of humor.
The AI may not have a sense of humor, but it’s also unencumbered by all this baggage, so when it pops out with something that’s funny, it’s genuinely funny.
Congratulations, MRA; it’s official now: You’ve failed the Turing test.
Send tips to dfutrelle at gmail dot com.
We Hunted the Mammoth relies entirely on readers like you for its survival. If you appreciate our work, please send a few bucks our way! Thanks!
@MansVoice
You have yet to demonstrate a) why Tindr can be seen as representative of society as a whole, b) how any conclusions can be drawn from the study’s methodology, and c) how one can draw any meaningful conclusions from such a small sample.
Someone is still very upset that women get to choose who they fuck and who they find attractive. Oh why won’t women settle for guys that they do not love or have any interest in.
Mmmhmm. I must step away for now – as we know, I have responsibilities – but I wish you all luck in your continued hamstering.
Yes, yes, yes, you’re the only one who has responsibilities and a job, we know.
@BoysVoice:
Projecting like a lighthouse, are we?
Flounce #2. I wonder how high he’ll get. #10? 30? A million?
@LindsayIrene:
Wow, it’s almost like all of it is just projection and it’s really men who mainly go for the really good-looking women instead!
@Lainy:
Why does that immediately make me think of Ava in the “As Is” section of that purgatory-department-store in Legends of Tomorrow? Corny, I suppose, but it does.
*looks at watch*
He didn’t do any better than last time, did he.
@dipshit
I debunked your “study” in another comment thread and can’t be bothered to do it again especially cos I’m on mobile right now. Suffice to say that the whole method is laughable. There’s nothing scientific about the method of research and I say this as a social scientist. It’s ridiculous. That you like it makes you ridiculous.
This boyvoice is 15 tops at this point. Either that or he’s laid off. Dude is really insecure about his job right now. I’m getting a “yeah I’ve totally had sex. With a woman. You don’t know her she goes to another school” type vibes from him. Seriously dude get a grip. A lot of people are unemployed right now. Just go to your zoom class like a good boy or add something to a conversation that isn’t whining
If the troll, Trump, other right-wingers, or other general shittiness have you despairing for humanity, here is something that offers a hopeful sign:
https://www.theguardian.com/books/2020/may/09/the-real-lord-of-the-flies-what-happened-when-six-boys-were-shipwrecked-for-15-months
Of course, the pessimist-about-human-nature who wrote The Lord of the Flies turns out to have been a conservative. Who’d have thought?
@Surplus
That article reminded me of something I noticed on 9/11. (Mr. Parasol and I were on a plane that day.) There was a LOT of tension in the airport, but nobody was rioting, even in the baggage claim area. We were all trying to do a job together, and the job was “stay safe,” with a side order of “help other people if you can.”
Oh no! He’s left again, and he still hasn’t assigned me to the correct man! How am I ever going to be decent now? Although actually I recently turned 31 so I’m probably not even a woman anymore. I’ve probably missed my chance for decency entirely.
Happy Mother’s Day for those with good mom’s and/or are good moms.
He left? Without talking about his silly “hypergamy” article? What a coward.
@MansVoice
Don’t let the door hit you on the way out. Or do and blame it on hypergamy.
@Surplus, VP
Whenever conservatives talk about people being horrible in the absence of a government, they’re telling on themselves big time.
Part of why conservatives, especially those of the prepper variety, are freaking out is because this wasn’t the apocalypse they wanted. They wanted everything to fall apart, with them the only survivors and everyone else fighting to the death so they could kill people they didn’t like with impunity. Instead, they see people banding together to support each other and form mutual aid groups, with the notable exception of the conservatives who are far too busy storming state houses and demanding to get sick. This throws their whole perspective out of whack, and might even bring some back to reality (for example, Trump’s approval rating amongst Baby Boomers is falling).
@Ooglyboggles
I made dinner for my mom along with my dad. It turned out great! We had ribeyes, potatoes, and Brussels sprouts with Dutch apple pie with vanilla ice cream for dessert. Yum.
In defence of Golding, he wrote Lord of the Flies in response to a type of popular YA story known as ‘Robinsonade’ and specifically Robert Ballantyne’s The Coral Island.
He thought such stories were unrealistic jingoism; with kids suddenly knowing more about life in remote places than the actual inhabitants.
Coral Island features the boys ‘rescuing’ a native girl who wants to convert to Christianity from the savage locals.
As for LOTF itself; I, personally, don’t see it as an attack on government. Quite the opposite. Ralph tries to set up a democracy where everyone gets to be heard so as to take care of all the essential, but boring, requirements of a society such as shelter and rescue.
Then Jack goes all right wing populist and promises pigs and circuses; culminating in the murder of someone to steal resources because they are too lazy and incompetent to rub two sticks together.
Other interpretations are of course very possible. That’s why it’s such a great book.
(Even with the error about how lenses work)
@Naglfar
I may’ve mentioned this book before, but I’ll mention it again: Bannerless, by Carrie Vaughn. In this novel and its sequel, we’re introduced to a post-apocalyptic world that didn’t have a single discrete inciting event. There was an epidemic, which led to part of the workforce being sidelined for a while, which exacerbated things when massive storms (thank you, climate change!) got worse and worse, and the infrastructure damage couldn’t be repaired because the necessary people weren’t available or couldn’t get to the damage sites, etc. No bonfire, just a lot of slow burns with occasional flare-ups.
Unsurprisingly, the most successful communities in this setting are the ones that adhere to a system of cooperation and interdependence. “Selfishness” is a punishable offense. Being a good citizen means taking no more than you need, helping out others when they need it, and in general not being a greedy bonkeyhead.
If you like SF with a social focus, I highly recommend Bannerless and its sequel The Wild Dead.
@MansVoice
Looks like you still couldn’t even be bothered to address Naglfar’s question on how this pseudo-rational “looksmatch” nonsense is supposed to work when it comes to LGBT people, or can be supposedly applied.
I suspect though that given your waffling about nonsense “hypergammy” dreck that you must rely on a solely stright/cis centrist, self aggrandizing mindset that refuses to consider other positions and perceptives.
And i suspect that maybe on some level you even know this; this is why you not only cannot answer Naglfar’s question, you actively refuse to and willfully avoid doing so; you know it challenges your false assertions that you have built up self interest to perpetuate and feel pathologically a need to defend despite how bunk it is. And you do so by projecting and asserting that we are somehow the “bath faith/uncritical” parties when in reality your making an Imax level projection.
If your wounder why your being addressed with mockery and viewing you with heavy suspicious and think your acting in bad faith; those are the reasons.
@Victorious Parasol
Thanks for the rec, I will check it out when I get a chance (though it seems a bit on the nose right now).
It seems rather accurate, cooperation seems much more efficient than lone wolf behavior when it comes to surviving. If you are constantly fighting and/or on guard from those in your surroundings that uses up energy and resources that could be better spent on continued survival and development. However, conservatism is based around killing those you don’t like, so a cooperative society made of people from different backgrounds is antithetical to them.
@Lainy – If you must know, I am an actuary, currently working remotely. I am looking forward to getting back to the office, though. My friends are mostly coworkers.
@Naglfar –
However, conservatism is based around killing those you don’t like
Good God, this community is mindkilled.
Hey, he failed the flounce again. What a surprise.
@Naglfar
Yeah, I enjoyed reading it a lot more when it first came out, when I could go to the grocery without a mask, or when I didn’t have to worry about Dr. Baby Sister ER Vet re-using her PPE. I could simply appreciate that Vaughn had avoided many of the usual (threadbare) post-apocalyptic tropes and created a society that seemed like a reasonable response to a slow-burn apocalypse. It’s easier to appreciate that sort of thing from a distance.
Alan Robertshaw
I believe the other issue skewered in LOTF was classism & exceptionalism: the attitude that the upper class (like Jack) were trained to believe they should be in charge, exempt from manual labor & served by their inferiors (like Ralph).
This is a basic belief of fascists, religious fanatics & every dictatorship of either the left or right. (Orwell satirized the left wing version in “Animal Farm”.)
The Trump administration is a textbook example of this.
Trump thinks because he is brilliant, he is “exceptional” & the only one fit to rule everyone else. Many of his supporters are Fundies who think their God gave them absolute right to rule over the rest of us because they are the only True Christians. And Trump has been chosen by god to deliver America over to them.
Hey, he failed the flounce again. What a surprise.
Seriously, what is this “flounce” stuff? Do you think it’s, like, some kind of burn to… observe that someone else has temporarily left the conversation? “Oh, he had to go to bed. Checkmate, loser!”
Stop trying to make your failure to support your argument about us being somehow simultaneously intellectual snobs and incapable of “difficult” intellectual conversation.
Again with the reading comprehension issues. I’ve never called any of you intellectual snobs. Frankly, the intelligence level of this community is quite low.