Kizer Rolls: Cleveland Browns Preseason Week 1 Winners and Losers
August 11, 2017Inside the mind of a Tampa Tribe fan: Between Innings
August 14, 2017At least one person is dead. Roughly two dozen more have been pronounced as injured. One man, a 20-year-old from Ohio,1 has been arrested for murder as his mind and heart was filled with such rage over a protest that he decided to turn his automobile in to a weapon, gaining as much speed as he could down a narrow alley before plowing it hood first into a pack of individuals. Having watched the video of this incident, hearing the screeches and screams and the a collision, seeing the running and fear and debris, it’s a miracle that there were not more injured — at least physically.
On Saturday morning, it was a litany of memes. While the white nationalist protest in Charlottesville, Virginia was rooted in hate — hate of races, religions, or beliefs differing from those held so dear by those marching — it started innocently, the internet poking fun at the absurdity of white males acting as if they are the oppressed ones. The polos. The khakis. The tiki torches — a product rooted in Polynesian culture, sold at Party City. All to “Unite the Right.” Imagery of the men on the front line quickly went viral, leading to some of the Friday Night Marchers to lose their jobs, but allowing many more to get some jokes off at their expense.
#Charlottesville pic.twitter.com/ROk4ev7kHi
— Mike Polk Jr. (@mikepolkjr) August 12, 2017
Jokes are good. They’re great, even, especially when in the face of otherwise vile individuals setting out to “unite” while actually doing the opposite. One even had the balls to say he didn’t think images of him would go viral and that we shouldn’t judge a book by it’s hateful cover. But then things took an immediate turn for the worst in an act of cold-blooded domestic terrorism. And while everyone in a position of national leadership but the President of the United States of America is willing to decry it as such,2 a 20-year old whose mother said “he had an African-American friend…” caused the death of a 32-year-old woman whose last words online were “if you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention.”
The question I’m left with as a loving, caring, and accepting citizen of the United States: When will it stop? As Nelson Mandela stated, we’re not born to hate. But just as we’re not born to hate, this hate didn’t start to fester on November 8, 2016 — it’s that certain groups felt outward display of their hate was more acceptable upon the decision handed down that evening. Individually — be it something as horrifying as the outcome of this rally, something as ephemeral as the hate speech spray painted on the garage of LeBron James, or anything in between — they can be viewed as happenstance countered with whataboutism. What about emails? What about Antifa? What about BLM? As a whole, however, it’s much different. It’s something that stretches way beyond politics. As Chris Long, a Charlottesville native, put best: It’s about right and wrong.
Someone lost their life standing up for what was right, brutally murdered, at random, by someone who undeniably stood for wrong. The man driving his car at unsafe speeds into a crowd of individuals was not targeting any one of them independently; he was targeting their beliefs being different than his and wanted to cause harm to as many of them as possible.
If (when?) the President of the United States finally comes out and calls out these individuals for what they are rather than touting job numbers, Merck Pharma, and releasing a tone deaf campaign video in the wake of a tragedy,3 that’s only the start. My fear lies in the belief that there will be other instances like what happened this past weekend before we start to see any sort of correction from wrong to right. For all of the good that Twitter provided throughout the course of this tragedy, I saw one individual say that those marching in Charlottesville on Friday night were operatives “planted by the left.” Given these mental gymnastics, my fear lies in the belief that there would have been many more individuals in Charlottesville, carrying tiki torches and chanting hate-filled rhetoric had it not been for logistical issues like travel. My fear lies in the belief that, as I’m typing out thoughts on a public display of hatred and bigotry, there are countless others celebrating what happened behind closed doors. My fear lies in the fact that, as a father, I don’t know what to do about any of this outside of raising my daughters to not only understand right from wrong, but to ensure they uphold those values each and every day. My fear lies in the belief that even if I do my best, it won’t be enough.
This Week in #ActualSportswriting:
- “Crossing Crumlin Road” by Wright Thompson (ESPN The Magazine)4
- “Roberto Aguayo, a second-round kicker who couldn’t cut it” by Jenny Vrentas (MMQB)5
- “You don’t have to be paranoid to win at college football. Just look at Navy” by Dan Steinberg (Washington Post)6
This Week in #ActualNonsportswriting:
- “When Should A Child Be Taken From His Parents?” by Larissa MacFarquhar (New Yorker)7
- “Meet Alex, the Russian Casino Hacker Who Makes Millions Targeting Slot Machines” by Brendan Koerner (WIRED)8
- “Robert Pattinson is Alive Again” by Taffy Brodesser-Akner (GQ)
- “Wanna Feel Old? Go to VidCon” by Victor Lukerson (The Ringer)
This Week in #Announcements:
- Good news: While others are “pivoting to video,” we’re still writing things! You can continue to support WFNY in any way you feel comfortable. Head to our Patreon page to check it out. We have some additional opportunities coming up for Patrons, so please consider jumping in. These dollars are immensely helpful as we’re going to be experiencing even more change in the coming months. We won’t bore you now, but know that we appreciate everything you guys have done.
- Subscribe to our Newsletter and get the occasional blast of original content or items you may have missed during certain stretches of time. Browns season is coming up, so there will be plenty to discuss.
- Need some NFL talk? Subscribe to the WFNY Podcast on iTunes, Stitcher, and/or Google Play. Have we mentioned that the best way to move us up the ranks is to subscribe, comment, and share with your friends? It only takes a second and helps us out a ton. Here’s our latest one! Cheers!
- A non sequitur to some, but this detail shows this level of hate isn’t limited to south of the Mason Dixon line. [↩]
- “Certainly I think we can confidently call it a form of terrorism,” the adviser, Lt. Gen H.R. McMaster, said on NBC’s “Meet The Press.” [↩]
- And not in some prepared statement issued by a White House communications staffer. [↩]
- As if a Wright Thompson story wouldn’t lead things off… [↩]
- A master class on how to cover an otherwise ephemeral news item. [↩]
- What happens when communications areas don’t treat teams like classified codes? Good things. [↩]
- Holy shit this piece. [↩]
- I mean if the headline doesn’t do the trick, why are you even here? [↩]
178 Comments
Currently sitting in the same hospital room for the last five days. I have zero sympathy, and much disdain, for all of these asswipes.
http://i0.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/newsfeed/000/126/314/3cd8a33a.png?1306264975
Ah, quite possibly.
The 1st Amendment allows them the right to state their idiotic and hateful messages if they do so without breaking any laws no matter how much I disagree with them.
I view them much as I view North Korea. Don’t disregard the potential for horrific conflict and be ready to take it down quickly if needed. But, do not engage which gives them the attention they desperately seek.
The “potential for horror conflict” red line is what I fear which is why I don’t bat an eye anytime one of those maggots gets punched in the nose
Call me old anti-fascisthion i guess.
Man that was a horrible spelling on a somewhat decent pun.
Sorry to hear of your condition and best wishes on your recovery sir.
mission accomplished and whatnot.
I prefer we use every legal means necessary to eradicate them. Having rallies makes it easier for the FBI to identify them too.
I know this is a handy jab, but you do know what really was behind the “mission accomplished” banner, don’t you?
DAMMIT YOU AND YOUR KNOWLEDGE.
I get that this was said tongue-in-cheek (mostly) but what do you really mean here? Does a heartbeat and a genome a human make? I’d wager that what you consider the to be the soul, or to be “human” as you stated is an output from the brain (behaviors, emotions, decisions, etc.), not some seemingly arbitrary measures such as a unique set of DNA and the beginnings of a heartbeat. The science bears out that fetal brains are severely underdeveloped due to both lack of gestational time and lack of experiences. So while that brain has the ability to grow into what you really deem to be “human” it isn’t yet by any real cognitive standard.
P.S. –
I love your writing Bode and I read this site all of the time. I just graduated school a year ago and I’m working doing brain science stuff out in Baltimore so you and the whole WFNY staff keep me connected to the goings on in Cleveland which I really appreciate. I love reading this message board, and rarely if ever hop in (mostly bc my views align w chrisdottcomm and he writes my ideas out for me better than I can most of the time) but I couldn’t help saying something here because your use of science denier here really irked me, whether you were being flippant or not.
https://img.buzzfeed.com/buzzfeed-static/static/2015-06/9/21/enhanced/webdr13/anigif_original-12548-1433900375-6.gif
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Thank you for your communication and interest in the Mars Mission. Your message has been redirected to the recipient at his new, VERY well-funded, billet.
YOU READ THIS EVERYONE? I TALK GOOD LIKE A BRAIN GUY.
Seriously though Joe, always jump in on the discussion. I have the utmost respect for Bode, Garry, Harv, Marty, Steve, Ben, RGB, Biscuit, Chris, Tigers, B-Bo, Pat, Doc Curly, Donatello, Optimus Prime, little Joe with the gimpy leg, the list goes on and on.
Which is why I think we can get into these discussions here and not out on the “actual internet”. That place is scary stuff.
First, thank you much for the kind words. As CDC notes below, it is the mutual respect we’ve garnered through the community over the years that allows us to have ‘family’ discussions where we know we disagree but can help hash out why a bit. It helps keep us cognizant of deeper reasoning that many people have, which is important.
———
As noted, it was done mostly tongue-in-cheek though CBiscuit was correct to deescalate (hey, that’s usually my job- well he can have it!). And feel free to jump in the fray, you are welcome anytime.
As for my personal feeling on the science, I believe that once the DNA has begun the process to develop a human that the individual is indeed human (so at conception). The development does not end until the early-to-mid 20s before then beginning the process of deterioration as I’m sure you are well aware.
I also understand that not everyone believes as I do and am willing to discuss. I also strongly believe that having such an item as open-ended as SCOTUS left it before science even had a chance to truly investigate it is wrong.
Yep, family can disagree and know that everyone will still be at the next BBQ.
Soooo . . . according to my precise, SpaceX-sponsored calculations, it is now 5:17 EST, and the comment total is holding steady at 167. I win, I win, I win.
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I’m good Chris thanks. Just a first hand lesson on how insurance, drug and legal companies make it extremely difficult for Doctors and Nurses to practice, like, actual medicine.
You better be splitting the winnings with CBiscuit.
Downtick
I believe John Oliver called this a “Reverse Godwin;”. If you DONT mention Hitler, you violate.
Apps255s
Apps255s
Mag207s
Mag207s
Arizona State is close…