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Olympics clip was taken down. So...Newsroom!
"Only a Sith deals in absolutes" - Obi-Wan Kenobi
Disagree?
Olympics clip was taken down. So...Newsroom!
Posted by _J_ at 11:59 PM 5 comments
Labels: [chat]
SolForge Kickstarter
Richard Garfield is making an online CCG.
Posted by _J_ at 2:00 AM 1 comments
Awesome Q is Awesome.
Posted by _J_ at 6:59 PM 1 comments
Labels: video
Aaron Sorkin has a thing about gay republicans.
In episode 6 of The Newsroom, Bully, we have a scene
reminiscent of a plotline from The Portland Trip, from Season 2 of West Wing. In The Portland Trip, Josh argues with a gay
republican congressman about DOMA. That
exchange ends with the congressman proclaiming that his life isn't solely about
his sexuality, because something something state's rights.
In Bully, we have another gay republican, only this is a
black gay Santorum republican, which is like 7 Unicorns of absurd. But anyway.
The scene is meant to portray Will as a bully. He continually questions the black gay Santorum
republican (BGSR from now on) on Santorum's talking points. He asks how, exactly, gay marriage is a
threat to heterosexual marriage. He asks
BGSR if the legalization of gay marriage in five states has damaged Santorum's
own marriage. He reminds BGSR that
Santorum thinks him a "sick deviant who threatens the fabric of
society", that Santorum compares homosexuality to incest and
bestiality. This line of inquiry
culminates with, "I'm asking why you would work for a man who believes you
are inferior, damaged, ill, unnatural, a threat to children, unfit to serve in
the military, unfit to be a parent, and unloved by god."
At this point BGSR tells Will to stop. He goes on his own reply rant about how he
believes in the sanctity of life. About
how he is "more than one thing", not reducible to his skin color or
sexual orientation: "I am not
defined by my blackness. I am not
defined by my gayness." BGSR came
on the program to voice his support for Santorum's stance on abortion, and he
does not need Will to protect him.
Once BGSR ends his own rant, we see the following exchange.
Will: "Does Mr.
Santorum think you're fit to be a teacher?"
BGSR: "No."
Throughout the scene there are cuts to the control room, to
persons outside in the newsroom. They
all look away awkwardly, or cast their heads down. Mackenzie repeatedly says, "Stop hitting
him!" into Will's earpiece. We're
supposed to feel uncomfortable, or think that Will has gone too far.
But I cannot quite get there.
In each of these episodes, Bully and The Portland Trip, the
gay republican states that he is more than his sexual orientation. He cannot be reduced to his sexuality and
cares about more issues than gay rights.
Yet in each of these situations the gay republican has to sacrifice one
issue to support another. It's not that
they care about both gay rights and states rights or abortion, but rather they
sacrifice their concern for gay rights to focus upon other issues. This is supposed to be laudable, but it ought
to result in the following exchange:
Gay Republican: I am
more than my sexuality.
Interlocutor: But
aren't you also more than your concern for states rights / abortion?
Why can you not care about both?
That's why I cannot conceive of Will as a bully; his
questions are legitimate. Yes, BGSR
cares about fetuses, but in supporting Santorum he's harming himself. Maybe there is a political candidate who
cares about abortion
Moreover, I think it problematic for these fictional gay
republicans to give credibility to conservatives by sacrificing their concern
for social issues. State's rights are
important. Abortion issues are
important. But gay rights are important,
too. These fictional characters seem to
consider gay rights to be less important than other issues, and that may not be
a good thing.
So, I don't take Will to be unnecessarily harsh in the
exchange. Yes, BGSR is in a difficult
position. But maybe that is not a
virtuous thing: Perhaps the difficulty
indicates a problem. And the hope, at
least my hope, is that if a News Anchor plays enough clips of Santorum
comparing homosexuals to pedophiles this will spark conservative homosexuals to
stop supporting the people who think them broken.
I realize that the series are both fictional, and there is a
good chance that the conservative homosexual characters are mostly entirely
strawmen. Maybe actual conservative
homosexuals do not sacrifice their concern for gay rights when they...yeah I
can't even finish that thought.
Here's the thing: Will
and Josh are not acting like bullies when they ask uncomfortable
questions. When Josh exclaims, "How
can you be a member of this party?!" he's asking a reasonable
question. When Will presses BGSR on the
fact that Santorum thinks him a social deviant, that is a fair line of inquiry.
It doesn't make any sense to hold conservative homosexuals
up as laudable individuals who make personal sacrifices for some greater
good. It's absurd to suggest that
pressing them on social issues is somehow out of line or mean. Will and Josh both ask fair questions, and
are entirely justified in repeating the republican talking points on the evils
of homosexuality.
You can't shoot yourself in the foot, and then stand proudly
in all of your foot shooting glory.
Because the blood loss from the fucking bullet hole will
make you fall down.
And I'm ok with that metaphor.
Posted by _J_ at 2:56 AM 2 comments
Labels: homosexuality, rant, the newsroom