Thursday, July 10, 2014

When is Misogyny OK?

 Society is becoming very conscious of the way women are treated these days, which is a Very Good Thing. Having a culture where anybody can be subjected to threats of violence or sexual abuse or stalking is pathologically repulsive. That's NOT behavior I think we should tolerate; it's not the world that I want to leave behind as our legacy for future generations!

Unfortunately, concern over these issues is strangely selective. There's a lot of focus on women on the Internet being harassed and receiving threats from antisocial cretins, which absolutely makes sense. But what about a Congressional candidate who is soliciting nude photos and sex tapes for a teenage girl and blatantly posting all sort of ugly comments about her?

Does it matter whether he is a Republican or Democrat? Should it?

Does it matter whether she is a cosplayer or engaging in some other activity he disapproves of? Should it?

Mike Dickinson is a Congressional candidate in Virginia who seems comfortable posting all manner of ugly, repulsive comments on Twitter under the painfully ironic handle @VoteMike2014. He happens to be a Democrat

One of the latest Internet tempests in a teacup is people going berzerk about a teenager from Texas who was photographed after hunting a lion. Dickinson's Tweets below were screen-captured this morning.

Will this sort of ugliness get as strong a response at SDCC leering at cosplayers? I sure as Hell hope so...