Furthermore, I’d like to remind everyone that the modern “cancel culture” the GOP loves to complain about began when CONSERVATIVES decided to burn Dixie Chicks albums en masse in the early ‘00s simply because a member of that band criticized Bush during a concert.
People like Boebert and Greene are attracted to the Republican Party because conservative social, political and economic philosophy eschews any proscriptions on behavior, which they characterize as an attack on their liberties. Collectively, the modern-day Republicans are a motley of what Hannah Arendt described as the mob, the worst elements of all social strata. How did our democracy become such fertile ground for their proliferation?
There is an error in the piece-- I'm not sure why you located Shooters Grill in Aurora? It was in Rifle which is a far different place. Rifle is 197 miles from Aurora, on the other side of the Continental Divide, and has a population of about 10,000. Aurora has about a population of 400,000 and is very ethnically diverse. Rifle is in Boebert's district, Aurora is not.
Boebert presents to me as someone who was (or is being) abused. Why gets married at 16? What public officials lets some idiot maul them in a theater? The whole thing breaks my heart.
Excellent writing. All gossip about these stupids always boils down to: will it gain, lose, or not change votes for them. In Boebart's recent fiasco it will probably gain votes.
Terrific piece, Claire and full of information new to me. But I still think it's wrong to call Boebert a skank, whore, etc, even if that's fine with her and her horrible fans.
I guess the question is why is it wrong--I have rather prissy reasons for not doing it, which is that I think name-calling, and particularly sexual name calling, is undignified. But the situation is an interesting twist on the Trump playbook, which is that Boebert gets to destroy the atmosphere within which we might have reasoned political debate, and no one gets to call out what she is doing because it's anti-feminist. So it puts her opponents in a peculiar bind, much like Trump criming all over the place while claiming to be the only virtuous man who ever came to Washington.
It isn't anti-feminist to say there's a time and place for everything. She and her man friend were preventing others from enjoying the performance -- not just with the PDA, but the singing, the vaping, the videoing etc. It was ridiculous! But "whore" and "skank" and similar words are gender-specific terms that apply only to women, and are not about being polite and considerate of others in public but about being "too" sexual, including in private.
Note how guys never get called out for this, it's always the woman who gets slagged. That's why I wouldn't participate in this particular name-calling, despite having a very low regard for Boebert. It's also sort of irrelevant to me. She's a bad congresswoman and behaving like a pathetic person who ought to know better, and her official actions hurt other people but she doesn't care; that's enough for me.
In general, I agree with you--but history has lots of examples of political men called out for slutty/sexually abusive behavior: Wilbur Mills, Bob Packwood, Wayne Hays. Ted Kennedy was all over the gossip mags for years when he was drinking heavily and running around on Joan.
What brilliant analysis, Claire. This one of your best. The twinning of gun violence and sexuality is something that also works itself out as young mass shooters try to reclaim their "masculinity" (read power) by killing everyone in sight. At age 36, Boebert is going to be a grandmother, or as she says, a GiGi. One can only imagine what their lives have been like. Like gay men at CPAC, Boebert has a secret story that we'll never know until she crashes, which she surely will.
The only ones restricting freedoms are the GOP, as usual . . the party of snowflakes, religous pretenders, and fake patriots. Another ironic thing is their woke, indoctrination bs, when any adult with a functioning brain knows the only indoctrinated mental midgets are Republicans. Look at Louisiana with the 10 commandments - even though not one Repub politician follows them, but instead spends their lives doing exactly the opposite of Jesus' teachings.
One shouldn't need to slut-shame Boebert. There once was a time when a politician cheating on their spouse meant the end of their political career, even when they weren't a self-professed family-values Christian.
I have noticed that, often, the GOP (especially the MAGA crowd) will use the term “cancel” when what they’re actually talking about is actually a boycott. I attended above-average public schools until I entered university, but even at my public elementary school (in Texas, mind you!) we learned about boycotts like the Montgomery Bus Boycott as early as second grade. There is a reason for that. It’s because boycotts have always been an important sociopolitical tool for bringing about change in society. They serve a purpose, and that purpose is virtually always noble. When the GOP decries “cancel culture” they are attempting to draw attention away from the problem (i.e., the reason behind a boycott or “cancellation”) to make it look as if the boycotter is the real problem. It’s lunacy!
I miss the goofball rightwing gal who ran for Congress a lifetime ago and had to declare in a commercial, "And I'm not a witch, I'm just like you." Someone was spreading rumors that she was a "witch." (Sheesh! She weren't no Samantha Stevens.) That seems like such an innocent time by comparison. (And who was that Not-Witch??)
While I agree with you that slut-shaming Boebert is futile, don’t you think her choice of date might give some of these lunatics who actually ARE worried about drag shows and like, license to not vote in Boebert’s re-election?
Furthermore, I’d like to remind everyone that the modern “cancel culture” the GOP loves to complain about began when CONSERVATIVES decided to burn Dixie Chicks albums en masse in the early ‘00s simply because a member of that band criticized Bush during a concert.
biggest freedom killers in the country
Excellent analysis!
People like Boebert and Greene are attracted to the Republican Party because conservative social, political and economic philosophy eschews any proscriptions on behavior, which they characterize as an attack on their liberties. Collectively, the modern-day Republicans are a motley of what Hannah Arendt described as the mob, the worst elements of all social strata. How did our democracy become such fertile ground for their proliferation?
right on, and so sad. At this point, if you are Republican you are screaming I'm hateful, stupid, or both!!
There is an error in the piece-- I'm not sure why you located Shooters Grill in Aurora? It was in Rifle which is a far different place. Rifle is 197 miles from Aurora, on the other side of the Continental Divide, and has a population of about 10,000. Aurora has about a population of 400,000 and is very ethnically diverse. Rifle is in Boebert's district, Aurora is not.
Dear Zora, I can't thank you enough--it was a slip when I tried to untangel a couple sentences in the edit process, but an important one.
Boebert presents to me as someone who was (or is being) abused. Why gets married at 16? What public officials lets some idiot maul them in a theater? The whole thing breaks my heart.
At least one of my friends, Amanda Marcotte at Salon, has made that argument in private exchanges. Marcotte also argues that Boebert is the perfect example of why conservative attempts to stabilize society by locking men and women down in early marriages are nonsense: https://www.salon.com/2023/09/19/lauren-boeberts-sexy-adventure-conservatives-push-for-traditional-marriage/
This presents as one who, marriage certificate or video, can't be persuaded by the evidence.
Lauren wasn't married at sixteen and she wasn't being mauled in a theater.
so yes, they may be wrong, but this is your input? You must love her and knew of no other way to defend the f'n abomination
Excellent writing. All gossip about these stupids always boils down to: will it gain, lose, or not change votes for them. In Boebart's recent fiasco it will probably gain votes.
Terrific piece, Claire and full of information new to me. But I still think it's wrong to call Boebert a skank, whore, etc, even if that's fine with her and her horrible fans.
I guess the question is why is it wrong--I have rather prissy reasons for not doing it, which is that I think name-calling, and particularly sexual name calling, is undignified. But the situation is an interesting twist on the Trump playbook, which is that Boebert gets to destroy the atmosphere within which we might have reasoned political debate, and no one gets to call out what she is doing because it's anti-feminist. So it puts her opponents in a peculiar bind, much like Trump criming all over the place while claiming to be the only virtuous man who ever came to Washington.
It isn't anti-feminist to say there's a time and place for everything. She and her man friend were preventing others from enjoying the performance -- not just with the PDA, but the singing, the vaping, the videoing etc. It was ridiculous! But "whore" and "skank" and similar words are gender-specific terms that apply only to women, and are not about being polite and considerate of others in public but about being "too" sexual, including in private.
Note how guys never get called out for this, it's always the woman who gets slagged. That's why I wouldn't participate in this particular name-calling, despite having a very low regard for Boebert. It's also sort of irrelevant to me. She's a bad congresswoman and behaving like a pathetic person who ought to know better, and her official actions hurt other people but she doesn't care; that's enough for me.
In general, I agree with you--but history has lots of examples of political men called out for slutty/sexually abusive behavior: Wilbur Mills, Bob Packwood, Wayne Hays. Ted Kennedy was all over the gossip mags for years when he was drinking heavily and running around on Joan.
and now it is just fine with Republicans to be a chauvinistic pig . . they actually prefer it
What brilliant analysis, Claire. This one of your best. The twinning of gun violence and sexuality is something that also works itself out as young mass shooters try to reclaim their "masculinity" (read power) by killing everyone in sight. At age 36, Boebert is going to be a grandmother, or as she says, a GiGi. One can only imagine what their lives have been like. Like gay men at CPAC, Boebert has a secret story that we'll never know until she crashes, which she surely will.
The only ones restricting freedoms are the GOP, as usual . . the party of snowflakes, religous pretenders, and fake patriots. Another ironic thing is their woke, indoctrination bs, when any adult with a functioning brain knows the only indoctrinated mental midgets are Republicans. Look at Louisiana with the 10 commandments - even though not one Repub politician follows them, but instead spends their lives doing exactly the opposite of Jesus' teachings.
One shouldn't need to slut-shame Boebert. There once was a time when a politician cheating on their spouse meant the end of their political career, even when they weren't a self-professed family-values Christian.
I have noticed that, often, the GOP (especially the MAGA crowd) will use the term “cancel” when what they’re actually talking about is actually a boycott. I attended above-average public schools until I entered university, but even at my public elementary school (in Texas, mind you!) we learned about boycotts like the Montgomery Bus Boycott as early as second grade. There is a reason for that. It’s because boycotts have always been an important sociopolitical tool for bringing about change in society. They serve a purpose, and that purpose is virtually always noble. When the GOP decries “cancel culture” they are attempting to draw attention away from the problem (i.e., the reason behind a boycott or “cancellation”) to make it look as if the boycotter is the real problem. It’s lunacy!
I miss the goofball rightwing gal who ran for Congress a lifetime ago and had to declare in a commercial, "And I'm not a witch, I'm just like you." Someone was spreading rumors that she was a "witch." (Sheesh! She weren't no Samantha Stevens.) That seems like such an innocent time by comparison. (And who was that Not-Witch??)
Guns are phallic symbols for males in the first place. Some woman maybe jealous of such symbols.
While I agree with you that slut-shaming Boebert is futile, don’t you think her choice of date might give some of these lunatics who actually ARE worried about drag shows and like, license to not vote in Boebert’s re-election?