American Consequences - November 2020

immune to the unjust, or even sometimes just, attacks by some. Some people are like Teflon to scandal. It could be argued that, historically, we have seen this with Bill Clinton and even Joe Biden, regarding sexual assault and harassment allegations. Shepard and Gaffigan used original radio shock jock and current SiriusXM host, Howard Stern, as an example of someone who has likely been left unharmed by the #MeToo movement due to his transparency of what/who he is. On the right side of the aisle, it might be harder to find an example of someone who is immune to the wokeness pervasive in society today. The Left would instantaneously jump to Trump, who himself was the accused in many cases and by many women. But what happens when it is someone who is not even publicly political? What happens if it’s an A-list star that the masses actually like? We saw this play out in October with Marvel superstar, Chris Pratt. He had been largely quiet on social media and never made a public political statement. Yet he was dubbed the “Worst Hollywood Chris” by an angry group of people online who were mad about his church and alleged support for Trump. Some of their fuel came from the Right folks he follows on Twitter, like Ben Shapiro, or conservative politicians’ Rep. Dan Crenshaw and former United States ambassador to the United Nations, Nikki Haley. The anti-Pratt brigade began somewhat as a joke when Hollywood producer Amy Berg, best known for her award-winning 2006

keyboard warriors on social media, companies feel forced to take a stand. And as in the case of New York City-based Kith (lifestyle and fashion brand), it saw how even after turning its 5,000-square-foot flagship location into a mural of a famous Nelson Mandela quote and turning its retail shop into a voter registration spot on top of numerous social media postings in support of Black Lives Matter, it was still not enough. Commenters noted that the business needed to make up for past mistakes, institutional racism, and unfairness toward minorities in the fashion industry first. Others questioned how many Black employees they had on the payroll. And still, some wondered if it featured enough minority designers. So, it seems as if small businesses, Fortune 500 companies, and even fashion boutiques are plagued by this modern-day Salem witch trial where, without much evidence, the charges of racism can be shouted and the business instantly condemned. Earlier this year, Left-leaning podcast host, writer, director, actor, and husband of Hollywood starlet Kristen Bell, Dax Shepard, had an interesting conversation with the previously level-headed comedian Jim Gaffigan. (“Previously” is used here due to his recent Twitter outburst about how awful Trump and his supporters are.) At the time, the two agreed that the outrage mob was too reactive and dangerous to our American way of life, and its encroachment on comedy, entertainment, and media was a fun-robber and joy-killer. The gentlemen further agreed that some people are just

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