In the span of a few days, Dilbert — a cartoon lampooning workplace culture by Scott Adams — was dropped by hundreds of newspapers. The backlash was in response to a racist rant that Adams posted on YouTube in which he described Black Americans as "a hate group" and advised white people "to get the hell away from Black people."
I walked away from Twitter the day after Musk restored the account of neo-Nazi Andrew Anglin. Didn't delete my account, but did delete the app from my phone and haven't posted or gone on the website since then. His latest obnoxious comments just prove to me that I made the right decision.
As for Adams, I can't say enough how disappointed I am. I used to love the Dilbert comic strip, because of the way it mocked the absurdity of modern office life. Now, I'll never be able to look at it the same way again. He had the right to say what he said, but freedom of speech does not mean freedom from consequences. Too bad, so sad for him.
I left the day he took over. It was the only social media app I still used and I miss “friends” I made there and the ability to comment, especially to journalists and media types. I won’t give Musk my body count. I deleted my account.
The counter-argument to that is "don't cede territory in an information war." Musk wants to drive "leftists" away from Twitter, so that "free speech" *will* be free from consequences.
Scott Adams is one more proof that Rick Wilson was right - Everything Trump touches, dies. He was always conservative but not nuts. And his Dilbert was, and still is, a perfect encapsulation of corporate life. But Scott Adams went over the edge when he fell in with Trump, and the Trump stench never wears off. And seems only to have consequences for others, not Trump. That all said, you can be white. You can be conservative. But you cannot be a white racist and expect that there will not be consequences.
If White means that it is okay to barge onto someone else’s land and drive them out, then it is not okay.
If White means that only White is to be in charge of everything and anything, then no, it is not okay.
If White means it is superior to non-Whites, then no, it is not okay.
If White means that rules don’t apply or only lenient rules apply, then no, it is not okay.
If White means that non-Whites are owned by them in any way, then no, it is not okay.
If White means it has the right to be rude, mean, cruel, disrespectful, etc to non-Whites, then no, it is not okay.
If White means all the above and worse, then it looks like something when wrong with White genetics because it is seems to be linked a disease causing mental instability and delusions.
None of those things are ok, regardless of color. Is it ok to be white and NOT be someone who does those things? I worry that this is that same as saying all Black boys are gangsters. It's BS to blame a race or skin color for that generalization.
Lisa, I agree completely that white (and other) people need to look at what their race means to them. I worry that there is increased conflict and competition based on race, where there ought to be more cooperation to make everyone's lives better - regardless of race. There is a lot of power to be gained in chaos and conflict
Most of this was news to me. Thanks for the information. I will not support companies or states like Florida or cartoonists who get economic benefit from racism and hate.
As for Musk. His family wealth came from Apartheid. Perhaps welcoming back neo nazi, white supremacists groups gave him a peer group on Twitter ie like
"The boys are back in town."
Thanks Judd and crew for this informative article.
Well, being white certainly isn't anything to be proud of. Your ancestors came from somewhere. If you want take pride in your heritage, look at who and where you came from, not the color of your skin.
Also, Elon Musk lecturing anyone about racism when he came from and at least indirectly benefited from South Africa being an apartheid state LOL WUT.
Thanks. I did not know the background of IOTBW. I just thought it was a terrible poll question, which coming from Rasmussen, did not surprise me. Knowing the the background, I better understand the results, and realize it’s an even worse poll question.
Do you remember 'anti-bullying' classes before 2016? The MAGAt and tfg have made all of this nasty and hateful behavior 'ok', it's repulsive. Last weekend had 'weekend of hate' marches, with sociopath nazis around the country. What in the world is wrong with us? I want to blame someone or something. It's also pathetic that you have to worry that you'll be shot in a grocery store, or by a road rager. Is it wrong to think that we as humans, as a species, aren't evolving nicely?
I have kids in college now, but they absolutely had anti bullying lectures in their middle school years. Kids will always be kids, and social media made spreading hate easier.
To me, the 'saying the quiet thing out loud' and overt racism that Trump made acceptable is the kicker. The book banning and class cancelling in FL, the threats to police women from going out of state to get an abortion... the party of small government wants a police state now.
It's very discouraging. We may have seen the best years of the USA--and have been fortunate to have been a part of it. The future is looking more bleak, sad to say. I can see why so many people post pictures of their puppies and kittens now...to avoid reality.
True. And When my child was harassed, the school took it seriously enough, with parents and kids hauled in the the Vice Principal. So even if the lectures didn't make an imprint, the VP's personal lecture did have an effect.
I didn't see the poll, but I'm guessing they didn't ask if white respondents agree or disagree with the statement "Black Lives Matter". I suspect the numbers would have been similar (or worse).
Scott Adams been a using this flawed reasoning, circular logic, and pseudo-intellectual crap for years and he gets a ton of credibility from the basement dwellers because he's "smart". The Venn diagram of his fanbase and the people Elon needs to monetize is a circle.
I think most of us are trying to figure out what is happening to the civil society we strive to live in. My mind spins each day because of the constant assault of toxic people saying toxic things. Language is key. Words are our tools. Words matter but language is very tricky and slippery. It is ok to be a person ( although I wonder about that a lot whenever I think about how we are destroying the rest of nature). Pigmentation is or should be irrelevant. We have made it relevant but it is just pigmentation that we and our words have made toxic. Journalism is a mighty force in our society and it carries a great responsibility. It seems that nuance and detailed explanations are off the table. Yes journalists and their employers need to sell their product. So a pitch to the lowest common denominators of public interest and the public’s willingness to understand. Media literacy could go a very long way in tamping down the daily does of “angertainment” ( not my term but I love it). Here is a thought I have been ruminating about lately. The thought is that schools need to play their intended role of helping students to function productively in the world. We have added a heavy emphasis on STEM at the expense of civics, logic , analysis , evaluation, rhetoric, and a whole bunch of basic life skills that I think were more commonly taught both in schools and in the family and in the larger society. To be clear we need STEM but we also need a civil society. I don’t have an answer but getting to the core of the problem is a start and I hope that what remains of a civil society will prevail in this regard.
Us vs Them. There's money and power in that. Create a conflict, direct the conflict, take power from the conflict. 2 books: Vonnegut's "Cat's Cradle" and Orwell's "1984".
Decent people who read the news are bombarded with hate, fear and bloodshed all day long. They’re bombarded with the craziness of the loons in congress. They may think that it’s their duty to watch and keep track of what’s going on in this regard because if they don’t something bad will happen. Meanwhile their minds are being filled with debilitating negativity. They go to bed every night with worry and wonder what will become of our nation and our people. I think we should turn away from this kind of news. Fill our heads with what is going right. Read great books. Look at great art. Listen to great music. Check out the headlines and some of the voices on Substack to keep up. But carefully guard your mind. Protect it from fear, hate and helplessness. And KEEP THE FAITH, pass it on.
Agreed. Precisely why I read Judd, Letter from an American, etc. I reject the generalized news product the MSM excretes. It's only made to titilate, as it is presented with an increased sense of drama.
Also, I ask myself this: what percentage, of all the events that are happening in the world at any given moment are scary and what percentage are not? And what percentage are lovely and loving? And what percentage are/is not? So the news is all a lopsided story with an agenda.
Adams has been spewing hate for years. Newspapers finally decided enough was enough.
But really, Dilbert hasn't been relevant in dec ages, it's long past the 80s heyday when people used to cut out comics and pin them to their work cork board or cubical walls. He's made his money. Maybe Ben Shapiro will commission a Dilbert strip for his blog? Unlikely.
Thanks for the additional details. I believed the poll and the entire story to be another purposeful insertion to further divide us and deflect from accountability for the larger news about how bad it really was and is at all things Rupert Murdoch empire.
So, Musk considers himself an elitist who is white? Look up his background: Musk is one confused, raging, resentful miscreant publicly acting out his problems, particularly with regard to Daddy issues.
This is fascinating. Since I'm not a 4chan kind of guy, the whole IOKTBW thing had totally passed me by, and I'd missed the crucial point that this poll was conducted by the Rasmussen scumbags. This puts Adams's comments in a lot better perspective.
Also, IMHO Dilbert hasn't been funny since the mid 90s. My consistent reaction to it for many years now has been to have increased respect for Bill Watterson for gracefully retiring before he started doing the same damn joke every single day.
I hadn’t heard of IOTBW trope and was confused when I saw the title to this article. Bizarre question and another confirmation I made the right choice in abandoning social media and much of MSM.
I walked away from Twitter the day after Musk restored the account of neo-Nazi Andrew Anglin. Didn't delete my account, but did delete the app from my phone and haven't posted or gone on the website since then. His latest obnoxious comments just prove to me that I made the right decision.
As for Adams, I can't say enough how disappointed I am. I used to love the Dilbert comic strip, because of the way it mocked the absurdity of modern office life. Now, I'll never be able to look at it the same way again. He had the right to say what he said, but freedom of speech does not mean freedom from consequences. Too bad, so sad for him.
That sentence..." He had the right to say what he said, but freedom of speech does not mean freedom from consequences." Perfectly stated...
In life there are always consequences; good or bad. It's how we learn, especially from bad choices & our mistakes...hopefully.
What took you so long? I left the day he closed the deal.
I left the day he took over. It was the only social media app I still used and I miss “friends” I made there and the ability to comment, especially to journalists and media types. I won’t give Musk my body count. I deleted my account.
The counter-argument to that is "don't cede territory in an information war." Musk wants to drive "leftists" away from Twitter, so that "free speech" *will* be free from consequences.
I'm still on Twitter.
Scott Adams is one more proof that Rick Wilson was right - Everything Trump touches, dies. He was always conservative but not nuts. And his Dilbert was, and still is, a perfect encapsulation of corporate life. But Scott Adams went over the edge when he fell in with Trump, and the Trump stench never wears off. And seems only to have consequences for others, not Trump. That all said, you can be white. You can be conservative. But you cannot be a white racist and expect that there will not be consequences.
If White means that it is okay to barge onto someone else’s land and drive them out, then it is not okay.
If White means that only White is to be in charge of everything and anything, then no, it is not okay.
If White means it is superior to non-Whites, then no, it is not okay.
If White means that rules don’t apply or only lenient rules apply, then no, it is not okay.
If White means that non-Whites are owned by them in any way, then no, it is not okay.
If White means it has the right to be rude, mean, cruel, disrespectful, etc to non-Whites, then no, it is not okay.
If White means all the above and worse, then it looks like something when wrong with White genetics because it is seems to be linked a disease causing mental instability and delusions.
None of those things are ok, regardless of color. Is it ok to be white and NOT be someone who does those things? I worry that this is that same as saying all Black boys are gangsters. It's BS to blame a race or skin color for that generalization.
Lisa is a racist. Clear and simple.
Lisa, I agree completely that white (and other) people need to look at what their race means to them. I worry that there is increased conflict and competition based on race, where there ought to be more cooperation to make everyone's lives better - regardless of race. There is a lot of power to be gained in chaos and conflict
Most of this was news to me. Thanks for the information. I will not support companies or states like Florida or cartoonists who get economic benefit from racism and hate.
As for Musk. His family wealth came from Apartheid. Perhaps welcoming back neo nazi, white supremacists groups gave him a peer group on Twitter ie like
"The boys are back in town."
Thanks Judd and crew for this informative article.
Well, being white certainly isn't anything to be proud of. Your ancestors came from somewhere. If you want take pride in your heritage, look at who and where you came from, not the color of your skin.
Also, Elon Musk lecturing anyone about racism when he came from and at least indirectly benefited from South Africa being an apartheid state LOL WUT.
Thanks. I did not know the background of IOTBW. I just thought it was a terrible poll question, which coming from Rasmussen, did not surprise me. Knowing the the background, I better understand the results, and realize it’s an even worse poll question.
Do you remember 'anti-bullying' classes before 2016? The MAGAt and tfg have made all of this nasty and hateful behavior 'ok', it's repulsive. Last weekend had 'weekend of hate' marches, with sociopath nazis around the country. What in the world is wrong with us? I want to blame someone or something. It's also pathetic that you have to worry that you'll be shot in a grocery store, or by a road rager. Is it wrong to think that we as humans, as a species, aren't evolving nicely?
I have kids in college now, but they absolutely had anti bullying lectures in their middle school years. Kids will always be kids, and social media made spreading hate easier.
To me, the 'saying the quiet thing out loud' and overt racism that Trump made acceptable is the kicker. The book banning and class cancelling in FL, the threats to police women from going out of state to get an abortion... the party of small government wants a police state now.
It's very discouraging. We may have seen the best years of the USA--and have been fortunate to have been a part of it. The future is looking more bleak, sad to say. I can see why so many people post pictures of their puppies and kittens now...to avoid reality.
Reality is just a crutch for people with no imagination.
Anti bullying lectured are just words. If there were bad consequences to bullying it would stop.
True. And When my child was harassed, the school took it seriously enough, with parents and kids hauled in the the Vice Principal. So even if the lectures didn't make an imprint, the VP's personal lecture did have an effect.
I didn't see the poll, but I'm guessing they didn't ask if white respondents agree or disagree with the statement "Black Lives Matter". I suspect the numbers would have been similar (or worse).
Scott Adams been a using this flawed reasoning, circular logic, and pseudo-intellectual crap for years and he gets a ton of credibility from the basement dwellers because he's "smart". The Venn diagram of his fanbase and the people Elon needs to monetize is a circle.
The de-evolution of our society is gaining speed. I dare not ask "what next?"
For fear of finding out.
K e e p the F a i t h .
I think most of us are trying to figure out what is happening to the civil society we strive to live in. My mind spins each day because of the constant assault of toxic people saying toxic things. Language is key. Words are our tools. Words matter but language is very tricky and slippery. It is ok to be a person ( although I wonder about that a lot whenever I think about how we are destroying the rest of nature). Pigmentation is or should be irrelevant. We have made it relevant but it is just pigmentation that we and our words have made toxic. Journalism is a mighty force in our society and it carries a great responsibility. It seems that nuance and detailed explanations are off the table. Yes journalists and their employers need to sell their product. So a pitch to the lowest common denominators of public interest and the public’s willingness to understand. Media literacy could go a very long way in tamping down the daily does of “angertainment” ( not my term but I love it). Here is a thought I have been ruminating about lately. The thought is that schools need to play their intended role of helping students to function productively in the world. We have added a heavy emphasis on STEM at the expense of civics, logic , analysis , evaluation, rhetoric, and a whole bunch of basic life skills that I think were more commonly taught both in schools and in the family and in the larger society. To be clear we need STEM but we also need a civil society. I don’t have an answer but getting to the core of the problem is a start and I hope that what remains of a civil society will prevail in this regard.
Us vs Them. There's money and power in that. Create a conflict, direct the conflict, take power from the conflict. 2 books: Vonnegut's "Cat's Cradle" and Orwell's "1984".
Decent people who read the news are bombarded with hate, fear and bloodshed all day long. They’re bombarded with the craziness of the loons in congress. They may think that it’s their duty to watch and keep track of what’s going on in this regard because if they don’t something bad will happen. Meanwhile their minds are being filled with debilitating negativity. They go to bed every night with worry and wonder what will become of our nation and our people. I think we should turn away from this kind of news. Fill our heads with what is going right. Read great books. Look at great art. Listen to great music. Check out the headlines and some of the voices on Substack to keep up. But carefully guard your mind. Protect it from fear, hate and helplessness. And KEEP THE FAITH, pass it on.
And cooperate instead of compete with at least one person each day.
It would not be rude to do neither.
Agreed. Precisely why I read Judd, Letter from an American, etc. I reject the generalized news product the MSM excretes. It's only made to titilate, as it is presented with an increased sense of drama.
Also, I ask myself this: what percentage, of all the events that are happening in the world at any given moment are scary and what percentage are not? And what percentage are lovely and loving? And what percentage are/is not? So the news is all a lopsided story with an agenda.
Adams has been spewing hate for years. Newspapers finally decided enough was enough.
But really, Dilbert hasn't been relevant in dec ages, it's long past the 80s heyday when people used to cut out comics and pin them to their work cork board or cubical walls. He's made his money. Maybe Ben Shapiro will commission a Dilbert strip for his blog? Unlikely.
Thanks for the additional details. I believed the poll and the entire story to be another purposeful insertion to further divide us and deflect from accountability for the larger news about how bad it really was and is at all things Rupert Murdoch empire.
So, Musk considers himself an elitist who is white? Look up his background: Musk is one confused, raging, resentful miscreant publicly acting out his problems, particularly with regard to Daddy issues.
This is fascinating. Since I'm not a 4chan kind of guy, the whole IOKTBW thing had totally passed me by, and I'd missed the crucial point that this poll was conducted by the Rasmussen scumbags. This puts Adams's comments in a lot better perspective.
Also, IMHO Dilbert hasn't been funny since the mid 90s. My consistent reaction to it for many years now has been to have increased respect for Bill Watterson for gracefully retiring before he started doing the same damn joke every single day.
I hadn’t heard of IOTBW trope and was confused when I saw the title to this article. Bizarre question and another confirmation I made the right choice in abandoning social media and much of MSM.