The New York Times just announced that Sarah Jeong is joining its editorial board. This is the same Sarah Jeong who once tweeted that it was “kind of sick” how much joy she got from “being cruel to old white men” and that it was her plan for white people to “go extinct.” These are just a couple of examples from a large set of tweets that drip with disdain, if not hatred, for an entire race.
Perhaps she was being satirical. Perhaps she overgeneralized for dramatic effect. Perhaps her views have changed and she now deeply regrets those posts. And if we lived in a different time, perhaps we would give her the benefit of the doubt, the opportunity to explain herself, and a chance to put her past behind her.
But we live in the hellish world that the leftists have created, where activists actively scour the internet to find old off-color tweets from conservatives and treat each consequential firing or ruined life as a prized scalp. And they don’t plan on stopping anytime soon. They aren’t interested in intellectual honesty or personal growth. They are intent on winning at any cost.
Some conservatives argue that we shouldn’t stoop to the left’s level. After all, we do not want people with differing views to be fired. We value free speech, have a sense of humor, are willing to engage with ideas we find distasteful, and believe that people can change for the better.
Even Kevin Williamson—who was fired from The Atlantic for having the audacity publically to wrestle with the logical implications of his views on abortion—is standing up for Jeong and saying that the Times should resist the social-media mob campaign to have her dismissed. He argues that it is “up to institutions to hold the line against mass hysteria.”
After reading Jeong’s explanation for her past tweets, I want to agree with the turn-the-other-cheek and set-the-example conservatives. I want to accept that Jeong was simply engaging in “satire” and was “counter-trolling.” I want to believe that she didn’t mean any of the general statements that she was making about white people. I want her to have a successful career and to retain her job, even though many conservatives have been fired for saying far less offensive things.
But this is not about what I want. This is about the disgusting double standard that has pervaded our society and the fact that it is not going to go anywhere as long as conservatives continue standing down.
The Times’ statement standing by its decision to hire Jeong is perfectly reasonable.
Statements from NYT and Sarah Jeong in response to criticism of her joining the editorial board in Opinion https://t.co/ucuzVjcGKb
— NYTimes Communications (@NYTimesPR) August 2, 2018
But that’s not the issue. Conservatives are not upset about what James Gunn, Samantha Bee, or Sarah Jeong actually said or wrote; most view these comments as pathetic attempts at humor or otherwise carelessly made remarks that do not deserve severe repercussions. But they are upset at the leniency that the liberal media gives these figures while simultaneously attempting to destroy their right-leaning counterparts.
This tactic has worked for the Left quite well so far. They have destroyed many conservatives while keeping their allies unscathed. It’s time to change that. And given the amount of casual racism in leftist circles, it won’t be hard to fight back.
Liberals do not have a monopoly on poorly constructed jokes and ill-thought-out remarks, though it may often seem that way. There are in fact plenty of examples of both from all parts of the political spectrum. Let’s adopt a policy of mutually assured destruction—maybe then the Left may be slightly more charitable and intellectually honest.
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