TW: Mention of violent acts below.
1. George Will
George Will was chosen to speak at Michigan State University's commencement for the fall semester graduates. There's no surprise that he was selected since Michael Moore was also picked as a speaker, thus they needed to balance the "left" and "right" ideologies. What does not make sense is that George Will had made some terrible comments about campus sexual assault victims and was not only selected to speak but was given an honorary degree from the University. For a college that has been supposedly committed to fighting such crimes on their campus, it was so illogical, not to mention insensitive to pick a speaker that said,"... victimhood serves as a coveted status that confers privileges." What George was trying to say is that being a victim of assault brings unfair privileges to the victims, whatever that means. Even though students heavily protested the selection of George Will as their commencement speaker, President Snow *cough* Simon stuck by the decision. I guess she forgot that Michigan State is currently under investigation for their handling of sexual assault cases on campus. Oops. Bye, Felicia!
2.Dick Cheney
Dick. Good ol' Dick Cheney. When a Senate report emerged regarding the unlawful torture tactics used in Guantanamo Bay, Cheney quickly defended the Bush administration. He argued that the CIA's "Enhanced Interrogation" programs were necessary and within their rights. The report suggested that many innocent civilians were tortured and even killed by the CIA during interrogation. The detainees were protected by the Geneva Conventions although Cheney claimed they were not since they were "combatants". The Geneva Conventions grant "combatants" basic protections however, so Cheney was wrong and his comments were disgraceful.
3. Exodus: Gods and Kings
Exodus: Gods and Kings more like Exodus: Racist and White Washed. Normally, I would be jumping up and down upon hearing that a new Christina Bale movie is hitting theaters, but instead this movie is making the cringe list for very obvious reasons. Moses and Ramses were Egyptian, which means they were most likely Black. The fact that Egyptian actors were not considered for the roles of these religious figures that were clearly Egyptian is beyond me. Yet another example of Hollywood white washing not only history, but religion. I guess it makes sense because Hollywood could never send the message that people of color could be "Gods" or "Kings" without first stereotyping or exoticising them. I think everyone is yet again forgetting that Jesus was a Middle-Eastern Jewish Israelite and that all three of the Abrahamic religions (Christianity, Judaism and Islam) originated in the Middle East or Western Asia. So can we send the Euro-centric, White-washed religious depictions packing? Go home Hollywood, you're drunk.
4. meninists (or is it Menists?)
Meninists the word not only reminds us of meningitis (a disease that inflames your brain), but is a men's rights movement that definitely makes our heads hurt. The Meninist Movement ranges from a misunderstanding of the word feminism to full out patriarchal and violent misogyny. Some posts can be harmless, but others justify violence against women. Most however claim that it is equally difficult to be a man in the 21st century as it is to be a woman. I think it's safe to say that this movement is pretty bogus and does not need further explanation.