My take...
PDP is a producer of insipid videos that's been LUCKY enough to be able to reap some rewards. He's indeed dabbled in some questionable humor that, right or wrong, does make it very easy for someone to think he's at least a fellow traveller of the Alt-Right.
That said... No, he's not some grand disseminator of radical White Identity propaganda and he's not responsible for acts of violence even if the perpetrator mentions him by name. (Though... Yeah, maybe ask WHY that is, and I'm sorry, "They're crazy" doesn't cut it anymore.) He's not going to be censored by Youtube and I doubt whatever he's done warrants it, though if individuals wish to make their displeasure that he's being supported by various corporate entities known to said entities and they say organize a boycott or bring social media pressure to bear well, tough nuts PDP defenders. That's not government action. Live by the social media... Die by the social media.
More to the point though... This discussion which has dominated this thread is at best tangential. If we were talking about the wealth of Alt-Right/White Supremacist/White Identity Political material and ideological spokesmen online that would be one thing. There's a nuanced and important discussion to be had about that, which includes questions of free speech and yes, it's limits perhaps in the age of incredibly vocal keyboard warriors from one end of the spectrum to the other that are using the various media platforms available on the Internet to spread whatever message they want in whatever way they want including ways that are either insidious, outrageous or designed specifically to foment argument and resentment.
But we're talking about ****ing Pewdiepie. Does everyone really want to die on this hill? And more to the point... Why is this dominating the discussion about this tragic act of terrorism, and it is terrorism. Terrorist action inspired by the online world of White Identity politics which is neck deep filled with insane conspiracy theories and unhinged reactions to the way the world is. This is resulting in a spike in Right Wing Reactionary crimes across the globe... But Pewdiepie is hardly the cause. At best he's a symptom of a generation of people that have the ****tiest judgement about everything from taste in humor to what is understandable youthful rebellion and what's just stupid postering, yes, even on the subject of free speech. It's funny because there was a poster going on about how PDP represents some break from older media that is more pure and truthful or whatever bull**** he was peddling. It's funny because it's more apparent than ever that in fact the generation raised on new media are ****ing morons when it comes to knowing what's noise and what's signal to the delight of corporations and governments everywhere.
But... I'm sorry this back and forth right now based solely on PDP being mentioned is a snapshot of how the forest isn't seen through the trees with the usual suspects, not just here but all over the media world, shining up their armor and sharpening their blades all powered by their resentments from some previous argument they had somewhere else on some other topic using the same poses of moral and intellectual superiority which at this point are no longer reasonable or understandable... It's schtick. Schtick that makes some feel better about themselves. This is all sides. ALL SIDES.
50 people who are guilty of nothing more than being at their house of worship were slaughtered and that's nothing more than a blip. It's an excuse for the same people we've heard for the last 18 years make the same ****ing circular arguments we've all heard before. Lost in that is the horror of connecting with other people and a whole nation really, that is in an emotional tailspin because of actions taken by a person who cannot fathom that there is nuance and gray. Are there Islamic Militants who use their dogmatic impulses to justify mass slaughter? There are, that there is no doubt on from my point of view. I'm an atheist. I find ALL religions to be frankly delusions with an end point that will never have good outcomes in one form or another because when you believe in things that are not so you will never have a good end, even if there are short term positive results from your belief. But at the same time the whole world isn't going to convert to my view on these things overnight and I cannot force them to do that. And if someone is going about their faith in a peaceful manner I should, if for no other than practical reasons, respect that. The shooter cannot understand that. He's set in a binary view (like a lot of people who are posters here on the Hype) that if one person is a threat from the faith of Islam, then they all are. No inbetween. No debate. And in being trapped in this binary view of humanity he allows himself the rationale that what he did was justified. And in his wake is a ripple effect of sorrow and despair as the end of those 50 lives touches a network of humanity across the globe likely.
If going on about this brings any some sense of accomplishment, by all means, please go on about it. I can't stop you. But notice how this tragedy is being used to talk about everything BUT the murder of these people.
If I've offended anyone here (and I'm looking at Darth and Trav) I honestly don't care. This is just what this sort of Hype ****show brings out in me.
