Today Talking Points Memo publisher Josh Marshall tweeted the following blind item:
So who is Marshall talking about? We couldn’t find any recent columns in a mainstream outlet about “what really counts as rape,” and Marshall didn’t respond to an email requesting clarification. We did come across a few hints, though.
It's weird seeing columnist explain what really counts as rape when you've seen a woman cringe when she's subjected to his unwanted groping.
— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) February 26, 2015
The first hint: If you search Marshall’s Twitter history for “rape” and “columnist,” you’ll find exactly one prior tweet, from February 2014, in which Marshall uses both of those words:
WSJ Columnist: Women need to step up and take their share of the blame for date rape. http://t.co/cI6dkxtDur #youreadthatright
— Josh Marshall (@joshtpm) February 12, 2014
The columnist mentioned in that link, James Taranto of the Wall Street Journal, argued at the time that “what is called the problem of ‘sexual assault’ on campus is in large part a problem of reckless alcohol consumption, by men and women alike.”
The second hint: Earlier today, Taranto mockingly linked to a column of Marshall’s on Twitter (using a picture of himself standing next to the 2014 Mel Bechner painting Ha Ha):
HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!!!
http://t.co/A1ji7YGs97 pic.twitter.com/RFgTSy1gOF
— James Taranto (@jamestaranto) February 26, 2015
Same here. It is way too early in the morning for me to be trying to interpret this shit.
ReplyDeleteSo am I FSP.
ReplyDeleteThank goodness I am not along, So confused.
ReplyDelete/goes to get another cup of coffee
ReplyDeleteI've had three cups of coffee already (11 AM on the East Coast), and I still don't get this ish.
DeleteThe two hints point to James Taranto.
ReplyDeleteBasically, the Tweeter is saying that he a) disagrees with Taranto's views on campus rape and b) that he has seen Taranto groping a woman in a way she did not consent to.
ReplyDeleteTaranto basically placed the problem of campus rape equally on both males and females who drink (because if you're a girl and you get drunk, rape is your fault) and Marshall is saying that's pretty ironic since he's seen women actually cringe from Taranto's groping.
ReplyDeleteThis is how grown up educated intellectuals argue. On Twitter.
To those that are confused and/or not interested in this...my apologies. I submitted this to Outtie yesterday thinking we might enjoy a blind from a world other than celebrity. Apparently I didn't read it that closely last night because I now see that the blind kinda answers itself lol oh well, i tried!! :)
ReplyDelete@Rose L- I'm now aware of what a dickbag James Taranto is, that's something.
DeleteI got it and appreciated it after I was able to read it with a more awake brain. I really was still fuzzy brained when i first looked at it.
Delete