Should the star podcaster take any responsibility for how he uses his power?
getting your opinions entirely from stand-up comics, Bigfoot forums, and various men named Dave might not be the optimal method for acquiring knowledge
Reminder that Douglas Murray is a committed conservative who is very supportive of fascism, as long as it has the 'right' victims. So much so that he's gotten an award by Isaac Herzog in 2024.
Murray has been a supporter of Israel's military response to the October 7 attacks by Hamas. He spent around 6 months in Israel, visiting Gaza twice, and writing in defense of Israel's actions.
Murray said "conditions for Muslims in Europe must be made harder across the board: Europe must look like a less attractive proposition." and that "All immigration into Europe from Muslim countries must stop." Murray's former coworker at the Centre for Social Cohesion, James Brandon, interpreted this speech as calling for the collective punishment of Muslims
I started reading the article and I was curious what the context was and who was involved.
I was shocked to hear that it was Douglas Murray who got into a conflict with Rogan. Murray out of all people (I am aware of his chauvinism due to some other stuff).
What really struck me about this article was this:
Nine days and five shows later, Rogan hosted Tim Dillon, another anti-woke comic, and together they impersonated Murray’s voice like middle schoolers at a sleepover. (“You haven’t beeeeen?”)
I am not American, but I have lived there and travelled extensively. I have close friends who live there (both locals and immigrants from a very young age).
I would always defend the US as a force for good in the democratic world (albeit a very flawed one) and highlight that compared to other major powers (russia, china), the US has been involved in a very good outcomes (post WW2 Germany/Japan, Poland and the Baltic nations after the breakup of the USSR).
With the reelection of Trump, I am starting to wonder if this well ever be possible again (from my perspective Trump is a symptom, not a cause).
But Rogan's behaviour is an example of degeneracy. True degeneracy. Not degenerate as a random insult or say the term "degenerate gambler", but the actual term like in the dictionary. A regressive, undesirable behaviour that is an affront to the development of human society. And this is perhaps the largest media personality in the US.
It's going to be very difficult for sane Americans to root out such degeneracy. And there are unfortunately (in my opinion) certain negative elements of American culture that are going to reinforce such behaviour. It will require novel approaches that I don't believe Americans have the capability to explore (I hope I am wrong).
But it says something about Rogan and his ilk that even a guy like that would speak up against their BS.
And the article makes at least one excellent point:
Life was easier for them when Donald Trump was merely the punkish challenger to the presidency. Now Trump is in the White House, the former upstart independents of the Roganverse are the new establishment, and their desire for power without responsibility is being challenged.
You can see this everywhere. The whole "Don't tread on me" narrative just doesn't work anymore, but they can't seem to find anything else even while they proclaim to be pumped that their guy is at the top now.