Paul Cantrell
Just to state the obvious (and sorry for even mentioning the guy, I try to keep it to a minimum, but):
Elon Musk’s totally ew-gross stalker-creep post about Taylor Swift is a demonstration of power.
It isn’t just a dog dry-humping a stranger’s leg. The point isn’t what he thinks he can actually happen.
The point is to be •seen• saying something that disgusting and be •seen• experiencing no consequences for it. It’s about who gets impunity.
Paul Cantrell
From @susankayequinn: Yes, that’s exactly what it is. And thank you for naming it: violence.
And I’d venture that even when people miss the violence of it, at some level they don’t: the violence is meant to be unnamable and unacknowledged, but •felt•.
Paul Cantrell
@mayaisloading
Yes, desperation too. Desperation and needing to demonstrate power go hand in hand. “Look at me! Look at what I can get away with here!!”
Mᴀʏᴀ :bc:
@inthehands Demonstration of power is her ignoring his existence because she has her own enpire and he is not important in it. Demonstration of power is Stephen King also ignoring his existence because he has hei own empire in which Musky is irrelevant.
The thing he dose is a demonstration of desparation to stay relevant and looking for someone to engage with him.
Btw, I Googled this to see what's that about and I love the first site I opened just refers to it as "Twitter", don't even bother with the porn name.
Paul Cantrell
@susankayequinn
[grim nodding]
Sue is Walking the Earth 🌱
@inthehands yes, that's when it's most powerful, when we can't even name it. I literally had someone (a friend, a decent person) say "why would she leave her boyfriend for Musk" and MAN rape culture goes deep. I named it for her and she was like... Oh... (Yeah)
Paul Cantrell
@Edelruth
Oh, indeed. I think women are •meant• to recognize it — and yet be unable to make him face any consequences for it. The implied violence of his threat combined with demonstrating personal impunity for it are the point. “Look what I can get away with.”
Edelruth In The Wrong Timeline
Except that he came across as a rapey creep who will never grasp the concept of consent, and women recognize that.
Paul Cantrell
@mayaisloading
This is a fair distinction!
In this context, I’d say the •actual• power he’s demonstrating is the power to control who can say what on this communication platform: a power over speech.
Mᴀʏᴀ :bc:
@inthehands Needing to demonstrate power and actually demonstrating power are two different things. That's what I wanted to elaborate on.
Dr. Cat Hicks
@inthehands yeah. I find it specifically about enforcing rules about women not having voice in our society too.
Instantly recognizable to so many women. How many of us have started to win an argument, shown evidence, or just dared be smart out loud and then watched the men around us suddenly make graphic sexual "jokes," find some reason to physically loom over us, make some absolutely out of pocket statement about how btw they could beat us up. This has happened to me so many times.
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