Chapo Trap House and the rise of the dirtbag left

As both a lapsed Catholic and a Marxist I definitely feel how complex that hurdle is, hopefully the Catholic left (a small but real thing) can help out with messaging when it comes to communities like these

I don't think anyone worth taking seriously thinks it's any more than an entertainment. (To keep the comparison going, just as Stewart always protested that he was doing a comedy show, these guys have repeatedly disavowed that listening/subscribing is a political act in any way). It has spurred some people to join DSA but that's about it.

The argument about whether or Chapo is just entertainment or not strikes me as a symptom of general lunkheadedness among political types. (As an aside, I saw Ralph Nader talk at a college back in the 90s and he turned off the crowd by a tone deaf attack on Beavis and Butthead.) People are led to political consciousness in a myriad of ways. Surely there were teens who read an anti-war novel and ended up joining the Vietnam protest movement. That's not to say that writing a novel is a kind of "political organizing" just that anything can be political and influential. And I'm going to guess that cracking asshole jokes on Twitter and podcasts is going to reach more people than most actual protests will.

On a very related note, the DSA convention is livestreaming: http://www.dsausa.org/live

Also Simon thank you for that twitter link. That's a good thread.

Liking what I'm hearing from the DSA stage, good diversity of perspectives as well (not just in terms of race but ideological inspirations / focuses)

new premium ep is pretty great, i haven't actually read the Trump phone call transcripts yet so i'm enjoying this insanity ("the local milk people")

any ilx0rs go to DSA in person?

I've asked around before and got a few positive replies, don't think anyone is at the convention tho

since I guess this is the de facto DSA thread, I liked this set of interviews w/ POC members (including a couple in slates/committees)

http://splinternews.com/forget-bernie-bros-meet-the-young-people-of-color-lead-1797710340

Electing a guy who worked for a cop union to the NPC and the ensuing shit storm is just an amazingly 'American leftist' turn of events.

Yes, though tbf he seemingly deliberately concealed that aspect of his work history and they seem to be doing a decent job of dealing with it

Oh, he should definitely go, it's just the whole chain of events feels like yet another repeat of the way leftist groups shoot themselves and each other in the foot.

Between the steering committee to examine Fetonte and all the convention talk on this episode and a couple of other podcasts, all I can envision in my head is the SPUSA convention from Reds.

Only instead of Warren Beatty yelling in a smoke filled room it's an avatar threatening to quit the DSA on Twitter.

Any organization that tries to be "multi-tendency" is going to have hiccups, and this is a pretty small one in the grand scheme of things. I was sort of amused that for all the talk beforehand about the BDS resolution, only one member that I saw ended up making a fuss and leaving over it.

I think Chapo has a use to the left beyond "entertainment" (for that matter I think Stewart was very useful to mainstream liberalism). It's not organizing, but it's a sort of reassurance or reinforcement. For me a weekly dose of Chapo is a reminder, like "it's ok, you don't have to read the Times op ed page and pretend to give a shit what it says. Your instincts are correct, trust them."

OTM - it's separate from 'doing politics' (which they seem to accept way more than Stewart did - they actively support the DSA and progressive causes) but not just comedy.

jfc they've more than doubled their monthly take since I started this thread, I keep thinking they'll stall out but nah

https://graphtreon.com/creator/chapotraphouse

i don't see it plateauing anytime soon, i think they'll hit 100k in a couple months, & for sure by the end of the year.

So ridiculous, bringing in that much cash would be grounds for a purity test witch hunt if it were anyone else on the "left"

yeah that's ridiculous, it's a decent podcast but truly not good enough to have all the attention + cash it has

So ridiculous, bringing in that much cash would be grounds for a purity test witch hunt if it were anyone else on the "left"

― Dan I., Friday, August 11, 2017 10:06 AM (nine minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

lol, you are a dork

literally the only purity test aspect of it is that they're making money for sv vc slime as patreon takes a cut

yeah that's ridiculous, it's a decent podcast but truly not good enough to have all the attention + cash it has

― global tetrahedron, Friday, August 11, 2017 1:10 PM (nine minutes ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

wah

it's worth whatever ppl are willing to pay for it... aka the free market works

They have thousands of people - most of them giving just $5 a month - giving them all that money. What's the issue? Where's the damage? It got popular. I love how so many writers & podcast people are so pissy about how much money CTH is making, it's just jealousy. Patreon is a great model for artists to support themselves - I like what CTH does, I pay $5 a month, and get a lot of content for a pretty low price relative to most other subscription services. Again, what's the problem? I've heard lots of fans talk about how much money they're making with this kind of suspicious/disdainful tone - I really don't understand it. They're not being bankrolled by anyone but their fans. That fucking rules.

Uh yeah I wasn't clear. I'm not against them making money, I'm against purity tests and witch hunts, and especially hypocrisy regarding who on the left is allowed to seek/obtain/possess money without automatically becoming a Bad Guy

"I'm against purity tests and witch hunts but i want a witch hunt in this case"

xp i was responding to GT

I mean, shouldn't that cash be distributed around the rough-hewn wood table of the commune, along with the potatoes and sheaves of wheat?

I'm funny sometimes I wish I had a one hundred grand

Not even per month, a one-off payment would suffice

What's the issue? Where's the damage? It got popular. I love how so many writers & podcast people are so pissy about how much money CTH is making, it's just jealousy.

lmao

all criticism of how much money they're making boils down to "they don't deserve it" / "the show isn't good" / "they should be doing something with it"

i love that they're making a ton of money almost entirely from small donations from their fans. that rules. what exactly is the issue?

Is that money a consequence of CTH's needs, or their ability?

all criticism of how much money they're making boils down to "they don't deserve it" / "the show isn't good" / "they should be doing something with it"

wow, sounds like every socialist critique ever

http://www.alternet.org/sites/default/files/bo160913.png

xp lmao i know, it's so ridiculous.

If you won't allow your interlocutor to play devil's advocate for a moment, then I will tip my trilby to you and bid you good day

I mean, shouldn't that cash be distributed around the rough-hewn wood table of the commune, along with the potatoes and sheaves of wheat?

"If you love socialism so much why don't you move to North Korea?!?!"

Gotta confess that I'm trolling into the void here because I listened to 10 minutes of one of their podcasts before deciding I couldn't bear another second of these assholes and their loathsome personalities.

Also I'm grumpy cause my Bernie-loving best friend has, in the last 24 hours, come out in favor of the Google "women are stupid" guy and somehow talked himself into being anti-abortion based on an argument from the fetus' right to decide whether or not it gets a circumcision (!?). So I'm reeling

damn wtf

he's.... impressionable.

But also I think there are a lot of idiots out there just like him who are being damaged and alienated by whatever it is that CTH is a part of!

well they're not pro-life and afaik not supportive of the google dude, though it hasn't been discussed on the show & i haven't seen any of them tweet about it. i'd be surprised if they supported google dude

Apparently! Jfc

Xp

I think their last live show went to benefit a pro-choice group?

No idea how one dumbass becoming a pro-life misogynist reflects on a podcast that doesn't support either of those.

What on earth is it that makes you think CTH have anything to do with each other beyond your friend liking Bernie? CTH regularly make fun of Silicon Valley turds and featured a segment (admittedly an outtake) where a host who'd had an abortion confronted a pro-life hardliner.

because he's trolling