I picture David Futrelle capering gleefully right now: he has so much blog fodder falling out of the sky from the Aurini/Owen breakup. He’s posting some of the comments from misogynist fans, and a hilariously angry interview with Aurini. And now I’m all out of popcorn.
Unfortunately, I had a downer of a thought. This could be a ploy: look at all the attention those two are getting right now. I can’t believe it’s going to lead to more profit — would even someone sympathetic to their cause donate to those bumbling maroons now? — but they say their movie is almost done, and that what they’re going to do is release two versions of The Sarkeesian Effect. Two badly edited, pretentious, incompetent and boring feature length “movies” thrown onto the web, where after all this build-up many of us are going to feel obligated to watch them…or, at least, watch the first 5 dreary minutes before we give up.
I’m also thinking of The Producers. And maybe Uwe Boll’s tax finagling.
Don’t be stupid, be a smartie!
Come and join the Men’s Right Party!
There ain’t enough popcorn in the world for this.
I wouldn’t be that cynical about this. This kind of clashing egos is what typically happens in Hate Groups. The fact is that these people basically trade in ego and status, and that’s only compounded further on the internet. Becoming a laughingstock among their followers is bad news, even if it is publicity.
The opportunity for a mockumentary is strong…. Maybe someone should do a kickstarter… No, wait.
Out of morbid curiosity, I started to watch one of Aurini’s videos, one where he speaks about how net neutrality is not needed, because the free market is all we need to protect us from evil and capitalism is sooper speshul.
And my dog, is he dumb. What a fuckwit. If that video is anything to go by, then his anti-Sarkeesian video will be full of ridiculous non-sequitirs and badly constructed strawmen. And lots of him acting like a cock.
Dumb and Dumber
Use Your Delusion I+II
The MRA With Two Heads
Committee to Elect Anita Sarkeesian EMPRESS OF KNOWN SPACE
@Janine:
If you can’t be an athlete, be an athletic supporter.
PZ: “Unfortunately, I had a downer of a thought. This could be a ploy: look at all the attention those two are getting right now. I can’t believe it’s going to lead to more profit — would even someone sympathetic to their cause donate to those bumbling maroons now? ”
I kind of don’t think they’d be quite smart enough or have enough guile to pull something like this off. I’m kind of surprised they managed to find their ways out of the basements of their respective parents long enough even meet up in meat space.
@arids, #8:
They might not be smart, but they could be just smart enough to follow the plot of The Producers.
On the other hand there was that thing with the supposed threats against the MRA conference last year, which Paul Elam used to raise some 20k$ to “hire additional security.” Except there was no expensive additional secruity and the money likely ended up in Elam’s own pockets.
And didn’t Aurini and Owen themselves have some extravagant pricetag for their documentary? It would be entirely unsurprising to find these two have launched a money-grabbing scheme inside their money-grabbing scheme. This could be standard operating procedure for MRAs.
@10 komarov
I suppose that’s true. I was thinking more in terms of MRAs more political goals of misogyny rather than just money. Even if they managed to scam their followers, it’s bad for the MRA movement to have a clash of egos like this. It makes both people in the movement look like a bunch of bickering children.
That’s very different that Elam martyring and scamming MRAs out of their money, because that puts himself on a pedestal. Did Elam get blowback for pocketing the security money?
@a_ray_in_dilbert_space #8
Haven’t we decided not to do that joke here?
a few centuries from now a a group of digital archeologists, possible aliens, will root out three versions of the The Sarkeesian Effect. They, from other sources, will know two are real and one is a mocumentary, but they will be entirely baffled as to which is which.
I don’t think so, but as far as his followers are concerned Elam appears to be an immortal god who can do no wrong. Not an unusual phenomenon for supposed thought leaders, I guess.
On his blog Futrelle already posted the odd huzzah-comment, for example the guy saying he’d donate to both Aurini and Owen so they’d end up making two documentaries. MRA-icons really can do no wrong.
Perhaps any fight an MRA starts is a ‘good fight’ in their eyes. That wouldn’t be too surprising given that MRAs prefer to tear down others rather than making positive contributions in those few areas where their interests might actually serve some good.
Am I the only one who thinks that Aurini looks and behaves like a cheap, public access cable horror show host?
No Akira, you aren’t.
Dave Anurani, why does that name sound so familiar? Oh yeah, that was the asshole friend of a friend who I had to block on facebook because he was such an enormous, abusive asshole. ( I also blocked the friend and now am restraining myself from posting gloating, sarcasm filled schadenfreude all over his wall.) I listened to the interview, and I am laughing so hard at these fools. Hearing DA attack Owen over his supposed mental health issues, including using the term triggered correctly is just too perfect. His opinion that its all due to Owen not being able to get laid is beyond pitiful. News flash mra dudes, women avoid you assholes with sad wieners because you are disgusting human beings who have nothing to offer but your entitled, sad wiener.
@Akira
Yeah the host’s name is “Anon LeVay”
“Next on Dudebro Chiller Theatre: the 1976 drive-in Classic, ‘Cannibal Feminist Emasculators & The ERA Zombies’ written, produced, and directed by Phyllis Schlafly!”
I thought it might be a ploy to begin with, but after reading the Skype logs on Aurinis site… there’s just no way. No way either anyone would purposefully portray themselves like that and no way either of them are talented enough to fabricate them to that level of detail.
There is such a thing as bad publicity.
It might be bad publicity … but at least it’s fun.
P’raps not. It’s actually screamingly hilarious.
Looks like regular fodder for Mammoths is assured for a good while yet.