Like the bullies we are, we FtB bloggers (and our friends and readers) crashed a hashtag originally started by a few people who just absolutely hate that we talk about social justice so much and dare to moderate the comments sections on those posts. Hilarity ensued.
This is a snapshot of some of the funniest tweets from when I was participating yesterday. It is probably not representative of all the best tweets, so much as the ones that caught my eye (or that I said and therefore think are hilarious).
Sometimes some of those bloggers write posts about stuff I’m not personally interested in. The nerve of some people.
#FTBullies
I’ve not got involved with this
#FTBullies thing at all, but I struggle to see what the Financial Times could have done to earn such ire
I’m quite uncompromising on LGBT rights. I think I might be a Lesbonazi.
#FTBullies
Rebecca Watson
@rebeccawatsonLots of talk on Twitter about how bad the
#FTBullies are. I don’t want to pile on, but: they wrote Prometheus.
#FTBullies want sexual harrassment policies to be explicit, meaning the accused have WARNINGS before suffering consequences. So unfair!!
RT
@QueQuoi: “If you asked#FTBullies if they had any Grey Poupon, they would say no.” || But we TOTALLY have a WHOLE THING OF IT!#Muhahaha
#FTBullies patiently explain that the Coriolis Effect has nothing to do with the chirality of the swirly they’re giving you.
Those uppity
#FTBullies keep on talking about stuff they think matters, no matter how many times we threaten to kick them in the cunts!
#FTBullies drank the last beer and won’t even fucking admit it!
Natural selection happens by design of the
#FTBullies.
Is that why the Reavers are after them? | MT
@Crommunist@Sonja1023#FTBullies canceled Firefly.
@canislatrans@Crommunist@Sonja1023 We created the Reavers in an effort to make everyone uniform groupthink!#FTBullies#firefly
“
@lousycanuck: CERN can’t get direct evidence of the Higgs Boson because#FTBullies keep silencing it” // You MONSTERS!!!
Tobasco da Gama
@tobascodagama
@drskyskull@lousycanuck#FTBullies coined the term “God Particle”.
Thinking that soft sciences like history and social science are part of general rational thought and discussion =
#FTBullies
Pretty sure the
#FTBullies either invented or killed roller disco, whichever one is bad.
Official SpokesGay
@SpokesGay
#FTBullies broke up the Supremes. And Bananarama. And LaLa-Nee-Nee-Noo-Noo.
.
@szvan suggested a book to me once. It was super good but the sequel isn’t even finished yet!#FTBullies.
You know who else crashed hashtags? L RON HUBBARD and HITLER! oh and
#FTBullies
Rebecca Watson
@rebeccawatson
@SurlyAmy I know that’s true because I lived with Hitler for two years and he was nonstop crashing hashtags!#FTBullies
#FTBullies made me a sandwich without the crust cut off!
I almost peed myself three times (out of fear because of all the bullying, not because I was laughing too hard.)
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Pteryxx
July 4, 2012 at 12:14 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
oh sweet! I collected some too, but my list starts after yours. It’s here:
http://freethoughtblogs.com/butterfliesandwheels/2012/07/i-made-something-trend-on-twitter/#comment-212771
(or I could just repost the whole thing here, but it’s HUGE)
julian
July 4, 2012 at 12:38 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Great moments in trolling.
Greta Christina’s rick roll was particularly awesome.
Kels
July 4, 2012 at 12:43 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
That whole thing was a bag of fun (I’m @nezchan BTW) and had me staying up WAY later than planned. And in fact it looks like things are still going to some degree.
I was particularly amused by Hoggle, et al, still trying to take themselves seriously, and the guy who was seriously offended by someone offering a toast to Greg Laden. All the while drowning in in a sea of ridicule.
Ophelia Benson
July 4, 2012 at 12:47 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
I actually started this. I have not lived in vain! People are reaching heights of creative absurdity that I can only gape at in yokelish awe.
Yesterday afternoon I just listed a few bad things and blamed #FTBullies and then whoomp! the horse ran away.
Jason Thibeault
July 4, 2012 at 12:51 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
My thoughts on this matter are complicated though.
First, I’m annoyed as fuck that people are trivializing actual bullying by claiming that we’re it — because we post about social justice and moderate our spaces (or moderate via ridicule), when the vast majority of the people who agree are actively engaging in a real and targeted bullying campaign.
Second, we actually are mocking them en masse, by crashing the hashtag and posting about how terrible of people we all are.
Third, I think that second point is okay because we are our own targets, and we’re drowning out the trivialization of bullying by making shit up about how awful we are.
I’m probably overthinking it. Damn #ftbullies made me overthink it.
pipenta
July 4, 2012 at 12:52 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Watching it unfold on Twitter, my fav had been the Prometheus script accusation. But I hadn’t seen the rick roll. Heh.
Onamission5
July 4, 2012 at 1:00 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
The roller disco and Grey Poupon ones you posted are gold.
smhll
July 4, 2012 at 1:09 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
I think they really hate when you talk about social justice and disagree with them. For people who love dissent, some of them certainly hate disagreement.
karmakin
July 4, 2012 at 1:14 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Well, I generally overthink things as well. And I thought about this, and I think I’ve come to a firm position on this.
It’s pretty simple. Bullying is punching down. Full stop. That is, going after people with less status or power or whatever. And that’s why it’s wrong.What’s going on here, is a firm case of at the very least punching to the side (which is fine), but more than likely is punching up. We’re punching against people who think that they’re better than other people for whatever reason.
(I’m not sure if I’d call what the other side is doing bullying either, per se, however it is very stalker/obsessive behavior, which is another kettle of fish)
As long as we’re punching up, it’s fine. Now, that doesn’t give us permission to do whatever. But that’s not because it’s bullying, but it’s because sometimes it can give the wrong impression of what you’re actually fighting for. (I.E. make it seem like you’re more extreme than you are)
So anyway. That’s my view, I think on the whole bullying thing. And yes, it’s very demeaning towards people who are the victims of ACTUAL bullying.
Tabby Lavalamp
July 4, 2012 at 1:15 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Ever since I first say the “bully” accusations, I’ve been wondering if they have broken dictionaries. The irony has been mindblowing because most of the actual bullying behaviour I’ve seen has been coming from them. Hell, it’s been almost a year now and their campaign against Rebecca Watson shows no signs of abating.
That said, I thought #FTBullies would have run its course when I logged onto Twitter today. I’m very glad it hasn’t because I’m still having fun with it…
Kels
July 4, 2012 at 1:16 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
#FTBullies only want you to think it’s all made up.
Kels
July 4, 2012 at 1:27 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
On the subject of bullying behaviour, there’s a certain mob mentality to it as well. It was telling to me that when I went through the comments on the whole Thunderf00t mess, you had many critics putting forth actual critiques, and on the other side you had the Usual Suspects who largely just wanted to toss around invective at PZ/Ophelia/Ed/Rebecca/FTB in general and didn’t really have much content other than “they’re awful people”. They weren’t there because of the issues, but because someone was sticking it to their crowd’s favourite targets and content be damned.
To be fair, there were some pro-FTB pile-on folks just there to say “TF is a poopyhead”, but really not that many.
Ophelia Benson
July 4, 2012 at 1:28 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Um…can anybody explain the rick roll to me? I live under a large stone, and I don’t get it. I feel like a Martian.
Jason Thibeault
July 4, 2012 at 1:31 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Ophelia: Here’s a video that will explain what a Rick Roll is.
Tabby Lavalamp
July 4, 2012 at 1:32 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Basically a “Rickroll” is getting people to click a fake link and they end up watching the video for Rick Astley’s “Never Gonna Give You Up”. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dQw4w9WgXcQ
Kels
July 4, 2012 at 1:39 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
I think my favourite Rick Roll was this one from JoCo:
Improbable Joe
July 4, 2012 at 1:48 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
I’ve got to figure out this Twitter thingy…
Pteryxx
July 4, 2012 at 1:55 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Joe, to actually write tweets of your own you’ll have to sign up. Anyone can read them though:
http://twitter.com/#!/search/%23FTBullies
Eskeptrical Engineer
July 4, 2012 at 2:05 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
This one is my favorite Rickroll. Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.
Improbable Joe
July 4, 2012 at 2:18 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
I tried the Twitter thing… I think I may have broken it, and I’m not even drunk yet.
karmakin
July 4, 2012 at 2:28 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
I saw your tweet. Didn’t look like you broke it to me.
Kels
July 4, 2012 at 2:32 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Maybe you’re not drunk enough, Joe.
Jason Thibeault
July 4, 2012 at 2:34 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
I must be pretty drunk myself, because I just followed you, Joe.
Improbable Joe
July 4, 2012 at 2:40 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
I have 3 and/or 4 followers on Twitter!!!
… that’s not actually a lot, is it? :( Time for more beer!
karmakin
July 4, 2012 at 2:45 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Quality over quantity, that’s what I say!
Improbable Joe
July 4, 2012 at 2:56 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Yeargh!
Tabby Lavalamp
July 4, 2012 at 4:47 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
Some of my favourites are the people who are actually serious about “FTBullies”.
Tabby Lavalamp
July 4, 2012 at 4:50 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
That first one is my absolute favourite. It boils down to “Those jerks aren’t letting us call them bullies!”
julian
July 4, 2012 at 5:12 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
So I actually clicked that…
Does anyone else really wanna dress up as Rick Astley for reasons they can’t explain?
Rob
July 4, 2012 at 6:57 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
@Karmakin #9
I agree with your sentiment, but if only it were that simple to define bullying. I have been subjected to sustained and planed bullying by an employee who was well versed in employment law and who managed to skirt just on the right side of avoiding any punishment other than a couple of warnings. Even the mediator employed to try and resolve issues said she had never seen anything quite like it, although she did say reverse bullying is not actually uncommon. In short a clever bully can actually use laws and systems designed to prevent bullying and discrimination as cover – for a time at least – by using fairness and due process against others.
Bullying in any form is despicable.
On a brighter note – this whole #FTBullies thing has been hilarious.
Chris Willett
July 4, 2012 at 8:47 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
“First, I’m annoyed as fuck that people are trivializing actual bullying by claiming that we’re it.” – Jason Thibeault
Oh, like how bloggers and commenters at Skepchick and FtB trivialize sexism and misogyny by using those terms to label anyone who dares disagree with the crowd? It’s real easy to convince yourself that you’re in the right if all your opponents are bigots, right? Just look at this very post, in which you misrepresent your opposition by claiming that they hate discussions of “social justice.”
RahXephon, Waahmbulance Driver for St. Entitlement's Hospital
July 4, 2012 at 8:59 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
I’ll say someone’s done something misogynistic when they have done something that warrants it. Disagreement has nothing to do with it. The hivemind meme is getting really old.
throwaway
July 4, 2012 at 9:03 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
I noticed a severe lack of examples there. Care to provide any? #FTBullies always asking for some citations that aren’t misrepresentations.
Smhlle
July 4, 2012 at 9:22 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
@34
Evidence or shut up.
Chris
July 12, 2012 at 10:10 am CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
“dare to moderate the comments sections on those posts.”
Just like Uncommon Descent does. And this is called free thought blogs?
So disappointed. This is something the god types do. Not us. Just what would Hitchens think of this?
A life of meaning and purpose | Butterflies and Wheels
July 4, 2012 at 3:58 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
[...] the rest of us, who enjoy the hilarity – Jason has a selection of the best tweets. Pteryxx posted one here. Here are a few of my favorites – JoeZowghi@JoeZowghi All #FTBullies [...]
What’s better than sex? | Lousy Canuck « Sexual Health for Men And Women
July 4, 2012 at 8:20 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
[...] sex, sexuality, surveys < < On harassment policies requiring signed consent forms in triplicate Crashing the #FTBullies Hashtag [...]
#FTBullies: When Hashtags Go Bad | Greta Christina's Blog
July 4, 2012 at 8:44 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
[...] other good compilations are at Lousy Canuck, Butterflies and Wheels, and Pteryxx in a comment on [...]
Anatomy of a bully is it | Butterflies and Wheels
September 10, 2012 at 10:06 pm CDT (UTC -5) Link to this comment
[...] is quite a good example of this happening recently on Greta Christina’s Blog, and on the Lousy Canuck where they thought it would be funny to take over the Twitter hashtag #FTBullies and use it to mock [...]