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Guy Buys Movie Ticket, Internet Outraged
A Brooklyn movie theater recently scheduled a special screening of Wonder Woman open only to women. Cinema/dining chain Alamo Drafthouse said on their website, “Apologies, gentlemen, but we’re embracing our girl power and saying ‘No Guys Allowed’ for several special shows at the Alamo Downtown Brooklyn. And when we say ‘Women (and people who identify as women) only,’ we mean it.”
Movie fan (and my Conservatarians podcast partner-in-crime) Stephen Miller decided he wanted to see a new superhero flick, so he bought a ticket online. Upon sharing this rather mundane act, the Internet exploded, as is its wont.
I hope this story ends with a lifetime ban from Alamo theaters. https://t.co/JqBMJGvVLG
— BenDavid Grabinski (@bdgrabinski) May 27, 2017
*tannoy* can Stephen Miller’s mommy please come to the sandpit he has soiled himself for attention https://t.co/hv865Rfnxx
— David Lewis (@davidclewis) May 27, 2017
Yes but you are also barging into a space you’ve been asked not to enter, and doing it for lulz. This is a rapist’s mentality. https://t.co/38Ql0Lg5hE
— Jordan Hoffman (@jhoffman) May 27, 2017
Of course, there were thousands more entertaining tweets, but their ubiquitous profanity violates Ricochet’s Code of Conduct. To each attack, Miller stressed he has no interest in making a scene; he just wants to sit down and watch Wonder Woman.
Of course, his calmness created even more outrage. A.V. Club writer William Hughes wrote the first of sure to be many think-pieces on this calumny:
As Miller has delighted in telling people irritated by his decision—in that “I am speaking calmly, so you must be the [expletive]” tone so beloved by internet trolls—there’s nothing illegal about purchasing a ticket to a screening. That argument does, though, gloss over the fact that, while barging into a space you’ve been asked to stay out of just because that request made you feel briefly tiny and weak doesn’t make you a criminal, it does make you an insecure piece of [expletive].”
Alamo Drafthouse is in a bit of a pickle here. New York City law strictly prohibits them from discriminating by gender:
Hello mentions https://t.co/VxvkxVVezE pic.twitter.com/okkAZ6zjyU
— Stephen Miller (@redsteeze) May 27, 2017
In fact, New York City prohibits even advertising women-only events, meaning that Alamo is already in violation of the law.
@redsteeze Better to cite the statute itself https://t.co/FKi6QBiuS5 note that the ad already is a violation of the law pic.twitter.com/ahefjj5Ity
— (((Aaron Worthing))) (@AaronWorthing) May 27, 2017
After years of progressives demanding that businesses bake cakes and open bathrooms, it’s cathartic to see them reverse their position when it offends their consciences. Miller is offering them a minor, even friendly, clinic on the brave new world they have created.
And I’m sure he’ll provide a thorough review of the screening when he returns to our podcast.
Published in Entertainment
I don’t think what he’s doing is impolite.
He’s not trying to take a shower at a one-gender gym. He’s not ordering water only at the Alamo popcorn counter before spewing hate at the person trying to serve him. He’s not opening up his cell phone and texting during the feature presentation.
He’s just going to a movie, sitting quietly with his Raisinets, and watching.
I’d get more on @benjaminglaser‘s train if Miller yelled at anyone or tried to sue them. Knock down the trans person in a skirt who keeps needling him–break that trans person’s glasses, say– and then he’s gotten down in the dirt.
It is not overly aggressive for conservatives to follow the law.
This isn’t about a movie, it’s about the law. The law can’t be something you apply only to the “bad” people. Equal protection or we live in a tyranny. That’s the danger of using the force of government as a substitute for social pressure to achieve moral ends. And the only way to teach (and re-teach) this lesson to people who want to use the power of the state to shape the culture is to insist the law be applied impartially.
It’s time to go full Alinsky on them. Shove the rules they have forced on us back in their face.
FIFY
Civil
disobedienceobedience?Exactly.
I do so love your wacky references. Made me laugh.
Gaius: A story. I was working in a building where an elevator was being installed. Their work is mechanical and electrical, from heavy steel to control wiring. I commented that they did quite a bit of work of electricians. The elevator mechanic said that the boundaries between the trades was established in street fights in New York many years ago.
What freedom actually means in practice is being hammered out in these street fights. Principles don’t mean anything here. These fights are about a wide array of very serious issues; the power of women, the entertainment industry as a means of forcing social change, the assumption of the left that the laws don’t apply to them. And freedom of association.
Did you not read in those angry comments a vigorous defence of one’s right to not participate in a gay marriage ceremony? I did.
A basic, very very basic conservative tenet is that societies and organized institutions are emergent. They grow and hold power and influence because they emerge from a societal consensus.
The consensus is being formed, on the streets. If you don’t want to be there, fine. But then you don’t have a say what the consensus is if you aren’t there.
You all missed the point entirely. The girls just wanted to enjoy a movie where a girl gets to wrestle with a whole bunch of guys and wins. Girls know that when they wrestle with guys, 99% of the time, they lose. This is a big deal for them. They want to cheer on the Wonder Woman. If there were guys (like dates, friends or brothers) in the audience, the girls would feel bad for them for losing by association and that would ruin the movie experience.
And yeah, we all know that wrestling and action hero movies are fake, BTW. And yeah, the Wonder Woman stole her outfit idea from the pro wrestling circuit.
She’s still hot.
Bonus! Guys! Listen-up. I’m going to give away one of my secrets in dealing with the fairer sex; when I wrestle a girl, I always let her win.
I’ll let you in on a little secret, too, El Colonel.
Women understand men throw the fight, but we’re just using the weapons God gave us to still end up on top.
It’s why I keep telling feminists to shut the hell up.
I recognize the immense power of female privilege.
You’ve been programmed to protect me, which means I can make you do my bidding, even without the invisible jet. ;)
Well it is an interesting dynamic. I’m not sure who the producers think will buy the most tickets in the long run. Will it be women that want to watch a movie that features a woman that is clad in a revealing sword and sandal outfit, or will it be 12 year-old boys and older that want to watch a woman clad in a revealing sword an sandal outfit with the added bonus of neat special effects. My money is on the latter, and deep down the producers probably feel the same way.
Now you’re just messing with us, right?
“Guys”.
Fixed it for ya.
I think I’d need a Sherpa to find me a Gurkha before I handed out the burqas.
To Benjamin Glaser
Opposition through leading the good life? Effective? No! The wine and cigar opposition has ceded our schools, universities and the press to the left. Control of these two institutions was crucial to the Nazis and Soviets in gaining total dominance. ISIS has not overlooked their importance either. And, by the way, Progressives live the good life too while diligently marching into these institutions.
Cowardice is not a Conservative principle. Neither is stupidity. Don’t like the methods of the left? Then devise effective alternate strategies. They must be effective.
I say Bravo, Stephen. But somebody better have his back at the event.
To paraphrase Ecclesiastes 3, to every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under heaven … a time to show up at a women’s only movie showing because it’s hilarious to confront liberal hypocrisy, and time to be respectful and kind to people I disagree with. I’m not a guerrilla—not an opinion maker or a provocateur. What I say or do doesn’t matter to anyone but the people I already know and love. They are the only ones I can influence, and it would be very easy for me to permanently alienate them if I used Rules for Radicals as my guide on how to conduct political discourse. That’s all I’m saying.
This whole thing more than proves health care guru Jonathan Gruber’s observation about the stupidity of the American public — the twittering ones at least.
Lol. You couldn’t even force yourself to identify as a man.
But you are wrong. There are no female lead or important characters because of patriarchy or some such. The feminist have decreeded it and the Leftist have confirmed it. We will not have true equality until every show has only non male primary characters.
Of course I’m messing with you, @dougkimball! But I’m still right.
Real women have amazing power in our society that makes being a good wrestler an extremely moot point. :)
Goodness gracious.
We have men arguing for us that we should be able to cut them out of public events when we would not tolerate being excluded!!!!
Tell me who is more powerful again?
I’m coming around to this way of thinking. All it does is harden the tribal lines and make the rule of law impossible to restablish. The left simply aren’t going to learn the lesson you want the to learn: that these kind of laws abridge fundamental rights. All they are going to learn is: conservatives are jerks.
I still got a lot of schadenfreude out of it though.
All they will learn is that conservatives are every bit as bad and evil as they thought. They aren’t going to learn the lessons you think they should.
The Left does not need to “learn” conservatives are jerks because they believe this already.
I can’t stand it when I see people call “liberals” childish things like “libtards” which is akin to the idiotic “rethuglicans,” but I don’t see simply attending an event in that same way.
Maybe he can compromise with the spirit of celebrating female power by wearing a pink shirt. Politely, of course. Not ironically. :)
If your goal is just to annoy them or make them mad I guess this is an effective tactic. If your goal is to persuade them to change their opinions on public accommodation laws and freedom of assoaciation then I’m starting to think this is counterproductive.
I admit it does feel good, but those feelings are momentary.
You are not going to change their mind. You can only change the law.
I think someone else way back in the thread made the correct observation. This isn’t about persuading the Left. It’s about highlighting the hypocrisy of the Left for those in the middle who have not really thought about what the laws in NY mean.
I also think it won’t make much of an impact if the Alamo simply punches the ticket and brings the guy his order in his seat.
That is actually what I think will happen.
If someone makes a big deal out of it–yells at him or whatever–he should just calmly explain he’s a Wonder Woman fan… a fan of all women.
Then he’ll look fine.
Honestly.
They are watching a movie. His mere presence doesn’t change the experience for anyone in any appreciable way.
Ok, I’m going a little off topic here, but I wanted to comment on the usual sex-baiting gripe about Wonder Woman, which is that her breasts are too large. Sure, Gal Gadot has sort of defused that complaint for purposes of this movie, but I’m old enough to remember Linda Carter. Now, if someone wants to complain that Wonder Woman is a hypersexualized version of femininity, then they really should give their take on Superman.
Now there are two things that have always bothered me about Superman having all those muscles. First, why? He has super strength due to Earth’s yellow sun. He has had it from the time he was a baby. Why does he also need more muscles than Arnold Schwarzenegger in his prime? Second, how? What kind of exercises could Superman possibly do to build that physique? What would his barbell set look like? How hard is it to do pull ups when you can fly?
In context, the hypermasculine physique of Superman makes far less sense than the fact that Wonder Woman can fill her ample bustier. Contrary to the gender grievance-mongers, I don’t think there is anything particularly lascivious about either depiction. We simply want our superheroes to look like superheroes, unless of course they are wearing glasses and street clothes.
Stephen Miller: the Rosa Parks of the 21st century.
Of course it does. Boys have cooties.
Never thought about it, but that’s a great point, Larry.
Plus, the guy who created Wonder Woman was involved in a polygamous relationship, if I recall correctly. He cared about “girl power,” but I think it’s fair to say that he was also a great admirer of female… assets.
If women want a different kind of superhero, then a woman should make her up and see if she can sell her.
When I was a little girl, I wanted to look exactly like Linda Carter, though I knew I never would.
What did I envy about her looks???
Her eyes.
They were amazing.