Upending Conservative Memes

Part I of an irregular series

It happens the moment you log in to Facebook. Someone in your life went to the dark side and now there is a Conservative Meme on your newsfeed.

It’s like that with my friend Paul. He posts right-wing memes all the time. I usually send him comments like “this is beneath you” or plea with him to take more hateful messages down.

Lately, though, I have gone full realist and pointed out the obvious - a true realist response. The result - the meme stops. There is nothing worse on social media than realizing one’s viewpoint is so flawed that you become mocked for posting it.

The Keystone/XL Pipeline meme - Went to the source on this one. Canada has tar oil sands. Lots of it apparently. The purpose of the pipeline is to move it from Canada to New Orleans for refining it and exporting it. But here’s the thing, tar sands oil is not refined into gasoline. It’s used to make plastic and petrochemicals. The buyer is China at the moment.

Hillary and Benghazi memes - This still pops up occasionally, certainly more often that it should. I know it was a slow news day when it does, because it means that FoxNews/OANN/Breirbart have been serving leftover mutton instead of red meat to their audiences. This one is even easier thatn the XL Pipeline. The Department of Defense is in charge of embassy security. Hillary Clinton was Secretary of State. Literally not her responsibility. And that’s not me talking, that’s the GOP House Committee that investigated Benghazi - a quietly filed committee report after spending 3 years and $44 million dollars investigating Hillary said it was not her responsibility, fault, or problem.

Anti-Joe Biden memes - He stammers. He’s old. He’s been in government forever. Pick one or pick’em all — Economy grew at 5.6% last quater. Six and a half million jobs created (and better paying, largely, than the jobs that were lost). COVID crisis averted, abated, and won. Putin pushed back on his heels by basically everyone, because of his leadership.

The Left needs to realize that yesterday’s lunch, vacation pictures, and pets are the Facebook of old. Today, it’s the news source, pulpit, and podium for middle America and right now, the Right owns it.