Last night’s Late Show featured a PSA starring Senator Claire McCaskill in which she urged men to “shut the hell up” on certain subjects–much to the chagrin of the video’s target audience.
As one of just 20 women serving in the Senate, McCaskill is very familiar with men who don’t know when to stop talking. Helpfully, she came prepared with a list of subjects on which male opinions are already well-known and no longer needed. For your convenience:
What women do with their bodies […] Star Wars. Pants suits. Selfies. Shonda Rhimes. Curtains. Carbs. Millenials. Body hair removal. Religion. Gluten. Harry Potter. Nut allergies. Star Wars again. All art in general. Whether or not to brine the Thanksgiving turkey. And ethics in gaming journalism.
Not surprisingly, McCaskill’s video garnered a lot of comments from the very demographic that was explicitly told its comments would not be needed. Over on KotakuInAction, dudes mansplained everything from the First Amendment to periods for the Senator:
Here’s the thing. Joke or not, you have a sitting US Senator, sworn to uphold the Constitution, which includes the First Amendment. That First Amendment protects many rights from government control, due to the inhertness of the rights protected.
Men also don’t need to hear women’s opinion on how hot and naked is my video game character, how violent is the game I play, what movies and series I watch, what is offensive to you and what isn’t, how cold is the air conditioner when you’re almost naked in 40 degree sweltering heat and all men are dressed in suits because these wonderful double standards and dress codes seem to apply only to men, I also don’t need to hear that because I have balls I “manspread” too much in an empty subway in the middle of the night why you have absolutely no problems to park several of your bags and take 3 seats in rush hours, men also don’t need to hear how fragile our masculinity is while it’s poisoning you with its toxicity (make up your mind, dear), I also don’t need to hear that fat cunts are beautiful and I have to respect and love land whales the same way I do Scarlett Johansson, I also don’t need to hear… and even see you “free bleeding” because it’s “natural” and “empowering”…
Get it, hun? You can’t have your cake and eat it too, darling.
Star Wars is awesome, pantsuits should be straight legged, selfies are retarded, who is this Shonda Rhimes you speak of? curtains: yes please, people should control their carb intake a little better, millenials have to get their shit together, you are big boys and girls now c’mon, body hair removal is painful, religion is bullshit, gluten won’t kill you (unless you are a celiac), Harry Potter is good yet overrated, nut alergy sucks balls, Star Wars is shit (the prequels), art is nice, brining ruins a perfectly good turkey, ethics in gaming journalism (as in journalism in general) are compromised, and newsflash: you are not my fucking mom!
Elsewhere on the Internet, men jumped at the chance to offer opinions on the video about how men cannot resist offering opinions:
I’ll stop having an opinion on what women do with their bodies @Clairecmc.when you stop asking me to pay for it!
— TerpHeel (@NorthStateTerp) November 10, 2015
Dear @clairecmc: Men don’t think you should shut up about anything, because we are not cowardly chickenshits who fear opinions we don’t like
— JAIGuy (@J_A_I_Guy) November 10, 2015
This is a very strange attempt at humor. Feels more like cat lady off her meds than senator being wry https://t.co/GLCdPN8v8H
— Jonah Goldberg (@JonahNRO) November 10, 2015
It’s a joke silly. Love your bro pic. https://t.co/QTtskdotrX
— Claire McCaskill (@clairecmc) November 10, 2015
Can’t wait until the next time all the men now dissecting McCaskill’s video invariably tell feminists “it’s just a joke” or “stop being so sensitive” over an offensive portrayal of women in media. Male opinions are basically Beetlejuice; mention them regardless of context and they’re guaranteed to make an appearance!
(via The Slot)
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