Tweet

Tim Wise

26 Jun, 12 tweets, 2 min read

However one feels about NC State being disqualified from the College World Series bc of positive COVID tests (and I agree, it's questionable given crowds being able to attend w/o tests/masks), some of the anti-Vanderbilt sentiment is incredibly twisted and revealing...

THREAD

First, it's not the players' fault, so hating on them is just petty bullshit. Second, showing a pic of Fauci in a Vandy shirt is not evidence that the fix is in. Some of y'all need to put down the Alex Jones pipe. You are why we can't have nice things (2)...

After all, college baseball would benefit MORE from having a great amazing underdog team like NC State knock off the defending champs, than simply passing Vandy on to the finals. The "fix" theory is illogical on its own terms (3)...

But the worst hot take is the one where some of y'all say Vandy has an unfair edge bc they have 35 scholarships for their players compared to 11.7 for public schools. This is a) wrong, b) incredibly revealing about why some folks really hate Vandy, and c) a stupid argument (4)...

It's wrong bc they don't get more baseball schollys than others. Those are set by NCAA rules and for "minor" sports like baseball, are set at 11.7. When pushed, Vandy critics admit this but then bring up the "Opportunity Vanderbilt" program as if it gives Vandy the edge (5)...

But those scholarships are targeted to students w/financial need, almost all of whom aren't athletes. Star athletes good enuf to get one of the 11.7 already get them. There is NO evidence Vandy baseball loads up on stars with the OV schollys and critics present NO evidence (6)...

So, why do people assume this about Vandy? And why don't they say similar things about, say, Stanford, which also gives out big aid to folks with need, and could do the same thing as is alleged about Vandy? Hmm, it's a mystery (he says snarkily) (7)...

I'm sure it has NOTHING to do w/Vandy having several star players who are Black & thus ASSUMED, by resentful reactionaries (like the ones who think it's the Fauci fix) to be on big need-based aid, even while people know nothing about their families' financial situations? (8)...

Finally, the private/public unfairness argument is absurd on its face. If the idea is "privates can pay for players thereby making it cost affordable to attend," well, um...publics cost less to begin with, so that could give THEM the edge bc they don't NEED to pay (9)...

But that would be an equally ridiculous argument. If private schools being able to pay for talent with need-based financial aid made a difference, private schools would win every sports' biggest tournaments. Um, Google that shit: they don't (10)...

It's like y'all don't even think about things before you spew. I guess the "Rocker and Bradfield and Vaz and Thomas and Little MUST be getting preferential treatment" take is just too intoxicating to pass up, for some people (11)...

Look, I feel terrible for NC State. But to take out frustrations on Vandy when you have no idea what you're talking about -- and using arguments that give away your real resentments and hostility as being less than noble -- is pathetic. And typical. (END).

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

More from @timjacobwise

Tim Wise

@timjacobwise

23 Jun

The difference between liberals, conservatives & critical race theorists in one tweet

Liberals: 'America is failing to live up to its promises when it comes to equality'

Conservatives: 'No it's not.'

Critical Race Theorists: 'What promises? Those were never meant for everyone'

Fundamentally this is the key distinction. The right thinks racial disparities are the fault of those on the bottom. Liberals think we just haven't quite perfected our system. CRTs say this is exactly what the system was meant to produce...

One can agree or disagree with any of these, in turn, or perhaps come up with some hybrid of them if you choose. But to say one school of thought (CRT) is forbidden and too dangerous to allow people to hear is authoritarian thought control

Read 4 tweets

Tim Wise

@timjacobwise

21 Jun

My latest essay on how the attack on Critical Race Theory (and antiracist education more broadly) would require canceling the real MLK from being taught. Strategically, this is a key point to emphasize in our response to them. Pass it along...

timjwise.medium.com/conservatives-…

The reason this is an important response to the right's attack on CRT and antiracist education is two fold: first, they are seeking to wrap themselves in MLKs words, by distorting the only line they know of his. We must prevent them from effectively doing that...

And second, by responding with material like that I quote in this piece -- most of it stuff few people have ever read or heard from King -- we can further present the real MLK, which is helpful in and of itself...

Read 5 tweets

Tim Wise

@timjacobwise

18 Jun

I love it when folks say the South is so patriotic. They typically mean white conservatives of course. But historically white conservatives have been the LEAST patriotic group. Don't believe me?

A quick thread.

First, they wouldn't even join the nation unless slavery was protected & strengthened via the 3/5 compromise, a fugitive slave return provision in the constitution and the extension of the trans-Atlantic slave trade for 20 more years (2)...

@ProfCAnderson

...not to mention the 2nd Amendment, which, as @ProfCAnderson demonstrates in her brilliant new book, The Second, was principally about strengthening the white militia so as to put down possible rebellions by enslaved Black folks (3)...

Read 9 tweets

Tim Wise

@timjacobwise

18 Jun

Your daily reminder that those who would ban antiracist education or Critical Race Theory would have to ban MLK. And the only reason people don't realize this is they've never read King or listened to any of his speeches except one misinterpreted line from one speech

THREAD...

After all, King recognized the systemic nature of injustice and how to address it when he said:

"...the problems of racial injustice and economic injustice cannot be solved without a radical redistribution of political and economic power.” (2)

He also was clear about white ignorance:

'Whites are not putting in a similar mass effort to reeducate themselves out of racial ignorance. It is an aspect of their sense of superiority that the white people of America believe they have so little to learn.' (3)

Read 10 tweets

Tim Wise

@timjacobwise

17 Jun

Conservatives say we shouldn't teach that racism was embedded in the U.S. from the start bc that ignores the progress we've made. But only by understanding how deeply rooted racism has been can we truly appreciate the victories of the abolitionist or civil rights movements (1)...

By downplaying how central white supremacy was to the founding & creation of the country, we minimize how incredible the anti-slavery and larger freedom struggles were. Progress only has full meaning when contrasted with the depths of depravity from which it emerged (2)...

Ultimately, the reason the right doesn't want us teaching about racism isn't so we can focus on progress, but so we can ignore everything against which we needed progress to begin with. These are people who say we need to MAGA, which means they think we didn't need progress (3)..

Read 4 tweets

Tim Wise

@timjacobwise

16 Jun

Obviously, I'm no fan of Greg Kelly or Newsmax, but the main interpretation of his since-deleted tweet about military service & race is pretty clearly inaccurate. That said, what he IS saying, or trying to say, is also tone deaf and worth challenging...

A THREAD

On Sunday, Kelly tweeted this (2)...

At first glance, and taken literally, it sounds amazingly white supremacist. But truthfully, it should be obvious he's trying to be funny and ironic. Sadly, right-wingers aren't good at either, so it falls flat (3)...

Read 19 tweets

Support us! We are indie developers!

This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Too expensive? Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal Become our Patreon

Thank you for your support!