The Thinking ‘Kat: Do as I say, not as I do
Not for the first time, I have had people object to me, a Brit, commenting on US politics. Not for the first time, all I can think of is how ironic this is.
Bloggers such as Derrick Thomas Thiessen and Barabbas Me have remarked upon UK politics despite not being British, and then without a shred of self-awareness, rebuked me for commenting on US politics. I have also received some rather virulent abuse for having exercised my voice to reference US politics, which I detailed in this post. In acts of further irony, Derrick Thomas Thiessen is not American, and does not live in the USA, yet sees fit to have his say on US matters on a near-weekly basis.
There seems to be something of a trend with conservative right-wing commentators. ‘Do as I say, not as I do.’ That certainly seems to fit the theme of my recent back and forth with Citizen Tom. It seems when conservative politicians are being disingenuous and duplicitous, it is excused, with desperate arguments made for how they aren’t really being dishonest. ‘It’s fake news, it’s not really hypocrisy, it’s this, it’s that!’ Do these conservative bloggers give Democrats the same benefit of the doubt? Of course not.
I do not care if people from overseas remark upon UK politics. I have read some absolute, and unsubstantiated, absurdities, including the oft-repeated yet never verified claim that Brits are getting arrested over posts on social media. By all means, make the claim that somehow freedom of expression is being oppressed here. I have no problem with such comments, though I have to roll my eyes at how absurd they are. If Britain is such a cesspool of draconian authoritarianism, why is Nigel Farage, one of the primary opposition leaders, getting such constant media airtime? Why is his voice, and that of many other right-wingers, amplified on Twitter without meaningful consequence? Surely the likes of Tommy Robinson would be in jail right now?!
When I comment on US politics, I will do what I can to provide evidence to back up my remarks. I don’t particularly need to justify why I comment on US politics (all I will say is that US policies tend to carry a global impact), but nonetheless, I try to offer substance behind my arguments. The people who make claims about UK politics are free to do so, but rarely provide substance. That’s fine, but it tends to be a further example of ‘do as I say, not as I do’. In my experience, conservative commentators are not interested in facts, but quite expecting of others to provide them.
My view is simple. Comment on what you want to comment on. Exercise your freedom to speak. If you are an American wishing to pass comment on British society, go for it. If you are Japanese and which to write about Brazilian politics, go for it. If you are prepared to complain that a foreigner is writing of your nation’s politics whilst simultaneously writing about another country’s affairs, don’t be surprised when you are called out for being a hypocrite. If you’re going to make unsubstantiated claims, I’ll take an even dimmer view. If you have a pathological aversion to practicing what you preach, don’t surprised if that gets a rebuke.
‘Kat Comments