Most of you will remember the case of Kyle Rittenhouse—the teenager who saw a Wisconsin town on fire, brought a gun to see if he could help, and ended up killing two men in self-defense. This instantly made him a cause célèbre for conservatives and a target for the left. And it wasn’t just Rittenhouse himself in the crosshairs. When the teenager began crowdfunding for his legal defense, there was a sudden intense interest in who was donating to him. A watchdog group obtained a list of names, including a police officer named William Kelly. Kelly gave $25 anonymously with the message “God bless. Thank you for your courage. Keep your head up. You’ve done nothing wrong. Every rank and file police officer supports you. Don’t be discouraged by actions of the political class of law enforcement leadership.”
Within less than a week of the leak, William Kelly had been fired. The city manager said his comments were “egregious” and “eroded trust” between his department and the people they were sworn to serve. The city’s police chief said a department can’t do its job when the public “loses trust with those whose duty is to serve and protect them.” They wouldn’t want “perceptions of any individual officer” to erode that trust.
This happened in 2021. Now, fast-forward to July, 2024. Donald Trump has nearly been assassinated. On an Instagram post about the shooting, a Dallas PD officer posts the comment, “Aim better.” Allegedly, it’s visible only to his friends. But it becomes public, and he’s immediately put on paid leave while the department investigates. The officer’s lawyer has claimed the remark was taken out of context and was meant as a reference to the inept Secret Service. His police chief says that if this defense proves untrue, then “the comment made has no place in our society and certainly no place in law enforcement.”
Meanwhile, in Pennsylvania, a fireman made a tweet that left his meaning in no doubt: “Too bad it didn’t hit him square.” The tweet was reported and removed, but not before a screenshot had gone viral. He later announced that his reputation was in tatters, his family and friends had received threats, and he had chosen to resign. “I’m ashamed that I’ve brought this to you. I’ve already lost several people extremely close to me. I expect to lose more.”
In upstate New York, a woman named Darcy Waldron Pinckney posted a comment on a friend’s Facebook wall that left her meaning in no doubt: “To [sic] bad they weren’t a better shooter!!!!” When someone challenged her, she doubled down: “He is the definition of corrupt and evil.”
Not long afterwards, a man tracked her down at her place of work, berated her on camera, and sent the video viral, vowing to “make you famous.” In a couple days, she was fired, with a statement that her behavior did not reflect the company’s “values.” Her employer? Home Depot.
The officer, the fireman, and the Home Depot lady are all on a list of “scalps” currently being collected by Libs of TikTok, a watchdog Twitter account that curates and highlights the worst of radical leftism. In the wake of the assassination attempt, multiple people have felt free to post their regret that it was unsuccessful, including several school employees and university instructors. As their remarks come to light and go viral, they’ve been receiving a taste of the left’s own cancel culture medicine. Some are calling this justice. Some are saying it’s gone too far, especially for Home Depot lady. The “scalps” have also included other low-status employees, including a kitchen chef and a pharmacy worker.
Most people sense that a line must be drawn somewhere. But where exactly is the line to be drawn between the fireman and the Home Depot lady? And what exactly does it say about us that we’re even having this conversation? That is the question.
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