Ok here's what were gonna do / science / writing

Epic Bullying

Posted on by 136 Comments

#Shirtstorm

The Bullies Won

Long Live the Bullies

Who will stand with me for individuality, and freedom of expression?

philae

The bullying started with a ‘reporter’ focusing on an irrelevant detail instead of a monumental human achievement. It ended in triumph for the bullies when the geek who’d been targeted apologized to them in tears, because he was in danger of losing his livelihood if he didn’t kowtow to their desires.

I’m furious. This is simply unacceptable. It is not ok to let the bullies win. I’ve spent years telling my daughters that it’s ok to be different, to not dress like every other girl in school. It’s ok for them to be geeks, to love science, to be in band, to not do what all the cool kids think they ought to do. And now, this comes along and suddenly all the work I have done is set back by the prissy mean girls who can’t stand that geeks are Odds.

My initial comment on this stands.  “Arguing that this is why women don’t go into science is beyond ludicrous. Based on my observations at school, most women don’t go into science because it would mess up their hair and chip their nails, and they went to school where they passed because they were girls, and science is HARD, so they switch to journalism. And the few, the proud, the insanely weird like all the others we know and love in the field, we keep going because Science is cool, and that’s where the boys are (and who wants to hang out with a bunch of girls who are only interested in critiquing your shirt?).”

I bought two shirts today. One is for my First Reader, one is for me. I’ll model it for the blog when it arrives. (Edited to add, the Gunner Gals shirt the scientist is wearing can be found here, I bought that design, and the one pictured below, because spaceships).

And Matt Taylor, I realize you will never see this, or your awesome friend Elly Prizeman who made the shirt for you. But I’m so sad that the bullies took the joy out of your amazing accomplishments, and the pleasure from wearing your cool shirt. I hope someday you can don it again with a smile, instead of seeing the cloud they are raining on you with right now. Philae is a reason for kids to get into science, your shirt is just a great expression of individual freedom.

Welcome, Instapundit Readers! Glad to see you, and thanks for helping me tell the world.

SFnal Shirt

Classic SF, Women who carried rayguns and faced down space monsters. What’s not to love about this?

136 thoughts on “Epic Bullying”

  1. And just like that, a great scientific achievement becomes all about the social justice.

    What a small and petty society they have created.

    Liked by 4 people

  2. Pingback: Epic Bullying | Cedar Writes | Head Noises

  3. Note that the pictured shirt isn’t quite this one. Although it is similar (she may have got the fabric from the same place or it be an older version.or something).

    Personal;ly I like the red version better. I’ll have to see if someone will buy it for me as a Xmas present ….

    Liked by 2 people

  7. I just have to have the writing career work, because I really don’t think I could live with a job where I’d have to apologize for offending these special snowflakes.

    Instead, I prefer to go out of my to offend them. After stunts like this, they freaking deserve it. That shirt wasn’t hurting a soul. Claiming it’s why more women aren’t in science is like saying World War II nose art is the reason there weren’t more women bomber pilots. The two have nothing to do with one another.

    Liked by 3 people

  8. I believe the proper response to this should have been a presser alright. but not for an apology. I believe my response would have been summat like teh following

    “Hmmm so my employers were all twitchy and afeared because a small number of people supposedly of the fairer sex, got their panties in a twist over my shirt. Instead of focusing on what the team I’m a part of just accomplished because that’s what this is truly about. Nope you pimples on a donkey’s ass, focus on a SHIRT! A shirt that was custom made for me by a lovely lady friend for my birthday. Let me reiterate this for the hard of hearing and the willfully STUPID! You excretions from a camels stomach focus NOT on the major scientific accomplishment of landing a rover on a COMET, nope. No you want to get offended over a shirt! Why? Well because that’s what you do…you are professional victims taking offense at everything to increase your social media foot print. Whiners and cowards. That’s fine. My employers wanted me to apologize to you weak minded moronic incompetents. My answer to that is NO, if they want to can me for this, because they’re weak willed, well…they WILL have to fire me. But back to those small minded individuals raising the ruckus. Ladies? and I use that term loosely. Go forth and sexually pleasure yourselves with a dildo soaked in ghost chile sauce. You professional leeches. Hmm referring to you as leeches is probably an insult to the leech species but..it’s the best I can do with out delving into the truly profane, and scatological. That is all.

    Liked by 4 people

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  11. This has to be the dumbest outrage I’ve ever read. I feel bad for the guy. He doesn’t deserve to lose his job over is. If I wore that shirt on TV, I’d probably be fired, but I’m a businessman, not a scientist. The pattern doesn’t matter, a Hawaiian shirt is not professional. You should be wearing something classier on TV. I have plenty of shirts I like to wear around the house and on the weekend. I would not wear them to work. I’d feel stupid. If you can’t realize this looks unprofessional, stupid, etc, maybe you should work in academia forever, where walking around looking like some sort of individualist dumbass is actually a benefit.

    Liked by 1 person

    • Here’s the thing, this isn’t the first time he had worn the shirt. It’s likely he didn’t anticipate the filming, as I have seen it said that they were looking to find someone who wasn’t an official spokesperson to talk to, and this guy got picked on, likely because he did stand out.

      Not classy? That’s a matter of taste. As it happens, I’m an artist. I like cheesecake. This shirt meets my approval, but then again, I’m also a freelancer and a performer, have been for years. Just because society likes to stick people in boxes (called cubicles) and dictate what they wear, doesn’t mean everyone has to go along with that.

      Liked by 2 people

      • If he just got picked, I feel bad for him. Like I said, I hope he doesn’t lose his job for this. I severely doubt he’s a misogynist.

        It is a severely stupid shirt to have worn if he knew he’d be interviewed. I like to wear my 80s punk and post punk shirts. You may see me wearing one around if I run in on the weekends or after hours to use some of the things I don’t have access to at home. I don’t wear them to work.

        I dress business casual unless I’m told differently. I sometimes dress business casual even when I’m told professional. Probably not a big deal to most people, but I’ve had complaints. I don’t mean to sound like an ass, but Hawaiian shirts are just ridiculous. You will be taken advantage of in a situition like this by someone dressed nicer than you. I’ve done it before with my boss’ boss. If you can make the person embarrassed about what they’re wearing, you win. I’m not saying it’s right, but it’s the way it is.

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        • I sometimes dress business casual even when I’m told professional. Probably not a big deal to most people, but I’ve had complaints.

          That’s because you violated the dress code. Here’s the thing though, no one is saying Matt Taylor violated any dress code. They’re not saying he broke any policy against Hawaiian shirts. They’re saying he wore a shirt that didn’t make them feel warm and fuzzy and that he should be flayed alive (OK, a slight amount of hyperbole there).

          I don’t think Hawaiian shirts are the best choice for a work environment either, but if the dress code allows it, our opinions on that subject are irrelevant.

          Liked by 3 people

          • I posted a follow-up this morning, and did a little digging. It seems that Matt Taylor had gotten in trouble before for his tattoos, and had been asked to cover them up in a previous incident, but also, that his personal style and body-art choices are a signature of his, his way of trying to engage a younger, hipper generation. Given that he was wearing that shirt, I’d say he had at the least implicit permission, if not explicit.

            Liked by 1 person

            • Or he got in trouble for his tattoos. Hid them with a hideous Hawaiian shirt, and hadn’t been called on that yet. I feel less bad for the guy now. If I decided to respond to complaints of showing up in a polo shirt by showing up in a money patterned suit, I’d expect to be fired. I might get a lot of joy out of it, but I’d be fired. I’m hoping I’d get the same blogosphere angry reaction, but I doubt that would happen. If I want to quit now, I’ll just wear a suit with some scantily clad women on it. I probably wouldn’t get the same angry reaction on blogs, though. Then again, it’s not like I’m putting a spacecraft on a comet. Those people are beyond our norms and comprehension and should be able to do what they want with no repercussions.

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          • Good to know you would support me being fired for wearing an orange polo shirt to meet with people also wearing Polo shirts, but you don’t see a problem with someone going on tv with a stupid looking Hawaiian shirt that completely distracted from their message. That makes a whole lot of sense.

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            • For the last time. You have a dress code. You admitted you willfully dressed in a manner contrary to your instructions. In other words, you did something other than what you were explicitly told to do. Don’t like it? Get another job.

              This guy wore a shirt that he most likely wore several times before, and similar in style to what he usually wore. While it does appear they asked him to cover up his tattoos and he didn’t, that’s not what he got in trouble over. It was a shirt, and no one has shown any policy over why that shirt wasn’t allowed.

              Now, is there any other area of this that you’re not comprehending?

              All you’ve been doing is injecting your own sense of taste and style, and possibly your employers dress code, into the discussion as if it actually matters.

              Like

        • Believe it or not, there are LOTS of fine Hawaiian shirts that are quite appropriate for business casual, that go just fine with slacks and even a tie and sports jacket if required. They are not all bright and loud, many are quite subtle and done in silk and cotton lawn, some with Oxford collars.

          Heck, the Hawaiians invented the idea of business casual. .

          Liked by 1 person

          • Dad, who attended High school on the Big Island as a military brat, once told me that the way you can tell an original Hawaiian shirt is if the fabric is inside out. Seems the garish trade cloth was a bit much, so they would tone it down by flipping it over and stitching it up that way.

            Personally, I love the bright colors and have been known to perform in a vintage pink-orange-and-yellow floral.

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            • I’ve collected vintage aloha shirts for years, and your dad is spot on. The label saying “Made in Hawaii” is also a big tip-off. 🙂 Also, there are the Tahitian and other bark-cloths and batiks that can be pretty awesome.

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    • Actually you are quite correct and absolutely wrong. A business person or a public affairs person must dress professionally. A technician or other worker? well that depends on the climate where they work. I have workred in places where the employees were told to dress down because suits and full makeup were not appropriate for the warehouse position and the heels were a safety hazard. Other positions all that is worried about is being legal and not distracting your co-workers. The shirt was apparently fine til some bimbo with a camera wanted to feel special. therefore you are correct about business attire and wrong about everything else

      Like

    • You know what? New fisking rule:

      If you help land a space probe on a comet, you get to wear any damn shirt you want to. And no-one gets to criticize you unless and until they have matched the feat.

      “Professional” is whatever the hell the actual professional says it is.

      Because fashion is entirely subjective, changes by the minute, and has no rules based on empirical evidence AT ALL.

      Liked by 2 people

    • The guy just landed the probe on the comet, he is the best professional in this profession, so it is up to him to dictate the limits of “professional behaviour”. You either accept him, or get out from the field. At least until you did something comparable.

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  12. here’s the thing. people who worry about insignificant things like what shirt to wear on TV don’t accomplish something that no human has ever accomplished ever before in the history of the world. what an embarrassing generation we’ve become.

    Liked by 1 person

  13. Start an e-mail campaign to the advertisers who support The Atlantic. Tell them to halt their support until bullies like Rose Eveleth are fired from their journalistic positions.

    Liked by 3 people

  15. They may not read it, but…

    Matt Taylor, you and the whole team accomplished incredible things! Inspiring and fascinating things! Ignore the bullies, they’re small minded and craven.

    Elly Prizeman, awesome shirt! It’s a wonderful celebration of the beauty of women. Wonderful gift for your friend, and I’m glad he wore it on his historic day.

    For the bullies — you don’t want to hear what I think of you.

    Liked by 4 people

  16. You know what? New fisking rule:

    If you help land a space probe on a comet, you get to wear any damn shirt you want to. And no-one gets to criticize you unless and until they have matched the feat.

    “Professional” is whatever the hell the actual professional says it is.

    Because fashion is entirely subjective, changes by the minute, and has no rules based on empirical scientific evidence AT ALL.

    Liked by 1 person

  19. The author, for some reason, omitted the names of the contemptible, bullying scum: Chris Plante, Arielle Duhaime-Ross at “The Verge”, joined by Ed Yong and Rose Eveleth, and every other SJW POS who piled on via twitter.

    Oh, and boycott “The Verge”.

    Like

    • I omitted names in this post. I call out Rose in my follow-up. But frankly, this was more about support for the fellow in the shirt than it was about going after anyone in particular. There were too many to name, I just pointed at a behaviour that needs to stop.

      Liked by 4 people

      • Someone started an IndieGogo to buy him a very nice watch, and says they’ll use any extra funds to buy dinner for the whole probe crew. They’re over $7000 last I checked.

        How much to trust an IG funder is your own mileage, of course.

        Liked by 1 person

  21. I’ve read everything and watched all the videos and come to my judgement: he shall henceforth be known as The Mohican Shirtstorm guy in my memory. Who else thought the chick on the lander control team was hot!?!

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  23. A lot of the “he shouldn’t have worn that shirt!” stuff reminds me of an XO we had, that went around during cleaning quarters and threw massive fits because people up to their elbows cleaning didn’t have boots that were well polished and were wearing coveralls, not utilities.

    Also the PR people who throw fits that candid photos of shipboard life don’t look like recruiting posters.

    Liked by 1 person

  25. Joey McDaniel, it’s your behavior that labels you. Your, “what you’re wearing is more important than what you *do,*” attitude, is wildly inappropriate in High Tech industries. 30 years ago, H. Ross Perot (yes that Perot) has a “dress code,” for his EDS staff. It was, “Pinstripe suits, white shirt, dark tie, short hair (for men _and_ women), no facial hair, and polished shoes.” Funny ting, no “highly competent, free thinking,” Computer people would work for EDS. None were willing to put up with such “petty bull feces.” He _wanted_, top of the line, highly competent people, what he _got_ was “rule following, mid level,” workers. Companies that said. “We don’t care what length your hair is, what you wear (as long as it fits public decency laws, and doesn’t offend the *clients*), and *do outstanding work.”* Those companies got the “best and brightest.” The same ones that said, “No way” to EDS.
    When you, or any other “corporate clown,” care more about “dress codes” than the quality of work, you have chosen mediocrity.

    Liked by 1 person

    • My husband worked in IT in the Bay Area pre-bust and for computers… if your employee *bathed* it was a bonus. The goatee beard and pony-tail weren’t a fashion statement beyond “I don’t have time to see a barber.” The T-shirts were Vendor Loot.

      Like

  26. If a shirt with scantily (and not all that scantily at that) clad babes on it is going to keep some “Delicate Flower” from pursuing a career in STEM, then how are they going to handle something like a thesis defense?

    What that “journalist” was saying, along with everybody who supports her, is that women are too weak to deal with even minor “cheesecake” without having the vapors over it.

    And that is an incredibly sexist thing to say.

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  27. The reason we don’t need “feminism” anymore, is because no single cause nor interest unites all women. What we have are several dozen (maybe several hundred?) different little versions of woman-ish philosophy and theory, much of it contradictory and/or competing with itself for adherents and popularity. Almost like secular churches proselytizing among men and women alike, for devoutness and followers. Each sect may identify as “feminist” so that if you suggest feminism is irrelevant or problematic, they react as if you’re saying their brand specifically is irrelevant and problematic. When it may not be. I think “old school” feminism that focuses on equality of opportunity and the problem of domestic violence is useful. Unfortunately I think many self-styled media feminists are “new school” and indulge far too much in lazy man-bashing and “speshul” pleading, emotional logic, etc.

    Liked by 2 people

    • I’ve summarized it as having moved past a quest for equality, which is where feminism was born, to seeking supremacy. I’ll have none of the grinding evul men under the bootheel. Although I adhere to many of the tenets of feminism as originally espoused, I will not call myself a feminist.

      Liked by 2 people

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  30. Great response to a mean self-centred pointless act that grabbed way more attention than it deserved.
    I may not be smart enough to be a geek who flies spaceships to faraway comets but I am smart enough to recognise a cool shirt when I see one. So guess what’s now at the top of my Xmas list. I reckon that by wearing a copy of that shirt I’m pushing back against bullies. And ‘ll be cool to boot.

    Like

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