Saturday, 31 May 2025
Thursday, 29 May 2025
Red Carpets and Red Flags: The Rise and Rise of Cancel Culture
By Scholx
1970–1975
Terminology: Blacklisting, Shunning, Boycotting (legacy from earlier decades)
Context: Political activism and personal views led to unofficial blacklisting or career limits, but no formal “canceling.” Media tightly controlled narratives; no social media or widespread public campaigns.
Examples:
Jane Fonda — Vietnam War activism backlash (“Hanoi Jane”).
Paul Newman — Political activism caused tension but career intact.
Marilyn Chambers — Stigma crossing from adult films.
Marlon Brando — Political stances caused friction, no career loss.
Angela Davis — Controversial political support.
Analysis:
Boycotting was limited and informal, mostly driven by political blacklisting or social stigma. Public campaigns were rare and slow, with low levels of “canceling” as we know it today. The trend was stable but low, with isolated cases.
1975–1980
Terminology: Public Backlash, Controversy
Context: Scandals and activism drew media attention; studios controlled damage. “Canceling” as a term was absent.
Examples:
Richard Pryor — Drug problems public but no career collapse.
John Lennon — Political activism led to FBI surveillance, public backlash.
Jane Fonda — Continued activism with ongoing backlash.
Bill Cosby — Some controversy for views, career intact.
Liza Minnelli — Drug issues surfaced but career viable.
Analysis:
Boycotting increased slightly due to more vocal public opposition and media coverage, but still mostly controlled by studios and slow to affect careers deeply. The level was moderate and rising, but no widespread cancel culture yet.
1980–1985
Terminology: Falling out of favor, Career setbacks
Context: Media scrutiny increased; personal troubles caused limited industry pushback but no mass cancellations.
Examples:
Robert Downey Jr. — Early drug use began hurting career.
Dustin Hoffman — Misconduct allegations surfaced but no cancellation.
Tommy Lee Jones — Difficult behavior known but no fallout.
Mel Gibson — Rising star, clean image.
Mickey Rourke — Career slowed by personal issues.
Analysis:
Boycotting and “canceling” were sporadic and based on private industry decisions rather than public campaigns. The level was low and stable, with personal issues affecting individual careers quietly.
1985–1990
Terminology: Backlash, Public criticism
Context: Tabloids and TV exposed more celebrity misbehavior; public backlash grew but didn’t usually cause cancellations.
Examples:
Robert Downey Jr. — Drug arrests began damaging career.
Mel Gibson — Career ascending, no controversies.
Christian Slater — Drug and legal troubles hurt image.
Winona Ryder — Rebellious image but career strong.
Richard Gere — Criticized for activism but working.
Analysis:
Public criticism and boycotting increased but were still largely limited to media backlash and damage to reputation rather than formal cancellations. The trend was rising moderately.
1990–1995
Terminology: Public relations crisis, Career trouble
Context: 24-hour news cycle increased pressure; arrests/scandals led to lost roles or bad press.
Examples:
Robert Downey Jr. — Multiple arrests, jail, lost roles.
Mel Gibson — Career strong, no scandals.
Winona Ryder — Slight public scrutiny.
Mickey Rourke — Career decline.
Charlie Sheen — Drug/behavior problems began.
Analysis:
Boycotting began to affect careers more tangibly, with studios dropping or suspending actors for public trouble. Level was moderate and increasing.
1995–2000
Terminology: Firing, Dropped from projects
Context: Studios became less tolerant of bad behavior; dropping actors became common for career protection.
Examples:
Robert Downey Jr. — Dropped from projects due to addiction.
Charlie Sheen — Ongoing issues, still working.
Mel Gibson — Career strong.
Drew Barrymore — Drug problems, successful comeback.
Mark Wahlberg — Past criminal history questioned.
Analysis:
Boycotting evolved into formal industry action such as firing or dropping actors, with public support. The level was high and rising, starting to resemble early cancel culture dynamics.
2000–2005
Terminology: Career setbacks, Public fallout
Context: Internet and early social media amplified scandals; public apologies and rehab became part of recovery.
Examples:
Robert Downey Jr. — Rehab, slow comeback.
Mel Gibson — Controversies brewing.
Winona Ryder — Shoplifting arrest, career setback.
Lindsay Lohan — Legal and partying issues began.
Britney Spears — Personal struggles emerged.
Analysis:
Public scrutiny and boycotting rose sharply due to digital media growth. The level was high and rising, with public opinion playing a larger role.
2005–2010
Terminology: Public backlash, Boycott calls
Context: Social media platforms grow, enabling public to call for boycotts and hold celebrities accountable quickly.
Examples:
Mel Gibson — 2006 anti-Semitic rant sparked huge backlash, studio distancing.
Lindsay Lohan — Ongoing publicized legal troubles.
Winona Ryder — Rebuilding after shoplifting scandal.
Charlie Sheen — Public meltdown begins.
Tiger Woods — Infidelity scandal destroyed image.
Analysis:
Boycotting became more public, organized, and impactful, especially with social media amplifying calls. Level was very high and rising sharply.
2010–2015
Terminology: Call-out culture, Online shaming
Context: Online shaming and call-out culture rise; studios respond more rapidly to controversies.
Examples:
Mel Gibson — Continued condemnation.
Lindsay Lohan — Reputational damage ongoing.
Amanda Bynes — Public mental health struggles heavily ridiculed.
Charlie Sheen — Fired from show after meltdown.
Kanye West — Controversial statements spark backlash.
Analysis:
Boycotting reached a peak in public engagement and speed, with social media mobs influencing industry decisions. Level was very high, possibly at its peak.
2015–2020
Terminology: Cancel culture, De-platforming
Context: The term “cancel culture” is mainstream; careers destroyed quickly after allegations or offenses.
Examples:
Mel Gibson — Attempted comeback met with criticism.
Roseanne Barr — Cancelled after racist tweet, show canceled immediately.
Kevin Spacey — Career ended after abuse allegations.
Louis C.K. — Lost deals post-misconduct admission.
James Franco — Allegations impacted projects.
Analysis:
Boycotting and canceling became institutionalized and normalized; speed and severity increased. Level was very high and peaking.
2020–Present
Terminology: Cancel culture fully established
Context: Instant global response via social media; studios and sponsors sever ties rapidly.
Examples:
Gina Carano — Fired for controversial posts.
Shia LaBeouf — Misconduct accusations led to role losses.
Armie Hammer — Sexual abuse allegations caused removals.
Johnny Depp — Legal battles and backlash hurt career.
Mel Gibson — Continues comeback attempts amid controversy.
Analysis:
Boycotting/canceling is now fully embedded in Hollywood culture, fast, widespread, and often irreversible. Level remains very high, with some calls for moderation emerging.
Monday, 26 May 2025
Visa scam
https://honorificabilitudinitatibus1.blogspot.com/2025/05/blog-post.html
You ever call customer service, get a cheerful voice on the line, and think, “This guy sounds more American than I do”? Surprise—you're talking to a bloke in El Salvador who got deported from the U.S. for having too many parking tickets... or possibly a felony. Either way—cheers to immigration policy, the unsung hero of outsourced tech support.
See, the U.S. decided, “Let’s deport thousands of people who grew up in America, speak perfect English, and know more about our pop culture than half the Midwest.” El Salvador said, “Fine by us, we’ve got a few empty buildings and a lot of phones.” Boom—instant call center industry.
It’s poetic, really. America kicks them out, then pays their employers to hire them back... just with worse dental. You can't make this stuff up. These guys spent more time watching Friends than Salvadoran news, but now they're explaining your overdraft fees with a smile and a hint of trauma.
Jonathan Blitzer from The New Yorker called it “the only part of the formal economy that makes use of their skill set.”¹ That’s code for: You sound American enough to get screamed at by Karen from Nebraska without her realizing you're 2,000 miles south of Texas.
So next time you’re yelling “Let me speak to your supervisor,” remember: you probably already have. He just got deported last week.
¹ Jonathan Blitzer, “The Deportees Taking Our Calls,” The New Yorker, January 23, 2017, https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/01/23/the-deportees-taking-our-call
Wednesday, 21 May 2025
The Physical Risks of Fame: The Beatles in Hamburg, 1960–1962 — and the New Agōn of Playing Under Trump
The Physical Risks of Fame: The Beatles in Hamburg, 1960–1962 — and the New Agōn of Playing Under Trump
Scholx Thoughts and Reflections, May 21st 2025
"Fame is a furnace. If you come out unburnt, you probably weren’t in it."
I. The Crucible of Hamburg
Between August 1960 and December 1962, five young Liverpudlian musicians endured a modern-day agōge—the brutal, mythic training ground of Hamburg's red-light district. It was not the glimmering fame of The Ed Sullivan Show that baptized them, but the smoke, blood, and exhaustion of the Kaiserkeller and the Star-Club. Eight-hour sets. Speed pills. Knife fights. Deportation. Death.
John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison, Stuart Sutcliffe, and Pete Best didn't play for glamor. They played for survival. Their first booking at the Indra Club was more trial than triumph. The crowd was rowdy: dockworkers, sailors, prostitutes. Paul and Pete were arrested for setting a condom alight to see in the dark. George, seventeen, was deported. Sutcliffe would be dead within two years, likely from a blow to the head during a street fight. This was not music as entertainment. It was music as ordeal.
II. Arete and Agōn: Risk as Rite
The Greeks called it arete: the pursuit of excellence, achieved only through enduring struggle—agon. For the Beatles, Hamburg was their arena. Their myth began not in charts but in chaos. Risk wasn't incidental to fame; it was the forge.
This is where modern musicians falter. Platforms like TikTok and sanitized studio deals offer reach without rupture. But true greatness doesn't come without scars. There is a physical cost to genius. Bleeding fingers. Starved bodies. The ever-looming risk of exile, arrest, collapse.
III. A New Reeperbahn: Playing Under Trump
Now, in 2025, a new crucible emerges. A band I know was offered a gig in the United States. But this isn’t just another tour stop. It's Trump’s America—a land where dissenting artists face threats of deportation, censorship, or worse. Some bands backed out. Too risky. Too exposed.
But this band? They're still considering it. Because like the Beatles in Hamburg, they sense what this really is: an agon.
The parallels are exacting. A foreign land. Legal peril. The risk of jail. The stage not as sanctuary, but as battleground. In Trump’s America, to play is to provoke. To perform is to defy. The concert becomes confrontation.
And maybe that’s the point. Maybe that’s where the myth begins.
IV. Manual for the Would-Be God of Sound
To chase arete in this era:
Enter the Furnace: Your Hamburg may be Alabama, Texas, or Ohio. It may be a tour under threat. Go anyway.
Say Yes to the Grind: Play until your fingers split. Record until you hate the sound. Then keep going.
Risk the Body: Your presence is your protest. Stand in the fire.
Court the Unknown: If the law trembles at your art, you are on the right path.
Embrace Brotherhood: Go in with your band. Go in together, or not at all.
Know You Might Fail: Stuart died. George was deported. You are not safe. But fame was never for the safe.
Sacrifice Comfort for Myth: The risk becomes the story. The furnace becomes the firelight.
V. Epilogue: The Fire Waits for No One
The Beatles emerged from Hamburg forged, not found. Their genius was beaten into them by the world’s indifference. And this band now faces the same choice: risk obscurity for safety, or walk into the furnace and become legend.
If they get a second chance, let them take it.
Because the fire does not wait. And only the ones who burn become myth.
Let them choose. And let history remember the ones who dared.
Citations
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Spitz, Bob. The Beatles: The Biography. Little, Brown and Company, 2005.
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Lewisohn, Mark. Tune In: The Beatles: All These Years, Volume 1. Crown Archetype, 2013.
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Norman, Philip. Shout!: The Beatles in Their Generation. Fireside, 1981.
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Sutcliffe, Pauline. The Beatles’ Shadow: Stuart Sutcliffe and His Lonely Hearts Club. Sidgwick & Jackson, 2001.