There’s a class of political attacks that consists of embarrassing the targets. Here’s a very recent example:
We spoke directly to Wayne LaPierre at the NRA Convention and thanked him for all his thoughts and prayers. pic.twitter.com/EfdDrgD4Af
— The Good Liars (@TheGoodLiars) May 29, 2022
WaPo provides a summary:
“You heard [the criticism] after Las Vegas, you heard it after Pulse Nightclub in Orlando, you heard it after Columbine, you heard it after Parkland, you heard it after Virginia Tech, you heard it after Sandy Hook, you heard it after El Paso, you heard it after Buffalo. You kept hearing that Wayne LaPierre isn’t doing enough.”
But that’s not true, [Jason Selvig] said. The NRA, under LaPierre’s leadership, had given victims’ family members thoughts and prayers, “and maybe these mass shootings would stop happening if we all thought a little bit more and we prayed a little bit more.”
Then he addressed a confused-looking LaPierre.
“I want to thank you … for all your thoughts and all your prayers — thank you.”
It’s the sarcastic attack.
But do these things ever work? Maybe they’re targeted, much like debates, on the audience and not the apparent target.
But it almost seems like art in a very macabre context.
