In an age of rage, it is often difficult to stand out in the mob as so many pander to the perpetually irate. However, New York Times columnist Jamelle Bouie has found a way to win the race to the bottom. In a posting on Bluesky, Bouie mocked the account of the addiction of the mother of Vice President J.D. Vance, saying that she should have sold her son for drugs.
Bouie used Bluesky (the digital safe zone for the viewpoint intolerant on the left) to post one of the most reprehensible attacks on Vance. Bouie wrote that “this is a wicked man who knows he is being wicked and does it anyway.” That is hardly notable on today’s rage scale. However, he then decided to use the painful addiction history of Beverly Aikins against her son: “No wonder his mom tried to sell him for Percocets. [I] can’t imagine a parent who wouldn’t sell little JD for percocet if they knew he would turn out like this.’
Vance wrote a celebrated bestseller, “Hillbilly Elegy,” about his difficult childhood with a mother who became addicted to pain medication and eventually found herself stealing drugs from her patients. It was a tragic account of how addiction tore their family apart, but also a tale of redemption: “I knew that a mother could love her son despite the grip of addiction. I knew that my family loved me, even when they struggled to take care of themselves.”
In April of last year, Vance celebrated his mother’s decade of sobriety.
As I discuss in my new book “Rage and the Republic,” a common element to past radical movements has been the dehumanization of political opponents. In calling others “Gestapo,” “fascists,” and “Nazis,” you achieve a certain license to say and do things that you would ordinarily never say or do. By stripping them of any humanity or right to empathy, you are free to discard the limitations of decency and civility.
Rage is itself a type of drug. It is addictive and, while they never admit it, they like it.
Bouie shows the lack of self-awareness in his hateful posts, objecting that “this is a wicked man who knows he is being wicked and does it anyway.” It is the ultimate example of transference; a self-description ascribed to those you hate.
On his New York Times bio, Bouie insists that “I come from a left-leaning, social democratic perspective, but I strive for honesty, fairness and good faith in my writing.” He adds that “I abide by the same rigorous ethical standards as all Times journalists.”
If using Vance’s tragic childhood and his mother’s addiction is an example of the “fairness and good faith” of the New York Times, it is a chilling prospect.
In his book, Vance observes that the children of broken and impoverished homes often give up hope, as he did: “Psychologists call it “learned helplessness” when a person believes, as I did during my youth, that the choices I made had no effect on the outcomes in my life.”
He found that choices do matter in shaping your life. We all make such choices, as did Bouie in becoming another voice of rage and the New York Times in giving him a platform to amplify his views.
It is the same choice that the Times makes in barring a U.S. senator and firing editors for exposing readers to alternative viewpoints while publishing those who advocate repression or rationalize political violence. To the obvious appeal of its readers, the paper now peddles in hate to feed a national addiction.
In the end, Vance and his mother have overcome far greater challenges than this vicious columnist or the hatefest at Bluesky. From adversity, they found a strength and a bond that has inspired many who are struggling with such addictions and poverty.
It is clear who is “wicked” in these postings. Perhaps it is even strangely edifying and self-condemning. As Victor Hugo observed, “the wicked envy and hate; it is their way of admiring.”
Turley sure loves to pull on MAGA’s leg often. Ironically, so the right can rage about the left. If you take a gander at Bouie Jamelle’s blue-sky quote, you can tell he’s not being serious about the comment Turley is raging about.
Of course, Turley, as always, didn’t tell you the whole story. Shocking, I know. What Turley didn’t bother to tell you is that the post on Blue Sky wasn’t done in a vacuum. It was a response to an interview he did with JD Vance. When he asked him if he would apologize to the family of Alex Pretti for the clearly unjustified shooting, he responded by saying “No” and a smirk, which is a pretty good justification for calling him a wicked man.
The Percocet jab was just a jab. He was responding to a commenter on his thread. This is par for the course on any social media comment section these days. What Turley neglected to mention, again, a big surprise, is the accompanying follow-up to the comment that got Turley all hot and bothered,
“To be a bit serious, one irony of Vance’s life is that he is also an addict: addicted to power and clearly willing to sell anything to get it.”
The rest of the posts on his thread are typical of any comment section, just like Turley’s own blog. Some pretty wildly racist and bigoted posts on this blog are rarely removed. The rage on the right is on par with that of the left. But Turley doesn’t seem to want to chastise the right as much because he knows MAGA will eat him alive if he does.
It is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a man, but rather it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles a man. Matthew 15:11
“I abide by the same rigorous ethical standards as all Times journalists.”
Would that be the same “rigorous ethical standards” as pushing the Russiagate hoax?
Stay classy, NYT.
Wow, just wow. Professor, when trying to sell books, he sure goes all out. The hypocrisy is wild. I seem to remember lots of Republicans disparaging Hunter Biden’s addiction as a means to attack or denigrate President Biden’s alleged misdeeds.
When Turley refuses to discuss or even bring up the same kind of rhetoric the right uses to dehumanize those on the left and gaslight shooting victims less than an hour after a federal agents shoot them makes any of these assertions and gripes ring hollow and grossly hypocritical. Ironically, fascists tend to do this against their political enemies, and I don’t mean those on the left.
Turley thinks ‘’rage” is like a drug? That’s just plain stupid. People are going to be angry and upset when they see the Trump administration engaging in wanton cruelty and violence with their immigration enforcement tactics. Poorly vetted and trained officers hired off the street, or accepting police recruits who are rejects, and lowering training standards have led to the abuses of power and the law that many Minnesotans are seeing every day. Their rage is justified, and Turley is wondering why there is so much of it. Because he does a pretty good job of ignoring the source, Trump and his incompetent goons. Stephen Miller and his anti-immigrant zealotry. Disobeying court orders with impunity while lying to judges and the public with little to no immunity. Turley doesn’t want to fully understand what he’s talking about because he will be forced to arrive at an uncomfortable truth, that he’s been part of it for a long time.
Such a cruel comment from Jamelle — whoever she is.
And why are such comments allowed? Free speech??
I wonder why New York Times columnist Jamelle Bouie thinks he’s an exception?
(He’s a complete hypocrite in denial)
WE are all Adult Children of Addiction
ACOA – Adult Children of Addiction
ACOA – Adult Children of Alcohol
ACOM – Adult Children of Media, … Social, Political, Economic,…etc.
ACOL – Adult Children of Life
There is no escaping it.
I would not be at all surprised to learn that Bouie speaks from personal experience, having sold a child for drug money, been sold as a child for same, or both. That kind of traumatic history might at least provide some marginal excuse for making such a statement under the pretense of being a respectable and responsible columnist.
Surprised you say? You’re easily surprised. No surprise there.
I’m surprised…and disappointed….that Baba Bouie’s mommy made the wrong “choice.”
Whaaaat? Didn’t you know – SCUM only exist on the conservative side of politics. The lefties are triggered by the outrageous WORDS of conservatives that lead them to have to Break Glass Emergency Action like “fiery but mostly peaceful” gatherings of fellow triggered mental crisis patients. The only way to stop heretical conservative thoughts like teaching the basics and Western Values is calls for violence that hopefully lead a few of the lefties snapping and actually doing it like a Jihadi Martyr – Total Bunch of Idiots bent on Self-Destruction (and taking everyone with them).
What a truly disgusting comment. The Liberals I have known through the years would never have written such as column as this Jamelle. Usually the classical liberal would have had some empathy and hope for the addicted person and would be out there trying to help and treat. This soulless comment is totally devoid of empathy, or feeling for the trials and travails of the addicted individual. If you have ever treated any you find it a hard, difficult job with many setbacks and loss of hope by both the person addicted and those that are treating them. Failure after failure just sucks the life out of you but then you have to rebuild your humanity and confidence and then try again.
I am amazed by those people that kick the addiction habit because so much is stacked against them. Those occasional victories are what you have to hold on to as you then try again with another person.
I respect the VP for his approach to his mother, and apparently doing all he can do to support and help her. He could have easily turned into the soulless, bitter, condescending Jamelle Bouie who only mocks and adds nothing to discourse except as a bad example of some sick, somewhat foul mind.
Liberal through the years? What years are those 1899 onwards? Always harking to the good ole days. So typical geriatric.
Yes, truly disgusting. The guardrails have fallen leading us to chaos and violence.
Fallen? They were never setup. I see NO difference between the hate spewed HERE than at the Times.
Ironic that the commenters here mourn civility, yet they attack opinions with such vile vehemence that it astounding.
You have hit the nail on the head as to why so many people that were Democrats are leaving the party to be Independents or Republicans. At some point a normal person realizes when the morals of the group they are in are just not acceptable anymore. I was a Democrat when in my early 20’s, changed to Republican in the mid 70’s (Carter and finances) and switched to Independent due to the excessive war machine and the perceived religious push. Perhaps most of all I feel that the Democratic party has no morals that require accountability for use of language and that the individual takes the responsibilities for their life’s decisions and responsibilities. Vance’s mother with his support decided to take that responsibility and I have the greatest respect for her as well as for him standing there in the most difficult of times for the family.