PDP has publicly embraced Sargon. A alt-right anti-semitic white nationalist. When you want to convince people you aren't anti-semitic, you know what isn't a good idea? Thanking a rabid anti-semitic racist for for their support.
This is like if someone made an off-color racist joke and then in explaining that they aren't actually racist they thanked David Duke and the KKK for having their back.
It could also be a sign of the backfire effect in action. When people are cornered or feel assaulted, what happens often is that their mind shuts down as they become defensive. Then they double down on a previous held belief.
I think a lot of us here have had experiences with friends and family who did or said something dumb or very insensitive, were not quick to apologize or admit their mistake when they were shamed, ridiculed or threatened indirectly or psychologically. It's not a good strategy for making people, not do what you don't want them to do.
Now you might say that that, that is different because PDP is a public figure with a large audience and platform, and therefore the escalation as it has unfolded is valid. Maybe that is true, but regardless I don't think Felix or many young males who are interested or embedded in internet culture (movies, games, anime, general internet) are open to that responsibility.
I suspect that there is something generational going on, but I also think that with gamers in particular you get a subset stereotype of young men and teenagers who are loners, isolated and who are at an exposed risk for being prone to anger. I think you have a higher statistical likelihood of finding predisposed individuals in gaming culture than in other hobbies that are more social, who ultimately are easier prey on conservative, alt-right and far-right ideology. These are not the winners who got laid in high school. Lots of overweight, low self esteem people who draw themselves into virtual worlds. A stereotype that doesn't fit many, but I do believe there is a larger subset of these types of stereotype male youths than in other cultures like sports jocks, or people who party a lot.
What can end up happening when you drag someone through a shaming or ridicule machine, is that the target can double down on previous held beliefs. It's sometimes called cognitive dissonance, or the backfire effect. Or confirmation bias. Even in the face of logical argument and sensible facts, people will refuse to change their opinion, and in fact, they will get more embolden in their previously held beliefs. You see this in many cases. Anti-vaccine or climate change deniers. These people feel prosecuted, assaulted and hunted, and because of that they are unable to internally realize, verify and come to facts because they take the tone against them so serious, that they are unable to look at this beyond an emotional level. They see everything in anger, and they become further radicalized.
It's for this reason that I don't think the current "white privilege shaming" smug liberal bonanza helps young men come to some sort of acceptence, reflection, apology and the most important; a changed behavioral state that stops them from doing that again.
Do I think it is unreasonable to escalate your anger all the way to alt-right town? You bet I do. I think many young people have a weaker emotional (and spoiled) compas, as well as lacking critical thinking skills. It shouldn't be this way, but I think there is enough a plethora of drama that shows us, that antagonizes them, ridiculing them and shitting on them through humiliation brings out the worst in them. I think we, as liberals have completely underestimated just how much people double down in anger and hate when they are called out.
I am not a psychologist, but if someone here is, maybe they can tell me, what a chief strategy is to create a rudimentary change in a persons core physiology. Nothing in my life experience have told me that this sort of antics is a sound strategy for making them stop what they are doing.
Of course, as another poster said in the other thread; "I don't care if they stop doing it. I just want them to pay for their actions and suffer the consequences". That of course is a different matter entirely and in terms of making them pay, I guess escalating this as far as it can will probably be exciting to those who revel in it. I suspect that people on their side, hope that someone like Peter Tiel will interfere in all and escalate things further on their side as well.
It is difficult to say what Felix meant initially. But I feel that, Jew jokes, holocaust jokes and nazi and adolf hitler jokes are one of the most common "socially accepted" jokes you see on the internet. It feels like to me that up until the last few months, "I didn't nazi that coming" type puns and all that crap, was everywhere on social media, reddit, imgur, 9gag, buzzfeed. Normalized to the point where I don't remember anybody batting an eye about it.
I believe the tone has changed a lot since Trumps election, and PewDiePie is one of the people who gets the axe for saying something that didn't seem to create a lot of tension just a few months ago.
And there is a logic to this. When Obama was in office and the tone was very different not many people had a lot of reasons to be upset. But because of the actual rise of nationalism and anti-semitism suddenly exploding, it does make sense that people become extremely sensitive to it. And I don't think that is bad. I think it's a sign of a collective good health when a global change can come so fast and priorities can change over the span of a few months.
I don't think PDP ever in his wildest dreams expected this would backfire.
I think the situation is sad. It is difficult to look at someone killing everything they've build p because of their own pride. The expression "Never make important decision when you're angry" is very true. You're not rational or functional when you are pissed. Felix is going to lose everything, but he might also through his own experience have made many people belief in the alt-right movement through seeing their idol go through this, and it saddens me that the alt-right will be further strengthened through this experience.
If someone had calmly told him after the video that it was uncool and someones were very distressed and offended by it, is it possible that he would have apologized and that would have been the end of it? PDP is a public person, but he doesn't seem able to handle the responsibility or the weight of what that means. Both in terms of his influence and reach but also in even realizing what he is doing. I doubt he has media training at all, because this is a disaster.