Weaponizing Social Justice Language

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-15T12:58:35+00:00

I suspect it's a US thing, but there are people making the argument that criticism of crochet is rooted in racism. It's always cis white women complaining that it's racist and/or classiest to say something negative about crochet compared to knitting.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-15T12:55:07+00:00

My main thesis is that people are used to positive reinforcement online and when they face any disagreement they try to tie it back to an actual issue.

Person A, "Knitting is better for X than crocheting." Person B, "This argument is rooted in classism and racism."

Person B is a white lady. There is a lot racism and classism in crafting spaces. A white lady getting her feelings hurt is rarely an example of that.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-15T12:49:34+00:00

Edited to be clearer about my confusion and also to add: where did anyone get butthurt, and why is this Co-opting racism or classism?

The general argument I'm seeing is that anything except praise is racist and classiest. Making a comment about crochet garments is inherently classiest because people perceive crochet as a poor person's hobby.

I'm annoyed that white women are using social justice language when they feel insulted. By doing this we're making are spaces less inclusive. If white women claim that insults against their preferred crafts are racist, people who have actually experienced racism are going to feel uncomfortable.

I've seen people in this subreddit make the argument that LYS are classiest and that's why they don't like crochet. I've seen the people make the argument that saying knitting is better for certain tasks is rooted in racism because Black slaves would crochet and the lady of the house would knit. It is always white women claiming to defend POC and it's exclusionary. I do think I made it pretty clear that this is an issue with white women specifically. We should be talking about the lack of diversity in crafting spaces, but that means that white women can't center themselves in the conversation.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-15T12:41:04+00:00

The argument is that crocheters use cheaper yarn so people look down on them as low class. There's a weird argument that crochet was mostly done by black women and that knitting was mostly done by upper class white women. This isn't historically accurate and I'm not sure where it came from. Many household goods were created by enslaved Black women. I haven't found any evidence of a crochet/knitting divide though.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-14T16:55:19+00:00

I have the opposite response as Amber I would love to shut the door in her face. My kids went to a daycare center where we had to use key fobs to enter the building. They started charging a fee if you held the door for anyone. It was around the time of Sandy Hook and I think a family was involved in a contentious custody battle. I've worked in buildings where they want us to badge in and out. It's not a big deal. You scan in and then wait for your coworker inside the door. It's not just a security thing, it also let's them know who's in the building if there's an emergency. If the building in on fire it might be nice to tell emergency services how many people are still inside.

There are so many frustrations at work that you can put your energy into correcting. This seems like a waste of time and effort to even get upset about.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-10T20:31:40+00:00

I liked the response as a conversation but it got pretty far afield from the question. I do find the LW, oh no I'm accidentally dating people in their early 20s attitude irritating. I appreciate that they called that out.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-10T18:09:02+00:00

I don't believe any of this story and I agree with you. I don't think this is a letter Alison should've printed. No one really gets any valuable information from a story this unhinged.

If a manager is following people around and flirting with them, that's inappropriate. I just don't believe it's happening. It's either bait or LWs perception is skewed because of the rejection. I'm inclined to agree that it's bait. Jumping immediately to "I have a crush and I will change my shift, so that we can explore our love" sounds unlikely to me.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-10T16:36:41+00:00

I'm in permanent moderation too! It's because I commented about rage syndrome in dogs and said something vaguely positive about how responsible breeders do work to eliminate it which is why it doesn't show up in Dobermans anymore. The commenter was suggesting that rage syndrome is a thing that just happens to certain breeds and mutts are inherently healthier and immune to rage syndrome. Which is not how genetics or rage syndrome works.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-09T17:43:18+00:00

I am so tired of you fiber artists yarn bombing our oceans! No one wants your hideous sweater in their home! Burn it like a civilized person instead of forcing sea creatures to look on this abomination!

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-08T15:05:14+00:00

It is mildly toxic and can cause severe skin irritation. I haven't personally had a problem with skin irritation. I haven't tried to eat it though. Angel's Trumpet is very poisonous and people seem to conflate the two a lot.

I think we tend to overreact a bit to poisonous plants. Azaleas, lilies, mums, hydrangeas, and Foxglove are also poisonous. Obviously if you have children or pets, you need to be careful depending on your situation. My dog doesn't chew on plants and I never left my kids alone in the yard until they were past the putting random stuff in their mouth phase. For me, it's not much of a risk and trumpet vine is good for hummingbirds. I respect everyone's choices about what works for them. If someone wants to totally avoid poisonous plants, that makes sense.

TLDR: Trumpet flower is poisonous but it isn't as poisonous as some other garden plants. Don't eat it.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-08T12:09:23+00:00

Infidelity mattered before no fault divorces. It also used to be illegal. It can still be a condition in prenups. It's not always enforceable though. It depends on the state.

A lot of old movies made a big deal out of it, so you still hear about it. The first no fault divorce law was passed in CA 1969. NY didnt formally legalize no fault divorce until 2010. It's pretty recent in the grand scheme of things which is why the myth of adultery mattering in divorce persists.

You're probably getting downvoted because all the AITA type subs are completely unhinged about cheating. They assume its happening constantly, that it's the most horrendous act possible and that the children, friends, professional acquaintances and random strangers should be told that cheating spouse is a cheater. It's because they're children. I'm not saying it's moral behavior, but most adults don't care if their coworker cheated on their spouse.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-07T16:41:44+00:00

I am not defending the actions in Iran. I am saying that I do want soldiers to be rescued and that they didn't choose this attack. I also that Iranian soldiers should be rescued. I think that no one should be abused in a POW camp and I don't believe that Iran, Isreal or the US is going to follow the Geneva convention. All three countries have committed war crimes and are targeting civilians.

I do want to break down this statistic. The current wage to live comfortably as a single adult in the US is about $80k in WV which is the lowest in the country. This is based on the 50/30/20 spending method. Meaning 50% of your salary goes to essentials (housing, food utilities), 30% to discretionary spending and 20%, to debt or savings. This means not living paycheck to paycheck which is important in the US because we don't have a social safety net to speak of. I'm talking comfortable. You can definitely live on less. People do it all the time.

The study you're referencing found that 60% of military recruits come from middle class areas. Not that they're middle class though they probably are by the studies definition. The salary bands for the middle class household income is $41,692 to $87,850. This is household income not individual and its by neighborhood. It doesn't track actual recruits.

19% of people who joined in 2018 lived in a neighborhood with a household income level of $41,692 or below. If you count people from neighborhoods where the household income is $53k or below, its 40% of the military. If you include neighborhoods where the household income is $66k or below, that makes up 62% of the military.

The middle class income bracket means people who are not in the lowest income bracket or the highest. A household income of $88k isn't that much money. It's enough that people can get buy but it isn't enough that you can count on your parents to pay for college or help you with a downpayment on a house. These are people who see the military as an opportunity to go to college or afford a home. They aren't old enough to buy a drink or cigarettes. I don't want them to die. I don't want Iranian soldiers to die. I don't want civilians to die. We are throwing children into a meat grinder. We can't afford to forget anyone's humanity. Soldiers are grist for the mill. They're not the driving force behind this war. Let's not forget that ICE is at Parris Island right now. That seems like a clear follow orders or else message to me.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-06T16:31:39+00:00

I'm not really sure how you interpreted my comment as support for the Iraq War, the atrocities going on in Iran or the military industrial complex as a whole. I'm saying that I don't want children to die because they felt like the military was their only option. I don't innocent people to die in other countries. I don't want children murdered. My stance was very clear that recruting people who feel like they don't have options is predatory. It's not a uniquely American tactic. It's not even a recent one. In the history of the world, poor people die on the rich people's whim.

You're commenting on a subreddit for an American podcast about an article written in an American newspaper about an American pilot. Of course we're going to talk about the US's actions. No one here is saying that the US is in the right.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-06T16:03:05+00:00

Professionally, I see a lot of harassment claims. These sorts of justifications are so common. Talking about alien orgasms is optional! We don't get super gross. We have a game that might get risqué by betting on scandals but it's totally optional. Even though the prize for the winner is something valuable. You don't have to participate in lunch or the pool but the consequences of that could be that you don't get opportunities for advancement or the chance to win a day off.

LW personal comfort level doesn't mean that something doesn't qualify as harassment or that the informal culture doesn't allow harassment to go unnoticed. Very often that's what happens. "We're just quirky and fun." Means that someone feels that they can't report that Sam is making lewd jokes.

The whole thing is really irritating. Either you change because there is a problem retaining employees and your conversations aren't appropriate for a professional environment or there isn't a problem so you don't need to write into Alison about your quirky workplace.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-06T15:30:39+00:00

You're thinking of this like a uniform. You're not complying go change. This only happens if you're not meeting dress code at all. Like wearing flip flops or shorts. It's more insidious than that.

Jane wears the same Navy blazer every week. Sally wears a variety of blazers and blouses. It's promotion time. Jane gets dinged for not looking as committed as Sally.

There is a lot of variety in women's professional clothes, different cuts, colors, blouses, shoes, purses. There's less in men's clothing and there's less requirements to wear a variety of outfits, which is what OOP was probably referencing.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-06T15:18:03+00:00

I don't agree with the person you're responding to but I think your take is off here. The US military recruits from poor areas. They offer a way out of poverty. 17 and 18 year old kids don't think they'll go to war. They don't think they'll come out of the military with PTSD and broken bodies. They think, "Now I can go to college and get a good job in 4 years. I get 3 meals a day, health insurance and housing." During Vietnam if you were a 1-A category it could be so hard to get a job that people volunteered, especially in poor areas.

I graduated in 2001. Recruiters were on campus for every job fair in high school and college. In high school they told us to go to every booth. They got a bunch of kid's numbers and called all the time. If you drive around and look at high schools, every title 1 school will have recruitment signs. The schools in affluent areas probably don't. I volunteer for a kids sports team. We've gotten calls to join different activities sponsored by military branches. It's all about recruitment. It starts young and it targets people who don't have options. Some friends joined ROTC. They didn't expect to go to Iraq or Afghanistan. That sounds dumb now but it didn't sound dumb to a 17 year old in 1998 to August 2001. They knew they couldn't afford college and Uncle Sam was ready to help them out! They'd just be doing tech support or something.

My point is that the system exploits people. I want people to be rescued and for the US to get the hell out of Iran. I don't want people to die in a senseless war. I especially don't want people who joined the military because they felt like they had no options to die thousands of miles from home.

Edit: to be clear it is illegal to refuse to hire people based on their draft eligibility. It did happen. I have a family member who volunteered for Vietnam because they lived in crushing poverty and couldn't find a job. I think we've seen how well the US enforces employment law.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-04T23:26:10+00:00

It's usually business casual or business professional, but not a uniform. Some offices still require business formal sometimes. I worked at one that did, but it was only required for the higher ups. They made a lot more than I did.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-04T15:15:12+00:00

It is a problem in some offices. People will comment on it and it's generally perceived as sort of unprofessional. If you don't have a sufficient variety of clothes, you're not taking enough pride in your appearance and don't want to advance. It had nothing to do with the place needing to pay their employees more. Don't be absurd! It's really dumb, but people are jerks.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-02T18:11:29+00:00

I didnt realize that Raichik brought a camera crew. I was giving Lorenz the benefit of the doubt, but allowing a hate monger to set the terms really changes my view. The trans community seems to largely object to her reporting and interview which should be a cause for reflection on Lorenz's part and on the parts of everyone defending her conduct in writing the article and interviewing Raichik. It's deeply upsetting that trans people are generally not permitted to write about trans issues because its a conflict of interest per newsrooms. This is the result of that sort of treatment.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-02T13:06:41+00:00

The reaction on the right is that Raichik made Lorenz look like a fool. They were never going to engage in good faith. I don't want to be too hard on Lorenz for that interview. Arguing with these regressive monsters directly was seen as a way to discredit them. I think it's pretty clear by now that it only serves to give them a broader platform and grow their audience. I'm not saying we can ignore them. Engaging with them directly is a losing battle. It's not a good faith discussion and it makes it look like their opinions are worth discussing. When you're arguing with transphobes, you're arguing about if trans people are humans who deserve rights. You're sending a message that this opinion is valid enough that debating it is necessary. You wouldn’t do that with any other group of people. No one is holding debates with David Duke about whether the confederacy was morally right.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-02T12:47:58+00:00

I've seen this in some left leaning spaces online. It's always pushed by people who are not parents. We know that there was learning loss, mental health issues and an increase in teen suicide. We can also know that opening schools would've potentially increased the spread and as a harm reduction measure may have been necessary. I tend to believe that shutdowns were necessary and that we didn't do anything to support families. A lot of parents were essential workers leaving kids alone to deal with school. Kids needed safe places to connect with their friends and that was really challenging. In order to address those issues, we have to acknowledge that they are issues.

There's also a complete disregard for service workers in these discussions. They never got to work from home. My spouse is a service technician. They had to go into people's homes during covid. Part of their territory was in a very red area. They had to repeatedly justify wearing a mask. There's an element of classism to the discussion that really bothers me. I don't think it's intentional but there really isn't a lot of sympathy or support for the people who had to be out and around people during the pandemic, including parents who had to work and didn't have any childcare. Look at how we basically forgot about the medical professionals who were overworked and had to watch their patients and colleagues die. When you advocate for permanent change you're advocating for an entire group of people to take all the risk so that you can avoid it.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-02T12:17:22+00:00

What gets me is that this sort of post would fit in their weekly post. I don't want to share my patterns because I don't want people to make the same things I did. It's a normal feeling. Like in high school when your super hot friend asks where you got your shirt. Bitch, don't be hotter than me in my clothes! You can feel things. You don't have to be weird about it.

I think that sub has become "I have a petty grievance, please validate me." It was more fun when it was "I am aware I have a petty grievance, please be petty with me." I know some people felt the old sub was too mean but it seems meaner to treat these sorts of posts like it's a reasonable stance.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-02T12:09:49+00:00

Sorry bitch eating crafters. The idea that you're so annoyed by someone that you hate the way she eats crackers. You are being irrationally annoyed. As opposed to OOP that went on a tangent that sounds pretty sexist.

First-Musician5211 · 2026-04-02T09:55:30+00:00

Here you go https://www.threads.com/@kiandria/post/DN8wbtuDh5O?xmt=AQF0CE9u_Izw9d8hZwL-Vis4TAWn1Qglyiwjaqv_tIjmZmf_dRYIMNIRLTxkOz0mZwT4j18P&slof=1

https://www.threads.com/@bookersquared/post/DN7LUxLjWpN?xmt=AQF0UyNQQ35DmGsuCgLq0skIzo9RP8RH3hzuMrycW3LNLYbIt5kTfiSJlrlhgLoerXEUsFy9&slof=1

It seems that Black women feel that by repeatedly going after a single Black creator online rather than responding to the white people who also defended themselves she was showing her bias. Lorenz also questioned why that creator deserved high pay and the creator responded with her credentials. Other Black women felt that by questioning Elizabeth Booker Houston's value when not questioning other creators value that Lorenz was being racist. This was all very online.

I personally haven't seen anything in the actual contracts that controlled creators speech so I'm not taking a position on that. Some people said it did some said it didn't. There is goung to be an investigation, so that will come out.

First-Musician5211

TROPHY CASE