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the whole show was so blatantly biased, so clearly designed to make "characters" of real ppl, so *obviously* building a narrative, picking and choosing what to leave in, take out, or obscure, that it was deeply, genuinely disappointing to see some folks eat it up w/out question https://twitter.com/CosmicFunkonaut/status/1249124994677907456
and I'm SO not here for the "yeah the renewed harassment of Carole is only bad because all the people in the show were 'equally bad'" takes. To actually believe that is to illustrate the exact problem. The show was literally trying to trick you into seeing a false equivalency
It repeatedly allowed a series of abusive, criminal, sociopathic men to present their own viewpoints -- whether on Carole or on the exotic animal "industry" or whatever -- motivated by resentment or envy or revenge, without challenge
most of the male "characters" in the story shared certain patterns that tied them to the exotic animal world. Extreme self-centeredness, lack of empathy, EXTREMELY controlling of all other living things around them, especially women, animals, and young people. i.e. the vulnerable
doc antle is a literal fucking cult leader and most likely has slept with multiple underage people (who he then "marries" and literally traps on his property). but yeah carole is equally "annoying" because she's ::checks notes:: trying to get legislation passed
I'm not gonna bother finding all the links to things I've seen over teh past few weeks but there's TONS out there if you bother to look on all sorts of things left out in the doc, from other ways that Joe lies (lied about having cancer to get money!) to transcripts from his trial
Speaking of which, great example. The show goes out of its way to push a narrative that Joe only got convicted of murder-for-hire because the dirty dirty government pulled the jury's heart strings with "extra" charges to do with animal abuse
When in reality, first of all, HE DID ABUSE HIS ANIMALS, but also, the jury convicted him because of the mountains of evidence including transcripts from phone calls that meet the evidentiary burden of having commited murder for hire
but the show wants to play into this preexisting "all sides are bad" narrative that exists out there when it comes to animal rights. like the only two groups involved are people who exploit animals on the one side, and "crazy activitists" a la PETA on the other
it was INCREDIBLY gross and irresponsible of the show to not once bring in any of the numerous types of outside, 3rd party, more "objective" parties -- director of a major zoo, literally any actual biologist, idk -- to respond to the claims made by these men abt what they do
Anyway getting a little off track but back to the trial. Notice how the second half of the show starts to build a lot on this theme of "the gubment" trying to take away people's freedom's. Because most of the men in the show are libertarians.
it's interesting to read up on the background of the filmmaker as he himself -- big surprise -- is also heavily involved in "exotic" animal ownership (but of reptiles). Has a strange bio in general that I'm pretty sure starts with being born rich.
anyways another random example of the way the show is constructed dishonestly is like when it plays us a clip Joe claiming that Carole's facilities are the same as his (thus making her a hypocrite). He says something about "water in tiny cages" --
-- then cuts to a tight FOV clip of a cat at her park drinking from a water bowl. Then it just moves on to an entirely new topic.
Even before that, I had been noticing how the editing seem to take pains not to let me get a clear view of her park's grounds. But of the glimpses you could catch, it sure as hell seemed way *greener*, the cages WAY bigger, with only one or a couple cats per cage.
And turns out, all of this is, of course, true. But the show deliberately hides it because it's told entirely from her unhinged stalker's perspective.
This show will literally play an interview of a man standing in front of 20 tigers squeezed into a chickenwire cage starving for their next meal of expired walmart meat at his for profit roadside zoo talking about how evil a non-profit rescue center is and just let that stand.
idk, i'm mad at myself now for doing this thread stream of consciousness instead of actually planning it so it could be succinct but whatever. there's just so many examples it'd be a huge project to wrangle them all.
anyways, it also hasn't escaped my notice the massive gender gap between which ppl in my network bought the bullshit hook line and sinker and parroted carole baskin memes, and which ones actually watched the show with a critical eye
