Hard Times wrote a very transphobic article (I think unintentionally) which is characteristic of their biggest flaw: churning out dozens of stories a week and rarely digging deeper than surface level satire. The “punk” limitation sadly recycles old tropes. So what went wrong? https://twitter.com/realpunknews/status/1320168504667082753

By framing this story as using LGTBQ+ identity to get laid, it inadvertently gives legitimacy to the shitty conservative beliefs it intends to lampoon. HT probably went in thinking this was a hit on these people. But it’s too close to their hateful message. Satire was lost :(

Ex: Article might have worked as “I’m Whichever Gender Gets Me Free Sandwiches at Subway.” There you parody this false conservative idea of why people don’t adhere to the gender binary: It’s to get meatballs without paying. Everyone sees the satire and when they don’t: funny!

Other flaws: narrator is on defense. Context is key. Because the narrator is supposed to be wrong (doing this to get laid) explaining their behavior must expose them as frauds. Instead they exploit LGBTQ+ experience for sex which is exactly what conservatives believe. No satire.

Other flaws: No moment of clarity. Big component of The Onion is a character in the wrong having a big speech at the end only to miss the point. Narrator should say a string of sentences praising LGTBQ+ identity and then loosing track (“that’s why I should get free sandwiches!”)

Instead this article doubles down on how you don’t understand them. Correct! HT is parodying a misunderstood group of people INSTEAD of satirizing the opposition and their bullshit beliefs. This could have been a great piece instead it’s something Tucker Carlson could read on air

@REALpunknews pieces rarely go into the absurd unlike their contemporaries (and Hard Drive which rules). They rely on existing tropes to relate to their punk crowd. It’s a huge flaw. I know this because I was an editor there for a year and that’s one of the reasons I quit lol

Strangely for a “punk” website HT doesn’t like to subvert expectations. There are many great writers there who find their voice after writing the 335th article about Henry Rollins. I think editorial failed this writer by not giving them enough guidance to turn this piece around.

Anyways, so Cheetor and Rhinox...