Time to Log Off is a weekly series documenting the many ways our political figures show their whole asses online.
You would think that Marjorie Taylor Greene — a human shitpost born from the internet's slimy underbelly who managed to drag herself from the 4chan conspiracy boards to the halls of Congress — would be a little more careful about holding up large pieces of posterboard in front of camera while declaring her expertise on memes. You would think that!! But, no, evidently not.
That, unfortunately, is how we end up here: with MTG (fresh off blowing up a car with an obscenely overpowered sniper rifle that she plans to raffle off to the various white nationalists and neo-Nazis that populate the social network Gab) trying to link the idea that perhaps the U.S. government should do something about cataclysmic climate change with the specter of communist China. Also, Scooby-Doo is involved for some reason.
Look, just, uh ... just watch for yourself, okay?
First, before you ask: Yes, I know the hammer and sickle is most commonly associated with the Soviet Union and not China. But, it's also the symbol of the Chinese Communist Party, so in this instance, its use here is perfectly A-okay, semiotics-wise. If we're gonna dissect this bonkers-go-nuts piece of political grandstanding, let's at least be accurate, shall we?
Alright, having said all that ...
What?
I mean ... WHAT? Imagine having the overwhelming sense of infallible self-righteousness to stand in Congress, in front of your coworkers and the press and the public, and saying the words "this meme is very real" without immediately doubling over in the sort of laughter reserved for middle schoolers making Mountain Dew-fueled prank calls at 2 a.m. Especially if the meme in question calls to mind a giant animated dog and his stoner pal shouting "rooby-dooby-roooo!" at some poorly drawn swamp monster, or something. My god, you could power the entire Eastern seaboard with the levels of hubris on display here.
But I digress. Because what's really worth noting here is that Greene has made a classic blunder. She's invoked memedom, while simultaneously standing next to a very easily Photoshopped piece of posterboard. What, exactly, did she think was going to happen here? My guess is, "not this":
And these are just a few of the tame ones.
Greene's mistake here is not simply that she opened herself up to being memed in the first place, but that she — a dedicated internet troll — should have absolutely known this was going to happen! And yet. AND YET.
To be clear, I have no sympathy for MTG in this, and most other circumstances. The woman is an unrepentant ghoul whose appetite for terrible politics is matched only by her utterly terrible personality and sense of morals. Still, for her sake, I can't help but recommend that she log off and save herself whatever subatomic particles of dignity she might have left. Having said that, however, for my sake, I hope she never logs off. I hope she stays too-online forever. This is just too much fun.
