MyPillow’s response is not to abolish culture, it is what capitalism is all about

The phrase cancel culture has grown by leaps and bounds in meaning and scope in recent years. It is now used by people on the right to chastise liberals who want to socially exclude and punish people and organizations that deviate from their values.

It’s also a smart rhetorical way to cut down on your opponents’ words.

Now there is good reason to be wary of Twitter mobs and purity police who are aggressively prowling social media to silence and punish them for failing to live up to progressive ideals.

There is the story of the University of Southern California professor who was put on leave for saying a Chinese word that sounded like the N word. There have been numerous cases of students on college campuses shouting down speakers with whom they disagree, suppressing their right to share their views.

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There was also a turning point in 2020 when a battle between The New York Times’ younger, progressive generation of reporters fought hard against the senior, classically liberal editorial over whether or not to publish an op-ed by Republican Senator Tom Cotton.

via Torrenegra / Flickr

The progressives were against giving a platform for Cotton, a right-wing extremist, to share his views. So cancel him. While the older staff thought it was editorially ethical to share the vote of an elected official, no matter how repugnant his opinion was.

The excesses of the cancellation culture have had a chilling effect on public discourse. Comedians fear joking for fear of being taken seriously, and public figures should prepare for a response if they say anything that is contrary to progressive orthodoxy.

The cancel culture has sparked an important debate about how we weigh and challenge ideas in a new world where everyone has a microphone. That debate is far from over.

However, conservatives who deplore the rise of the cancellation culture should be careful not to confuse it with being held accountable for their words and actions.

An example of this is Mike Lindell, CEO of MyPillow.

via Gage Skidmore / Flickr

Lindell is a self-made man who overcame the crack cocaine addiction to start a company that makes more than $ 300 million a year. He has become a household name for creating what he calls “The Most Comfortable Pillow You Will Ever Own” and starred in commercials with his signature thick mustache, clear die-job and oversized crucifix.

The pillow magnate has also made himself one of the more visible members of Trumplandia, something that would bite his company this week.

Recently, he co-chaired the president’s reelection camp in Minnesota and helped fund Trump attorneys Sidney Powell and Lin Wood. After Trump lost the November election, they spread the false theory that he was the victim of voter fraud.

This conspiracy theory was a catalyst for the hundreds of insurgents who swarmed the Capitol on January 6, resulting in the deaths of five people.

Lindell has claimed the insurgents were Antifa activists, not Trump supporters.

He had a meeting with Trump last Friday, where he was photographed with some papers with intriguing notes.

The notes seemed to suggest that the president should invoke “martial law if necessary” and the “Insurrection Act,” which mobilizes the military and national guard.

This meeting was the last straw for many of Lindell’s business ties.

In recent days, Wayfair, Bed Bath & Beyond, Kohl’s, and HEB have all dropped MyPillow products, leading Lendell to claim he’s a victim of culture cancellation.

“They attacked my company,” right-wing media outlet Right Side Broadcasting. “They’ve attacked companies I’ve worked with … They’re trying to shut me out.”

“I just called Bed Bath & Beyond … They’re dropping MyPillow,” Lindell added.

His feelings are similar to those of the president’s son, Eric, who claims that the myriad companies that severed ties with his father after the uprising are simply breaking down the culture.

“We live in the age of cancellation culture, but this isn’t something that started this week. It’s something they’ve been doing to us and others for years,” Eric Trump told The Associated Press. “If you don’t agree with them, if they don’t like you, they try to cancel you.”

Sorry, Mike and Eric, it’s not a culture cancellation, it’s an old-fashioned boycott.

Lindell must only blame himself for his business problems. He publicly joined a historically unpopular political figure and stayed by his side after sparking an uprising at the Capitol.

He needed to know that he was jeopardizing his business by publicly supporting a man who is one of the most scornful men in the country.

Lindell is not the victim of an awakened crowd, he is a perfect example of what happens in a functioning capitalist system.

Republicans love the free market. So Lindell should have no problem accepting what happens when you poison your band after associating him with violent right-wing extremists.

One of the freedoms of the capitalist system is to vote with your wallet. Companies and consumers don’t want to support a brand run by a man who supported an attempt to overthrow the US government. They prefer to give their hard-earned pillow money to someone else.

Historically, Republicans have always claimed to be champions of personal responsibility. Blaming the culture for failing can be an easy way to calm a culture warrior base. Ultimately, though, it doesn’t stop you from facing the real consequences for your actions.