Let the mockery fly – with precision

A few years ago, when a politician – let’s call him Mark Dwayne Mullions – challenged the Teamsters president to a physical fight during a hearing at the U.S. Capitol, I wondered, who is this guy?

Google answered, and soon I understood that he was a far-right first-term senator who generally did not express complex thoughts. So when Muttons parachuted into the national spotlight as the nominee to lead the Department of Homeland Security, I had an idea of what we as a country were getting into. The kakistocracy pipeline seems in no danger of running dry.

Not that some folks didn't try to head this off – fellow senators made heroic efforts to highlight Muffins' violent tendencies and pin him down on exactly where it was that he “smelled war,” given that he has no military service. (Wow.)

It may seem contradictory in such scary times, but humor and ridicule are key tool of fighting authoritarianism, as experts like Ruth Ben-Ghiat remind us. And public officials have long known that they’ll be subjected to satire and mockery. So it’s fair game for me to put some playful spins on Mittens’ name and for people to share photos of him looking less than valiant on January 6. And I can’t wait to see what “SNL” comes up with when it resumes in a couple weeks.

But there were some humor misfires over the past week or so – comments that made me not quite wince, but at least suck the air in through my teeth in that “oh dear” kind of way. Now that we're stuck with this guy, here’s some ribbing to avoid:

1) Making fun of his height. You may have noticed that, as I shifted his name from Mullions to Muffins, I avoided a couple of "m" words commonly used to describe short people. There isn’t a way to make fun of one person's height without engaging in widespread mockery of shortness – no way to do so without adding to the widespread stigma that short people, particularly men, live with. His height is not the problem and there’s plenty else to criticize about the man; let’s not be like the guy who came up with “Little Marco.”

2) “He’s a plumber without a bachelor’s degree.” Part of this country’s political divide is that less prosperous, less formally educated white people think that “urban elites” look down on them. And this line of criticism that's being directed at the new secretary – that he’s an undereducated plumber – plays right into that perception of condescension. One could certainly argue that a plumbing background is not the ideal preparation for the DHS job. But any nuance is easily lost, and what’s heard is “plumbers and people with associates degrees are dumb.” We know there are plenty of officials with bachelor’s and law degrees (like the president) who are not terribly bright, and I can tell you that plumbers, like everybody else, come in a range. Most of the ones who have ever been to my house have been more thoughtful and articulate than this guy.

3) General stereotypes about names. This one may seem surprising, given that I’ve just now parodied his last name multiple ways. But what I didn’t partake in, and what I did see elsewhere, was mockery of having two first names combined into one. This is another way that northern liberals act superior to southerners. Back when I dated an Alabama native, I became awkwardly aware of how often my Midwestern friends, when telling a story, would adopt “southern” names and drawls to try to indicate lower intelligence, rednecks, etc. So when you meet a Bobbyjoe or a LindaSue, don't decide that that's a reason to look down on someone.

As the pendulum of public opinion creakily swings away from this administration, we need to remove obstacles for those who want to come into the light, from whatever kind of American culture they inhabit. Let genuine criticisms of public officials flow forth; let ridicule, mockery, and satire shine. But regular folks who happen to be short or to work in the trades or to have two first names should not be collateral damage; we need them to help turn things around. And if ol' Mudhen gets some things right – like reining in ICE's excesses – we'll make room for that, too.