As society and technology push forward, protest takes on different forms reflective of who and where we are. While the Occupy Wall Street movement has been more typical of historic protests – marches, sitting while linking arms – a new form of protest recently sprung up. After the pepper spray incident at UC Davis, protests have been lodged in the form of reviews on the Defense Technology 56895 MK-9 Stream, 1.3% Red Band/1.3% Blue Band Pepper Spray page. Some of the reviews take the snark to a new level by referencing other commentary, such as this comment by Kevin Mowery that riffs on Megyn Kelly’s pepper spray is “a food product, essentially” remark:
I heard some people raving about sriracha sauce, and I tried it despite its distressingly ethnic name. They call that hot? Then I heard Megyn Kelley on Fox News giving a rave review of this new hot sauce. Finally, something to put on my eggs in the morning that can give me the kind of spiciness I like in my food: the kind that causes blisters, swelling, and suffocation.
Best of all, its name is 100% American!
People are mad, and this is a great public forum for venting. Not to mention innovative. This what the internet is ultimately about – free expression, communities finding each other, and a whole lot of attitude. There is a long history of sarcastic Amazon comments, and it’s really cool, and even reassuring, to see a funny meme being used as an expression of political discontent. This is the exact opposite of the dire predictions that the technological age would speed up the decline into a police state.
Comments are closed.