Kind of weird that the subject heading got clipped after it was already successfully posted. Anyway, it had originally read...
Whatever happened to the "People's Convoy" in the US?
I was trying to find the thread where MidEngineManiac was euphoric over what he perceived as a "flyby" by US Air Force jets, who were supposedly acknowledging the "People's Convoy". EDIT: Found it...
We are stopping in Amarillo, TX for a while, its's gonna be huge!!!! Two fighter jets saluted us flying over our convoy!!!!! Think about this for a minute..... WE LOVE YOU TEXANS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ignoring the fact for a moment that MEM was nowhere near Texas ... Turns out, as pointed out by blackrams in that thread, the "flyby" was probably due to the truck route simply being on the jets flight path to the nearby air base.
Nevertheless, I was curious about whatever happened to this "People's Convoy". Haven't heard a thing about it. Looks like it's either petered out... or is in the process of doing so. Found the following article though. T'was good for a laugh.
The truckers who make up the People's Convoy driving in circles around Washington, D.C., are making it hard for people who write satire.
Rex Huppke, USA TODAY
OK, let me get this straight: A truckload of U.S. truckers has assembled outside Washington, D.C., to protest something, but nobody quite knows what. Is it the mask and vaccine mandates that most cities and states have already dropped? Who knows.
On Sunday, they formed a convoy and did two loops around the Capital Beltway. What did they accomplish? Who knows.
They’re threatening to repeat the driving-around-in-a-big-circle thing Monday, but to show they really mean business, they’re adding a third Beltway lap, and organizers say they’ll add an extra lap each day until their demands are met. What are their demands? Again, who knows.
According to The Washington Post: “Organizers said their goal is to be a ‘huge pain.’ ”
Congratulations, brave members of the “People’s Convoy.” You and your 6-mile-per-gallon diesel 18-wheelers have managed to make me root for higher fuel prices.
If you’re wondering why I’m so annoyed with this assemblage of people who have too much time on their hands, it’s simple: I write satire for a living, and they’re making my job really difficult.
How exactly am I supposed to satirize something that’s already zanier than any absurd hypothetical I could cook up?
Imagine my column pitch to an editor.
Me: “OK, I want to parody the lengths some are going to in protesting basic public health measures during the pandemic. So I’m going to come up with this wildly over-exaggerated scenario where a bunch of truckers drive to Washington, D.C., in protest and then just start driving in circles around the city in inefficient vehicles during a time when fuel prices are nearing record highs!”
Editor: “I know you need to make it zany so readers know you’re kidding around, but that seems like a bit much.”
Me: “Did I mention that Russia has invaded Ukraine and the Ukrainian people are bravely defending their homeland, making the truck protesters look even more tone deaf and whiny?”
Editor: “Stop it.”
Me: “Oh, no, I’m just getting started. In the weeks before the truck protest, most of the mask and vaccine mandates get dropped because COVID-19 numbers are trending down, so the very thing they’re protesting is no longer really a thing!”
Editor: “Well that’s just ridiculous. Try dialing it back a little.”
Nobody in their right mind would buy that, even as parody. But it’s EXACTLY what’s happening in real life.
I desperately want to – and professionally need to – make fun of the People’s Convoy, but people in the convoy are making it impossible by being astonishingly ridiculous.
It’s like they’ve made themselves immune to satire by achieving self-satirization. And that immunity, in and of itself, is satirizing vaccines.
It’s brilliant, and I wish I had come up with it. But these folks? They just … did it. HOW CAN I COMPETE WITH THAT?!?
Consider this actual quote from an actual human member of the convoy who says his name is Stan. This was on a podcast run by Steve Bannon, who, speaking of self-satirization, is a former White House strategist. The podcast is called “War Room,” because of course it is, and on a recent episode Stan is asked what people in the convoy really want:
“We want to go back to the way it was before the COVID stuff. Personally, me, I’d like to go back before 9/11, the Patriot Act. Things like that. It’s just very tyrannical type stuff. It’s government overreach. And that’s what we’re all about. Sure, the mask things and the shots and all this, they’re the … easy thing to talk about, but it’s all the other things behind the scenes. … We have freedom. They’re trying to take it away, and we’re gonna stop ’em. We’re gonna take our freedom back to where it was before.”
If someone said, “Rex, please write a made-up quote that perfectly encapsulates the babbling, aggrieved nonsense modern-day conservatives go on about, but make it really over the top,” I couldn’t have dreamed of crafting something as good as what my friend Stan actually said. Out loud.
And after he said it – and again, the question was basically, “What are you protesting?” – people around him began randomly shouting, “FREEDOM!!!”
The satire business is getting impossible.
Making matters worse, some in the convoy, likely in an effort to better tailor their protest to the news of the day, have glommed on to a QAnon-linked conspiracy that says Russia, with the help of former President Donald Trump, invaded Ukraine to stop secret bioweapon laboratories set up by President Joe Biden's top medical adviser, Anthony Fauci.
Sara Aniano, an extremism researcher, told NBC News: “In their fantasy, Trump comes back and the military tribunals commence over COVID tests. But I don’t think they know what they want. They are just mad, and they want a reason to express that.”
Look, if you trucker convoy people are mad and want to vent your anger, I get it. Just the other day I stopped to get a vanilla cone at McDonald’s and the soft-serve machine wasn’t working. I was furious. But I didn’t respond by making it damn near impossible for America’s hardworking satirists to write silly things that expose other people’s silliness.
So to defend my profession, I hope rising fuel prices make it fiscally impossible for you all to keep trucking the 64-mile loop around Washington, trying to persuade who-knows-who to stop doing lord-knows-what.
Please leave the mind-bending absurdity to the experts. Because, frankly, we’re swiftly running out of material.
[This message has been edited by Patrick (edited 03-13-2022).]
The subject field or title would have been clipped if you used double quotation marks (") instead of single quotation marks (') to enclose People's Convoy.
Single quotation marks, only, in the subject field.
[This message has been edited by rinselberg (edited 03-12-2022).]
The subject field or title would have been clipped if you used double quotation marks (") instead of single quotation marks (') to enclose People's Convoy.
Oh. Well, that certainly explains it then. I was unaware of this double quotation mark constraint.
So... what's all the chatter regarding the "People's Convoy"?
[This message has been edited by Patrick (edited 03-13-2022).]
Peoples Convoy didn't have nearly the impact Freedom Convoy did, simply because they were fighting a lot fewer mandates, and much less heavy-handedness, than we were to begin with.
America actually stayed mostly sane the past couple years, at least in that regard. They HAD places to go to escape the "Gestappo Zones" if they wanted to, Canada didn't.
Peoples Convoy didn't have nearly the impact Freedom Convoy did, simply because they were fighting a lot fewer mandates, and much less heavy-handedness, than we were to begin with.
America actually stayed mostly sane the past couple years, at least in that regard. They HAD places to go to escape the "Gestappo Zones" if they wanted to, Canada didn't.
That might be correct or, maybe it was realized it was a waste of time, effort, fuel and money by the majority of Americans. I agree that the US's mandates seemed to be less than Canada's but, since I don't look at Canada's issue's unless highlighted and they don't really concern or interest me. I'm no expert on what's happening there.
It's also possible that events around the world (another shiny distractor) that got the "Press's" attention and thus the public's attention made the convoy's attention getter even less. IIRC, the convoy took the slow lane and reportedly circled DC a couple of days at the minimum legal speed before breaking up and the truckers heading home. When I think about all the fuel, time and effort that was wasted on that, it looks more like a joke than a real movement. The vast majority of mandates they were protesting were being relaxed as they traveled and, it had absolutely nothing to do with the truckers protest but with actual scientific data the different entities were seeing.
Just the way I perceived what happened, I'm sure others see it differently.
Most people just follow the msm agenda. Nobody here talks about 'The Covid' or the trucker protests because the media offered them 'Russia bad'.
I saw diesel fuel prices on the interstate which were over $5 a gallon. Thanks US govt.
However, if you support independent media, you know the racist ones that are censored from sites like YouTube, they still have coverage of those issues. That's where I got the Shane Varne (sp) article from. The 52 year old former phenom Cricket.player who was an advocate for getting jabbed and died from a heart attack.
[This message has been edited by sourmash (edited 03-13-2022).]
When I think about all the fuel, time and effort that was wasted on that, it looks more like a joke than a real movement. The vast majority of mandates they were protesting were being relaxed as they traveled and, it had absolutely nothing to do with the truckers protest but with actual scientific data the different entities were seeing.
However, if you support independent media, you know the racist ones that are censored from sites like YouTube, they still have coverage of those issues.
Most people just follow the msm agenda. Nobody here talks about 'The Covid' or the trucker protests because the media offered them 'Russia bad'.
I saw diesel fuel prices on the interstate which were over $5 a gallon. Thanks US govt.
However, if you support independent media, you know the racist ones that are censored from sites like YouTube, they still have coverage of those issues. That's where I got the Shane Varne (sp) article from. The 52 year old former phenom Cricket.player who was an advocate for getting jabbed and died from a heart attack.
The autopsy report showed Warne died of a “congenital disease”, Songyot Chayaninporamet, the deputy director of Samui Hospital [in Thailand], told a news conference.
“There is no Covid-19 infection and no sign of assault or murder,” Songyot added.
Before releasing the outcome of the autopsy, Thai police revealed that Warne had previously had “chest pains”, based on information from his family.
“He had asthma and had seen a doctor about his heart,” Yuttana Sirisombat, superintendent at the Bo Phut police station on the island of Koh Samui, told reporters.
Asked about any illnesses before Warne’s death, he said: “We learned from his family that he had experienced chest pains when he was back home in his country.”
[This message has been edited by rinselberg (edited 03-14-2022).]
I'm surprised you posted in the Politics & Religion area, I thought it was something you despised.
Generally speaking... yes, I feel political "discussion" in O/T to be a total waste of time. However, I did speak up last month in the threads regarding the trucker protests in Canada, as I felt anyone who actually cared about the topic needed to hear a voice from a non-extremist Canadian forum member.
I couldn't help but notice the large number of American forum members participating in the Canadian trucker protest threads, so I was genuinely curious why there had been absolutely nothing posted by American forum members regarding the "People's Convoy" in their own country.
I guess you're right. I wasn't thinking about that "Duh?" thread. I put this (Shane's autopsy report) in this thread because you referenced Shane again in this thread. Although somewhat parenthetically.
"Shane on me."
[This message has been edited by rinselberg (edited 03-14-2022).]
Generally speaking... yes, I feel political "discussion" in O/T to be a total waste of time. However, I did speak up last month in the threads regarding the trucker protests in Canada, as I felt anyone who actually cared about the topic needed to hear a voice from a non-extremist Canadian forum member.
I couldn't help but notice the large number of American forum members participating in the Canadian trucker protest threads, so I was genuinely curious why there had been absolutely nothing posted by American forum members regarding the "People's Convoy" in their own country.
[This message has been edited by Patrick (edited 03-15-2022).]
It is not so much about the act of cutting and pasting, it is about the words cut and pasted. My point doesnt seem very disguised, I'd say it is somewhat similar to Hudini's and Sourmash's (above) at this point. I just don't understand why else you would come into an area you despise and stir pots. But it is your prerogative.
Originally posted by 2.5: It is not so much about the act of cutting and pasting, it is about the words cut and pasted.
My point doesn't seem very disguised, I'd say it is somewhat similar to Hudini's and Sourmash's (above) at this point.
I just don't understand why else you [Patrick] would come into an area you despise and stir pots. But it is your prerogative.
I think Patrick was very clear, when he created this Topic, that Trucker Convoys of this kind are of special interest to him because he's Canadian, and like so many other Canadians, he has just lived through these recent weeks when Trucker Convoys were a real big thing in Canada.
It's only natural that he would be interested in what is, or is not going on with this U.S. version of Trucker Convoy.
This newly inaugurated Politics & Religion area of the forum is a towering lighthouse on a sea of reason, beckoning participants from all corners of the world, even those who are thought to have said that they "despise" the kinds of discussions in this area. It's not something to look askance upon, like an irate and gray-bearded college professor, squinting dourly through the eyepiece of a pince-nez. Nay, it's something to be celebrated with open arms, and a snifter of fine cognac raised in toast.
"The pot you stir may be your own."
[This message has been edited by rinselberg (edited 03-15-2022).]
Just in case anyone is interested. In the spirit of "honesty", I was in error when I said the truckers all went home. Apparently some are still in DC and applied for a permit to protest and that didn't get very far. In all fairness, they aren't getting much publicity so, their "Protests" obviously isn't gaining much support for dropping mandates already being dropped.
Rams
[This message has been edited by blackrams (edited 03-15-2022).]
Whatever happened to the "People's Convoy" in the US?
I think it's pretty obvious.
The Freedom Convoy in Canada basically fought the battle for us, and largely succeeded.
The People's Convoy had started before Canada caved to the truckers, but by the time the Convoy had made it half-way to D.C., Joe Biden rescinded all Federal COVID mandates. So in truth, there was almost nothing left for them to do.
One of the things you need to know about Joe Biden is how feckless he is. He is terrified of doing something that will make him look bad, and as a result... everything that his administration does is poll-tested. The problem is, the only advisors he has are radical left, that largely only represent 20% of the country. So in an effort to not fail, he ends up failing every single time.
The vast majority of Democrats that voted for Biden, did not /actually/ want most of the things that Joe Biden has been pushing. Most Democrats I spoke with before the election that said they were going to vote for Joe Biden, said they did not support open borders, yet here we are. I could go on, and on...
Never the less.. Joe rescinded all the mandates before the trucker convoy even had the chance. So while you likely made this post to highlight what you saw as a failure of the trucker convoy, the reality is that the Democrats were so weak that they gave up even before the convoy had the chance to protest them. :/
Originally posted by 82-T/A [At Work]: I think it's pretty obvious.
The Freedom Convoy in Canada basically fought the battle for us, and largely succeeded.
The People's Convoy had started before Canada caved to the truckers, but by the time the Convoy had made it half-way to D.C., Joe Biden rescinded all Federal COVID mandates. So in truth, there was almost nothing left for them to do.
One of the things you need to know about Joe Biden is how feckless he is. He is terrified of doing something that will make him look bad, and as a result... everything that his administration does is poll-tested. The problem is, the only advisors he has are radical left, that largely only represent 20% of the country. So in an effort to not fail, he ends up failing every single time.
The vast majority of Democrats that voted for Biden, did not /actually/ want most of the things that Joe Biden has been pushing. Most Democrats I spoke with before the election that said they were going to vote for Joe Biden, said they did not support open borders, yet here we are. I could go on, and on...
Never the less.. Joe rescinded all the mandates before the trucker convoy even had the chance. So while you likely made this post to highlight what you saw as a failure of the trucker convoy, the reality is that the Democrats were so weak that they gave up even before the convoy had the chance to protest them. :/
"Whatever happened to the... end of this sentence?"
The Topic or thread title. Too funny. It's so important that forum members be ever cognizant of the distinction between the single quote punctuation mark (') and the double quote punctuation mark ("), when titularizing their new forum Topics. So important that it's worth a review: https://www.fiero.nl/forum/.../HTML/000068.html#p1
"Whatever happened to the... end of this sentence?"
Don't let this happen to you!
I'm surprised that this screw-up isn't seen here more often. I can't be the only PFF member who's tried to use double quotation marks within the subject heading.
"Whatever happened to the... end of this sentence?"
The Topic or thread title. Too funny. It's so important that forum members be ever cognizant of the distinction between the single quote punctuation mark (') and the double quote punctuation mark ("), when titularizing their new forum Topics. So important that it's worth a review: https://www.fiero.nl/forum/.../HTML/000068.html#p1
Don't let this happen to you!
As Ira so famously posited, "It ain't necessarily so."
I can't absolutely swear to this... but I'm pretty sure that the subject heading originally appeared in its entirety, but then re-appeared in its "clipped" form after I had edited a typo in my post. I thought that was awfully strange, as we cannot edit/alter our own subject headings even if we wanted to.
[This message has been edited by Patrick (edited 03-20-2022).]
Anyway, it had originally read...
... Turns out, as pointed out by blackrams in that thread, the "flyby" was probably due to the truck route simply being on the jets flight path to the nearby air base. 
Well, that certainly explains it then. I was unaware of this double quotation mark constraint.
