‘Three’s a charm:’ Woke culture jeopardizes ‘Jeopardy!’ and champion Kelly Donohue
Category: “Repugnant People.” Answer: They demonized recent “Jeopardy!” champion Kelly Donohue, and the game show itself, with the ridiculous claim that the contestant flashed a racist symbol.
Question: Who are America’s woke, whiny and wimpy politically-correct thought police?
And today’s Daily Double: What is the likelihood that these entitled idiots have any remorse for destroying a person’s reputation in the tap of a buzzer?
If you guessed “none,” you win.
But the rest of America loses, most of all Kelly Donohue.
Even by today’s outlandish standards, what recently transpired with “Jeopardy!” is incredulous.
Mr. Donohue was on a winning streak. During subsequent introductions, he held up fingers representing his number of victories. Apparently, that fact needs to be repeated to the troglodytes sitting in the cheap seats (aka their parents’ basements).
Since we’re dealing with firstgraders masquerading as critics, here’s what that means: After winning the first match, his one finger symbolized winning one game. Repeat for games two and three. Granted, woke conspiracists aren’t the sharpest people, but even for them, attacking someone who simply raised three fingers should have been an off-the-charts stupid idea.
But in today’s Amerika, character assassination is standard-operating-procedure for those who engage in scorched-earth policy, reveling in sensationalized global headlines. In turn, media attention motivates them to up the ante for their next target.
So what did Mr. Donohue, a sharply-dressed and convivial bank examiner from Massachusetts, do that so crossed the line of “hate?” His last three fingers were extended, while his thumb and index finger were touching. If you’re waiting for the rest of the horror, sorry. That’s it. Since that gesture has been arbitrarily declared racist, and because it is allegedly the preferred symbol of some white supremacists, that must mean the contestant was wrong (for doing it), as well as the show (for allowing it).
They weren’t.
Preposterous as it is, the sad truth is that we have once again allowed the cancel culture to win. Consider:
1) First and foremost, this column is written for the benefit of Mr. Donohue. His life is forever altered, as he’ll never be viewed quite the same way, and his name will be searched for years to come, for all the wrong reasons. The prevailing results of internet inquiries won’t be “Kelly Donohue, multiple ‘Jeopardy!’ Champion,” or “Kelly Donohue, bank examiner,” but “Kelly Donohue’s association with an alleged racist gesture.” And that stinks.
For public record, this column defends the honor and integrity of someone who, until proven otherwise, is an upstanding citizen who did nothing wrong. And it urges people who feel the same way to make their sentiments known, be it to “Jeopardy!” execs and the network, on social media, on my Facebook page, and in the comments. Despite being in the era of big government, big brother and big tech, the people’s voice still matters most.
2) Let’s talk symbols. We all know the meaning behind certain gestures, such as “thumbs up,” and “flipping the bird,” as they’ve been around for ages.
The symbol which Mr. Donohue flashed is no different. As a matter of fact, that gesture has been part of pop culture long before it was deemed racist, since it was, and remains, the symbol for “A-OK.” And that’s not bigoted.
That hasn’t stopped critics from pouncing on Mr. Donohue for reportedly having a photo of Frank
Sinatra on his social media, where the venerated singer, and yes, avid civil rights advocate, was giving the OK sign while socializing. In 1965.
Let’s get this straight. The gesture was designated as a hate symbol by the Anti-Defamation League in September 2019. And Frank Sinatra died in 1998. So how can anyone be associated with racism for showcasing an anti-racist entertainment icon who was giving the OK sign 56 years ago, almost six decades before it was arbitrarily deemed hateful?
Here’s an idea. Maybe the symbol police ought to concern themselves with finding real solutions to real issues, instead of inventing problems where they don’t exist.
Using an age-old symbol that turns anyone using it into a hatemonger is bad enough. But it doesn’t stop there. We’ve handed the extremists a victory by allowing them to co-opt our symbols, which accomplishes three things: It A) shows that we will roll over and accede to the will of real bigots, B) emboldens radicals to continue taking what isn’t theirs, and C) leads to increased Orwellian control of thoughts and actions by self-designated arbiters of “truth.”
Proof? The geniuses at Nike thought it a swell idea to ban the Betsy Ross flag from its sneakers after just one guy - Colin Kaepernick - deemed it offensive. Worse, a Major League Soccer team banned that same flag from its venue yes, a revered American flag was banned from a stadium in the United States of America - because someone claimed it had become a symbol of hate. What’s next? The Stars and Stripes itself?
Instead of cowering to extremists, we should be doing the opposite. If everyone - black, white, gay, straight, Democrat, Republican - used the OK sign on a regular basis, and waved the Betsy Ross flag, then the hate groups and their symbols would be completely marginalized. It’s time we take back what is ours, by co-opting the coopters. Appeasement is never the answer to fighting evil, yet that’s exactly what we do. And when you give an inch, they take a mile.
3) A group of former “Jeopardy!” contestants penned a letter criticizing both Mr. Donohue and the show. Not only was it rambling and painfully long, but was so ludicrous that it presumably lost the attention of anyone in Middle America who actually read it. At the risk of giving the letter undeserved publicity, here are several excepts that illustrate just how “out there” its points are:
- “Regardless of his stated intent, the gesture is a racist dog whistle.”
So intent doesn’t matter? How omnipotent of them.
- “Most problematic to us as a contestant community is the fact that Kelly has not publicly apologized for the ramifications of the gesture he made. If something has been misconstrued, an apology and a total disavowal of any connection to white supremacist doctrines is called for.”
A) Don’t end a sentence with a preposition. B) Apologize? For what? Why should someone be forced to apologize when he did nothing wrong? An apology, by the way, that would never be accepted by many on the left. And why grovel for approval at the feet of the mob on the sole basis that they demanded you do so? Oh, and C) “contestant community?” Are they serious? Talk about a pathetic attempt to maintain a relevance they never had.
- “This event…was perceived by people across demographic boundaries as a wink and a nod by white men about their superiority.” Yeah. Sure it was.
- “We cannot stand up for hate. We cannot stand next to hate. We cannot stand onstage with something that looks like hate. We are ashamed to be associated with brands and identities that suffer the taint of hateful statements and actions, particularly if they go unchallenged by those at the top.”
Could not agree more. So when real hate occurs, not the figment of one’s fanciful imagination, be sure to let us know. Until then, “bye Felicia” and thanks for playing.
After living the dream of competing on “Jeopardy!,” Kelly Donohue faced an impossible situation. If he didn’t respond to the baseless allegations, some would perceive his silence as guilt. If he did, the woke mob’s power would grow, reinforcing the notion that it can force people to do its bidding.
The real victim is Mr. Donohue. If he is passed over for a new job, was it because an employer didn’t want the “baggage” that now accompanies him? Will his colleagues, neighbors and friends ever look at him the same way? Or will they view him with silent suspicion that maybe, just maybe, it was more than just “three wins?” And will he always be “that guy” about whom people whisper every time he goes out for dinner?
None of that matters to the bored, self-righteous hypocrites who slashed-and-burned Kelly Donohue and his family. They’re long gone, having moved on to their next victim-du-jour while the Donohues are left to rebuild a lifetime’s reputation that now lies smoldering in the ashes.
At the risk of placing my civility in … jeopardy, I would love to send the woke cancel culture a gesture not steeped in racism, but utter disgust. Here’s a hint: It’s only one finger.