Elon Musk dips his toe into 'Dilbert' cartoonist controversy, says US media is 'racist against whites & Asians'



South African billionaire Elon Musk embroiled himself Sunday in the controversy surrounding "Dilbert" cartoonist Scott Adams' recent racially charged remarks and resultant cancellation, suggesting that the same media outfits now crying racism are hardly guiltless, having themselves long peddled division in America.

What is the background?

A host of newspapers across the United States — including USA Today, the Washington Post, and the New York Times — have dropped Adams' long-running comic strip, suggesting that his remarks on a Feb. 22 episode of the YouTube show "Real Coffee with Scott Adams" were hateful and "discriminatory."

TheBlaze previously reported that Adams had cited videos of black people beating white people and a Rasmussen poll indicating that only 53% of black respondents agreed with the statement, "It's OK to be white."

"That's a hate group and I don't want to have anything to do with them," said Adams. "And I would say, based on the current way things are going, the best advice I would give to white people is to get the hell away from black people."

"Just get the f*** away," Adams emphasized, adding, "Wherever you have to go, just get away. Because there's no fixing this. This can't be fixed, right. ... I'm gonna back off from being helpful to black America, because it doesn't seem like it pays off. I've been doing it all my life, and the only outcome is I get called a racist. ... It makes no sense to help black Americans if you're white. It's over. Don't even think it's worth trying. Totally not trying."

\u201cThis is the absolute truth what @ScottAdamsSays is saying here. He had to have known that all the coward newspapers would drop his Dilbert comic strip. I admire Scott Adams for doing it anyway.\u201d
— Jesse Lee Peterson (@Jesse Lee Peterson) 1677365359

The Miami Herald reported that Adams attempted to clarify his remarks on Saturday, suggesting that he had been making a point that "everyone should be treated as an individual" without discrimination.

"But you should also avoid any group that doesn't respect you, even if there are people within the group who are fine," said Adams.

The cartoonist claimed that CNN's Don Lemon was of a similar mind, sharing a 2013 video wherein the scandal-plagued news-reader detailed five things he believed black people ought to do to "fix the problem." Among the host's suggestions were recommendations to black Americans to hold off having kids and to emulate "predominantly white neighborhoods" by picking up litter.

Adams also suggested that what he had proposed was not dissimilar from former Vice President Mike Pence's personal policy, according to which the politician would never dine alone with any woman other than his wife.

"The Mike Pence rule would say you wanna get some distance. Now is that racist? Yeah, by definition," said Adams. "But it's racist in a personal success context, which is completely allowable."

Despite his attempts at clarification, Gannett, which publishes over 100 papers in the U.S., indicated it would drop "Dilbert," reported the Daily Mail.

The Los Angeles Times, various Hearst Newspapers (e.g., the San Antonio Express-News), certain Advance Local media publications, and other outfits are similarly ditching the comic strip, which has been in circulation since 1989.

The San Antonio Express-News indicated it was curbing "Dilbert" because "of hateful and discriminatory public comments by its creator."

Chris Quinn, editor of the Plain Dealer, wrote of the decision, "This is a decision based on the principles of this news organization and the community we serve. ... We are not a home for those who espouse racism. We certainly do not want to provide them with financial support."

John Hiner, VP of content for Michigan's MLive Media, wrote Friday, "MLive has zero tolerance for racism. And we certainly will not spend our money supporting purveyors of it."

The papers doth protest too much

Following Adams' initial cancellation and in response to a comment contextualizing the cartoonist's remarks, Twitter CEO Elon Musk wrote, "The media is racist."

Musk added in a subsequent post, "For a *very* long time, US media was racist against non-white people, now they’re racist against whites & Asians. Same thing happened with elite colleges & high schools in America. Maybe they can try not being racist."

\u201c@monitoringbias For a *very* long time, US media was racist against non-white people, now they\u2019re racist against whites & Asians. \n\nSame thing happened with elite colleges & high schools in America.\n\nMaybe they can try not being racist.\u201d
— Monitoring Bias (@Monitoring Bias) 1677332686

The tech magnate then concurred with Christopher Ferguson, a psychology professor at Stetson University, who tweeted, "Adams' comments weren't good. But there's an element of truth to this. ... It's complicated. Mainly we've leaned into identity with predictable results, and power today is complicated. We were on the right path with colorblindness and need to return to it."

Musk may have arrived at this opinion having glimpsed the kinds of headlines below that routinely appear in the liberal media, advancing identity politics and sifting complex issues through the singular lens of race:

Tom Fitton, president of Judicial Watch, suggested that the leftist media's use of "'Black' and 'White' to describe people" is evidence of a "pernicious racialism with which the South African apartheid system would be quite comfortable. #CriticalRaceTheory."

CNN news-reader Oliver Darcy asked whether media organizations should "respond to Musk the same way they did to Adams?"

In response, Adams wrote, "Who stoked racial division for the past five years? Was that me? Or Musk?

The Rabbit Hole elicited an "interesting" from Musk by suggesting that the terms "Racist" and "Racism" saw a significant spike in media usage over the past decade:

\u201c@WolfofLevittown @ScottAdamsSays Ask and you shall receive\u201d
— The Rabbit Hole (@The Rabbit Hole) 1677350932

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Loudoun County father arrested at school board meeting for standing up for kids and against leftist indoctrination cleared of wrongdoing



A Loudoun County dad was criminally charged and smeared as an extremist after he took a stand at a school board meeting in June 2021 against leftist indoctrination and "moral decay." On Wednesday, he was cleared of wrongdoing.

After his vindication in court, Jon Tigges told TheBlaze that while he does not advocate getting arrested, every person has to come to their own understanding of "what God is calling them to say and do."

For some, this might mean they "simply stop living their life on Facebook and have someone over for dinner. For others, it may be reconciling with estranged family members. ... But to do nothing in the midst of decay and injustice is disobedience [to God]," he added. "The greatest paradox is that we must die to truly live."

What's the background?

Jon Tigges was arrested on June 22, 2021, and charged with trespassing after he refused to leave a Loudoun County school board meeting that apparently did not go the way the board members wanted.

TheBlaze previously reported that the district and its board had made national headlines over the "pornographic" content in assigned books, their mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic, the suspension of a Christian teacher who opposed transsexual policies, and a student claim that the administrators' admission of transsexuals into girls' locker rooms put her in danger.

Over 250 people signed up to express their concerns about the school board's proposed transsexual accommodations, critical race theory, and other leftist designs foisted upon kids in the county.

Officials tried to prematurely end the meeting while concerned citizens, including Tigges, attempted to give their testimonies.

According to Loudoun Now, school board chairman Brenda Sheridan (Sterling) halted the meeting, claiming that members of the crowd were being disorderly. Superintendent Scott Ziegler, who was indicted over his handling of transsexual rapes and fired last month, then declared the gathering an "unlawful assembly," ordering the board room to be cleared.

Tigges told the sheriff clearing the room that he intended to stay until everyone had an opportunity to speak — only 51 of the 259 had been heard — and that the meeting, which was scheduled to run at least another hour, was technically not over.

He was handcuffed and dragged outside.

In a video of the arrest, Tigges can be heard informing the deputies taking him away, "This is an unlawful arrest. I have a First Amendment right."

\u201cTwo arrests made at the Loudoun County, Virginia school board meeting after it was declared an unlawful assembly and some parents here to protest against critical race theory and a transgender policy refused to leave right away #CriticalRaceTheory\u201d
— Gabriella Borter (@Gabriella Borter) 1624390451

In September 2021, Tigges was found guilty of trespassing by Judge Ian Williams in a Virginia district court.

Tigges announced his appeal soon thereafter, noting, "Public officials can't stop public comments just because they don’t like what is being said, nor can they demand that attendees not make noise of any kind."

Judge Douglas Fleming Jr. of the 20th Judicial Circuit in Virginia happened to agree with him.

\u201c\u201cNot guilty\u201d\n\nRuling today on my arrest for trespassing at the 6/22/21 Loudoun County School Board meeting.\u201d
— Jon Tigges (@Jon Tigges) 1672863554

Vindicated

On Wednesday, Fleming cleared Tigges of any wrongdoing.

Fleming found both that Tigges had a First Amendment right to attend the meeting and that Ziegler had no right to declare the meeting an "unlawful assembly," thereby nullifying the grounds for the trespassing charge, reported the Federalist.

"Unlike the first two judges who ruled against my case, Judge Fleming actually made a ruling based on state statutes. ... The first judge stated that since Ziegler didn’t 'feel safe” he could have peaceful protesters arrested. The second judge determined that a person’s constitutional right to speech and assembly were not allowed during a meeting recess," Tigges told TheBlaze. "Three's a charm I guess."

Tigges suggested that the ordeal opened his eyes "to just how deep and dark the rabbit hole of evil really is. Helped me see that real freedom is grounded on (1) faith, (2) family, and (3) friends — not government."

The Loudoun father indicated that his grounding is now firmer than its ever been. "God has never been more real or personal in my life," he said.

In terms of his family and friends, Tigges credits his wife, Chris, for withstanding what was "really a rough ride" and coming out even stronger and the "amazing people we met through this."

Even his wedding venue business, Zion Springs, which was canceled by its major referrers such as WeddingWire and TheKnot, and ultimately lost over $1 million in revenue, has rebounded, enjoying its best year ever in 2022.

While his business turns a profit, Tigges noted that he has profited from the insights he gleaned during this protracted battle to peaceably assemble and speak out against the school board's adoption and advancement of radical leftist agendas — a battle in which he and parents like him were smeared as domestic terrorists by the National School Boards Association and by elements of the Biden administration.

"I learned that I needed to stop expecting someone else to do something and take responsibility for what I could influence. That started with a long look in the mirror and realizing I had neglected giving time, treasure, and talents to my community," he said.

Tigges noted that he will move forward with the understanding that "the biggest problem ... was not that bad people are going to do bad things. I knew that already. The solution is to get good people to do good things."

"God's people sin by their silence. Faith without works is dead," Tigges suggested, noting, "We don't trust God when we display inaction in the face of justice."

The Loudoun father called on other Christians to similarly look in the mirror and to challenge "the depravity all around them. The Bible is clear that change in our world starts with the Church."

\u201cNothing will change until We the People value conviction over comfort. Despite the many bad actors here in Loudoun, I\u2019m most concerned about those who call themselves Christians. Many haven\u2019t lifted a finger or opened their mouths in protest to the depravity all around them.\u201d
— Jon Tigges (@Jon Tigges) 1672863554

Tigges indicated he will be launching a podcast on Friday called "Bedrock Blueprints," in which he'll discuss frameworks based on truth.