Q: Why do UFC fighters say so many racist and xenophobic things? Is it because they're terrible people?
Q: Why do cops pull over so many Black drivers? Are they terrible people?
Q: Why do ICE agents detain non-violent immigrant families? Terrible?
Let's look at Colby Covington's transformation.
[I've said this before on Twitter years ago, but I erased it, so I have to say it again]
Colby Covington was a good college wrestler. Not much you can do with that career wise.🤷🏿♂️
He decided to pursue a career in the UFC.
His MMA fighting style was based on wrestling: take you down, punch you.
If you lose too many fights in the UFC, you won't get your contract renewed. You have to win to stay.
Colby Covington was winning. He had 7 wins and only 1 loss.
This is how Colby Covington used to talk to promote his fights.
And yes, he beat DHK after this, to improve to 8 wins and 1 loss.
His next fight was against Demian Maia, a dangerous 5th degree Black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. And the fight would be in Brazil, Demian's home country.
Colby's manager alleged that the UFC told him that even if Colby beat Demian, his contract would not be renewed. Because he was boring.
A wrestler can't just become a kickboxer or boxer overnight. He couldn't change his fighting style to be more interesting.
So he created a character. A persona, like a wrestler. He leaned into being super offensive MAGA guy.
He said super offensive things about Brazilians that I won't repeat.
So the UFC did re-sign him, and he became very popular with UFC fans thanks to his out of the cage MAGA antics.
Would he have gone super MAGA if his livelihood weren't threatened? Was this mask on or mask off? Which Colby is the character, and which one is real?
Who is at fault? Colby? UFC? Fans?
Is there a difference between:
"I say terrible things because it's the easiest way I know to stay employed. But I don't enjoy it."
And
"I say terrible things because it's the easiest way I know to stay employed. And I do enjoy it."
If you wanted to incentivize a reduction in the number of offensive and harmful things that UFC fighters say, where is the right place to drive that incentive?
The fighters?
The leagues?
The fans?
Is there a difference between an ICE agent that does enjoy detaining innocent people, vs one that doesn't enjoy it but does it anyway, because it's an easy way to get paid?
Is the ICE agent evil?
Or is ICE evil?
Or are ICE's "fans," the people that want to see negative net migration, evil?
What's the best leverage point if you want to incentivize reducing the number of innocent people detained by ICE?
Is it the individual ICE agents?
Or ICE?
Or ICE's fans?
There is some true percent of the US population that really are super offensively MAGA.
At times when MAGA is out of favor, some MAGA people mask, and pretend not to be MAGA.
At other times when MAGA is popular, some people that are not MAGA, pretend to be MAGA.
🙂🙃
Is one better for society? Why?
Conor McGregor says many offensive things. Most US folk, even those that don't follow MMA, know who Conor is. Conor loses a lot. He has only won 1 fight since 2016.🤷🏿♂️
Khabib Nurmagomedov avoids saying offensive things. Most people don't know who he is. He retired undefeated, having never lost in MMA.
Does that say something about Conor?
Or about UFC fans?
Or about Americans?
What are we worshipping?
Unfortunately no.
Toxic masculinity and racism / xenophobia are not the same.
If we were worshipping toxic masculinity, then we would hold Khabib in higher regard than Conor. Khabib is tougher, more manly, lives a more ascetic and spartan lifestyle, and conforms even more rigidly to harmful self-imposed gender roles and rules for conduct appropriate for a man.
We're worshipping something even worse.
@ohmu. Nope. WWF is the World Wildlife Fund. Hulk Hogan and the rest of the "wrestlers" lost the right to use WWF to a bunch of animal rights activists in 2000. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/WWF_trademark_dispute
(I know this isn’t what you were asking, but I still giggle every time I think of the macho-man muscle-bound jerks losing their brand name to an environmental group.)
Similar in that most of the rank and file and leadership are Trumpy, but the champs and fan favorites are anti-racism. Hulk Hogan was super racist, and many of the 80s characters were very racist. But most of the modern fan favorites have been anti-racism and anti-Trump, both in character and out.
John Cena
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=wVbHeSereR0
Mick Foley
https://m.youtube.com/shorts/u7pKLNK0XA0
Dave Bautista
https://youtube.com/shorts/aXQdYzwalEw
Steve Austin
https://youtube.com/shorts/Vltm88cipuA
Francis Ngannou was the heavyweight champ, until he quit the UFC. Here's what he had to say about Trump. He has a thick Cameroonian French accent. English is his 3rd language.
Khabib’s victory against McGregor was
👨🍳 😚 👌🏽
@mekkaokereke I posted but then deleted a musing on why Nak Muay from Thailand rarely compete in MMA except in a handful of specialist promotions. The answer is that Muay Thai is a national sport that's fought with honour and respect between competitors, and MMA is perceived as the opposite over there.
There are other reasons - lack of ground skills and the Thai ruleset favouring kicking, requiring a more upright stance leaving them vulnerable to takedowns - but the main reason is...just nah. 🤷🏻♂️
@mekkaokereke
i see your point and i’d add that there may be a difference between enjoying it and not, because one offers a simpler breaking point: if one doesn’t enjoy it, it may be easier to convince, cajole, or coerce them into not doing it or even being against it.
i know, little difference.
You know, white supremacy isn’t just going to support itself! You’ve got to set up social structures of reinforcement.
One possible answer on Colby Covington:
“Historians have a word for Germans who joined the Nazi party, not because they hated Jews, but out of a hope for restored patriotism, or a sense of economic anxiety, or a hope to preserve their religious values, or dislike of their opponents, or raw political opportunism, or convenience, or ignorance, or greed.
"That word is 'Nazi.' Nobody cares about their motives anymore."
― A.R. Moxon
mekka okereke 
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