So Tired of Manufactured Rage

I don't normally read the kinds of articles that have a Kardashian in the title, but this one I opened due to the cultural appropriation claims. Don't get me wrong - I vaguely know who Kendall Jenner is just because her name comes up in pop culture news articles, I just don't know much about her otherwise. For example, I know she's related to the Kardashians but I'm not sure how as her last name isn't "Kardashian".

Why were people upset that Kendall Jenner started a tequila company? That's what I wanted to know. People start liquor companies every single day from the gazillions of micro-brews across the US to the start-up distilleries across the globe. So, why was this particular instance different?

From what I read in the article people are upset that a non-Mexican (or person of non-Mexican decent) started a company closely associated with Mexican heritage. And my question was: who cares?

The outrage this caused reeks of what I refer to as the Outrage Machine. What's the Outrage Machine? Well, I'm glad you asked. 

The Outrage Machine is manufactured outrage over something inconsequential. It's a reason for people who have nothing else to be outraged about to jump on a bandwagon of faux offense.  

In this instance, social media users are "outraged" that Kendal Jenner is somehow appropriating a culture she doesn't belong to. And that would be fine and dandy if these same people were outraged across the board instead of targeting their outrage at convenient targets.

What do I mean? Well, it's fairly simple: people have been appropriating other cultures as long as there have been people and other cultures. Hell, some people even start religions over concepts they have appropriated from other cultures. Others take language or technology, architectural skills or war fighting expertise. Our own Continental Army's training came from a Prussian General. The USA, for example, is based loosely on the Roman Republic. Our government buildings have hints of classical designs, our language was taken from the British and our alphabet came from Rome, while our numbers are Arabic. 

The thing is, everyone appropriates from everyone else. Non-black people listen to hip-hop and rap, while good old' fashioned Rock'n Roll stems from white people appropriating the blues from black musicians. The ghetto is a term taken from Jewish history and appropriated by the black community and countless other example. 

Hell, there are Japanese whisky distillers - why is no one firing up the Outrage Machine over cultural appropriation and whisky is very distinctively Scottish and Irish? Why is no one starting the Outrage Machine when India produces a bourbon, a very American beverage?

We hear of the Outrage Machine when Dr. Strange goes to the far east to learn magic and when a football team uses the likeness and name of a type of Native American, but no one wants to get the machine going when a Chinese person wears jeans and a cowboy hat, when the Vikings are playing or when Japanese businessmen wear western suits. 

Stop it with the Outrage Machine already. There are very real things in this world to get upset about, but a white woman dressing as a geisha for Hallowe'en isn't one. 

More about Kenall Jenner and her tequila:

https://www.insider.com/kendall-jenner-tequila-cultural-appropriation-accusation-expert-responds-2021-2