Where to go from here…

I’ve been an H3 follower for about a decade at this point, really through better and worse (and there’s been much more of the latter in that ten year period). I’ve been watching Hasan for about half that time. Truly, it’s embarrassing to even think about the hours of my life I’ve spent listening to these two dudes just talk in front of a camera. With Ethan and all of his faux-pas and burned bridges (not even to mention some of his content from the pre-podcast days) I think I’ve begrudgingly known that one day I would have to drop off. I’ve been ambivalent about the drama focus of the podcast for the past couple of years because it’s seemed kinda vapid and mean, but usually targeted at people ostensibly worthy of cattiness. But now that this format’s tackling something so volatile as foreign politics, genocide, racism, antisemitism, communism (?), it’s basically unconscionable. Any valid critique Ethan has is getting lost in this absolute mad search for individual blame and malice in leftist streamers. The tier list shit is absolutely insane to me, like I just think it’s a ridiculous reaction from him. His perspective on this is just totally unshakable and he wants everyone to meet him where he is, even though he’s not really in this sphere of political content. Really, once he brought Hasan on as a co-host, I should have anticipated this fallout. Which brings me to some kind of reckoning I guess. The pain I feel at watching this public dispute is, embarrassing for one, but a larger indication of how gross and antisocial online content like this is. Just personal relationships mined and dragged for some spectator body. It gives me the ick, as the kids might say. Very immature behavior that the format supports. It didn’t start here, but I think it ends here. Perhaps it’s time to fly from YouTube and Twitch altogether. He’s gone down a path I can’t follow…