Punching down

Punching down is easy. We assess that someone is weaker than us and we degrade them to make ourselves feel better somehow; no matter how briefly. 

Dave Chapelle has seen the writing on the wall and is trying to back away slowly from his right wing cheerleaders; the ones who rejoiced in the litany of transgender jokes he now says were meant differently. He sees MAGA disintegrating and the backlash coming and he wants off lest the stench remains attached to him. 

We're supposed to be sympathetic. 

His pronouncement that he is a proud member of team TERF wasn't intended how it sounded he tells us. It wasn't punching down as much as people thought. After all he had one transgender woman friend the way some whites say they have a black friend while letting their racism slip here and there. 

Bringing renowned transphobe Elon Musk on stage wasn't helpful either.

It's too late for Dave and many others who made a decision while the going was good. A brain dead Lauren Boebert gleefully wanting his autograph in large part because of his barrage of anti-trans humor will remain on the public record.

But also, people have memories.