The Week on Twitter: Cecil the Lion & the Marriage Referendum
This week, Twitter was outraged by the murder of Cecil the lion, confused by objections to the marriage referendum, and satisfied with the internet’s treatment of Vine ‘star’ Carter Reynolds.
Outrage over murder of #CecilTheLion #JusticeForCecil
This week, it was revealed that Minnesotan dentist and trophy hunter, Walter Palmer, had illegally hunted and killed Cecil the lion. Cecil, who was a collared and very much loved attraction at Zimbabwe’s National Park, was apparently lured out of the park by Palmer, and shot with a bow and arrow. The lion was then pursued by Palmer and his hunting group for over 40 hours, before he was eventually caught, beheaded, and skinned.
Once it was confirmed that Cecil had in fact been murdered, the good people of Twitter took to their timelines to express their anger, sorrow, and desire to see Palmer meet the same fate as poor Cecil.
Stop killing animals for sport. #CecilTheLion
— JARED LETO (@JaredLeto) July 31, 2015
https://twitter.com/Cassie_Taylor_/status/626434207531859968
Walter Palmer killed Cecil the Lion with a bow to show off – and now he's discovering what it's like to be hunted http://t.co/f4NQWiFM3f
— Louis Theroux (@louistheroux) July 30, 2015
Love it! A memorial has started for #CecilTheLion, in front of that arse of a Dentist, #WalterPalmer. pic.twitter.com/0ZUYTcyjJp
— Charles Chaz Fowler (@ChazFowler) July 28, 2015
Following the incident, Palmer released a letter of apology to his clients, where he stated “I had no idea that the lion I took was a known, local favorite, was collared and part of a study until the end of the hunt.” He also claimed that he thought the hunt was legal, and apologised for closing his practice. Either way, Palmer – you’re killing animals for sport, and that ain’t cool.
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in the #marref tag…
Yesterday, the Court of Appeal came together to refute the last legal challenges to the marriage referendum. Gerry Walshe and Maurice Lyons opposed the referendum’s landslide success, claiming that those who voted no (and those who didn’t bother to vote at all), were misrepresented by the state in the months leading up to May 22nd. Walshe and Lyons also decided to suggest that the government had illegally spent public money in order to procure a yes vote. Of course, they had no evidence of this, but who needs evidence when you’ve got homophobia? Am I right?
Policy director of the Gay and Lesbian Equality Network (GLEN), Tiernan Brady, did us all a favour and live tweeted the whole debacle.
#marref objector says govt hid the truth about HIV and AIDS during the campaign. I hope some day he realises how ashamed he should be
— Tiernan Brady (@Tiernanbrady) July 30, 2015
Objector to #marref result claims separation of church & State is unconstitutional as all authority flows from the most holy trinity.
— Tiernan Brady (@Tiernanbrady) July 30, 2015
Objector to the #marref result tells the court of appeal this is not anti-gay as he has gay friends #peoplearesovreign
— Tiernan Brady (@Tiernanbrady) July 30, 2015
(Seriously?)
Naturally, the three-judge court rejected these ridiculous oppositions, and same-sex marriage is still set to become law some time later this year. Yay!
Both #marref cases struck out. The people are sovereign and we are equal!
— Tiernan Brady (@Tiernanbrady) July 30, 2015
Internet ‘sensation’ Carter Reynolds faces well deserved backlash in #RespectForCarter hashtag
Over the weekend, #RespectForCarter trended for awhile, and if you (like me) were wondering who this mysterious figure you were supposed to be respecting was, look no further. “Is he a human rights activist?” I hear you ask. “Did he save somebody from a burning building?” “Has he ended world hunger?!” No, none of those things. Actually, he sexually assaulted his girlfriend and filmed the whole thing. Serious respect, man. Wow.
It all started when the aforementioned video was leaked, and Reynolds – being the massive Vine star that he is – was kicked out of VidCon for the safety of whoever else was attending.
https://twitter.com/Clisare/status/624711809795133440
He also took to Twitter to respond to those who were so aptly disgusted by his actions in the video (and to thank his loyal fans for their love. How nice).
— Carter Reynolds (@carterreynolds) June 23, 2015
(As someone who has been in a relationship for awhile, I can confirm that filming yourself forcing someone to preform oral sex is not something couples do “all the time.” But maybe that’s just me.)
The trending topic, which was probably started by Reynold’s fans (or a load of menists, who knows?), was thankfully hijacked by a lot of people who think that this is actually a thing one does not deserve respect for.
why is #RespectForCarter even a hashtag when he can't even respect a girl .
— b diddy (@lavaIamps) July 25, 2015
@carterreynolds you're a sexual predator what the actual fuck do you expect?
— saffron (@spiritualstiles) July 25, 2015
Nah, respect is earned not begged for #RespectForCarter
— Anna Santos (@annaysabeI) July 25, 2015
love is overrated
— Carter Reynolds (@carterreynolds) July 27, 2015
Y’know what’s underrated though, Carter? Respecting women.
#GrowingUpCatholic brings back some dodgy memories
On Monday, we had a bit of a laugh as #GrowingUpCatholic trended in Ireland. It wasn’t long before everyone’s newsfeeds had turned to talk of confession boxes, fish on Fridays, and being on your best behaviour when the local priest came to visit your school.
#GrowingUpCatholic Severe 'PEACEBEWITCHU' handshake anxiety
— Valerie Loftus (@valerieloftus) July 25, 2015
The pope in the Phoenix Park being the biggest gig you were at #growingupcatholic
— OldIreland (@OldeEire) July 25, 2015
Taking the pledge, and two years later, getting locked on Harp. #growingupcatholic
— Colm Keegan (@Colm_Keegan) July 25, 2015
Crowdsourcing sins from other children in the queue while we waited for first confession. #growingupcatholic
— Colette Browne (@colettebrowne) July 25, 2015
And my personal favourite:
#growingupcatholic when your school can't afford an aux cord pic.twitter.com/0wDwAWYmZx
— Alec Winden (@AlecWinden) July 23, 2015
Featured image via Ronna Tom