No one criticizes leftists more than other leftists, and ever since I told my DSA working group that I enjoy the smash hit series “Yellowstone,” it feels like Rose Emoji Twitter is out to crucify me. It’s gotten to the point where I’ve begun to question my entire identity and core beliefs; so I ask you, dear reader, can I still be a leftist if I watch Yellowstone?
I get that Yellowstone has been branded by some as “anti-woke,” and that it’s the favorite show of just about every Republican suburbanite with an F150 that will never see a job site. But liking something that conservatives have overwhelmingly aligned themselves with shouldn’t call my politics into question. Right?
I still think all cops are bastards. I still think landlords are leeches. I still think billionaires shouldn’t exist; especially the ones trying to build an airport on The Yellowstone Ranch. Yes, I get that it would create jobs and yes I get that no one person should own as much land as John Dutton, but I mean, come on, like anyone is going to side with Market Equities.
All the people in my DSA chapter who I used to call my “comrades” have dared to even question my allyship with Indigenous communities, and environmental values! While I would love to see large swaths of land returned to indigenous peoples in real life, you gotta admit, the Yellowstone writers kinda make you root for the Duttons. And yes, the cattle industry is disastrous for the environment, but aerial shots of grazing cows are beautiful and roping calves does seem kinda fun.
There are some parts of the show that we should all be able to agree are good, too. They kill a lot of white supremecists, which is undeniably cool. Sure, if the Duttons were real they would probably share some of the same beliefs to a degree, but watching them shoot up a bunch of Nazis while “Sleeping On The Blacktop” is playing was fucking awesome.
Look, we all like something that’s at least a little problematic. I’m willing to bet more than a few “leftists” I know still listen to Brand New. So you know what? I’m not taking “leftist” out of any of my bios. I’m the type of guy that will lead a protest outside of a store selling fur, and then enthusiastically watch cattle get branded and sold for slaughter on a fictional television show, and if you don’t like that, tough.