28 votes

Kanye West praises Hitler, Nazis in openly antisemitic rant: 'I like Hitler'

43 comments

  1. [27]
    an_angry_tiger
    Link
    This is by far the craziest thing I've seen a prominent celebrity do. The videos are so out of left field they are beyond reality. Honestly the one thats the strangest to me isn't even the Hitler...

    This is by far the craziest thing I've seen a prominent celebrity do. The videos are so out of left field they are beyond reality.

    Honestly the one thats the strangest to me isn't even the Hitler or the Nazi parts (they're bad, I didn't know Kanye was that anti-semitic, but this is something I can wrap my head around), it's where he brings out a net and a bottle of Yoohoo while talking about Benjamin Net-in-Yoohoo (Netinyahu). That part has twisted my brain in a tight grip, I couldn't envision someone doing something so strange and being so committed to it.

    14 votes
    1. [2]
      streblo
      Link Parent
      The fact that his behaviour is so bizarre that no one is even mentioning the gimp mask is also pretty wild.

      Honestly the one thats the strangest to me isn't even the Hitler or the Nazi parts

      The fact that his behaviour is so bizarre that no one is even mentioning the gimp mask is also pretty wild.

      13 votes
      1. Thrabalen
        Link Parent
        It didn't even looking like a gimp mask to me, it looked like a first-person shooter tryhard mask. I felt like I was watching a Weazel News segment in GTA.

        It didn't even looking like a gimp mask to me, it looked like a first-person shooter tryhard mask. I felt like I was watching a Weazel News segment in GTA.

        7 votes
    2. [18]
      Greg
      Link Parent
      I could only bring myself to watch a short clip, but you know things are bad when Alex fucking Jones is visibly uncomfortable and trying to distance himself from the points being made.

      I could only bring myself to watch a short clip, but you know things are bad when Alex fucking Jones is visibly uncomfortable and trying to distance himself from the points being made.

      13 votes
      1. [17]
        vord
        Link Parent
        Rasicts always feel uncomfortable when they find themselves agreeing with a black man. /rimshot

        Rasicts always feel uncomfortable when they find themselves agreeing with a black man.

        /rimshot

        8 votes
        1. [16]
          aphoenix
          Link Parent
          The deeply cynical person in me wonders if this is an act, and if various powerful white men are paying him to look insane so they can point to him and say, "look, it's not us who praises nazies,...

          The deeply cynical person in me wonders if this is an act, and if various powerful white men are paying him to look insane so they can point to him and say, "look, it's not us who praises nazies, it's you!"

          1 vote
          1. [2]
            cmccabe
            Link Parent
            Similarly cynical, I've been wondering if big players on the left are boosting him in order to accentuate the lunatic fringe of the right. I'm honestly not sure how to characterize this guy's...

            Similarly cynical, I've been wondering if big players on the left are boosting him in order to accentuate the lunatic fringe of the right. I'm honestly not sure how to characterize this guy's politics (even more cynically: I'm not sure he knows), but he has appeared on Tucker Carlson. Similarly, Biden is evidently attempting to lead MTG into the Republican spotlight. And I think it's pretty well known now that Democrats helped the looniest of Republicans win their primary nominations which ended up in a few Democrat midterm wins. There are a lot of mind games going on right now.

            8 votes
            1. AnthonyB
              Link Parent
              That's American politics for you. We spend a lot of time talking about polarization which leads to the false impression that most people fall neatly into onto one side of the aisle. That might be...

              I'm honestly not sure how to characterize this guy's politics (even more cynically: I'm not sure he knows),

              That's American politics for you. We spend a lot of time talking about polarization which leads to the false impression that most people fall neatly into onto one side of the aisle. That might be somewhat true for regular voters and/or people that closely follow politics, but the majority of people in the US don't pay much attention to what's going on and have a bizarre mishmash of conflicting views, like Kanye Ye. Take any extreme or ridiculous view on any random issue and you'll probably find that 30% of Americans believe it.

              1 vote
          2. [10]
            NaraVara
            Link Parent
            They don't need to pay him. He's clearly got some psychiatric disorder that he stopped taking meds for. All they need to do is platform him. Also, FWIW, I think some people are just wired to...

            They don't need to pay him. He's clearly got some psychiatric disorder that he stopped taking meds for. All they need to do is platform him.

            Also, FWIW, I think some people are just wired to succumb to this specific form of radicalization when they have a big social media following and spend too much time online. I'm coming to believe they're just something about the interaction paradigm that breaks certain people's brains in predictable and repeatable ways under certain conditions. We don't know what they are but it's unmistakable.

            7 votes
            1. [9]
              smoontjes
              Link Parent
              I don't know if anybody on tildes are medical/psychiatric professionals but has he not been this way for years at this point? I know nothing about it but I didn't think that a manic or psychotic...

              He's clearly got some psychiatric disorder that he stopped taking meds for.

              I don't know if anybody on tildes are medical/psychiatric professionals but has he not been this way for years at this point?

              I know nothing about it but I didn't think that a manic or psychotic episode could last such a long time as this

              3 votes
              1. [2]
                vord
                Link Parent
                As a bipolar manic myself, a full-blown psychotic episode can go on indefinitely if left untreated.

                I know nothing about it but I didn't think that a manic or psychotic episode could last such a long time as this

                As a bipolar manic myself, a full-blown psychotic episode can go on indefinitely if left untreated.

                8 votes
                1. lou
                  Link Parent
                  Yep. The content may be different, but the presentation can be very similar.

                  Yep. The content may be different, but the presentation can be very similar.

                  1 vote
              2. NaraVara
                Link Parent
                He's always been prone to saying some wild shit but he's on another level now. Kim Kardashian basically said as much when she divorced him.

                I don't know if anybody on tildes are medical/psychiatric professionals but has he not been this way for years at this point?

                He's always been prone to saying some wild shit but he's on another level now. Kim Kardashian basically said as much when she divorced him.

                5 votes
              3. lou
                Link Parent
                Both he and his ex-wife public declared that Kanye West was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

                Both he and his ex-wife public declared that Kanye West was diagnosed with bipolar disorder.

                2 votes
              4. [4]
                Thrabalen
                Link Parent
                There was a tweet back in 2018 predicting that Kanye would praise Hitler. That's... a very niche prediction.

                There was a tweet back in 2018 predicting that Kanye would praise Hitler. That's... a very niche prediction.

                1 vote
                1. [3]
                  Liru
                  Link Parent
                  It's not quite so niche when you realize that's around the time Kanye said that "slavery was a choice" or something similarly ridiculous.

                  It's not quite so niche when you realize that's around the time Kanye said that "slavery was a choice" or something similarly ridiculous.

                  2 votes
                  1. [2]
                    teaearlgraycold
                    Link Parent
                    Also tweet predictions are the same phenomena as a broken clock being right twice per day.

                    Also tweet predictions are the same phenomena as a broken clock being right twice per day.

                    2 votes
                    1. Thrabalen
                      Link Parent
                      Still, praising Hitler isn't exactly something just about anyone does, much less someone who isn't even close to Aryan.

                      Still, praising Hitler isn't exactly something just about anyone does, much less someone who isn't even close to Aryan.

                      1 vote
          3. [2]
            vord
            (edited )
            Link Parent
            Thinking about this in the context of Kanye being a bipolar artist, particularily one that doesn't really need the public anymore... There is a non-0 chance this is some degree of artistic...

            Thinking about this in the context of Kanye being a bipolar artist, particularily one that doesn't really need the public anymore...

            There is a non-0 chance this is some degree of artistic performance rather than an honest expression of politics and beliefs. Not even of the nefarious conspiratorial kind, but just in a "I wonder what would happen" way.

            Thinking further, being brought on a famed-bigot show, then being the most stereotypically over the top bigot, especially with a "but you're black" kicker, has that level of dark comedic twist to it. There's a reason that "Godwinning" is a thing, and that's because evoking Hitler is shorthand for "irreemable evil" and only bigots that agree or people trying to make blatently obvious that something is wrong do so.

            The gimp does what their dom wants. He's performing as a sub for the right wing. The unspoken bit is "Alex Jones is too."

            If I had the celebrity to go on Fox News, I'd certainly play the part of a proper conservative in a suit, talk about tax cuts and wastful spending and abortions, all up till the ottro then do a "Heil Hitler." It'd be hilarious.

            5 votes
            1. aphoenix
              Link Parent
              I have wondered about it being performance art as well, a sort of mega-kaufman bit. Sometimes his timing is just too on point; there's a relatively recent rant where he talks about being...

              I have wondered about it being performance art as well, a sort of mega-kaufman bit. Sometimes his timing is just too on point; there's a relatively recent rant where he talks about being misdiagnosed by a doctor that is comedically brilliant, albeit awful.

              1 vote
          4. Leonidas
            Link Parent
            I think it's partially that, but keep in mind that many of these far-right figures are experts at obfuscating the full truth of their ideas and rhetoric, maintaining deniability while signaling to...

            I think it's partially that, but keep in mind that many of these far-right figures are experts at obfuscating the full truth of their ideas and rhetoric, maintaining deniability while signaling to their audience what they really want. Kanye is just saying this stuff completely out in the open, which makes things awkward since they want to maintain their audience but not lose credibility by not pushing back against a guy who literally praised Hitler.

            5 votes
    3. [2]
      cmccabe
      Link Parent
      From another article: Sounds like foreign relations won’t be at the top of his 2024 presidential platform.

      From another article:

      When asked by Jones why he wasn't fond of Netanyahu, Ye admitted he had only heard of the former prime minister two weeks ago and thought he "had a funny name".

      Sounds like foreign relations won’t be at the top of his 2024 presidential platform.

      7 votes
      1. an_angry_tiger
        Link Parent
        You really cannot make this up, life is too bizarre. Seriously what the hell.

        You really cannot make this up, life is too bizarre.

        Seriously what the hell.

        3 votes
    4. [3]
      Fiachra
      Link Parent
      Puppet Netinyahu says "you can't say that, we'll take your family from you". As far as I can glean, this seems to be the chain of logic that led to that puppet show: Kim left him He thinks the...

      Puppet Netinyahu says "you can't say that, we'll take your family from you". As far as I can glean, this seems to be the chain of logic that led to that puppet show:

      • Kim left him
      • He thinks the media made Kim leave him
      • He thinks the media is controlled by Jewish people
      • Netinyahu was the PM of Israel
      • Therefore, he reasons Netinyahu made Kim leave him.

      At least, that's as much sense as I can make of it. Fucked up beyond my wildest expectations.

      4 votes
      1. Leonidas
        Link Parent
        And Pete Davidson has Jewish ancestry (although he doesn't identify as such), so...yeah.

        And Pete Davidson has Jewish ancestry (although he doesn't identify as such), so...yeah.

        1 vote
      2. teaearlgraycold
        Link Parent
        It could easily be a scene in a South Park episode.

        It could easily be a scene in a South Park episode.

        1 vote
    5. hamstergeddon
      Link Parent
      Watch out Carrot Top, there's a new prop comic on the scene!

      Watch out Carrot Top, there's a new prop comic on the scene!

      3 votes
  2. [2]
    Thrabalen
    Link
    While there's certainly some comedy to be had in all of this, his net worth is still $400m (before yesterday, of course) and that's considerable power if he were to put his money where his...

    While there's certainly some comedy to be had in all of this, his net worth is still $400m (before yesterday, of course) and that's considerable power if he were to put his money where his incredibly large mouth is.

    3 votes
    1. stu2b50
      Link Parent
      Kanye is also symptomatic of more issues with other celebrities that have sway. While with this, Kanye has gone so far off the deep end that no one is taking him seriously (well, hopefully anyway...

      Kanye is also symptomatic of more issues with other celebrities that have sway. While with this, Kanye has gone so far off the deep end that no one is taking him seriously (well, hopefully anyway - if you're too extreme for Alex Jones, that's quite a position). But, we know that other influential people also have similar antisemtic beliefs - Kyrie Irving, and Jaylen Brown have signalled support for the Black Israelites, for instance.

      It's likely that many more secretly have these beliefs, and I can see them being empowered by what may appear to them as "the globalist (aka Jews)" silencing another of their ilk.

      6 votes
  3. [11]
    lou
    Link
    Why is he wearing a mask?

    Why is he wearing a mask?

    1 vote
    1. stu2b50
      Link Parent
      Kanye has been wearing masks for a while (at least 2021). I can only find tabloid sources for this, which makes sense, because why would anyone else care, but here's an article:...

      Kanye has been wearing masks for a while (at least 2021). I can only find tabloid sources for this, which makes sense, because why would anyone else care, but here's an article: https://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/fashion/article/kanye-west-mask-bet-awards

      That being said I don't think anyone knows it any more now. He said some mumbo jumbo about anonymity and whatnot, there's some fan psychoanalysis that it's related to body image issues, in the end, I don't know anyone will or ever will know why.

      4 votes
    2. [9]
      vord
      Link Parent
      I outlined in this comment.... I think it's performance art. Edit: Or...Kanye is trying to become un-famous as quickly as possible without going full Cobain.

      I outlined in this comment.... I think it's performance art.

      Edit: Or...Kanye is trying to become un-famous as quickly as possible without going full Cobain.

      1 vote
      1. [7]
        teaearlgraycold
        Link Parent
        Or he's losing his mind

        Or he's losing his mind

        7 votes
        1. [6]
          vord
          Link Parent
          These things are not mutually exclusive. Think about some of the most famous artists of the past. A large percentage of them were not mentally sound.

          These things are not mutually exclusive. Think about some of the most famous artists of the past. A large percentage of them were not mentally sound.

          2 votes
          1. [5]
            Akir
            Link Parent
            Honestly, I really don't like this take. I highly doubt that the majority of famous people have mental issues to begin with, but I think it's worse to glorify mental diseases as something that...

            Honestly, I really don't like this take. I highly doubt that the majority of famous people have mental issues to begin with, but I think it's worse to glorify mental diseases as something that improves creativity.

            I'm not a big fan of looking into famous people's biographies, but of the ones that I have seen where it talked about mental issues, it always seemed the common thread is that they were good at their craft in spite of them. At best they could use their experience to improve their performances. Robin Williams, for instance, could have used his depression to better portray a character who is in despair, but the actual effects of depression makes acting much less believable in my personal experience.

            7 votes
            1. vord
              (edited )
              Link Parent
              That's fine to disagree. But I didn't say majority, I said a large percentage. I'd say even 10% would constitute that. And I didn't say that it was fueling his creativity, just that comorbidity is...

              That's fine to disagree. But I didn't say majority, I said a large percentage. I'd say even 10% would constitute that. And I didn't say that it was fueling his creativity, just that comorbidity is a thing.

              Between addiction, mania, depression, and schizophrenia...there's a lot of potential ground to cover. Especially since it's hard to diagnose people who are long dead before the diagnosis became a thing. Vincent van Gogh, Salvador Dalí, and Phillip Dick all sprung to the forefront of my mind in short order. Half of my favorite musicians, comedians, and authors struggle with addiction and depression.

              If nothing else, being mentally unwell (especially in the context of a bipolar manic) removes that filter which might cause an average person to hesitate at taking a controversial action. A person with nothing to lose (or abstracted from consequence physically or mentally) is a person who is free in a way that a "well-adjusted" person is not.

              A short list of some of the crazy performance art. Kanye portraying "biggest-bigot" probably wouldn't even make the list if/when confirmed as such.

              3 votes
            2. [3]
              Thrabalen
              Link Parent
              I don't think it's so much that being mentally divergent improves creativity so much as it skews one's vision in a way that most people find intriguing. If skewed mentality wasn't inherently...

              I don't think it's so much that being mentally divergent improves creativity so much as it skews one's vision in a way that most people find intriguing. If skewed mentality wasn't inherently interesting, I don't think mind altering substances would be so popular.

              In other words, you have to be talented to be artistic, but being different has always been a way to stand out from the crowd.

              2 votes
              1. [2]
                Akir
                Link Parent
                That's kind of why I'm not terribly comfortable with that idea; often times it's like they are using a person's mental illness as a way to sell people a product at the expense of the creator (i.e....

                That's kind of why I'm not terribly comfortable with that idea; often times it's like they are using a person's mental illness as a way to sell people a product at the expense of the creator (i.e. "only a crazy person could think this up!").

                2 votes
                1. Thrabalen
                  Link Parent
                  I agree, it's very much a circus sideshow mentality at play for the observer.

                  I agree, it's very much a circus sideshow mentality at play for the observer.

                  2 votes
      2. Akir
        Link Parent
        TBH I would love to find out at some point that he's doing some outrageous next-level Andy Kaufman style stuff, but it's mainly because I find the much more probable reality to be too sad.

        TBH I would love to find out at some point that he's doing some outrageous next-level Andy Kaufman style stuff, but it's mainly because I find the much more probable reality to be too sad.

        3 votes