Austin Mayor Shuts Down Man's Rant Over Women-Only 'Wonder Woman' Screening

Man writes ridiculous letter venting his frustrations with women, Austin’s mayor responds perfectly

When Austin’s Alamo Drafthouse movie theater announced their women-only screening of the long-awaited “Wonder Woman” movie, insecure men everywhere got sad. One man even sent a letter to the mayor of Austin, hoping for sympathy.

Instead he got sarcasm. And he got owned.

Everything is bigger in Texas. Including the assholes.

NPR has the story on the dueling letters, the first of which was sent to Austin Mayor Steve Adler and showed a breathtaking lack of awareness, both of what year it is, what women have accomplished, and his own importance to Texas’ most liberal city.

Richard A. Ameduri even signed his letter, indicating that perhaps he was proud of the ignorant, idiotic things he wrote, which included his hope that “every man will boycott Austin and do what he can to diminish Austin and to cause damage to the city’s image.”

There are too many incorrect facts in this letter to respond to. A few choice quotes:

• The notion of a woman hero is a fine example of women’s eagerness to accept the appearance of achievement without actual achievement.
• Women pretend they do not know that only men serve in combat because they are content to have an easier ride.
• Women gladly accept gold medals at the Olympics for coming in 10th and competing only against the second class of athletes.
• Name something invented by a woman!
• Everything great in human history was accomplished by men, not women.
• And I will not forget that Austin is best known for Charles Whitman

Even if the mayor did feel the need to correct this poor meninist’s ridiculous collection of falsehoods, topped off by his insistence that he doesn’t hate women (okay, pal), the reference to Austin’s infamous mass-shooting incident – perpetrated by Charles Whitman – was probably extra incentive to just toss the letter in the trash bin.

But Mayor Adler wasn’t having that. And his response is a masterclass in how to diplomatically crush someone. First, the mayor allows Ameduri in out by pretending he thinks his email was hacked. “Please remedy your account’s security right away, lest this person’s uninformed and sexist rantings give you a bad name. After all, we men have to look out for each other!”

And then, using what can only be described as fluency in sarcasm, proceeds to dismantle the poor misguided gentleman. First, by correcting him.

“Can you imagine if someone thought that you didn’t know women could serve in our combat units now without exclusion? What if someone thought you didn’t know that women invented medical syringes, life rafts, fire escapes, central and solar heating, a war-time communications system for radio-controlling torpedoes that laid the technological foundations for everything from Wi-Fi to GPS, and beer?”

Then by targeting just how absurdly misplaced his outrage is.

“I hesitate to imagine how embarrassed you’d be if someone thought you were upset that a private business was realizing a business opportunity by reserving one screening this weekend for women to see a superhero movie.”

He even manages to insult the man while pretending he’s not insulting him.

“You and I are serious men of substance with little time for the delicate sensitivities displayed by the pitiful creature who maligned your good name and sterling character by writing that abysmal email.”

Finally, he twists the knife.

“And in the future, should your travels take you to Austin, please know that everyone is welcome here, even people like those who wrote that email whose views are an embarrassment to modernity, decency, and common sense.”

BOOM.

First things first, let’s applaud Mayor Adler for his restraint. Second things second, let’s give him a standing O for responding to a troll with some world-class trolling of his own. (Thirdly, Mr. Adler would you please be my mayor? You’d be doing me a really big favor.)

Responding to trolls is tricky business for even the most low-profile of us. Merely by engaging them you are inviting negativity into your life. And if you botch your response, you risk having it blow up in your face and provoking further nonsense from your assailant.

Of course, if you manage to do it well, you can send the troll back under his bridge. In this case, presumably a bridge without any women, or any of those female-created inventions Mr. Adler mentioned. Or the Wonder Woman movie, which, by most accounts, is a roaring success.

Needless to say, this was done well. As was the Alamo Drafthouse’s response to the ridiculous anger their women-only screenings provoked. They added a few women-only screenings at my local Brooklyn theater and in Northern Virginia.

Jason Stanford, the mayor’s communications director, gets the last word here summarizing the inanity of Mr. Ameduri’s stance. “It’s almost like the whole world is set up for [men]. I think the real shocking thing is it took this long to get a lady superhero movie.”

If one of the byproducts of female superhero movies is expert take-downs of pitiful man-babies with a limited grasp on history and facts, let’s keep ’em coming!