There are few people on the far-right of the political aisle as sleazy, as unabashedly mucilaginous, as Ben Shapiro. He’s spineless, sycophantic, and utterly without morals, and there’s not a single thing of worth he’s contributed to the national discussion.
He’s also far too vocal, and provided far too large a platform, to entirely ignore. Something about that sneering, toadish face seems to appeal to the worst people you’ve ever met, and they’ve allowed the smarmy snake to reach upsetting levels of prominence.
Shapiro is best known for his atrocious hot takes, and for his willingness to “debate” those who disagree. The issue? Ben never really learned how to debate, and instead he uses his prominent platform, and careful editing, to ignore the arguments of the other side and promote his own half-cocked hatred. Many of the same tactics Shapiro uses to engage in so-called debates were used against him in a recent episode of “Surrounded,” which pitted the notorious grifter against a wave of people who disagree with the stance “Kamala Harris’ extreme pro-abortion stance is morally indefensible.”
The shining star of the night emerged in no time, after an unflinching trans man took the seat opposite Shapiro. Sturdy, unabashedly masculine, and clearly itching for the fight, he poses several questions to Shapiro before really digging into the meat of his argument. He leaves Shapiro sputtering with questions about the existence of trans men, white supremacy, and sexual assault, but really drives the nail home with his emphasis of how damaging Shapiro is to our society.
This absolute icon carefully wields the exact same tactics Shapiro is known for — fast talking, ever shifting topics, barely pausing for the other party to speak — and when Shapiro complains, he throws it right in his face. “That’s the tactics you play in your game,” he says. “You’ve done it the entire time — you jump from one subject to the next, you speak so fast and I know how you work. So how’s it feel to have it in your face?”
The gorgeous response prompts scattered applause from attendees, but our king is not finished. He goes on to emphasize that male leadership — something Shapiro thinks is a requirement in this country — has led us to the ditch we’re currently mired in, and watches in delight as frustration grows on Shapiro’s face. The far-right talking head is hardly given a single moment to interject, and watching him stew from the other side of his typical tactics is nothing short of delicious.
It’s one of the greatest smack-downs Shapiro has ever suffered, and its really laid out near the end, when the hero of our tale emphasizes that all that prattle doesn’t matter “if you’re harming” the very same people you’re purportedly aiming to protect.
The nearly-five minute rant is polished off flawlessly by an inarguably petty handshake fake-out, which emerged as a shining moment for a bulk of viewers, who gushed over the glorious opportunity to watch Shapiro shovel his own sh*t for once.
Shapiro will absolutely spin this to make our trans hero look like a furious feminist, but it seems the bulk of viewers saw that clip for what it really was — a seasoned flim-flam man struck speechless by his own twisted tactics. Shapiro was at a loss for how to respond to that approach, just as most people are, and his own inability to properly debate in such unwelcome conditions really underpins how toxic the approach was from the start.
