 2021 wasn't the most exciting year ever. I mean, there were a lot of missed opportunities. There could have been standout moments that kind of changed the direction of the country. But that didn't really happen, you know, with regard to the Democratic Party. There was always some excuse, be it the parliamentarian or Manchinema. But there were some things that gave me a little bit of hope that were cause for cautious optimism that I do think we should celebrate. So without further ado, these are my nominations for the most badass moment of 2021. Sam Seder's surprise debate with Steven Crowder. This moment, for whatever reason, gave me so much joy to see a ghoul like Steven Crowder genuinely shook at the sight of somebody who he just doesn't want to talk with when he's like this debate, bro. I mean, it was it was really great. It's kind of nice to see an asshole get their comeuppance. And this moment was celebrated by the left. It kind of gave us something to just look forward to and joke about. And I really appreciate this moment. Of course, also there is Cory Bush's three day protest. This is really, really something that I think needs to be celebrated. Cory Bush in her first year in office showed how powerful you can be as a lawmaker. Sure, you might not have the votes to pass everything that you want, but you still have a platform that you didn't previously have. So by sleeping on the Capitol steps for three days straight, Cory Bush forced the Biden administration's hand and forced him to extend the moratorium on evictions. Now, eventually it got shut down, but she bought people crucial extra time that they desperately needed. So this absolutely should be celebrated. Also, Derek Chauvin's guilty verdict in 2020, one of the WTF moments of the year, was him killing George Floyd. I still thinking about that video. It brings up so many feelings, dread, sadness, but also in response to Black Lives Matter protests that did give me a little bit of hope. We've never seen a mass movement like that in our lifetime. So it's nice to see an international movement be catalyzed. I just wish they didn't have to come to this. But this year, Derek Chauvin shockingly was found guilty. And it's not like there was doubt that he was guilty. It's just a matter of whether or not our broken criminal justice system would actually convict a cop. And they did. And that's shocking. That doesn't happen very frequently. So that is cause for celebration. It's a badass moment. Now, also, Striketober, huge and still ongoing. This is the year where we've seen the rise of labor. And I didn't think that this was something that would happen. All across the country, workers are standing up. They're going on strike. And finally, they're the ones who took their power back. And Striketober was the moment where everything just kind of culminated in this realization that, wow, workers are rising up. We're seeing the rise of labor, the likes of which we haven't seen since perhaps the Great Depression. I mean, this really is significant. And it could lead to a paradigm shift in the United States in terms of the way that we view the economy and workers in general. So I had to nominate this. Now, there wasn't a lot, but I did have some honorable mentions here. Protesters following Kirsten Sinema into a bathroom was awesome because I think that she thought that going into a bathroom would get them off of her backs, but they were relentless. I mean, there's no other way to get her attention. She's not going to respond to your voicemails or your emails. So if you want to talk to her, you've got to get up in her face and ask her directly. And unfortunately, she's the one who created this predicament. So the bathroom protesters, as much as everyone shit on them after that happened, as much as like the media was clutching their pearls, that makes me support them even more. That makes me want to rally around the bathroom protesters specifically even more. So that was a badass moment. Additionally, Alex Jones losing his defamation lawsuit. Again, same reason why I really like to see the Steven Crowder moment. It's nice to see a scumbag finally get what was coming to them. And Alex Jones lost his defamation lawsuit. Rightfully so. What he did to the victims, families of Sandy Hook. I don't know how he lives with himself, but either way, it's nice to see him at least get a little bit of accountability, even if it's not going to change the way that he operates. Finally, Wall Street Bats, the subreddit that beat short sellers at their own game. Such an interesting moment. And it kind of goes with this ongoing theme of the year where people are rising up. Workers are demanding rights. The little guy in America is once again saying, fuck the man. I'm going to take power into my own hands. And that's really encouraging to see. So, you know, I want to celebrate these moments. Definitely a badass moment contender. So let's get to the results. Now I make the nominations and I put it up to a vote. And then my audience across all three platforms will vote. And here's what they decided. So when it comes to Twitter with 670 total votes, Sam Cedars surprise debate with Steven Crowder narrowly won with 34.2% of the vote. The results on Patreon were a little bit different with my Patreon voters choosing Corey Bush's 3-day protest as the number one badass moment. And on YouTube, which is where the most amount of votes came through with 7.8K, striked over narrowly won with 31% of the vote. But as you can see, the YouTube audience was also kind of divided with Sam Cedars, Steven Crowder and Chauvin's guilty verdict tying for second place, both with 27%. So, getting to the overall results, in spite of massive, massive disagreement, uncharacteristically so, across three platforms, striked over overall has prevailed. It has secured enough votes to narrowly be crowned our official badass moment of 2021. Although our Twitter audience chose Cedars versus Crowder, while our Patreon followers chose Corey Bush's protest. So let me just say this was the most divisive category. Viewers were kind of all over the place, but it's nice that there were so many moments that meant so much to different people. That actually is something that's valuable. So I'm trying to make this divisive or split rather on the audience into a positive thing, but nonetheless, let's go to the comments here and see what people had to say. Bill on Twitter writes, The Crowder slash Cedar debate brought me joy in a way I haven't felt for the rest of the year. The other choices are way more impactful, but I had to vote for the debate out of pure selfishness. I get it. Progressive Party on Twitter writes, Your options are lame and typical Nebron noise. I mean, let's see you come up with some badass moments in a year as weird as 2021. Miles on Patreon writes, Speaking relatively, Stephen Crowder's meltdown to Sam Cedar, one of the greatest internet moments I've ever seen and just a nice little break for progressives who have otherwise been having a rough time lately granted the other three options are positive things we've gotten this year, but that's pretty much a comprehensive list of all of them. Christian LaSalle on Patreon writes, The Derek Chauvin moment was incredible. I have so little faith in our institution that I was fully preparing myself for a full exoneration. This does not undo the damage Chauvin caused, but it is a step towards justice. Yeah, I felt the same way, Christian. Mr. Anderson on Patreon writes, I'm giving the credit to Cory Bush for showing that progressives can exert pressure and effect legislation. The change she created and standing up against the eviction moratorium ending saved a lot of people. I was torn between voting for her and Striketober though, because the working class fighting for rights against the corporate overlords is badass for sure. Severely berserk on YouTube rights, Mike, I'm amazed that the DSA takeover of the Nevada Democratic Party is not a nominee in this category or the MVP category. Yeah, honestly, I just forgot about this moment. I try to go back and remember all of the good things that happened, but unfortunately this one slipped my memory. Club Lord Max on YouTube rights, Striketober was the most important and impactful of the choices by far. Edward Ross on YouTube writes, these options prove that Mike Figueredo is a complete stooge and a waste of time. How fucking dare you, Edward? How dare you? No, look, this year was, um, it wasn't the worst year ever, but not necessarily the best year. Overall, we're still in a really bad political climate, so I really want to take the time to celebrate the unique badass moments that were short, sweet, but overall really impactful. And in terms of how I would have voted, I honestly am conflicted because I think that Derek Chauvin's Guilty Verdict and Striketober are both really important long-term for the country, but I also can understand why someone would choose Cory Bush's protest because that really made a difference. It showed to other lawmakers what they too can do. Steven Crowder Sam Cedar, it's a moment that brought me so much joy and it might not have long-term significance. It might not be impactful, you know, on policy, but it just, it made me fucking happy. And I think that that's worth something, right? So folks, there you have it, badass moment of 2021.