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Culture War Roundup for the week of November 28, 2022

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Sam Brinton is in the news this week.

For those who don't know, Sam is the first non-binary, gay drag queen to hold a federal government leadership position. I know him for his distinctive appearance, with moustache, bald head, and typical cross-dressing clothing and makeup. Here's another piece about him, from several months ago. The culture war angle should be obvious, as this man was highlighted, along with Rachael Levine, as examples of progressive hiring in the Biden administration. Suffice to say that he is not the kind of person I can take seriously, and I do not think he should have been hired, and certainly shouldn't have been celebrated. But that's not why I'm posting.

Now, why was he in the news this week?

Brinton was caught stealing luggage from an airport terminal. I'll notice that this article has no pictures of him. A summary, from here:

On Sept. 16, a female traveler alerted the Airport Police Department at Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport that she was missing a piece of luggage.

Law enforcement officers who reviewed surveillance footage that same day saw Brinton remove a navy blue, hard-sided, 26-inch roller bag made by Vera Bradley from Carousel 7, according to the criminal complaint filed in Hennepin County District Court.

The victim confirmed, through a digital still of surveillance footage, that it was her bag with total contents worth $2,325, according to the complaint.

The same style of Vera Bradley luggage sells for $295 from VeraBradley.com.

Law enforcement confirmed that Brinton arrived at Minneapolis-Saint Paul International Airport at 4:27 p.m. Sept. 16 on a flight from Washington, D.C., and had not checked a bag when he departed Washington.

Law enforcement learned that Brinton stayed at the InterContinental Saint Paul Riverfront hotel, and video surveillance from that hotel showed Brinton checking in with a bag that fit the description of the stolen luggage.

So he's been put on leave, for now, and he's due in court on the 19th of this month. At first, I wouldn't have considered posting this, as I simply found it funny in an absurd way, but then I ran across what is really the reason why I posted. I ran across a thread on twitter explaining why this was actually serious, and reflected a dangerous escalation of perverse behavior. I'll quote the main points:

The public needs to understand that this sexual deviant did NOT accidentally pick up the wrong suitcase, as he checked no bags on the flight. This was likely a targeted attempt at gaining access to a woman's underwear. This is what the Biden Admin desperately wants to keep quiet.

With nearly 13K clinical contact hrs, over 14+ years, working in a clinical capacity with men who sexually offend... with men who've done very deviant and heinous things to women and children... I can assure you that, once you see a man steal female items, it's really serious.

Go ahead and read the whole thread.

I hadn't considered this angle, at first, but once it's been pointed out to me, I can't shake it. It's the most plausible argument I've heard of for why Sam would steal the woman's luggage, given that all others make no sense.

So, to wrap up, my questions. First, should he be fired for stealing? Second, how likely is it that Sam stole the luggage specifically for underwear? And third, does this move the needle for you in any way, when considering whether to trust, hire, or promote people like Sam?

Would this have been interesting news if Brinton weren't so... outspoken? If it was a generic everyperson sort of bureaucrat stealing a generic everyperson sort of suitcase, would it have made any national news, or just been an internal kerfuffle?

If you care I'll offer the leftist perspective on this. Of course this story is bigger than usual due to Brinton's identity. But Brinton isn't to blame for their outsized persona. I think Brinton's personal life adequately sums up how they came to be the person they are today.

Backstory:

Brinton grew up with homophobic parents who sent him to a conversion camp for two years after he came out. These camps are notorious for being both ineffective (clearly lol) and inhumane. Brinton's experience was so bad that they contemplated suicide while at the camp. Once out of the camp, Brinton was motivated to prevent others from having their same experience and started a successful political campaign to end conversion camps nationwide. After, they earned graduate degrees at MIT and starting working for several liberal think-tanks. The Biden administration then offered them a position which Brinton accepted. Despite having high-value degrees & work experience, Brinton received criticism for being a diversity hire. Then the suitcase incident happened.

Here's how Brinton's life would have gone if we lived in a Leftist Utopia™️:

Brinton grew up with supportive parents. After graduating high school, Brinton earned graduate degrees in nuclear science from MIT. They then worked with liberal think-tanks until they were offered a mid-tier government job in the area of their degree & work experience. Then the suitcase incident happened

Looking at the two stories, it's clear that Brinton's real life story is heavily influenced by their identity. Their entire childhood and pre-college experience would have been very different if they were straight or if society accepted them as-is. I'm seeing a lot of people talk about how Brinton is at fault for the extra attention due to their appearance & persona. But that's not Brinton's fault (unless you believe that Brinton is just making it up). The attention that's been given to Brinton is mostly negative - people questioning their credentials, calling them a diversity grad, a freak, etc.

If any other mid tier government employee took the wrong bag from the airport and claimed it was an honest mistake, it would only make the news AFTER a guilty verdict was reached (if guilty). Instead, this has become a major story because of Brinton's identity.

But that's not Brinton's fault (unless you believe that Brinton is just making it up).

Yes, that's exactly what I believe. This kind of thing reminds me of the kid in my class who used to make stuff up for attention constantly. "My eyes change colour when I'm mad" being a notable standout. As far as I can tell, it's mostly the same thing minus being able to immediately and obviously prove it as bullshit on the spot. But bullshit it remains, as far as I'm concerned. Brinton is just a dude seeking attention.

What's your basis for your assumption that Brinton is lying about his rough childhood?

What's your basis for your assumption that Brinton is lying about his rough childhood?

Criminals are usually not the most trustworthy sources, and, face, it, the whole thing was no accident.

Such accidents happen daily on every airport of the world, and are easily resolved when normal, non criminal people are involved.

https://www.quora.com/What-happens-if-someone-else-takes-your-luggage-from-the-airport

Aniruddha Joshi

I experienced this at Mumbai international airport. A person with a similar last name (Mr. Doshi, pun intended!) mistakenly took my bag and walked out of the airport. His bag was of the same brand as mine, and I found it unclaimed at the belt. I immediately alerted the airline staff. They told me not to worry and from the baggage tag traced the owner and his cell number. Luckily, this person was not too far from the airport and was asked to report back to the exit gate of the airport. Meanwhile, the airline ground staff took me to the customs officer and explained that the bag that I was carrying belonged to another person. The bag was promptly X-rayed and I was allowed to exit. Meanwhile, Mr. Doshi was at the exit gate and we exchanged the bags.

The airline ground staff at Mumbai airport was very professional, calm, and prompt. As a result, the entire problem was resolved in 30 minutes. I sent their team an email of appreciation. The airline was Swiss Air.

Sarah Lockwood

I’ve been the one who did this, actually!

I was away for a weekend without my spouse/kiddo, and my flight home was delayed. When I finally landed, and got to the baggage carousel, I saw my big black Osprey backpack with a rainbow luggage tag and grabbed it, since I was running late and didn’t want to miss my family. I got in a cab, went to meet up with my family and that was that. Until I opened up the bag for a gift for my kiddo and the bag didn’t have my stuff in it.. Well CRAP!

I called the airline, who were decidedly uncooperative, and then called the airport and asked to be connected to the airline luggage desk. I explained the whole thing, told them whose name was ACTUALLY on the bag, and that I would return the bag and pick up mine… only they didn’t HAVE mine. Turns out, the guy whose bag I had, had mine.

The airline at the airport called him, explained the situation, and he turned around to head back to the airport. My family and I headed back as well. We parked, got on the escalator to go to the luggage area, and the guy in front of us on the escalator - yep, you guessed it - it was the guy with my bag! We all walked to the airline desk, swapped bags in front of them so they knew it was good, checked that we had the RIGHT bags, shook hands, and walked away. As it happened, he had a short turn-around: he was returning from one business trip and was going back out the next morning…I would have had to wait weeks for my stuff, and he would have been stuck without his gear.

Also, I switched my luggage tag to something more distinctive - no more mistaking it for someone elses!

I agree that what Brinton did cannot reasonably be characterised as an honest mistake. But it seems like a bit of a jump to think "this person committed a crime, therefore we must assume that everything they have ever said about their personal life was a lie and nothing they say can be trusted." Being guilty of one crime does not imply that you are guilty of all crimes, or that you are a pathological liar.

His behavior was exactly one of pathological liar.

"yes, this was not my suitcase, but the clothes inside were mine"

WTF? Ordinary junkie stealing shit to get the next fix would find better excuse when caught. This guy is supposed to be some high IQ irreplaceable genius?

Ordinary junkie stealing shit to get the next fix would find better excuse when caught.

I agree, which is why I don't think Brinton is a pathological liar. I would naively predict a person who lies compulsively to have more practice at coming up with convincing-sounding lies on the spur of the moment. Brinton's behaviour seems more consistent with someone who did something stupid and then panicked when caught red-handed, than with a smooth cunning con artist effortlessly talking their way out of a tight spot.

If Brinton had been caught red-handed, but immediately came up with an untrue-but-believable explanation on the fly, that would cause me to update in favour of their being someone who routinely tells lies and gets away with it. The fact that they got caught red-handed and their "explanation" was so unconvincing (as you said yourself) suggests to me that they do not have a great deal of practice in telling lies i.e. they are not a pathological liar.

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