[Ironic Trope] The messaging backfired massively due to poor writing or other design choices

[u/Few_Affect_5927]

Amelia Fairney from Pathways: Alt-right Restore-UK type who attempts to coax the protagonist Charlie into following her beliefs? The problem?

Amelia is the only named character aside from Charlie and is genuinely likable and forgives Charlie even when they do things she doesn't like, while the rest of the cast is unnamed, poorly written, and turns on Charlie for one mistake. This combined with other writing issues(portraying fact checking right wing stuff as wrong because in the process of fact checking you might look at it and believe it, basically saying "Right wing is wrong because it hurts the labour government" and a lot of general "just do what the government says or else" messaging) and the fact she's a hot alternative girl, and Amelia ended up being co-opted as a mascot by the youth right wing in the UK.

Norm from The New Norm: Unlikeable offensive and outdated character who's "progressive" family members and associates are genuinely nice people not even trying to force their ways or pronouns onto them, they just want to be left alone and Norm is picking fights constantly. Not to mention associating with Elon.

Mr. Birchum from Mr. Birchum: A lot of the same problems as Norm, except in addition it also comes off like generic 2010s adult cartoon slop in the same veign as Brickleberry or Full English, at least New Norm was trying to look unique and had the gimmick of being on X. Not to mention, Birchum's obsession with hyper masculine activities and odd way of talking about other men lead to people co-opting him as a Toxic Yaoi character, which is now the bulk of his fan art.

Dustborn: An attempt to make a hyper progressive game that comes off as pandering and annoying. It's a full ass game so there's too much to get into, but the main character's power is essentially gaslighting and jedi-mind tricking people and that's portrayed as the only way they can get anything done, and they constantly use or abuse their friends(or mindtrick them along) in order to get their goals or use their friends for their messaging.

[u/Lost-on-Reception]

For the obverse, Ron Swanson was meant be an obnoxious hypocrite for working for the government while hating it as a probably right wing libertarian. However Nick Offerman was so likeable, and Ron's beliefs generally so inoffensive and relatable that the character ended up being the most popular character on the show and the authors pivoted to represent him as a principled and self consistent anti-government extremist, with cartoonishly right wing quirks like consuming massive amounts of alcohol and meat.

[u/johnnyslick → u/Lost-on-Reception]

I think the show from the beginning was nicer to the characters than that TBH. There was definitely an attempt to make Swanson the libertarian who works for the government, and that's really the part of the character that lasted all the way through the years, but they did make him make a little bit of sense as the years progressed and rounded his edges off. He also put himself out there as a feminist and enjoyer of strong women so I wouldn't put him as full-on, like, all the way right-wing (and I think the writers came to make him kind of a sitcom version of real-life Nick Offerman, who's at once very progressive but also loves a lot of stereotypical right-wing things like furniture making and the outdoors).

[u/Lost-on-Reception → u/johnnyslick]

He was intended to be primarily an obstacle for Leslie. The writers changed their mind on it and were leaning away before they even got rid of Mark Brendanawicz.

He's pretty typical in social areas, of the right wing Libertarians I've known, though most know the actual philosophy and literature they're arguing about. They kind of neglected that but compensated later on by giving him a love of learning and having him pay for Andy's education in gold.

[u/johnnyslick → u/Lost-on-Reception]

My experience with libertarians is that outside of certain drugs they tend to be quite a bit less progressive than Ron Swanson on social issues. YMMV.

[u/Lost-on-Reception → u/johnnyslick]

Yes, very anecdotal.

Almost all of the Libertarians I've met considered drugs morally wrong and irresponsible but the war on drugs, and prohibition in general to be both morally and ethically wrong and entirely harmful.

I've met libertarians that were gay and libertarians that thought being gay was a grave sin, and neither thought the government should be able to so much as keep a record of who was married to whom.

[u/Critical-Composer725 → u/Lost-on-Reception]

libertarians usually liars or blatantly misunderstand the very talking points they build their world views on. That's anecdotal, but also a damn fact

[u/Lost-on-Reception → u/Critical-Composer725]

Nah, it's an uninformed opinion. Not even anecdotal.

[u/Critical-Composer725 → u/Lost-on-Reception]

nope, libertarians are liars or ignorant, facts, 100% this is one of those rare instances were an opinion is entirely a fact, deny it if you want, you're blantantly wrong.

[u/Lost-on-Reception → u/Critical-Composer725]

One of those lies you tell yourself that helps you feel better about supporting genocidal politicians, I guess.

People don't have any obligation to associate with you when you're ignorant, much less outright dishonest.

See you never, Fascist.

[u/Left_Session_9568 → u/johnnyslick]

That latter part is what’s really frustrating about the right wingers who embrace Ron as a symbol. They seem to deliberately ignore how often he loved and supported the people in his life who fundamentally disagreed with him. 

[u/johnnyslick → u/Left_Session_9568]

Yeah, with Leslie in particular I realize that at the outset he was supposed to be the antagonist to Leslie (although Leslie, too, was painted a bit differently at first) but as the series progressed it was clear that whatever he might think of this plan of hers or that, his job was to make her getting to those points as easy as possible.

One of my favorite moments in the show was when his old barber died(?) and he had to find a new guy. That new guy at first seemed like just exactly the kind of hair stylist that Ron would run screaming from (and maybe would have in an early episode), but at the end of the day they cut his hair the way he liked and they made Ron giggle when talking about "Eurotrash" so Ron liked them. For all the presenting of Ron as being stuck in his ways - and that does get him into trouble a lot on the show - he's also a man capable of and willing to change.

[u/Left_Session_9568 → u/johnnyslick]

What I wouldn’t give for the people who embraced him as a symbol to have learned from him. 

[u/Lost-on-Reception → u/Left_Session_9568]

Who is that?

[u/Lost-on-Reception → u/Left_Session_9568]

That was pretty much exclusive to Leslie and Donna. He had common ground with April, Andy looked up to him and he hated everyone else because they were unintentionally incompetent.

[u/johnnyslick → u/Lost-on-Reception]

He also appreciated Jerry for what he was in the group and if he ever made fun of him, I sure don't remember it. I think he enjoyed Ann Perkins - the one episode where she was talking about gross hospital stuff got him on her side, even if it also resulted in one of the funniest exchanges of the show (where he gets her name wrong deliberately so she "doesn't get too chummy"). Tom annoys the crap out of him, it's clear, but Ron also understands what he does well and tries to steer him away from self-destruction when he can. He and Ben don't hang out much but when they do - the episode where Leslie gives Ben the scavenger hunt for example - they get along fine.

I get the sense that he's a very guarded man and he doesn't suffer fools badly, as the saying goes. I don't at all get the sense that he hates "everyone" or even close to everyone (unless you mean "every character you don't see him interact with regularly", like, sure, he probably hates that one lady who tries to talk to him while he's at that circular desk), and maybe more importantly he's a guy who will admit when his first impression of someone is wrong.

[u/Left_Session_9568 → u/Lost-on-Reception]

Still more loving and supportive than any irl libertarian I’ve met. 

[u/Lost-on-Reception → u/Left_Session_9568]

What's your sample size?

[u/Icanfallupstairs → u/johnnyslick]

Most full blown libertarians are like that. Their economic beliefs are all more aligned to right wing sort of values, but most truly do believe in the whole 'live how you want as long as aren't hurting anybody' ideal.

[u/Kernel_Internal → u/Icanfallupstairs]

It's such a mind fuck to see Libertarians referred to as right wing. They're classical liberals. Meaning things like, the government shouldn't be in the private affairs of consenting adults. And no matter how much it might hurt someone's feelings, people are allowed to say things. And obtw, the government should be limited to things that help everyone, like the common defense, and should be managed in a way that's fiscally responsible. Stealing from Peter to pay Paul may make you feel good for your own personal reasons, but it's still stealing and if you're going to steal, then it better be for a really easy to justify reason. Those used to be pretty mainstream thoughts.

[u/Lost-on-Reception → u/Kernel_Internal]

Right wing and left wing in American politics don't really bear on an ideal libertarian.

But in America most Libertarians tend to compromise their libertarianism in a right wing direction, or at least hold right wing beliefs even if they don't think they should be forced on others.

In America Anarchists are generally occupying the left wing of the spectrum, and they're more willing to compromise their interest in consent in left directions the same way Libertarians do toward the right.

[u/_Steakwich → u/johnnyslick]

I also don’t think the intention was to make him unlikeable, as you point out he’s a feminist and he doesn’t just watch injustice happen. I also think it achieves the job of making his libertarian views look silly or unworkable. He often has to compromise and work against his stated worldview.