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Opinion: The ‘you bought a pipeline’ retort needs to be retired

I’m a big believer in trying to be funny on social media. I like to make people laugh, as long as I’m not doing harm to anyone who is marginalized.
Trans Mountain
Photo: Kinder Morgan

I’m a big believer in trying to be funny on social media. I like to make people laugh, as long as I’m not doing harm to anyone who is marginalized.

So a year ago, when people started responding to tweets by members of the Liberal Party of Canada with “you bought a pipeline” – as in, “we don’t buy that you care about the environment because you bought a pipeline” - I laughed.

But that was about 100,000 tweets ago. People are still using this line. Like, every day.

OK, we get it.

Justin Trudeau and the Liberals were responsible for Canada buying the Trans Mountain project.

You dropping “you bought a pipeline” is no longer clever. It’s tired and worn out. Get some fresh material. You’re annoying me. (Also, was it really that clever to begin with?)

People seem so smug when they drop that line, as though they are the first to think of it.

Now I just cringe when I read it.

People, even “not that there’s anything wrong with that” and “that’s what she said” both think you need some new material.

Follow Chris Campbell on Twitter @shinebox44.