August 23, 2024 9:40 am ET
Practically a dozen years after a principally forgotten-about social media put up resurfaced, Ronda Rousey has apologized for what she known as “the only most regrettable choice” of her life.
Within the wake of the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting in Newtown, Ct., in late 2012, Rousey reposted a conspiracy theory that, amongst different issues, stated the taking pictures was a hoax, a call that Dana White defended at the time. In the course of the Dec. 14, 2012, bloodbath, Adam Lanza killed his mom, then 20 kids between the ages of 6-7 and 6 academics on the faculty. He then killed himself.
Rousey later deleted the tweet and her touch upon the video that went with it that she stated was “extraordinarily fascinating” and “must-watch” content material. However she posted a brand new tweet on the time that stated her philosophy is “asking questions and doing analysis is extra patriotic than blindly accepting what you’re instructed.”
However this previous week, throughout a Reddit “Ask Me Anything” meant to advertise her new graphic novel “Anticipating the Sudden,” issues took a flip when she was inundated with questions and criticisms and reminders of her promotion of the conspiracy idea, and immediately the MMA and WWE and sports activities world generally bear in mind or knew for the primary time that she went down that street.
Her late Thursday apology on social media cautions others towards doing the identical factor she did. — Ronda Rousey (@RondaRousey) August 23, 2024
“I can’t say what number of occasions I’ve redrafted this apology over the past 11 years,” Rousey posted. “What number of occasions I’ve satisfied myself it wasn’t the proper time or that I’d be inflicting much more harm by giving it. However 11 years in the past I made the only most regrettable choice of my life. I watched a Sandy Hook conspiracy video and reposted it on twitter. I didn’t even consider it, however was so horrified on the fact that I used to be greedy for another fiction to cling to as an alternative. I shortly realized my mistake and took it down, however the harm was achieved. By some miracle it seemingly slipped underneath the media’s radar, I used to be by no means requested about it so I by no means spoke of it once more, afraid that calling consideration to it could have the other of the supposed impact – it might enhance the views of these conspiracy movies, and selfishly, inform much more individuals I used to be ignorant, self absorbed, and tone deaf sufficient to share one within the first place.
“I drafted a thousandth apology to incorporate in my final memoir, however my writer begged me to take it out, saying it could overshadow the whole lot else and do extra hurt than good. So I satisfied myself that apologizing would simply reopen the wound for no different motive than me selfishly making an attempt to make myself really feel higher, that I might harm these struggling much more and probably lead extra individuals down the black gap of conspiracy bullsh*t by it being introduced up once more simply so I might attempt to shake the label of being a ‘Sandy Hook truther.’
“However truthfully I need to be hated, labeled, detested, resented and worse for it. I need to lose out on each alternative, I ought to have been canceled, I might have deserved it. I nonetheless do.
“I apologize that this got here 11 years too late, however to these affected by the Sandy Hook bloodbath, from the underside of my coronary heart and depth of my soul I’m so so sorry for the harm I prompted. I can’t even start to think about the ache you’ve endured and phrases can’t describe how totally remorseful and ashamed I’m of myself for contributing to it. I’ve regretted it day-after-day of my life since and can proceed to take action till the day I die.
“And to anybody else that’s fallen down the black gap of bullsh*t. It doesn’t make you edgy, or an impartial thinker, you’re not doing all of your due diligence entertaining each risk by digesting these conspiracies. They are going to solely make you’re feeling powerless, afraid, depressing and remoted. You’re doing nothing however hurting others and your self. No matter what number of bridges you’ve burned over it, cease digging your self a deeper gap, don’t get wrapped up within the sunk price fallacy, regardless of how lengthy you’ve gone down the incorrect street, you need to nonetheless flip again.”
Conspiracy theories, largely from right-wing fringe teams, have claimed any variety of issues concerning the taking pictures since 2012, however most say the complete factor was faked by the federal government. Alex Jones, arguably the nation’s most notorious conspiracy peddler and a previous visitor on UFC analyst Joe Rogan’s podcast, lower than a yr in the past was found guilty of defaming families and victims in the massacre and is on the hook for practically $1.5 billion in damages. Jones filed for chapter lower than two months later.
When Rousey reposted the video in January 2013, she had been named the UFC’s inaugural girls’s bantamweight champion a pair months prior however hadn’t but had her promotional debut. That got here a month later when she defended her title towards Liz Carmouche within the first girls’s struggle in UFC historical past.
Rousey, a UFC Corridor of Famer, set the usual for ladies’s MMA after her arrival to the UFC from Strikeforce. After back-to-back title losses to Holly Holm and Amanda Nunes, she retired from MMA and took on a short-lived WWE profession. She just lately parted methods with that firm and has been publicly critical of WWE head Vince McMahon, together with saying he’s an “a**gap.”
Feedback on her Twitter apology ran the gamut, which is to be anticipated from the MMA fanbase. Whereas many lauded her for the apology and taking duty for it, in addition to for her warning to others who purchase into far-flung conspiracy theories, the opposite half accused her of the whole lot from apologizing for a publicity stunt, to making an attempt to keep away from getting sued the way in which Jones did. Rousey, 37, has been married to former UFC heavyweight Travis Browne since 2017. They’ve one daughter and a second youngster on the way in which, Rousey introduced in July.
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