Mad as hell: Taylor Swift isn't Kanye's runningmate anymore

Everyone has a breaking point. Trust me, you’ll know it when you see it. Like getting toothpaste back in the tube, it’s almost impossible to retract, retrace, or redo the actions that lead to this point. You’ve seen it. The most obvious cases can be observed at grocery stores or malls when a child under the age of 6 is too tired and bored to be there any longer. It’s the meltdown parents and their fellow shoppers dread. But this seemingly extravagant response to the feeling of fatigue and restlessness is because it’s just not that simple. There’s always more to the story. Depending on the time of day, there could be hours and hours of triggers that finally led to this climactic point. It’s not Russian Roulette, it’s systematic–loading a gun with one bullet, knowing exactly where it is then firing blanks until you hit the explosive. In every single “hindsight 20/20” scenario, it’s very clear what led to the episode.

Tell me Taylor Swift hasn’t finally reached her breaking point with Kanye West. Go ahead. Tell me her Grammy acceptance speech where she called out people who steal the credit for accomplishment, success and fame from women wasn’t a controlled, deliberate break. Tell me she still wants to carry on the facade that all wounds have fully healed, and this is last attempt to embarrass and disrespect her didn’t sting. Tell me she’s willing to give Kanye another chance.

Forget it. This is rhetoric, you get the idea. The lyric reads, “I think me and Taylor could still have sex/ Why? I made that bitch famous!”

I’m in the business of deconstruction. There was very intentional construction in this case, so why not? Kanye puts Taylor on a whipping post and gives her two painful lashes meant to leave scarring. It’s obvious from Taylor’s speech which blow pierced the skin the deepest and left the biggest mark.

When her name was called for Album of the Year, Swift was comparatively subdued in her joyous state of shock. Remember, this is the girl famous for her wide-eyed amazement every single mother fuckin’ time she hears her name at any and every award show. If the award was “Person most likely to skip leg day at the gym” as voted on by the office staff at an Ohio accounting firm, the Taylor of yesteryear would look like she won the Nobel Peace Prize and wasn’t even nominated. This time, at the biggest award show in her industry, Taylor played it relatively cool. Relatively. Again, comparatively. Less shock and awe, more “hell yes I did”.

She made her way to the stage, collecting her poise and resplendence with every step. She was on a mission, she had something very specific to accomplish with this speech. It was more important than ever to keep it together. At this moment, she didn’t want people to see her as the bouncy Feeling Twenty Two, or etherial Fifteen singer.

After getting the obligatory “thank you’s” out of the way, Taylor’s beachy blue eyes looked directly into the camera and with the world watching, the most influential people in the biz listening, and nary a Kardashian in the room, responded to Kanye with this:

“There are going to be people along the way who will try to undercut your success or take credit for your accomplishments or your fame. But if you just focus on the work, and you don’t let those people sidetrack you, some day when you get where you’re going, you will look around and know it is you and the people who love you who put you there.”

That's my girl Taylor's way of saying "I'm mad as hell and I'm not gonna take it anymore." She did it by taking the kind of stand that people could get behind. Team Taylor is incredibly lopsided right now. Unfortunately, Kanye's currency is repugnance, divergence, and controversy. The man cashes in on that every time he speaks. There are no winners or losers in this game, so it seems. But, guess what? Taylor Swift has a breaking point. One where she doesn't go home, cuddle her cats, ruin her make-up with eye-liner tears, and write the next best break up tune. No, we just witnessed a new Taylor. A woman who isn't afraid to use her platform to address a bully. Your move Kanye. Sigh.