Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) is upset that Apple Maps still calls the Gulf of America the Gulf of Mexico. He was so upset that he marked Apple CEO Tim Cook with an X and said he had filed a complaint. “Hi @tim_cook, I just noticed that Apple Maps still calls it the Gulf of Mexico. Sent a report through the app, but thought you’d like to know!” said the former Navy Seal.
It seems Crenshaw is upset, if you will, that Big Tech isn’t changing as fast as he’d like. He was so upset that he made a surprise post in the style of urban outrage at Target. Crenshaw’s outcry typifies the behavior I’ve seen from right-wing pundits and politicians over the past few years, an increase in the type of posts and style once attributed to the left in online spaces.
Crenshaw sends a cringe and doubles down on the culture war. They are busy with identity politics, trying to cancel their enemies, police gender norms, and demand that the culture conform to their desires despite the culture being disinterested. These are all the things the left has been accused of doing.
Hello @tim_cookyou just noticed Apple Maps still calls it the Gulf of Mexico. Submitted a report about the app, but thought you’d like to know! pic.twitter.com/fA7cWtOGY1
— Dan Crenshaw (@DanCrenshawTX) January 21, 2025
Less than 24 hours ago, as of this writing, Trump signed an executive order titled “Reinstating Words That Honor America’s Greatness.” Along with a number of other changes, the order stated that the US would henceforth refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America. Google and Apple have not yet updated the name.
These things take time. But just because Trump says the name is different doesn’t make it so. Most of the water can only be used by the US and Mexico, and the rest of the world will still call it the Gulf of Mexico. Most people who don’t live in the US use Google and Apple Maps and it’s a good bet the name won’t change for them.
Wikipedia also has not changed the name of its entry into the Gulf. “Even if it was legal, America does not get ownership of Wikipedia. [It] it lives in the Gulf of Mexico as the rest of the world calls it,” said an unnamed Wikipedia editor in the page’s editorial history.
“This is a modern version of Freedom fries jingoism, with nothing to do with the country and everything to do with politics,” said one Wikipedia editor, referring to the post-9/11 effort by conservationists to rename French fries. “We have something in common with the British Isles and the endless appeal from a series of Irish editors. This is nothing new or special, and can be written on its own and easily bypassed the topic if it is more than just heard at a news conference. “
But conservatives like Crenshaw will make the demand public, cringe and embarrass themselves. Neglected to win, they are now showing the traits they have long accused their rivals of.
The American right controls the Supreme Court, the presidency and the legislature. That kind of total political victory is not enough. They want you to love them too. They want you to laugh at their jokes, take their memes seriously, and call the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America.
Posts pinned on Crenshaw’s X account are “A Survival Guide to the Culture Wars” from 2021. The second item on the list is the claim that “a winner’s mindset is better than a victim’s mindset.”
Over the next four years, I suspect we’ll see a lot of folding posts from Crenshaw and others as the victors make themselves victims when every little thing doesn’t go their way. Or if it doesn’t go their way as quickly as they would like.