site banner

Culture War Roundup for the week of December 23, 2024

This weekly roundup thread is intended for all culture war posts. 'Culture war' is vaguely defined, but it basically means controversial issues that fall along set tribal lines. Arguments over culture war issues generate a lot of heat and little light, and few deeply entrenched people ever change their minds. This thread is for voicing opinions and analyzing the state of the discussion while trying to optimize for light over heat.

Optimistically, we think that engaging with people you disagree with is worth your time, and so is being nice! Pessimistically, there are many dynamics that can lead discussions on Culture War topics to become unproductive. There's a human tendency to divide along tribal lines, praising your ingroup and vilifying your outgroup - and if you think you find it easy to criticize your ingroup, then it may be that your outgroup is not who you think it is. Extremists with opposing positions can feed off each other, highlighting each other's worst points to justify their own angry rhetoric, which becomes in turn a new example of bad behavior for the other side to highlight.

We would like to avoid these negative dynamics. Accordingly, we ask that you do not use this thread for waging the Culture War. Examples of waging the Culture War:

  • Shaming.

  • Attempting to 'build consensus' or enforce ideological conformity.

  • Making sweeping generalizations to vilify a group you dislike.

  • Recruiting for a cause.

  • Posting links that could be summarized as 'Boo outgroup!' Basically, if your content is 'Can you believe what Those People did this week?' then you should either refrain from posting, or do some very patient work to contextualize and/or steel-man the relevant viewpoint.

In general, you should argue to understand, not to win. This thread is not territory to be claimed by one group or another; indeed, the aim is to have many different viewpoints represented here. Thus, we also ask that you follow some guidelines:

  • Speak plainly. Avoid sarcasm and mockery. When disagreeing with someone, state your objections explicitly.

  • Be as precise and charitable as you can. Don't paraphrase unflatteringly.

  • Don't imply that someone said something they did not say, even if you think it follows from what they said.

  • Write like everyone is reading and you want them to be included in the discussion.

On an ad hoc basis, the mods will try to compile a list of the best posts/comments from the previous week, posted in Quality Contribution threads and archived at /r/TheThread. You may nominate a comment for this list by clicking on 'report' at the bottom of the post and typing 'Actually a quality contribution' as the report reason.

8
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

Is this a test, to see if you will be modded for saying "nigger"?

Yes, you can say nigger as long as you are not just nigger-posting to be edgy. But this is seems well past the use-mention distinction, and we have always modded people for casual derogatory references to other people who might also be posting here.

The entire tone of this post is high heat, low signal, an unfiltered expression of anger, and not the kind of discussion we're looking for.

Is this a test, to see if you will be modded for saying "nigger"?

A little bit yes.

If we can casually refer to non-whites and the "low castes" as subhuman surely a few harmless slurs wont draw any attention.

My point remains though, this notional homogeneous milk-white United States never existed because even before its founding there was already a significant population of Slaves, Natives, and Southern Europeans "poluting" your precious Anglo/Dutch gene-pool, and I would argue that rather than being a problem this is one of the US's strengths, we're mutants

If we can casually refer to non-whites and the "low castes" as subhuman

Don't.

My point remains though

The point you are making is not the problem. How you make it is.

Don't.

Im not, when i talk about "a prepondererance of Niggers and Spaniards" it is coming from a place of love.

Which is more than can be said for several of the users here.