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PaperclipPerfector  8d ago (text post)   33174 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of February 24, 2025

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Yes, and leftists accuse people like me (and others on the DR) of doing that all the time.

And what is Popper supposed to do about that?

Don't get me wrong, I think liberals were writing checks they couldn't cash (they were assuming they will always win a rational argument, and therefore won't need suppression as long as they can debate), but that's another thing than outright advocating for banning specific positions, which is what you're accusing them of.

You are just avoiding this part of the quote, which is the most unambiguous part:

I disagree that it's unambiguous, "intolerance" can mean a lot of things. "Not being prepared to meet us on the level of rational argument" is a lot more descriptive, and therefore more strict, which makes it a lot harder to accuse your opponent of.

And what is Popper supposed to do about that?

What Popper is doing is pathologizing criticism of the outgroup, except for his own outgroup. This has been the bedrock of post-WWII moral consensus. It's the foundation of Critical Theory and the study of The Authoritarian Personality.

The syllogism is foundational to Critical Theory: racism and antisemitism is a psychopathology with no rational basis (note this is not proven, it's just taken as an unassailable assumption). So any engagement in that behavior is ipso facto irrational. So if you criminalize "irrational intolerance" you are criminalizing racism and anti-semitism. Although Popper suggests the risk of violence from "intolerance" he is unequivocally advocating for criminalizing "incitement of intolerance." He says this directly, he's not saying to only criminalize intolerance if it's physically violent.

It directly follows from Popper and Critical Theory that Gentiles criticizing Jewish culture and morality is a psychopathology and intolerant, whereas Jews criticizing Gentile culture and morality is rational and preaching tolerance.

"We should claim that any movement preaching intolerance places itself outside the law." Those are his words.

Popper is pretty much as opposite a Critical Theorist as it's possible to be. He's a frequent source for arguments against Critical Theory, even.

The Authoritarian Personality is not at all far from Popper, it also relates anti-authoritarianism to anti-nativism and proposes those emotions as threatening.

Using a book that was not written by Popper, or referring to anything written by Popper, to figure out what Popper thinks is a bad idea. Adorno is not Popper.

Both relate anti-authoritarianism to anti-nativism. Do you think Popper would support the political system allowing a racialist movement a public platform, to organize and achieve political power? He clearly wouldn't, the idea that the Paradox of Intolerance means he would be on the side of the political rights of the racialists against antifa is absurd. Antifa has a better reading of it than you do. Not to say he would necessarily support BLM riots or whatever. But he is motivated to suppress racialism just like Adorno.

What Popper is doing is pathologizing criticism of the outgroup, except for his own outgroup.

You haven't pointed to where he is doing it. You've pointed to him doing the opposite.

This has been the bedrock of post-WWII moral consensus. It's the foundation of Critical Theory and the study of The Authoritarian Personality.

Is Popper a Critical Theorist, or a member of the Frankfurt School? It's the first I'd hear about that.

Although Popper suggests the risk of violence from "intolerance" he is unequivocally advocating for criminalizing "incitement of intolerance." He says this directly, he's not saying to only criminalize intolerance if it's physically violent.

I don't see where you're getting it from. The direct interpretation of his words is that "intolerance" is defined as denouncing all argument, and forbidding followers to listen to rational argument.

"We should claim that any movement preaching intolerance places itself outside the law." Those are his words.

I know. You've quoted the entire paragraph. There are other words there too, ones that contradict your interpretation.

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