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.
Jump in the discussion.
No email address required.
Notes -
What’s the practical difference between a significant advantage and a requirement in a lucrative and competitive industry? Sure, we can go back up thread and parse “have to”. I fully concede there is no law mandating it.
To the degree there's a misunderstanding between us, it's because my initial question was aimed at clearing up any misconceptions that other posters may have had that banks have to be in NYC because the stock exchange is there or because of laws or whatever.
More broadly and theoretically, there's a moral difference to me between the two situations:
a) The government legally requires that I go to a location, and then creates policies that restrict how I can reach that location. Such as placing it out of town and away from transit somewhere that can only be reached by car so that poor people and drunks are out of luck or taking an expensive Uber; or placing it downtown somewhere without any available parking where I can't reach it by car.
b) There exists a Thing, government makes a decision which restricts which transit modes can most conveniently reach the Thing.
Scenario a) strikes me as inherently tyrannical in that they're double-dipping on government power, while b) strikes me as the kind of inevitable choice about whose ox will be gored today that is inherent in any government decision. It strikes me as fully within a government's core competency to make choices that will benefit one group or another. If the financial industry in NYC really, really didn't like it, it's unlikely it would have been implemented in the first place; Wall Street is hardly an oppressed minority.
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link