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 -
It's all subjective - one man's whining is another's righteous indignation. But the fact is there is no winning quite like winning itself - the BLM activist that gets a professor fired for his 'microaggression' is cut from the same cloth as the 'whiners'. We simply look on her without contempt because she wields power, and power is at the end, what it's all about. In my experience the white-nats on Twitter aren't any whinier than anyone else - we're simply disposed to see it as whining because they're politically impotent.
There's also a point to be made that whining and appealing to higher authority is a strategy that works really well for some groups. It can therefore be hard to escape it as a model for politics. If all you've ever seen is politicians complaining about their oppression or marginalization, that's what you know.
I don't think that's true. For your example, I absolutely look on such a person with contempt, or as close to it as I ever get. That activist is a toxic troublemaker who is actively making our society worse. If anything her behavior is worse, not better, because she has power.
On the other hand, those who view your hypothetical activist without contempt are probably doing so not because she has power. Rather, it's because they agree with her ideology and approve that she is putting it into practice. But again, it's nothing to do with power or lack thereof.
More options
Context Copy link
More options
Context Copy link