4 ms·

>they seem wrong based on the conservatives I know, follow on Twitter, etc. I think the problem is that you need to define what conservatism is to you. Otherwi

>they seem wrong based on the conservatives I know, follow on Twitter, etc. I think the problem is that you need to define what conservatism is to you. Otherwise it's hard to really have a discussion about the label. He's defined at least partially what it is to him ("conservative movement that attacks facts because facts refuse to coexist with their ideology") and frankly it's a group I can see many rational people being negative about. But if conservatism to you is just slightly right of center on most things, I don't think people would be very negative about them and I definitely can't see them having any more trouble than usual on a college campus. Their views are going to be challenged there but that's kind of the point of college. And if being challenged is too high a mountain for them, a career in science isn't going to work out.

eropple 10y ago
There is a certain resistance to challenge that you characterize amongst even more moderate "conservatives". Despite the notion of conservatism being...y'know, conservative, there's a very post-modern, all-narratives-are-valid notion that I think (circling back to the OP of this discussion) fuels the "fake news" thing more aggressively on the right than it does the left. The left encourages you to find your own truth about yourself; the right encourages you to generate your own truths about things external to you. When you believe a minority viewpoint, you're going to be challenged more often than the mainstream--and you can refine your viewpoint under fire and make it better (the inability to make it better because there was no better to be made was a large part of what pushed me away from conservatism), or you can adopt a siege mentality and hide from it. I find that cowardice endemic to the modern right and its fragility the centerpiece of the hatred of even mild challenges.
brighteyes 10y ago
> I think the problem is that you need to define what conservatism is to you. I'm not a conservative, so I don't think I should be the one to define what it means? Instead, I listen to people that self-identify as conservative.
- badlucklottery 10y ago
  But anyone can label themselves whatever they like and there's no way extract the "true" viewpoint of that group. Without something resembling a common definition, you're going to have a hell of time having a sane, productive discussion.

eropple 10y ago

There is a certain resistance to challenge that you characterize amongst even more moderate "conservatives". Despite the notion of conservatism being...y'know, conservative, there's a very post-modern, all-narratives-are-valid notion that I think (circling back to the OP of this discussion) fuels the "fake news" thing more aggressively on the right than it does the left. The left encourages you to find your own truth about yourself; the right encourages you to generate your own truths about things external to you. When you believe a minority viewpoint, you're going to be challenged more often than the mainstream--and you can refine your viewpoint under fire and make it better (the inability to make it better because there was no better to be made was a large part of what pushed me away from conservatism), or you can adopt a siege mentality and hide from it. I find that cowardice endemic to the modern right and its fragility the centerpiece of the hatred of even mild challenges.

brighteyes 10y ago

> I think the problem is that you need to define what conservatism is to you. I'm not a conservative, so I don't think I should be the one to define what it means? Instead, I listen to people that self-identify as conservative.

badlucklottery 10y ago
But anyone can label themselves whatever they like and there's no way extract the "true" viewpoint of that group. Without something resembling a common definition, you're going to have a hell of time having a sane, productive discussion.