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I believe that PG makes a very interesting point in Hackers and Painters saying that one shouldn't discuss about whether something is sexist, racist or offensiv

I believe that PG makes a very interesting point in Hackers and Painters saying that one shouldn't discuss about whether something is sexist, racist or offensive but rather just whether it is accurate or not.

narag 9y ago
TBH, that's irrelevant too. The interesting part here (at least for me, YMMV) is the reactions, from the owners, the media, the people... Not sure if we should credit the author with this shift of focus, though.
- guywhocodes 9y ago
  I agree 100%, the only stake I have in this is the lack of argumentation paired with the amount of outrage and knee-jerk reactions being portrayed as normal by the media. The only counter arguments I see around this is essentially "this is not a person I generally agree with so their opinion has zero value. They might be a doctor in psychology but my opinion is more correct."
zimpenfish 9y ago
The problem is that as a rich white dude, he's really not ever going to be on the receiving end of those things and his "just rise above it" stance consequently doesn't carry any weight.
- stagbeetle 9y ago
  Ideas should (albeit this is an idealistic notion) be judged by their content, not who speaks them. I'm well off and I have white skin, yet I started in poverty and I was discriminated against for the non-western country I came from. We all face challenges and injustices, there's never been an "us vs them."
  - zimpenfish 9y ago
    > Ideas should (albeit this is an idealistic notion) be judged by their content, not who speaks them. Funny how it's almost always (like 99% of the time) privileged white dudes bewailing this trope and almost always on topics they want to hold offensive opinions about.
    - stagbeetle 9y ago
      Perhaps, though it doesn't make it untrue.
      - zimpenfish 9y ago
        Equally it doesn't make it true either.
- RealityNow 9y ago
  Essentially what you're saying is that, because he's a white male, his opinion on the matter isn't taken as seriously. In other words, this is a clear case of sexism/racism.
  - dbenhur 9y ago
    Alternatively: his membership in a privileged class is unlikely to grant him especially accurate insight into the experience of individuals in less privileged classes, and more likely to reinforce his bias to justify his own privileged position.
    - justin_vanw 9y ago
      Deleting because apparently you can get brigaded and fired for any slightly dissenting opinion.
  - zimpenfish 9y ago
    > Essentially what you're saying is that, because he's a white male, his opinion on the matter isn't taken as seriously. Correct. Just as my opinion, as a privileged white dude, can be largely ignored on the topics of the problems of the less privileged because I do not have the experiences necessary to give them any weight.

narag 9y ago

TBH, that's irrelevant too. The interesting part here (at least for me, YMMV) is the reactions, from the owners, the media, the people... Not sure if we should credit the author with this shift of focus, though.

guywhocodes 9y ago
I agree 100%, the only stake I have in this is the lack of argumentation paired with the amount of outrage and knee-jerk reactions being portrayed as normal by the media. The only counter arguments I see around this is essentially "this is not a person I generally agree with so their opinion has zero value. They might be a doctor in psychology but my opinion is more correct."

zimpenfish 9y ago

The problem is that as a rich white dude, he's really not ever going to be on the receiving end of those things and his "just rise above it" stance consequently doesn't carry any weight.

stagbeetle 9y ago
Ideas should (albeit this is an idealistic notion) be judged by their content, not who speaks them. I'm well off and I have white skin, yet I started in poverty and I was discriminated against for the non-western country I came from. We all face challenges and injustices, there's never been an "us vs them."
- zimpenfish 9y ago
  > Ideas should (albeit this is an idealistic notion) be judged by their content, not who speaks them. Funny how it's almost always (like 99% of the time) privileged white dudes bewailing this trope and almost always on topics they want to hold offensive opinions about.
  - stagbeetle 9y ago
    Perhaps, though it doesn't make it untrue.
    - zimpenfish 9y ago
      Equally it doesn't make it true either.
RealityNow 9y ago
Essentially what you're saying is that, because he's a white male, his opinion on the matter isn't taken as seriously. In other words, this is a clear case of sexism/racism.
- dbenhur 9y ago
  Alternatively: his membership in a privileged class is unlikely to grant him especially accurate insight into the experience of individuals in less privileged classes, and more likely to reinforce his bias to justify his own privileged position.
  - justin_vanw 9y ago
    Deleting because apparently you can get brigaded and fired for any slightly dissenting opinion.
- zimpenfish 9y ago
  > Essentially what you're saying is that, because he's a white male, his opinion on the matter isn't taken as seriously. Correct. Just as my opinion, as a privileged white dude, can be largely ignored on the topics of the problems of the less privileged because I do not have the experiences necessary to give them any weight.