Anyone can say they didn't mean it that way/they were joking without any cost to themselves as well. Not to say that there isn't anything wrong with how people

Anyone can say they didn't mean it that way/they were joking without any cost to themselves as well. Not to say that there isn't anything wrong with how people have been increasingly incensed in the last few decades, but that's basically what it was like in the 90s and before. Someone was like, "whoa dude what you said wasn't cool" was met with "it was just a joke". Your reasoning cuts both ways I think.