5 ms·

That's why we can't have nice things. Damned if you do, damned if you don't. Such bullying incidents may look like PR victories for the PC crowd in terms of sha

That's why we can't have nice things. Damned if you do, damned if you don't. Such bullying incidents may look like PR victories for the PC crowd in terms of shaping public opinion. What they miss though is that even when they don't backfire loudly (see "donglegate"), they turn off moderate people who are otherwise neutral or sympathetic to reasonable calls for equal opportunities. By trying to guilt trip the whole white/male segment of society as "privileged" and "misogynistic", some will bite but many won't, much more so when they feel they are unfairly put on the defensive. And while some will bend over backwards and become more Catholic than the Pope promoting their social justice causes, many will grow more and more resentful. They won't tweet and blog about it but they will be taking notes and making sure they stay the hell away from PC zealots and their ilk, be it in hiring decisions, investment funding or anything else. Congratulations, you have turned a sizable part of the silent majority into an opponent.

crassus 13y ago
The weird secret of Social Justice, including the "all white men are evil, because the group on average is successful" faction, is that it's mostly white men bullying other white men.
- erichocean 13y ago
  That reminded me of this gem from The Onion: http://www.theonion.com/articles/man-finally-put-in-charge-of-struggling-feminist-m,2338/ http://www.theonion.com/articles/man-finally-put-in-charge-o...
- ChrisNorstrom 13y ago
  You're one of the few people here that understands this. Thank you. It's mostly white men trying to be someone elses savoir to free themselves from racial tension induced white guilt.
- stedaniels 13y ago
  "White Knighting" is common enough around the world. Let me save you from those horrible people (who probably aren't that horrible).
- gaius 13y ago
  Similarly, "slut shaming", pressure to be size 0, etc, are all things done by women to keep other women in line.
wpietri 13y ago
Yes, if only MLK and the civil rights marchers had been quieter and more obedient, I'm sure racism would be less of a problem today.
- coldtea 13y ago
  Actually MLK acted perfectly (if a little too quiet at times, though he was portrayed much more obedient that how dynamic he was). The problem is with priviliged upper middle class white PC police, that are nothing like MLK -- and their "rage" is all show off and conforming to the social norms of their peer group.
  - wpietri 13y ago
    >Actually MLK acted perfectly Q: How many times was Dr. King arrested? A: He was arrested 30 times. (From http://www.thekingcenter.org/faqs http://www.thekingcenter.org/faqs) Or go read Letter From a Birmingham Jail: http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.html http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.h... It was a letter rooted in anger: http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/16/us/king-birmingham-jail-letter-anniversary/ http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/16/us/king-birmingham-jail-letter... In it, he writes: "Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored. My citing the creation of tension as part of the work of the nonviolent resister may sound rather shocking. But I must confess that I am not afraid of the word 'tension.' I have earnestly opposed violent tension, but there is a type of constructive, nonviolent tension which is necessary for growth." And of course part of what helped MLK's public standing was that there were much more radical people than him. Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam shifted the Overton Window enough that MLK could look reasonable. My point here is that social change is never comfortable, never easy, and certainly never welcomed by the bulk of the privileged group. Asking activists to be quieter and nicer is pointless; they already know what that gets them, which is being ignored. Which they've already had a bellyful of, or they wouldn't be activists. People forced Paul Graham to confront the issue. And as he's a visible leader of the startup community, they're forcing everybody to confront it. Will that alienate some number of people? Sure. Would they have been advocates for change anyhow? Nope. Ask yourself: what did those "more and more resentful" people look like in the civil rights era? Now ask yourself: is that the group you'd like to be remembered as being a part of?

crassus 13y ago

The weird secret of Social Justice, including the "all white men are evil, because the group on average is successful" faction, is that it's mostly white men bullying other white men.

erichocean 13y ago
That reminded me of this gem from The Onion: http://www.theonion.com/articles/man-finally-put-in-charge-of-struggling-feminist-m,2338/ http://www.theonion.com/articles/man-finally-put-in-charge-o...
ChrisNorstrom 13y ago
You're one of the few people here that understands this. Thank you. It's mostly white men trying to be someone elses savoir to free themselves from racial tension induced white guilt.
stedaniels 13y ago
"White Knighting" is common enough around the world. Let me save you from those horrible people (who probably aren't that horrible).
gaius 13y ago
Similarly, "slut shaming", pressure to be size 0, etc, are all things done by women to keep other women in line.

wpietri 13y ago

Yes, if only MLK and the civil rights marchers had been quieter and more obedient, I'm sure racism would be less of a problem today.

coldtea 13y ago
Actually MLK acted perfectly (if a little too quiet at times, though he was portrayed much more obedient that how dynamic he was). The problem is with priviliged upper middle class white PC police, that are nothing like MLK -- and their "rage" is all show off and conforming to the social norms of their peer group.
- wpietri 13y ago
  >Actually MLK acted perfectly Q: How many times was Dr. King arrested? A: He was arrested 30 times. (From http://www.thekingcenter.org/faqs http://www.thekingcenter.org/faqs) Or go read Letter From a Birmingham Jail: http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.html http://www.africa.upenn.edu/Articles_Gen/Letter_Birmingham.h... It was a letter rooted in anger: http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/16/us/king-birmingham-jail-letter-anniversary/ http://www.cnn.com/2013/04/16/us/king-birmingham-jail-letter... In it, he writes: "Nonviolent direct action seeks to create such a crisis and foster such a tension that a community which has constantly refused to negotiate is forced to confront the issue. It seeks so to dramatize the issue that it can no longer be ignored. My citing the creation of tension as part of the work of the nonviolent resister may sound rather shocking. But I must confess that I am not afraid of the word 'tension.' I have earnestly opposed violent tension, but there is a type of constructive, nonviolent tension which is necessary for growth." And of course part of what helped MLK's public standing was that there were much more radical people than him. Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam shifted the Overton Window enough that MLK could look reasonable. My point here is that social change is never comfortable, never easy, and certainly never welcomed by the bulk of the privileged group. Asking activists to be quieter and nicer is pointless; they already know what that gets them, which is being ignored. Which they've already had a bellyful of, or they wouldn't be activists. People forced Paul Graham to confront the issue. And as he's a visible leader of the startup community, they're forcing everybody to confront it. Will that alienate some number of people? Sure. Would they have been advocates for change anyhow? Nope. Ask yourself: what did those "more and more resentful" people look like in the civil rights era? Now ask yourself: is that the group you'd like to be remembered as being a part of?