social-justice ideologues have a stock of concepts to protect themselves from listening to inconvenient facts or reasonable criticisms. This can make conversations with them impossible. They don’t want to talk with you; they want to talk at you. You’re supposed to shut up, listen and believe, because, according to their underlying theory, any story that isn’t consistent with their approved discourse has “already been told” and “upholds unjust power dynamics.” Chances are, you’ll be insulted and accused of moral failures—participation in systems of oppression, racism or sexism—and the conversation will go nowhere.
What can you do? Listen and learn. Ask questions to try to understand exactly what these quasi-religious ideologues are saying…
What most people don’t realize about conversations like these is that it’s always possible to default to a position of listening and learning. Adopt a position of genuine curiosity; seek to explore what others believe and how they came to believe it. This gives you an opportunity to understand another perspective, even when your interlocutor has no interest in hearing yours.
This is not bad advice. But I do not know if I would go so far as to say it is good advice.
It also smacks a little of the WSJ authors selling their book (published last month in paperback, $10 on Amazon) on this topic. But we’re all in favor of capitalism here, so here’s a link and I won’t hold it against them.
SJWs are ideologues who want control. They are like religious zealots, but with more political power, and without the logical and cultural restraints imposed by millennia of theological progress that shaped Christianity and Judaism. SJWism is a nihilistic theology, one that tears down more than it creates.
It does take some listening to them to realize this. But once you’ve figured this out, no need to “listen and learn” and “ask questions” and “adopt a position of genuine curiosity.” Better to spend that time trying to counter it.
Behind a paywall so here’s an excerpt:
This is not bad advice. But I do not know if I would go so far as to say it is good advice.
It also smacks a little of the WSJ authors selling their book (published last month in paperback, $10 on Amazon) on this topic. But we’re all in favor of capitalism here, so here’s a link and I won’t hold it against them.
SJWs are ideologues who want control. They are like religious zealots, but with more political power, and without the logical and cultural restraints imposed by millennia of theological progress that shaped Christianity and Judaism. SJWism is a nihilistic theology, one that tears down more than it creates.
It does take some listening to them to realize this. But once you’ve figured this out, no need to “listen and learn” and “ask questions” and “adopt a position of genuine curiosity.” Better to spend that time trying to counter it.