site banner
PaperclipPerfector  1d ago (text post)   2865 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of March 16, 2026

This weekly roundup thread is intended for all culture war posts. 'Culture war' is vaguely defined, but it basically means controversial issues that fall along set tribal lines. Arguments over culture war issues generate a lot of heat and little light, and few deeply entrenched people ever change their minds. This thread is for voicing opinions and analyzing the state of the discussion while trying to optimize for light over heat.

Optimistically, we think that engaging with people you disagree with is worth your time, and so is being nice! Pessimistically, there are many dynamics that can lead discussions on Culture War topics to become unproductive. There's a human tendency to divide along tribal lines, praising your ingroup and vilifying your outgroup - and if you think you find it easy to criticize your ingroup, then it may be that your outgroup is not who you think it is. Extremists with opposing positions can feed off each other, highlighting each other's worst points to justify their own angry rhetoric, which becomes in turn a new example of bad behavior for the other side to highlight.

We would like to avoid these negative dynamics. Accordingly, we ask that you do not use this thread for waging the Culture War. Examples of waging the Culture War:

  • Shaming.

  • Attempting to 'build consensus' or enforce ideological conformity.

  • Making sweeping generalizations to vilify a group you dislike.

  • Recruiting for a cause.

  • Posting links that could be summarized as 'Boo outgroup!' Basically, if your content is 'Can you believe what Those People did this week?' then you should either refrain from posting, or do some very patient work to contextualize and/or steel-man the relevant viewpoint.

In general, you should argue to understand, not to win. This thread is not territory to be claimed by one group or another; indeed, the aim is to have many different viewpoints represented here. Thus, we also ask that you follow some guidelines:

  • Speak plainly. Avoid sarcasm and mockery. When disagreeing with someone, state your objections explicitly.

  • Be as precise and charitable as you can. Don't paraphrase unflatteringly.

  • Don't imply that someone said something they did not say, even if you think it follows from what they said.

  • Write like everyone is reading and you want them to be included in the discussion.

On an ad hoc basis, the mods will try to compile a list of the best posts/comments from the previous week, posted in Quality Contribution threads and archived at /r/TheThread. You may nominate a comment for this list by clicking on 'report' at the bottom of the post and typing 'Actually a quality contribution' as the report reason.

3
Top Bottom Old Controversial Comments
Jump in the discussion.

No email address required.

The DNI has brought in an Iran Dove to advise Trump’s briefings:

Dan Caldwell, a former top Pentagon aide who was fired by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth after being publicly accused of leaking classified information, was recently hired by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence, said an administration official and others familiar with the move. In his new position, Mr. Caldwell will serve as an adviser to senior intelligence officials who are responsible for coordinating the work of 18 federal intelligence agencies and drafting the president’s daily intelligence briefing.

Dan Caldwell was a Hegseth aide who was fired back in 2025 during SignalGate. He claimed he was fired for advising against a war with Iran:

Caldwell, a former Marine officer who previously worked for Hegseth at Concerned Veterans of America, portrayed himself as an opponent of open-ended military conflict that has characterized U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East — and could resume with an attack on Iran that has the backing of some American and Israeli officials. “I think there clearly is a very strong coalition within the United States that wants to see another war in the Middle East,” Caldwell said. “And it crosses both parties.”

The circumstances of the leak and firing were strange. Some insiders believe in a cover-up:

Former chief DoD spokesman John Ullyott penned an op-ed in POLITICO Sunday night, in which said there "has been a full-blown meltdown at the Pentagon — and it’s becoming a real problem for the administration." He said he was a big supporter of Hegseth's candidacy for the job, but pointed out a number of wrong turns by Hegseth including the way Signalgate was handled. There are also new embarrassing revelations like another reported Signal chat regarding Yemen airstrikes that also included the Secretary's wife and brother. Also, a reported meeting with foreign defense officials in which his wife, a former FOX News reporter, was in attendance and sensitive information was discussed. He said the purge of Hegseth's "closest advisors of over a decade" — Caldwell and Selnick — was "strange and baffling." He suggested the entire leak investigation was some sort of elaborate set-up.

Caldwell is a committed anti-war MAGA. Back in 2024 he wrote an op-ed titled Trump Must Not Betray “America First”: The Case for a Foreign Policy That Eschews Primacy and Embraces Restraint:

A foreign policy that prioritizes making Americans safe and prosperous while acknowledging the country’s constraints would improve the United States’ fiscal policies and work to rebuild its industrial base. But these measures alone will not be sufficient: the United States should militarily retrench from regions in which American interests are less pronounced, such as Europe and the Middle East, especially when the United States’ current responsibilities can be outsourced to relatively wealthy and capable allies in those regions who have more at stake. Balancing against Iran, for instance, can be achieved largely by Israel and by the Gulf Arab nations; the United States should not have to substantially backstop them or bribe them to pursue their own interests. The United States should ask allies in East Asia to shoulder similarly heightened levels of responsibility in order to manage competition with China through strategic balancing rather than a security spiral that could easily end in a full-on war.

All things considered, I wonder if this indicative of the American military intelligence position on the conflict. You’re bringing in a guy who was outspoken against an Iran war throughout 2025, who is quote-tweeting Khamenei’s funniest bangers to countersignal the Iran hysteria. I’m also really confused what happened with SignalGate. Who wanted them fired? And why?

I’m also really confused what happened with SignalGate. Who wanted them fired? And why?

What is it that you find confusing?

Caldwell was/is creature of the intel establishment. He got fired by Hegseth for reasons but Hegseth never bothered to revoke his security clearance. Caldwell has since been rehired by an arm of the intel establishment that Hegseth has no authority over because the intel establishment looks out for it's own.

This is basically any given Tuesday in DC (or any other first world government for that matter).

Isn't DNI run by Tulsi Gabbard? How is she "the intel establishment"?

I do not believe that Gabbard is signing off on every individual hiring decision across the entirety of the US intelligence community, do you?

Not every single one in the intelligence community, just the specific department she's in charge of, and perhaps not even all of those, I'm sure there are many hiring decisions that are insignificant in the grand scheme of things, but it doesn't look like he got hired as the receptionist either, so...

What is this place?

This website is a place for people who want to move past shady thinking and test their ideas in a court of people who don't all share the same biases. Our goal is to optimize for light, not heat; this is a group effort, and all commentators are asked to do their part.

The weekly Culture War threads host the most controversial topics and are the most visible aspect of The Motte. However, many other topics are appropriate here. We encourage people to post anything related to science, politics, or philosophy; if in doubt, post!

Check out The Vault for an archive of old quality posts. You are encouraged to crosspost these elsewhere.


Why are you called The Motte?

A motte is a stone keep on a raised earthwork common in early medieval fortifications. More pertinently, it's an element in a rhetorical move called a "Motte-and-Bailey", originally identified by philosopher Nicholas Shackel. It describes the tendency in discourse for people to move from a controversial but high value claim to a defensible but less exciting one upon any resistance to the former. He likens this to the medieval fortification, where a desirable land (the bailey) is abandoned when in danger for the more easily defended motte. In Shackel's words, "The Motte represents the defensible but undesired propositions to which one retreats when hard pressed."

On The Motte, always attempt to remain inside your defensible territory, even if you are not being pressed.


New post guidelines

If you're posting something that isn't related to the culture war, we encourage you to post a thread for it. A submission statement is highly appreciated, but isn't necessary for text posts or links to largely-text posts such as blogs or news articles; if we're unsure of the value of your post, we might remove it until you add a submission statement. A submission statement is required for non-text sources (videos, podcasts, images).

Culture war posts go in the culture war thread; all links must either include a submission statement or significant commentary. Bare links without those will be removed.

If in doubt, please post it!


Rules


Recommended Posts And Communities

Recommended Realtime Chats