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PaperclipPerfector  5mo ago (text post)   25730 thread views

Culture War Roundup for the week of December 4, 2023

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What kind of statement would you like "I am not, nor have I ever been, a member of the nazi party"? I'm not defending the plagiarism, but this is ideological witch-hunting. Does every reference to che guevara have to result in a groveling apology for the crimes of communism?

I don’t know why he bothered with the edgy jokes and dogswhistles. He should have simply called for the genocide of jews, then the presidents of harvard and co would find his behaviour compatible with a strongly inclusive code of conduct.

No, just a statement about what he actually thinks would be enough for me. I'm not on the anti-IH train.

Does every reference to che guevara have to result in a groveling apology for the crimes of communism?

If you insert sneaky references to Che and make videos portraying him in a positive light, then yeah, people are going to think you support Che. The "it's just a joke" thing is a valid defense if you actually explain your position as not defending him or just sticking it to the Che haters, otherwise you're remaining in ambiguity and might suffer some consequences if anti-Che sentiment becomes so powerful that they start demanding people be socially ostracized for any perceived defense of Che.

Is it good? Probably not. Is there a clear way out? Yes.

I don’t know why he bothered with the edgy jokes and dogswhistles. He should have simply called for the genocide of jews, then the presidents of harvard and co would find his behaviour compatible with a strongly inclusive code of conduct.

Can you indicate to me a prior instance in which a Harvard student was punished for stating "death to all (insert progressive-favored group here}" to no one in particular?

otherwise you're remaining in ambiguity and might suffer some consequences if anti-Che sentiment becomes so powerful that they start demanding people be socially ostracized for any perceived defense of Che.

Answering legitimizes the witch-hunt. Their goal is not to discuss, but to silence. Their language is that of power. That behaviour is incompatible with a free and open society.

Can you indicate to me a prior instance in which a Harvard student was punished for stating "death to all (insert progressive-favored group here}" to no one in particular?

What? Professors have to write DEI statements (also known as “I love pocs” statements) as part of the application process. Mere indifference towards protected classes, not murderous intent, is disqualifying, insufficiently inclusive.

This fire article has a few examples of the free speech atmosphere at harvard, notably a student whose acceptance was revoked over comments he made on social media as a 16-year-old, which contained racial slurs.

Or for Penn:

In January 2022, Penn Law Professor Amy Wax came under public criticism for an interview in which she said the United States would be “better off with fewer Asians and less Asian immigration.” Penn Law Dean Theodore Ruger issued a report asking Penn’s faculty senate to impose a “major sanction” against Wax — up to and including termination — for her extramural speech.

I can't find calls for genocide because conservatives already get banned for expressing any antagonism at all. But if you have examples of calls for the genocide of protected classes that went unpunished, I'm all ears.

Answering legitimizes the witch-hunt. Their goal is not to discuss, but to silence. Their language is that of power. That behaviour is incompatible with a free and open society.

As I said elsewhere, the existence of bad actors shouldn't be a justification to avoid responding.

This fire article has a few examples of the free speech atmosphere at harvard, notably a student whose acceptance was revoked over comments he made on social media as a 16-year-old, which contained racial slurs.

That's not what I asked for. I explicitly said "student", not "acceptee". The reason I was specific here is that I'm aware of this case, but I don't see why it compares. I don't see a reason why the body of students should necessarily be held to exactly the same standard as the body of those who would be joining the school eventually. Maybe there's a good argument for it, but I'm not aware of one.

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