Political correctness is a style of politics in which the more radical members of the left attempt to regulate political discourse by defining opposing views as bigoted and illegitimate.
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But this pointlessness is exactly the point: Political correctness makes debate irrelevant and frequently impossible.
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If a person who is accused of bias attempts to defend his intentions, he merely compounds his own guilt. ... There is no allowance in p.c. culture for the possibility that the accusation may be erroneous.
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It is true that liberals and leftists both want to make society more economically and socially egalitarian. But liberals still hold to the classic Enlightenment political tradition that cherishes individuals rights, freedom of expression, and the protection of a kind of free political marketplace. (So, for that matter, do most conservatives.)
The Marxist left has always dismissed liberalism’s commitment to protecting the rights of its political opponents — you know, the old line often misattributed to Voltaire, “I disapprove of what you have to say, but I’ll defend to the death your right to say it” — as hopelessly naïve. If you maintain equal political rights for the oppressive capitalists and their proletarian victims, this will simply keep in place society’s unequal power relations. Why respect the rights of the class whose power you’re trying to smash? And so, according to Marxist thinking, your political rights depend entirely on what class you belong to.
The modern far left has borrowed the Marxist critique of liberalism and substituted race and gender identities for economic ones.
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Politics in a democracy is still based on getting people to agree with you, not making them afraid to disagree. The historical record of political movements that sought to expand freedom for the oppressed by eliminating it for their enemies is dismal.
Source: New York Magazine, Not a Very P.C. Thing to Say by Jonathon Chait
Interesting perspective of someone from the left (Chait), talking about people that are even further left than he is. Also, a brief glimpse at the comments section of the article shows the irony in that some (many?) people obviously did not understand the points that Chait was making, because they are doing the exact things that he lambastes.
I first heard about this article from Albert Mohler's podcast, The Briefing. He talks about it here from 6:58 - 12:10.
...
But this pointlessness is exactly the point: Political correctness makes debate irrelevant and frequently impossible.
...
If a person who is accused of bias attempts to defend his intentions, he merely compounds his own guilt. ... There is no allowance in p.c. culture for the possibility that the accusation may be erroneous.
...
It is true that liberals and leftists both want to make society more economically and socially egalitarian. But liberals still hold to the classic Enlightenment political tradition that cherishes individuals rights, freedom of expression, and the protection of a kind of free political marketplace. (So, for that matter, do most conservatives.)
The Marxist left has always dismissed liberalism’s commitment to protecting the rights of its political opponents — you know, the old line often misattributed to Voltaire, “I disapprove of what you have to say, but I’ll defend to the death your right to say it” — as hopelessly naïve. If you maintain equal political rights for the oppressive capitalists and their proletarian victims, this will simply keep in place society’s unequal power relations. Why respect the rights of the class whose power you’re trying to smash? And so, according to Marxist thinking, your political rights depend entirely on what class you belong to.
The modern far left has borrowed the Marxist critique of liberalism and substituted race and gender identities for economic ones.
...
Politics in a democracy is still based on getting people to agree with you, not making them afraid to disagree. The historical record of political movements that sought to expand freedom for the oppressed by eliminating it for their enemies is dismal.
Source: New York Magazine, Not a Very P.C. Thing to Say by Jonathon Chait
Interesting perspective of someone from the left (Chait), talking about people that are even further left than he is. Also, a brief glimpse at the comments section of the article shows the irony in that some (many?) people obviously did not understand the points that Chait was making, because they are doing the exact things that he lambastes.
I first heard about this article from Albert Mohler's podcast, The Briefing. He talks about it here from 6:58 - 12:10.
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