These Stanford hecklers sound more like preadolescents who are emotionally attached to getting their own way.
Whether it’s a consequence of social media platforms incentivizing groupthink and mob mentality or yet another generation coming from failed parenting strategies moving through the system, none of this benefits society at large.
Informing on your classmate for saying something ‘the system’ disagrees with and considering yourself first an agent of a censorist movement is indicative of totalitarianism. Or in other words, Left wing.
I agree with everything except the last sentence. "Left wing" has many connotations these days, but many of us who profoundly disagree with Wokism have considered ourselves very "Left Wing", where such a designation was associated with economic class, labour, and social and foreign affairs policies, not with feelings, sex and a perverse view of race.
That’s a fair point. “Left wing” is overly broad with many hooks to be misinterpreted by. More specifically what I intended was the temperament displayed by the students displays an extreme level of group behavior that seems better suited to a time when the heretics were chased down by the pitchfork mob. These are supposedly Ivy League grads at a top law school and don’t seem capable of individual opinion or exploration of topics. The fact that it was aimed at conservatives prompted me to label it “Left wing”.
Identity politics has usurped much of the traditional socialist narrative but I wonder if these highly-charged and emotionally disregulated shouting matches is in any way effective at making progress on pressing societal problems such as homelessness, drug addiction, labor rights and on. I suspect not, it’s more about making the other side illegitimate and gaining political advantage. I would welcome the return of the measured, good-faith debates before they start to feel nostalgic.
What happened at Stanford was out-and-out bullying. The students were getting their kicks out of shutting down the event and feeling virtuous at the same time.
I am not familiar with Fire, and despite my dislike of the Federalist Society, found this episode very worthwhile. At the same time, I can't help feeling - isn't Alex Morey merely stating the obvious? Or perhaps, better said, what on earth has happened to the universities , and why isn't her position obvious anymore?
(Her comments on university administrators' obligations to defend free speech - and to refrain from fanning the flames of censorship - are particularly apt.)
Alex Morey refers to the heckling as censorship but the behaviour is not intelligent enough to earn that distinction. Our political discourse has become puerile. How that came to be is a question worth considering.
My own view is that the puerile element is coming from this existential theme that unless one faction (the woke mob) gets their way on every issue then it deserves the wholesale collapse of society. I’m more and more convinced we have adults in our society that are suffering from infantilism because they were never properly challenged and socialized as kids and so never developed an assertive view of themselves. It’s like the “terrible two’s” phase of childhood in perpetuity.
Will ivory-tower naive law students will get their asses kicked when they enter professional practise? Will they shy away from practising any law which may expose themselves to any opposing social viewpoints (like real-estate law or whatever)?
This will not be possible to turn around. The Leftwaffe owns the Universities, media, teachers union, political positions in all major cities, district attorneys.
You cannot expect employment without belonging to the "proper political party."
Smart Jews were on the move before 1938, smart Chinese were on the move before 1949, smart Cambodians in the early 1970's. This is an inevitable cycle of human nature and the real crisis is just over the horizon. Don't believe it can't happen here.
I am listening to this interview on a topic I am fascinated by and just have to say, Alex's mode of speaking is as annoying as heck. I don't know if I'll make it through the thing.. I so appreciate FIRE. Glad for the interview. Wish I could put my finger on what it is that is so annoying..
Agreed. This is the first Henley interview I abandoned halfway through. If only she was more dispassionate; I felt like I was being sold something I otherwise wouldn't buy.
For people interested in the law school angle of this issue, check out The Remnant podcast with Jonah Goldberg for March 23, starting at the 18:00 minute mark . Jonah's take is - as always - one step away from the conventional take and really interesting. And then he gets a bit more excited about it. Worth a listen.
Love FIRE. It has replaced the “ defunct” ACLU in my opinion.
These Stanford hecklers sound more like preadolescents who are emotionally attached to getting their own way.
Whether it’s a consequence of social media platforms incentivizing groupthink and mob mentality or yet another generation coming from failed parenting strategies moving through the system, none of this benefits society at large.
Informing on your classmate for saying something ‘the system’ disagrees with and considering yourself first an agent of a censorist movement is indicative of totalitarianism. Or in other words, Left wing.
I agree with everything except the last sentence. "Left wing" has many connotations these days, but many of us who profoundly disagree with Wokism have considered ourselves very "Left Wing", where such a designation was associated with economic class, labour, and social and foreign affairs policies, not with feelings, sex and a perverse view of race.
That’s a fair point. “Left wing” is overly broad with many hooks to be misinterpreted by. More specifically what I intended was the temperament displayed by the students displays an extreme level of group behavior that seems better suited to a time when the heretics were chased down by the pitchfork mob. These are supposedly Ivy League grads at a top law school and don’t seem capable of individual opinion or exploration of topics. The fact that it was aimed at conservatives prompted me to label it “Left wing”.
Identity politics has usurped much of the traditional socialist narrative but I wonder if these highly-charged and emotionally disregulated shouting matches is in any way effective at making progress on pressing societal problems such as homelessness, drug addiction, labor rights and on. I suspect not, it’s more about making the other side illegitimate and gaining political advantage. I would welcome the return of the measured, good-faith debates before they start to feel nostalgic.
What happened at Stanford was out-and-out bullying. The students were getting their kicks out of shutting down the event and feeling virtuous at the same time.
I am not familiar with Fire, and despite my dislike of the Federalist Society, found this episode very worthwhile. At the same time, I can't help feeling - isn't Alex Morey merely stating the obvious? Or perhaps, better said, what on earth has happened to the universities , and why isn't her position obvious anymore?
(Her comments on university administrators' obligations to defend free speech - and to refrain from fanning the flames of censorship - are particularly apt.)
Alex Morey refers to the heckling as censorship but the behaviour is not intelligent enough to earn that distinction. Our political discourse has become puerile. How that came to be is a question worth considering.
My own view is that the puerile element is coming from this existential theme that unless one faction (the woke mob) gets their way on every issue then it deserves the wholesale collapse of society. I’m more and more convinced we have adults in our society that are suffering from infantilism because they were never properly challenged and socialized as kids and so never developed an assertive view of themselves. It’s like the “terrible two’s” phase of childhood in perpetuity.
Will ivory-tower naive law students will get their asses kicked when they enter professional practise? Will they shy away from practising any law which may expose themselves to any opposing social viewpoints (like real-estate law or whatever)?
No, they become banana republic judges/ lawyers that we have plenty of here in canada already.
This will not be possible to turn around. The Leftwaffe owns the Universities, media, teachers union, political positions in all major cities, district attorneys.
You cannot expect employment without belonging to the "proper political party."
Smart Jews were on the move before 1938, smart Chinese were on the move before 1949, smart Cambodians in the early 1970's. This is an inevitable cycle of human nature and the real crisis is just over the horizon. Don't believe it can't happen here.
I am listening to this interview on a topic I am fascinated by and just have to say, Alex's mode of speaking is as annoying as heck. I don't know if I'll make it through the thing.. I so appreciate FIRE. Glad for the interview. Wish I could put my finger on what it is that is so annoying..
Agreed. This is the first Henley interview I abandoned halfway through. If only she was more dispassionate; I felt like I was being sold something I otherwise wouldn't buy.
For people interested in the law school angle of this issue, check out The Remnant podcast with Jonah Goldberg for March 23, starting at the 18:00 minute mark . Jonah's take is - as always - one step away from the conventional take and really interesting. And then he gets a bit more excited about it. Worth a listen.