# So-Called “Cancel Culture”, Social Media and Bullying **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 9, 2020, 11:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676 "2020-08-09T23:29:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 2:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/61 "2020-08-12T14:35:33Z")
It also has a lot of power for good. It’s a positive good that racist assholes face hordes of harsh criticism online if they dare to spout their drivel. This is a fact of the internet, but it’s not inherently good or bad. It can be either, depending on the circumstances. Most of the time it’s just background noise. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/62 "2020-08-12T14:36:20Z")
Was it MLK that was instrumental in civil rights, or was it the people (the mob) who followed him? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/63 "2020-08-12T14:38:34Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > white people (Andrew Sullivan, Steven Pinker, Bill Maher, Sam Harris, and others) have glommed onto this bullshit because (I presume) their egos can’t take being criticized by online strangers. If they are saying something worth considering, does the color of their skin diminish their argument? ---
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/64 "2020-08-12T14:39:54Z")
Yes, that’s her. You’d have to find out what she wrote before she was fired though, to see if there was any more to it. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/65 "2020-08-12T14:40:07Z")
Okay, so assuming that it was Philips that you were talking about when you said an author was fired for backing JKR, were you writing a thoughtful essay about the situation, or were you just piling on due to hearsay. Were you aware that she has a ton of very, lets say, “problematic” content that she chooses to share with the public when you said that she was fired for backing Rowling? ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/66 "2020-08-12T14:43:04Z")
> [@k9bfriender](#): > > Was it MLK that was instrumental in civil rights, or was it the people (the mob) who followed him? MLK was the inspiration. Imagine MLK trying to inspire social change today and having to face an online mob who dug up his infidelity to sink his ideas. We see it now with current political leaders who are otherwise good people who want to move towards a more just society. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/67 "2020-08-12T14:43:33Z")
I’d say that the thing that she wrote that got her sacked was not her support of Rowling, but when she said, “Bring it on, homophobes and lesbian-haters”. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/68 "2020-08-12T14:46:21Z")
> [@DemonTree](#): > > JKR was also speaking out about something she believed in, using her platform to draw attention to a serious issue, and so far as I can see tried hard not to vilify anyone. The same certainly cannot be said for her detractors. What she “believed in” so ardently is that certain people shouldn’t get to exist peacefully in the manner that suits them. I don’t think she should be assaulted or killed, but if you think that someone has no right to exist, don’t be surprised if they reach the same conclusion about you. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/69 "2020-08-12T14:46:46Z")
> [@QuickSilver](#): > > MLK was the inspiration. Imagine MLK trying to inspire social change today and having to face an online mob who dug up his infidelity to sink his ideas. We see it now with current political leaders who are otherwise good people who want to move towards a more just society. Such a movement would be even more successful today, as the internet would make it impossible to be ignorant of the widespread brutality and abuse against black people at the time. MLK might not be quite as popular, but the movement would be much more so. EDIT: I forgot that at the time, most white people actually opposed MLK and his movement, and he didn’t become the almost universally popular figure he became until after his death. So I take back the part about the internet possibly hurting his popularity. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/70 "2020-08-12T14:48:07Z")
Online mobs are going after infidelity now? When has this happened? Can you imagine MLK trying to inspire social change today and having to face a bunch of people complaining that he is trying to cancel busses and lunch counters? ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/71 "2020-08-12T14:50:10Z")
Keep in mind, she got sacked from a job to write books in a specific series geared for 8-12 year olds. ---
**Author:** ![QuickSilver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quicksilver/32/7832_2.png) [@QuickSilver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/QuickSilver)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 2:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/72 "2020-08-12T14:51:48Z")
Sorry guys… gotta bail for now. Got a production environment issue I gotta handle. I’ll respond as time permits. ---
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 2:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/73 "2020-08-12T14:53:09Z")
> [@HMS\_Irruncible](#): > > What she “believed in” so ardently is that certain people shouldn’t get to exist peacefully in the manner that suits them. > > I don’t think she should be assaulted or killed, but if you think that someone has no right to exist, don’t be surprised if they reach the same conclusion about you. Where on earth did she say anyone has no right to exist? We all have to live in a society, if ‘living in a manner that suits you’ causes inconvenience or difficulty or danger to other people, then some compromise may be required. ---
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/74 "2020-08-12T15:06:00Z")
> [@iiandyiiii](#): > > And for some reason, some prominent “centrist” (or at least not right wing like Shapiro, Peterson, and the like) white people (Andrew Sullivan, Steven Pinker, Bill Maher, Sam Harris, and others) have glommed onto this bullshit because (I presume) their egos can’t take being criticized by online strangers. It didn’t occur to you they might genuinely be concerned about freedom of speech and thought? Pinker, at least, has some personal experience with this: > **[The Chilling Effect of an Attack on a Scholar](https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/07/steven-pinker-will-be-just-fine/614323/)** > > Steven Pinker will be fine, but a letter from his critics signals less powerful scholars that certain opinions, publicly stated, could result in professional sanction. ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/75 "2020-08-12T15:13:00Z")
> [@DemonTree](#): > > > [@iiandyiiii](#): > > > > And for some reason, some prominent “centrist” (or at least not right wing like Shapiro, Peterson, and the like) white people (Andrew Sullivan, Steven Pinker, Bill Maher, Sam Harris, and others) have glommed onto this bullshit because (I presume) their egos can’t take being criticized by online strangers. > > It didn’t occur to you they might genuinely be concerned about freedom of speech and thought? > > Pinker, at least, has some personal experience with this: > > [Steven Pinker Will Be Just Fine - The Atlantic](https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/07/steven-pinker-will-be-just-fine/614323/) For those four in particular? It’s mostly been whining about being criticized. In the past, I’ve liked much of what those guys have said on a variety of subjects. But on this topic, they’ve mostly been pathetic whiners. Maybe they have some genuine concerns, but what they’ve had to say on the subject has mostly been nonsense. ---
**Author:** ![DemonTree](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/demontree/32/8646_2.png) [@DemonTree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DemonTree)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 3:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/76 "2020-08-12T15:29:46Z")
Can you link to an example of what Pinker has said on the subject, please? ---
**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 3:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/77 "2020-08-12T15:49:35Z")
Here are a couple of links that reflect my feelings on Pinker, with detailed examples: > **[The World’s Most Annoying Man | Current Affairs](https://www.currentaffairs.org/2019/05/the-worlds-most-annoying-man)** > > \Steven Pinker is selling Reason™, not reason… \ > **[Steven Pinker and the New York Times are making us dumber](https://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2018/01/12/steven-pinker-and-the-new-york-times-are-making-us-dumber/)** > > Because I exposed Steven Pinker’s atrociously bad arguments, I have now been accused of “smearing” and “distorting” Pinker’s words, and gotten all kinds of fun h… ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/78 "2020-08-12T16:01:13Z")
> [@DemonTree](#): > > Where on earth did she say anyone has no right to exist? > Is she not saying that people who menstruate can _only_ refer to women? As well as doing so in rather infantile terms? If you are not a woman, and yet you menstruate, then according to JKR, you don’t exist. And she will point this out in a mocking and hostile fashion. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 4:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/79 "2020-08-12T16:17:36Z")
> [@DemonTree](#): > > It didn’t occur to you they might genuinely be concerned about freedom of speech and thought? I can safely say that “genuinely concerned” does not attach itself to anybody on that list, and that we’re getting more hot takes than ever from people who complain about a “chilling effect” on speech. These are people who think they’re entitled to be liked and celebrated even if they put out offensive crap. They are confused about the difference between freedom of speech and freedom of consequences. ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Conrad\_Shadowdale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ea924/32.png) [@Dr.Conrad\_Shadowdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Conrad_Shadowdale)\ **Post date:** [August 12, 2020, 4:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676/80 "2020-08-12T16:23:11Z")
Folks, are we re-hashing the JKR thread in the other Forum? It’s lively and goes over many of these points. Focus, people. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-called-cancel-culture-social-media-and-bullying/917676.md?page=5)