575 - ROMA 67 (True words and false prophets)
This is a follow-up to ROMA 66, in which I further discuss the dangers of ignoring or silencing people we disagree with. Here\u2019s the profile of Andrew Tate I mention. Here\u2019s \u201cFix Your Mind,\u201d the video that distills some of his teaching. Here are my notes on the cycle I mention.
* With the intention of making the world better, we deny obvious reality (race doesn\u2019t exist, men and women are the same, trans women are just like biological women, it\u2019s not too late to stop climate change, we can buy our way out of global collapse, etc.);
* We silence and shame anyone who openly questions these narratives: fire professors who say there may be innate differences in math skills between boys and girls (Larry Summers), cancel culture, deplatforming, etc.
* Control acceptable language: force us to use weird pronouns and respect whatever identity people claim, Latinx, \u201cnon-men,\u201d \u201cpeople with vaginas,\u201d n-word, c-word, etc.
* This creates a huge market for anyone willing to speak these forbidden truths. But it\u2019s very risky. So who steps up?
* The already wealthy (invulnerable) Berlusconi, Trump, Murdoch. Those with nothing to lose (Fuck the Police), punk, early rock. Podcasters/comics (insulated from economic impact). The wounded (Tate: \u201cI get bored too fast. I need to be distracted. I need to be stressed at all times. I need to be entertained.\u201d)
Note: I was wrong in claiming that this quote was from a Founding Father of the United States: \u201cI disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.\u201d This was actually written by Evelyn Beatrice Hall, who wrote under the pseudonym S. G. Tallentyre, in her biography of Voltaire, The Friends of Voltaire. (1906) This was her summary of Voltaire\u2019s passion for free speech.
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