Quote:
Originally Posted by O.A.F.K.1.1
The most annoying thing about this debate is its constant framing as a topical pressing crises of the present, when certain sections of the community have been making the exact same complaint since the 70s.
I would guess people have been arguing about this sort of thing a lot longer than that, and probably will be forever to come.
You remind me that the other day we were watching Downton Abbey (but you could substitute any similar period drama) and thinking "now this is some social control." So I think you have a point. To some extent I think the arguments are the same, only the context has changed. It seems meaningful to me that in the past enforcement of social norms was very strong, but also very local. Social media have definitely broadened the scope in an interesting way.
I'm not sure I know how to evaluate the question of whether this is particularly a crisis in this moment. I hear and read enough examples that seem dubious to me, and it does seem like things have changed a lot over the last 20 years, though not mostly for the worse, I don't think. But it's hard to say how meaningful that is in some larger perspective. In any case, I'm sure I think that at least some people are overzealous in their commitments. And I also think it's interesting to think about how social norms function and where they breakdown. But if I'm skeptical of at least some of what gets called "cancel culture," I am also definitely very skeptical of a lot of the counter-framing too.