The Invented Enemy of Political Correctness

Over the past decade or so, the issue of political

correctness has rapidly moved to the forefront of the national

discourse. What began as a leftist in-joke and evolved into a

right-wing boogeyman has, at this point, has become one of the

most dominant issues of the modern era, with over half of

Americans and almost eight in ten Republicans agreeing with the

statement that a big problem this country has is being

politically correct1. One of the things that helped Donald Trump

secure the Republican nomination and the presidency is the fact

that he rallied against the supposedly pervasive political

correctness of the left. Some of the most popular political

YouTube channels combat the threat of Social Justice Warriors

to free speech.

[Montage of Political Correctness]

Theres a problem with that, though. Theyre fighting a

phantom enemy. While political correctness, while Social

Justice Warriors or what have you exist, theyre a radical fringe

with a marginal effect on holistic policy.

In a recent video, entitled The Free Speech Wars Have

Begun, political commentator Dave Rubin listed a number of

events to justify the idea that theres a battle over free

speech going on.

2.
http://fivethirtyeight.com/live-blog/live-blogcnn-republican-debate-
presidential-election-2016/?lpup=20056480#livepress-update-20056480
 [Dave Rubin clip]

None of those are actual examples of free speech being

trampled by liberals.

Gamergate was never about any resembling ethics in game

journalism much less free speech as a whole. The core

allegations proven false, it was an amorphous hate blob against

feminists and social justice warriors. Whether or not you

support Anita Sarkeesian or Zoe Quinn or any other involved

parties, you cannot possibly argue that Gamergate is part of a

liberal war on free speech.

Ben Afflecks Gross and Racist tirade, as its termed, is

not in any way an attack on free speech. It was a discussion in

which Affleck was saying that the assertion that the majority of

Muslims are bad is grossly generalistic. He isnt saying that

you cant criticize them, nor that you shouldnt be allowed to

vocalize bigotry. Hes not saying that you cant criticize bad

ideas.

Trigger warnings and safe spaces arent an affront to free

speech, either. Trigger warnings are functionally similar to

content warnings on things like games and films. Safe spaces are

areas where people can go to not be criticized on a certain

issue, like a college Republican club, or an LGBT club, or a rape

4.
http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/main/2017/01/americans-think-trump-
will-be-worst-president-since-nixon.html
5.
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2016/sep/11/context-
hillary-clinton-basket-deplorables/
support group. You might think that these arent productive

ideas, but they are not censorship or an attack on free speech.

Hillary Clintons deplorable comment is also, again, not

an attack on free speech3. The full speech in context gives a

much more favorable outlook on Hillary Clinton; she even says

shes being grossly generalistic before making the statement.

While that may not entirely excuse her, it is flatly hypocritical

to say that painting Muslims with a broad brush is a legitimate

usage of free speech and painting Trump supporters with a broad

brush is not.

The assault of Richard Spencer is the closest thing to an

attack on free speech of the issues listed. Unfortunately, the

majority of liberals likely agree that he should not have been

assaulted. In a poll by Public Policy Polling2, when asked if it

acceptable or unacceptable to punch a Nazi, 18% of voters thought

it was acceptable, with 31% unsure and 51% saying that it is

unacceptable. Comparable amounts of Trump voters and Hillary

voters said it was okay to punch a Nazi, at 18%.

The events at UC Berkeley were not the actions of a

liberals, but of a group of 50 to 75 anarchists out of an

estimated 1,500 demonstrators4. The majority of liberals respect

Yiannopouloss first amendment rights; unfortunately fringe

groups will use the cover of the protest to try to enact radical
2.
http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/main/2017/01/americans-think-trump-
will-be-worst-president-since-nixon.html
3.
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2016/sep/11/context-
hillary-clinton-basket-deplorables/
social change or sow chaos. They do not represent a holistic

threatespecially as a mechanism of the leftto the institution

of free speech.

This video began with a clip that I think drives home my

point well. When people rally against political correctness, it

is very often not about defending free speech, but rather

defending the ability to be an asshole with impunity. You have a

right to voice your opinions, but not a right to be shielded from

the consequences of doing so. You have the right to say anything

you want, but you cant stop other people from exercising their

right to call your opinion stupid, bigoted, or dickish.

Statements are attributed some mystical, fundamental

validity by the virtue that youre technically allowed to say it

and some other group doesnt like what youre saying. The adage

that if youre pissing someone off, youre probably doing

something right is absolute garbage. People have a right to

respond, just as they have to right to speak in the first place.

Now, an astute observer might say that Im doing the same

thing that I decry others for doing, and exaggerating the

prevalence of the anti-PC movement. However, unlike the social

justice warriors, the anti-PC movement has had a tangible effect

on policy and are actually causing damage. One of the important

draws of Donald Trump was the fact that he supposedly was a vote

4.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/02/02/what-black-
bloc/97393870/
against the encroachment of the regressive left. Its even made

it into the official Republican platform. Additionally, the anti-

PC movement is many magnitudes larger than the PC movement and

the backlash against political correctness is encouraging its own

brand of right-wing censorship.

Actual, legitimate social issues are being ignored in the

process, too. The only casualty in the Free Speech Wars is

nuance. Our ability to talk about gendered and racial issues are

being severely hampered by a knee-jerk delegitimization on the

basis of radical liberalism. We cant make progress towards

solving these problems if we pretend like they can only exist as

a messed-up form of virtue signaling.

Part of the problem is that people develop a form of media

reporting survivorship bias that exaggerates the prevalence of

the radical types. A nuanced view doesnt get clicks, but a

constant drip-feed of radical feminists calling for patricide and

angry college students calling Trump Hitler does. This is a

positive feedback loop for radicalization.

Another factor is a thing that we havent fully grasped in

the national psyche yet is the power of the Internet Hate

Machine. The internet gives everyone a voice, and that means that

everyone is subject to a lot more abuse for any personal

infraction. When comedians and media personalities are

2.
http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/main/2017/01/americans-think-trump-
will-be-worst-president-since-nixon.html
3.
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2016/sep/11/context-
hillary-clinton-basket-deplorables/
complaining about political correctness, theyre not being

prosecuted or anything for saying politically incorrect things.

Theyre getting chastised by random people on Twitter and blogs.

When people lose their jobs over stuff they say online, thats

not liberalism, thats the internet hate machine spinning its

gears for a little bit of cheap outrage. That doesnt excuse it,

but it means that it really relevant to political correctness.

All in all, we have to get a sense of perspective. We need

to be able to interpret the media we consume in a holistic sense.

We need to get used to the fact that everyone has a voice now,

and that means that youre going to have people you disagree with

fundamentally get their own soapbox to shout from.

Dont let nuance die.

[LIST OF VIDEO SOURCES:]

4.
http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/02/02/what-black-
bloc/97393870/
Bill Maher: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y3-uNxmNj5o

Bill OReilly: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oorQO8CNtfk

Sean Hannity: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mglKyvrmfpI

Milo Yiannopoulos: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ELh5o1BAdA

Dave Rubin: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsRW1FCmTYg

Donald Trump: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYIinBKejnM

Jeanine Pirro: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBpa-J4waYo

Free Speech Wars: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p_KUf_giuZo

2.
http://www.publicpolicypolling.com/main/2017/01/americans-think-trump-
will-be-worst-president-since-nixon.html
3.
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/article/2016/sep/11/context-
hillary-clinton-basket-deplorables/