Scrutable

I know Pinker wasn't cancelled, but there was a bit of noise over one of his appearances. And the criticisms of him and his work and influence may well be perfectly valid (I don't follow everything the man does). However, if you can have newt gingrich, trump, vandana shiva, sheri tenpenny, gov abbott (tx), lt gov patrick (tx), ted cruz (also tx, seems to be a theme here), and the hundreds of other truly racist, bigoted, hateful, anti-science, anti-reality, virus-spreading, women and minority oppressing a..holes giving speeches (and sometimes getting big money for it, i.e. gingrich and shiva), but the hullabaloo is over Steven Pinker...


I may have just aspoloded a few heads with that tortured sentence.

So, he's not been cancelled but because other worse people haven't been cancelled either he shouldn't get criticised? Or am I misunderstanding your point?

Surely everyone who cancelled Pinker had already cancelled

Al Capone Junior wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 11, 2021 9:57 pm

newt gingrich, trump, vandana shiva, sheri tenpenny, gov abbott (tx), lt gov patrick (tx), ted cruz (also tx, seems to be a theme here), and the hundreds of other truly racist, bigoted, hateful, anti-science, anti-reality, virus-spreading, women and minority oppressing a..holes

? It’s just that

Al Capone Junior wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 11, 2021 9:57 pm

newt gingrich, trump, vandana shiva, sheri tenpenny, gov abbott (tx), lt gov patrick (tx), ted cruz (also tx, seems to be a theme here), and the hundreds of other truly racist, bigoted, hateful, anti-science, anti-reality, virus-spreading, women and minority oppressing a..holes

never noticed nor cared what the former people thought of them.

I cancelled Pinker before they invented cancelling, fwiw.

nekomatic wrote: ↑

Mon Sep 13, 2021 6:57 am

Surely everyone who cancelled Pinker had already cancelled

Al Capone Junior wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 11, 2021 9:57 pm

newt gingrich, trump, vandana shiva, sheri tenpenny, gov abbott (tx), lt gov patrick (tx), ted cruz (also tx, seems to be a theme here), and the hundreds of other truly racist, bigoted, hateful, anti-science, anti-reality, virus-spreading, women and minority oppressing a..holes

? It’s just that

Al Capone Junior wrote: ↑

Sat Sep 11, 2021 9:57 pm

newt gingrich, trump, vandana shiva, sheri tenpenny, gov abbott (tx), lt gov patrick (tx), ted cruz (also tx, seems to be a theme here), and the hundreds of other truly racist, bigoted, hateful, anti-science, anti-reality, virus-spreading, women and minority oppressing a..holes

never noticed nor cared what the former people thought of them.

I cancelled Pinker before they invented cancelling, fwiw.

Top level bigots don't care about cancelling. Pinker is a wannabee which is why he's having a hissy fit to get more attention.

People might have different expectations for the behaviour of a Harvard professor versus politicians and pundits, too.

Bird on a Fire wrote: ↑

Mon Sep 13, 2021 10:18 am

People might have different expectations for the behaviour of a Harvard professor versus politicians and pundits, too.

True. It's complicated though.

Academics are generally respected as educated, informed and dignified people by the general public - who don't know them - and who put them high in the social pecking order. Politicians and pundits like academics who agree with them and denigrate those who don't, seeing them all as much lower in the pecking order, a convenience at best.

When an academic has a hissy fit some people think it must be serious because they wouldn't do it over nothing whereas it's expected behaviour from politicians.

On the upside, most people haven't even heard of him. He makes much smaller waves than a politician.