Some of our elected officials lament society being “divided”. So-called “progressive” leaders like Justin Trudeau bemoan Western democracies seeming “polarized”, yet they fetishize group identity (gender, race, etc.). Trudeau obsessed about diversity of identity, while rejecting diversity of opinion.
This approach is very destructive.
Democracies have always been argumentative and should be. People naturally hold different opinions. Children should be taught how to talk to those who hold opposing views, civilly and without hostility. Adults should be able to discuss most topics without rancour.
Unity tends to exist mainly in places that are not free. When everyone has to pretend to support Dear Leader, out of fear for their family’s safety and financial security, unity is artificial and maintained only through coercion.
Contrary to the toxic philosophy of intersectionality that now dominates our governments, media, corporations and school curriculae, identity is arguably the least important diversity.
Choosing to view every situation through the lens of power, as intersectionality does, attributing virtue to whichever group is deemed weakest, is a recipe for endless conflict. Generalizing about individuals based on what group they belong to is the essential problem of racism, so responding to racism with more generalizations, re- directed at new groups, is no solution.
Disagreements should be resolved by logical, reasonable arguments, without regard to who is making those arguments.
When people’s views are weighted according to their membership in an identity group, rather than on the strength of their arguments and character, bad decisions, resentment and increased conflict are the inevitable result.
Recently, a medical professor confessed to me that she had been chastised during an anatomy lecture for using the word “boy”, which was deemed offensive to Trans people. She said she had immediately apologized, because she did not want to lose her teaching privileges at the medical school!
This is a situation that deserves strong protest, because of the counterfactual coercion it reveals. She is afraid to defend herself, which is sad and outrageous, but indicative of how far from common sense we have strayed.
Comedian Dave Chappelle is being accused by the Left lately of “punching down”, a cardinal sin in progressive eyes, when he makes fun of the Trans movement. How dare Chappelle point out absurdities, fume the progressives, when Trans people suffer elevated rates of depression and suicide?
What his critics do not understand is that by going after some of the excesses of the Trans phenomenon, Chappelle is actually punching up, not down, because Trans is the one group that absolutely nobody is allowed to mock.
Trans people have higher intersectional status than blacks, latinxes, gay men and lesbians. They are at the top of the heap, miles above white women, Asians and especially straight, old, white men, who are considered privileged and are therefore not free to speak their minds. Seeing Trans vault to the summit of the victimhood pyramid, Chappelle mocks them specifically because they occupy that privileged position, as well he should.
Canine chemistry confrontation
Thankfully, not all conflict is identity based, but we seem to have lost an ability to deal calmly with disagreements.
I was walking my two dogs in an off- leash area when another dog approached, dropped his head and growled at them, from about five metres away. One of my dogs growled back and the three converged in a cacophonous canine cyclone that last less than five seconds, because I yelled at mine to stop. The trio ceased spinning and the third dog trotted off to see his owner, who was 20 metres away. To my horror, she then exclaimed that one of my dogs “bit her dog’s ear OFF”!
I saw that her dog’s ear was not missing, but was punctured and bleeding, without the yipping we might have expected from a bite. I had heard snarling from all three, but had not been able to see biting as they spun, although clearly biting had occurred. I gave her my phone number and she agreed to update me on repairs to her dog’s ear.
Two lawyers and a veterinarian advised that because the other dog had initiated the aggression, because his owner had been too far away to control him and because the incident had occurred in an off leash area, where everyone is exposed to the risks of unpredictable dog chemistry, I owed these people nothing. Still, offering to defray their costs seemed like the right thing to do.
A veterinarian billed them almost $2,000 for anesthetic and surgery, at which point the owner’s husband took over the case. This was unfortunate, as he had not even been present during the incident, yet decided to take an aggressive tone.
Prince Charming accused my dog (he did not specify which one) of “attacking” his dog and pressed me to pay his whole vet bill. I remained calm and polite, praising his wife for having been so reasonable. She had even assured me that this was not my fault. I reminded him that he had not been present, that his dog had shown aggression first, that his wife had been too far away to control her dog and that there was no “attack” by anyone.
I offered to pay half their costs and they took the money without a word. A week later, she sent me a text, shaming me for my handling of the incident.
Comedian in car, getting cut off
There must have been something in the air along that stretch of road, because about a week later, as I was driving there, another car followed me so closely that I could barely see the grill of the vehicle. I was doing the speed limit of 50 km/h, there is no passing allowed and there are always many kids, pedestrians and dogs on both sides of the roadway.
Irritated by his low speed tailgating, I tapped my brakes, but he stayed glued to my back bumper, so I tapped them again. Even at low speed, I acknowledge that this was clearly not a Defensive Driving approved move. I am human and deeply flawed.
Enraged, the tailgater sped up and lurched into the bike lane to my right, as if to pass me. He failed and fortunately hit no cyclists, dogs or kids.
Hilariously, he came very close to bursting his own tires on an unexpected concrete curb, where the road narrowed. As he slammed on his brakes to avoid the curb, his car came to rest in a diagonal position, without blocking my car.
Tempted as I was to engage, instead I shoulder checked, signaled and turned left onto an intersecting road. As I did so, his 30-something passenger jumped out of the car and screamed obscenities at me. I headed home via back alleys, so as not to reveal where I live, in case he followed me.
Where does this rage come from? Did the dog people and the tailgater really believe that aggression would achieve the best outcome?
Surely we shouldn’t have to endure accusations, threats or coercion every time we disagree with someone. Whatever happened to self control?
The rage seems to infuse the air we breathe these days.
While I'm sure it didn't start with the lockdowns, I think that time destabilized us. We haven't, yet, found equilibrium.
It is going to be a rocky road ahead