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by FeepingCreature 2144 days ago
Sorry, now you're telling me what I'm allowed to fear? Is this still about freedom? It just seems like you're doubling down on a bad idea. People have a right to not be made afraid - but people don't have a right to be afraid except if it's a valid fear?

I much prefer my position that freedom and fear do not intersect.
2 comments
jones1618 2142 days ago
He said "concerned" as in "it is none of your concern" because it shouldn't effect you. You are still free to fear gay marriage or spiders or clowns but your fear shouldn't dictate public policy or impinge on anyone else's freedom.

I like your idea that freedom and emotion are orthogonal. A lot of the problem we're having with "culture wars" right now is the blurring of the line between the two. I think separating the two ideas might help solve a lot of issues from "cancel culture" to "war on Christmas" and "safe spaces" and maybe even gun control. You can hate/fear/boycott a comedian who offends you but you aren't owed their head on a platter. It's OK to think that your being a Christian/Vegan/Cosplayer is sacred but you shouldn't expect everyone to cater to your belief.

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nske 2144 days ago
I might be failing to comprehend something, but I don't think you and D895n9o33436N42 necessarily disagree.
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FeepingCreature 2144 days ago
"The only marriage you have the right to be concerned about is your own, if any."

=> "You do not have the right to fear the decline of traditional marriage." Particularly relevant if you think, for instance, the gay agenda would be corrosive to your own marriage, due to what I am told is widespread sublimated homosexuality, or the dating life of your children, due to similar reasons. Regardless, I believe telling people that their fear is invalid doesn't tend to be a crowd-pleaser. Instead, I take the more extreme but also I think more defensibly liberal position that their fear is irrelevant, because reducing fear is not a legitimate policy goal of a well-functioning state. A state should reduce the referent of a fear, if such a referent exists.

A state should not engage in sociology - it should not strive to shape the emotions of its citizenry. Such an endeavour is corrosive to the control mechanism of democratic feedback, because it decouples citizens' reaction from reality.

"Any proxy measure that becomes a policy target ceases to be a good proxy measure."

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