"But I think people like Julia are more victims of a lack of thought and a bias built on the belief that their dogma is necessary to protect people they care about."
I don't think my point is far from this. I'm a big believer in Rene Girard's mimetic theory. People "learn" who the objects of their empathy "ought" to be through social cues…
"But I think people like Julia are more victims of a lack of thought and a bias built on the belief that their dogma is necessary to protect people they care about."
I don't think my point is far from this. I'm a big believer in Rene Girard's mimetic theory. People "learn" who the objects of their empathy "ought" to be through social cues. This is the "bias" you refer to.
Julia is not coming at this issue from a vacuum. In a profound sense, moral beliefs are functionally indistinguishable from fashion. Before 2015 and the legalization of gay marriage---that is, before people in Progressive circles were "trained" to have empathy for trans people despite the harms to others--my guess is that if Julia were confronted with the same moral dilemma (transwomen athletes in women's sports), she likely would have had a much more nuanced response. But now that her dominant group has labeled that nuanced response as "bigotry," it changes the entire psychological dynamic.
I have seen the identical mimetic process work its magic on Progressive friends of mine I have known for decades, who suddenly had profound "concerns" they never knew they had. (Indeed, I might be "projecting" a bit with Julia.) I do not doubt Julia's sincerity within this framework, but I also question if true empathy is possible without independence of thought and a grounding in reality. It takes a certain personality type to go against the grain.
"But I think people like Julia are more victims of a lack of thought and a bias built on the belief that their dogma is necessary to protect people they care about."
I don't think my point is far from this. I'm a big believer in Rene Girard's mimetic theory. People "learn" who the objects of their empathy "ought" to be through social cues. This is the "bias" you refer to.
Julia is not coming at this issue from a vacuum. In a profound sense, moral beliefs are functionally indistinguishable from fashion. Before 2015 and the legalization of gay marriage---that is, before people in Progressive circles were "trained" to have empathy for trans people despite the harms to others--my guess is that if Julia were confronted with the same moral dilemma (transwomen athletes in women's sports), she likely would have had a much more nuanced response. But now that her dominant group has labeled that nuanced response as "bigotry," it changes the entire psychological dynamic.
I have seen the identical mimetic process work its magic on Progressive friends of mine I have known for decades, who suddenly had profound "concerns" they never knew they had. (Indeed, I might be "projecting" a bit with Julia.) I do not doubt Julia's sincerity within this framework, but I also question if true empathy is possible without independence of thought and a grounding in reality. It takes a certain personality type to go against the grain.