That *was* a long read, JD.Originally Posted by LA Ute
The author is Russian born, which I think may help explain her strong bias toward free speech, no matter how toxic, but otherwise, I got the sense she was warning about the IDW being a magnet for all kinds of dangerous thinking just because it's anti-PC. "The enemy of your enemy may not be your friend".
My wife teaches at a Title I Jr. HS. They have a kid who is acting out, dad is a bishop, the kid spews white supremacist stuff in a school that is far more diverse than most in Utah. They brought his parents in, the dad was apparently in denial and the mom starting sobbing and couldn't stop. Messy situation. When I was at that age, we had an odd kid who professed an admiration for Adolph Hitler, I think mostly to get attention. (He turned out fine. Jr. HS can be an interesting time in the development of kids' brains & personalities.)
The difference is with today's technology anyone's opinion can be amplified and even a Jr. HS kid can get a national audience with radicals cheering them on, as the article describes happening.
Even though I generally disagree with him, one point Jordan Peterson makes I agree with is there needs to be boundaries, and culture is important.
We have a multi-cultural society, but we need some unifying cultural foundation, and there have to be limits. You can't beat your kids. You can't threaten others. Basically, all the stuff we learn in Kindergarten. There will always be some problems and friction with diversity, but I think the world is a better place the more people interact and build connections and understand and respect each other, and if that can happen in Elementary school & Jr HS, it's far easier than later, when thinking is engrained & open-mindedness seems to disappear far too often.
Diversity can be an inoculation against unbridled nationalism, which has led to countless wars over the course of history.
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