I’m sorry that you’re hurting, Denise, and I know that this was hastily written. And I think there’s some value in others knowing how you’re feeling.
But I worry that your ‘death blow’ comment reinforces the ‘throw the baby out with the bathwater’ narrative:
“Recently, bright young people have been energized by the political activist movement. Political activism says that instead of helping your friends or spending time with your family, you should have opinions on national politics, vote for candidates you like, donate to campaigns, and go to protests. But these high-sounding ideas came crashing down when President Bill Clinton, a hero of the political activism movement, was caught having sex with his intern Monica Lewinsky. Lewinsky, herself a political activist, was lured into the White House with grandiose promises of “making a difference” and “doing her civic duty”. But in the end, political activism’s ideas proved nothing more than a cover for normal human predatory behavior. Young people should resist the lure of political activism and stick to time-honored ways of making a difference, like staying in touch with their family and holding church picnics.”
I’m sorry that you’re hurting, Denise, and I know that this was hastily written. And I think there’s some value in others knowing how you’re feeling.
But I worry that your ‘death blow’ comment reinforces the ‘throw the baby out with the bathwater’ narrative:
“Recently, bright young people have been energized by the political activist movement. Political activism says that instead of helping your friends or spending time with your family, you should have opinions on national politics, vote for candidates you like, donate to campaigns, and go to protests. But these high-sounding ideas came crashing down when President Bill Clinton, a hero of the political activism movement, was caught having sex with his intern Monica Lewinsky. Lewinsky, herself a political activist, was lured into the White House with grandiose promises of “making a difference” and “doing her civic duty”. But in the end, political activism’s ideas proved nothing more than a cover for normal human predatory behavior. Young people should resist the lure of political activism and stick to time-honored ways of making a difference, like staying in touch with their family and holding church picnics.”
(https://astralcodexten.substack.com/p/if-the-media-reported-on-other-things)