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Do not trade one sin for another.

7/31/2019

Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others. -- Matthew 23:23, ESV

I have to admit that I don't relish the idea of writing this, but once in a rare while I feel the compulsion to share my opinion on something.

Many people have a pet cause, which is often (but not always) a legitimately good cause, but ignore all other matters of truth and justice, often without even a semblance of faithfulness or mercy. They become hyper-focused on doing whatever it takes for "their side". A person that does this is a dangerous person with a near-cultic mindset. And it's surprisingly easy to fall into this trap. I'd be lying if I said I hadn't, myself.

Third-wave feminists and MRAs alike are prone to turning to a form of identitarianism and cause far more pain than they relieve. People that call themselves "anti-racists" are usually the most racist people you will ever find because they only care about a certain race, not racism. The closest thing to Fascist ideology that you'll mostly find today is Antifa, those that are supposedly "Anti-Fascist," because they... Well, because they're crazy.

With these people, every disagreement, no matter how nuanced, or even the wrong expression on your face at the wrong time, is somehow bigoted (or they'll find another pejorative-- this isn't limited to identitarians). And they're not afraid to announce to the world that you are guilty of wrongthink. That's where the real problem lies: The constant bearing of false witness. This does real emotional harm and reputational harm to people as well as to their friends and family. Over and over and over again I've seen people falsely accused of being white supremacists, of being misogynist (and, sometimes, misandronist, but that's not so much in vogue right now), of being homophobic or transphobic, or even of being a pervert or sexual predator.

They will find a way to make sure that you are "cancelled," which is the equivalent of what the Church of Scientology calls being a "suppressive person". At that point, you will be the recipient of a massive amount of abuse. In some cases, they will make your life a living hell, way beyond social media harassment, the equivalent of what the Church of Scientology calls being "Fair Gamed".

I don't know how to break through this barrier, and I don't really think we can. All I can think is that we present the truth in love, and pray that God changes the heart.

But that's easier said than done. I don't have the energy to bear with these people. I've blocked a number of people on Twitter for the sake of my own sanity. There's only so much abuse I can take. So, I've had to "cancel" quite a few people myself, and I wish I didn't have to. Though I certainly don't go through the process of harassing them and encouraging my followers to do likewise. I've learned from experience that I simply cannot interact with people on social media the same way that I do IRL. There are just too many people coming at me at once.

Back to the main point, though-- We must never trade one sin for another. Seeking justice does not mean inflicting injustice on another. That's another form of injustice. Being concerned that women are treated fairly does not mean heaping abuse upon all men, or vice versa. And you can do a search-and-replace to substitute any two groups you like into that previous sentence. I've seen it on both sides of nearly every ongoing controversy.