But I do fear that well-off straight white dudes hear what's being said online and think that no one is actually suffering.
Our kid would go to the LGBTQ support group at school (a big state school) in order to offer others support. But they couldn't go regularly because of the stories they heard. Parents who beat their gay kids, threw them out, etc. It was too enraging.
I wonder how much taking offense is built into certain people's psychology. I can voluntarily stop being offended or prevent any "I'm offended" thoughts/feelings from ever creeping up, but maybe other people can't do that.
I think it's irrational to ever be offended by anything because there are always better mental states to be in depending on the circumstances: if it's something online, just ignore it or think up of a counterargument; if somebody is a threat to your personal safety, getting angry to fight them or running away seem like better options than getting offended; if somebody makes an offensive joke, it seems like laughing at it strictly increases utility vs getting offended by it, etc.
But given this and the prevalence of being offended in society, it seems like most people are either very irrational or can't help being in the "I'm offended" state (assuming they're experiencing real offense and not just posturing for status on social media).
I think making young people (and everyone) anti-fragile / resilient should be the goal.
https://www.mattball.org/2022/11/woke-fragility-and-what-is-necessary-to.html
But I do fear that well-off straight white dudes hear what's being said online and think that no one is actually suffering.
Our kid would go to the LGBTQ support group at school (a big state school) in order to offer others support. But they couldn't go regularly because of the stories they heard. Parents who beat their gay kids, threw them out, etc. It was too enraging.
I wonder how much taking offense is built into certain people's psychology. I can voluntarily stop being offended or prevent any "I'm offended" thoughts/feelings from ever creeping up, but maybe other people can't do that.
I think it's irrational to ever be offended by anything because there are always better mental states to be in depending on the circumstances: if it's something online, just ignore it or think up of a counterargument; if somebody is a threat to your personal safety, getting angry to fight them or running away seem like better options than getting offended; if somebody makes an offensive joke, it seems like laughing at it strictly increases utility vs getting offended by it, etc.
But given this and the prevalence of being offended in society, it seems like most people are either very irrational or can't help being in the "I'm offended" state (assuming they're experiencing real offense and not just posturing for status on social media).