I'll bite, in the spirit of discourse. Two issues I have with this take. First, David Bowie can afford in terms of money and in "social credit" to apologize and move on. A lowly first year prof or reporter who lost her job, friends, ability to publish, and ability to get a job besides flipping burgers despite apologizing is stuck with a metaphorical "Scarlet A" on her chest. If not for life, then for a very long time.
Second, who decides what is ___ist and how, and how is that enforced? If one disagrees fundamentally that saying "X" is ___ist, or what their anonymous accuser is saying happened at that party ages ago, where do they appeal their cause? As the article notes, these standards have changed _wildly_ over the past 5 years. There is no democratic process deciding these rules - it's just social evolution, amplified and sped up by today's communication technology. Even if one believes every new standard and the Twitter mob enforcing them is well-reasoned and morally right, I would hope they would want some due process before using these rules to take away a person's livelihood. I would hope one would be gracious toward people who for whatever reason don't immediately adjust their views to the "right" side every year. Have some consideration for us slower-evolving lifeforms, and realize you, too could eventually be on the that side of the equation some day.
Do some people cry "cancel culture" to gloss over truly stupid or downright evil things? Absolutely. Is every prof denying being __ist telling the truth? No. But it's also true that we live in a period of rapid social change, and are repeating some aspects of mob mentality that have caused problems in the past.
Second, who decides what is ___ist and how, and how is that enforced? If one disagrees fundamentally that saying "X" is ___ist, or what their anonymous accuser is saying happened at that party ages ago, where do they appeal their cause? As the article notes, these standards have changed _wildly_ over the past 5 years. There is no democratic process deciding these rules - it's just social evolution, amplified and sped up by today's communication technology. Even if one believes every new standard and the Twitter mob enforcing them is well-reasoned and morally right, I would hope they would want some due process before using these rules to take away a person's livelihood. I would hope one would be gracious toward people who for whatever reason don't immediately adjust their views to the "right" side every year. Have some consideration for us slower-evolving lifeforms, and realize you, too could eventually be on the that side of the equation some day.
Do some people cry "cancel culture" to gloss over truly stupid or downright evil things? Absolutely. Is every prof denying being __ist telling the truth? No. But it's also true that we live in a period of rapid social change, and are repeating some aspects of mob mentality that have caused problems in the past.