The CRT Debate

Not a whole lot going on now. I sense that discourse is becoming angrier and more contentious online, after a brief one-month reprieve following the inauguration of Biden. The Critical Race Theory (CRT) meme/debate, which has erupted over the past month and in the headlines everywhere, has to some extent pulled apart old wounds and divisions, that had at least temporarily mostly closed, combined with renewed BLM activity. Biden, similar to Clinton, benefits from a strong economy and stability. Having the culture wars in the news detracts from the economy and the administration of vaccines, which are Biden’s strengths.

The left consistently overestimates the popularity of their ideology, and as a result they are occasionally caught flat-fooled like in 2016, or in 2017-2018 with the rise of Jordan Peterson and the IDW, as a center-right/left response to the avowedly anti-Trump left. For the left to maintain legitimacy and power must mean that enough people believe, but more importantly, do not question its contradictions and delusions (such as about gender or race) that go against empirical reality or are inconsistent. It is mostly an ideology enforced through fear and intimidation, such as the threat of being fired for questioning its assumptions, so when the opportunity arises for people to anonymously defect, such as by moving or parents pulling their children out of woke private schools, some will.

The CRT debate means that such assumptions of the left are being called into doubt, or at least debated by journalists, pundits, and top internet personalities (such as on Twitter, podcasts, or YouTube), which may trickle down to the general population, who see headlines and debates about CRT in the press or on social media, and upon the realization of how pernicious and widespread CRT is, begin to defect. I like to believe there is some reason for optimism.