The Facts Should Matter
Bubba
23 Sep
Is the recent cancelation of Rich Lowry an isolated incident or a sign of the state of American political discourse? (National Review)
The latest: Lowry’s scheduled talks at Indiana State University and the Badger Institute, a right-leaning think tank, were scrapped following allegations that the National Review editor used the n-word during an appearance on Megyn Kelly’s show.
Clips of Lowry’s appearance were shared widely on social media, prompting a pile-on by prominent X/Twitter liberals.
Lowry has since explained that what sounded like a possible n-word was merely a flubbing of the word “migrants.”
Judge for yourself: The video.
Lowry:
Cowardice is contagious.
I don’t want to suggest this is anything on the order of what other people have suffered in losing their livelihoods and reputations to cancel culture.
This episode is worth dwelling on, though, because the underlying phenomenon is so pernicious and stupid, and people who don’t have gallons of ink to defend themselves the way I do and don’t work for a conservative organization the way I do are particularly susceptible to this kind of cut-rate McCarthyism.
The vibes: A recent Pew Research Center poll found 62% of Americans say people being too easily offended by things other say is a major problem these days.
Bubba’s Two Cents
I could say something about commitment to free speech principles or how important it is to interpret your opponents' words in good faith, but that’s beside the point. Lowry clearly didn’t do what he was accused of. The real story here is how ridiculous public discourse has gotten, (as Lowry rightly pointed out, the reaction was “stupid"). This cutthroat, post-truth style of politics is driving the madness. A lot of the people attacking Lowry probably knew deep down he didn’t say what they claimed, but in today’s climate, if it hurts the other side, and helps mine, the facts don’t seem to matter.