"My Truth" and "Privilege"

Off Topic Politics and World Issues
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Thought about posting this in in the “things that piss you off” thread but figured it might get a bit rowdy so posting to PWI.

Two phrases I am sick of hearing “My Truth” and “Privilege”

  1. “My truth”
    This phrase is a fallacy as it stands. Truth is not a subjective thing. One can have experiences that defines one’s reality but there cannot be an individual person’s truth. If everyone really has his/her own truth than absolutely nothing can be true.

I don’t even as a Christian claim to have the truth as many in the religion do. I believe in God and Jesus and their existence as being true, but it might not be the absolute truth. I won’t find that out until my heart quits beating.

  1. Privilege
    This has gone from something that may be worthwhile to discuss to a phrase that is used to dismiss any achievement by anyone who is not on the margins (which are constantly shifting nowadays).

Bonus:
The small but important change in phrasing from “equality” to “equity”. Equality presumes equal treatment and opportunity. Equity presumes an equal outcome. I am all for the former but the latter has never happened in all of human history.

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Nothing really to say except I am firmly in your camp regarding uses of the terms my truth, my privilege, and equity.

This ought to be an interesting thread to follow lol

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That’s your privilege talking. Seriously, the woke response to your statement will make you either suicidal or homicidal. It will include references to whiteness, white supremacy, patriarchy, colonialism, anti capitalism and pro communism.

I actually don’t mind this one as I score low on the privilege scale. I think a trans, handicapped Native American might score lower.

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The concept of privilege and understanding it I believe is important. However, it has now been used so much it has lost a lot of its power from being applied incorrectly.

“Woke” is based largely on circular logic. That’s why the arguments never make sense. Why can’t the main message be “Be a decent human”.

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All this shit is now starting where I live because of you assholes.

:joy:

Fucking had a real life conversation about “toxic masculinity” - the SJW version, not the actual version which I’m in agreement with to some extent - recently.

All I know is that a privilege is the difference between an entitlement in the military.

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I believe this version is called being a creepy assh*le

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You mean the SJW version? The real version simply attempts to address the roots of the problems some men face that are overlooked in society. For example, 20 years ago someone with clinical depression wouldn’t even dare seek treatment here because of the social stigma. As for focusing less on competition, I’d say a step towards collaboration wouldn’t be bad without throwing away the concept altogether. We see more of this as the gig economy expands in certain sectors and it’s a form of profit maximization for individuals.

The SJW version is about power balance, which is a fucking stupid way of looking at this.

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We already had a less divisive and more correct term: advantage. I don’t think someone born into a wealthy family would deny he had advantages over some poor kid born in a trailer park to a meth addicted single mother. But privilege implies someone should feel ashamed, even guilty, he had advantages. It’s a very raised by wolves American way of thinking. People who were raised with a sense of pride and dignity in their roots, look at the sacrifices their families made, so they could have it easier, with appreciation, not self loathing.

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This I can wholeheartedly agree on. I grew up with the advantage of being a white, straight, male. I recognize that makes things easier for me, but like you said I feel no shame in it, but have been now told I should feel ashamed or guilty because some folks had it harder.

@dt79
Yeah, I misunderstood your meaning there. I agree with what you just said above.

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Agreed, and it’s not just an American thing when it comes to this:

Understanding the real version of toxic masculinity would somewhat resolve this.

From every single experience I’ve had, successful people want to prop you up to their level so you can do the shit they can do. People below your level want to bring you down to theirs’s so they don’t feel envy when they hang out with you.

That’s the idea of mutual collaboration I was referring to.

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I haven’t found this true in every situation, but in many it applies.

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Yeah, it depends. Asia consists of more collaborative societies in general but of course it works against us when few people are successful. (Success can range from happiness from forming and raising a good family to financial wealth and status so please nobody start arguing about this part.) Which also doesn’t mean that in business people don’t use you for their own financial gain. BUT they have more of a mentality that they can get more out of you in the long run if they prop you up while they’re at it and they’ll do it at their own expense IF you have the potential.

For the latter, I also see this mentality when I work with people from certain European countries. I’m NOT talking about the Nordic states. I’ve never worked with anyone from there before.

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I echo the exact sentiments of the OP.

But the real question is how far will this go.

It has permeated into nearly every facet of American society.

My youngest brother recently graduated high school and while helping him browse certain university programs I couldn’t help but notice nearly every program page had a diversity link which espoused the kinda bs you would expect it to.

I believe it will ultimately regress. Will it be by our own choice? Or will it be by the mujahideen/ whatever force that displaces us/fills the power vacuum when our society crumbles? I hope it is the former.

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I’ve never been told to feel ashamed or been made to feel guilty. And I just went through 2hrs of diversity training in Seattle, wa.

Maybe you’re looking at it wrong or being overly sensitive. I think many are.

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Yeah well.

I guess that would just be your truth than wouldn’t it.

Don’t try to invalidate cycloengineer’s truth ok.

#gaslighting

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When you are told to recognize and list your privileges, is it to make you feel good about yourself?

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Maybe, but the term has now become a favorite excuse for many who are just lazy or don’t want to admit that life isn’t fair (nor should it be).

Examples
“Thin privilege”
“Cis privilege”
“Couple Privilege”
“Location Privilege”
“Religious Privilege”
“Citizen Privilege” (this one literally said under the definition “not having to worry about what to write under SSN number on a job application” - if one doesn’t have an SSN or tax identifier and is working in the US laws have been broken)
“Linguistic Privilege” (Seriously? New languages can be learned).

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Ooooffff, the woke trifecta.

In all honesty, that’s a shitty deck of cards to be dealt… I’m not sure what the actual prevalence of transexuality is. I’d think REAL gender dysphoria is rare, though inflated numbers amongst my youth demographic appears to be apparent.

I happen to know of one or two previously heterosexual women who suffered from significant psychiatric aberrations and had a history of shocking, deliberately attention seeking behaviour. Suddenly two of them came out as transexual, yet neither to my knowledge pursued gender reassignment surgery.

Are they transexual? Perhaps… But I’ll suspend my disbelief, and I’ve seen my fair share of similar scenarios unfold over the years.

Perhaps I’m just ignorant… That’s what plenty of people would tell me.

I’m not trying to detract from the very real nature of gender dysphoria, I just think it’s a very rare condition (literature would back this) and I’ve seen a disproportionate influx of young kids identify as transgender, a large crowd furthermore egg them on by telling them how brave they are. For those who virtue signal or falsely identify as something they aren’t, you are detracting/hurting the cause for a very real issue that does affect people in ways you probably can’t even begin to comprehend.

This is a first world, secular society. People don’t really care and given the lack of religious influence in Australia most don’t tend to outwardly discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation. I don’t see how it’s important or “brave” to identify as trans, gay etc when the risk of persecution is nil to none. Unless you have discriminatory parents/live within a discriminatory demographic (say the conservative areas of the Islamic community in Australia), I don’t think coming out is some amazing feat of strength. Quite frankly I just don’t care.

Forty years ago was it brave? Yes… Now… If you live within the confines of (the majority of) Australia, Eastern Europe etc… No… at least I don’t think so, for the individual at hand typically isn’t going to be at a disadvantage for coming out

Then if someone ever tries to call me homophobic or transphobic I can remind them I’ve made out with a dude once or twice, it’s probably not something I’d do again but a homophobic person probably wouldn’t openly admit to doing this when/if asked about it.

It’s not something I consider to be of significance/of any particular importance to my life… It’s not a big deal, who cares…

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I dislike this notion. Socioeconomic discrepancies are statistically apparent based upon ethnic status depending on the country one resides in. But right off the bat… Does JUST being white give you a distinct advantage in 2021 era USA? I’m not sure… What if you’re caucasian but born into poverty? Are you still privileged?

Does being homosexual net you at a disadvantage in Australia (2021)? Once again, I’m not sure if the disadvantage is particularly significant anymore. There will always be discrimination, and that is highly unfortunate. But being homosexual in 2021 is thankfully openly accepted as being a commodity one can’t choose, as a result it is no longer considered morally reprehensible by the vast majority of the population here… By that standard, how is a homosexual particularly disadvantaged over here?

I don’t find myself at a disadvantage for being Jewish despite having received a fair bit of hate for it throughout my life.

Serious improvements have been made over the years to address racial inequity, sexism, LGBT discrimination. But it appears a large demographic are unwilling to admit ANY progress has been made. Almost as if they think the US/AUS is akin to Saudi Arabia.

I admit we still have some work that needs to be done… But we are sooooo much better than we were fifty years ago… Hell even twenty years ago…

Good GOD I hope not!

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Just wanted to note, @oglebee, that I believe the college I go to right now (I’m at a public university; your brother may be headed to better things than me, haha) has a page just like that, yet it has not been something I’ve “dealt with” or heard about to any large extent.

I think schools pretty much “have” to say that stuff on their websites these days. Not all will bring it up in their classrooms though.