The Right to be an Asshole

Stand back! I’m going to use logic!

All discrimination comes in the form “You can’t do X, because you’re Y.” Mind you, that’s not to say that all such frases are discriminatory, some may be logical “You can’t fly, because you’re not a bird” (X=fly, Y=not a bird). Actually, a (human) law is a statement of that form but For All values of Y. But something can’t be discriminatory, unless it contains, at least, support for a statement of that form. Notice that when the statement is false, i.e. not supported by true or logic, it limits the freedom of the group represented by Y, without a valid reason for the restriction. That is, it’s a restriction of Y’s rights, no matter whether or not they interfere with the rights of others.

The discrimination may take several forms, it may be legal, eg. “You can’t get married, becuase you’re gay.” (X=get married, Y=gay). It may be economic, eg. “Y0u can’t go to college, because you’re black.” (X=go to college, Y=black). In this case, you can actually go to college, a lot of Ys do it. But there are impediments, like cost and previous education, that make it harder for Ys than for not Ys. Finally, this list does not pretend to be exhaustive, it may be just a social convention, which is just another way of saying bullying, eg. “You can’t be a scientist, because you’re a woman.” (X=be a scientist, Y=woman). Again, there is nothing impiding Y to do X, lots of Ys have done it. The hope of the Y hater (misoYist?) is that the repetition of the phrase will discourage enough Ys to try X to make it seem true, a kind of false, self-fulfilling prophecy.

In all cases, the phrase is discriminatory only if it isn’t based on true or logic, but is rather an attempt of imposing your power, real or imaginary, upon the group represented by Y.

When you make such a false statement For All values of Y, you are discriminating, the fact that you are trying to exert your power, real or imaginary, upon everybody instead of a subgroup, doesn’t make it any better. It actually makes it much worse, not only because there are more, potential, victims, but because you end up damaging society. You can’t, logically, tolerate intolerance.

So, jokes, cartoons, can discriminate against a group, if they support a (false) statement of the form “You can’t do X, because you’re Y.” Noticed how stereotypes can take that form, but not neccesarily. Humor with stereotypes can be done succesfully without resulting in discrimination. You may be offended by what is being said, you can critized the person making the statement, but you have to admit that, logically, it is not discrimination. If we want to live in a free society, we have to uphold the right each of us has to be an asshole.

On the other hand, the attempt to make others follow the precepts of your believes, whether they share them or not, is discriminatory, it takes the form “You can’t do X.” For All Y. It is, in itself, a violation of the rights of others, not only freedom of speech, but also religious freedom, among others. Because, religious freedom should include being free from religion if that’s Ys choice.