Why is Misanthropy ok but racism taboo?

[Frozen Donkey Wheel2]

Because Yatzee Croshaw is one of the most widely known internet misantrhopes and we love him.

Yeah, the key word there is "internet".

And to your question:

1. Because misanthropes don't have a centuries-long legacy of human rights violation behind their attitude, and

2. Because no one with a brain in their head takes misanthropes seriously in the first place.

 

[ivarsa15]

Because Yatzee Croshaw is one of the most widely known internet misantrhopes and we love him.

What this person said.

 

[Vault101]

probably because people are socially conditioned to not like racism, but the media doesn't tell you how to feel about Misanthropy

?

actually I wouls say racism comes from social conditiong..not the other way around, people dislike racsim because (in the society we live in now) they can see how stupid and pointless it really is

sure distrusting others of a different race is natural to an extent (natural, not right) but beliving yourself to be superior based on somthing as silly as the amount of melanin in your skin...is stupidm, but then again I think racism is more of cultral thing

Ok I'm confused, if racism is hating somebody and thinking you better than them because of race, what would you call it if I hated another race because of their race, but I just thought I was about average? Example, lets say I hate all Jews/Middle Eastern people because I thought they where theives, but at the same time I didn't think much of myself? I never said that they are subhuman, just that I hate their race. What would I be called then?

all I ment was the term "social conditioning" has slighty negative conotations, you are probably correct, thats just how I was reading into it

well I used social conditioning on purpose because, (imo) telling me from a young age that I MUST hold an specific opinion on a certain topic (in this case, I MUST oppose the idea of racism) is social conditioning/indoctrination. Now you can argue that it is positive or good intended social conditioning, however it is social conditioning all the same. I question anybody who tells me what "my" opinion on a subject should be before I'm even given the chance to think about it on my own.

but seriously, what would you call those kinds of people? Prejudice, bigots?

that is correct...HOWEVER

I think the conclusion "rasicm is wrong" doesnt only have to come from social conditioning

I mean somone can grow up in a prejudiced environment..but mabye they can leave and learn thatthose certain veiws are perhaps a little ignorant (mabye by getting to know others of a differet ethnicity)..not saying it happens allt he time but it can happen

 

[Char-Nobyl]

I think we can all agree that there are few attitudes as taboo in the modern age as racism. Nothing will lead quicker to total social ostricization than to let loose a few racist comments and slurs. We all hate those ignorant, hate filled fucks. My question is why doesn't this attitude carry over to misanthropes, those folks who hate all of humanity instead of just some particular segment? Misanthropes enjoy a much warmer cultural reception. He can be seen as charming and sympathetic, someone fed up with the bullshit of his species. Even at his worst, the general misanthrope is received better than a racist.

Why is this? Shouldn't it logically follow that misanthropes are worse people than racists if they do the racist's job and then some?

Because a misanthrope is consistent, and thus easily ignored. Someone who hates literally everyone on Earth is utterly irrelevant because they'll never affect our lives: that would require them to interact with others, which they'll never do. Racists manage to get public office all the time.

 

[Supertegwyn]

Racism isn't taboo. It's perfectly normal and allowed, provided you're not white, and discriminating against white people.

Of course being white and discriminating someone, now that would indeed be a horrible crime.

Then again, misanthropy isn't taken very seriously, and hates on everyone, so nobody can feel offended.

That is the most hateful and bigoted comment I have read all day.
Mind, I haven't read a lot of comments today so I'm sure I will find worse.

 

[chadachada123]

Because people are more concerned about equality than they are with... well most anything else, actually. At least that's the way it is in America.

na, we Americans just pretend that "we don't see color", I think America is probably just secretly racist now.

It's not really that secret, it's just that everyone's distracted by the rampant islamophobia and heterosexism.

Well the Islam reaction comes with war, just like anti-German/Japanese feelings back in the 1940's. Heterosexism? wtf? Last I checked, most people tell me I'm not supposed to say, "that's so gay".

Bullshit. We're not "at war" with Islam or the majority of Islamic culture. We're not even in a state of war with a tiny fraction of Muslims, as opposed to being at war with the entire country of Germany, that is, most of German culture, and Japan, or all of Japanese culture.

False equivalency is false.

(I do believe that that poster was referring to the pro-hetereosexual/anti-homosexual attitude in much of the US today, regarding the second part. Not everywhere in the US is as civilized as, say, a college campus; there's still tons of people that think that gay people should have fewer rights than straights by virtue of having an uncontrollable personality trait alone).

 

[GraveeKing]

I think a better question would be why aren't all prejudices treated equally.

It's not ok to be sexist or racist but it is ok to be homophobic? Not cool brah.

These days - sexism is fine as long as you're a women. I don't think I've ever heard of a women being put down for being sexist, yet I hear it plenty of times....

Although really surely if you hate all humanity equally - you're not doing anything wrong really, it means they hate themselves too IF they actually mean it (which is rather rare). In which case they'll probably end up becoming Emo anyway, not my problem eh?

Oh and to get back to homophobia - I've not seen much in the part of Britain I live in, you get the occasional quote or person mentioning something a bit low, but not outright homophobia. Hell, by today's standards, liking twilight makes you more gay than being bisexual.
Apparently. I don't really have much of an opinion on it, so there we go!


By god I got off topic.... point is really though - there's no reason to lose faith in a specific group of people based on ethical origin. Although there's plenty of reason to lose faith in all of humanity in general - i.e finding that more people are stupid than not, so there's no reason to really meet someone and think differently. Seems logical enough to me, it's just the assumption you'll hate anyone before you meet them - it's no worse than a pessimistic attitude.

 

[chadachada123]

I think a better question would be why aren't all prejudices treated equally.

It's not ok to be sexist or racist but it is ok to be homophobic? Not cool brah.

These days - sexism is fine as long as you're a women. I don't think I've ever heard of a women being put down for being sexist, yet I hear it plenty of times....

Although really surely if you hate all humanity equally - you're not doing anything wrong really, it means they hate themselves too IF they actually mean it (which is rather rare). In which case they'll probably end up becoming Emo anyway, not my problem eh?

Oh and to get back to homophobia - I've not seen much in the part of Britain I live in, you get the occasional quote or person mentioning something a bit low, but not outright homophobia. Hell, by today's standards, liking twilight makes you more gay than being bisexual.
Apparently. I don't really have much of an opinion on it, so there we go!


By god I got off topic.... point is really though - there's no reason to lose faith in a specific group of people based on ethical origin. Although there's plenty of reason to lose faith in all of humanity in general - i.e finding that more people are stupid than not, so there's no reason to really meet someone and think differently. Seems logical enough to me, it's just the assumption you'll hate anyone before you meet them - it's no worse than a pessimistic attitude.

The only problem, and the main conflict I have with this debate in logic (I certainly support you and your argument, I just feel that there's a still-unfilled hole in it), is that, if we can say that it's logical to presume that you'll dislike someone before meeting them because statistically most humans are assholes, how would it NOT be logical to presume that you'll dislike (person of a specific demographic) if statistically *most* people in that demographic are assholes (or have some other specific trait that makes them dis-likeable)?

My only explanation to fill this gap would be to say that humans are by nature assholes (the majority will be no matter what because of their genes), whereas even if there's a statistical anomaly for a demographic and they happen to be more asshole-ish than another, it is NOT based on their nature and shouldn't be used to justify the presumption of assholeishness.

I like this topic, trying to discover logical support for our arguments for the good of humanity (or the good of misanthropes, I guess).

 

[Asbobitus]

You could argue that it's because historically misanthropy has been associated to those with the "wisdom" to be misanthropic. Diogenes and Wilde are both known for their pretty awesome ability to make fun of every living thing. They were studied, they were seen as cool. Misanthropy is for the educated and elevated people, racism is for the masses. And as said, usually the misanthropic dudes won't create a political movement to discriminate against a group, which would be humans. kinda self defeating

 

[Cheesus333]

As people have mentioned, I would expect it's simply this: racism discriminates; misanthropy doesn't.

Not that I really support it. That's just my theory for why it's considered less utterly reprehensible.

 

[AdmiralMemo]

Well, see, a misanthrope (assuming you mean the definition that indicates "all mankind" rather than "male gender") generally hates everyone equally.

Someone who hates men would be a misandrist, just like someone who hates women is a misogynist.

 

[Floppertje]

Maybe it's because misanthropes either a) don't really mean it and don't hate every element of humanity or b) if they do, they're miserable enough anyway so everyone just adopts a 'he's gonna hate us all anyway, whatever' approach.

 

[Judgmentalist]

Because the world doesn't hate hate, it hates inequality.

 

[SL33TBL1ND]

Because misanthropy isn't discrimination. That would be why.

 

[Naeras]

Because misanthropes don't discriminate. Plus, nobody takes them seriously.

There's also the case of there never being organized movements based on misanthropy that murders random people for poorly justified reasons, probably because all the misanthropes hate each others too.

 

[Therarchos]

Because The misanthropist logically speaking has a point. Humans as a species do so many atrocious things that the racist seem incredibly ignorant for only hating part of humanity and usually the ones that have only mad "small" scale holocaousts at that (read anyone but white people)

P.S. I am white

 

[Ambrose von Carstein]

Why is this? Shouldn't it logically follow that misanthropes are worse people than racists if they do the racist's job and then some?

The answer is rather simple really. You've been brainwashed to respond negatively to anything precieved as racist, as the goverment fears that if the race question becomes well-known again they might have to adress it. Misanthropes generaly do not give a fuck about societ, so they aren't as likely to spread their views.

 

[EvilPicnic]

I think this has been answered about 50 times already but: it's all about prejudice and discrimination.

A racist is saying that, based on arbitrary surface features, some humans are superior to others, and others are by implication sub-human.

A misanthrope should dislike all humans equally, and usually comes across as a curmudgeonly grump. This is because in practice a misanthrope is either a serial-killer, or they're putting it on and being hyperbolic.

 

[TiloXofXTanto]

Well, I think the general reason misanthropes are so well received in comparison to racists is the premises that stand behind the two.

Misanthropy is born by learning what our species has done, regardless of to whom or what it is done (the environment, ourselves, etc.), and not being able to deal with it. They view all that has been accomplished by humankind merely as a means to more destruction. They look at all of humankind as a superorganism which seeks only to destroy that which surrounds it. They look at the state of the world, blame it on us (and let's face it, yeah, it is the fault of the entire human race that our world is in its current state), and see the problem as ultimately unsolvable, wallowing in their hatred for their own species, because what else is there to do?

It's rather sympathetic is it not? Especially considering the fact that we can clearly see all the harm we've done to the world. We can see how much our war and selfish greed has harmed innocent people in less fortunate countries. We can generally see where they're coming from.

Racism is an entirely different story. Racism is born of ignorance, where one is taught from an early age, whether deliberately or simply through subconscious absorption of the values from the society one is raised in, that they are superior in some way to another because their skin is a certain color, and they never re-think it, simply accepting it as the truth. It is born of an entirely unjust and irrational hatred of people that they've likely never met and couldn't have possibly known anything about. It is a prejudice that has no ground to stand on, and is no longer socially acceptable in many countries world over. It is so demonized, and rightfully so, by previous generations that even attempting to justify or sympathize with them is unacceptable, and an evil in and of itself equal to the crime of racism.

They have two different bases that are extremely different in circumstances. One is vaguely understandable and can be sympathized with, the other is irrational and cannot be sympathized with due not only to its lack of reason but also its, completely justified, demonizing caused by all the social movements against it.

 

[Colour Scientist]

Plus, nobody takes them seriously.

I think this is the crux of it, rather than the discrimination thing.
Those claiming to be misanthropes irritate me but I don't take them very seriously.

Examples:
'I hate black people' - Ignorant ass.
'I hate everyone' - Teenager/Loner, probably needs more friends.