19 Comments

Rolf,

"bestiality seems to me like a possible candidate for rehabilitation. One could make the argument that no intelligent being is being hurt; after all we eat animals"

The trend seems to be more animal rights protections, not less.

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I think we’ve reached a point in history where the resurrection of some activities such as sex with infants, animals, and rape is not going to happen and not worth contemplation.

I will give you pedophilia and rape, although trying to predict the morals of even a century into the future is a mug's game; but bestiality seems to me like a possible candidate for rehabilitation. One could make the argument that no intelligent being is being hurt; after all we eat animals, and the insertion of genitalia into orifices does not on the face of it seem particularly more objectionable except for the squick factor. Take a look at a cow going into a slaughterhouse some time, and tell me that it would not 'prefer' (to the extent that one can speak of animals having preferences) a bit of bestiality.

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You still have to explain why women prefer such policies in the first place.

Rolf, watch Milk. Gay activists have been articulate artistic cosmopolitan professionals, displaying strong group solidarity.

Which part of this does not apply to atheists, except perhaps substituting 'scientific' for 'artistic'? Which should not matter to the argument, scientists having these days even more prestige than artists.

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“Now that homosexuals have made progress, let’s contemplate how rapists, pedophiles, and bestially activists might make progress”. Saying that these activities are currently being suppressed just like homosexuality was and may be accepted some day is a pretty absurd thought experiment. Are we to believe that Robin would be morally neutral on such prospects? I think we’ve reached a point in history where the resurrection of some activities such as sex with infants, animals, and rape is not going to happen and not worth contemplation. Polygamists as a consituency is a valid analogy. Pedophilia was a poor choice so Robin is being insensitive at best.

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It's not the activism, but the effect of the issue on mate selection. Men, who have been the primary political movers (sorry to say, but true) have endorsed policies that signal positive attributes to women. In our current society, the majority (but not all, of course) of women prefer men who are tolerant of homosexuals. Thus, policy positions that benefit homosexuals are making strides.

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Eric, everything is different somehow. If you don't like the example with pedophiles, substitute polygamy or polyandry instead.

Rolf, watch Milk. Gay activists have been articulate artistic cosmopolitan professionals, displaying strong group solidarity.

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It seems to me that your theory still has the difficulty of explaining where this impressiveness comes from. What is impressive about the gay activists that is not impressive about the activists of other despised groups? What strategies did the gay movement adopt that atheists, for example, have not?

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I generally only chime in with criticism, so I thought I'd mention briefly that the amount of space Robin dedicates in the original post to explaining the arguments of the opposing viewpoint is commendable.

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TGGP and Arthur, I acknowledged that error in an added to the original post.

Ah, so I see. Sorry, I'd missed the update.

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"What facts could pedophiles or polygamists teach us to change our minds about them? The idea that we choose our coalitions to identify with impressive allies seems a less troubled explanation. Impressive gay activists made gays into impressive allies; pedophiles will not gain approval until their activists are similarly impressive."

I find this statement quite disingenuous (cheap shot against homosexuals) unless Robin is really that dumb. There’s a clear legal/moral distinction to be drawn between consenting adults (gays and polygamists) and pedophiles, which involves sex with those who haven’t developed the rational faculty to make voluntary choices. Should we as citizens be worried about those who want to legalize sex with animals or reintroduced slavery? Apparently so according to the brilliant logic of Robin Hanson.

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Robin,

No, that's not my view. My claim is that voters and elites such as journalists more often change their political attitudes and behavior about a disrespected group because of changes in the incentives provided by their social circles rather than in direct response to distant activists; the activists get more results by galvanizing their group members to change the incentives in their local social environments, which garners allies (including among elites, e.g. courts and media) and ultimately victory.

Women or ethnic minorities couldn't 'come out' (although ethnic and religious groups could benefit from increased actual numbers in a society), but rank-and-file members could be inspired to socially penalize (with the aid of their close outgroup allies) their associates, e.g. by ensuring that expressions blatant sexism would be met with protest/diminished social support.

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Robin,

While I think that you are obviously right in that _most_ of the beliefs held by folks are signaling beliefs, I think here you are complexifying too much.

A much more plausible explanation is a much simpler signaling mechanism. Liberals are liberals because they are signaling to liberals that they are in-group. Similarly with conservatives and libertarians. "(I want to be / I am) like him" is a powerful force in psychology. And holding specific opinions is a VERY cheap way to do so.

Were I not on a mobile device, I'd go find the article (linked by one Masonomist or another) suggesting that people have 2 distinct sets of preferences politically. 1. for a party and 2. for a policy.

If this is true, you may as well be comparing the signaling differences between White Sox fans and Cubs fans.

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TGGP and Arthur, I acknowledged that error in an added to the original post.

Carl, in your view it seems gay respect was earned by very different means than ethnic, religious, and gender respect. I suggest the means was more similar.

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A better signaling would be conservatives are respecting their ancestors and traditions, while liberals are respecting their reason and empathy. I say reason because it requires an openness to new facts and changing beliefs that conservatives only face as a last resort and only when it can connect with something else in their past. Conservatives see change being forced on them by new ideas of liberals. Liberals see oppression by custom of conservatives. It is no surprise conservatives opposed civil rights. Libertarians probably do relate to the self-made individual threatened by outside forces more than are sympathetic to the oppression of others since they see themselves more self-focused and more self-empowered. They may oppose discrimination by society but not by themselves since this impinges on their own control. What facts? Existence, genetics. knowledge, experience, dispelling misconceptions, lack of rationale of opposition beyond fears and appeals to authority and tradition.

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Your main point strikes me as plausible enough, you just could have been a more thorough bullet-biter.

I agree, but at the same time, I didn't find his specific, what shall we call them, "cynical" explanations to be all that compelling. I think one could spend all day coming up with alternative "cynical" explanations, and wasn't particularly impressed with the ones he came up with.

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My first reaction was similar to Andrew's. Rereading the original post, it seems like you took libertarians' stated reasons for their beliefs at face value and contrasted them with unflattering signaling explanations for liberals and conservatives. This struck me as unfair and made the descriptions of the conservatives and liberals come off as caricature rather than a sincere attempt to understand.

btw, I'm a longtime reader, first time commenter. Reading this blog has largely brought me around to the signaling interpretation, but the previous post left me a bit incredulous because it seemed so unfair. A sharper analysis of libertarians might have made it more palatable.

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