[Terminology note: I use the term “postmodernism” to include leftover Marxists, Neo-Marxists, postmodernists, Critical Race Theory practitioners, and Wokers. These schools are all closely related. See my article on Critical Race Theory for some background.]
Have you ever tried to reason with a postmodernist? Or read one of their books or essays? The writing is often impossible of parse. John Leo identified the problem in 2005: “I reluctantly report that liberal friends basically reject give-and-take political discussion. Their positions are typically posed in the language of feelings or the language of rights. Either way, there is nothing much to debate–feelings are personal and rights are beyond the reach of argument and majority decision making.” Therefore, if you disagree with a progressive/postmodernist’s idea based on feelings, you are being cruel and hateful. If you disagree based on evidence or reason, you are denying someone’s rights and are therefore evil. Any disagreement makes them angry because you are attacking their basic worldview, which cannot be compromised–to compromise a completely correct worldview is to compromise with evil.
Postmodernist: “America is incurably racist.”
Socrates: “Oh? Who did the survey and what were the numbers?”
“A survey isn’t needed. The results are obvious.”
“But if you’re a postmodernist, you don’t believe in objective truth, which means that you feel free to lie—to make up or misinterpret or misunderstand a data set and claim as true whatever you say.”
“I reject your manipulative, totalizing metanarrative about the value of reason and logic and evidence and data. That’s just a temporary hegemony. A tool of the oppressors.”
“So, then, on what basis do you make the claim about racism? You have rejected objective foundations. I’m not at all understanding what your claim is based on.”
“My own lived experience.”
“And I suppose you reject the logical fallacy that applies when someone extrapolates limited personal experience, research, or analysis and, as you folks say, totalizes it.”
“You’re a racist.”
“What is your definition of ‘racist’?”
“You.”