It isn’t inevitable. There’s a trivial demonstration that censorship self-censorship don’t form necessarily form a collective downward spiral: There are societies that at one point had much heavier censorship and now don’t. That’s not easily made consistent with your claim.
Censorship is bad. Self-censorship is very bad. Especially on a website devoted to improving rationality we shouldn’t censor what we have to say. But the notion that small bits of self-censorship will eventually lead to believing that 2+2=5 if the Party says so is simply not called for. This is a classic example where a strong argument can be made for a claim but that claim is being inherently undermined by the use of a very weak argument for the claim instead of the strong one.
(Incidentally, generalization from fictional evidence also comes up here).
It isn’t inevitable. There’s a trivial demonstration that censorship self-censorship don’t form necessarily form a collective downward spiral: There are societies that at one point had much heavier censorship and now don’t. That’s not easily made consistent with your claim.
I am claiming that this road leads to totalitarianism. That is not the same as claiming that the road is one way with no exits and no U-turns. If I thought otherwise there would be little point in me expressing my concerns. As long as society keeps its foot on the pedal and fails to realize it is heading in the wrong direction however that is where it will end up. Inevitably.
(Incidentally, generalization from fictional evidence also comes up here).
This is not generalizing from fictional evidence. It is using a literary quote to express an idea more eloquently than I can myself. Since the book can be seen as a parable illustrating the same concerns I am emphasizing I believe it is quite appropriate to quote from it. I am not using the fictional story as proof of my claim, I am quoting it to elaborate on what it is I am claiming.
It isn’t inevitable. There’s a trivial demonstration that censorship self-censorship don’t form necessarily form a collective downward spiral: There are societies that at one point had much heavier censorship and now don’t. That’s not easily made consistent with your claim.
Censorship is bad. Self-censorship is very bad. Especially on a website devoted to improving rationality we shouldn’t censor what we have to say. But the notion that small bits of self-censorship will eventually lead to believing that 2+2=5 if the Party says so is simply not called for. This is a classic example where a strong argument can be made for a claim but that claim is being inherently undermined by the use of a very weak argument for the claim instead of the strong one.
(Incidentally, generalization from fictional evidence also comes up here).
I am claiming that this road leads to totalitarianism. That is not the same as claiming that the road is one way with no exits and no U-turns. If I thought otherwise there would be little point in me expressing my concerns. As long as society keeps its foot on the pedal and fails to realize it is heading in the wrong direction however that is where it will end up. Inevitably.
This is not generalizing from fictional evidence. It is using a literary quote to express an idea more eloquently than I can myself. Since the book can be seen as a parable illustrating the same concerns I am emphasizing I believe it is quite appropriate to quote from it. I am not using the fictional story as proof of my claim, I am quoting it to elaborate on what it is I am claiming.