History is not a straight line forward, and sometimes cultures that appear to be moving forward end up taking steps back. There are a number of periods of history where something more like what we would consider to be good today regressed into something that was quite different that we would consider to be less good.
The Islamic golden age between the 8th and 14th centuries was characterized by advances in various fields including mathematics, astronomy, medicine, philosophy, and architecture. We feel the impact of those times to this day in our words for things like algebra and alchemy (and thus chemistry). That golden age was followed by an era of deep religious conservatism that in many ways continues to this day. Instead of investigating the world to find out what God has done through his works, they decided that the book itself was the word of God. They believed that God, being an unknowable entity, would go out and change the world at its whim. Therefore, rather than trying to understand God through the world, they believed that one must try to understand God through the Quran.
The Korean Goryeo period had a number of rights and freedoms for women that were something we might consider quite good for the time when viewed through today's lens. However, the following Joseon dynasty followed Confucianism, which is an extremely conservative set of values. This changed the role of women from one where they could hold positions of authority in a number of different institutions to one where they were often kept from social interactions altogether. Women were confined to the inner quarters of their homes and were told that they should obey their fathers, sons, and parents.
The Weimar Republic of Germany was, by the standards of the era, quite progressive when viewed through a modern lens. However, the next chapter of Germany's story were the national socialists under Adolf Hitler, who implemented a highly oppressive and totalitarian regime.
Given this, knowing that perhaps someday progressives may have to give back some of their gains, seems to me quite important not to use corrupt tools to achieve those gains. Acting as if a corrupt tool is a good thing because it happens to align with their values today means people don’t realize that they’re playing with a dangerous tool, much like the murasama sword it must taste blood before it is put back in the scabbard.
The Islamic golden age between the 8th and 14th centuries was characterized by advances in various fields including mathematics, astronomy, medicine, philosophy, and architecture. We feel the impact of those times to this day in our words for things like algebra and alchemy (and thus chemistry). That golden age was followed by an era of deep religious conservatism that in many ways continues to this day. Instead of investigating the world to find out what God has done through his works, they decided that the book itself was the word of God. They believed that God, being an unknowable entity, would go out and change the world at its whim. Therefore, rather than trying to understand God through the world, they believed that one must try to understand God through the Quran.
The Korean Goryeo period had a number of rights and freedoms for women that were something we might consider quite good for the time when viewed through today's lens. However, the following Joseon dynasty followed Confucianism, which is an extremely conservative set of values. This changed the role of women from one where they could hold positions of authority in a number of different institutions to one where they were often kept from social interactions altogether. Women were confined to the inner quarters of their homes and were told that they should obey their fathers, sons, and parents.
The Weimar Republic of Germany was, by the standards of the era, quite progressive when viewed through a modern lens. However, the next chapter of Germany's story were the national socialists under Adolf Hitler, who implemented a highly oppressive and totalitarian regime.
Given this, knowing that perhaps someday progressives may have to give back some of their gains, seems to me quite important not to use corrupt tools to achieve those gains. Acting as if a corrupt tool is a good thing because it happens to align with their values today means people don’t realize that they’re playing with a dangerous tool, much like the murasama sword it must taste blood before it is put back in the scabbard.
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