And what in people’s own experiences does a transgressive Right understand that the Debate Club does not? Yiannopoulos explains, using the example of Ben Shapiro:
“Shapiro is thinking of a world where only politics matter. To him, political correctness is a problem because it suppresses facts relevant to current affairs—and that’s it. For most other people, the stultifying rules of political correctness go far beyond the suppression of facts; it’s the suppression of jokes, banter, and yes, the suppression of rudeness.
“Political correctness interrupts everyday human experiences, threatening to turn every single personal matter into a public one. You can no longer slip up in conversation without worrying if the person you’re talking to is going to tell the whole world what you said, potentially ruining your life forever (need I provide a personal example?). The internet’s erosion of privacy with the resurgence of politically correct taboos is a terrifying combination. That’s why so many people are drawn to Trump.”
Now, Yiannopoulos doesn’t delve into history to make his case as much as he could, which is unfortunate. But what this point seems to suggest, and I believe correctly, is that the instant modern day political correctness became a dominant cultural force (most likely during the ’90s), conservatives were effectively gang pressed into common cause with figures like Marilyn Manson, Lenny Bruce, and every other person who laid siege to good (i.e., politically correct) taste.
The instant public virtue was weaponized by the Left, it became necessary to defend public vice, because otherwise the definition of “vice” would be expanded to cover anyone its new politically correct masters didn’t like. The Left actually understood this when it was in the transgressive position, and implemented it by having groups like the ACLU stand up for the rights of neo-Nazis and Communists in the same breath.
Conservatives, by contrast, seem reluctant to do the same, or even to acknowledge the necessity.
