Thread by @CoveringDelta

1/ On this week's @HiddenForcesPod I speak with philosophers @BrandonWarmke and @JustinTosi about the phenomenon of grandstanding, which they define as "the use and abuse of moral talk for the purposes of self-promotion." bit.ly/HF_144

2/ Although grandstanding is a spectacle most commonly associated with those on the political left, the practice of grandstanding is a bipartisan phenomenon.

Its increased prevalence in public discourse has dangerous implications, many of which we explore in-depth today.

3/ Grandstanders aren't concerned with doing good; they’re concerned with looking good.

They want others to think that they are morally superior, and they’re willing to go to great lengths to prove it, including using moral talk as a tactic for punishment & intimidation.

4/ The irony is that grandstanders accomplish all of this by free-riding on the moral behavior and good intentions of others.

They turn civil discourse into an arms race, weaponizing language, and silencing their enemies with threats of doxing & humiliation.

5/ In this sense, the marketplace of ideas suffers today from a tragedy of the commons.

Grandstanding pollutes the information landscape by incentivizing bad moral behavior at the expense of the common good.

6/ If we want to make it through this period with our nation intact we need to reclaim the moral high ground in our discourse.

But in order to do this, we must understand the nature of the problem.

Today's conversation w/@BrandonWarmke & @JustinTosi is a step in that direction.