this post was submitted on 28 Oct 2023
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The paradox has never been a problem. This is just another way to frame it
It's like saying 'you might think this engine is broken since it can't run on the water that it is filled with, but if you simply remove the water and replace it with petrol suddenly the engine is fixed.'
The post seems to approach the paradox as if it meant to show that tolerance is inherently broken when in reality it just points out the possibility of problematic aspects if incorrectly applied, like in the above where it is obvious the engine itself was never broken. The paradox doesn't disappear, it simply doesn't apply to that particular application.
The main idea from OPs post is often ascribed to Yonatan Zunger as some huge revelation, but really this idea has been about for quite some time as its not exactly hard to come up with. For example, K. R. Popper 1945, and E. M. Forster 1922 both wrote about this.
The paradox has never been a problem for you.
Some people find the paradox of tolerance to be unhelpful because it seems like it's making an excuse for intolerance. And to be fair, the paradox phrasing doesn't provide hard boundaries - intentionally, I think, since the extent to which a statement is intolerant can vary - and intolerance in response to it should be commensurate. But for people who tend towards black and white thinking, it can be a problematic explanation.
The social contact version is much more clear cut: the metaphor of contract law is binary, and contains the image of the neutral "judge" which is helpful for black and white thinkers. A person either is it is not in breach of contract. It lacks nuance, which is good and bad.
Essentially, the core idea is the same: tolerance is the expected foundation; intolerance is abnormal and not ok. But whichever expression works for you is probably better.
Editing to add: the contract version, with its appeal to the Law and judges etc, is objective, which is helpful; the subjective nature of the paradox means that it can be weaponized - and it is, often. Tho to be fair the people who would weaponize it would probably weaponize either version - as it has been, multiple times in this very thread.
For me? Yeah sure, but that's irrelevant and not the case of my comment.
What I meant is that the paradox doesn't mean that the concept of tolerance is toppled by the paradox existing.
But your exploration of the topic is spot-on. This post is an additional way to describe it and it seems to be more approachable to many, so great
Right this is just adding another layer to the same concept.