Techrights

Language Policing as the Hallmark and Pretext of Tyranny

Posted by Roy Schestowitz on Jan 12, 2024

Red Hat is now controlled by IBM. From an objective historical perspective, IBM was on the side of Hitler until that became exceedingly unpopular.

Modern CoCs also forbid so-called "tone policing", which means that not only your actual words may be deemed "offensive".

Let's take a journey back in time for some contextual analysis of what policing tone/speech may beget (the underlying motivations).

2020 article:

2020 Red Hat:

This year: (related only indirectly)

And present day Red Hat:

Hat Red

The Language Police Were Terrifyingly Real. My Grandfather Was One.

An update on Red Hat's conscious language efforts

Grammar Nazi: A Look at Prescriptivism and Language Policing

Red Hat slide

Commandments

Whiteness

A picture slide

3 columns in slide

Slide with prose

Last slide

You need not be a right winger or a racist to think there's something inadequate above. Schismogenesis a mirage, constructing polarity where none is suitable.

"WHITENE-SS" (direct quote) is an unhelpful label and adamant tribalism led some left-leaning, anti-racist politicians to public association with groups that ended up supporting terror attacks.

Radicalism in all its form is problematic. We've been the victim of some who spewed Nazi slogans and made calls for genocide in our IRC channels. Those people are connected to Microsoft and IBM/Red Hat. What are we supposed to deduce?

As associate of ours views them as directly or indirectly Microsofters. Microsoft militants like these reaffirm the impression that Microsoft promotes grotesque nationalism. Militant microsofters like these reaffirm the belief that it's risky to integrate microsofters into one's workforce, as Red Hat has done a lot (especially in recent years; we gave many high-profile examples). █