Give trans people a chance

(Note to reader: this is an ally’s opinion) The Gay Agenda in action Around the turn of the millennium, gay marriage became a serious national issue in the US. Opposition to it came from the social and political right. Fundamentally, the opposition was based in homophobia, the tendency to feel fear, discomfort and disgust towards…

Which side of the quotation mark does it go on?

I’m not a prescriptivist, I swear. As someone who is math-oriented (and maybe has some neurodivergent features), I like formal rules. I enjoy treating English grammar like a math problem; and, due to the circumstances of my upbringing, I am highly proficient at “standard” English. When I was younger I understood this to be a…

Disagreement and subjectivity

Why do people disagree? In many cases, it’s due to differences in preferences and values, things that are entirely subjective. However, people also frequently disagree about facts, which should be objective. How does this happen and how can it be resolved? First, we don’t have direct access to physical facts, we only have access to…

On learning by mimicry

Consider sports, music, and foreign language. Most people grow up being exposed to what these things are, and in particular often observe experts in action: professional athletes and musicians and native speakers of foreign languages. People also often have opportunities to engage in learning these things from a young age, and their education or training…