“Everything is relative.” No, it isn’t. We can start with that sentence.
I hope we can agree that some things are better than other things. I ask my students, “Is there no difference between your boyfriend who just learned how to play the guitar and the Beatles?” I feel the question answers itself.
I have detected in Generation Z an inclination to deem all opinions of equal value. We just have opinions and then we exchange those opinions, which are all comparable. I ask them, “What about neo-Nazi opinion? Are those opinions legitimate?” And to my horror, many have responded, “Well, those opinions are right for them.” “For them?? What does that mean?”
So, there is a hesitance to take a moral stand and say X is wrong. Don’t offend the neo-Nazis! How very woke. The upshot here is there is no right and wrong, and all views are equivalent.
Dear reader, frightens me. Something tells me that if these young people—heaven forbid—were treated to such viciousness, they would adopt a different view. Like Noam Chomsky once said, “There are no moral relativists.” People can call themselves that, however, they’re doing it from the comfort of their living rooms or the classroom.
As discussed in a previous post, the species shares a universal moral core. There are at least three principles that apply to all human groups on record:
1. Mistreatment of infants is frowned upon
2. Murder is frowned upon
3. Lying is frowned upon
Yes, these things happen all over the world. But, at the level of principle, all human societies uphold prohibitions on these three. These are absolutes—much like the assertion, “Everything is relative.”
Another trap many fall into is the “I like it, therefore it’s good” mindset. (So, I guess there is room for absolutes after all.) Just because you like chicken nuggets, does not mean they’re good. You just like them. And it’s okay to like bad things: bad food, bad art, bad music, and so on. For example, I love canned asparagus. Canned asparagus is disgusting. They (Green Giant) destroy the asparagus and what you’re left with is asparagus-flavored mush. I guess it reminds me of my grandma and being with her at her house. At any rate, I’m not going to say, “Canned asparagus is awesome!” It is not. See? The Earth is still spinning. Everything is fine.
So, reader, please don’t shy away from taking a stand and saying something is wrong. Some things are wrong. Like systemic racism, like the egregious wealth inequality in this country. What is crucial is your argumentation; how you back up your position. And if something doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t. Therefore, dig for an answer, have some confidence. And leave the canned asparagus on the shelf—just a nickel’s worth of free advice.
