Editorial – "So much for the tolerant left"

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Anyone who follows political 'debates' particularly online – something I strongly advise against – may well have come across the meme 'So much for the tolerant left'. It pokes fun at an apparent contradiction in progressive ideas: 'Ah, so you think the far right is a danger to society? I'm not supposed to shout 'Foreigners out'? So you don't tolerate my opinion? So much for the tolerant left." The tolerance paradox states that tolerant societies cannot tolerate intolerance – and thus become intolerant themselves.

The solution lies, as is so often the case (though not always), in moderation. For yes, if a society tolerates intolerance, it risks being abolished – and yes, if necessary, we must ultimately counter intolerance with intolerance. But one thing at a time.

Meanwhile, progressives have casually hijacked the meme: have you stubbed your little toe on the edge of the table? So much for the tolerant left!

Yet there's a grain of truth hidden in that quip. After all, anyone who takes part in discussions, on social media, or even out in the real world, does indeed frequently come across statements or reactions that leave you speechless. "Oh, so you're a feminist? But are you an intersectional queer feminist? No? Tsk, tsk…" The more charged the topic becomes, the more performative the purity rituals get. "You dare to publish a post speaking out against the genocide in Gaza? Well, we've been waiting a long time for that – where was that a month ago, hmm?" "The killing must stop? No, the deliberate killing must stop!" Too weak, too little, too late. "Vegetarian, but not vegan? Why don't you just open your own slaughterhouse?" No room for small steps, for belated realisation, for newly found openness.

Whom, I wonder, does this help? What has been achieved, apart from public self-congratulation at the expense of a potential ally who has now been alienated? Surely no one can seriously believe that this actually improves anything?