Trigger Warnings Have Spread from Blogs to College Classes. That’s Bad | New Republic.
“Trigger warnings” are not just ridiculous, they’re embarrassingly stupid and sad: ignorant of actual human psychology (trauma) and essentially is all about spreading political correctness.
Here’s another article about this pathetic tendency in Reason.
A truly heartwarming scene: as friends and family dab their eyes, a 19-year-old young man, in Special Ed since middle school for both “behavioral” and
“Attention” is getting a lot of attention these days, and rightfully so. We routinely joke about everybody’s shorter attention spans and chronic anxiety – “I
There are certainly a lot of credible reasons to hesitate to talk to a professional about problems and situations that have a personal, emotional piece.
It was never totally clear to me what the characteristics were of someone choosing to seek consultation. It wasn’t always an outright crisis, but sometimes
2 Responses
Hi there,
What an enjoyable blog — insightful and well written. I would like to drop a line to counter the unequivocal dismissal of trigger warnings. Maybe we’ve read different ones, but most of the trigger warnings I’ve come across are pretty reasonable. There are two reasons I believe they are OK. The first is that people with a trigger-able mental/emotional condition like PTSD have explained it to me as similar to having a food allergy. Their mind over-produces cortisol when it encounters a certain thing, and they take responsibility for avoiding this certain thing, however they need to know it’s there in advance in order to avoid it. The second reason is that trigger warnings are part of a broader discourse that breaks the norm of silence about the incredible prevalence of sexual assault. It’s way high, and people are just beginning to acknowledge its existence. Also, it is worth considering that returning soldiers are everywhere, and they may have a trigger-able trauma. I think trigger warnings show respect for people who have survived such things. That all being said, I understand it can seem excessive to take on these additional concerns. I don’t expect or insist than anybody change their mind, just something to consider.
Looking forward to reading more of your stuff.
All the best,
Rebecca
That’s an angle I need to consider and reflect upon. My impression so far, however, is that the “warning” boils down to someone being about to be exposed to an idea or opinion the mere existence of which is traumatizing to perceive, which is either pathetic or ridiculous – or both.