Actually, maybe I could try a similar parable about a world in which there’s a severe, brutally enforced religious taboo against smoking and a widespread belief that it’s unhealthy, and then when the enlightened opinion turns against the religious beliefs and norms of old, smoking becomes a symbol of progress and freethinking—and those who try to present evidence that it is bad for you after all are derided as wanting to bring back the inquisition.
Though this perhaps wouldn’t be effective since the modern respectable opinion is compatible with criminalization of recreational drugs, so the image of freethinkers decrying what is basically a case of drug prohibition as characteristic of superstitious dark ages doesn’t really click. I’ll have to think about this more.
maybe I could try a similar parable about a world in which there’s a severe, brutally enforced religious taboo against smoking and a widespread belief that it’s unhealthy, and then when the enlightened opinion turns against the religious beliefs and norms of old, smoking becomes a symbol of progress and freethinking
Actually, you might be surprised to learn that Randian Objectivists held a similar view (or at least Rand herself did), that smoking is a symbol of man’s[1] harnessing of fire by the power of reason. Here’s a video that caricatures the view (when they get to talking about smoking).
I don’t think they actually denied its harmful health effects though.
Yes, I’m familiar with this. Though in fairness, I’ve read conflicting reports about it, with some old-guard Randians claiming that they all stopped smoking once, according to them, scientific evidence for its damaging effects became convincing. I don’t know how much (if any) currency denialism on this issue had among them back in the day.
Rothbard’s “Mozart was a Red” is a brilliant piece of satire, though! I’m not even that familiar with the details of Rand’s life and personality, but just from the behavior and attitudes I’ve seen from her contemporary followers, every line of it rings with hilarious parody.
Actually, maybe I could try a similar parable about a world in which there’s a severe, brutally enforced religious taboo against smoking and a widespread belief that it’s unhealthy, and then when the enlightened opinion turns against the religious beliefs and norms of old, smoking becomes a symbol of progress and freethinking—and those who try to present evidence that it is bad for you after all are derided as wanting to bring back the inquisition.
Though this perhaps wouldn’t be effective since the modern respectable opinion is compatible with criminalization of recreational drugs, so the image of freethinkers decrying what is basically a case of drug prohibition as characteristic of superstitious dark ages doesn’t really click. I’ll have to think about this more.
Actually, you might be surprised to learn that Randian Objectivists held a similar view (or at least Rand herself did), that smoking is a symbol of man’s[1] harnessing of fire by the power of reason. Here’s a video that caricatures the view (when they get to talking about smoking).
I don’t think they actually denied its harmful health effects though.
ETA: [1] Rand’s gendered language, not mine.
Yes, I’m familiar with this. Though in fairness, I’ve read conflicting reports about it, with some old-guard Randians claiming that they all stopped smoking once, according to them, scientific evidence for its damaging effects became convincing. I don’t know how much (if any) currency denialism on this issue had among them back in the day.
Rothbard’s “Mozart was a Red” is a brilliant piece of satire, though! I’m not even that familiar with the details of Rand’s life and personality, but just from the behavior and attitudes I’ve seen from her contemporary followers, every line of it rings with hilarious parody.