I am okay with Brendan Eich being named CEO of Mozilla, despite having made a political donation that I strongly disagree with.
I am also okay with Eich drawing criticism over it, indefinitely.
That being said, I can't help but feel that a lot people are, for lack of a better way to say it... trying too hard. It's like we've completely lost track of some VERY recent historical context.
If I recall correctly, back in the 2008 Presidential election, not a single one of the Democratic Party front-runners would stand in support of marriage equality. Obama wouldn't, the Clintons wouldn't, Edwards wouldn't. Support for "civil unions" was still a completely socially acceptable position in left-wing circles, and even that was a controversial stance among the mainstream public.
Sometime in late-2011 / early-2012 a critical mass was finally reached, and it rather suddenly became okay to "out" yourself in the mainstream as supporting full equality. President Obama "evolved" (i.e. reversed) his position in May of 2012. The percentage of public support for marriage equality finally crossed over the 50% threshold in the U.S. a couple of months later.
To hear people talk, you would think the "bad old days" were decades ago... and that anyone who hasn't stood on the correct side of history for years now is a bigoted fossil. Folks, President Obama's reversal was TWENTY-TWO MONTHS AGO. Equality has been a majority view for barely a year and a half.
Granted, popularity and poll numbers are not a substitute for moral righteousness. Moreover, "not publicly supporting" equality is a different matter from spending money to actively oppose it. As I said, I believe that Eich should draw criticism for his 2008 donation indefinitely, or at least until he experiences enough personal growth to reverse his views. However, much of the reaction this week has been a bit over-the-top and unproductive. It feels like a lot people who just RECENTLY arrived at a party are doubling-down on their partying, to compensate for arriving only recently. There's a fine line between being righteous and working to change people's hearts and minds, or just being smugly self-righteous to score imaginary Internet-points. I think a lot of this week's commentary has fallen on the wrong side of that line.
I am also okay with Eich drawing criticism over it, indefinitely.
That being said, I can't help but feel that a lot people are, for lack of a better way to say it... trying too hard. It's like we've completely lost track of some VERY recent historical context.
If I recall correctly, back in the 2008 Presidential election, not a single one of the Democratic Party front-runners would stand in support of marriage equality. Obama wouldn't, the Clintons wouldn't, Edwards wouldn't. Support for "civil unions" was still a completely socially acceptable position in left-wing circles, and even that was a controversial stance among the mainstream public.
Sometime in late-2011 / early-2012 a critical mass was finally reached, and it rather suddenly became okay to "out" yourself in the mainstream as supporting full equality. President Obama "evolved" (i.e. reversed) his position in May of 2012. The percentage of public support for marriage equality finally crossed over the 50% threshold in the U.S. a couple of months later.
To hear people talk, you would think the "bad old days" were decades ago... and that anyone who hasn't stood on the correct side of history for years now is a bigoted fossil. Folks, President Obama's reversal was TWENTY-TWO MONTHS AGO. Equality has been a majority view for barely a year and a half.
Granted, popularity and poll numbers are not a substitute for moral righteousness. Moreover, "not publicly supporting" equality is a different matter from spending money to actively oppose it. As I said, I believe that Eich should draw criticism for his 2008 donation indefinitely, or at least until he experiences enough personal growth to reverse his views. However, much of the reaction this week has been a bit over-the-top and unproductive. It feels like a lot people who just RECENTLY arrived at a party are doubling-down on their partying, to compensate for arriving only recently. There's a fine line between being righteous and working to change people's hearts and minds, or just being smugly self-righteous to score imaginary Internet-points. I think a lot of this week's commentary has fallen on the wrong side of that line.