Castle Ideas :: Cultural Improvement :: Equality Movements Should Be Tolerant

It's a great thing to be involved in social movements to bring about inclusion and equality, I believe. Every generation on Earth should make this a better place for all. However, we should not forget our ultimate aim to be a society of freedom and tolerance, when faced with those who are opposed to change.

For example, it pains me that the marriage equality movement, something I have been passionately involved with for more than a decade now, has in recent years been accused of intolerance. Of course, we would like the world to be more accepting and inclusive for all. However, to say that businesses who do not wish to be involved in same sex weddings deserve to be out of business for their 'bigotry' is really not on. I am ashamed of my fellow equality supporters who say things like this. Not to mention more serious 'action', like the boycott of Mozilla Firefox last year.

I am sure that equality and inclusion, including in marriage equality, will come with time. Perhaps in a generation almost everyone will accept same sex marriages. It's not unlikely, the way trends are going. But to force people to come on board really defeats our goals of tolerance and freedom, right?

Castle Ideas :: Towards Equality :: Smashing Sexism Should Not Be About The Politics

It's great to see that, in recent years, the world has been taking sexism seriously again, after a hiatus of several decades. Discussion of the topic is totally mainstream nowadays, unlike just 10 years ago, where you'll find such discussion often restricted to particular circles, with the question 'is feminism irrelevant now' more likely to be found in mainstream discourse.

Smashing sexism, once and for all, should be a team effort. We should all be in it together. And we need everyone to participate passionately too. Things like smashing the glass ceiling and ending domestic violence are difficult long term campaigns that require a whole of society effort. In light of this, Emma Watson's invitation of the boys to come on board was really inspirational. We should all do something similar whenever we can.

On the other hand, political division would be unhelpful for the team effort. I know we are all passionate about some things, but you really don't have to agree with a certain brand of politics to be part of team smashing sexism. Some feminists strongly believe in affirmative action, but the more libertarian among us find that idea suspect and prefer we get there on merit. It's okay to have differences like these - affirmative action or not, it should not distract from our common goals. Another good example is differing views on abortion. There's the debate between pro-life feminists and pro-choice feminists, and even amongst the pro-choice there's the question of whether it should just be 'safe and legal' or 'safe legal and rare'. Again, this just mirrors the general political debate on the topic, and should not be a cause to disunite us.

Smashing sexism is a team effort. Don't let our personal politics get between us.

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View On Culture :: Is it the Kardashian and Jenner World? It's not!

A few days ago, my friend remarked that it must be the Kardahsian and Jenner world out there now. I mean, she probably has a point, as a recent list of the most hotly discussed celebrities had a few of them in the top 10. And even without trying to 'keep up' with them, I've somehow managed to know that Caitlyn Jenner is being criticised for her views on social programs, and that there are reports of Kim Kardashian's next child being named Easton West.

But all that's because too many people have developed an obsession with this particular family, who, besides from being very rich, offer nothing too special for our culture, I believe. That's why I refuse to tune into their world. And I'm not missing out, either. Kim Kardshian and her sister Khloe are no more interesting than the many young women doing VLogs on Youtube, for example. And for all the media interest in Caitlyn, there are many others in a similar situation doing VLogs too. (Except for the fact that they don't usually criticise social programs.) In fact, YouTube is the best source of reality TV out there, and in the age of YouTube, I really don't understand the appeal of the Kardashians' shows.

For those who want to live in the Kardahsian and Jenner world, they can feel free to tune in. But for me, I'm going to continue to opt out, as the world out there is so much more interesting.

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Castle Ideas :: Cultural Improvement :: Don't Like What's Out There? Add Your Own!

People often complain about what's on offer in popular culture land out there. It's too cliche. It's not inclusive enough. It's too vulgar. It's unimaginative. I know the feeling, as personally I have been morally outraged by many offerings out there in the past, even calling for boycotts sometimes (remember Miley Cyrus and Wrecking Ball)?

But outrage is rarely effective (as my Wrecking Ball example shows). A more constructive response is to create your own alternative vision of culture instead. If you don't like what's being offered, create an alternative. Making your own music, TV show or even movie has never been easier. It will help make culture richer, and help to achieve your cultural vision in a way that negativity simply never will.

As for me, I still believe the vulgarity of Wrecking Ball is not called for, and in my world, music videos should be much more 'family friendly'. Trust me, there is something refreshing about wholesome culture, it just feels so good. But I have learned that outrage and boycott don't really work. Therefore, I am determined to make my own culture, and I hope that we can show the world that there's a better way, by being constructive rather than negative.