Monday, September 15, 2014

The Bender Theory of Anti-Discrimination

The Bender Theory of Discrimination, named for the loveable Futurama robot who identified it, is that the worst (or in the strongest form, only) form of discrimination is "the kind against me."



Though not canonical, I've often suspected that there was a correlate Bender theory of anti-discrimination. As a society, we have no clear understanding of what constitutes "discrimination" or what steps are required to oppose it. But there is one unifying thread I've identified to all theories of anti-discrimination:
No theory of anti-discrimination is credible if it targets me.
Simply put, any theory of discrimination which encompasses Jane's activities will be rejected as facially ridiculous by Jane. Whatever anti-discrimination entails, it certainly does not entail any critique of my behavior. If it does, the theory is facially invalid and must be thrown out.

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