I Used To Be A Fan But I Am Now Shocked, Disgusted And Appalled With Sam Harris

[paulpablo]

Might be an issue of interpretation between cultures/legal systems/regions? 

In the US, at least, a person might be complicit in some offense for having been witness to the offense and not, in effect, discharging their civic duty.  For example, a person who knows that someone intends to commit arson, watches them commit arson, does not call the fire department, and does not notify authorities actively seeking information regarding that arson.  They've done absolutely nothing...and that, in that instance, is what -makes- them complicit.

Or a person who, not knowing a robbery was committed, nevertheless drives the getaway car.  An accomplice.  In this case, they have done something..maybe they didn't intend to or realize that they had.  From their point of view they;ve done nothing wrong..but from the point of view of the injured they have - and when there is an injured party, we generally place the compelling interest with them.  Essentially, demanding that someone clarify their remarks and repudiate any seeming offense in a compelling way.

I guess the disagreement is over whether or not Harris has or can, do that, in this case?  Was Harris actively complicit in laughing and providing the vehicle?  Was he passively complicit in that he provided no opposition to those remarks, having at least some idea as to what the guest he had on was going to say.....and did his clarification compellingly address the issue, or was it an attempt to duck the entire thing by claiming, in effect, ignorance?

(I still think it was just an insensitive moment, not an antipathetic or apathetic moment, only spitballing above)

It's understandable that in some legal situations it makes someone complicit to not report a crime or drive a get away vehicle.

But in a general non legal sense you could look at it either way.

What the person did that some people think was morally wrong is make a statement likely backed up by what people would think is an immoral opinion.  Sam Harris didn't help him say the words or come up with the opinion.  A get away driver drives a vehicle that helps someone commit an illegal act. And in regards to not reporting an arson/illegal act, Sam Harris did the opposite.  He's letting anyone who wants to watch the youtube video see and hear the words the man is saying that some people think is immoral.

I'm probably going to step away from this convo though because I don't have much interest in transexuals or the politics surrounding sexual identity, I think Sam Harris is usually quite boring, I don't know who Douglas Murray.