POISONOUS SYMBOLISM

摘要

Our politics increasingly subsist on symbolism. We argue furiously over policies that purport to advance "family values" or to suppress obscenity or to honor some group, when these policies—whether adopted or not—wouldn't affect most intended beneficiaries. These poisonous debates mainly encourage political breast-beating; each side flaunts its own moral superiority. Nowhere is this truer than in matters of race and ethnicity and, in particular, in affirmative action. Indeed, the debate on affirmative action is now almost completely disconnected from the facts.