Proverbs 29.9
“If a wise man has an argument with a fool, the fool only rages and laughs, and there is no quiet.”
This proverb asserts that when there is a debate between a wise person and a fool, it is not a reasonable discussion that leads to a resolution. Instead, it is chaos. This is because the fool is stubbornly arrogant to the point of being irrational.
The fool doesn’t bring facts to the discussion; rather, the fool brings emotion and noise. When confronted with a different point of view, the fool gets angry and ridicules the wise person and their message. The fool doesn’t understand the value of creative abrasion. They don’t understand that iron sharpens iron.
We are witnessing this very thing today in many of the debates about social and political issues. Extremists do not want to engage in civil discourse; rather, they want to silence and “cancel” the perspective of those who disagree with them. For example, on some (many?) college campuses, speakers who present a conservative point of view are shouted down or prevented from speaking.
The protesters, who ironically describe themselves as progressives, use the tactics described in this proverb. They rage, they mock, they shout … and they certainly are not quiet. Their standard strategy is to engage in name-calling and glibly throw out what has become a cookie-cutter list of derisive labels: racist, nazi, misogynist, homophobe, xenophobe, etc..
The tragic result of this foolishness is that free speech, civil discourse, and the debating of alternative perspectives and viewpoints is being severely restricted (and in some cases eliminated altogether) on many college campuses. Needless to say, this is disastrous for the collegiate learning process, which should encourage and facilitate exposure to differing ideas and perspectives.
Sadly, despite their rhetoric about diversity and inclusion, universities today are increasingly anti-liberal and anti-diversity. They are quite selective about who is protected and promoted by “inclusivity.” The atmosphere on many campuses can be accurately described as philosophical fascism, where people are punished for expressing conservative ideas that differ from the progressive beliefs that dominate the campus culture.
Wise people aren’t afraid of different opinions and perspectives. They welcome diversity of thought. They embrace disagreement, and respond with respectful discussion, discourse, and debate. They understand the benefit of creative abrasion. They know that iron sharpens iron.
