Why So Many ‘Tolerant’ People Are Intolerant | Intellectual Takeout

Why So Many ‘Tolerant’ People Are Intolerant | Intellectual Takeout
"It’s become common to point out that those who most preach “tolerance” are often themselves highly “intolerant.”

But why is that?

As University of Texas professor and ethics expert J. Budziszewski explains, it may have a lot to do with tolerance’s character as a virtue.

Let me explain. 

Or rather, I’ll explain Budziszewski’s explanation from his excellent article, “The Illusion of Moral Neutrality.” 

This explanation involves three steps:
1) Tolerance is a virtue.
...Thus, for instance, we may tolerate someone voicing a wrong opinion because suppressing it: 

1) could lead to further, more insidious suppressions of free speech; 

2) could eliminate the chance for truth to shine through when pitted against error.

According to Budziszewski, the extremes to be avoided in exercising tolerance are “softheadedness”—“putting up with something we should suppress”—and “narrowmindedness”—“suppressing what we should put up with.”
2) The virtues are interdependent..."
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