Hacker Newsnew | past | comments | ask | show | jobs | submitlogin

I thought it means "dogwhistling", except for the political left instead of the right?


Sort of. My understanding is that it means "declaring your (virtuous) opposition to <bad thing X>, regardless of whether <current topic Y> is actually an instance of X or whether Y is actually harmful."

On the right, it might be: murder is bad, therefore I oppose abortion.

On the left: gay marriage is good, and opposition to it is homophobia, therefore Brandon Eich should be fired.

When the link between X and Y is too specious, it implies the speaker's primary goal is to show virtue by opposing X, rather than any real concern they have about Y.




Consider applying for YC's Fall 2026 batch! Applications are open till July 27.

Guidelines | FAQ | Lists | API | Security | Legal | Apply to YC | Contact

Search: