Gabriel Hanna,

So, when a feminist philosopher says that E = mc^2 is a gendered equation because the speed of light is privileged over speeds that women might find more relevant, and if I am scornful about that statement in a paper, then I am supposed to fail at critical thinking.

1)I privilege “c” because the universe does.

2)To be scornful of that statement is to be critical. The problem with really existing “critical thinking” is that it is not critical enough. It questions when an assertion comes from a white male because we all know white males have interests. But so do academics or feminists or anyone else.

Too much of what goes by the name of critical thinking is just privileging the customs and prejudices of particular groups. As one of George Bernard Shaw’s characters puts it, “Forgive him, for he is a savage and believes that the customs of his tribe are the laws of nature.”

(Or in the words of Mr. Rogers, “Can you say ‘infinite regress?’ Sure you can.”)