The philosophical architects of liberalism made an exception for savages, people too backwards to appreciate liberty. Socialism made exceptions for the bourgeois, people too attached to their ownership of the means of production to be beyond saving. Conservatism is built upon the idea that some people are better than others.
There's always an exception. And somehow, that exception always becomes the norm, we enter into a state of exception. There's savages everywhere! The bourgeois control everything! Equality! It's time to kill people.
In no uncertain terms, fuck that no. If people believe asinine things, they (as a person, not as a holder of asinine beliefs) should be respected nonetheless. Classic Aristotle quote:
It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it
Refusing to entertain, "respect', or consider beliefs that you think are astoundingly stupid and wrong is basically an internal admission of being intellectually weak or a coward. Take your pick. Differences in how people see the world exist and that doesn't automatically preclude collaboration and cooperation. In fact, it makes finding the best path to some goal far less likely to end in ruin.
If we’re going to engage in the deliberative model, we’d have to begin by rejecting that notion that only our position is legitimate; we’d have to value the inclusion of diverse points of view. The deliberative model says that we should take on the extraordinarily difficult task of arguing together, looking for policies that make everyone at least a little unhappy, but that are in the long-term best interest of everyone, or, at the very least, the long-term better interest of everyone.
That is, it's in our collective best interest to respect everyone without exception. I suppose it's hard if you're just intellectual weak, but don't choose to be a coward. Respect other people.
And if you're like, "Well, what about the interests of Nazis?!", then read the second sentence of the title. But if you think that means appeasing them, then read the article linked by the word 'here' above.
Edit: This was a really useful exercise. Thanks, y'all!
On a personal level the default respect is only for the first few encounters.
If the person constantly violates societal norms and does not respect others in return, they do not deserve respect.
Refusing to entertain, "respect’, or consider beliefs that you think are astoundingly stupid and wrong
This is quite simplistic, you are also judging the beliefs of others yourself and deciding what they are allowed to believe.
Yes, any person is allowed to hold any beliefs and worship (or not) any god they wish. So long as they understand the only person they can expect to be held by and follow those belief is themselves.
This is not the paradox of tolerance. That's why I suggested reading the article linked by the word 'here'.
The paradox of tolerance only can only happen in an environment where one side routinely abuses the rule of engagement and gets away with it. A paradoxically tolerant person would be like, "Well...you're entitled to your opinion that I'm inferior to you because of my skin color, and people less than you should put into concentration camps for our safety...but I disagree."
The article above denied this had to be the case. If someone believes that I'm sub-human because of my skin color and makes that argument, then it's perfectly reasonable for me to believe the same of them for the same reason. I don't actually have to believe this, mind you, but I can argue for policies I want on that basis. So, if someone wants to put me in concentration camps because of my skin color, then I can reasonably argue, on the merits of the stupid argument, that they, too, should be placed in concentration camps to ensure their safety from the riffraff.
As you can see, if people argue for things for stupid reasons, then a lot of stupid things open up. The paradox of tolerance assumes one person is exceptionally aggressive in their stupidity (i.e., intolerant) and the other refrains for some reason.
Fuck that. If someone argues for bad things to happen to other people for bad reasons (racism, xenophobia, homophobia, etc), then it's perfectly reasonable for somebody else to argue that bad things happen to them for those same reasons.
Your comment refutes the main premise of your post.
Refusing to entertain, "respect’, or consider beliefs that you think are astoundingly stupid and wrong is basically an internal admission of being intellectually weak or a coward.
If someone argues for bad things to happen to other people for bad reasons (racism, xenophobia, homophobia, etc), then it’s perfectly reasonable for somebody else to argue that bad things happen to them for those same reasons.
At this point I have no idea what you are trying to say.
That is, it’s in our collective best interest to respect everyone without exception. I suppose it’s hard if you’re just intellectual weak, but don’t choose to be a coward.
Whenever I see someone making the claim that we should respect everyone, it rarely takes much deep diving to find them being disrespectful. It is rare, however, to find that disrespect in the very post where they're calling for everybody to be respectful.
So kudos, dude. You undermined your own high ideals while expressing them. Fuckin'-A man.
I'll go a step farther. Respect should be the default stance when meeting someone.
But ...
If someone shows disrespect from the get-go (and that includes wearing Nazi paraphernalia or other such hate symbols), fuck 'em in the ear with a rusty, spiked dildo.
“There is a cult of ignorance in the United States, and there has always been. The strain of anti-intellectualism has been a constant thread winding its way through our political and cultural life, nurtured by the false notion that democracy means that ‘my ignorance is just as good as your knowledge’.”
—Isaac Asimov, “A Cult of Ignorance”, Newsweek (1980-01-21)
You've got to respect everyone, yes -- and point out the wrongs in the other person's opinion. Because if you just respect... then you are (also) being heedless.
Yes, but pointing out the wrongs is only logically and/or rhetorically effective when done in a certain way. American political polarization basically has us saying "You're wrong because you're not X", when that's a shitty argument all around. Being conservative or democrat isn't itself an indicator of the validity of any argument.
Pointing out the wrongs by identifying their premises and conclusions and arguing about those things is being respectful. That is what I mean by respect, which is obviously unclear, or so I've learned in this thread. Focusing on the argument is respectful. Because even white supremacists know that capitalism fucking sucks and hate on rich people. Their proposed solution is a shitty alternative, and that's where they're wrong. But if you start with they're a white supremacists, therefore they're wrong because all white supremacists are wrong, then that's shitty.