The usage of the term "bad faith" on leftist Twitter

[Iwasamwillbe]

I have begun to notice that every time someone brings up a point of leftist hypocrisy, double standards, self-contradiction, or general inconsistency, the natural argument from leftists is that said someone is arguing in "bad faith".

Take, for example, Tim Pool's calling out the media for double standards about AOC using the OK hand sign, in the sense that it suddenly became insignificant and benign when she was using it.

https://twitter.com/Timcast/status/1137539262671405056?s=19

One of the response tweets was this:

https://twitter.com/RespectableLaw/status/1137545895527026688?s=19

If you’re not even going to put in the effort to mask your bad faith when playing Twitter, then I’m not even going to put in the effort of making fun of you.

The question here is: why do leftists resort to screaming "bad faith", even and especially when it doesn't apply, whenever someone calls them out on their double standards?

 

[Surf and TERF]

It's a cop-out for having self awareness.

 

[dreamworks face]

In many cases, "bad faith" is a term synonymous with "I'm losing the argument and am immune to logic and reason, wah wah wah."

This is not one of those cases.

The original twitter poster is clearly joking / being disingenuous and the one who replied is a humorless asshole. He's correct in that the OP isn't seriously advocating for that position, but he's also not realizing that it's a joke.

 

[Libtard-Wrecking Krogoth]

fad word and meme phrase currently in vogue, not helped in the least by the fact that sartre was skeptical of the unconcious which would effectively make him a fellow blank-slater, in a self-fulfilling full circle thus leading to free license to project hard.

or stated more concisely

It's a cop-out for having self awareness.

 

[Exigent Circumcisions]

The people who are least equipped to argue are the most reliant on terms like this; see everybody who cries LOGICAL FALLACY at the drop of a hat.

ETA: I personally give people the benefit of the doubt that they're arguing from conviction and proceed from there. If their argument is built on shaky premises it's going to come out anyway. Similarly I'd never tell a cop I know my rights; I just assert them and see where it goes.

 

[Beautiful Border]

I've noticed that the left has become really fond of a particular Sartre quote and spam it constantly, the "never believe that anti-semites..." one. It's such an idiotic quote because it's literally just a strawman.

 

[Red Hood]

"You're arguing in bad faith" is basically flipping the table when you're losing the game so no one can have any more fun.

 

[AF 802]

Realizing their ideas are fucking retarded, not wanting to admit it, and find some made-up nonsense term to cover it up.

 

[Judge Holden]

Translated from checkmark untermensch it means...

"you disagree with me, which means you are inherently morally flawed and deceitful so any discussion with you would be a waste of my super valuable and important time and brainpower"

 

[Picnic_Boy]

Your point is flawed because HAMBURGERS. In fact, I don't even have to argue against it because HAMBURGERS. Now I'm going to chill with my Switch so I don't even have to think about HAMBURGERS ever again.

 

[Y2K Baby]

Thread was made in bad faith.

 

[Vampirella]

"You're arguing in bad faith" is basically flipping the table when you're losing the game so no one can have any more fun.

Funny how they have so many phrases that mean this.

 

[Wallace]

Translated from checkmark untermensch it means...

Holden's response is correct. Since their arguments are rooted in unquestionably good intentions or values, anyone who criticizes them must therefore be indirectly attacking said intentions or values.

"We are doing X because Y."
"You object to us doing X."
"Therefore, you oppose Y, because that is the only reason you would object to X."

 

[QI 541]

"Intellectuals" have been making up these kind of words whenever they're losing the argument for ages. Slippery slope, whataboutism, etc. The masses will eat it up though.

 

[Y2K Baby]

"Intellectuals" have been making up these kind of words whenever they're losing the argument for ages. Slippery slope, whataboutism, etc. The masses will eat it up though.

That's not a word, it's a phrase.

 

[CivilianOfTheFandomWars]

It ties into that other saying they love, "rules for thee, not for me."
They seem to think that they aren't doing exactly that. It's so they can seem like the underdogs fighting an authority, when in reality their just being dicks.

 

[BoingBoingBoi]

"bad faith" was a term used by sartre to basically mean "lying to yourself", but on a deep level having to do with your own conception of yourself, such as a gay man not admitting to himself that he is actually gay. you can read chapter two of being and nothingness to learn more if you want (i sure don't).

i think the way it's used on lefty twitter is just as an uncreative opposite to "good faith," where a "good faith" engagement with an argument points to a kind of sincerity and commitment to the importance of the issue being discussed. When the twatter above claims that tim pool is arguing in bad faith, they just mean that he's being flippant, or isn't really arguing, but just pretending to.

 

[Drunk and Pour]

Leftist will always accuse you of things that they do. Claiming the "ok" sign is a white supremacist sign is in itself a bad faith claim. I get that Tim Pool is trying to illustrate the left's hypocrisy. Unfortunately, the people who want the "ok" sign to mean "white power" aren't going to get Pool's point, and the people that know it's bullshit, knows it's also bullshit when AOC does it.

What's more unfortunate to me is that I used to like Cody Johnson's comedy back in the good old days of Cracked.com. Now it seems like he believes in "literal Nazis".

 

[spurger king]

"bad faith" was a term used by sartre to basically mean "lying to yourself", but on a deep level having to do with your own conception of yourself, such as a gay man not admitting to himself that he is actually gay. you can read chapter two of being and nothingness to learn more if you want (i sure don't).

Right. What they are actually talking about is "intellectual dishonesty", which is deliberately flawed logic in an argument (distinct from normal dishonesty which is just saying things that aren't true). Politics spergs of every stripe do this and it is not worth taking seriously. Tim Poole thinks that if he exposes the evils and hypocrisy of Big Tech and the venture-backed e-journalism mediasphere, they will stop being awful. He's wasting his time.

 

[I should be working]

"Acting in bad faith" is an armchair Philosipher's way of saying you are acting against your own beliefs or interests.
This term became very popular amongst the Youtube/Blogger Philosiphers a couple of years ago.
As a result the term started spreading into Media Review/Commentary channels as an easy "intelectual" way of desribing some character's actions. Usually a copout phrase to describe asshole behavior and actions that didn't make sense in the context of the show/movie.
Since most of these channels are run by Left Wing, middle class, hoity toity, hate the poor fuckwits, the term naturally started spreading into Left Wing, middle class, hoity toity, hate the poor fuckwit Twitter as a cop out "this person's just acting against himself" arguement (also known as the uncle Tom arguement). And from here it now seems to be devolving into the "I can't argue, let me vomit a common catch phrase at them" Arguement.