Ryan Hall on cancel culture: Hitler ‘did some positive things as well’
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UFC featherweight Ryan Hall used a bizarre example when attempting to explain his disregard for cancel culture.
Ryan Hall is not a fan of cancel culture.
The UFC featherweight appeared on the Lex Fridman podcast to share his thoughts on social media and its role in nuanced debates and discussions between varying opinions. During the discussion, Hall made a bizarre reference to Adolf Hitler when explaining that cancel culture “doesn’t incentivize proper behaviour.”
“Let’s take one of the great monsters from history, Adolf Hitler, obviously who’s done awful, awful things, but also for anyone who’s even a minor student of history, did some positive things as well,” Hall said (h/t RT Sports) “I don’t have to embroider this person’s crimes, I don’t have to act as if there was nothing good a monster has ever done and nothing bad that a great person throughout history has ever done.
“But imagine if the ghost of Adolf Hitler were to pop up and go, ‘Oh my gosh, guys I’m so sorry, I know what I’ve done, but I would like to apologize and start to make it right’. You’d hope if he popped over here we would go, ‘I don’t really like what you’ve done and I don’t like you, but at the same time I’m glad to hear that you are attempting to make this right and push in a positive direction, even if you can’t make it right.’”
The UFC featherweight, who sports an 8-1 professional record, added that he believes the internet should be a place that incentivizes positivity rather than cementing “tribal” differences, even if that apparently means referencing a dictator who was responsible for the holocaust, which killed more than six million European Jews, as well as World War II.
“Because otherwise, what am I doing? I’m disincentivizing change for the better, I’m looking to wield whatever power I have in a punitive fashion, which does not encourage people to do anything other than double down on the wrongs that they’ve made, knowing that at least they are going to have some support from the people that support that.
“I want to encourage positive behavior, if I lash out at people… I’m going to perpetuate the cycle that’s gone on to this point.”