Anthropologists sometimes say that revenge serves a social purpose, such as loss of status within the group, but maybe revenge isn’t the right word, since there’s a difference between revenge and justice. There’s no way to guarantee that someone will change, since their reaction to the punishment is at least as important as the punishment itself. Being cancelled might make someone even more popular with the anti-PC crowd. Sometimes all you can do is separate someone from the group. “Cancel Culture” usually means cancelling someone for an unpopular point of view on campuses rather than criminal behavior. Cloak-knit communities with open communication are a check on bad behavior.
"Close-knit communities with open communication are a check on bad behavior."
Especially this. And each strong institution can act as a close-knit community. Each university, each church, when it has reasonably good leadership and reasonably solid finances, can play this role.
Anthropologists sometimes say that revenge serves a social purpose, such as loss of status within the group, but maybe revenge isn’t the right word, since there’s a difference between revenge and justice. There’s no way to guarantee that someone will change, since their reaction to the punishment is at least as important as the punishment itself. Being cancelled might make someone even more popular with the anti-PC crowd. Sometimes all you can do is separate someone from the group. “Cancel Culture” usually means cancelling someone for an unpopular point of view on campuses rather than criminal behavior. Cloak-knit communities with open communication are a check on bad behavior.
"Close-knit communities with open communication are a check on bad behavior."
Especially this. And each strong institution can act as a close-knit community. Each university, each church, when it has reasonably good leadership and reasonably solid finances, can play this role.