Beliefs and truths, or the eclipse of reason by right-wing "liberalism" in the administrative state

Comment published on New York Times blog in response to opinion essay by Susan Faludi, “‘Believe all women’ is a right-wing trap,” May 18, 2020:

American culture has some constitutive problems that partly concern matters of belief. These are related to our problems with liberty and authority (which are often opposed to each other absolutely, or made absolute as if the exercise of social power is just either always or never). Related to both of these problems is a broad eclipse of rational thinking, which precisely is what a democracy most depends on. One cause is the growth of the administrative state, in which authority rests on judgement and powers of enforcement more than on any legislative or judicial processes of reaching conclusions based, ideally, on arguments.

Progressive or "liberal" causes may appeal to a false egalitarianism via the administrative state, eager to enforce their agenda as broadly as possible, and change society and mores through the strategic use of legal proceedings. This leads to people of an activist bent pretending that the importance of some moral norm is alone what makes anyone guilty of violating it who is so accused.

"Feminists" may then argue from "feeling," experience, and a "common sense" that what they say is true must be. If you feel wronged, you are wronged--and the person you were interacting with has wronged you.

It is easy to see that this is utterly irrational. In a democracy, free speech means anyone can claim something to be true, but that doesn't make it so. Right-wing claims (like for authoritarianism and prisons) may have a liberal face.