Barely a day passes without someone demanding a ban on something.
Once upon a time, it was left to tinpot dictators, ecclesiastical zealots, illiberal judges or scary inquisitors to proclaim a ban, to demand that some publication or custom or subversive phrase be outlawed. In the twenty-first century, however, calls for banning stuff have come down to Earth: now, literally anyone with access to the internet can demand a ban, and many do.
May the gods preserve and defend me from self-righteous altruists; I can defend myself from my enemies and my friends.
The penchant for trivial “banning” as noted in the article is symptomatic of a culture where meaning and value have become confused and vapid. The immediacy of outrage expressed in banning crusades and assorted hysteria offer a temporary relief from the persistent ennui that we avoid and typically are unable to accept. Instead, we project our inner vacuity and corruption onto others in our seemingly endless grievances. Our ongoing, bizarre political circuses, both left and right, are illustrative.