A lot of folks have so bought into the lie that those of us who worry about people being gratuitously fired for minor offenses just don't want anybody to be criticized that they see it as an amazing gotcha when we say that people should be criticized for terrible behavior.

As @jon_rauch explained, there is a big difference between somebody being criticized and somebody being canceled. https://www.persuasion.community/p/the-cancel-culture-checklist-c63

In the tweet that people are dunking on, I explicitly say we should *not* be canceling the cancellers.

But when people gratuitously accuse good-faith interlocutors of thought crimes, they *should* suffer reputational harm: we should all just roll our eyes. https://twitter.com/Yascha_Mounk/status/1356438623827226624

But if you think @JohnHMcWhorter being denounced as a white supremacist or @willwilkinson being fired over a dumb joke is a sign of cultural progress, no one will change your mind.

Some positions are so stupid, only smart and deeply ideological people can fervently hold onto it.

And by the way:

Yes, the term "cancel culture" is less than perfect, and some of the worst people in the country are exploiting it in deeply cynical ways.

Sadly, that doesn't mean that there is no problem with people being gratuitously canceled for pretend thought crimes.