In the early Naughties, I was a... well, about an average fan, actually... of the Magical School created by That Person who turned out to be a TERF. Her position, as well as the rather shabby treatment she gave the one identifiable East Asian character in her books, as well as... well, her just turning out to be a generally shitty person, has cooled me on her world.
And in a way, that's a shame. Because back then, I could identify myself to those who Knew The Code. I could say, "yes, I am a member of the House of the Eagle," and they could say, "ah, okay; you think you're smart, and you're a bibliophile." and they'd be right. Now, though, there's so much shade involved with even mentioning That Person's name and admitting to having enjoyed her books, that it's easier to just bypass the whole issue.
In a similar vein, a friend of mine once admitted that in a way, he missed the cold war. During the cold war, he said, everything seemed so clear. It was Us vs. Them, and it was a struggle of Good vs. Evil; Right vs. Wrong. Viewing the Olympics, for instance, through that lens let him see it as symbolic trial by combat, and every time one of Ours triumphed, it was proof that we were the best! Every time one of theirs triumphed, well, they had to get lucky sometimes.
Now? The world is all shades of gray, we can't tell who our friends are, or if we actually even have friends, and the Olympics? Is just another sportsball competition which can safely be ignored.
