I think it's just fundamentally wrong to abuse human beings, whoever they are, whatever they've done, for things that they can't control. Full stop. No exceptions.

But more than that - if for example you abuse Lindsay Graham by calling him 'gay' - 'punching up' in your mind - then that does that say about what you think about other gay people that you think it's a criticism to call him gay?

plenty of legit things to say about lindsay graham without bringing any of that up indeed.

When you insult someone powerful and evil for some immutable characteristic, everyone else who shares that characteristic also feels it.

> But I'm not convinced punching upward in this manner to the obscenely rich and powerful should be considered universally wrong.

What if you used racial slurs, but exclusively on brown multimillionaires?

Putin is evil for reasons completely unrelated to his height.