Some of us actually do care, and we should actually care about this. Don't put people up on pedestals that don't deserve it.
I am not making excuses or forgiving anyone. I'm just trying to point out that using today's "acceptable" to judge the past will devalue everything that's ever been accomplished.
E.g., no doubt Salk had ideas about male/female roles in society that would be considered poorly today. That should be acknowledged as part of his time. Does that affect the success of the polio vaccine?
And? Why does that matter to you?
"I'm just trying to point out that using today's "acceptable" to judge the past will devalue everything that's ever been accomplished"
I disagree, even in the time of the Founding Fathers it was common knowledge that slavery was bad, they just didn't care. Is that not wrong?
And in this case, clearly Asimov knew that what he was doing was wrong. We can call out what these figures did as being wrong, while also acknowledging the work that they have done.