The Left's Inability To Be Civil
Steve McCann
It
was inevitable that the American left, and its mouthpiece the
mainstream media, is now resorting to its usual mindless name calling,
as they cannot intimidate the NRA and the bulk of the American citizens
into meekly acquiescing to their so-called "gun violence" initiative.
The majority of the citizenry see this ploy for what it is: an attempt
at further incrementalism with the ultimate goal of eviscerating the
Second Amendment. Therefore, the references to the NRA and gun
advocates as racists as well as comparisons to Hitler and the Nazis are
coming fast and furious. It is as predictable as the sun rising in the
east.
This past week, Bob Sheiffer of CBS compared defeating the NRA to defeating the Nazis in World War II. Not to be outdone Martin Bashir of NBC said the NRA "...deserved to be compared to Hitler." Representative Hank Johnson (D-GA) claimed: "...they [NRA] cannot get over the fact that Obama is black." And the ever reasonable Charlie Rangel (D-NY)
in discussing gun control said: "..the Southern states have cultures
that we have to overcome." These are but a few of the many references
to either Hitler, the Nazis, racism or backwoods gun-totting hicks in
fly-over country since the debate spawned by Obama's determination to
impose more stringent gun control measures began.
The well-worn and dog-eared tactic -- used by the Progressive cabal to malign and intimidate their political opponents by the obligatory reference to anyone who opposes their agenda as Nazis, references to World War II and the mindless charge of racism as synonyms for political disagreements -- is beneath contempt and is indicative of the inability to present a coherent argument in support of their position.
The mindless references to the World War II period are an insult to and denigration of the memory of nearly 70 million people who died in the War and the countless millions who suffered and were displaced. None of you, on the left, who so glibly throw around these terms have the slightest idea of the experiences of those who were there.
Your frame of reference is perhaps a faded and grainy yet impersonal black and white film of ashen faces staring into the camera, or of emaciated children begging for food, or of lifeless bodies strewn across a field. To others, it is sitting in a movie theatre for two hours, watching a Hollywood portrayal of the War. In either case, these images are quickly forgotten as you go about your daily lives. But to those of us who lived it do not have that luxury. Our experiences haunt us every hour, day, and night.
There are no political disagreements, groups or movements in the United States that can be remotely compared to those days of death and destruction when, for the people in the center of the maelstrom, there was not the option of thinking of tomorrow; instead it was how to live through the day. To those on both sides of the political spectrum, in particular the left, and on behalf of all of us, living and dead, who experienced the years of hell -- the time has come to stop using references to the War in order to demonize your political opponents. You only succeed in diminishing yourselves as the worst of scoundrels.
Since Barack Obama was inaugurated in January of 2009, the use of the race card has reached epidemic proportions. Anyone who disagrees with his policies is branded a racist --a term filled with negative and ominous connotations. Its use is solely intended to demonize and intimidate the political opposition and is succeeding only in creating the most polarized society since the 1960's.
Forty-eight years ago, while on a voter registration drive, I went up to a ramshackle house near a small town in southern Maryland. There on the porch quietly rocking in her well-worn chair was the bent figure of an elderly black woman. We sat on the porch, with its peeling paint and rotting boards, for two hours or more, the 92 year old daughter of slaves and a displaced war orphan from across the ocean, bound together by past life experiences but optimistic about the future. When the time came to leave she gently took my hand and held it in her gnarled fingers long ago deformed by the ravages of arthritis and said: "The times are a'changin, I hope my people will listen to God's word to forgive and lead a good and honest life. May God bless you always."
As I never saw her again, I hope Acadie was able to live long enough to witness the historic transformation of American attitudes toward intolerance and discrimination that occurred over the past fifty years. But it was her determination and that of so many before and after her that made the prospect of a black man being elected president achievable, as well as a society that has eradicated nearly all the vestiges of its racist past. Thinking of those last words she said to me, I wonder what she would think of those in the black community and in the liberal establishment deliberately fomenting racial animosity by the indiscriminate use of the racist charge, solely for the purpose of political gain and the defeat of their political adversaries. Having had the privilege, over many years, to meet her and so many like her here in the United States, I think I know.
The lifeblood of a Democracy is civil discourse. It is painfully obvious that the left, the mainstream media, and the Democratic Party have no interest in any other point of view or even the future of the country. They have instead descended into the depths of disgusting name-calling and outright lies and obfuscation. They should be ashamed of themselves, assuming they are capable of shame or getting beyond childish playground taunts.
The well-worn and dog-eared tactic -- used by the Progressive cabal to malign and intimidate their political opponents by the obligatory reference to anyone who opposes their agenda as Nazis, references to World War II and the mindless charge of racism as synonyms for political disagreements -- is beneath contempt and is indicative of the inability to present a coherent argument in support of their position.
The mindless references to the World War II period are an insult to and denigration of the memory of nearly 70 million people who died in the War and the countless millions who suffered and were displaced. None of you, on the left, who so glibly throw around these terms have the slightest idea of the experiences of those who were there.
Your frame of reference is perhaps a faded and grainy yet impersonal black and white film of ashen faces staring into the camera, or of emaciated children begging for food, or of lifeless bodies strewn across a field. To others, it is sitting in a movie theatre for two hours, watching a Hollywood portrayal of the War. In either case, these images are quickly forgotten as you go about your daily lives. But to those of us who lived it do not have that luxury. Our experiences haunt us every hour, day, and night.
There are no political disagreements, groups or movements in the United States that can be remotely compared to those days of death and destruction when, for the people in the center of the maelstrom, there was not the option of thinking of tomorrow; instead it was how to live through the day. To those on both sides of the political spectrum, in particular the left, and on behalf of all of us, living and dead, who experienced the years of hell -- the time has come to stop using references to the War in order to demonize your political opponents. You only succeed in diminishing yourselves as the worst of scoundrels.
Since Barack Obama was inaugurated in January of 2009, the use of the race card has reached epidemic proportions. Anyone who disagrees with his policies is branded a racist --a term filled with negative and ominous connotations. Its use is solely intended to demonize and intimidate the political opposition and is succeeding only in creating the most polarized society since the 1960's.
Forty-eight years ago, while on a voter registration drive, I went up to a ramshackle house near a small town in southern Maryland. There on the porch quietly rocking in her well-worn chair was the bent figure of an elderly black woman. We sat on the porch, with its peeling paint and rotting boards, for two hours or more, the 92 year old daughter of slaves and a displaced war orphan from across the ocean, bound together by past life experiences but optimistic about the future. When the time came to leave she gently took my hand and held it in her gnarled fingers long ago deformed by the ravages of arthritis and said: "The times are a'changin, I hope my people will listen to God's word to forgive and lead a good and honest life. May God bless you always."
As I never saw her again, I hope Acadie was able to live long enough to witness the historic transformation of American attitudes toward intolerance and discrimination that occurred over the past fifty years. But it was her determination and that of so many before and after her that made the prospect of a black man being elected president achievable, as well as a society that has eradicated nearly all the vestiges of its racist past. Thinking of those last words she said to me, I wonder what she would think of those in the black community and in the liberal establishment deliberately fomenting racial animosity by the indiscriminate use of the racist charge, solely for the purpose of political gain and the defeat of their political adversaries. Having had the privilege, over many years, to meet her and so many like her here in the United States, I think I know.
The lifeblood of a Democracy is civil discourse. It is painfully obvious that the left, the mainstream media, and the Democratic Party have no interest in any other point of view or even the future of the country. They have instead descended into the depths of disgusting name-calling and outright lies and obfuscation. They should be ashamed of themselves, assuming they are capable of shame or getting beyond childish playground taunts.
No comments:
Post a Comment