Enough is Enough!

In the movie Network, who could forget the famous line uttered by the character Howard Beale – “I’m mad as hell and I’m not going to take it anymore!”  Well, this Beale is tired of those who look for something to be offended about … and I can’t take it anymore!

 

The world of ‘political correctness’ … started under the George H.W. Bush administration, and  placed on steroids by the Bill Clinton presidency … has become so out of control that harmless and previously inoffensive terms now offend.  What happened to the playground phrase I grew-up with – “Sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me?”  How did my generation survive before PC?  Have we become such ‘pansies’ that people can no longer freely express themselves for fear of being offensive?

 

Here’s some ‘tough love’ for the politically correct: If you cannot laugh at yourself and the world, then you’ve got deeper issues than someone calling you a name.

 

We can’t even express simple facts.  Take the case of Ms. Fluke.  People were not allowed to be upset and voice their opinion about her promiscuity.  Instead, we manufacture an emotional crisis; feelings are hurt; and lawsuits follow.  In the case of Fluke, why is her bad decision to have unprotected sex become our (taxpayer’s) fault?

 

Or ponder this: We have gone to the brink of crazy by allowing people who are in this country illegally to be offended that persons who refer to them as ‘illegal aliens’ … because the term has negative connotations.  News Flash: doing something illegal should have negative connotations!

 

Or consider the miniscule minority of people who are offended by Christian symbols and holidays, and freely vocalize their distaste; yet refuse to speak the truth about militant Islam. They’ll use inflammatory language about Christians, but quickly correct anyone’s use of the phrase “militant Islamist” … as it might offend the folks who hate us.

 

The most offended people today are Atheists.  While they claim there is no God and are anti-religious, they persist in their quest to force their own ‘non-belief’ religion on everyone.  They are quick to attack any Christian display as offensive.  They exhibit absolutely no tolerance for Christians … while somewhat abounding in tolerance for all other religious belief systems.  They want atheist chaplains in the military and atheist meeting areas for ‘church services’ … because not having any is unfair.  They complain about all Christian holidays, but no one complains about theirs on April 1st.  As Psalm 14:1 states – “The fool says in his heart, there is no God.”

 

Dr. Ben Carson’s speech at the National Prayer Breakfast clearly identified our problem when he said – “…it’s very difficult to speak to a large group of people these days and not offend someone … The PC police are out in force at all times … We’ve reached the point where people are afraid to actually talk about what they want to say because somebody might be offended … We’ve got to get over this sensitivity … It keeps people from saying what they really believe … What we need to do in this PC world is forget about unanimity of speech and unanimity of thought, and we need to concentrate on being respectful to those people with whom we disagree … PC is dangerous, because … one of the founding principles was freedom of thought and freedom of expression … [PC] it muffles people.  It puts a muzzle on them.  And at the same time, keeps people from discussing important issues while the fabric of this society is being changed.”

 

The real issues of our day must be addresses … without concern for being muzzled.  It’s time to deal with the important issues at hand.

 

Rev. Dr. Kenneth L. Beale, Jr.

Chaplain (Colonel-Ret), U.S. Army

Pastor, Ft. Snelling Memorial Chapel