The Patriot Corner

At the risk of offending you, let me say that trying to be politically correct is arguably the most insidious, pernicious disease to ever infect the United States. Honest, open communication has become an anachronism. Peter Hitchens says: “What Americans describe with the casual phrase ‘political correctness’ is the most intolerant system of thought to dominate the British Isles since the Reformation." Good people are scared to tell the truth about something for fear of being labeled as racist or hatemongers. In our efforts to become "politically correct," we have allowed our language to be neutered in many respects and our perceived lack of civility towards each other has markedly increased. Somehow, this has evolved into an all-out attack on the protections we are guaranteed under the First Amendment. Our First Amendment right to free speech is the single most important right we as Americans have. Yet many seem willing to give away this right, just to satisfy the strident cries of a few easily-offended people.

So where did this idea of political correctness come from? There is some evidence of the term being used in the eighteenth century to describe something as being in line with prevailing political thought or theory. This is far different from its current usage, which has its roots in the teachings of Karl Marx and is thought to be one of the first steps in converting a society to Marxism by using linguistic change to create cultural change. Historical evidence shows that this concept was promoted by Marxian theorists such as George Lukacs and Herbert Marcuse in the early twentieth century. The adoption of supposedly neutral terms was being widely used by both liberal and conservative politicians in an effort to promote their beliefs while controlling the argument by changing the language of the debate. This has now resulted in an almost total paralysis of our entire political and legislative processes at all levels.  

What do we do? We must regain control of our language. We must not be afraid to use a term just because someone may be offended. Using a different term in place of a supposedly politically incorrect term does nothing more than eventually make the new term equally as pejorative. The English language is dynamic and vast. Why should we restrict ourselves?
   
I would also like to take this opportunity to thank the publisher of this newspaper for allowing the citizens of Parma to have a place to express themselves in their own words. That is certainly supportive of the free speech rights that most of us cherish.

One last thing I want to address before I step off the soapbox: that is your right and duty as an American citizen to vote. This is the single most effective way for your voice to be heard by our elected officials. November 8 is Election Day. No matter how you vote or what candidates or issues you support, VOTE.