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TONGUE TIED ARCHIVE
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October 08, 2005Free Speech for Leftists Only
Nobody is quicker to stifle freedom of speech than Leftists. Try saying "homosexuals are from the Devil" almost anywhere (but particularly on college and university premises) and you will be in big trouble. In Canada you can even go to jail for it. But, when conservatives object to obscenities directed at them by Leftists, freedom of speech is suddenly rediscovered. The press excerpt below tells you what actually happened. Read further in the article to hear about the Leftist protests:
"Southwest Airlines earlier this week booted a Washington woman off a flight in Reno after she refused to cover up a T-shirt some considered to be in poor taste. The cotton T in question played off the comedy film "Meet the Fockers," and featured black-and-white pictures of President Bush, Vice President Dick Cheney and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice alongside the movie's title - with a strategically misplaced vowel.... And in the Southwest case, it was fellow passengers who objected to the T-shirt. Beth Harbin, a spokeswoman for the airline, said Thursday that it was not a case of stifling criticism of the president. "It could've been a (T-shirt) of Michael Jackson - it doesn't matter," she said. It simply was, she said, that the language is not "appropriate for Southwest Airlines." ....While an airline can prohibit passengers from wearing certain types of clothing, only government incursions on free expression are considered a violation of the First Amendment, said Scheer, of the First Amendment coalition. Southwest calls it a "contract of carriage," and Page 10 of the document reads: "Carrier may refuse to transport" passengers whose "clothing is lewd, obscene or patently offensive." "
So apparently speech that offends Leftists on government-funded property (as most universities and colleges are, at least in part) is rightly suppressed in violation of the first amendment but speech which offends conservatives should NEVER be suppressed -- even when it occurs on private property and the property owners are perfectly within their rights to suppress it. Double standards anyone?
Racist Milk
When they are not condemning our speech, the busybodies of the Left are also busy condemning our food -- usually under the banner of preventing "obesity". The idea that your weight might be your own business cuts no ice with them. Nor does the fact that moderately overweight people on average live longer than slim people hold them up any. This time, however the problem seems to be that milk is both racist and not vegetarian enough. The busybodies have fastened onto the fact that milk can give you indigestion if you are not used to it -- though people of Northern European descent rarely get such indigestion. So it is "racist" not to demonize milk. And it's a perfect excuse to promote a "vegan" diet and vegetarian "alternative" foods too! Press excerpt follows:
"Milk isn't for everyone, according to a new lawsuit demanding that each and every carton sold in Washington carry a warning label for people who are unable to tolerate it. Filed yesterday in D.C. Superior Court by an organization that promotes vegetarian diets, the suit charges that Giant, Safeway and other milk retailers have failed to warn lactose-intolerant consumers of the risks of drinking milk. At a morning news conference, where the coffee was lightened with soy milk, the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine accused doctors and the dairy companies of failing to address the problem of lactose intolerance, particularly among people of African, Asian and Hispanic descent. Blacks, Asians and Hispanics are much more likely to have low levels of the enzyme needed to break down lactose, the predominant sugar in milk. As many as 75 percent of African Americans and 90 percent of Asian Americans are lactose intolerant, according to the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse.But two national experts say the gastrointestinal problems that can result are far less prevalent than the lawsuit claims and are hardly the basis for a warning label. "This is not a health hazard," said Richard J. Grand, a professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School who has studied lactose for about 30 years. "It's made out to be a health problem, but it isn't." People who have low levels of lactase -- the enzyme that breaks down lactose -- but want to consume milk products can adapt, Grand said. Introducing milk in modest, managed amounts over several weeks typically builds the capacity to break down lactose, he said"
So the latest campaign makes two lots of wackos happy at once: The food freaks and those who see racism under every bed.
The Incorrectness of Adam Smith
Scottish intellectual Adam Smith is universally acknowledged as one of the founding fathers of economics. His idea that free markets work like an "invisible hand" to ensure the supply of goods and services without any need for someone regulating them is constantly quoted to this day. So it is no wonder that Leftists who think that the government should control everything loathe Smith. As this news excerpt shows:"If anyone deserves permanent recognition for a lasting contribution to the improvement of humanity it is Adam Smith. But to a band of leftist students in Smith's hometown of Kirkcaldy (pronounced "kercoddy"), this is the last thing that should be done. Two merged colleges located in Kirkcaldy, Adam Smith's birthplace in eastern Scotland, were recently renamed after the town's most famous figure. But the new name, Adam Smith College, has not sat well with 30 radical students who refused to call their campus club the Adam Smith Students' Association. According to the Sunday edition of The Scotsman, as far as these student activists are concerned, "Adam Smith's name is linked to exploitation and greed" and with "socioeconomic policies that work against the people.""I suppose all-powerful governments such as those of the old Soviet Union ensure the best interests of the people? Seeing that Russia itself has abandoned the Soviet system, you'd have to be a Leftist fruitcake to believe it. But mental maturity is not to be expected of student radicals, I guess.
Scary
A Halloween haunted house attraction in Birmingham, Ala. was forced to change its name after mental health advocates there complained that the name was insensitive to people with mental illnesses, reports the AP.
The Operators of "Slag's Insane Asylum" changed the name to "Slag's Un-ending Nightmare" and agreed to remove the image of a man in a straitjacket.
And you can't Mention Bullets, Either!
A lady (Hey! Am I allowed to use the word "lady" or should I do as the police do and refer to a "female person"?) who has been accepted into the "Teach For America" program (where graduates of top colleges spend a few weeks learning how to teach and then get sent off to inner city schools) and is embarking on her first year teaching in New York City. She notes on her blog:
"Today in our weekly PD it was mentioned that the region doesn't want us to use the term "bullet points" anymore because it has a negative connotation".So what do we call bullets now? "Leaden messengers"?
(Hat Tip to Mike Pechar)
Now You Can't Mention Whites!
We all know that you can't use the "N word" and that the word "race" is getting pretty suspect too but it seems that mention of whites is becoming pretty bad too. Note the following news excerpt:
"When Myers first mentioned the phrase "white flight" eight years ago, she says she was dismissed as a racist..... At two recent board meetings, Tom has presented research that shows many San Jose schools are more segregated than ever before because of white flight, resulting in lower test scores and a wider achievement gap. But the trustees have merely shushed Tom when his two minutes were over. He says they're just afraid of talking about race. When questioned by Metro, longtime board member Rich Garcia carefully avoided mention of white flight-instead he gushed about the greatness of San Jose Unified and said parents mistakenly think their kids will get a better education at private schools".One of my readers thinks it is incorrect to use the term "white flight" too. He says that since whites have been chased out of their original homes by high levels of violence which nobody seems willing or able to stop, we should refer to "ethnic cleansing" of whites.
Boo-Hoo
AFP reports that the Subway sandwhich shop chain has apologized for an ad campaign poking fun at French cowardice after some Francophiles in America complained that it was disrespectful.
The ad featured a cordon bleu chicken sandwich with the words "France and chicken, somehow it just goes together." A photo of a chicken dressed like Napoleon accompanied the advertisement.
A spokesman for Subway said the campaign was meant to champion French cuisine. The ads were removed once company execs realized that people were offended, he said.
"Saying that the French are dirty or cowards is a little bit like saying the sky is blue. Nobody is going to contest it," Denis Chazelle, a long-time French resident of the Washington area, told AFP. "I think (French bashing) is worse now than it was two years ago because, although it's not as relentless as it was, it has become a lot more accepted and part of the landscape."
They Have a Spokesman?
Pagans in the UK forced a police department in Kent to change the name of an Halloween-era anti-crime effort because they said it was "grossly irresponsible" to link their religion's name to crime, according to the BBC.
"Operation Pagan" was to be launched later this month around Halloween and Guy Fawkes Night in Ashford. Police apologized and changed the name, however, when members of the 5,000-strong Pagan Federation complained.
"They wouldn't have called it Operation Christian, Operation Jew or Operation Muslim for obvious reasons, so why Operation Pagan?," said Pagan spokesman Brian Botham.
The Last Time the Germans Sang About a Motherland ...
The invaluable Brussels Journal says miscreants in both France and Austria are objecting to their respective countries' national anthems because they believe some of the lyrics to be racist and sexist.
In France, some teachers have refused to teach the Marseillaise because they say bits about calling citizens to arms and letting "impure blood water our furrows" are a bit over the top.
And in Austria, Health and Woman Minister Maria Rauch-Kallat is whining about that members of the fairer sex get short shrift in lyrics about a "home of great sons" and "brotherhood" and "fatherland." Where, she wonders, are the "great daughters" and "sisterhood" and "Motherland."
"Women's politics are also the politics of language and of shaping awareness. There is discrimination in the national anthem. When sons are mentioned, daughters should also be mentioned. The national anthem should be part of the identity of every Austrianess and every Austrian," Rauch-Kallat said.
Soviet Britain
In totalitarian countries it is normal for it to be a criminal offence to "insult" the "Leader" (or whatever he is called). That now seems to be true in Britain too. The British Prime Minister is deemed to need the same sort of enforced respect that a Fascist or Communist dictator requires -- as the news excerpt below shows:
"A girl was arrested for wearing her "Bollocks to Blair" T-shirt at the Midlands Game Fair last weekend. Charlotte Denis, 20, a gamekeeper from Gloucestershire, was stopped by police as she left the Countryside Alliance stand because of the "offensive" slogan. Shocked and dismayed to be made a public spectacle, Denis tried to reason with the officers: "What do you want me to do? Take my top off and wear my bra?" At this point, two officers marched Denis towards a police car. "They grabbed me as if I was a football hooligan," she says".Socialist Britain has obviously long ago given up on free speech. "Bollocks" is a very mild expletive and the girl was conveying in restrained country style the outrage many British country people feel about the recent ban on hunting. But political opposition in Britain obviously can now be conducted only within very strict limits -- which will no doubt gradually get more and more restrictive -- until Britain gradually morphs into a genteel type of totalitarian State.
Are You Now or Have You Ever Been a Homophobe?
A Washington University physics professor who expressed the opinion that homosexuality is sinful on a personal website is under fire from students who say such opinions shouln't be allowed on university servers, according to the St. Louis Post-Dispatch.
In one of several opinion pieces hosted on his faculty web page, professor Jonathan Katz writes that homophobia is a moral judgment on acts engaged in by choice. Like incest and bestiality, he says, homosexuality is condemned by the Bible as a sin. After stating that homophobic people don't encourage violence against gays but just choose to stay away from them, he concludes, "I am a homophobe, and proud."
The site features a disclaimer reading, "These represent my personal views alone. Washington University would never take an official position which might deviate from the 'politically correct' line. I don't know how they find out what the line is each day, but they sure keep up-to-date."
Gay students have said they may feel uncomfortable taking Katz's class now that they are aware of his opinions, but Katz says politics never enters his science class and that the situation is no different from Republican students who might be uncomfortable taking a class taught by a professor that they know to be a Democrat.
PETA to the Rescue
A couple of high school students in Washington State who swallowed goldfish to fulfill campaign promises are having their wrists slapped by administrators and PETA for mistreatment of animals on school property, reports the Tacoma News Tribune.
The two juniors pulled the stunt during a welcome back assembly at Todd Beamer High School. They had promised to eat live goldfish in front of the entire student body if one of them got elected a class officer.
PETA got wind of the stunt and sprang into action.
"We feel certain you'll agree that killing fish in the name of school spirit is unacceptable," the group wrote in a letter of complaint to school officials. "If the reports we received are accurate, this cruel spectacle has no place in Federal Way public schools. Given the proliferation of violence in the schools, it is imperative that we teach compassion for all living beings rather than publicly encouraging cruelty to animals."
Huh?
Officials at a South Florida library were forced to reschedule the showing of a bio-pic of Cuban revolutionary Che Guevara after exiles complained that it was "disrespectful" to show the film during Hispanic Heritage month, according to the Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel.
Officials at the Pembroke Pines library in Broward County wanted to show Robert Redford's "Motorcycle Diaries" this month, but rescheduled it for November following complaints from anti-Castro activists.
Pembroke Pines City Commissioner Angelo Castillo said a movie about the life of Che Guevara had no place in a Hispanic Heritage festival.
"If they put out a movie depicting the life of Adolf Hitler before he came to power in Germany, how well would that have gone over during Holocaust Survivors Week?" Castillo asked. "The guy was a terrorist who was responsible for the deaths of a lot of people."
'Body Blow'?
Muslims in the Seattle area are irate over an ad for the Osprey aircraft in the Armed Forces Journal that features the plane unloading a number of US troops near a mosque, according to KOMO-TV.
The ad -- a computer-generated composite image and not a genuine scene -- by Boeing and Bell Helicopters reads: 'It descends from the heavens" and goes on to read: "Ironically it unleashes hell."
Jeff Siddiqui with the American Muslims of Puget Sound was devastated, and called on Boeing to fire the agency that produced the ad.
"At first I was infuriated," he said. "Then I thought it's just one of those body-blows that Muslims and Arabs in this country keep receiving."
Boeing has apologized. "We consider the ad offensive, regret its publication and apologize to those who, like us, are dismayed with its contents... We immediately requested that our partner's agency withdraw and destroy all print proofs of the advertisement."
Even in Prison
The U.K.'s Press Association says a jail watchdog has declared the English national flag to be a potentially racist symbol and forbidden corrections officers from wearing tie pins with its image on them.
Officers at the Wakefield prison wearing pins with St. George's cross on them will no longer be allowed to do so after the chief inspector of prisons, Anne Owers, said she was concerned by the display.
"While we were told that these had been bought in support of a cancer charity there was clear scope for misinterpretation, and Prison Service Orders made clear that unauthorised badges and pins should not be worn," she wrote in a report on the prison.
More Mad Catholics
Sony has apologized and been forced to withdraw an ad for its Playstation game console that featured a young man wearing a crown of thorns with the slogan "Ten years of passion."
Reuters reports that some Catholics were described as outraged over the ads.
"This time they've gone too far," said Antonio Sciortino, editor of Famiglia Cristiana (Christian Family), a mass-circulation Catholic weekly.
A Niggardly Cartoon
There is a very good cartoon here about use of the word "niggardly". See here and here for examples of the uproar that use of the word "niggardly" has produced in the past. Despite appearances, "niggardly" has nothing whatever to do with the famous "N word".
The DNA of Race
There is no topic on which Americans are more tongue-tied than race. Even mentioning the word is almost taboo. About the only thing you can safely say on the subject is the monotonous Leftist chant that "race does not exist". Yet Americans not only notice racial differences but they respond very strongly to them -- as the "white flight" phenomenon shows.So in such circumstances it is perhaps encouraging that some geneticists (many of whom seem to be Asian) are resolute enough to continue their studies of the matter. And what they find is that the different races (which Leftists assure us are all "a social contruct") are genetically very distinct. You can predict from a person's DNA which "social" race he belongs to -- and you can predict it with a very high probability of getting the prediction right.
The Abstract (scientific summary) of the latest research report is here and you can find some interpretative commentary from an anthropologist here
Comments? Email John Ray
More on Male/female IQ
On August 27th. and 28th. I posted on this blog (See here) a few comments about differences in male and female intelligence. The posts were in reponse to a recent paper on the subject in the British Journal of Psychology by Profs. Irwing and Lynn.
I think I should therefore mention that there has recently come out a new book by Charles Murray, The Inequality Taboo, which also deals with the subject. You can access a big review and discussion of it here from last Saturday's edition of a major Australian newspaper.
I don't really see why it should be so incorrect to say that men are better at some mental tasks and women are better at others but saying so really seems to generate an uproar.
It's been known to psychometricians for around a century that women tend to have better verbal skills and men tend to have better mathematical skills but evidence does not seem to be what is at issue here.
Hallmark Blues
A mayor in Kansas is raising a stink about a Hallmark greeting card, according to the AP, saying it is offensive to people of his great state.
Topeka, Kan. mayor Bill Bunten officially complained about the card, which bears the title "CSI: Topeka" and features a cartoon of two people standing over a corpse, with one saying, "Looks like he was bored to death." Inside, it reads "Hope your birthday is anything but dull."
"I find it offensive," Bunten said. "It's probably drawn up by somebody from West Virginia who hasn't been here."
A Hallmark spokesman said the company didn't intend to offend anyone, and that they had hoped the people of Kansas would take the card in good humor.
What About 'Paddy Power?'
Catholics in Ireland are up in arms about an ad for a bookmaker that features Jesus and the Apostles gambling at the Last Supper, reports Reuters.
Bookmaker Paddy Power's billboards, on display in Dublin, play on Leonardo da Vinci's famous painting and show Jesus with a stack of poker chips, Judas with 30 pieces of silver and other apostles clutching hands of cards.
"There's a place for fun and games," says the caption.
"This is an insult to the religious sensitivities of a lot of people and should be withdrawn immediately," said Jesuit priest Micheal MacGreil. "To abuse this image, which is central to Christian beliefs, in a vulgar advertising campaign is totally and grossly inappropriate and Paddy Power should apologise to the people."
Even Pictures of Pigs are Incorrect
We all know that Jews and Muslims alike are not allowed to eat pigs or any part of them. The unfortunate porker is neither Kosher nor Halal. It sounds like swinish prejudice to me. What have pigs ever done wrong? (OK: I know all about Maimonides, trichinosis etc.)
And, being one of those pesky libertarians, I am perfectly happy for people to eat or not eat whatever they like. I myself even occasionally commit the ultimate sin of dining at McDonalds and any food freak worth his salt (sea-salt, of course) would envisage an early death for me over that. But is even seeing a picture of a big Mac an offence? Isn't it the EATING of it that is bad? Does a picture of a big Mac do me any harm? Maybe it does. Because all pictures of pigs now seem set to be banned. Excerpt from a British report:
"Novelty pig calendars and toys have been banned from a council office - in case they offend Muslim staff. Workers in the benefits department at Dudley Council, West Midlands, were told to remove or cover up all pig-related items, including toys, porcelain figures, calendars and even a tissue box featuring Winnie the Pooh and Piglet. Bosses acted after a Muslim complained about pig-shaped stress relievers delivered to the council in the run-up to the Islamic festival of Ramadan".Oink! Oink! is my comment on that. See if you can come up with a better one.
What exactly is a pig-shaped stress-reliever anyway? My mind is quietly boggling as I try to imagine it. Does it vibrate or what?
And if you want to see something that is REALLY piggishly offensive, click here (backup here)
Comments? Email John Ray
Can Something be Offensive if it Doesn't Actually Offend Anybody?
In PC Britain it can be, apparently. Note the following news excerpt about one of Britain's major art galleries: The Tate.
"Tate Britain "misunderstood" a piece of art it took out of a show to avoid religious offence, its creator said. The gallery cancelled plans to display John Latham's "God Is Great", concerned in particular that it could upset Muslims after London's 7 July bombings. Latham was angered by the decision and said that the work, made 10 years ago, was "not offensive to anybody". "It shows that all religious teaching comes from the same source, whatever name you give to it," he told BBC News. "God Is Great" consists of a large sheet of glass and copies of the Koran, the Bible and Judaism's Talmud that have been cut apart.Apparently the work concerned has been on display elsewhere for years and there have been no serious complaints. I myself don't like modern art so I might well complain about wasting public funds on it but nobody would take any notice of me. And apparently in this case, no actual Muslims were consulted before the work was removed and the Muslim Council of Britain has actually criticized the Tate's actions in removing the work.
I think self-congratulation on their "sensitivity" among the managers at the Tate was the real motive for the censorship. But you don't have to be censored. In line with my usual endeavours at defeating censorship, I have uploaded a copy of the "offending" artwork here in case the BBC take down their copy of it.
