By Dr. Ben Carson
Wednesday, March 19, 2014
When I was in high school in Detroit, there was a great
deal of emphasis on clothing. As I became increasingly interested in fitting in
with the "in crowd," fashion supplanted academic achievement in my
hierarchy of importance. My grades plummeted, and I became a person who was
less pleasant and more self-absorbed.
My mother was disappointed because she thought I had
enough insight and intelligence to avoid the flypaper trap of acting like
everyone else.
Fortunately, after wasting a year pursuing acceptance, I
realized that my dreams went far beyond silk shirts and sharkskin pants. I
decided to forsake the "in crowd" and redoubled my academic efforts
in time to rescue my sinking grade-point average and gain admission to an Ivy
League university.
To say that the "in crowd" was disgruntled when
I abandoned their association would be a gross understatement. It eventually
became clear to them that I would not rejoin their ranks under any
circumstances, and they left me alone.
Despite the insults hurled at me, at the time of
graduation, my classmates voted me "most likely to succeed." This
indicated that they knew the prerequisites for success but were unwilling to
fulfill them, and they wanted others to remain shackled to their underachieving
lifestyle.
Political correctness (PC) operates in much the same
fashion. It is in place to ensure conformity to the prescribed expressions and
lifestyles dictated by the elites.
There are rewards of acceptance and praise for members of
the "in crowd" as they attempt to silence or destroy any who dare
think for themselves or express opposing views. Similarly, the purveyors of PC
seize upon a word or phrase, which they emphasize in an attempt to divert
attention away from the actual issue that doesn't fit their narrative.
I have stated in the past that Obamacare is the worst
thing to occur in our country since slavery. Why did I make such a strong
statement? Obviously, I recognize the horrors of slavery. My roots have been
traced back to Africa, and I am aware of some horrendous deeds inflicted on my
ancestors in this country.
The purpose of the statement was not to minimize the most
evil institution in American history, but rather to draw attention to a
profound shift of power from the people to the government.
I think this shift is beginning to wrench the nation from
one centered on the rights of individual citizens to one that accepts the right
of the government to control even the most essential parts of our lives. This
strikes a serious blow to the concept of freedom that gave birth to this
nation.
Some well-known radicals have publicly written and stated
that in order for their idea of a utopian, egalitarian society to emerge in the
United States, the government must control health care, which ensures the
dependency of the populace on government. Historical analysis of many countries
that have gone this route demonstrates the obliteration of the middle class and
a massive expansion of the poor, dependent class with a relatively small number
of elites in control.
This is sobering information, and those who want to
fundamentally change America would much rather demonize someone who is exposing
this agenda than engage in a conversation that they cannot win. Others join in
the fray, happily marching in lockstep with those who are attempting to convert
our nation to something we won't recognize, having no idea that they are being
used.
Vladimir Lenin is sometimes credited with coining the
phrase "useful idiots" to describe such individuals.
It is time in America for the people to open their eyes
to what is happening all around them as our nation undergoes radical changes
without so much as a conversation out of fear of being called a name, of facing
economically adverse actions or of enduring government harassment,
characterized by the perpetrators as "phony scandals."
Political correctness is antithetical to our founding
principles of freedom of speech and freedom of expression. Its most powerful
tool is intimidation.
If it is not vigorously opposed, its proponents win by
default, because the victims adopt a "go along to get along"
attitude. Major allies in the imposition of PC are members of the media, some
of whom thrive on controversy while others are true ideologues.
The true believers would be amusing if it were not so sad
to behold them dissecting, distorting and repeating words in an attempt to
divert attention from the rise of government control.
The American people must learn to identify and ignore
political correctness if we are to escape the bitter ideological grenades that
are destroying our unity and strength. Political correctness is impotent if we
the people are fearless. Let us emphasize intelligent discussion of issues and
leave the smear campaigns to those with no constructive ideas.
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