When did Americans lose their spines? When did the country I went to battle for stop being the Land of the Free and the Home of the Brave, and turn into the Land of Snowflakes and the Home of the Offended?

To be blunt, I don’t even care about who’s offended, who needs a “safe space,” or who gets “triggered.” People offend me all the time but, somehow, I’ve managed to move through life, earn a living, and be thankful to God for each day on this side of the grass without ever needing an emotional support squirrel, or monkey, or alpaca…or whatever.

But, here’s the problem. People getting “offended” today aren’t like me. They are more like five-year-olds – going on two years old. Instead of abiding by “Live and Let Live,” today’s culture is all about punishing anyone who believes differently than they do.

And, that “punishment” plays out in many forms. It includes shaming people, criticizing people, hating people – and striving to get even more people to shame, criticize, and hate those with differing points of view.

And, lately, things have gotten worse. The ranks of “the offended” have come to believe that they have the privilege to tell everyone else what they are allowed say and think, or they attempt to silence them. “Silence” takes the form of ruining lives, and destroying businesses and people’s careers.

There is a definition for this type of mindset. Let’s cut through the B.S. and define what “Cancel Culture” truly is: Fascism

Let’s define “Fascism” with Webster’s dictionary:
Fascism – n. a tendency toward or actual exercise of strong autocratic or dictatorial control

Fascism sounds like this: “You do not have any right to believe differently than I do.”

A couple of years ago, I wrote my book, Blue Lives Matter: The Heart Behind the Badge. To help promote the book, I started a blog, called “Our Blue Lives.” To promote the blog and the book, I used my Facebook account to post articles, my thoughts associated with police, and what was going on with the insane “Defund the Police” movement in 2020.  (Even CNN posted an article  admitting that was a catastrophic mistake.)

One day, I posted a news story about prosecutors announcing how they were going to stop pushing for pre-trial bail, and start being soft on their prosecution of criminals. My comment on the story: “Get ready, America. Crime is about to skyrocket!”

The next day … POOF! My Facebook account was gone. “Violating community standards” was the excuse on the screen. And, no matter what I clicked on, there was nowhere to appeal the action. An account I had built for 12 years – all the photos, all the conversations, all the contacts – was simply gone. Of course, nobody at Facebook bothered to read my book. Nobody at Facebook learned that, as a cop, I had once stood up against the bureaucracy, and defended a black man who’d been wrongfully arrested.

And now, two years later, where are we? Crime spikes in ALL categories – especially in our large cities – the ones that defunded their police departments. Murder, robbery, carjacking, rape, killing of cops – all are sharply on the rise today. Even the FBI has reported that murders spiked 30% in 2020 as the police departments were being defunded. So, I was right. But, Facebook doesn’t care. That account is still nothing but a memory.

Over the last year, this ugly specter of fascistic judgement has oozed its way into some of WritersWeekly’s readership.

Now, keep in mind that WritersWeekly is a FREE publication. No one spends one penny to read WritersWeekly. Additionally, WritersWeekly was started by a woman who had escaped a very bad marriage to an alcoholic, and was struggling to raise three kids as a single mother. Additionally, she has been the victim of unwanted sexual advances, and far worse. I never hear Angela whine about  any of that. She is a strong woman who refused to allow herself to be further victimized by her past. Perpetual victims could learn a lot from her.

Lately, we’ve seen more and more emails from people who feel it necessary to pour their derision and demands upon us for – of all things – the News Articles we share through our “In The News” column! And, the majority of the time, these snowflakes write us whining about the sources we use, as opposed to any relevant facts surrounding the stories.

I’m floored at the idea that there are actually adults out there (I’m throwing “adult” around loosely here) that don’t get the concept of living in a free country where they are not forced to expose themselves to anything they don’t like to see or hear. You’d think they would just skip the parts of WritersWeekly they don’t like. But Noooooooo!

No, they cannot look up the same story on another news outlet. No, they cannot click on the next story in the column. No, they cannot click onto another section of WritersWeekly, and skip the news altogether. No, they cannot click the Home button on their browser, and go find another website! And, God forbid they actually ponder a news story from a point of view different from their own. That would require critical thinking!

I didn’t get my first computer until 1998. I still remember when “researching” meant hours in a library pouring over printed reference material, searching multiple periodicals and newspapers, and collecting a multitude of viewpoints and opinions. Then, you would attempt to squeeze out the actual truth by comparing all of that information to find commonalities and factual trends.

Today, everybody has access to more information than any library could possibly hold – at their fingertips! And, what have we, as a society and a species, done? Many have completely stopped thinking, stopped asking questions, and stopped weighing “news” against their own experiences. And, many have chosen to let their favorite “news” personality, or worse – the government – tell them what to think.

So, I’ve decided to share some snowflake emails with you, our readers, in the same spirit as we share our “World’s Worst Query Letters.” I’ll also share my thoughts concerning these emails … heavily edited so you don’t have to endure all the expletives I use to describe these people to Angela.

Dear WW,

Did you really post this link under “Journalism?: It’s garbage. If you actually believe what this site has to say, then you are forever discredited in my view. I would never do business with someone who believes the ****** was anything less than terrorism supported by *******. Didn’t you see the videos?

Firstly, you’ve never “done business” with us. We checked. You’ve never paid us one dime for anything. Secondly, yes, I’ve seen the videos you speak of. I’ve also seen videos of what people swear is Bigfoot. Am I supposed to believe those people too?

***

You’re guilty of spreading misinformation in your newsletter. You should not have posted this article.

Wow! We’ve been graced by an email from the “Knower of All Things.” Care to tell us the winning lottery numbers for tomorrow while you’re at it? But, please, leave out the government/media buzz words.

***

I can’t believe you’re posting articles from ****! Are you really serious?
&$@* YOU!! You people are NAZIS! I’ll never read your ****ing rag again!

Glad we could lighten up your day – free of charge. Kiss your mother with that mouth much?

***

I’m calling you out on the article you posted from ****. It’s full of every ****-wing conspiracy theory and propaganda I would expect from ****. You have no right to peddle this crap.

On the contrary, we have every right to peddle whatever we wish on a website we own. It’s called the First Amendment. Ever hear of it?

***

Now, this one is bizarre.

A school in Toronto cancelled a talk to be given by a female author who wrote of her experience of being kidnapped by ISIS, held captive, and repeatedly raped. It cancelled her speech because it might contribute to “Islamaphobia.” Once the media got wind of it, and started asking questions – VOILA!! – the speaking gig was back on!

So Kooky Karen writes:

Are you actually linking the headliner for this newsletter to a news story from ****? They NEVER tell the truth. You need to cite some reliable sources if you’re going to do stories on politics or other relevant news. What a joke!

My response:

This is a story about the RE-abuse of a rape victim (who is also an AUTHOR) – not politics. It’s disappointing that you would lash out at us for supporting her, and helping bring awareness to her story. Below are four alternative links reporting the exact same story from MSN, The Gazette.com, The UK DailyMail, and The New York Post.

Karen’s Response. (Yeah, she was so “triggered” she had to take another swipe at me.)

Are you kidding? None of those outlets are any better than ****. You don’t care about the victim. You just want to spread your FAKE NEWS!

Well, thanks, Karen, for taking the time to sit with me, and getting to know something about me before passing your judgement. Good luck in finding your “reliable source.” Is PRAVDA still operating?

***

Another response from the same story:

Angela, despite ****’s garish title, their article later says: “In a statement to **** News on Sunday, the Toronto District School Board said the event is not yet canceled and Murad’s book is being reviewed.” So how can you say it was cancelled?

Yeah…because people NEVER backpedal and lie when they are about to be exposed by the media! It was cancelled, and only “un-cancelled” when the media got wind of what was happening.

***

I can’t believe you are citing articles by ****  on your website. You have lost all credibility with me. Unsubscribe me NOW.

Funny, you never published a book with us, nor bought a book from us when we DID have credibility with you, so… And there is an “UNSUBSCRIBE” button right there on the front page of the newsletter. You could have clicked that all by your little self without the tantrum, cupcake.

***

Hello, Angela:

I have always appreciated your articles on writing and publishing. However, I am horrified to see links to articles by ****. If you insist on promoting this publication, then please unsubscribe me from your publication.
Thank you.

See Ya!!

***

The bottom line is that we are living in dangerous times when people 1) refuse to allow others to have differing viewpoints and opinions, 2) refuse to even consider a news story simply because of who published the story, and 3) refuse to do their own research, and form their own opinions.

When we get emails like these that contain words like “misinformation”, “conspiracy theory,” or “****-wing,” we know we are dealing with a sock-puppet who is simply regurgitating what they’ve been spoon fed by their “reliable” news sources, and have not done a whole lot of thinking for themselves.

You don’t have to see things my way. I, and a whole lot of people like me, wore a uniform, and fought for your right not to see things the same way I do. Many of them never came back home. But, we’re going to lose this country if we don’t stand up to people who are hell-bent on silencing differing opinions, and establishing some kind of “official” truth.

Right now, we are in a dangerous time in America. There is a HUGE movement to tell people what they can and cannot say, what they can and cannot read, and what they can and cannot think. That alone should scare the hell out of anyone who writes with the intent of being published. Writing is all about freedom. As writers, we should all be fighting for that freedom;  not trying to silence one another.

Even worse, this Orwellian mindset has infected our schools. School boards are replacing basic educational fundamentals with a curriculum based on hatred for our country, rejection of moral standards, age-inappropriate sexual topics, and overt racism – all while blatantly telling parents that they have no right to a say in what their children are learning.

Here at WritersWeekly, we are dedicated to a diversity of thoughts and opinions, freedom to express those thoughts and opinions, and honest critical thinking. Angela and I are notorious for digging down, and researching news stories from multiple sources. We think critically by rejecting those who report news that is contrary to what we see going on right in front of our own eyes. And, we reject news media that tells us we must believe one narrative, and that we are dangerous if we do not believe their narrative.

What is dangerous is the number of Americans today allowing themselves to be spoon-fed their belief systems, while refusing to do their own research, or to ask themselves some tough, uncomfortable questions about what they are seeing and hearing versus what they are being told.

WritersWeekly will remain true to its core values. No one has to ride this train. But, if you get on, know that you are riding the American Values Express. We will not be politically correct. We will not bend to “wokeism.” And, we will not bow down to fascists.

RELATED

• I Need Your Help Understanding This Cancel Culture Thing (WARNING: Contains “offensive” material not suitable for minors)
• Another Reason Authors Must Own and Control Their Own Websites? CANCEL CULTURE!
• Keeping Certain Books Out of the Hands of Children is NOT Censorship! – by Angela Hoy
• I Believe Children Shouldn’t Be Exposed to Sexual Content and Now I’m a HOMOPHOBIC RACIST? HA HA HA!
• Have You Been Denied a Writing Gig Because of Your THOUGHTS on Sexual Orientation?

 

 

 

Brian Whiddon is the Managing Editor of WritersWeekly.com and the Operations Manager at BookLocker.com. An Army vet and former police officer, Brian is the author of Blue Lives Matter: The Heart behind the Badge. He's an avid sailor, having lived and worked aboard his 36-foot sailboat, the “Floggin’ Molly” for 9 years after finding her abandoned in a boat yard and re-building her himself. Now, in northern Georgia, when not working on WritersWeekly and BookLocker, he divides his off-time between hiking, hunting, and farming.

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