Before you read this article, please make sure you first read today’s earlier post on the Biscuit of the Week. How one neighbor feels about another is germane to our discussion below.
Great, thanks for doing that, it’s an important part of understanding what is going on here.
As you have probably seen by now, Gina Carano, an actress who starred in the Disney Plus series “The Mandalorian” has been fired from her job. She was fired because she made a social media post that I have seen described as “abhorrent,” “racist,” and “unacceptable.” She has made other “controversial” posts but apparently this one was the proverbial “straw that broke the camel’s back.”
The problem is the post is also 100% true and accurate. Her words, verbatim:
“Because history is edited, most people today don’t realize that to get to the point where Nazi soldiers could round up thousands of Jews, the government first made their own neighbors hate them simply for being Jews. How is that any different than hating someone for their political views?”
Let’s examine that statement in detail.
“History is edited.” I’m not sure exactly how that bolsters her argument, however, I think we can all agree that the quote attributed to Winston Churchill that “history is written by the victors” is a reasonable statement. Any number of videos on YouTube of people asking simple US History questions on the street or worse, on college campuses, tells us that there are in fact quite a few folks living here that are clueless in the category.
The part that the Nazi government waged a vicious hate campaign particularly against the Jewish people is undeniable. Do you suppose the biscuit of the week would “dig deeper” into matters if one day the cops showed up and arrested her kind snow plowing neighbors? Put her talent as a journalist into finding out what exactly is going on next door? I have my doubts, sorry not sorry.
Lastly she asks quite simply, is this any different than hating someone because of their political views.
I don’t see the statement as abhorrent. It certainly does not seem racist. It is only unacceptable if you don’t believe in asking legitimate questions… and there’s the rub.
Here is where we come to a critical difference in the two political leanings in this country. One side looks at that question and says “we should discuss this.” The other side says “she should be fired, her management should leave her before we cancel them and force their other clients to dump them, and we must work to make sure someone asking legitimate questions and stating facts that we don’t like should never have work again.”
If you’re not honestly scared by that mindset to at least some extent at this point I’d tell you that at the very least you are lying to yourself. Tell me that there isn’t one (or more) of your colleagues at work or a nearby neighbor, and of course the worst, a family member, that you won’t talk politics or share your views with?
Just had someone pop into your mind, didn’t you?
Have an opinion that does not fit with the Democratic Party’s ideology? Admit it – all of us with an even remotely conservative world view have hidden our leanings from someone for fear of reprisal. Doesn’t matter whether that reprisal is simply a spurning of another person’s friendship/acceptance or worse a thing necessary to maintain one’s gainful employment. It’s real, and we all know it.
Not long ago I was with a group of people who I was friendly with in a professional setting. We were sitting around a conference table making small talk while we were waiting on another person to join us. We kind of started talking about politics. Like a dance between two animals trying to ascertain the others intent we beat around the bush about Trump a bit. Finally, one of the ladies smiled, literally put her hand on mine and said “it’s okay, you’re amongst friends.” They all smiled and we dropped our defenses. A cogent adult conversation ensued.
I thought afterward just how crazy things have become that a situation like that happened. This was literally what we’ve come to. A group of educated, reasonable and friendly folks have to sniff around each other to make sure it’s okay to talk.
As I mentioned in the other article I struggled a lot with this one. Mostly because it saddens me. I also don’t have all the answers, and I don’t see how this will ever end. When a house is divided to the point where one side will literally take your life away from you for asking a legitimate question how can there ever be a return to civil discourse, bi-partisanship or compromise? Gina Carano had an opinion and a question and she paid for it with her job. Who’s next? They will never be satisfied with just one scalp, their next victim is only a 24 hour news cycle away.
I’d very much like to hear your thoughts in the comments below. Are you as worried as I am? I can only hope you feel free to share your opinion. I realize that not all of you as are as lucky as me who can speak my mind. At least for now.
I hear you. We need to stand together and really step up to make sure that cancelled can only mean cancelled by the left and that it brings good people together. Stop giving your money to those who will destroy you. Trump tried to teach us this lesson by telling Germany not to buy oil from Russia and by not giving money to N Korea or Iran to get them to do the right thing. Support good people.
Amen brother. Tough times and the money is a core part of the cancer.