The Phony Outrage Community And The PC Police Are Killing Free Speech

We have come to a point in our culture in which a person can say an innocent, relatively innocuous statement and suddenly be descended upon by the perpetually outraged PC Police.

By the time the self-appointed arbiters of what-is-allowed and what-is-not-allowed are done with their campaign of demonization against the hapless speaker of the politically incorrect word/phrase the very fact that the person actually exists has been brought into question.

What happened to freedom of speech?

It is on the endangered list.

What happened to a robust exchange of ideas?

It is frowned upon.

Jerry Seinfeld recently spoke about the “creepy” PC culture that now prevails on American college campuses. This is why he will no longer perform at colleges. Sadly, many of these institutions which—at one time—existed to promote a wide and freewheeling exchange of ideas have become the places that are least open to differing thoughts and opinions.

If things keep heading in this direction, soon legitimate discussion of certain subjects will no longer be allowed. There will be the culturally approved position on topics and all other positions will be banned. (And you will be obedient if you know what’s good for you…you punks!)

It’s too bad. I remember a particular class back when I was in my senior year of high school (approximately 145 years ago) in which we debated the current issues of the day. (Some of the issues are still hot button topics today, believe it or not.)

There were strong differences of opinion expressed. We argued. We even yelled occasionally. But we also laughed a lot and teased each other mercilessly. No one ever whined and complained with great indignation about being offended. It was fun. As a matter of fact, I recall it being one of my favorite high school classes. And then we walked out of the classroom and we were still friends. Crazy, huh?

What bothers me the most about the “I’m-offended-by-everything” crowd is that they are trying to pull all the rest of us into their dull, uptight misery.

I like to kid around, joke and tease in a fun way. I think it’s healthy for people to play around in this manner. Life can be very serious and it is important have some laughter, lightness and mirth. When I was young, a little teasing was even a way of being affectionate with friends. But I find now I do a lot of this joking around only in my own head and never out loud. When technology becomes sophisticated enough to actually read my thoughts and it is discovered I am teasing people in my mind, I’m really going to be in big trouble. (Maybe I’ll be old enough to blame it on senility when this technology is prevalent.)

[ Imagining some point in the future.]  “Are you kidding?!? You can’t take anything we read in Dan’s mind seriously! For crying out loud, look at the old codger, he’s drooling again!!!”

I have expressed a lot of foolish and cringe-worthy thoughts in my life. I’ve been wrong, misinformed, ill-advised, exhibited poor judgment and have drawn the wrong conclusions on many occasions. The truth is, we have all done this. Right? We’re human.

But if we have a culture that allows regular people to have freedom—including freedom of thought and speech—then us regular people are bound to get it wrong sometimes. I would prefer we put up with regular people saying dumb things than living in a culture in which the PC Police and the Phony-Outrage-Community control everything that is said.

“We must picture hell as a state where everyone is perpetually concerned about his own dignity and advancement, where everyone has a grievance, and where everyone lives with the deadly serious passions of envy, self-importance, and resentment.”

C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters

*NOTE:  By the way, I wrote this thought yesterday and have started to post it several times and then stopped. Ironically, I’ve been hesitant to post a thought about not being able to share certain thoughts because I didn’t want someone to read it and then be hurt, or bothered, or offended. But I’ve determined it is important to express thoughts—particularly thoughts that make a case for protecting our freedom to express thoughts.

*FINAL NOTE: If this post truly irks you and you are deeply offended by it, keep in mind that sometimes computers get compromised and something gets posted on a person’s account by nefarious, politically incorrect hackers. (It’s theoretically possible, right?)

Will Standing Up For God's Truth Be Costly?

About five or six years ago a minister told me he thought he would probably go to prison one day because the teachings of the Bible would become so politically incorrect that they would actually be illegal. I remember thinking, “Wow, I hope this fellow’s concern is a crazy, extreme exaggeration.” But the guy did not seem like a kook. I did not know him well but he was smart, educated and eloquent. He seemed like a reasonable, credible, sane person.

Last week I was at an event and during a conversation with a pastor who is a friend of mine he told me, “I think there’s a possibility I will go to prison before I retire from ministry.” He basically invoked the same reasons the other minister mentioned. This man is in his early 60s.

I thought, “Hmm that’s two guys, now, who have shared this concern with me.”

Yesterday I was talking with yet another pastor who is a good friend and I mentioned these previous conversations. My friend said, “Yeah, I think that’s a possibility.”

That sound you just heard was me gulping.

I went into pastoral ministry in my mid-thirties. Entering the ministry as a vocation involved a significant change for my family and myself. So I had to think and pray about the matter a lot. It took me a couple of years to come to a sense of certainty that the call to ministry was, in fact, a genuine calling from God.

When I was thinking, praying and talking with people I trusted about this matter—I hate to admit it—but the idea of having to stand up for God facing truly difficult circumstances like, say, the possibility of prison never really entered my mind in any significant way. (The worst case scenario I imagined was putting several people asleep in the same service.)

I don’t know if these men are way off base—and if their concerns are just plain silly—or if what they are saying has some likelihood of happening. But what they have said makes me think about myself and my commitment to Christ.

To be very frank, I have never seen myself as a courageous warrior for the faith. This is not false modesty it’s just an honest, somewhat embarrassing, admission. But when my friend and I finished our meeting yesterday we prayed—as we normally do—and I prayed that he and I would always be willing to lovingly, graciously speak God’s truth no matter what the cost.

I realize this is a somewhat personal post. I am sharing it with you because I find the comments of my colleagues to be interesting and I thought you might find them interesting, as well. Also, I am sharing this because I want to be on record saying, “It is my desire to stand for God’s truth with love, gentleness, respect and grace and to trust in God as my protector.” I pray the Holy Spirit will empower me to do this.

P.S. I came across this quote from the respected Christian writer and thinker, A.W. Tozer, several years ago. I know I’ve shared it before but I continue to share it because it is very meaningful to me...

“Whoever defends himself will have himself for his defense, and he will have no other. But let him come defenseless before the Lord and he will have for his defender no less than God himself.” A..W. Tozer

Something Jesus Said

Jesus said this one time, “I am the way and the truth and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6. That comment was politically incorrect back when He said it and it’s still politically incorrect today. (But I suspect you’re not too intimidated by political correctness when you’re God, huh?) This comment by Jesus is either true or it’s false. I believe that it’s true.

Stand With The Bible Or Go With The Culture?

For 2000 years the Bible has been acknowledged and accepted as the trustworthy and authoritative source of teaching about God and morality by Christians all over the world. Now, we find that the Bible is saying things that are politically incorrect in American culture. Question: Should I go with the flow of the culture or should I stand with the unpopular positions of the Bible?