It is certainly no secret that President Barack Obama learned the art and style of politics in the most notorious place possible, Chicago. The man who would be King...I mean President, began his rise to fame in the home of a domestic terrorist, Bill Ayers. Even prior to that, as a boy growing up in Hawaii, Writer, Poet, and known Communist sympathizer Frank Marshall Davis was a heavy influence on young Barack. Some of the Obamas Windy City neighbors include Nation of Islam Leader Louis Farrakhan, and let's not forget every one's favorite man of the cloth, Reverend Jeremiah Wright. Barack Obama sat for some 20 years in Trinity United Church of Christ, but never once heard Wright preach about social justice, and the teachings of James Cone, one of the early pioneers of Black Liberation Theology.
Friends and enemies are a big theme in the Obama Whitehouse. During the 2010 election cycle, in a radio interview, President Obama talked about Latino voters "punishing their enemies and rewarding friends" over the immigration debate. Perhaps the most famous of such quotes comes from Presidential Advisor extraordinaire Valerie Jarrett, who made no bones about standard operating procedure Obama style. "After we win this election, it is payback time. For those who supported us, there will be rewards, for the ones who opposed us; they will get what they deserve. There will be hell to pay...".
Enter Conservative Author and Film Maker Dinesh D'Souza. D'Souza was arraigned on federal charges on January 24 that he violated campaign finance laws by donating $20,000 to the campaign of a friend who ran unsuccessfully for Hillary Clinton's Senate seat in 2012. D'Souza's movie, "2016: Obama's America", became the second largest grossing documentary in history. The movie does not portray the president in a flattering light, touching on his sketchy relationship with his father, his father's political leanings, and how they influenced the younger Obama.
Coming on the heels of Dinesh D'Souza's troubles, a group known as "Friends of Abe", a group of Hollywood Conservatives who are actors, writers, directors, producers, etc., is apparently being targeted by our old friends the IRS after filing for tax exempt status. The group fiercely protects the identities of its members, as they believe their political beliefs could hinder their chances for work in Tinsel town. The IRS is pushing Friends of Abe for lists of names of its members. So far, they are refusing to do so.
Let's let that idea sink in for just a moment. A group of people, Americans, fear that if their beliefs become known, they will have trouble finding work. In America, in 2014. It boggles the mind.
Now let's let the other idea sink in. A writer, who makes his living celebrating free speech, and the beauty of words, a naturalized citizen, someone who chose to come here and become an American, is now possibly being targeted by his adopted homeland's government, for his political beliefs.
Have we officially arrived at an ominous place in our history that the founding fathers tried to warn us of? A short 90 mile trip south of Florida will offer glaring examples of what happens when one is publicly vocal in their disagreement with the government. Many a Cuban immigrant can verify such stories, regardless of what Jay Z and Beyoncé say they saw.
Have we come down to just a handful of us left who are paying attention to the slow erosion of our liberties? If so, is there enough of us to combat it? Those of us with the power of words say yes. The battle plan is more speech. More blogs, more writers, more talk radio, more online presence. If we do not believe this to be true, then the very ideas our nation was founded upon are in greater jeopardy than we know.
A government with the power to control what you say will also have the power to control what you think.
Time to man the battle stations.
Friends and enemies are a big theme in the Obama Whitehouse. During the 2010 election cycle, in a radio interview, President Obama talked about Latino voters "punishing their enemies and rewarding friends" over the immigration debate. Perhaps the most famous of such quotes comes from Presidential Advisor extraordinaire Valerie Jarrett, who made no bones about standard operating procedure Obama style. "After we win this election, it is payback time. For those who supported us, there will be rewards, for the ones who opposed us; they will get what they deserve. There will be hell to pay...".
Enter Conservative Author and Film Maker Dinesh D'Souza. D'Souza was arraigned on federal charges on January 24 that he violated campaign finance laws by donating $20,000 to the campaign of a friend who ran unsuccessfully for Hillary Clinton's Senate seat in 2012. D'Souza's movie, "2016: Obama's America", became the second largest grossing documentary in history. The movie does not portray the president in a flattering light, touching on his sketchy relationship with his father, his father's political leanings, and how they influenced the younger Obama.
Coming on the heels of Dinesh D'Souza's troubles, a group known as "Friends of Abe", a group of Hollywood Conservatives who are actors, writers, directors, producers, etc., is apparently being targeted by our old friends the IRS after filing for tax exempt status. The group fiercely protects the identities of its members, as they believe their political beliefs could hinder their chances for work in Tinsel town. The IRS is pushing Friends of Abe for lists of names of its members. So far, they are refusing to do so.
Let's let that idea sink in for just a moment. A group of people, Americans, fear that if their beliefs become known, they will have trouble finding work. In America, in 2014. It boggles the mind.
Now let's let the other idea sink in. A writer, who makes his living celebrating free speech, and the beauty of words, a naturalized citizen, someone who chose to come here and become an American, is now possibly being targeted by his adopted homeland's government, for his political beliefs.
Have we come down to just a handful of us left who are paying attention to the slow erosion of our liberties? If so, is there enough of us to combat it? Those of us with the power of words say yes. The battle plan is more speech. More blogs, more writers, more talk radio, more online presence. If we do not believe this to be true, then the very ideas our nation was founded upon are in greater jeopardy than we know.
A government with the power to control what you say will also have the power to control what you think.
Time to man the battle stations.
No comments:
Post a Comment