Whose Political Correctness

One of the most brilliant achievements of the right in the U.S.– like it or not– was convincing some people that “political correctness” consisted mostly of liberals browbeating conservatives and censoring conservative opinion. Yes, it’s a brilliant achievement, because while there definitely is some left-wing suppression and censorship, all you have to do is consider patriotism, national anthems, flag pins, war protests, peaceniks, environmentalists, and so on and so on to realize that political correctness is and has always been the issue par excellence of the right.

Nobody censors more and more often than conservatives, whether it be books in schools, or dramas at a theatre being built in the new World Trade Center, or cutting off the microphone when a Democrat wants to ask a question at a committee meeting, or destroying evidence so it is impossible to appeal capital crime convictions, or preventing the appointment of a person to the office of Surgeon General because she once expressed concern about the number of gun deaths in the United States: conservatives adore censorship and suppression of dissent.

But it is always a great strategy to accuse your opponent of your own most cherished practices.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *