By Linda Thom
03/13/2012
Peter Brimelow writes: VDARE.com is a coalition and Linda Thom is one of our valued Democrats. She thinks VDARE.com has been too easy on Rush Limbaugh — which may well be true: I’ve been pretty desensitized over the years by all the things said about me, and anyway I think Political Correctness is the more important problem. Here Linda sets me straight. Note that we bleep out some expletives here, not to make a moral statement, but because VDARE.com has quite enough trouble with corporate censorware as it is).
I recently had a discussion with a local Democratic politician who had read an article I had written for VDARE.com about immigrant-employment, or the lack thereof, on the island where I live in Washington State. She said that she completely agreed with everything I said — but as a politician, she would never say those things because they would hurt people’s feelings.
Of course a local politician would say this. What is the benefit in discussing the negative consequences of immigration where not much immigration exists?
Practicing civil behavior in uncivil times takes courage. But it also allows people to listen and think. So giving comfort and solace to Rush Limbaugh (as I think VDARE.com has done) is a bad idea because his language is uncivil and offensive. It causes a great emotional stir. And when emotions stir, thinking stops.
Of course, Limbaugh has the absolute right to use whatever language he wishes except to yell “fire” in a crowded theater. The Supremes have said so. But when Limbaugh called a college woman a slut for wanting contraceptives covered by insurance, the uproar that followed was all about his language — not about birth control, or insurance.
Slut: n. derog. Sloven, slattern, trollop, whore, prostitute, street walker, lady of the evening, woman of ill repute, lose or fallen woman, call girl.
Slut is a sexist slur just as ni**er is a racist slur. What is the male equivalent of slut? Stud; you go dude! Slut and ni**er are Politically Incorrect for a reason. To use either of these words is abhorrent. Among civil people, listening stops when racial or sexual slurs or personal insults occur.
I know. I asked my licensed, clinical therapist daughter.
On the other hand, saying what may hurt people’s feelings is okay — if it is factually based and it serves a social good.
The truth, even if hurtful, is not only acceptable, it is also a social good. Facts which do not support the Main Steam Media viewpoint are nevertheless facts (even if HateFacts).
Here are some facts according to birth certificate data gathered by the National Center for Health Statistics, [National Vital Statistics Reports — Births: Final Data for 2009, November 3, 2011] which may indeed hurt people’s feelings:
Hispanic women accounted for only 24 percent of all 4,130,665 births in 2009. Despite this —
Note that these facts are not Republican facts nor are they Democratic facts. They are just the facts. Note that no ethnic slurs or sexist slurs are included.
These statistics are important because Hispanic immigration has caused a huge increase in a culture with high rates of teen pregnancy and single-parent households.
Rush Limbaugh said that the cost of contraceptives is high and that women who are not married and want free contraceptives are sluts. That is when the thinking stopped and the outrage began.
Nevertheless, discussing taboo topics is important to an informed society. Here are some more facts, devoid of slurs:
Contraceptives are cheap compared to obstetric services. Taxpayers are funding the birth of Anchor Babies. Think about it.
As Hispanic women comprise such a disproportionate share of the number of teen and unmarried mothers, they and the fathers of their children are causing not only huge costs but also huge social problems.
Children raised in single parents households (mother or father) are greatly harmed. Boys need positive male role models to learn how to be good fathers and good husbands. Girls also suffer. They tend to be hostile toward adult males, among other problems. Ask a male high-school teacher.
Greater authorities than I have written volumes on this topic. The late Daniel Patrick Moynihan was among the first to describe the dysfunction in “no-father-present” African-American families. He was vilified.
Nevertheless, the truth is the truth. We must continue to speak the truth even if it is not politically correct.
But, at the same time, we must avoid sexist and racist slurs. We must also avoid supporting those who demean themselves and others by using words such as slut, k**e, ni**er, slope-head, towel-head, wetback … .
Rush Limbaugh is a slut. Is that funny or what?
Linda Thom is a retiree and refugee from California, now living in Washington State. She formerly worked as an officer for a major bank and as a budget analyst for the County Administrator of Santa Barbara
This is a content archive of VDARE.com, which Letitia James forced off of the Internet using lawfare.