You might think the value of adults being able to read those books they want and make their own choices about them would be self-evident to people living in a free society.
Not so to the Social Justice Wankers.
You might think the value of adults being able to read those books they want and make their own choices about them would be self-evident to people living in a free society.
Not so to the Social Justice Wankers.
How long before little red books and grey smocks are mandatory?
From CS Lewis (via Andrew Bolt — I don’t know the original source”):
Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It would be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.
How soon will the leftists scumballs the leftists collage adminastrators start burrvative books banning all books written by conservatives and allowing only for leftists written books hey the nazis did it
Fahrenheit 451, and like Ken said red books and grey smocks.
The Puritan urge is ever present in humanity. Today’s Puritans happen to be SJWs.
The exploits of Sir Harry Paget Flashman VC KCB KCIE (1822–1915) were immortalized in a 12 volume memoire penned by George Macdonald Fraser, and should be required reading in high school history classes.
In his 2003 memoirs, Fraser laments the weak tea reviews of his work, taking aim at British political correctness with both barrels:
“The philosophy of political correctness is now firmly entrenched over here, too, and at its core is a refusal to look the truth squarely in the face, unpalatable as it may be.
Political correctness is about denial, usually in the weasel circumlocutory jargon which distorts and evades and seldom stands up to honest analysis.
It comes in many guises, some of them so effective that the PC can be difficult to detect. The silly euphemisms, apparently harmless, but forever dripping to wear away common sense — the naiveté of the phrase “a caring force for the future” on Remembrance poppy trays, which suggests that the army is some kind of peace corps, when in fact its true function is killing.
The continual attempt to soften and sanitise the harsh realities of life in the name of liberalism, in an effort to suppress truths unwelcome to the PC mind; the social engineering which plays down Christianity, demanding equal status for alien religions.
This is not a lament for past imperial glory, though I regret its inevitable passing, nor is it the raging of a die-hard Conservative.
I loathe all political parties, which I regard as inventions of the devil. My favourite prime minister was Sir Alec Douglas-Home, not because he was on the Right, but because he spent a year in office without, on his own admission, doing a damned thing.”
Your local librarian may be mainstream politically but the Chicago-based ALA is extremely left-wing, largely because most of its conferences, publications, committees and listservs are run by academic librarians or those in large public libraries and by necessity of promotion need these venues.
BBW is nonsense but effectively drums up PR, money and self-righteousness. There are no banned books in the US; to get on the list a single parent can ask that Suzy read an alternate to the profanity, drugs and sex rampant in a teacher’s assigned book or request a specific book be transferred from children’s into the YA section.
Books that ARE banned, e.g., the AGW-skeptic books burned by 2 Arizona profs -they proudly sent out pics – aren’t on the list; conservative books routinely not reviewed by NYT or absent from college/hs reading lists or library book clubs aren’t either.
I urge moderate, libertarian, or conservatives to read some YA or children’s books or peruse specific library sections for balance, and view as many reading lists and book club selections as possible in libraries and schools.
BTW, a couple of years ago, the ALA hosted a panel on Islam and tolerance. Islam was to be represented by CAIR but their rep rebelled against Robert Spencer being on the panel, calling him Islamophobic. CAIR then withdrew from the panel, and ALA canceled the event. Spencer begged them to continue it with just him or to get someone else to discuss Islam, saying they were bowing to censorship but ALA refused. The panel discussion was not rescheduled.
As to the BBW poster, the ALA profusely apologized and defended themselves by saying they had a Muslim librarian on the poster committee and she approved the poster. The Muslim protester was furious, saying the ALA offended her and all Muslim women by assuming a lone representative could speak for Muslim women everywhere. The horrified ALA is promising a full investigation and greater sensitivity to all its posters in the future.
“The desire to save humanity is almost always a false front for the urge to rule it.” H.L. Mencken
According to Google, it’s from “God in the Dock: Essays on Theology”. Not something I’ve read, but a great quote, and worthy or greater passing on.
George Macdonald Fraser was a really good writer. I didn’t read too many of the “Flashman” series, but did enjoy “The General Danced at Dawn” and McAuslan in the Rough”. Your quote is presumably from “The Light’s on at Signpost”, which I found rather sad, an old soldier realizing that the country he fought for has been betrayed by recent politicians. As I remember, he really did not like Tony Blair.
BTW, you might enjoy “The Steel Bonnets” which details the border wars along the Anglo-Scottish borders from about 1400 – 1600 As far as I could gather, they were all rogues and thieves on both sides. One story I did like was that, when a border woman found the larder bare, she would serve her husband a pair of spurs on his plate for breakfast as a reminder that he had to go out reiving again and produce the needful.