When political correctness is wrong
Benjamin Leffell
Issue date: 11/19/09 Section: Op/Ed
All the political correctness meted out by the media will not change the objective fact, that our culture, which is based on Judeo-Christian values that prize individual rights and freedom of religion and speech, is in an existential struggle against radical Islam. This struggle is the central element of American foreign policy. So, for people to pretend that this is just an isolated incident, or an individual's psychological breakdown, not only insulting but purposefully obstructionist. It is not unreasonable for Americans to question whether Islam somehow sows the seeds that lead some Muslims to fanaticism. Belief in such a "politically incorrect" concept could rightly be attributed to the 14,374 terrorist attacks perpetrated by Muslims worldwide since September 11th (www.thereligionofpeace.com). Contrary to politically correct dogma, an honest discourse of these challenges and attacks is not necessarily an indictment of all Muslims or Islam as a whole. Rather, such honesty might encourage the same type of introspection in Islamic society that has benefited Western democracies.
A failure to recognize or acknowledge problems does not mean that they do not exist. We must not bend over backwards to avoid offending people at the expense of the truth; it is our duty as citizens of the free world to become more intellectually honest as individuals and as responsible members of society and recognize the threats to the rights and freedoms that we enjoy on a daily basis. The rights we value are not an entitlement. Our parents and grandparents fought and died for those freedoms; we are merely the guardians and gatekeepers of those rights. If we fail to protect them, our country's heroes will have died in vain.
If we fail recognize that it is in fact possible to have terrorists within our military the problem will spread and become debilitating. When someone, whether an American soldier or a Saudi Wahhabi extremist, screams 'God is great' as he guns down unarmed people, and has SoA (Soldier of Allah) printed on his personal business card, he qualifies as a terrorist and should be identified as such. Acknowledging the problem by its rightful name is the first step to solving it.
A failure to recognize or acknowledge problems does not mean that they do not exist. We must not bend over backwards to avoid offending people at the expense of the truth; it is our duty as citizens of the free world to become more intellectually honest as individuals and as responsible members of society and recognize the threats to the rights and freedoms that we enjoy on a daily basis. The rights we value are not an entitlement. Our parents and grandparents fought and died for those freedoms; we are merely the guardians and gatekeepers of those rights. If we fail to protect them, our country's heroes will have died in vain.
If we fail recognize that it is in fact possible to have terrorists within our military the problem will spread and become debilitating. When someone, whether an American soldier or a Saudi Wahhabi extremist, screams 'God is great' as he guns down unarmed people, and has SoA (Soldier of Allah) printed on his personal business card, he qualifies as a terrorist and should be identified as such. Acknowledging the problem by its rightful name is the first step to solving it.