These folks must have been "un-American"

Much has been made of Nancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer's note that

These (townhall) disruptions are occurring because opponents are afraid not just of differing views — but of the facts themselves. Drowning out opposing views is simply un-American. Drowning out the facts is how we failed at this task for decades.

There has been much parsing of this statement. Some believe Nance and Steny are correct; others play semantics games to the tune of defending Pelosi and Hoyer.

So, is it "un-American" to "drown out" opposing views? I wonder, especially considering these examples of discussions about privatizing Social Security from 2005:

"a boisterous crowd which frequently interrupted the discussion with shouts and hard nosed questions. ... Democrats in the audience who were interrupting the panel.... the crowd erupted in anger... Democrats in the audience started shouting him down again."

"By now, Jack Kingston is used to shouted questions, interruptions and boos. Republican congressmen expect such responses these days when they meet with constituents about President Bush's proposal to overhaul Social Security."

"Shaken by raucous protests at open "town hall"-style meetings last month ... Santorum was among dozens of members of Congress who ran gantlets of demonstrators and shouted over hecklers at Social Security events last month. Many who showed up to protest were alerted by e-mails and bused in by anti-Bush organizations such as MoveOn.org and USAction, a liberal advocacy group. They came with prepared questions and instructions on how to confront lawmakers."

Not only are these folks "un-American" using the Pelosi-Hoyer standard, they also did precisely what the Left is accusing the GOP of doing now -- planning on how to disrupt meetings.

Did any GOP lawmakers refer to these protestors as "un-American?" I don't know. I sure didn't hear about it. If they did, you can be sure we would have heard about it in the MSM, just as we did when the occasional conservative/Republican called an anti-Iraq War protestor "un-American" or something similar. But I did hear about these Social Security protestors, though -- and it was usually referred to positively by the MSM. After all, can't have anyone touching Social Security now, can we? But when folks are concerned about a federal takeover of 1/5 of the US economy, well, they're somehow "overreacting!"

And where are Pelosi and Hoyer (not to mention their defenders noted above) when this "un-American" prevention-of-discussion" activity happens regularly on American college campuses? Anecdotes abound of conservative speakers on campuses being heckled, shouted down and even physically attacked. Again (as I've noted many, many times here), this happens all the time. And this doesn't even take into account the myriad speech codes, kangaroo college "courts" and so-called disciplinary procedures that universities utilize to suppress views contrary to the "prevailing orthodoxy."

But if the Left suddenly has determined that "loudly protesting" something is "un-American," then why do we make such a big deal of the McCarthy Era in American history? After all, there were Communists that had infiltrated our government (and other cultural institutions) and Communism was dedicated to destroying the United States one way or another. Was Elia Kazan wrong to expose those who were associated with Communism? The conventional wisdom (mostly among the Left) is that what Kazan did was "un-American," not what those who he exposed did!

So, which is "un-American?" Actively supporting an ideology that wishes to annihilate our own system of government ... or boisterous protests in favor of preserving our system of government? If the Left really believes that the latter is "un-American," then they also need to believe that the former is likewise so. If not, then they have a rather unique view of "American."

Personally, I feel that the current anti-Obama healthcare reform protestors should indeed be respectful and allow our elected officials to say their piece. Contrariwise, our elected officials need to listen to THE PEOPLE, and deal with the bit of anger they may express -- and even the occasional "boos" and shout-outs. After all, that's what our elected officials are -- elected officials. WE are THEIR bosses, not the other way around.

And while I certainly feel that the Communists of the 50s (and before and after) are "un-American" (again, their very belief system desires the demise of America), the mere fact that they reside in the United States gives them the right to hold their beliefs, and to be free of government coercion and investigation unless of course, like anybody else, they become an actual threat. (Holding beliefs and informing others of said beliefs is not an actual threat -- as long as the beliefs and informing are sans violence.)

Overall, it seems to me that the Left is extremely touchy about being called "un-American," but are awfully quick to use the term (and similar epithets) when their opponents do something that they do not like. And it's bolstered by the fact that the MSM will immediately jump on a conservative that has dubbed a liberal politician so ... not so much the other way around. Thankfully, the new media is changing all that -- and exposing long-known hypocrisies.

UPDATE: How easily predictable.

Posted by Hube at August 11, 2009 11:18 AM | TrackBack