L. Neil Smith's
THE LIBERTARIAN ENTERPRISE
Number 310, March 13, 2005

"Words and Guns"

Censorship and Mind Control
Ron Beatty
bearfreeliberty@yahoo.com

Exclusive to TLE

As I'm sure most of you have noticed, there has been a very strong movement in Congress to legislate freedom of speech out of existence.

For several years now, the 'moral majority' has been agitating for more censorship on the airwaves. With Janet Jackson's 'wardrobe malfunction' at last year's Super Bowl, they finally have the trigger they need to push their agenda forward.

There is even an act proposed to 'restore decency' to pay stations and programs, programs that individuals have paid to see because they like the content and/or 'raciness' of the program.

Hmmm, something doesn't ring true here. Some of the most popular programs on TV are those which have content which could be considered 'adult' by most viewers. Programs such as Sex in the City, Desperate Housewives, the Sopranos, and many others I'm sure you could name. Some of the highest selling videos anywhere are the 'Girls Gone Wild' videos, where young girls flash their breasts and engage in suggestive acts on camera. If the 'majority' were 'moral', according to the tenets of the "MORAL MAJORITY", would any of this be true? I don't think so.

In my opinion, what we are experiencing is a fanatic, vocal minority, with power all out of proportion to their numbers, attempting to assert their moral code over all of society. We have cowardly, lazy politicians, who are desperate to remain in office so they can keep stealing, who will cater to the whims of the most vocal, no matter how much such catering violates their oath of office, the Constitution they have sworn to protect and defend, and even the most basic strictures of right and wrong.

1984If This Goes OnFlight From Eden

Were/are the authors of all of these books prophets? I don't know, but it sure is beginning to look like it!

In 1984, Orwell wrote about a government gone mad with power, twisting the truth and the meaning of words, making wrong seem right and right seem wrong, forcing people to spy on each other, for the good of the state. Hmm, Iraqi WMDs, Patriot Act, Intelligence Reform Act, does anything seem familiar here?

In If This Goes On and Flight From Eden, Heinlein and Graham have written about a state controlled by the church, using religious principles as guidelines for society (and yes, I know these stories are much more complicated than that, I'm simplifying for ease of reference). No matter how benign such things may seem, a religious tyranny, or even a tyranny based on religious principles is the worst thing that can happen to a society. Once government and it's agents convince themselves that they are carrying out 'the will of god', it's only a matter of time until we have pogroms, persecution, even human bonfires. After all, if it's 'god's will', it can't be wrong, can it? Remember the T-shirt slogan? "Kill them all, let god sort them out?" Well, the first record of that was during the Albigensian Crusade, when a Catholic bishop, when asked how to tell the heretics from the true believers, answered, "Kill them all. God will know his own." That is the attitude that takes over when religious fanaticism rules. Do we want to see that in this country? I don't.

Back to the main topic, this kind of attitude is what is driving the call for 'decency' on the airwaves. The people who are behind this type of legal action want us all to think and act the same way they do, since that is obviously the way god wants it. Anyone who objects is against decency, and therefore against god's will. Anyone who thinks differently is a 'sinner', and against god. Take this attitude to it's logical conclusion. If you have a problem visualizing it, think Salem Witch Trials, or maybe Inquisition. That is what will happen if this type of attitude is allowed to continue unchecked. People have the right to believe what they will. They do not have the right to force those beliefs on others.

I am going to close now. For those who are curious, look up the Inquisition (which still exists today, BTW), or the Salem Witch Trials, or even call up 'Burning Times' or read the history of the Mormon persecution in this country.

Do the research yourself, see what happens every single time a religion gains political power over a state.

As always, never, ever take my unsupported word for anything, and still less the word of any government or media spokesperson. Do the research, learn the facts, think for yourself. After all, you and only you are responsible for your own safety and freedom.


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