Category Archives: Politically Incorrect

Baby boomers once came into adulthood fighting for the freedom to say crude words on television. As they reach the ends of their careers in this 21st century, they should recognize that the pendulum has swung too far. They should demand a return to civil speech.

Political correctness is a catch-all term for using self-restraint when talking. It means restraining derogatory comments about race, gender or creed aimed at individuals or groups of people. It means restraining fighting words.

Engagement in political correctness does not mean that people may not protest or vociferously disagree. It means that insults, profanity or violence used to deny the rights of others in this free nation are not acceptable behaviors.

On the fringe left this year, groups dressed in black with covered faces and calling themselves anti-fa, short for anti-fascists, broke windows and defaced buildings in supposed opposition to a politically incorrect speech on the University of California-Berkeley campus. It is not at all certain they were students, but that is relevant only in that the criminal property destruction added to the universitys unfair reputation for harboring antisocial activists.

On the fringe right, a white supremacist hurled racist slurs at two young women on a train in Portland, Ore., killed two men who came to their defense, then ranted in a courtroom that being politically correct is an affront to freedom.

Since the nations founding, Americans have seen many changes in what is considered socially acceptable speech. Changes in speech create social norms that can prevent, cool or fuel incendiary confrontations. For capturing hearts and minds, social norms are often more effective than laws.

For example, cigarette smoking was once ubiquitous despite scientific proof of disastrous health consequences. Yet, it wasnt until smoking became socially unacceptable that the numbers of smokers began to fall. Ashtrays that once were everywhere barely exist today.

Political speech, delivered over the air or in the streets, is a precious right that includes the distasteful, the ignorant, the politically incorrect. However, just because citizens can use uncivil speech doesnt mean we should.

When uncivil dialogue becomes political partisanship and then hardens into armed conflict, the times demand a return to the lessons of childhood: Speak your mind, but dont hurl profane personal insults. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Think before you speak.

This will make America a better, stronger and smarter place.

View post:
Make uncivil speech socially unacceptable | Editorials | mtexpress.com - Idaho Mountain Express and Guide

The events leading to this online call to arms began Sunday morning, whenPresident Trump tweeted a gif created by Reddit user HanAssholeSolo depicting a scene from Wrestlemania XXIII in which Trump body slams and pummels WWE promoter Vince McMahon. In the gif, the CNN logo is superimposed over McMahons face.

Auernheimer heralded the tweet as easily the greatest tweet in the history of Twitter.

After scouring HanAssholeSolo'sReddit account, which contained scores of racist and xenophobic postings, CNNs KFile was able to track down the users Facebook page and contact him.

Fearing public embarrassment and his safety, HanAssholeSolo published a lengthy apology on the Reddit group r/theDonald, asking that CNN not publish his identity. (The apology has since been removed.)

Alt-righter Jack Posobiec claims HanAssholeSolo is a 15 year-old LGBT person; however, CNN has identified the Reddit user as an adult male. (via Twitter)

CNN obliged, on the condition that HanAssholeSoloremove his offending posts and cease his trolling, but that didnt stop the self-proclaimed real media at the Daily Stormer from issuing an ultimatum to every staffer at CNN.

Just like CNN tracked down this child and used media exposure as a bludgeon against him for posting (truthful and funny) things that they dont like, we are going to begin tracking down their families as a bludgeon against them for publishing (seditiously fraudulent) things that we dont like, wrote Auernheimer. CNN, this is your one singular chance to walk back this behavior of public blackmail. You have one week to fix this.

Auernheimers list of demands includes the public firing of the KFile team, a denouncement of their alleged threats, a $50,000 college scholarship for HanAssholeSolo, and a public assurance that he and his family will never be harmed by your organization.

The only problem:HanAssholeSolo is an adult,according to CNN.

Andrew Kaczynski, senor editor of CNN's KFile, Tweets that HanAssholeSolo is an adult, not a teenager, as some have claimed. (via Twitter)

We are going to track down your parents. We are going to track down your siblings. We are going to track down your spouses. We are going to track down your children. Because hey, thats what you guys get to do, right? Were going to see how you like it when our reporters are hunting down your children, continued Auernheimer.

Auernheimer instructed CNN employees that do not want to be doxed to quit within the week and denounce the organizations alleged blackmail.

We didnt make these rules you did and now were going to force you to play by them. Hope you enjoy what is coming, you filthy rat kike bastards. Kill yourselves, kike news fakers. You deserve every single bit of what you are about to get, concluded Auernheimer.

The call to "kill the lying mass of shit that is CNN" posted to 4chan's politically incorrect forum, /pol/.

Within hours, personal information for multiple CNN staffers and their family members -- alongside images and gifs of individuals with CNN superimposed over their facesbeing shot in the head -- appeared in the comments of the posting.

The incident is a rare moment of unity for the far-right with members of r/theDonald, 4chan, the Daily Stormer, and the alt-lite banding together to attack CNN.

The 4chan message board /pol/, which isdedicated topolitically incorrect discussion,dubbed the campaign Operation:Autism Storm and posted a four part plan of attack that includes banding together with other far right sites, going after CNNs advertisers, discrediting everyone at CNN, and forming a legal strategy for HanAssholeSolo should he later be doxed.

At least nine separate hashtags trended across far-right accounts Tuesday evening including #cnnblackmail, #cnndoxing, and #fraudnewscnn as the controversy erupted.

To people who troll on the Internet for fun, wrote HanAssholeSolo. Consider your words and actions conveyed in your message and who it might upset or anger. Put yourself in their shoes before you post it. If you have a problem with trolling it is an addiction just like any other addiction someone can have to something and dont be embarrassed to ask for help.

The Daily Stormers veteran troll army hasnt heeded his advice.

See original here:
Daily Stormer Troll Army Threatens CNN Staffers Over Reddit User Behind Trump/CNN GIF - Southern Poverty Law Center

Are only hypocrites allowed to be politically incorrect?

I frequently hear people complaining that things are too politically correct these days; people should just get over themselves and stop being angry and offended.

So, a couple days ago, I was chatting via email with a good friend, until I made some sarcastic comments about Ronald Reagan. The next response from this friend was a sudden, super serious, Stop trying to pick a fight!

I was floored. This person claims to hate politically correct people. My response was, So, political incorrectness stops at Reagan? I still havent received a reply.

I have very little filter and adore political incorrectness. I dream of finding truly politically incorrect people impervious to offense. What I find is myself being invariably snookered by every new person who waltzes in howling to the rafters how much they dislike politically correct people.

Ill happily listen to whoever berates both Clintons, Obama, Nancy Pelosi and the politically correct. But Ive learned the hardest way that the moment I say something sarcastic about Joseph McCarthy or Nixon or Rush Limbaugh or George W. Bush or Trump, the conversation quickly derails.

My wish in life is to know lots of people who can happily handle an eternal, wide-ranging, politically incorrect conversation laced with sarcasm about politics, social issues, religion everything.

But I find myself continually wondering, does anyone know political incorrectness isnt a one-way street? Does anyone know, if you truly want political incorrectness to reign supreme, you have to accept it as happily as you dish it? Does anyone know that, if this letter upsets them, theyre as politically-correct as everyone else?

My sad reality is, when I meet someone claiming to hate political correctness, acting like theyre immune to all verbal offense, I think: yeah, and unicorns exist and hypocrites arent a dime a dozen.

Nathan Kirby

Augusta

Original post:
Unicorns and hypocrites - The Augusta Chronicle

Rhode Island's most politically incorrect Independence Day tradition packed the narrow sidewalks of Chepachet Village for the 91st consecutive year Tuesday with a touch of existential uncertainty mixing in with the usual supply of patriotism and irreverence.

GLOCESTER, R.I. "Save Our Parade," read a sign on the first truck rolling down Putnam Pike Tuesday in the annual Ancients & Horribles Parade. "Donate to Bucket Brigade."

Rhode Island's most politically incorrect Independence Day tradition packed the narrow sidewalks of Chepachet Village for the 91st consecutive year Tuesday with a touch of existential uncertainty mixing in with the usual supply of patriotism and irreverence.

Faced with a shortage of volunteers, parade committee ChairmanMichael DeGrange has warned the event might not go on in 2018 if more people don't join in to help raise money, line up sponsors and organize.

"We'll see after this is over and we have our meeting," DeGrange said about the parade's future from the finishing line. "If we get enough volunteers I will stay on for another couple of years. We don't have the budget like Bristol."

DeGrange, who took over running the parade five years ago when a change in leadership forced a scramble to keep the parade going,said he needs to at least double the 10 adult volunteers involved next year.

Held each year since 1926, the Ancients & Horribles Parade's often rough take on the politics of the day reflects the independent streak of this rural corner of the state, but can be a hurdle to creating institutional support.

Fans of the parade admit that some satirical floats may push the limits of taste, but say that's what free speech is about.

"You have to express your freedom of speech," said DeGrange. "That's why we are here."

Along the parade route, spectators said the down-to-earth, grass-roots spontaneity of the Ancients & Horribles adds to its appeal.

"Everything is unique," said Eleanor Lafazia, of Warwick. "It doesn't look like it was over organized, which is what we like."

"It's part of the fun," said Jeannine Shaw, of Glocester, about the political satire in the parade. "It would be a shame if it went away."

"I'd cry," said Nancy Angell, also of Warwick, about a July 4 without the parade. "What else would I do?"

The subjects of this year's satire were numerous and bipartisan.

A potential deal for a new Pawtucket Red Sox stadium appeared on a few signs, but by far the most frequent target of abuse was the proposed Invenergy power plant in neighboring Burrillville, which drew several groups of protesters.

On the national side, a "Chepachet Fake News" float adorned with Twitter logos carried a mock White House press briefing room podium complete with a Sean Spicer impersonator.

"Record-breaking crowd at parade," a sign on the float said.

The General Assembly's four-day-old budget impasse inspired a large sign with likenesses of House Speaker Nicholas Mattiello and Senate President Dominick Ruggerio doing battle. "Taxpayers in the crossfire," it said underneath.

Even internal state Republican Party politics made the parade, with a float asking for GOP Rep. Michael Chippendale, who represents Glocester, to get his place back on the House Oversight Committee.

Recent years have seen complaints about parade trucks flying the Confederate flag, and again this year the flag was present on two vehicles.

"Anyone who is not going to sponsor the parade because of this, we don't need," said Steve Bemis, driver of an antique tractor with one of the flags.

"It's part of our country," said Brian Baxter, driver of a pickup truck with another.

panderson@providencejournal.com

(401) 277-7384

On Twitter: @PatrickAnderso_

Continue reading here:
Uncertainty clouds future of RI's satirical parade - The Providence Journal

Photo Credit: Marc Nozell / Flickr Creative Commons

Perhaps something useful can be accomplished as a consequence of the transparently repulsive Trump: rousing Americans to reconsider honoring US presidents with Presidents Day, and replacing it with a holiday that recognizes a more respectable group of people.

Trumps misogyny has long inflamed Democrats, but now even Republicans, including Paul Ryan and Lindsey Graham, haveexpressed repulsionover his bleeding badly from a face-lift insult of Mika Brzezinski. For both Republicans and Democrats, recent history tells us that drone bombings of117 civilian noncombatants,whistle-blower persecutions, andbanker stay-out-of-jail-free cardsare not politically incorrect offenses. But a transparent misogynistnow thats a politically incorrect offender.

So, one way to eliminate Presidents Day would be for Americans to discover that Trump is not even the worst misogynist or worst sexual predator president ever. Below are some US presidents misogyny and sexual predatory practice lowlights. Spoiler alert: Except in the arena of transparency and bragging, Trump cannot out-scum Grover Cleveland or Thomas Jefferson, or maybe even Ronald Reagan.

Grover Cleveland: Honoring Presidents Day in 2015, theBoston Globetold us how Americans once elected a president with great integrity: Not since George Washington had a candidate for president been so renowned for his rectitude. Grover the good, his supporters dubbed him. The standard account of Cleveland is the following: The 22ndand the 24thpresident, the only one to serve two non-consecutive terms, who as mayor of Buffalo, governor of New York, and president was a crusader against corruption. Some accounts include that Cleveland was alleged to have fathered an illegitimate child and was taunted in the 1884 presidential campaign with, Ma, Ma, wheres my Pa, but that Cleveland honorably handled this matter, was victorious, and his supporters had the last laugh, retorting, Gone to the White House. Ha! Ha! Ha!

But was he really Grover the Good or Grover the Gross?

For several months in 1873, Cleveland courted Maria Halpin, an attractive 38-year-old sales clerk; then Cleveland date-raped her. Journalist Charles Lachman, author ofA Secret Life(2011),discoveredan affidavit from Maria Halpin about her sexual assault by Cleveland by use of force and violence and without my consent, she stated. When Halpin threatened to notify the authorities, she said Cleveland told her he was determined to ruin me if it cost him $10,000. Impregnated by Clevelands rape, Halpin gave birth in 1874 to a baby boy in a hospital for unwed mothers in Buffalo; and then Cleveland arranged to have the child forcibly removed from Halpin and placed in the Buffalo Orphan Asylum. Halpin was thrown into the Providence Lunatic Asylum but released after it became clear that her incarceration was the result of an abuse of power by political elites.

Cleveland won the Democratic nomination for president in 1884, and the media exposed the existence of Clevelands illegitimate son. In response to that, Grover Clevelands team conducted a malicious smear campaign against Halpin: falsely claiming that she drank to excess and was sexually active with at least three (and possibly four) married men; and that Cleveland honorably took responsibility for the childs conception because he was the only bachelor among Halpins sexual partners. The truth was that Halpin was the opposite of promiscuousa widow with two young children, and a church-going woman held in high esteem by all who knew her.

The salient difference between Cleveland and Trump is their private-public congruence. Trump has beenaccusedof sexually assaulting twelve women. However, unlike Cleveland, Trump has publicly braggedmost notably inseveral interviews with Howard Sternabout his predatory behaviors, for example, going backstage at beauty pageants to ogle naked contestants changing clothes. And Trump is tweet-transparent in his misogyny.

Thomas Jefferson:The standard account is Founding Father and author of the Declaration of Independence, and so venerable as to be one of four presidents on Mount Rushmore as well as having a memorial for him in Washington D.C. While many of his contemporaries saw him as the supreme hypocrite, it is only recently that popular culturefor example, Lin-Manuel Mirandas musical,Hamiltonhas caught up with Jeffersons hypocrisy and ignobility.

Henry Wienceks 2012Master of the Mountain: Thomas Jefferson and His Slavesis one of many books that document how Jefferson was a hypocrite in many regards: espousing freedom while holding slaves; advocating revolutionary militancy while exhibiting chicken-hawk cowardice; and promoting frugality while amassing huge debt with an extravagant lifestyle. More than simply hypocritical, the case has increasingly been made that Jefferson was a sexual predator, or asFeministeproclaimed,Thomas Jefferson: The Face of a Rapist.

For generations, Jefferson apologists disputed the claim of the descendants of Jeffersons slave Sally Hemings that Jefferson had fathered children with her.Genetic testing has helped change most historians minds, and today even the official Thomas Jefferson/Monticello site reports (inThomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings: A Brief Account) the following: Based on documentary, scientific, statistical,and oral history evidence, theThomas Jefferson Foundation (TJF) Research Committee Report on Thomas Jefferson and Sally Hemings(January 2000) remains the most comprehensive analysis of this historical topic.. . TJF and most historians believe that. . . Thomas Jefferson was the father of the six children of Sally Hemings.It is now accepted by most historians that Jefferson had a sexual relationship with his slave Sally Hemings, likely beginning when she was 14 or 15 years old.

InThomas Jefferson: Americas Founding Sociopath, investigative reporter Robert Parry notes:

Recent historical examinations of records at Jeffersons Monticello plantation have providedsupport for contemporaneous accounts of Jefferson having sexual relations with at least one other slave girl beside Hemings and possibly more. . . .The historical record increasingly makes Jefferson out to be a serial rapist, exploiting at least one and possibly more girls who were trapped on his property, who indeed were his property, and thus had little choice but to tolerate his sexual advances.

The Monster of Monticello was the title of a 2012New York Timesreview of Wienceks book, and monster does not seem hyperbolic, considering the following. Jefferson wrote, A child raised every 2 years is of more profit than the crop of the best laboring man, and according to Wiencek, The enslaved people were yielding him a bonanza, a perpetual human dividend at compound interest. While Jefferson ultimately freed the children he had with Sally Hemings (in what is believed to have been a deal he made with her so she would not flee him in Paris), Jeffersons slave breeding enhanced his personal wealth.

Ronald Reagan:Ronald Reagans all-American pristine public image is certainly the opposite of Trumps, but what was Reagans private reality? In 1991, themainstream press ridiculedKitty Kelleys account (in her bookNancy Reagan) of actress Selene Walters claim that Ronald Reagan date-raped her in the early 1950s.The ridicule continued even thoughPeoplemagazine got Walters to repeat this story almost verbatim. Walters did correct some of Kelleys version, as Walters said, I opened the door. Then it was the battle of the couch. I was fighting him. I didnt want him to make love to me. Hes a very big man, and he just had his way. Date rape? No, God, no, thats [Kelleys] phrase. I didnt have a chance to have a date with him.

Given Reagans gentleman image, Walters story was mostly dismissed, but in 2011, actressPiper Laurie wroteabout her sexual encounter with Reagan. They had met when Laurie was 18 and still a virgin, and Reagan was 39, playing her father in the 1950 dramaLouisa. In Lauries autobiographyLearning to Live Out Loud, she reports that Reagan was initially the perfect gentleman, asking her mother for permission to take her out on a date. But instead of going out, Reagan took her to his home where he made hamburgers, then took her into the bedroom where he turned into a show-off who had sex without grace, with Reagan bragging about his staying power. Laurie wrote, He made sure I was aware of the length of time he had been ardent, but when she told him that she was not satisfied, Reagan responded: Theres something wrong with you. You should have had many orgasms by nowafter all this time. Youve got to see a doctor. While Laurie did not claim that Reagan raped her, her description of Reagans emotional abuse following intercourse makes Walters claim more plausible.

Womanizing, misogynist, sexual predator presidents have actually been quite common in American history. Bill Clinton was forced to admit his sexual escapade with Monica Lewinsky, but there were numerous other accusations, includingJuanita Broaddricks claimthat he raped her. John Kennedy biographersdescribe himas a compulsive womanizer; and when Kennedys many affairs were mentioned to Lyndon Johnson, he would competitivelybragthat he had more women by accident than Kennedy ever had on purpose. This is by no means the complete list of womanizing, wife-cheating, sexual predator presidents.

The reality of course is not only private sexual predatory practices but monstrous crimes against humanity are common among US presidents. Numerous presidents presided over the crimes of African-American slavery and Native-American genocide; and since WWII alone,by some estimates, 20 to 30 million deaths around the world have resulted from multiple presidents trumped-up wars and shameful foreign policies.

With the transparently repulsive Trump, can we finally end the humiliation of Presidents Day, and replace it with another holiday that recognizes a more respectable group of Americans? How about Mail Carriers Day?

More:
3 of the Biggest Misogynists to Reach the Oval Office Before Donald Trump Got There - AlterNet

Jocelyn McClurg , USA TODAY 12:01 a.m. EDT July 4, 2017

by Milo Yiannopoulos

(Dangerous Books)

in Non-Fiction

Oh, Milo.

Youve done the impossible. Written a book thats largelyboring.

Booted by major publishing house Simon & Schuster, controversial right-wing provocateur and incendiary quipsterMilo Yiannopoulos now has self-published his so-called Dangerous manifesto (Dangerous Books, 288 pp., ** out of four stars).

Simon & Schuster, already under fire for signing a "hate speech" book deal with the British bad boy and self-proclaimed Dangerous Faggot, unceremoniously dumped Yiannopoulosin February after a podcast emerged in which he seemed to condone sex between men and boys. He resigned from Breitbart News amid the uproar.

He relives this unpleasant episode right off the bat, bashing S&S and assuring his "enemies" that he has not been "vanquished." But if you're looking for clarity, good luck. He says hewas the "victim of sexual abuse" (he had what apparently was consensual sex with a priest when he was 13) while refusingto be a victim, because, you know, he loathes the victim culture. But he does say: "I do not condone, in any way, pedophilia."

Anyway, a look at the table of contents seems promising, whether you love or hate the guy, although judging by his chapter headings, just abouteverybody hates him. ("Why the Progressive Left Hates Me," Why the Alt-Right Hates Me, Why Twitter Hates Me, Why Feminists Hate Me, "Why the Media Hates Me," Why Black Lives Matter Hates Me, Why Muslims Hate Me).

Yes, Yiannopouloscan be very funny, in that flamboyant, bitchy, post-Oscar Wilde manner he laments is going the way of the closet. (See Why Establishment Gays Hate Me.)

Milo Yiannopoulos had to self-publish his new book after it was dropped by Simon & Schuster.(Photo: Drew Angerer, Getty Images)

When hes preening about how good-looking he is and boasting about his "massive" ego, hes almost endearing in a little-boy-lost kind of way. But too oftenhe tosses wit aside for insipid earnestness: Hewants Dangerous to be taken seriously as a how-to politically incorrect "textbook" for his college fan boys.

He throws around statistics and name-dropshistorical figures (Marx, Nietzsche, Thomas Aquinas) like hes trying for an A on a term paper. The rest of the time he rehashes old feuds (Leslie Jones, Lena Dunham, Amy Schumer) and justifies his far-right political views about ugly women, fat people, Muslim migrants, black criminals and the "fake news"mainstream media.

Of Girls star Dunham, he writes: "My old favorite Lena Dunham is a particular travesty, being both shockinglyunattractive and determined to pose nude or semi-nude at everychance she gets. And she loves bitching about how people give her ahard time about it. So as a thoughtful gentleman, I will comply. Noone wants to see obese hairy men with their tops off, so why doesshe assume people want to see her sprawling naked like a beachedmanatee?" Yiannopoulosis pleased that Dunham is getting "skinny," thanks to stressingover President Trump. Big of him!

Who's your Daddy? Milo Yiannopoulos has a thing for the president.(Photo: Mark Wilson, Getty Images)

Same old Milo, practicing abrand of free speech that's a license tooffend and demean. #Sad, even if one agrees that today's babyfied, "safe space" campusesare just as loony and dangerous on the opposite extreme.

If theres a bright spot here, its Yiannopoulos adoration for fellow Internet troll (his words) Trump. The English expatishilarious on the subject of the American president he worships and calls Daddy.

Trump, Yiannopouloswrites, is a fabulously camp cultural figure. Hes the drag queen president! Its easy to see why so may gays I know secretly adore him. All that pizzazz and bluster!

Now, 288 pages on that amusing topic might even land him a legit publisher and a callback fromBill Maher. He could title it: My Big Daddy Issues.

Read more from the original source:
Milo Yiannopoulos' new book is hardly 'Dangerous' - USA TODAY

On Saturday night, roughly 12 hours after tweeting that Mika Brzezinski was dumb as a rock and 12 hours before tweeting a video of himself side-slamming CNN, Donald Trump spoke at a Celebrate Freedom Concert at Washingtons Kennedy Center. Journalists covering the event focused on Trumps jabs at the media. But they missed his veiled attack on another group of Americans whose First Amendment rights he threatens: Muslims.

In his remarks, Trump promised (in July!) that, Were going to start saying Merry Christmas again. He referred repeatedly to our God. And he explained that, we want to make sure that anyone who wants to join our country shares our values.

By Trumps standards, those comments might sound anodyne. But consider his audience. The Celebrate Freedom Concert was co-hosted by the First Baptist Church of Dallas. Warming up the crowd before Trump spoke were the churchs choir and orchestra and its senior pastor, Robert Jeffress, one of Trumps favorite evangelicals. During the campaign, when other Christian leaders were criticizing Trumps vulgarity and religious illiteracy, Jeffress declared that, I dont care about that candidates tone or vocabulary, I want the meanest, toughest, son of a you-know-what I can findand I believe thats biblical. Christians, he explained, should look for a strongman. Jeffress later said he was getting sick and tired of these namby-pamby, pantywaisted, weak-kneed Christians who say theyre going to stay home in November out of moral principle.

Trump rewarded Jeffress by inviting him to give the sermon at the church service he attended on inauguration morning. In his remarks, Jeffress told Trump that, I dont believe we have ever had a president with as many natural gifts as you. In May, Trump invited Jeffress to the White House to watch him sign an executive order on religious liberty. As the Messiah College professor John Fea has noted, many Christian conservatives derided Trumps move as meaningless and useless. Not Jeffress, who called Trump the most faith-friendly president in U.S. history. In introducing him at the Freedom Concert on Saturday night, Jeffress said the President has not only met but he has exceeded our every expectation and that we thank God every day that he gave us a leader like Donald Trump

But Jeffress and Trump share more than just a high opinion of Donald Trump. They share a deep antipathy toward Muslims and Islam. Jeffress, to be fair, isnt exactly ecumenical when it comes to any other faith. Hes called Buddhism and Hinduism false religions. Hes said, you cant be saved being a Jew. Hes called Mormonism a cult. And hes called Catholicism a counterfeit religion invented by Satan.

But hes saved his harshest and most extensive vitriol for Islam. In 2010, Jeffress criticized conservatives who opposed building an Islamic Community Center near Ground Zero in lower Manhattan merely because they considered the location insensitive. Jeffress offered a broader justification. The only argument that makes sense against building that mosque, he insisted, is that Islam is an oppressive religion. Islam, he added, is a religion that promotes pedophilia. It is time to take off the gloves and stand up and tell the truth about this evil, evil religion. Jeffress logic, needless to say, justifies opposing the construction of a mosque anywhere in the United States.

In 2015, Jeffress showed up Fox News to defend Ben Carsons claim that a Muslim should not be president. Jeffress explained that he could only vote for a Muslim who disavowed portions of the Koran and renounce[d] Mohammed. That same year, Jeffress called the Koran a false book, Mohammed a false prophet and Islam a false religion that will lead you to hell. Last July, he declared that, Mohammad was nothing but a bloodthirsty warlord. And last March, he said President Obama was once again assuming his favorite role, not as commander in chief but as defender in chief of Islam. By contrast, Jeffress insisted, Donald Trumps statements that Islam hates us was absolutely true. There is something within Islam that is engendering this hatred toward the rest of the world Trump is telling the politically incorrect truth.

Jeffress also shares Trumps enthusiasm for the words Merry Christmas. In 2015 he actually created a website that listed the Dallas-area businesses that used the salutation (they received the honorific nice) and those that did not (which were classified as naughty). But Trumps promotion of the phrase takes on a different meaning at an event co-sponsored by an avowed anti-Muslim bigot. So do Trumps references to our God and his declaration that we want to make sure that anyone who wants to join our country shares our values.

What values, after all, do Trump and Jeffress share? Not a commitment to marital fidelity. Not a commitment to honesty, charity, or humility. The value that unites them, above allthe one that led Jeffress to favor Trump over his more devout, more socially conservative Republican rivals during the primariesis their shared belief that the American government should favor Christianity over Islam. Thats the odd form of freedom they celebrated together at the Kennedy Center on Saturday night.

Continued here:
Trump's Celebration of an Exclusionary Vision of Freedom - The Atlantic

No matter your political proclivities, there seems to be one thing people can agree on: The 24/7 onslaught of CNN news alerts, partisan tweets, and Facebook debates is seriously exhausting. Political news overload is real , and its wreaking havoc on the mental health of people across the country. This peak political saturation can really make you yearn for simpler times when people were obsessed with the song of summer , Pokmon Go, or who Taylor Swift is dating. Remember . . . joy?

Perhaps, now more than ever, we need these simple pleasuresthe shows, books, podcasts, and Instagram handles that provide sweet escapes from Trumpland. Vogue rounded up some preferred palate cleansers to help you escape the political crush and dive into your holiday. Whether youre embarking on a lush Instagrammable summer vacation or not, these picks will provide a vacation for the mind.

Podcasts

Who? Weekly Billed as the podcast that tells you everything you need to know about the celebrities you dont, hilarious hosts and entertainment writers Lindsey Weber and Bobby Finger break down the hottest celebrities on the D-list (also know as whos). Finally figuring out who Tarek and Christina El Moussa are has a way of making you forget about Jeff Sessions, at least for a few minutes.

Ronna & Beverly Like the modern-day incarnation of Mike Myerss Coffee Talk sketch on SNL , actress-comedians Jessica Chaffin and Jamie Denbo masterfully masquerade as 50-something Jewish mothers Ronna and Beverly, whose brash, politically incorrect interview style make them perfect for grilling celebrity guests.

Instagram

A distinctly un-political meme-a-palooza:

The meme giantess (in the vein of Betches and The Fat Jewish) will make your late-night phone scrolls fun again.

Babyface Overload:

This feed filled with baby faces, is pure, unadulterated cuteness.

A #WadeWorldTour:

Do yourself a favor and acquaint yourself with Dwyane Wade and Gabrielle Unions recent romp through Paris mens Fashion Week and beyond it may inspire some fanfic of your own.

Television

Glow The White House photo ops may be populated entirely by white guys, but Netflixs latest sensationshort for gorgeous ladies of wrestlingis a festival of female power at a time when we need a boost.

The Bachelorette ABCs cheese-tastic reality juggernaut wont necessarily provide solace from the toxic bro culture of Washington, D.C., but the fantasy dates, helicopter aerial viewporn, and free Neil Lane engagement rings dont disappoint in the mindless entertainment department. And Monday night Bachelorette Twitter > political Twitter any time.

Kevin Hart: What Now? You don't have to like his frenetic buddy comedies, but Harts latest stand-up special on Netflixin which he mocks the everyday drama of family life with his wife, kids, and technologically challenged father delivers.

Billy on the Street Pop culture savant Billy Eichners manic roving game show (aka Cash Cab on cocaine, on iTunes and Amazon Video) guarantees actual LOLs. The Russia investigation will be the furthest thing from your mind as Billy thrusts his microphone into unsuspecting New Yorkers faces and demands to know, Are you jealous of Beyoncs success?

Cartoons for adults: Retro reruns (like Frasier and The Office ) have never felt cozier and more reliable. And adult cartoons like Family Guy and The Simpsons , with its silly jabs at society, feel newly funnyand all too relevant.

Music

Jay-Zs 4:44 Not since James Comeys statement will you be so thrilled to deep-dive into a piece of writing , or, in this case, an album. Form your own hot take about what Jays reference to Becky with the Good Hair really means!

Balaga from Broadways Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812 cast recording This wild Russian party song beats endless reports about the Russian investigation every time.

Despacito remix (Daddy Yankee and Luis Fonsi, featuring Justin Bieber) May the emergent song of summer spark a new wave of Latin pop that transports you far, far away from Trumps travel ban.

Books

Harry Potter and Hercule Poirot fanfiction This crossover fanfic between the boy wizard and Agatha Christies most famous detective is an addictive palate cleanser.

Al Franken, Giant of the Senate Musings from one of the original entertainer-turned-politicians prove that having political-outsider status isnt always catastrophicIn Frankens case, its totally hilarious.

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Here's How to Avoid the News (And Enjoy Yourself) Over the 4th of July Holiday - Vogue.com

Sacramento Bee

July 4: In defense of food that's politically incorrect | The Sacramento ... Sacramento Bee As edible patriotism, hot dogs, burgers, corn on the cob and strawberry shortcake should be non-partisan traditions on the Fourth of July. Unfortunately, this ... and more »

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July 4: In defense of food that's politically incorrect | The Sacramento ... - Sacramento Bee

With the disappearance of freedom of speech and fun, the recent rash of alleged, politically-incorrect, insensitive comments, and subsequent apologies, retractions and job losses, the pre-Independence Day column written for today has ceased to be.

Instead of reading this spaces usual drivel, youre on your own until further notice.

As the late Edward R. Murrow signed off newscasts, Good Night and Good Luck.

Dont know how Murrow and the CBS newsmen he assembled during/after World War II, including Troys Douglas Edwards, would handle social media, Instagram, Internet, YouTube, cell phones, lovers, truckers and thieves, ad nauseum, while ever-increasing coveys of moronic-aspiring twitters, from almost every walk of life, seemingly cant wait for their tweeters to leap into their cash registers.

Its sorta like Archie Campbells 1964 song, RinderCella, the youngest, prettiest sister who slopped her dripper.

Hard to believe, some of us baby bloomers(!) have long revisited the Summer of Love, aka 1967, while others continued happily motoring along, without looking back, attending class reunions and/or regretting mistakes made 50 summers ago.

Comedian Charlie Fleischer is credited by many for saying, If you can remember the 60s, you really werent there.

Maybe thats right for some; others of us with memories are extremely thankful for six magical words concerning the 60s: The statute of limitations has expired.

Whether and how well celebrate this July 4 aint decided, but on July 4, 1967, some 64 members of Enterprise High Schools Wildcat Marching Band celebrated involvement in the Summer of Love, in Chicago, where we represented Alabama at the 50th anniversary Lions International Convention.

Summer of Love seeds were sown in and around San Francisco in early January 67, and by summertime, more than 100,000 hippies, many festooned in vibrant paisleys, rallied at the Haight/Ashbury confluence, near where, in musically-magic 62, pre-Lady Gaga Tony Bennett had left his heart.

Long before 67s summers solstice, as it turned out, wed over-prepared afore boarding two chartered Greyhound buses for the 23.5-hour trip to Chicago; our contribution to the four-hour parade would be short and sweet.

Kris Holzapfel had provided, arguably, the highlight of our trip north when, unbeknownst to others, he sneaked a candy bar, Sessions Co. had given us, into the buss bathroom, where he stayed and stayed.

When Kris emerged, wed already noticed hed daubed chocolate specks all over his face before he suspiciously complained, ahem, about rough roads as we sped across rural Indiana and its historic Wabash River.

Simultaneously, some 50,000 Lions Club members from everywhere (thats the International part, Neal) had begun arriving in Chicago July 3, ready for numerous festivities, including the parade, which began on Michigan Avenue at Wacker Drive, and headed south some 14 blocks, ending at 9th Street.

Itd take this entire newspaper to rehash that unforgettable trip, but for 12 of us our leader, the late Bob McMillan, dubbed the Dixie Dozen, one day we played 17 venues, as the crow flies, throughout the Palmer House, Pick Congress and Conrad Hilton hotel convention venues.

Played Dixie every set and while strolling Michigan Avenue.

Since the 67 Lions gathering was the 50th, must mean thisuns the 100th and its in Chicago.

Wish now wed done what Ellwood and Jake Blues did, you know, get the band back together.

The convention runs through Tuesday.

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Let's get the band back together for Chicago trip - Dothan Eagle