I am about to click the button and leave Facebook forever. I have spent four years trying to be non-political on there and my “friends” finally tipped me over the edge. I knew I had to leave there, but I decided to let them have it on my way out. Here is my final post. I am sure once I’m gone I’ll regain my balance and see other views as contributory and part of the balance once again. But right now, the media abuses in this country and the left’s overall tactics of shutting down any opinion they don’t agree with has pushed me temporarily out of my calm zone:
On my way out. Thoughts to leave you with: Stalin and Hitler controlled the media and it’s the LEFT in this country controlling the narrative. And no objective reporting. That alone should give you pause. But they are actually lying. In the best face on it, they omit half the story. Matt Taibbi, contributing editor to Rolling Stone, reports this accurately. And he’s a Democrat no Donald Trump fan. He stops short of calling what’s happened here worse than Watergate, yet it is. See his courageous post.
Not to mention, the hypocrisy of the left on the Me Too Movement, gathering in crowds, using foreign powers to take down a political opponent? You must be kidding. I’ll leave you with more thought on free speech and critical thinking. The left’s modus operandi is to censor and shut down any idea they don’t like. Or contradicts their narrative. It started with Climate Change. Now I’m a conservationist and I live off the grid, and we should do all we can–I’m passionate about it, but this is a prime example. Let’s leave out that scientists can’t even project what this virus will do, let alone have accounted for all the variables in the universe– it isn’t even about who is right or wrong. It’s about their tactics. Anyone who disagrees with them must be shut down and destroyed. Scientists who did disagree have been fired. Silenced. In newspapers, on tv, on campuses, you name it. It’s “settled science” and anyone who might not believe this 100% is demonized with this moral signalling that is appalling. How many times have scientists been wrong?? But it’s brilliant politics and emotional.
And that is how they approach everything now. There is no debate. Our college campuses are no longer places of free exchange of ideas–conservative students and the few teachers there are (I know–I was an adjunct professor) are attacked in brutal and various ways. Conservatives are not allowed to speak on campuses. Literary publications at these universities will excommunicate you. Editors will unfriend you and refuse to even respond to you once they know you aren’t a far leftist. It happened to me after I was published at Wayne State. They will publish only one political viewpoint even though they are publicly funded.
I propose conservatives and independents and libertarians (civil libertarians of all sorts) keep their children out of any public university that doesn’t advance and promote free speech. I propose we simply stop paying, America. Don’t support universities, Hollywood, and certainly no newspaper that has no journalistic integrity. You should know that if you’re watching CNN or MSNBC you are being lied to nightly. And important information is omitted. There are editorialists on Fox News, but you will also hear objective reporting from Chris Wallace, Brett Baier, Neil Cavuto. Howie Curtz (sp). Juan Williams is on the Five and many other contributors. They present it all.
The left has become the ends justifies the means party — everything is fair to advance their globalist collectivist goals because they know what is morally correct. ONLY THEY KNOW. And they will listen to no opinion other than theirs. Snowflakes on universities must be protected from any idea they don’t like. It’s “hate speech.” They are not required to defend any position with logic, they must have safe spaces where their world cannot be jarred in any way. That is not the purpose of higher education. And in fact, it is NOT higher education.
And I am not proposing they be silenced. I would fight as hard against that.
This police thing is out of control. Chauvin does not represent the average officer. And justice is prevailing in his case. So hurting innocent people and property is not necessary. We voted twice for a black man. Most black perpetrators are shot by black or minority officers. And this is far from the genocide the left is using–again to get rid of Donald Trump. Those numbers they site of twice more likely is not accurate since there are way more than 14% minorities in inner cities where most of this takes place. Can things improve? Yes. Should we disband police departments? No. And here is one small suggestion: don’t break the law people. Don’t take drugs and get addicted to substances and pass phony money no matter what color you are–and there are plenty of white people doing this and being killed. The police need to do things properly and they need to get cameras on it. Chauvin was out of line if there is no other information and he’s being prosecuted, but everybody bears responsibility for their actions. Or nobody is responsible. If it’s determinism, and we are all a product of our environment then there is no hope for anyone. We’re all victims. I’m a mixed philosopher. We have some control over things so the police can do better and people like Floyd can do better, too. He’s not a saint. Or a martyr.
But of all t he things going on here, the media is the most worrisome. What’s gone on here the last four years is way more problematic than one president could ever be. And this shutting down of dialogue..So as I go, I’ll leave you with one more suggestion that you read Matt Taibbi. It’s the most important issue here of our time.
I pray for peace and I wish you well, but after being attacked full time on here by my leftist friends, I don’t hold out much hope for it. Take care.
And I’m gone from that place. I sigh a sigh of infinite relief.
Happy Sunday, folks. I’m sure my generosity of spirit will return soon if not faced with idiocy and thoughtlessness every day on that platform.
L.E.K. 
I know how you feel about Facebook and unfortunately it is a breeding ground of everything troubling and annoying. It is also great for lighter things when you can take them lightly (sometimes I can’t either so I turn it off for awhile or when some particulars family member is driving me insane) I had found it dreadful for my poetry and stuff because I am posting in front of people who didn’t even know I wrote poetry or family etc but lately I’ve been climbing out of other people’s boxes and turning down the volume of my self consciousness. It is very freeing. Reading a great book that another blogger put me onto 12 Rules of Life by Jordan Peterson. I love his quote “you must say what you think or you kill your unborn self” it is so bloody true. Every time I read it I’m even more sure of that. Say exactly what you think and be who you are Lynn – I love reading your posts and always enjoy your thoughtful comments on my blog. Have a lovely week and enjoy some Facebook free time – when you come back find my page so I can chat to you over there too 😊
What a lovely comment, Kate! And more of what I needed right now. Facebook functions completely differently than WordPress and lends itself to thoughtless, cruel, annoying posts. I think it’s great to share pictures and keep in touch, but it’s being abused. And of course, the big tech companies are starting to censor things — as well as they claim algorithms or some such thing do some of it. The Arbiters of Truth they are going to be. Right.
I love Jordan Peterson. I first found him when he was talking about feeling so much better on the Carnivore diet. And I’ve seen him interviewed on Joe Rogan. But that is a particularly nice quote. I will order his book! A synchronistic moment. Thank you.
I see one of my friends is writing me a big letter. He’s a dear friend, a writer, and black. I hope I made it clear enough how despicable we all found Chauvin’s behavior. Keith is a great guy and good friend, so I doubt he’ll stop loving me. He was one of the cherished friends at my book launch. And I don’t want to seem insensitive. But I really don’t believe we are systemically racist anymore. I think most people are better than that, though I have no doubt it has not been easy for them.
But you know, I got a better reception after being totally myself than I expected to. It’s not that my friends don’t know my politics — they do. It’s just that I have always avoided politics since that venue is so bad for it. But they finally put anyone who didn’t see it like them into the basket of “deplorables” — when most people’s views are nuanced and complicated–.and I just blew. I at least understand that liberals come to their views out of place of compassion and a good heart (not the politicians, but the people). Even if they seem so illogical to me and child-like (child-ISH at times, trying to make people be quiet). And I always thought it was about a balance. But now that they are into shutting down other views like this–the snowflake mentality and “safe spaces” –(right??), it’s been getting to me more. I care more about freedom of speech than any other thing–and the concept of debate –and that is most at stake right now. Journalism is dead and when I was teaching at a pretty conservative university (I taught argument papers as one of the freshman English assignments), I was still attacked –for wanting the university to take NO political view. The English Dept. was brutal.
I got more support than I got people yelling at me, though. Just now on facebook. Got support from people whose views I didn’t know — they were quiet, too. 🙂 A bit surprising. I doubt I would have talked more on that venue than I did, though, just because I am so against those jabbing posts, and I wouldn’t want to write out careful ones on that topic all the time. Or respond to their posts in the knee-jerk way they posted them in the first place. I’ll do better off it, though promoting my work will be problematic no doubt.
But I need to do better in my own skin. So I will buy Jordan’s book for my kindle right now! (And maybe finish your short stories–I’ve lost some focus since I was feeling under the weather. That will make me smile.)
Thanks, Kate.
Your thoughts are in complete alignment with mine, Lynn. We are birds of a feather………and I also deleted my Facebook account a month ago. Though they hold it for 30 days before actually deleting.
About the controlled universities, I read years ago that they wouldn’t fund creationist scientist, but the opposite thinkers yes.
Thanks, Len, and Wanda. It’s brutal out there and it’s so terrible that the left is using this to divide us. It’s not constructive. And too bad that idiot cop set us back five years in racial harmony. Just a shame.