"Coming Out of the Conservative Closet"

An extraordinary column by Elizabeth Nickson in today's National Post:

.... In any case, coming out as Christian or conservative is terrifying, as is, I'm certain, coming out as gay. You will be discriminated against. The crimes of the past will be held against you. Your income, unless you stick close to your kin, will be threatened. People will frown when they look at you. People will hate you without knowing you, they will call you names if you say anything, they will send you coruscating hate mail, you will suck it up. This will make you crazy and you will understand extremism because you'll see it in your own soul, called up from the depths by the hatred in which you are held.

The reason it will make you crazy is that so many things that need deep public discussion are ignored. Voting surveys for the past 30 years have identified that as many as 90% of all journalists are left-wing. This war, along with polarizing social life and opinion, has revealed that weakness in all its glory. If during the first weeks of the war, it was on the front page of the Globe or The New York Times, it was pretty much guaranteed not to be happening. Why were these stories not previously, exhaustively investigated: Saddam's insane brutality, and his decades of theft from the Iraqi people? The repulsive corruption of the Food for Oil program, the direction of which was personally overseen by only-I-can-confer-legitimacy Kofi Annan? The utter head up your ass-ness of Hans Blix inspection routine? Those with a clear choice voted with their feet. In the States, Fox News now has 4.52 viewers to CNN's 3.4. Hello?

There are many more conservatives in Canada than you would think, given most of our news sources. Intimidated by charges of racism, sexism, homophobia and fascism, they are silent. My gay friend told me Monday that three of his friends told him they were fed up by the left, hated being portrayed as victims by the press, and were turning right. Perhaps they can teach us a little about courage.

Lane Core Jr. CIW P — Sat. 04/26/03 11:03:17 AM
Categorized as Social/Cultural.