Politically Correct Bullying

By James Breckenridge. The 11 PM Final Newscandy on a local TV station had a report on a ‘racist incident’ at the Cloverdale Rodeo. The report included a police officer saying the police were investigating to determine if it was a ‘hate crime’.

The information we were given in the report was that the person claiming she was a victim of racism had gone to the Rodeo with a sign to protest the treatment of the animals involved in the Rodeo as cruelty to animals.

The short video we had was taken by the ‘victim’ with her cell phone and showed the ‘victim’ taunting someone who, one assumes from the context, expressed disagreement on the treatment of animals involved in a Rodeo.

The ‘victim’ repeatedly called upon the person she was videoing with her cell phone to “come on, hit me’.

The words uttered by the ‘victim’ contained no reference or statements about Rodeo being cruelty to the animals involved; just repeated taunts to “come on, hit me”.

The words and tone used by the ‘victim’ in taunting her ‘racist attacker’ appeared to have no purpose but to enrage the ‘racist attacker’ into attacking.

I love to read, I both like and am driven to write and my favoured comedy is George Carlin and Monty Python. If you managed to taunt me into a verbal attack I will take you apart with the skill and precision of a surgeon with a scalpel.

But most people taunted into a verbal attack are going to be using the verbal equivalent of a sledge hammer. You are a woman with a hairy chin – bearded lady; facial moles – wart face; overweight – fat f**k, fattie, sooooooie; distinctive racial characteristics – racial based insults.

Is using verbal references about fat against a fat person fatism? Is making a verbal attack on a fat person in public with people around inciting hatred of fat people and are you committing a hate crime? Is simply referring to the existence of people who are fat, fatism?

Is not the ‘victim’ guilty of racism for choosing to taunt and egg on a white person to the point the ‘racist’ white person made comments based on the ‘victims’ race? In light of the public reaction to the ‘racist’ did the ‘victim’ not, in singling out a white person to taunt until they lost control, invoke hate?

In ignoring that the cellphone video clearly showed the ‘victim’ taunting and egging on the ‘racist’ to assault the ‘victim’, ignoring the real possibility that this was all about the ‘victim’ getting her 15 minutes of fame, branding the person being taunted a racist and getting the police to speak of investigating whether it was a hate crime and then broadcasting the person’s face far and wide – did not the media incite hate of the ‘racist’? Did the media not also show a callous disregard for life and limb of the ‘racist’?

Racism is based in fear and ignorance. Having no use for fear or ignorance and having been gifted with immense curiosity by my parents I abhor racism.

I have no use for fear and ignorance, not simply because they give rise to racism, but because of all the other issues, problems and consequences they lead humans into.
And one of the aspects of ignorance, of choosing not to think, that I find particularly offensive is trivializing.

In taking an incident that is about human needs and human stupidity and running around like Chicken Little screaming “racism” and “hate crime” media trivialize both racism and hate crimes AND de-sensitize the public to racism and hate crimes.

Creating a growth medium for racism and hate.

Stardate: 90994.14

Sol III Date: 22/05/2013/16:13

Racism or PCB [Politically Correct Bullying]

Photo from Vancouver Sun Video