The purpose of Political Correctness

Recently, much has arisen to make me want to write. Two stand out in my mind, frankly. Firstly, our culture's mass cowardice regarding Mr. Hasan (whom I deliberately strip of rank, as befits a traitor and a murderer) and the continued folly of the Copenhagen summit. Both are cases of imprecision of language being enforced so as to prevent an informed public.



Firstly: Many Muslims state that their religion does not condone the murder of innocents. Many Muslims even have the same definition of "innocent" as Western Law. The truth remains, however, that Islam has very broad definitions of guilt. As an atheist, I find many religions amusing in their obsession over minor details. As a former Catholic, I know all about religious guilt. As a student of philosophy, and world religions, I can tell you that Islam is distinct. You see, other religions deal with politics in one of two ways: some variation of "render unto Caesar what is Caesar's", or to label it as an impediment to be overcome on the route to Paradise. Islam alone labels political victory as a precondition of universal salvation. As in, universal salvation will only exists when "universal" means that everyone is Muslim, or dhimmi (look it up).

So what does this have to do with language? It should be blindingly obvious. Our inability to express openly that Hasan's actions were deliberately linked to his religion makes us cowards. If a lunatic Christian were to shoot up a Base because of certain passages in Revelations, the world would spend weeks decrying Christianity. Media pundits would stare gravely into the camera and demand answers from the Pope. Fine. My turn.

Sheiks of Al-Azhar University in Cairo: I demand answers. Grand Ayatollahs of Iran: I demand answers. Why do so many break the law in the name of Allah? And if they are perverting your religions, what are you going to do to stop them? Dar Al-Islam is your house: clean it, or have it be condemned and razed by the families of victims. When it comes to Jihadism, your silence implies consent.


Secondly, the global ecological movement is playing a similar game. The science is settled, they say. Anyone who resists will be assimilated... I mean re-educated...I mean ignored as governments pass laws that no one voted on. The calls for eco-action are growing ever more urgent, and shrill. Has it occurred to no one that perhaps, before attempting something so massive as regulating the global climate, a few more years of study wouldnt be amiss? Don't get me wrong, pushing for tighter controls on known pollutants, and getting more energy efficient is not a bad thing. Enforcing a global theocracy in the name of debatable claims, however... Political correctness again prevents anyone from speaking the obvious: human existence takes priority over everything. The climate was permanently altered when the first human to build fire did so to stay warm. The Gates of Eden are shut, and no amount of self-flagellation or enforced suffering will open them again. Even if the environmentalists could prove that by privation and ascetic living, humanity could reconstruct a sylvan wonderland, I would say no. I would resist. Societal advancement has come at a cost, yes, but it remains advancement. If we were all bust foraging for our sustainable families in our eco-friendly huts, no one would have the time or ability to paint the Sistin Chapel. Rodin's Gates of Hell wouldn't evoke. Josh Groban's voice would be reserved for bellowing to other hunters that he found a particularly tasty patch of moss, or lamenting over friends lost to eminently preventable illness. Does it not seem odd that those living "closest to Gaia" are the ones trying hardest to rise above? Tell an impoverished Swahili tribesman that his life is superior to Average Joe in Anywhere, Ontario. Tell the Chinese peasant that his sweat and misery are sacred. Tell the Rickshaw cabbie in Thailand that Al Gore envies him. They will do what they always do; shake their heads at the madness of Westerners, and go back to trying to make the world a better place for his family.

The Gates of Eden are shut. Dry your eyes, and see a world that can be a better Paradise. Then get to work.