The Left Threatens Freedom

There was an amazing exchange on Capitol Hill yesterday that deserves much more attention than it is receiving.

California Congressman Eric Swalwell of Fang Fang fame was questioning a witness during a hearing about corporate efforts to censor and silence conservative voices online and on social media. And, as leftists are prone to do, Swalwell attempted to bully and shame the witness.

Swalwell demanded to know the witness’s views on same-sex marriage and if he believed that homosexuality was a sin. Unfortunately for Swalwell, the witness was Ben Shapiro.

Not only is Shapiro an Orthodox Jew, he is very sharp. Swalwell’s attempt to publicly belittle Shapiro backfired spectacularly.

But aside from Swalwell becoming the comedic relief at the hearing, his line of questioning should outrage every freedom-loving America.

At a hearing on combating censorship, Swalwell launched a direct attack on the First Amendment freedoms of religious liberty and free speech! He was attempting to stigmatize traditional religious and conservative beliefs as something “unacceptable” and “unspeakable.”

And once the left labels something as “unacceptable” or “hate speech” – such as believing that abortion or homosexual acts are sins – it’s not a big leap to suggest that organizations, including churches, that share those beliefs should not receive tax exemptions.

This effort to demonize mainstream conservative thought is a key component of the left’s strategy. It invariably leads to censorship of whatever the left determines to be “wrongthink” and it leads to the totalitarian enforcement of “groupthink.” That’s what the whole concept of “intersectionality” is all about – silencing dissent and enforcing groupthink conformity.

Sadly, this is happening in virtually every Western country, including our NATO allies.

Remember how Justin Trudeau crushed critics of his oppressive COVID regime?  He invoked emergency powers and debanked truckers trying to feed their families. Hate speech laws undermining free speech and religious liberty are everywhere in Europe.

The more the left shouts about “saving democracy,” the more they threaten it by trying to silence the very beliefs that are the basis of Western Civilization.

They tell us we must go to war to defend Western Civilization, while they are trying to rip out the foundation of Western Civilization. And they wonder why their militaries are having recruiting problems.

Good luck recruiting at abortion clinics and gay bars!