Dear Media: It's Called Terrorism

The Planned Parenthood shooting yesterday is creating a source of confusion for the media; at least for those who are afraid to discuss a terrorist event by an American and call it by its name. The media seems to sincerely not understand the meaning of the word. And their confusion is severely hampered by their own inability to understand that a terrorist act can, in fact, be committed by a person who has white skin or is not a Muslim.

This morning I was not surprised to hear their all too familiar narrative while they compel the audience to believe that our most recent terrorist suffers from mental health issues, the same diagnosis members of the American media are happy to attribute to all white men with guns. I ask my thoughtful readership to spend a single moment understanding that this supposition only supports the exact distraction the NRA offers as contradiction to any reasoned discourse about gun violence for each of our countless mass shootings every month. One would think a liberal media would want to counter their nonsensical talking points. Of course, one would have to first be ignorant enough to believe that a liberal media exists.

The other gift the media are offering the least among us is the question of motive in yesterdays terrorist act. Every channel I watched this morning asked me to believe that the police were still investigating motive. Huh. Well, considering the fact that even the Regressive Party leaders are allowed to make up completely wild and baseless claims about Planned Parenthood during Presidential debates without being countered, any rational human being would not need to spend time on what motivated the terrorism.

For those incapable of rational thinking: The terrorist was motivated by a media which allows false and hateful narrative to permeate our air. The terrorist was motivated by a society which allows the truths about abortion rights and providers to be completely countered by narrow and meaningless distractions. The terrorist was motivated by Regressive Party 'leaders' who perpetuate the lies they need to put into the community in order to stir up mindless and hateful pieces of shit to vote for them.

2015 has seen an unparalleled assault on Planned Parenthood by the Regressive Party. A group hired by the least among us (with the most money) to find and create negative stories about their opponents made videos to compel those who can't be bothered to think for themselves to believe that Planned Parenthood exists to murder babies and sell baby parts. The media has been quite eager to cover these videos because of their tabloidesque value, but they have not been remotely interested in offering their audience thoughtful discourse about the obviously ridiculous contentions.

Because our media is unwilling to report to Americans the truths behind terrorist acts in our country, it has become the job of intelligent citizens to inform them. I compel you, please do not take this responsibility lightly. It is an overwhelming request, I realize this. But the only way people are going to reason through rhetoric is for us to create the meaningful conversations those around us are not finding elsewhere. Imagine how many people heard Uncle Cletus rail against Planned Parenthood this week at the Thanksgiving dinner table. His audience was held captive by a fear of ruining grandma's day. Think of the countless people who hear the hate the RWNJs project in their workplaces but are not corrected because decorum dictates rational human beings not discuss such matters in that environment. Those within earshot will then only hear what the Regressive Party wants them to hear. Every opportunity missed to create thoughtful dialogue strengthens the objectives of those who mean to destroy our country.

If anyone bothers to ever report it to us, it is imperative that we remind all around us about the victims of yesterday's terrorist act. There were certainly women there who were seeking pre-natal care. Or looking to get birth control. Or a pap smear. Or a breast exam. Or treatment for countless maladies that are exclusive to women. It is important for us to then remind everyone that Planned Parenthood is an essential part of every community because of the services it provides to women.

Lawmakers and dissenters pretend as if we can go anywhere at all to get these services. Ohio Regressive leaders, after having killed Planned Parenthood funding in the state, have offered women a list of places we can get our care instead: School nurses, food banks, dentists, and senior centers. It is as if they believe a woman goes for gynecological care to receive a tickle and a slap on the ass. Women's health care is complex. And the recommendations of our lawmakers proves that they have no understanding of that fact. Their need to maintain dominance and dictate the means by which a woman plans her family is enough reason for them to work tirelessly to take away the services Planned Parenthood provides. It is your job to make those around you understand that. I beg you to take it seriously. I promise those on the right do little else with their time.

My only resolution at this time is for thoughtful Americans to become the media. Speak the truths about terrorism and Planned Parenthood beyond those in the left-leaning groups you are members of. The people who agree with you don't need to be convinced of anything. Those who are not paying attention enough to discern causation or motivation are the people we need to be spending our time on. Become their media. Become the rational voice they need to hear the truths no one else seems to be interested in giving them. We might not have a billion dollars to create our own campaign like the Koch blockers, but we have truth. Don't let it go to waste, I implore you.

Kiss Kiss.
Mean Progressive



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Extreme Political Views

Some months ago, when the Pam Geller inspired shooting happened in Texas, I wrote a blog post about the many terrorist acts in America since 9/11. Not surprisingly (to those not desperate to live in an alternate reality), the overwhelming majority of those attacks have been tracked to right-wing hate groups or those who follow right-wing 'media.' Then last month I did a piece for my Dear Media: series about the fact that we are never informed of the terrorists who don't meet the very narrow definition of the terrorists we want to believe in. As I wrote both I felt like my writing was irrelevant. And both times, I was pretty much right.

The same week as I wrote my Dear Media piece last month, we had the tragic massacre in South Carolina. Again, no one told us that the killer was a terrorist. The media literally tripped all over themselves to determine whether or not he was a terrorist because it seemed like maybe he was, but they didn't want to be too hasty in assigning labels.

When we, as a society, are desperate to tell ourselves that we live in a post-racial era, we ignore racism to feed our need to hold onto our irrational and childlike fantasies. We do the same thing when we see repeated acts of terrorism and allow them to be called anything else. When the terrorist is a white man he is, undoubtedly, suffering from mental health issues. He is always a lone wolf, as well. It is curious that the shooter who killed 5 Marines one week ago suffered from documented mental health issues but very few outlets reported that information. The obvious correlations to his family having come from Kuwait were identified almost immediately and since then we have only been offered supposition based on where he really visited while he was in the Middle East last year.

We will never find a way to stop these events from happening if we limit our definition of a terrorist as one who comes from another country or worships another God. Earlier this month a white man from Tennessee was let out of jail after having been arrested plotting a massacre of Muslims in New York state with an undercover FBI agent and others. The judge determined that,"(The government) has not shown by clear and convincing evidence defendant's release would pose an unreasonable danger to the community or any particular individual," even after his own attorneys admitted he posed a genuine threat. Lest there be any confusion as to how extreme his plans were, these were his recorded words:

“When we meet in this state, the people we seek will know who we are. We will be cruel to them, and we will burn down their buildings. If anyone attempts to harm us in any way, our stand gunner will take them down from 350 yards away. The standoff gunner would be me.”

Last night another white man who has been inspired by right-wing rhetoric attempted a mass killing. He was able to kill 2 women and injure 9 others then eventually killed himself when the completion of his plot had been foiled. We were immediately informed by the media of his mental health diagnoses. I have yet to hear a major media outlet tell us about his political views, however. I have heard that he was 'extremely political.' I have heard that he had 'radical political views.' But no one has explained what those views are. Sadly, as with our desire to really just not know about racism and gun violence, no one wants to hear about where these ideas are bred, manipulated and disseminated throughout our society.

Here we see that he was in a Facebook group called "I Hate Liberals." I will quickly admit I am in a Facebook group called "I Hate Republicans." I will then advise that I have never heard of a flaming Liberal committing extreme violence in defense of or because of their views. If anyone sends me information, I will update and cite right here, I promise.

In the Raw Story article here, we learn that he had very extreme views of the US Government and the fears which are presently being offered by the right-wing radio hosts like Michael Savage, Alex Jones and the like. Below he said that death is soon coming on the 'financially failing filth farm called the US." When people can ask themselves the question, "How will we be able to identify those with extreme views before they commit such atrocities," but then refuse to answer the question with something along the lines of, "They are all listening to the same constant drone of hateful rhetoric," we will continue to allow our citizens to be taken out, one by one or two by two, by those whose hatred is fed in these protected institutions of right-wing hate and propaganda.

 Of course, those who are willing to believe and follow these spin doctors tell themselves that those on the left hate America. This came just one week before he determined that we were living in a 'filth farm' which deserved to soon die. I will gladly assume that the people who passionately follow the hate on the right are suffering from mental health issues. I don't say that to be mean. I suffer from some pretty profound issues, myself (of course, my personality points inward instead of out; a clear difference between left and right). If you can be led to believe in myriad conspiracies passed around and find your way to a place where you think that random people should die and further justify your own right to kill them, you are not in the right frame of mind, regardless of your national origin or your religion.

Until American society embraces the actual definition of terrorist and allows themselves to see that the same talking points Isis are offering to those who join them are those dog whistles (if only using different words) being sent out by our right-wing propagandists while instilling similar fears, we will continue to have no way of dealing with these issues because we refuse to answer the questions we are asking ourselves.

What an absolute clusterfuck we allow ourselves to endure instead of admitting our own complicity and tolerance of what we create.

The Least Among Us

I spend a lot of my time pissed off about the fact that teabaggers are so easily duped. The shit they believe is impossible for me to comprehend anyone taking seriously. But the thing that is worse, to me, is that this is deliberate. There are a lot of radio, internet and television talking heads that they listen to religiously. And every message they get is to be afraid. "Our country is under attack. Our way of life is under attack." They totally believe it. Obama is going to take all of their rights away. They are threatened by Muslims, and gays and immigrants and all people of color. They have been convinced that all of these people, in one way or another, are trying to take away their rights. And the worst of them project a violent rage toward all of those who they were programmed to hate. It is terrifying.

Everyone has heard of Rush Limbaugh and the Fox cable entertainment channel. But there are so many more voices that they get their hateful messages from. A lot of them, believe it or not, get messages of hate from their church. I researched a blog I did last month and the pastor of a mega-church here in town was condemning Muslims and the poor. He was supporting the hateful rhetoric they hear all week on the radio. And another pastor, quite literally, told his congregation that he hates the President, prays for his death, and called his mother a whore. (See Here) This conglomerate have been able to successfully brainwash an entire political movement.

It sounds dramatic, right? Angie, you are exaggerating. Ok. I tell you what ... I will offer you a handful of stories here and I want you to imagine anyone on the left doing it. Ever. We have assholes who will throw paint on someone wearing a fur coat, but we don't have anyone who decides the answer to any fears they have about their political or religious views is violence. Or worse.

In March of this year, a man in Georgia planted a bomb in a public park in an attempt to make the community aware of the Muslim threat he believed the country was under. He demanded that "No one is paying attention to what is going on in the world." This self-professed "Patriot" put the bomb in a backpack and added some Muslim memorabilia, a copy of the Quran and a map of the Jewish Community Center of Atlanta. He literally picked out a name that he thought sounded foreign and put it in the back pack. All items were meant to be evidence, after the pending explosion, of a Muslim performing a terrorist attack. Please understand. The bombs in the backpack were real. He left them at a national park. Anyone could have picked that up and been blown up. And once arrested, what was he charged with? Terrorism? Nope. He's a white man. It was probably just a mental issue. He was charged with: an attempt to damage or destroy by means of an explosive property owned by the United States of America.

Also in March, a man in New Orleans went to the airport with a duffel bag carrying a machete, six homemade explosives and poison spray. He sprayed two TSA officers in the face with the poison and then chased another with the machete. He was eventually shot and killed and when they searched his car they found more chemicals to make explosives. The TSA are targets for hate by two right-wing radio personalities, Alex Jones and Glenn Beck. Beck actually tells his listeners that he believes the TSA are working for the President as his "secret army." And he has an audience. Again, its more than my mind can embrace. This man who attacked with explosives and a machete, based on irrational fear, was also determined not to have been a terrorist. He, too, was white. He, too, they said, probably had mental health issues.

In August, 2012, a Wisconsin man shot and killed six and injured four at a Sikh temple. His hate was so ignorant and lazy that he didn't know the difference between Sikhs and Muslims. He was a white supremacist and in a neo-Nazi band. He had been telling friends that a holy war was coming. I found no mention of his having a mental problem, but he lost all of his jobs for a drinking problem. Had he not killed himself that day, I'm sure that would've been his defense.

In September, 2012, a Virginia man killed himself and his family. He as afraid that President Obama was going to be re-elected. He worked as a defense contractor and was sure that, if re-elected, President Obama would cut defense spending. So, out of that fear, one Sunday after church, he shot his wife and two sons and then himself, rather than face whatever world would be created by a second Obama term. Information was released to state that he suffered from mental health issue, as well.

In June, 2014, a couple, Jerad and Amanda Miller, who were big fans of right wing radio host Alex Jones, went on a shooting spree. They had expressed a lot of anti-government rhetoric and hatred for authority. They managed to kill two police officers, throwing a Tea Party flag and Nazi swastika on their dead bodies and then killed another person before they were finally killed.

Per the Southern Poverty Law Center, in the last six years right-wing hate groups, militias who call themselves "Patriots," have killed 63 people. These groups are literally convinced that America is under attack and it is their duty to protect her. Meanwhile, they are the terrorists. They are the ones who are wreaking havoc. Out of fear and hate they rally around a flag and a right to bear arms and terrorize whomever they deem a threat. And it seems like the list of those who are threatening them gets longer and longer.

So last night in Texas a group of redneck tebagging trash held a cartoon drawing event, arranged by a woman named Pamela Gellar. When I heard this was her event I nearly lost my  mind. A lot of the moron trolls on Twitter cite her or send you a link to some absolutely unbelievable lie. She is so outrageous that I literally sent her a message last month and asked her how she sleeps at night with all of the fear she is deliberately trying to instill in others. And she arranged an event in Texas for people to draw pictures of Mohammad. It is an Islamic rule that no depiction of their prophet ever be made. She decided this would be a good idea to have a celebration of their freedom of speech and said it was inspired by the Charlie Hebdo massacre.

In January she had a rally to protest a Muslim leadership conference in the same town as last nights shooting, Garland, Texas. She told the group that they were coming to take away Americans freedom of speech. You can go here to see her rally in January. It is a little funny. Or a lot. She is literally telling them what to say to the media. She told her audience that they are soldiers in the battle for America. Because..yeah. And, finally she reminded them to be righteous and not to embarrass the movement.

She was OBVIOUSLY trying to start trouble last night. She even had the police there ready to catch the terrorists when they showed up. Fox (not) News interviewed a woman who said, "our way of life is under attack." She thought the event was a great idea to show off their freedom of speech. Now, please understand, this entire event was a reaction to Muslims in Texas having a leadership conference in January.

Apparently when the shooting happened, an officer entered the center where this event was going on and informed the guests that there was an active shooting. The group inside literally started singing "God Bless America" in unity and then they began to pray together. Close your eyes. No. I'm not kidding. Close your eyes. Envision people under a shooting attack that they deliberately incited are huddled together singing "God Bless America" and praying together. Have a moment with that vision. What did you just see? Right! They are as brainwashed as a real cult. (Of course, Fox (not) News pointed out that it was a patriotic display of the true "spirit of freedom of speech").

The Fox host interviewed Pamela Gellar and asked her if she ever considered that this event was a bad idea? She was off-put by his question and snapped back, "What should I do? Abridge my freedoms so as to not offend savages?" She then went on to remind Americans that, "This is the new normal," in our country. This bitch wanted something like this to happen. She said it was in response to the Charlie Hebdo event in January. That event was VERY different. They printed a magazine to show their speech because they had been threatened. The magazine had received a threat and they were standing up to bullies. No one had sent a threat to this group in Texas. They created their own imagined threat because a Muslim leadership conference was in their town. They have been brainwashed to believe that Muslims are coming for them and a holy war is on the way. This is literally a reaction to a fear they were instilled with. They baited the shooters. And they willingly put their own lives on the line in hopes that this might happen.

The next time anyone drones on and on about terrorists, remind them that we have had more Christian terrorist incidents since 9/11 than Muslim. In the last 20 Years 4700 acts of clinic violence were perpetrated against abortion clinics in the USA by "Christians." They are the ones creating all of the hate in our society. And they are too stupid to realize it. And, sadly, we are stuck with them.



HateGroups(See Here)