Mamamontezz's Mental Rumpus Room

Regarding Censorship: Kerry's Latest Insult to Vets

Before I left for work today, the headline and developing story at Drudge was probably one of the most frightening things I've seen in a longtime. As scared as some folks are about the Patriot act, this causes me much more concern. Members of the Democrat National Committee are attempting to have a book banned because the content of this book is detrimental to the election campaign of their candidate, John Kerry.

This isn't some group of overanxious parents trying to protect their children from our history as presented by Mark Twain. This isn't some church group asking the library board to prohibit children from reading Salinger. Nor is it a community asking for internet filters in libraries.

Today a political party is attempting to silence a group of citizens who espouse and present an alternate political opinion and an alternate version of facts as pertain to a seminal series of events surrounding their presidential candidate. Because character assassination against members of this opposing group has failed, they now attempt to silence them by demanding that their book be banned and their 527C status revoked.

This is an extremely dangerous precipice on which we find ourselves poised. What happens during the next several days could be very telling about where we are as a nation.

Will we allow a group of citizens to be silenced because of a dissenting opinion? Will such guardians of Civil Liberties as the ACLU avail themselves of this group of citizens, or will they allow their prejudices and obvious historical political affiliations to override their reason for existence? Will we as a thoughtful, informed and intelligent citizenry demand that such attempts at political censure be seen as what they truly are, as direct attacks on our constitution?

I'm afraid there are more questions than answers at this point. But from what I have seen before, if past experience is any indicator of what to expect, there will be no outrage from those who generally hide behind the petticoats of the first amendment. The press will not speak out, nor will the "main stream" broadcast or cable media. Those who do speak out against this censorship will be labeled as ideologues or reactionaries.

No one will remember the tremendous hue and cry against Mel Gibson personally or against his movie. No one will remember the organized attempts by action groups to stop production of his film, or to have his film banned by theater chains. Every reporter, pundit, editorialist and journalist, however, will point out any slight or criticism of Michael Moore's fantasy, real or imagined, and declare them the equivalent of what is now being directed at these naval veterans.

But we know better, don't we?