The Tyranny of Thought

"Racism is about power". We have heard this statement time and again. I've never really accepted this premise, as I view racism as an attitude. It seems to me that it really is about thinking. Thought by itself cannot lynch someone. That takes conscious action. Thought may inspire discrimination, but it is the actions, the act of denial (or undue acceptance) that is the substance.

There is something far worse than racism. Something that encompasses the worst elements of racism and expands them. Tyranny. Most notably in our modern world the tyranny of opinion and thought. A tyranny that declares "You can't think in any way that diverges from my belief". A tyranny that says "If you ask inconvenient questions you will be branded and castigated, declared unclean". A tyranny that stifles articulate debate and shutters the the mind of Man.

This tyranny has crippled our political process. It has rendered our once great University System a sad joke. It has created the monster that is Political Correctness with all of it's blind, sympathetic insensitivity.

We Humans are social animals. This is both a benefit and a curse. A benefit in that we can learn to love and create something greater than our individual selves. A curse in that that need can be used as a potent weapon of manipulation. It is a fearless person who will risk being shunned for speaking an unpleasant truth.

When newspaper columnists or caustic commenters blithely toss out accusations of racism because they disagree with an opinion, they are practicing tyranny. They wish to silence those voices raised in protest because they are not in harmony with a preconceived notion. They hate thought. To call such accusations scurrilous is futile. The accuser is nearly always immune to rational discourse. To ignore such accusations is ludicrous. If one has the courage to speak up, one should then have the fortitude for defense.

Honor is a concept, and insult is a thought expressed. No thought is real until action is taken on it's behalf. The tyranny of thought seeks to prevent action and enslave the mind. It is the worst form of oppression, and it is pure evil.