September 6, 2020
MY CORNER by Boyd
Cathey
Cancel Culture and the
Religious Origins of the Revolution in the Streets
Friends,
These violent times in which we live are in some ways
unparalleled. Various writers and commentators have attempted to describe them.
In many cases, these authors reach back into history for analogies or parallels.
But ongoing history never offers the same event repeated exactly.
Of course, the riots of 1968, ostensibly over the Vietnam War,
figure in these historical comparisons. And on a literary level, we recall the
works of George Orwell on the growth and results of totalitarian Communism and
collectivism (Nineteen-Eighty-Four
and Animal Farm) or the late Jean
Raspail on the very real peril of mass immigration which would overwhelm our
civilization (The Camp of the Saints,
1975 and 1995). And there are other examples, especially on the infiltration
and perversion of academia and of our entertainment industry, which come to
mind.
But none of these literary classics or historical analogies
can measure or describe fully what we are witnessing today. It is unique.
A work—a film—that I own came to mind recently, and in so many
ways I think it encapsulates as no other artistic or literary work has the
period we are passing through. No, I am not thinking of the riots and the
looting: they are, I would suggest, a derivative, a by-product of the mentality
that reigns today nearly everywhere, in our politics, in our media, in
entertainment, and most particularly in that most critical element of society
(and its continuance), education. There are reasons behind those frenzied and
unhinged “mostly peaceful” demonstrations, and those reasons are not just the
financial largesse of a George Soros or of Hollywood and Silicon Valley mega-millionaire
elites.
That movie is a Russian opus, Burnt by the Sun (1994), directed by the Russian anti-Communist
(and monarchist) Nikita Mikhalkov. It is set in 1936 more or less at the height
of the Stalinist purges, and its main character is Comrade Sergei Kotov, a
devout Communist, a hero of the Russian Civil War, an “Old Bolshevik.” But
Kotov commits one small error: as Soviet tanks on maneuver are about to trample
the wheat fields that belong to the local village collective, with his senior
status in the Party he orders them to halt. A family friend, Mitya, arrives;
Mitya is working with the Soviet secret police, the NKVD, and because of Sergei’s
action he arrests him on a trumped up charge of treason. A black car with NKVD
agents arrives and whisks him away. He is forced—indeed, does so willingly in
the name of the party and the ideals of Communism—to confess to his “crime” and
is executed.
Comrade Kotov’s mental attitude is indeed very much like that
of our modern-day revolutionaries. If monuments to Frederick Douglass and the Abolitionists
are now defined as “racist,” then they must go, they must be brought down (not
to mention those to Robert E. Lee or other Confederates). If a textbook says
faintly favorable things about Columbus (or Fray Junipero Serra), then it must
be banned or purged. And, thus, the film Gone
with the Wind and perhaps any number of John Wayne movies need to be
removed from view, or at least contextualized.
The sweep of this destructive vision is immense. It shapes and
determines the mindset of millions, bending them to its will, even for those
who were entrusted ostensibly with the very defense of our civilization. They
cower in silence or fear, if not going along with the Revolution.
This vision, as Mikhalkov underlines in Burnt by the Sun, is motivated essentially by a type of religious fanaticism, a kind of
Anti-Christianity, with its own emblematic symbols, sacred teachings, parables,
saints (and sinners), a confessional (and repentance) system, and accompanying manufactured
history. In that sense, it mirrors in a very
dark and evil way the traditional faith which for two millennia has informed
and annealed our civilization. It is that civilization—our Western and
Christian civilization—which is the target, and no manner of half-measures on
the part of our supposed conservative opposition can stem or defeat it.
In previous essays I have called those who now rampage not
just in the streets but intellectually and culturally, “Insaniacs,” that is,
those possessed—and that indeed is the proper word—of an outlook and vision that
is antithetical to the traditions and heritage of our civilization, the
opposite of “normal.” They are to quote G. K. Chesterton, “insane,” in the
sense that they reject the living reality and foundations of our history. They
are thus outside reality. They feverishly attempt to create a new “reality”
which is disconnected from the laws of Nature and the past, and owes almost
nothing to two-thousand years of Christian tradition. They are driven by an
all-consuming madness—it is impossible to reason with them, it is impossible to
compromise with them. No act, immoral or vicious as it may be, is beyond their
use in their quest to destroy. Everyone, including their own adepts, must bend
to the will of the Insanity. For it is a new paradigm, a new religion far more
insistent, demanding and dogmatic than any church of the past.
Just like
Sergei Kotov, very recently a major left wing political activist (devoted to
rooting out racist “imperialism and colonialism”), Jessica Krug, a professor of African-American
Studies at The George Washington University (Washington, DC), came clean. For
years she had claimed that she was black, but now blubbering, she admitted her
“sin”—Krug confessed that it was all a lie: she is actually white and Jewish.
She had been prevaricating for years: “I am not a culture vulture. I am a culture leech,” Krug wrote tearfully.
“I have thought about ending these lies many times over many years, but my
cowardice was always more powerful than my ethics.” She continues: “You
should absolutely cancel me, and I absolutely cancel myself.”
At first it was her zealous desire for this
new form of “salvation” (and possible advancement)—she would become black or a
minority, which in the new religion is equivalent to a kind of reserved
sainthood, a special and elevated place of predilection for the Elect. But now,
recognizing her immense “sin” against the new faith, comes her abject
“confession” and public announcement about engaging in multiple lies, her
guilt, which like Kotov and any number of those Bolsheviks shot in 1936-1937, she
accepts with the same zeal as those victims of Stalin’s purge exhibited as
faithful and illustrious party members.
“You should absolutely cancel me, and I
absolutely cancel myself,” she cries, perhaps seeking some form of expiation.
But unlike in traditional Christianity, with its loving and forgiving God, Krug
may not get forgiveness from her progressivist allies.
She illustrates in a certain very disturbing
manner what we face: it is not just unchained violence and looting in the
streets—it is not just an unhinged anti-Trumpism politically in the media or in
academia—it is not even just the hysterical hatred by our defecated elites. In
a way Krug is emblematic of the age-old spiritual war between the Children of
Faith, the inheritors of our civilization and culture entrusted to them by
their ancestors, and those programmed minions, those dark demiurges out of Hell
itself who answer not to God but to the Evil One.
This, then, is the conflict we find
ourselves in, and just like our Crusading ancestors we must answer the Call.
Failing that, we shall perish and future generations will curse our names.
*****
I pass on an article about Jessica Krug’s
lies and deception, plus a piece on the purging of non-Progressivist academics
and professionals. Be afraid, be very afraid…then prayerfully suit up the armor
of the Crusaders and go forth chanting: “Christus vincit! Christus regnat!
Christus regnat!” – Christ conquers – Christ reigns – Christ commands!
‘Black’ professor admits she is actually white in self-published
essay
ELYSE WANSHEL Sep 4th 2020
8:59AM
A history professor and political activist at The George
Washington University has publicly admitted that she is actually white and
Jewish — despite claiming to be Black for years.
Jessica A. Krug — whose areas of expertise include “African
American history” and “imperialism and colonialism” — came clean in a
self-published essay titled “The Truth, and the Anti-Black Violence of My Lies”
on Medium published
Thursday. In the confessional piece, Krug said that she has deceived friends
and colleagues by falsely claiming several identities like “North African
Blackness, then US rooted Blackness, then Caribbean rooted Bronx Blackness” for
“the better part of my adult life.”
“I am not a culture vulture. I am a culture leech,” Krug
wrote. “I have thought about ending these lies many times over many years, but
my cowardice was always more powerful than my ethics.”
Krug continued: “You should absolutely cancel me, and
I absolutely cancel myself.”
A representative of The George Washington University,
located in Washington, D.C., told HuffPost in an email, “We are aware of the
post and are looking into the situation. We cannot comment further on personnel
matters.”
HuffPost reached out to Krug but did not receive an
immediate response.
In her essay, Krug said that she’s been battling
“unaddressed mental health demons” for most of her life and began assuming a
false identity as a child.
“But mental health issues can never, will never, neither
explain nor justify, neither condone nor excuse, that, in spite of knowing and
regularly critiquing any and every non-Black person who appropriates from Black
people, my false identity was crafted entirely from the fabric of Black lives,”
she wrote.
Krug has been teaching classes such as “Topics in African
History “ and “Africa and the African Diaspora” at the George Washington
University since 2012, according to the university’s website. She has also
written extensively on the subject of Blackness, including two books.
It’s unclear why Krug decided to write and publish her
essay. Twitter users, who included people claiming to know Krug, have theories
— along with reactions to the news.
Many people compared her to Rachel Dolezal, who was
exposed as a white woman in 2015 after pretending to be Black while heading an
NAACP chapter in Washington State.
To read their responses, scroll down.
Hari Ziyad @HariZiyad Jess Krug, professor at @GWtweets, is someone
I called a friend up until this morning when she gave me a call admitting to
everything written here. She didn't do it out of benevolence. She did it
because she had been found out.
Festive Colors @neosoulgod Yo we have to talk about this. Jessica Krug,
a white Jewish woman from Kansas City, has been passing as a
Black/Latina/Caribbean woman for years. This is violence, this is anti-black,
and this is shameful. It's Rachel Dolezal all over again. And I KNOW it's even
more prevalent than this.
Leslie Mac @LeslieMac When Jessica
Krug gets her book deal and is on the talk show circuit, remember this tweet.
White women continually harm our communities and are rewarded for their
efforts.
*****
Educated Young Leftists Most Likely To
Fire You Over Politics
Charles Bowyer Posted: Aug 14,
2020 10:14 AM
A new survey by the Cato Institute has
major implications for woke capitalism. The survey has revealed the extent to
which the artificial corporate monoculture has poisoned our discourse and made
it perilous for anyone outside the left to be open about their views.
One of the key take-aways from the survey was that 62% of those polled
said they were afraid to openly discuss their political opinions. The numbers
get worse the further down the political spectrum you go: 77% of
self-identified Republicans felt that they could not be honest about their
politics, whereas 52% of self-identified Democrats felt the same way. The only
group that felt they could be honest about their views were “strong liberals.”
Liberals, moderates, and conservatives all feel to some extent that they have
to self-censor, and that if they were honest about their political views, their
careers would suffer.
Perhaps the most distressing aspect of this report is just how many
respondents, particularly those on the left, reported being willing to punish
their political opponents. Half of self-identified “strong liberals” said they
would support firing Trump donors (only 36% of “strong conservatives” said they
would support firing Biden donors). There is also a distinct generational
divide – younger Americans are more willing to punish Trump or Biden supporters
than older Americans.
The problem of an artificial ideological monoculture is exceptionally
prominent among the well-educated. According to the Cato study, if you’re a Republican
with a graduate degree, there’s a 60% chance you are worried that being open
about your politics could cost you at your job, while only 25% of post-graduate
Democrats felt the same way.
In summary, virtually every major political group feels some amount of
external pressure to keep their mouths shut, and a troubling proportion of
people find the idea of firing people because they donated to the wrong
politician defensible – and these problems are particularly
severe for young, well-educated people. While political bias within
corporations is an extremely widespread phenomenon, the big tech companies –
Apple, Facebook, Twitter, etc. – are almost endemically left-wing, and these
Silicon Valley companies are disproportionately likely to be run by young
people.
In light of this study, the widespread ideological monoculture in big tech
is not a shocking anomaly. The cause is obvious: Conservatives cannot openly
challenge any dogma of the political left, because they might be fired, as
happened to James Damore at Google, if they tell the truth. An internal group
called “FB’ers for Political Diversity” was formed inside Facebook, consisting
of 100 employees who believe that the company was systemically biased against
conservatives. A senior engineer at the company wrote in a memo, “We are a
political monoculture that’s intolerant of different views [….] We claim to
welcome all perspectives, but are quick to attack — often in mobs — anyone who
presents a view that appears to be in opposition to left-leaning ideology.”
Undoubtedly, a culture that forces conservatives to form tiny support groups
would influence how a corporation operates. According to 2ndVote, which tracks
political bias in business, Facebook is almost monolithically left-wing.
*Source: 2ndVote. Scale from 1 to 5, 1 being the most left-wing, 5 being
the most right-wing.
On everything from abortion to religious liberty, Facebook is completely
embedded within the left. There is no viewpoint diversity at these
companies because they make no effort to encourage dissenting or deviation from
the accepted doctrines.
They may be deeply committed to diversity in a facile and superficial
sense, but they have no concern for diversity in its most meaningful sense:
diversity of viewpoint. It is not considered desirable by
corporate management to maintain a workforce that consists of people who view
the world differently. When shareholder rights groups have tried to fix this
problem through resolutions that support ideological diversity, corporate
management shoots them down. Amazon, Apple, Twitter, and Google all rejected
shareholder resolutions calling for more ideological diversity, evidently
preferring to let their workers stay in petrified silence than do anything that
might allow moderates and conservatives to speak freely.
The conservative movement should find this report deeply concerning. It
indicates that left-wing bias in corporations is even more widespread and
deep-seated than we thought it was. As far as we can tell, companies such as
Apple are doing nothing to make employees who disagree with the consensus feel
comfortable being honest about their views. It is now incumbent upon investors
to pressure woke capital, particularly big tech companies, to protect and
promote ideological dissent. The left-wing monoculture in corporations is both
bad for business and offensive to human dignity.
