I have been watching for more commentary on the Donald
Sterling / NBA / LA Clippers saga and found a letter in the Wall Street Journal
titled: THE EMBARRASSING MR. STERLING AND FREEDOM OF SPEECH by Ron Anderson of
Rancho Palos Verdes, California.
In the letter, Anderson says that the racist remarks by
Donald Sterling are troubling but to him what was more troubling is the
overwhelming response of thousands in our society to his words in this age of
instant communications.
He said that as a society, we are increasingly less able to
state unpopular views without being censored, bullied or even mobbed.
He goes on to detail some examples which included 110,000
signatures on a petition demanding the Washington Post ban any and all articles
that questioned global warming.
A huge point in his letter is his comparison of how our
society reacted to Mr. Sterling’s words with actions of religious-motivated
persons in other parts of the world when they respond with violence to words or
images that offend them, such as the reactions of some Muslims to writings,
cartoons or films that disparage the Prophet Muhammad.
He decries the loss of our ability to think and speak freely
in our daily lives.
As a frequent blogger and editorial letter writer, I am
personally aware how my words and opinions can affect those who disagree with
me on subjects and issues; I have had threatening phone calls.
And the phrase, I may not agree with what you say, but I
will defend your right to say it is something this country has stood for from
the beginning.
The views of our society is changing and changing fast in
recent times as evidenced by the sea change in opinion about homosexuality but
there are those in our society that will buck the trend and oppose the new
thinking with all their might; it is their right.
In the case of Donald Sterling, his bigotry came into public
view and the nation reacted to his words. I don’t think Mr. Sterling was
putting forth an idea or a thought or even an opinion about a certain subject;
he was plainly making derogatory remarks about certain people.
I think Mr. Anderson’s letter to the Wall Street Journal was
clearly a warning about a slippery slope we may be nearing.
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