Populism versus Progressivism

2016 was a watershed year in politics. With Brexit and the stunning election of Trump as U.S. President the word populism has been used to describe anything that is not politically progressive. What is ignored is the reason for the shift to populism.

The liberal media brands anything which is not progressive as far-right, alt-right or populism. The label of fascism is now commonly used to describe any policy that the liberal left opposes. The freedom of speech and freedom of expression is being challenged by the left as they attempt to impose their beliefs on the citizenry.

For over two decades the left has changed its name from Socialist and Liberal to Progressive in an attempt to garner more votes. What is not understood by the vast majority of voters is that progressivism has nothing to do with progress, but rather the imposition of socialist dogma. Using progressivism, many leftist governments including those of Blair, Clinton, Obama. Hollande and even Merkel, have embraced policies and international agreements. Their affiliations with international organizations such as the E.U, the United Nations, The International Monetary Fund, etc., have reduced national sovereignty through multilateralism.

While the initial intentions of these organizations were altruistic, in recent past their policies have been more towards the formation of a one world order or government. The demand by progressives to have international laws dictate national policies on gun, gender, religion, education and immigration is causing havoc on national cultures.

 Let us look at some of these policies. Climate change policies, as they turn out, are nothing but a ploy for the redistribution of wealth, with very little effect on the environment. The U.N’s refugee agreement is now causing major disruptions in the Western world as increasing number of people, some legitimate and some not so legitimate claim to be refugees. Illegal immigration in Europe and in the United States is often used by terrorists, drug and human traffickers.

 Globalisation under the façade of free trade is now often used to push for issues other than fair or real trade. Progressives believe that we should no longer have borders and that immigration should be devoid of national regulations. President Trump’s travel ban on the same countries imposed by Obama, is now being challenged in court as a Muslim ban. Canadian students and Girl Guides visits to the United States have been cancelled because it may affect some participants’ visas. In reality the ban would not affect any legitimate traveller, but instead is being used as a pretext by the left to label Trump as a racist.

                                                       

The idea that culture should be homogeneous is creating rifts in nations and even communities. The wearing of religious garments, mainly by Muslims, has become a lightning rod for the left. Islamophobia is the latest rallying cry for the left who refuse to acknowledge that there are more attacks on other religions than on Muslims except by terrorists, while they organize protests in favor of Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions against Israel. Schools are being forced to allocate time for Muslims to pray. Imposition of Laws that demand that transgender people can use the bathroom of their choice or that businesses no longer have the right to serve or not serve people whose lifestyles may affect their religious beliefs.

 Universities are now becoming places of intolerance. Academic freedom is increasingly reserved for liberal professors, whereas conservative lecturers are being ostracised for their opinions. Supported by a Liberal media, it seems that freedom of speech is now the sole domain of progressives. Multicultural policies have helped to ‘ghettorize’ certain parts of the western world. In Europe there is no assimilation of immigrants within the country’s culture instead we have ‘No Go ‘zones where even law enforcement is reluctant to enter.

The judiciary is complicit in this attempt to move cultures to the left. Human rights legislations which were designed to stem some of humanity’s worst traits, has been used to muzzle or even ostracized people with common sense thinking. Political correctness, the core belief of progressives is now under attack by an increasingly worried citizenry. The rise and bias of progressivism has resulted in a backlash which has given rise to populism.

Despite the loss by Geert Wilders’ party in the Netherlands, it is yet to be seen what happens in the French and German elections. While the right may not win majorities, it is quite possible that they may make gains. The shift against progressivism in Europe is real. The unfortunate part about this backlash against progressivism is that it invites far-right parties into the political mainstream.

The idea that multiculturalism and multilateralism is the wave of the future is going to be challenged as progressive governments fall. Many of the progressive policies of the past have created more problems than improve the plight of the masses. Multiculturalism instead of assimilation and integration is the root cause of much of the immigrants’ problems of today. Despite the claim of the left as champions of the middle class, progressives have in fact reduced the wealth of the middle class. Foreign aid as a core principle of the left has created more wealthy despots in the third world instead of helping the poor.

The rise of populism is not going to be stemmed by progressives, because ordinary citizens are being affected economically and culturally. Call it Trumpism or populism, reality is that it is a growing movement of people taking back their countries from the elites of the left.

Good Cop, Bad Cop

Let’s face it; President Trump is not the greatest orator we have seen in the White House. He refuses to be politically correct, and the elite will call him un-Presidential.

However if there is one thing about him that resonates with the people is that he is uncompromising in his beliefs and he speaks in terms that are easily understood by the common man.

To the elite media, being Presidential seems to be that a President should speak in terms that are endearing and not combative. They would like to see the use of politically correct terms in every speech. His statements will be parsed by the media to find fault and discredit his policies. Trump is no wordsmith. Very often what he says may not seem to be the right tone or context. His executive orders are followed by tweets that sometime get contradicted by his cabinet members.

In his first month as President, he has signed multitudes of executive orders and created jobs, while operating without a full cabinet. The Democrats still in a state of shock have blocked many of his appointees and thus slowdown his progress. While the roll out of some of his executive orders have been less than perfect, he has delivered on several of his campaign promises – a rarity for a politician. His problem resides in the opposition from the disaffected Democratic Party and the media. However in many cases his problems are self-inflicted, this is where his cabinet comes in to put things in the right perspective.

 While it is anti-Semitism which is apparently on the rise, the left will use xenophobia and Islamophobia to demonize his policies. Yet the same media that attack Trump have short memories, given that they support Salman Rushdie author of the Satanic Verses, and Kiefer Sutherland actor and executive producer of 24, and 24 Legacy. Both of these darlings of the left portray Islam as an enemy. In Canada the anti-Islamophobia M-103 may well degenerate into laws equivalent to a fatwah issued by a Ayatollah. But many citizens are afraid to express their doubts and concerns about Islamic terrorism because they are afraid of being branded as racist or xenophobic. Trump on the other hand is not afraid to express his thoughts and policies, which in the main are supported by a silent majority, despite the number of leftist protesters around the world.

On NATO, his pronouncement that it is defective has already produced some results as his Vice President got allies to agree to increase their contribution to the organization, except so far by Canada. While his tweets have caused problems the world has been put on notice that his immigration plans are under way. His first roll out was marred by administrative problems, and challenged by the courts not on legal but rather on moral grounds. The Trump administration has started the deportation of illegal immigrants. His use of the word ‘military, has caused the media to go into full attack mode, but the fact remains that Obama deported more illegals than any previous administration yet with nary a peep from the media. His travel ban is for the same seven countries issued by Obama, but now it is called a ‘Muslim’ ban.

His attack on globalism may not be supported by the left, but it is a real concern for many. While I am a supporter of free and fair trade, I recognize that international organizations like the World Bank, NAFTA, TPP, the U.N and the E.U have taken the trade and other international agreements to a level that now encompasses many progressive ideas. Open borders and international laws are now being used to supersede national laws. It is no wonder that in many industrialised countries there is a growing movement towards nationalism and populism. Trump and Brexit are perfect examples of this movement, soon probably to be followed by the election of Marine Le Pen in France and the demise of Merkel in Germany.

In my view, the media is underestimating Trump. He is not the usual politician that they have been accustomed to for years. He will retaliate in terms that are not politically correct. His attacks on things he does not like and that he promised to reverse during his campaign will alienate many, but so far he has kept his promises. Some may disagree with his bombastic and sometime simplified rhetoric, but it rings true to the ordinary people in Main Street, who have been ignored by the elite left.

Trump has surrounded himself with many good and competent people, who disagree with him on certain issues. Better these people than the sycophants in the media. His good cop, bad cop strategy may well work if he focusses his energy on the things that really matter: tax reform, Obamacare, smaller government, security and immigration. I give him the benefit of the doubt, while he learns how to combat the bureaucracy and drains the swamp. He was Presidential; not to the media, but in his first Address to Congress – where it really matters. Without being biased I believe that he may well be a resounding success. It is only his first month in office – only time will tell.

A Government controlled Media?

The campaign and election of President Donald Trump has exposed the constant bias of the Liberal media. Unfortunately for the media, technology has now created a means of a quick response to their opinions. Social media has become the favorite outlet for the President as he ignores the main stream media. As a result we may see new laws to revive a dying form of information as advertising dollars dwindle. The danger lurks in government interference in the media market.

In 2001, Mount Royal Professor David Taras published a book, in which he argued that the Canadian media was in the midst of a cataclysmic change. At the time his premise was that there was conservative media concentration. Today this is far from the truth as most media is under Liberal and progressive ownership or management. The media over the past sixteen years has seen a shift from investigative reporters to opinion columnists. More often than not printed and broadcasted news is delivered through liberal rose- colored lenses, destined to vilify any conservative point of view.

The use of a completely bias lexicon creates an antagonistic environment. The left constantly use words like: Islamophopia, racism, bigotry, xenophobia, homophobia and other epithets to describe any event that does not fit into their progressive beliefs. Conservative leaders are vilified and are often called authoritarian and even tyrants, but progressive leaders on the other hand are always called intellectuals and compassionate. Compare these two statements by MSNBC’s Dave Mathews on Trump’s and Obama’s inaugural speeches: For Obama he said that ‘I felt this thrill going up my leg’; for Trump he said it was ‘Hitlerian’ instead of ‘Jacksonian’. These nuances in the media create a constant rift among conservatives and progressives. Political correctness smothers debate and has created an environment where people are afraid to express their opinions for fear of being attacked for their views. Freedom of speech seemingly only belongs to the left.

Acts of terrorism by Islamist Jihadists are very seldom initially reported as acts of terrorism. Instead a description of ‘mentally disturbed persons’, ‘self-radicalized’ or lone wolf’ is used to report these attacks. However the Quebec attack on a Mosque was immediately reported and acknowledged in Parliament by the PM as an act of ‘terror’. It seems that the media and politicians have a different standard for reporting similar events.

The narrative of the mass media is definitely more progressive. Too often the media fawns over pronouncements made by Hollywood types about serious issues of which these sycophants have no experience or understanding. As long as the point of view is progressive the media will publish and cover it as news. The backlash against this growing trend of adulterated news is the unfortunate rise of fake news on the web. Too often fake news, by both right and left, has been taken as real news and has created many distorted view points and reaction.

There is a growing lack of credibility in the main stream media, so much so that an increasing majority are now consumers of news through social media. As a result mass media outlets are losing advertising dollars and are accumulating debt. Problem is that publishers and some Canadian broadcasters are seeking government intervention; which unfortunately seems to be supported by the Canadian Liberal government of Justin Trudeau who commissioned a new report by Public Policy Forum.

The report recommends among other things that the government change tax laws to favour Canadian news publishers and use the new revenues ($300m/$400m) to create a publicly subsidized journalism fund. As if public funded media like the CBC is not controversial enough in its overt support for the Liberal government, now we may have government funding the  media which is already progressive in nature.

Furthermore, there are politicians who want to legislate free speech. Liberal MP Iqra Khalid introduced a motion against ‘Islamophobia’. With the Trump’s decision to put a temporary ban on immigration from 7 Muslim countries which  draws protest by the left, and the shooting at a Quebec Mosque, this motion is sure to pass. But make no mistake this motion is an attempt to silence rational criticism of political and radical Islam. Despite attacks on other religions there has never been legislation similar to M-103.Why now?

Most Canadians do not take notice of Government legislation unless reported and debated widely in the media. Interference in the media advertising market and legislation to manage freedom of speech is in my view a very dangerous slope. Intentions that may seem to be insignificant at first could later morph into more drastic legislation that could result in Orwell’s Nineteen Eighty-Four prediction of a socialist regime of new mass media abuses.

Fake News and the bias Mass Media

In the aftermath of Trump’s presidential election, Brexit and other historical democratic decisions made in 2017, the losing factions have attributed their demises to fake news, cyber hacking and WikiLeaks, however very little has been said about the role played by the liberal mass media and post-truth, in the determination of these results.

For quite some time, but more importantly during the past sixteen years, the mass media has become more liberal and less objective in its publication of news. It is not a phenomenon attributable to the U.S alone but is prevalent in all western democratic countries. During the Bush Presidency and the Harper government there was very little positive reporting by the media. In contrast the adulation for Obama was shown in every report even when he really screwed up, or used his autocratic executive orders to bypass Congress. During those years, seemingly to promote a liberal agenda, the media chose to use post truth as their favorite reporting tool. They cherry picked how and what they would report and as per the Oxford Dictionary’s definition they publish news :”Relating to or denoting circumstances in which objective facts are less influential in shaping public opinion than appeals to emotion and personal belief”. For example the media embraced the “hands up don’t shoot ‘claim which became a rally cry for the Black Lives Matter movement. In the Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown cases, the pictures published by the media showed them as young boys instead of their true adolescent self to garner more sympathy. On the war on terror, the narrative is always about self-radicalization, or mental health ignoring that the world faces a real threat by radical Islamist terrorists.

The narrative was that the Clinton e-mail fiasco was pure lies created by either the Russians or WikiLeaks, forgetting that none of the published e-mails were found to be false or denied by their authors. The Benghazi debacle was rarely portrayed in the media as a security failure and a lie about a ‘video’. In effect the Obama administration and Clinton were always given a pass on their failures. As Obama makes his delusional farewell speech, the media will continue to believe in his failed hope and change promises, and agree with him that America is better off today than eight years ago. Hopefully, history will be the judge, not the liberal media.

Closer to home, Harper was always portrayed as a dictator and Trudeau as the savior of the middle class, who incidentally will be the ones who will endure the brunt of his policies. The media never vetted Trudeau as the vacuous politician that he is. Just like Obama is seen as a great orator, Justin Trudeau is seen as the political ‘rock star’ of the future. The media ignore that being a great speaker or having great hair does not a great leader make.

In my opinion, there is no doubt that Russia may have been involved in cyber hacking. Most, if not all, super powers do interfere in elections around the world in one way or another. Just like Obama’s operatives were advising Trudeau’s campaign. So far, it has not been proven that the interference directly influenced the results of the Presidential elections. For the next four years political adversaries will do everything to try and delegitimize Trump’s election, and the media will be right there to help with post-truth and fake news.

In a time when it is easy to cherry-pick data and come to whatever conclusion you may wish, it is no surprise that a vast majority does not believe in the mass media. As a result many unscrupulous people have taken advantage of the growth of social media and its growing platforms to deliberately publish hoaxes, propaganda, and disinformation, using social media to drive web traffic and amplify their effect. Fake news has become a real industry. In addition, too often news satire on the late night shows is being seen by many as a real source of news. It has become quite apparent that the mass media is fast losing its credibility. The irony is that news people who once were respected for their professionalism have now embraced post-truth and fake news as a source for their columns and discussion forum. Even worse is that Dan Rather, the former CBS anchor,  who could be called the father of ‘fake news’ for his release of documents on George Bush false National Guard story, is now teaching an online course on Journalism Ethics.

Today there are very few real journalists; most newspapers are filled with opinion writers. Investigative reporting is now reserved to target conservatives while liberals are eulogized instead of being investigated. Hollywood stars make news by involving themselves in politics, which they have a right to do, but they very rarely embrace the facts. We must not forget that this is an entertainment industry filled by liberal sycophants who make their money in a world of make-believe. To give them so much credit for their political views, very often misplaced, is a waste of ink. Similarly there is an increasing number of media personnel who enter politics believing that, because they once read the news that they are qualified to make the news.

To conclude let us not blame fake news and WikiLeaks for the election of Donald Trump, or Brexit. Instead blame the sycophantic liberal mass media for what can be considered a referendum on themselves, and the Obama policies they supported. The liberal elite disregarded the ordinary people and created a demi-god in a socialist President who divided his country and created an unsafe world. As Obama departs, Donald Trump will bear the brunt of a liberal media that has not learnt its lesson. They should take note that Trump will probably not be the politician that the media has been used to. In my opinion he will be rambunctious, spar and admonish the media if he believes that they are unfair. It will be an interesting time.

Canadians should be very concerned about the way that international news is reported in the Canadian media, because in effect the news tend to shape how Canadians view foreign powers. CTV and CBC have become a virtual arm of the Liberal party and their reporting tends to shape the news to favour Liberal policies and slant conservative international dogmas.

Fairness and objectivity should be the basis of an industry which is supposed to be the guardian of political accountability. Should the media not revert to this important role, there is no doubt that the makers of ‘fake news’ will thrive, and the world will be worse for it.

2016: The year of Delusional Liberals

As the year comes to a close, we would be remiss if we do not acknowledge what happened in 2016. The Trump phenomena should give conservatives a real boost. For liberals, on the other hand, it seems that they are ripe for psychiatric therapy, and more importantly we should be aware of the continued and growing delusions of the left around the world and at home.

When Donald Trump started his campaign for the Presidency, a vast majority did not give him any chance of winning; neither did I because at first he did not articulate his policies. During the months leading to the elections he was accused and marred by many controversies, justified or not. But in the end he prevailed and won a historic victory over a failed candidate. As a result the left has now found themselves in a state of delusion rarely seen in politics. It is not a malaise seen in the U.S alone, but it seems that the contagion has spread around the world, especially in countries with socialist governments, including Canada.

After the November 8 elections, the Democrats have searched for excuses to explain their biggest defeat since the twenties. Blaming the Russians to the FBI and then the electoral system, they refuse to accept that Clinton was a failed candidate with huge baggage, starting with her campaign staff and the liberal mass media. The Wikileaks releases showed how the elitist Democrats dismissed their opponent and the electorate, and how biased the media was. The campaign was a bust as it relied on a continuation of the Obama presidency with no new ideas. Their delusion was that the past eight years had been a success, notwithstanding massive unemployment, a world in chaos and the failed promises of hope and change.

There was a call for a recount in three states by the Green Party. In Wisconsin the result was that Trump gained votes and the other two states cancelled the recount. As the Electoral College vote approached, a campaign started for the voters to switch their votes. Not having learnt their lesson, that celebrities are not that bright and their support of Clinton had failed, some irrelevant Hollywood celebrities came out with a video to sway the voters. The result was that ‘faithless’ electors switched 5 votes from Clinton and only 2 from Trump. Once again the delusion of Democrats showed itself to be very apparent.

In his last address before leaving for Hawaii, President Obama stated that the United States was now more respected and liked around the world and that the country was more prosperous. He once again ignored that his true legacy will be Aleppo, when he imposed a ‘red line’ which turned pink and then disappeared, resulting in the slaughter of thousands of innocents. Furthermore, his wife in an interview with Oprah, had the impudence to state that the Trump’s election has now brought ‘No Hope’, to the country. Contrary to her diatribe, the market place as validated by the rise in the DOW since the election shows that there is real hope for a better world economy.

After the latest attack in Berlin, Angela Merkel stated that it was: “A gruesome and ultimately incomprehensible act.” Ignoring that it was her feckless refugee policy that may be at the root of the problem. 

Closer to home, the NDP in Alberta and PM Trudeau continued to extol their failed policies. Their climate change policies  will see the imposition of direct and indirect taxes on everything which they claim to be good for the consumer. Their blind acceptance of the Paris agreement will make a mockery of the Canadian economy for years to come.

In Alberta the failed Progressive Conservatives, are in the throes of a leadership race. Once again the progressives in the party are still suffering from the delusion that  their loss to the NDP was not their fault. Sandra Jansen, a leadership candidate, who saw that her campaign was going nowhere defected to the NDP, showing that she had absolutely no idea about political ideology. In this case it was delusions of grandeur.

But the most absurd display of illusions came from Vice President Joe Biden when in a futile and useless visit to Canada he stated that the world needed genuine leaders such as Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.  A laughable  statement at best, but yet Jim Warren, a Liberal columnist believed in it and wrote a column in the Sun newspaper entitled: “How Trudeau can lead on the world stage”. We should remember that like Obama, Trudeau has never run anything before entering politics.  His success is derived from his father’s accomplishments and nothing else.

The left around the world are now reaping the bitter fruits of their so-called progressive policies. Their continued belief that it is everybody else’s fault rather than their own, displays a complete mental failure which in many cases may require therapy for some.

The real positive result of this delusional failure of the left is that if conservatives around the world learn a lesson and regroup with pragmatic conservative principles, they can regain the upper ground. A united conservative movement at all levels under a Trump leadership can bring back real hope and change, not the phony liberal view of a multilateral world dominated by socialist policies and organizations.

As this is my last 2016 blog, I would like to take this opportunity to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.