Daily Archives: March 24, 2020

Political correctness has been around for half a century and throughout that time the world has witnessed many great changes; the end of apartheid, Australias first female Prime Minister and the passing of the same-sex marriage bill.

The term describes an avoidance of actions and language that offends or marginalises groups, particularly those that have historically been discriminated against.

Yes, political correctness has a powerful place in society, but in our increasingly diverse workplaces, PC culture has stifled curiosity, understanding, and our ability to empathise.

Australia is a proudly multicultural nation. Because of this, many believe our diversity rates and inclusive behaviours are ahead of the pack. In reality, we are not as progressive as we think. Working with global organisations from Shanghai, Japan, Pakistan, Malaysia and Silicon Valley taught me that Australias relationship with diversity and inclusion is fraught and no-one wants to talk about why theyre uncomfortable.

The smile-and-nod mentality is futile; on the surface workplaces are agreeing, while deep-down theyre not buying in. There is an artificial harmony between the politically correct way to embrace diversity and inclusion, and the real feelings, concerns and questions we have about the practical implications of change.

We must do better, and if that means being politically incorrect for the greater good of true progress, then so be it.

Humans are organically wired to be exclusive creatures; we gravitate towards similarity and comfort, and often we find that in reflections of ourselves. When asked to not only support, but prioritise difference, its a common reaction to feel uncomfortable or threatened.

This needs to be acknowledged, and that begins by proactively inviting dissent. Everyone has a bias be that unconscious or otherwise that informs their understanding of what diversity and inclusion is.

We use three fluid classifications to categorise individuals level of awareness on the subject:

Of all groups, rarely do we encounter anyone that wants to openly discriminate, rather its misinformation that fosters resistance.

Creating psychologically safe spaces to be politically incorrect and ask taboo questions without fear of judgement is the way to having honest and effective conversations.

The one size fits all approach rigid workplace policies or lectures on the issue only moralises workers, rather than actively engaging them in what they think diversity and inclusion means. This has the potential to create a culture of blind acceptance by suppressing curiosity and real understanding.

Acknowledging resistance is the first step to dropping the false pretence of artificial harmony. We are often told about the benefits of diversity and inclusion; the increased performance results; diversified skill sets; expanded talent pool; increased innovation the list goes on. But little attention is paid to the myths and challenges associated with implementing change.

A common myth is that women and minority groups are promoted or given special treatment over men, sparking all sorts of heated debate around the role of meritocracy. In reality, diversity and inclusion is not about superiorising women and minorities, its about adopting and learning an alternate view of what success, skills, experience and potential looks like when it encompasses a greater portion of society.

Another common misconception is that all people want to be treated equally, that the goal of diversity and inclusion is to see no distinction between men, women, and minority groups. But the dream is not equality; its equity.

Treating everyone with equity is part of the reason why diversity and inclusion is challenging, not only to implement but to maintain.

As a leader, it takes more money, time, resources and work to authentically manage individualism. Yet within many organisations, theres a sense that once the right boxes are ticked, the job is done.

Diversity and inclusion create friction that can proactively encourage dissent, but the belief that creating change is easy discourages the hard work behind progress and the benefits that come with it.

Its politically incorrect to openly acknowledge the difficulties of diversity and inclusion, but until we start to accept that its okay to imperfectly participate in conversation and be honest about the complexities that making real progress brings, we will continue to cultivate artificial harmony by wavering on the precipice of change.

Sarah Liu is the founder and director of The Dream Collective, Australias most influential network of high-calibre young women. Through this networking platform, The Dream Collective has been responsible for empowering and equipping thousands of professional women into leadership roles through leadership training and mentoring opportunities. She is also the co-founder of Gemini3 and has lead branding strategies for some of the worlds most recognised brands including Revlon, Olay and Coca-Cola.

Read next: Do you really need more inclusive language in the workplace?

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Its time to stop fake political correctness and artificial harmony - The CEO Magazine

To The Daily Sun,

Ive been resisting the temptation to record my thoughts and misgivings about the coronavirus pandemic and pandemonium. Marie and I are following President Trumps guidelines, but my concern is that the supposed expert, Dr. Fauci, has caused an extraordinary overreaction because of his political goals. So the question is not whether the coronavirus is a pandemic (it is), but whether the pandemonium is necessary.

1. Here is what Dr. Fauci said about the H1N1 virus (Swine Flu) in September 2009, when Barack Obama was president and after millions had become infected and thousands had died: People just need to use good judgment. Parents should not send their kids to school if they are sick, if youre sick dont go to work . . .. avoid places where there are people who are sick and coughing, now that is a difficult thing to do," he said, "You cant isolate yourself from the rest of the world for the whole flu season.

2. Almost every flu season since September 2009, the cold virus and the flu have caused anywhere from 35,000 to 65,000 plus deaths and hundreds of thousands of hospitalizations and millions of people infected (see numerous articles from American Thinker). Dr. Fauci has held the same position at the CDC this entire time. Therefore, it does seem reasonable to ask Dr. Fauci why the clarion call to arms now when you have presided over 650,000 deaths from the flu since 2009? Having watched the presidents daily reports to the USA, I am astounded the snarky idiots of the White House kiddie press corps have been unable to ask Dr. Fauci this question, while attempting to create national pandemonium over, at least by Faucis past standards, an incipient pandemic, whose ultimate toll can only be known in retrospect.

3. Political correctness has again reared its ugly head. The ignoramuses of the mainstream media, including Covuto and John Roberts on Fox, have decided it is racist to label a virus from whence it came. Apparently, they have never heard of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever. In November 2019, China refused President Trumps offer of assistance. There is a more sinister goal in their Chinese Virus Syndrome Obsession (CUSO). The Chinese globalists and panderers understand that Chinas failure to inform the world in a timely manner of the Wuhan virus will accelerate President Trumps Americanization of our means of production, including our pharmaceutical and medical device industries. The choice is Make America Great Again or Let China Rule the World.

4. Finally on Sunday, the Valerie Pflames, John Brennan and Comey proteges began to emerge from the denizen of our intelligence community. I am so sick and tired of the criminal leaks from the nincompoops of the CIA and NSA. They are so dumb that these scalawags do not understand that the only audience they have are the Demolitioncrats, Pravda on the Hudson (NY Times) and Pravda on the Potomac (The Washington Post).

Out of words, decide for yourself! Time will tell.

Charles H. Bradley

Laconia

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Charles H. Bradley: It is not racist to name a virus after where it started? - The Laconia Daily Sun

People dont generally like to read old news. In most cases, stories on the Ohio State News website like most news sites reach peak readership within a week or so after they are published and arent read much after that.

But then again, the second most read story on the Ohio State News site in 2019 viewed more than 90,000 times was one that was published 16 years ago. Thats not a typo. The story first appeared March 7, 2004.

But it gets even stranger when you realize that the story was not about a blockbuster medical discovery or tuition announcement, but a book on European and African history from 1500 to 1800.

It only starts to make some hazy sense when you find out the title of the book: Christian Slaves, Muslim Masters: White Slavery in the Mediterranean, The Barbary Coast, and Italy, 1500-1800.

The Ohio State news story on the book is titled When Europeans were slaves: Research suggests white slavery was much more common than previously believed.

In the book, now-retired Ohio State University history professor Robert Davis used a unique methodology to estimate that a million or more European Christians were enslaved by Muslims in North Africa between 1530 and 1780 a far greater number than had ever been estimated before.

A web search of the book and the Ohio State News story shows why their popularity has soared.

In an era of political polarization in America, much of which is related to issues of race, it appears that a portion of the political spectrum often termed the alt-right has produced itsown particular take on the book and is sharing the story widely over social media.

The Southern Poverty Law Center says the alt-right is a set of far-right ideologies, groups and individuals whose core belief is that white identity is under attack by multicultural forces using political correctness and social justice to undermine white people and their civilization.

The alt-right take on the book, in a nutshell: The fact that some white Christians were once held as slaves by black Muslims essentially excuses slavery in America.

This take on his work disturbs Davis, who was surprised when he was told about the recent popularity of the old Ohio State News story. He said that over the years he has regularly received emails and requests for interviewsabout the book, but he had no idea how much attention his book was receiving and for what reason.

The early attention for the book was much different.

Thanks in good part to the original OSU news release, which was picked up by several wire services, there was a rapid and largely enthusiastic response all over the world to my book.Feature articles were run in major newspapers and magazines from Britain, France, Germany, Switzerland and Italy all the way to India, Malaysia and Australia.A French translation of the book even received a major prize from the Acadmie Franaise, Davis said.

But even at the beginning, there were hints about what was to come.

At almost the same time, I started being contacted by various right-wing broadcasters and conservative pundits who believed the book or the news release supported their own take on racial history. Some have specifically used it to back their claims that the slavery suffered by white European Christians somehow lessens or even negates the great historical horror of the trans-Atlantic slave trade from Africa to the Americas, he said.

Some on the alt-right have gone so far as to assert that Davis findings that white Christians had themselves once been enslaved by black Muslims mean that Americans today need not be concerned about either African American slavery or its aftermath.

One Facebook page discussing Christian Slaves, Muslim Masters makes its message plain: Never feel guilty about slavery in American again!

As time has passed and mainstream interest in my findings unsurprisingly began to fade, the commitment to this racialist interpretation seems to have only intensified, as especially people of thealt-right have taken to using my book or at least the news release for their own, unrelated purposes. And while Id really like to distance myself from such use, or rather misuse, theres not a lot I can do at this point, Davis said.

He said that some people have begun taking one of his findings (about the number of Christians enslaved by Muslims) out of context and not really comprehending the whole book.

I see the book as a kind of highway towards certain historical conclusions, but some people are getting off the first exit that has some information they can use, without seeing where the highway ends up, he said.

It is telling, Davis said, that his follow-up book which Ohio State News also wrote about has not received nearly the attention of Christian Slaves, Muslim Masters.

Thats probably because the second book (Holy War and Human Bondage: Tales of Christian-Muslim Slavery in the Early-Modern Mediterranean, published in 2010) spread its focus to include the North African Muslims taken as slaves by European Christians, as well as Protestants and Orthodox Christians enslaved by Catholics.

In that book, Davis estimated that more than 1 million Muslims were enslaved in Europe and 2 million Christians suffered the same fate in North Africa and the Near East. Jews also fell victim to slavers on both sides of the struggle, he pointed out.

It was in this book that Davis coined the term faith slavery.

During this period, both sides, Muslims and Christians, had nearly equal power, Davis told Ohio State News at the time. It really was a clash of empires and taking slaves was part of the conflict.

Even then, Davis was clear that the fact that some white Europeans were slaves did not mitigate or diminish the enslavement of 10 to 12 million black Africans who were brought to the Americas.

That (argument) doesnt make sense to me, Davis told Ohio State News in 2010.

Though faith and race slavery were both pervasive in those centuries, the enslavement of some white Christians can hardly balance the moral wrong of the slavery that other whites inflicted on Africans. Two such enormous wrongs dont make anything right.

Since the two books have come out, Davis has retired and moved to California, where he continues to research and write. He said he probably receives an average of two or three emails a month from people inquiring about Christian Slaves, Muslim Masters or the Ohio State news release.

He thought it must be normal for historians to be asked about their old research a few times a month, until he talked to another retired colleague.

I mentioned something about how as a historian you must get these emails all the time about your research. And he said, No, I dont. That was when I started to realize my book was somewhat peculiar in that regard.

Davis said he is still proud of the work with both books, particularly the methodology he developed to calculate the number of people who were taken as faith slaves.

Taking the best contemporary estimates of how many slaves were at each location at a given time, Davis calculated how many new slaves it would take to replace the ones who died, escaped or were ransomed.

Davis believes this is the best way available to make estimates of how many were enslaved, given the limited records of the time.

Even rough calculations make it clear that Mediterranean faith slaving was not some minor phenomenon, a petty problem for people at the time, as has been assumed by many historians today, Davis told Ohio State News in 2010.

After its moment in the spotlight when it was released, Christian Slaves, Muslim Masters faded from view somewhat, until the rise of social media and the alt-right.

The first recent spike in readership of the story at the Ohio State News site occurred in February 2019, when more than 1,100 people viewed the story on one day. On a day in June, more than 5,000 people clicked on the story. Since then, more than 100 people a day have visited the story.

In 2020, it is still the sixth most viewed story on the Ohio State News website.

Davis said that while he realizes that issues of race in America have driven a lot of the interest in his book, he is reluctant to speculate too much about why the alt-right has embraced Christian Slaves, Muslim Masters.

Youre moving outside my skills as a historian into sociology or political psychology. Im not certain what motivates people. I just know that some people are using my research as a standard to rally around without really following it to its conclusions or trying to understand its implications, he said.

Then again, there have been only limited attempts among American academics to either develop or refute my findings, so perhaps non-academics interested in this subject feel they have nowhere else to go.

Davis said he is realistic about how his books on faith slavery will be remembered, but he still hopes his research encourages people to remember a historical reality that has often been forgotten or ignored.

Faith slavery played an important role in history. It deserves more attention.

As for Davis, he has moved on to researching a topic that should be somewhat less controversial: He has begun writing a series of historical novels on 16th-century Italian bandits.

More:

Why is a 16-year-old book on slavery so popular now? - The Ohio State University News

To the editor:A democracy is nothing more than mob rule, where 51 percent of the people may take away the rights of the other 49. Thomas Jefferson.Michael Kinsers arguments for the elimination of the Electoral College are exactly the reasons that the Founders put it in place. He tells us that by 2040 50% of the people will live in just eight states. Apparently Kinser believes that eight states should be able to dictate to the rest how they should live and what is good for them. That is the Tyranny of the Mob that the founders feared so much.Most of us in fly over country would actually like to have a voice in how our country is run. And we dont like the idea of liberal do-gooders telling us how much pop we can drink, how much salt we are allowed, or what guns we can own. California is a liberal mess that the middle class is deserting in droves. Why would we want to put them in charge of ruining the rest of the country?We prefer honest judges who make decisions based on the rule of law rather than the rule of political correctness. That is the last safeguard of our rights that the founders have built into our Republic.I am not sure how you make the House of Representatives more representative unless Kinser actually meant the Senate and that was also made the way it is to prevent mob rule.As for divisiveness, look no further than the democrat party that has for generations been the party of division and identity politics. Republicans are racist, homophobic, islamaphobic, sexist, haters, etc. Bernie went through the whole litany on TV recently.In reality the source of most of the hate in this country is the lies Democrats tell about Republicans, Libertarians and conservatives.We are a Republican government. Real liberty is never found in despotism or the extremes of democracy. Alexander Hamilton.Stephen ErwinPortland

Thank youTo the editor:Recently we had a consignment auction to benefit the Jay County 4-H Program and it was a huge success.This could not have happened without help and assistance from many people.We would like to take this time to publicly thank Ryan and Randy Davidson and Bryant Combine Parts for their huge help in getting this going as well as Craig Miller and Roger Geeseman.Also thanks to Roger Geeseman, Zane Shawver, Chad Bricker, Pete Shawver Jr. and Laci Smitley for their assistance with the auctioneering services.This first annual consignment auction would not have been successful without the people from the area consigning items and also donating items for sale. The 4-H council thanks each of you for what you gave.There were many other people that did a lot of work before, during and after the auction that are too numerous to name but know that we thank all of you for your hard work. Thanks also to all of the buyers and to the 4-Hers that came and helped out. Its great to have community support for our great 4-H program. Thanks again for helping us To Make the Best Better for 4-H in Jay County.Sincerely,Beth StephenPresidentJay County 4-H Council

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Lies are what lead to division - The Commercial Review

Are Now Being Forced To Be Tough On Their Own Citizens

WINNIPEG, MANITOBA- March 23,2020 (LSN) Weak borders and a lack of strength has serious consequences.With health minister Patty Hajdu who repeatedly downplayed the threat of Coronavirus and said border controls cause harm in a pandemic now musing about the government using expanded power to force people to stay inside, we are seeing a brutal irony emerge:

The countries that were weakest on foreign nationals are now being forced to be the toughest on their own citizens.

Remember, had Canada shut our borders to China early and imposed ruthless screening at the airports ahead of time, the Coronavirus outbreak in Canada would have been much smaller. After all, about 80 85% of Canadas Coronavirus cases are travel related, meaning either foreign nationals brought it into our country mostly from China at the beginning or Canadian Citizens returned and werent screened/isolated.

Yet, because of political correctness and an overall attitude of weakness, the federal government refused to take strong action against foreign nationals the group that originally brought Coronavirus into Canada as flights were allowed in from China.

Now, because of that refusal to be tough on foreign nationals, Canadian Citizens are seeing unprecedented restrictions on our freedom, with even more restrictions likely.

These restrictions have become necessary to stop the China CCP Coronavirus, and it is essential that we save lives and stop the spread of the virus.

That said, we must not forget the lessons of this moment. If we cant be strong in defending our borders and protecting our Citizens, the price will be paid here at home, among the Canadian People.

That cannot be allowed to happen again.

https://www.spencerfernando.com

Spencer Fernando Spencer Fernando is based in Winnipeg

DisclaimerThe views expressed in this opinion article are solely those of their author and are not necessarily either shared or endorsed by Lake Superior News / Lake Superior Media.

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The Countries That Were Weak On Foreign Nationals - Lake Superior News

Proud to be Canadian

When I watch the COVID-19 gong show from the White House and then watch the daily updates from the PM and his cabinet ministers, I am not only relieved to be Canadian but downright proud.

At least our politicians are trying to keep us informed, emphasizing what we need to do and attempting to answer questions from the press in a respectful way.

Are they getting everything right? Most likely not. But I would be terrified if they operated like the Republicans and their sociopath of a non-leader in the White House.

The best thing we can do now is stand behind our political leaders and follow their guidelines to the best of our abilities and not fuel partisan agendas.

Barry StreetBrantford

There may be another result from COVID-19 as a result of self-isolation. I would suggest that hospitals prepare for a pandemic of babies in nine months.

Bill Calvesbert

Brantford

U.S. President Donald Trump was lambasted for referring to COVID-19 as the Chinese virus. Although I have no use for Trump, what he said may not have been politically correct but his label simply reflects the truth.

The fact is that COVID-19 is a direct result of the practices that occur in public markets in China. The slaughter of cats, dogs, bats, snakes, rodents and other creatures, in such a manner, will invariably unleash dangerous pathogens into the human population. Such occurred with SARS, and has happened again. This time, the stakes are much higher, as a lethal pandemic has been spawned, which may ultimately kill millions of people across the globe. One would hope not, but that potential surely exists.

Sad to say, when this crisis is over, political correctness will prevent quintessential measures from being enacted. China should, in fact, be held accountable for this disaster, and should pay compensation to every nation affected. That wont happen. Additionally, all countries should refuse all traffic from China, until these detestable practices are stopped. That wont happen either. Political correctness will one day be our undoing.

John Harley Whitlock

Brantford

Fascinating to see what services people really need and how service providers are coping: restaurant takeout, dry cleaning, gas bars.

What we are not needing is almost every function of government, except our neglected health-care system.

Hopefully, when COVID-19 is a memory, we wont forget these lessons and demand similar efficiencies from governments as we have seen for more than a generation from computerization, the internet and eliminating or redesigning processes.

John PurkissSt. George

There is a lot of misinformation out there regarding the COVID-19 pandemic. One theory I have read is that the virus was propagated by our government to induce panic and take over our lives. Another theory is that this is all media hype.

The measures that we are being asked to take ending non-essential travel, maintaining social distancing, increasing hand washing are to help stop the spread of this virus. I hope the skeptics will see that this pandemic has the potential to endanger our fragile health-care system to the point of collapse.

Freda GouletBrantford

Out of curiosity, I compared the 10 happiest nations listed in your newspaper against the 10 nations with the largest gross domestic products. Not a single one of this latter group appeared in the happiest nation group. Canada came closest. It has the 10th largest GDP and ranked 11th in happiness.

All of which supports the adage: Money cant buy happiness.

Nor, apparently, can money buy health. The two wealthiest nations on Earth are also among the three hardest hit by COVID-19. The third one, Italy, also is one of the top 10 GDPs in the world.

Robert J. MacMillanBrantford

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Letters to the editor - Brantford Expositor

Nandi Governor Stephen Sang' on Sunday, March 22 delivered heavy criticism of the National Prayer Ceremony held at State House, Nairobi on Saturday, March 21 over the Coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.

Taking to social media, Sang' claimed that the prayers were laden with hypocrisy, asserting that the ceremony should have started with President Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto repenting along with opposition leaders.

Sang' opined that the 'sickening' hypocrisy witnessed in the prayers could attract God's wrath, contrary to the planned objective of the ceremony.

He lamented that even the religious leaders who were drawn from several denominationshad opted for political correctness in their prayers.

Nandi Governor Stephen sang during a press conference April 19, 2019

The Standard

"The level of hypocrisy in yesterday's National prayers at State House was sickening. It should have started with repentance, especially by us in leadership (both government and opposition) led by President Uhuru Kenyatta and Deputy President William Ruto.

"It was such a shame to see the very top church leadership direct praise instead of rebuke atus the politicians. It was unfortunate that political correctness was strictly observed even in prayers made," the governor wrote.

Sang' complained that the negative connotations associated with politics in Kenya seemed to be finding their way to the pulpit.

"This kind of mockery in the name of National Prayers is likely to attract more wrath than good. The church leadership in Kenya today must also reflect and revert to their pure sense of calling.

"The unfortunate bad manners in politics must never find its way to church. Our country needs to genuinely get back to its senses," he asserted.

Other than Uhuru and Ruto, leaders who attended the national prayer day included Orange Democratic Movement (ODM)leader Raila Odinga, Wiper Democratic Movement (WDM) leader Kalonzo Musyoka and Amani National Congress (ANC) party leader Musalia Mudavadi.

Addressing the ceremony, Anglican Church of Kenya (ACK) Archbishop Jackson Ole Sapit called for the pandemic to be a turning point for Kenyato shun corruption and negative ethnicity among other ills that have plagued the nation.

Coronavirus has humbled the mighty It did not respect political powers, it doesnt respect the military powers of the world. It has threatened us to the core, but our God is above nature as he is the one who created nature.

Repentance is a call to return to God and turn away from sin. True repentance is more than just talking, but a change of behaviour," Ole Sapit stated.

President Uhuru Kenyatta at State House, Nairobi, where he hosted national prayers against the Coronavirus pandemic on March 21, 2020.

PSCU

Originally posted here:

Uhuru, Ruto Fake Prayers Will Anger God - Nandi Governor - Kenyans.co.ke