ERODING FREEDOMS

Friday, February 09, 2007

Dr. Noel Gibeson Corbell

Today when we think of having our freedoms eroded, we oftentimes think of airline passenger restrictions, monitoring of some telephone conversations, or the forced visibility of our all our financial transactions. We also think of it in terms of our mobile telephones and cars reporting our location through use of technology such as the Global Positioning System (GPS) and by RFID technology used to track our purchases and locations via our passports. We think of the massive databases assembled by the government and commercial data-sellers that monitor every aspect of our daily lives. 

While these are significant, there is more.

There are other erosions of our freedom that continue to operate with less visibility either because they are not covered at all, or covered significantly less by the Lame Stream Media (LSM). Two come to mind; the freedom to speak freely about whether global warming is 'caused' by humans and the freedom to question the diversity agenda.

Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski is preparing to fire state climatologist George Taylor, who heads the Oregon Climate Service at Oregon State University because he continues to express a different opinion than that which is commonly accepted regarding global warming. Professor Taylor's analysis and professional opinion are that natural changes have a bigger influence on global temperatures than people do and that the world has been warmer in the past than it is today. This is considered heresy by the "global warming is caused by people" crowd; the liberals.

Because Professor Taylor's professional opinion flies in the face of the state of Oregon's policy about global warming and the beliefs of most people in that state that have been cultivated over the last three decades, his position is not popular. Hence, the state wants to get rid of him for expressing doubts about the 'cause' of global warming. 

Nobody refutes that the earth is getting warmer; only about what is causing it. There is general agreement that there are naturally occurring cycles of cold and warm periods; of ice ages and warming periods. Geological and climatological evidence supports this.

Most will agree that global warming occurs naturally. However, some have concluded that global warming is also 'caused' by humans to a highly significant degree. Others, however, say that no measurable effect can be attributed to the actions of man; that man's activity does not affect the environment to any measurable degree. In other words, if there are any man-caused factors, they cannot be measured. 

But this heresy is not acceptable to most environmentalists because it flies in the face of their belief system that has been carefully cultivated over the years. They want restrictions and laws that would limit economic activity that further restricts the free market exchange of goods and services. That is why they want to silence opposition; anyone who expresses a different position when it comes to global warming. The message is clear: agree with us or you will be fired. 

Another restriction on our freedom is the quest for diversity at any cost.

Arizona State University senior and resident assistant Ryan Visconti was put on probation because he refused to attend the required diversity training and spoke to a reporter about a role-playing exercise that he was forced to undergo in order to keep his job. This role-playing exercise promoted racial and sexual orientation stereotypes and made any straight, white male out to be the bad guy. 

On January 21, 2007 he published an article about this that appeared in the East Valley Tribune that was later covered by the Drudge Report about the forced diversity training at ASU. Four days later on January 25, 2007 Ryan received a letter from the ASU saying that he was now on probation.

This type of diversity training is for resident assistants so that they can influence the younger students that they are responsible for, about 60. The training is designed to promote equality, openness, minorities, and a variety of sexual orientations. Anyone who criticizes or opposes this agenda is branded "intolerant." In this program, intolerance has five different degrees. Someone designated 'intolerant' is flagged for re-education to bring that person in line with the proper way of thinking about diversity.

ASU issued a press release stating that Ryan Visconti was not placed on probation because he refused to attend this training or criticized the training he did attend, but was placed on probation during the Fall semester for other reasons.

However, when an East Valley Tribune reporter brought in a copy to the January 25, 2007 probation letter to ASU and showed it to ASU and started asking questions, the university quickly withdrew and later retracted the earlier press release.

Luckily for Ryan Visconti the Alliance Defense Fund (http://www.alliancedefensefund.org/main/default.aspx) has come forward and is offering free legal services to him in this matter. The Alliance Defense Fund is a well-respected organization that has a superior track record and reputation when it comes to defending the underdog in cases like this.

There is a clear agenda to stifle contrary views through intimidation and coercion, and if that doesn't work, to fire people. They try to marginalize opposition and suppress dissent. This totalitarian doctrine, based on the teachings of Lenin and Mao, permeates much of U.S. society in addition to many other countries such as Canada, Australia, and Europe. 

This doctrine is taught in U.S. public schools everyday. Public schools can now be called “socialist indoctrination centers). That is why such important work done by such excellent organizations as the Alliance for the Separation of SCHOOL and State (http://www.schoolandstate.org/home.htm) are vital to protecting our freedoms.

These are but two everyday examples of the ongoing erosion of our freedom to speak freely and to associate with whom we want. We must continue to push back; to fight against any further erosion.

The truth must prevail.

 

Dr. Noel Gibeson Corbell. As president of the Mount Vernon Institute, Dr. Corbell provides research and consulting services into contemporary issues involving the U.S. Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and the Declaration of Independence, international affairs, human rights, the economy, terrorism, intelligence, homeland security, including counter-terrorism, and government responsibility and accountability. At Georgetown University, he taught courses as they relate to technology, intelligence, counter-intelligence, counter-terrorism and space issues. One course called Intelligence and American Foreign Policy, examined unclassified, open-source documents and the steps in the intelligence cycle up to and including preparation of the National Intelligence Estimate. As an organizational management consultant and a radio broadcaster with WALE Radio 990, he produced and hosted a live, radio talk show broadcast over New England and New York called Tomorrow, Today. Earlier, Noel Gibeson Corbell was a career U.S. Marine Corps force recon and infantry officer. In that regard he served in operational positions worldwide in jungles, deserts, mountains and oceans. Later, he was a strategic planner at Headquarters Marine Corps and for the Secretary of the Navy. His commentaries have appeared in newspapers like the Chicago Tribune, San Francisco Chronicle, the Army Times, the Air Force Times, and on the Free Market News Network, as well as in The National Interest.