Labeling Ben Carson “Extremist” Exposes Political Bias

Onyx Truth Contributor:  J.S. Franklin

The Southern Poverty Law Center was founded in 1971 for the purpose of championing civil rights and equality in the US.  Over the last several decades they have become internationally acclaimed as crusaders for the rights of minorities and homosexuals.  The SPLC has even become a valuable resource to law enforcement through the maintenance and publication of their list of extremist/hate groups and individuals.  The list tracks the villainous likes of Neo-Nazis, White supremacists, Black separatists, anti-LGBT’s, and religious extremists.  It’s a “who’s who” of the most hateful and intolerant people in America.  But just today a rather curious addition to that list was announced.  Conservative darling Dr. Ben Carson has just been labeled an extremist by the SPLC.  Wait, what?

Neo-Nazis, Grand Wizards of the KKK, religious killers, Black revolutionaries…..Ben Carson.  The description of Carson as a member of this list is as follows:

“Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson rapidly ascended as a far-right political star after publicly scolding President Obama, whom he sat a few feet away from, at a National Prayer Breakfast in February 2013.  Carson’s reproach of Obama for his health care and tax policies went viral, unleashing a flood of adulation from right-wing media and hate groups.  Carson’s own story as an “up by the bootstraps” black man reared in poverty translated into an inspiring, magnetic narrative that captured media attention.  Soon he was appearing as the keynoter at a rash of right-wing and hate group gatherings, linking gays with pedophiles, comparing the U.S. to Nazi Germany and endorsing biblical economic practices for 21st century America.  A movement to draft Carson as a Presidential candidate took off in 2014, raising more than $7 million by June, according to its website.  Carson has coyly declined to say whether he would run as a Republican or on a third-party ticket, but media interviews suggest that he is increasingly willing to run on some ticket.”

Does that sound like a person who deserves to be deemed an “extremist” by the SPLC and put on a list along with hardcore hate-mongers, racists, and violent criminals?  The comments referred to above are these:

“Marriage is between a man and a woman.  It’s a well-established pillar of society and no group, be they gays, be they NAMBLA [North American Man/Boy Association, a group advocating pedophilia], be they people who believe in bestiality—it doesn’t matter what they are, they don’t get to change the definition.”

“[I]f we can redefine marriage as between two men or two women or any other way based on social pressures as opposed to between a man and a woman, we will continue to redefine it in any way that we wish, which is a slippery slope with a disastrous ending, as witnessed in the dramatic fall of the Roman Empire.”

“Obamacare is really the worst thing that has happened in this nation since slavery.  And … in a way, it is slavery.”

“I mean [our government and institutions] are very much like Nazi Germany. … You know, you had a government using its tools to intimidate the population.  We now live in a society where people are afraid to say what they really believe.”

“What we need to do is come up with something simple.  And when I pick up my Bible, you know what I see?  I see the first individual in the universe, God, and he’s given us a system.  It’s called a tithe.”

Now I will admit that his comments on homosexuality are offensive, essentially comparing gays to pedophiles and animal “lovers”; but he did apologize for those remarks, and let’s face it, others have gotten out of worse situations with a simple apology before.  As for the rest there really isn’t anything wrong with the rest of the comments listed here.  People may not agree with them but there is no wanton hatred in any of those comments.  He disagrees with Obamacare, he disagrees with the massive expansion of the federal government, and he finds basis for a national flat tax (something supported by many) in the religious tithe.  Exactly where is the problem?  Many other people have said and done far worse than this.

Bill Maher frequently denigrates women calling them “stupid twats” and worse, and constantly refers to Catholics in general as child rapists.  During the BP oil spill he once remarked “I thought when we elected a black President, we were going to get a black President.  You know, this is where I want a real black President.  I want him in a meeting with the BP CEOs, you know, where he lifts up his shirt so you can see the gun in his pants.  That’s – (in black man voice) ‘we’ve got a motherfu**ing problem here?’  Shoot somebody in the foot.”  He equated our President to being a common gang member because he’s a Black man and “real” Black men are all murderous gangsters in his mind.  I don’t see him on this list.

As a matter of fact you wont find anyone considered to be of “leftist” or “left-wing” ideology on this list at all.  There are categories for Neo-Nazis, racists, religious hate groups, and even “patriot” groups, but there are no left-wing categories to speak of.  No eco-terrorists such as the Animal Liberation Front or Earth Liberation Front even though they continue to engage in serious criminal activities such as arson.  No anti-religious or atheist groups like the Freedom From Religion Foundation who are constantly attacking people of faith with lawsuits for things like praying in public or setting up nativity scenes during Christmas; or others that go so far as to vandalize churches and religious displays.  No Marxist groups like the Occupy movement whose members committed numerous crimes during protests in numerous cities (riots, vandalism, assault, rape…).  None of the liberal talking heads who refer to conservatives as “idiots, rednecks, hicks, loons, religious whack jobs, gun nuts, tea baggers” and much, much worse.  According to the SPLC the only hateful and/or violent people in America reside on the right side of the political spectrum.

Refer back to the SPLC description of Dr. Carson.  Notice how it begins with a story about how he publicly scolded President Obama?  Notice how it ends with talk of his possible ambitions of a presidential run in 2016?  That’s the real motivation behind his addition to this list.  Clearly the SPLC maintains a left leaning political bent and Carson represents a serious threat to the Democratic party come 2016.  He has a huge fan base, he’s in the center of the political spotlight and the fact that he’s a Black man flies in the face of the standard “GOP is racist” nonsense.  This is pretty clearly a politically motivated move by the SPLC to try and scuttle Carson’s Presidential run before it gets started.

I’m not much of a Carson supporter, in fact I’m not really a Carson fan at all.  He’s a little too socially conservative for my liking.  But this and future attacks like it will only serve to unit people like me behind him.  A powerful, allegedly non-partisan organization using its influence to attack a political adversary for his views and opinions is the exact opposite of what the SPLC supposedly stands for.  Carson is not a hate-monger, he’s not a terrorist, or a criminal.  But he is a Black conservative and that is something the Left simply cannot abide.