Doug Casey on Political Correctness

(Interviewed by Louis James, International Speculator)

L:So, Mr. Wilson (R-SC) went to Washington and called the president a liar, an action I can't help but approve of. Regrettably, he didn't have the spine to stick with the truth and later apologized to the president. Knowing that you don't have any more use for politicians than I do, Doug, I suspect you have some thoughts on this subject.

Doug: Yes. First of all, I have to say that it does speak well of Wilson that he would do something like that. But a little research shows that his comment had little to do with principle, and more to do with the battle over medical insurance for illegal aliens and his desire that they not be given any. A few years ago, he voted to insure them – just the opposite. The point is that he might have yelled out, “You lie!” just to get some free publicity, to garner his 15 minutes of fame. Like almost everyone else in Congress, he's a hypocrite who stands for absolutely nothing. Certainly not the truth. Interestingly, he was censured by Congress for simply pointing out a fact.

But reprimands are rare. The last two I recall were Traficant in ‘02, after a federal bribery conviction, and Gingrich in ‘97 for ethical breaches to do with a multi-million-dollar book deal. Wilson is being reprimanded for what amounts to a speech crime, or, really, just impoliteness.

One nice thing about the spat was that it allowed a glimpse behind the curtain-facade of gentility Congress tries to project. One trouble with Congress – one of very many – is that it's entirely too politically correct. They have rules about how they are supposed to treat each other with respect, not call each other names, etc. But I'm of the opinion, assuming we have to have a Congress at all, that the country was much better served during the 19th century, when these creatures would physically fight each other on the floor and invite each other outside for duels. Self-removal of hotheads and blow-hards from the political process was a public service.

I don't like the idea of Congress trying to make itself appear august and worthy of respect when its members are basically all thugs, at least psychologically and philosophically. It's false advertising.

L:This reminds me of the way the Constitution prohibits titles of nobility. The founders were vehemently opposed to the establishment of a new American aristocracy and even more so of a new American monarchy. And yet, we have a set of government administrators who wear black robes – thank goodness the powdered wigs are no longer fashionable – and ask us to call them “Your Honor.”

Doug: Right. I've been in court a few times and had to address the judge, and I've never addressed him as “Your Honor.” I've addressed him as “Judge.”

L:That's simply a statement of fact.

Doug: Exactly right. But to take what you're saying a bit further, I don't like the way media interviewers address the politicians by their titles in an honorific way. I saw an interview with Newt Gingrich the other day, and he was still addressed as “Mr. Speaker.” Even if he were still the speaker, he shouldn’t be addressed that way – he should be called “Newt” or “Mr. Gingrich,” if one wanted to be polite. It’s entirely too close to the European custom of addressing certain persons as “Your Highness,” or “Your Eminence,” or “Your Holiness,” or “Your Lordship.”

L:How about, “Hey, scumbag?”

Doug: If you wish. [Chuckles] Gingrich is a particularly unprincipled creature. None of them should be called “Senator,” nor “Representative,” just “Mr.,” at most. I don't want to be thought of as a Jacobin who thinks everyone should be addressed as “Citizen,” nor as a Soviet, who thinks everyone should be called “Comrade.” But I think addressing people by their first name, once you've been introduced, or by their last name, or “Mr.” if you want to show respect, is the proper way to do it. Why should a government employee be treated with any more deference than a shop clerk?

L:Okay – back to Mr. Wilson. I don't suppose there was any chance of him doing anything honorable, like throwing a shoe at Obama, since Wilson wasn't really objecting to lying in general, but to a particular lie that upset his own political agenda.

Doug: Unfortunately. I certainly think there have been so many blatant lies, and gross and willful misinterpretations of reality by Obama, that there's nothing wrong with calling him a liar. Just because he's the president doesn't mean he shouldn't be called a liar. In fact, this should be done much more often...

L: [Interrupts, laughing.]

Doug: I'm serious. Politics is nothing but a body of lies. It's given entirely too much respect, and that is unhealthy for a society. That fellow who threw his shoes at Bush, Muntazer al-Zaidi, he's a hero. He took his life in his hands to do the correct and honorable thing. I have immense respect for him.

This is why the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany lasted so long: people were too afraid to speak up and yell “Liar!” at Hitler and Stalin. And you can see that Wilson was afraid of what might happen to his career if he didn't apologize, so he rolled over on his back and wet himself. We're headed in the wrong direction.

L:The Thought Police are coming.

Doug:You can hear their sirens; soon you’ll hear them banging on your door. You know, when the phrase “politically correct” came out in the 1980s, I thought it was a spoof of some kind, a line from a Saturday Night Live skit. The Soviets had “political officers” to make sure everyone thought – or at least spoke – in approved manners, not America. But political correctness has woven itself into American society over the last generation. We're not allowed to say anything politically incorrect.