In the 1930’s Nazis in both Germany and Austria engaged in numerous book-burning events in an awful attempt to rid of their societies of Jewish, Democratic, Republican, Marxist, and, in their view, Anti-German influence.
Writers were also blacklisted.
Close to a hundred years later, American Citizens in Idaho are demonstrating a similarly unenlightened behavior like the Nazi book burners by engaging in various mask burning events across the state.
These events were organized by two State Representatives: Heather Scott and Dorothy Moon.
Idaho’s Lieutenant Governor, Janice McGeachin, spoke at an event encouraging the burnings.
Their justification for this stupidity. They want to protect their personal liberties and get rid of any restrictions based on safety and science that they consider dictatorial.
Ms. Scott reportedly also has ties to white supremacist groups and other fringe apocalyptic groups. Ms. McGeachin has been associated with far-right militia groups.
What is wrong with these people?
Well over a year into the Coronavirus Pandemic and over 520,000 dead across the country and these idiots think it is a good thing to burn the object that is among the most effective mitigation tools to ward off COVID 19.
It is mind-boggling that there are people in this country (including Arizona figures like Andy Biggs) that still feel masks are bad and vaccines are too dangerous to take.
This Nazi-style behavior is another example that this nation faces a domestic terrorist and Neo-Fascist problem that needed to be addressed yesterday.
Law enforcement and government authorities need to act now before a bad situation gets worse.
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Wow! When I saw your headline about 21st century book burning, I thought you were going to attack the absurd banning of six Dr. Suess books. Disappointing that you were instead attacking some free speech expressions.
So John, were the Nazi Book Burners exhibiting free speech and expression? Please offer thoughts. I do not think history will be kind to the mask destroyers either. You also spelled Dr. Seuss incorrectly.
A leading expert on racism in children’s literature has said the decision by the Dr. Seuss Foundation to withdraw six books should be viewed as a “product recall” and not, as many claim, an example of cancel culture.
Philip Nel, a professor of English at Kansas State University, is the author of “Was The Cat in the Hat Black? The Hidden Racism of Children’s Literature and the Need for Diverse Books.” He told the Guardian the six titles by Theodor Geisel, who wrote under the pen name Dr Seuss, published between 1937 and 1976, which Dr Seuss Enterprises said it would cease printing, contained stereotypes of a clearly racist nature.
“Dr. Seuss Enterprises has made a moral decision of choosing not to profit from work with racist caricature in it and they have taken responsibility for the art they are putting into the world and I would support that,” Nel said.
The titles in question are And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, If I Ran the Zoo, McElligot’s Pool, On Beyond Zebra!, Scrambled Eggs Super! and The Cat’s Quizzer. [The books that will cease publication are nowhere near his most popular works, and it is doubtful most Americans have even heard of them.]
Nel said the decision to no longer publish titles that include racist caricatures showed just one way to address problematic material.
“The books are not going to disappear,” he said. “They’re not being banned. They’re not being cancelled. It’s just a decision to no longer sell them.”
“‘It’s a moral decision’: Dr Seuss books are being ‘recalled’ not cancelled, expert says”, https://www.theguardian.com/books/2021/mar/07/dr-seuss-books-product-recall-cancel-culture
My guess is that the Dr. Seuss Foundation decided to discontinue publishing its least popular titles as a business decision, not a moral decision. Corporations don’t have morals, and don’t care about taking political or ethical stances; their bottom line is just that – their bottom line.
Dr. Seuss — who died in 1991 — was one of the top-earning dead celebrities of 2020, with $33 million in total earnings, according to Forbes. Since his Foundation announced dropping these six titles from further publication, sales of Dr. Seuss books have increased. It was a brilliant marketing strategy to increase profits.
Hey John Kavanagh, it was the company that owns the rights to the Seuss books that decided to stop printing 6 books out of 60, you can still find the rest, and the old ones are still around if you want one.
It was a business decision by Dr. Seuss Enterprises, they were not “banned”.
But I do see that your folks have been buying them up like hotcakes, meaning your folks are making money for the company that did the actual cancelling.
You’re rewarding them in the mistaken belief that you’re owning the libs.
Now that’s funny. 🙂
No one forced Hasbro to change Mr. Potato head, either, and FYI, Antifa is not a real thing.
One last thought, teaching children that doctors and scientists are bad is probably not going to go well for you when those are the kids who grow up to be the people at the old folks home changing your sheets and handing out your meds.
I think Arizona would be better off if you turned off Fox News and worked harder at actually understanding real issues.
Your pal,
Tom in Ahwatukee
I’m glad you’re writing about the mask burnings, David.
We survived Goldwater and the John Birchers.
Klu klux
Think of Trump. One set of census numbers for immigrants. One for everyone else.
The Nazi comparisons are rampant.