DUCK DYNASTY…POLITICAL CORRECTNESS OUT OF CONTROL…

 

Just for the record, and I’m sure it will come as no surprise to anyone who happens to be a frequent visitor to these pages, I am one of those who wholeheartedly agrees with those now calling for a boycott of the cable network A&E. One of those also calling for a boycott is conservative political activist Ralph Reed, who on Thursday called on the 800,000 members of the Faith & Freedom Coalition to boycott the A&E Network until "Duck Dynasty" patriarch Phil Robertson is reinstated to the program. "Phil Robertson’s suspension is a brazen act of anti-Christian bigotry," Reed, the coalition's chairman, said in a statement.

Robertson was placed on indefinite suspension by the cable network on Wednesday after he compared homosexuality to having sex with animals in a published magazine interview. But Robertson has since received broad support from conservatives and Republican politicians ranging from former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin to Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal. In the interview, Robertson "never represented his views and values as being those of A&E or the producers of 'Duck Dynasty,' " Reed said. "He was specifically asked about his views on sin and God’s best plan for humanity, and he answered honestly, forthrightly, even directly."

"His comments were based on his faith in God, not animus directed at gays or others who might be different from him," Reed added. He went on to say, "To suspend Robertson under these circumstances is sanctioning him for holding Christian faith and beliefs — and it is a sign of a broader intolerance, bigotry, and discrimination against Christians that has no place in America."  The coalition's boycott efforts will also include telephone calls, email blasts, mailings, and text messages. Members are urged to write A&E executives to protest the suspension. Reed said that he, too, wrote network officials over the matter. There is also a petition supporters can sign.

"Sadly, A&E is in danger of destroying one of the most-valuable franchises in the television industry and offending 40 million Americans in the process," Reed said. "If its management is smart, they will move swiftly to repair the damage before it is too late." So I guess we’ll see just what the network’s priority is, is it kowtowing to a bunch of gays or is it supporting a man’s freedom of speech, guaranteed by our Constitution? My own personal opinion on the topic that got Phil into such hot water, is that I find the act of one man having sex with another, by way of the orifice through which we all rid our bodies of solid waste, to be more than a bit disgusting.

But I’ll tell you something else. How this family itself treats this whole thing, is also likely to have an impact on the shows popularity. Because a lot of their popularity comes from what is their devotion to family. But as they say, fame has a funny way of effecting people, and I’m sure while out doing a little Christmas shopping we’ve all seen the Robertson boys on everything from coffee mugs to door mats to greeting cards. So I’m just curious if these folks are what they seem, or if they have now become smitten with fame and all the money that goes with it, and might therefore be willing to allow the network to get away with treating Phil the way they have.

And I’m here to tell you that if I was Willie Robertson I would have already told those A&E bigwigs that either Phil is allowed to make a very hasty return, or folks will have to start tuning in to another network if they wish to watch the show. And I’ll tell you something else, I would be very disappointed in the fact that if in the end this family is not what they profess themselves to be and are, in reality, nothing more than a bunch greedy opportunists. So I’m not only curious to see what sort of action A&E is going to take, but I’m just as curious to see just how far the Robertson clan is willing to go in their effort to expedite Phil’s return.