It's hard to believe that it has been four years already, since the Canadian actress and producer Ellen Page came out at a gay right's conference in Las Vegas. And delivered a powerful anti-bullying message.
Because for people like me who had to fight bullies before I fought Cons, it was such a great moment it seems like yesterday.
So I'm glad to see that Page hasn't lost her fighting spirit, when she appeared on the Late Show last night.
And took aim at these two anti-gay bigots.
By pointing out among other things, that anti-gay policies can lead to anti-gay violence.
And asking people to connect the dots...
.@EllenPage is fed up with leaders who promote hatred and intolerance. #LSSC pic.twitter.com/apxXzye5SF— The Late Show (@colbertlateshow) February 1, 2019
“If you are in a position of power and you hate people and you want to cause suffering to them, you go through the trouble, you spend your career trying to cause suffering — what do you think is going to happen? Kids are going to be abused, and they’re going to kill themselves and people are going to be beaten on the street.
Which I think is a really good message to send out, at a time when even in Canada the far right is on a rampage. Racism, misogyny, and homophobia are everywhere.
All three of these leaders were elected by the support of religious fanatics...
And are just as anti-gay as Trump and Pence.
You know, another reason I remember the day Ellen Page came out is that I can never forget the way a so-called "progressive" reacted:
But then he's the same nasty old kook who sent me some of the most vile anti-gay comments that I have ever received.
And the same toxic Trudeau hater whose hatred for our prime minister also exceeds the boundaries of decency...
And it's not too hard to figure out why that might be...
Oh boy. Isn't life weird? Progressive doesn't seem to mean what it once did.
But Ellen Page is right.
Connect the dots.
And you'll understand who really are our friends, who are our enemies.
And why this blog will always be a no bully zone...
Good for you, Simon. I see a lot more of this from faux-gressives who rattle on about "identity politics" and seem to think that discrimination and hatred can be magically repaired with taxes on the rich and a higher minimum wage. Being a famous actor didn't protect Jussie Smollett from being viciously attacked for both his race and sexual orientation. Not everything boils down to the bottom line, and it is possible to fight against two things at once -- economic inequality and prejudice -- which is what they don't seem to get (or want to accept). There's even a cohort of so-called feminists (TERFs or trans-exclusionary radical feminists), who sound just like right-wingers with their rabid denouncement of "gender theory" and comparisons of trans-related medical care to lobotomies and genital mutilation. They're no better than anti-vaxers: ignorant of science and abusive to children.
ReplyDeleteGood on Ellen Page for speaking out against all of this. I didn't know until recently she was from Canada. Canada keeps sending their best (with a few glaring exceptions, like Professor Lobster Claw), but it seems we just don't appreciate them enough. And as for Trudeau, he is more of a man and a good-natured human being than incel Kenney, moron Ford, Schitferbrains Scheer, bottom-feeder Peterson, low-rent Bond villain Harper, or the twin-headed monster Putin puppet known as Trumpence will ever be.
Hi Jackie...yes, Ellen Page is Canadian, and as I said in my post, her message may have been delivered to Americans but there couldn't be a better message for Canadians at this time. The violent Con rhetoric in this country is out of control and can only lead to violence and tragedy. I only recently became aware of the TERF movement which I find absolutely disgusting, and to my horror discovered that Progressive Bloggers hosts one of their sites. I don't know how long I can stay at Progressive Bloggers because there are now more toxic Trudeau haters writing for it than you can find at the Blogging Tories. It's so sad, and if that keeps up I doubt It will survive for much longer...
DeleteI think Trump does not give a flying thing about sexual orientation, abortion or Skygod. Pence on the otherhand could star in the Handmaidiens tale. How could anyone so intelligent believe in such crap.
ReplyDeleteHi Steve....you may be right about Trump, but the fact is he is bending backwards to please the religious right, and by so doing is a mortal enemy of the LGBT community. But I agree, Pence is right out of the Handmaid's Tale, a freaky bigot if ever there was one...
DeleteI remember when you were just starting blogging and were battling the bullies and homophobes from Free Dominion. They were real animals, the worst kind of Cons. But they are gone, and you’re still here. I know it frustrates you to see old bigots like the Mound get away unscathed. But cheer up you’ll outlive him too.
ReplyDeleteHi anon...OMG, what a blast from the past. I had forgotten about that nest of bigots. They use to descend on my blog like a swarm of hornets, and they were truly disgusting. But thanks to the well known bigot slayer Richard Warman they went down in flames wailing like banshees. As for the Mound, he is his own punishment. He's such a closeted ant-gay bigot, I sometimes wonder whether he's a self loathing homosexual. He's got away with it for so long, but he has no life, and no friends, all he does is sit on his fat ass all day and blog, so he won't be with us for much longer. 👻
DeleteProgressive Bloggers is certainly not what it used to be. If I was you
ReplyDeleteI’d leave. You don’t need them anymore, now that you are more popular on Twitter. PB is stuck in the past, and if you left I’d never have to visit the site again.
Hi anon...I have thought of leaving. I really don't like being surrounded by so many old Con freaks pretending to be progressive. But I feel a sense of loyalty for progressive Bloggers and keep hoping thatvIncan help attract some younger people to renew it and help keep it alive. But it may be a losing battle, and as you say, I don't need them anymore...
DeleteWhat blog did the Mound write his weird comment on? Was it Politics and its Discontents? And if so what did the owner of that blog say? I hope he gave that homophobe a piece of his mind.
ReplyDeleteHi anon...Yes, it was Politics and its Discontents. But no its owner who had dared to praise Page, folded like a cheap suit. Which isn't surprising since he is another toxic Trudeau hater, a sad little man who runs behind them monstrous Mound inhaling his farts. He's probably a better man than Mound, but his unconditional love for him made him a total loser...
Delete.. if somehow, the roles were reversed.. or just exactly the way they are.. we would say (I say 'we' as - in the salamander family) - we would say have never seen a shred of wrongness, or bigotry in any blog entry, ever, by The Mound of Sound, just as we would say exactly the same thing about Montreal Simon. Scott who is the gracious host at Progressive Bloggers seems quite clear on this as well. The blog referenced ie 'Lorne' would certainly say the same, not a shred of a doubt. And many others of us who read Simon and Mound.. would attest to this. Mound needs no defense, he certainly can speak for himself and does. Just as Simon requires no defense, can speak for himself eloquently & elegantly.. always has. Let these perceptions rest. Mound was particularly prolific the last few days.. so what ? The essays were informative, timely, detailed, accurate.. and many. I often wish Simon was as prolific.. but i know how time consuming his style of blogging must be.. and we have always been stoked to see & read his latest, often several times.. or reflect back to a previous smackdown of some of our failed 'public servants' or twisted loser pundits or scumbags
ReplyDeleteAgain, we suggest.. Let this rest
All the best to Simon of course.. you are 'the dude' - keep on keepin on..
The salamanders have spoken ..
Yes in an ideal society people should not have to come out, sexual orientation could be a private non event. However we do not live in an ideal society and it demands that sexual orientation be made public and judged in a public space such as fill in forms, school meetings, washrooms to name a few. The Mound is right in that it should be a private non event type issue but wrong when it is suggested that the LGBT community are responsible for making it an issue. Our society still demands that it be an issue, even small progressive steps such as dropping Mr. and Mrs. from forms resulted in wailing backlash. The Mound did not help by down playing the challenge.
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Hi salamander...have you ever heard of people living a double life, well the hideous Mound is one of them. This is a story that goes back many years to the days when Progressive Bloggers had a voting system. And it drove that old man CRAAAAZY that I always beat him. So that's when he started sending me anonymous comments, which as I've said were among the most vile I have ever received. But unfortunately for him they arrived when police were investigating another freak who was bombarding me with death threats. I mean seriously do you think I would make something like that up? Why ? Unlike him I've got a life, and even corresponding with him makes me nauseous. But isn't it a familiar story, the victim gets blamed, and the guilty party gets away with it. Or so he thinks...
DeleteHi RT...The only reason I included that comment was to point out that there is something weird about a guy who would get so exercised about a young woman coming out and urging that more effort be made to fight anti-gay bullying. And the only reason I rose to that challenge is because I have had to fight bullies from a very early age, and anybody who gets in the way of that life and death struggle is going to hear what I think of them....
DeleteMassive kudos to Ellen Page for that moving and timely appearance on Colbert. When I hear her speak of the Veep's belief in conversion therapy, I am reminded of the fictional Ian Gallagher's anointment as "Gay Jesus" from last season's US version of Shameless.
ReplyDeleteIt also reminded me of a song I wrote long ago, but only just got around to posting on Tattered Sleeve today. Chorus: I don't know why they hate so strong, but it just keeps going on
Keep fighting the good fight, everyone! Peace
.. Thanks for getting back to me Simon.. Going back to the very beginnings of Progressive Bloggers and the other Progressive aggregator that shut down.. Well there are numerous exemplary Indy Bloggers who likely have read every entry by the Mound.. as well as your. I never knew you or he to be in a 'competition' .. just two very bright & earnest Canadians pulling hard on their oars.. ie blogging. Mound of course has a splendid background in Law.. and Order, astonishing skills in research and writing. Your astonishing skills are different but lean the same way.. Intolerant of bullies, rascists, Environmental travesties, toxic political partisans, deceivers.. etc etc. Why not let Edward de Bono's lateral thinking filter for 'problem solving' into your perception or issues re Mound? Apply 'po' .. ie let 'time' enter the equation.. It certainly serves me well. But do your own thing.. you do it very well.. never a worry here !
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