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WARNING TO THE CANCEL CULTURE!

I’ve been hearing a lot lately about the power of the ‘cancel culture’. Whereby--allegedly--if any member of the ten to twenty percent that drives much of the commentary on social media (the pajama boys, BLM girls, and other assorted LGBTQWXY electronic slackers) get their knickers in a twist about the truth, they ‘cancel’ someone’s social media footprint…thereby ‘cancelling’ their existence.

All I have to say is BALDERDASH!

As a former schoolteacher and college instructor, I’ve dealt with a variety of young people over the years. I have learned that the same young person who accuses an adult (usually a teacher) of being ‘insensitive, horrible, and/or unsympathetic’ to their point of view USUALLY practices the same form of SIN against those of their same age group. You teachers reading this understand where I am coming from. How many of your students didn’t like the fact that you told Sandra to ‘shut up’ as she was talking too much in class; yet and still her pals out in the hallway AFTER class told her the same thing LOUDLY--possibly setting the comments on blast, Amen?

How many of the ‘hip’ and ‘socially conscious are on social media? Studies indicate--again--that you have ten to twenty percent driving some eighty percent of the web traffic. Some of them strike me as being a part of the “Lord of the Flies” collective--they got nothing better to do than to complain. You know…they want to run the colony, but don’t like the end result and want to take out their frustration on the nearest adult in the room?

A SIMPLE MATTER OF DUE PROCESS?
Years ago, one of my female students had a piece of her jewelry stolen by a classmate. She was VERY angry and upset. She went down and got the school police officer, forced her classmates to stay after the bell, and demanded that the officer search each student until she got her property back! Boys as well as girls. The ‘missing’ jewelry was eventually found, and all was right with the world. The end justifies the means, right?

That is, until I heard about it.

I pointed out to the student that all of the rights violations that the student subjected her classmates to--including denying them their rights against illegal search and seizure, plus their right to proceed to their next class--were wrong! Now, her classmates ‘submitted’ to this violation of their rights because she had a hissy fit over a piece of jewelry. Imagine what would have happened IF some student decided NOT to cooperate?

You guessed it. World War III would have broken out in that classroom.

A SHORT LIST TO THE ‘CANCEL CULTURE’:
I consider this column a public service. Just to remind all of us that no matter how hard one may try; how hard they may try to be PC, they will upset someone. They can’t get away from others without a huge cost being collected. In the end analysis, God don’t like ugly…and ain’t too thrilled with pretty. On the street…what goes around, comes around. Let us end the matter. God created you as an individual--an original. Don’t go through life being a copy, nor biting your tongue, constantly being afraid of ‘offending’ someone, some cause, or some group of knuckleheads.

Let’s go down my short list to the ‘cancel culture’ association of the web:

First, you will be doing me a HUGE favor. Cancelling me means that I won’t have to worry about spam in my inbox, idiotic attempts to ask me for money for causes I don’t care about, and I won’t have mentally inferior ‘weeds’ in my intellectual garden. Not to mention the peace I will get from not having to sport fools. I’ll have peace…but YOU won’t!

Second, eventually, your ‘cancel culture’ goons will soon turn to feed on YOU. A veteran Pastor once told me: “Son, people will fight amongst themselves and TURN on you if they perceive you to be a threat to them. Once they polish you off, or run you off, they will turn back to fighting, complaining and grousing amongst themselves.”

Third, you will be cutting yourself off from present and future help. Think about it…the teacher whom you ‘cancel’ won’t be able to give you college or employment recommendations, no matter how many “I’m sorry” words you vomit. That professor who wouldn’t ‘bow’ to your demands that they ‘respect’ your BLMLGBTQWXYZ identity won’t have to provide you any type of tutoring, academic help, nor administrative support outside or beyond school policy--and guess who sets school policy? Plus, guess who has access to your academic transcripts and disciplinary file? Every school employee from the lunch lady to the custodian! Let’s see you cancel them!

Fourth, ‘cancel’ an employer? Forget getting a job that is worth anything in the near future. Employers--even cancelled ones--have long memories, and even longer connections to other employers. They will have no sympathy for you when it comes to finding another job. Written recommendations? Forget them. Clearing security checks? Forget that too. Plus, their lawyers and investigators…once they find you? They will feast upon your financial bones for a GOOD, long time!

Fifth, ‘cancel’ a person in your immediate universe of friends for some idiotic reason, like they didn’t like the same character in a TV show that you liked, and you will rue the day that you did that. You never know who knows who in this world. Nuff said.

Sixth, ‘cancel’ or lead your ‘Squad’ against a writer on line? Well, you ain’t that powerful. Many writers of quality that I know already realize that social media is a business tool, NOT a lifeline. Solid writers have an electronic footprint the size of Godzilla. How do you ‘unpublish’ someone’s past body of work? How do you ‘cancel’ someone’s last column after it has been syndicated and has appeared around the world? How do you put the nix on someone who makes sense? Highly doubtful.

Seventh, the cancellers will eventually look and sound like an ‘ex-spouses’ club in that they will demand people not associate with a person whom THEY know, love and respect. Pretty hard to follow your cancel advice when that person is alive right in front of them and carrying on an upright, contributing and successful life. Cancellers have a way of sounding like shrews. They will also get the same level of attention, too.

Eighth, eventually, dear ‘cancel freak’ you will grow out of your cancel storm and want to be taken seriously as a leader. Social media, contrary to popular opinion, is not the ‘end all or be all’ of life. I do quite well without twitter, snapchat, tiktok, and the rest of the Silicon Valley mafia. They are subject to economic truth, no matter how much they ‘try’ to look like ‘upscale hippies’. Check the latest social media layoffs list!

Lastly, ‘cancel’ a person because they are a Christian? Well, I wouldn’t do that if I were you. You’ll be shaking your Iphone in the face of God. Your arms are WAY too short to box with the Lord. God has a way of protecting His people, and His church. He has the capacity of making the canceller scream UNCLE in a major league way. Just read the Book of Daniel in the KJV Bible and see what happened when King Nebuchadnezzar took credit for being successful in his kingdom and ‘canceled’ God out of the mix? When he came to himself, he had come through a bout of insanity recorded in Scripture that is amazing to this day!

Oh, and by the way, I wouldn’t attempt to ‘cancel’ a church. The church doesn’t belong to the people that attend it. It belongs to Jesus Christ. No matter how good you are, you can not ‘cancel’ my Lord and Savior. EVERY knee WILL bow, and EVERY tongue WILL confess that Jesus is who He says He is…on that great getting up morning! ‘Cancel’ the church? Since the church is the bride of Christ, ain’t NO way that a husband will let you abuse or talk nasty about their wife. Not on THIS side of the Jordan!

Dear Cancellers…you are going to miss out on more than you could possibly imagine! Reach for the keys, pal. I guarantee that you will NOT beat God nor reality to the retribution draw, baby! At the bottom line, don’t be fooled young person. Just because YOU may get high from the fumes of social media, does NOT mean that everyone else will drink from the same pitcher!

Mike Ramey is a Minister, Book Reviewer, P-School Ranger, Modern Street Gangs Specialist and Syndicated Columnist who lives in Indianapolis, Indiana. “The Ramey Commentaries” is one of a variety of columns that Ramey has in cyberspace. To drop him a line…or a whine…the address is still the same: mgmikeramey@yahoo.com. ©2020 Barnstorm Communications.