Ann Barnhardt--now on Skype!

But STILL not on Facebook.  Here's the latest Warren Pollock interview with her accompanying post.  Emphasis in red is mine.

1. I stumbled on my words a bit and I just wanted to make clear what I was saying at the 1:43 mark. I am NOT being followed nor am I the least bit paranoid that I am being followed. If I am, I would like to apologize to whoever is "following" or "surveilling" me, because, yes, I am the single most BORING person on the face of the earth.

2. Warren hits it out of the park at the end when he drills in on the adolescent narcissism and self-absorption of Facebook. Dude, that's our culture in a nutshell: a society of people stunted into a perpetual adolescence, with its attendant ignorance, sense of entitlement, sense of invincibility and lack of fully-realized masculinity - manifested in cowardice. Facebook is a self-feeding derivative of that childishness.

3. The scripture reference is right in the heart of the Sermon on the Mount.

But let your speech be yea, yea: no, no: and that which is over and above these, is of evil.
--Matthew 5:37

Translation: CUT THE CRAP. Isn't this exactly the problem today? No one talks straight. No one lays it out. No one is honest and forthright. It's all just a steady stream of mincing, equivocating, politically correct, lying bullshit. Anything to be "liked", given a "thumbs up" or to generate cash flow. No one's "yes" means "yes", and no one's "no" means "no" anymore. People are pathologically incapable of answering the damn question. People are pathologically incapable of clarity for fear of "giving offense."

Well, except for me. And I guess that is why I have any degree of popularity, and why people find me interesting. People are so unused to seeing someone who is forthright that they are shocked by it. How incredibly sad.

4. People say to me, "But Ann, I only say private stuff on the "private message" side of Facebook, so no one else can see it. I never put anything personal on my wall. So my info is all totally private and secure."

And then Ann does a double face-palm, goes over and sits on the stairs and quietly sobs.

It's been said that "Political Correctness" will be the death of all of us(which is pretty obvious when you note that the first word of the term is 'political').  This is why.  The war of ideas used to be a straight fight.  Now it's guerilla warfare.  It's backstabbing and booby traps.  Everyone's skulking in the metaphorical shadows, scared to death that someone might not approve of their opinions or conclusions. 

This is the way of children. 

Adults have the responsibility of not only having beliefs and opinons, but knowing why they do, being able to defend them with reason and logic, and standing by them no matter how unpopular they may be.  As I've said before, to refuse to take a stand is a disgusting act of cowardice despised by both God and man.

If you hate me, tell me so.  Right to my face.  I'll respect you for it.  If you can explain why, my respect will increase.  If you can explain why using actual facts and logic?  Hey, I'll buy you a beer and might even rethink my worldview.  If you like me, tell me that, too--I'll cut you a lot of slack on the whole 'defending your opinion' thing.  ;)

Just be straight with me.

And yourself.

And everyone else.

Please.