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Is It Possible To Be ‘Moderate’ And Not Be Labeled a Traitor?

Jan 20, 2023

By @TraceyKent

 I stumbled on Konstantin Kisin’s speech to the prestigious Oxford Union debate.

“Woke.”

That title alone causes division.  

Progressives had used the term to convey the closed-minded ‘waking’ to acceptance & acknowledging the struggles of others. It’s since been wrested by the far-right as a slur and labeled as the never-ending complaints of the far-left’s grievances. 

In his speech, Kisin uses the climate change debate that the far-left has co-opted as their own. He points out the hypocrisy of anti-climate change protesters defacing art, and buildings, to push for zero carbon & their anarchy-like protests against targeted corporations. All while ignoring the plight of the poor in underdeveloped countries. Countries that significantly contribute to pollution, with a population that can’t afford the luxury of non-carbon emission demands.  His speech cuts to why “Woke” has become hypocritical.

Kisin proclaims himself a moderate. The far-left would strongly disagree with him.  He has received vitriol & threats from progressives on social media.

Those in center-left media have yet to include his rising status as part of their coverage, and right-leaning media, such as Tucker Carlson and Piers Morgan, have featured him on their shows. 

Both hosts pointed out that dialogue isn’t allowed within the far left. They proclaim that any criticism of the left’s beliefs & arguments is not permitted nor condoned. 

Are they wrong? 

I am myself a proclaimed moderate. I’ve been a Conservative with a capital C. (Google is your friend here). When I left the party with some media coverage, I was derided by the right. I lost friends and colleagues. I had crossed the line to the political wasteland of the middle. Not able to overlook the hypocrisy of my conservative friends. And labeled as a potential “disguised conservative” by those on the left.  I held no political banner.  I became the politically maligned “mushy middle.”

In my personal life, my youngest child came out as transgender in high school.  This was almost ten years ago, just before Caitlyn Jenner appeared on Vanity Fair. The transgender issue was becoming a political divider in North America. Our family struggled to shake off old biases and to understand better, all while getting support for our teen son. Along this journey, we met many supportive people and some who weren’t. Those in our personal lives who may have had their own hesitant bias slowly eased their way to understanding—through many private discussions, explaining, and listening.  Our son was still the outgoing, funny & respectful kid they always knew. He just now wore different clothes, a different name.  Our son just wanted to live his life, participating as a regular contributing person—such a humble request. The main point is that discussion was critical and almost always made relationships stronger and understanding much better.

When I saw the vitriol spewed at Caryma Sa’ad’s coverage of last weekend’s Peterborough library drag storytime, I thought. First, it must be coming from the far-right protesters. Instead, the worst actions were coming from the LGBTQ activists. They spat at Caryma and used ethnic slurs.

I saw no difference between the far right and the far left. Both are stuck in their dogma. Both are policing their allies to maintain whatever narrative has to be pushed. Both use degrading antics. Caryma is a community tenant rights lawyer, a brown-skinned Muslim woman whose main reason for covering these protests is to highlight the divisions and advocate for dialogue. 

However, something is alarming with a group fighting for the rights of the marginalized, using the tactics of the far-right. There’s no more extended dialogue allowed with those they labeled the enemy. They’re ridiculed, insulted, and threatened.  This includes anyone who doesn’t conform to their beliefs or challenges any stance, where debate & discussion is deemed oppression.  

There’s something grotesque in advocating for acceptance while degrading and threatening anyone, not on their side. 

Do we now all have to choose a side? Are criticism and dialogue now verboten? Are “Moderates” lost in the middle of the political battlefield of two sides that enjoy the war too much? 

Can we talk over a coffee? 

Tracey Kent, Vaughn. Special to Crier Media

 

Dean Blundell

Dean Blundell is a Canadian radio personality. Best known as a longtime morning host on CFNY-FM (The Edge) in Toronto, Ontario. In 2015 he was named the new morning host on sports radio station CJCL (Sportsnet 590 The Fan). Dean started his career in radio in 2001 and for nearly 20 years been entertaining the radio audience. Dean’s newest venture is the launch of his site and podcast which is gaining tremendous momentum across North America.

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