Mark Caserta: American lives overrule political correctness

17 Jun

me

Mark Caserta: Free State Patriot editor

6.17.16

San Bern

Simply put, political correctness and a liberal misrepresentation of Islamophobia in our nation are costing lives.

Last week we sustained the worst mass shooting in our nation’s history. An Islamic gunman, wielding an assault-style weapon and handgun, reportedly opened fire on hundreds of innocent people killing dozens and injuring many more.

While authorities are investigating whether the attack was an act of domestic or international terror, there is little doubt the shooter was influenced by his radical Islamic roots. CNN reported the afternoon following the attack that the attacker called 911 to pledge allegiance to ISIS and mentioned the Boston Marathon bombers, according to a U.S. official.

Shortly following the attack, a friend asked me, “Mark, what do you think Obama will call this attack?”

Of course, my friend was alluding to Obama’s prior shameful reference to “workplace violence” as in the 2009 Fort Hood shooting, or an act of violence committed by a “lone gunman,” as in the shooting deaths of four Marines in Chattanooga, Tennessee, in 2015.

“Anything but an attack from radical Islam,” I replied.

And true to form, following the attack, multiple news agencies including USA Today, reported President Obama calling the mass shooting in Orlando “an act of terror” and “an act of hate.”

No mention of Islam.

Interestingly, however, while the president made no mention of the shooter’s Islamic background, he was sure to identify the victims as being part of the lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender culture.

I wonder how long before he blames the assault rifle and/or conservative “homophobe mentality” for the brutal attack.

But liberal libel and intellectual dishonesty aren’t going to protect our families from the threat of Islamic terrorism. Obama’s persistent refusal to admit innocent blood is being shed in the name of Allah should be troubling to all Americans.

And we all should be reminded, Hillary Clinton plans to carry on Obama’s failed Islamic foreign policy if elected.

It’s naive and otherwise blatantly ignorant to believe that simply refusing to call these extremists “Islamic terrorists” is going to save lives or in any way help fortify our relationship with Muslims around the world.

In fact, quite the opposite is happening. Our enemy is emboldened and prepared to bring the fight within the borders of the United States, as it was in Orlando.

To make matters worse, the president seems determined to exacerbate the problem by bringing thousands of un-vetted Syrian refuges to the U.S. Obama’s own FBI director James Comey told a House Committee on Homeland Security in 2015 that the federal government simply does not have the resources to conduct thorough background checks on all of the 10,000 Syrian refugees and exclude ISIS penetration.

America needs leadership willing to deliver a message of “shock and awe” to radical Islamic extremists around the world. Obama has proven he isn’t even willing to rattle his saber against Islamic terrorists, much less defeat them.

And we have no need of a president who values protecting the tenets of Islam over protecting the lives of Americans.

American lives matter.

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

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Mark Caserta: A letter to the president about the economy

10 Jun

me

Mark Caserta: Free State Patriot Editor

6.10.16

              

 

obama

Dear President Obama,

 

Greetings from the great state of West Virginia!

Mr. President, last week in an interview with The Economist, you boasted to the American people the economy is better now than when you took office saying, “Since I have come into office, there’s almost no economic metric by which you couldn’t say that the U.S. economy is better and that corporate bottom lines are better – None.”

Well, Mr. President, I’m not sure what metrics apply in Washington, but as for the rest of the country, things have never been tougher.

Sadly, throughout your presidency, the complicit liberal media has refused to engage you with direct questions aimed at getting honest answers.

So if you’ll indulge me, Mr. President, I would like to pose a few simple questions.

Mr. President, our nation’s labor participation force is the lowest it’s been since the mid-1970s. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a record 94 million Americans are missing from the labor force. During the same period of time in 2008, the number was 79 million Americans. How do you explain this tragic drop in employment?

President Obama, as you know, individuals who haven’t actively looked for work for four weeks are dropped from the monthly reported unemployment rate. Given the record number of Americans not looking for work and missing from the labor force, don’t you feel it’s misleading to report unemployment at below 5 percent?

Mr. President, following the Bush presidency, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, there were 28.2 million people on food stamps, now known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). Yet, according to recent SNAP statistics, this number has increased to over 44 million people. How do you explain so many more people now dependent upon the government for food?

Mr. President, in recent weeks, you’ve used the word “booming” to describe certain segments of our economy. Yet, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, median household income has dropped from $55,313 in 2008 when you took office to $53,657 in 2014. When factoring price increases, the median household income becomes comparable to levels we haven’t seen since the mid-1990s. What words do you have for families not feeling the “boom” in the economy?

In 2008, Mr. President, when you were running for office, you criticized then-President Bush for adding $4 trillion to the national debt, saying it was “unpatriotic” and “irresponsible” to burden future generations with such a large national debt.

Yet, since taking office in 2009, your administration has added another $7.5 trillion, according to multiple sources, including The Weekly Standard. In fact, the Congressional Budget Office predicts the debt could exceed $19 trillion by the end of your presidency. Would you now “walk back” your 2009 indictment of Bush?

“Metrics” are only as good as the data, Mr. President. And yours fail to meet the mark.

But if you’re looking for a good accountant to honestly track the information, give us a call here in West Virginia.

We have plenty of people who could use the work.

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

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Mark Caserta: Progressivism isn’t about technology, injustice

5 Jun

me

  • Jun 3, 2016

Sadly, as our nation wars against issues like nuclear proliferation, illegal immigration and rampant Islamic terrorism, we have no choice but to focus our attention on potentially debilitating social onslaughts from progressives.

 

Emboldened by successes achieved under the most liberal president in my lifetime, we’re becoming increasingly impinged upon by members of society disengaged from principles of morality and social conscience.

 

And why not? They’re simply following the lead block of a president whose success at fundamentally transforming America is unprecedented.

What began as a societal “pursuit of acceptance,” the LGBT lifestyle has successfully opened the door to a new world order of “interrelation” and recognition.

 

And knowing liberals will never be satisfied until they’ve removed all barriers of virtue and incorruption, I believe the battle has only begun.

 

I’m amazed how liberals aggrandize the progressive movement in our nation. Their implication that conservatism seeks to oppress civil rights and bolster social injustice is laughable.

 

Progressivism has historically been laden with unintended consequences and is now beginning to impact our nation in ways we never dreamed.

 

As of last week, 12 states, including Kentucky and West Virginia, have joined in a lawsuit against the federal government over its transgender bathroom guidelines for schools, as reported by multiple news organizations, including CNN. The lawsuit seeks to block the federal government from “implementing, applying or enforcing the new rules, regulations and guidance interpretations.”

 

Understand, there’s a pattern progressives follow when establishing a foothold from which they can propagate their agenda, and it’s important to identify the early phases.

Progressives understand they must advance their agenda “progressively.” “Step one” is to challenge traditionally accepted standards. In this case, it’s the conservative interpretation of federal anti-discrimination laws.

 

Achieving protection “under the radar” for even a small group of individuals may be perceived as only one small step for a liberal, but it’s actually one giant leap for progressivism!

 

From that point, progressives tenaciously advance the scale of “acceptance” and “protection” in our society under the guise of human and civil rights.

 

Suppose pedophiles begin leveraging similar tactics seeking protection akin to those waged by the LGBT rights activists, arguing their desire for children is a “sexual orientation” and no different than heterosexual or homosexual desires?

 

Consider NAMBLA, the North American Man/Boy Love Association, whose website states it’s a political, civil rights and educational organization whose goal is to end “the extreme oppression of men and boys in mutually consensual relationships.”

Would it matter to a liberal if this organization sought protection under the same illogical set of values?

 

Folks, we’re in a battle for the very soul of our nation. I expect ambitions of tolerance we never thought possible.

 

Think about it. How many of us, even 10 years ago, would have envisioned the federal government allowing individuals to choose the restroom that aligned with their gender “perception” rather than their physiology?

 

It’s time we set progressivism apart from simply being advances in technology and social injustice.

 

Progressivism seeks to remove the metric of morality and the edict of conscience.

me

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

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Mark Caserta: Federal minimum wage should be tied to inflation

28 May

me

Mark Caserta: Free State Patriot Editor

  • May 27, 2016 

 

On the left we’ll see “progressive” Democrats portrayed as liberators of the downtrodden, offering complimentary passes on everything from birth control to tuition.

While on the right we’ll have the “primordial” GOP, viewed as protectors of the “one percent,” looking to reduce entitlements and intrusive government oversight.

Well, when it comes to doing the right thing for hard-working hourly wage earners, I believe both sides have an argument.

 

I recall working for $1.65 per hour in 1974. While hardly a “living wage,” it provided me spending money during school.

 

But the cost of living has increased exponentially through the years, and the federal minimum wage has never been set to rise with inflation. This must change. Currently, the increase requires congressional action and politicians have been irresponsible in acting. Go figure.

 

But understand, attempting to repair 40 years of feckless government bureaucracy in one fatal swoop could send our economy into a disastrous nosedive!

 

One important factor liberal Democrats don’t understand is someone has to pay for it. And that “someone” will predominately be the consumer who frequents the businesses employing the minimum wage workforce. This would include restaurants, movie theaters, retail outlets, grocery stores and so on.

 

Suppose proponents of the federal minimum wage increase are successful at increasing the current rate from $7.25 to $15 per hour. As a business owner, I now have to cover the additional cost in labor.

 

Projecting lower profit margins is not an option.

 

Employers will be forced to react by reducing their costs and services while increasing their revenues to the degree necessary to remain profitable. This means higher prices.

So if I’m paying my restaurant employee $15 per hour to flip your hamburger, guess what – the burger is going to cost you more – not the employer. And there will, no doubt, be fewer cooks in the kitchen.

If I’m paying movie theater employees $15 per hour to sell you a movie ticket, pop popcorn and clean up your mess, you’ll pay much more for the popcorn and movie.

 

If I’m paying my retail outlet store employees $15 per hour to stock the shelves and run the cash register, who do you suppose is going to cover the additional cost? You will – not the employer.

 

In fact, the same people who supposedly got a minimum wage pay increase are the very ones who will cover much of the employer’s additional payroll cost.

 

Minimum wage was never meant to be a living wage, but a stepping stone to a better future. But Democrats have forged a “nanny state” that under their current policies, could be bound to a minimum wage for life!

 

A drastic increase in the federal minimum wage would prohibit employers from growing and creating higher-paying jobs of the future.

 

Let’s tie the federal minimum wage to cost of living increases and allow the free market to work.

 

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

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Here’s The Full list of 92 Paychecks Hillary Collected from Wall Street

22 May
Here’s The FULL List of 92 Paychecks
Hillary Collected From Wall Street
By Robert Gehl 

http://thefederalistpapers.integratedmarket.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Hillary-angry.jpg

The media’s going nuts that Hillary Clinton took three big paychecks for three speeches at Goldman Sachs.
At $225,000 a pops that’s pretty good scratch – but it’s just the tip of the iceberg.

She’s been very, very   busy, raking in millions in a three-year stretch since she left her post as the Secretary of State.
Her defense? It varies from ” It’s   what they offered me ” to the hilarious, “I happen to think we need more
conversations about what’s going on in the world.” Pricey “conversations” indeed.
Here’s a list of the 92 “conversations” that Clinton has had in just the past three years.
The total: $21.7 million.

http://thefederalistpapers.integratedmarket.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Hillary-Clinton-Speeches-2013-2015_1.jpg
She’s been very, very busy. What did Hillary promise in all these speeches?

What was her advice to Deutche Bank, Cisco and the Council of Insurance Agents? What did she tell eBay?

Or the ” American Camping   Association ” and why on earth would the American Camping Association pay $260,000 to hear from Hillary? Has she ever been camping? We may never know because she refuses to tell us. 

What Hillary discloses to us peasants is on a ” need to know ” basis only.

Robert Gehl is a college professor in
Phoenix, Arizona. He has over 15 years journalism experience, including two
Associated Press awards.

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Mark Caserta: Job numbers obscure hardship felt by Americans

20 May

me

Mark Caserta: Free State Patriot Editor

Anyone suggesting the current unemployment rate in our nation is truly at 5 percent is either being intellectually dishonest or wantonly ignorant about our nation’s job situation.

Frankly, Americans are tired of liberal Democrats paying homage to the Obama administration’s bogus “jobs creation” success. It’s shameful to ignore hurting families in lieu of their own political expediency.

It’s the type of representation Americans abhor.

Look around you. Where are the good-paying jobs?

The truth is Americans are falling out of the job force at an alarming rate. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, (BLS) a record 94 million people were missing from the labor force last month with the labor participation rate reaching its lowest point in 38 years.

Most Americans aren’t aware of the ambiguity of the government’s monthly jobs report, nor of the Obama administration’s misrepresentation of the facts in order to shield their failing policies.

Understand the unemployment number being touted before the American people only counts people who don’t have a job, have actively looked for work in the prior four weeks and are currently available for work.

Everyone else falls out of the equation and are no longer counted in the total number of unemployed.

The truer number of total unemployed, including those who have stopped looking for work and those employed part time for economic reasons, is at 9.7 percent, according to the BLS.

But I believe even that number is too low. Here’s why.

Not many people consider how the government “captures” unemployment statistics. Some simply assume the government uses the number of people collecting unemployment benefits under state or federal programs. But some people are still jobless when their benefits run out.

Other people think the government counts every unemployed person each month. But this would require every home in America to be contacted to gather the information, making this method unrealistic.

Rather than formulate a viable, accurate method of measurement, the government opts to conduct a monthly survey called the “Current Population Survey” (CPS) to measure our nation’s unemployment.

Each month, “highly trained and experienced” Census Bureau employees contact sample households, either in person or over the phone and ask about the labor force activities or non-labor force status of the members of the household.

Now there are only about 60,000 eligible households in the survey sample, but they’re “supposed” to represent our nation’s workforce demographically.

Does anyone understand the potential obscurity of this process? The end result is precarious at best!

Further exacerbating the problem, of the jobs being created, the strongest growth has been in lower-paying retail and service industry jobs, according to BLS statistics.

The hardship felt by American families is very real. Tragically, it’s being mocked by progressive “elitists” like Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton and other liberal Democrats trying to convince us our lives are getting better.

But it’s all about to change.

Americans are very angry. They’re weary of the deception.

I believe they’re about to collectively put an end to this “reign of oppression” from the political establishment.

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

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Mark Caserta: It’s time for us to unite to defeat Hillary

13 May

me

Mark Caserta: Free State Patriot Editor

Donald Trump has shocked the Washington establishment. And while he wasn’t my choice for the GOP nomination, it’s time to unite under one purpose. For when the smoke clears, I fully support defeating Hillary Clinton.

 

And right now, Trump may be our only hope.

 

Let me be clear. This election may offer the most important choice of our lifetime. Our nation is on life support and we’re in critical need of leadership. And sitting this one out is a vote for Hillary.

Let’s examine what’s at stake.

 

If Hillary is elected president, we’ll be giving the Supreme Court over to the progressive movement, literally for the rest of our lives. And you won’t believe how quickly our country will be inflamed with liberal pathosis.

 

The LGBT movement will have secured a victory far beyond achieving “acceptance” in our society. We’ll see an escalation of lawsuits against Christian business owners choosing to adhere to their religious principles like Aaron and Melissa Klein of Oregon. The Kleins were eventually forced out of their bakery business in 2013 following an anti-discrimination lawsuit in which the judge ordered the couple to pay $135,000 for declining to bake a cake for a lesbian marriage ceremony.

 

I believe we’ll see attempts to rescue Obamacare from obliteration through leveraging the tenacious tentacles of the most feared organization in our nation’s government – the Internal Revenue Service.

 

We’ll see a stalwart approach at identifying families and individuals who haven’t purchased healthcare due to cost or coverage and attacking them with merciless penalties.

I predict getting an abortion will be as simple as purchasing an “over the counter” drug. Liberals believe that a woman’s right to choose far exceeds the life of an unborn infant.

Babies will be tossed into the dumpster out of “inconvenience” or due to physical impairment. Partial birth and live birth abortions will likely be re-invigorated as they align with the progressive mentality of “choice supersedes life.”

 

Hillary has already condemned a proposed “wall” closing our borders to illegals. A Hillary presidency would open our borders to illegals under the guise of “humanity” and then allow them to vote.

 

Liberals have long desired to relax the voting requirements on every demographic they’ve accused conservatives of trying to “disenfranchise” so they can buy their vote with your tax dollars!

Expect the same lackadaisical approach to ISIS. Hillary has already refused to utter the words “radical Islam,” just like Barack Hussein Obama. She will continue to refuse to identify our enemy in lieu of being a Muslim apologist.

 

And just last month, Hillary Clinton vowed to “put a lot of coal miners and coal companies out of business.”

 

Now, I’ve been to the coal fields of Southern West Virginia several times recently. The lack of jobs and ensuing poverty is heart-breaking. It’s impossible to understand Clinton’s “compassion” for illegals entering our country and her indifference for hard-working families in our area simply trying to make a living.

 

Hillary Clinton must not be elected president. And it isn’t about politics or even winning.

It’s about survival.

 

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

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New Trump Ad Hits Hillary Hard Over Benghazi Statements

11 May

hill

Would like to give her a lie detector test.

Randy DeSoto May 10, 2016 at 5:15pm

Print

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Donald Trump released a new ad Tuesday with family members of Benghazi victims saying Hillary Clinton misled them to believe the 2012 Benghazi attack was the result of an internet video.

The video released on Trump’s Instagram account opens with Clinton speaking about the “awful internet video” that she proclaimed sparked the Benghazi attacks in remarks made at Andrews Air Force base shortly after the strikes on the American consulate and CIA annex.

Next comes news footage of victims’ family members, including Patricia Smith, mother of State Department employee Sean Smith; Charles Woods, father of Navy SEAL Tyrone Woods; and Kate Quigley, sister of Navy SEAL Glen Doherty, speaking about how Hillary Clinton did not tell them the truth.

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Mark Caserta: Consider impact of Obamacare when voting

7 May

me

Mark Caserta: Free State Patriot Editor

  • May 6, 2016

As many of us are busy “revving our mental motors” to pick the most qualified 2016 presidential candidate, it’s time to revisit the impact of the largest form of socialist redistribution ever to be thrust upon the American people, as well as who supports keeping it.

 

Let’s begin with broken promises of Obamacare.

 

Remember when Barack Obama repeatedly told Americans, “If you like your healthcare plan, you’ll be able to keep your healthcare plan – period”?

In what Politifact called “The Lie of the Year,” Obama began perpetrating this canard upon the American people as early as 2009 to facilitate passage of his signature healthcare law. Millions of Americans have since lost their policies and have been forced to purchase another plan at an increased cost.

 

But for liberals, the end justifies the means.

 

During the 2008 campaign and healthcare reform debate in 2009, Obama repeatedly promised that under his administration, the typical American family would see their health insurance premiums decrease by up to $2,500 per year.

 

The reality is most Americans will see their premiums increase. According to multiple sources, including CNN Money, Obamacare premiums will increase an average of 7.5 percent for the benchmark silver insurance plan next year in the 37 states using the federal exchange, based on Department of Health and Human Services estimations.

 

Also during his 2008 presidential campaign, Barack Obama told Americans of his proposed healthcare plan, “I can make a firm pledge. Under my plan, no family making less than $250,000 a year will see any form of tax increase. Not your income tax, not your payroll tax, not your capital gains taxes, not any of your taxes.”

 

Isn’t it amazing Obama’s lies don’t matter to liberals?

 

As the Supreme Court ultimately ruled, the Obamacare Individual mandate is in itself a “tax” requiring individual workers to purchase health insurance even if they don’t want it! This mandate is critical for Obamacare’s viability as it must “take” from younger, healthier enrollees and “give” to clients with higher rates of claims.

 

But Obamacare’s impact is far-reaching.

 

The 40-hour work week is rapidly disappearing as businesses re-tool, re-staff and reschedule to stay under the Obamacare radar.

 

As part of the employer mandate, beginning in 2015, employers with 50 or more “full-time equivalent” employees were required to provide health insurance coverage for employees averaging 30 hours per week over the course of a month.

 

This job-killing mandate has discouraged employers from hiring above the 50-employee level and from scheduling employees 30 hours. As a result, employers are forced to demand more production from existing staff while many retail and service employees are having to work a second or third job simply to survive.

Remarkably, the government touts these as “jobs created” in their progressive world of Obamanomics.

 

But the thousands of families trying to make ends meet know the difference.

 

Now, Hillary Clinton wants to expand Obamacare if she’s elected president.

 

How will furthering this health debacle impact our nation long term?

 

I suggest you consider that question when you go to the polls.

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

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Mark Caserta: Rights not exclusive to LGBT community

29 Apr

me

Mark Caserta: Free State Patriot Editor

4.29.16

Liberals seem to only focus on protecting the rights of individuals engaged in behaviors that align with their progressive ideology.

 

One timely example would be the promotion of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) lifestyle in America.

 

What seemingly began as a “simple pursuit” of acceptance has now expanded into a large segment of society boldly embracing their choice of an alternative lifestyle.

And I believe it is indeed their right to pursue their constitutional rights.

 

But not if it infringes upon mine.

 

In fact, no segment of society should have to sacrifice their rights so others can exercise theirs. One could easily call that “reverse discrimination.”

 

For many of us, gender identity wasn’t something we ever envisioned questioning. We simply accepted our physical characteristics as God’s will in our lives. However, through the years, progressives have encouraged parents to promote “healthy gender development” and allow their child’s gender identity to “evolve” as they grow older.

 

This gender “ambiguity,” while fully within a parent’s rights, has been an enabler to some ultimately choosing this lifestyle.

 

Through the years, we’ve seen the LGBT movement expand into nearly every segment of society – from scouting to sports teams. LGBT communities and organizations now thrive all around us.

 

And I have no reservation in stating that I believe they are deserving of respect and should be treated no differently than anyone else – period.

 

But they are in no way deserving of special treatment that infringes upon my rights. And that has nothing to do with discrimination.

 

Too often the LGBT community is portrayed as victims of hatred and persecution deserving of special protection and accommodation beyond existing laws on the books.

 

According to an October 2015 column in The New York Times by Richard Perez-Pena, California has become the first state with a policy of providing sex reassignment surgery for some prison inmates. And as advocates for the process move forward, it’s only a matter of time before your tax dollars will do the same in your state.

 

In 2015, Huntington Mayor Steve Williams formed the LGBT Advisory Committee to help advance the discussion about equality and justice for the LGBT community in our area. While the mayor’s intentions may be honorable, I believe it’s a mistake to expose our city to the same array of unintended consequences other cities now face.

 

Now, I have a few questions regarding my rights in this gender identity quandary.

 

“Which public restroom will they be allowed to use?” Will it be based on an individual’s “gender choice” or their biological persuasion?

Suppose a 30 year-old male chooses to put on a dress and walk into the same women’s restroom your 14-year-old daughter just entered.

 

Are we to assume this individual’s intentions are harmless?

 

How will law enforcement be forced to react if a citizen acts in such a situation?

 

We’ve allowed liberals to advance “political correctness” to mean some rights are more deserving of protection than others!

 

Not so!

 

Individuals outside the LGBT community also have rights which need to be protected.

 

Mark Caserta is a conservative blogger, a Cabell County resident and a regular contributor to The Herald-Dispatch editorial page.

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