By: Jože Biščak
Not even in my dreams did I imagine that one of the most brilliant definitions of the modern progressive madness we recognise in the “cancel culture” would be given by the British comedian Rowan Atkinson. Months ago, the actor, who is recognisable by the character of Mr. Bean, told the Radio Times that slander for the left of controversial ideas and individuals is “a digital equivalent of the medieval mob roaming the streets looking for someone to burn.” The on-duty moralists, sometimes anti-fascists, convinced of their own right like a boulder under a mountain, impose their view, try to erase those with whom they disagree. Of course, they allow other opinions, an individual can have any position on various topics, but only on condition that these “different” views completely and unconditionally correspond to the progressive agenda. And this in Slovenia is: you have to be anti-Janša, any kind of cooperation or agreement with the center-right government is unacceptable.
The KUL coalition is negotiating for post-election cooperation, the announcement is (and they have been repeating it for some time) that they will not cooperate with parties and individuals who support or cooperate with the government of Janez Janša, and that they will take care of them when they rule. This is a typical “cancel culture”, pre-exclusion, social intimidation, the return of the medieval mob announced with fanfares. With the support of various NGOs or civic associations, they faithfully circulate on social networks and media and search for victims; when they find them, they trigger insanity. If history is our teacher, such practices bring only evil.
Director Mitja Okorn, skier Tina Maze or communication expert Edvard Kadič are just three more exposed people who were the target of the “digital equivalent of the medieval mob”. Okorn was insulted for making a film for the government about individuals who overcame the Chinese virus; Tina was being expelled from her homeland for publicly announcing that she had been vaccinated; Kadič was attacked for promoting vaccination for the government. The paper does not tolerate swearing to be repeated here. They were really vilely, this is a modern form of shard judgment, discrediting people who have succeeded in life with their own hard work, they owe nothing to anyone, they have their own values and view of the world. And they say it publicly. Given that many of the prey of the awakened police do not even have the same worldview as the coalition parties. Their only sin is that as celebrities they do not spit on the government; they do not insult it with fascist. On the contrary, oh, horror, some even cooperate with it.
It is about a cancel culture
The dirty detail of the “cancel culture” is that it is driven by a lack of self-commitment to certain standards. If you give up the traditions, general moral principles and values that have driven and preserved our family for centuries, you will be easy prey. Step by step you will slide into their claws. And when the cultural mob tastes your fear and willingness to give in, it will come back for your soul, because it will not be able to resist this bloodthirsty desire. So you have to learn to run through time.
The “cancel culture” is deeply ingrained in the very core of the West, poisoning the democracies there. Nick Cave, a top musician known for his dark songs, said last Christmas that people lack mercy. “As far as I can see, cancel culture is mercy’s antithesis. Political correctness has grown to become the unhappiest religion in the world,” says Cave. It would be hard to disagree with that. “Cancel culture” thrives slightly less in Central and Eastern Europe, where people are still more primitive, free, prone to natural processes.
Bloody chairs on the road, smeared walls of the Ministry of Culture and homes of individuals, street spitting of people, shouting at Triglav, burning photos of ideological opponents, online labelling with Zlovenec, Nazis and clero-fascists; all this is the atmosphere brought by the “cancel culture” in Slovenia. Its practitioners say that only in this way can they achieve social, racial and other justice, which is why the media mainstream views it as virtuous. Far from it. The “cancel culture” is darker than the blackest coal. And when it grinds, its dust soils everything around it. Except for those who run through time, they shake the dust off their shoulders and leave strong marks. Like Okorn, Meze and Kadič.
Jože Biščak is the editor-in-chief of the weekly Demokracija, a long-term investigative journalist, and since 2020 also the president of the Slovenian Association of Patriotic Journalists and the author of three books.