Every day you can find a new story of the left abusing power, infringing rights and pushing their backwards ideology on people will all the force they can muster. A new story has recently circulated, but you won’t find it through liberal channels. A farmer in Michigan has had his business attacked for its views on homosexuality. While this sounds like a common story in modern America, the details of this particular case paint a condemning picture for the leftists involved, and they have shied away from the public eye as a result.
The Short Version
Steve Tennes is a farmer who lives just outside of East Lansing, Michigan. Last year, he was asked about his religious views concerning same-sex marriage via Facebook. He answered honestly that his faith is in disagreement with the practice. More than six months later, the city of East Lansing took action to bar Tennes’ farm, the Country Mill, from participating in the local farmers market.
This decision was made and enforced after a fierce campaign run by liberal activists. Tennes has responded with a lawsuit that claims his First Amendment rights have been violated. This is yet another small story that has ignited debates on the limits of freedom in the country, and it once again highlights the skewed perspective of morality between liberals and conservatives.
The Problems
This ban is a violation of the First Amendment. It inhibits Tennes’ religious freedom by requiring him to participate in an action that he finds immoral. It also violates his right to free speech. Keep in mind that this ban is the result of an inquiry on Facebook. It is not in response to discriminatory action. Here’s the kicker: Tennes elected to stop hosting weddings altogether specifically to avoid any discriminatory action. In terms of all of his other events, he welcomes all patrons equally. Despite this, the liberals still attacked him wholesale.
The left’s argument holds no water at all, but even if Tennes hadn’t been so careful, there are still problems with forcing him to participate in gay marriage. The farm is private property, and as such, no individuals have a right to hold events there. More importantly, the market ban is predicated on a city ordinance that promotes equality. Tennes’ farm is 22 miles outside the city limits so there is no jurisdiction to enforce the ordinance. This is a grotesque government overreach on several fronts.
Let’s recap. A farmer who believes gay marriage is wrong was forced to openly discuss his beliefs. In order to hold to his beliefs as fairly as possible, he stopped hosting weddings at all, and still the left has hobbled his ability to earn a living and put food on the table. Their official stance at this point is that he has to openly support gay marriage on his private property to be allowed the chance to sell the food he grows.
Shifting Paradigms
The “tolerant” left strikes again. There can be no mincing of words here. There are deliberately and forcefully projecting their religious views on others, and a failure to participate now holds deadly consequences. Destroying a person’s right to conduct business is tantamount to denying them food. This is the dark center of the entire liberal ideology.
The reason they fight so hard for bigger government and more power is because they have the endgame in sight. If they can determine everyone’s livelihood, they can use it to force their beliefs on each of us. The goal is nothing less than unbreakable fascism.
This feels like a major departure from years past. In the 50s, it was conservative power that aggressively fought waves of communism. The left learned from their losses and subverted power by identifying potential constriction of freedom every time the right tried to prevent the destruction of our country. Now, they have seized the moral high ground in the eyes of many Americans, and they use that excuse to perform the same acts they once condemned.
They will call Trump and the GOP a fascist even as they work to reduce government power and overreach. This shouting is really just a distraction to keep us from noticing the subversion and outright violation of basic rights that is happening in countless instances across the country. Members of the far left have been regurgitating warnings from fascist regimes of the past. Listen to those warnings and see how it applies to their tactics. Who are the real fascists in today’s America?
~ American Liberty Report
