Columnist Brent Bozell recently noted that in our popular culture there are two sides to every issue: the Enlightenment Side and the Idiotic Other Side.

Well, at least that’s how most issues are described by the three major institutions that shape our culture nowadays: the news media, the entertainment industry, and the educational system.

Just think of how people who do not agree with the Politically Correct point-of-view are portrayed regarding the following topics:

Global warming – Anyone who does not agree that the earth is warming rapidly, and that it’s caused by human activity, is labeled a “denier.” Al Gore said people who do not agree with his apocalyptic, 20-foot-rise-in-sea-level prophecy are just like Holocaust deniers. In other words, they are either incredibly stupid or just plain evil.

Same-sex marriage – Whoever believes same-sex marriage should not be legalized, is labeled an intolerant religious fanatic and a “hater.”

Abortion – If you are pro-life and believe abortion kills a precious, unique human being, you are described as someone who wants to oppress women. Oh, and you’re also described as an intolerant religious fanatic and a “hater.”

Gun control – Anyone who agrees with the Second Amendment, and who thinks it’s OK for law-abiding citizens to own firearms, is portrayed as a redneck simpleton whose “obsession with guns” is actually the root cause of violence in our society.

Darwinism – If you believe a Divine Being was somehow involved with the creation of life on earth, rather than the neo-Darwinian dogma that states all life arose purely by natural, random, unplanned processes, then you are called ignorant, superstitious, and an “enemy of science.” And once again you most likely are described as an intolerant religious fanatic and, of course, a “hater.”

Anyway, just in case you’re not quite sure where I stand on these issues, let me state that I firmly believe the following:

• Al Gore’s predictions about global warming are absurd. (I also believe in 20 years people will watch Al’s award-winning movie in the same way college students watch that old flick “Reefer Madness.” That is, with a lot of laughter and incredulity that people were once so gullible and hysterical.)
   
• I really don’t care what consenting adults do in private, but the term “same-sex marriage” sure sounds like an oxymoron.
   
• Abortion is murder.
   
• Self-defense, including owning a gun, is not only a constitutionally-guaranteed right but a sacred civic duty.
   
• The idea that life, with all its amazing complexity, could have come into existence without any intelligence, guidance, or design is more absurd than Al Gore’s predictions about a 20-foot rise in sea levels.  

I realize that admitting these personal beliefs in public marks me as a permanent member of the Idiotic Other Side (IOS). But I don’t care anymore. For far too long our culture has endured a one-sided debate: the Politically Correct crowd, that is, the Arrogant Socialist Side (do your own acronym) has shoved its narrow views down society’s throat. And as society chokes on the resulting cultural chaos, those of us who don’t agree have cowered in silence.