'Hate'-arbiters give back-handed 'apology' to Ben Carson

Dr. Ben Carson

The Southern Poverty Law Center, linked to domestic terror through a case in Washington in which a homosexual activist tried to kill as many Christians as he could, has backed off its attack on Dr. Ben Carson, the highly acclaimed brain surgeon and potential presidential candidate.

But in announcing that it was removing Carson from its "Extremist File," SPLC actually doubled down on the eminent physician, listing several pages of statements by him that it charged were "extreme."

The controversy arose this week when it was revealed that the far-left SPLC, which designates some advocacy organizations that oppose their social agenda as "hate" groups, had listed Carson as an extremist.

WND reported Carson's response was to warn that America was approaching a point where "wrong is called right and right is called wrong."

Carson said SPLC's designation of him as an extremist flipped values upside down.

"When embracing traditional Christian values is equated to hatred, we are approaching the stage where wrong is called right and right is called wrong," he said. "It is important for us to once again advocate true tolerance.

"That means being respectful of those with whom we disagree and allowing people to live according to their values without harassment. It is nothing but projectionism when some groups label those who disagree with them as haters."

The "wrong is right" theme comes from the book of Isaiah: "Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter."

The Pulpit Commentary notes: "There are persons who gloss over evil deeds and evil habits by fair-sounding names, who call cowardice caution, and rashness courage, niggardliness thrift, and wasteful profusion generosity. The same men are apt also to call good evil; they brand prudence with the name of cunning, call meekness want of proper spirit, sincerity rudeness, and firmness obstinacy.

"This deadness to moral distinctions is the sign of deep moral corruption."

WND reported SPLC's reasoning was that Carson is "against" same-sex marriage.

But because of the criticism, SPLC said it was reversing course.

"This week, as we've come under intense criticism for [listing Carson], we've reviewed our profile and have concluded that it did not meet our standards, so we have taken it down and apologize to Dr. Carson for having posted it," the organization said in an online statement.

Get all of Dr. Ben Carson's inspiring books that celebrate the values that shaped America's past and must shape her future in WND's Superstore.

Then it doubled down on its claims against the doctor.

"We've also come to the conclusion that the question of whether a better-researched profile of Dr. Carson should or should not be included in our 'extremist Files' is taking attention from the fact that Dr. Carson has, in fact, made a number of statements that express views that we believe most people would conclude are extreme."

It listed the statement that originally was cited: "Marriage is between a man and a woman. It's a well-established pillar of society and no group, be they gays, be they NAMBLA [North American Man/Boy (Love) Association, a group advocating pedophilia], be they people who believe in bestiality – it doesn't matter what they are, they don't get to change the definition."

Carson addressed the developments in an interview with the Fox News Channel's Bill O'Reilly this week.

Carson said: "My point was if you change [the definition of marriage] for one group, you'll have to change it for another group. I think everybody should have choice. Any two consenting adults can have any kind of relationship they want. I wouldn't' try to impose my view on them. But I do believe that a family where there's a mother and a father and a loving environment is the best place to raise children."

Carson continued: "I would like to ask them [SPLC] a question. What position could a person take who believes in traditional marriage and who has no animosity whatsoever toward gays? What position could they take that would be acceptable, other than embracing gay marriage?"

He said the tactics appear intended to shut up people who have views that don't align with theirs.

"We need to get back to a place where people feel free to express themselves."

See the interview:

In the latest attack, SPLC also cited the following statements attributed to Carson:

"I certainly believe gay people should have all the rights that anybody else has. What I was basically saying is that as far as marriage is concerned, that has traditionally been between a man and a woman, and nobody should be able to change that."
"If we can redefine marriage as between two men or two women or any other way based on social pressures as opposed to between a man and a woman, we will continue to redefine it in any way that we wish, which is a slippery slope with a disastrous ending, as witnessed in the dramatic fall of the Roman Empire."
"If you look in the writings of a lot of the neo-Marxists, when they talk about the New World Order, they say there's only one stick in the mud: the United States. How do you get them out of the way, or how do you change them? And they said there were two fundamental things, their Judeo-Christian faith and their strong families. Those were the things that had to be attacked and those things have been systematically attacked over the last several decades."
"Obamacare is really the worst thing that has happened in this nation since slavery. And … in a way, it is slavery."

SPLC also called "extreme" a reference to how Washington uses government institutions to intimidate people, "very much like Nazi Germany."

Another Carson quote cited was: "Citizens should be able to own weapons, they should not have to report what weapons they own so that somebody can come and collect those weapons before, you know, they start their martial law."

SPLC added its own editorial comment to many of the quotes cited.

SPLC itself has been accused of being a hate group. It was one of several groups identified by a domestic terrorist as having inspired his attempt to murder Christians at the Family Research Council in a foiled armed attack in 2012.

Floyd Lee Corkin is serving a 25-year prison sentence for the attack that resulted in the wounding of an FRC security guard. A judge determined that it was an act of domestic terrorism after the shooter admitted he used SPLC's hate map to identify FRC as a target. Corkins said his plan was to kill as many people at FRC as he could.

In 2012, a team of Christian activists, black pastors and Orthodox Jews called on SPLC, which bills itself as an organization "dedicated to fighting hate and bigotry," to speak out against hate.

"The SPLC has moved from monitoring actual hate groups like the KKK and Neo Nazis to slandering mainstream Christian organizations with that very same 'hate group' label," said Matt Barber, then vice president of Liberty Counsel Action, who attended a news conference held outside the group's headquarters in Alabama. "By extension, the SPLC is smearing billions of Christians and Jews worldwide as 'haters,' simply because they embrace the traditional Judeo-Christian sexual ethic."

Former Congressman Tom Tancredo has called SPLC a "dishonest left-wing outfit" whose officials "are extremists themselves."

WND reported the FBI was utilizing SPLC as a "resource" on its website regarding hate crimes but then scrubbed it from the site.

It was at the Family Research Council in Washington that Corkins staged his attack on Christians. He later told investigators how he selected FRC as his target: "It was a, uh, Southern Poverty Law, lists, uh, anti-gay groups. I found them online. I did a little bit of research, went to the website, stuff like that."

FRC said that when Corkins later pleaded guilty to a charge of domestic terrorism, SPLC "was connected in federal court in this first domestic terrorism conviction in Washington, D.C., under the post 9/11 law."

"Floyd Corkins admitted his intention to 'kill the people in the building and then smear a Chick-fil-A sandwich in their face,'" FRC explained. "The Southern Poverty Law Center has thus far refused to remove Family Research Council as a 'hate group' from its target map."

FRC chief Toney Perkins said SPLC's statements about FRC "gave license" to Corkins to attack.

"The Southern Poverty Law Center can no longer say that it is not a source for those bent on committing acts of violence," Perkins said.