OP ED: WHY IS NO ONE TALKING ABOUT PREVENTING SUICIDE?

OP-ED
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18 January 2021
Authors: The Patriot, KT

Why is no one talking about preventing suicide?

In light of two suicides making recent headlines, specifically of US Capitol Police Officer Howard Liebengood, 51; and, renowned investment banker Christopher Stanton, 53, a Georgia man smeared in the media after being charged with ‘attempting to enter.. the United States Capitol Grounds, against the will of the United States Capitol Police’- my question is simple: why is no one talking about this?

Personally, I am immensely saddened and appalled by the unnecessary violence and destruction that took place on January 6, 2021 at the United States Capitol. I pray that law enforcement prosecutes every single one of the criminals that trespassed on and destroyed federal property. However, that being said, the public outrage created and even worse, reinforced, by the media makes them complicit. But for the media’s gross wanton negligence in smearing the names and spreading the images of Officer Liebengood and Stanton on a mass, global scale, I am of the view that both men would still be alive today.

Moreover, instead of politically crucifying members of the Capitol Police and those charged with crimes and letting the justice system do its job, national networks, instead, use their power guised under alleged First Amendment protections, to justify smearing the reputation of two people who saw no out- suicide was there only option. Whatever happened to ‘innocent until proven guilty’? Within MINUTES of the US Capitol incident on January 6, 2021, censorship began on all social media and major news networks. The hallmark of the free speech doctrine allows for expression, even if objectionable, calls for more free expression arguing the other, dissenting side of the debate, rather than censorship. But, in Brandenburg v Ohio, the Supreme Court’s landmark decision highlighting that incitement to imminent lawlessness or violence (i.e. suicide, here) is not protected by the First Amendment.

This is especially applicable in my argument of complicity by the media’s mass false propaganda ‘spins’ coupled with widespread censorship by liberal news and social media platforms worldwide. Point blank, stop pointing fingers. Both the media and censorship are complicit in these two untimely deaths. Prima facie, this is, in part, because in Brandenburg, the Supreme Court held, as was the case in both victims of the media, Officer Liebengood and Stanton, because there is no opportunity to counter the violent message (i.e. media’s false headlines and smear campaigns on the front page of every newspaper, globally) with a contrary idea (due to censorship)- precisely because of the immediacy of what the speech urges.

However, now that I have expressed my personal concerns about what went wrong and the media’s immediate role in causing two suicides- I propose a solution. First and foremost, I urge the media to stop crucifying alleged ‘bad actors’ and smearing their names without remorse- without censoring themselves. Censorship has disallowed anyone to defend themselves against even the most outright absurd and inaccurate ‘false accusations’ that dissents or objects, albeit respectfully, on social media and all major news outlets. I remember a time where The National Inquirer was the only (albeit, known) ‘Fake News’ national ‘news’ outlet. It is nearly impossible to get a conservative viewpoint published at this day in age- dissent should be encouraged. It would actually sell more papers, too.

More recently, on November 6, 2020, Navy Veteran Joshua Macias, co-founder of Veterans for Trump, and Army Veteran Antonio LaMatta fell victim to the media’s false prophecy by use of political propaganda. The full story can be found at www.freemacias.com. Both were political prisoners of liberal activist Philadelphia District Attorney Kraner. All charges were and still are (the gun charges were most recently dropped due to lack of evidence; please note, the case is ongoing) 100% politically motivated, and bail was excessively set at $750,000 for their outward support of President Trump.

Disgusting, one-sided headlines have been all the rage to smear these two decorated, honorable veterans. The Philadelphia Inquirer published a hit piece on November 16, 2020, entitled ‘No bail relief for Virginia QAnon follower who came to Philly to ‘straighten out the vote’, on January 14, 2021, 6ABC Philadelphia on November 16, 2020, spewed ‘Armed man arrested near Philadelphia Convention Venter Denied Bail’, CBS Local (Philadelphia) published ‘Men Who Came Armed To Philadelphia Vote Count Remain Free on Bail’- all without publishing updates nor editing facts for accuracy ex post facto. If it weren’t for their faith and humble conservative values, prima facie, one would suspect that these two would be the next victims of suicide by media.

But the thing is- they’re not. Joshua Macias is no victim. During the 2016 Presidential race, Mr. Macias valiantly set aside his professional endeavors and hit the road to lead the Vets for Trump campaign movement, by working on the front lines at rallies and behind the scenes in organizing and creating activism. On March 5, 2019, Macias’s hard work and dedication was celebrated when President Donald J. Trump signed an Executive Order called the “National Initiative to Empower Veterans and End Veterans Suicide.”
On www.joshuamacias.com, decorated Navy Veteran Joshua Macias highlights the pivotal role he played in making their Executive Order to prevent suicide come to fruition, citing- “This is addressing the single most devastating issue in America today; the abandonment of those who have served in our armed forces and allowing them to slip into such an abyss of loneliness that they feel the only rational choice is to take their own life.” Similar to Macias, President Trump is the very first sitting President to take on the difficult task of preventing suicide by evoking real change- systematically.

On March 5, 2019, President Trump emphasized, in signing the order, “To every veteran, I want you to know that you have an entire nation of more than 300 million people behind you. You will never be forgotten. We are with you all the way.” Moreover, Joshua Macias is a celebrated co-founder of #End27- a non-profit who’s namesake highlights that ‘27’ is the minimum real number of suicides our research indicates happen every day among those who serve or have served, in our armed forces. These are people who risked their lives deliberately in order to help protect the life of every American, regardless of their race, religion, economic status, political beliefs, or anything else of which you can imagine. Then they end up losing their own life at their own hand.

Continuing his lifetime goal of philanthropy and preventing veteran suicide, Macias continues on www.joshuwamacias.com, “As a Service Connected Disabled Veteran, I have been inside the system myself and I have been inside it with my brothers and sisters who have served. I have watched the bureaucracy operate within a culture of inefficiency. Previous administrations have paid lip service to reforming this culture but when the time comes for real action and reform, the status quo has “trumped” the willingness to change. Now, hopefully, there is a new “Trump card.” This action by President Trump needs to be a call to every member of the military, past, and present, to get engaged and show support for him in the next election. He is the only President to this point to take a stand to help us. There is absolutely no reason, none, to assume that anyone who might replace him would continue with his efforts.” Attention being paid to Veteran issues rarely survives the next news cycle.

In closing, I offer one suggestion- To the media: Villainizing patriots in the media and disallowing dissent or even the opportunity for rebuttal is in direct violation of the First Amendment. No wonder so many are committing suicides after being falsely labeled as the ‘bad guy’ and creating false ‘facts’ to prolongate their false narrative. The suicides and attempts are only going to increase the longer this continues. Stop. Let conservatives have a voice.

MEDIA CONTACTS:
• KT, [email protected], @TheMarineRapperMedia
• The Patriot, [email protected], @TheMarineRapper, @MilitaryMusician

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