Hi, I'm Bill O'Reilly. Thanks for watching us tonight.
A very disturbing situation unfolding across the country, rewriting history for the sake of political correctness. That is the subject of this evening's Talking Points memo.
In Brooklyn, New York, Borough President Marty Markowitz has removed a portrait of George Washington from the borough office building. Markowitz said, quote, "Some of the old white guys are coming down. Everything is coming down, and we are going to have in this room a reflection of the diversity of Brooklyn. The strength of Brooklyn is diversity."
In New Orleans, where 90 percent of public school students are black, the city has changed the names of 26 schools which were named after slave owners such as Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Franklin, and George Washington.
This politically correct way of thinking seems to be a growing trend, that anyone associated with dubious behavior throughout history is held accountable by today's standards. This, of course, is insane.
Democracy was started in Athens, Greece, centuries before the birth of Christ. Slavery and other barbaric practices were a stable of life in ancient Greece. Should we now ignore Socrates, Aristotle, and Plato?
Ancient Rome was a place of terrible injustice, but incredible achievement. Again, do we ignore Augustus and Julius Caesar?
History itself is never soft and fuzzy. The fact is that some African blacks participated in the slave trade themselves, rounding up their enemies and selling them to the Arabs, who in turn sold them to the Europeans.
And while it is true that many of America's founding fathers held slaves, those very men made it possible for slavery to be abolished years later by providing a framework of freedom and a Bill of Rights.
During the Civil War, hundreds of thousands of white Americans died freeing the slaves.
Historical injustice is one thing. Historical ignorance is quite something else. There would be no United States if not for George Washington. There would be no Constitution if not for Thomas Jefferson. These men were not perfect, but they were heroes.
The enormous fallacy of politically correct thinking is that it harms those for which it is intended to help. Minority students in America need to understand this country, how it works, what made it great. In order to succeed in our competitive society, an American must buy into the traditions and expectations of the system.
That is, loyalty, hard work, and a certain amount of conformity to the capitalistic ethic. If minorities or anybody else are taught to hold this country and its founders in contempt and are encouraged to ignore the structure that's in place, then those children will surely fail in the marketplace.
Of course, America and every place else on earth can be improved, and we applaud crusaders who want to think -- make things better. But tearing down heroes and replacing them with questionable role models and trendy thinking is a dangerous charade. It must be challenged by all fair-minded Americans.
And that's the memo.
The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day
Time now for "The Most Ridiculous Item of the Day,"
Every year, there's a convention in Las Vegas for the adult film industry. Adult films are sex movies. This year, one of the adult stars, Tera Patrick, had a message for us.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
TERA PATRICK, ADULT VIDEO ACRTRESS: But I personally, I can't get enough of Bill O'Reilly or Aaron Brown. Actually, I'm dying to go on Bill O'Reilly. And I just want Bill to know, I have the biggest crush on you. And I want to go in the No Spin Zone with you, Mr. O'Reilly.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
O'REILLY: Wow. I don't quite know what to say. Other than it could be ridiculous. Aaron who? Who was that?
— You can watch Bill O'Reilly's Talking Points and "Most Ridiculous Item" weeknights at 8 & 11p.m. ET on the Fox News Channel. Send your comments to: oreilly@foxnews.com
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