𝗢𝗡 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗜𝗡𝗙𝗔𝗡𝗧𝗜𝗟𝗘 𝗧𝗘𝗔𝗥𝗦 𝗢𝗙 𝗔 “𝗡𝗢𝗡-𝗥𝗘𝗟𝗜𝗚𝗜𝗢𝗨𝗦 𝗣𝗥𝗢-𝗟𝗜𝗙𝗘 𝗖𝗢𝗡𝗦𝗘𝗥𝗩𝗔𝗧𝗜𝗩𝗘 𝗟𝗘𝗙𝗧𝗜𝗦𝗧” 𝗦𝗡𝗢𝗪𝗙𝗟𝗔𝗞𝗘

Christopher Camilleri, following the footsteps of Joe Borg, regaled us with a lengthy whiny opinion piece in Malta’s leading Sunday newspaper on January 1, complaining that conservatives are being “persecuted for their beliefs”. He tells us that he is a very active commentator on social media whose arguments are usually balanced and impartial, and who has recently been voicing his opinion on the current abortion debate in Malta. Camilleri goes on to tell us that “as a non-religious pro-life and conservative leftist” he has been “attacked, ridiculed, derided, insulted and even labelled a misogynist by several people who hold pro-choice views”, and that “one particular social media attack by a pro-choice newspaper columnist was very nasty and brutal”. Of course, he gave us no means of verifying his claims, since he gave neither names nor references.

Now, I won’t dwell much on his political confusion in claims such as that he is a “conservative leftist”, which kind of reminds me of the term “National Socialist” (and just to be clear, I’m not implying that he is one). I will just comment on Camilleri’s regrettably all-too-common ailment which I’d like to call “perpetual victimhood”. But first, to put things into perspective, I’ll just rhetorically ask Camilleri the following questions: Have you been called the devil’s servant? Have you been told that you should be shot, hanged or burned? Have you been told that you will burn in hell for eternity? I know Pro-Choice people routinely have. The only difference is that most of us generally laugh these comments off, and yes, ridicule and mock the people who say them, instead of rushing to our computer to write a whiny article to Sunday’s leading paper (which gets published – how about that for silencing “conservative leftists”?).

I have searched for Christopher Camilleri on social media in order to verify what he’s saying, and despite him telling us that he is a very active commentator there, I haven’t actually managed to pin-point any one of the people sharing his name to be certainly him, which leads me to suspect that his prolific activity on social media happens on other people’s pages or spaces.

I have a few words of advice for people like Camilleri: When you comment on other people’s pages criticising their beliefs or opinions, expect to be criticised back. If you can’t handle the criticism, desist from commenting on other people’s pages and leave. If, on the other hand, people comment on your own pages in a way that you find offensive, you can always block them. Only people who like to play victim stay in an uncomfortable situation that can be avoided by the simple click of a button. And if you are really threatened or bullied, you’re an adult – report it to the police. But make sure it’s really bullying before wasting police time. Ridiculing a publicly made comment is not bullying. You might not like it, but you have to live with it if you freely choose to be a public speaker.

Camilleri tells us that should Bill 28 come to pass as drafted, he has no doubt in his mind that “ultra-liberals will keep pushing for abortion to be allowed under any circumstance; even in cases of unwanted pregnancies with healthy embryos, late abortions, etc”. He then says that Pro-Lifers “are often accused of depriving women of their liberty, which is definitely not the case”. Camilleri is evidently confused about terminology, which necessarily makes his argument incoherent and contradictory.

For instance, it is obviously true that any law that prohibits abortion deprives women of their liberty (to have an abortion, if nothing else). The question is whether the deprivation of liberty is justified. We say it is not. Moreover, it is ridiculous for one to denounce totalitarianism (which Camilleri fears will come via Liberalism) and then complain that “liberals will keep pushing for abortion to be allowed under any circumstance”, which in a democratic society they must have every right to do, irrespective of whether the demands are reasonable or justified.

The mask of “impartiality” immediately falls off once you complain that you are denied free-speech through “bullying” (and ironically saying this in the country’s leading newspaper), and then going on to say that people you disagree with should be silenced (which is exactly what Camilleri necessarily implies here). Camilleri tells us that it is not acceptable for Pro-Choice people to say that embryos have no rights, and then, with no hint of irony, while claiming a right to decide what others are allowed to believe or say, accuses Pro-Choice people of being totalitarian themselves!

No, Mr Camilleri, we don’t “live in an opposite time” where people who disagree with conservative dogma try to “oppress people who don’t agree with their views”. We live in a time where we are free to challenge your irrational views, and you can’t do anything about it. And that is what is driving you (and people like you) mad. Tough. Deal with it, snowflake. This is a culture war. If you can’t take the heat, raise the white flag and keep out of it. That's what being impartial actually means. The irony is that the vehemence with which the anti-choice faction wishes to maintain the status quo and impose their religious beliefs on the rest of us (no, Camilleri, your "non-religious" claim is not fooling anyone) is what stirred people like me to quit being silent in the face of totalitarian conservatives such as you.

For an example of debunking of irrational views such as Camilleri holds, see: https://prochoicethoughtsandarguments.blogspot.com/2023/01/as-abortion-debate-in-malta-rages-on.html

Christopher Camilleri’s opinion piece may be found here: https://timesofmalta.com/.../bullying-conservatives...

My commentary on Joe Borg’s opinion piece may be found here: https://prochoicethoughtsandarguments.blogspot.com/2023/01/blog-post.html

First published on Facebook on 3 January 2023.