Steve Price: Cancel culture seeking to silence anything but left, woke opinions

If you’re an aging, white male in Australia, you’re expected not to voice your views on anything these days, let alone on big issues like the flag.

Last Monday night on Network Ten’s The Project in a debate about the Australian flag I was asked if the national flag should be replaced by the Aboriginal flag.

My answer: a simple and emphatic NO.

I went on to argue that in my view most Australians were happy with the national symbol.

You would think I had suggested all other flags — except the traditional flag with the subtle changes we have had since 1901 — be burned and never displayed anywhere ever again.

The feral left wound themselves into a cancel culture frenzy online like we have never seen before. The common theme seemed to be that it was somehow disrespectful to even have the debate about our flag without a member of what we now call a First Nations person on the desk.

It seems — if you bother to read this sewer of commentary — that if you are white or old and a male then you are expected to not have a view on anything, let alone on an important treasured national symbol like the flag.

I’ll get to some of the more aggressively violent suggestions of what should happen to me shortly but let me address a couple of facts the cancel culture mob might have missed.

I have been on The Project desk once or twice a week for more than 11 years. I have always been respectful of views different to mine on all topics, otherwise I wouldn’t still be there.

On Monday we were talking about the sensible decision taken by the NSW Government to not spend $25 million on new Harbour Bridge flagpoles so that the Australian flag, the NSW State flag, and the Indigenous flag could all be displayed at once.

The Aboriginal flag flies beside Australia's national flag over the Sydney Harbour Bridge. Picture: AFP

The NSW Premier then embraced the sensible plan to bin the NSW flag and hoist the Indigenous black, yellow and orange flag next to the Aussie emblem.

In my view – yes, note to the woke brigade, old white guys are allowed a view — this two-flag idea divides rather than unites Australia and Australians and I suggested if we want to change flags, we need a referendum to let everyone, not just loud pushy activists, have their say.

This discussion was a normal part of an hour-long edition of The Project, not some ABC-style Q&A debate that was stacked with agenda pushing attention seekers.

To think that – as many of my critics seems to do – you can’t discuss issues of Indigenous flags or other issues to do with Indigenous Australians because you are old and white is ridiculous.

Sadly though, this is where the cancel culture is taking Australia rapidly, running down the woke road after places like the USA and UK.

It seems we are no longer able to have an alternative and respectfully different view than what the tribe expects you to believe.

The Herald Sun reported this week on a nationwide study by demographer Mark McCrindle of 1000 Australians that found people were afraid to express their views on hot issues.

Mark listed topics like the US abortion debate, single use plastic bags, same sex marriage or climate change.

Put simply, if you don’t agree with my views on these issues, they don’t want to hear what you have to say, don’t want to associate with you, or in my case see you on TV.

The study went on to find 40 per cent of Gen Z (those aged in their 20s) say they are increasingly “self-censoring” when and with whom they share their opinions.

How sad but true. I know of many 20-somethings who sidle up to me and tell me they agree entirely with my views on any number of issues but are too scared to say so.

Social media, especially Twitter, Instagram and more lately Tik Tok, give these faceless critics a platform where they pander to each other, creating the impression that what they are posting makes any sense.

Normally I pay no attention to any of them or their mindless contributions but to suggest your age, colour and sex – old white man – rules you out from having an opinion if it doesn’t agree with theirs is just plain wrong.

The Project’s Steve Price says the voices of old, white men are being cancelled, if they don’t align with what the woke left think. Picture: Channel 10

These tribes need to be called out, not bowed down to, because everyone is entitled to their point of view. I’ve spent the best part of 26 years on talkback radio allowing anyone who wants to have a view get on air unless they swear or defame someone.

Compare those airwaves of democracy with some of what I copped this week from people who don’t use their real names:

“What a surprise that an old white guy wants to keep the flag. Talk about an irrelevant piece of TV.”

“Very intense, intimidating behaviour interrupting, looking someone dead in the eye and leaning towards them asking would you support it – a flag change.”

“It’s disgusting that they put him on there just to air an argument on TV – it’s a panel discussion – watching this made me want to vomit.”

They were the comments I was able to print.

You get the idea. It’s less about what my views on the flag were, more that my view doesn’t match theirs so I shouldn’t be able to express a different line to the one that they want me to follow.

I’m in a one-man tribe and I suspect more Australians agree with my flag views than don’t.

LIKES

The 150th running of The Open this weekend with its nod to golfing history.

RACV’s roadside service prompt friendly and successful.

AMA’s Dr Chris Moys sensible call for renewed talk about Covid masks.

Rugby League’s State of Origin decider in Brisbane why can’t the AFL bring it back in our sport.

DISLIKES

A Covid outbreak on board the cruise ship Coral Princess; when will we learn?

Bunnings sausage sandwich dollar price increase for the weekend treat.

The Ronaldo no show in Melbourne.

Victorian politicians ignoring the best medical advice over Covid. What changed?

Australia Today with Steve Price can be heard live from 7am weekdays via the LiSTNR app.