JUST ANOTHER “BRICK” IN THE WALL
David Barnhizer
“We don’t need no education, we don’t need no thought control. No dark sarcasm in the classroom. Teachers! Leave them kids alone! All in all we’re just another brick in the wall!” “Just Another Brick in the Wall”, by Pink Floyd.
Pink Floyd’s stark words voiced in its album, The Wall, have been realized, at least some of them. Given consistently falling test results year-by-year and the shocking inability of many students to read, do mathematics, think critically, understand history, civics, English language and numerous other subjects, it is obvious that many American students aren’t receiving an education. But they are receiving a heavy dose of thought control and that is showing up dramatically in their behavior.
More dismally, they have been taught to turn their backs on a society where an increasing number of the citizens have ended up without any education in the fundamentals and civic commitments concerning what is required in the creation and preservation of an incredibly complex democratic republic of the kind represented by the United States. We are now well into the second generation of individuals educated in an intellectually deficient educational system that fails to teach critical concepts, skills, subject matters and responsibilities. This includes civics, the spirit of the Rule of Law, how to think honestly and precisely, and how to resolve disputes and engage in political compromise.
Nor have all that many people been taught how to think critically based on the application of actual evidence and valid data—fundamental attributes of effective decision-making. People who do not understand what is critical to the maintenance of a strong, just, and balanced political community where there will and should be inevitable disagreement and a corresponding need for balancing and compromise about disputed issues, are highly susceptible to having their thoughts controlled. We really are at risk of mirroring George Orwell’s “Oceania”.
“New Oceania”
In many ways we are moving toward the kind of totalitarian state George Orwell warned against in his classic novel Nineteen Eighty-four. 1984 predicts the emergence of a version of a totalitarian state of the kind now being created in America through a variety of techniques. These include outright intimidation, propaganda, rage and threat, shaming, rioting, “canceling”, suppression and manipulation of information. They also include the creation of false “narratives” aimed at bypassing our rational minds and capturing us on the level of our deeper emotions. Such tactics have swept through our society like an ill and bitter wind. In considering this, it may be useful to regain a sense of Orwell’s story. Cathy Lowne offers this in a capsule overview she wrote in the Encyclopedia Britannica.
“The book is set in 1984 in Oceania, one of three perpetually warring totalitarian states (the other two are Eurasia and Eastasia). Oceania is governed by the all-controlling Party, which has brainwashed the population into unthinking obedience to its leader, Big Brother. The Party has created a propagandistic language known as Newspeak, which is designed to limit free thought and promote the Party’s doctrines. Its words include doublethink(belief in contradictory ideas simultaneously), which is reflected in the Party’s slogans: “War is peace,” “Freedom is slavery,” and “Ignorance is strength.” The Party maintains control through the Thought Police and continual surveillance.
Orwell wrote Nineteen Eighty-four as a warning after years of brooding on the twin menaces of Nazism and Stalinism. Its depiction of a state where daring to think differently is rewarded with torture, where people are monitored every second of the day, and where party propaganda trumps free speech and thought is a sobering reminder of the evils of unaccountable governments. Winston is the symbol of the values of civilized life, and his defeat is a poignant reminder of the vulnerability of such values in the midst of all-powerful states.” Cathy Lowne, Encyclopedia Britannica, 7/22/24.
The following brief descriptions of how “Oceania” is being recreated in America demonstrate just how aggressive are those seeking that result, as well as how proud they are of what they are doing. The examples are only a small part of what is taking place, but my 2021 book “Un-Canceling” America (Amazon) contains 600 more reported activities. What is taking place is a movement, and although there are numerous elements, corrupting America’s educational system, K-12 and universities is a core part of the transformational strategy. In many ways, it seems we are in the midst of a shift toward Marxism and Maoism and we need to stop that movement before it goes much further. Make your judgment after reading the examples and responses.
“A Way of Life” Through “Deprogramming”?
https://www.theepochtimes.com/how-california-is-embracing-mandatory-racial-injustice-study-for-all-of-its-1-7-million-high-schoolers_3727957.html. “How California Is Embracing Mandatory Racial-Injustice Study for All of Its 1.7 Million High Schoolers”, John Murawski, RealClearInvestigations, 3/12/21.
“The Liberated Ethnic Studies group includes many of the original authors of the 2019 Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum that the state has gutted, as well as 50 scholars, teachers, practitioners and students, according to Allyson Tintiangco-Cubales, an Asian American Studies professor at San Francisco State University, speaking during a Feb. 2 online event. The advocates say that many state officials fail to grasp that ethnic studies is not a traditional school subject, but a movement and a philosophy best described as “narrative medicine,” “radical healing” and even a “way of life.” It’s distinguished from traditional classroom instruction by its emotional, immersive pedagogy designed to deprogram kids from European cultural assumptions, to make teenagers conscious of systemic inequities, and to reconnect them with forgotten ancestral knowledge.”
The “Four I’s of Oppression”: A New Education Bill in California “Cancels” a Balanced, Non-Ideological Examination of American History
The Wall Street Journal reports on a new education proposal advancing in the California legislature. Caleb Parke provides further explanation. The four “I’s” are the "ideological, institutional, interpersonal and internalized" ways that the creators of this educational movement allege that “oppression is said to take hold in a society.” The proposed educational offerings:
[W]ould aim to “build new possibilities for post-imperial life that promotes collective narratives of transformative resistance.” The [WSJ] further said that the proposed bill suggests teachers provide “examples of systems of power, which can include economic systems like capitalism and social systems like patriarchy.” [Leonard] Jones’ comment about “the four ’I’s of oppression” students would learn about refers to "ideological, institutional, interpersonal and internalized" ways that oppression is said to take hold in a society. https://www.foxnews.com/us/california-education-student-k-12-lawrence-jones. “CA curriculum bill is example of 'radical indoctrination' in schools, 'parents have a choice': 'Are the parents just going to sit back and watch this happen?’”, Caleb Parke, 9/1/20.https://www.wsj.com/articles/californias-radical-indoctrination-11598829048. “California’s Radical Indoctrination: A bill would establish a K-12 curriculum in the ‘four I’s of oppression.’”
Brainwashing Through Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)
https://www.theepochtimes.com/trading-academics-for-far-left-social-emotional-learning_3466722.html. “Trading Academics for Far-Left ‘Social-Emotional Learning’”, Alex Newman, 8/21/20.
Academics are fast becoming a thing of the past in public schools. In their place: behavioral psychology and “social and emotional learning” (SEL) designed not to educate, but to transform children’s core values, attitudes, beliefs, and behavior. Once upon a time, education meant learning how to read, write, do math, and think. It meant learning history and science as well. That is barely happening now, as government data show. Today, government schools use advanced methods, including SEL, to instill in children a radical new and oftentimes contradictory “politically correct” value system: radical environmentalism, radical feminism, critical theory, Marxism, social justice, LGBTQ+, population control, socialism, hyper racialism, class struggle, and more.
“Social and emotional learning (SEL) is the process through which children and adults understand and manage emotions, set and achieve positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, establish and maintain positive relationships, and make responsible decisions,” explains the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL), one of the leading outfits promoting SEL. Among the webinars offered there are “SEL as a Lever for Equity and Social Justice,” and also a lecture on how to use SEL to “support antiracist practices.” Another webinar outlines how to use policy to “dismantle inequities.” Again, the leftist buzzwords are everywhere. And that’s not an accident.
The children are also expected to “develop an understanding of systemic or structural explanations for different treatment and outcomes.” In short, they are expected to believe the highly controversial hypothesis that America is awash in “systemic” and “structural” racism, and that only massive government-led social engineering can fix it. The children are also expected to accept and agree with the artificial divisions being fomented along “race” and “class” lines as part of the now-obvious effort to “divide and conquer” America.
“Anyone can march but not everyone can get a job."
https://www.foxnews.com/us/chicago-schools-illinois-progressive-politics-teaching-standards-inclusive. “Reporter's Notebook: Chicago schools face nightmare as Illinois pushes progressive politics: Only 37% of Illinois' third-graders demonstrated grade-level proficiency in English-language arts in 2019”, Eli Steele, 2/18/21.
Eli Steele offers an incredibly poignant and powerful description of his interaction with a young black man in Chicago.
“While I was shooting B-roll footage on the South Side of Chicago, a young man approached and asked what I was doing. I explained I was gathering footage for a short documentary on the new "Culturally Responsive Teaching and Leading Standards" that the Illinois Board of Education had approved and was on the verge of being ratified by the Illinois General Assembly. He boiled it down to, "A documentary on education?" He then told me that he had been kicked out of two high schools and never graduated. His mother worked two jobs to provide for him and his sister and he never learned how to read. As a parent of two children, I asked him how this was possible. Didn’t his teachers in the Chicago Public School system know that he couldn’t read? He shrugged and asked me if I had any work to give him. He was in his mid-20s, looking for work in the middle of an icy, sunny day. I told him I was sorry and that I was leaving for the airport in two hours. Used to these kinds of turn-downs, he grinned and said it was all right.
In 2019, only 37% of third-graders in Illinois demonstrated grade-level proficiency in English-language arts, and when it came to math only 41% could demonstrate grade-level proficiency. Why would the state of Illinois consider new standards when it failed to uphold the most basic and universal of education standards? The disconnect between the progressive ideology driving these new standards and the realities on the ground could not be starker. After I filmed the shot that the young man recommended, I asked him how he felt about the education system wanting to encourage students to become activists. He laughed and said that was easy. "Anyone can march but not everyone can get a job."
“OOPs! Political Scientist Carol Swain Warns “The BLM curriculum is 'destructive' to the Black community”
Seizing control of not only university education but elementary and high school education is a critical part of the use of Cancel Culture strategy. This is because young minds are innocent and malleable and are not prepared to fight back against Orwellian infusions of what they are required to believe. As reported below, political scientist Carol Swain has described what is going on as “destructive to the Black community”.
Political scientist Carol M. Swain derided the Black Lives Matter curriculum on Monday, arguing that it hurts students and destroys the Black community. "The curriculum put forth by Black Lives Matter and being embraced in too many places is really destructive of the Black community and the Black family and racial justice," said Swain, a former professor at Vanderbilt and Princeton. [In discussing] the Black Lives Matter "week of action" Swain stated: [A] document was given to teachers and outlined the week of action's "guiding principles," which included "disrupting the western-prescribed nuclear family.” "It doesn’t help Black people," Swain said in response. "It doesn’t help White people. It doesn’t help America. And I would strongly encourage everyone who cares about education to go to the Black Lives Matter website and learn more about them and their principles, because there's nothing there that advances our society in a way that's beneficial.” https://www.foxnews.com/media/carol-swain-black-lives-matter-curriculum. “Political scientist says BLM curriculum is 'destructive' to the Black community: 'It doesn’t help Black people. It doesn’t help White people. It doesn’t help America’”, Sam Dorman, 2/2/21.
“Kneel to Allah”. It’s Only Prayer, For God’s Sake
In the UK two boys were given detention after refusing to kneel down and ‘pray to Allah’ during a religious education lesson.
Two schoolboys were given detention after refusing to kneel down and 'pray to Allah' during a religious education lesson. Parents were outraged that the two boys from year seven (11 to 12-year-olds) were punished for not wanting to take part in the practical demonstration of how Allah is worshipped. They said forcing their children to take part in the exercise at Alsager High School, near Stoke-on-Trent - which included wearing Muslim headgear - was a breach of their human rights.
One parent said: "This isn't right, it's taking things too far. "I understand that they have to learn about other religions. I can live with that but it is taking it a step too far to be punished because they wouldn't join in Muslim prayer. "Making them pray to Allah, who isn't who they worship, is wrong and what got me is that they were told they were being disrespectful. … Another parent said: "I am absolutely furious my daughter was made to take part in it and I don't find it acceptable. "I haven't got a problem with them teaching my child other religions and a small amount of information doesn't do any harm. "But not only did they have to pray, the teacher had gone into the class and made them watch a short film and then said 'we are now going out to pray to Allah’. … ”Not only was it forced upon them, my daughter was told off for not doing it right. “Schoolboys punished with detention for refusing to kneel in class and pray to Allah”, July 4, 2008. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1031784/Schoolboys-punished-detention-refusing-kneel-pray-Allah.html.
Forcing Teachers to Submit
https://www.foxnews.com/us/san-diego-school-teachers-must-undergo-white-privilege-training-commit-to-being-antiracist. “San Diego school teachers must undergo ‘white privilege training,’ commit to being ‘antiracist’”, Bradford Betz, 12/6/20.
San Diego teachers are [being] required to undergo “white privilege” training, in which they must accept that their supposed unconscious bias is perpetuating racial superstructures. … They are also required to watch clips of Robin DiAngelo, author of the book, “White Fragility,” and Ibram X. Kendi, author of the book “How to be an Antiracist.” After that, the teachers are told they are racist and “upholding racist ideas, structures, and policies” and must commit to becoming “antiracist” in the classroom.” The trainers reportedly say that “white people in America hold most of the [power]” and white teachers are “preserved at every level of power.” Teachers must vow to “confront and examine [their] white privilege,” “acknowledge when [they] feel white fragility,” and “teach others to see their privilege,” … ][T]eachers are challenged to “confront and examine [their] white privilege and “teach others to see their privilege.”
OMG! Parents Could Be “Spying” on Children’s Online Zoom Classes. They Might Even Discover the Teachers are Attempting to
“destabilize a kid’s racism or homophobia or transphobia!”
When I first read about this post I had a rare “Oh My God” moment—rare because I am accustomed to people doing and saying weird things. But it was just too far “over the top”. A revealing social media post by a Philadelphia school teacher demonstrates quite clearly what is going on in much of America’s educational system not only in universities but top to bottom. This teacher of English was concerned about being observed by conservative “helicopter” parents. His worry was that it could interfere with: “the messy work of destabilizing a kid’s racism or homophobia or transphobia.” My initial reaction is about how those issues emerge in the context and subject matter one would expect provide the focus for an English course? My second concern is why an ElHi teacher would be engaged in, or competent, to professionally handle “the messy work of destabilizing a kid’s racism or homophobia or transphobia.” The report explains:
A Philadelphia public school teacher is curious about how educators will cope with “conservative parents" listening in on virtual classes, according to a thread captured on Twitter. According to a report by the Daily Wire, Matthew Kay, who teaches English at the Science Leadership Academy said on the social media platform that he is concerned about the “damage” that “helicopter parents” might cause if they overhear lessons on topics such as gender and sexuality. “So, this fall, virtual class discussion will have many potential spectators — parents, siblings, etc. — in the same room. We’ll never be quite sure who is overhearing the discourse. What does this do for our equity/inclusion work?” Kay tweeted. https://www.foxnews.com/us/philadelphia-public-school-teacher-worries-about-conservative-parents-listening-in-on-virtual-classes. “Philadelphia public school teacher worries about 'conservative' parents listening in on virtual classes. Kay said "conservative parents" are his chief concern when teachers are engaging “in the messy work of destabilizing a kid’s racism or homophobia or transphobia.” Lucas Manfredi, 8/10/20.
Parents Shouldn’t Be Allowed To “Eavesdrop” on Their Children’s Classes in Tennessee. The Teachers Don’t Want Them to Know What They Are Doing
A recent report indicates some parents have significant concerns about their children being subjected to socializing propaganda without their approval. They are being asked to sign a waiver promising they will not sit in or observe their children’s online instruction
A Tennessee school district is under fire for asking parents to sign a form agreeing not to eavesdrop on kids' virtual classes over concerns they could overhear confidential information. After significant pushback, Rutherford County Schools is allowing parents to tune in with permission from the teacher but they can't record the classes. "It's ridiculous. It's so hypocritical because they've been data mining our children for years, compliments of common core," Laurie Cardoza-Moore, founder of Proclaiming Justice to the Nations, said.… "What are they trying to hide? What is the problem? Why won't they let us sit in?" the homeschool mom of five asked. "Obviously, because they are teaching our children propaganda that they should not be teaching," she said. "They are trying to socialize our children.”” “Tennessee mom says parents asked to sign 'ridiculous' waiver they will not eavesdrop on kids' online lessons: 'What are they trying to hide? What is the problem? Why won't they let us sit in?’” Caleb Parke, 8/22/20.
Westlake High School in NY “Canceling” Police
by Comparing Them to Slave Owners and the KKK
A school in New York is under fire after a high-school teacher handed out a Black Lives Matter protest image comparing police with slave owners and the Ku Klux Klan, according to a report. Westlake HS educator Christoper Moreno allegedly gave 11th-graders a five-frame cartoon panel on a handout on Sept. 8. The first three frames show slave owners and a member of the KKK with their knees on the backs of black men in shackles. The KKK member also has a noose around the black man’s neck. The last two panels depict a sheriff and a police officer each with their knees on the neck of a black man in handcuffs.
“My daughter showed me the paper. I said, `What is this?! You’ve got to be kidding me!’” said Westlake High School mom Ania Paternostro. “This cartoon compares the police to the KKK. It’s an attack on the police.” “Enough is enough,” Paternostro told The New York Post. Paternostro took her protest to Mount Pleasant School District Superintendent Kurt Kotes and Westlake Principal Keith Schenker, whose school is in the district. “This cartoon is disturbing. We have to respect the men in blue who protect us,” added the mom of two, a native of Poland. “We don’t need a teacher brainwashing my kids. I’ll teach my kids about what’s right and what’s wrong.” Her daughter Nicole said she was bullied for being the whistleblower on the controversial lesson plan. “The cartoon was disgusting,’’ the teen said about the image she considered one-sided and anti-police. “It compared the police with all the terrible people in history. It was not fair. It wasn’t right.’’ https://www.foxnews.com/us/new-york-school-under-fire-for-cartoon-comparing-cops-to-kkk-and-slave-owners. “New York school under fire for cartoon comparing cops to KKK and slave owners”, Frank Miles, 9/13/20.
Don’t You Dare Criticize “Critical Race Theory”
https://www.foxnews.com/media/laura-ingraham-teachers-poisonous-views-america. “Laura Ingraham warns more teachers 'advancing poisonous views' about American history, values: 'This should matter' to taxpayers, not just parents, 'Ingraham Angle' host says”, Charles Creitz, 3/17/21.
A growing number of American teachers and educators are engaging in racial indoctrination and humiliation of their students, Laura Ingraham warned. "I don't recall ever hearing my teachers talk about politics, let alone pushing their opinions on us," recalled "The Ingraham Angle" host. "Today, led by radicals running the NEA [National Education Association] and the AFT [American Federation of Teachers], too many teachers either don't want to be in the classroom at all, or when they are in the classroom, they are advancing poisonous views about our founding, our history, and traditional family values. "Increasingly, critical race theory infects not only the teaching of American history but the core disciplines, even math and science, and how they are taught.” In a particularly disturbing case, … [is in] a report about Hilary Hultman-Lee, a former Latin teacher in Potomac Falls, Va., who sought to create a "blacklist" of parents who oppose the teaching of critical race theory.
[She apparently asked]:
"Regarding the anti-[critical race theory] movement, we’d like to compile a document of all known actors and supporters. Please comment below with legal names of these individuals, area of residence and or school board rep known, known accounts on social media, and any other info that you feel is relevant," wrote Hultman-Lee, according to the Daily Wire.
https://www.foxnews.com/us/virginia-parents-teachers-group-accused-of-racketeering-intimidating-conservative-parents. “Virginia parents, teachers group accused of 'racketeering,' intimidating conservative parents: 'It's political racketeering,' says one of the group's targets”, Michael Ruiz, 3/17/21.
Teachers, parents and other members of a private Facebook group in Loudoun County, Virginia have been accused of compiling a list of names of district parents who oppose "critical race theory" and other progressive, raced-based classroom programs, according to the director of a local Republican political action committee. Members of a Facebook group called the "Anti-Racist Parents of Loudoun County" have been accused of compiling a list of outspoken conservatives in order to track, hack and "doxx" them – or even intimidate them into self-censorship. The group also contains teachers, school board members, elected officials and other "prominent members of the left-wing elite in Loudoun County," according to David Gordon, director of the Virginia Project, a Republican PAC.
Gordon provided a number of screenshots allegedly taken from the private group that he says show evidence of an attempt at soliciting cybercriminals to go after groups opposed to teaching and taxpayer funding critical race theory programs. In one post, a group member shared "a call for volunteers" to combat anti-critical race theory advocates and websites. She asked for volunteers to help "gather information" on critics of the controversial race-based education platform, to "infiltrate" their groups and sought "hackers who can either shut down their websites or redirect them.” Others show group members listing the names, addresses and workplaces of community members they disagree with.
Is Critical Race Theory a New Version of the Chinese Exclusion Act?
https://www.theepochtimes.com/chinese-american-parents-view-critical-race-theory-as-new-version-of-the-chinese-exclusion-act_3721228.html. “Chinese American Parents View Critical Race Theory as New Version of the Chinese Exclusion Act”, Alexander Liao, 3/5/21.
A state-wide survey of California’s K-12 education revealed that nearly 90 percent of respondents are dissatisfied with the current public education in the state, and over 80 percent don’t want ethnic studies to be a high school graduation requirement. Californians for Equal Rights, a nonprofit organization that opposes racial and gender preferences in government programs, conducted the survey in February. The result shows that 88.3 percent of survey participants are unhappy with California’s K-12 public education. Moreover, 85.1 percent do not want the “Ethnic Studies Demonstration Course” included as a compulsory course for high school graduates, and more than 77.7 percent disagree with the implementation of this course. Furthermore, 91.5 percent think the overall academic performance of California K-12 needs to be improved; 75 percent hope schools will pay more attention to students’ basic reading and mathematics skills; 78.7 percent think high schoolers need to improve on academic competitiveness and college readiness.
The Ethnic Studies Model Curriculum (ESMC), voted as the most unpopular course by the survey respondents, is very different from genuine ethnic studies. High schools across the country have introduced ESMC, Ethnic Studies, or Critical Thinking courses in recent years. But in essence, all these courses fall under Critical Race Theory (CRT). The Chinese-language Christian Post revealed that many of the 14,000 public school boards in the United States have accepted CRT. “More than 4,500 schools across the country have begun to incorporate the 1619 Project into their curriculum,” the Jan. 25 article said, adding that Critical Race Theory has also made its way into Christian private schools, but parents have remained silent due to fear.
The Chinese American Citizens Alliance (CACA), the oldest Chinese civil rights organization in the United States, recently issued a statement in New York, calling on Chinese parents to resist CRT. “Critical Race Theory is a hateful, divisive, manipulative fraud,” the statement read. “Hate groups, with allies in politics, the press and education, pass CRT off as anti-racism and diversity, equity and inclusion, but CRT is exactly the opposite. From its very roots, CRT is racist, repressive, discriminatory, and divisive.” Therefore, the organization views CRT as a contemporary version of the Chinese Exclusion Act, and calls on all Chinese parents to speak up to oppose it.
CACA then shared a story of a Chinese third grader in an elementary school in Cupertino city, California. The child’s father found out that the CRT course at the school incites racial conflicts, and so he organized parents to stop it. … In Walnut city, California, a mother of a student, surnamed He, believes that California’s ethnic studies curriculum based on CRT is meant to criticize and vilify American traditional values and indoctrinate students with the communist “struggle” theory. … “It feels very familiar to me. It’s totally communist theory.”
The New York Times “1619 Project”
Seeks to Cancel the Core Values of the American Experiment
https://www.foxnews.com/media/1619-project-founder-us-not-an-exceptional-nation-founding-fathers. “1619 Project founder says US ‘not an exceptional nation,’ Founding Fathers ‘did not believe in democracy’”,Bradford Betz, 9/10/20.
Although we casually describe America as a “democracy” it is not and never has been. America is far too widespread and diverse to operate according to what we think of when saying “democracy” or a simplistic majoritarian “one person-one vote” system. Ironically, Nikole Hannah-Jones, the founder of the highly divisive 1619 Project was correct about the fact that the Founders of the American Constitutional Republic “did not believe in democracy”, even while being an intensely focused propagandist with a goal of undermining fundamental ideals in other aspects.
The truth, however, is that America’s Founding Fathers didn’t believe in democracy in its unfettered simple majoritarian version because they understood its inevitable flaws. They had read their Aristotelian warnings about “democracy” as one of the “impure” versions of political organization, and took the warnings into account in creating a counter-majoritarian democratic “Republic” system of government in which power was diffused throughout multiple institutions, states and processes so that the majoritarian “mob” was not able to gain complete control. We owe thanks to those Founders who created the ground rules for the American political system because they were familiar with the philosophical and political analyses of Aristotle and understood that “democracy” was a flawed form that was inevitably abused unless checks and balances were made part of the governmental “package”.
The Founders understood the need to create limits on the abuse of unlimited majoritarian democracy because they understood human nature well enough to know the power of an uncontrolled majority would eventually be used to vote the largest part of benefits to themselves, while feeding on those who played a critical role in creating those benefits. Those limits on the otherwise inevitable centralization and abuse of government are a critical part of the “Exceptionalist Ideal” of America. That Ideal is one that the Leftists and Radical Progressives who keep demanding an end to the Electoral College either do not understand or seek to sabotage. Their strategy is to achieve full and permanent control.
The system the Founders forged represents the true point in which the nation began and where the nation’s exceptionalism lies. The unfortunate fact is that Ideals are never fully realized no matter how hard we try. But in the American system we at least have the right to criticize and seek to overcome our shortcomings. Outside of Western Europe, America, and a few other isolated contexts, that right does not exist in other nations. Striving to be better and more just, even while knowing we will never fully achieve our goals, is something we must never surrender.
“Woke” History Is Not the Answer
https://www.theepochtimes.com/why-woke-history-is-not-the-answer_3711629.html. “Why Woke History Is Not the Answer”, Wilfred Reilly, 2/25/21.
The United States may be the first country in history to tell a “noble lie” about its past that makes that past look worse, not better, than it actually was. For certain, the premodern history of the United States included a great deal of barbaric, uncivilized behavior: the conquest of Native American tribes, the enslavement of captured Africans, and the oppression of women, just for starters. But popular left-wing models of historical education, in the “1619 Project” and “Howard Zinn” traditions, regularly make claims about further injustices and atrocities that are simply not based in reality: for example, that Americans fought the Revolutionary War to preserve slavery, or that African-Americans struggled largely “alone” for freedom. Almost universally, these pedagogies also ignore both the context within which America’s undisputed sins took place—essentially all nations allowed slavery or serfdom until recent centuries. … A coherent education in history and civics must involve studying one’s society neither as blemish-free nor as virtually “all warts,” but rather comprehensively and honestly—warts and all.
No one denies the sins of the American past. African slavery obviously was one of the foundational facts of our national existence. More than 400,000 captured human beings were brought to our shores before the mid-1800s, and 40 million of their descendants—including me—live here today. … However, the existence of these all-too-legitimate horrors has not stopped activist scholars from exaggerating—or making up—other ones. Many primary claims of what might be termed the “1619” school of historical and civics education are simply not empirically accurate. My criticism here is not a matter of pointing out minor inaccuracies or misreading a few sentences here and there; rather, I find fault with the core arguments of a new “woke” worldview because they lack factual basis.
Perhaps the most notable example of this is the claim, made in the best-known 1619 Project essay, that the American Revolutionary War was fought to preserve human bondage. … 1619 founder Nikole Hannah-Jones argues that preserving “the institution of slavery” was a/the “primary” reason the Founding Fathers launched the Revolutionary War against England. Not so. For one thing, England did not free the slaves in her overseas colonies until 1833—some 57 years after the Declaration of Independence was signed. Every American school kid has heard, or used to hear, the true reasons for the war—taxation without representation, the Intolerable Acts, the Boston Massacre, disputes over French and Indian War debt, among others—and the general consensus among scholars is that this listing is reasonably accurate. … Another dubious claim, this one more sweeping, is that pre-1865 chattel slavery was a primary source of American wealth. In the same essay, Hannah-Jones claims that slavery is what built “vast fortunes for white people North and South” and specifically “made New York City the financial capital of the world.” Again, this is dubious or plain false. No one denies that slavery made slave-masters rich, as well as providing the start-up capital for such notable enterprises as Yale University. But medieval-style plantation agriculture built upon the backs of abused people who cannot read is not a very effective way to utilize land and make money.
In fact, economists such as Thomas Sowell have long argued that slavery actually retarded the economic development of the South. The entire region boasted only 9-10 percent of the U.S.’s capital and skilled work force when the Civil War began in 1861, and this limitation was a major reason for the eventual defeat of the Confederacy. And consider the costs of the Civil War, which killed 620,000 Americans. It would be hard to argue that the United States turned a profit on a practice that led to the eventual death of 360,000 Union soldiers—one man in blue for every nine slaves freed.