Friends, more good news out of Florida...and more bad news out of everywhere else. The Florida legislature has passed a bold new law to make a state grant available to parents of every school-age child, allowing them to send their kids to the public or private school of their choice, or to use the money to underwrite the expenses of homeschooling. Bravo, Florida! There is an exciting trend blossoming across this country favorable to school choice, and there are few more promising measures available for getting the next generation on track, pedagogically, ideologically, and morally. Long may it last!
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/universal-school-choice-headed-desantis-desk-passing-florida-senate
On a much less encouraging note, check out these poll results indicating that Americans' moral compass is seriously out of whack. Fewer and fewer of us, especially in younger age cohorts, appear to believe in the importance of patriotism, God, and hard work, among other traditional values. The Left is doing a mighty good job of scooping out the heart of Western Civilization, I'd say, but what will take its place? DEI? Marxism? Wokeness? Social justice? Resentment and entitlement? Self-pity? Materialism? Eek! I don't know about you, but I might need to apply for asylum in El Salvador ASAP if this craziness continues...
Finally, it's staggering to contemplate just how much our popular culture, our economy, and our political system turned on a dime in reaction to the killing of George Floyd and the subsequent BLM agitation and unrest. This article gets it right: this country was intimidated into handing over vast amounts of money to highly questionable causes, and we were coerced into violating our historic commitments to meritocracy and equal justice, all to placate neo-Marxist radicals. This brings to mind all those Democrats in the Capitol rotunda, literally kneeling at the feet of social justice activists. The lesson: when conservatives use violence, they need to be roundly condemned and sternly punished. When leftists use violence, this only proves the justice of their cause, and society needs to genuflect, and quick! Makes you wonder how extravagantly we'll cave to the far-left the next time they burn our cities to the ground, doesn't it?
Dr.Waddy from Jack: It is close to axiomatic that social revolutions are inevitably betrayed.Examples range from the ridiculous to the monumental: eg from the swift drug badass takeover of the San Francisco "summer of love" to the enslavement of many hundreds of millions in China, Russia etc. ad nauseum, after the promise of equity is tragically embraced. Cynical, venal, amoral dictators almost always prevail.Surely there have been many who gave their all to sincerely advance credibly just causes. Equally certain is that many are attracted to revolution for hope of personal advancement, gain and power. The probability of such corruption is one of the most powerful arguments against radical political movements. "Fundamental transformation" of societies which display historical measured progress in justice is condemned by this reality. Revolution had its chance from 1789 to 1949 and its consequence , injustice on an incalculably counterintuitive, inhuman scale, completely discredits it now.
ReplyDeleteJack, I tend to agree. Revolutions are almost always better in theory than in practice. The American Revolution is one of the few exceptions that I can think of, but it was very much a revolution from within, and frankly one led by the establishment itself. My number one lesson to prospective students of history: so you think you have it rough and that things can't possibly get any worse? Ha! Crack open a book. You might begin to see things rather differently.
ReplyDeleteDr. Waddy from Jack:Florida is fast becoming an exemplar of common sense among the states, along with Texas. Organized entities with law making and enforcement powers are perhaps our best bet for combating the american left, though groups like NRA (which supports candidates and office holders who are conservative on a wide range of issues beyond our gun rights) play a major role. Its alot harder for those vicious, incipient dictators to savage an hombre land like Texas or a courageously led place like Florida. I'd like to see them lead the way in preventing school shootings using common sense: defend at the point of attack! Especially in our vast real America, where guns are not held by timorous touchie feelies to be icky, we could harden school defenses overnight by using gun wise local volunteers to supplement the police and if necessary, the military. This murderous insanity is a consequence of leftist moral relativity and spiritual vacuousness which shows no signs of abatement. We need a new Great Awakening but meantime lets get our guts up, defend the kids and defeat those who dream of disarming the lawful, NOW!
ReplyDeleteDr.Waddy from Jack: A prison Chaplain once told me "these people need to have the fear of God put in them! " The casually counterintuitive american left which emulates and apologizes for lawless savages, deserves such admonition too. Communists tried to violently expunge religion in those lands cursed by their rule and they failed. They had nothing to offer in place of the Lord of the Universe. The cultural marxists are sneakier about it; " no violence, thank you, we will just undermine him! Why he won't notice (will he?)". And they have done a rare old job of debauching our country. Again; its time for a new Great Awakening with a reestablishment of dread of God's wrath for the flouting of standards of which he has long since apprised us.
ReplyDeleteJack, I'd like to know if any school shooter has ever attempted to attack a school in which the teachers were armed... Do you know the answer?
ReplyDeleteA God who enforces strict moral standards? Oh, Jack! That's so...19th century. Today's god (he's cool, so he doesn't mind lower case letters) loves us unconditionally, affirms our transcendent worth, whispers sweet nothings in our ears, and asks nothing of us except that we hug the occasional tree and be kind to transvestites. Get with the times!
Dr.Waddy from Jack: Good question. But I think it would be close to impossible to arm teachers anyway.Too many of them (certainly not all) are touchy feely liberal products of leftist infested education departments. And perhaps most of their unions, being reflexively leftist and loath to honor gun possessing citizens, would pitch a very large and emotional bitch. Armed guards having as their sole purpose the denial to monsters of access to their prey are the most direct and presently doable defense. Their presence in the schools could introduce kids to the reality of armed guards in many settings, including in the hands of the police ,and perhaps foster respect for them.Our schools face a currently implacable threat from insane armed fiends; it must be met with arms!
ReplyDeleteDr. Waddy from Jack: But what unimaginable chastisement was humanity's lot in the 20th century! God sent? Widespread belief in the possibility would have a salubrious effect on a humanity tragically lacking in moral and spiritual fibre and humility.
ReplyDeleteOh, I realize that the vast majority of schools, and the vast majority of teachers, would not countenance arming teachers, but the prospect remains viable in the reddest states and in the most rural communities. And only a small number of teachers need to be armed to give would-be aggressors pause. What I wonder is: does the expectation of armed resistance have the deterrent effect that I imagine it must, or are these shooters too deranged to care?
ReplyDeleteDr.Waddy from Jack: Unless school shooters were to summarily meet the uncomfortable ends that would have been their lot in the 19th century (an impossibility now )I cannot think of a way to give them pause. They seek to outrage and enjoy causing despair. I suggest hardening the schools in order to repel or prevent attackers at the point of attack.Too,having been provided information clearly indicating ultra violent tendencies in an individual and failing to act, or directing a subordinate not to act ,ought to end the career of the decision maker. And those who take action in good faith should be legally indemnified against retaliation.
ReplyDeleteThat's easy to say, Jack, but keep in mind that this country is brimming with depressed, egomaniacal types, and all we ever do about it is medicate them, and even that we don't compel but ask of them politely. No, I think there are plenty more mass shootings in our future, although we may get better at shutting these rampages down earlier rather than later, so as to minimize the number of victims.
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