Common sense Americans are all too aware of the losses that impacted California and the rest of the nation last year. The state and federal government ramped up their respective debt and deficit spending on dubious programs that primarily benefited crony capitalist elites. Energy autonomy has been rejected over the last three years, inflation is persistent, the Southern border is lawless, and wokeness is infecting society, while crime and homelessness have escalated due to soft-on-crime district attorneys.
On the foreign front, which affects us here at home, our adversaries have increased their muscle flexing, illustrated by the aggression displayed by China, Iran, North Korea, Russia, and Venezuela. Speaking loudly while carrying a small stick (opposite of Teddy Roosevelt), President Joe Biden has emboldened China’s global ambitions, Iran’s proxy warfare, Kim Jong Un’s missile activity, and Moscow’s Ukraine quagmire. These actions are losses for directly impacted nations as well as for the principles of liberty, prosperity, and the rule of law.
Predictably, these domestic and global trends have weakened America’s standing as leader of the free world. However, despite these troubling events, there are some gains from last year that we can build upon in 2024.
First, the woke industrial complex has been exposed as a Marxist construct that primarily caters to the shrill minority. Companies such as Budweiser, CNN, Disney, Target, among others, are learning the hard way that if they ignore the majority of customers, they can lose market share and their stocks will plummet.
Next, a number of city councils, counties, and school boards have fought back against woke nonsense. The unity of the American and state flag are taking precedence over the divisive pride flag, as evidenced by the actions of Huntington Beach and the OC Board of Supervisors. Charter schools are increasing in Southern California, and parents are demanding greater input into the curricular content of their children’s public school education. That would include utilizing appropriate books and curricular materials in classrooms and school libraries.
When I taught secondary school, I would prepare weekly lessons on aesthetic cursive handwriting, wherein students can develop manual dexterity and patience. Moreover, signatures are required in many of life’s transactions, and troves of research materials are written in cursive dating back hundreds of years. Students need to be able to read and understand historical materials when they generate essays, papers, and projects.
Sixth, although many of California’s universities continue to spout woke gibberish, common sense citizens can vote with their wallets and withdraw financial contributions to the propaganda factories that are fixated on color, creed, gender, and race. These institutions need to restore traditional values such as academic rigor, character and career development, equality of opportunity, free speech, and merit.
