Bonkers, Blather, Blunders, & Buffoons #21
Time for another gentle stroll down America’s most colorful, insightful, often startling walkway: Bonehead Lane. Expectedly, the first and most obvious event spotted along our way: the huge derailment of a train carrying hazardous chemicals near East Palestine, Ohio, resulting in a major content spill. Then, appropriate or not becomes a question, federal workers from some department set the spilled material on fire, in a “controlled burn,” creating an ominous, billowing cloud of dark smoke towering over the town and, understandably, frightening residents. For whatever reason, perhaps political, the administration in D.C. reportedly opted to show little immediate concern or to send sufficient federal forces and resident assistance to help. Instead, opting for silence and lack of response lasting for several days.
Meanwhile, residents there were justifiably concerned about the safety of both their water and the air around them. Seemingly showing even more apathy to the toxic (in all ways) situation, Mr. Biden chose that particular time to fly to Poland (and Ukraine) for speeches and further promises of support. Which understandably inflamed those Ohio residents worried about their health and families, leading the New York Post Editorial Board to conclude that: “The White House (and national Dems in general) don’t’ care about what happens to average Americans.” A stark statement that may well go beyond this beleaguered town’s pressing issue. The same could be said when it comes to the safety and security of our citizens in those ‘invaded” states along our open southern border (and then well beyond, thanks to taxpayer-paid government transport to other interior regions). Just another example of what’s become abundantly clear with the Progressive-Socialist movement now dictating federal policies: It’s Migrants (and seemingly all other favored situations/nations) who rank First, while the rights and well-being of America’s Citizens remain Second in concern.
That, of course, is the opposite of the way it’s supposed to be. But with this administration, we have long known and sadly realized that their too-often-radical party politics dictate all policies and actions. Even now, with, thankfully, a Republican House majority, the correction needed to bring our own U.S. citizens back into the deserved primary focus very likely will not happen until the national election of 2024. Elitist Democrat party politics, which seem to consistently place their own self-centered interests well above what’s best for America, is a travesty. Public pressure (and some reluctant media push) is just now, by the way, forcing this administration to react to the immediate needs of, and very real anticipated long-term health impact for, those frightened (and some displaced) folks in Ohio.
Moving on, Representative Jamal Bowman (D-NY) has stated that the young black man fatally beaten recently in Memphis was “killed by white supremacy.” Everything wrong in America, you see, is falsely considered to be the fault of white people. The only thing wrong with that erroneous theory and conclusion, in this case, is that all five of the individuals responsible for the tragic death of that young man (Memphis police officers) were black! It’s beyond a stretch to lay the blame for this tragic fatality at mythical white supremacy. It’s certainly an effective way to attempt to shift the blame, focus, and liberal media coverage, but one with no basis in truth, at least from a non-liberal, non-ethnic, non-woke perspective.
Then there is the seemingly absurd, financially-bankrupting proposal that continues to bubble up, particularly in San Francisco, regarding the prospect of actually paying reparations for centuries ago “slavery” to the city’s current black residents, none of whom are currently, nor have ever have been, held in slavery, based on the historic understanding of the concept. And we’re not talking about somehow (near impossible) tracing lineage back to actual black slaves in America for reparation payment. No. The intent is to pay every current black resident, regardless.
By the way, at least one current proposed payment figure in San Francisco was $5-million per black resident (again, regardless of any historic linkage). And that astounding figure has actually been called “very miniscule” by one local leader. Oh, and on the topic of historic slavery, a reminder that the admittedly evil enterprise ended in America at the conclusion of the Civil War in April of 1865.
Rather get into a discussion of the legitimacy of hefty cash payments to ALL black residents of the City, based on an the historic scourge of slavery, how about this as a far less costly and more predictably productive alternative. To make up to young black residents of San Francisco (or any city), who were the product of poor schooling, parenting, depressed neighborhoods, and/or negative peer influences, which may have hampered their financial potential and well-being, why not provide them (male and female) with free (city-paid) comprehensive academic (if needed), and industrial, corporation, or organizational actual career training, along with a cash support stipend to assist, as well as continuing counseling and guidance, until effective certifications and appropriate employment is obtained.
If the concept of reparations is to make up for historic limitations or hardships that have hampered legitimate individual financial earnings, then career training, counseling, and job acquisition would provide cost-effective pathways to self-supportive, tax-paying, employment, assisting both the participants and the surrounding society. A pro-active suggestion to solve the issue, short of huge, no-individual merit, financial hand-outs, which at that initially suggested level, would likely bankrupt the city, or cities, involved. Just a sensible thought aimed at generating personal responsibility and individual growth for the long-term.
Now, while the open southern border situation with illegal migrants continues to spiral out of control, because the Biden administration clearly welcomes the continuing stampede of illegals, with resulting cost, chaos, and safety concerns for America’s citizens, the issue of illegal immigration has now, perhaps ultimately to be expected, shifted also to our northern border! Yep, an 800% surge of illegals (said to be mostly Mexican) is now attempting to enter the U.S. via Canada! To the point where our Border Patrol is actually having to “beg” for agents from our southern border to come north to assist. Now that “beg” is, of course, ridiculous and an insult to America’s protective safety and security. Rather than shifting already overwhelmed agents from the south, where even more are definitely needed, we must immediately assign more federal funding to the hiring and training of many more federal border agents.
Will that happen with this administration? Not likely, because open borders are their creation and policy. Hopefully, Congress can move dollars to solve this now-northern border crisis, as well. Take some dollars from that totally unnecessary bolstering of IRS agents, designed to audit and badger primarily white tax payers, and, instead, send much needed additional trained and equipped personnel to the Canadian border (and the Mexican one, also) to protect America, which is supposed to be the clear sworn priority of any federal administration! Anymore, it seems that Mr. Biden’s border protection priority is Ukraine, and not America.
And that negligence includes the serious, deadly issue of fentanyl. Once again, fentanyl is considered to be “50 times stronger than heroin, and 100 times more powerful than morphine, and cheaper to produce than either”! To help assess the seriousness of the current supply problem, last year (2022), Customs and Border Protection agents confiscated 14,700 pounds of fentanyl shipments. This year, just two months in (unless possibly referring to fiscal year (September), regardless, reportedly 12,500 pounds of the killer drug have already been captured by our border agents, regrettably said to be only a fraction of the fentanyl making its way to America’s streets. This is in incredibly serious and dangerous problem allowed to happen due to our open southern border. We need far, far more migrant and fentanyl enforcement at the Mexican border, and, most critically, the political willingness to do so.
And the cost to we citizens of taking in sheltering, feeding, providing medical care, schooling, clothing, and cash welfare for these millions of administration-invited illegal aliens (2-million apprehended and an additional estimated 1-million “got-aways)? It’s estimated to come to more than $80,000 per migrant in life-time cost. That’s a long-term expense to U.S. taxpayers approaching $200-billion. And that’s just for the existing illegals now within our borders. That number, and the expense, sadly increases literally every day. An injustice to America, and our budget solvency, that hopefully the post-2024 election results can resolve.
This next one won’t cheer you up. The results of one recent study indicated that 70% of criminal suspects released from jail, without bail, are eventually arrested for additional crimes. The no-bail scheme, fostered by the Progressive-Socialist application of our laws and court prosecution, within Democrat-run metropolitan areas, results in a significant increase in crimes within those areas. Yet we see no meaningful, serious move to stop this fraudulent application of justice. You see, this is said to be promoting (racial) equity, when, instead, the legal system, to truly be just, should always be representing (racial, gender, age, nationality) equality!
And finally for this edition of Quad-B, an ideological tidbit from the eroding off-shore Isle of Wokedumb. The Arizona legislature is proposing an amendment to existing education laws there that would “give parents the right to review and, through a defined procedure, seek to remove inappropriate books from libraries and classrooms, especially books that promote non-traditional sexual and gender roles or that normalize pedophilia.” Notably, one activist teacher there in the school system has objected to the proposed legislation based on her deemed superiority as a degreed academic. In essence, she believes that her credentials render her above and beyond in ability and judgment to our plain, old, academically-backwoods parents. Said she, in part: “I have a Master’s degree. We (teachers there) all have advanced degrees. What do parents have? Are we vetting the background of parents? Are we allowing the parents to choose the curriculum and the books?” She continued: “The purpose of public education is not to teach only what parents want their children to be taught. It is to teach them what society needs them to be taught.”
“What do parents have?” she asked. Well, in addition to most parents anymore having at least a bachelor’s degree, many have a Master’s and beyond. It’s not the 1950’s anymore where an academic degree often made you above all mortals. But degrees are far from the key point here. Parents want their kids to be taught basic, state-testable competency in key, traditional academic subjects (e.g., English, math, & science), especially at the elementary school level. And not divergent sexual practices (or discussion of sex at all!) and the apparently increasing push to discuss gender “options,” even perhaps hiding potential teacher in-class gender transition encouragement and decisions from parents. It’s good to remember that while a teacher may have classroom responsibility for a child for a maximum of one academic year, the responsibility of parents lasts far longer, as in, for a lifetime. Parents should have the right to be aware of, and if need be, object to sexually and/or language inappropriate books being used, or made accessible, in public schools. And, hopefully, have procedures in place, so that with adequate parental consensus, objectionable materials can be removed in a timely manner.
Parents have every right, or should, to have an informed say as to what is being taught in area schools to their children. An educator with a Master’s degree (or any advanced degree) should not begin to have the final, perhaps even secretive, say in what takes place within the basic classroom education of young, impressionable children. Nor should teachers have the ability or opportunity to stray with that instruction into areas of sex, gender, or race, and anything else beyond district approved, and grade-level appropriate, core curriculum. Ideally, then, education should be an ongoing, informed partnership between caring educators, administrators, and involved parents, the latter bearing the ultimate responsibility for the education, growth and well-being of their children.
(Ohio derailment scenario and quote via nypost.com, Post Editorial Board, 2-19-23; White supremacy charge via foxnews.com, Jessica Chasmar, 2-12-23; Slavery reparations suggestion via jewishworldreview.com, Deroy Murdock, 2-20-23; Northern border illegal migrant incursions via nypost.com, Lee Brown, 2-21-23; Fentanyl problem at our border via nypost.com, Michael Kaplan, 12-18-23; Cost to Americans of supporting the illegals here via nypost.com, Mark Kirkorian, 2-10-23; No-bail releases result in additional crimes via breitbart.com, John Binder, 2-20-23; Educators vs. parents in classroom instruction via americanthinker.com, Andrea Widburg, 2-20-23).