Is Nationalism Treason?

            In a November 11^th speech at the Armistice Day centennial observance in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron fired a blast at President Trump by declaring that “Nationalism is a betrayal of patriotism…Patriotism is the exact opposite of nationalism. Nationalism is treason.”  President Trump, an avowed nationalist, took it as an insult, and rightly so.

            Macron surely knows the history of nationalism in Europe. But was he justified in linking the German nationalism that gave rise to Hitler with Trump’s “America First” policy? Then he compounded the insult by proposing that Europe unite to form its own armed forces in opposition to Russia, China, and yes, the United States, leaving no doubt in anybody’s mind that he now views America as a foe. Considering that Trump is in the midst of trade negotiations with Europe and is also looking to Europe to bear a larger share of NATO’s costs, Macron’s speech was extraordinarily rash and provocative. President Trump retaliated with harsh words of his own, reminding President Macron that the United States had saved France’s butt in two world wars. Meanwhile, many Western European countries, echoing Mr. Macron’s obstreperousness, are refusing to go along with U.S. sanctions against Iran.

            I can’t help thinking of a similar struggle between American Catholic bishops and the Vatican. The bishops met earlier this month in Baltimore at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) to deal with the church’s sexual abuse crisis. They were prepared to vote on standards for episcopal conduct and on the formation of a special commission to review complaints of violation of these standards. But the Vatican ordered the USCCB not to vote on these matters, telling the American bishops in effect that the Vatican would call the shots. Which makes me wonder about what the American bishops’ response to Rome’s authoritarianism will be. Will they conclude it is time to form an “America First” church independent of Vatican diktat? Can Rome really afford to alienate its largest national congregation and its biggest financial supporter? Could it be provoking a second Reformation? Interesting questions in a world debating the pros and cons of nationalism.

On Promises and Protests

            Hillary Clinton promised that civility would return to the political arena after Democrats regained power in Congress. Well, what happened? No sooner had Democrats learned that voters had given them control of the House of Representatives, their incoming committee chairmen Richard Neal, Adam Schiff, Jerry Nadler, and Maxine (“Impeach-Impeach-Impeach”) Waters declared all-out war on the president, his family, his administration, even Justice Kavanaugh. So much for Hillary’s promise of restored civility.

            Meanwhile, election results did not produce a Democrat-like response from Republicans: there were no tears, no predictions of Armageddon, no vows to move to Canada, no mob protests in the streets, or banging on Supreme Court doors. Oh, but there was a banging on a door, the front door of Fox News talk-show host Tucker Carlson’s home. A masked mob outside spry-painted an anarchy symbol on his driveway and shouted, “We will fight. We know where you sleep at night. Racist scumbag leave town. We are outside your home. Mail bomb.”

            This was not a peaceful gathering of protesters exercising their First Amendment rights. It was a threat to Carlson’s life and the life of his family. It was a criminal act. Police were called to the scene, but made no arrests, although authorities promised to investigate. A promise is not enough: if the protesters are identified, they should be arrested and prosecuted for what this was, a hate crime. And the guilty should carry this black mark on their record for the rest of their lives as an example for those who would terrorize people for their political beliefs.

            To their credit, most of the left-wing Trump haters in the media voiced their support for Carlson. Trump critic Stephen Colbert called the protest right: he called it “monstrous cowardice.” I did not see any report of comments from Maxine Waters.

           

Not Buying Anymore

            Not long ago I was price-gouged by a restaurant and vowed never to return. Just the other day I was repulsed by a TV program and vowed never to watch that series again. There is a parallel, I think, between being forced to pay for over-priced food and unexpectedly finding myself watching an offensive TV show. Both deserved the response, a miniature marketplace in action.

            The TV program I’m referring to, an episode of SWAT, featured a character, a regular on the series, who openly admitted to being bi-sexual. When she confided to a co-worker that she was intensely attracted to another woman, she was told essentially to “go for it,” in other words, go ahead and satisfy your sexual urges, even if the relationship would not meet traditional norms. Now, I don’t know how or why producers of this action show felt that this would add to the enjoyment of the program, and I’m not so much of a prude that I object to portrayals of different life-styles. But then a meeting with the two women turned into something more than an expression of interest: it became an invitation by the other woman to enter into a threesome called a “thruple” involving her fiancée. The next scene showed the boyfriend making a lascivious invitation to explore the proposed arrangement’s exciting aspects. The scene ended with the young lady seriously considering it. That’s when I pushed the OFF button on the TV remote.

            As someone with a former connection to the advertising business, I ask myself why an advertiser would want to support a show that asks viewers to empathize with a character who is considering joining a “thruple;” worse, to invite viewers to vicariously weigh the pros and cons of adopting a life-style that flouts traditional morality. This, I submit, is a perfect example of corrosive Hollywood values promoted to the public in prime time.

            I am only one person, but I am saying to those responsible, producers and advertisers alike, “I am not going to buy what you’re selling anymore.”  

Ignorance Is Not Bliss

            No matter how we view the results of the mid-term elections, we have to acknowledge a definite movement to the left in the Democratic Party’s natural constituency of minorities.  This move has been fed by the left’s incessant use of identity politics to promote victimhood, academia’s preaching of the anti-capitalist gospel, and the emergence of public figures like Bernie Sanders who worship at the altar of socialism. Indeed, masses of young people are singing the praises of an ideology that in their star-gazing imagination is the ultimate cure for poverty, inequality, and infectious disease. Unfortunately, the one infection it cannot cure is ignorance.

            First, the vast majority of socialism’s infantile cheerleaders don’t even know what socialism is. In a recent Gallup survey, only 17% correctly identified socialism with government ownership or control. The other 83% associated socialism vaguely with equality, enhanced benefits, and such nonsense as being social to people.

            Second, immature swallowers of socialist pap lack the knowledge necessary to recognize the fallacies in descriptions of socialist utopias. Bernie Sanders would have them believe that socialist economies in Scandinavia, for instance, are thriving, when the truth is that Norway, Sweden, and Denmark have high tax rates to support vast social safety nets, but also have thriving market economies dependent on the private sector. Advocates of single-payer health care systems also fail to mention that countries like Great Britain and Canada that have such a system deliver far worse health care than ours.

            Finally, it is an indictment of our educational system that the majority of our young people are totally ignorant of the history of the Soviet Union and China whose authoritarian regimes put socialism and communism into practice and exterminated tens of millions of people in the 20^th century. Our blissfully unsuspecting youngsters aren’t even aware of the misery brought on right now by the same kind of authoritarian regimes in North Korea, Cuba, and Venezuela.

            Ignorance may be bliss, but not when it comes to the truth about socialism.

On Health-Care Costs

            Reports of mail-bomb scares less than two weeks from mid-term elections drowned out discussions of other important factors in deciding which party to favor at the ballot box.  One of these is the exploding cost of health care and how to control it.  Socialists like Bernie Sanders continue to push for a single-payer system, even though there is ample evidence that such systems in countries like Canada and Great Britain have resulted in a drastic reduction in the quality of health care. Rather than resorting to socialized medicine, we should be looking at other ways to rein in costs. One of these, among many, is price competition.

            The other day my wife and I dined at a restaurant with moderately priced entrees on the menu. My wife ordered a shrimp dish for $18, but I chose a lamb piccata special listed on a board at the entrance to the restaurant. The lamb dish was good, but it certainly wasn’t worth the $34 I was hit with on the bill. There had been no price listed on the board, and it was my fault for not asking before ordering. Had I known the price I would not have ordered the dish; having been the victim of what I felt was price-gouging, I will never return to that restaurant.

            Can we make this an analogy to health care? How many people facing the cost of a knee replacement and several days in the hospital shop around for the facility with the lowest cost? Probably none, because hospitals don’t post prices. Many costs result from unnecessary tests and procedures, but how many patients question their need and how much they cost? Probably none, if they have insurance that will cover them.

            The point is that there is virtually no price competition among major health care providers like hospitals. I submit that if the prices of all their services were available to the public, the open market would come into play to drive prices down by forcing providers to be more innovative and efficient. Competition, an essential element of capitalism, works in the marketplace, be it in shoe stores, gas stations, and restaurants. Many factors could drive down the cost of health care; competition wouldn’t be a bad way to start.

Elizabeth Warren--Woman of Color

            On November 19, 1493, Christopher Columbus, on his second voyage to the New World, set foot on what is now Puerto Rico and claimed it for Spain. At the time of Columbus’s discovery, the inhabitants of Puerto Rico were Carib Indians, a warrior people rumored to roast and eat the flesh of their enemies. Undeterred by the reputation of the natives, Spain proceeded to colonize the island.

            Earlier this year, my wife, who was born in New York City of Puerto Rican immigrants, spit in a vial and sent it off to have her DNA analyzed. Sure enough, the report came back showing a preponderance of Iberian (Spanish and Portuguese) ancestry. But it also showed 13% Native American blood, which we can assume resulted from a mixed marriage some generations back between a European colonist and a native Carib.

            I asked my son David in jest if he thought he had enough Native American blood to build a casino. It certainly would be enough, apparently, for him to be admitted as a preferred minority to Harvard Law School, which boasted of having in Elizabeth Warren its first woman of color. And she had only .009% Native American blood. So much for Harvard’s commitment to diversity and its policy of discriminating against Asian applicants.

            Warren’s richly-deserved mockery points to the pitfalls of racial identity and to the bankruptcy of programs designed to benefit minorities solely on the basis of their race. DNA doesn’t define who we are as individuals or as Americans. We are a melting pot enriched by the various strengths and talents of the people who live and work in this land of opportunity. It doesn’t matter how or when our ancestors came here.  

              Senator Warren, for her part, has made her own important discovery: nothing damages a self-absorbed politician more than ridicule. As one wag put it, Elizabeth Warren, who profited from her claim of being, as Harvard put it, a woman of color, is in fact whiter than Ivory Soap.

Mobs, Civility, and Lawlessness

            Three words reverberate in our public discourse these days: mob, civility, and lawlessness.

            Commentators on the right accuse the left of inciting mob violence, while the left responds that there are no mobs, only protestors exercising their rights of free speech. Perhaps the screamers at the Kavanaugh confirmation hearing and from the Senate gallery during the voting thought they were doing just that, but those screamers lacked the one quality that could have commanded respect for their opinions: civility.

            Hillary (can’t she just go away?) chimed in last week that civility won’t be restored until the Democrats regain control of Congress. Was she suggesting that the right is uncivil, or was she threatening that Democrats would continue to incite mob lawlessness until the loons on the left outvote the deplorables on the right?

            It is true that President Trump rallies his frenzied base with his intemperate speeches and tweets. But his followers were not the ones harassing Republican senators outside their offices, in  elevators, or commuting to work; they were not the ones banging on the doors of the Supreme Court on Justice Kavanaugh’s first day on the bench; they were not the ones following Maxine Waters’ orders to confront Trump supporters in restaurants, gas stations, and supermarkets; they certainly were not the ones wearing masks while breaking windows and setting fires to prevent conservatives from speaking at universities.

            I don’t know if the “Kavanaugh effect” will be enough to prevent the Blue Wave from gaining control of the House or the Senate in the upcoming elections. But I don’t think Democrats have been helping their cause. George Melloan recently said it best: “It is not a good omen when leaders of a major party and its adherents in the press seem to justify lawlessness simply because they don’t like the president the country elected.” Amen.