Posts Tagged ‘socialism’

Leftist group of Chicago municipal staffers cheers on students cutting class to attend Gaza ceasefire rally

Posted: January 28, 2024 by John Ruberry in crime, education, Israel vs Hamas, News/opinion, opinion/news, politics
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By John Ruberry

On Friday afternoon, just blocks from Chicago’s City Hall, two students–Robert Boston and Monterio Williams–were shot to death on a crowded street outside Innovation High School. It was like a scene from the old Untouchables television show.

Yesterday on X, Chicago Progressive Staffers, which describes itself as a “coalition of progressive staffers from the Mayors [sic] Office and [the] City Council, posted this troubling message. “WOW! Thousands of @ChiPubSchools students are organizing a walk out on Tuesday in support of @AldermanLaSpata & @RossanaFor33’s Ceasefire resolution that’s being voted on Wednesday Jan 31. The youth will always lead us.”

Yes, “The youth will always lead us.” That’s the messaging that was drilled into Mrs. Marathon Pundit when she was a Young Pioneer in the Soviet Union.

Like Washington DC, Chicago is built on onetime swamp land. Think of the Chicago Progressive Staffers as part of the city’s Deep State. As for the two alderpersons mentioned in that X post–Daniel LaSpata and Rossana Rodriguez-Sanchez–the sponsors of the Gaza ceasefire resolution, both are members of the Democratic Socialists of America.

Leftists nationwide, nearly to a person, are calling for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war because Hamas, which attacked the Jewish state on October 7, is losing.

Back in Chicago, so far this weekend—as of 3:00pm CST on Sunday–two people have been shot to death and at least 12 others have been wounded. 

And Gaza ceasefire resolution–or no ceasefire resolution–however Chicago’s City Council votes won’t make a difference. Just as the countless resolutions approved by the City Council condemning communism in Eastern Europe had no effect on America winning the Cold War. 

Tuesday of course is a school day in Chicago, so essentially, Chicago Progressive Staffers, this anonymous group of city hall leftists, is cheering on students cutting class.  

On the flipside, it’s easy to say that Chicago Public Schools students who play hooky on Tuesday won’t miss much. Not even one-quarter of them are proficient in reading or math at grade level. And nearly half of CPS students missed 18 days of class during the 2021-22 school year. 

So, what’s one more day away from school, right?

Chicago might be a better place if the Chicago City Council plays hooky–indefinitely. Last month, Edward Burke, who was a Chicago alderperson for a record 54 years, was convicted on corruption charges. In the last five decades, 38 members of the Chicago City Council have been found guilty of federal crimes, which averages to one aldercritter heading to the House of Many Doors every 16 months.

Perhaps Hamas might reply, “Thanks, but no thanks” if the Chicago City Council’s Gaza ceasefire resolution passes. Hamas deservedly already has a very bad reputation.

But as bad as the Chicago Public Schools system is, its students belong in school on Tuesday. And the Chicago City Council needs work on improving life in the city.

Such as aiding law enforcement so it can adequately protect Chicagoans. Or bringing back school choice to Chicago.

John Ruberry regularly blogs at Marathon Pundit.

The Pilgrims nearly starved to death because of an ill fated experiment with Communism

Posted: November 23, 2023 by Jon Fournier in Uncategorized
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For the past several decades Progressives have been steadily transforming the United States from a Free Market nation based on individualism into Socialist nation based on collectivism.  These radical leftists completely ignore the bloody and brutal legacy of all collectivist ideologies.  Starvation and misery are the only things that are abundant in a Communist or Socialist economy.

Today’s Progressives go to great lengths to hide the fact that the earliest colonies here in what became the United States experimented with Communism.  Those early experiments very nearly ended in total failure.  Disaster was only averted when the colonies switched to a Free Market economy based on individualism.  Plymouth Plantation was one of the colonies.  This is chronicled here in William Bradford: from History of Plymouth Plantation, c. 1650.

This first quote describes their experiment with communist:

The experience that was had in this common course and condition, tried sundry years and that amongst godly and sober men, may well evince the vanity of that conceit of Plato’s and other ancients applauded by some of later times; and that the taking away of property and bringing in community into a commonwealth would make them happy and flourishing; as if they were wiser than God. 

It did not work out at all.

For this community (so far as it was) was found to breed much confusion and discontent and retard much employment that would have been to their benefit and comfort. For the young men, that were most able and fit for labor and service, did repine that they should spend their time and strength to work for other men’s wives and children without any recompense. The strong, or man of parts, had no more in division of victuals and clothes than he that was weak and not able to do a quarter the other could; this was thought injustice. The aged and graver men to be ranked and equalized in labors and victuals, clothes etc., with the meaner and younger sort, thought it some indignity and disrespect unto them. And for men’s wives to be commanded to do service for other men, as dressing their meat, washing their clothes, etc., they deemed it a kind of slavery, neither could many husbands well brook it.

The Pilgrims began their experiment with the most noble of intentions, it failed because human societies always falter when collectivism is attempted.

Upon the point all being to have alike, and all to do alike, they thought themselves in the like condition, and one as good as another; and so, if it did not cut off those relations that God hath set amongst men, yet it did at least much diminish and take off the mutual respects that should be preserved amongst them. And would have been worse if they had been men of another condition. Let none object this is men’s corruption, and nothing to the course itself. I answer, seeing all men have this corruption in them, God in His wisdom saw another course fitter for them.

Disaster was averted and Plymouth Plantation thrived when William Bradford proposed a radical change to a free market economy based on individualism.

All this while no supply was heard of, neither knew they when they might expect any. So they began to think how they might raise as much corn as they could, and obtain a better crop than they had done, that they might not still thus languish in misery. At length, after much debate of things, the Governor (with the advice of the chiefest amongst them) gave way that they should set corn every man for his own particular, and in that regard trust to themselves; in all other thing to go on in the general way as before. And so assigned to every family a parcel of land, according to the proportion of their number, for that end, only for present use (but made no division for inheritance) and ranged all boys and youth under some family. This had very good success, for it made all hands very industrious, so as much more corn was planted than otherwise would have been by any means the Governor or any other could use, and saved him a great deal of trouble, and gave far better content. The women now went willingly into the field, and took their little ones with them to set corn; which before would allege weakness and inability; whom to have compelled would have been thought great tyranny and oppression.

Shining some light on the true nature of Socialism

Posted: February 20, 2020 by Jon Fournier in Uncategorized
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The fact that Bernie Sanders, the self avowed socialist, appears to be currently the front runner for the Democratic Presidential nomination is proof our educational system has failed to properly educate far too many about the true nature of Socialism.  It is up to us on the political right to set the record straight on social media. To make this easier I’ve assembled a selection of quotes from a couple of articles.

The first collection of quotes are from this American Thinker article Bernie Bros and the Catastrophe of Socialism. 

This first quote is not to flattering, yet it is accurate.

The love affair of young Americans with Bernie Sanders is the result of their disturbingly disastrous belief that they are entitled to what other people worked for. Pied Piper Bernie seduces young followers with his seductive lie: “You deserve and I will give you everything for free.” Ponder that, folks. In Bernie’s America, no one has to work for anything.

This next quote perfectly sums up one aspect of socialism the youth of this country fail to appreciate, it primarily benefits the least productive workers at the expense of the most productive.

You and Larry have summer jobs as waiters. You work your butt off, remembering patrons’ food orders correctly and swiftly filling their empty glasses; doing everything in your power to make their dining experience enjoyable. For your excellence, patrons tip you generously.

But rather than your well-deserved hard-earned money going into your pocket, it goes into a tip jar to be distributed equally between you and Larry. Meanwhile, Larry routinely arrives late, reeks of alcohol, takes long smoke breaks, routinely gets food orders wrong and does not give a rat’s derriere about the patrons. Management (government) forces you to share the fruits of your labor with lazy Larry. That is the major flaw of socialism.

Most students are not informed that socialism was attempted in several of the earliest colonies of this nation, and it failed each time.  One attempt was made in Plymouth Plantation.

William Bradford was the first governor of the Pilgrims’ Plymouth Colony. Bradford tried socialism, which meant that everything belonged to the community and everyone supposedly did their fair share of the work. Because of lazy Larrys, it failed. Therefore, Bradford wisely decided to give everyone their own land, which was extremely successful. Due to an abundance, families began trading goods and services. Capitalism.

I don’t think too many millennials would be thrilled to learn that socialism would put an end to innovation in the United States.

Duped Bernie Bros are thrilled over his promise to confiscate all earnings over a million dollars. Cell phones, the internet, medical breakthroughs, and other blessings are the result of individuals being allowed to be the best they can be; striving to reap great rewards for themselves and their families. Folks, there is nothing evil about that. If the government takes everything over a million dollars, why would anyone take risks or pursue new breakthroughs?

This next article, from the Mises institute, is rather technical, however, it contains a treasure trove of information Socialism: A Brief Taxonomy

As you can see from this quote, the most often cited definition of Socialism is incomplete:

The contemporary meaning of socialism often runs along the lines that it is a politico-economic theory in which the means of production, wealth distribution, and exchange are supposed to be owned and regulated by the community as a whole. This characterization of socialism emphasizes its important economic features; however, it cannot be considered a comprehensive definition. The wording implies a narrow understanding of socialism from the point of view of materialist and positivist currents of socialism but does not fully encompass the features exhibited in antimaterialist, anti-Cartesian, and Kantian members of the socialist family.

Here is a much more complete definition:

Socialism is a set of artificial socioeconomic systems that are characterized by varying degrees of collectivization of property, or consciousness, or the redistribution of wealth… socialization of property, collectivization of consciousness, and wealth redistribution are necessary and sufficient causative factors that taken separately or in combination unambiguously define an ideology as socialistic and designate preferred paths to socialism

The Mises article contains definitions of many different types of Socialism that have cropped up over the centuries, the one for Democratic Socialism is the most crucial to understand considering the popularity of Bernie Sanders.

Democratic Socialism in the USA, is a significant revision to Marxism, which practically does not leave even the foundation of genuine Marxist principles. Reformism has been a mainstream form of socialist ideology and practice since the end of the nineteenth century. Redistribution of wealth and partial socialization of consciousness are the main paths being utilized by the doctrine. Socialism is supposed to be gradually built within a capitalistic society by methodically changing the socioeconomic laws of the land using parliamentary procedures. Great importance is also attached to the mental transformation of members of the society through the indoctrination of the population in educational institutions and the propaganda of the socialistic ideals in the mass media, social networks, and materials of pop culture.

Progressive indoctrination in US schools has reached dangerous levels

Posted: November 7, 2019 by Jon Fournier in Uncategorized
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It is difficult to pinpoint just when progressive indoctrination began at the college level in this country, it began slowly and under the radar at first.  What is abundantly clear today is that indoctrination has reached levels that are hazardous to our constitutional republic.  You can see just how dangerous the level of indoctrination has become from the Federalist article 4 Reasons Socialism Is More Popular Among Americans Now Than Ever Before

The supporters of socialism are not simply the young, but they’re disproportionately young people who are college-educated. The more college they have, the hotter for socialism they get. According to a 2015 poll, support for socialism grows from 48 percent among those with a high school diploma or less, to 62 percent among college graduates, to 78 percent among those with post-graduate degrees.

Those on the left probably jump immediately to the conclusion that support for socialism is just a natural outgrowth of big brains and elite educations. But there is, in fact, a less obvious but ultimately far more compelling explanation: Something — something bad — is happening at universities to pull students toward the (far) left.

We have already seen above that what’s not happening at even elite universities today is a whole lot of education in important subjects such as history. What we are getting instead is a lot of groupthink and indoctrination. Universities have always skewed a bit left. But beginning in the early to mid 1990s (for reasons I’ve explained in some detail elsewhere), ideological diversity began to vanish entirely, as the leftward deviation turned tidal.

Unfortunately the progressive indoctrination has spread down to high schools and grade schools because progressives infected teaching colleges.  The indoctrination has also been spread down to this level by teacher unions. 

Multiculturalism has always been a vehicle used to spread progressive indoctrination. Here is a particularly ridiculous example I found on Breitbart  Seattle Schools Plan Curriculum to ‘Explore’ Cultural Appropriation of Math.

The Seattle school district is putting into place a K-12 curriculum that encourages students “to explore how math has been ‘appropriated’ by Western culture and used in systems of power and oppression.”

Here is a quote from the Breitbart article that was originally from an article in Education Week

In most places, if schools offer ethnic studies at all, it’s usually in a stand-alone course in high school. But increasingly, schools and districts are starting to sprinkle ethnic studies across the K-12 spectrum. Seattle is taking a highly unusual approach by weaving the field’s multicultural and political questions not just through all grade levels, but into all subjects.

Politically correct revisionist history has been a mainstay of progressive indoctrination.  It is a particularly dangerous one because it is meant to undermine the entire foundation of our constitutional republic.  This Daily Signal article Woke History Is Making Big Inroads in America’s High Schools chronicles the spread of this revisionist history.

Two years ago, the Indiana Legislature mandated that high schools offer an ethnic studies elective. As approved by the state’s Education Department, the class teaches about the contributions of ethnic and racial groups, various cultural practices, as well as such concepts as privilege, systematic oppression, and implicit bias. And now three states—California, Oregon, and Vermont—are trying to create authoritative statewide templates that, advocates hope, will make it easier for schools to adopt ethnic studies.

The statewide California ethnic studies curriculum was proposed in June by an advisory committee, composed of ethnic studies teachers and professors, and met with public outcry that such classes are designed to recruit students into political activism, indoctrinate them with ideological jargon, and promote the pro-Palestinian Boycott, Divestment, Sanctions (BDS) campaign against Israel.

Multiculturalism may seem warm and fuzzy on the surface however it is meant to tear down one particular culture, the culture of the United States.  Here are two great Thomas Sowell Quotes which sum up this sham.

Much of what is promoted as “critical thinking” in our public schools is in fact uncritical negativism towards the history and institutions of America and an uncritical praise of the cultures of foreign countries and domestic minorities.

What “multiculturalism” boils down to is that you can praise any culture in the world except Western culture—and you cannot blame any culture in the world except Western culture.

It will be extremely difficult to turn the tide back on this progressive indoctrination but it is something we must do to save our constitutional republic.  Ending Common Core and all other federal intrusions, while taking local control of K-12 schools, are important steps in the process, along with completely relaxing the iron grip of teacher unions.

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