The Press-Dispatch
Issue link: http://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/1331323
Observations By Thomas Sowell Is truth irrelevant? It is amazing how many people seem to have discovered recently that riots are wrong — when many of those same people apparent- ly had not noticed that when riots went on, for weeks or even months, in various cit- ies across the country last year. For too many people, es- pecially in the media, what is right and wrong, true or false, depends on who it helps or hurts politically. Too many media people who are supposed to be reporters act as if they are combat- ants in political wars. Someone once said that, in a war, truth is the first casualty. That has certainly been so in the media — and in much of academia as well. One of the most grotesque distortions growing out of this carelessness with the facts has been a removal of Abraham Lin- coln's name and statues from various plac- es, on grounds that he saw black people only as property. Such criticisms betray an incredible ig- norance of history — or else a complete disregard of truth. As a lawyer, Abraham Lincoln knew that there was nothing in the Constitution which authorized him or any other Presi- dent to free slaves. But he also knew that a military commander in wartime can le- gally seize the property of an enemy na- tion. Defining slaves as property gave President Lincoln the only legal author- ity he had to seize them during the Civil War. And once they were seized as prop- erty, he could then free them as human beings. But, if the Emancipation Proclamation had based its action on defining the slaves as human beings, with a right to be free, the Supreme Court of that era would undoubted- ly have declared it unconsti- tutional. Millions of human beings would have remained slaves. Would ringing rhetoric be worth that price? As for the claim that Lincoln did not re- gard black people as human, he invited Frederick Douglass to the White House! Gross distortions of history, in order to get Abraham Lincoln's name removed from schools tells us a lot about what is wrong with American education today. Many schools are closed because of the coronavirus and the teachers unions. And many schools in minority neighborhoods failed to teach children enough math and English, back when they were still open. So it is incredible that school authorities have time to spend on ideological cru- sades like removing names and statues from schools. Unfortunately, too many American ed- ucational institutions — from elementary schools to universities — have become in- doctrination centers. The riots that swept across the country last year are fruits of that indoctrination and the utter disre- gard for other people's rights that accom- panied those riots. At the heart of that indoctrination is a sense of grievance and victimhood when others have better outcomes — which are automatically called "privileges" and nev- er called "achievements," regardless of what the actual facts are. Facts don't matter in such issues, any more than facts mattered when smear- ing Lincoln. Any "under-representation" of any group in any endeavor can be taken as evidence or proof of discriminatory bi- as. But those who argue this way cannot show us any society — anywhere in the world, or at any time during thousands of years of recorded history — that had all groups represented proportionally in all endeavors. In America's National Hockey League, for example, there are more players from Canada than there are players from the United States. There are also more play- ers from Sweden than from California, even though California's population is nearly four times the population of Swe- den. Californians are more "under-repre- sented" in the NHL than women are in Silicon Valley. But no one can claim that this is due to discriminatory bias by the NHL. It is far more obviously due to peo- ple growing up in cold climates being more likely to have ice-skating experi- ence. This is one of many factors that pro- duce skewed statistics in many endeav- ors. Discriminatory bias is among those factors. But it has no monopoly. Yet who cares about facts any more, in this age of indoctrination? Thomas Sowell is a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution. The Press-Dispatch Wednesday, Januar y 20, 2021 D-5 Letter to the Editor Upside-down world Court Report FELONY Pike County Circuit Court Jason R. Williams charged with child solicitation, a level 4 felony. Henry G. Deweese charged with do- mestic battery by means of a deadly weapon, a level 5 felony. Stephanie Jo Navarrete charged with count I possession of methamphetamine, a level 6 felony, and count II possession of marijuana. Broc C. Hardy charged with count I possession of methamphetamine, a level 6 felony, count II possession of marijua- na and count III visiting a common nui- sance - controlled substances. Hector Ramirez charged with count I possession of methamphetamine, a level 6 felony, count II possession of marijua- na and count III visiting a common nui- sance - controlled substances. Shawn W. Watson charged with count I operating a vehicle with an ACE of .15 or more and count II operating a vehicle while intoxicated, prior, a level 6 felony. Nathan Houchin charged with count I domestic battery and count II domestic battery on a person less than 14 years of age, a level 6 felony. TRAFFIC AND MISDEMEANORS Pike County Circuit Court Daythan L. Whitman-Walburn charged with count I possession of marijuana and count II possession of paraphernalia. Dwaina J. Young charged with count I possession of marijuana and count II pos- session of paraphernalia. Patti A. Criswell charged with count I possession of marijuana and count II pos- session of paraphernalia. Christopher Alex Weltz charged with count I operating a vehicle with an ACE of at least .08 but less than .15 and count II operating a vehicle while intoxicated. Garold Callicoat charged with count I invasion of privacy, count II criminal mis- chief and count III domestic battery. CIVIL Pike County Circuit Court Professional and Business Collections, LLC sues Jason Bottoms on complaint. Roy D. Hedge sues Bonnie J. Bannows- ky for dissolution of marriage. Cheri Anne Dunn sues Terry Edward Dunn for dissolution of marriage. Christy Allen sues John D. Allen II for dissolution of marriage. SMALL CLAIMS Pike County Circuit Court Hoosier Accounts Service sues Susan Hinton on complaint. Hoosier Accounts Service sues Jeffer- son T. Loveless on complaint. INFRACTIONS Pike County Circuit Court Kyndall J. Meece charged with speed- ing, exceeding 55 mph. Uriah T. Sterling charged with speed- ing, exceeding 70 mph. Melissa Sue Wilson charged with speeding. Gabriel J. Weber charged with operat- ing with expired plates. Isaiah M. Culbertson charged with speeding. Brandon A. Young charged with speed- ing. William D. Carter charged with disre- garding stop sign. Elaine K. Zetina charged with speed- ing, exceeding 70 mph. Jami M. Klusmeier charged with speeding, exceeding 70 mph. Isabell M. Laird charged with speed- ing, exceeding 70 mph. Hugues Mbumba Mbumba charged with speeding. Timothy W. Teague charged with own- er allows dog to stray beyond owner's premises. Torivio Ortega charged with speeding. Logan R. Dawson charged with speed- ing, exceeding 70 mph. Ryan K. Mason charged with speed- ing, exceeding 55 mph. Brittany N. Aikman charged with speeding, exceeding 70 mph. Keith K. Roberts II charged with speeding, exceeding 70 mph. Jason L. Soto charged with speeding, exceeding 55 mph. Jessica C. Perez charged with speed- ing, exceeding 70 mph. Donna B. Sexton charged with speed- ing. Josefina T. Moreno charged with speeding, exceeding 70 mph. Blake A. McLain charged with driving while suspended. Duy H. Thach charged with speeding, exceeding 55 mph. Jerry W. Coleman charged with speed- ing, exceeding 55 mph. Michael R. Walburn charged with seat- belt violation. Ronald D. Knepp charged with seat- belt violation. Candace L. Grismore charged with speeding, exceeding 55 mph. Alli M. Holder charged with speeding, exceeding 55 mph. Bradley J. Richardson charged with speeding, exceeding 70 mph. Ariel S. Sanchez charged with speed- ing, exceeding 55 mph. Dylan J. Seidel charged with speeding, exceeding 55 mph. Megan M. Jackson charged with speeding, exceeding 55 mph. Tasha N. Cox charged with throwing burning material from a moving motor vehicle. PRAY Continued from page 4 will "not be required to teach classes using live video con- ferencing." Nice non-work if you can get it. Yet, the teachers unions keep winning. They will win more now that Democrats control the federal govern- ment. Congress' last stim- ulus package forbids any funds to be used to expand school choice: no "vouchers, tuition tax credit programs, education savings accounts, scholarship programs, or tu- ition assistance programs." So, students lose. Parents lose. Taxpayers lose. Ameri- ca loses. Unions win. We asked 21 teachers unions to respond to the criti- cisms in this column. Not one would. Their behavior reveals their true interest: power and money. Students come third. John Stossel is author of "Give Me a Break: How I Ex- posed Hucksters, Cheats, and Scam Artists and Became the Scourge of the Liberal Media." UNIONS Continued from page 4 President Mike Pence, an upright Christian man and American patriot who could speak truth to the nation as the unruly Democratic mob takes charge and begins its long campaign to drag our nation into the abyss. Star Parker is president of the Center for Urban Renew- al and Education and host of the new weekly news talk show "Cure America with Star Parker." MASADA Continued from page 4 life's journey, we realize we are able sort out good deci- sions that we have made, but there are also not-so-good outcomes on some choic- es we have made. Howev- er, the good news is that out of these seemingly unfortu- nate choices we have made, human as we are, healing do happen when we consistently ask help from Above. From the above seven steps outlined, I think there is also virtue on seeking ad- vice and wisdom from those around us in whom we trust – a trusted family member, a friend or a spiritual adviser. You'll be surprised what wis- dom they can share too. • • • I want to take this oppor- tunity to thank those who have sent kind words of con- dolences, cards, social me- dia messages, texts, on my mom's passing at 104 years of age. She had lived a good and very long life and was ready to "go home" and join my dad. It is unfortunate that due to very strict rules when crossing the border (Cana- da and USA) on either side, I could not be present for her services. All we could avail was to watch the event on livestream. What a different world we live in. I'm ready to see an end to this long dark tunnel we have been traveling the past many months. Aren't you? Be safe, be hopeful, and make good decisions. DECISIONS Continued from page 4 LIBERALISM Continued from page 4 agenda. The nation voted against Trump's antics and his bombastic personali- ty, not his policies — which were a spectacular success, particularly on the economy. Let's not forget that right be- fore the November elections, almost 6 of 10 Americans said the country was better off today than four years ago — i.e., the end of the Obama- Biden regime. Biden prom- ised that the agenda of Oc- asio-Cortez and Sen. Bernie Sanders would be kicked to the side of the road, but that's not where the party in Wash- ington is. That's not where last year's most liberal sen- ator, Kamala Harris, is at. Democrats will concentrate power in Washington and re- fill the swamp. Most voters still want it drained. To save the country from socialism — which vot- ers in 2020 said they clear- ly do NOT want — Repub- licans need to do what for- mer Rep. Newt Gingrich did in 1993 and 1994 and the "young guns" in the House did in 2009 and 2010 : play defense like it's fourth down on the one-yard line and lay out an alternative vision for America based on opportu- nity, freedom, free markets, choices and, yes, making America great again. Conservatives may have lost the reins of power in Washington, but they won nearly everywhere else coast to coast in November. Mean- while, the GOP's corps of superstar governors, from Ron DeSantis of Florida to Pete Ricketts of Nebraska to Kristi Noem in South Dako- ta, among others, must show to the country the alternative and superior vision to pro- gressivism. The Biden-Pelosi-Schum- er juggernaut is going to be like tanks streaming over the border. Of course, the victims of progressivism and redistributionism, as al- ways, will be the very peo- ple who benefited the most from Trump policies: the poor, the working class and minorities. Liberalism has been un- leashed, but it has also been put on trial in 2021 and 2022. I'd bet high odds that voters will convict it two years from now. Stephen Moore is a senior fellow at the Heritage Foun- dation and an economic con- sultant with FreedomWorks. He is the co-author of "Trum- ponomics: Inside the America First Plan to Revive the Amer- ican Economy." the COVID crisis, and the power of the president and congress exceeds this expo- nentially. You may not have liked Trump, but did you pray for him? You may not like Biden, but will you pray for him? You and I are tied to the policies of our nation. We are captives of politics whether we participate or not by vir- tue of living in the United States. Regardless who is president, it behooves each of us to pray for him. Think about it! The past couple of months have been harrowing times for conservative minds. A quote by Dave Ramsey was sent to me from a friend, and his words outline my personal sentiments clearly. I felt like they were worthy to share with all. "This morning I realized that every- thing is about to change. No matter how I vote, no matter what I say, lives are never going to be the same. I have been confused by the hostility of family and friends. I look at people I have known all my life, so hate-filled that they agree with opinions they would never express as their own. I think that I may well have entered the Twilight Zone. You can't justify this insanity. We have become a nation that has lost its collective mind. We see other coun- tries going socialist and collapsing, but it seems like a great plan to us. Some- how it's un-American for the census to count how many Americans are in Ameri- ca. People who say there is no such thing as gender are demanding a female Pres- ident. Universities that advocate equali- ty discriminate against Asian-Americans in favor of A frican-Americans. Some people are held responsible for things that happened before they were born, and other people are not held re- sponsible for what they are doing right now. Criminals are caught and released to hurt more people, but stopping them is bad because it's a violation of THEIR rights. People who have never owned slaves should pay slavery reparations to people who have never been slaves. A fter legis- lating gender, if a dude pretends to be a woman, you are required to pretend with him. It was "cool" for Joe Biden to blackmail the President of Ukraine, but it's an im- peachable offense if Donald Trump in- quires about it. People who have never been to col- lege should pay the debts of college stu- dents who took out huge loans for their degrees. Immigrants with tuberculosis and polio are welcome, but you'd better be able to prove your dog is vaccinated. Irish and German engineers who want to immigrate to the US must go through a rigorous vetting process but any illiter- ate gang busters who jumps the south- ern fence are welcomed. Five billion dol- lars for border security is too expensive, but 1.5 trillion dollars for free healthcare is not. If you cheat to get into college, you go to prison; but if you cheat to get into the country, you go to college for free. And pointing out all this hypocrisy somehow makes us 'racist.' Nothing makes sense anymore. No val- ues, no morals, no civility; and people are dying of a Chinese virus, but it is 'rac- ist' to refer to it as 'chinese' even though it began in China. We are clearly living in an upside down world where right is wrong and wrong is right. Where moral is immoral and immoral is moral. Where good is evil and evil is good. Where kill- ing murderers is wrong, but killing inno- cent babies is right. Wake up, America. The great unsink- able ship Titanic America has hit an ice- berg, is taking on water and sinking fast." Go Dave Ramsey! I might add that we need to look close- ly at what is now being censored in the news world. When did we become so so- cialistic that the President of the United States is not allowed to address the na- tion via current methods? God, help us if we do not cry aloud and make our voic- es heard to the wicked, spineless politi- cians who are crucifying one of the only men in America who is still fighting for "we the people! 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