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Parenthood has blessed me four times in life – twice in my 30s, via the old-fashioned way, and twice in my 60s, via adoptions. Now in my 70s, I am disturbed to find parenting skills challenged in some locations by dangerous wokeist influences. Never did I think applying basic common sense – i.e., banning children from making a life-changing decision when their minds are not fully capable of understanding the consequences of doing so – would be chastised. When parents have more than one child, efforts are made to avoid any demonstration of favoritism toward one over another. A parent seeks to be equally loving toward all to avoid discord and unfairness. A parent – even an aging one – endeavors with young children to maintain a level playing field as much as possible on the homefront. So, it is shocking to see our schools demonstrate clear favoritism toward transgender females today, denying biological female athletes the opportunity to compete on a level playing field. This is permitted because a biological

Ironic to think it could come to this but if Leicester, England, is the "canary in the coal mine" for the future of the country's democracy, it will take a future generation of "rational thinking" wokeists, if such an animal exists, to turn things around – assuming it is not too late to do so. To understand what has befallen Leicester, England's 10th-largest city, we must go back to the beginning of this century. In 2001, as Muslims fleeing Middle East turmoil settled in England, Leicester became a magnet for them. A Muslim population of 11% spread like wildfire, increasing to 20% by 2017. En route to getting there, along with attracting other minorities, Leicester was described in a 2007 U.K. newspaper article as "the first city where white people are a minority."

Turkish journalist Can Dundar and a German-based broadcasting company have created a documentary series entitled "Guardians of Truth." It shares stories about people around the world who have courageously stood up for freedom of speech. Dundar himself has paid a high price for doing so. As editor-in-chief of a daily Turkish newspaper, he published a true story about President Recep Tayyip Erdogan shipping weapons to Syria. For two decades, an autocratic Erdogan has been tightening his grasp on power, initially as prime minister and currently as president. His near carte blanche control of the country's institutions, including the judiciary, resulted in Dundar being tried in absentia for publishing the story and receiving a prison sentence of 27 years. For many of the subjects in the documentary series, America has long served as a source of inspiration for free speech and their ultimate decision to take on the fight within their own countries. It is sadly ironic, however, the American institutions tradition

One of the great comedy films of 1984 was "Ghostbusters." The opening stanza of the movie's song asked a question of import to one plagued by ghosts: "If there's something strange in your neighborhood, who you gonna call?" It then advised calling "Ghostbusers!" Similarly, in the world of reality, when one feels threatened by the words or actions of another person, "Who you gonna call?" Logically, we have been programmed to call the police. However, if one is a liberal politician who feels so threatened but has established a reputation for undermining police credibility by calling for their defunding, "who you gonna call?"

As is often the case in war, among those hardest hit – especially in an invasion – are the children. And while nuclear families tend to look out for their own, those who suffer the most are the orphans. Ukrainian orphans were no exception to this when Russia invaded in February 2022, but what was most disconcerting to those of us familiar with Russia’s history were its intentions for these children. The alarm quickly led to a small army of non-governmental organization (NGO) volunteers rushing to Ukraine to stymy Moscow’s attempt to deport as many of the orphans as possible. A recent Russian propaganda video attempted to hide the fate these children are suffering. It cloaked the deportations under the facade of removing Ukrainian orphans from the war zone to safety inside Russia – there to be adopted.

In March of 2001, the international community was shocked to witness the Taliban destroy two magnificent statues carved, centuries earlier, into a mountainside in central Afghanistan. The Buddhas of Bamiyan included a smaller statue (125 feet) and larger one (180 feet), both of which were built in approximately the sixth century. The reason for their destruction was that they violated Islam's ban against idolatry. An historical treasure was lost that day as 21st century "woke" Islamists fulfilled their religion's extremist interpretation that is intolerant of all other religions. For them, Islam is the only global religion.

Chances are you did not hear about the stabbing of an imam in San Diego because, despite his claim to followers the incident occurred at the hands of an "Islamophobic" attacker on March 23, 2022, neither the police nor the district attorney have any record of it. Sheikh Uthman ibn Farooq is a Muslim scholar and iman known to preach on the streets of San Diego, inviting people to convert to Islam. A video ibn Farooq recorded, apparently after a public appearance, shows a man approaching his car, calling him a "f***ing terrorist," before the imam was allegedly stabbed by the assailant. Quick on the draw to criticize America for Islamophobia whenever a Muslim is victimized was the San Diego chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). While its mission is to protect civil rights for Muslims, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice and empower American Muslims, it condemned the "apparently bias-motivated attack," expressing concerns over a steady rise in hate crimes.

Espionage has been described as the "second-oldest profession." Clearly, ever since the earliest conflicts, man has come to value the need for such a skill so as not to be ultimately surprised later by an enemy's capabilities upon the battlefield. It was a skill Gen. George Washington recognized and effectively used to defeat the British during the American Revolutionary War. It is an even more critical capability to maintain in today's world due to the numerous technological advances being made with weaponry. During the Cold War, when the U.S. and Russia suffered the accidental loss of advanced weaponry at sea, both sides raced to locate it and secretly undertake recovery operations – one side seeking to gain intelligence from doing so, the other trying to prevent it. Just such a race is underway today due to a U.S. military MQ-9 Reaper surveillance drone that crashed into the Black Sea on March 14.