My brother is currently a sophomore in college, and he hasn’t read a single book in the entirety of his time there. He has taken courses that include English, history, religion, psychology, and other humanities. You would be right to assume that reading books, often in their entirety, would be required in these subjects.  This follows a new trend in the education system. In the past two weeks, I have read at least two recent news stories lamenting the plummeting reading levels in students and young people. While you might assume that this has the alarm bells ringing; it appears that this is all part of the plan. It is a part of a systematic shift in education, as well as how we think about the world. It’s a shift away from reading and writing and toward the sciences — resulting in negative effects on a student’s studies, as well as their mental well-being. (RELATED: The Classical Education Reformers Have a Chance) In 2022, the National Council of Teachers of English released a statement about the “expansion” of English classes: “The time has come to decenter book reading and essay-writing as the pinnacles of English language arts education.” This shift originates in a pragmatic societal shift that has devalued the humanities in an effort to promote economic success. Now, the National Council of Teachers of English suggests in its statement that the role of English teachers is to prepare students through media literacy or alternate forms of information, like social media. Ultimately, this means increasing the use of phones and computers in class and decreasing the use of textbooks and novels. A shift of this magnitude does not happen in a vacuum or without consequences. Research done by neuroscientists suggests that “smartphone use can be disruptively habitual, with the main detrimental consequence being an inability to exert prolonged mental effort.” The failure to concentrate is not merely a malady happening without cause, but is directly related to the choices we are making. This has even led psychologist Jonathan Haidt to suggest, “More American schools — arguably all schools — should make themselves into genuinely phone-free zones.” Perhaps schools should go back to teaching students how to read novels instead of how to read social media. The curious thing about these studies is that they assume the same flawed premise: Science and technology hold the answers to our problems. If we just study and quantify the problem enough, then the solution will emerge, and we can diagnose it. Yet, isn’t part of the problem here an overemphasis on technology? The rise of technology is part of a greater shift in society towards STEM-focused education. Certainly, science and math are important subjects, but you cannot cast aside the humanities for the sake of STEM. Education needs wholeness.  Phasing out the humanities, while propping up STEM and media literacy, abandons the students to the very thing causing them so much anxiety. More than that, there’s a deeper spiritual reason — not spiritual in terms of religion, but in terms of what it means to be human. We want to cure humanity through quantifying and diagnosing it. We give them tools (media literacy) that will help them operate in the world, but you are missing wonder.  Why Books? We should require our students of all ages to read books from cover to cover. Not only does that reaffirm the virtues of perseverance, hard work, and an understanding of beginning, middle, and end; oftentimes, those books teach students how to think and understand the world around them. The Great Books do not just entertain the mind, but inspire it. When you read Dostoevsky or Dickens or Dante, you are immersed in a world of ideas and characters that spur you to action with lofty ideals. They give students reference points and standards to shoot for. But we’re seeing them vanish from under our very noses. Increases in anxiety, poor attention spans, and plummeting reading levels are interlinked. The societal shift towards a wholehearted embracing of technology is bleeding into the classroom. As a result, children are losing the ability to focus and think through complex issues. The relentless stream of information snippets causes anxiety, even in adults. Focus and peace are key components of what it means to be human. Reclaiming attention spans begins with teaching kids how to read. You can’t do that without books in the classroom. May the recent tales of schools rejecting paper books serve as our wake-up call. Samuel Schaefer is a Research Analyst at Peter Schweizer’s Government Accountability Institute and a contributor to Schweizer’s Drill Down. He studied politics, philosophy, and English at Hillsdale College. Follow Samuel to receive more breaking news and analysis. READ MORE: Lies Abound In Higher Education. Now They’ve Lost Our Respect. Americans Vouch for Religious Education Over Public Schools The post What Happens When You Abandon Books? appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

We’ve all read the stories and seen the videos about the FBI coming to the homes of ordinary citizens to investigate or arrest them. Sometimes it’s a small group of agents exuding faux amiability who assure the subjects that, although they have done nothing wrong, they need to answer questions about their activities, online postings or publicly expressed opinions. In short, according to Cahaly, once again Trump is poised to outperform the polls. Other times it’s a heavily armed contingent of helmeted agents brandishing long guns and ballistic shields dragging the subjects out of their homes and taking them away in handcuffs. And what have these individuals done to warrant such treatment? Some of them may have had a mobile phone that pinged off a cell tower in Washington, D.C. on the day of the Capitol Hill riot. They may not have been anywhere near the riot, but so what? Since they were in D.C. that day they must explain themselves to the authorities. Or else. Others may have prayed too closely to an abortion center or protested at a school board meeting. Then there are those who have expressed themselves online in a manner that has been deemed unacceptable by our all-knowing and omnipotent surveillance-state government. So what do all of these desperadoes have in common? They have said or done something that offends leftist orthodoxy. For example, who can forget the nightmare that befell Marc Houck, the pro-life Catholic, who dared to defend his twelve year old son from an aggressive abortion center escort? Even though he had offered to voluntarily surrender, an FBI SWAT team raided his home in the early morning hours and dragged him away in handcuffs. In the process these heroes terrorized Houck’s seven small and screaming children by pointing automatic rifles at them and their mother. After the nightmare of indictment and trial, it took a jury one hour to acquit Houck on what can only be described as utterly baseless charges. And then there’s the infamous memorandum circulated nationwide among FBI field offices calling for the infiltration of the Catholic Church and surveillance of parish churches to monitor possible terrorist activities. If the FBI’s intention has been to intimidate, cow, and bring to heel the citizenry, it has succeeded. Ordinary citizens who have families, jobs, and lives to lead have learned to keep their heads down, mouths shut and avoid at all costs drawing the attention of the FBI, the Democrat Party’s secret police. So what does this have to do with political polling? Consider the following. In 2016, although the Real Clear Politics national poll averages had Hillary Clinton leading Donald Trump by 6 percent, she won the popular vote by only 2.1 percent and lost in the electoral college. In 2020, the RCP national poll averages had Joe Biden leading Trump by 10.3 percent. But Biden won the popular vote by 4.4 percent. So how and why did Trump outperform the polls in both 2016 and 2020? Almost alone among pollsters, the Atlanta-based Trafalgar Group correctly predicted Trump’s 2016 victory. Similarly, though it incorrectly predicted Trump’s victory in 2020, that loss was by the narrowest of margins in the swing states. Again, in 2020, Trump’s popular vote greatly exceeded the polling averages. In October 2022, Robert Cahaly, Trafalgar’s founder and chief strategist, was interviewed by Elizabeth Staufer of the Washington Examiner. In discussing why the polls had so massively understated Trump’s support among voters, he postulated his theory of the “shy” Trump voters. These were individuals who were reluctant to acknowledge to pollsters their support for the reviled and much maligned Trump. But the “shy” Trump voter theory applied only to 2016 and 2020. After two years of the Biden-Harris reign, Cahaly explained that the shy Trump voter had become the “submerged Trump voter” who was “virtually impossible to poll.” Cahaly attributed this transformation to the Biden-Harris regime’s condemnation of MAGA Republicans as a threat to the nation. “We found a lot of people who don’t want to participate in polls now.… At one time, they would put a sign in their yard or a bumper sticker on their car. Maybe they’d comment on social media or talk to their friends and take polls. They’re doing none of that now.” “A lot of people tell us, with what’s going on … whether this is justified or not, I don’t know the answer, but their opinion is that — based on what they see on television, what they hear, and what they read — the FBI’s keeping track of what’s happening on social media,” he said. “They hear things like the government has told the bank to keep track of gun purchases. So, it’s not a jump in their minds to think that they might be keeping track of what people say in polls. And so, they’re saying, ‘We’re not taking them [polls].’” “In 2020, were there examples of pro-life activists having the FBI come to their house with guns and take people away? No. In 2020, were there examples of people who were willing to turn themselves in but had to go through an FBI-style raid on their homes? No. In 2020, did people think that the FBI was working with Facebook? No. In 2020, did the president of the United States say that MAGA supporters were a threat to America? No.” But with the advent of the Biden-Harris regime, all of that changed. And with the targeting of the MAGA movement, Trump voters began to consider the legal risks of voicing their support of Trump. In other words, why risk drawing the unwanted scrutiny of the FBI, the equally politicized Justice Department, and the rest of the federal surveillance and regulatory behemoth for the sake of taking a poll? Recently Dan Proft, host of American Greatness’ Counterculture interviewed Cahaly regarding the upcoming 2024 election and the difficulties of polling Trump supporters. “We have seen a significant undercurrent of Trump voters that are hesitant to say they are for Trump,” Cahaly said. “And, in 2016, it was being shamed mostly with live callers … people didn’t want to to say to a live caller they were for Trump. They didn’t want to be judged by that person they were talking to. “By 2024 it’s a different thing. There’s a perception among many Trump voters that the Justice Department has been weaponized against them. They don’t know what’s going to happen …When you talk to strong second amendment defenders they are always opposed to gun registration because they know that that will be the list they use to go collect the guns. People feel that way about polls. They are always asking what are you doing with this information? Who are you? What’s this about? Who’s going to have access to this? Is this is going to be something Big Tech can get? They’re very nervous. “And so what we’re finding is people who hear stories about people using an ATM in Washington on January 6 even though they weren’t near the Capitol being investigated. There’s too much of that undercurrent.” In short, according to Cahaly, once again Trump is poised to outperform the polls. But this time, it’s because American citizens, who fear the enforcers of the Biden-Harris regime, dare not speak their minds. READ MORE from George Parry: The Hidden Vote Kamala’s Media Bodyguards George Parry is a former federal and state prosecutor. He blogs at knowledgeisgood.net. The post The Submerged Trump Vote appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

Former U.S. ambassador to Israel Michael Oren presented what he calls “the view from Israel’s universe.” After noting that since October 7, 2023 Israel’s terrorist adversaries have fired 25,000 rockets and missiles at the Jewish State, Oren rhetorically asks whether hitting Tehran with 25,000 missiles would be acceptable. He answers: “In practice … there is no effective counter-offensive action that Israel can legitimately take.” Neither Biden, who has told Israel not to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities, nor Harris … will use the new super-weapon. He then explains why the West sees the war so differently than does Israel: “Our Western allies…. inhabit a universe utterly alien to ours. In their world, [Tehran] can be induced to deescalate by means other than escalation…. jihadists can be mollified by creating a Palestinian state.” Illustrating this dichotomy is Tehran’s October missile strike, when Iran fired 200 missiles, of which 19 failed to launch; 23 struck Israeli air bases, causing little damage; and the remaining 158 were downed or missed their targets. Team Biden/Harris told Israel to make its response “proportional” to the magnitude of Iran’s minuscule destructive results, instead of that which is likely to deter future attacks — let alone serve as predicate to an Israeli victory. Now, factor in three astonishing, game-changing directed-energy wonder-weapons, two already operational; the other, highly promising, in early stages of development. Wonder Weapon for Deep Underground Targets Enter a U.S. super-weapon, Boeing’s Counter-electronic High-power Advanced Microwave Project (CHAMP), which emits high-frequency microwave pulses that can fry computer chips deep underground, effectively zapping Iran’s nuclear facilities. There are 20 CHAMP missiles extant, each equipped with an electromagnetic pulse (EMP) cannon, that properly-equipped combat aircraft can release from 700 miles away, flying at low-altitudes (harder to track); each missile can take out several targets. Moreover, these EMP pulses can also disable radar systems designed to track incoming planes. The U.S. government estimates that at present, Iran is one to two weeks away from breakout: producing enough weapons-grade fuel for an atomic bomb; Iran would need several months to create a deliverable A-bomb. At this writing there are three months until a new president is inaugurated. Neither Biden, who has told Israel not to attack Iran’s nuclear facilities, nor Harris, who threatens unspecified “consequences” if U.S. policy is ignored, will use the new super-weapon. Thus the “several” months in the Iranian atom-bomb assembly estimate must number at least four, if our super-weapon will ever be at Donald Trump’s disposal. Former president Trump has said that Israel should destroy Iran’s nuclear weapons program. The only other way to stop this catastrophe from coming to pass would be if Israel carries out its longstanding promise that it will not allow Iran to cross the nuclear threshold. Israel will assuredly do so if Kamala wins, but would have to do it without U.S. help Two Air-Defense Wonder-Weapons Boeing has developed the Compact Laser Weapons System (CWLS), powerful and accurate enough, at ranges from 650 feet to 1.6 miles, to destroy incoming first-person view drones, “swarm” munitions and heavy, Group 3 drones. (Here is a list of drone groups used by our military.) Already, in a series of tests conducted jointly with Saudi Arabia in realistic climate conditions, CWLS has destroyed 500 targets, using operators with one hour of training on an X-box controller. A second air-defense laser system, under development by Rafael Advanced Defense Systems Ltd., in conjunction with the U.S., is a laser gun that has already in early tests destroyed rockets, mortar shells, drones, and anti-tank missiles (which follow a low, flat trajectory). Significantly, its effective range is six miles, and it detects and tracks targets in seconds, versus minutes for earlier air defense systems. And it costs $3.50 per shot, versus thousands of dollars per shot with kinetic-kill systems. (Lasers are, however, less effective in low-visibility areas, and hence are more useful in the Mideast than in the frequent cloud cover encountered in Europe.) Bottom Line Directed-energy weapons are essential for successful, affordable operation in the emerging battlefield environment of significant threats posed by cheap, mass-produced unmanned aerial systems. Israel leads the world, with systems being tested under actual combat conditions. READ MORE from John C. Wohlstetter: 25th Amendment: Acting President Is Not President The Summer 2024 Presidential Succession Crisis Explodes John C. Wohlstetter is the author of Presidential Succession: Constitution, Congress and National Security (Gold Institute Press, 2024) The post Can Wonder Weapons Defeat Terror Masters? appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

Oxford, Ohio — With early voting underway in Ohio, the stakes in the Buckeye state’s Senate race couldn’t be higher. The tight contest between incumbent Democrat Senator Sherrod Brown and Republican outsider Bernie Moreno will be among the most decisive races determining control of the U.S. Senate. Sen. Brown has had a steady lead in the polls, but the gap has narrowed considerably in recent weeks. Identifying Ohio as “a microcosm of the nation,” Vivek recognized that the state had long been one of the most innovative and prosperous. Recent internal polling by the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC) has Moreno actually leading by two points, fueling further optimism for Republicans (most polls have Brown with a slight lead). With growing momentum for Moreno, big-name conservatives have come to the state to try to help push Moreno over the finish line. A case in point was the October 10 Future Leaders Forum at Miami University in Oxford, Ohio featuring former presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy and conservative talk-show host Ben Shapiro. The event was hosted by the Ohio College Republicans Federation (OCRF) and Miami College Republicans, with local and state officials across the Butler County area in attendance to rally around the Republican Senate nominee. What Moreno, Vivek, and Shapiro Said For the first 90 minutes of the event, OCRF members welcomed and informed attendees of their recent notable successes with voter registration across Ohio and in assisting Ohio Republican candidates across the state. Then came Moreno and Vivek. They addressed a crowd of about 200, with Moreno starting his 45 minute speech with a NASCAR analogy to the three-lined posts used to help racers know when to turn on the track. Moreno told the crowd that America is the car that has already past the post with the one line, a jumping point for the rest of his energetic talk. Moreno focused on his life experiences and lessons as a businessman in helping him formulate his conservative views. He then dove into the failures of Sherrod Brown, highlighting the fact that when Brown first ran for office, the two issues he ran on were restoring manufacturing jobs — Ohio has since lost around 200,000 manufacturing jobs — and backing term limits, which Brown now opposes. “It’s very simple,” said Moreno. “If Kamala wins and Sherrod wins re-election, we will go off the cliff.” Despite that dire assessment, Moreno ended on an optimistic note, insisting that young conservatives today have the opportunity to not just help him win a Senate majority for Republicans, but to get the country back on track towards freedom and prosperity. Following Moreno, Vivek spoke about America’s problems from a more philosophical and historical perspective, insisting that he’s optimistic about Trump’s and Moreno’s chances in 2024, but also that today’s problems can’t be addressed unless their root causes are properly understood.  America, he said, suffers from a “national identity crisis” that finds too many of our young people not proud to be Americans and citing a 30-40 percent recruitment deficit across all three military branches. How did the country come to this point? According to Vivek, the answer starts with LBJ’s Great Society. During the 1960s, the nation underwent “a second American Revolution and second Constitutional Convention.” LBJ’s Great Society led Americans to surrender their own self-governance in exchange for “free” stuff, thus giving way to the welfare state. For decades, this bargain became the status quo until the government ran out of “free” material. “What happens to the bargain when you run out of stuff?” asked Vivek. He said the nation has been heading towards revolt as Americans now lack both the material benefits promised to them as well as their ability to self-govern. In turn, the progressive solution to our impending bankruptcy has been “tax the rich,” a non-answer reflecting the “bleak moment” at which we have arrived and must move past. While Shapiro originally planned to be at the forum for the fireside chat with Moreno and Vivek, he arrived late due to flight delays in Florida, where his family had been dealing with hurricanes Helene and Milton. Though he didn’t speak for long, Shapiro spoke vigorously and passionately made his case for Moreno. He told Ohioans that if they do their part in helping Moreno, not only would Ohio rid itself of Sherrod Brown but it would secure Republican control of the Senate. The Prospects for Conservatism Though much of the forum’s attention focused on Moreno and encouraging young Republicans to help him win in November, a major theme was the future of conservatism. Moreno stated that today’s political environment is one characterized between two opposing philosophies, one being big government and “total control” progressivism versus pro-freedom and “self-determination” conservatism. Echoing Vivek’s sentiment, Moreno said that Americans today “have forgotten what makes this country special.” On the plus side, Moreno believes that we’re witnessing a revival of America’s founding principles. This is drawing people to conservatism and helping them rediscover what it means to be patriotic and prosperous without government telling them what to do. For Vivek, the conservatism of the present and future must seek to dismantle the deep state. “We don’t want a left nanny state or right nanny state,” he said. “We want to dismantle the nanny state and shut it down.” Vivek said that while progressivism has pushed the country towards indigence and stifled incentives for innovation, young people are beginning to see that conservative principles strive for prosperity. Identifying Ohio as “a microcosm of the nation,” Vivek recognized that the state had long been one of the most innovative and prosperous. Unfortunately, he explained, progressivism and failed promises have stifled the pioneering and frontier spirit the state once had. Vivek believes that Ohioans and Americans generally are desiring a return to the pioneering spirit offered by conservatives, especially young conservatives. “We can be victims or victors,” said Vivek, and conservatives have the “values, record, and enthusiasm” to show that America can once again be a nation of victors. Shapiro seconded this point, insisting that like Ohio, America can once again be a nation of innovators, pioneers, and entrepreneurs. While the event at Miami University of Ohio aimed to bolster Bernie Moreno’s prospects for the U.S. Senate, it also bolstered conservatism’s prospects for America. The ultimate prospects for both remain to be seen. READ MORE from Hunter Oswald: Iran Pushes the Middle East Closer to Catastrophe Progressives Are Trying to Make Ohio More Like Michigan The post Ohio Senate Race: Moreno Scores Vivek and Shapiro appeared first on The American Spectator | USA News and Politics.

by Rajan Laad, All News Pipeline: These are desperate times for Kamala Harris, the proof of which is demonstrable in Harris’s actions. The Harris campaign desperately wants to change the subject, so we have witnessed a series of unusual ploys. Harris released her health report. Harris appeared on Fox News with Brett Baier where she crashed […]

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