As the international climate conference known as the Conference Of Parties‚ Or COP28‚ starts the first Global Stocktake—a methodology for countries to measure their compliance with the 2015 Paris Agreement on climate—the participating governments would do well to remember that energy is more than a mere commodity; it’s the backbone of human progress. Energy’s ubiquitous role in our daily lives masks its positive and profound effect on economic growth‚ medicine‚ longevity‚ and wealth creation‚ empowering people around the world to rise above mere subsistence. A forthcoming Heritage Foundation special report‚ “Powering Human Advancement: Why the World Needs Affordable and Reliable Energy‚” shows that energy is the thread that weaves the fabric of civilizations together and the universal currency to transact business. The report shows that countries that harness more than 1‚000 kilowatt hours (kWh) of energy per capita begin to lower poverty substantially. Countries that harness more than 10‚000 kWh per capita see the virtual elimination of widespread poverty. The conclusion is clear: encouraging energy use reduces global poverty and generates economic growth to overcome environmental concerns. (The Daily Signal is the news and commentary outlet of The Heritage Foundation.) For instance‚ the health care revolution of the 21st century owes much to the relentless march of energy. Energy has allowed medical discoveries to leap beyond geographical barriers‚ bringing advanced medical care to far-flung corners of the world. From the hum of MRI machines to the quiet reliability of vaccine refrigerators in clinics‚ energy is a silent guardian of health. Neonatal incubators use energy to keep millions of premature babies’ little hearts pounding and lungs breathing. The result of abundant energy has been a century of dramatic reduction in child and disease mortality and a leap in global health standards. The story of this increased longevity in the past century is‚ at its core‚ a tale of energy. Access to clean water‚ efficient food production‚ and sanitary facilities—all energy-intensive—have drastically reduced mortality rates. This longevity boom is intertwined with wealth generation. As people live longer‚ healthier lives‚ they contribute significantly more to economic prosperity‚ creating virtuous cycles of wealth and well-being. In combination with the rule of law‚ wealth can be generated by affordable and reliable energy sources‚ and it is this wealth that will‚ in turn‚ afford a society to buy pollution scrubbers for their hydrocarbon power plants. Wealth‚ thus accrued through energy use‚ not only creates a buffer against long-term environmental degradation‚ but actively fuels the fight against it. High- income countries with high energy use can afford to remove the worst criteria pollutants from the atmosphere. Many pundits at COP28 will ignore these realities and blame the harnessing of hydrocarbons as an environmental disaster that has befallen the world‚ despite hydrocarbons’ many benefits. COP28 officials should be careful about advocating for solar and wind power without acknowledging their respective drawbacks in terms of cost‚ their lack of reliability as energy sources‚ pollution from the manufacture and disposal of solar panels‚ and the harm to wildlife that wind turbines pose. COP28 attendees should also recognize how dependent the world‚ and especially America‚ are on the Chinese Communist Party for critical minerals that are used in the manufacture of renewables and battery technology. In fact‚ China already produces 80% of solar components and 65% of lithium-ion batteries that the world uses. Furthermore‚ attendees should be cautious about advocating for zero-carbon emissions mandates paid for by raising energy rates on consumers (a form of regressive taxation that hurts the poorest the hardest) or letting supranational bureaucrats intervene in contracts because their preferred energy company did not win. While some policymakers advocate “allowing” poor people to have air conditioning‚ some COP28 attendees were against plug-in air conditioners for the poor. We should be wary of such officials using “climate change” as a mechanism to hold back low-income individuals and those in developing nations. Those attending COP28 should not distribute untransparent powers to governments and bureaucrats while also signing expensive deals with dictators like the president of China.  Policymakers at COP28 need to get out of the way of companies that are harnessing energy responsibly and innovatively and recognize the need to pave the way for a legacy of human advancement worldwide. In energy lies not just the power to create but also the power to conserve and protect all that has been created. Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com‚ and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state. The post Climate Conference Ignores Energy’s Role in Reducing Poverty and Preserving the Environment appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Argentina’s troubled economy has led to the victory of President-elect Javier Milei‚ whom many have branded a radical. Given our own fiscal and monetary troubles‚ what has happened in Argentina has implications for the United States. Milei’s ideas are neither radical nor novel. They represent a move toward returning to normal and a repudiation of the economic sins Argentina has repeatedly committed. The nation is in the throes of its fifth hyperinflation in less than five decades‚ with prices now rising 143% per year. It was enough to convince the Argentine electorate that it was time for a 180-degree change in economic policy. The people want to make Argentina great again‚ as former President Donald Trump said in congratulating Milei‚ 53‚ who takes office on Sunday. A century ago‚ Argentina was the crown jewel of South America. It was one of the richest countries in the world‚ with a gold-backed currency and a higher per-capita gross domestic product than Austria‚ Italy or Spain‚ its former master. But Argentina got caught up in the progressive era of the early 20th century and elected socialists around World War I. Government meddling in the economy took root with new laws controlling factory production and working hours. Major industries such as energy and transportation were nationalized. Government schools became ubiquitous. Economic efficiency declined and output fell as the bureaucracy became bloated. With the onset of the Great Depression‚ socialists in both the U.S. and Argentina found a new excuse to implement the agenda they had been advocating for decades. Argentina‘s government exploded its budget and launched an economywide industrial policy‚ which backfired spectacularly‚ just as the New Deal drove U.S. economic output lower. To finance an expanded government‚ Argentina chose to print money and abandoned the gold standard‚ then devalued the peso by half. Agricultural output plunged‚ including beef‚ and Argentina lost its place as one of the world’s biggest beef exporters. The political unrest that followed led to a military coup and takeover by fascist-sympathizing national socialists who doubled down on their predecessors’ failed policies. The next four decades saw more inflation and the nationalization and unionization of more industries and workers amid constant pushes for social justice. The middle class all but disappeared‚ replaced by an overregulated‚ overtaxed underclass. In the first of a series of hyperinflations‚ the peso’s value went from 42 cents American to less than three one-thousands of a cent in 1969. Argentina abandoned its throne among the pantheon of the richest nations in the world‚ descending to perennial economic basket cases. Although the peso was restored in 1970‚ it quickly lost 99.9% of its value. It was reset again in 1981‚ only to lose 95% of its value thereafter. Each time government spending expanded beyond its means‚ Argentina printed the money to pay for it‚ robbing the people of their wealth. After resetting the peso in 1983‚ hyperinflation was repeated yet again with a 98% devaluation. A further reset of the peso in 1985 was preceded by a collapse of the currency‚ losing 99.9% of its value once more. By 1992‚ then-President Carlos Menem was able to restore the Argentine peso to parity with the U.S. dollar‚ but the feat lasted only a decade before the nation returned to its socialist credo. Government spending grew‚ financed by printed money‚ and the currency predictably lost more than 90% of its value. Argentina returned to being persona non grata in the world of investment-grade bonds‚ and Argentines were once again laboring away under the yoke of hyperinflation. This is the context that elected Milei. At long last‚ Argentines have had enough socialism and want their country back. Sadly‚ it took Argentina almost a century of chaos to learn that lesson. The United States is following in Argentina’s footsteps‚ but it is running instead of walking. Relative to the size of the economy‚ Washington is racking up deficits twice as large as those of Buenos Aires. More than 40% of U.S. personal income taxes in America are consumed just in interest on the federal debt. If the spending is not cut soon‚ Argentina-style hyperinflation will follow as the only way to pay for excessive government spending. America should skip to the end of the story of Argentina instead of reliving the whole tragedy page by page. That seems unlikely since‚ as our South American cousin has shown‚ even repeated bouts of hyperinflation aren’t always enough to wake people up to the disastrous reality of socialism. Originally published at WashingtonTimes.com Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com‚ and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state. The post What President-Elect Javier Milei of Argentina Means for US appeared first on The Daily Signal.

The BorderLine is a weekly Daily Signal feature examining everything from the unprecedented illegal immigration crisis at the border to immigration’s impact on cities and states throughout the land. We will also shed light on other critical border-related issues like human trafficking‚ drug smuggling‚ terrorism‚ and more. ——————————————————— Thanks to President Joe Biden’s immigration policies‚ every American is forced to play a game of “recidivist roulette” with criminal aliens. In addition to installing a virtual revolving door at the border‚ the Biden administration has spiked immigration law enforcement in the interior of the country‚ putting the lie to Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas’ oft-repeated whopper that “our border is not open‚ that crossing irregularly is against the law‚ and that those who are not eligible for relief will be quickly returned [to their home countries].” More than two years ago—before the Biden administration started mass releases and parole of illegal aliens caught at the southern border—there were already over 400‚000 convicted criminal foreigners walking free throughout the United States. That’s 400‚000 convicted criminals out of around 5 million illegal aliens on Immigration and Customs Enforcement’s “non-detained docket‚” meaning all the aliens involved in deportation proceedings who‚ under U.S. law‚ should be detained while awaiting their hearings but are not. With today’s social media‚ facial recognition‚ and amazing data tools‚ a lot of the 400‚000 could be found‚ but ICE officers are so constrained by their political bosses that they are barely able to arrest anyone. The Biden administration has given ICE the paltry target of deporting just under 30‚000 criminal aliens this fiscal year and the same for next year. Roughly 4 million illegal aliens have been allowed into the U.S. since Biden took office‚ at least an estimated 1.8 million of whom were “gotaways”—those thought to have entered the U.S. but not identified or arrested. Given the number‚ age‚ and origin of all the illegal aliens entering the country‚ it’s certain that a percentage of them have criminal records and that Biden is thus adding more convicts per year to our population than ICE is subtracting. Over 70% of U.S. state prisoners (both citizens and foreigners) are re-arrested within five years of release. It’s a fair bet that released or paroled aliens with foreign criminal records (that are undiscoverable or unknown to the Department of Homeland Security)‚ re-offend at similar rates. And logically‚ it would be even higher for the gotaways who deliberately avoid detection. The costs of recidivism‚ or re-offending‚ by criminal aliens are borne by Americans‚ including physical and financial harm to victims‚ diverted law enforcement resources‚ and burdens on the entire criminal justice system. Just a few of the many examples of preventable crimes resulting from Biden’s border policies will illustrate the risk we all put up with. In August 2018‚ Jose Gonzalez-Flores‚ an illegal alien from Guatemala‚ rear-ended a family van near Chesterfield‚ Virginia‚ killing 4-year-old Elias Camacho. He was drunk—at 5 in the afternoon—and fled the scene of the accident. For that “involuntary manslaughter‚” Gonzalez-Flores served 3 1/2 years in prison‚ after which ICE deported him back to Guatemala. A year later‚ he was back in the U.S. as a gotaway. The Biden administration’s deliberate decision to divert all possible staff and money to processing illegal aliens at the border (to let them into the U.S. rather than turning them away) has allowed gotaway numbers to rise from the decade-long average of about 125‚000 a year to at least 600‚000 now. Recidivist criminals like Gonzalez-Flores‚ and the cartels that smuggle them in‚ know that. So that their U.S. criminal records are not discovered‚ they avoid ports of entry and easily evade a Border Patrol thinned out by re-assignments off the border. ICE eventually found Gonzalez-Flores and re-arrested him in Virginia. He was charged with unlawful re-entry after deportation. After serving his latest 4-year sentence‚ he should be deported again. On Nov. 24 of this year‚ ICE deported Cesar Antiono Rafael Lopez‚ an illegal alien wanted in Guatemala for rape. Border Patrol encountered him in Arizona in 2019 and was able to deport him a few days later under an expedited removal process created in 1996. That process was intended to limit the release of illegal aliens into the U.S. at the border and to allow them to be more quickly deported. However‚ illegal aliens claiming that they have a “credible fear” of returning to their home countries for fear that they would face violence or government persecution can avoid removal and apply for asylum in the U.S. There is a very low bar for aliens to claim credible fear and avoid this quick process‚ and around 75% pass the test to enter the U.S. and the years-long asylum process. Lopez illegally came back three more times‚ on June 3‚ June 8‚ and June 12‚ 2021. He was removed each time—most likely to only over the border to Mexico‚ given the speed of his re-entries. On his fourth try‚ he made it back as a gotaway. There had been no consequences for his earlier fails‚ although the government should have prosecuted him for the crime of illegal reentry. Lopez remained in the U.S. for two years until this September‚ when he was arrested in Michigan on unspecified “local charges.” As often happens‚ local jail officials didn’t honor the detainer ICE had lodged with them. Detainers are a law enforcement courtesy where ICE asks state authorities to let it take custody of prisoners before they are released‚ so that the government can enforce federal immigration law. Probably due to local “sanctuary city” policies‚ the jail failed to inform ICE before it released Lopez‚ but ICE found and arrested him in October. A month later‚ Lopez was deported to Guatemala. In September‚ Honduran illegal alien Kevin Castro-Garcia was charged with two murders in Nashville. Authorities found the burned body of victim Brandon Rivas-Noriega inside a torched car and the decomposing body of a second victim‚ Elmer Nahum Miranda-Martinez‚ in the trunk of a different car. Castro-Garcia is a member of Sur 13‚ a transnational criminal organization. He had already been deported from the U.S. twice before‚ in 2010 and again in 2018‚ but for him and other dangerous aliens‚ re-entering the U.S. illegally as a gotaway has never been easier.  In July‚ a 25-year old Haitian gotaway was released with a Notice to Appear before an immigration judge in Boston to explain why he should not be deported. But there are 55‚000 asylum cases pending in Boston. The average wait there from court filing (assuming he bothered to file for asylum) to asylum hearing is about four years and growing. He didn’t make it that far‚ as on Oct. 3‚ police in Massachusetts arrested him for assaulting someone in his own household. DHS knows it is releasing potential human time bombs into American communities every day. U.S. citizens only learn the risk when it’s too late. Unless we get control of our border by ending the flow of migrants making fraudulent asylum claims‚ enforcing immigration law in the interior‚ and getting Border Patrol back on the border‚ thousands of high-risk illegal aliens like those mentioned above will keep coming. Under Joe Biden and Alejandro Mayorkas‚ the Department of Homeland Security is failing at its “one job”—securing the American people from preventable threats. Read Other BorderLine Columns: Memo from McAllen—A Look Inside the Mayorkas Migration Machine Will Biden Going Soft on Venezuelan Dictator Lead to Increase in Immigrants to US? Senate Hearing Shows—Again—Why Mayorkas Should Be Impeached New York’s ‘Right to Shelter’—Why Are Taxpayers Forced to House Unlimited Illegal Aliens? Cities‚ States Can’t Continue to Shoulder Costs of Biden’s Deliberate Border Crisis Have an opinion about this article? To sound off‚ please email letters@DailySignal.com‚ and we’ll consider publishing your edited remarks in our regular “We Hear You” feature. Remember to include the URL or headline of the article plus your name and town and/or state. The post The BorderLine: Biden Prefers to Put Your Safety at Risk and Play Recidivism Roulette With Criminal Aliens appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Daily Mail: Secret Migrant Facility in Texas Holds Families in a Private Aircraft Hangar

CAIR Co-Founder: Gazans' 10/7 Attack Made Me Happy

A Mexican national in the U.S. illegally has been handed down two life sentences for brutally murdering a 75-year-old American grandmother. Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg of Texas announced Tuesday that Etta Nugent's killer‚ 24-year-old Marcos Cobos‚ "will now spend decades‚ and hopefully the rest of his life‚ in prison." Ogg indicated the victim's family won't have to "go through a painful and traumatic trial" since Cobos pleaded guilty Friday both to Nugent's 2019 murder and to aggravated robbery. In May 2019‚ Cobos stole a Ford F-150 in Arizona and drove to Houston in hopes of meeting someone he supposedly met online. The meeting failed to transpire‚ so the illegal alien began living out of the stolen truck in Sharpstown. Although nearby residents repeatedly contacted authorities about the truck‚ which had been recognized as out of place in the tight-knit community‚ law enforcement apparently left Cobos alone for several days. On May 19‚ 2019‚ Cobos‚ 19 at the time‚ knocked on Nugent's door and asked the elderly woman for water and to charge his phone. Etta Nugent‚ originally from Yoakum‚ was a mother of three and a grandmother of six who worked as a parish secretary at Holy Ghost Catholic Church in the Houston area for 25 years. Her husband‚ to whom she had been married for over 50 years‚ had been relocated to a medical facility owing to his failing health‚ according to the Victoria Advocate. Nugent‚ evidently a sound judge of character‚ declined to let the illegal alien inside‚ directing him instead to another neighbor who might be more willing. Cobos left‚ but returned just minutes later and forced his way inside the home. Right away‚ he stabbed the victim in the chest with a knife he had brought with him. He then went into the kitchen in search of a better blade. The illegal alien later told police that he spotted the elderly woman crawling onto the porch in an attempt to escape‚ so he grabbed her in a "bear hug‚" brought her inside‚ then resumed his butchery with the victim's kitchen knives‚ reported the Houston Chronicle. According to the Harris County District Attorney's Office‚ Cobos stabbed Nugent at least 13 times‚ but not all in one go. He apparently spread the attacks out over several hours until the grandmother finally succumbed to her injuries. While Nugent bled out‚ Cobos reportedly did his laundry in the house and took a shower. At one point‚ he went out for a burger‚ then returned to eat it nearby the victim's body. After finishing both his meal and his laundry‚ the illegal alien pillaged the victim's house‚ used her credit cards to pay his cell phone bill‚ then stole her car. The Advocate reported that Nugent was scheduled to visit her ailing husband Monday morning. However‚ when she failed to turn up‚ family members became concerned. Unable to hail her on the phone‚ Nugent's son raced to the house where he found her body. Although Cobos had fled the night of the murder and shacked up in a nearby motel‚ he returned the next day to move his stolen truck away from the grisly scene. Police caught him driving Nugent's car and detained him. Cobos confessed to the murder shortly thereafter. Family members noted in a statement following Nugent's death‚ "Etta was a kind‚ gentle and generous woman who lived her life with unwavering dedication to her faith‚ family and friends." "To see her life end in such a tragic‚ evil matter is simply unexplainable‚" continued the statement. Assistant District Attorney Lynn Nguyen‚ who prosecuted Cobos‚ said‚ "This case is truly horrendous and is the worst possible nightmare for anyone who has an elderly parent living on their own." "You don’t want to believe that something like this could happen in our community‚ but when it does‚ we do everything possible to seek justice for the victim and their family‚" added Nguyen. Per Cobos' plea deal‚ he will serve 60 years in prison before becoming eligible for parole. Furthermore‚ he cannot appeal the conviction or dual life sentences. According to U.S. Customs and Border Protection‚ there have been 29 illegal aliens convicted for murder in the U.S. in fiscal year 2023; 62 last fiscal year; and 60 the previous year. Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

Sony PlayStation will delete more than 1‚200 video titles under the Discovery banner‚ meaning users who purchased digital access to the products will no longer be able to view them. The media company has made no mention of refunds‚ either.PlayStation announced on its website that due to "content licensing arrangements‚" shows from the Discovery network will no longer be available after 2023."As of 31 December 2023‚ due to our content licensing arrangements with content providers‚ you will no longer be able to watch any of your previously purchased Discovery content and the content will be removed from your video library. We sincerely thank you for your continued support. Thank you‚" the company note read.Then‚ the entertainment company detailed a massive of list of fleeing content which included shows like “MythBusters” and “Deadliest Catch."No refunds were mentioned and none have been discussed by the company. The New York Times noted that Sony did not respond to request for comment regarding the issue‚ while outlets Nerdist and Forbes plainly noted that there will be "no refunds.""PlayStation will delete users’ purchased tv shows with no refunds" Nerdist wrote‚ while Forbes noted‚ "PlayStation store to lose more than 1‚200 purchasable titles - with no refunds."If the PlayStation Network terms of service and user agreement is any indicator‚ it certainly appears that users should not expect reimbursement. The agreement noted that content is provided on a "revocable" basis."All Content provided through [PlayStation Network) is licensed on a non-exclusive and revocable basis to you for your personal‚ private‚ non-transferable‚ non-commercial‚ limited use."Further in the agreement‚ the company stated that as the user‚ "you bear all responsibility for ensuring that you have the capabilities to view Video Content in the appropriate format‚ or at all."Warner Bros. Discovery‚ which owns Discovery's content‚ has reportedly been working to add more subscribers to its own streaming services Max and Discovery+. According to the New York Times‚ this could be the reason behind the content pull.Director Christopher Nolan ("The Dark Knight‚" "Oppenheimer") recently criticized digital media for this very reason in an interview with IGN. Nolan explained that access to digital products often relies on the status of a distributor's relationship with the platform providing access to the media."If you buy a [DVD]‚ you buy a Blu-Ray‚ it's on your shelf‚ it's yours. No company is going to break into your house and take it from you‚ repossess it; you know it's yours and and you own it‚" Nolan explained. "That's never really the case with any form of digital distribution. You're relying on the continued health of the supplier‚ the company who's supplying."PlayStation has not yet responded to questions for comment regarding possible refunds‚ reimbursements‚ or user agreements.This article will be updated with any relevant responses from PlayStation.Like Blaze News? Bypass the censors‚ sign up for our newsletters‚ and get stories like this direct to your inbox. Sign up here!

For the first time in the history of American higher education‚ three female university presidents this week announced themselves as the ideological sponsors of terrorism. Harvard University President Claudine Gay‚ MIT President Sally Kornbluth‚ and University of Pennsylvania President Liz Magill appeared before the House Committee on Education on Tuesday to explain the sharp increase in anti-Semitic incidents on their campuses since the October 7 attacks in Israel. All three women claimed that calling for the genocide of Jews does not necessarily violate the code of conduct regarding bullying and harassment at their universities. To a woman‚ they all responded that such utterances required “context.” Their well-coordinated responses represent a comprehensive and wholesale green light to student terrorists to terrorize Jews and American patriots in the United States of America. Every donor needs to denounce these ideological terror cells masquerading as universities‚ withdraw their financial support‚ and demand the resignation of these vanguards of terror posturing as administrative leaders. They are the moral equivalents of the Weimar Republic intellectual terrorists who provided the intellectual ammunition for the Holocaust in the years preceding the rise of Nazism. Some might say Tuesday‚ December 5‚ 2023‚ was the day academia died. The road ahead is a long one. There will need to be purges. The universities need to be defunded and shut down. As a philosophy professor of 26 years‚ I can say that academia is not dead. The universities are living‚ breathing national security threats that function as indoctrination centers and bastions for nihilistic activists whose twin goals are the destruction of the American republic and of Western civilization. They are breeding grounds for enemies of the state. They are beyond reform. One deals with them the way one deals logically with any national security threat. So academia did not die on Tuesday. Rather‚ December 5 should be remembered as the day the world saw the rot‚ moral corruption‚ and evil that have been festering for decades in our nation’s institutions of higher learning. When one watched the smug smirk of Penn’s Liz Magill in her refusal to condemn calls for genocide against Jews — “It is a context-dependent decision‚” she said in response to a question from Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) — one saw the look of a supercilious‚ evil woman‚ a harbinger of darkness and malice. She also acted as a ventriloquist for her minions: today’s professoriate. To make matters worse‚ one of America’s leading intellectuals‚ Jonathan Haidt‚ took to X (formerly Twitter) to declare the following: As a professor who favors free speech on campus‚ I can sympathize with the "nuanced" answers given by U. presidents yesterday‚ about whether calls to attack or wipe out Israel violate campus speech policies. What offends me is that since 2015‚ universities have been so quick to punish "microaggressions‚" including statements intended to be kind‚ if even one person from a favored group took offense. The presidents are now saying: "Jews are not a favored group‚ so offending or threatening Jews is not so bad. For Jews‚ it all depends on context." We might call this double standard "institutional anti-semitism." University presidents: If you're not going to punish students for calling for the elimination of Israel and Israelis‚ it's OK with me‚ but ONLY if you also immediately dismantle the speech policing apparatus and norms you created in 2015-2016. My first response to Haidt’s evil collusion and appeasement was: Please tell me this a deepfake response! One cannot be serious that there can be any nuance to and sympathy for attacks against Israel‚ or to wipe out Israel. This is sheer lunacy. These college presidents are not nuanced. They are complicit with evil. They are morally reprehensible and should be forced to resign — but not before being mercilessly grilled before their university boards of directors. Calls to attack and wipe out Israel are incitements to violence. Anyone who makes excuses for top-tier administrators who not only aid and abet these student terrorists‚ but who themselves are architects of programs that make such hate-mongering policies possible‚ is‚ by default‚ a sponsor of domestic terrorism. The disgraceful display of Hamas supporters parading through our city streets and university campuses and the calls for genocide of Jews and the destruction of Israel are incitements to violence. They are not‚ therefore‚ protected speech. So what is to be done? Mass arrests of student terrorists who both exercise violence against Jewish students and who use the language of incitement would be a place to begin. Deportation of foreign nationals guilty of such crimes would also be advisable. The university administrators are like Iran and Hezbollah operatives: They fight their proxy wars through the students. They need to go. In a culture where ethical relativism is the norm‚ the issue is this: We will need to be very selective in deciding who gets let into any newly created reason-centered university. Rational discrimination should be the order of the day. Not everyone can be let into the future. This was the promise of liberalism. Then the barbarians at the gates entered the cities‚ and the cities became jungles. Rational exclusion is the only way forward: We welcome a cadre of pro-American‚ pro-Enlightenment students who value life and appreciate liberty. The road ahead is a long one. There will need to be purges. The universities need to be defunded and shut down. Some professors may need to be tried for treason and sedition. Students will need to be expelled by an administration that realizes that academia has become a cancerous tumor destroying America from within. People have asked me what will replace it. I’m not yet sure. A body rid of a malignant tumor does not ask itself what will replace the tumor. The body grows into health and robustness. Then and only then can human imagination flourish and produce a vital alternative.

Conservatives are supposed to understand the law of unintended consequences. For 20 years‚ American colleges have been driven toward ruin by the cultural cancer of “safetyism” and “crybullying.” Famously‚ Harvard Law School professor Jeannie Suk Gersen wrote an essay for the New Yorker about her bruising institutional fight to teach students in criminal law classes about the laws governing sexual offenses. She was‚ students explained‚ hurting them. They went to the dean because they felt unsafe. Saying “rape” in class was violence. Professors who teach rape law are mean. “One teacher I know was recently asked by a student not to use the word ‘violate’ in class — as in ‘Does this conduct violate the law?’ — because the word was triggering‚” she wrote. “Some students have even suggested that rape law should not be taught because of its potential to cause distress.” The opening sentence of that New Yorker essay frames the question with vividness and lawyerly clarity: “Imagine a medical student who is training to be a surgeon but who fears that he’ll become distressed if he sees or handles blood.” Now‚ imagine a student who is training for adult life in a republic who fears he’ll become distressed if he hears “hate speech.” College is for people who have just started being grown-ups. The point is to face ugly things head-on‚ distinguish truth from lies‚ develop an ability to see logical fallacies and bad evidence‚ and become a disciplined‚ serious adult citizen. When conservatives take up the cudgel of what kind of speech should be allowed‚ we’ve taken a hard left turn and driven into a cultural desert. Sorry‚ I screwed up that last sentence: It was. The culture of open discourse has long been in retreat on college campuses — in the purge of wrong-thinking professors‚ in the distaste for dead white male authors‚ and in the absurd moment when “trigger warnings” were still a thing. See‚ for one quick example in a sea of nonsense‚ the harsh response from UCLA to the business school professor who laughed off a student’s demand that exams be postponed for black students because of the trauma caused by Saint George Floyd’s murder. “More than 17‚000 people have since signed a petition calling for UCLA to dismiss [Gordon] Klein from the school‚” according to the Poets and Quants business school blog. Colleges purge and punish crimespeak with a joyful zeal that makes actual Red Guards a little jealous. This week‚ Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) confronted a panel of university presidents with statements being made on college campuses that hint at or openly call for violence against Jews. She demanded to know if those speech acts were being allowed: “Do you believe that kind of hateful speech is contrary to Harvard’s code of conduct‚ or is it allowed at Harvard?” she asked. When conservatives take up the cudgel of what kind of speech should be allowed‚ we’ve taken a hard left turn and driven into a cultural desert. I agree that students and professors on many college campuses have crossed lines into repugnant Jew-hating rants‚ but colleges are supposed to teach. They’re supposed to run over hateful ignorance with the freight train of factual‚ rational thought. Bad discourse is supposed to encounter good discourse and lose on the battlefield. You cannot dismantle the left's ideological house with the left's cultural tools. Arguing that calls for the genocide of Israeli Jews should be a code of conduct violation that results in a repressive administrative response — that colleges should make people stop saying that through punishment — Stefanik and others who back her point of view walk into a barely concealed pitfall trap. Consider what recently happened to Professor John Strauss at the University of Southern California. Strauss‚ an economics professor‚ is Jewish. Walking across campus‚ he encountered a student-led rally for the brave and gentle social workers of Hamas‚ who are righteously fighting against evil colonialism. They got his response on video: “Hamas are murderers. That's all they are. Every one should be killed‚ and I hope they all are.” In a move that should shock absolutely no one‚ the student protesters were triggered. Professor Strauss‚ they told USC administrators‚ had called for genocide. His words were violence: I hope they're all killed. Because people who support Hamas cannot tolerate violence‚ you see. An online petition quickly got thousands of signatures‚ under the header‚ "Demand the Termination of USC Economics Professor John Strauss for Racist and Xenophobic Behavior." University administrators ordered Strauss off campus and told him not to come back for the rest of the semester. (He lawyered up‚ as you always should in comparable circumstances‚ and they reversed that decision.) Of course campus codes of conduct taking aim at Hamas supporters for speaking in favor of hate and violence will be turned against Jewish students and professors. “It's against the code of conduct to call for genocide by supporting Israel‚ Zionist pig!” Who does DARVO well? Who's good at purge culture? Codes of conduct that punish hateful speech are a pistol on the ground that we’ll all be wrestling over for years. Don’t leave the pistol there. The gibbering campus dimwits framing the war between Israel and Hamas as brave decolonial struggle are the product of a closed culture that prevents bad ideas from being challenged and defeated. The exact problem is the long repression of campus speech and the punishment of discourse that makes people “feel unsafe.” At the risk of making up my own words‚ we desperately need to re-adultify our campuses with a giant dose of toughness and unpunished debate. Burn the speech codes. Let supporters of Hamas speak openly and hear the unmediated responses they get. Let supporters of Israel speak openly and hear the unmediated responses they get. Make arguments and counterarguments. What we need is the open discourse of adults in a republic‚ in an atmosphere of well-earned contempt for stupid arguments and dangerous ideas. Some of the things people say in that atmosphere of openness will be horrible‚ but none of it will be as horrible as a repressive culture that hides evil and forbids its exposure.

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