'Major regulatory milestone'

This list looks at the best Elton John albums ever released in our humble subjective opinion. Elton John has released so many albums that picking a top 10 is simply an exercise in fun and tribute. No other individual artist in popular music history‚ with the exception of Paul McCartney‚ has been as prolific as Elton John. It’s daunting how much material Elton John has released‚ especially during Elton’s nineteen seventies period. Elton John’s first album‚ entitled Empty Sky‚ was released in 1969. It was the same year Led Zeppelin released their debut album Led Zeppelin. In 1969‚ Jim Hendrix blew The post 10 Best Elton John Albums Of All Time appeared first on ClassicRockHistory.com.

A new and creative study shows that rejecting undesired invitations to parties can be beneficial in avoiding holiday burnout. The study also found that even if the invitation comes from loved ones‚ they don’t care about rejections as much as we imagine they do. More than three-quarters of people in a survey confessed to accepting […] The post Learning to Just Say No to Unwanted Holiday Invitations Can Benefit Your Mental Health–New Study appeared first on Good News Network.

Marvel is working on a few animated projects in addition to the second (and third) season of What If…? And at a screening last night‚ the studio shared a sizzle reel highlighting three of them‚ including the first look at Eyes of Wakanda. At the end of the What If…? event (which you can read more about here)‚ Brad Winderbaum—Marvel Studios’ head of streaming‚ television‚ and animation—introduced a video highlighting three upcoming animated series. The first two—X-Men ’97 (which gave me a whiplash of nostalgia for the series it’s based on) and Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man (previously titled Spider-Man: Freshman Year)—had been announced previously. The clip‚ however‚ also provided a first look at Eyes of Wakanda‚ which has the following logline: Throughout Wakandan history‚ brave warriors have been tasked to travel the world retrieving dangerous vibranium artifacts. This is their story. The shots from Eyes of Wakanda were brief‚ but they revealed that the show’s animation style is computer-generated animation similar to recent Disney animated films rather than the more comic book feel in What If…? and the clips we saw of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man. We don’t have any more on Eyes of Wakanda beyond the logline above‚ so no news yet on when the show will premiere on Disney+ or whether we’ll see any live-action Marvel characters in its episodes. We do know‚ however‚ that at least one Black Panther will be in an episode of What If…? season two‚ so we’ll get more Wakandan superheroes on Disney+ sooner rather than later when that season premieres on December 22‚ 2023.

Just tell it like it is. It seems so simple‚ yet American media companies are failing miserably at their most basic duty: to truthfully report the news. This year’s Gallup survey‚ released in October‚ put trust in media at its lowest-ever rating since the polling began. Asked if they trust media‚ a record-high 39% of U.S. adults said they have absolutely “none at all.” It’s no wonder Tucker Carlson is thriving since Fox News canceled his top-rated prime time show in April. Americans want authenticity‚ and few are better at delivering the news unfiltered than Carlson. The popular cable TV host first turned to Twitter‚ now X‚ before announcing Monday the launch of Tucker Carlson Network. The new venture will distribute Carlson’s interviews‚ commentaries‚ and other videos to paying subscribers at a cost of $72 per year. (Full disclosure: I signed up as a founding member over the weekend.) >;>;>; Tucker Carlson Blasts Corporate Media Lies‚ Launches New Video Subscription Service as Alternative Even though Fox News hasn’t revealed the rationale for its decision—Carlson‚ 54‚ said Monday that he still doesn’t know—that hasn’t stopped him from shifting gears and finding his niche by connecting directly with his audience. It’s not exactly a novel approach‚ even for Carlson. In 2010‚ with business partner Neil Patel‚ he created the Daily Caller‚ a news site that quickly rivaled and then surpassed many established media outlets. (Patel‚ along with Justin Wells‚ form the leadership team of the new Tucker Carlson Network.) Two of Carlson’s former Fox News colleagues‚ Bill O’Reilly and Megyn Kelly‚ found their footing after decamping from highly rated TV shows. Today‚ they’ve built their own media companies. And it’s not just media stars who are finding success. The trend also extends to members of Congress. Sen. Ted Cruz‚ R-Texas‚ and co-host Ben Ferguson have one of the most popular podcasts‚ “The Verdict With Ted Cruz‚” which they’ve grown in partnership with iHeart over the past year. The common denominator is authenticity. In an age of artificial intelligence and deep fakes‚ Americans are craving the truth and an unfiltered host to deliver the news. Carlson understands this and vows to make it the mission of his work. “I’m going to tell the unadorned truth‚” Carlson said Monday on Sirius XM’s “The Megyn Kelly Show.” “I hope gently and in as least offensive way as I possibly can‚ but I’m going to tell that truth until the day I die‚” he said. “And I really mean that. I’m going to try to do it in my personal life‚ too. It’s one of my things that I’ve resolved to do until I die because I think that’s the answer.” .@MegynKelly x @TuckerCarlson – The FULL InterviewTopics discussed:– Tucker's Fox News exit– The launch of @TCNetwork– Tucker's positions on Ukraine and Israel– Whether Tucker would be Trump's VP– The reality of the illegal immigration crisisAnd more… WATCH: pic.twitter.com/btVlUouspQ— The Megyn Kelly Show (@MegynKellyShow) December 12‚ 2023 Now imagine if every journalist operated by that same principle. Those record-low polling numbers might start to reverse. Don’t count on it. After beginning Monday’s interview with Carlson on the topic of Fox News‚ Kelly shifted gears to explore corporate media’s failures. Carlson’s explanation is spot on: There’s a need for people who are honest [and] not always right. I’ll speak for myself: I’ve been wrong a lot. I have some views that in retrospect turned out to be stupid. I know I’ll have more of those. But the audience can tell if you’re trying to tell the truth and that’s the main thing they want—your commitment to honesty‚ imperfect as it may be. If they see other news organizations that aren’t even trying‚ whose whole existing is about manipulating you‚ the public‚ into joining some program that’s bad for you and your family‚ then of course there’s going to be a massive hunger for something better than that. It doesn’t take much to be better than that‚ by the way. The second you start to see your mission as shaping the public’s views on something‚ or getting everyone on board for whatever project they’ve dreamed up this week‚ you lose all curiosity because you’re so mission-driven. … And that really is the way they see the world‚ all these companies. Then you miss all the amazing stuff that’s going on around the world. You stop being curious. And that is the thing that strikes me about corporate media is their incuriosity‚ their total disinterest and lack of interest in anything that’s happening. And so much is happening. The whole world is resetting and exploding in some place. It’s a fascinating time and they miss all of it. It’s the same story on a loop. That lack of curiosity leads to groupthink and laziness. It’s why so many media outlets are indistinguishable from one another today—and why there’s such an appetite for voices like Carlson to provide an alternative. Carlson’s prediction that within five years outlets such as Axios and NBC News won’t exist might be too optimistic‚ but he’s right that “the whole edifice is crumbling.” The Washington Post‚ owned by billionaire Jeff Bezos (net worth: $170 billion)‚ is asking up to 240 employees to quit voluntarily. If well-heeled media companies are struggling‚ it’s a sign of what’s to come. >;>;>; Related: More Americans Need to Stand Up to the Left’s Insanity‚ Tucker Carlson Says at Heritage Foundation Gala The growth of independent media ventures such as Carlson’s provides hope that we’ll have “more voices‚ not less‚” as the great Andrew Breitbart often said. I won’t always agree with Carlson—I’ve publicly disagreed in the past‚ and wasn’t always right—but the curiosity he demands will lead naturally to different conclusions. There’s an audience of heterodox thinkers and everyday Americans who crave something more than what the corporate media offers. We’re blessed to live at a time when so many choices exist. Congratulations to Tucker Carlson. For the sake of our country’s future‚ let’s hope his new venture is a success. 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 Get Ready for ‘Unadorned Truth’ From Tucker Carlson appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s visit to Washington‚ D.C.‚ Tuesday failed to win over skeptical lawmakers‚ who are weary of sending more money abroad to fund a war effort that appears to have stalled. The high-profile visit marked a stark contrast to Zelenskyy’s glorified appearance last December‚ when he addressed a joint session of Congress. This time‚ some senators reportedly didn’t even stick around to hear his one-hour pitch. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell‚ R-Ky.‚ a vocal supporter of Ukraine funding‚ admitted it was “practically impossible” to act before Christmas‚ according to The Hill. Zelenskyy’s decision to visit Capitol Hill and the White House comes amid conservatives’ demands for strong border security measures to be paired with additional Ukraine funding. President Joe Biden is asking for $60 billion more to fund Ukraine’s war effort against Russia. Since the February 2022 invasion‚ Congress has approved $113 billion at a cost of $900 per American household. Their generosity‚ however‚ appears to be waning. A recent Morning Consult poll found just 41% support for sending more money to Ukraine. Conservatives in the House and Senate want to attach the Secure the Border Act (H.R. 2) to Biden’s funding request to address the worsening border crisis in the United States. “We cannot turn a blind eye to the perilous invitation the Biden White House continues to freely give out to break our immigration laws‚” Sen. Ted Cruz‚ R-Texas‚ said Tuesday. My amendment to the national security supplemental package would secure our southern border. READ THE FULL RELEASE BELOW:https://t.co/5kCqw6swF1 pic.twitter.com/iVN8ysYKl2— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) December 12‚ 2023 Cruz introduced an amendment to the supplemental spending bill that mirrors the Secure the Border Act. He called it the “most comprehensive border security legislation in decades.” The measure passed the House‚ 219-213‚ with all but two Republicans voting in favor of it. >;>;>; House Passes Border Bill as Illegal Alien Encounters Surge on Southern Border The Biden administration‚ however‚ opposes the Secure the Border Act. In a May statement‚ it claimed the legislation would make “elements of our immigration system worse.” According to Cruz‚ his amendment “would provide physical and technological border improvements‚ manpower assistance to Border Patrol and ICE Enforcement Removal Operations‚ and protection to families seeking entry at the border as well as unaccompanied alien children.” House Speaker Mike Johnson‚ R-La.‚ reiterated his opposition to Ukraine funding that wasn’t paired with the Secure the Border Act. “These are our conditions because these are the conditions of the American people‚” Johnson said. “And we are resolute on that. It is not the House’s issue right now. The issue is with the White House and the Senate‚ and I implore them to do their job because the time is urgent and we do want to do the right thing.” .@SpeakerJohnson after meeting with Ukrainian President Zelensky: "I have asked the White House since the day that I was handed the gavel as speaker for clarity. We need clear articulation of the strategy to allow Ukraine to win. Thus far‚ their responses have been insufficient." pic.twitter.com/jVX0hnxghF— CSPAN (@cspan) December 12‚ 2023 >;>;>; Heritage Action President Calls on House Speaker to Prioritize Border Security in Spending Fight Dwindling public support for Ukraine funding has prompted pro-war pundits to shift their tactics. Washington Post columnist Marc Thiessen‚ a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute‚ wrote a full-page‚ 2‚000-word column Nov. 29 arguing the “best-kept secret” about U.S. funding for Ukraine is that it’s benefited defense contractors in America. Thiessen’s column prompted a sharp rebuke from Sens. Tommy Tuberville‚ R-Ala.‚ and J.D. Vance‚ R-Ohio‚ who said it didn’t justify another “blank check.” “War is not a business venture‚ and the United States is more than just an economy‚” the senators wrote in a Washington Post letter to the editor. “We are a nation with discrete geopolitical objectives and security priorities.” We need more courageous leaders like @JDVance1 to speak the truth about what’s really happening in Washington. Predictably‚ “The Blob” is outraged that anyone would have the audacity to question another $60 billion for Zelensky. Proud to stand with my friend from Ohio‚ who… https://t.co/4wkWq4nAeg— Kevin Roberts (@KevinRobertsTX) December 12‚ 2023 Tuberville and Vance said U.S. production of weapons wasn’t grounds for supporting more Ukraine funding. They warned that Biden’s request would continue to drain America’s stockpiles and prolong the war. “Ukraine aid proponents have failed to secure victory or end the conflict‚” they wrote. “This failure has come at great cost to U.S. taxpayers and to the Ukrainian people. Mr. Zelenskyy’s senior officials admit the war has reached an intractable stalemate and that hundreds of billions in foreign aid has fueled rampant corruption. The failure machine must be stopped.” 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 Lawmakers Rebuff Zelenskyy’s Plea for More Ukraine Funding appeared first on The Daily Signal.

As House Republicans pressed Tuesday to advance an impeachment inquiry targeting President Joe Biden‚ Democrats decided to rehash Donald Trump’s two impeachments.  The House Rules Committee ultimately voted 9-4 along party lines to adopt and send a resolution to the full House floor formalizing an impeachment inquiry into alleged influence peddling by the president and close family members‚ especially son Hunter Biden.  The vote on the resolution‚ HR 918‚ came days after the younger Biden was indicted by a California grand jury on nine felony and misdemeanor charges of violating the tax code. As House committees continue to pursue transparency and accountability‚ we are formalizing their impeachment inquiry efforts.Doing so will help them enforce subpoenas and pursue needed information.H. Res. 918 is vital to preserving our system of checks and balances. pic.twitter.com/gjUPLTTDi5— House Rules Committee (@RulesReps) December 12‚ 2023 “This is a weighty responsibility‚ one that we all take seriously‚ and we must do our duty for ourselves and the institution of the nation‚” House Rules Chairman Tom Cole‚ R-Okla.‚ said in opening the committee meeting.  “We are here to determine a process‚ not an outcome‚” Cole said‚ citing a duty under the Constitution. “We are here to assert our Article 1 responsibility‚ not to act as judge or jury. We are here fundamentally to chart a path forward that unveils the facts to the public.” The Republican majority on the Rules Committee defeated a slew of amendments from Democrats.  ? #BREAKING: Republicans Release Impeachment Inquiry Explainer Ahead of Vote pic.twitter.com/HYAiquVzA5— House Judiciary GOP ? (@JudiciaryGOP) December 12‚ 2023 A vote to begin an impeachment inquiry isn’t a vote for impeaching the president. Rather‚ the move opens a formal investigation.  In September‚ then-House Speaker Kevin McCarthy‚ R-Calif.‚ endorsed an impeachment inquiry to scrutinize Biden’s actions—but held no House vote to proceed with a formal investigation. Before the committee convened‚ new Speaker Mike Johnson‚ R-La.‚ told reporters that the House must follow the Constitution and open the inquiry.  “We have to follow the truth where it takes us. That is exactly what we are going to do‚” Johnson told reporters. “I would note too that people are frustrated sometimes with the time that is being invested in this. This is the way the Founders anticipated that something like this would go. There shouldn’t be anything like a snap impeachment‚ a sham impeachment like the Democrats did against President Trump. This is the opposite of that.” Ian Sams‚ senior adviser to the White House counsel’s office‚ decried what he called a lack of transparency in the Republican-led investigation‚ a concern echoed by Democrats on the Rules Committee.  “House Rs can’t even answer basic questions about the ‘evidence’ they’re keeping secret from the public &; refusing to release‚” Sams wrote in a post on X‚ formerly Twitter. “As they’re caught in rampant hypocrisy claiming they’ve been transparent. It’s because they know their own witnesses have refuted their false allegations.” House Rs can’t even answer basic questions about the “evidence” they’re keeping secret from the public &; refusing to releaseAs they’re caught in rampant hypocrisy claiming they’ve been transparent It’s because they know their own witnesses have refuted their false allegations https://t.co/pq06NiQJxv— Ian Sams (@IanSams46) December 12‚ 2023 The resolution effectively would authorize three House committees—Oversight and Accountability; Ways and Means; and Judiciary—to continue the investigation.  “It’s a shocking weaponization of the impeachment process by MAGA extremists who are dead set on doing anything and everything they can to help elect Donald Trump‚” said Rep. Jim McGovern‚ D-Mass.‚ ranking member of the Rules Committee‚ referring to the acronym for “Make America Great Again‚” Trump’s campaign slogan. McGovern went on to talk about the Capitol riot on Jan. 6‚ 2021.  “They’re upset Trump lost. He’s upset he lost. Some of them don’t even believe he lost‚” McGovern said. “Many of them are upset that the insurrection didn’t succeed on Jan. 6. Today they want to finish the job. What’s left in the toolbox? An impeachment stunt to hang around Joe Biden’s neck to tarnish him as he heads into the next election.” Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon‚ D-Pa.‚ called the impeachment inquiry  a “MAGA kangaroo court.”  “The former president’s lackeys in Congress are running the show‚ holding the floor hostage as they attempt to curry favor to obtain positions in a second Trump administration‚” Scanlon said. “Meanwhile‚ the rest of their conference seems content to sleepwalk into dictatorship as they view what remains of their caucus in the most extreme members of the Republican Party.” The Pennsylvania Democrat proposed an amendment to the resolution that would insert language praising the Biden administration’s cooperation with congressional investigators.  “My amendment would shed some light on this shameful process and expose it for what it is; a circus and a farce whipped up to placate the disgraced‚ defeated‚ and twice impeached former president‚” Scanlon said.  Rep. Ralph Norman‚ R-S.C.‚ scoffed at Democrats’ focus on Trump.  “It’s really humorous the fever that I see from the other side to continually bring up Donald Trump. This is about Joe Biden‚” Norman said‚ adding:  To put some context to the money we are talking about: From 2014 to 2019‚ Biden family members and their affiliate companies received over $15 million from foreign companies and foreign nationals from Ukraine‚ Russia‚ Kazakhstan‚ Romania‚ and China. Biden business associates received an additional $9 million. For the president’s contention he didn’t know anything about it‚ wasn’t anywhere near his son’s business dealings‚ Devon Archer‚ a longtime Biden associate‚ described the Biden brand and how Hunter Biden placed Joe Biden on phone calls‚ including on speakerphone‚ 20 times with business associates. For you all to want to water this down and say it’s nothing‚ what are you scared of? Republican lawmakers have argued that a formal impeachment inquiry—a process authorized under the Constitution—is necessary to compel the White House and the Biden family to provide documents and testimony that otherwise wouldn’t be required by regular congressional oversight. Formal approval by a full House is not a constitutional requirement‚ but it does give the impeachment inquiry more credibility.  In 2019‚ Republicans were heavily critical of then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi‚ D-Calif.‚ for unilaterally declaring an impeachment inquiry targeting Trump for a phone call to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Eventually‚ the full Democrat-controlled House approved the inquiry.  However‚ the House didn’t formalize an inquiry or hold hearings ahead of Trump’s second impeachment for his role in the Capitol riot‚ which Democrats call an insurrection.  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 House GOP Takes Next Step in Biden Impeachment Probe‚ as Democrats Dwell on Trump  appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Georgia’s top election official is pointing to the Biden administration’s failure to secure the southern border as a reason the state Legislature must act to prevent voting by foreign nationals in state elections.  “With open borders‚ citizenship verification for voter registration is more important than ever‚” Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger‚ a Republican‚ said Monday in a public statement.  Raffensberger called on the Georgia General Assembly to amend the state Constitution to clarify that only U.S. citizens may vote in elections. He warned that liberal organizations are trying to use the courts to overturn citizenship verification ahead of the 2024 election. “Organizations like the Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda are currently suing to end critical citizenship verification in our registration process‚ potentially exposing our elections to foreign interference and diluting the power of legally registered voters‚” Raffensperger said. “I’m calling on the General Assembly to take immediate action and pass a constitutional amendment ensuring that no liberal group can leverage the courts to add noncitizens to our voter rolls.” The Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda didn’t respond immediately to inquiries from The Daily Signal for this report. But the organization’s website boasts about the success of past litigation over voting requirements.  “In the area of voter protection‚ lawsuits were won against the secretary of state [Raffensperger] for unilaterally eliminating voters from the rolls and discarding absentee ballots where signatures did not exactly match‚” the coalition’s website says. “Efforts to reduce early voting periods have been thwarted while the coalition has effectively petitioned election boards in order to prevent the closure of polling locations.” As noted in my book “The Myth of Voter Suppression‚” Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams launched a national movement and career off her two failed campaigns for governor‚ claiming without evidence that the first election was stolen from her. Her organization‚ Fair Fight Action‚ has opposed voter ID and citizenship verification measures nationally.  “Failed candidates like Stacey Abrams and the organization she founded‚ Fair Fight‚ have fought in court to eliminate citizenship verification for Georgia voters and they continue to fail in court‚” Raffensperger said.  Georgia has a score of 84 on The Heritage Foundation’s election integrity scorecard‚ ranking second in the nation behind only Tennessee’s score of 88.  About 8 in 10 Georgia voters apply for registration automatically when they get or update their driver’s license‚ according to the Georgia Secretary of State’s Office. The Georgia Department of Driver Services‚ which is REAL ID-certified‚ verifies citizenship status.  Raffensperger’s office worked with the Department of Driver Services to conduct a full citizenship audit of Georgia’s voter rolls. Other states have enacted measures in recent years to protect against noncitizens voting‚ according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.  An Arizona law passed in 2022 requires jury lists to be shared with clerks to remove from voting rolls any individuals who were dismissed from a jury for not meeting citizenship requirements. It also requires county election registrars to review state‚ federal‚ and local databases against their own voter registration databases. Even liberal Washington state passed a measure earlier this year to require proof of citizenship to participate in automatic voter registration. It also requires the state’s Department of Licensing to provide citizenship documents when asked by the secretary of state. Mississippi enacted a measure in 2022 that requires voter registration applications to be compared with driver’s license and identification information held by the state’s Department of Public Safety.  If a comparison reveals that an applicant who wants to register to vote isn’t a U.S. citizen‚ Mississippi’s Statewide Election Management system notifies the local registrar. That registrar then must enter the applicant’s information into U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service’s Systematic Alien Verification for Entitlements program and notify the person‚ who has 30 days to provide proof of citizenship. In 2021‚ Texas enacted an election reform law that‚ among other things‚ requires the secretary of state to compare monthly voter registration lists with the Texas Department of Public Safety’s database to verify the accuracy of citizenship status provided on voter registration applications.  The states of North Carolina‚ Alabama‚ Florida‚ Georgia‚ Indiana‚ Iowa‚ and Oklahoma‚ already had similar requirements on the books.  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 Georgia Moves to Block Noncitizen Voting in State Constitution appeared first on The Daily Signal.

American higher education is reeling from a litany of well-deserved scandals‚ most recently from the congressional hearing on antisemitism last week‚ which pulled back the curtain to reveal the world’s oldest hatred cloaked in the language of “diversity” and “inclusion.” Harvard President Claudine Gay’s hedging when asked to condemn antisemitism during the hearing and her new plagiarism scandal follow years of universities mandating COVID-19 masking and vaccines; the pay-to-play “Varsity Blues” scandal; and a decade of embarrassing scuffles over “microaggressions‚” “trigger warnings‚” and the cancellation of conservative speakers. The university has abandoned its fundamental purpose: the search for truth in an atmosphere of free inquiry. America’s colleges and universities deserve opprobrium‚ and perhaps even a complete uprooting to start over again. The Marxist ideology pitting the “oppressed” against “oppressors” has ravaged higher education‚ discarding the wisdom of the ancients in a destructive pursuit of intersectional one-upmanship that is poison not just to the pursuit of truth but to the foundations of the social order and prosperity we take for granted. The antidote‚ however‚ is not a wholesale rejection of higher education but a return to the animating force that gives higher education its value—the artes liberales‚ or “liberal arts” education. Not liberal in the sense of the Left or the Right‚ but in the sense of equipping a person with the skills to enjoy and maintain freedom. What Is Liberal Education? Oxford professor and theologian John Henry Newman wrote that a liberal education entails a “process of training‚ by which the intellect‚ instead of being formed or sacrificed to some particular or accidental purpose‚ some specific trade or profession‚ or study or science‚ is disciplined for its own sake.” The liberal arts trains students to contemplate the good‚ the true‚ and the beautiful‚ which Aristotle said was the highest end of mankind‚ and to articulate the truth once it has been discovered. The great thinkers of the West raised timeless philosophical questions that students should ponder‚ and the Western intellectual tradition laid the foundation for the freedom and prosperity we enjoy today. Liberal arts involves embracing the roots of our civilization‚ studying them‚ questioning them‚ and learning from them. This kind of education can produce great reformers who are wise enough to know what to change without rejecting our heritage wholesale. It fosters intellectual curiosity‚ humility‚ and a resolve to change things for the better. Even amid the rot of higher education today‚ diamonds in the rough like my alma mater‚ Hillsdale College‚ keep the liberal arts spirit alive‚ teaching students that pursuing truth is an end in itself and equipping them to learn from the rich tradition of education in the West. Hillsdale knows better than to discard Plato‚ Aristotle‚ Augustine‚ Aquinas‚ Thomas Hobbes‚ and John Locke in pursuit of a “racial justice” that sees these luminaries as building blocks in the structure of oppressive white supremacy. Hillsdale students learn from these thinkers‚ and if students ultimately reject their ideas‚ they have at least expanded their minds by seriously considering them. Hillsdale seriously wrestles with the Western tradition and America’s heritage‚ teaching students to read the original documents and contemplate how they shaped the world around us. While this kind of education may not be for everyone‚ it represents a good in itself‚ and America would be wise to preserve it amid the reckoning in higher education to come. A Reckoning for Higher Education Such a reckoning is long overdue. C.S. Lewis highlighted the central problem in his book “The Abolition of Man.” He noted that human beings have to learn to navigate between our animal appetites and our reason‚ and this requires a well-trained moral compass. Yet modern education teaches the young to debunk morality and follow their own course. Lewis calls these people “Men without chests”—men and women without grounding in a proper response to the way things really are‚ a foundation that makes it possible to live a good life.. “In the older systems‚ both the kind of man the teachers wished to produce and their motives for producing him were prescribed by [conscience]—a norm to which the teachers themselves were subject and from which they claimed no liberty to depart‚” Lewis explained. “They did not cut men to some pattern they have chosen‚” but rather “they initiated the young neophyte into the mystery of humanity which over-arched him and them alike.” It was merely “old birds teaching young birds to fly.” The new morality is more a form of “conditioning‚” forcing students to follow a particular ideology. In recent decades‚ the university has become dominated by a Marxist ideology teaching that society is fundamentally oppressive and the oppressed (women‚ minorities‚ LGBTQ people) must throw off the yoke of the oppressors (men‚ white people‚ straight people). This great revolution justifies tossing out the entire Western heritage and producing people who adhere to a new “woke” morality. It increasingly brooks no dissent‚ encouraging students to view with suspicion anyone who questions its pseudo-religious tenets. These ideas themselves represent a threat to liberal education. They aim to transform the sanctuary of learning into a factory of ideological warriors bent on pulling down the very foundations on which it stands. Americans should vehemently oppose this ideology and demand reform in higher education. Such reform should not aim to abolish the universities but to restore them to their original purpose—the artes liberales. Editor’s note: The author of this column is a graduate of Hillsdale College. 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 Don’t Throw Out Liberal Education With the University Bathwater appeared first on The Daily Signal.

Sununu Will Endorse Nikki Haley - Will It Matter?