Good morning and welcome back for another issue of Bright Morning. There is no sense dancing around - we have a lot to get through today. Do you remember what we discussed last week, specifically on Critical Race Theory (CRT) and how it is infecting our culture at an accelerating pace? Well, as we have mentioned in this newsletter before, it is almost like the news writes itself, only so that we can be proven right. Allow us to illuminate.
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| CULTURE
The Cancelling of Dr. Seuss
The Nitty Gritty
Last week, your favorite childhood author was cancelled
Ebay, Amazon and others pulled a handful of the beloved authors’ books claiming some variant of “racism” before the Dr. Seuss organization, themselves, stated they would end-of-life the 6 titles in question.
We all remember Dr. Seuss books. They are among the best children’s books ever written. Parents across the world have been reading Dr. Seuss books to their kids - and continue to do so - because they contain valuable messages and life lessons that we can bring with us as we grow up. For example, How the Grinch Stole Christmas reminds us that while it is easy to get caught up in the excitement of presents and decorations, that is not the true intention of Christmas. Instead, Christmas is about being grateful for what you have, nurturing your relationships, and embracing connections with others. Even Barack Obama once said that “pretty much, all the stuff you need to know is in Dr. Seuss.” So, what is the problem?
Last week, a school district in Virginia announced that Dr. Seuss books can no longer be read on Read Across America Day (a celebratory day in honour of Dr. Seuss) because a “study” (and we use that word incredibly loosely) claimed that the author's work is “filled with orientalism, anti-blackness, and white supremacy.” There it is - the one phrase that keeps appearing with increasing frequency: white supremacy. To the uninformed observer, it might seem like children are being indoctrinated with Adolf Hitler’s Mein Kampf (which you can still purchase on Amazon and Ebay, by the way. But can you purchase Dr. Seuss? Not a chance, as six of his books have been removed from the online stores).
Again, it sounds deranged to think that the mere presence of dated illustrations, in one of the most popular and beloved children’s book franchises, will “harm” children and contribute to racist attitudes. But this is yet another example of the mores of the time. Furthermore, a “study” that makes this assertion proves nothing else except that the researchers wanted to arrive at this conclusion. Part of the magic of Critical Race Theory is that it is unprovable - something which all serious scholarship cannot be.
Meanwhile, in a move that would make Dr. Seuss shudder, Dr. Seuss Enterprises - the company which publishes his books - announced that it will stop the publication of six titles, claiming that they “listened and took feedback from our audiences including teachers, academics, and specialists in the field as part of our review process.” In other words, some pseudo-academics with made-up degrees in the pretend fields of Critical Race Theory, Whiteness Studies, Gender Studies, or any other form of “critical studies,” looked for a new witch to hunt, identified it within the work of Dr. Seuss, and then pressured the company into ceasing publication of the books. Shame on Dr. Seuss Enterprises for cowering to this tired, exhausting, and manipulative game. But this is how “cancel culture” operates. As Douglas Murray writes in The Madness of Crowds (which you should read), cancel culture “operates most effectively when it can locate a hierarchy above an individual that is itself wobbly, gutless or otherwise vulnerable to mob pressure,” and then shame it into conformity.
One question before we move on: how is this different from the burning of books in Nazi Germany or the destruction of the Four Olds by the Red Guard in Maoist China? Spoiler alert: it isn’t. The destruction or removal of cultural artifacts, such as books, is a necessary step for ideologues to advance utopian and anti-human worldviews. After all, if we cannot read better ideas, then how can we know they exist?
It would not be an unwise decision to purchase some Dr. Seuss books while you still can. Otherwise, we will be left circulating them underground, like Aleksandr Solzhenityn’s The Gulag Archipelago.
| PUBLIC HEALTH
Unmasked: Texas and Mississippi
The Nitty Gritty:
Only 12 short months into “2 weeks to flatten the curve”, Texas and Mississippi have joined a small club of states within America who have completely lifted the state-wide mask mandate and indoor capacity restrictions.
The left exploded.
This next story arrived just in time for the one-year anniversary of “two weeks to flatten the curve” (Gosh, it has been a long two weeks, hasn’t it? It’s almost like the only thing governments are consistent on is shifting the goalposts).
Last week, Governors Tate Reeves of Mississippi and Greg Abbott of Texas announced that their states would be reopening completely, therefore eliminating capacity limits in businesses and removing mask mandates for citizens. Their reasoning emphasized a message of personal responsibility. A spokesperson for Abbott stated that “Texas now has the tools and knowledge to combat COVID while also allowing Texans and small businesses to make their own decisions.” Similarly, Governor Reeves stated that “as numbers drop, [citizens] can assess their choices and listen to experts. I guess I just think we should trust Americans.” This sounds completely reasonable. After all, freedom of association is a guaranteed right within the United States Constitution. We also know much more about the virus than we did one year ago, so should we not be trusted to manage the level of risk we want to incorporate into our own lives?
Not according to the American Left. Their response was instantaneous, and the choices of words they used were about as empathetic, kind, tolerant, and respectable as you can expect from mainstream American leftists. For example, prominent champagne socialist, Michael Moore (depicted wonderfully in the image below from Team America), tweeted to Texans: “u don’t need our precious vaccine. We’ll send it to ppl who are saving lives by wearing masks.” Apparently, Moore was too busy indulging in himself to complete the proper spelling of “you” and “people.” Next up was failed Democratic Presidential candidate, Beto O’Rourke, who provided a very beta male interpretation of the situation. He called Texas a “failed state” and said that removing the mask mandate was akin to a “cult of death.” Then, President Biden, the Unifying Man of Science himself, said that removing mask mandates was “neanderthal thinking.”
According to these comments, we can conclude that Americans who do not want interminable government control over their lives and who want to participate in society are: i) unworthy of a vaccine; ii) akin to a Jonestown-like cult; and iii) uncivilized cavemen. This sounds a lot like projection. Biden’s comment is especially demented because it suggests that participating in society and assessing one’s own level of risk is somehow gross and archaic, but remaining indoors, in the dark, and closing ourselves off from the world is totally normal.
At the end of the day, those who want to wear a mask will wear a mask, and those who do not, will not - regardless of a mandate. As Ben Shapiro states, mask mandates and lockdowns do not reduce anything, other than the mental health and well-being of citizens. This is demonstrated by California and New York - two states with the heaviest restrictions and mandates, yet rank among the highest for cases and deaths per capita. But who knows, such changes might just catch on as citizens grow increasingly frustrated. This could indicate that we are approaching the beginning of the end of “two weeks to flatten the curve.”
| POLITICS
Trump 2024?
President Trump ended his (unusual) silence at this years Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) and teased a 2024 run.
CPAC 2021 was held in Florida. Obviously.
After spending the past couple of months maintaining a low profile, Donald Trump returned to give a speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC). Before we break this down, can we just say that news has felt boring without Trump’s tweets making waves across the internet? Seriously, like him or not, the man did have some knee-slapping one-liners. Nevertheless, Trump’s speech at CPAC hinted at what many people have been suspecting since he left office: a campaign for President in 2024.
During his speech, Trump boasted that “a Republican President will make a triumphant return to the White House. I wonder who that will be?” So, it is all-but-confirmed that Trump will be running once again. But should he? An overwhelming majority of Republican voters believe that yes, he should.
A preliminary survey of the 2024 Republican Primary shows that Trump remains a dominant force within the GOP. Next on the list would be former Vice President Mike Pence and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. This is important because it shows, once again, that there is something more to Trump that is attracting at least half of the American population - and it is not “white supremacy,” nor is it any other “ism” or “phobe” that legacy media continue to throw at his voters.
Instead, as far as we can tell, Trump speaks to the concerns of the working and middle class populace who believe that their institutions (educational, media, economical, and otherwise) have left them behind and instead prioritize the interests of wealthy, parochial internationalists. This is evident to all who pay attention to the language used by representatives of these institutions. It was on display when CNN’s Don Lemon stated that those who voted for Trump are in the same camp as Nazis and Klansmen - therefore equating Trump voters with some of the worst people in history. It is on display now, when Michael Moore suggests that those who want to be responsible for their own lives, rather than be micromanaged by a centralized government, are unworthy of vaccination (and, by implication of his statement, deserve either illness or death from the virus).
Why would those who are subjected to this contempt want anything to do with these institutions? The answer is that they do not. This is why they voted for Donald Trump. Flawed and bombastic though he may be, Trump at least spoke to immediate concerns, such as jobs and social mobility, as well as more abstract ideas, including the brilliance of the values that built America (even though America has not always lived up to those values). Democrats, on the other hand, speak of vague, intangible, and unprovable ideological assertions, such as Critical Race Theory, Intersectionality, and Equity, and impose them onto the population - at least half of which does not want them. Trump rejected these ideas, through his actions and words, and this is precisely where a large part of his appeal came from. But a large sect of the American Left will not accept this. Instead, the current iteration of Democratic politicians, and their institutional counterparts (such as legacy media, tech, education, and entertainment) have an attitude which instead suggests: “we know what is best for you, so shut up and take it... bigot.”
However, should Trump choose to re-enter the political fray, he has some lessons to learn. Part of what makes him attractive to voters is his unwillingness to use a politician’s filter in his speech, but this does have its downsides. Twitter battles, calling world leaders with nuclear weapons “fat,” and engaging in troll-like behaviour online is funny, because, in some sense, it is a mockery of the stone-faced leaders we have become so accustomed to. But it is also unlikely to convince casual observers - who do not pay attention to policy - to cast their vote in his favour. Therefore, if Trump wants to be successful, it would be in his best interest to retain his fierceness, but perhaps resist the temptation to react to his harshest critics in a way that they expect him to. Sometimes, silence speaks much louder than words. Otherwise, a prospective candidate like Governor DeSantis, who is sharp and fierce (but not petty) would be a better option for those who want to stand up for conservative values. Regardless, the Republican Party does have a crisis of identity to work through.
| POLITICS
Our old friend, Gavin Newsom
The Nitty Gritty
The “Recall Gavin” efforts have amassed a whopping 1.95 million signatures from Californians. The deadline is today.
They only need 1.6 million to trigger the recall 🙃 🤡
Before we close, it would be remiss of us if we did not provide an update on our old friend, Gavin Newsom - or, as we like to call him, American Psycho. Several weeks ago, we spoke briefly about the Recall Gavin movement which seeks to have Newsom removed from his duties as Governor. Well, it looks like that movement has now surpassed the 1.6 million votes needed to hold a special election. In fact, at the time of writing, there are currently 1.95 million votes, with no signs of slowing down. Just like Andrew Cuomo, Newsom has been hailed as a saviour of COVID. However, it seems that while he was indulging in the orgiastic praise of the media (and $400 dinners at the French Laundry), he forgot to listen to the very vocal opposition towards his policies. As Jerry Seinfeld says: “that’s a shame.”
| EXTRAS
Further Listening 🎞️
This week, we recommend that you watch Dr. Gad Saad as he speaks with Zuby, a rapper and podcaster who is gaining more traction as a cultural critic. The interview touches on some of the themes we have spoken about today, although in a much more playful way.
Gad Saad - Idea Pathogens Are Ruining Society | Real Talk with Zuby #138 - YouTube
Have a good week, everyone. We will see you next time. Take care.
