Monthly Archives: January 2024

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by Reid Fitzsimons

During much of the Presidential primary season in 2016 I was out of the country in a fairly remote area with little access to news. Upon my return in May, while on a layover at the Atlanta airport and their endless broadcasts of CNN, I learned that Trump has sewn up the Republican nomination. I admit I felt a little queasy the news: I didn’t really know that much about Trump and never watched that show with the tag-line “You’re Fired!,” but I had heard plenty from the establishment news media that he was somehow dangerous and clearly not their guy. In general the other Republican candidates fit the desired mold of being “reasonable,” willing to “cross the aisle” and work with Democrats. I did know Trump was a blowhard.

Donald Trump and Barack Obama post-election Nov. 2016

Over the summer Trump was officially nominated, as was Hillary Clinton (HRC) for the Democrats. The latter, who is a true sociopath, made it easier to vote for Trump despite my severe reservations. Perhaps due to increasing age and cynicism I avoided watching the conventions and speeches, but shortly before the election I was in a cheap motel room in Pensacola, FL, turned on the TV and found Trump at some campaign rally. I girded myself to listen to his shtick, fully expecting him to rant with spittle flying and bark like a seal, this being largely how he was portrayed by the establishment press. What I found instead was a pretty typical political speech with the usual promises of prosperity, jobs, strong military, etc. Part of his rhetoric involved “make America great again (MAGA).

Left: Trump/Clinton debate Fall 2016, Right: Hillary Clinton with spouse in background, concession speech
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by Reid Fitzsimons

Back in high school in the mid-1970s there was a student missing a leg. I didn’t know him as he came from a different feeder school, but the word was he had bone cancer. He didn’t seem to be at school much, but I vividly recall the occasional time he was in gym class and played soccer with vigor, running around on his crutches and using them to kick the ball. People at that age tend to be self involved, but I remember somewhere in my thoughts that this was a brave guy. I’m fairly sure he died well before graduation.

An example of a truly courageous person

Growing up in the post-WW2era just about every time and cultural reference pertained to The War: What did your father do in The War? Where were you when The War ended? Back during The War… Even from a young age, I knew that a lot of people did some very courageous things, and a lot of them died doing so. Perhaps because of the era in which I was raised, throughout my life I’ve pondered the meaning of courage and bravery, and asked if I have it in me. I’ve come to conclusions of the former but, at 65, I have to admit “I don’t know” about the latter. I’ve done a handful of things that might be confused with a low-level degree of courage, but certainly nothing like throwing myself on the grenade to save the other guys in the platoon. The only scenario in life I am certain I would have passed that test would have been as a father, to save my son.

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by Reid Fitzsimons

“Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI)” is a cultural fad that is mostly a thing of the elite, especially but not exclusively of the progressive and privileged white elite. It possesses all of the characteristics of really bad religions: dogma and doctrine that must be embraced without question for fear of banishment and accusations of heresy and blasphemy, everyone but the elite are grave sinners and forgiveness is rare...and expensive. A wealthy person- a corporate CEO, a media figure, a celebrity, an academician, a politician- can obtain an “indulgence” with money and chanting the catechism of DEI, but the riff-raff of society, i.e. regular people, are generally viewed with scorn as hopelessly ignorant deplorables.

Brian Moynihan, a prototypical privileged and enormously wealthy white corporate CEO (Bank of America). He is among the multitude of this elite caste who pretend to embrace DEI, but with the primary goal of maintaining privilege and feeling good about greed.

While this is a nationwide phenomenon it has tentacles into even out of the way places such as Susquehanna County, PA This is evident in the controversy with the library system, which has membership and affiliations with the DEI obsessed Pennsylvania Library Association and the American Library Association, organizations for whom libraries, books, etc are simply a basis for activism, with dreams of leading to the imposition of their elite-controlled DEI Utopia. From the PLA opening page banner:

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion: “The Pennsylvania Library Association will actively and intentionally pursue, promote and champion equity, diversity, and inclusion within the organization and within the profession so that our association, libraries, librarians, and library staff will all thrive.”

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