I’m 55 years old. Three months ago I was trying to figure out what to tell the many people in situations like yours. I still don’t have answers but I feel that is unacceptable. I must be able to answer your questions, so I’m going to try.
First, what is the potential magnitude of our current situation? When we are terrified of voicing our political opinions for fear of having our careers destroyed or even literally losing our lives then we are no longer free. That alone tells me I must fight.
But then I look at what has transpired many times in history when that freedom had been taken away, and things get much worse. For instance, you could not speak against the nazi party. Within just a few short years millions of innocent men, women and children had been murdered. Prior to the nazi party people were living just like you and your family are living now. This was not some ancient barbaric civilization. My parents were alive while this took place and they’re still alive today. We are essentially still the same human beings. Yes, it could happen again and it could happen here.
When I put the current pieces together I believe I’m seeing an effort to turn America into something that resembles communist China. It feels like a global mafia is in charge and the Chinese model is best for business.
Well, you’re not free to speak against the party in that model either. Just like you could not in Soviet Russia. Both of these governments have murdered 10’s of millions of people, all within the last one hundred years, all because these people disagreed with or stood in the way of the party’s plans of creating a better world.
Will that happen here? We don’t know. But what is clear is that it absolutely COULD happen here. 1.5 billion people live under this model in China. Right now. Why not the remaining few billions of us?
At what stage of this process would you have decided to take action or make a stand? Those that waited too long were simply killed.
So I conclude that I must be fighting and I must be fighting now.
Many Jewish families did not close their eyes to what was transpiring in Germany in the late ‘30’s and they packed up and left. Others kept their eyes closed until they walked under their own power right into the showers at places like Auschwitz, believing the nazi lies every step of the way.
It’s also true that 10’s of millions of non-Jewish German citizens went about their lives as though everything was fine, many of them even being convinced that the Jewish people deserved what was being done to them.
The situation is more morally difficult for us. A Jewish person could not become a non-Jewish person. And there’s nowhere for us to go. We could “simply” choose not to be Trump supporters, or not to be Christians who are also in the crosshairs. Although under the current Chinese system, people would also have to choose not to be Muslim, not to be gay, etc., etc., and to not ever disagree with the party about anything.
We know that Muslim Uyghurs are being forced into re-education camps today, right now. We know that the CCP will execute political dissidents, branding them as enemies of the state and sending a bill for the cost of the bullet to the person’s family. I believe the stories are credible of live organ harvesting being performed on such prisoners, with those organs being sold on the black market.
I am not really a religious person. I believe in God in a way that I have not been able to get others to understand. But I have very strong faith in the concepts of individual liberty, that all people are created equal. That the words In God We Trust mean that we shall not be subjugated by another human being. That power is reserved to God alone, whether that be a Christian God, a Muslim God, a Hindu God, or otherwise, even if God is something that exists within your own heart and is difficult to describe as it does and is for me.
I believe that allowing my voice, my thoughts, my religion, to be controlled by other human beings is tantamount to abandoning my faith. That it invites evil into my life and renders me spiritually dead. Which, for me, is little different than actually being dead.
So I have chosen not to allow it. To not be afraid of it. When I was afraid of wearing my maga hat in public, I was allowing myself to be subjugated by the will of other human beings. I was no longer free and thus essentially already dead.
I was standing on a corner with my Trump flag when someone driving by hucked a solid chunk of aluminum at me, face full of hate and rage like they wanted me dead. They missed and hit the electrical box I was standing next to. I was standing on a corner with my flag the next day.
When Lee Keltner was murdered about 20 miles away from me here in Colorado my dad called me the next day begging me to buy a bulletproof vest. I never bought a vest. I became more careful and more aware of my surroundings but I was out the next day standing alongside the highway with my flag.
Why? Because it means I am free and not subjugated by fear induced by other human beings. If I die in this pursuit, I believe I will leave behind a family that will be proud of me, and that that will have a more positive effect on them than perhaps anything else I could do.
But something I have learned in this journey; It has not been nearly as dangerous as my previous fear suggested. I am still alive and in one piece. I feel ashamed that this is what I was afraid of.
So I am not going to meld into the controlled population so that I can be safe. My heart won’t let me. I would be living a lie because I cannot unsee the things I have seen.
I encourage you to keep fighting, to never let yourself be subjugated by fear induced by another human being. Pursue the career that you have admirably worked so hard towards. But speak your mind when you disagree and when you see things being done that you feel are wrong. And never, ever allow someone to intimidate you over support for the political candidate that you feel is the best choice. Be the best you can be in your profession. That will help tremendously in allowing you to speak your mind.
Inaction and submission are absolutely capable of producing consequences for you and your family just as bad or worse than what could occur because you are standing strong.
Be smart about it, use discretion, do not be reckless, but do not let fear allow you to abandon yourself.
This will make you a leader, even if you feel like you have no followers, and that path will not always be pleasant. But the feeling of freedom I have now that the fear is gone is indescribable, and worth every bit of pain.
Keep posting information. Go to every rally you can. Every full bucket is populated by individual drops. If you took the individual drops away the bucket would be empty.
Be the best you can be and never, ever stop loving your family. We will see what the future holds for us. There is much that is out of our control, but we are lost if we allow that to let us shy away from trying to shape that future to the best of our ability.
This is the best I can offer at this time. I hope it is helpful. (It helped ME to write all this so your questions have been humbly appreciated.)
#1 Only you can determine this, no one else can possibly know the correct decision for you to make but you. Additionally, there is always a place for those who speak against the status quo in the sciences, but you will be met with copious amounts of hostility and persecution for your conviction of seeking truth. It takes a very special kind of person to fill this role, but you certainly wouldn't be alone if you chose to make that sacrifice.
#2 I'm not sure if you're a man of faith, but if you do believe in a higher power, then you must, by all logic and reason, trust that Goodness will always prevail. With that in mind, follow your conscience, as it is remarkable at guiding one in the right direction in difficult circumstances. There may come a time when you know the right thing to do is to lay your life down for your country, because it is necessary for your children to be free. However, it won't do you any good to dwell on the potential for war, and the horrors that come with it at this point in time. Be ready, but don't attune yourself with those negative thoughts. Have faith that if it does come to it (which at this point is entirely uncertain it will), your loved ones will be cared for.
#3 I loathe having to go to NY, personally. You can practically feel the heaviness and spiritual vacancy in that city with every breath. The all-consuming egoism that pervades every corner, with so few people spending even a moment a day thinking about other people. Unfortunately, it is, as you well know, often necessary to be there. That being the case, I would highly recommend not being overtly political in that city -- and to treat it like visiting another country, because in essence, it is. You can have a positive affect around you without invoking politics by simply being a Light for those around you who so desperately need it. Remember that our political battle is an EFFECT of a greater battle, and that our political alignments are an EFFECT of our mental conditions.
Ultimately, only you can decide what is right for you and your family, as these decisions are an essential component to life and why we are on this Earth in the first place. But I promise that if you seek God (whatever your conception of God may be), Peace and tranquility, and look for the Goodness and Truth in all things, these decisions will be much easier to make and know that you're making the right one.
Thank you for providing such detail. I am a man of faith, my wife and I are both Latter-Day Saints (but we do not support RINO Romney). The church is a very big part of our daily lives even though we have to sign up a month in advance for Sundays.
No need to thank, and that's good to hear. Just to reiterate because it is so very important for EVERYONE: Seek God, Peace and tranquility and always look for the Goodness and Truth in everything, because it's always there. In all evil you may come across, there is always a glimmer of goodness, and even in the most fallacious lies, you can find a sliver of Truth.
And I'll add that when you seek God, seek Him within. It is commonly said that "God is in our hearts," but more importantly He is also in our minds, if we can just but quiet our thoughts and listen.
I think you need to remain a sleeper agent. Stay inside academia so you can observe and confront the Marxism. It will be tough, and I know first hand how frustrating it will be, I'm not in acedemia but a parallel leftist institution.
War? No one knows. Stay prepared and do what you can when you can. Not every soldier fights on the front lines, and I think judging by this site and the rallies we have quite a few of front line volunteers.
You might feel a bit less anxious for answers when this current issue is resolved.
It can be dangerous to put yourself into a position where you have to suppress who you are to make a living. Not everyone has this luxury and often decide to suck it up and separate work and home life. In my experience, you really never keep it separate, which over time builds up into apathy or waiting for vacations. It could have other issues in your life. In the past, you could live well with an income like that and it made choices easier, still not immune though.
You could always take that degree and become a commissioned officer and your family would be cared for. If this call to duty is something you really need to meet head on if the time comes, you don’t want to be one of us out here in the towns and cities. It will be a mess and nobody will know who’s on who’s team. It won’t play out like most people think it will, not good. Join the service while you can and let them pay for the rest of your schooling and maybe teach in there, just a suggestion. Military pensions for officers are nothing to complain about either.
You describe how most people feel without the specifics of your life. We’re in a transition phase in the culture and it was a long time coming. We had the warm blanket pulled off us at the right moment and woke up to the cold hard truth, just in time.
Most institutions are having an issue with adapting, churches are no exception. It’s going to be this way for awhile and maybe a few years. The next phase will be vaccinated vs non vaccinated. Insurance companies force risk analysis on everyone and every business, COVID dictates policy and response. Nobody wants to be in litigation for this and will have hard choices to make. So, expect the crazy to continue on for awhile.
Either way, we will have military conflict in the future. Be at home or abroad, it’s just the way we are at this point in history. Sharing those values you talk about is what we all think will keep the republic alive and going forward. Finding the niche for balance and fulfillment is the promise land for us all.
Just take a deep breath and relax,take it easy.Be grateful that you are alive and are seeing such big events unfolding in your lifetime. God surely has a path for you and he will guide you to it.
The mentor that I mentioned who doesn't understand Trump but has been a conservative his whole life. He was my teacher for several years and has become a close friend, but I had to move out of state to get into a doctoral program. He is a therapist and professor, I modeled my career path from him.
I’m 55 years old. Three months ago I was trying to figure out what to tell the many people in situations like yours. I still don’t have answers but I feel that is unacceptable. I must be able to answer your questions, so I’m going to try.
First, what is the potential magnitude of our current situation? When we are terrified of voicing our political opinions for fear of having our careers destroyed or even literally losing our lives then we are no longer free. That alone tells me I must fight.
But then I look at what has transpired many times in history when that freedom had been taken away, and things get much worse. For instance, you could not speak against the nazi party. Within just a few short years millions of innocent men, women and children had been murdered. Prior to the nazi party people were living just like you and your family are living now. This was not some ancient barbaric civilization. My parents were alive while this took place and they’re still alive today. We are essentially still the same human beings. Yes, it could happen again and it could happen here.
When I put the current pieces together I believe I’m seeing an effort to turn America into something that resembles communist China. It feels like a global mafia is in charge and the Chinese model is best for business.
Well, you’re not free to speak against the party in that model either. Just like you could not in Soviet Russia. Both of these governments have murdered 10’s of millions of people, all within the last one hundred years, all because these people disagreed with or stood in the way of the party’s plans of creating a better world.
Will that happen here? We don’t know. But what is clear is that it absolutely COULD happen here. 1.5 billion people live under this model in China. Right now. Why not the remaining few billions of us?
At what stage of this process would you have decided to take action or make a stand? Those that waited too long were simply killed.
So I conclude that I must be fighting and I must be fighting now.
Many Jewish families did not close their eyes to what was transpiring in Germany in the late ‘30’s and they packed up and left. Others kept their eyes closed until they walked under their own power right into the showers at places like Auschwitz, believing the nazi lies every step of the way.
It’s also true that 10’s of millions of non-Jewish German citizens went about their lives as though everything was fine, many of them even being convinced that the Jewish people deserved what was being done to them.
The situation is more morally difficult for us. A Jewish person could not become a non-Jewish person. And there’s nowhere for us to go. We could “simply” choose not to be Trump supporters, or not to be Christians who are also in the crosshairs. Although under the current Chinese system, people would also have to choose not to be Muslim, not to be gay, etc., etc., and to not ever disagree with the party about anything.
We know that Muslim Uyghurs are being forced into re-education camps today, right now. We know that the CCP will execute political dissidents, branding them as enemies of the state and sending a bill for the cost of the bullet to the person’s family. I believe the stories are credible of live organ harvesting being performed on such prisoners, with those organs being sold on the black market.
I am not really a religious person. I believe in God in a way that I have not been able to get others to understand. But I have very strong faith in the concepts of individual liberty, that all people are created equal. That the words In God We Trust mean that we shall not be subjugated by another human being. That power is reserved to God alone, whether that be a Christian God, a Muslim God, a Hindu God, or otherwise, even if God is something that exists within your own heart and is difficult to describe as it does and is for me.
I believe that allowing my voice, my thoughts, my religion, to be controlled by other human beings is tantamount to abandoning my faith. That it invites evil into my life and renders me spiritually dead. Which, for me, is little different than actually being dead.
So I have chosen not to allow it. To not be afraid of it. When I was afraid of wearing my maga hat in public, I was allowing myself to be subjugated by the will of other human beings. I was no longer free and thus essentially already dead.
I was standing on a corner with my Trump flag when someone driving by hucked a solid chunk of aluminum at me, face full of hate and rage like they wanted me dead. They missed and hit the electrical box I was standing next to. I was standing on a corner with my flag the next day.
When Lee Keltner was murdered about 20 miles away from me here in Colorado my dad called me the next day begging me to buy a bulletproof vest. I never bought a vest. I became more careful and more aware of my surroundings but I was out the next day standing alongside the highway with my flag.
Why? Because it means I am free and not subjugated by fear induced by other human beings. If I die in this pursuit, I believe I will leave behind a family that will be proud of me, and that that will have a more positive effect on them than perhaps anything else I could do.
But something I have learned in this journey; It has not been nearly as dangerous as my previous fear suggested. I am still alive and in one piece. I feel ashamed that this is what I was afraid of.
So I am not going to meld into the controlled population so that I can be safe. My heart won’t let me. I would be living a lie because I cannot unsee the things I have seen.
I encourage you to keep fighting, to never let yourself be subjugated by fear induced by another human being. Pursue the career that you have admirably worked so hard towards. But speak your mind when you disagree and when you see things being done that you feel are wrong. And never, ever allow someone to intimidate you over support for the political candidate that you feel is the best choice. Be the best you can be in your profession. That will help tremendously in allowing you to speak your mind.
Inaction and submission are absolutely capable of producing consequences for you and your family just as bad or worse than what could occur because you are standing strong.
Be smart about it, use discretion, do not be reckless, but do not let fear allow you to abandon yourself.
This will make you a leader, even if you feel like you have no followers, and that path will not always be pleasant. But the feeling of freedom I have now that the fear is gone is indescribable, and worth every bit of pain.
Keep posting information. Go to every rally you can. Every full bucket is populated by individual drops. If you took the individual drops away the bucket would be empty.
Be the best you can be and never, ever stop loving your family. We will see what the future holds for us. There is much that is out of our control, but we are lost if we allow that to let us shy away from trying to shape that future to the best of our ability.
This is the best I can offer at this time. I hope it is helpful. (It helped ME to write all this so your questions have been humbly appreciated.)
#1 Only you can determine this, no one else can possibly know the correct decision for you to make but you. Additionally, there is always a place for those who speak against the status quo in the sciences, but you will be met with copious amounts of hostility and persecution for your conviction of seeking truth. It takes a very special kind of person to fill this role, but you certainly wouldn't be alone if you chose to make that sacrifice.
#2 I'm not sure if you're a man of faith, but if you do believe in a higher power, then you must, by all logic and reason, trust that Goodness will always prevail. With that in mind, follow your conscience, as it is remarkable at guiding one in the right direction in difficult circumstances. There may come a time when you know the right thing to do is to lay your life down for your country, because it is necessary for your children to be free. However, it won't do you any good to dwell on the potential for war, and the horrors that come with it at this point in time. Be ready, but don't attune yourself with those negative thoughts. Have faith that if it does come to it (which at this point is entirely uncertain it will), your loved ones will be cared for.
#3 I loathe having to go to NY, personally. You can practically feel the heaviness and spiritual vacancy in that city with every breath. The all-consuming egoism that pervades every corner, with so few people spending even a moment a day thinking about other people. Unfortunately, it is, as you well know, often necessary to be there. That being the case, I would highly recommend not being overtly political in that city -- and to treat it like visiting another country, because in essence, it is. You can have a positive affect around you without invoking politics by simply being a Light for those around you who so desperately need it. Remember that our political battle is an EFFECT of a greater battle, and that our political alignments are an EFFECT of our mental conditions.
Ultimately, only you can decide what is right for you and your family, as these decisions are an essential component to life and why we are on this Earth in the first place. But I promise that if you seek God (whatever your conception of God may be), Peace and tranquility, and look for the Goodness and Truth in all things, these decisions will be much easier to make and know that you're making the right one.
Thank you for providing such detail. I am a man of faith, my wife and I are both Latter-Day Saints (but we do not support RINO Romney). The church is a very big part of our daily lives even though we have to sign up a month in advance for Sundays.
No need to thank, and that's good to hear. Just to reiterate because it is so very important for EVERYONE: Seek God, Peace and tranquility and always look for the Goodness and Truth in everything, because it's always there. In all evil you may come across, there is always a glimmer of goodness, and even in the most fallacious lies, you can find a sliver of Truth.
And I'll add that when you seek God, seek Him within. It is commonly said that "God is in our hearts," but more importantly He is also in our minds, if we can just but quiet our thoughts and listen.
Best of luck on your journey!
I would teach Marriage and Family Therapy. I don't know precisely what MFT courses I would be assigned until I get hired.
We need MAGA fighers in academia! Sounds very useful to me!
Thank you. I know it has the potential to be useful.
I think you need to remain a sleeper agent. Stay inside academia so you can observe and confront the Marxism. It will be tough, and I know first hand how frustrating it will be, I'm not in acedemia but a parallel leftist institution.
War? No one knows. Stay prepared and do what you can when you can. Not every soldier fights on the front lines, and I think judging by this site and the rallies we have quite a few of front line volunteers.
Keep on keeping on.
You make it sound like there are just too many variables to predict right now and you're almost certainly correct.
You might feel a bit less anxious for answers when this current issue is resolved.
It can be dangerous to put yourself into a position where you have to suppress who you are to make a living. Not everyone has this luxury and often decide to suck it up and separate work and home life. In my experience, you really never keep it separate, which over time builds up into apathy or waiting for vacations. It could have other issues in your life. In the past, you could live well with an income like that and it made choices easier, still not immune though.
You could always take that degree and become a commissioned officer and your family would be cared for. If this call to duty is something you really need to meet head on if the time comes, you don’t want to be one of us out here in the towns and cities. It will be a mess and nobody will know who’s on who’s team. It won’t play out like most people think it will, not good. Join the service while you can and let them pay for the rest of your schooling and maybe teach in there, just a suggestion. Military pensions for officers are nothing to complain about either.
You describe how most people feel without the specifics of your life. We’re in a transition phase in the culture and it was a long time coming. We had the warm blanket pulled off us at the right moment and woke up to the cold hard truth, just in time.
Most institutions are having an issue with adapting, churches are no exception. It’s going to be this way for awhile and maybe a few years. The next phase will be vaccinated vs non vaccinated. Insurance companies force risk analysis on everyone and every business, COVID dictates policy and response. Nobody wants to be in litigation for this and will have hard choices to make. So, expect the crazy to continue on for awhile.
Either way, we will have military conflict in the future. Be at home or abroad, it’s just the way we are at this point in history. Sharing those values you talk about is what we all think will keep the republic alive and going forward. Finding the niche for balance and fulfillment is the promise land for us all.
Just take a deep breath and relax,take it easy.Be grateful that you are alive and are seeing such big events unfolding in your lifetime. God surely has a path for you and he will guide you to it.
Not older, not wiser pede here. Who has been your mentor or role model up until this point when you decided to go into therapy and/or teaching?
The mentor that I mentioned who doesn't understand Trump but has been a conservative his whole life. He was my teacher for several years and has become a close friend, but I had to move out of state to get into a doctoral program. He is a therapist and professor, I modeled my career path from him.