Dakota Beacon

Recently, actor-cum-commentator Ben Stein was condemned in media for touting the “progress” the U.S. has made and saying that black Americans “never had it so good.” One website called his remarks a “racist rant” even though he was, in keeping with his personality, just calmly expressing his opinion. The worst thing about this story, though, isn’t that Stein may become a cancel-culture casualty.

There are several states which are now basically rogue territory - where children can be legally kidnapped from their parents and abused, mutilated and left to suffer . . . and parents are helpless.  There can be no worse torture than to see your child abused and be denied the right to protect him.  That is a parent's prmary job.  These laws are denying children their childhood, they are robbing parents of their fundamental right to care for and protect them and to impart their beliefs and values.  What will be next?  After physically mutilating children everything else seems anti-climactic, but any views or values held by parents that they wish to share with their own kids are now likely to become contraband as well.  It is the death of civilization in America.  And this does not affect merely the children in these states - it potentially endangers children anywhere in the U.S.  This legislation must be stopped.  Tomorrow, in Minnesota, there will be a vote on just such a bill - HB-146.  It must be stopped.  Whether you reside in Minnesota or not, this affects you and your rights.  We must all take action to end this abuse now.

Another Saint Patrick’s Day has come and gone and with it the frills and falderal of superficiality. However, for descendants of the Irish who know their history, Saint Patrick’s Day becomes a significant commemoration. Looking past the silly tales of leprechauns, shamrocks, and green beer exists the account of a people’s struggle and triumph. The Irish offer a superb example of how a persecuted people with a fighting spirit can succeed against all odds enduring centuries of mistreatment. Irishmen can thank their patron saint not so much for driving snakes off the island but for sustaining their faith through centuries of hardship.

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In an act of breathtaking arrogance and high-handedness, the Grand Forks City Council rejected a petition from Grand Forks citizens deeply concerned about its planned project to establish a supposed wet corn milling plant under control of Communist China, next door to the Air Base which has been a major sustaining element in the City for nearly 70 years.   When, belatedly, the Air Force finally bothered to look at the national security implications of this ill-advised project and gave it their thumbs-down, the City Council was left holding the bag.  They need to be held accountable.  A vote would have cleared the air and spread the blame around if the city had won the vote.  As it stands, the people were ridden over and their voice silenced in the city government's haste to satisfy their greed for this.  If a threatened lawsuit is undertaken by the Chinese-controlled company, justice would demand that those who said "no" to the vote really ought to bear the entire cost for this personally.  This is how we can make government responsive.

Last week, I spoke with a lifelong friend. He has lived in western Canada for almost 50 years, and he was in Phoenix staying at the home of another lifelong friend. Rick flew to Phoenix to arrange for knee-replacement surgery. This was interesting from the perspective that several decades ago, he had spoken enthusiastically about Canada’s government-run “free health care” system. (Note: Of course, the health care system isn’t free. It is financed via taxation. But the out-of-pocket expense for any treatment—what we economists call “the marginal cost”—is essentially zero, i.e., free.)

So, if Canada provides surgery for free, why would Rick fly all the way to Phoenix where, as he had been told earlier via telephone, he would have to pay $25,000 for the operation? The answer is obvious to anyone who understands Economics 101: If a price is held below the market-clearing price where supply meets demand, there will be an excess of demand over supply—in plain English, a shortage.

We are relentlessly being herded to the brink of nuclear war with Russia.  Why??  Who is making the big bucks on this?  Or is it just basically a path to more government power grabbing at the expense of our freedom here?  All we know for sure is that there is absolutely no good reason for one American dollar or one American bullet or one American life to be spent in Ukraine.

English long ago established itself as a rich, versatile, and descriptive language. I used to tell my granddaughter, “Play with words. But when you are done, clean them off and put them back on the shelf.”

Definition of farce: a comic dramatic work using buffoonery, horseplay, and typically including crude characterizations and ludicrously improbable situations. Synonyms include parody, mockery, and sham.

Definition of sham: a thing that is not what it purports to be. Synonyms include pretense, false, and phony.

Now, witness the coming together of two recent news events. Then invoke your verbal poison. First consider the piecemeal drip, drip, drip of the Twitter files released by Elon Musk.

“A pox on both their houses,” we may say, when wishing both sides in a contest could lose. I surely feel this way, too, with the “transgender” vs. feminist debate over men masquerading as female entering women’s sports and private spaces.

Oh, I don’t fence-sit. Not only have I likely written more pieces on preposterous “transgenderism” than most any other commentator, but I even reject the term and coined a more accurate characterization of the phenomenon — the MUSS (Made-up Sexual Status) agenda. Yet I also know this:

While leftists may call that agenda a men’s-rights-movement monster, the foundation for it absolutely was laid by feminists.

With a nation in obvious decline, reeling under unimaginable debt, crime and drugs out of control, hideous porn being pushed on our elementary school children, the virtual elimination of our own borders, warmongering and terrorist behavior undertaken by our own government, our people becoming injured and dying from experimental vaccines and their mandates, soaring inflation, record lows in military recruitment, our reputation on the world stage in tatters and the erosion of our rights as American citizens under our sacred Constitution before our very eyes, one would think that the time is ripe for the mother of all backlashes.  The Republican Party has never been in a better position to score and be the instrument of America's salvation.  The problem is that although the will to fight back is in the people, party leadership is running interference in the cynical belief that they know better - we just are too simple and unsophisticated to be trusted.   And the problem with that, is that their practices and policies have served no one better than their Democrat "opposition".

In June, members of the United Nations observe the International Day of Family Remittances. This day receives little attention in the United States—a day that recognizes more than 200 million migrant workers, women and men, who send money home to over 800 million family members. In this article, Dr. John Sparks details remittances and argues that governments in the countries of the recipient families must resist the temptation to tax the money. He writes, “Taxing and excessive regulation of these remittance providers will stall the engine of private, migrant-funded aid that will continue to help reduce poverty in many nations.”  

Daylight savings time (DST) represents a bi-partisan legislative effort providing for an artificial determination of time, a hodgepodge at best. In the US, DST begins the second Sunday in March and reverts to standard time the first Sunday in November. Exceptions: Hawaii and Arizona do not observe DST -- but the Navajo Nation in Arizona does.

If anyone should be held accountable for DST, Ben Franklin of kites-and-lightning fame must accept the credit or take the blame. Mr. Franklin conceived the idea while in Paris. One morning, rudely awakened by a noise at 6:00 a.m., he was amazed to find his room filled with light. Even more amazing was the amount of daylight lost to those traditionally arising around noon. His idea struck him like a bolt of lightning, so to speak. Whimsically he wrote of his idea in “Journal de Paris” going so far as to calculate potential monetary savings if people arose earlier and capitalized on existing daylight.

Graf Otto Von Bismarck famously observed that we should not see laws or sausages being made.  I would not disagree.  I would add to that. We should not see the machinations of the Minnesota State Republican organziation.  The people of northwestern Minnesota deserve better.

Between August 1964 and February 1973, during the Vietnam era, more than 1.8 million men were drafted. Currently, there is no draft. But, if there were a draft, almost all men aged between 18 and 25 who are US citizens or immigrants living in the US will be required to register with a few exceptions. To date, there has been little interest by Congress to reinstate the draft. BUT -- Congress can do so at any time.

The end of “universal” conscription in 1973 also ended military service as we knew it. Eliminating the draft in 1973 had little to do with national security and everything to do with domestic politics. It was a political ploy by the American Right against the American anti-war Left and the ploy worked. With the end of the draft, the anti-war movement collapsed.

Just how much economic ignorance is compatible with human flourishing? We may soon find out. In this article, economist Dr. Caleb Fuller details recent headlines that demonstrate a wide range of economic illiteracy. Fuller uses the example of rent control to highlight many fallacies. He writes, “You’ll search high and low before finding an economist who believes rent control exhibits a tight link between intentions and outcomes.”

A discussion of Milton’s classic “Paradise Lost” came to my attention simply due to providence. I had begun to write my review of Ibram Kendi’s bestselling book, “How to be an Antiracist”, but was jolted from that task by the Epoch Times article that perfectly set up the book review in a way that I never could have on my own. Devine Intervention has permeated my life so there is no reason it should not arrive abruptly at this endeavor.

This week I caught myself gazing lackadaisically out of the window with a cup of coffee in hand. Spring, the eventual conqueror, will soon break forth in all her glory. One of Robert Browning’s sonnets begins, “How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.” Forgive the personification, but that’s how much I love spring.

Life stirs in spring and the Great Outdoors takes on verve and vitality. Forgotten sounds of kids playing outside, lawn mowers mowing, and birds singing all signal the cycle of the seasons. All life displays a new zest for living.

In Part One, Grove City College Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Peter Frank ’95 detailed how Grove City College is expanding a commitment to the liberal arts as the foundation of the student experience. In Part Two, Frank examines Grove City College’s historic commitment to freedom and how this commitment is purposely conveyed to each generation of students through the unique core curriculum. He writes, “Freedom to act is a necessary condition for a prosperous society, but it is not sufficient alone for a virtuous one. The cultivation of a moral framework, enhanced by a Christian liberal arts education, is what will lead to the actions that build a thriving society.”

The tax man’s near, and soon is here, and all must pay their due;

From each his wealth will extract a pelf -- oh my, it makes us blue.

Some taxes sure are necessary, but many of them are not;

Each person stands as their own tax base, it’s really all they’ve got.

Taxes were spent, and where they went, were for entitlements;

Most were bequeathed on “entitlees” claiming impoverishment.

Confessions of Modern Day Patriot

I have a confession to make… I love history!

I had a conversation with a historian friend of mine and he shared with me the power of Calvin Coolidge speech given on the 150th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence... Please do me a favor and read this... could be one of the most powerful messages in the history of our Great Republic!

Every February, the nation celebrates Black History Month to honor the triumphs and struggles of African Americans throughout history. In this article, scholar Dr. Gary Scott Smith highlights one man who helped build a better America: Jackie Robinson. Smith writes, “Robinson’s legacy is extraordinary because it consists of a Hall of Fame baseball career, a pioneering role in promoting civil rights, and the creation of several businesses that benefited African Americans. Inspired by his Christian faith, Robinson helped smash racial barriers not only on the baseball diamond but also in politics, business, religion, and society.”

I'm not making any promises, but I thought it would be fun to return just this once to my Sunday specials.  I was inspired by a movie.

Once in a blue moon someone comes out with a movie that is really worth the time to see.  I'd say Puss in Boots "The Last Wish" falls into that category.  It's not only a colorful adventure story based on the classic fairytale character, it is a poignant statement about what is important in life - when you have only one to live.  There's a lot more along the way in terms of witty dialogue and clever supporting characters.  It's worth it just for Goldilocks and the Three Bears.  It ain't woke, quite the opposite - it's fun, with a moral to it, and great entertainment.  What's not to like?  A love story, an attempted heist, a really scary villain (or two) and some great swashbuckling action.  Go see it!  

To show partiality in judgment is not good. Proverbs 24:23

There is nothing more dangerous to authoritarianism than a principle applied impartially.

Authoritarianism thrives on group bias. Thus, one of the cures for authoritarianism is a willingness to be fair to your opponents, to judge both your own group and their group with the same lens. Like a fungus exposed to constant fresh air, authoritarianism simply cannot survive when a sustained principle is fairly applied to all sides. The danger of authoritarianism is one of the many reasons that to show partiality in judgment is not good.

Quietly dawns the day -- Valentine’s Day -- awakening tender thoughts of love. As if a prelude to spring, affectionate hearts begin to warm.

Without dramatic fanfare, how does one distinguish between real love and mere physical attraction or infatuation?

Be careful how you answer! Listening ears might be seeking a simple friendship rather than a relationship with a rose.

The world was shocked by Nazi Germany’s “final solution”, implemented in 1941 and preceded by increasingly draconian measures to punish innocent people for being Jews.  The intention of this effort was to eliminate 11 million Jews.  In the event, they were able to kill only about 6 million.  The world dealt with these criminals in the famous Nuremburg Trials.  We thought we had closed the book on such genocide.  We were wrong.  The pharmaceutical industry, led by Pfizer and similar companies, is now committing genocide - to use the normal definition of that term and apply it to the words of the proponents of various vaccines.  It turns out that the plan all along was to kill, not protect, people.  The chilling, off-hand remarks of Dr. Carol Baker should be enough to send her to prison for life if not worse.  Her words leave no doubt of the intent.  And she is but one.

This is urgent!  Call your Minnesota senator and call on them to vote NO on the "Zero Carbon Electricity by 2040 Bill"!

We wish our favorite writers would live forever. But alas, they are mortal. Fortunately, their words live on.

The great historian, Paul Johnson, passed away on January 12, 2023 at the age of 94.

I own several of his books, at least his more important ones and I dip into them occasionally. Johnson, British by birth, was an author and journalist who wrote prolifically producing more than 50 books. Notably, he fell in love with America. At one time he wrote a weekly essay for “The Spectator” and was a frequent contributor to the “Daily Telegraph,” the “New York Times,” the “Wall Street Journal,” and other newspapers and magazines.

Debt ceiling time rolls around again with all the drama of a Greek tragedy. And the media cabal offers a mesmerizing kaleidoscope of confusing factoids and disinformation.

The discussion focuses on raising the debt limit as if it were the self-evident responsible thing to do. Politicians keep emphasizing America must “honor its obligation.” This would be like a long-term heroin addict lecturing his suppliers that the responsible thing is to keep giving him heroin. Advocates of big spending in both parties (but especially Democrats) get away with implying that THEY are the morally and fiscally responsible ones by proposing raising the debt limit. But raising the debt limit is like raising the limit on a long-since maxed out credit card. If you knew somebody who makes $50,000 a year and had $700,000 racked up on his credit card, would you tell him that the responsible thing is to raise his credit card limit — immediately?

America must “honor its obligations?” We’re talking DEBT here. Isn’t the way to honor your debt obligation to simply start paying it off? And how is it you start paying it off by deeming an arbitrary increase in the amount you allow yourself to borrow? That’s insanity!

For the past decade, the American culture—and higher education in particular—have been pushing greater and greater specialization and a focus on job-skill training. While these skills are important for society, the question arises: have the liberal arts been pushed aside? Not at Grove City College. In this article, Grove City College Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs Dr. Peter Frank ’95 details how the College is expanding a commitment to the liberal arts as the foundation of the student experience. He writes, “rather than abandoning our rich heritage centered on the classical liberal arts, we are not only safeguarding that heritage, but strengthening it.”