Last week, Wall Street Journal Features have been released Ideological disparities in the boroughs of southeastern Pennsylvania – I happened to live there. This article presents photos of Elizabethtown High School, about half a mile from my home, with groups of teenagers and adult organizers going out and asking for greater awareness of transgender identity. The report says the borough is “tearing” over “preferred pronouns.”
One protester held signs of laughing at churches opposing the left-wing political agenda. Rev. Doug Lamb, of the nearby Lifegate Church, is openly open about enabling trans athletes to participate in women's sports. Evangelical Protestants are at the forefront of this battle.
On the right, you should not wait for a leftist attack to signal its presence. Instead of retreating into silence, the local right must match the level of commitment on the left.
Their behaviorism played a key role in banning contact sports for trans athletes in the recent 8-1 vote on the local school board. The board has a history of conservative attitudes, including a resolution in the 1990s that praised “traditional families.” At the time, board members denounced union members for promoting “promotion of parent-child relationships” “against their parents' wishes.”
For years I have written about the culture war at the northwest corner of Lancaster County, a region known for the large Amish crowd. This is not a fight on the side that matches evenly. Most of my neighbors are conservative Protestants, and the town overwhelmingly votes for Republicans. Donald Trump won his hand in the election last November, and Republican Rep. Lloyd Smucker takes pride in his Amish ancestors – wins big in these parts.
If conservatives were in the minority, there would not be any cultural conflict in Elizabethtown. If this is Waltham, Massachusetts, or Portland, Maine, rights have little effect. Leftists are excellent at making their enemies uncomfortable and forcing them to hide their beliefs. They are also far more merciless to push their vision into everyone's faces.
Around this point, traditionalists are intermittently involved in the cultural battles unfolding on the left. Progressives are always in a state of mobilization, but rights tend to focus on other aspects of life. It's about attending church society, maintaining the lawn and going to Little League matches. The Wall Street Journal reports that local rights people are energised by having a president who supports them, but they should not resort to Washington's help.
Even before last year's election, the left wing, despite being significantly outstripped, has at least as many Kamala Harris signs as Trump's signs. The Trump signs were routinely disappearing overnight, but the Democrats remained untouched.
I've noticed something else over the years This asymmetric conflict. Social progressives show far more popularity than enemies, even when they enjoy numerical edges. Between the left-wing extremists at our university, union teachers at local schools, and the suffering feminists in my neighborhood, I will never hide where they came from. In fact, these extremists want everyone to know where they stand, even if you don't want to hear.
My conservative neighbor takes a different approach. If they speak openly, they hesitate to share their political views, fearing that they will lose friends and clients. The boldest statement they make is often a bland lawn sign that shows “we support the police.”
But in the Turkey Hill store, no one under the block hides their mag's loyalty. The same applies to some high school dropouts and others who are slightly below our notion of social respect. Fundamentalists also acknowledge their support for Trump, but their support is often a reminder that we live in the end.
On the right, you should not wait for a leftist attack to signal its presence. Instead of retreating into silence, conservatives should provide not only biblical references but also clear and rational arguments about progressive ideology.
More importantly, the local right must match the level of commitment on the left. Don't hide your opinion! There's a middle ground between bullying neighbors and acting like a scary cat. Rather than responding only when forced to protect traditional family values, conservatives should be spoken as openly as leftists are their own.
In particular, we need to make it clear to the other side that we deserve our “safe space.” The awakened left is already in control, and in some cases, it is clearly charging in most of the country's densely populated areas. We don't need our borough as an extra trophy.
