Preserving American Values

Our nation stands under attack … not from without but from within. American values, our politics, and our culture have been corrupted.

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Websites: www.westillholdthesetruths.weebly.com; www.preservingamericanvalues.com; www.thepracticalbuddhist.com. A graduate of Brown U. and U. of Chicago Law School, I’ve had a varied career as a legal aid lawyer, survey researcher, nonprofit executive, management consultant, composer, teacher, and author. I have authored 7 books on topics as varied as Buddhism, child rearing, and politics, the latter of which received a pre-publication endorsement from James Fallows, National Correspondent, The Atlantic. My Buddhist blog was selected as one of the top 50 Buddhist blogs on the web.

Category: The Trump Factor

  • Trump’s Different “Big” Government

    When Trump assumed the presidency again, one of his stated aims was to make government smaller, whether by getting rid of Federal employees, cutting “unnecessary” allocated funds and grants, or limiting the scope of the government’s work. So on the one hand, Trump and his MAGA allies are very anti-Federal traditional big government. And Trump…

  • Trump Scorecard: Week 9/21-9/27

    A while ago, I suggested that one thing the Democratic Party should do to counter Trump is to have a weekly new conference to highlight what Trump has done during the previous week that harms the people or endangers the country.  Democrats have not adopted my idea, so I’ve decided to put together my own…

  • Remove Prescription Drug Advertising

    At last the Trump administration is taking action that I approve of.  He has issued a memorandum that will in effect remove advertising of prescription drugs on TV, returning to a policy that was in effect until the 1990s. What is the purpose of these ads?  The pharmaceuticals industry would say that it’s important that…

  • Tyler Robinson Sounds Like a Good Christian Boy

    In the texts cited by the prosecutors in charging Tyler Robinson for the murder of Charlie Kirk, while he clearly did the deed, which in itself is a radical act, there was nothing in the texts that showed he was motivated by radical, progressive, or leftist thinking. Instead, I would call his thinking very Christian,…

  • Who Has Free Speech Rights? Kimmel?

    While what Kimmel said regarding the far-right’s reaction to Charlie Kirk’s death may have been partially inaccurate and unnecessarily combative, it certainly did not warrant the FDC Chair’s reaction or ABC’s decision to indefinitely suspend him. What did Kimmel say?  “We hit some new lows over the weekend with the MAGA gang desperately trying to…

  • “It’s the Radical Left” – Trump’s Scapegoating Power Grab

    Scapegoating is an old ruse of authoritarian leaders to get their followers to support action against the minority scapegoated, or even commit crimes themselves against the scapegoated. The Nazi’s used the burning of the Reichstag (the German equivalent of the capitol), which it blamed on a Communist, to convince the German President to issue an…

  • Who Pays Tariffs – Another Big Trump Lie

    The newspapers are full of Trump’s saying that his tariffs are or will bring billions of dollars into the American treasury and thus help pay for many of the measures he is implementing which otherwise would lead to a substantial increase in the nation’s deficit. Yes … but with a big BUT.  During the 1st…

  • Hey Bro! Do You Think Trump Has Your Back?

    This is an open letter to all bros.  You’re angry,. You’re disillusioned. And you have every right to be. The question is, what do you do about it?  How do you do something that’s going to improve your life, your future? Does the answer lie in a political party? Both Republicans and Democrats certainly want…

  • Countering Trump’s Alternate Reality

    It is common in non-Trump circles to describe Trump as an inveterate, congenital liar. Throughout his campaigns and his presidency, his distorted perspective on facts—or outright lies—have been the underpinning of his combative arguments, And his forceful, passionate statements, whether distortions or lies, have become the truth for his followers. All real news and truth…

  • MAGA/IRS Weaponize Religion

    In order to receive the tax benefits of being recognized as a nonprofit organization by the IRS, one of the restrictions required by the Internal Revenue Code is that such organizations are absolutely prohibited from directly or indirectly participating in, or intervening in, any political campaign on behalf of (or in opposition to) any candidate…