- LeBron James: Tweets photo of cop who shot 16-year-old Columbus, OH knife-wielder, with caption “You’re next.” Next for what – jail or death? LeBron doesn’t say.
- Valerie Jarrett, Obama advisor: Young people get into knife fights, not a source of concern. But knives kill more people that rifles of all types, including “assault rifles,” so why not be concerned?
- Jen Psaki, White House Press Secretary: Cop is example of “systematic racism.” But female in pink whom cop saved from being stabbed was also Black. Isn’t it racist not to be concerned with her life
- LATimes Op-Ed: Teen was big, cop may have felt threatened, used gun. Doesn’t mention knife at all.
We can argue with real liberals about methods and goals. But how can we argue with leftists – also called progressives – like these fonts of wisdom? Methods and goals are relevant only to a specific problem – for example, youth crime. There is no point in arguing about methods and goals if we cannot agree on basic facts. There is no point in discussing anything at all if we cannot first agree on what planet we inhabit.
On Planet Earth, tweeting a photo with “You’re next” is an obvious threat, but on Planet Left it’s just legitimate criticism.
On Planet Earth, young people attacking one another with deadly weapons are of great concern. But on Planet Left, it’s just “kids will be kids.”
On Planet Earth, it’s racist to show indifference to the life of a Black teen being attacked with a knife. But on Planet Left, it’s racist to stop the attack.
On Planet Earth, when a teen backs another teen against a car with one hand, and lunges forward with a knife in the other hand, it’s natural to be alarmed. But on Planet Left, it must be the girl’s size that was alarming.
For better or worse, we inhabit Planet Earth. Here, we must find practical solutions to serious problems. Planet Left exists only in the fevered imaginations of progressives. There, all problems can be solved with generous doses of leftist ideology. Can the inhabitants of these two planets communicate in any meaningful way? I don’t know, but we have a solemn obligation to try.
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