by Allen West, Lt. Col. U.S. Army (retired), Chairman of the Republican Party of Texas, and former member of U.S. Congress representing Florida 22nd District.
If you listen to the leftist media outlets, they tell us that our country, America, is a land of racism, not opportunity. They are teaching our children that our beloved Republic started in 1619 when slaves first arrived on these shores. They do not want us to believe that America began on July 4, 1776. These are the same media outlets that would not want you to know that our Republican Party of Texas was founded in Houston, on July 4, 1867 by 150 black men.
My story is that of opportunity. A kid born in 1961 in a blacks-only hospital, Hughes Spalding, in Atlanta. Today, that same fella is a retired Army Lieutenant Colonel, a former member of the U.S. House of Representatives, and now Chairman of the Republican Party of Texas. It is all possible because, here, in America, we are endowed by our Creator, the Judeo-Christian God, with unalienable rights: life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.
The greatest equality we possess in America is the equality of opportunity. That means no matter where you are born, no matter where you come from, you can achieve whatever hopes, dreams, and aspirations your individual will, determination, and drive desire. We are all “dreamers” in America, not just some politically identified demographic.
What is the opposite of our equality of opportunity? The antithesis is the progressive socialist left’s concept — nightmare — of equality of outcomes. Analyze what “social justice” really means: it is the forcible mandate of equality for all or social egalitarianism. That results in a few elites deciding what our outcomes shall be, based solely upon their subjective interpretation, centered on their ideological agenda, of what the elites think is just, right, and equal.
We are all blessed as individuals with our respective talents, gifts, intellect, and exceptionalism. In America, we believe that the individual is sovereign over the institution of government. Progressive socialists take the opposing viewpoint; they see the institution of government as sovereign over the individual. Leftists do not embrace the fundamental American ideal of individual rights. They demand collective subjugation.
How does one subjugate individuals? It is simple: fail to truly educate society and its future generations. Instead, indoctrinate the children and control the culture as well as the media narrative.
This is why Joe Biden has come forward and stated that he will eliminate charter schools. For the left, any competition to their state-controlled indoctrination centers is a threat. As a matter of fact, one of the planks in Karl Marx’s Communist Manifesto was state control of education. This is why the school board member is the most important elected position in our nation. If you do not believe me, just take a look at what is happening in Texas with Austin, San Antonio, and Carrol Independent School Districts. We are well aware of the socialist, Marxist indoctrination happening on our Texas college and university campuses. All this breeds the next generation of leftist radicals, whom we are watching riot and enact violence and chaos on our streets.
Equality of opportunity leads to economic empowerment while equality of outcomes leads to economic enslavement. Equality of opportunity creates victors! Equality of outcomes results in victims. So many have come to America, legally, and found the equality of opportunity. Even those, like my predecessors, who were forcibly brought here to these shores, eventually found equality of opportunity, even under the most horrible conditions.
The progressive socialist left believes that they can guarantee happiness by determining your outcomes. It has always proven unsuccessful and we must reject it again this election cycle, and in the future. Sir Winston Churchill aptly defined socialism: “Socialism is a philosophy of failure, the creed of ignorance, and the gospel of envy; its inherent virtue is the equal sharing of misery.”
Equality of opportunity is the American way. Equality of outcomes just ends up with equal sharing of misery because no government can guarantee your happiness.