With our cities burning and our way of life being threatened, it’s time for those of us who value traditional American principles to speak bold truth in love. I say love, because it is out of love for people and country that I write these words. Our culture is at a philosophical crossroad and the struggle is much larger than political parties, geographic boundaries, or racial lineages. It’s about our future together and what principles will guide us as a people. Of course, those creating so much havoc also claim to be about people and the future, but their actions reveal otherwise. Below are five reasons I believe leftist ideology is destructive and five ways I believe we can make a difference in our personal spheres of influence:

1. Leftist ideology favors control – whether politically, socially, or academically, as leftist achieve power, the demands for conformity increase under threat of punishment for those who resist (the collective as opposed to individual liberty).
2. Leftist ideology uses dishonest narratives – through the use of technics such as “framing” and “deconstruction”, the promoters revise history (even as it happens in real time) to create a narrative for the purpose of further an agenda (such as demonizing historical figures, interpreting/reinterpreting events and ignoring certain portions altogether).
3. Leftist ideology rejects dissent – through various methods of intimidation, dissent to the leftist narrative on things such as climate, race, gender, economics, and history is routinely silenced through classification as “hate speech” or “denial” (as opposed to being welcomed in civil debate).
4. Leftist ideology undermines the rule of law – under the claims of inequality, laws are often rejected on the grounds of being “unfair” or “racist” which destabilizes communities and suppresses personal advancement while leaving the most vulnerable exposed to those who would take advantage of them.
5. Leftist ideology weakens our economic system – through the Marxist method of stirring class-envy, capitalism is being recast as fundamentally flawed (as opposed to the truth of it being a system that has elevated more from poverty than any other system in history).

While recognizing the previous five, here are five ways we can make a difference in the lives of those we influence:

1. Make a difference by valuing people’s God-given right to liberty – be one who values peoples’ opinion and their freedom to conduct their lives as they see fit within a civil society (and say so).
2. Make a difference by being a person of truth – whether personally, academically, or vocationally, be one who seeks the truth. An essential to arriving at solutions for any challenge or inequity is to do the due-diligence and discover the truth (and say so).
3. Make a difference by being open to disagreement – having a strong opinion can be a good thing, but we must demonstrate to those around us that we are open to civil debate and philosophical challenge. It is possible to disagree without becoming enemies (and say so).
4. Make a difference by appreciating the rule of law – we live under a system that will always be imperfect but is designed to promote stability for people to pursue their dreams and not be threatened by other citizens or their government. If there are points of true injustice, then be a promoter of change (and say so).
5. Make a difference by supporting capitalism – there is no perfect economic system but one that allows people to make their own economic decisions concerning risk, investments, and careers has proven to be successful for the most people. Yes, there is potential for cronyism and inequity in all systems, which means we should demand economic liberty for all people, not just those well-connected or favored (and say so).

Silence may be the path of least resistance but let history record that we rejected it and spoke, wrote, taught, preached, posted, and shared the truth in our time.