As Joe Biden’s dementia becomes increasingly difficult to hide, the Left (by which I mean the media) is doing what you’d expect. Projecting. There has been an increase in chatter about Trump’s mental health, which proves what? Joe is nuts, and there’s no hiding it.

Distract, distract, distract.

As we creep toward November, successive broadsides from a range of third-party actions will attempt to show that Mr. Trump is not mentally competent (among other things) or just dangerous.

We are (each of us) welcome to whatever opinion keeps us warm at night, but the odds are very good that Trump will have enough delegates when the sun rises Wednesday morning. There is no escaping that or this.

New Trump ad absolutely destroys Biden

pic.twitter.com/PWCp2dkUCq

— Alex Bruesewitz (@alexbruesewitz) March 9, 2024

While there is a lot to be said about what you can show people on television if they are not experiencing the hurt the way many Americans do, it won’t be enough. Joe’s public exposure as president is bad, but it is “Joe’s” policies (Democrat policies) that should doom the Left.

It’ll take more than some videos of Joe falling on his face, especially since he won’t be the nominee when the election rolls around, and just about everyone knows it but Joe. So, while it is a neat and necessary trick to show what Democrats will elect (no matter what it does to the country), we need to do more.

I do feel obligated to include the disclaimer that none of that matters if the elections are not cleaned up in key states before November or if the turnout for Trump is not beyond the Left’s ability to steal it. Polling in the margins is not enough, and the Democrats have the Deep State, the Censorship Industrial Complex, the Blob, globalist Western nations, Russia, China, and the media on their side.

We need a plan. Plans within plans.

I have some ideas, but I’m open to suggestions.

 

The post Watching Joe Biden Slap Stick Won’t Win Us The Election In November appeared first on Granite Grok.

This week, my committee met to recommend eleven bills to the full House. Most had gone to the subcommittee, and as usual, we nearly always agreed with the subcommittee recommendation, and most recommendations were unanimous.

HB 1387, my bill on the state building code adoption process, had a minor amendment to allow consideration of a new code one year after it was released rather than two. The difference is that we now require the legislature to act before a new code is effective, and that takes some time.

HB 1285, merging the Board of Podiatry into the Board of Medicine, was killed without much discussion. HB 1486, requiring state procurement to use proxy carbon pricing, was killed because we didn’t want to distort the procurement process by a bad guess on the proxy price – we’d rather wait until a carbon tax or federal control program establishes the appropriate price.

HB 1190, the interstate compact for social workers, was rather a surprise to me. I moved to kill the bill since I believe it’s unconstitutional to sign up to have the compact rules have the force of law in the state before we know the actual rules. Discussion brought out that some members were concerned that the compact had uncontrolled authority to make rules, buy and sell property, and assess fees from member states; others, that the benefits of the compact were oversold and other compacts have not brought the interstate flexibility that the proponents sought. We voted 12-8 to kill the bill; I expect a floor fight.

HB 1271, converting a number of the smaller regulatory boards to advisory boards, had an amendment from the subcommittee that revised the composition of some boards in response to stakeholder concerns. We were examining it when one member, not on the subcommittee, raised the issue that some parts of this bill conflicted with the language in the non-germane amendment to HB 1095, which had been in subcommittee this morning. That would be a totally unacceptable result, so I stopped the discussion on HB 1271 so that the two bills could be compared and each section be addressed in only one bill!

We want to thank Carol McGuire for this Contribution – Please direct yours to Steve@GraniteGrok.com.
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HB 1059, updating the state building codes, had an amendment to include code amendments approved at the January meeting and to set the effective date to July 1. We discussed the updated energy code, and despite some reservations, we approved the update which left the energy code at the current revision. HB 1606, requiring contact information on state agency web pages, was killed as an update to most web pages is in process, and the Department of Information Technology agreed with us that contact information needed to be obvious. (I plan to check a few websites after they’re updated – we can always try a bill next year if necessary.)

HB 1411. requiring state agencies to accept cash payments was not as smooth. The testimony was that all state agencies do accept cash; the sticking point was the all electronic tolls on the Spaulding Turnpike. I had spoken to someone familiar with the toll system, and there are several ways to pay cash for the tolls, but all require some effort; the simplest would be to stop in the EZ Pass office once a week and pay the missed tolls – fees start accruing after eight days. And yes, they accept cash! Nonetheless, some members were concerned about either people who didn’t have bank accounts or preferred to deal in cash or people who were too poor to maintain a balance in their EZ Pass account. The vote was 17-3; I’m not entirely sure what the real issue was since using cash with state agencies doesn’t seem to be a problem.

HB 1272, on occupational license reciprocity, was killed because we had passed a very strong license by endorsement (that is, with a license from another state) bill last year, and the rules implementing it are still in process. HB 1408, a bill to merge and reorganize a number of boards, went to interim study as we wanted to deal with the advisory boards in HB 1271 and other statutory cleanup in HB 1095. This bill could conflict with either of them, and that would be unacceptable. Another round of board mergers and reorganizations should wait until we’ve finished with the current one.

Finally, HB 1222, deleting the requirement for physician assistants to have collaboration agreements with physicians, was discussed at some length. The subcommittee presented an amendment to clarify the Veterans’ Administration’s use of PAs, which was unanimously adopted. There was quite a bit of discussion about the equivalence of PAs and advanced practice nurse practitioners, who are allowed to practice independently. We also discussed problems with the collaboration agreements – some doctors “collaborate” at a distance for a fee; others won’t sign any such agreement since the insurance companies seem to sue the doctors as well, despite the law establishing the professional responsibility of the PAs. (I think the insurers are just going after all the deep pockets they can see!) The Board of Medicine, which had initially opposed the bill, was now “neutral.” Finally, we voted 12-8 to pass the bill.

On Thursday, the House met in session. The first order of business was to suspend all our rules to introduce a bill that would force those accused of felonies (specifically, Adam Montgomery, according to the petitioner) to be present in court. This motion passed 286-67; I voted against it because it seemed petty and specific to one person.

CACR 17, establishing the fundamental right of parents to direct the upbringing, education, and care of their children, was debated and not killed, 174-184. A floor amendment stating that this right “shall not be infringed” was debated and not passed, 173-189. The constitutional amendment was not passed, 180-183; a representative who voted against it has asked for reconsideration, so we will have another shot at it next week. The 60% requirement to put a constitutional amendment on the ballot (where voters must approve it by 2/3) is a hard bar to meet in a closely divided House.

HB 1006, creating a “family access motion” to have the courts enforce parenting time, had a floor amendment to clarify the language; both the amendment and the bill passed on voice votes. HB 1189, criteria for reporting child support delinquencies to federal agencies, had been rejected by the committee because they thought it was only a problem for the one representative who sponsored the bill; after they voted on it, they got information on how many child support delinquencies are reported – over 12,000, and many of them are for quite small amounts of money. It also happens if they get paid biweekly or monthly, and their support is assessed weekly. So, after some debate, the bill was not killed, 174-191, then passed on a voice vote.

HB 1263, allowing parenting coordinators to be used in high-conflict divorce or custody cases, passed without comment. HB 1266, explicitly allowing recording of open family court proceedings by the parties involved, was debated as to the necessity or usefulness of these recordings, then passed, 191-173. It was not reconsidered, 173-192.

HB 1308, parent’s access to children’s library records, was debated as to the possible expense to the libraries, the need for children’s privacy, and the existence of parent-objectionable material in libraries. It was killed 194-170, with 22 Republicans joining all Democrats in opposition. (If given a chance, I would have supported a floor amendment that clarified that only the books currently taken out by a child were included, with no need for a comprehensive list or any record of books read in the library.)

HB 1392, considering the opinion of the child in determining parenting time, was killed, 219-121, after a brief debate that established that judges could already consult with children before finalizing parenting time.

HB 1527, on criminal trespass, actually proposed that a spray of purple paint meant “no trespassing.” It was debated at some length; supporters insisted that it reinforced property rights, while opponents pointed out that violations (randoms spray painting trees on other people’s property) were impossible to police. In addition, it doesn’t offer the nuanced restrictions that current law allows – just “no.” Some opponents pointed out New Hampshire’s long history of common use, such that it’s normal and expected to hunt on your neighbor’s land. The bill was finally killed, 202-161.

HB 1437 would restructure the state Board of Education to include professional educators. It was minimally amended, 178-176, debated, and not passed, 176-190. Indefinite postponement passed 193-173. It is a citizen board, as it has been since initially structured over 100 years ago.

HB 1695, requiring parents to be notified when personally identifiable information is shared with third parties (private contractors providing special education services, for example), was debated, passed 192-173, and not reconsidered 170-195.The opposition was concerned that school personnel might have more paperwork, but that seemed a reasonable expense to me (and most others).

CACR 14, adding a constitutional provision that the state shall maintain and improve a clean and healthful environment, was debated at some length. Supporters wanted a commitment to the environment, opponents felt the state already has one and the rather vague language of this amendment would be problematic. The vote was 197-168 to kill it.

CACR 11, allowing sheriffs to serve out their elected term even after they turned 70, was killed on a voice vote without debate.

HB 1029, exempting some people from needing a license to land crab or lobster (taken in federal or another state’s waters) for personal consumption, was debated over the cost of such a license ($50 or $500 – I heard both!) and the need for state control of such activities. It was killed, 186-179 (I voted in favor.)

HB 1100, on coyote hunting, was tabled, 241-123, before the probably lengthy and unpleasant debate.

HB 1194, amending the definition of a non-communicable disease to one that is not transmitted from person to person, would not require immunization for malaria or Covid. An amendment that left the requirement for tetanus vaccines passed without comment, then the debate began. The bill passed 191-171 and was not reconsidered 171-192. HB 1213, eliminating the requirement for childcare centers to maintain records of immunizations of children in their care, was debated with the opposition concerned that it would decrease the vaccination rate for children if parents no longer have to report vaccination status to their childcare center. Proponents reiterated that the requirement for vaccination was unchanged, but having to maintain this data was a serious problem for childcare agencies, particularly the smaller ones. The bill passed 189-173 and was not reconsidered 172-193.

On a voice vote, we special ordered HB 1250, allowing the creation of village districts that cross town lines for the purpose of protecting water bodies. This was debated, with opponents concerned about the power of these districts to gerrymander themselves, including properties far from the water, and levy new taxes. Village districts within one town are common; waterside communities can form voluntary associations to protect our lakes without needing to form a village district. The bill was not passed, 182-182; not tabled, 182-183; killed, 184-180; and not reconsidered, 179-187.

Voting 336-29, we then special ordered HB 1416, which forbade non-electric vehicles from parking in EV charging spaces. The bill allowed anyone to take a picture of a violator, present the picture to law enforcement, and have a ticket issued – not the normal method of enforcement! Before the debate, we voted 189-176 to indefinitely postpone the bill and any similar ones.

HB 1240, adding eating disorders as a qualifying condition for therapeutic cannabis, was tabled 310-54, in agreement with the majority of the committee and the Therapeutic Cannabis Medical Oversight Board. HB 1482, allowing the sale of human blood and organs so that recipients could pay donors, was tabled 326-38 before the debate.

HB 1660, banning gender reassignment surgery for minors from being covered by the Medicaid program, was debated on the expected issues. It was not tabled, 174-188, passed 193-169, and not reconsidered, 171-192. HB 1706, informed consent for circumcision, went to interim study without comment.

CACR 12, replacing the 1784 word “cherish” with the current meaning of “cherish,” was Dan’s attempt to amend the constitution to trigger the Supreme Court to reconsider their original Claremont decision on school funding, and subsequent decisions as well. He spoke on the importance of having school funding – an inherently political process – decided by the legislature, not the courts. The interesting thing about the debate was that the speakers against it agreed with Dan on the effects of this change; they disagreed on whether it was a desirable change! In any event, the amendment was killed, 188-171.

HB 1037, repealing limited liability for firearms manufacturers, was indefinitely postponed, 196-163. HB 1089, repealing the statute of limitations on civil suits over PFAS, went to interim study without comment.

HB 1220, abolishing the collection of racial, ancestral, and educational data on the application for a marriage license, was debated on a floor amendment that was identical to the committee amendment (which passed without comment.) Apparently, the person proposing the amendment hadn’t read it carefully enough since she wanted to collect ancestry data (only)… In any event, these data are self-reported and optional and not used by any state agency for any purpose. The amendment failed 324-33 since it didn’t do anything, and the bill passed 293-64.

HB 1412, repealing the licensing of court reporters, had a floor amendment to make it effective in 90 days rather than 60, which passed without comment. After some debate, including the information that the courts have not used court reporters in decades, the bill passed 188-166, and reconsideration failed on a voice vote. This repeal has failed in my committee multiple times, so I was glad another committee could accomplish it. Advanced recording technology has made it possible to use less skilled transcribers in most cases, and the license now serves mostly to limit competition for the actual court reporter positions.

HB 1629, requiring the Attorney General to report to the legislature when investigating cases of a legislator not living in his district, was tabled 339-19. HR 29, declaring an “economic justice bill of rights,” was killed without comment, as was HB 1086, amending public notice of ZBA hearings.

HB 1120, repealing the requirement that municipal votes (by select board or budget committee) appear on the warrant, was debated and killed on a voice vote – then the speaker asked for reconsideration since one of the debaters had asked for a division vote. So reconsideration passed 188-168, and the bill was killed 264-95.

HB 1125 would require county delegation and commission meetings to comply with the same public access and public comment as town or city meetings. It passed without debate on voice votes. HB 1242, authorizing county-wide communications districts, was debated and killed, 173-172, as unnecessary; Carroll County has created one on an opt-in basis, with 16 towns voting to join, whereas HB 1242 would include all communities involuntarily. HB 1297, requiring all zoning ordinances to be directly related to health and safety, was tabled before debate, 285-65. I can imagine the way various towns would twist their current zoning ordinances to ensure they were related to health or safety.

HB 1359, on appeals of zoning decisions by abutters, clarified who, exactly, counted as an abutter for standing to appeal. It was debated, and a floor amendment to include residents in the town who were not abutters in an appeal was rejected, 130-224. After more debate, citing support from various organizations interested in increasing the housing supply, the bill passed 265-88.

HB 1253, renaming the Blair State Forest as the Jane Kellogg State Forest, was quietly killed; despite her leadership and accomplishments, we try hard not to name things for living people. HB 1510, establishing a commission to encourage electric vehicles, was killed without comment.

HB 1142, requiring people who failed the septic system evaluator test to take additional training or work experience before trying again, passed without debate. HB 1208, making the contractor rather than the landowner responsible for getting all permits before cutting timber, was tabled on a voice vote. HB 1483, allowing subdivision regulations to require a suitable water supply, was briefly debated before going to interim study, 182-165.

HB 1036, potentially allowing a different cost/benefit analysis for energy efficiency programs, passed the committee amendment 176-170, then the debate was over the propriety of changes to the ratepayer-funded program. It passed 184-169; examining methods always makes sense to me.

HB 1623, updating the state energy policy, had a long, dull debate as both sides tried to present all the details of this policy. The committee amendment was adopted, 182-169, then more debate. The bill passed 184-168 and was not reconsidered, 165-179. The new policy is more supportive of all types of energy generation and more resistant to mandates to limit energy in favor of climate change control.

HB 1118, issuance of driver’s licenses for legal aliens, was mostly a reorganization of existing statutes for clarity. Importantly, it also included a requirement that licenses for non-citizens were clearly marked as not valid for voting! The debate was largely on that issue, and the amendment passed, 180-167, the bill passed 179-166, and reconsideration failed, 167-178.

At this point, about 6 pm, all the remaining bills were special ordered for our next session day.

Friday, the county convention (all 45 state representatives from Merrimack County) met to consider the budget. This had started the review process as a 17% increase, but extensive work cut it to 7.6%. It’s still high, but with the end of special federal funding (largely for one-time expenses), less income from the register of deeds as real estate sales shrunk, and high inflation, I could understand it. In addition, the county has kept increases to a minimum for a while – even with this year’s jump, the amount raised by taxes has averaged a 1.5% per year increase for the last seven years. So, I voted for the budget, which passed 26-7.

The county delegation also approved 31-2, the county power aggregation plan. This allows the commissioners to purchase power in bulk for anyone in the county, without the regulations imposed on the electric utilities – so quicker responding to market conditions and hopefully, cheaper. At this point any power customer in the county can sign up to use this plan for their default power. If a town so votes, it would become the default power supplier for everyone in the town – but anyone could opt out in that case. If your town already has a community power plan (Canterbury does; Pembroke, New London, Warner and Webster are starting one this month; six other towns are considering it) that takes precedence for default power, but individuals can always opt for the county plan if they prefer.

It seems to me that this agreement might well save money for the aware consumer; the only risk is that the county might change its goals from “least cost” power to “most sustainable.” That would be a problem, but again, the aware consumer has plenty of options to meet their goals for power. (I want reliability and low cost, myself.)

I also met in subcommittee on two bills on mental health licensing, HB 1131 and HB 1413. We discussed what the problems were, and developed amendments to both bills. HB 1413, on supervisory agreements (mental health counselors require supervised practice before they are eligible for a full license,) instead of repealing the definition of these agreements, will change the language of the supervisor’s responsibility to that used in another section of the statute, which is not objectionable. For HB 1413, instead of adding private clinics to the list of organizations that can hire new graduates without specific supervisory agreements, we defined the responsibilities of an organization that can do so, without worrying about its structure.

The post Your State House appeared first on Granite Grok.

So, truth be told, I didn’t mind The Grok recently publishing legislator attendance records, perhaps because I’d missed approximately zero votes, much less any sessions, during six years at the State House. And yes, I was among those who were frustrated when our red team lost some close floor votes due to Republican lawmakers’ absences.

After The Grok published a list of solons with the highest absentee rates I was kind of hoping that it would also publish a list of those of us with 100% attendance rates, like me.

That is until a House Session was scheduled for Thursday, March 7.

Months ago, I’d planned to be at Camp Pendleton, Calif., that day for the dedication of a memorial monument 40 years after my Marine Corps unit, Lima Company, 3rd Battalion, 5th Marine Regiment, suffered a dreadful tragedy when a helicopter hit a mountain during a night training exercise in Korea. All 29 Marines aboard were killed. I was in a different chopper and, like many others, always carried a touch of survivor’s guilt.

I knew many of the Marines who were killed and would never miss the March 7th reunion, where I could reconnect with old comrades and meet Gold Star families. Our company commander, Captain Jay Paxton, would make special remarks at the commemoration. After a 42-year USMC career, Paxton retired from the Marines in 2016 as a four-star general and Assistant Commandant.

A lot of tears were shed, a lot of folks were remembered, and afterward, there were warm embraces, later laughs, and camaraderie. There was no way I was going to miss the reunion.

But as a Grokster, I soon noticed my name listed in a Grok piece with the number of floor votes I missed on March 7. Fair enough.

Catholic guilt ensued—different from survivor’s guilt. But some humility and wisdom ensued as well. Never again would I judge fellow citizen-legislators who might miss a session for whatever reason. “Stuff” happens—anything from sicknesses to family emergencies to 40th Anniversary USMC Monument Dedications.

Mea culpa.

Live free or die.

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STOP making things so complicated. Things are actually quite simple. Republican good; Democrat bad. That is all you need to know. Just vote Republican … that is all that matters. What? What about primaries? Well, in the case of primaries you vote for the candidate your “leaders” tell you to vote for. Why else would we have “leaders”?!?!?! What a silly question.

What? Another question? Isn’t just voting Republican how we end up with the UniParty … in Concord, as well as DC?  What you have a recent example … Senate Republicans joining with the Democrats to pass yet another omnibus:

The #SchumerMinibus passed tonight.

As Senate conservatives, we did everything we possibly could to stop it.

In the end, we were no match for The Uniparty.

Republicans must stop helping Democrats advance Democrat policies.

Now.

— Mike Lee (@BasedMikeLee) March 9, 2024

This bill is an insult to the American people. The earmarks are all the wasteful spending that you could ever hope to see, and it should be defeated. Read more: https://t.co/Jt8K5iucA4 pic.twitter.com/I5okd4QgDg

— Senator Rand Paul (@SenRandPaul) March 8, 2024

But just think how bad it would have been without the “responsible” Republicans who voted with the Democrats! These statesmen and stateswomen who voted for the latest omnibus represent true conservatism! Same but less is true conservatism! Slava Ukraine! Vote Republican! Slava Ukraine! Vote Republican!

The post Vote Republican … Up And Down Ticket … All Day, Every Day … Go Team Go!!! appeared first on Granite Grok.

Vermont taxpayers are screwed. Their Democrat majority government can override any Phil Scott Veto (assuming he’s not also part of the problem) and where there are Democrats, there will be higher taxes and little or nothing to show for the taking. The failed public education experiment is a great example.

Twenty years ago (2004), Vermont had a problem.

A total of 39 schools, or 13 percent, failed to make what is defined as adequate yearly progress this year, Education Commissioner Richard Cate said Tuesday. The results, he said, should be used to better understand how to serve all Vermont students and not to judge schools. “If identification doesn’t mean that terrible things are going to happen, I don’t think we should care quite as much about numbers as we should about the needs of kids,” Cate said. “All I really care about is that all the kids are served.”

If you compare the 2003 troubles reported in that 2004 article to the 2024 troubles (or the 2023 proficiency results), the needs of the kids cost exponentially more while fewer of them are “being served.” Competency is down, and grade-level reading and math are down.

“Bellows Falls Union High School Principal Kelly O’Ryan told the school’s budget committee this week that seven freshmen out of a classroom of 14 students were reading at a first-grade or elementary school level.”

It’s not that only half of the high school students can read to grade level. It’s that half of them can only read to a first-grade level.

It’s not just Bellows Falls but statewide.

As has been reported, Vermont test scores are dropping significantly and have been for over a decade. A recent deep dive revealed that our public schools have been teaching kids to read the wrong way for over a generation. Along that line comes a story from the Brattleboro Reformer, Low Reading Scores Alarm BFUHS Board, in which the Bellows Falls Union High School principal revealed that half of the freshman class “were reading at a first-grade or elementary school level.”

The one thing that IS up is school budgets and spending which brings us to Town meeting 2024. Multiple outlets have reported that a third of towns rejected their school budgets last week. What one commenter suggested might be a historical record.

Well, the reason that so many budgets failed is because property taxes were projected to skyrocket by nearly 20%. And that’s because, collectively, the budgets that were put before voters represented a $230 million increase in education spending. So even before all these budgets went down, lawmakers were already saying, ‘This is a crisis. Something has got to give.’ Tuesday’s results confirmed for them, that they have a mandate for change.

VermontGrok regular Rob Roper wrote about this latest tidal wave tax and the spending last December.

Vermont already spends more per pupil than almost every other state in the Union at the official count of $22,953, but the NEA pegged the number at $25,053 in 2022-23, which is the number you get when you simply divide the education budget by the number of students. And what are we getting for all this increased spending year after year? An unmitigated disaster of falling student outcomes, rising classroom violence, and a shockingly arrogant lack of accountability or common sense by public school officials.

Democrats can’t imagine a solution that doesn’t involve throwing more of your money into a bottomless hole. In the case of public Ed, however, they get some back from union dues to campaign coffers to boots on the ground, and more often than is reported – electioneering. Democrats benefit from recycling your hard-earned dollars through an institution that can’t seem to do much else unless turning generations of kids into helpless illiterate gender queers can be viewed as another positive (though again, you’d be right to wonder for whom).

After spending a barrel of one-time money, Vermont is over a barrel. The state used inflation-driving COVID bailouts to grow school budgets, and taxpayers were left holding the larger bag. That was not an accident. It is a well-honed tactic of government-first progressives: Make government bigger and then cry about how awful things will get if they have to propose cuts. Anyone who dares is smeared, and taxes rise perpetually to fill a space that didn’t exist before the one-time money came along.

Wash, rinse, repeat. When the institution continues to fail, the solution is more money to pay for more failure—a doom loop that few ever escape.

Public education has been in decline for decades, and for just as long, Amininstrators union loudmouths, and politicians have blamed it on money. But the only thing more money can be directly connected to in government schools is dumber children. As the budgets have grown, kids have become less capable, less proficient, and ill-prepared for anything outside that fiscally bloated womb.

It would be nice if you could invest that in something else, but the other problem with electing Democrats is they will do whatever they can to trap your kids in their doom loop.

What exactly you plan to do about that is your decision, but a good start would be to stop electing Democrats for at least as long as your schools have been failing.

 

The post More Money Will Only Make The “Public Education Problem” Worse appeared first on Granite Grok.

Growing up in China, I never heard of parental rights. Every child in China belongs to the State. After Mao used urban youth Red Guards during his Cultural Revolution, he forced them to be re-educated in the countryside. My uncles were sent hundreds of miles away from home for ten years, and my grandparents had no say.

As a student, I was subjected to forced indoctrination in government schools, centralized curricula, testing, data collection, secret “Student Files,” and mandatory vaccinations.

Student Files for each child included grades, speeches, behaviors, rewards, violations, punishments, physical health, mental health, vaccine shots, religion, family members inf. No parents were allowed to see what was in these files.

Our school day started with chanting “Long Live CHAIRMAN MAO, LONG LIVE CCP” and red songs like “My parents are dear, but Chairman Mao is dearer.” We were required to memorize Mao’s quotations, writing dairies reviewed by teachers, report on our family and neighbors for anti-gov speeches, and confess our own incorrect thoughts.

There were posters in schools and communities in front of your eyes everywhere.

Our music and art classes were about showing affection and loyalty to Mao, demonizing the oppressors. I never questioned anything. It was effective in convincing people that if you see something and hear something daily, it must be the truth. I would see Mao’s face in the clouds and in the fire under our wok, smiling at me. I thought Mao was a God until he died when I was 12. That was my first awaking moment.

What happened in China is happening here in the US. I opposed Common Core, centralized education standards, testing, and data collection over ten years ago. I enrolled my kids in a charter school where I served as a board member and a chair. Today’s school kids are being indoctrinated with CRT, the 1619 project, SEL, DEI, Gender Ideology, LGBTQ agendas, etc.

We want to thank Lily Tang Williams for this Contribution – Please direct yours to Steve@GraniteGrok.com.
You can review our ‘Op-Ed Guidelines‘ on the FAQ Page.

Kids are encouraged to keep secrets from parents, health centers in schools keep separate files, and teachers are not required to inform parents about a child’s gender identity change. Some School teachers and counselors are political activists who brainwash and train kids to be SJWs.

Parents are being sidelined, if you dare to challenge age-inappropriate books in schools, you are called bigots, and book banners. If you go to school board meetings speaking up against their indoctrination, you could be a “domestic terrorist”.

The fact that I must go to the State House and Senate to testify to support parental rights bills is concerning. It is absolutely necessary, though. It clarifies and protects one of the most ancient of all human rights – parental sovereignty.

The deepest human bond is between parents and their children. This bond must be protected from being torn by any political agenda. In America, children still belong to their parents, not the government, not the institutions, not any collective groups.

In America, children belong to their parents, not state. Parents have the right to choose the best suitable school for their children. Parents must have the right to know what their children are taught in school, Parents should have the right to access all their kids’ personal data, health records, and make informed medical decisions with/for their children.

Schools should not be political battlefields or indoctrination centers. Schools should be places of joyful learning focusing on academic subjects like reading, writing, math, and science — not places of social engineering with divisive political agendas and age-inappropriate content.

Girls should always feel safe to use their bathrooms, boys, too. Girls’ sports should not be crushed by men who identify as women.

Parents, grandparents, and good teachers, our kids need us more than ever. They are the most vulnerable, innocent, and precious humans and need our love, guidance, and protection.

Local town elections, including school board elections, are coming up on March 12th. Show up to vote for the candidates who represent your values and respect your parental rights. Make it your priority to get involved in your kids’ schools and their lives at home, including their social media activities.

If your state can’t pass a parental rights bill, try to work with local districts or towns to protect kids. At the Federal level, make sure your candidates will pledge to sponsor or co-sponsor a bill to abolish the DOE and return education to local control and parental control. That is what I will do when I get elected.

We need concerned citizen groups willing to be fierce, Mama and Papa Bears ready to protect the children. Your children, families, and freedoms depend on this. Take action now before it is too late.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EBoBBQUpa4U&t=225s
Lily Tang Williams
Republican Congressional Candidate NH02
www.lilytangwilliams.com
Reminder: Content about candidates or by candidates is not an endorsement by GraniteGrok.com or its authors.

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