The West seems strangely intent on committing suicide, even though it was Western Civilization that liberated mankind from its history of slavery, servitude, and poverty.

The unparalleled freedom and prosperity we have enjoyed in this country are the direct result of uniquely Western — and particularly American — values, yet the Woke Left wants to return us to government-imposed serfdom under their control.

Western Tradition is a set of cultural norms developed over 500 years with roots in classic Greek philosophy and Judeo-Christian beliefs. It is based on the application of reason and the belief in Natural Rights — that individuals have a Right to exist for their own sake, rather than to serve the Government.

Natural Rights are acknowledged in America’s Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”

The presumption of Natural Rights is the most consequential revolution in human history because it alone freed the individual from past and future enslavement to the government.

A Natural Right is an action taken by an individual that cannot be legally constrained by others. Hence, Person-A can exercise a Right (like freedom of speech, religion, etc.), and neither Person-B nor the Government can infringe on Person-A’s Right to do so. However, Person-A has no Right to anything that Person-B would have to provide.

Natural Rights imply equality before the law and personal responsibility for choosing one’s own course as long as it does not interfere with another’s Rights. Be an adult, make your own choices, and accept the consequences.

Freedom from Government is the core of Natural Rights. No kings. No socialism. No fascism. No communism. No commissars. No DEI. No tyranny of the majority. No forced collectivism. No subsidies.

Just free markets and protection of our Natural Rights.

The assault on Natural Rights began with the perverse and murderous collectivist ideas behind the French Revolution (Rousseau, Babeuf) and the Great Terror, which were followed by the “Communist Confession of Faith” (Engels) and the “Communist Manifesto” (Marx and Engels). The socialist ideology of Marx and Engels led to the massive humanitarian disasters of the USSR, Eastern Europe, Maoist China, etc.

After the meltdown of classic socialism in the 1990s, the Left tried to re-brand itself as Woke (neo-Marxist) “democratic socialists” – hoping nobody would notice that their totalitarian objectives remained.

Socialism — in any of its forms — rejects Natural Rights (see Marx). People are merely tools of the State like the “Borg” in Star Trek. Follow instructions. Own nothing — and be happy about it.

Socialism only recognizes Rights granted by the State. The Woke Left has made a living by inventing unconstitutional “group rights” for privileged classes under the euphemistic oxymoron of “Social Justice.” But justice – by its very nature — can only be served on an individual basis. Social Justice naturally contradicts individual justice.

To convey group privileges requires the government to abridge the Natural Rights of others. The best example is DEI, where preferred groups are given special privileges, while the Natural Rights of others are suspended to provide the privilege. DEI is simply institutionalized injustice, giving special privileges to people who did not earn them, extracted from others under threat of government force.

Woke ideology also rejects the existence of objective truth, and believes truth is whatever they want it to be, without regard to reality or evidence. Hence, Woke is indistinguishable from any other gnostic religion. Woke gave us the absolute fraud of “the science” given by “authorities” rather than actual evidence.

Woke means biological males can have babies, play sports reserved for biological females, invade their locker rooms, and rape schoolgirls with impunity (Virginia) while the Woke government looks the other way. The Natural Rights of females are sacrificed to give special privileges to delusional males in some deranged form of “equity.”

The so-called “right to free healthcare” pushed by the Left is also nonsensical. No healthcare (or any other service) is free – somebody must provide the service. But “free” always sounds good to the people who will pay nothing, and selfishly require others to pay.

Nor does the Left ask, “How much healthcare is free?” Canada’s “universal healthcare” is famous for how many people are denied care. In Canada people universally get limited care unless they can afford to leave the country and self-pay. But medically assisted suicide is free!

Woke ideology is a mind virus that has gained a foothold among the most naïve – the young. They have no defense because they are inexperienced in real life and have been indoctrinated by our public schools to not think and to not ask questions.

Perfect socialists.

Unfortunately, it is not only the young who have been infected.

Michael Dee is a Silver Creek resident while Scott Axelson resides in Jamestown.