The Arch Conservative - Fall 2018

Raising the Standard

Why It Means More Faith, Family and Georgia Football

By J.Thomas Perdue

Stacey Abrams and Crayola Politics

By Luke McGahren

The Kavanaugh Files

By Ian LaCroix

Mad Scots & Englishmen

By Reed Ferguson

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THE EDITORS

COLUMNS

COLUMNS 16 Stacey Abrams and

3 Retrospective

8 America Will Always Be Great

By J. Thomas Perdue

By McKenzie Sams

CAMPUS

9 The Kavanaugh Files

4 The Campus Informant

By Connor Foarde

5 SGA Watch

By Connor Foarde

COLUMNS

6 He Served His Country

By Christopher Lipscomb

07 The Rise, Fall,

and Future of the Bird

By Connor Foarde

Crayola Politics

By Luke McGahren

By Ian LaCroix

17 Welcome to the Party

10 Stock Market Repeat

By Oliver Bunner

By Carson Brown

HUMOR

11 Crisis in Burma

18 Harsh Reality

By Boris A. Abreu

By Madison Cooper

FEATURES

19 ArchCon's Guide to

12 Why It Means More

By J. Thomas Perdue

White Supremacy

By J.Thomas Perdue

14 Mad Scots & Englishmen

By Reed Ferguson

The Arch Conservative Editorial Board and Staff: 2018-2019 Editor in Chief J.Thomas Perdue

Creative Director Mallory Traylor

Executive Editor Reed Ferguson

Business Manager Sydney Robertson

Publishing Editor Boris A. Abreu

Contributors Christopher Lipscomb McKenzie Sams Carson Brown Luke McGahren Oliver Bunner Madison Cooper

Campus News Editor Connor Foarde Online Editor Ian LaCroix Book Editor Ross Dubberly

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THE EDITORS i

Retrospective Five Years with The Arch Conservative

COVER PHOTO COURTESY OF DXR. PHOTO COURTESY OF DAVID TORCIVIA.

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he year 2018 marks The Arch Conservative’s fifth anniversary.

Our first issue of the new academic year seems like an appropriate time to take inventory. It’s fair to say that the United States was a different political environment in 2013 than in 2018. For better and for worse, it is more important now than at any time in recent memory for conservative standard-bearers to promote the ideals that we believe make our nation exceptional. In doing so, it is just as important to reject unfounded promises of utopia, as well as the allure of populism thinly disguised as conservatism.

In the inaugural edition of The Arch Conservative, our original editors referenced the testimony of communist defector, and later conservative icon, Whittaker Chambers on communist infiltration of the U.S. government. On his conversion to what would eventually be identified as the American Right, Chambers said, “I know that I am leaving the winning side for the losing side, but it is better to die on the losing side than to live under communism.”

As our editors pointed out, Chambers’ pessimism was not at all unfounded.

The aforementioned Right had not yet been unified by the likes of Barry Goldwater and Bill Buckley, and the communist tide they so staunchly opposed was rising across the world. Soviet aggression, both political and military, a liberal domination of Washington, and communist infiltration seemed to confirm Chambers’s fears. Less than half a century later, his allegiance and efforts were rewarded.

With the gradual exposure of Soviet crimes against humanity, the emergence of the United States as the world’s premier superpower, and the eventual defeat of communism, it would seem that those post-WWII worries were alleviated decades ago. However, the need for strong conservative voices remains.

Perhaps there is no arena in more such need as the American college campus. The continuing phenomenon of left-wing bias in classrooms and several instances of free-speech suppression have been well-documented, and mentioning it here may seem redundant.

Nurturing a diverse set of ideals and maintaining a platform for conservative students is definitely one of our most important duties.

However, it is just as important, and just as necessary, that we are clear in our definition of conservatism, as well as in our role as journalists.

To once again borrow from our inaugural editorial, and for the sake of clarity, our ultimate allegiance is to the truth. And the truth leads us to a list of apparent conclusions:

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— That there exists an enduring moral order. That a healthy respect for traditional beliefs is prudent, as they represent the accumulated wisdom of history.

— That free markets enable human flourishing, contribute to the general welfare and safeguard liberty.

— That individual rights are imperative and, unacceptably, not available to millions around the world. That free nations are obligated to oppose, by force of arms when justified, the designs of tyrants.

— That ultimately the great experiences in life are outside the realm of politics, and cannot be manufactured by government.

That these conclusions maintain relevance today speaks to the enduring nature of our guiding principles. However, a rising rightwing phenomenon on campus is the perversion of conservatism into populist sloganeering, a brand of entertainment conservatism, so to speak. Recently, populism has claimed victory in the name of conservatism in the fields of government, media, student organizations, and so on. We believe these victories to be, at best, a means to an end, and at worst, an altogether façade.

It sometimes appears as if conservatism is being buried beneath the rise of populism, as well as a renewed national interest in socialism (which we have consistently rebuked). But like Mr. Chambers before us, we would rather fight against the tide, perhaps even on the losing side, than compromise our ideals for a hollow victory or live under tyranny of any sort. This is the duty, not just of conservatives, but of any free people.

Here’s to several more years of The Arch Conservative. b — The Editors

The Arch Conservative / 3

CAMPUS

Young Democratic Socialists

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— Connor Foarde, Campus News Editor of The Arch Conservative.

bout 30 UGA students and Athens residents attended the inaugural meeting of the Athens’ Young Democratic Socialists of America on Aug. 23 in the Tate Student Center. “[YDSA] is the Young Democratic Socialists of America in Athens. Socialist, because we believe in people controlling their own labor. Socialist, because we believe in people controlling the product of their labor. And socialist, because we believe in people controlling the full value of their labor,” Riley Findley, co-chair of YDSA in Athens, told The Red and Black. The group, which does not want to be confused with the now-defunct Young Democratic Socialists of UGA, aims to build coalitions with other progressive student groups on campus, and advocate for higher wages for full time university employees.

The Great Debate

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he annual Great Debate between the UGA College Republicans and Young Democrats,sponsored by the Georgia Political Review, will take place on October 18. Last year’s debate saw a dismal performance from the College Republicans, who failed to deliver a strong counter to the arguments by the well-prepared members representing the Young Democrats. A sound analysis of last year’s debate written

by Executive Editor Reed Ferguson and former Editor-in-Chief Nick Geeslin can be found on The Arch Conservative website titled “A Not So Great Debate”. Be sure to stay tuned for coverage of this year’s debate from The Arch Conservative, as the College Republicans look to bounce back from last year’s errors. The debate will be held at 6pm in the Historic Fine Arts Building.

Charlie Kirk and Candace Owens on Campus

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n October 9th, Turning Point USA at UGA hosted Founder and Executive Director Charlie Kirk and Communications Director Candace Owens at 6:30pm for an event titled “Campus Clash.” Last Spring, Kirk came to UGA alone to give a similarly themed lecture, when he spoke on topics ranging from the national gun debate to the myth of white privilege and engaged in a charged Q&A session with both supporters and detractors. Some 200 students attended the event last spring, and this time around Kirk was joined by the outspoken Candace Owens, who joined the TPUSA team last November. The event was held at The Classic Center, and tickets were available for free to the general public on the event Facebook page.

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CAMPUS

S G A WAT C H

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he historic victory of the “Believe” executive Student Government Association ticket last Spring brought with it promises of increased transparency between the administration and students as well as a renewed sense of enthusiasm for potentially beneficial initiatives and resolutions to be set forth during the 2018-19 school year. So far, the administration has done a fine job delivering on both of these promises. In an email to The Arch Conservative, Press Secretary Donovan Harris provided ample and timely information about SGA initiatives and upcoming events, which are summarized in the following paragraphs.

SGA Chief Implementation Officer Ethan Pender met with Don Walter of UGA's Office of Auxiliary Services to address concerns about the Georgia Center bus stop located across the street from Snelling Dining Hall on Sanford Drive. The proximity of the bus stop and the nearby crosswalk creates a potential safety issue for students who cannot see past stopped busses when they attempt to cross.

Drivers going north on Sanford also encounter visibility issues, as they cannot easily see students and pedestrians attempting to cross behind stopped busses.

To rectify the issue, SGA has proposed both the crosswalk and the bus stop be moved further north and south on Sanford Drive, respectively. This proposal

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would allow drivers on Sanford increased visibility of the crosswalk, and in turn create a safer environment for pedestrians crossing the street.

Sustainability Liaison Julian Marmal announced two upcoming sustainability events.

On October 11 from 2-6pm, the second annual Kindfest, a festival encouraging kindness and positivity, will take place on Myers Quad in partnership with Karma Coffee and the Office of Sustainability. Last year, Kindfest partnered with the Athens Humane Society, Nezda’s Waffles, KIND, Food 2 Kids, the Chapel Bell, the Backpack Project and more.

On October 17 at 2pm, a dedication ceremony will take place to mark the beginning of restoration efforts of UGA’s Lake Herrick. University officials banned swimming and boating in the man-made lake near the intramural fields in 2002, due to high levels of bacteria resulting from pollution. The restoration project will officially begin this month, and by next summer Lake Herrick will be open to boaters, kayakers, and swimmers.

It cannot be overstated how crucial transparency is to a healthy student government, and the rapid dissemination of information on new initiatives and upcoming events from our current administration demonstrates their understanding of this. In keeping with that transparency, keep an eye out for the changes on Sanford Drive as the bus stop proposal moves forward, and stay tuned to The Arch Conservative website for further updates on any and all SGA happenings as the semester progresses.

— Connor Foarde

The Arch Conservative / 5

COLUMNS

He Served His Country The Life and Career of John McCain

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cCain was born on August 29, 1936 into a Navy family—both his father and grandfather were admirals. McCain entered the Naval Academy in 1954, “simply recognizing my eventual enrollment at the Academy as an immutable fact of life, and accepting it without comment.” Once there, he “embarked on a four-year course of insubordination and rebellion,” racking up countless demerits; the disapproval of his superiors “was measured in the hundreds of miles of extra duty I marched in my time there.” McCain graduated from Annapolis in 1958, becoming a Naval Aviator.

In 1967, then-Lieutenant Commander McCain deployed to Southeast Asia, where he participated in Operation Rolling Thunder in the skies over North Vietnam. On October 26, 1967, McCain was shot down over Hanoi while on his twenty-third bombing mission.

Severely injured and badly beaten when he was captured, the North Vietnamese refused to treat him until they learned that his father was the commander of U.S. Pacific Command; the communists offered to release him early because of his father, but McCain refused, citing the Code of Conduct, which states that “I will accept neither parole nor special favors from the enemy.”

Following his refusal to accept release, his captors told him that “things will be very bad for you now, McCain.” Over the next five years, McCain experienced brutal treatment, largely he reconnected with the rebellious streak that had held him back at Annapolis. McCain was beaten regularly and underfed, and spent two years in solitary confinement. Under extreme duress from beatings and dysentery, McCain made a false confession of war crimes, declaring himself a “black criminal” and an “air pirate,” which led to a reprieve from his torture. By that

Christopher Lipscomb is a junior studying international affairs.

He is a regular contributor to The Arch Conservative.

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point he felt as if “my disgrace were forever,” and attempted suicide.

Released on March 14, 1973, McCain returned to the United States and resumed his Navy career, however his injuries sustained during his imprisonment made a long-term Navy career unlikely. In 1977 he began working as the Navy’s liaison to the Senate, and began considering getting into politics, while also developing friendships on both sides of the aisle—Joe Biden was a notable McCain friend dating from this time. At the same time, McCain’s marriage, which had struggled since his return from Vietnam, fell apart, and in 1980 married he Cindy Hensley.

Retiring from the Navy in 1981, McCain ran for Congress in Cindy’s home state of Arizona. Accused of being a carpetbagger, McCain retorted that “the place I lived longest in my life was Hanoi.” In 1987 he entered the Senate following Barry Goldwater’s retirement, and began to make his mark as a political maverick who was unafraid to speak his mind and vote across party lines.

On April 6, 1999, McCain announced that he was running for President, kicking off the “straight talk express.” McCain crisscrossed the country, providing unfettered access to the press, however he was unable to defeat George W. Bush. After terminating his campaign, McCain returned to the Senate, where he was an early and strong supporter of the Iraq War, with his views considerably influenced by the American experience in Vietnam. During this time, McCain worked work with Democrat Russ Feingold to create what became the McCain-Feingold Act, aimed at regulating campaign financing.

In 2008 McCain again ran for President, and won the Republican nomination. In the midst of a tough general election campaign, McCain made waves by defending his opponent, Barack Obama, after members of the audience questioned his patriotism and authenticity. When one woman claimed that she could not trust Obama because she had read that he was an Arab, McCain responded “No ma’am, he’s a decent family man, citizen, that I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues, and that’s what this campaign is all about.” When Obama won

that November, McCain once again returned to the Senate.

In his final years in the Senate, McCain was a fierce critic of the Obama administration on foreign policy, however he remained the maverick who was unafraid to buck his own party. When Republicans gained control of the Senate in 2014, McCain became chairman of the Armed Services Committee. In 2015, then-candidate Trump stated that in his view, McCain was not a war hero because he was captured, sparking a tense relationship that lasted the rest of McCain’s life.

In the summer of 2017, McCain was treated for a blood clot in his brain. On July 19, 2017, his office announced that he had brain cancer.

McCain underwent treatment and was able to return to Washington for much of the fall of 2017, where he notably gave a speech challenging his colleagues to return to normal order, and to reach across the aisle. But what he will be most remembered for during this time is his decisive vote against repealing Obamacare.

John McCain left Washington, D.C. for the final time in December, 2017. Returning to Arizona, McCain never publicly doubted that he would return to Washington, though it seemed unlikely. As the months dragged on, McCain fought a battled a cancer that often proved fatal within weeks. McCain remained involved with his Senate work, especially as chairman of the Armed Services Committee, and continued to be outspoken on many issues.

Always a fighter, John McCain fought to the very end; facing a form of cancer that often proves fatal within six months, John McCain fought it for over a year, all while remaining as active as he possible. On August 24, 2018, his family announced that he had decided to cease treatment, and the next day John McCain passed away, four days shy of his eighty-second birthday. The legacy of John McCain will evolve for years to come, but it seems that he will be remembered largely as he had hoped: “He served his country, and not always right—made a lot of mistakes, made a lot of errors—but served his country, and, I hope we could add, honorably.” b

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COLUMNS

The Rise, Fall, and Future of the Bird Did This Project Fly too Close to the Sun

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hen students returned to campus last month to begin the fall semester, they were met with a slew of infrastructural changes that will undoubtedly confound their day-to-day commutes. Beginning August 13, The University of Georgia Transportation and Parking Services (TPS) altered two of its most utilized bus routes, Health Sciences and Milledge, and made minor changes to the RiverbendSouth Milledge and Vet Med routes.

Any alteration to a UGA bus route that a student relies on creates the need to quickly adapt to maintain the chaos. Lo and behold, a solution arrived concurrent to the much ballyhooed bus route changes in the form of a fleet of peculiar motorized scooters that deployed across Athens, virtually overnight.

However, “fleet” is not the right term to use here. It was a “flock” of Bird Electric Scooters that arrived last month in the Classic City, and they have been all the rage around town ever since.

It would be hard to find anyone in Athens who hasn’t seen one of these scooters zoom down the street during the day. One might even be found parked in the middle of the sidewalk! To those unfamiliar with these contraptions, a Bird scooter is an electronic motorized vehicle that users can unlock with their device and ride at a set fare. Upon encountering one of these scooters in the wild, a potential rider need only set up an account via the Bird company’s mobile app, and scan the QR code on the helm of the machine to begin riding. From there it is only three manual kickstarts and the rider can proceed to their destination at speeds up to 15 mph. When they arrive at their destination, the rider may deposit their Bird in any area that does not impede traffic or threaten the integrity of the vehicle.

All that is left is to then lock the vehicle, Connor Foarde is a senior studying journalism. He is Campus News Editor of The Arch Conservative.

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take a picture to confirm an acceptable parking job, and move on to allow the next rider to come along. At night, individuals employed by the Bird company as “chargers” pick up each scooter wherever it was last left, and take it home to power up for the next day of usage. A scooter’s battery can last for a distance of about 15 miles before it needs to be charged again.

Founded in 2017 by former Lyft and Uber executive Travis VanderZanden, Bird is the latest extension of the 21st century ride-sharing economy. Their scooters can be found in nearly 40 cities nationwide, and even abroad in Paris and Tel Aviv. With dozens of these vehicles now accessible to the Athens student body and general public, it seemed as if the Bird was poised to become the frugal commuter’s alternative to overpriced parking passes. But, as history has shown us, competition is not always taken positively by the dominant bureaucracy.

Less than a week after their deployment, UGA instituted a partial ban on Birds on campus. Students are currently not allowed to park or ride Birds on campus unless using a public road. UGA’s much-disliked TPS actively began impounding the scooters at every opportunity, leaving the Bird company liable for paying any incurred fines.

Over Labor Day weekend, Athens-Clarke County Police Department released a PSA warning riders that violating state laws on Birds could result in citations. Soon thereafter, UGA Police announced that they would began ticketing riders on campus for violations such as riding on walkways or lack of a helmet.

The rise of the Bird was swift, and the fall has been steady. One can already notice that there are less people riding the scooters around town, as riders are more hesitant to exclusively ride on the oft-hectic city roads.

The question lingers as to the fate of the Bird scooter in Athens.

On August 22, UGA students received an urgent email titled “Save Bird at UGA” from the Bird company. “Campus officials are impounding Birds on UGA’s campus and making it impossible for us to deliver scooters as an option for you to get to and

from campus. With parking permits ranging from $200-$480 each semester, UGA students, faculty, and staff deserve a lowcost alternative to get to and from campus everyday,” the email read. The email went on to call students to petition TPS to allow Birds on campus.

The email also explained that were Birds allowed to remain on campus and in Athens unregulated, it would help UGA obtain it’s sustainability goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 20 percent by 2020. This is something Athens officials ought to take note of in deciding the future of Bird in Athens, considering this year’s introduction of hybrid electric busses to city streets.

Undoubtedly, there will be further roadblocks for Bird’s existence in Athens as the semester goes on. Those who support this affordable means of getting around town would be wise to continue to ride safely and in accordance with current law, as well as make their support known to any and all entities who have influence in the matter. If city and university officials begin to see consistent, appropriate usage of Birds in Athens, they might just recognize that their effort to restrict them was nothing more than a wild goose chase. b

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COLUMNS

America Will Always Be Great

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ew York Governor Andrew Cuomo drew criticism from both parties after making a remark in response to President Trump’s campaign slogan, “Make America Great Again.” Cuomo was at a billsigning event celebrating women and young girls in New York City when he said, “We are not going to make America great again.

It was never that great.” His far-left primary challenger, Cynthia Nixon, rebuked Cuomo’s comment, accusing the governor of attempting to sound like a progressive but “missing by a mile.” Ironically, Cuomo’s first campaign slogan in 2010 for Governor was “Together, we can make New York great again. Let’s get to work.”

Furthermore, Governor Cuomo’s ancestors were Italian immigrants who came to this nation presumably looking for a better life. America is not perfect, nor will it ever be; however, it has historically exhibited a commitment to liberty and prosperity that continues to be an example for nations seeking to improve in the modern world.

One of the United States’ oldest enduring commitments to liberty is the Constitution. Our Constitution is much more than a document outlining our rights for the people; it guarantees basic human rights and protects us from government tyranny when our freedoms are threatened. It is indeed one of the pivotal rights guaranteed in the Constitution which allows Governor Cuomo to make his asinine negative statements about America. Some of the world’s governments would even be within their legal bounds to incarcerate him. Our founding fathers could have easily spent no time writing our Constitution and given us no liberties at all, as was the norm of the late McKenzie Sams is a sophomore studying international affairs. She is a first-time contributor to The Arch Conservative.

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18th century. As military victors in the seat of power, they could have instituted an absolute monarchy with national support, but they knew in order to create a great nation, citizens needed to have inalienable freedoms, which was still a novel concept at the time.

Furthermore, our founding fathers installed a governmental system which would prohibit one man or family from taking complete control of the government.

In 2015, Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia delivered a speech to the Federalist

Society in Morristown, New Jersey, where he made the statement “The genius of the American constitutional system is the dispersal of power. Once power is centralized in one person, or one part of government, a Bill of Rights is just words on paper.” Justice Scalia could not be more correct, our government system can be frustrating, but without checks and balances, our rights and liberties would not be properly insured. Our founding fathers were never perfect; they were mostly slaveholders, and the nation they created, at first, disproportionately benefited landowning white men. Yet, throughout our history, we have strived for the equality and liberty of our citizens, and though we fall short sometimes, there will always be those willing and able to carry the founders’ ideas

forward. The Constitution is just one example of the many ways America is great; even more so, our contributions to society and the world exemplify our long history of being a leading world power.

American greatness has been passed down from generation to generation. There are plenty of examples of our ancestors achieving greatness even during our darkest times.

Displays of courage and bravery in fighting to keep our union together during the Civil War made our nation “a more perfect union.”

Susan B. Anthony knew women had a place in America, and she accomplished so much for women in our nation by fighting for women’s suffrage during the early 1900’s resulting in the 19th Amendment granting women the right to vote on August 26th, 1920. With her brave efforts to continue the long tradition to make America a better nation, she gave women a voice in our society; a voice which is still heard today.

Young men who stormed the beaches of Normandy illustrate the commitment our military has to protecting our freedoms at home and on that day, they protected both the United States and Europe. During the Civil Rights Movement, AfricanAmericans fought for their rights and the rights of their children and grandchildren. Our country fell short acknowledging the injustices done to AfricanAmericans, but Americans like Martin Luther King Jr. believed people of all races had a part in developing our great nation even further.

I believe America will always be great so long as we remember the people who helped us get where we are today. Andrew Cuomo probably just temporarily forgot our nation’s great history while focusing on our dark past.

Thankfully, greatness does not equal perfection for if it did, Cuomo would be right. We are not perfect, and it is not our place in the world to be. But when we strive for greatness like we always have, we will continue making America a better place for our citizens. b

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PHOTO COURTESY OF METROPOLITAN TRANSPORTATION AUTHORITY OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK

In Defense of Exceptionalism

COLUMNS

The Kavanaugh Files Abortion, Roe, and the Future of the Supreme Court

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he confirmation process of Judge Brett Kavanaugh has been arguably the most contentious process in the history of the Supreme Court. While we have come to expect impassioned, grandstanding senators and fierce questioning, we would never expect this revered process to erupt into such a partisan debacle. Of course, sexual assault accusations should be taken seriously and the Senate Judiciary Committee and the FBI should do everything in its power to determine the validity of these statements.

While it is important to know the character of a Supreme Court nominee, it is arguably just as important that we protect the confirmation process from rotting into a contentious showdown where both sides will do whatever it takes to carry out their agendas.

Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg weighed in on the current confirmation process calling it “wrong” and “a highly partisan show.” Indeed, we certainly have strayed far from the bipartisan votes of Ginsberg (96-3) and Scalia (98-0), despite both justices’ legal philosophies sitting at opposite ends of the spectrum. While Kavanaugh is not known to be as conservative as Scalia, the contentiousness surrounding his nomination is due in part to his replacement of swing-vote Justice Anthony Kennedy.

Despite narrow odds, if Kavanaugh is confirmed to the Supreme Court it will most certainly shift the court to being majority conservative potentially for decades. As expected, the future of abortion rights surrounding the landmark ruling of Roe v. Wade (1973) has risen to the forefront of discourse when discussing the consequences of Kavanaugh’s confirmation. Publicly, Kavanaugh has stated that Roe v. Wade is “binding precedent of the court” and “settled law.” While this may be true for a sitting U.S. Court of Appeals judge, there certainly is no such Ian LaCroix is a junior studying political science. He is Online Editor for The Arch Conservative.

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thing as “binding precedent” on the Supreme Court since justices can overturn previous decisions with a simple majority. Furthermore, Kavanaugh’s answer fails to tell us how he will vote on future abortion cases and how he feels about the issue personally. To fully understand Kavanaugh’s opinions on abortion, we must heed his advice: “Don’t read about my opinions. Read my opinions.”

Throughout Kavanaugh’s vast record as a judge, one case sticks out as being the most relevant to the judge’s views on abortion: Garza v. Hargan (2014).

In Garza V. Hargan, “Jane Doe” (J.D. from here on), a 17-year-old girl, illegally crossed the U.S. southern border into Texas; she was 8 weeks pregnant. She was detained and relocated to a designated refugee shelter. At the facility, she decided that she wanted to terminate her pregnancy despite Texas law requiring parental consent for minors seeking an abortion. J.D.’s guardian ad litem, Rochelle Garza, got a temporary restraining order from a D.C. district court judge allowing her to get an abortion despite Texas’s parental consent requirement. The case went up to the D.C. Circuit, where it was presented to a three-judge panel, Kavanaugh being among on the judges on the panel. The panel ruled that J.D. possessed a constitutional right to an abortion, but the process of releasing a minor to a sponsor does not unduly burden the minor’s right to an abortion as long as getting a sponsor “occurs expeditiously.” In sum, they ruled with the Texas parental consent requirement.

The case moved to an en banc hearing, which calls for all judges of the D.C. Circuit Court to hear the case, not just the threejudge panel. The court proceeded to reverse the ruling in the three-judge panel and sent the case back to the district court to be remanded. Judge Kavanaugh issued a strong dissent from the en banc ruling made by the court. In the words of this lengthy dissent, we can see where Kavanaugh stands on abortion rights in our country.

Kavanaugh once again stated that J.D. had the constitutional right to get an abortion, but most of the emphasis of the dissent was focused around whether the sponsor

requirement creates an undue burden onto J.D. He believed that expeditiously transferring J.D. to an immigration sponsor prior to her getting an abortion did not constitute an undue burden onto her, and it was in fact, the right thing to do since J.D. was 1) a minor 2) alone in a foreign nation, and 3) about to make a major life decision regarding the future of her pregnancy. Judge Kavanaugh went on to criticize the court for allowing “unlawful immigrant minors to have an immediate abortion on demand.” In perhaps the most telling line of his dissent, he interpreted Supreme Court precedent as “…the government has permissible interest in favoring fetal life, protecting the best interest of the minor, and not facilitating abortion, so long as the Government does not impose undue burden on the abortion decision.”

Judge Kavanaugh did not attempt to prevent J.D. from getting an abortion despite the claims Hillary Clinton and other Democrats purport; he simply believed that J.D. should be in the hands of a sponsor before making such a serious life decision. However, Kavanaugh’s language regarding the government interest in protecting fetal life hints at his personal opinions on abortion. His stance on abortion becomes even clearer upon examination of his 2017 address to the American Enterprise Institute, in which he praised the rationale of the dissent by Chief Justice William Rehnquist in Roe v. Wade.

It seems clear that Kavanaugh, based on his writings, speeches, and general proximity to conservative politics, personally does not agree with abortion. However, as a judge with deep respect for tradition, precedent, and the American legal system, it seems like Kavanaugh will avoid voting in a way that conforms to his personal, private opinion on abortion. While it is likely that Kavanaugh will take a more conservative stance than Kennedy, he will demonstrate his judicial independence by voting in accordance with the Constitution and not his personal biases alone. b

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Stock Market Repeat “No One Can See a Bubble”

Carson Brown is a sophomore studying history. He is a regular contributor to The Arch Conservative.

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you cannot afford? If you can’t afford to go on vacation, don’t go on vacation. Anyone who has ever bought anything should understand this concept, but somehow many people in

the U.S. balanced a federal budget was 2001, Bill Clinton’s last budget. I was two years old that year. That’s how long ago the U.S. government gave up on being fiscally responsible. The war on terrorism, the invasion of Iraq, the increase in social security spending, more increases in military spending, Obamacare, and once again, more increases in defense spending, while cutting taxes, have created a budget deficit of $21.3 trillion as of July 31.

Drastic changes must be made to the way the federal government and citizens manage their money. Continued increased spending will lead to larger and larger amounts of debt, which will eventually crumble, crushing the millions of hard-working Americans because our institutions and our people are unwilling to realistically evaluate how much they can spend. As was said in The Big Short, “No one can see a bubble. That’s what makes it a bubble.” b

this country, and around the world (fiscal irresponsibility is not just an American fascination), cannot wrap their heads around applying frugality to credit. And if nothing is done to change this trend, the problem will continue to get worse.

This problem does not stop with everyday people; our federal government has displayed egregious fiscal irresponsiblty of all. Here’s a good trivia fact for the next game you play at a sports bar: the last time

PHOTO COURTESY OF TONY HISGETT

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he past 18 months have shown some of the most impressive economic growth in years. The stock market is currently riding the longest bull market since all the way back to the 2008 financial crisis and subsequent recession. President Trump’s hardline stance to bring back manufacturing jobs has lowered the unemployment rate, and the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act has allowed many Americans to have more disposable income.

While these are all signs of a successful economy, it will not last forever, and it may be coming to an end sooner rather than later. Northwestern Mutual’s 2018 Planning and Progress Study reveals that the average personal debt is over $38,000.

Twice as many Americans added to their debt rather than their savings this past year. Debt that is payable and is used for things like tuition, a car, or a home are not negative financial activities.

However, people who use a loan to pay for weddings, vacations, and home improvements are creating debt for purchases that should not require a loan. This negligent spending, mixed with investment banks overwhelming greed and lack of standards, such as overinflating credit ratings, then selling those unstable loans to investors, are what led to the economic collapse a decade ago.

And if we fall into the same patterns, the same result will occur.

Is it really this hard for some people to understand that you shouldn’t purchase what

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COLUMNS

Crisis in Burma A Blow to the Principles of Democracy

PHOTO COURTESY OF CLAUDE TRUONG-NGOC

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s some of our more internationally-inclined readers may know, the government of Myanmar has been holding two Reuters journalists for more than 260 days—more as of the publishing of this piece. Their crime? Investigative journalism on atrocities being committed by the Burmese security forces on Rohingya villagers. Per Reuters, the reporters were investigating the killing of 10 Rohingya men and boys, among other abuses in the village of Inn Din, in Rakhine State. To add some backstory, 700,000 Rohingya Muslims have been forced to flee into the neighboring state of Bangladesh because of a violent security crackdown on the part of Myanmar in response to attacks by insurgents. This is arguably one of the most pressing international issues of this year, and the international community has been extremely slow to respond with anything more than rhetoric—though the US, the EU, and Canada have placed Burmese military and police officers on sanctions in response to the crackdown.

In a blow to the principles of democracy, the Burmese courts sentenced Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo to seven years in prison for “breaching the Official Secrets Act” when they “collected and obtained confidential documents.” Dubiously the court determined that the documents found on the two at the time of their arrest would have been useful to “enemies of the state and terrorist organizations” and were “not public information.” It would seem that the only crime the two journalists committed was to hold the state accountable to the international community for the human rights abuses being committed in the Rakhine state. “Enemies of the state” here seem to imply anyone who would seek to punish the perpetrators (and rightfully so).

Boris A. Abreu is a senior studying international affairs and political science. He is Publishing Editor to The Arch Conservative.

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In fact, a UN-mandated mission found that the Burmese military carried out mass killings and gang rapes with “genocidal intent,” to use their own language.

These trumped-up charges on the purported “violation” of a colonial-era law show just how far the once-promising government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi has fallen from its 2011 transition to democratic

systems of governance. The international world is right to shame her for failing to step up and control the military forces that she oversees—she should not get a free pass.

This is not the first time the freedom of the press has taken a blow in Myanmar either: In 2014, five journalists were sentenced to ten years in jail after publishing a report saying the country was building a new chemical weapons plant. This is a deliberate flouting of international norms and law, as chemical weapons have been banned by the Chemical Weapons Conventions—of which Myanmar signed AND ratified. It makes sense that journalists want to report this, and while many scholars of international relations

understand that many international agreements can be simply symbolic in nature and lack enforcement mechanisms, that need not stop the journalists from doing the job they are trained to do.

As any honest journalist knows, their mission is to tell the truth—no matter how uncomfortable and damaging the revelations may be. Enshrined in our First Amendment are the protections for the freedom of the press. Unfortunately, our legal and cultural American norms are not shared across the globe, and for some, journalism is one of the most dangerous professions.

These men and women are sometimes, quite literally, putting their lives on the line to get the stories to those who would read them. It seems that almost every day, we must remind ourselves that a free press is essential to a healthy democracy. I rarely, if ever agree with the Left’s talking points, but freedom of the press is one of the greatest freedoms we as Americans enjoy, and something we should all agree on. Just because something makes you uncomfortable or angers you doesn’t mean it should be banned. Go move to Iran or China if you think people shouldn’t be allowed to write whatever they please, even if it is conspiratorial garbage (hello, QAnon). If that was the case, I would have banned Buzzfeed 6 ways to Sunday.

If we are to move forward as a productive global society, freedom of the press must remain enshrined and we must teach citizens the its value around the globe; the spreading of American constitutional values abroad is a crucial tool to assist in achieving this goal. The egregious human rights violations occurring in Myanmar, coupled with the absolutely idiotic charges being pressed by Myanmar onto two professionals, paint a dark picture of what the past was, and what our future looks like, if we do not reliably work to protect those quintessential freedoms, and expose corruption and abuse where it may lay, so that it may be burned in the light. b

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FEATURES

Why It Means More Faith, Family and Georgia Football

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n a sunny autumn Saturday in Athens, Georgia, I walk behind Harold Tarrer down East Campus Road through a congestion of Bulldog fans. Harold is my maternal grandfather, and he’s always stood out a bit on game days. He approaches the Georgia Football Letterman’s Club with the sort of purposeful, out-at-the-hips swagger that is common among old Southern men. The solitary bouncer asks for his pass to get in, and Harold replies by wordlessly flashing the ring on his left hand. The ring commemorates Georgia’s 1966 SEC Championship. I don’t think Harold has ever actually owned the pass, but the bouncer always let him in anyway.

This scene was common to me between the years 1999 and 2014, and I couldn’t help but feel a similar pride to my grandfather’s when the people around us realize that he was once a Georgia football player. It’s no secret that this integral part of my upbringing influenced me heavily when I was applying to college: I only applied to one. Harold’s daughter and his son-in-law are also UGA grads, so anything else would have just felt off. I grew up knowing that Georgia football was tied closely to my family, but it was only recently that I came to understand the true, critical nature of the ties. In a way, Georgia football saved my family.

I’m a fanatic and I’ve accepted that. To answer the recently popular Twitter question, “When were you radicalized?” my J.Thomas Perdue is Editor in Chief of The Arch Conservative.

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answer is November 16, 2002, exactly one month before my sixth birthday, when David Greene completed a 19-yard 4th down pass to Michael Johnson to beat Auburn and clinch the SEC East title. I’m also a Christian, and was taught, perhaps most specifically by my grandfather, to avoid idolatry. And no, the campus preacher did not get to me, but I used to actually feel guilty about caring so much about something as seemingly inconsequential as college sports. I’ve judged the quality of entire calendar years based on something the Dawgs did, or didn’t do. But upon learning more about my family’s history, I’ve discovered not only that it’s okay for me to wear my passion on my sleeve but that I’d be ungrateful to do anything less. It’s likely that none of us, myself especially, would be where we are today if not for Harold’s love of football, his efforts spent at UGA, and the opportunities he earned in payment for those efforts.

My family spent the better part of the past century piddling in Thomaston, Georgia, a rural town that was destroyed during the Civil War but became a textile hub after the Reconstruction. The textile mill has since moved overseas, and I’m actually the first man in my family to not have worked there for any amount of time. Harold grew up in the “Mill Village,” which was a community from where laborers could walk to work.

His mother, Hazel, worked in the morning, and his father Morris’s shift began when her’s ended. With neither of his parents around for the day-to-day of much of his childhood, Harold found a way to occupy himself in football.

At some point in the next ten years, Harold decided that the life he wanted for himself was destined to unfold outside of the monotonous grind of Thomaston Mills, and football revealed itself to be a plausible escape. In the third grade, he joined Thomaston’s aptly named “Midget League” football team for elementary and middle school boys. Harold turned out to be a tremendous athlete, but his advantage came from his mindset. The city kids he played with were typically wealthier and more educated than Mill Village kids.

So Harold was meaner. He told me that, at first, his objective at practice was to make the R. E. Lee Grammar School kids cry every day. His playing technique obviously became more refined with age, but I will never forget his consistent, two-word piece of advice to me when I played in high school: “reckless abandon.”

It was on the Midget teams where Harold met Coach James Dawkins, one of the few people who my grandfather reveres as a mentor (the only other I can think of being Erk Russell). Coach Dawkins was responsible for developing a lot of the talent that came through grammar school to play for the typically state-ranked R.E. Lee Rebels, and Harold was no exception. In stark contrast to today’s little league sports, where parents buy their children top-end equipment and hire personal coaches if their little future All-American expresses even the slightest interest in a sport, Harold just had Coach Dawkins, his friends, and himself. In fact, the first football game that Harold’s father ever saw him play was Between the Hedges.

In high school, Harold was an All-State

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PHOTO COURTESY OF DXR

By J. Thomas Perdue

FEATURES

defensive lineman on some statistically ridiculous teams. Harold’s tenure saw the Rebel defense give up an average of just over four points per game. R.E. Lee epitomized the old school. Generally outclassed and outmanned in this era by superior competition from the Atlanta area, Thomaston’s boys were always competitive, becoming a perennial powerhouse throughout the 60s, 70s, and 80s. They were the pride of the town. Harold was recruited by almost every major school in the South, and even came dangerously close to becoming a Volunteer before deciding on Georgia as part of Vince Dooley’s first recruiting class. He was a three-year letterman at UGA, a member of two SEC Championship teams, three bowl teams (Cotton, Liberty, and Sugar as he’ll tell you), and during his career, Georgia did not lose a single home game. Harold was part of a very important class of college football. He played alongside legendary players in Bulldog lore, such as future Super Bowl MVP Jake Scott and Steve Spurrier’s perpetual fever dream, Bill Stanfill. During his time, he also went up against the likes of the aforementioned Spurrier, Archie Manning and even future Bulldog head coach, Jim Donnan. More importantly, it was during these years when Harold married his wife Marsha, who soon after gave birth to my mother, Kelly.

College wasn’t exactly easy for Harold, but he was there, so he persevered. It was no small feat for a working-class kid from East Thomaston to graduate from one of the biggest schools in the South. Harold was the first person in the family to attend college, and football opened that door. Harold was never stupid or slow, but he wasn’t academically gifted either. Maybe it was the attitude he picked up on the football field or in the Mill Village, but something made him keep trying, and he got his degree in 1969. Just

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like trying out for football in the third grade, making the daily commitment to becoming one of the best athletes in the state, and competing on the national stage as a Bulldog, getting his degree was an effort Harold made with few means, but with all of his heart.

Since then, Harold has lived as a loving patriarch and a capable provider, but that’s not really the point of the rest of his story. Because it’s not a perfect Cinderella story where we all lived happily ever after. He didn’t go to the NFL and make a lot of money like Scott and Stanfill. In fact, I’ve known my grandfather in a wide range of financial straits, familial turmoil, and physical health. He, just like the rest of us, has been struck with the familiar tragedy and hardship that brings strong men down. Georgia football did not save him from that. No amount of nostalgic glory days can alleviate the anxiety that inevitably comes with age and degradation.

However, it was through all of this, the ups and downs of life, that he taught my mother and me what it means to be a Bulldog. No matter how bad things look, Harold goes through each day whistling a song. He taught us that every morning, we make a choice, conscious or not, about what kind of day we’re going to have and what kind of people we’re going to be. Much akin to “Attack the Day,” as it were.

The SEC’s football dominance in the past decade and change inspired the conference to adopt a new slogan: “It Just Means More.”

This almost comes across as an apologetic excuse for the rabid nature of Southern fan bases. To an outsider, the South’s devotion to college football could be explained by stereotypical Southern bitterness, i.e., our dependency on alcohol and fried food stemming from poverty and losing the Civil War. That might be true for some people, but I don’t think it speaks for most of us. For some, it

might be as simple as remembering where we were when a certain play happened. For me, the story of my grandfather is why it means more. And beyond that, the spirit that I’ve inherited through blood and the lessons in fortitude I was taught were all born equally of my humble and decrepit hometown and the majestic and venerable Sanford Stadium.

Harold does not attend as many games now as he did when I was growing up. But I think he’s pleased with what he sees. When he makes the trip up to tailgate on Oconee Hill across from the stadium, his spirits lift and he acts almost like a puppy let off the leash, roving from one tent to another and seeking out old Bulldogs to chat with. His smile is three miles wide. He likes to talk about the rejuvenated fight that Kirby Smart has put in the new breed of Bulldogs. I can’t help but point out the similarities between Smart’s “Attack the Day” slogan and Erk Russell’s legendary “G.A.T.A.” I no longer follow Harold into the stadium, and the awe I used to feel as a child is quite familiar now. However, I’ll certainly meet him after the game and help finish whatever beer and tailgate food he and my stepfather didn’t polish off earlier. We’ll talk about the game we just watched and the game we’ll watch next week. As Harold says with more and more frequency these days, he is in the fourth quarter of his life. However, there is not a trace of fear or uncertainty in his voice when he does. That’s the advantageous condition of a man who has done his best in for the first three. b

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Mad Scots & Englishmen

Great Britain’s Influence on the American Founding

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roamed through the halls of Windsor Castle in the year 2018, in my head eulogizing the castle’s figuratively and literally rich history that spans back in time a millenium, before William the Conqueror even set foot on the soil of the British Isles in 1066. As I studied the paintings of the heroes of the Napoleonic Wars on the walls of the Waterloo Chamber, I wondered: How could any Englishman not be fiercely proud of his country?

As proud Americans, we often kick dust in the face of our ideological (and for some, genealogical) forebears. When a British politician or public figure makes a snide comment about the United States, the typical (and oft-hilarious) American response is: “The last time I cared what a Brit had to say was 1776.” Or, if we wanted to add a little more sting to the insult: “You’d all be speaking German if it weren’t for us.” Admittedly, both are true. And perhaps we have a right to be bitter. They colonized us; they taxed us without our consent; they had several tyrants for kings. Like all superpowers at some point in history, their armies raped and plundered and murdered. But, all that evil being confessed, another truth not so popularly espoused amongst us Americans is that America would not exist as the land of the free today if it weren’t for the Brits.

The ideas that shaped the United States—our system of common law, our Constitution, and even the very document that declared Reed Ferguson is Executive Editor of The Arch Conservative.

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the states’ independence from the British Empire—derive from centuries of English and Scottish political thought and moral philosophy.

In a speech delivered to the Second Virginia Convention in March 1775, Patrick Henry said, “Should I keep back my opinions at such a time, through fear of giving offense, I should consider myself as guilty of treason towards my country, and of an act of disloyalty toward the majesty of heaven, which I revere above all earthly kings.” These “earthly kings,” according to Henry, among other contemporary American Patriots, were subject to a higher authority. Governments existed to perform a specific duty, and there sat in heaven a just God who ripped all tyrants from their thrones in His timing: “There is a just God who presides over the destinies of nations,” Henry bellowed from the pulpit of St. John’s Episcopal Church on that March day in 1775.

In Thomas Jefferson’s own words, penned a mere year after Henry’s speech, in the Declaration of Independence, men are “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

Patrick Henry and Thomas Jefferson were not prophets bearing a progressive message for the Modern Age; and, though revolutionary in full-scale practice, nor were their ideas new ones that miraculously popped into their heads from mere nothingness.

In November of 1720, over half a

century before the American Revolution, John Trenchard and Thomas Gordon, respectively an Englishman and a Scot, penned their first letter under the pseudonym “Cato.”

(The name refers to Cato, enemy of Julius Caesar and defender of Roman republicanism.) In one of Cato’s Letters, his pseudonymous authors wrote: “Force is often dangerous; and when employed to acquire what is not ours, it is always unjust; and therefore men, to procure from others what they had not before, must gain their consent.” Cato’s ideas were reminiscent of the ideas of English philosopher John Locke.

In his 1651 book, Leviathan, another English philosopher, Thomas Hobbes, argued that the state of nature is all against all. Man, unrestrained, is “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short.” Because of the anarchic state of natural man, Hobbes argued in favor of the absolute authority of monarchs. Through a covenant between the people and the monarch (i.e., the people’s surrendering of all their rights to the monarch), governance is made wholly legitimate and just.

John Locke, an ally of constitutional monarchy, took Hobbes’ theory of social contract further, invoking his own belief in the sanctity of property rights to dismiss Hobbes’ case for absolutism. In his 1689 work Two Treatise of Government, Locke refuted the absolute, hereditary divine right of monarchs.

He argued that the power of all men, even kings, is limited by the laws of God. However, though he may have codified the phrasing, “life, liberty, and property,” even Locke was not the first to dream of protecting those specific three sacred gifts of God.

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PHOTO COURTESY OF JEFF KUBINA

By Reed Ferguson

FEATURES

established the colonies. It was the monarch with whom Englishmen had signed a treaty.

And it was the monarch whom they believed had broken his covenant with them.

George Buchanan, a 16th-century Scottish Reformation leader and historian, appealed to the ancient Gaelic kings of Scotland for historical precedent of the social contract theory. Propagating the overthrow of his former pupil, Mary, Queen of Scots, he asserted that the ancient Scottish monarchs were not entitled to rule by bloodline but were subject to election by the people. If a king became a tyrant, breaking his contract with the people, the nobility was lawfully entitled to subvert him.

The Glorious Revolution of 1688 marked the deposition of the Roman Catholic King James II of England and the accession to the throne of his Protestant daughter, Mary, and her husband, William of Orange. In lockstep with Lockean social contract philosophy, the so-called “bloodless” revolution was just. No man’s rule is unconditional. Even the king’s rule is ruled over. The lords of the earth, themselves being lorded over by the Lord of lords, are accountable to the well-being of their subjects. If Parliament, in the stead of the people’s will, wanted a Protestant monarch to represent their Protestant population, so be it—even if it meant dethroning the rightful hereditary ruler.

The central themes of English and Scottish history and philosophy were actualized in the United States Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights. Hundreds of years of both war and peace, bloodshed and bloodless debate, ultimately materialized in

the form of a new nation—one founded on a creed of self-governance, the rule of law, due process, and the unalienable rights of men.

British statesman Edmund Burke believed that people were better off looking to the “general bank and capital of nations and of ages” than trying to infer morality from their own observation and intellect. Therein lies the crux of American conservatism: to hold a reverence toward history, a respect for both the failures and triumphs of our ancestors, a desire to understand both their moral shortcomings and victories, and to improve upon them all.

It is from the wisdom of the past that our great nation was born. We owe it to the British—perhaps not to every single action of the British government (as both a descendant of Scotsmen and a daughter of the American Revolution, I can attest that I certainly have my quarrels with the English kings) but unquestionably, to the philosophers who first influenced their own government and whose ideas were, in due time, realized in our founding documents. America is the offspring of all the best parts of enlightened European philosophy. It is the physical manifestation of centuries of, more specifically, English and Scottish political thought. It is because the British once sang “God Save the King” that we now sing “Let freedom ring.”

For all my grievances against the Crown, I will still say with pride, as a free American: Thank God for the British Empire. b

PHOTO COURTESY OF KAREN BLAHA

In 1215, a peace treaty between English noblemen and King John, known as the Magna Carta, became the first governmental decree to affirm that both the ruled and the ruler were equally subject to the law. In the fall of 1774, the delegates to the first Continental Congress cited the Magna Carta in a Declaration of Rights and Grievances. As a precursor to the protections outlined in the fourth through eighth amendments to the United States Constitution, the Magna Carta’s protections included freedom from unlawful searches and seizures, right to a speedy trial and trial by jury, and protection from loss of life, liberty, and property without due process of law.

In the Declaration of Independence, Thomas Jefferson detailed 28 grievances against King George III. They included the king’s dissolving of colonial representative bodies, his violation of the social contract, the closing of the Boston Harbor to trade with the world, and the quartering of British soldiers in American homes, among others. The American Patriots believed it was the duty of the English king to secure the unalienable and God-given rights of Englishmen. In their eyes, their king was not only failing to protect their rights but was actually complicit in actively suppressing them.

The 1620 Mayflower Compact was the colonists’ contract with the king, an agreement to form a civil government for the “preservation” of the colonists, for “the advancement of Christian Faith,” and for “the Honour of our King and Country.” Decades before Parliament had any substantial power in British polity, it was the monarch who had

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The Arch Conservative / 15

COLUMNS

Stacey Abrams and Crayola Politics How Identity Politics Can Define a Candidate

Luke McGahren is a freshman studying business. He is a firsttime contributor to The Arch Conservative.

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defense for what seemed to be a direct attack on Evan’s race. Abrams responded by defending the disruption of Stacey Evans as “an historic endorsement of the value of bringing marginalized voices to the forefront.”

Whether Stacey Abrams will admit it or not, Abrams understands that race and gender have become the backbone of her campaign, and she has to remain complicit in Crayola politics if she wants to win.

Identity politics doesn’t just cause damage to informed and rational voting. It’s degrading.

To the Democratic Party, Stacey Abrams

is a pawn, only her skin color and gender making her important. And it may lead to a victory—but a victory without dignity.

Stacey Abrams deserves, like the vast majority of candidates, to have citizens vote on the merits of the policies they plan to implement and support. However, the Democrats and Abrams herself are both aware that leftist policies alone cannot win in Georgia. By turning people towards identity politics, a large amount of Abram’s supporters become single-issue voters that may not understand what they’re actually voting for.

It should be made clear that identity politics is a tool. Groups that proudly proclaim, “Elect black women!” don’t actually mean “Elect all black women.” When individuals within a minority group—be it African-American,

female, or gay—disagree with the prescribed “beliefs” of each group, then they are targeted and attacked more than anyone else.

Take Guy Benson or Dave Rubin, for example, two gay right-wing figures who receive very little admiration from the LGBTTQQIAAP crowd. Or Christina Hoff Sommers, a self-proclaimed feminist whom the Left constantly heckles and attacks purely because her interpretation of feminism deviates from the multiculturalist, intersectional, third-wave feminism of the Left. Or Kanye West, who was berated for daring to break from the standard mantra of leftist celebrities. Or even other black women, like Candace Owens, a conservative who has been labeled an “Uncle Tom” by the left, a racial accusation that intends to demean and vilify black conservatives.

They are considered traitors, and in a way, they are. They are traitors to the Democratic Party that has claimed them. How else can identity politics function as a strategy if people with similar group-identities have different political viewpoints? This is what made the Democratic Primary in Georgia concerning. This is why having Abrams described as “The future for Democrats” concerning. In the Democratic Party, “crayola politics” is winning out, and it is shown less by Abrams herself and more by her proclaimed supporters. This couldn’t be more evident than by the Washington Post’s article “Stacey Abrams supporters aren’t afraid of identity politics.” They may not be afraid, but America should be. When it becomes a radical position to believe that people should be judged only by the content of their character rather than the color of their skin, we’ve entered dangerous territory. Or maybe we just never left it. b PHOTO COURTESY OF DXR

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tacey Abrams is in a virtual tie in the polls against Brian Kemp, and Democrats are ecstatic. But this interest in Abrams isn’t new; Democrats and leftists have been ecstatic about her since the beginning of the Democratic Primary. She appeared all over national media and was even featured on “Full Frontal With Samantha Bee,” and it all centered around her race. These immutable and irrelevant characteristics only have importance through the lens of identity politics instead of taking the time to explain and debate concrete policy positions, “Elect black women!” tends to be a simpler, more persuasive way to convince voters that their candidate represents their group identity.

Even Abrams herself, appearing live on Trevor Noah’s show after the primary, admitted to a “Crayola version of policymaking” in her campaign, where voters and the media focus only on color. She went on to say that, “Fundamentally, it doesn’t really matter what race you are—people want a good Governor who can lead.” Abrams emphasized in the interview that she wanted to focus on her policies rather than her race. This is a clear point of conflict with Abrams and her supporters, who are more than happy to use her race and gender as reasons to cast a vote. But even if Abrams disagrees with the approach, she still requires their support.

At a progressive conference during the Democratic primary, Abrams’ then-opponent Stacey Evans was shouted down by Abrams supporters chanting “support black women” while delivering a speech focused mainly on the HOPE scholarship.The disruptors justified their actions by claiming that Evans didn’t “represent their community”—a weak

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COLUMNS

Welcome To The Party The Communist Double Standard

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rom August 12th to the 18th, the University of Georgia hosted a poster sale in the Tate Student Center with a variety of movie, video game, art, and pop culture posters. After browsing for around ten minutes with nothing in particular interest catching my eye, I decided to not blow through what little my bank account still contained and began to leave. However, just before I left I saw one poster that truly surprised me. It was a red and black poster with the caption “Welcome to the Party!” - and depicted iconic ruthless dictators Mao Zedong, Joseph Stalin, and Fidel Castro, as well as Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin. Each figure was attired with party hats except for Mao, who was doing the honor of DJing for his fellow comrades.

Obviously the poster is meant to be a joke, and I’m unopposed to jokes that toe the line between outright offensive and humorous.

That being said, I couldn’t help but think how ridiculous this poster really is considering it alone portrays the murderers of over 100 million human beings across at least three continents. Imagine for a second if a poster being sold on UGA’s campus depicted Adolf Hitler in an outlandish party hat breakdancing to music being produced by DJ Doctor Josef Mengele with the caption “We Party Reich!” or “You Did Nazi This Coming!” The country would grind to a halt, babies would begin crying in the distance, and UGA would be kowtowing to the media apologizing profusely for having the gall to sell such an insensitive poster. And honestly, I think this reaction would be entirely appropriate seeing as how Hitler was responsible for World War II and for over 12 million deaths in the concentration camps. But this begs the question: if making joke posters about Hitler is (correctly) off limits, why is it okay in our culture to portray pictures of Oliver Bunner is a freshman studying electrical engineering.

He is a first-time contributor to The Arch Conservative.

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multiple communist dictators partying despite the fact that they’re responsible for far more gruesome atrocities than Hitler, in terms of both numbers and cruelty?

I have a couple of theories: 1) Because millennials weren’t brought up during the height of the Cold War, the atrocities of communism throughout the world are largely ignored by them. 2) The racial dogma of Nazism is more overtly horrific to the nonpolitically informed individual when compared to the nice-sounding sloganeering of communism.

Let’s address the first theory. Ask nearly any older American who lived through the Cold War about communism, and you’ll hear a harsh response about an evil ideology.

Our parents and grandparents lived through the Stalin and Mao regimes. The atrocities in those countries weren’t distant facts written in a textbook that we reluctantly had to read for homework; rather, for our parents, the atrocities were daily news. Furthermore, these communist regimes were America’s direct and overt enemies. Nuclear war wasn’t a buzzword like it is today, but rather a true potential reality during the Cold War when the USSR was a global superpower. Millennials did not experience the fear of a true adversary to America, and therefore the innate suspicion, if not hatred of Marxism does not captivate the millennial generation.

On the second theory, according to the Communism Memorial Foundation, 51 percent of millennials see capitalism unfavorably—specifically, 44 percent prefer socialism and 7 percent prefer fascism. These statistics raise a question: Why are Marxist ideologies less consistently persecuted than Nazism, and seen as drastically different when in reality, they’re all merely a few centimeters apart on the meter stick of garbage ideas?

In fact, the only real difference between Marxism and Nazism is the way in which they divide society: Marxists through class warfare, Nazis through racism. Both ideologies result in massive government overreach and death camps, yet fascistic Nazism is hated significantly more than Marxist ideologies.

The reason for this is simple; the racial aspect of Nazism is an evil which Americans can

relate to more than class warfare, as America is no stranger to racism. It is an evil we fought a civil war over and still continued to push under the rug for over 100 years until the Civil Rights Movement. However, American history is quite unfamiliar with class warfare until recently. Because of this, Americans are less prone to understanding the dangers of emphasizing class divisions and hate of the rich than they are to understanding the dangers of racism. Therefore, Nazism is rightly despised while Marxism is incorrectly seen as a truly valid solution to our nation’s current problems.

We may know the reasons for why Nazism is hated more by millennials than socialism, but that doesn’t make the difference in favorability valid or okay. The fact is just one of the figures on this poster, let’s say Stalin, killed three-fold more people in his regime than Hitler did in his. When you combine Stalin with everyone else on this poster, the numbers are staggeringly worse than anything Hitler did, and Hitler is already one of the worst human beings in world history.

Put simply, it is far past time for us to regard Marxist ideologies in kind with its fascist counterpart—being disingenuous about Socialism and Communism is just as damaging to our society and culture as the rallies in Charlottesville. b

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HUMOR

Harsh Reality 2020 Democratic Presidential Prospects as Jersey Shore Characters Elizabeth Warren- Snooki While we love Snooki, it’s no secret that most of the things she says do not make sense, and that can sometimes be apparent with Senator Elizabeth Warren. Intentions are always good with our beloved Snooks, but just like the Senator, Snooki’s plans are usually subject to disaster due to ill planning and irrational logic. The racial ambiguity of the two is also an area they have in common.

A Snooki quote that could double as a Warren quote: “After I run for president… the economy would rise, everyone would be tan, and all the radios would play house music.”

Joe Biden- Pauly D Joe Biden and Pauly D both serve as the fan favorite for their group. Funny, charismatic and entertaining, both of these gents are likable. It’s safe to say that Jersey Shore would be a completely different show without Pauly D, and we wouldn’t want it without him. The same can be said about a Democratic primary with no Joe Biden: people just don’t want it.

Unfortunately, both of these men are just too silly to be taken seriously. A Pauly D quote that could double as a Biden quote: “I travel every single day, but I make it a point to go to the gym. I want to look good for summer.”

Kamala Harris- JWOWW Nobody wants to go toe-to-toe with Jenni on the show, which is why most of her arguments end in a win for her. We’ve seen that with Kamala Harris against other Dems. She’s a firecracker, for sure. While both of these ladies may be the best speakers in each of their groups, the United States needs not only a speaker, but also a doer. This is one area where the two differ; Harris does a lot of talking (yelling), but we’ve yet to see incredible action from the Senator. A JWOWW quote that could double as a Harris quote: “I don’t Madison Cooper is a senior studying political science. She is a firsttime contributor to The Arch Conservative.

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follow trends. I set my own and go for the extreme.”

Bernie Sanders- Vinny Everybody loves Vinny, but some of his lifestyle choices are questionable. The exit of Vinny from Jersey Shore in its 6th season left fan devastated, just like many Dems felt with the exit of Senator Sanders from the Democratic Primary of 2016. Vinny received his own reality tv show after Jersey Shore’s 6 seasons ended. Similarly, Sanders has been able to maintain the traction his movement saw in 2016. People want both of these charismatic men to succeed, but it seems for both of them that they themselves are their own kryptonite with angering leaders of their own groups. A Vinny quote that could double as a Sanders quote: “I was always the lead role in plays. I like entertaining people.

I like when you're on stage doing crazy stuff and the audience gets it.”

Cory Booker- The Situation Loud, proud, and quite annoying…both of these men have an incredible ability to suck all of the air out of the room. Whether it’s giving yourself a concussion in Italy, or attempting to make every single hearing you attend about the LGBT community, both of these fools always manage to waste time and energy. However, one of them seems to be finally getting emotionally and mentally stable, and we’re so happy for the Situation about that. A Situation quote that could double as a Booker quote: “You can hate on me all you want to, but what can you possibly say to someone who looks like Rambo pretty much with his shirt off.”

Kristen Gillibrand- Sammi Sweetheart Both of these ladies appear to be nice, accommodating, sincere women. As the President would say, “WRONG.” Similar to Sammi’s constant insecurities about her relationship, Gillibrand has remained a thorn in the side of literally every single Senator.

She was the only Senator to vote against the appointment of Sonny Perdue as the Secretary of Agriculture. I mean, come on. They’re both difficult for no reason. While Sammi is no

longer affiliated with the Jersey Shore brand, we can only hope that Gillibrand’s political presence ceases to exist, and soon. A Sammi quote that could double as a Gillibrand quote: “I don't care about family dinner. I'm not great friends with these people at this point.”

Oprah Winfrey- Deena Perhaps the most lovable of each group, both Oprah and Deena have personalities that make you want to be their best friends.

Oprah will buy you a car, teach you how to diet, and give you a public therapy session.

Deena will take you out for drinks, get lost on the beach with you and expose you to what having a “real blast” is like. However, neither of them should be in a position where they’re making decisions for an entire country. Like ever. A Deena quote that could double as an Oprah quote: “Like, I dont want anybody in a funk, because their funk puts me in a funk because they’re in a funk and I dont want anybody to be in a funk!”

Mark Zuckerberg- Ronnie Tsk Tsk, what did this guy do now? This question could be asked of both of these guys. While one has an anger problem and one is a little nosy, the trust is gone for both of these fellas. No one is really expecting the Zucc to run for President, but nobody expected Ronnie to return to Jersey Shore after becoming a father and showing the world a grand display of domestic violence.

So, ya never know. A Ronnie quote that could double as a Zucc quote: “I'm definitely not a saint. If I walked into a church, I'd probably burst into flames to be honest with you. [But] I think I can probably talk my way out of the hole I dug. I mean, how deep is a grave?”

Hillary Clinton- Angelina No explanation needed. Kicked out by rest of the group. Romantic life is messy. Not sure why she’s still around. I thought we got rid of her? An Angelina quote that could double as a Clinton quote: “I think I f**king deserve to be in this house. I've been very respectful to a lot of people and I've let a lot of people step on me. F**k that, no more. If you want to say something, come in my face and we'll fight.” b

FALL 2018

COLUMNS HUMOR

ArchCon's Guide to White Supremacy Bigotry Works in Mysterious Ways

I

t can be difficult in this day and age to identify danger where it lurks. It sometimes seems that our nation is woefully unprepared to handle new threats to our way of life. This decade alone has brought forth cyber-attacks from North Korea, election interference from Russia, and Colin Kaepernick. Although ISIS is being rolled back significantly and The Big Bang Theory was finally cancelled, it’s safe to say this has been a trying time for the American soul.

With such intensified turmoil, the stage was set for a seemingly dormant blight on American culture to make its comeback tour.

I’m talking, of course, about white supremacy.

As anyone stupid enough to still own a cable TV subscription will tell you, there is a literal Nazi in the White House. 45’s election has emboldened racists all across the country, and they operate with varying degrees of subtlety.

For example, national media was steadfast in its nonstop coverage of alt-right demonstrators in Washington, D.C. last month. Thankfully, counter-protesters, who are on the right side of history, were there to oppose them.

Much like the 300 Spartans holding the line at Thermopylae, they would not let either of the alt-right demonstrators win the day and spread their hateful rhetoric. Unfortunately though, racists are not always subjected to the spotlight as they were on that day.

That’s where we come in. The editors of this magazine have graciously thrown together a guide to the secret communications used by white supremacists. Much like the Navajo code-breakers of World War II fame, we will not let the enemy operate under our noses any longer. Here are a few gestures to look out for. If you see any of them, and we mean any of them, you definitely have a fascist on your hands. So grab your bike locks, throw on your balaclavas, and educate yourselves.

J. Thomas Perdue is a senior studying journalism. He is Editor in Chief of The Arch Conservative.

FALL 2018

1. “The OK Sign”— You should all be familiar with this one. By holding your index finger behind your thumb, you’re probably participating in genocide without even knowing it. The OK sign recently gained national prominence when Zina Bash, a woman of Mexican and Jewish heritage threw it up at the Kavanaugh hearings. You may ask, “Why would a Mexican-Jewish woman who descended from Holocaust survivors be a white supremacist?” Well, now you see just how much subtlety we’re dealing with here. I personally find it highly likely that Bash was brainwashed by the ethno-state conspiracy.

It’s just too much evidence to be a coincidence. And at the Kavanaugh hearing, no less! Gilead is coming, folks. (Editor’s note: And it’s going to be awesome).

2. “Thumbs Up” — If you think this is an innocent, friendly affirmative, I’m sorry to say they got to you. By holding up your thumb, you are actually isolating your thumb from the other four fingers, signaling 14. What is the significance of the number 14? Prepare to get woke. It is a reference to the Fourteen Words written by white supremacist David Lane, who wrote while in prison, “We must secure the existence of our people and a future for white children.” Yeah. Might want to keep those thumbs holstered for the time being.

the South Carolina game: total dominance against our unprepared and outmatched neighbors to the east. Replace our tailbacks with Panzer tanks and Williams-Brice with Poland, and you’ve got a recipe for 1939. We’re all better off smoking cigarettes outside of Church Bar and scoffing at the crypto-fash in red and black on game days.

Coming to terms with our problematic habits can be upsetting, but it’s something we must all work towards. The only true way to avoid signaling your allegiance to the Fourth Reich is to do absolutely nothing at all. Just sit in your room and hide. Actually, that might be too similar to Hitler’s final days in the bunker. Scratch that. Well… we’ll keep working on a solution. For now, keep an eye out for these tell-tale signs of the impending ethno-state. b

3. “Peace Symbol” — There is nothing peaceful about holding up two fingers. This is actually a reference to the fascistic idea that there are only two genders. Turns out every Tri-Delt who posted on Instagram from Music Midtown was advocating for violence against the trans community. Peace out.

4. “Sitting with a Book on Your Lap” — You know what else was a book? Mein Kampf.

5. “Attending Georgia Football Games” — Come on, the symbolism is too great to ignore. Red and black? Nazi flag. The Savage Pads? Painted gold to bring to mind Nazi vanity and Hitler’s interest in the Ark of the Covenant. Even our beloved mascot, Uga, is only a few selectively bred generations away from being a German Shepherd. Consider

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