MY DAUGHTER, MY FIGHT A girl spiraled into depression after exposure to a transgender program at school. Her mom sounds the alarm. By Alex Newman
MAY 13–19, 2022 | $6.95
NO. 19
Editor’s Note
A Mom Fights Back erin lee’s life was turned upside down in May last year when she allowed her 12-year-old daughter to attend an afterschool “art club.” As it turns out, the “art club” was nothing like it sounded, and her daughter said she was encouraged by the staff there to believe that she was “transgender.” “My heart started racing and my mind blacked out,” Lee recounted to Insight. “I was in so much shock that I struggled to get out any words.” Lee ended up taking her daughter out of school and placed her in a private Christian school. But even after that, the ordeal wasn’t over. Her daughter had been so confused by the club that she continued to question whether she was, in fact, transgender. When Lee raised her concerns to the school, she said administrators affirmed the actions of the club. Local law enforcement told her they weren’t able to do anything. She also learned that the school had discussed sending Child Protective Services to her home. Lee’s story is hardly an isolated incident. There is a trend of parents across the nation reporting similar stories. She is now considering legal action and wants to make others aware of what’s happening.
Jasper Fakkert Editor-in-chief
2 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
JASPER FAKKERT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF CHANNALY PHILIPP LIFE & TRADITION, TRAVEL EDITOR
ON THE COVER The lives of Erin Lee and her family were turned upside down last year when an after-school club encouraged her daughter to be transgender. MICHAEL CIAGLO FOR THE EPOCH TIMES
CHRISY TRUDEAU MIND & BODY EDITOR CRYSTAL SHI HOME, FOOD EDITOR SHARON KILARSKI ARTS & CULTURE EDITOR BILL LINDSEY LUXURY EDITOR BIBA KAJEVICH ILLUSTRATORS SHANSHAN HU PRODUCTION CONTACT US THE EPOCH TIMES ASSOCIATION INC. 229 W.28TH ST., FL.7 NEW YORK, NY 10001 ADVERTISING ADVERTISENOW@EPOCHTIMES.COM SUBSCRIPTIONS, GENERAL INQUIRIES, LETTERS TO THE EDITOR HELP.THEEPOCHTIMES.COM (USPS21-800)IS PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY THE EPOCH MEDIA GROUP, 9550 FLAIR DR. SUITE 411, EL MONTE, CA 91731-2922. PERIODICAL POSTAGE PAID AT EL MONTE, CA, AND ADDITIONAL MAILING OFFICES. POSTMASTER: SEND ADDRESS CHANGES TO THE EPOCH TIMES, 229 W. 28TH STREET, FLOOR 5, NEW YORK, NY 10001.
vol. 2 | no. 19 | may 13–19, 2022
26 | FBI Whistleblower
48 | The Dollar’s Power
Speaks Out An agent who quit the FBI rather than fulfill an order that he deemed improper talks about the bureau’s turf wars.
Many predicted the demise of the U.S. dollar, but they were wrong.
49 | Digital Asset
DeFi staking and cryptocurrency yield farming are very risky investments.
28 | Durham Versus
Mueller The disparate treatment of the Clinton camp versus the Trump camp.
50 | Lifelong Learning
The educational process continues long after graduation.
38 | Crop Shortages
52 | CCP Ambitions
Possible food shortages are looming amid drought and rising fertilizer costs.
40 | 1st Post-Roe Ballot Test A Kansas referendum proposes an amendment declaring there’s no constitutional right to abortion.
44 | Rising Costs
Democrats are using abortion to divert attention from inflation.
45 | Mitigating
the CCP Risk Beijing wants to evade trillions in future sanctions— and we shouldn’t let it.
Features 12 | Overturning Roe v. Wade If the Supreme Courts decides to overturn it, expect a flurry of legal wrangling at the state level. THE LEAD
16 | Mother Takes on
Transgender Agenda
A mother who pulled her daughter out of school due to its transgender agenda learns that a teacher suggested calling child services on her. 30 | Sexuality Education Banned In Corpus Christi, a Texas group has blocked a “harmful” school sex-ed program used in 35 states.
46 | Unavoidable Recession? Can prompt action by the Fed help avoid inflationary pressure?
47 | Fixing the IRS
IRS is battling backlogs caused by relief payments and staff shortages.
Michael Sussman (C), a former Hillary Clinton campaign attorney, arrives for a court hearing at a federal courthouse in Washington on April 27. Sussman, set to go on trial on May 16 for allegedly lying to the FBI, revealed just days before jury selection was to start that notes from a top former FBI official undercut the case against him. OLIVER TREY/THE EPOCH TIMES
The CCP’s digital yuan and global supremacy goal.
56 | Genteel Farming
This feature-packed estate offers easy city access in a bucolic setting.
58 | The Eternal City
Explorers of Rome enjoy a rare glimpse of ancient wonders.
60 | Furry Friends
How to show your pet just how much you really care for it.
63 | It’s About Time
Quiet elegance makes this collection of watches a statement of style.
66 | Super Chef!
Love helped Chef Darnell Ferguson turn his life around.
67 | Make a Great
Impression How to put your best foot forward at a job interview. I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 3
4 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
SPOTLIGHT
Braving the Rain, Sharing Hope FALUN DAFA PRACTITIONERS take part in an early event to celebrate World Falun Dafa Day (May 13), in Foley Square in New York on May 7. Hundreds gathered in the rain to share a message of health, hope, and resilience. PHOTO BY SAMIRA BOUAOU/THE EPOCH TIMES
I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 5
SHEN YUN SHOP
Great Culture Revived. Fine Jewelry | Italian Scarves | Home Decor
ShenYunShop.com
Tel: 1.80 0.208.2384
NAT ION • WOR L D • W H AT H A P P E N E D T H I S W E E K
The Week
No.19
A farmer inspects a grain drill while planting soybeans near Dwight, Ill., on April 23, 2020. PHOTO BY SCOTT OLSON/GETTY IMAGES
‘Perfect Storm’ Hitting US Crops
38
What’s After Roe v. Wade?
FBI Insider
Durham Versus Mueller
If it’s overturned, expect a flurry of legal wrangling at the state level. 12
Whistleblower faced backlash after quitting amid turf war. 26
Durham’s treatment of the Clinton camp contrasts with Mueller’s treatment of the Trump camp. 28
INSIDE I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 7
The Week in Short US
e n s nacirem A “ t uoba erom w onk den ia lpx enu es ht
$39.8
BILLION
In a 368–57 vote, the House of Representatives passed a $39.8 billion package for Ukraine on May 10.
” .s e c n e r u c o
Rep. André Carson (D-Ind.), on why the House will hold public hearing on UFOs.
$15.84 “China has focused on TRILLION studying the United States’ way of war and on offsetting our advantages.” Sen. Jack Reed (D-R.I.)
25
have reported at least one case of unexplained acute hepatitis among children in recent days.
8.3 PERCENT The U.S. annual inflation rate slipped to 8.3 percent in April. While inflation has declined from its March peak of 8.5 percent, it remains near 40-year-high levels.
14 YEARS — A federal judge has sentenced China-born American chemist You Xiaorong, also known as Shannon You, of Michigan to 14 years in prison for stealing trade secrets, engaging in economic espionage, and committing fraud. You tried to set up a Chinese company that would manufacture products for the global market based on stolen technology.
8 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
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STATES
In the first quarter of 2022, household debt in the United States reached $15.84 trillion, $1.7 trillion more than before the COVID19 pandemic began at the end of 2019, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
The Week in Short US HOUSE
NY Rep. Tom Reed Resigns From Congress REP. TOM REED (R-N.Y.) has
announced that he is resigning from Congress, stating in a lengthy speech that he was proud to have “put people before politics.” The sudden resignation comes after Reed announced in March 2021 that he would no longer be seeking office in 2022 and apologized to a former lobbyist who accused him of sexual misconduct. IMMIGRATION Dr. Anthony Fauci testifies during a hearing on Capitol Hill in Washington on May 11. NIH
Acting NIH Director Admits Appearance of Conflict of Interest in Payments to Fauci, Scientists UNDISCLOSED ROYALTY PAYMENTS estimated at $350 million from
pharmaceutical and other firms to Dr. Anthony Fauci and hundreds of National Institutes for Health (NIH) scientists do present “an appearance of a conflict of interest,” according to the agency’s acting director. Dr. Lawrence Tabak, who took over as NIH director following the December 2021 resignation of the agency’s long-time leader, Dr. Francis Collins, told a House Appropriations Committee subcommittee that federal law allows the royalty payments, but he conceded they don’t look ethical. Tabak said NIH doesn’t endorse particular medicines, but added, “I certainly can understand that it might seem as a conflict of interest.”
AG Garland Rules Judges May Consider Mental Health When Reviewing Asylum Claims
THE BIDEN ADMINISTR ATION
SPECIAL COUNSEL JOHN DURHAM has filed court papers saying that
has said that judges may take into consideration the mental health of criminal illegal immigrants who have been convicted of “particularly serious crimes” when considering asylum cases. Under the Immigration and Nationality Act, illegal immigrants seeking entry into the country would be made ineligible for both asylum and withholding of removal if they have been convicted of a “particularly serious crime” and are found to be a danger to the community of the United States. However, Attorney General Merrick Garland ruled that judges considering such cases may now take into consideration the mental health of the immigrants in their rulings.
the FBI and U.S. intelligence are slowly producing documents related to his case against Igor Danchenko, who prosecutors say lied to investigators about how he obtained information that later appeared in the controversial and discredited Steele dossier that was used against former President Donald Trump. Durham asked U.S. District Judge Anthony Trenga to set a new deadline of June 13 to turn over classified materials to Danchenko’s attorneys. So far, most of the classified documents have been handed over, although Durham said that “recent world events continue to contribute to delays in the processing and production of classified discovery,” possibly referring to the Ukraine–Russia conflict.
Attorney General Merrick Garland.
FBI
Durham Says FBI, Intelligence Agencies Slowly Producing Classified Materials
I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 9
The Week in Short World CHINA
Chinese Officials More Willing to Betray the CCP: Australian Spy Chief THE HEAD OF AUSTR ALIA’S
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson (L) and Finnish President Sauli Niinisto sign a declaration of security assurance, at the Presidential Palace in Helsinki, Finland, on May 11. UK
UK’s Johnson Signs Security Assurances With Sweden and Finland BRITISH PRIME MINISTER Boris Johnson has pledged to support both
Sweden and Finland should they come under attack, as he visited the two countries to sign historic declarations of security assurance. Both countries are considering the prospect of joining the NATO military alliance following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Moscow has warned that both countries would face “serious military and political repercussions” if they were to do so.
WHO Chief Says China’s ‘Zero-COVID’ Policy Not Sustainable THE HEAD OF what the Chinese
regime’s “zero-COVID” policy is “unsustainable,” a rare criticism that has been quickly censored on China’s Internet. “When we talk about the ‘zeroCOVID’ strategy, we don’t think that it’s sustainable, considering the behavior of the virus now and what we anticipate in the future,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said at a media briefing. Ghebreyesus. “We have discussed this issue with Chinese experts, and we indicated that the approach will not be sustainable. ... I think a shift would be very important.” It’s a rare rebuke from the director-general, who repeatedly praised the Chinese regime’s response earlier in the pandemic. 10 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
GERMANY
German Inflation Hits Record High at 7.4 Percent
INFLATION LEVELS IN GERMANY
reached their highest level in more than 40 years in April, according to figures released by the country’s Federal Statistical Office, also known as Destatis. Annual inflation grew 0.1 percentage point to 7.4 percent, up from 7.3 percent in March, marking the second month in a row of record-high inflation since the reunification of East and West Germany in 1990, and the fastest rise in consumer prices since 1981.
THIS PAGE FROM TOP: FRANK AUGSTEIN - WPA POOL/GETTY IMAGES, FABRICE COFFRINI/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES; RIGHT PAGE: MIGUEL MEDINA/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES, ANTHONY WALLACE/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES, EZRA ACAYAN/GETTY IMAGES, ISHARA S. KODIKARA/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
WHO
foreign spy agency has hinted that disgruntled officials in non-democratic societies, like China, are more likely to betray their government and leak information as the regimes tighten their control. Paul Symon, director-general of the Australian Security Intelligence Service—the country’s equivalent to the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency— revealed that the organization benefits when authoritarian regimes are suppressing dissent within their borders. “We noticed that in closed societies, top officials will always reinforce leaders’ biases and assumptions. That after all, is the safest career path for them, speaking truth to power is an enduring strength of our system,” he said in reference to the democratic system, at the Lowy Institute in Sydney. Symon said he believes more and more officials “unhappy with the trajectory of closed societies” will start speaking out or will “take risks” to do so.
World in Photos
World in Photos
1.
2.
1. Bosco Verticale (Vertical Forest), a high-rise complex in the Library of Trees botanic park in Milan, Italy, on May 10. 2. Performers wait before their act at the Blue House compound, the executive office and official residence of South Korea’s president, in Seoul on May 11. 3. A priest talks to police officers standing guard as protesters rally against election results outside the Commission on Elections building in Manila, Philippines, on May 10. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., son of ousted dictator Ferdinand Marcos Sr., claimed victory in the 2022 presidential election. 4. People walk past a burnt bus torched by protesters near former Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa’s official residence in Colombo on May 10.
3. 4.
I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 11
WHAT’S ROE V. SUPREME COURT
While some have considered abortion law to be essentially settled since the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision, others view the jurisprudence around this issue as having been in flux for many years. PHOTO BY DREW ANGERER/GETTY IMAGES
12 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
AFTER WADE?
IF IT’S OVERTURNED, EXPECT A FLURRY OF LEGAL WRANGLING AT THE STATE LEVEL BY M I C H A E L WA S H BU R N
I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 13
In Focus Abortion Decision
N OVERTURNING OF ROE
The Autonomy of States Glenn offered a number of thoughts on 14 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
Pro-life and pro-abortion demonstrators gather in front of the Supreme Court in Washington on May 3. the likely consequences of the Dobbs decision passing into law in its current form or something quite close. In Glenn’s view, the final ruling is likely to acknowledge the validity of Mississippi’s contention that Roe and Casey were wrongly decided and that nothing in the Constitution or the 14th Amendment, which has been used to uphold legal abortion, mentions or alludes to abortion. “What Mississippi argued is that abortion is not in the Constitution, and if it’s not, then it is a state issue and it should be regulated, like other health and safety
AN OVERTURN OF Roe wouldn’t mean abortion is automatically banned across all 50 states, an expert says. States would use their own discretion in regulating abortion.
issues, at the state level,” she said. Some states have already laid the legal groundwork preparing for the turning of decisions back over to them about whether and how to regulate or restrict abortion, she noted. They’ve held ballot initiatives leading to the implementation of a trigger law providing that an overturn of Roe would cause the law to kick in, forbidding abortion. One example is Wyoming, where Glenn expects to see officials outlaw abortion as soon as the Dobbs ruling frees their hand to do so. In other states, attorneys general will quickly head to court at the state and federal levels to seek to have laws applied relating to parental consent, prenatal nondiscrimination, and the banning of abortion on the grounds of prenatal diagnoses, Glenn predicts. “We will see attorneys general arguing to let those laws take effect, and so I think there will be waves of different laws being reevaluated in the federal courts,” she said. The legal actions and challenges will play out in highly dissimilar ways given the differing laws on the books in dif-
FROM TOP: BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES, MICHAEL B. THOMAS/GETTY IMAGES
v. Wade won’t come close to ending legal abortion in the United States, but rather, a flurry of legal wrangling at the state level is all but certain to follow the ruling’s expected rollback, longtime observers of the battles over abortion in the United States say. This will lead to numerous contrasting and opposing laws and regulations in different states, they say. The leak of a draft opinion on the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization published by Politico on May 2 caught many people off guard, caused censure from both sides of the political spectrum, and kicked off a flurry of statements by federal and state politicians looking to get ahead of an expected overturning of the seminal 1973 precedent that wrested the regulation of abortion from the states and made the procedure lawful throughout the entire United States. In the 67-page leaked majority opinion, its author, Justice Samuel Alito, calls Roe v. Wade “egregiously wrong from the start” and says, “It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.” In addition to Roe, the justice calls for overturning Planned Parenthood v. Casey, a 1992 ruling upholding the earlier one. That case held that states couldn’t impose significant restrictions on abortion before a fetus becomes viable for life outside the womb, somewhere around the 24-week gestation mark. For all the shock engendered by the leak of the Dobbs opinion, it’s consistent with the pro-states’ rights position articulated in recent hearings on the issues at the heart of this case. The case concerns the validity of a Mississippi law that greatly restricts abortions at 15 weeks. “If you listened to the oral arguments and read the briefings, it would not surprise you that this is the kind of opinion that would come out of it. It was aligned with the case that the state of Mississippi made when they asked for Roe v. Wade to be overturned,” said Katie Glenn, government affairs counsel at Americans United for Life.
In Focus Abortion Decision IF ROE VERSES WADE IS OVERTURNED 18 States - set to protect life at conception ID
WY
UT
AZ
ND
SD
OK
TX
WI
MO
AR
LA
MS
AL
TN
KY
WV
MI
4 States - will protect life when a heartbeat is detected IA
OH
GA
SC
8 States - will protect life based on gestational age/when the child is viable MT
NE
NC
FL
KS
IN
NH
PA
20 States - will not protect unborn life
ferent states. In Florida, where Glenn resides, a law on the books since the 1980s says that abortion is legal in the state, she noted. She expects to see that law challenged in the state Supreme Court. According to figures from the Family Research Council, 18 states are set to protect life at conception, in accordance with their own laws, once Roe is overturned. An additional four states will protect life when a heartbeat is detected. California, New York, and 18 other states won’t protect unborn life.
Evolving Jurisprudence While some have long considered abortion law to be essentially settled since Roe, Glenn, on the contrary, views the jurisprudence around this issue as having been in flux for many years, and the likely outcome of Dobbs is the latest stage in a long process. “The standard has shifted over the years. Even in Planned Parenthood v. Casey, the court changed its stance substantially from Roe when they talked about autonomy,” she said. Matt Forys, chief of staff at the Leesburg, Virginia-based Landmark Legal
WA
NV
CA
MN
IL
NY
VA
ME
MA
RI
CT
NJ
DE
MD
OR
CO
NM
AK
VT
HI
SOURCE: FAMILY RESEARCH COUNCIL
Foundation, sees both external factors and the evolution of the Supreme Court’s reasoning as decisive here. “What has changed since Roe? First, as technology has progressed, the viability of the fetus or child, a focus of Roe and Casey, is earlier and earlier,” he said. “Secondly, in practice, the court has found the Casey framework unwieldy to apply over time.” A third and no less critical factor is the change in the composition of the court, as the number of appointees sympathetic to “pro-choice” arguments has dwindled, he observed. Concurring with Glenn, Forys said that an overturn of Roe wouldn’t mean abortion is automatically banned across all 50 states. Rather, states would use their own discretion in regulating abortion. Bans already on the books and trigger laws would come into play. “We’ll see a flurry of activity in state legislatures for the rest of the year, whether in special session or regular session, as they address this issue anew,” he said.
states are not in holding patterns. Rather, they’ve already taken action to become abortion sanctuaries, Forys said, noting that California is already considering amending its state constitution to guarantee legal abortion. California Gov. Gavin Newsom is also on record as having vowed to make California a safe haven for any women who can’t legally get abortions in other states in the aftermath of the coming ruling. At a news conference on May 4 at Planned Parenthood’s Los Angeles office, Newsom sharply criticized the rollback as a repressive measure of a kind that had “never happened before in our lifetimes.” In an America with so many contrasting and conflicting state laws, frequent and protracted litigation looks hard to avoid. “The next important chapter in the legal story of abortion is going to involve how the state laws interact with each other. A pro-life state allowing private parties to sue abortion providers could be thwarted by a pro-choice state that allows those private parties to countersue. And the pro-choice states could block out-ofstate attempts to investigate or extradite their abortion providers,” Forys said. Glenn said she expects the well-funded abortion industry to be highly creative in developing legal challenges to restrictions on abortion. She acknowledged that California is likely to fight for legal abortion and noted that Connecticut, which has vocally pro-abortion representatives in its state legislature, recently passed a law that will make it difficult, if not impossible, to subpoena records when suing a health provider. “A doctor could block you from getting your own medical records,” she noted. Planned Parenthood and the National Abortion Rights League didn’t respond by press time to requests by Insight for comment.
Expect Battles The road won’t be easy for either side in the continuing controversy. Pro-choice
A Planned Parenthood center in St. Louis on May 28, 2019. I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 15
CULTURE WAR
A MOTHER
STANDS UP TO
TRANSGENDER AGENDA
16 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
Erin Lee (R) poses for a portrait with her 13-year-old daughter, who wished to remain anonymous, at their home in Wellington, Colo., on May 7. PHOTO BY MICHAEL CIAGLO FOR THE EPOCH TIMES
Mom’s resistance to transgender push led teacher to suggest sending in child services BY ALEX NEWMAN
I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 17
The Lead Education
If Erin Lee had known what her 12-year-old daughter would be exposed to during an afterschool “art club” last May, she would have never allowed her to go. I T B E G A N IN N O C E N T LY enough. Lee received
18 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
that their family homes may not be a “safe space,” but that there were “resources” available. She also handed out transgender flags and stickers that Amanda understood were supposed to represent the children in the club. As soon as Lee picked up her daughter at school, it was clear that something was “off,” the mother told Insight in a series of interviews A new ‘puberty guide’ about the incident. Amanda, looking for children between 9 confused, showed her and 12 published by the mother the transgender American Academy of paraphernalia she had received from Chambers. Pediatrics claims that The transgender flag repboys can mensurate and resented her, Amanda told that girls can experience her mom. “My heart started racerections. ing and my mind blacked out,” Lee recounted. “I was in so much shock that I struggled to get out any words.” Even though the GSA leader at school had told Amanda it was OK to lie to her parents, Amanda knew better. Over the days that followed, she told her parents everything, Lee said.
ALL PHOTOS BY MICHAEL CIAGLO FOR THE EPOCH TIMES
a text from her daughter asking if she could stay late for an “art club” at Wellington Middle School near Fort Collins, Colorado. What happened next, though, would change their lives forever. The “art club” was actually a meeting of the school’s Genders & Sexualities Alliance (GSA) club, a group dedicated to supporting homosexuality, transgenderism, and other nontraditional ideas about gender and sexuality. When the leader told Amanda (name changed to protect the minor) she must be “queer” if she didn’t feel sexually attracted to anybody, and that she must be “transgender” if she didn’t feel fully comfortable in her own body, the shy little girl suspected something wasn’t right. According to Amanda, that same leader told her not to tell her parents about what would be discussed that day. The woman in charge, Kimberly Chambers, who works as a “health equity initiatives coordinator” for Larimer County and director of the pro-LGBT organization SPLASH Youth of Northern Colorado, also handed out her personal contact information to the children and urged them to contact her anytime. Chambers’s organization has boasted of teaching children ages 12 to 16 about “polyamory”—relationships with multiple sexual partners simultaneously—and other controversial ideas. During the afterschool GSA club, according to Amanda, Chambers explained to the children
The Lead Education
Amanda’s parents could hardly believe what they were hearing. Lee, who has described herself as an “ally of the LGBTQ community” and said she has a history of voting “pretty progressively on social issues,” was appalled. But that would be just the beginning of an ordeal that continues to haunt the family.
The Fallout
(Top) (L–R) Erin Lee, her daughter, and her husband, Jonathan. Lee’s daughter was invited to an after-school "art club" last year by the Wellington Middle School art teacher, but the club was teaching gender and sexuality awareness topics instead, according to Lee. (Above) Wellington Middle School in Wellington, Colo., on May 7.
Amanda never went back to the school after that. Instead, her parents put her in a local Christian school, even though it meant Lee would have to work nights to afford it. But as Lee and her husband saw it, there was no other choice. Despite that Amanda was pulled out of Wellington Middle School, the family’s difficulties grew. After the lesson, Amanda began to wonder whether she might truly be queer and transgender. Her mental state began to rapidly deteriorate, her mother said. Multiple family members confirmed to Insight that prior to what Lee describes as the “grooming” of her daughter at school, Amanda never showed any signs of “gender dysphoria,” the term used by psychiatrists to describe discomfort with one’s biological sex. Afterward, though, it was hard for the girl to shake the idea. Lee and her husband, who was outraged by the ordeal, struggled for months with how to talk to their daughter about what had happened. “We didn’t want to say something that would push her further into this dark hole or further into this transgender label,” Lee said. “And we did exactly what the trusted adults who indoctrinated her told her we would do. We played right into their narrative.” Weeks after the incident, as her mental state got worse, the parents decided to take Amanda to a therapist. The therapist also ended up being “queer” and sought to affirm the young girl’s confusion about her gender. By December, between the COVID isolation and the questions surrounding her gender, Amanda’s mental state was spiraling downward, Lee said. The pediatrician immediately prescribed powerful psychotropic drugs for depression— medications that Amanda has since been weaned from—in an attempt to deal with the crisis. “I don’t know if that fear will ever go away,” Lee said about her own concerns. “I don’t expect to ever stop being struck with sadness about what happened.” I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 19
The Lead Education
Fighting Back
20 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
ALL PHOTOS BY MICHAEL CIAGLO FOR THE EPOCH TIMES
about doing a well-child check or whatever is The more she thought about the whole ordeal, within the policies of the school,” Chambers the more Lee realized she had to do something. wrote, describing upset parents as “barriers” and First, she contacted Chambers, the woman who citing an “extreme case” in which a family did not Lee says “groomed” her daughter and who also allow their transgender child to leave the home sometimes works as a substitute teacher for the unsupervised. district. “Her response was alarming,” Lee said. “It Lee was flabbergasted after receiving the docwas delusional. She doubled down on her actions.” uments. Next, she contacted the principal, who seemed “I knew this woman was evil, but I didn’t see empathetic but confirmed that secret GSA meet- this coming,” she said. “This teacher and Kimberings with children were an intentional part of ly [Chambers] forced us to pull our child out of creating a “safe space” at school. school by creating an unsafe environment, then There are more than two dozen self-proclaimed discussed sending CPS into our home because we LGBT children in the small middle school, accord- pulled her out, at our most vulnerable moment ing to social media posts by SPLASH. And the as a family—that they caused. district is determined that “If my child had indithey be “affirmed” without cated that we were not afparental involvement, Lee firming her pronouns and said. trans identity, I believe the After all that, Lee spoke authorities would’ve taken out at a school board meetour child away. And everying and contacted all its one involved knew this.” members by email. None District and responded. When she was “This teacher and LGBTActivists finally able to sit down Kimberly [Chambers] with two of them, they Respond both “supported everyforced us to pull our thing that transpired and Insight reached out to child out of school by refused to address any of Chambers for comment, my concerns.” asking whether she concreating an unsafe Finally, exasperated sidered nonaffirmation environment, then and realizing her first call of a child’s gender ideas would have been to the poto be abuse, and seeking discussed sending CPS lice if this had occurred on confirmation about the a playground or any other story details. into our home because setting, Lee contacted the “Given the private nawe pulled her out.” sheriff’s office. ture of this specific youth While law enforcement and family’s needs, I’d Erin Lee, mother of Amanda was deeply sympathetic to like to share with you a her plight, and urged her couple of Colorado and to speak out loudly, there was nothing they could National resources around gender identity to do from a legal perspective, Lee said. help inform your article rather than provide District officials, meanwhile, saw nothing any comment,” she said before providing a wrong with what had occurred, she said. Indeed, number of links on transgenderism and legal some expressed shock that a parent would be issues. upset over the incident. Wellington Middle School referred inquiries As Lee fought back, school officials were work- to the district. A message left on the principal’s ing on their next move. phone wasn’t immediately returned. Among other tactics, documents and communiPoudre School District Executive Director of cations obtained by Insight revealed a discussion Communications Madeline Noblett told Insight about the possibility of reporting the parents to that the district couldn’t comment on “specific child-welfare authorities. student matters.” When Chambers was informed by the art teachWhen asked about policies on getting child er that Amanda’s parents had not been sending protection services involved in cases such as her to school since the incident, Chambers wrote Amanda’s, Noblett noted that all district staff back urging her to consider filing a report and are “mandated reporters” under Colorado law. have child-protection officials visit the home. That means they are required to report sus“If that persists, you’ll want to talk to admin pected child abuse.
The Lead Education
Noblett didn’t respond to follow-up questions about district policy on whether parents’ refusal to support their children transitioning to a new gender constitutes abuse. “It is the role of the Department of Human Services to investigate the suspected/reported case; to determine whether the child is safe; to determine if abuse occurred; and to provide appropriate services to the family,” she said. However, the district aims to “create and uphold equitable, inclusive, and rigorous educational opportunities, outcomes, and experiences for all students,” she said. “As a district, we are committed to making our schools safe spaces in which all students can learn,” Noblett said, adding that the district has “a LGBTQIA+ coordinator who works to advance
the resources, support, inclusion, and advocacy of LGBTQIA+ students, staff, and families.” “Gay Straight Alliances were established as safe spaces for members of the LGBTQIA+ community, allies, and any individual to come together with the goals of ensuring inclusivity, safety, and support,” Noblett said. When asked how GSA adult leaders were trained, the communications director said there were no training requirements to lead any club in the district. However, GSA leaders could use resources from the GSA network and from One Colorado, the network’s state affiliate. Gillian Ford of One Colorado didn’t specifically address questions from Insight about how GSA adult leaders are trained, whether it’s standard practice to tell children not
Erin Lee’s 13-year-old daughter, who wished to remain anonymous, holds an assignment that was handed out at an “art club” at her school in Wellington, Colo.
I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 21
The Lead Education
“I spoke with a dad who told me that without his knowledge, staff from his daughter’s middle school drafted a transition plan for his daughter to become a male.” Pam Benigno, director, Education Policy Center
to talk to their parents about these issues, or whether the escalating parental outrage was appropriate. “Schools are often places where LGBTQ+ young people don’t feel safe or included,” said Ford, whose pronouns are listed as “she, her, hers” in her email signature. “Since 2011, One Colorado has worked with both statewide education associations, as well as local educators, parents, and students to create and sustain the Colorado Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA) Network to support and empower LGBTQ+ young people and their allies against the bullying, harassment, homophobia, and transphobia in their schools.”
National and State Trends
What happened to the Lee family in Northern Colorado is hardly an isolated incident. Insight spoke with other families across the nation who had similar experiences, but almost none were willing to go on record due to fears of retaliation by government officials and activists. While the American College of Pediatricians describes teaching children that it’s normal or healthy to impersonate the opposite sex as “child abuse,” larger and more established associations have taken a different approach. A new “puberty guide” for children between 9 and 12 published by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) claims that boys can menstruate and that girls can experience erections. “Most babies who are born with a penis grow up feeling like a boy on the inside too. That’s called being cisgender (cis- means ‘same’),” the 22 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
guide states. “But there are some babies born with a penis who grow up feeling like a girl on the inside. That’s called being transgender (trans- means ‘cross’ or ‘opposite’).” According to a recent report published in the journal Pediatrics, almost 1 in 10 children surveyed now identify as “gender diverse,” far more than traditionally believed. Other surveys show even higher numbers. One from UCLA found that more than onefourth of California teens were viewed by peers as “gender non-conforming.” Those numbers are rising rapidly. Pam Benigno, director of the Education Policy Center at Colorado’s free-market think tank the Independence Institute, told Insight that she has heard numerous “disturbing stories” from parents across the state about their children coming home from school confused about their gender. “I spoke with a dad who told me that without his knowledge, staff from his daughter’s middle
Although what happened to Lee’s family is part of an accelerating national trend, almost no other families were willing to go on record, due to fears of retaliation by government officials and activists.
The Lead Education
FROM L: COURTESY OF PAM BENIGNO, MEGAN JELINGER/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
2015 and 2020 in the number of minor girls undergoing medical transitions. In Ludlow, Massachusetts, a major lawsuit by parents against the school district is alleging that education officials encouraged children to experiment with alternate gender identities and hide it from their parents. Andrew Beckwith, president of the Massachusetts Family Institute, who is involved in the case, is dealing with a surge in such cases in his state. “We see the same aggressive attack on the integrity of the parent–child relationship here in Massachusetts,” he told Insight when asked about parallels between Lee’s story and what’s taking place there. “Many of the LGBTQ activists want to brand traditional sexual morality as ‘child abuse,’ and their accomplices in child services terrorize families who won’t just go along with this agenda,” he said, calling these sorts of policies an “appalling and dangerous violation of the rights of parents.” “What is happening in Ludlow is part of a larger national agenda to deliberately circumvent the authority of parents over the mental health and religious beliefs of their children. “School officials around the country are secretly affirming, or even promoting, discordant gender identities in young children.” The Biden administration has started threatening legal action against local communities, schools, states, and other institutions that don’t submit to the transgender agenda.
school drafted a transition plan for his daughter to become a male,” Benigno said. “This is not uncommon. In fact, teachers have been ordered not to tell parents if students take on a new identity while at school.” Districts across the state, under the guise of being “inclusive,” are “pushing a radical-left agenda on children” and have even “adopted the nonscientific theory that gender identity is fluid,” she said. This includes hiring “queer” organizations to smash traditional notions of normalcy in the minds of students, she added. A recently published paper by The Independence Institute aims at helping parents ensure transparency in school curricula. But parents must be vigilant and protect their children from “devastating emotional and sometimes physical harm,” Benigno said. Conservative states are no exception to the trend. In Utah, state controlled-substance data revealed a 10,000 percent increase between
Warning to Parents
10,000 PERCENT IN UTAH,
state controlledsubstance data revealed a 10,000 percent increase between 2015 and 2020 in the number of minor girls undergoing medical transitions.
As a result of the ordeal, Lee has lost all trust in the media, the government, the medical profession, and the public school system. “Now I don’t trust a single person in the public school system,” she told Insight. “Not a single one.” Lee said she has been in contact with numerous attorneys about the case as she considers her legal options. She is still seeking counsel. Today, Amanda is doing much better, her parents say. But in an effort to help protect other families from similar situations, the family has decided to continue sounding the alarm, while encouraging parents to become more aware and get more involved. Among other suggestions, Lee is also urging parents to remove their children from public school. “Get them into private schools if you can afford it,” she said. “Get them into homeschool co-ops or homeschool them yourself.” I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 23
24 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
T H G IL T O P S Journey to the Greens
A MAN HERDS A FLOCK OF SHEEP on his way from Chenqueniyen to Río Chico, during the yearly transhumance, near Bariloche, Argentina, on May 6. Transhumance is a practice of moving livestock from one grazing ground to another in a seasonal cycle, typically to lowlands in winter and highlands in summer. PHOTO BY FRANCISCO RAMOS MEJIA/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 25
FBI
Whistleblower Faced Backlash After Quitting Amid Turf War Agent opted to protect source after higher-up gave an order which allegedly broke bureau policy
N By Ken Silva
early 25 years ago, FBI agent William McGrath resigned after refusing to follow an order that allegedly would have blown a federal informant’s cover. According to McGrath, FBI officials retaliated against him by spreading false information designed to damage his career. Those officials were never held accountable for their actions, he said. The former FBI agent has never told his story publicly until now. The Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General (OIG) declined to comment, while the FBI didn’t respond to emails from Insight.
Investigating a New York Politician In 1997, McGrath was a special agent who led high-profile investigations into Russian organized crime. That year, a confidential informant notified him about a prominent politician soliciting allegedly illegal financial contributions. “While I was briefing the informant, the informant advised me that a New York politician had contacted the informant and requested money,” McGrath told Insight, declining to name the politi-
26 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
vent the informant’s relationship with the direct handler in Washington. That would violate the FBI guidelines, and can erode trust between informants and their handlers, he said. “The procedures for handling informants provide for a handling agent for a reason. The procedures for handling informants are in place to protect the informants, agents, and the public,” he said. When the New York officials insisted on using the informant against McGrath’s wishes, he resigned from the FBI on Dec. 5, 1997. McGrath told Insight that he resigned after careful deliberation. “This thing had been going on for a couple days at least, and I had made my decision for a couple days that I wasn’t going to do anything that [the informant’s handler] wasn’t on board with,” he said. “And I had a feeling there was a turf war between these two field offices [New York and Washington], and I wasn’t willing to do this inappropriate thing—and I wasn’t going to take the hit for not doing it.” Under the impression that he was avoiding a hornet’s nest by resigning, McGrath was shocked and angered when the FBI said he went absent without leave (AWOL) on the day of his departure.
DREW ANGERER/GETTY IMAGES
McGrath said FBI officials were trying to use him to circumvent a informant’s relationship with the direct handler in Washington, which would violate the FBI guidelines.
cian. “No case was ever made against the public official, who is in a more prominent position now. To my knowledge, there is nothing in the public domain to suggest that the public official has integrity issues.” Because it was campaign season at the time, McGrath said he didn’t find the politician’s request unusual. Nevertheless, records show that the informant’s tip made it all the way to the attention of then-FBI Director Louis Freeh. McGrath said the FBI higher-ups told him to have the informant record a phone call with the New York politician. “They were hoping to reel in a big fish,” he said. But doing so would have compromised the informant’s identity and life, he said. “If the target were indicted, the government would have to turn over recorded conversations to the defendant, and the identity of the informant would be obvious.” Internal OIG notes reviewed by Insight support McGrath’s claim. The notes say the informant worked on investigations involving Russian organized crime, and “was of such importance to the FBI that in the early 1980s, FBI Headquarters ordered that this informant was not to be put in position to testify, which would then reveal his identity.” While the informant had the freedom to refuse—McGrath referred to the person as a “good citizen informant” rather than someone working with the federal government to avoid prosecution—he also may not have known the risks involved in the recorded call, McGrath said. McGrath said the FBI officials in New York were trying to use him to circum-
Government Criminal Justice
McGrath said FBI officials were trying to use him to circumvent a informant’s relationship with the direct handler in Washington DC, which would violate the FBI guidelines.
The Department of Justice in Washington on March 22, 2019.
He filed an internal whistleblower complaint in 1998, alleging that the FBI’s AWOL label was retaliation for his resignation. The FBI disputed his complaint for the next nine years. Along with other arguments, bureau officials said McGrath’s abrupt departure was unjustified because the informant’s direct handler had, in fact, authorized the phone call to the New York politician. FBI agent Raymond Kerr, one of the New York officials who pushed to use the informant, wrote in a 2002 signed statement: “My instruction to McGrath, regarding the direction to the [confidential informant], was lawful and correct. In fact, subsequent to McGrath’s departure, I received a phone call from special agent Bill Mackey [the informant’s handler] who concurred with the decision to pursue the operation.” However, McGrath obtained notes from a 2002 interview OIG officials conducted with Mackey that contradict Kerr’s statement. According to notes from that interview, Mackey did tell McGrath to refrain from using his informant until he could find out more
details of the operation. “[Mackey] said he was not aware of the order or that a phone call was even planned. [Mackey] told McGrath not to make the phone call until he had time to check it out,” the OIG notes state. “[Mackey] next heard from New York that McGrath had refused the order for the informant to make the call and that McGrath had quit the FBI.” The notes say the informant was used but didn’t record his conversation with the U.S. official. Without a recording of the phone call, the informant wouldn’t have to testify and would maintain anonymity. During the discovery for McGrath’s whistleblower dispute, he said the FBI destroyed evidence related to his case. Records show the FBI told him they destroyed his attendance records in 2003, in accordance with their policy to only retain such files for six years. However, McGrath said those records should have been preserved when he filed his complaint less than a year after leaving the bureau. McGrath’s whistleblower complaint was finally successful in 2007, when the DOJ’s Office of Attorney Recruitment and Management (OARM) found that the FBI incorrectly labeled him AWOL—ordering the bureau to pay him $13,422 in
legal costs and four hours of docked pay. However, the administrative process failed to take any action against the FBI officials. OARM dismissed McGrath’s other allegations, including that FBI officials gave him negative performance reviews and provided false information to other prospective employers.
Turning to the Courts and Congress McGrath sued the FBI in federal court in 2007 over his complaints, but the case was tossed for procedural reasons. U.S. District Judge Shira Scheindlin said in her April 2008 decision that the law doesn’t afford the same whistleblower protections to FBI agents as it does to other government employees. “Congress chose not to include FBI employees in the [Civil Service Reform Act] because of the sensitive national security and law enforcement issues that might be implicated by personnel disputes within the agency,” the judge said. “Congress intended to bar FBI employees from obtaining any form of external review with respect to whistleblower complaints, for fear of intruding on sensitive national security and law enforcement operations.” With his legal avenues apparently largely closed, McGrath has continued to file complaints with the FBI and OIG. The FBI has called McGrath a “prolific correspondent” in written correspondence—a term he resents because he says his complaints haven’t been thoroughly investigated. The whistleblower has also lobbied his elected representatives for redress over the past 10-plus years—to little avail. However, in February, the Senate Committee on Homeland Security interviewed McGrath, and on April 6, he signed a consent form for the committee to obtain information about his case from the OIG, according to records he provided Insight. “The most response I’ve gotten has been this recent one from Senate Homeland Security,” he said. “I guess they’re feeling strong enough to request documents from OIG. They could have just done nothing.” The Senate Committee on Homeland Security didn’t respond to an Insight email seeking comment. I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 27
Nation Politics
(Far left) John H. Durham, special counsel for the Department of Justice. (Left) Former special counsel Robert Mueller.
S P EC I A L C O U N S E L S
Durham v. Mueller
Durham’s treatment of Clinton camp contrasts with Mueller’s treatment of Trump camp
T
By Petr Svab
28 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
2016 to then-FBI general counsel James Baker about his motivation to give him reports and data supposedly showing secret communications between the Trump Organization and Russia’s Alfa Bank. The FBI determined that no such channel existed. Sussmann told Baker in an email that he was going to the meeting not representing any client. However, he billed the time to the presidential campaign of former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. The data and reports were provided to Sussmann by Rodney Joffe, who has run several tech companies. Sussmann, Joffe, and others were part of a “joint venture” to dig up dirt on Donald Trump and help Clinton, Durham has said, although he has stopped short
Lawyers for both Manafort and Cohen said the FBI raids under Mueller were unnecessary because their clients had voluntarily cooperated with law enforcement.
THIS PAGE FROM L: DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE, MANDEL NGAN/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES; RIGHT PAGE: BETH BRELJE/THE EPOCH TIMES
he way special counsel John Durham is treating people associated with the 2016 Clinton campaign while investigating them is far cry from how special counsel Robert Mueller treated people associated with the 2016 Trump campaign while investigating them. After Durham indicted attorney Michael Sussmann in 2021 for lying to the FBI, court documents show that the special counsel had long been in communication with Clinton campaign attorneys, hearing them out on why certain subpoenaed documents were protected by attorney-client privilege and thus shouldn’t be turned over. Durham only recently asked the court to compel production of the documents or at least have the judge review a sample of them before making a final decision. “We have tried for some time to understand better the theory of privilege that is being asserted over various documents, and, you know, we have had conversations and have been unable to get comfort as to the grounding and bases of various privilege theories that have been asserted here,” Durham’s lead prosecutor, Andrew DeFilippis, said during a March 31 hearing. Sussmann allegedly lied in September
of alleging that the venture amounted to a criminal conspiracy. Durham’s approach contrasts with the methods used by Mueller, who from 2017 to 2019 investigated supposed collusion between the 2016 presidential campaign of Trump and Russia to sway the election in his favor. No such collusion was found, although Mueller prosecuted or referred for prosecution multiple Trump associates for unrelated or process crimes. In August 2017, a few months after taking over the FBI Russia probe, Mueller had FBI agents raid the home of Paul Manafort, a career political consultant who headed Trump’s campaign for several months before his prior foreign dealings were criticized by the media. Mueller busted through Manafort’s attorney-client privilege, asserting the crime-fraud exemption, which strips the privilege from communications that a judge agrees pertained to committing or planning a crime. Largely based on secret evidence, D.C. District Judge Beryl Howell agreed with Mueller that Manafort “downplayed” in his lobbying disclosures his company’s prior activities in the United States on behalf of a Ukrainian political party. The judge thus allowed Mueller to question Manafort’s previous attorney to some degree. In April 2019, on a referral from Mueller, New York prosecutors had the FBI raid the office of Michael Cohen, then-personal attorney of Trump. Cohen’s attorney said at the time that during the raid, agents seized privileged communications between Cohen and his clients. In such a case, the government sorts out what is and isn’t privileged on its own, usually assigning a team independent of the case investigators to do the sorting. Attorneys for both Manafort and Cohen said the raids were unnecessary because their clients had voluntarily cooperated with law enforcement. Trump pardoned Manafort, but not Cohen, who made substantial efforts trying to implicate his former boss in a crime.
Nation Cost of Living
L IF E S T Y L E
Seniors Hit Hard as Inflation Soars Seniors give up medicine, food, comfort as inflation lowers standard of living
I
By Beth Brelje n response to inflation, the prizes at bingo have changed in recent weeks at the Millersville Senior Center in Millersville, Pennsylvania. Instead of fun little trinkets, winning players now choose between cleaning supplies, laundry items, or snacks, depending on the theme of the week, Senior Center Director Starr Brubaker told Insight. Dryer sheets and bottles of detergent are practical items that help defray the growing cost of living. Seniors there say they’re happy to win such prizes because they’re feeling inflation in all areas, and they’re worried they won’t have enough money to get by in the future. One senior at the center said her husband is at retirement age, but isn’t retiring yet because they fear it will be difficult to keep up with inflation. Seniors gather at the Millersville Senior Center in Lancaster County on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays for fellowship, exercise, and recreation, such as crafting and friendly games of pinochle. They also share provided meals administered by the county. There are similar programs across the nation. Some who qualify get additional food to take home, while others are making tough decisions about what they can and can’t afford, including food choices and medicines. “It would be harder for some of us, if not for the senior center,” Christine Kuss, 71, told Insight, indicating that some wouldn’t have enough to eat. “Rent is getting higher. I gave up on my $ 400-a-month medication.” Kuss should take a blood thinner, but
(L–R) Ria Foltz (86), Christine Kuss (71), and Tom Schultz (85) get ready to play Bingo at the Millersville Senior Center in Millersville, Penn., on May 9. the cost of her medications has put her in the Medicare “donut hole,” a coverage gap that’s triggered when prescription costs hit a certain amount for the year. Without coverage, affording all of her medicine is simply out of reach. Lillian Pacheco, 67, retired in March and says she’s already in the Medicare donut hole this year. She spends much of her time searching for better health coverage. Pacheco told Insight that she has diabetes, and every three months, her medications add up to $360. Linda Butt, 74, says she tries to save money by looking for deals like grocery stores that offer gas incentives. She uses coupons as much as possible. Recently, she found a good price on kitty litter and bought two bags. But one of her medications recently went up to $500 per month. She used to pay around $900 a month combined for all medications, but it’s now closer to $1,500 per month. “I’m seriously thinking of giving up medication and letting diabetes take over,” Butt said. “I realize everything is going up, but they are sure not thinking about us seniors.” While younger people may have the ability to take on a second job or find a better-paying job to make ends meet, senior citizens live on a fixed monthly income that will remain essentially the same. An 82-year-old may have retired around 2000 and the monthly income that covered costs back then doesn’t go as far anymore. When asked where they feel inflation pressures the most, many Millersville Se-
nior Center patrons—drivers and non-drivers alike—mentioned the cost of gas. The seniors don’t expect relief.
‘The Country Is Not Being Managed Right’ “Once it goes up, it won’t go down,” Jack Gardner, 76, told Insight. “The country is not being managed right. We’ve got gas reserves we’re not using.” He believes some who are raising prices may be using inflation talk as an excuse to keep their prices higher than necessary. “Food, water, electric—everything has gone up,” Tom Schultz, 85, told Insight. “Whatever [increase] you got in Social Security, you may as well forget it.” A cost of living adjustment increased the Social Security benefit that seniors receive by 5.9 percent in January—the largest increase in 30 years. But seniors say that increase was eaten up by inflation and an increase in the cost of Medicare Part B health insurance. In 2021, the average Social Security benefit was $1,565, according to the Social Security Administration. A 5.9 percent increase added $92 per month to that average amount. But at the same time, the Medicare Part B monthly payment was increased to $170.10 in 2022 from $148.50 per month in 2021, an increase of $21.60. That means an average net Social Security income increase of $70.40 per month—not enough to keep up with increasing costs. Schultz doesn’t hold out a lot of hope for an economic fix, but he has some ideas. “Tell Washington to give me a call.” I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 29
CURRICULUM
Sexuality Education Banned Texas group blocks ‘harmful’ school sex-ed program used in 35 states BY NANETTE HOLT 30 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
An international watchdog group says the real goal of the “Making Proud Choices!” curriculum is to sexualize children and change what’s accepted as normal sexual behavior by targeting the young in the United States and around the world. PHOTO BY BRANDON BELL/GETTY IMAGES
I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 31
Texas Education
Texas group is celebrating a win in its fight to block what it considers “harmful” sex-education lessons in some schools in Corpus Christi. But it’s a bit- tersweet victory, say parents with the Nueces County chapter of County Citizens Defending Freedom. That’s because a local nonprofit receives $412,208 annually through a twoyear federal grant to persuade school districts throughout five South Texas counties to adopt the Making Proud Choices! (MPC) curriculum. That U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) grant program aims to spread that curriculum, and others like it, throughout the country. The stated goal is to reduce teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. Yet, an international watchdog group says the real goal is motivated by a global movement by the “sexual left” to sexualize children and change what’s accepted as normal sexual behavior by targeting the young in the United States and around the world. SCHOOLS HERE AND in many other
32 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
“I want to be a voice for the voiceless.” Colby Wiltse, executive director, County Citizens Defending Freedom’s Nueces County chapter
HOPING TO GIVE parents tools to know
more about what’s taught in their children’s schools, the group publishes reports on what it identifies as the harmful elements in each CSE program. MPC was designed for ages 12 to 18 and contains all 15 categories of material that concern the group. Graphic examples are provided in an analysis online. To illustrate their concerns, Family
Watch International cites examples taken from the curriculum they say show how MPC sexualizes children, teaches children how to “negotiate” or “get consent” for sexual encounters, promotes anal and oral sex, promotes homosexual and bisexual behavior, encourages children to seek out sexual pleasure, promotes solo and mutual masturbation, promotes condom use in inappropriate ways, teaches children to choose to have sex when they feel they are ready, fails to establish abstinence as the expected standard, promotes transgender ideology, promotes abortion, encourages children to teach other children about sex, undermines traditional values and beliefs, undermines parents or parental rights, and refers children to harmful resources for more information on sexual topics. In response to questions from Insight about the report, Lauren Ranalli, director of marketing and communications, said in a written statement: “ETR believes young people deserve access to high-quality, science-based health education. “Making Proud Choices is an evidence-based curriculum that meets the federal Office of Population Affairs effectiveness criteria for impacting rates of teen pregnancy, STIs, or sexual risk behaviors. The curriculum provides adolescents with the knowledge, confidence, and skills necessary to reduce
Members of the County Citizens Defending Freedom chapter in Nueces County, Texas, gather to pray before asking a School Health Advisory Council in Corpus Christi to reject the “Making Proud Choices!” sex ed curriculum, on April 20.
FROM L: COURTESY OF COLBY WILTSE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF CCDF-NUECES COUNTY; ILENE ENG/THE EPOCH TIMES
countries have already adopted curricula that further those goals, often without the knowledge of parents, said Sharon Slater of Family Watch International. The 23-year-old nonprofit has “consultative status” with the United Nations and educates world leaders and diplomats about policies affecting families. Family Watch International has become particularly concerned about programs such as MPC, known as comprehensive sexuality education (CSE), Slater said. Her organization would like to see CSE programs rejected by school districts because the programs harm children, she said. But the group faces powerful opposition. Propelling the push to add CSE programs to schools in the United States are the HHS grants totaling about $110 million, Slater said. The money, set aside for the purpose during the Obama administration, goes to organizations pledging to work to implement CSE programs in specific regions, she said. Family Watch International maintains an online map that shows some of the
districts where CSE programs have been implemented in each state. By clicking on states, people can find details of grants paying for the sex-ed programs. But there’s no “neat and tidy way” to find all the school districts using harmful CSE materials, Slater said. That’s because of a new trend to weave in sexuality lessons during other classes throughout the school day, rather than dedicating a class period for the purpose of teaching sex ed, she said. What’s more, schools actively hide that new practice from parents, Slater said.
Texas Education
A rally at the California state Capitol in Sacramento to protest the sex education curriculum in public schools, on Jan. 25, 2019. their risk of sexually transmitted infections (STIs), HIV, and pregnancy by abstaining from sex or using condoms if they choose to have sex.” But Family Watch International and Nueces County parents say that characterization of the curriculum is misleading. “We will tell you that it’s age-inappropriate, medically and scientifically inaccurate sexualization education that’s comprehensive for children,” Slater said. MPC IS DESIGNED for ages 12 to 18, ac-
cording to the ETR website. The curriculum suggests to children that most in their age group are sexually active, the Family Watch International report says. The curriculum provides animated videos showing how to perform oral, anal, and vaginal sex, according to the report. And it gives tips on obtaining or granting consent for sex, and it suggests that parents’ values don’t have to be accepted by children. The program contains role-plays in
which children act out how to negotiate for consent to use a condom for sex. A model of male genitalia—used in condom placement and removal activities—is suggested for each child to use while being taught. The report states that ETR’s website has listed 35 states as having the curriculum in use, according to Family Watch International. They are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missis-
“‘Making Proud Choices!’ is essentially a manual for sexual activity.” Colby Wiltse, executive director, County Citizens Defending Freedom’s Nueces County chapter
sippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Texas, Vermont, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming. INSIGHT CONTACTED THE office of the
top education official in each state. Most didn’t respond to questions about whether MPC is used in their schools. A handful said all sex-ed curriculum choices are made locally and aren’t known at the state level. In Missouri, MPC is one of four curricula that some schools can choose, a spokeswoman confirmed. Some Alabama schools also use the curriculum, but it wasn’t clear where it’s used, a spokesman for that state said. One Washington district uses MPC, a spokeswoman said, but she didn’t know which district. Parents in Nueces County, Texas, are relieved that they succeeded in persuading members of their local school health advisory council that the proI N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 33
Texas Education
$110
MILLION HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
grants totaling about $110 million are driving the push to add CSE programs to U.S. schools, an expert says. gram has no place in their community. But the nonprofit receiving federal grant money to implement the program is still working to have it used in the other 12 school districts in Nueces County, as well as throughout Aransas, Bee, Kleberg, and San Patricio counties in Texas. As soon as he learned of the plan, Colby Wiltse, the father of two children under the age of 6, jumped into action. “I want to be a voice for the voiceless,” said Wiltse, executive director of the Nueces County chapter of County Citizens Defending Freedom (CCDF). While his older child attends kindergarten at a private school and his younger child is a toddler, he still felt a duty to get involved. “Who’s going to stand in the gap for the other kids?” he said. “This kind of curriculum is just not good for any kid.” HIS CCDF CHAPTER is part of the Flori-
34 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
Some parents believe that it’s the parents’ job to teach their children about sex, not that of public schools.
itive change in part of Nueces County, Wiltse said. The dedication of a few motivated residents allowed them to accomplish their goal. He started with research. He learned that the nonprofit Coastal Bend Wellness Foundation was receiving grant money from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services to bring the sex-ed program to more than 9,000 “adolescents ages 15-19, including LGBTQ+ youth” in his area of South Texas. THE PUBLISHER’S ONLINE description
of the program worried him. Then he discovered the detailed analysis by Family Watch International, which left him incredulous. He described his concerns at an October 2021 school board meeting. With
obvious discomfort, he told board members about the curriculum’s videos of animated sex acts. He said the curriculum told children they didn’t necessarily need to tell their parents if they wanted to get tested for pregnancy or sexually transmitted diseases. He began to describe instructions from the curriculum on adapting condoms for use as dental dams, then stopped. “I’m not even going to read what those are to be used for, out of respect for people here,” Wiltse said. “At the end of the day, I don’t think it’s the public school’s job to teach my children about sex,” he told school board members. “That responsibility belongs to me and my wife. Your responsibility is to protect our children from harmful
FROM TOP: IVAN PENTCHOUKOV/THE EPOCH TIMES; COURTESY OF COLBY WILTSE, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR OF CCDF-NUECES COUNTY
da-based national organization founded to train and encourage citizens throughout the country “to defend faith, freedom, and liberty” through local chapters. Leaning on principles outlined in the U.S. Constitution, the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, and the Federalist Papers, organization members look for what they identify as “a breach of freedom or liberty.” Key in their mission is their response, Wiltse said. It’s modeled after principles outlined in the Bible in the Gospel of Matthew, Chapter 18, verses 15–17. Those verses, Wiltse said, require them to first address a problem with the responsible party, such as a local elected official. If the problem isn’t corrected, the organization makes local citizens aware. If there’s still no resolution, CCDF takes the concern to local or national media. Then if authorities still don’t fix the problem, the group takes legal action. It didn’t take an army to effect pos-
Texas Education
essentially a manual for sexual activity.” Coastal Bend Wellness Foundation didn’t respond to requests for comment. Wiltse’s group provided copies of the Family Watch International analysis of MPC to members of all 13 advisory councils in his county. On April 20, the one in his own community voted 8–1 to reject the curriculum. “The process works!” Wiltse rejoiced. But his fight is far from over. “Coastal Bend Wellness is still trying to get Making Proud Choices! into other smaller school districts in the area. But CCDF is aware of this, and we will be there to shine the light and continue to expose this curriculum. “THE WAY I SEE IT is ordinary citizens
materials, like Making Proud Choices!” But he didn’t stop there. He and others from his group started attending school health advisory council meetings in their community and others. The councils, required under Texas law, evaluate and recommend sex-ed programs to school boards. Many states have laws requiring similar panels for the same purpose.
came together to stop a harmful curriculum from entering [some of] our schools. If more citizens would get engaged, have the courage to speak the truth, and put God first in everything we do, then we would see real positive change in our counties across the country!” From Slater’s vantage point of examining family policy issues from an international perspective, she agrees there’s more work to be done to keep harmful sex-ed programs out of schools in the United States and in other countries. But it’s ultimately up to parents, she said. “They’re going to have to go walk down
‘Making Proud Choices!’ provides explicit visual content on sexual activities, gives tips on obtaining or granting consent for sex, and suggests that parents’ values don’t have to be accepted by children. to the school. They’re going to have to look and ask to see any kind of video, any kind of supplementary material, any kind of guest speakers that are allowed to come speak, any kind of manuals, because [the schools] hide it. “[School officials] know if parents get a hold of it, they’re going to try to stop it. So they’ll do everything to try to hide it. “The parents are going to have to become super investigators and just demand to see and find out what’s being taught.”
AT THOSE MEETINGS, they listened as
Coastal Bend Wellness Foundation representatives explained why MPC should be implemented in their schools. What they say about trying to prevent teen pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases sounds “good on the surface,” Wiltse said. But “they weren’t presenting the truth. They were sugar-coating it.” He told school district decision-makers that he felt “Making Proud Choices! is
Colby Wiltse asks members of the School Health Advisory Council to reject a sex ed curriculum proposed for ages 15 to 19 in public schools in Corpus Christi, Texas, during an April 10 meeting. I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 35
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T H G IL T O P S Fleeing the Invasion
A WOMAN HOLDS HER DOG AFTER arriving at a registration and processing area for internally displaced people, after fleeing from Russian-occupied territory, in Zaporizhzhia, Ukraine, on May 8. PHOTO BY DIMITAR DILKOFF/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
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F O O D S EC U R I T Y
‘Perfect Storm’ Hitting US Crops
Possible food shortages on horizon, with soaring fertilizer costs and protracted drought conditions By Autumn Spredemann
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38 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
“For lack of a better pun, it’s the ‘perfect storm.’ We are having fertilizer shortages and also general chemicals related to agriculture,” Reb Wayne, of the Texas Department of Agriculture, told Insight. Wayne said smaller yields are a possibility from supply scarcity combined with the devastating effects of drought. “It is already having an impact from what we have seen,” he said. “People are talking about planting less, and farmers are concerned the yields will be lower regardless, which often happens as a function of drought. “It’s hard to measure at this stage what that full impact will be, [but] as far as the buzz in the industry is certain, this is going to have a smaller yield across the board. It’s not just one crop.” On March 11, the USDA announced a plan to invest $250 million in U.S.-based fertilizer production. The new grant program aims to ease inflated costs and shortages. Fertilizer supplies in the United States have suffered a series of setbacks that began with
Drought conditions will hit the 2022 growing season in at least 20 states, many of which are suffering historic water shortages.
A farmer harvests corn near Burlington, Iowa, on Oct. 22, 2015. Corn growers across 11 U.S. states revealed a planting forecast of 89.5 million acres this year, a 4 percent drop in production from last year.
FROM L: SCOTT OLSON/GETTY IMAGES, JOHANNES EISELE/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
hen farmers in the United States returned to their fields in April, officially kicking off the 2022 growing season, they implemented significant changes in their crop plantings. Because of soaring fertilizer costs, chemical shortages, and protracted drought conditions, farmers are now planting different and smaller quantities of certain crops. Some experts believe that forecasts for the 2022 growing season may outstrip existing production resources and may be overly ambitious. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) conducted a survey of producers across the country that shows their intentions to plant a record-high 91 million acres of soybeans in 2022. That would be an increase of 4 percent from last year. However, corn growers surveyed across 11 states revealed a planting forecast of only 89.5 million acres this year. That represents a production drop of 4 percent. Record-low corn production is expected for 2022 in three states—Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Rhode Island. Wheat planting is at its fifth-lowest level since 1919. Despite the challenges, U.S. farmers are soldiering on with strategic moves in an effort to “make do” with what’s available in terms of resources, both artificial and natural.
Nation Agriculture
pandemic-related supply chain issues, creating a noticeable scarcity in 2021. Then, Russian President Vladimir Putin launched a military invasion of Ukraine on Feb. 24, pushing inflated fertilizer prices even higher. The price increase resulting from Moscow’s conflict in neighboring Ukraine is because Russia is the world’s largest exporter of fertilizers, accounting for 23 percent of ammonia exports, 14 percent of urea exports, 10 percent of processed phosphate exports, and 21 percent of potash exports. As part of their crisis response, the USDA intends to launch a public inquiry seeking information about seeds and agricultural inputs, fertilizer, and retail markets to address growing concerns on the logistics side. “Recent supply chain disruptions—from the global pandemic to Putin’s unprovoked war against Ukraine—have shown just how important it is to invest in this crucial link in the agricultural supply chain here at home,” Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said. In Missouri, which is home to 95,000 farms, the inflated price tag of production materials has hit growers hard. “High input costs are certainly a concern. Fertilizer costs are double and triple in many instances what they were last year,” Christi Miller, of the Missouri Department of Agriculture, told Insight. Miller said projections indicated that Missouri farmers would also be planting less corn, at an estimated 3.5 million acres in 2022. If realized, this would be 100,000 acres less than the previous year. Because of corn’s versatile use in food products, experts predict planting shortages will continue to generate higher prices for maize, the cost of which has already risen by 5.5 percent this year. This would affect multiple consumer goods, from cornflour to starch and high fructose corn syrup. Cereal and grain product prices also will likely rise by 7 percent on store shelves this year. “All food prices are now predicted to increase,” the USDA’s Economic Research Service said in a March report. Although Missouri corn growers are following an established reduction trend, Miller said consumers can expect more soybeans from the state. While she indicated that the high cost of fertilizer may be a factor in the conscious decision to plant less corn, she also said the price of soybeans may also play a part. She noted that farmers planned to use an estimated 6.1 million acres for soybean production.
The price hike in fertilizer supplies results from Moscow’s conflict in neighboring Ukraine. Russia is the world’s largest exporter of fertilizers.
Wheat planting is at its fifth-lowest level since 1919. Market prices for soybeans were at their highest since 2012 in March.
“That would top the previous record of 5.95 million acres in 2017 and is an increase of 400,000 [acres] from 2021,” Miller said. Market prices for soybeans in March were at their highest since 2012, when they hit more than $17 per bushel because of production changes in Brazil and increased demand from China. Profits and shortages aside, drought remains a significant factor in some of the planting changes U.S. farmers are making this year. “We’re hearing some of those concerns from the south, and the Rio Grande Valley, and in south Texas, where a lot of our vegetable crops come from. The lack of rain even affects our rice farmers,” Wayne said. Drought conditions will hit the 2022 growing season in at least 20 states, many of which are suffering historic water shortages. The U.S. Drought Monitor has stated that it’s critical that farmers grow more with less water this season and that the outlook through June anticipates enduring dry spells for nearly half of the country. Cover crops play an important role in improving soil quality and reducing water loss through evaporation. Remarkable ground coverage is offered by grass-like products, such as rye, wheat, and a sorghum-sudangrass hybrid. Water-efficient legumes, such as medic and Indianhead lentils, also fall under the heading of cover crops. In February, the USDA announced its plan for the 2022 pandemic cover crop program, which offers farmers who’ve planted a qualifying cover crop this year a premium benefit of $5 per acre on top of their existing insurance. “Our concern with what we’re seeing here is not just one thing, it’s across the board,” Wayne said.
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Nation Kansas
First Post-Roe Ballot Test E L EC T I O N
Kansas referendum proposes amendment that declares no constitutional right to abortion
T
By John Haughey he first ballot test of the post-Roe era will be on Aug. 2, when Kansas voters are presented with a proposed constitutional amendment that declares that there’s no constitutional right to abortion. The Kansas Value Them Both Amendment will be the first of at least four proposed constitutional amendments addressing abortion certain to go before voters during the 2022 election cycle. After this week’s leak of the U.S. Supreme Court’s draft ruling in favor of nixing the court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, efforts by pro-life activists in Colorado to get an abortion ban on this year’s ballot have gained traction, while pro-abortion groups in Michigan are staging a late drive to qualify a “reproductive rights” amendment for a November referendum.
Abortion access would be dramatically curtailed in 23 to 26 states if the leaked Supreme Court ruling went into effect.
(Above) Pro-abortion and pro-life activists demonstrate in front of the Supreme Court during the 47th annual March for Life in Washington on Jan. 24, 2020. (Bottom Left) The Kansas state Capitol in Topeka. FROM L: TONY WEBSTER/CC BY-SA 2.0, OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
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If the draft remains as is, the ruling itself wouldn’t be surprising. All sides of the abortion debate expected the court to uphold a Mississippi law that bans abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy when it ruled on Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization and to return regulation of abortion to the states. In anticipation of the ruling, state lawmakers across the country have been adopting legislation that would go into effect if the Supreme Court kicked abortion regulation back to the states. According to the Guttmacher Institute, a research and policy nonprofit that supports abortion rights, at least 531 “anti-abortion restrictions” were introduced in 40 states during sessions in 2022 after lawmakers in 2021 adopted more than 100 laws restricting abortion—the most in any year in the past five decades. According to Congressional Quarterly/Fiscal Note, of those 500-plus proposals, lawmakers in nine states have adopted 33 new abortion restrictions as of May 2. Those new laws include “trigger bans” that prohibit abortion from 15 weeks, approved this year in Arizona, Florida, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, South Dakota, West Virginia, and Wyoming. Oklahoma’s new law would ban abortion at six weeks. Court rulings have suspended such “trigger bans” in Alabama, Georgia, Iowa, Ohio, and South Carolina. Those rulings would likely be overturned in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision in the Mississippi case. Depending on how laws are implemented, abortion access would be dramatically curtailed in 23 to 26 states if the leaked draft ruling went into effect. The likelihood of the Supreme Court tossing out Roe v. Wade has also spurred lawmakers in seven states to adopt 11 bills that protect access to abortion, including New Jersey, New York, Oregon, and Washington. California lawmakers
passed a law to make abortions less expensive for private insurance plans. In Colorado, legislators codified abortion access in the state when they adopted their Reproductive Health Equity Act. In Maryland, where the legislature passed four abortion access measures this year, lawmakers overrode Republican Gov. Larry Hogan’s objections to several provisions. In addition to legislative actions, lawmakers and activists on both sides of the issue have proposed ballot initiatives in several states that would directly appeal to voters. At least four proposed ballot measures addressing abortion are sure to be on 2022 ballots because lawmakers put them there. Three seek to restrict the procedure. In addition to the Kansas Value Them Both Amendment going before voters in August, Kentucky lawmakers have placed a similar proposed “no right to abortion” constitutional amendment on the Nov. 8 general election ballot. The Iowa Legislature has put a “no right to abortion” pro-
posed constitutional amendment on the November 2024 ballot as well. The Oklahoma Senate this year also passed proposals to place “no right to abortion” and “rights of the unborn” proposed constitutional amendments on November’s ballot. But with Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt, a Republican, signing a bill into law on May 3 that prohibits abortion at six weeks, it’s uncertain if the House will advance the two prospective measures to the ballot before the session adjourns on May 27. In January, the Montana Legislature agreed to place LR-131, the Medical Care Requirements for Born-Alive Infants Measure, on November’s ballot. LR 131 states that “infants born alive at any stage of development are legal persons” and requires “medical care to be provided to infants born alive after an induced labor, cesarean section, attempted abortion, or another method.” The fourth abortion-related measure certain to be on the ballot this year—and the only one
531 AT LEAST
‘anti-abortion restrictions’ were introduced in 40 states during sessions in 2022.
I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 41
Nation Kansas
that expands “abortion rights”—is Vermont’s Proposal 5, the Right to Personal Reproductive Autonomy Amendment. If adopted, the Vermont Constitution would state that “an individual’s right to personal reproductive autonomy is central to the liberty and dignity to determine one’s own life course.” Lawmakers had to adopt resolutions in consecutive legislative bienniums to get on the ballot via legislation. Vermont legislators passed the resolution in 2019–20 and again in 2021–22. In Colorado, where lawmakers passed a Reproductive Health Equity Act enshrining abortion access this year, pro-life forces are nevertheless mounting a signature-gathering petition to get a proposed ban on abortion except to save the life of the mother adopted by voters in November.
Lawmakers in 2021 adopted more than 100 laws restricting abortion—the most in any year in the past five decades.
Angela Eicher, of the Northeast Colorado United for Life Committee, and Rebecca Greenwood, of Christian Harvest International, are sponsors of the proposed ballot measure, which was cleared for signature gathering in April. They need 124,632 valid signatures by Aug. 8 to qualify. Similar measures seeking to restrict abortion in Colorado haven’t fared well. In 2020, Coloradans rejected an initiative to ban abortions after a fetus reaches 22 weeks. More likely to get on November’s ballot—and be among the most-watched votes in the nation— is the Michigan Right to Reproductive Freedom Initiative. Sponsored by Reproductive Freedom for All, a coalition that includes the American Civil Liberties Union and Planned Parenthood, the proposed constitutional amendment was cleared for signature gathering in March. The prospective amendment would create a state constitutional right to reproductive freedom, which it defines as “the right to make and effectuate decisions about all matters relating to pregnancy, including but not limited to prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum care, contraception, sterilization, abortion care, miscarriage management, and infertility care.” Sponsors need 425,059 signatures by July 11 to get on the November ballot.
Pro-abortion activists outside the Supreme Court in Washington on May 3. In addition to taking legislative action, lawmakers and activists on both sides of the issue have proposed ballot initiatives in several states that would directly appeal to voters.
THIS PAGE: JACKSON ELLIOTT/THE EPOCH TIMES
42 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
P OL I T IC S • E C ONOM Y • OPI N ION T H AT M AT T E R S
Perspectives
No.19
The Supreme Court in Washington on Sept. 2, 2021. Democrats are using abortion as a distraction from inflation, an expert says. PHOTO BY KEVIN DIETSCH/GETTY IMAGES
INFLATION DISTRACTION
FIXING THE IRS
THE VACUUM EFFECT OF THE GREENBACK
The left is using abortion as a distraction from soaring prices. 44
The agency continues to process millions of tax returns from earlier years. 47
Many expected a collapse of the U.S. dollar, but they were mistaken. 48
INSIDE I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 43
THOMAS MCARDLE was a White House speechwriter for President George W. Bush and writes for IssuesInsights.com.
Thomas McArdle
Inflation Distraction
The left is using abortion as a distraction from the soaring prices
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he notion that the leak of the Supreme Court’s draft opinion overturning the 1973 Roe v. Wade abortion decision has something to do with, of all things, inflation at first blush seems preposterous. And yet, the motive of the mystery figure responsible for the worst information breach within the halls of the Marble Palace at 1 First Street Northeast in history clearly was to substitute the most highly charged issue imaginable for consumers’ kitchen-table concerns. No one was talking about the price of a loaf of bread or taxes the day after the 9/11 terrorist attack, and the obvious aim of this attack on the high court from within is that, come the November congressional elections, the suburban female swing vote’s anger at Republicans with regard to abortion will exceed their anger at Democrats for making it so much harder to make ends meet. But hell hath no fury like a woman who realizes politicians are trying to pull the wool over her eyes. As the summer rolls on, it will become clear to the majority of Americans not immersed in the legalities of the abortion issue that despite the overturning of Roe there will still be hundreds of abortion clinics in the United States, and that previously there has been “no consistent relationship between increases or decreases in clinic numbers and changes in state abortion rates,” according to the Guttmacher Institute, the research arm originally affiliated with Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion provider in the country. How likely is it that they will be thinking more about abortion than inflation—especially four months after the court’s final decision is announced? Remember the “town hells” of
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Barack Obama’s first term, as the Tea Party movement bloomed, when constituents demanded to lawmakers’ faces that they stop spending their tax dollars on stimulus bills that didn’t stimulate and a government intrusion into health care? Picture the scene when voters realize Democrats are using one of the most divisive issues in the country to distract from the inflation that is largely the byproduct of their massive spending? Especially when the president who is the leader of the party refuses to condemn the Supreme Court leak.
To the Democrats, inflation is really none other than ‘corporate greed’ at play. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) who, with Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), has opted out of some of his party’s radical agenda in the 50–50 U.S. Senate, told CNN on May 4 that inflation, not abortion, was the “No. 1 driving issue.” In a Fox News poll of registered voters released May 3, the issue that far and away evoked the highest negatives for President Joe Biden was inflation, with 67 percent of those surveyed disapproving of his handling of the issue. Businesses now rank rising prices as their biggest concern, worrying that they’ll have to raise employee wages and benefits, and “weighing the impact of rising costs of doing business with how much they can invest in talent—for both recruitment and retention,” according to Amy Friedrich, president of U.S. Insurance Solutions at Principal Financial Group in Des Moines. Only 7 percent of small businesses aren’t troubled about inflation affecting their firms,
according to a study conducted last month by SCORE, the nonprofit small business mentoring association affiliated with the U.S. Small Business Administration. Some 30.5 percent cited inflation as a top concern, while another 62.5 percent were generally concerned with rising prices. In another poll by New York-based Clarify Capital, surveying more than 500 small businesses, 61 percent were worried that today’s inflation environment would force them to close shop permanently. Don’t count on the Federal Reserve to act as the cavalry coming over the hill to save the day. As Manhattan Institute senior fellow Brian Riedl commented regarding the Fed’s 50-basis-point increase in the Federal Funds rate, it was “mostly expected” and “will still leave real interest rates negative, and far below what would be considered a neutral interest rate given today’s inflation and economic fundamentals.” Riedl added that “combating 8.5 percent inflation should involve regulatory reform” and “tariff removal,” not just tightening in monetary policy. “Congress and the president can help by avoiding any new expensive fiscal expansions.” But don’t hold your breath on that. To the Democrats whose class struggle ideology dominates their party and the Biden administration, like Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), inflation is really none other than “corporate greed” at play. Business owners show up at town halls more than most. When they behold Democratic congressmen and congresswomen paying a visit to those they represent and preferring to talk about abortion instead of inflation, while blaming entrepreneurs for the latter, it may well be the “town hells” of the Obama era all over again.
ANDERS CORR is a principal at Corr Analytics Inc., publisher of the Journal of Political Risk. He is an expert in political science and government.
Anders Corr
CCP’s Criminal Intent Revealed Trillions must be protected before China risks more sanctions
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hile russia’s war in Ukraine rages, Chinese leader Xi Jinping is watching with interest—especially the canceling of Russian access to Moscow’s own foreign investments, including hard currencies, which it thought it could use to backstop the invasion. China, too, has invested in foreign assets, including $3.2 trillion in foreign reserves that it has tried to sell over the past few months. Using these currencies requires the cooperation of banking authorities in the countries from which they came. China’s investment would be vulnerable should the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) decide to commit an international crime, such as helping Moscow even more than it has or launching an invasion of Taiwan. Apparently, to that end, the CCP is stockpiling commodities such as oil and grain, attempting to make its economy self-reliant by reshoring supply chains to itself and countries that it trusts, decoupling its financial system from major democracies, evolving its economic strategy through stress tests and simulations, and legally formalizing its counter-sanctions capabilities. Reporting on May 3 indicates that China’s independent refiners are undermining Western sanctions against Russia through discreet oil purchases at steep discounts. The purchases are moving from China’s large state-owned commodity traders to small independent refiners “to avoid attracting scrutiny and being hit by US sanctions,” according to the Financial Times. On May 4, HSBC bank’s biggest shareholder called for splitting the bank’s most important profit centers in Asia from its
headquarters in the UK. The shareholder, a Chinese insurance company, likely had top cover from Beijing to thus shield the bank from Western sanctions. Beijing subsidized computer chip production with billions of dollars and is promoting domestic production of grain.
Beijing is setting its autocratic form of government onto a collison course with democracies. The mutual insecurities that result could easily spiral out of control and into military conflict. In December, Xi said, “The Chinese people’s rice bowl must be firmly held in their own hands at all times, and the rice bowl must mainly contain Chinese grain.” This is the fortress mentality of someone with criminal intent who expects to be sanctioned. Given that Xi is the world’s most powerful and genocidal dictator, in cahoots with the likes of Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, the crimes are likely premeditated and of the gravest threat to humankind. The CCP is unrepentant over its genocide, its support for Russia and North Korea, and its hypocritical promotion of a “new type of international relations,” which, despite its flowery words, likely means ignoring Western norms of democracy and human rights in favor of a Beijing-centric world focused on growing CCP power through the help of any pariah states desperate enough to join.
The response will be competing for U.S. and Chinese sanctions that bifurcate the global economy. Because of the Uyghur genocide, for example, the United States is increasing pressure on China’s Hikvision, the world’s largest surveillance camera maker. While Hikvision was already on the “entity list,” denying it the ability to purchase anything from U.S. companies, the likely new sanction would have a global effect. Any of more than 180 countries that currently use Hikvision cameras could face secondary U.S. sanctions if they continue the purchases. However, entities that comply with U.S. or European sanctions could break China’s 2021 anti-foreign sanction law. While the Biden administration has said in the past that it doesn’t ask countries to take sides, increasing sanctions and counter-sanctions creates a catch-22 that will force their hand. The CCP’s actions are driving its economy and the world toward a costly decoupling and indicating the regime’s intention to expand what should be recognized as not just healthy competition or even unhealthy adversarial relations. Beijing is setting its autocratic form of government onto a collision course with democracies. The mutual insecurities that result could easily spiral out of control and into military conflict. Giving Beijing time to prepare its economic defenses invites such aggression. Better to mitigate the risk now, while we still have the leverage, through much tougher economic measures. The regime is already guilty and sanctionable. Rather than kicking the can down the road yet again, deny the CCP the strength to commit more international crimes through sanctions now, not later. I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 45
MILTON EZRATI is chief economist for Vested, a contributing editor at The National Interest, and author of “Thirty Tomorrows” and “Bite-Sized Investing.”
Milton Ezrati
A Recession Is on the Horizon
One way or another, inflation will bring on recession
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he recent disappointing report on the gross domestic product (GDP) may reflect statistical particulars more than the immediate onset of a recession. But the real thing nonetheless lies on the horizon, probably in the next 18 to 24 months. Inflationary pressures are the culprit. They make recession all but inevitable. The downturn will arrive in one of two ways: the Fed’s anti-inflation fight will trouble markets and bring on a recession, as such policies have many times in the past; or if the Fed refuses to fight sufficiently, an unchecked inflation will, in time, produce enough economic distortion to create a recession on its own. This unwelcome prospect confronts the country because, contrary to Washington’s repeated claims, today’s inflation is neither a “transitory” reflection of post-pandemic strains nor the immediate result of the fighting in Ukraine. Though these developments surely have contributed, current price pressures mostly reflect more than a decade during which Washington—under both Democrats and Republicans— has run huge budget deficits that the Fed has financed by creating a torrent of new money. The Fed has, during this time, used new money to purchase some $5 trillion in government debt, some $3 trillion in just the past couple years. This modern equivalent of financing government by printing paper money is a classic prescription for persistent inflation. The Fed has only just begun to respond to the demands of the inflation fight. It has raised the benchmark federal funds rate by 0.75 percentage points from its lows to 1.0 percent and has promised more such increases. Policy has also reversed
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the so-called quantitative easing program. Instead of creating new money and financial liquidity to buy bonds directly on financial markets, the Fed will now sell some of the securities it has amassed in past years and, in so doing, absorb some of the inflationary money from financial markets and the economy. All this tends to restrain economic activity.
To erase that incentive and tame inflation, the Fed will have to raise interest rates above the ongoing rate of inflation. Getting there quickly enough to have an effect will inevitably shock markets and the economy. Fed policy will have to do considerably more to deal with what is now embedded inflation. Even after the Fed’s latest move, consider that short-term rates still stand at only 1.0 percent. In today’s 8.5 percent inflation, a borrower will repay the lender in dollars worth a lot less in real terms than he pays in interest. In real terms, the lender actually pays the borrower to use the money—a huge incentive to borrow and spend remains. To erase that incentive and tame inflation, the Fed will have to raise interest rates above the ongoing rate of inflation. Getting there quickly enough to have an effect will inevitably shock markets and the economy enough to cause a stall in economic activity and likely at least a brief downturn. No doubt the Fed has begun cautiously for fear of such a recessionary
effect. The economy, however, cannot avoid it. Even if monetary policy remains frightened and timid, a recession will come. Eventually, unchecked inflation will make business planning so fraught with uncertainty that businesses will forgo investment projects that would otherwise enhance the economy’s productive potential and encourage job growth. Workers, even if able to secure wage hikes, will still struggle to keep up with the rapidly rising cost of living. By eroding the value of dollar-denominated assets, such as stocks and bonds, inflation will also cause a retreat in financial markets and, in so doing, further discourage investments in real productive capacities. Meanwhile, ongoing price pressures will redirect what investment monies are available into inflation hedges such as art and land speculation, instead of more productive activities. All these distortions will bring on recession even if the Fed fails to act, likely a more severe and long-lasting one. The recession, now in the cards, might have been avoided. Had Washington a year ago, when the inflation first became evident, begun to shift policy instead of dismissing the problem, the authorities would not now have to shift as radically as they do to have a sufficient anti-inflationary impact. Instead, Fed Chairman Jerome Powell for months insisted that the inflation was “transitory,” as did Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen. Even President Joe Biden, as late as last summer, made such claims. Now he blames Russian President Vladimir Putin. Prompt action couldn’t have avoided all the inflationary pressure, but it could have eased the intensity of the trouble the United States now faces. That opportunity is of course now gone. A recession is unavoidable.
EMEL AKAN is a senior reporter for The Epoch Times in Washington, D.C. Previously she worked in the financial sector as an investment banker at JPMorgan.
Emel Akan
Fixing The IRS
The agency continues to process millions of tax returns from earlier years
MARK WILSON/GETTY IMAGES
T
he tax season of 2022 has been quite chaotic for the Internal Revenue Service because of significant challenges, including staffing shortages and backlogs of tax returns. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the IRS faced an unprecedented amount of work during the 2021 filing season. The agency started this year with a backlog of more than 8.4 million unprocessed individual tax returns and transactions, according to a preliminary report by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration. The backlog of individual tax returns was about 13 times more than the inventory experienced before the pandemic, according to the report. The accounts management function of the IRS, which is tasked with assisting taxpayers with inquiries, reported more than 8 million pending cases at the end of last year. The agency continues to process millions of tax returns from earlier years in addition to the millions received during the current filing season. IRS Commissioner Charles Rettig recently testified before the Senate that the agency took steps to reduce the backlog by the end of 2022 and start the 2023 filing season with a “healthy level” of inventories. Every year, about 10 percent of Americans file their tax returns by paper. Processing paper returns causes delays and increases the IRS’s workload significantly, according to tax experts. “Paper is the IRS’s Kryptonite,” said Erin Collins, the national taxpayer advocate who heads an independent organization within the IRS. The agency “is still buried in it,” she said in her testimony before the Senate Finance Committee in February.
In addition to collecting taxes, the IRS has been given the responsibility of administering social benefits. However, the backlog at the IRS isn’t a new issue. The current chaos is largely due to a long-standing trend in fiscal policy, according to the Tax Foundation, a tax policy think tank. “For the past few decades, policymakers have increasingly relied on the tax code to deliver major social spending initiatives,” the think tank’s recent report reads. In addition to collecting taxes, the IRS has been given the responsibility of administering social benefits. However, the IRS’s capacity hasn’t grown fast enough to meet these new tasks, according to the report. The political desire to increase its budget also weakened. And the pandemic has compounded the problems. The agency was heavily used to disperse pandemic aid in three major rounds of relief legislation, including the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan enacted in March 2021. The IRS was in charge of distributing
the majority of the funds, including the stimulus payments and the monthly child tax credit, to eligible families. In the first two weeks after Biden signed the stimulus bill in March 2021, for example, the IRS processed 127 million payments worth nearly $325 billion. The agency received additional funding to manage the relief payments, but the programs far exceeded the IRS’s capacity. It also received a record 282 million phone calls in 2021. According to Collins, only about 32 million, or 11 percent, of those calls were answered by IRS customer service agents. “In the long term, the most stable solution is to move social spending out of the tax code and let the IRS focus its resources on revenue collection,” the Tax Foundation stated. The agency plans to hire an additional 10,000 personnel to solve backlog issues. Rettig said 5,000 people would be employed in the next several months and an additional 5,000 people would be hired over the next year. However, the tight labor market makes it harder to attract and retain talent for the IRS. The Great Resignation, which has harmed businesses across all industries, has also affected the agency. Many workers retired or left their jobs last year because of COVID-19. More than 5,000 workers are also expected to retire this year. Roughly a quarter of the workforce is approaching retirement age. A lack of personnel is hindering the IRS’s auditing capabilities. “We can no longer audit a respectable percentage of large corporations,” Rettig said during his testimony. “We are, quite simply, ‘outgunned’ in our efforts to assure a high degree of compliance for these taxpayers.” I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 47
DANIEL LACALLE is chief economist at hedge fund Tressis and author of “Freedom or Equality,” “Escape from the Central Bank Trap,” and “Life in the Financial Markets.”
Daniel Lacalle
The Vacuum Effect of the US Dollar
Many expected a collapse of the US dollar, but they were mistaken
48 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
The U.S. dollar has created the conditions to be the most demanded currency simply because other central banks have been much more reckless. commented on before. In periods of complacency, the world’s central banks play at being the Federal Reserve without having the world’s reserve currency or the legal security and financial balance of the United States. Many massively increase money supply without paying attention to the global and local demand for their currency, and in addition, governments issue more U.S. dollar-denominated debt, hoping low rates will make the financing of huge deficits affordable. All this, in turn, leads the global demand for U.S. dollars to increase, not because the Federal Reserve carries out a restrictive policy, but because the comparison with others shows the alternative fiat currencies are much worse. It’s very worrying that the European Central Bank is allowing the euro to get dangerously close to parity with the U.S. dollar because of its
obsession with staying far away from the normalization process of other central banks. The global demand for euros is falling, and the trade surplus that supported the European currency is diminishing. All those who defend a weak euro should look at reality. Empirical evidence shows that the eurozone doesn’t export more due to a weak euro, but with products of higher added value. With a weak euro, imports skyrocket and become more expensive. Thus, the U.S. dollar has created the conditions to be the most demanded currency simply because other central banks have been much more reckless. It only took an inflationary process that the central banks themselves denied or called transitory to raise the alarm of a market with overly optimistic expectations. The market is clearly in a period of weakness and risk aversion. The effect of the invasion of Ukraine is relevant, but clearly, the greatest impact is monetary. A market that rose to record highs on the back of aggressive money printing now finds itself in a tough spot as rate hikes and the end of asset purchases by central banks loom. The fact is that this fear of interest rate hikes has led, so far, to a single modest rise of just 0.25 percent in the United States and none in Europe. Many expected a collapse of the U.S. dollar and a flight to other currencies for commodity trading. The reality has proven again that, in a “fire,” the U.S. dollar is the house with most windows and doors. The reckless policies of other central banks make the alternative in fiat world impossible. Will cryptocurrencies take over? Maybe, but it’s very far away.
JOSE LUIS GONZALEZ/ILLUSTRATION/REUTERS
pril 2022 will go down in history as a milestone that has only been seen on three previous occasions since 1973; it’s a month in which the S&P500 Index and U.S. Treasuries have fallen at the same time, 5 percent and 2 percent, respectively. Additionally, the U.S. dollar has appreciated against the main currencies with which it trades and reached a new yearly high. Years of monetary laughing gas haven’t diminished the strength of the U.S. dollar as the world reserve currency, rather the opposite. Now we witness the vacuum effect: inflows into the U.S. dollar in a period of risk aversion. The PBOC, the central bank of China, has had to give in and allow an aggressive devaluation of the yuan, although it tried to keep the currency stable via capital controls and a daily fixing. The government-programmed weakness of the yuan is probably designed to provide a boost to the Chinese economy in a slowdown and dissolve part of the yuan-denominated debt. However, it reduces the Chinese yuan’s appeal as an alternative to the U.S. dollar as global investors may fear both the central bank fixing as well as the tight capital controls imposed in China. It isn’t surprising, for example, that many commodity-exporting countries’ currencies have weakened against the U.S. dollar despite rising exports and foreign exchange inflows. From the Norwegian krone to the currencies of major exporters, only the Brazilian real appears to be holding strong—and that’s because it’s had several atrocious years, so it’s more a bounce than an appreciation. What we’re experiencing is the “vacuum effect,” which we have
Fan Yu
FAN YU is an expert in finance and economics and has contributed analyses on China’s economy since 2015.
DeFi, Yield Farming, and Ponzi Scheme? Investments that seem too good to be true typically are
ANTHONY KWAN/GETTY IMAGES
I
n today’s local interest rate environment, many investors have come across DeFi staking or cryptocurrency yield farming promising interest rates earned in the high single digits, double digits, and even triple digits. Compared to the paltry interest rate earned in most mainstream asset classes, conventional wisdom would suggest that those rates are too good to be true. DeFi, or decentralized finance, has become a new catchphrase to describe an industry within finance that relies on distributed ledger technology such as those used by cryptocurrencies. DeFi is very broad, but it has become synonymous with a popular money-making method called yield-farming and staking. Those two terms describe different things, but both promise high-interest rates on cryptocurrencies. Staking is easier to describe. Early coins such as Bitcoin relied on a system called “proof of work” to validate transactions, a process that involved solving algorithms and using a tremendous amount of energy. Later digital currencies are using a system called “proof of stake,” in which holders of the coins delegate their tokens to a pool where validators work to confirm transactions and create new blocks. And in turn, the validators earn a reward for their work. Over the past few years, many of these validator “companies” cropped up and promised investors high-interest rate rewards for the cryptocurrencies they deposit with the validator companies. Investors who “stake” their digital assets with these companies are promised great returns—from 5 percent to 25 percent, and sometimes even more—and these returns are marketed as “passive income” on the digital currencies they “deposit” at these institutions, similar to interest earned on savings accounts. This is where the narrative doesn’t always hold up and investors need to do
There’s great risk in earning these promised returns, yet often their marketing slogans make these products appear very similar to interest earned on savings accounts. their research. Some of these platform companies do validate crypto transactions and earn tokens for their efforts. Some of these companies take your deposits and lend them out to hedge funds and other institutions that may borrow the tokens in order to short them, in turn paying interest to the platform. But do their business models support such high-interest rates to be paid to the customers? It’s unclear what the spread or margins are on their activities. And if these companies go out of business or if the regulators such as the SEC shut down their businesses, how will investors be repaid? There’s great risk in earning these promised returns, yet often their marketing slogans make these products appear very similar to interest earned on savings accounts. Of course, none of the crypto assets deposited are insured by the Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation. A different strategy—yield farming— is even riskier. This involves depositing your cryptocurrency (say, bitcoin or ether) with a startup platform and instead of earning interest in kind (i.e., interest in the form of bitcoin or ether), your earnings accrue in the form of a completely new token created by said platform. And often, this platform has no discernible operating activities such as lending coins or validating proof of stake. Its only purpose is minting more of the newly created tokens. In a recent Bloomberg Odd Lots podcast, billionaire FTX CEO Sam Bankman-Fried described this business model as someone creating a new box and declaring that the box has value and then promoting the box, attracting investors to this box, thereby creating more artificial value. In other words, the platform has value because of marketing and people claiming that it has value. And when it is promoted, and more people send money into this platform, the hype around it generates a high market capitalization because people clamor for it. And the newly minted token—whatever it may be called—also has “value” ascribed to it, and the box owner can continue to mint new tokens. Conceptually, this sounds awfully like a Ponzi scheme. We’re not concluding that all such yield farming protocols are scams or Ponzi schemes. Some may ultimately have utility and a business purpose. In May, a corner of this market is already fractured. The popular stablecoin TerraUSD and the DeFi protocol behind it, Luna, experienced a significant disruption that, as of press time, has not yet been resolved. Investors looking into such opportunities should keep in mind the old adage that if something sounds too good to be true, it usually is. I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 49
JEFF MINICK lives and writes in Front Royal, Va. He is the author of two novels, “Amanda Bell” and “Dust on Their Wings,” and two works of nonfiction, “Learning as I Go” and “Movies Make the Man.”
Jeff Minick
Learning Isn’t Confined to Schools Expanding our knowledge base is a lifelong process
lot of folks continue their education after leaving school. Doctors, attorneys, nurses, computer programmers, and many others enroll in continuing education courses, attend seminars, and subscribe to professional journals to keep abreast of changes in their chosen fields. Several individuals I know in such trades are avid readers of magazines giving them new ideas on improving their work and services to their customers, and homemakers and moms are always looking for tips on decorating their homes and raising their children. Recognizing these desires, The Epoch Times, for example, devotes nearly half of its weekly paper to health, childrearing, home improvements, and cooking. All these efforts to keep pace with a changing world are admirable and necessary. They’re a vital fuel for the engines of progress. But we need not confine our learning to our specialties. By stepping outside those boundaries into unfamiliar territory, we not only add to our skill sets, but we can also make ourselves more fully human in the bargain. Consider the arenas of literature, history, and biography. Great literature exposes us to a vast array of different personalities and situations, providing us with deep dives into the human heart and mind. “Silas Marner” contrasts a man of rectitude, Silas Marner, with two thieves and a father who denies his daughter her rightful place in his life. Homer’s “Odyssey” gives us Penelope, who, at great cost, remains loyal to her hus50 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
Along the way, we also grow more aware of our strong and intimate links to the past. band Odysseus. Charles Dickens’s “A Christmas Carol” warns against greed and what we lose when we put money ahead of people. Deepening our knowledge of history can broaden our views of both the past and the present while delivering a sense of proportion to current events and personal difficul-
ties. Accounts of the bubonic plague of the Middle Ages, of the horrific wars fought around the globe, or of the Great Depression bring home the struggles of our ancestors and may encourage us to face our own trials with courage and strength. Along the way, we also grow more aware of our strong and intimate links to the past. As novelist Michael Crichton wrote: “If you don’t know history, then you don’t know anything. You are a leaf that doesn’t know it’s part of a tree.” Similarly, in biographies and autobiographies, we can find inspiration. The adolescent Winston Churchill, a mediocre student whose poor academic performance prevented him from attending a prestigious university, offers hope to parents whose child is fighting a losing battle in the classroom. The shop owner struggling to keep his doors open might draw courage and determination from Ulysses S. Grant, a failure in civilian life who rose to command the Northern armies during the Civil War and who in 1864, while battling Robert E. Lee’s Army of Northern Virginia, said, “I propose to fight it out on this line if it takes all summer.” All these books and thousands more offer invaluable lessons, but only to those who read them. A recent Gallup poll found that Americans are reading fewer books than in the past. As we forge ahead into the future, let’s be the ones who buck that regrettable trend. Let’s take our place daily in that greatest and noblest of all classrooms—the written word—and remain lifelong learners.
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Kyle Bass, founder and chief investment officer of Hayman Capital Management and a founding member of the Committee on the Present Danger: China.
THOUGHT LEADERS
China’s Digital Yuan and Global Supremacy Goal China, Russia forming axis of authoritarianism against the West, says expert Kyle Bass
I
t’s clear to me that China is the biggest threat to the West and the United States,” says Kyle Bass. “China’s goal is global supremacy.”
52 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
year ago, we talked about the Chinese digital yuan and the threat that poses. You described it as an existential threat. It’s basically the social credit system on steroids impacting many other countries. So now with this Russia–Ukraine war happening, we see the digital yuan accelerating in use. KYLE BASS: In the Beijing
Olympics this year, the Chinese Communist Party forced the participants to download the e-yuan app and to use it as their payment system while in Beijing. That, of course, begins the forcible use of the e-yuan. They want to lessen their dependence on the U.S.
dollar. About 87 percent of global transactions that China settles are in dollars. They’re desperately short of energy, food, and basic materials. They have to buy these things every day around the world, and no one trusts their currency, and they still have a closed capital account. They have to use their dollars. So they’re trying to lessen their reliance on dollars. They’re also exporting the Chinese tech stack all over the world. This is an app that tracks where you are, your name, your Social Security number: all of your identifiers. They’re exporting digital authoritarianism. And it’s being overshadowed by the Russian invasion
of Ukraine. How many articles have you seen on the e-yuan in the past three months? Almost none. MR . JEKIELEK: The Chi-
nese regime is aligning with Russia. Maybe you can tell us about that. MR . BASS: On Feb. 4, Chi-
nese leader Xi Jinping and Russian President Vladimir Putin issued a press release on their new strategic partnership. No areas of cooperation are “off limits,” which, of course, means hypersonics, nuclear, all of the good and bad things they could be working on together. They’re basically forming an axis of authoritarianism between China, Russia, and the rest of the bad guys
YORK DU/THE EPOCH TIMES
In this recent episode of “American Thought Leaders,” host Jan Jekielek met with Kyle Bass to discuss the effectiveness of sanctions in the war in Ukraine, the “axis of authoritarianism,” the housing crisis in China, and that country’s ongoing secret war on the United States. Bass is the founder and chief investment officer of Hayman Capital Management and a founding member of the Committee on the Present Danger: China.
JAN JEKIELEK: About a
Nation Profile
around the world. This war’s forcing a bifurcation of the world into the rules-based, rights-based West and the axis of authoritarians. MR . JEKIELEK: I want
to switch gears and look at the Chinese economy. What was the economic impact of COVID-19 policies on China? MR . BASS: China is really
struggling with inflation. They’ve got energy prices ripping. They’ve got food prices ripping. They’ve got things happening that they can’t handle as a government. And I think they’re panicking. MR . JEKIELEK: One of
those things is their housing crisis. Is it orders of magnitude greater than anything that ever happened in the United States? MR . BASS: Both residential
and commercial building are about a third of their economy. In the United States, it’s about 17 to 18 percent. So it’s very impactful in China. The average housing price in Tier 1 cities in China is 35 to 36 times the average income. To put things in context, when the
United States had its housing crisis in 2008, we got to six times, and that’s where affordability broke. They have their own system in China. They have their own propaganda, their own economy, which is yuan-based. And then they’ve got their interactions with the rest of the world, which are essentially dollar-based. Internally, that economic tree can fall and no one might hear it because they can print as much money as they want. And they can fill the holes in the banks without causing crisis, but it’s important to note they’ve only had some sort of capitalistic-based economy since early 2000. The U.S. has been at it for more than 100 years. And look at how badly we screwed up in 2008. They’re relatively new to this game, but they got to a point where the reckless printing of capital and real estate speculation took real estate to levels that actually are causing major population decline. In China today, the average birth rate per is now only 1.2 children. You need a 2.1 birth rate just to break even on your population. We already knew there would be a significant drop
“Chinese businessmen don’t engage in illicit trade knowing that if they get caught, they’ll be killed by their leadership. Their leadership is endorsing what’s going on.” because of China’s former one-child policy. But they allowed real estate prices to go so high that it effectively priced out the entire middle class. So what’s happening is Chinese men are living with their parents, they’re not marrying, and they’re not having kids. The birth rate’s collapsing, and it’s a direct result of rampant speculation in the real estate markets. I think the Chinese government is intentionally taking prices back down, and they’re going to try to keep them there to change their population demographics over the long run. MR . JEKIELEK: Let’s jump
to sanctions. Recently, and I’m paraphrasing, the Treasury secretary basically said to China, “Look what we’ve done to Russia. The same will happen to you if you behave in such ways.” How does that strike you? MR . BASS: The U.S. and
the allied Western powers are supplying some lethal aid to Ukraine, but the tip of our spear happens to be economic sanctions. But we aren’t really willing to sanction Russia’s primary business. Two-thirds of their economy is selling crude oil and natural gas to the rest of the world. They produce about 11.5 million barrels of crude I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 53
Nation Profile
“They have to use their dollars. So they’re trying to lessen their reliance on dollars.” a day. They export 8 million barrels and consume about three and a half, which means that the West is still sending Russia about $800 million a day. And that doesn’t include gas. Anyway, we haven’t effectively sanctioned Russia. If sanctions are a primary tool, then we should immediately sanction their energy business, which of course would cause crude oil to move up maybe to $200 a barrel. It would hurt us, but it would really, really hobble Russia. Russia’s production is already down about 550,000 barrels a day because some in the West
have been reluctant to buy Russian crude. That’s having a huge effect on Russia’s production. Imagine if we fully sanctioned their energy business for six months. We could hobble their energy production and really cut the blood flow to the tumor. MR . JEKIELEK: So, lessons
from the Russia–Ukraine war situation. Is there actually any capital flight happening or reduced investment in China? We know what happened with Russia, but are people reading the tea leaves that way? MR . BASS: They are. You
can see it in the capital flows. You can see it clear as day in their current account on the investing side. There was an article in the Ottawa Citizen just a couple of days ago, an opinion piece saying, “Why on earth are Canadian pension funds so heavily invested in China? They should divest.” You’re starting to see people wake up and say, “What are we doing?” People are finally saying, “Wow, these guys really are bad guys.” You should invest somewhere where there’s a rule of law, where there are basic human rights, where at least you know that your money is safe. MR . JEKIELEK: As we fin-
ish up, let’s talk about a few things closer to home. I saw that you’ve been interested in the imports of these sear devices that can turn handguns into automatic weapons. A lot of this stuff is coming from China, and it’s like the CCP is doing these
sorts of things to destabilize our country, such as the huge amounts of fentanyl coming from China. MR . BASS: We have more
than 55,000 deaths per year now because of Chinese fentanyl imports. Chinese businessmen don’t engage in illicit trade knowing that if they get caught, they’ll be killed by their leadership. Their leadership is endorsing what’s going on. The same with the sear device. It’s no bigger than the end of your finger, and it takes the recoil of a gun and immediately reloads the chamber and fires it. And it’s not only for handguns, but for assault rifles as well. It changes guns from semi-automatic to automatic. Once China figured out that this could increase crime and havoc in the United States, they started shipping them here. Now it’s a federal felony to possess one, but criminals don’t care. They commit felonies every day. China and Russia are experts at creating chaos and sowing discontent. That’s their game. And these full-auto sears are a real problem in the United States. They’ll create more death, more destruction, and more crime. MR . JEKIELEK: Just for
MR . BASS: It’s clear to me
that China is the biggest threat to the West and the United States. China’s goal is global primacy. The construction site of the Evergrande Cultural Tourism City, a mixed-used residential-retail-entertainment development, in Taicang, Suzhou city, Jiangsu Province, China, on Sept. 17, 2021. 54 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
THIS PAGE: VIVIAN LIN/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
the record, which of these regimes do you see as the biggest threat to America and this free world?
T R AV E L • F O O D • L U X U R Y L I V I N G
Unwind
No.19
When in Rome, do as the Romans do and enjoy the amazing food, the seemingly unending displays of history, and the bountiful natural beauty. PHOTO BY NICOLA FORENZA/SHUTTERSTOCK
A City Drenched in History AFTER A BUSY DAY IN THE city, this estate provides a thoroughly relaxing environment that is ideal for enjoying quality time with family and friends. 56
UNIQUE AND EXPENSIVE watches demand the ultimate in ongoing care and protection in order to ensure their proper operation and to preserve their value. 63
58
DARNELL FERGUSON HAS generated an enthusiastic fan base for his uniquely reimagined breakfast basics at his SuperChef restaurants. 66
INSIDE I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 55
A Gentleman’s Farm Located a short drive from Chicago, this delightful 20-acre property is full of impressive amenities
By Phil Butler
Upstairs, a massive master suite looks out over the 20-acre farm through bay windows. The suite has a sumptuous bath area, a large walk-in closet, and a sitting area as well. 56 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
Lifestyle Real Estate
T
his charming property in batavia, Illinois, truly delivers “country living.” Lionhead Farm is a 20-acre paddock with a magnificent 8,600-square-foot farmhouse. This one-of-a-kind sanctuary is located just a half-hour drive from the outskirts of Chicago. A tree-lined private drive leads to the two-level home with five luxurious bedrooms, five full baths, and two half baths. Stepping inside, it’s clear that this is no ordinary farmhouse. Designed on a grand scale throughout, the home makes expansive use of glass, natural stone, and fine wood to create a stunning effect. The downstairs is dominated by an open living space with a massive stone fireplace. At center stage of this open space is a remarkable gourmet kitchen, featuring a fabulous glass block eating bar, a second island, two Samsung Flexzone refrigerators, granite counters, and professional-grade appliances. A spacious dining area, private guest room, sitting room, study, two-car garage, and mudroom/laundry on this floor wrap around a cavernous indoor pool. Upstairs, there’s a huge two-bedroom suite at one end with remarkable en-suite features including a sitting room, a sumptuous bath, and a walk-in closet. This floor also has two additional guest bedrooms, a comfortable family room, a den, a world-class game room, a
complete office, and a loft with a fireplace. Beyond the main house is a private farm and playground. Extensive outdoor entertaining spaces include two spring-fed threeacre ponds for fishing, swimming, and casual kayaking. The property is also a proper farm with a barn, a large chicken coop for gathering fresh eggs, and a paddock for horses, goats, and bison. A playhouse with an attached fort, a 10-car separate garage, and RV hookups are a few more key features. Community amenities include horse-riding areas, trails, and more to highlight an amazing property offering. Batavia is consistently ranked as one of the best places to live in the United States, especially for families with kids. Its historic town is famous for making the Conestoga wagons that helped pioneers settle the West. Once known as the “Windmill City” because of the many American-style windmills produced during the 19th century, the city is also the home of Fermilab, one of the world’s most important particle physics facilities. Citizens and visitors of Batavia can also enjoy outdoor recreation on more than 6,800 acres of pristine nature, a bison preserve, a botanical garden, and a bird sanctuary. Phil Butler is a publisher, editor, author, and analyst who is a widely cited expert on subjects ranging from digital and social media to travel technology.
LIONHEAD FARM BATAVIA, ILLINOIS $4.45 MILLION
• 5 BEDROOMS • 20-ACRE FARM • INDOOR POOL KEY FEATURES
• CUSTOM DESIGN • PRIVATE FISHING PONDS • UNIQUE KITCHEN/ FEATURES AGENT BAIRD & WARNER
JANE RUDA 312-246-4019 BECKY SMITH 630-341-2243
BAIRD & WARNER
At the heart of the spacious manor home, a fantastic gourmet kitchen has every convenience, and a design to match the professional-grade appliances. With huge windows on every wall, and 17 skylights casting ambient light from above, this airy and spacious home has everything any glamor-conscious farmer could want.
The indoor pool house has its own bar, dining, sitting, bath, and changing areas. I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 57
Rome, the Eternal City.
PHOTO BY CALEB MILLER/UNSPLASH
1 Day, 3 Countries The Italian capital is home to two microstates
By Tim Johnson
O
n any given day, thousands of tourists—and probably most of the locals—in Rome walk right by this place, unaware that there’s a sovereign country just inside. Only able to find scant bits of information on the internet and a location on Google Maps, I walked slowly, seeking out the correct entrance. And then, there it was, a little alcove sandwiched between a Hermes and a Jimmy Choo, two red flags hanging over the front. At first, I was happy to just peer inside the courtyard, blocked by a gate and take a selfie with the golden plaque on the door, adorned with an unfamiliar coat of arms and an inscription. It reads, in Italian: Sovrano Militare Ordine Ospedaliero Di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme Di Rodi E Di Malta. And: Palazzo Magistrale-Sede Extraterritoriale. There was also a small mail slot (Telegrammi In Buca, it reads).
58 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
And most tempting—a bell. No invitations to ring it, but no prohibitions, either. Slowly and a little nervously, I reached out and pushed the button. To my complete surprise, the gate swung open. On the other side, sovereign territory, a landless country, was almost wholly contained there, in the heart of one of the world’s most celebrated cities. When you come to Rome, you can visit three countries in one day. Once the capital of the vast and almost unimaginably powerful Roman Empire, it remains the capital city of the modern nation-state of Italy. But while you won’t find any stern-faced border guards or passport checkpoints, Rome is also home to two microstates. And while the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, Rhodes, and Malta is obscure, the other one is the religious heart of billions of Catholics around the world. Entering Vatican City simply involves walking through one of three gates open to the public, passing through the Medieval and Renaissance
VIRGINIA ITALY
Rome Sardinia
Sicily
Rome is wellconnected by both an extensive bus network and a limited, threeline metro.
LEFT TO RIGHT: ERIC ISSELEE/SHUTTERSTOCK, CGE2010/SHUTTERSTOCK
Travel Rome
walls that still bound St. Peter’s Square. There’s a police presence, officers in combat gear with machine guns, but they seem relaxed enough, not stopping anyone from entering or leaving. Vatican City is the world’s smallest fully independent nation-state. You could spend a whole day or more there, touring the Vatican Museums, which showcase roughly 20,000 works of the 70,000 in their collections, including priceless Roman statues and paintings from the Renaissance, housed in grand palaces. I’ve visited the Vatican a number of times and seen the Sistine Chapel, the Pietà, and St. Peter’s crypt. This is a good thing, because I was only permitted a few moments within the pillars of St. Peter’s Square, having arrived just before local police started clearing the area, apparently for an imminent open-air mass. I asked one stern-faced man who seemed to be in charge when I could maybe attend the mass. Shaking his head with gusto, he looked down at my well-worn cargo shorts and faded sneakers. “No, no, prego, please go,” he said, efficiently directing me through a gate, which snaps shut behind me. But having just walked through the gate at the Order of Saint John, I found myself welcomed, sort of, at least for the moment. While these knights have ruled lands around the world (most notably, Malta, but also Rhodes, and four Caribbean islands), they now principally occupy two buildings in Rome, which enjoy extraterritorial status. The three officers of the order are their
The Sistine Chapel, with Michelangelo’s ceiling paintings and “The Last Judgment” on the altar wall.
only citizens, although thousands around the world remain knights and dames. The Order is now mostly involved in humanitarian work and enjoys observer status at the U.N. They even issue their own postage stamps, coins, and passports. I stepped into a small, dark office and was greeted in Italian by a man named Fabio in a sweater and tie. He spoke no English, and I faltered as I tried to explain my presence there. “I like visiting unknown countries, and this is a country—in a way,” I said, while Fabio’s face remained a wall of incomprehension. “I’m here to learn a little more history?” Suddenly, Fabio had an idea. “You here to see John?” he asked. Yes, certainly, I affirmed, I would love to meet John. Who was John, exactly? I’ll never know. Because after dialing a house phone and engaging in a rapid-fire conversation with the unknown person on the other end, Fabio’s face clouded. “John not here in the Palace,” he said. Then, placing the phone on his counter, he walked around and blocked my entrance to the courtyard, his arms folded across his chest. No more conversation was needed; it was time to go. I took one more look around the courtyard, which was covered in a huge Maltese cross. Soon, the gate snapped shut behind me, and I joined the flow of tourists to the Spanish Steps. But I felt like I had been privy to a secret, just a few moments inside the world’s strangest, smallest microstate. Tim Johnson is based in Toronto. He has visited 140 countries across all seven continents.
BE PREPARED
Be prepared to bargain before entering a cab—the city’s drivers can be fairly reluctant to run the meter.
If You Go Stay: Simple but stylish and centrally located near Termini station, the brandnew Camplus Hotel Roma Centro has a palace feel, with vaulted ceilings and an internal courtyard. Take Note: While Vatican City welcomes millions of visitors every year, a certain level of decorum is expected, including modest dress. Also, the Order of Saint John isn’t actually a tourist attraction, so ringing the bell isn’t recommended, although you can feel free to take photographs of the building from the street.
Bernini’s Fountain of the Four Rivers in Piazza Navona. I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 59
For those who love their beloved pets, there’s no such thing as excess when it comes to keeping the pup or kitty happy
Pampered
Pets By Bill Lindsey
Our pets provide nonstop, unconditional love, so it’s OK to spoil them a bit.
Lifestyle Pets
LEFT PAGE: COURTESY OF HERMES; THIS PAGE: COURTESY OF LA PETITE MAISON
T
hose who aren’t pet people sometimes struggle with the sentiment and importance pet owners place on their dogs and cats. There are certainly other pets, such as horses, reptiles, bunnies, fish, and more, but according to the 2021–22 survey conducted by the American Pet Products Association, 70 percent of U.S. households—accounting for 90.5 million families—included a pet. Dogs are owned by 69 million families and cats are owned by 45.3 million families— many own both a cat and a dog. To provide perspective, fish came in third at 11.8 million families. While some people own pets for protection, most studies indicate that dogs and cats provide companionship. They can also help keep us healthy; the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has stated that dogs increase the opportunities for their owners to get outside to play and take walks, which can keep both owners and pets fit; it’s not uncommon for the pet’s owners to benefit from decreased blood pressure as well as decreased cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Dogs and cats have also proven helpful in managing loneliness and depression. It’s no surprise to see growing acceptance of service and emotional support dogs, as well as more pet-friendly retailers, restaurants, hotels, and airlines. However, it’s perhaps the unconditional love given by dogs and cats to their owners that grants them the status of cherished members of the family. Accordingly, just as children are taken care of via inheritances, the number of trust funds for pets grows every year. In one very notable example of an owner loving her pet, in preparation for her eventual passing, hotel-magnate Leona Helmsley created a $12 million trust for Trouble, her Maltese. We can’t all make our pets millionaires, but there are many other ways in which we can reward these furry friends for their love and devotion. With the dog’s or cat’s standing in the family hierarchy firmly established, when it comes to their accessories the sky is the limit. Many owners have bowls that are used only for food or water. Ceramic bowls are popular—un-
Who said a dog house has to look like Snoopy’s? Pampered pooches can have fabulous homes.
Actress Rachel Hunter’s dog house is a smaller version of her home, complete with air conditioning and lights.
til you drop one onto a tile or hardwood floor. Stainless bowls used for water and food tend to be the most durable and easy to clean. If you’re nervous about putting them into the dishwasher, wash them in the sink with hot water. Dogs and cats are composed of 80 percent water, versus humans at 60 percent, making a steady supply of fresh, clean water a must for overall health. Cats tend to prefer moving water; providing them with one of the many water fountains made for felines can prove very effective for keeping them hydrated. Dogs aren’t as picky, drinking from water bowls, puddles, the swimming pool, or even, much to the horror of Mom, the toilet if the seat is left up. In any event, they’re often more likely to drink if the water is fresh. A simple test is to run your finger along the bottom of the water bowl; if it is slippery, the bowl needs to be
Pet owners may benefit from decreased blood pressure as well as decreased cholesterol and triglyceride levels.
A combination water and food bowl accented in handcrafted wood is a stylish way to keep your pet wellhydrated and well-fed. I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 61
Lifestyle Pets
LIFESTYLE
FURRY FRIENDS
Pets are part of your clan, so treat them right
1 Stop Hogging the Covers! Rather than attaching a leash to your pet’s collar, use a harness for a more secure and much safer connection.
62 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
Washington; Las Vegas; Vail, Colorado; and Los Angeles, where a dedicated dog bed is waiting for them in the room upon arrival. Most major U.S. carriers will allow passengers to bring small pets into the cabin in an approved under-seat carrier. For those who can’t travel with their pet, firms such as Blue Collar Pet Transport will accompany pets that are less than 20 pounds in the cabin of commercial airliners. While airlines can accommodate larger animals in the cargo area, many owners balk at that idea, as it’s a scary, uncomfortable environment. The ultimate in pet travel is offered by Miami’s Noble Air Charter, which will transport your pet anywhere in the United States in its own aircraft.
MAX DOG INC. MAX BARK, CEO
2 Taking Care of Pets A growing number of people make arrangements in the event their pets outlive them. Most attorneys can assist in the creation of a trust.
3 Bring It Along
A memory foam bed with bolsters provides your pet with an ideal place to catch up on naps.
Many airlines allow pets weighing up to 20 pounds in the cabin. Larger pets can be shipped in the cargo compartment, but a better option if the budget allows is to charter a flight.
THIS PAGE FROM TOP: COURTESY OF HERMES, COURTESY OF ORVIS
washed and refilled with fresh water. To show your dog that you care, consider the stainless and oak water and food bowl from Hermès. The twopiece design, said to be inspired by the firm’s signature Chaine d’Ancre motif, features an oak base crafted using traditional wine barrel construction methods and two stainless steel bowls held in place by magnets, allowing them to be separated. When it’s time for sleep, a survey by yogurt maker Stonyfield Organic found that 74 percent of dog owners share the bed with their pets. If your dog hogs the bed, consider getting your own bed or offering him or her an Orvis bolster-style bed with a memory foam cushion. Actress Rachel Hunter took it a step further. She had La Petite Maison build a dog house for her dogs that’s a scaled-down, air-conditioned version of her house. When it’s time for a family vacation, consider pet-friendly resorts, such as Ritz-Carlton’s Bachelor Gulch resort in Beaver Creek, Colorado. The property welcomes four-legged guests in the suites and rooms, with doggy day camp and grooming services available. The Four Seasons also welcomes pets at many of its properties, including
A majority of pet owners share the bed with their dogs and cats. For those pets that prefer their own space, consider beds with memory foam mattresses and bolsters.
Luxury Living Magnificent Men’s Watches
TIMELESS CLASSICS: TREASURE ON YOUR WRIST An essential collection of men’s luxury wristwatches By Bill Lindsey
Circular Time
Rugged, Refined Masculinity
MAURICE LACROIX MASTERPIECE MYSTERIOUS SECONDS 43 MILLIMETER
AUDEMARS-PIGUET ROYAL OAK OFFSHORE $60,600
An 18-carat gold housing accentuates the ceramic bezel, push-pieces, and screw-down crown, providing a rugged look that makes it perfectly at home in the office or climbing mountains. The large, 43-millimeter casing is watertight to 100 meters to protect the automatic chronograph movement.
$13,900
This firm is known for impressive models, such as this example redefining how time is displayed. With the dial housing the hour and minute hand offset at the 2 o’clock mark, the motion of the second hand is mesmerizing against the backdrop of the visible movement.
A Most Elegant Timepiece
ROLEX DIAMOND DAY-DATE 36
FROM TOP L: COURTESY OF MAURICE LACROIX, AUDEMARS PIGUET, ROLEX, CARTIER, JAEGER-LECOULTRE
CONTACT ROLEX FOR PRICE
Exquisite Practicality
SANTOS DE CARTIER TANK WATCH $18,800
The Day-Date has a clean, masculine design, but this unique example takes it to the extreme by crafting the timepiece from 18-carat yellow, white, and Everose gold, then covering almost every millimeter with glittering diamonds. A simple, yet elegant alligator strap keeps it securely in place.
Louis Cartier created this iconic design in 1917, inspired by a World War I tank. This example features blue hands, a date window, and an automatic movement housed in a rose gold case. A trademark sapphire on the winding stem and two locking straps—in alligator and calfskin—complete the package.
A Watch to Flip Over
JAEGER-LECOULTRE REVERSO CLASSIC MONOFACE $13,900
This features Reverso’s trademark flipping movement, which was originally created to protect the dial. The rose gold “tank watch”style case houses a manually-wound 18-jeweled movement; the overall compactness makes this an ideal choice for those who prefer minimalism. I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 63
Epoch Booklist RECOMMENDED READING FICTION
‘Debt of Honor’
By Tom Clancy
A Predictive Thriller Tom Clancy became a literary icon nearly overnight with “The Hunt for Red October.” Those interested in military activities around the world became massive fans. His book “Debt of Honor” practically predicted 9/11. The classic character Jack Ryan takes the lead. BERKLEY, 1995, 1008 PAGES
‘Dandelion Wine’
By Ray Bradbury
A Romp Through Boyhood Summer In this autobiographical novel, Ray Bradbury whisks us back to 1928 in Green Town, Illinois. Douglas Spaulding, at 12 years old, engages in adventure and intrigue while also brooding on his impending adulthood and the larger questions of life. It’s a summer of
This week, we feature a thriller that nearly predicted 9/11 and an account that traces important technologies through history.
new sneakers, fireworks, and family stories. With Grandpa’s dandelion wine serving as a symbol of the season’s essence, Bradbury recreates the simple joys and pleasures of his childhood’s small-town life. A great read for older kids and adults alike. BANTAM BOOKS, REISSUE EDITION, 1985, 256 PAGES
TECHNOLOGY
‘How We Got to Now’
By Steven Johnson
Journey Through Time by Tech This book examines six technologies that formed the modern world: glass and glassmaking, cooling and freezing, sound projection and recording, sanitation, time measurement, and artificial light. The chapters follow each item from ancient times to the present, showing their impacts on society. For example, the chapter on glass begins as jewelry in ancient Egypt and ends with its use as fiber in telecommunications today. It’s a fascinating look at the history of technology and its effects. RIVERHEAD BOOKS, 2014, 304 PAGES
64 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
Are there books you’d recommend? We’d love to hear from you. Let us know at features@epochtimes.com
HISTORY
ily and little money, she decides to fulfill her dream of seeing the Pacific Ocean. She leaves with her dog, Depeche Toi; her horse, Tarzan; and a hopeful heart. This is a true story of an incredible journey of faith.
‘The Black Joke’
BALLANTINE BOOKS, 2022, 336 PAGES
By A.E. Rooks
A Ship That Was No Joke This book tells of a ship that was instrumental in closing the illegal West African slave trade. Never a formally commissioned warship in the Royal Navy, the Black Joke was the vessel of Britain’s West Africa Squadron most feared by slave traders. Black Joke captured or participated in the capture of 14 slavers, freeing more than 5,700 slaves. It’s a classic study on the subject and one that will be considered valuable a century from now. SCRIBNER, 2022, 400 PAGES
‘The Ride of Her Life’
By Elizabeth Letts
Last of the Saddle Tramps It’s 1954. Maine farmer Annie Wilkins, at 63 years old, is told that she has just a few years left to live. With no fam-
CLASSICS
‘Plutarch’s Lives’
By George Long and Aubrey Stewart
Guiding Lights From the Ancients Historian, biographer, and essayist Plutarch wrote parallel biographies of Greek and Roman statesmen, rulers, and warriors. In these comparisons, he was less interested in the history of these notable men and more so in their personal character: their sense of honor and duty, their humanity, their leadership skills, and their largesse of spirit and wealth. These biographies influenced such writers as Shakespeare, Montaigne, and Emerson. America’s Founders also took lessons from Plutarch on vice, tyranny, and civic virtue. EAST INDIA PUBLISHING COMPANY, 2021, 331 PAGES
FOR KIDS
‘Calvin and Hobbes’
By Bill Watterson
A Boy With a Big Imagination These hilarious cartoons about a boy, his imaginary friend—a tiger—and their adventures and mishaps will bring laughter to readers young and old alike. An added bonus is a vocabulary-rich text for the younger set. This book is for elementary school students to adults. ANDREWS MCMEEL PUBLISHING, 1987, 128 PAGES
‘The Tale of Jemima Puddle-Duck’
By Beatrix Potter
Farmland Charm Jemima Puddle-Duck wants to find a place to lay and keep her eggs. When a foxy gentleman offers to help, Jemima’s fate becomes uncertain. No child’s bookshelf should be without the adorable farmland characters of Beatrix Potter. WARNE, 2002, 64 PAGES
Ian Kane is a U.S. Army veteran, filmmaker, and author. He enjoys the great outdoors and volunteering.
MOVIE REVIEWS
Epoch Watchlist
This week, we include two dramas about returning home to confront issues of the past: one about siblings tending to their father, and the other about a disgraced champion who gets a second chance.
NEW RELEASE
FAMILY PICK
‘The Last Champion’ (1984)
‘Montana Story’ (2022) Cal (Owen Teague) and his sister Erin (Haley Lu Richardson) return to their childhood home—a sprawling ranch in Montana—to tend to their dying father. As the estranged siblings begin to reconnect emotionally, they must also face some disturbing family issues involving their father and painful events of their childhoods. Although the healing family drama sports some gorgeous scenery of the sumptuous Montanan landscape, as well as some crisp acting by its main cast, the film meanders a bit and could have easily been shorter.
DR AMA
Release Date: May 13, 2022 Directors: Scott McGehee, David Siegel Starring: Haley Lu Richardson, Owen Teague, Gilbert Owuor Running Time: 1 hour, 53 minutes MPAA Rating: R Where to Watch: Theaters
stoic Western, this action-packed romantic comedy features a fast-moving pace and plenty of laughs. COMEDY | WESTERN | ROMANCE
(1960)
Sam McCord (John Wayne) and the Pratt brothers George (Stewart Granger) and Billy (Fabian) own a gold mine. To
celebrate striking it rich, George sends Sam to Seattle to fetch his fiancée, but she has married someone else. Will another gal do? A departure from Wayne’s usual
shot and acted, it’s a rousing film about second chances, grit, community, and redemption. DR AMA | FAMILY | SPORT
Release Date: Dec. 8, 2020 Director: Glenn Withrow Starring: Cole Hauser, Sean H. Scully, Annika Marks Running Time: 2 hours, 2 minutes MPAA Rating: PG-13 Where to Watch: PlutoTV, Amazon, Vudu
A FUN-FILLED QUEST
‘Time Bandits’ (1981)
A RAUCOUS COMEDY-WESTERN
‘North to Alaska’
John Wright (Cole Hauser) was once a promising Olympic wrestling champion, but threw it all away because of a bad life choice. Years later, he has to return to the hometown he left in disgrace to tend to a relative’s belongings. Will he be able to forgive not only himself, but those he let down? You don’t have to know about wrestling to appreciate this heartfelt drama that avoids the schmaltz often associated with films such as these. Expertly
Release Date: Nov. 10, 1960 Director: Henry Hathaway Starring: John Wayne, Stewart Granger, Ernie Kovacs Running Time: 2 hours, 2 minutes Approved Where to Watch: Where to Watch: DirecTV, Starz, Redbox
Kevin (Craig Warnock), at 11 years old, is suddenly visited by a group of time-traveling dwarfs who have a magical map that allows them to travel through time. But as they take Kevin along on their treasure hunts, they’re pursued by the Evil Genius (David Warner) who’s determined to steal that map. This fun-filled fantasy, geared toward older kids (and adults), piques the viewers’ curiosity
about history as the protagonists jump from one era to the next on their fantastical, rip-roaring quest. ADVENTURE | COMEDY | FANTASY
Release Date: Nov. 6, 1981 Director: Terry Gilliam Starring: Sean Connery, Shelley Duvall, John Cleese Run Time: 1 hour, 50 minutes MPAA Rating: PG Where to Watch: HBO Max, Vudu, Criterion
I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 65
Food Chefs
THE SUPERHERO CHEF: FROM HOMELESS TO STAR RESTAURANT OWNER, DARNELL FERGUSON TURNED HIS LIFE AROUND THROUGH FOOD After taking a wrong turn down a self-destructive path of drugs and incarceration, a combination of faith, soulful cooking, and guidance from a few ‘superheroes’ pulled the now-celebrity chef back into the light By Melanie Young
D
DARNELL FERGUSON
66 I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022
Darnell “Superchef” Ferguson, chef and owner of SuperChefs and Tha’ Drippin’ Crab in Louisville, Ky., and Superhero Chefs in Tuscumbia, Ala. ter opening, but his local heroes— the Louisville food community— helped him rebuild. His faith kept him together emotionally. Soon Ferguson’s story caught the attention of celebrity chefs and TV producers. He competed in Guy Fieri’s “Tournament of Champions” and other Food Network shows, picking up prize money and fame. He considers Fieri one of his superheroes. “Guy was one of the first people on a major level to see the star potential I have,” he said. “I had to prove it to him. Whenever I have a decision to make, I call him first. ... He always encourages me to keep going.” Now the 35-year-old father of eight owns SuperChefs and Tha’ Drippin Crab, both in Louisville, and Superhero Chefs, in Tuscumbia, Alabama. He sees his past as a
lesson to help build a better future for others, especially at-risk youths. He’s active in supporting nonprofits Blessings in a Backpack and Children Shouldn’t Hunger, and he goes out of his way to hire staff who have been down on their luck. “I went down a bad path that could have ended elsewhere. I managed to turn my life around thanks to my faith in God, by working hard, and through the support of good people who encouraged and guided me,” Ferguson said. “Now I want to help others facing challenges to believe in themselves. Through dedication and hard work, you can become your own superhero.” Melanie Young is a writer and co-host of the national radio show “The Connected Table LIVE!” and host of “Fearless Fabulous You!” on iHeart.com
COURTESY OF SUPERCHEFS
Ferguson a r nel l “su perc hef ” generated a Ferguson has an impressive following for his roster of accomplishments, inventive takes on waffles, from cooking for Team USA pancakes, and at the 2008 Summer Olymother breakfast pics to becoming a breakout star staples. contestant on Food Network to opening three hit restaurants. The “Southern But his success didn’t come easy. egg rolls” at Born in Philadelphia, Ferguson Superhero Chefs are made with grew up in Columbus, Ohio, with a mac ‘n’ cheese single mother. She married when and fried chicken, Ferguson was in the fifth grade, and served with and he recalls having a loving a sweet potato sauce. childhood and enjoying cooking as a teenager. He moved to Louisville, Kentucky, to study culinary Ferguson’s big TV break: arts, but struggled on his own. competing “I could only afford night school on Guy Fieri’s and worked a day job at the Dairy “Tournament Queen. It made me feel discon- of Champions” nected from the other students,” on the Food Network. he said. “I needed money very badly, so I started selling drugs.” Drug dealing landed Ferguson in and out of jail. At one point, he was broke, living in his car, and facing an uncertain future. He sought a path forward through his church, Southeast Christian in Kentucky, and he credits pastor Comfort Food: Chad Mosteller for helping him Mac ‘n’ cheese refocus on what he loved doing Favorite most: cooking. “I am never going backward Ingredient to Cook With: again,” Ferguson said. “I was lost, Sugar! and my faith in God helped lead Ideal Way me back to find my purpose.” After working short-order to Unwind: Going to the restaurant jobs, Ferguson began beach with the launching pop-up breakfast con- family cepts within lunch- and dinner-only restaurants in 2012. His creative Biggest Inspiration: takes on waffles, pancakes, and egg “The kids that sandwiches generated a following. look up to me In 2015, at the age of 28, he opened are what keeps his first brick-and-mortar restau- me going and rant: SuperChefs. The restaurant motivated.” was destroyed in a fire months af-
Job Interview Etiquette With a bit of preparation, you can shine during your next job interview
Keeping in mind the interviewer is actively seeking a person to fill a slot, focus on pleasantly and professionally helping them come to the realization that you are the perfect person they have been searching for. By Bill Lindsey
4 Sell Yourself
1 Be Enthusiastic Most interviewers are looking for someone they would want to work with, so make it clear that would be you with a positive attitude and genuine smiles. Let the interviewer know you’re pleased by the opportunity to meet with him or her. But while it’s good to be excited, don’t overdo the enthusiasm and resist the urge to overshare. If you feel that you’ve made a connection with the interviewer, open up a bit, but make sure to not interrupt them.
The fact that you’re in an interview means they’re interested, so be wellgroomed and dress for success. Be on time, and even if the firm has a casual dress code, wear a suit and tie or a conservative dress. If the interview is done remotely via an app, know how to use it and dress as if you were in their office. Test the app prior to the call to ensure nothing in the background is distracting.
CSA IMAGES/GETTY IMAGES
2 Be Honest If you’re asked if you can do something that you know you can’t do or that you’re unsure if you can do, speak up. The interview is most likely focused on a specific task, so if you have concerns over your suitability for it, now is the time to discuss it. On the other hand, if you’re superbly qualified for the job, confidently explain why with relevant examples and brief success stories and without sounding like a know-it-all narcissist.
5 3
Do Your Research
To make sure you would enjoy working for the company if you get an offer, do some online research to learn what the company does and read reviews from current and past employees. If the interviewer asks if you have any questions, have at least one or two. Clarifying expectations of what you’ll do is always a good one. If you’ve heard good things, say so. If you have concerns, such as high turnover rates, express them diplomatically.
Make Your Resume Shine
When you submit a resume, tailor it to the company and the job. If you use bullet points, arrange them so that the more relevant ones are at the top. Have a copy of the resume you provided to the company in front of you so you can refer to it if the interviewer asks a question about your skills or previous job experience. Use the interview to point out how your previous experience makes you a perfect fit for this new job.
I N S I G H T May 13–19, 2022 67
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