Buck Sexton and "The Message to Garcia"

Now, Bill de Blasio’s resounding victory this week in the New York City mayoral election, that could be a tipping point for America, not just for the City of New York.

The question is this: Which way will we go, de Blasio’s way, or will we reverse back towards individual liberty?  De Blasio’s not your garden-variety Progressive.  This is very important to keep in mind.  He doesn’t cloak his real intentions.  He doesn’t pretend that there’s all this flowery pro-American sounding phraseology.

De Blasio is unashamed of his radically left views, Marxism, Communism.  His top priority, as he says quite openly, is battling inequality, that mentality that somehow you are owed something just for existing and just because you live in a country where some people have more than you.  And as we know, this creates problems.

It creates more problems than it will ever solve because it turns people against each other.  It creates a sense of entitlement.  It makes life about cash over character and possessions over principles.  And now with de Blasio and others like him, this country’s embracing it.  We’re being forced to embrace this, and we’re reaping what we sow in America.

We can just take you to Chicago, for example, where there’s been a rash of audacious flash mob robberies happening.  Now, more than likely these thugs as you can see here as they run into these stores and steal articles of clothing that don’t belong to them, they’ve bought into some progressive lie that a fat cat CEO is to blame for their lot in life.  So why shouldn’t they just take a few things and even it out, right?

There’s a lot of inequality out there, so just steal from the store owner, steal from the employees there because there’s a fat cat CEO behind all of us, I guess.  In Georgia, and you can’t make this stuff up, a 14-year-old punk was arrested after throwing a violent tantrum because he didn’t want to get out of bed to go to school.  Yeah, look at that.  Now, why bother getting up and going to school and bettering yourself, learning things when it doesn’t matter in the end, right?

If you teach that everyone deserves to be equal and have the same stuff, this, what you’re seeing here, is the logical end result of all of that, a nation made up of entitled slugs like this 14-year-old, who probably thinks he’s somehow oppressed because mommy and daddy don’t give him everything that he wants.

Now, you think that’s oppression?  Why don’t we try on the Muslim teens who get shot by the Taliban on bus rides home from school?  That’s what happened to this girl, Malala Yousafzai.  Now, she had a bounty on her head because she spoke out.  The Taliban said we’re going to kill you because you think that girls should go to school.  And they tried to, and they shot her.

But when a generation in this country is being taught that they deserve and should be provided with the corner office, a fancy title and top benefits, a nice car, a fancy one, a home, maybe a higher education, all the way up through a PhD program, got to get that Masters in Caribbean literature 1850 to 1950, retirement funds, oh, let’s just stack them up for everybody, we’re going to raise more of the entitled sleepyheaded dopes than the inspirational heroes that we actually need in this country to get ourselves out of this rut and move forward.

It’s not just the kids that are falling victim to this, by the way.  Of course, kids are often a reflection of the adults in the society.  Adults here are having problems too.  Here’s a couple that just lost their health insurance because of ObamaCare, but they decided that instead of standing and fighting, instead of speaking out against the law, doing what they could to get rid of this legislative monstrosity, no, they want to lower their own salaries so that they can qualify for government subsidies.

Now, of course, in part this is a rational response to the administration’s policy of making you increasingly dependent on whatever’s decided in D.C.  They set those subsidies up so that people will say okay, I guess I’ll go for the subsidies, and then they’ll say well, I need D.C., don’t I?  I’m dependent on them.  They create the dependency, and then they bolster it.

We’re finished if we go that way, the de Blasio way, the openly Obama way.  Obama, of course, had a lot of happy talk coming in, and we’ve started to see that change now, but before you start beating your chest, this isn’t just a lesson about subsidy-loving Progressives.  There are problems with Conservatives too.  We complain and rail and pull our hair out, yelling at the screens – I know I do – “Obama lies.”

We know Obama lies.  We’ve said it, “He’s lying, he’s a liar, I told you so.”  That’s not enough, though.  We have to get up off our butts and lead without delay and without excuses.  This concept, this message, if you will, it’s not new.  The fear and frustration we feel in this country right now, we’ve face down worse before.  Never forget that.

But the only reason we were able to withstand and overcome the darkness was because some Americans decided I’m going to get it done, no stalling, no whining, no explanations.  Let me take you back a little bit, 1899, Elbert Hubbard, he’s an American essayist.  He prints a little copy of an essay in Philistine magazine.  He called it A Message to Garcia.

Now, it’s part short story, part call to arms.  The back story of the short story is that President McKinley wanted to establish contact with the Cuban rebels during the Spanish-American war, so an Army officer by the name of Andrew Summers Rowan was chosen, and he established a close alliance with General Garcia and his Cuban rebels in the Oriente Mountains.

The essay was wildly popular.  It sold millions of copies.  It was turned into a book, two movies, and for a time in this country became something of a rallying cry, one we should remember today, about self-reliance, determination and yes, excellence, not everybody gets a trophy.  We need those things right now, right now.

And so I wanted to share it with you.  I want to give you in full A Message to Garcia.

“In all this Cuban business there is one man stands out on the horizon of my memory like Mars at perihelion.  When war broke out between Spain & the United States, it was very necessary to communicate quickly with the leader of the Insurgents.  Garcia was somewhere in the mountain vastness of Cuba- no one knew where.  No mail nor telegraph message could reach him.  The President must secure his cooperation, and quickly.

What to do!

Someone said to the President, ‘There’s a fellow by the name of Rowan will find Garcia for you, if anybody can.’

Rowan was sent for and given a letter to be delivered to Garcia.  How ‘the fellow by the name of Rowan’ took the letter, sealed it up in an oil-skin pouch, strapped it over his heart, in four days landed by night off the coast of Cuba from an open boat, disappeared into the jungle, & in three weeks came out on the other side of the Island, having traversed a hostile country on foot, and delivered his letter to Garcia, are things I have no special desire now to tell in detail.

The point I wish to make is this: McKinley gave Rowan a letter to be delivered to Garcia; Rowan took the letter and did not ask, ‘Where is he at?’  By the Eternal!  There is a man whose form should be cast in deathless bronze and the statue placed in every college of the land.  It is not book-learning young men need, nor instruction about this and that, but a stiffening of the vertebrae which will cause them to be loyal to a trust, to act promptly, concentrate their energies: do the thing- ‘Carry a message to Garcia!’

General Garcia is dead now, but there are other Garcias.

No man, who has endeavored to carry out an enterprise where many hands were needed, but has been well-nigh appalled at times by the imbecility of the average man- the inability or unwillingness to concentrate on a thing and do it.  Slip-shod assistance, foolish inattention, dowdy indifference, & half-hearted work seem the rule; and no man succeeds, unless by hook or crook, or threat, he forces or bribes other men to assist him; or mayhap, God in His goodness performs a miracle, & sends him an Angel of Light for an assistant.  You, reader, put this matter to a test: You are sitting now in your office- six clerks are within call.

Summon any one and make this request: ‘Please look in the encyclopedia and make a brief memorandum for me concerning the life of Correggio’.

Will the clerk quietly say, ‘Yes, sir,’ and go do the task?

On your life, he will not.  He will look at you out of a fishy eye and ask one or more of the following questions:

Who was he?

Which encyclopedia?

Where is the encyclopedia?

Was I hired for that?

Don’t you mean Bismarck?

What’s the matter with Charlie doing it?

Is he dead?

Is there any hurry?

Shan’t I bring you the book and let you look it up yourself?

What do you want to know for?

And I will lay you ten to one that after you have answered the questions, and explained how to find the information, and why you want it, the clerk will go off and get one of the other clerks to help him try to find Garcia- and then come back and tell you there is no such man.  Of course I may lose my bet, but according to the Law of Average, I will not.

Now if you are wise you will not bother to explain to your ‘assistant’ that Correggio is indexed under the C’s, not in the K’s, but you will smile sweetly and say, ‘Never mind,’ and go look it up yourself.

And this incapacity for independent action, this moral stupidity, this infirmity of the will, this unwillingness to cheerfully catch hold and lift, are the things that put pure Socialism so far into the future.  If men will not act for themselves, what will they do when the benefit of their effort is for all?  A first-mate with knotted club seems necessary; and the dread of getting ‘the bounce’ Saturday night, holds many a worker to his place.

Advertise for a stenographer, and nine out of ten who apply, can neither spell nor punctuate- and do not think it necessary to.

Can such a one write a letter to Garcia?

‘You see that bookkeeper,’ said the foreman to me in a large factory.

‘Yes, what about him?’

‘Well he’s a fine accountant, but if I’d send him up town on an errand, he might accomplish the errand all right, and on the other hand, might stop at four saloons on the way, and when he got to Main Street, would forget what he had been sent for.’

Can such a man be entrusted to carry a message to Garcia?

We have recently been hearing much maudlin sympathy expressed for the ‘downtrodden denizen of the sweat-shop’ and the ‘homeless wanderer searching for honest employment,’ & with it all often go many hard words for the men in power.

Nothing is said about the employer who grows old before his time in a vain attempt to get frowsy ne’er-do-wells to do intelligent work; and his long patient striving with ‘help’ that does nothing but loaf when his back is turned.  In every store and factory there is a constant weeding-out process going on.  The employer is constantly sending away ‘help’ that have shown their incapacity to further the interests of the business, and others are being taken on.  No matter how good times are, this sorting continues, only if times are hard and work is scarce, the sorting is done finer- but out and forever out, the incompetent and unworthy go.

It is the survival of the fittest.  Self-interest prompts every employer to keep the best- those who can carry a message to Garcia.

I know one man of really brilliant parts who has not the ability to manage a business of his own, and yet who is absolutely worthless to anyone else, because he carries with him constantly the insane suspicion that his employer is oppressing, or intending to oppress him.  He cannot give orders; and he will not receive them.  Should a message be given him to take to Garcia, his answer would probably be, ‘Take it yourself.’

Tonight this man walks the streets looking for work, the wind whistling through his threadbare coat.  No one who knows him dare employ him, for he is a regular fire-brand of discontent.  He is impervious to reason, and the only thing that can impress him is the toe of a thick-soled No. 9 boot.

Of course I know that one so morally deformed is no less to be pitied than a physical cripple; but in our pitying, let us drop a tear, too, for the men who are striving to carry on a great enterprise, whose working hours are not limited by the whistle, and whose hair is fast turning white through the struggle to hold in line dowdy indifference, slip-shod imbecility, and the heartless ingratitude, which, but for their enterprise, would be both hungry & homeless.

Have I put the matter too strongly?  Possibly I have; but when all the world has gone a-slumming I wish to speak a word of sympathy for the man who succeeds- the man who, against great odds has directed the efforts of others, and having succeeded, finds there’s nothing in it: nothing but bare board and clothes.

I have carried a dinner pail & worked for day’s wages, and I have also been an employer of labor, and I know there is something to be said on both sides.  There is no excellence, per se, in poverty; rags are no recommendation; & all employers are not rapacious and high-handed, any more than all poor men are virtuous.

My heart goes out to the man who does his work when the ‘boss’ is away, as well as when he is at home.  And the man who, when given a letter for Garcia, quietly take the missive, without asking any idiotic questions, and with no lurking intention of chucking it into the nearest sewer, or of doing aught else but deliver it, never gets ‘laid off,’ nor has to go on a strike for higher wages.  Civilization is one long anxious search for just such individuals.  Anything such a man asks shall be granted; his kind is so rare that no employer can afford to let him go.  He is wanted in every city, town and village- in every office, shop, store and factory.  The world cries out for such: he is needed, & needed badly- the man who can carry a message to Garcia.”

America, we have to get in this fight and stay in it, every one of us, carry the message.

PHOTOS: Glenn’s rare tour reveals White House history

Image courtesy of the White House

In honor of Trump's 100th day in office, Glenn was invited to the White House for an exclusive interview with the President.

Naturally, Glenn's visit wasn't solely confined to the interview, and before long, Glenn and Trump were strolling through the majestic halls of the White House, trading interesting historical anecdotes while touring the iconic home. Glenn was blown away by the renovations that Trump and his team have made to the presidential residence and enthralled by the history that practically oozed out of the gleaming walls.

Want to join Glenn on this magical tour? Fortunately, Trump's gracious White House staff was kind enough to provide Glenn with photos of his journey through the historic residence so that he might share the experience with you.

So join Glenn for a stroll through 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue with the photo gallery below:

The Oval Office

Image courtesy of the White House

The Roosevelt Room

Image courtesy of the White House

The White House

Image courtesy of the White House

Trump branded a tyrant, but did Obama outdo him on deportations?

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MSNBC and CNN want you to think the president is a new Hitler launching another Holocaust. But the actual deportation numbers are nowhere near what they claim.

Former MSNBC host Chris Matthews, in an interview with CNN’s Jim Acosta, compared Trump’s immigration policies to Adolf Hitler’s Holocaust. He claimed that Hitler didn’t bother with German law — he just hauled people off to death camps in Poland and Hungary. Apparently, that’s what Trump is doing now by deporting MS-13 gang members to El Salvador.

Symone Sanders took it a step further. The MSNBC host suggested that deporting gang-affiliated noncitizens is simply the first step toward deporting black Americans. I’ll wait while you try to do that math.

The debate is about control — weaponizing the courts, twisting language, and using moral panic to silence dissent.

Media mouthpieces like Sanders and Matthews are just the latest examples of the left’s Pavlovian tribalism when it comes to Trump and immigration. Just say the word “Trump,” and people froth at the mouth before they even hear the sentence. While the media cries “Hitler,” the numbers say otherwise. And numbers don’t lie — the narrative does.

Numbers don’t lie

The real “deporter in chief” isn’t Trump. It was President Bill Clinton, who sent back 12.3 million people during his presidency — 11.4 million returns and nearly 900,000 formal removals. President George W. Bush, likewise, presided over 10.3 million deportations — 8.3 million returns and two million removals. Even President Barack Obama, the progressive darling, oversaw 5.5 million deportations, including more than three million formal removals.

So how does Donald Trump stack up? Between 2017 and 2021, Trump deported somewhere between 1.5 million and two million people — dramatically fewer than Obama, Bush, or Clinton. In his current term so far, Trump has deported between 100,000 and 138,000 people. Yes, that’s assertive for a first term — but it's still fewer than Biden was deporting toward the end of his presidency.

The numbers simply don’t support the hysteria.

Who's the “dictator” here? Trump is deporting fewer people, with more legal oversight, and still being compared to history’s most reviled tyrant. Apparently, sending MS-13 gang members — violent criminals — back to their country of origin is now equivalent to genocide.

It’s not about immigration

This debate stopped being about immigration a long time ago. It’s now about control — about weaponizing the courts, twisting language, and using moral panic to silence dissent. It’s about turning Donald Trump into the villain of every story, facts be damned.

If the numbers mattered, we’d be having a very different national conversation. We’d be asking why Bill Clinton deported six times as many people as Trump and never got labeled a fascist. We’d be questioning why Barack Obama’s record-setting removals didn’t spark cries of ethnic cleansing. And we’d be wondering why Trump, whose enforcement was relatively modest by comparison, triggered lawsuits, media hysteria, and endless Nazi analogies.

But facts don’t drive this narrative. The villain does. And in this script, Trump plays the villain — even when he does far less than the so-called heroes who came before him.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Can Trump stop the blackouts that threaten America's future?

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If America wants to remain a global leader in the coming decades, we need more energy fast.

It's no secret that Glenn is an advocate for the safe and ethical use of AI, not because he wants it, but because he knows it’s coming whether we like it or not. Our only option is to shape AI on our terms, not those of our adversaries. America has to win the AI Race if we want to maintain our stability and security, and to do that, we need more energy.

AI demands dozens—if not hundreds—of new server farms, each requiring vast amounts of electricity. The problem is, America lacks the power plants to generate the required electricity, nor do we have a power grid capable of handling the added load. We must overcome these hurdles quickly to outpace China and other foreign competitors.

Outdated Power Grid

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Our power grid is ancient, slowly buckling under the stress of our modern machines. AAI’s energy demands could collapse it without a major upgrade. The last significant overhaul occurred under FDR nearly a century ago, when he connected rural America to electricity. Since then, we’ve patched the system piecemeal, but it’s still the same grid from the 1930s. Over 70 percent of the powerlines are 30 years old or older, and circuit breakers and other vital components are in similar condition. Most people wouldn't trust a dishwasher that was 30 years old, and yet much of our grid relies on technology from the era of VHS tapes.

Upgrading the grid would prevent cascading failures, rolling blackouts, and even EMP attacks. It would also enable new AI server farms while ensuring reliable power for all.

A Need for Energy

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Earlier this month, former Google CEO Eric Schmidt appeared before Congress as part of an AI panel and claimed that by 2030, the U.S. will need to add 96 gigawatts to our national power production to meet AI-driven demand. While some experts question this figure, the message is clear: We must rapidly expand power production. But where will this energy come from?

As much as eco nuts would love to power the world with sunshine and rainbows, we need a much more reliable and significantly more efficient power source if we want to meet our electricity goals. Nuclear power—efficient, powerful, and clean—is the answer. It’s time to shed outdated fears of atomic energy and embrace the superior electricity source. Building and maintaining new nuclear plants, along with upgraded infrastructure, would create thousands of high-paying American jobs. Nuclear energy will fuel AI, boost the economy, and modernize America’s decaying infrastructure.

A Bold Step into the Future

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This is President Trump’s chance to leave a historic mark on America, restoring our role as global leaders and innovators. Just as FDR’s power grid and plants made America the dominant force of the 20th century, Trump could upgrade our infrastructure to secure dominance in the 21st century. Visionary leadership must cut red tape and spark excitement in the industry. This is how Trump can make America great again.

POLL: Is K2-18b proof of alien LIFE in the cosmos?

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Are we alone in the universe?

It's no secret that Glenn keeps one eye on the cosmos, searching for any signs of ET. Late last week, a team of astronomers at the University of Cambridge made an exciting discovery that could change how we view the universe. The astronomers were monitoring a distant planet, K2-18b, when the James Webb Space Telescope detected dimethyl sulfide and dimethyl disulfide, two atmospheric gases believed only to be generated by living organisms. The planet, which is just over two and a half times larger than Earth, orbits within the "habitable zone" of its star, meaning the presence of liquid water on its surface is possible, further supporting the possibility that life exists on this distant world.

Unfortunately, humans won't be able to visit K2-18b to see for ourselves anytime soon, as the planet is about 124 light-years from Earth. This means that even if we had rockets that could travel at the speed of light, it would still take 124 years to reach the potentially verdant planet. Even if humans made the long trek to K2-18b, they would be faced with an even more intense challenge upon arrival: Gravity. Assuming K2-18b has a similar density to Earth, its increased size would also mean it would have increased gravity, two and a half times as much gravity, to be exact. This would make it very difficult, if not impossible, for humans to live or explore the surface without serious technological support. But who knows, give Elon Musk and SpaceX a few years, and we might be ready to seek out new life (and maybe even new civilizations).

But Glenn wants to know what you think. Could K2-18b harbor life on its distant surface? Could alien astronomers be peering back at us from across the cosmos? Would you be willing to boldly go where no man has gone before? Let us know in the poll below:

Could there be life on K2-18b?

Could there be an alien civilization thriving on K2-18b?

Will humans develop the technology to one day explore distant worlds?

Would you sign up for a trip to an alien world?

Is K2-18b just another cold rock in space?