These five flags prove the importance of celebrating Flag Day

June 14, 2024

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On this day 247 years ago, the Second Continental Congress passed the Flag Resolution of 1777 making the "Stars and Stripes" the official flag of the United States of America.

Symbols are a vital part of the identity of a nation. They speak of the values and origins of the country, where they are going, and where they have been. They serve as a benchmark by which to measure the condition of the present society—are we closer to being the people our forefathers imagined all those years ago? They tell a story of the struggles and hardships of the men who first bore those symbols and what they stood to protect.

This Flag Day, we are taking the opportunity to reflect upon the rich history and symbolism of American Flags and the conflicts that shaped them. From the earliest colonial rebellions to modern military operations, here are five flags that symbolize America:

Pine Tree Flag

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Despite the media's claims, this flag is not a Christian Nationalist banner, nor a banner of any other extremist group. The origin of this flag well predates any of those modern groups as it was first created during the Revolutionary War.

The flag comprises two items: the pine tree and the text, "An Appeal to Heaven." The pine tree has long been a symbol of New England, even before Europeans landed in North America. The pine tree was an important symbol of peace to the Native tribes of New England after a great war between five tribes ended with the members settling their differences and burying each other's weapons under a pine tree. After the Europeans arrived, the pine tree remained significant. A large part of colonial New England's economy was based on shipbuilding using the tall pine trees local to the area.

The other portion of the flag, the text that reads "An Appeal to Heaven," is a quote from the English philosopher John Locke's famous book, The Second Treatise of Civil Government. In this particular passage the quote is referring to, Locke outlined the right of people to revolt against a tyrannical government. Locke argued that once you have exhausted your ability to appeal your grievances through the available government channels, you can make an appeal to heaven and throw off the shackles of tyranny through a revolution. As you can imagine, this particular passage was critical to the philosophical justification for the American Revolution.

Francis Hopkinson Flag

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Everyone knows the tale of Betsy Ross, a Philadelphia seamstress who was presented—by none other than George Washington himself—with a sketch of the flag that would come to represent the fledgling nation. After convincing Washington to reduce the points on the stars from six to five, Ross got to work sewing the first stars and stripes together. Before long, she was presenting George Washington with the first American flag with its iconic ring of stars.

Unfortunately, that story is more legend than fact. Betsy Ross did exist. She was a seamstress from Philadelphia, and she most likely did make some of the first American flags. But did she collaborate with George Washington to create the very first American flag? Not likely. Modern historians now tend to credit a man named Francis Hopkinson.

Francis Hopkinson, like many of our founding fathers, was a very interesting man. Along with serving as one of New Jersey's first congressmen, Hopkinson signed the Declaration of Independence and was a lawyer, poet, musician, and artist. It was his skill as an artist that led to him to design the flag. However, the journals of the Continental Congress suggest that he was not the only person consulted during the process. While it is unclear who these other people were (perhaps it was Besty Ross), it is known that Hopkinson would be credited with the creation of other important symbols and devices, including the Great Seal of the United States of America.

Fort Sumter Flag

In April of 1861, the nation split itself in two. The attack on Fort Sumpter in South Carolina marked the beginning of the Civil War, and for many people, it must have felt like the end of the republic. This flag, bearing 33 stars for the 33 states, flew above Fort Sumpter during the assault and was lowered when the fort was surrendered to Confederate forces. After the battle, President Lincoln had a decision that no president before or since has been faced with: would he keep the flag as it was or would he remove the stars that represented the states that had seceded?

Lincoln's mission was to preserve the union—to reform what had been broken—so he decided to keep the stars on the flag. This flag, with all 33 of its stars, came to represent what the Union troops were fighting for. They were defending the Union for which the flag had become the sacred symbol. As such, the flag was imbued with the religious and moral values that were violently clashing along the Mason-Dixon line. For many, the flag represented the abolition of slavery, and for many newly freed black Americans, the flag represented a brighter future and an opportunity to participate in the American Dream.

When the Stars and Stripes were once again flown over Fort Sumpter in February of 1865, just two months before the end of the Civil War, all 33 stars were present—plus two more to represent the new states that had joined the union during the war. While it would take decades for the wounds of the Civil War to heal, President Lincoln was successful in his mission to reunite America.

D-Day Flag

D-Day was the largest amphibious invasion in military history with over 156,000 Allied troops deployed to liberate Europe from the Nazi regime. America bore a significant portion of the burden, with sending 75,000 of the total 156,000 Allied troops. Moreover, most landing craft and support vehicles were manufactured in the United States. It was aboard one such landing craft, the L.S.T. 493, that the flag above was carried into the chaos. The L.S.T. 493 was one of the largest vessels to make an appearance in Normandy, and it was tasked with running supplies to the different beachheads along the coastline, which it did from June 6th, 1944 (D-Day) until the Battle of Normady's completion at the end of August 1944.

Despite being manufactured by the U.S. and carrying an American flag, L.S.T. 493 was operated by the British during the Battle of Normandy, which was not an unusual arrangement at the time. The vessel served until April 1945 when it was sent from Portland, UK, to Plymouth, UK, for routine maintenance. During this trek, the ship's navigation lights were turned off as per wartime procedures, and consequently, it was badly damaged by large concrete pyramids installed in the breakwater. These pyramids were called "dragonteeth" and were used as a defense against invasion. The ship was abandoned, and the crew was safely evacuated, but L.S.T. 493 was deemed too damaged to repair and was left behind.

The aforementioned 48-star American Flag was removed well before L.S.T. 493 wrecked and made its journey throughout the years before finding itself in Glenn's collection in the American Journey Experience museum. Glenn had the following to say regarding his acquisition of the flag:

“When I first saw this flag I was overwhelmed with the struggle and the power of the human spirit. While the human experience is itself exceptional, those who deny the will to endure and the willingness free mankind from those who wish to control and oppress miss what makes the average American truly exceptional throughout the world"

America's Flag of Valor

This last flag is a reminder that the fight for freedom is never over. There will always come a time when brave men will be called upon to lay down their lives in the pursuit and preservation of liberty, to fight on behalf of those who can't fight for themselves.

Imagine—it's March 2003, America is still recovering from the horror of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and a group of young men full of courage and determination board a plane in Germany bound for Kuwait City to engage in the initial attack of the Iraqi Freedom Campaign. These Marines, most of whom were fresh out of BootCamp and had never faced battle before, were asked to sign this flag by Flight Attendant Sarah Carruthers.

Susan Irvin, the custodian of this incredible artifact, is working on tracking down the fate of these brave soldiers. One can assume that many of the signees didn't make it back to the United States. The same spirit and determination that motivated our forefathers to fight for liberty were in these men as well, and that spirit still isn't lost amongst us today.

Here are just a few of the notes those brave men wrote a mere couple of days before they engaged in the Iraqi Freedom Campaign:

1. LCPC Christensen 3^rd PLT C. Co 1/24
“I’m doing this so my Stars, Stripes and Eagle will fly Forever.”
2. LEPL Wright
“I’m proud to be an American whatever the cost - know I’m There”
3. LEPL (Deputy) Edelski
“For the Love and Safety of my Wife and Family.”
4. PFC Myers Weapons Co 1/24
“Semper Fi ‘Always Faithful’ “
5. LEPL Koshis GP II
“For the Pride and Honor of my Country and the Love of my Family. Semper Fi”
6. Sgt Hamper M.B USMC 1/24 Detroit Mi.
“Not every Man Can fight. We do what we must for our country, I am proud to have the opportunity for Freedom and the American Way of Life.”
7. LEPL B Leain, M.J. C/co 1/24
“So that our Families will live free from fear. God Bless”
8. Don H Stevens Jr. USMC SSP 1/24
“Because I stand on a wall and say nothing is going to hurt you tonight. Not on my watch.”
9. SGT Dano, Michael Scout Sniper PLT.
“When you care to send the very best. Send USMC”
10. SSGT Ian M. Perry Scout Sniper Det “C” Co. 1/24 USMC
“Americans Sleep Peaceably at Night knowing that Rough Men Stand By To Do Violence on their Behalf…”
11. Leut Lawson SSP 1/24
“For America.”
12. CPT Valler E. R “C” Co 1/24
“The more we do today the less our children will have to do tomorrow.”
13. LCPL Council SSP/ “C” Co 1/24 USMC
“For God, my Loved Ones & America!! We’ll Fight the Good Fight!!”
14. CPT Povedn R. H.
“For My Family and my Country, Mission Accomplished
15. LCPL D? Kellerman “C” Co 1/24
“HIGHLY MOTIVATED – TRULY DEDICATED… TO GOD… TO THE CORPS… TO OUR COURNTRY… TO MY FAMILY… AND TO OUR FREEDOM! ‘SEMPER FI’ “.
16. LCPL Powers J.M
“WE FIGHT FOR THOSE WHO CAN’T OR WON’T… AND SO OUR CHILDREN WILL NOT NEED TO.”
17. LCPL Safko SSP 1/24
“I don’t know what will happen when I die but I am not gonna find out before my target!”
18. LCPL Christensen
“If they don’t like my Flag they can kiss my American Butt.”
19. LCPL Damon “C” Co. 1/24
“Doing my part every day that I can! Semper Fi”
20. LCPL Cowdry, Nick 1/24 “C” Co.
“Godspeed”
21. LCPL Tong
“Showing my blood for my country! Semper Fi”
22. CPL Kinnick WPNS “C” Co. 1/24
“Death before dishonor.”
23. SGT Jim Shabelski
“Semper Fi Fortune favors the Bold.”
24. Cpt. Don Valdivia “Mr. Clean” USMC Scout Sniper PH. 1/24
“I will defend my country and make the enemy DIE for his.”
25. LCPL Forshee JAV 1/24 WPNSRO
“Mess with the best, Die like the rest. ‘Goonie for life’ “
26. SSGT White Javelin PLT Commander
“Semper Fi! God, Country Corps!
27. Cpl. Deak C ”Co” 1/24
"I am proud to be a marine, But even more proud of that I am an American, that has a choice to be a Marine."
28. HM2 “Doc” MeElfresh
“Serving the Corps, my country & my family.
Giving My Best; For the Best. Semper Fi!
29. CPL Inman E.O.K
“You can run but you’ll only die tired----”
30. CPL Jason Spoelm
“Your friendly neighbor, terrorist killers. LET’S ROLL”
31. SGT Dover, Matthew 1^st Scout Sniper PLT
“If it positively has to be Destroyed overnight U.S. Marines.
RUN AND DIE TIRED!”
32. 1stSGT T.J. Pattok Semper FI
“What we do We do for You
33. Cpl Dawson
“What I do, I do for my Family”
34. CPL I Keagle
“Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” MLK Jr.
35.LCPL Piechawski, Nick
“PEACHES” I’ll be back for my beer”

Special thanks to Susan Irvin for sharing and preserving the story of these brave young men.

A Sharia enclave is quietly taking root in America. It's time to wake up.

NOVA SAFO / Staff | Getty Images

Sharia-based projects like the Meadow in Texas show how political Islam grows quietly, counting on Americans to stay silent while an incompatible legal system takes root.

Apolitical system completely incompatible with the Constitution is gaining ground in the United States, and we are pretending it is not happening.

Sharia — the legal and political framework of Islam — is being woven into developments, institutions, and neighborhoods, including a massive project in Texas. And the consequences will be enormous if we continue to look the other way.

This is the contradiction at the heart of political Islam: It claims universal authority while insisting its harshest rules will never be enforced here. That promise does not stand up to scrutiny. It never has.

Before we can have an honest debate, we’d better understand what Sharia represents. Sharia is not simply a set of religious rules about prayer or diet. It is a comprehensive legal and political structure that governs marriage, finance, criminal penalties, and civic life. It is a parallel system that claims supremacy wherever it takes hold.

This is where the distinction matters. Many Muslims in America want nothing to do with Sharia governance. They came here precisely because they lived under it. But political Islam — the movement that seeks to implement Sharia as law — is not the same as personal religious belief.

It is a political ideology with global ambitions, much like communism. Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently warned that Islamist movements do not seek peaceful coexistence with the West. They seek dominance. History backs him up.

How Sharia arrives

Political Islam does not begin with dramatic declarations. It starts quietly, through enclaves that operate by their own rules. That is why the development once called EPIC City — now rebranded as the Meadow — is so concerning. Early plans framed it as a Muslim-only community built around a mega-mosque and governed by Sharia-compliant financing. After state investigations were conducted, the branding changed, but the underlying intent remained the same.

Developers have openly described practices designed to keep non-Muslims out, using fees and ownership structures to create de facto religious exclusivity. This is not assimilation. It is the construction of a parallel society within a constitutional republic.

The warning from those who have lived under it

Years ago, local imams in Texas told me, without hesitation, that certain Sharia punishments “just work.” They spoke about cutting off hands for theft, stoning adulterers, and maintaining separate standards of testimony for men and women. They insisted it was logical and effective while insisting they would never attempt to implement it in Texas.

But when pressed, they could not explain why a system they consider divinely mandated would suddenly stop applying once someone crossed a border.

This is the contradiction at the heart of political Islam: It claims universal authority while insisting its harshest rules will never be enforced here. That promise does not stand up to scrutiny. It never has.

AASHISH KIPHAYET / Contributor | Getty Images

America is vulnerable

Europe is already showing us where this road leads. No-go zones, parallel courts, political intimidation, and clerics preaching supremacy have taken root across major cities.

America’s strength has always come from its melting pot, but assimilation requires boundaries. It requires insisting that the Constitution, not religious law, is the supreme authority on this soil.

Yet we are becoming complacent, even fearful, about saying so. We mistake silence for tolerance. We mistake avoidance for fairness. Meanwhile, political Islam views this hesitation as weakness.

Religious freedom is one of America’s greatest gifts. Muslims may worship freely here, as they should. But political Islam must not be permitted to plant a flag on American soil. The Constitution cannot coexist with a system that denies equal rights, restricts speech, subordinates women, and places clerical authority above civil law.

Wake up before it is too late

Projects like the Meadow are not isolated. They are test runs, footholds, proofs of concept. Political Islam operates with patience. It advances through demographic growth, legal ambiguity, and cultural hesitation — and it counts on Americans being too polite, too distracted, or too afraid to confront it.

We cannot afford that luxury. If we fail to defend the principles that make this country free, we will one day find ourselves asking how a parallel system gained power right in front of us. The answer will be simple: We looked away.

The time to draw boundaries and to speak honestly is now. The time to defend the Constitution as the supreme law of the land is now. Act while there is still time.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

The Crisis of Meaning: Searching for truth and purpose

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Anxiety, anger, and chronic dissatisfaction signal a country searching for meaning. Without truth and purpose, politics becomes a dangerous substitute for identity.

We have built a world overflowing with noise, convenience, and endless choice, yet something essential has slipped out of reach. You can sense it in the restless mood of the country, the anxiety among young people who cannot explain why they feel empty, in the angry confusion that dominates our politics.

We have more wealth than any nation in history, but the heart of the culture feels strangely malnourished. Before we can debate debt or elections, we must confront the reality that we created a world of things, but not a world of purpose.

You cannot survive a crisis you refuse to name, and you cannot rebuild a world whose foundations you no longer understand.

What we are living through is not just economic or political dysfunction. It is the vacuum that appears when a civilization mistakes abundance for meaning.

Modern life is stuffed with everything except what the human soul actually needs. We built systems to make life faster, easier, and more efficient — and then wondered why those systems cannot teach our children who they are, why they matter, or what is worth living for.

We tell the next generation to chase success, influence, and wealth, turning childhood into branding. We ask kids what they want to do, not who they want to be. We build a world wired for dopamine rather than dignity, and then we wonder why so many people feel unmoored.

When everything is curated, optimized, and delivered at the push of a button, the question “what is my life for?” gets lost in the static.

The crisis beneath the headlines

It is not just the young who feel this crisis. Every part of our society is straining under the weight of meaninglessness.

Look at the debt cycle — the mathematical fate no civilization has ever escaped once it crosses a threshold that we seem to have already blown by. While ordinary families feel the pressure, our leaders respond with distraction, with denial, or by rewriting the very history that could have warned us.

You cannot survive a crisis you refuse to name, and you cannot rebuild a world whose foundations you no longer understand.

We have entered a cultural moment where the noise is so loud that it drowns out the simplest truths. We are living in a country that no longer knows how to hear itself think.

So people go searching. Some drift toward the false promise of socialism, some toward the empty thrill of rebellion. Some simply check out. When a culture forgets what gives life meaning, it becomes vulnerable to every ideology that offers a quick answer.

The quiet return of meaning

And yet, quietly, something else is happening. Beneath the frustration and cynicism, many Americans are recognizing that meaning does not come from what we own, but from what we honor. It does not rise from success, but from virtue. It does not emerge from noise, but from the small, sacred things that modern life has pushed to the margins — the home, the table, the duty you fulfill, the person you help when no one is watching.

The danger is assuming that this rediscovery happens on its own. It does not.

Reorientation requires intention. It requires rebuilding the habits and virtues that once held us together. It requires telling the truth about our history instead of rewriting it to fit today’s narratives. And it requires acknowledging what has been erased: that meaning is inseparable from God’s presence in a nation’s life.

Harold M. Lambert / Contributor | Getty Images

Where renewal begins

We have built a world without stillness, and then we wondered why no one can hear the questions that matter. Those questions remain, whether we acknowledge them or not. They do not disappear just because we drown them in entertainment or noise. They wait for us, and the longer we ignore them, the more disoriented we become.

Meaning is still available. It is found in rebuilding the smallest, most human spaces — the places that cannot be digitized, globalized, or automated. The home. The family. The community.

These are the daily virtues that do not trend on social media, but that hold a civilization upright. If we want to repair this country, we begin there, exactly where every durable civilization has always begun: one virtue at a time, one tradition at a time, one generation at a time.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

A break in trust: A NEW Watergate is brewing in plain sight

Gary Hershorn / Contributor | Getty Images

When institutions betray the public’s trust, the country splits, and the spiral is hard to stop.

Something drastic is happening in American life. Headlines that should leave us stunned barely register anymore. Stories that once would have united the country instead dissolve into silence or shrugs.

It is not apathy exactly. It is something deeper — a growing belief that the people in charge either cannot or will not fix what is broken.

When people feel ignored or betrayed, they will align with anyone who appears willing to fight on their behalf.

I call this response the Bubba effect. It describes what happens when institutions lose so much public trust that “Bubba,” the average American minding his own business, finally throws his hands up and says, “Fine. I will handle it myself.” Not because he wants to, but because the system that was supposed to protect him now feels indifferent, corrupt, or openly hostile.

The Bubba effect is not a political movement. It is a survival instinct.

What triggers the Bubba effect

We are watching the triggers unfold in real time. When members of Congress publicly encourage active duty troops to disregard orders from the commander in chief, that is not a political squabble. When a federal judge quietly rewrites the rules so one branch of government can secretly surveil another, that is not normal. That is how republics fall. Yet these stories glided across the news cycle without urgency, without consequence, without explanation.

When the American people see the leadership class shrug, they conclude — correctly — that no one is steering the ship.

This is how the Bubba effect spreads. It is not just individuals resisting authority. It is sheriffs refusing to enforce new policies, school boards ignoring state mandates, entire communities saying, “We do not believe you anymore.” It becomes institutional, cultural, national.

A country cracking from the inside

This effect can be seen in Dearborn, Michigan. In the rise of fringe voices like Nick Fuentes. In the Epstein scandal, where powerful people could not seem to locate a single accountable adult. These stories are different in content but identical in message: The system protects itself, not you.

When people feel ignored or betrayed, they will align with anyone who appears willing to fight on their behalf. That does not mean they suddenly agree with everything that person says. It means they feel abandoned by the institutions that were supposed to be trustworthy.

The Bubba effect is what fills that vacuum.

The dangers of a faithless system

A republic cannot survive without credibility. Congress cannot oversee intelligence agencies if it refuses to discipline its own members. The military cannot remain apolitical if its chain of command becomes optional. The judiciary cannot defend the Constitution while inventing loopholes that erase the separation of powers.

History shows that once a nation militarizes politics, normalizes constitutional shortcuts, or allows government agencies to operate without scrutiny, it does not return to equilibrium peacefully. Something will give.

The question is what — and when.

The responsibility now belongs to us

In a healthy country, this is where the media steps in. This is where universities, pastors, journalists, and cultural leaders pause the outrage machine and explain what is at stake. But today, too many see themselves not as guardians of the republic, but of ideology. Their first loyalty is to narrative, not truth.

The founders never trusted the press more than the public. They trusted citizens who understood their rights, lived their responsibilities, and demanded accountability. That is the antidote to the Bubba effect — not rage, but citizenship.

How to respond without breaking ourselves

Do not riot. Do not withdraw. Do not cheer on destruction just because you dislike the target. That is how nations lose themselves. Instead, demand transparency. Call your representatives. Insist on consequences. Refuse to normalize constitutional violations simply because “everyone does it.” If you expect nothing, you will get nothing.

Do not hand your voice to the loudest warrior simply because he is swinging a bat at the establishment. You do not beat corruption by joining a different version of it. You beat it by modeling the country you want to preserve: principled, accountable, rooted in truth.

Adam Gray / Stringer | Getty Images

Every republic reaches a moment when historians will later say, “That was the warning.” We are living in ours. But warnings are gifts if they are recognized. Institutions bend. People fail. The Constitution can recover — if enough Americans still know and cherish it.

It does not take a majority. Twenty percent of the country — awake, educated, and courageous — can reset the system. It has happened before. It can happen again.

Wake up. Stand up. Demand integrity — from leaders, from institutions, and from yourself. Because the Bubba effect will not end until Americans reclaim the duty that has always belonged to them: preserving the republic for the next generation.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Grim warning: Bad-faith Israel critics duck REAL questions

Spencer Platt / Staff | Getty Images

Bad-faith attacks on Israel and AIPAC warp every debate. Real answers emerge only when people set aside scripts and ask what serves America’s long-term interests.

The search for truth has always required something very much in short supply these days: honesty. Not performative questions, not scripted outrage, not whatever happens to be trending on TikTok, but real curiosity.

Some issues, often focused on foreign aid, AIPAC, or Israel, have become hotbeds of debate and disagreement. Before we jump into those debates, however, we must return to a simpler, more important issue: honest questioning. Without it, nothing in these debates matters.

Ask questions because you want the truth, not because you want a target.

The phrase “just asking questions” has re-entered the zeitgeist, and that’s fine. We should always question power. But too many of those questions feel preloaded with someone else’s answer. If the goal is truth, then the questions should come from a sincere desire to understand, not from a hunt for a villain.

Honest desire for truth is the only foundation that can support a real conversation about these issues.

Truth-seeking is real work

Right now, plenty of people are not seeking the truth at all. They are repeating something they heard from a politician on cable news or from a stranger on TikTok who has never opened a history book. That is not a search for answers. That is simply outsourcing your own thought.

If you want the truth, you need to work for it. You cannot treat the world like a Marvel movie where the good guy appears in a cape and the villain hisses on command. Real life does not give you a neat script with the moral wrapped up in two hours.

But that is how people are approaching politics now. They want the oppressed and the oppressor, the heroic underdog and the cartoon villain. They embrace this fantastical framing because it is easier than wrestling with reality.

This framing took root in the 1960s when the left rebuilt its worldview around colonizers and the colonized. Overnight, Zionism was recast as imperialism. Suddenly, every conflict had to fit the same script. Today’s young activists are just recycling the same narrative with updated graphics. Everything becomes a morality play. No nuance, no context, just the comforting clarity of heroes and villains.

Bad-faith questions

This same mindset is fueling the sudden obsession with Israel, and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee in particular. You hear it from members of Congress and activists alike: AIPAC pulls the strings, AIPAC controls the government, AIPAC should register as a foreign agent under the Foreign Agents Registration Act. The questions are dramatic, but are they being asked in good faith?

FARA is clear. The standard is whether an individual or group acts under the direction or control of a foreign government. AIPAC simply does not qualify.

Here is a detail conveniently left out of these arguments: Dozens of domestic organizations — Armenian, Cuban, Irish, Turkish — lobby Congress on behalf of other countries. None of them registers under FARA because — like AIPAC — they are independent, domestic organizations.

If someone has a sincere problem with the structure of foreign lobbying, fair enough. Let us have that conversation. But singling out AIPAC alone is not a search for truth. It is bias dressed up as bravery.

Anadolu / Contributor | Getty Images

If someone wants to question foreign aid to Israel, fine. Let’s have that debate. But let’s ask the right questions. The issue is not the size of the package but whether the aid advances our interests. What does the United States gain? Does the investment strengthen our position in the region? How does it compare to what we give other nations? And do we examine those countries with the same intensity?

The real target

These questions reflect good-faith scrutiny. But narrowing the entire argument to one country or one dollar amount misses the larger problem. If someone objects to the way America handles foreign aid, the target is not Israel. The target is the system itself — an entrenched bureaucracy, poor transparency, and decades-old commitments that have never been re-examined. Those problems run through programs around the world.

If you want answers, you need to broaden the lens. You have to be willing to put aside the movie script and confront reality. You have to hold yourself to a simple rule: Ask questions because you want the truth, not because you want a target.

That is the only way this country ever gets clarity on foreign aid, influence, alliances, and our place in the world. Questioning is not just allowed. It is essential. But only if it is honest.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Glenn's Show Prep

These five flags prove the importance of celebrating Flag Day

Pine Tree Flag

Francis Hopkinson Flag

Fort Sumter Flag

D-Day Flag

America's Flag of Valor

A Sharia enclave is quietly taking root in America. It's time to wake up.

Sharia-based projects like the Meadow in Texas show how political Islam grows quietly, counting on Americans to stay silent while an incompatible legal system takes root.

This is the contradiction at the heart of political Islam: It claims universal authority while insisting its harshest rules will never be enforced here. That promise does not stand up to scrutiny. It never has.

How Sharia arrives

The warning from those who have lived under it

America is vulnerable

Wake up before it is too late

The Crisis of Meaning: Searching for truth and purpose

Anxiety, anger, and chronic dissatisfaction signal a country searching for meaning. Without truth and purpose, politics becomes a dangerous substitute for identity.

You cannot survive a crisis you refuse to name, and you cannot rebuild a world whose foundations you no longer understand.

The crisis beneath the headlines

The quiet return of meaning

Where renewal begins

A break in trust: A NEW Watergate is brewing in plain sight

When institutions betray the public’s trust, the country splits, and the spiral is hard to stop.

When people feel ignored or betrayed, they will align with anyone who appears willing to fight on their behalf.

What triggers the Bubba effect

A country cracking from the inside

The dangers of a faithless system

The responsibility now belongs to us

How to respond without breaking ourselves

Grim warning: Bad-faith Israel critics duck REAL questions

Bad-faith attacks on Israel and AIPAC warp every debate. Real answers emerge only when people set aside scripts and ask what serves America’s long-term interests.

Ask questions because you want the truth, not because you want a target.

Truth-seeking is real work

Bad-faith questions

The real target