Guy Ciarrocchi: Progressives policies are doomed to fail — often in deadly ways
In a still-unfolding tragedy, land over twice the size of Manhattan has burned to the ground across greater Los Angeles. Lives have been lost. Thousands have lost their homes, their businesses. Billions lost in property damage. However, this should not be a surprise.
Progressive policies always fail. We are watching it, again, in real time. Like so many other disastrous progressive policies forced upon us in the last several years, the Left is running Californians through a real life “lab” experiment. “What if we ignore common sense? What if we try this out and see what happens?
They’re failing in California — costing lives, livelihoods, and billions in property losses. Greater Los Angeles needed firefighters, equipment, commonsense leadership — and water.
What they were given by their mayor, city council, and governor were DEI policies for hiring and promoting fire fighters. Worse, climate extremists forced unnecessary, anti-commonsense policies on Californians: multi-million dollar fire department budget cuts, years of dead and dried-out brush built up, millions of gallons of rain and snow water intentionally poured into the Pacific Ocean instead of stored for use, and an enormous reservoir left bone-dry in the face of dangerous conditions and raging fires.
These are horribly bad decisions. And the results are obvious.
But it’s not simply the policy decisions that have created this tragedy. It’s the priorities and values of California Democrats — built on an ideology shared by far too many Democrats across America.
Their policies and values are not only idiotic, they’re dangerous, costly, and deadly. And they will impact Californians — and all Americans — for years.
The primary responsibility of elected officials is health, safety, and welfare. But they valued DEI over competence, training and commitment. They valued the habitat of a fish over lives, livelihoods, and billions of dollars of homes and businesses. They spent taxpayer money on left-wing, feel-good HR programs and trainings, rather than on firemen and equipment.
These are not policy decisions: these are value judgements. A policy disagreement is when the two parties fight over whether the top income tax rate should be 27 percent or 37 percent. But when elected officials vote not to build life-saving reservoirs because they want to save a fish habitat, that is not a policy disagreement — that’s placing the fish over people.
Our fellow Americans in greater Los Angeles are living through hell on earth, in large part because left-wing politicians failed them for years. Knowingly. Willfully. Stupidly.
Because of the left-wing values — their valuing fish over people and valuing “fighting the climate” over clearing out tons and tons of dead brush — people are dead and countless lives will never, ever be the same.
The left doesn’t value commonsense, everyday concerns and traditional hopes and dreams. They value virtue-signaling and chasing after the latest self-created crisis or cause. Tragically, in places like California — and New York, and much of American suburbia — they can get away with it politically. Let’s recognize that it’s not unique to California’s Newsom or the officials in LA.
From Philadelphia to New York, from San Francisco to Seattle, from Chicago to Portland, Democratic Party leaders and their left-wing funders have put forth District Attorneys who might as well be leaders of organized crime. They’ve sanctioned shoplifting, plea-bargained away felonies, and harassed our police officers. Again, not just bad policies but tragically backwards priorities.
In New York, another tragedy of errors — all built on left-wing values and priorities. The DA and Attorney General are focused on Trump and “corporate fraud,” while tolerating shoplifting, vandalism, subway fare-jumping — even violence. And putting cops and Good Samaritans on trial.
This has led to less people wanting to use subways. Yet, at the same time, the social “do-gooders” who hate the autonomy of people having cars and who worship the “climate-change god,” built miles and miles of bike lanes — in Manhattan! This turned four-lane streets into three; and two lanes into one.
Fewer people on the subway plus fewer lanes for cars equals traffic jams. Traffic was getting so bad that something had to be done. So, the governor came up with a proposal: charge a $9 a day toll to drive into Manhattan.
Value criminals over law-abiding citizens. Impose a European-master plan of bicycles in Manhattan. Create traffic and chaos — and, then, further punish the innocent victims.
The people being harmed are disproportionately poor and working class. After years of inflation, the last thing that every bartender, paralegal, or shopkeeper needed was to pay $45 more each week just to get to work.
Never forget the thousands who are still homeless in western North Carolina. Churches, non-profits — even the Amish — are doing their best to help. But it’s not enough. As a nation, we don’t lack money, expertise, or compassion. What we lack is a Biden/Harris administration that cares and that will prioritize helping those families, now!
Nationally and across Pennsylvania, we were Covid hostages in our homes and are still suffering from inflation due in large part to misguided policies based on misguided values. Economics 101 taught us that reducing the workforce, breaking the supply chain, and pumping trillions into the economy would create inflation and chaos, but they did it anyway.
Anyone with common sense knew that offering just about any person on Earth free entrance into America — with housing, medical care, cash and a cell phone — would create a crush at the border and bankrupt our cities, schools, and hospitals. And allowing just about anyone to claim “asylum” like kids playing “Simon says,” would lead to thousands — perhaps hundreds of thousands — of criminals and terrorists into our nation. But they did it anyway.
Far too many Democratic politicians have become left-wing ideologues. They prioritize “understanding the criminal” and “fixing” the justice system over supporting cops and tough prosecutors. They prioritize their own ideology and partisan, political goals over securing our border and preventing more Laken Rileys.
Their cult-like adherence to “fighting climate change” only intensifies when confronted with the realities of everyday life—and, science. They value ideology over energy, virtue-signaling over heating our homes. They value fish over people.
Like lab rats in a science center, too many Democrats have been testing out their ideology, their theories, their “religion” on our families, our Bill of Rights, and our students.
It’s been an abject failure. Voters have given the Republicans the chance not only to change policies, but to restore commonsense priorities. We need to hold them accountable — and any Democrat politician that stands in their way.
Guy Ciarrocchi is a Senior Fellow at the Commonwealth Foundation. He writes for Broad + Liberty and RealClear Pennsylvania. Follow Guy at @PaSuburbsGuy.
Well said!
As Democrats have seized control of Delaware County, the quality of life here has dramatically declined.
The Democrat snobs of Swarthmore and Radnor think they are isolated from the chaos that they impose on their lessers, just as Palisades Democrats thought a few weeks ago.
I have a question, what policies are being referred to in this rant. The author has not named a single law that proves his case.
Let’s see how the liberal crowd out west responds during election time. Maybe it take death, destruction and loss to realize the impact that bad decisions have. Used to be having a lot of money could insulate you from dem policies. Not this time.
What liberal laws are you referring to that created this?
“Used to be having a lot of money could insulate you from dem policies.” – The vast majority of people affected by this are no different financially than another American. Are you saying that Federal Disaster relief and support should be withheld?
Looks like you are trying to drag someone down a rabbit hole to argue the loss/benefit of DEI initiative and climate change ideology? Now people are dead. The vast majority of people in Malibu an Pacific Palisades are rich and don’t have to deal with crime, fecal covered sidewalks and tent cities, but now their castles burned to the ground because their elected leaders are exposed as useless virtue hires, and there’s no hiding it. It follows perfectly with the rest of this country and the last four years of Biden/Harris. All fun and games virtue signals of higher plane intelligence until it lays in waste and ashes because of bad fiscal policy and virtue electing and hiring.
What I am asking which laws you believe have caused this fire, the damage, and loss of life that has occurred. Instead I am getting someone who is overjoyed and thrilled that Americans have lost their homes and died because of these fires. As well as that Trump and his political supporters wanting to punish people by withholding Federal support and aid. The average home cost is California is $890,000 and in Malibu the average cost $3,100,000. So the people who are experiencing this are by no means wealthy.
“Looks like you are trying to drag someone down a rabbit hole to argue the loss/benefit of DEI initiative and climate change ideology?” The only people in this thread who are going down this rabbit hole are people like you and the author. Because you keep bringing it up without providing actual examples.
The results speak for themselves. Budget cuts to fire department activities at both the state and local levels, prevention maintenance, training and manpower shifted to race and sexual preference, bloated salaries to woke / DEI administrators, firing of veteran firefighters because they refused the (bogus) Vax mandates, poor infrastructure planning of water recourses that benefitted tribal fishing demands – all because tax dollars were shifted to illegal immigration, homeless vouchers, climate initiatives and virtue DEI initiatives. To answer your other question: I would absolutely withhold federal money unless it was overseen and monitored by federal agents of the incoming Trump administration for specific federal design initiatives and employment guidelines. Since you do not spend your money properly to ensure safety to your LEGAL citizens, if you want OUR MONEY – you live by OUR RULES FOR USING THAT MONEY.
“Budget cuts”- Budget cuts happen in every state. If you were the Governor how would have prevented this?
“firing of veteran firefighters because they refused the (bogus) Vax mandates” – Employees are required to follow all company policies and if they don’t, they can be fired. They were warned 30 days in advance and the choice was theirs to make. Did the Firefighters not trust a vaccine that was led and funded by then President Trump?
“all because tax dollars were shifted to illegal immigration, homeless vouchers, climate initiatives and virtue DEI initiatives.” Please provide actual proof. All you would have to do is find a summary of the State of California’s budget.
Last and most important question.
“To answer your other question: I would absolutely withhold federal money unless it was overseen and monitored by federal agents of the incoming Trump administration for specific federal design initiatives and employment guidelines.” – Would you require this for every state in America from this point forward. As an example the next time Florida the next time it gets hit by a hurricane, would this also be applied?
Do your own work. Very amusing that you’re crediting Biden for the case fire – hilarious. 4 months of inaction an war.. Trump wins, warns Hamas, and a week later, there’s a deal in place, and he’s not even bn inaugurated yet. Regarding FLA or anywhere: Yes – conditions will apply to how the money is spent. How do you cut firefighting budget when your stat burns every year because you don’t maintain and protect the same areas that burn every year?
“Do your own work.” – If you had proof you would have provided it, instead telling me to find it.
Very amusing that you’re crediting Biden for the case fire – hilarious. 4 months of inaction an war. Trump wins, warns Hamas, and a week later, there’s a deal in place, and he’s not even bn inaugurated yet. – The deal was the same deal Biden proposed 6 months earlier and Hamas’s leadership has been killed. If Trump achieved this by winning how do explain his backtracking on groceries.
But somehow Hamas now accepts the deal? Even Biden’s state department credited Trump. Trump can’t bomb grocery stores. It’ll just take a bit longer since Biden is still throwing money on the street and restricting energy production driving gas higher on his way out to the rest home.
“But somehow Hamas now accepts the deal? Even Biden’s state department credited Trump.” – This is a nothingburger. There is only one President at a time and Trump has not been sworn in. All the State Department is doing is massaging Trump’s ego to avoid him reneging on Biden’s plan.
“Trump can’t bomb grocery stores.” – Actually what has happened is Trump campaigned on bringing down the cost of groceries and now its to difficult. After 8 years Trump’s healthcare plan is nothing more than “ides and concepts”. He has no plan to lower grocery costs and is trying to distract people with things that will never happen, like invading Panama.
“Nothingburger.” Hillaryious. It certainly wasn’t Biden since he hasn’t been anywhere in the last 2 years minimum (more like 5). You’re in denial and stage 5 TDS. Carter giving back the canal was a big mistake. He’ll fix it to pressure China. MAGA thinking. Grocery prices will come down as inflation, fuel, war and new foreign policy take hold under TRUMP. OBAMAcare is floundering now and will be dealt with in this administration with Republican majority in the House and Senate.
“Grocery prices will come down as inflation, fuel, war and new foreign policy take hold under TRUMP.” You mean the same TRUMP who said that he won’t be able to get the prices down? As for the war(s) TUMP is going to create, just remember, Denmark is part of NATO and if he invades Greenland Article 5 will apply.
As of January 15, 2025, the price of gold on the Comex exchange was $2,700.55 per ounce. Henry Ford paid his workers $1,560 per year ($5 per day, with 1 day off per week – so they worked 6 days per week.) Back then, the United States of America was still on the gold standard. $1,560 per year was 75 ounces of gold, per year. As of January 15, 2025, 75 ounces of gold equates to $202,541.25 – think about that. Henry Ford’s lowest-level workers made the equivalent of over $200K. The Federal Reserve was created by Progressives in 1913. It has made United States citizens poorer (to enrich the leeching political class, big corps, and various other organized groups) for generations. And the Government schools (often called public schools) teach ideology that makes it forbidden and prohibited to criticize specific ideas and the people that were behind, and still push, very intentional and destructive progressive policies: such as DEI which is just Communism. Look to the fellows that run Blackrock that pushed DEI and ESG (Environmental, Social and Governance) scores which they now call “transition investing.” “Green” energy is now “clean” energy. If they can control what we are “allowed” to say and how to say it, then they control your lives more than you realize. Simply look at this website’s directions: Leave a (Respectful) Comment. What? Why do we need to respect evil people? People who want chaos and they plan and work to destroy this beautiful country. Because they want power. And they do not care about the average U.S. citizen. They are purposely subjecting us to these circumstances. For Pete’s sake – they have us arguing over “what is a woman?” If Covid, and the insane policies implemented during Covid, didn’t wake you up… then nothing will. Plenty of people just want to get along.
Luckily there are certain things they do which are revealing: such as insincerely asking nonsensical questions. Notice the slide from “policies” to “laws” in the above comments. The author of this article clearly describes the policy decisions, values, and priorities. There is zero point in engaging an insincere commentator.
It’s their way of playing pigeon chess: Strut around and crap all over the board, knock over the playing pieces and yell “I WON”.
Does that include Trump’s statements about invading Greenland, Panama, and Canada? Or taking credit for a potential cease fire agreement in Gaza?
According to Trump “”I won on the border, and I won on groceries,” he told NBC’s Kristen Welker. “Very simple word, groceries. Like almost — you know, who uses the word? I started using the word — the groceries. When you buy apples, when you buy bacon, when you buy eggs, they would double and triple the price over a short period of time, and I won an election based on that. We’re going to bring those prices way down.”
Trump’s recent statements break his campaign commitments to lower grocery prices.
“”I’d like to bring them down. It’s hard to bring things down once they’re up. You know, it’s very hard,” Trump said.”
Trump play checkers not chess, he is already crapping on the checkerboard, and he hasn’t been sworn in yet
It’s going to be a tough 4 years for you.
So you have no answers for Trump’s failure to honor his major campaign promise. Especially when he says why himself.
I’d plan on starting a new drinking game. Every time Trump replaces a Cabinet member you have to drink. He already had to drop Matt Gaetz, so drink up.
I think you’ve been drinking since 11/5. Time will tell on gas and groceries. Not overnight. Fixing 4 years of liberal destruction will take some time – maybe a year. I couldn’t care less about Gaetz. Good riddance. Again with the Pee Wee Herman act: I know you are – what am I? I think Panama, Denmark, et.al are interested.
“I couldn’t care less about Gaetz.” Then lets talk about some of the others.
Cash Patel – A convicted felon who may become head of the FBI and published a 60 person enemies list in a book. He’s going to try to be J. Edgar Hoover and it will end badly.
Pam Biondi – Still claims that Trump won the 2020 election.
Linda McMahon – Who has no experience in education and is facing a civil suit for sex trafficking.
Pete Hegseth – A serial sexual harasser and and alcoholic.
Elon Musk – an unelected person, running an unofficial agency that does not answer to Congress. A blatant racist and misogynist, who has expressed open support for a modern day version of the Nazi Party in Germany.
Steve Bannon – A convicted felon who has vowed to oust Elon Musk before Trump takes office.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr. – A medical conspiracy theorist who may become the Health Secretary.
In his first term Trump had a 92% turnover within his cabinet. These are just a few of the people he wants to bring on board. I thought Trump only hired the best. Let me know when you have a better answer than TDS, DEI, and CRT. Because the only answers you have offered BS.
All that and yet – he won. Like I said – its going to be a long 4 years for you. The truth will be coming out about J6, classified documents, and Biden’s weaponized Justice Department. McMahon is simply there to help close the liberal fiasco Dept. of Education. The rest of his picks are there to drive the swamp out of the Government. Pam Bondi was Florida’s AG for the last 8 years. She’ll clean house. Hegseth is an Army Major war vet with 2 bronze stars and degrees from Harvard and Princeton. BTW – it should be clear that 2020 election was a farce. Zuckbucks and mail ins. 81 million votes my azz. Again with the Nazi crap. When all else fail pull a race card or scream ‘Nazi’. All the while that dementia addled crook handing out pardons to all the perpetrators of election interference and lawfare. They know what they did and they know what’s coming their way.
“Again with the Nazi crap. When all else fail pull a race card or scream ‘Nazi’
American jews who vote Democrat are disloyal
American Jews who don’t vote Republican are hate their religion and Israel
If I lose the election it will be the fault of American Jews.
All of these were said by Trump during his campaign.
– If the Swastika armband fits, wear it.
“Biden’s weaponized Justice Department” – You should see a doctor about your Biden Derangement Psychosis.
“Hegseth is an Army Major war vet with 2 bronze stars and degrees from Harvard and Princeton.” And since then he he has assaulted and Hegseth is former Army Major war vet with 2 bronze stars and degrees from Harvard and Princeton.” He harassed and assaulted multiple women, routinely drinks on the job to the point of excess. All it is going to take a couple of drinks at a state function and China and Russia will know all of our military secrets.
“Zuckbucks ” – I did not get any money. How do I apply for it?
“81 million votes my azz.” There were multiple recounts, including voluntary, automatic, and court ordered, no one found anything. All of Trump’s court cases were tossed for lack of evidence and Trump’s Attorney General said that 2020 was the most secure election.
“Again with the Nazi crap.” – As I stated Elon Musk is providing support to an an actual political party. “In a post on his social media site X, Musk endorsed Alternative for Germany (AfD), a far right, anti-immigrant and antisemitic party that is gaining popularity among conservative Germans.”
https://truthout.org/articles/musk-endorses-neo-nazi-german-party-hours-after-sanders-calls-him-authoritarian/
Leave it to Guy to politicize this and use it to harp on baseless “facts” and somehow loop in COVID. Wow, just wow.
No wonder him and his republican cronies don’t like fact checking.
What baseless facts?
Empowerment of people with extreme Left opinions hurt people not just ideologically but in real tangible ways. Empowering extremists at all levels from UofP cafeteria sandwich makers; to school crossing guards; to Fire Chiefs to Presidents hurt people. One pays a penalty, a comeuppance, if one is the wrong gender, age, race, or has the wrong sexual preference. I call it trickle-down “ressentiment” from Hillary all the way down through the ranks of her minions. An authentic Marxist redistribution of cultural capital. You might even call it in Woke terms, a redistribution of privilege.
One might have to wait longer for that ham and cheese at lunch time until all the women and minorities get their sandwiches; or one might have to wait until last before proceeding through a school crossing without running the risk of having your license plate reported to the State Police; or your house might burn down because DEI is a priority over fire hydrants; or you might discover driving through the old neighborhood that “your people” are no longer the majority minority thanks to a President’s surrogates Open Border Policy and that soccer nets have replaced the basketball nets at the park.
Or like my wife and I on December 18th 2024 experienced, accused in a letter from the new apartment manager, a 55+ educated white woman, a former reading teacher and school board member, of singing Christmas Carols in our apartment at 4:00 AM. No proof but she doesn’t need proof. She can say and do anything she likes because she can. Her demographic has never been held accountable for anything they say or do. They are protected by their gender; protected by all those cultural red buttons and maybe even by their milk-toast husbands. We don’t know her motives. Of course, it’s laughable that two seventy-year-olds who go to bed before ten would be accused of partying at 4:00AM but what’s next?
The radical Left at all levels need to be profiled, discovered, and weaned out of positions where they can affect people’s lives. They could be promoted like those horrible school principals to positions where they never have any contact with teachers, parents, or kids. The Radical Left is only about 9% of the population according to a 2024 Gallup Poll (See Megan Brenan, “U.S. Political Parties Historically Polarized Ideologically In 2024.” January 16, 2025.) They are our country’s dangerous DEI hires. This group hates America, hates white men, kills babies, and hate Jews. They are even willing to surrender power to avoid affinity with a Jew. Like Nietzsche said, “It is inhuman to bless when one is cursed” (Beyond Good and Evil). Likewise it is inhuman to give mercy to the merciless.
I was appalled upon hearing of the Argentine Junta dropping Leftists out of helicopters over the South Atlantic. What else could they do? Build reeducation camps in the Pampas? They probably thought it best they disappear rather than have comparisons drawn between them and Nazi Germany’s concentration camps. I suppose it’s just inhumane to even consider the thought.
This conversation reminds me of the one Professor Groeteschele had with General Black in the movie Fail Safe:
Brigadier General Warren A. Black : You’re justifying murder.
Prof. Groeteschele : Yes, to keep from being murdered.
Brigadier General Warren A. Black : In the name of what? To preserve what? Even if we do survive, what are we? Better than what we say they are? What gives us the right to live, then? What makes us worth surviving, Groeteschele? That we are ruthless enough to strike first?
Prof. Groeteschele : Yes! Those who can survive are the only ones worth surviving.
Brigadier General Warren A. Black : Fighting for your life isn’t the same as murder.
Prof. Groeteschele : Where do you draw the line once you know what the enemy is? How long would the Nazis have kept it up, General, if every Jew they came after had met them with a gun in his hand? But I learned from them, General Black. Oh, I learned.
Brigadier General Warren A. Black : You learned too well, Professor. You learned so well that now there’s no difference between you and what you want to kill.
“This conversation reminds me of the one Professor Groeteschele had with General Black in the movie Fail Safe:” -0 You do understand that movies are make-believe with dialogue created by writers and performed by actors and in no way reflect real life. Just like Chris Hemsworth is not Thor and Tom Cruise is not a skilled fighter pilot.
“Empowerment of people with extreme Left opinions hurt people not just ideologically but in real tangible ways. Empowering extremists at all levels from UofP cafeteria sandwich makers; to school crossing guards; to Fire Chiefs to Presidents hurt people. One pays a penalty, a comeuppance, if one is the wrong gender, age, race, or has the wrong sexual preference.” – You are free to say whatever you want. But that does not prevent people from speaking out against you.
They are our country’s dangerous DEI hires. This group hates America, hates white men, kills babies, and hate Jews.”
Jewish Americans who vote Democrat are disloyal.
Jewish Americans who vote Democrat hate their religion and hate Israel
If I love this election it will be because of Jewish Americans.
All of these statements were made by Trump during his campaign. So this makes him a leftist, DEI President.
“One might have to wait longer for that ham and cheese at lunchtime until all the women and minorities get their sandwiches” – Really? This has never happened.
“I was appalled upon hearing of the Argentine Junta dropping Leftists out of helicopters over the South Atlantic…..They probably thought it best they disappear rather than have comparisons drawn between them and Nazi Germany’s concentration camps.” Guess where many high-ranking Nazis fled after the war? Argentina. Including Adolf Eichmann, who was the architect for the Final Solution.