Based Underground is now a conservative news aggregator AND curated newsletter.
(DCNF)—Oprah Winfrey’s speech at the Democratic National Convention was widely praised, but her analogy comparing Democrats to firefighters is deeply flawed. The left has often been the arsonist, igniting divisive racial policies that undermine social cohesion and meritocracy.
A look at Vice President Kamala Harris’ record reveals she will be the one holding the metaphorical matches in this dangerous game.
Democrats claim to extinguish the flames of racism, but they are, in fact, stoking the fires of division by perpetuating the very stereotypes they claim to fight against. This is evident in their handling of race and meritocracy.
Michelle Obama’s DNC speech echoed familiar progressive themes about systemic oppression and racial inequality. While these issues — when it comes to our public educational system — are real and need attention, the solutions proposed often exacerbate the problems.
Take, for instance, the fire service, a field where lives are on the line, and the progressive left’s focus on diversity over competence would have dangerous repercussions. When hiring and promotions are based more on skin color than ability, merit is sidelined, and mediocrity is tolerated.
This reflects a troubling notion that minorities require special treatment because they cannot compete on a level playing field. This mindset is not only condescending but also hazardous.
It suggests that minority individuals cannot achieve excellence on their own merits and need lowered standards. This undermines capable individuals and endangers the public, compromising critical services like firefighting, police and the medical profession.
Elon Musk has described the “woke mind virus” as one of the biggest threats to modern civilization, characterizing it as a toxic ideology that undermines merit, divides people by identity and stifles free thought.
The evolution of diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) training exemplifies this shift. In the 1990s, diversity training was about following the law, treating each other with respect and building consensus around a shared purpose.
It was about coming together despite differences, understanding proper behavior at work, and advancing together. Today, however, DEI training often emphasizes identity over individuality and grievance over gratitude. It has shifted from fostering inclusion to imposing a Marxist-inspired ideology that divides people into oppressors and oppressed, deepening the very divisions it claims to heal.
Don’t wait for a stock market crash, dedollarization, or CBDCs before securing your retirement with physical precious metals. Genesis Gold Group can help.
Eric Holder, when serving as U.S. attorney general, once criticized America for being a “nation of cowards” in discussing race. Yet, true cowardice lies in refusing to challenge the progressive orthodoxy that equates race with victimhood and merit with privilege. This narrative brands dissenters as racists or worse and perpetuates a harmful cycle.
The left’s broader agenda also mirrors this flawed approach. They claim to save the “cat” — the vulnerable and marginalized — but their policies often trap these individuals in failed schools controlled by progressive unions. This approach keeps low-income children in failing educational environments, reinforcing dependency and victimhood instead of offering genuine opportunities for success.
Moreover, the civil rights issue of our time is this very failure of our education system, perpetuated by entrenched union control. Breaking the teachers’ union monopoly and providing parents with real choices is essential to offering children the best educational opportunities.
Empowering individuals to rise through merit and personal responsibility, rather than coddling them with the “soft bigotry of low expectations,” is the real path to progress.
The progressive left’s focus on identity over ability is not the solution it claims to be. Instead of extinguishing the flames of racism, it has exacerbated them, creating a society where race often overshadows merit.
To move forward, we must reject this flawed ideology and embrace a future where merit and character define a person’s worth. The real firefighters are those who champion equality, merit and individual responsibility, not those who perpetuate a cycle of dependency and division.
Frank Ricci was the lead plaintiff in the landmark Supreme Court case Ricci v Destefano. He retired as a Battalion Chief in New Haven CT. He has testified before Congress and is the author of the book, Command Presence.
The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.
Featured Image: Screen Capture/CSPAN
All content created by the Daily Caller News Foundation, an independent and nonpartisan newswire service, is available without charge to any legitimate news publisher that can provide a large audience. All republished articles must include our logo, our reporter’s byline and their DCNF affiliation. For any questions about our guidelines or partnering with us, please contact [email protected].
Diddy Charges and Arrest Beg the Question: What Other Elite Hollywood Celebs Knew About ‘Freak Offs?’
by Outkick
Puff Daddy is finally facing the mother of all karma for his alleged sick and twisted behavior spanning a decade or more. At yesterday’s press conference, reporters asked the attorney why it took so long to get these charges and that’s a great question. Fs Sot 3 (5) Here’s another…
Is This Kamala’s Biggest Lie About Her Family Yet?
by Natural News
U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris has falsely claimed that her grandfather was a freedom fighter in the Indian independence movement. The Democratic presidential nominee shared on Sept. 8 a picture of herself in India with her maternal grandfather P.V. Gopalan. She described him as a “retired civil servant who had…
What Did John Brennan Know?
by Frontpage Mag
In the wake of the second attempt on his life, Donald Trump flagged the “highly inflammatory language” Democrats have deployed against him, such as the charges of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris that the former president is a threat to democracy and so forth. When it comes to inflammatory language…
Are the White House and Pentagon Controlled by a Shadowy Few?
by Zero Hedge
As we approach the 2024 election, many Americans are disillusioned by the notion that their votes truly matter. Why? Because there’s a growing belief that a hidden force – often referred to as the Deep or Administrative State – wields disproportionate power behind the scenes. Despite our democratic process, can…
Special:
Stock up on long-term storage steak with 25-year shelf-life and take advantage of 35% off with promo code “freedom35” – this week only. Visit Prepper All-Naturals and secure your family’s future with freeze dried Ribeye, NY Strip, Tenderloin, and more.
Do We Have Another Instance Where the Secret Service Can’t Get Its Story Right?
by Townhall
Former President Donald Trump was nearly assassinated on September 15 while golfing in West Palm Beach. The former president’s trip to Trump International Golf Club was not planned, but would-be assassin Ryan Wesley Routh was waiting on the course, hiding in a shrubbery for 12 hours with a rifle and…
City Demands Pastor Take Down ‘Jesus’ Sign in Front of Church, Gets Epic Response From Him During Sermon
by Western Journal
Freedom-loving Americans cannot help but bemoan the mounting authoritarianism of both federal and state officials. As we discovered during the COVID era, however, sometimes Satan infects even our neighbors with the spirit of petty tyranny. In a clip posted Tuesday to the social media platform X, Pastor Mark Driscoll of…
Leftists Deserve the J6 Treatment
by J.B. Shurk
Remember: illegally appointed special counsel Jack Smith is prosecuting President Trump in D.C. for exercising his constitutional right to free speech after the 2020 election. Smith’s case essentially claims that Trump was not entitled to question the legitimacy of the mail-in ballot–tainted election and that his refusal to concede to Joe Biden…
Professor Teaches Students About Evil by Having Them Read Writings of Hitler’s Chief Propagandist
by Red State
A professor at the University of Austin ingeniously teaches students about “good and evil” by having them read the writings of some of the 20th century’s most evil people, including Adolf Hitler’s chief propagandist, Joseph Goebbels. Spoiler: I think it’s absolutely brilliant. Professor Marietta, who says Goebbels used “emotional appeal”…
Bombshell Lab Findings: Covid Jab Spike Proteins Likely Accelerate Cancer, Neurological Disorders, Dementia, Crohn’s, Lyme and More
by S.D. Wells, Natural News
(Natural News)—Back in February, U.S. Republican Senator Ron Johnson from Wisconsin held a roundtable discussion titled ‘Federal Health Agencies and the COVID Cartel: What Are They Hiding?’. In attendance at that forum was an internal medicine specialist and medical doctor named Sabine Hazan, who conducts and supervises clinical trials for cutting-edge…
Fan in MAGA Hat Denied Entry at Arizona Cardinals’ Home Stadium Unless She Threw It Away, Prompting Apology From Team
by The Blaze
The Arizona Cardinals organization has issued an apology after a fan was initially denied entry to the team’s home opener because she was wearing a Make America Great Again hat in support of the presidential candidacy of former President Donald Trump. On Sunday, thousands of football fans flocked to State…
New Report: State Department Funded Fact-Checkers to Censor ‘Lawful Speech’
by Michael Nevradakis Ph.D., The Defender
(The Defender)—The U.S. Department of State-funded domestic and international fact-checking entities that censored American independent media outlets and social media users who questioned the Biden administration’s COVID-19 and other policies, according to a congressional report. The report by the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Small Business stated: “The Federal…
Springfield City Manager Admitted in March He’d ‘Heard’ About Haitian Migrants Eating ‘Domesticated Animals’
by The Post Millennial
A video from the Springfield City Commission meeting in March has resurfaced on Twitter, showing the Springfield, Ohio, City Manager Bryan Heck admitting that he had heard stories about Haitian immigrants to the town consuming “domesticated animals.” A resident of Springfield spoke to at the meeting and the City Manager,…
Did the Government Shield Diddy Like Epstein?
by Daily Wire
Some of the most revealing moments from the sordid saga of Jeffrey Epstein came when government officials were asked direct questions, then ducked them without any real explanation. Case in point: Five years ago, the Labor Secretary at the time, Alex Acosta, was speaking to reporters about his handling of…
Saudi Arabia Won’t Recognize Israel Without Palestinian State, Says Crown Prince
by End Times Headlines
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman on Wednesday said the kingdom would not recognize Israel without a Palestinian state and strongly condemned the “crimes of the Israeli occupation” against the Palestinian people. “The kingdom will not stop its tireless work towards the establishment of an independent Palestinian state with East…
Retired Border Patrol Chief Accuses Joe Biden, Kamala Harris of Attempting to Hide Mass Release of Migrants Into U.S.
by Breitbart
Retired Border Patrol Chief Aaron Heitke, who left his position at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) in early 2023, says President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris’s administration has worked to hide the mass release of migrants into American communities. During a House Homeland Security Committee hearing on…
Less Than 50 Days Until Life in America Changes Forever, and Our Nation Is Primed for Massive Civil Unrest
by Michael Snyder
(The Economic Collapse Blog)—Years of extremely inflammatory rhetoric from the mainstream media and from many of our leaders have brought us to the brink of a societal nightmare. The numbers that I am about to share with you are horrifying, but it is so important for us to understand what…
