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Over the past three weeks, I have traveled across the country like a madman.

I have pulled off my best impression of George Clooneys character in Up in the Air while navigating the TSA, overpriced airport coffees and travel delays. My extensive travel was for both personal and professional reasons alike, but job interviews and spring breaks dont just happen on their own. I flew and drove all around the country from South Bend to San Francisco to Chicago to New York City to Los Angeles and back again. As someone who isnt very fond of flying in the first place, it is safe to say that flying can be irritating. But with that being said, traveling back and forth between the coasts has a way of putting life into perspective. I interacted with dozens of intelligent folks in my travels which assured me of Americas standing as a country of great diversity and opportunity. While many of these interactions triumphed in our successes, conversations with new and old friends alike all pointed to the same conclusion.

America, and Americans in general, are focused on the wrong things. And we are so far behind in the race that we actually think we are winning. Let me explain.

A culture war can be defined as a conflict between social groups and the struggle for dominance of their values, beliefs and practices. It commonly refers to topics that generate social disagreement and polarization. Our current culture war has pitted cultural liberalism versus cultural socialism in the conflict of our time.

COVID-19. Trump. Russia. Biden. Our southern border. Abortion. 2024. Kanye West. Elon Musk. Twitter. Black Lives Matter. Inflation. The South China Sea. All topics that have ripped America apart at its seams. All topics that have pitted conservatives against liberals and secularists against traditionalists. They mark rally cries and screams of retreat as our political landscape continues to be dynamically transformed.

While several of these topics certainly demand our utmost attention and need for civil discourse, the backbone of our current culture war has been mostly predicated on nonsense. This ooze of buzzwords, self-professed gurus and pseudo-science has caused many Americans to miss the point. As a society, we are losing and our inability to solve varying social issues has been disguised by the cries of I want a four-day work and heres why!

You really need to look to see where the true faults lie, but once you do, its terrifying.

During my time in New York, several of my interactions took center stage as I explored and connected with people during my first time in the city. During my five-day stay in Midtown, a sense of urgency hung in the air like the smell of freshly coated paint. Around Manhattan and its surrounding boroughs, blue and white-collar workers alike rushed about with this air of urgency, not thinking twice while jaywalking or rushing to catch the subway. There is a truth that exists in New York Citys atmosphere of opportunity, because well, there is opportunity. Thanks to the world of high finance, the service industry, tourism, the port of New York and everything else in between, millions of jobs exist around New Yorks bustling metropolis that can certainly offer benefits for many.

But I have a question: In thirty years, who is going to work these jobs?

A projected decline in our American workforce can certainly be attributed to our perpetually declining birth rate. Numbers dont lie, and the numbers that surround our birth rate should make a culture war in any rational society irrelevant. In 2020, our American birth rate was 1.64 births per woman. For context, the global rate currently sits at 2.30 births per woman, placing Americas rate firmly behind the curve. Additionally, in the 15 years since the Great Recession, our birth rate has declined by 20 percent.

While other world superpowers have faced similar challenges, this is an issue we have simply refused to address in political discourse. And yes, I am aware that high levels of student debt and the high cost of raising children make raising children in 2023 a complicated endeavor. But do you want to know what will be more complicated? A sharp decrease in our workforce participation and an even sharper decrease in our economic productivity. If the birth rate in New England doesnt rise by about 0.9 percent, how do we expect to find the people to work jobs needed that will contribute to our society? Of course, this is a complicated argument. But since major players in our culture war continue to discuss Andrew Tate, the Oscars and every other immaterial topic, the future of our country goes unspoken.

During my time in California, I visited two cities struggling with a different issue: homelessness. Like other sunny cities, San Francisco and Los Angeles have struggled with helping the homeless for decades. Unlike other cities, their inability to help the homeless has come to define these cities. While enjoying my vanilla sweet cream cold brew in the sun last week in Los Angeles, I struck up a conversation with a dog walker who was passionate about this issue. She explained that the money has always been there to help, but any such resources have been squandered by political corruption or misuse.

It doesnt help that California is energy and water insecure, she added. Californias agriculture industry produces delicacies such as almonds and walnuts. 80 percent of the worlds almond crop is farmed in California, and the strain on the states water supply is ludicrous. 6,000 almond farmers in California use more water than the entire city of Sacramento which has a population of 500,000. While this industry and droughts have decimated the water supply, no one really seems to be talking about it.

So while culture wars have always been geared towards winning the hearts and minds of the populace, reality shows that we are a country of complex issues that are in dire need of fixing. But for the time being, as Tik Tok takes the center stage in reporting and rhetoric, we must ask ourselves: Who will have the guts to address and attack these issues?

Stephen Viz is a one-year MBA candidate and graduate of Holy Cross College. Hailing from Orland Park, Illinois, his columns are all trains of thought, and he can be found at either Decio Cafe or in Mendoza. He can be reached at [emailprotected] or on Twitter at @StephenViz.

The views expressed in this column are those of the author and not necessarily those of The Observer.

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Is anybody paying attention? // The Observer - Observer Online

Former President Donald Trump appears to be in real trouble in New York and Georgia as investigations into his business practices and in his efforts to bully Georgia elections officials seem to have prosecutors on the brink of filing criminal charges against him.

Trump was already walking on thin ice within the Republican Party due to the fiasco of the mid-term elections that most certainly didnt go the way Republican officials had hoped. He has borne much of the blame for that poor performance and now, with revelations from the Dominion Voting Systems lawsuit against Fox News, it is apparent even the hosts on that network knew he was lying about the election.

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis appears to be gaining an edge on Trump, assuming he declares for the presidency. The question Republican voters must confront is if the man who is at the forefront of the culture war is the right man to lead the party.

DeSantis recent push in Florida to ban books in schools, control school curriculums, and push for restrictions on health care for people with sexual identity issues might at first seem like a winning strategy with conservative voters. If you look beyond the surface, problems become quickly visible.

The problem for Republicans is that DeSantis message is playing to a diminishing segment of the population, that being older, very conservative voters, many of whom have deeply held religious beliefs. That is a core demographic of the conservative party and DeSantis is not wrong to play to that group. It is his choice of issues that needs questioning.

The danger in this strategy lies in the fact that this voting group cant elect him president. He will need moderately conservative voters and not a few of those all-important swing voters who do not identify as either conservative or liberal. They are the ones he must convince that he is the man for the job.

This leaves one wondering if the strategy of belligerence he is pursuing in Florida is going to play well nationally and particularly with that group of voters. The whole issue of transgender and gender identity issues is a relatively small issue, but it carries with it large ramifications.

Only a tiny percentage of the population has gender identity issues. This means the DeSantis is making a mountain out of a molehill for potential political gain. The same thing goes with the attempt to ban books in the public schools. I believe many of the books targeted deal with sexual identity issues. Again, we are talking about a tiny percentage of the books in the school libraries and a tiny percentage of people who might read them.

More:How sinful is Alabama? Survey has surprising answer | GARY COSBY JR.

This is purely opinion, but I think that conservative parents who back this sort of book-banning fear that their child might read the books and then develop a desire to become homosexual or transgender or have some kind of sexual identity crisis. That is an unrealistic fear, but it is a fear that DeSantis is leveraging for political gain.

Think about it for a moment. I dont like the first-person shooter games that most kids play online. Nevertheless, though it might desensitize them to violence, simply playing a video game or reading a book about guns doesnt transform kids into mass murderers. In like manner, the likelihood of kids reading books about trans people isnt going to produce a tidal wave of sex changes in Floridas youth.

These issues are but a microcosm of the overall culture war that is being fought on Americas airwaves and on the internet all the time. Fears of transgender people somehow mucking up the system are mostly just that; fear. It is largely a non-issue that is being turned into an issue because media providers know controversy sells and this is an excellent controversy to stir up because it hits at parents fears.

The culture war is mostly about fear-mongering to begin with. If you dont recognize that, you have lost the battle. Do you remember the transgender bathroom issue that was raised during the last few years of Barack Obamas presidency? Yeah, how many trans people have you run across in public bathrooms? It wasnt a problem then and it isnt a problem now. In fact, if you have been in a public restroom with a trans person, you likely didnt even know it.

The problem with the conservative approach to the culture wars is that we are pushing away the next generation of voters to play to the fears of older voters today. The older voters wont be around in a few years, but those who are young today will be in the arms of the Democrats and will be essentially a lost generation to Republicans. Short-sighted politicians of today are losing tomorrows elections. Since the culture war is mostly about political posturing rather than true conviction, it seems to me that it makes a great deal of sense to position conservatism to make future gains rather than give up the future over what is essentially a non-issue.

Gary Cosby Jr. is the photo editor of The Tuscaloosa News. Readers can email him at gary.cosby@tuscaloosanews.com.

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Fighting the culture war for political gain | GARY COSBY JR. - Tuscaloosa Magazine

Galloway, N.J. Two-thirds of New Jersey adults believe parents should be more involved in local decisions about what curriculum is taught in the schools, according to a Stockton University Poll released today.

Only 5% of the 600 state residents interviewed said parents should be less involved in deciding what gets taught, and 26% said the involvement level should stay the same as it is now.

More respondents identified curriculum (24%) as their top education concern than any other issue, with bullying next at 9% and students falling behind in core subjects at 8%.

Majorities considered it very important that noncore subjects be taught in the schools, including racism and its impact (66%) and sex education (57%). But only 30% considered it very important to teach about gender identity and sexuality and 35% on gender issues and stereotypes. Republican respondents, for the most part, did not think it was important to teach about gender identity issues.

New Jersey adults support teaching sex education and material about racism and its impact, which have been controversial elsewhere. But the poll shows many in the Garden State still have qualms over teaching about sexual identity and gender norms, especially in the earlier grades."

John Froonjian, director of the William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy at Stockton University

More than one in four (28%) supported the banning of certain books from school classrooms and libraries, including 19% of Democrats and 54% of Republicans. Sixty-one percent opposed book banning and 9% were unsure. Meanwhile, 73% were concerned about book censorship, but 22% were not.

Gender issues being taught in schools has been a hot-button topic for parents in many states and has become part of the culture wars in our politically polarized nation, said John Froonjian, director of the Hughes Center.

New Jersey adults support teaching sex education and material about racism and its impact, which have been controversial elsewhere. But the poll shows many in the Garden State still have qualms over teaching about sexual identity and gender norms, especially in the earlier grades, Froonjian said.

Overall, New Jersey residents are satisfied with the states schools and teachers. A majority (60%) are satisfied with the quality of K-12 education in the state and the vast majority (85%) have at least some trust in New Jersey school teachers.

Anywhere from 81-83% of K-12 parents, in particular, said their children are either on track or ahead of where they should be in core subjects like math, science, reading and writing, as well as social and communication skills. A minority of 14-16% said their child is behind.

Respondents were asked to rank the importance of various curricula, assuming the topics are being introduced and taught at an age-appropriate level.

Financial literacy was considered important to school curriculum by the highest rate of residents (97%) followed by social and emotional well-being (91%), sex education, media literacy, and racism (all 85%). Gender-related topics ranked last with lessons on gender issues and stereotyping deemed important by 62% and gender identity and sexuality by 59%.

When asked at what grade level these topics should be introduced, a majority (51%) said social and emotional well-being should be introduced in elementary school. A plurality (44%) said racism and its impact should also be introduced at this level. When it comes to sex ed, most (55%) said it should be introduced in middle school. A plurality of one-third said gender issues, and gender identity and sexuality should be introduced in middle school as well.

At least somewhat important to incorporate into curriculum

Gender identityand sexuality

Views toward topics of gender were divided sharply along partisan lines, with Republicans less supportive.

For the most part, K-12 parents are generally satisfied with New Jersey schools handling of potentially controversial topics, said Hughes Center Research Associate Alyssa Maurice.

Of those with children in grades K-12, a majority (62%) said their childrens school does a good job of keeping parents informed about what is being taught, including potentially controversial topics. A plurality said their childrens school gives parents the option to opt-out of potentially controversial lessons while 29% said the school did not and 27% were not sure.

Those who did not have any children in grades K-12 currently think that schools should keep parents informed about what is being taught at a rate of 71%, while 21% do not think schools should do so.

An area of consensus among New Jersey residents is supporting students mental health, with 90% in support of offering more mental health resources in schools.

For full poll results, visit https://stockton.edu/hughes-center/polling/polling-results-2023.html

Methodology

The poll of New Jersey adult residents was conducted by the Stockton Polling Institute of the William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy from Feb. 24-Mar. 10, 2023. Stockton University students texted cell phones with invitations to take the survey online and Opinion Services supplemented the dialing portion of the fieldwork, which consisted of cell and landline telephone calls. Overall, 92% of interviews were conducted on cell phones and 8% on landline phones. In terms of mode, 75% were reached via dialing and 25% were reached via text-to-web. A total of 600 New Jersey adult residents were interviewed. Both cell and landline samples consisted of random digit dialing (RDD) sample from MSG. Data are weighted based on U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey data for New Jersey on variables of age, race, ethnicity, education level, sex, and region. The poll's margin of error is +/- 4 percentage points at a 95% confidence level. MOE is higher for subsets.

About the Hughes Center

The William J. Hughes Center for Public Policy (stockton.edu/hughescenter) at Stockton University serves as a catalyst for research, analysis and innovative policy solutions on the economic, social and cultural issues facing New Jersey, and promotes the civic life of New Jersey through engagement, education and research. The center is named for the late William J. Hughes, whose distinguished career includes service in the U.S. House of Representatives, Ambassador to Panama and as a Distinguished Visiting Professor at Stockton. The Hughes Center can be found onYouTube, and can be followed on Facebook@StocktonHughesCenter, Twitter@hughescenterand Instagram@ stockton_hughes_center.

# # #Media contacts:Stacey ClappDirector of Strategic CommunicationsStacey.Clapp@stockton.edu609-626-3645609-412-8069

Mark MelhornAssociate Director of News and Media RelationsMark.Melhorn@stockton.edu609-652-4593609-569-6026

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Poll: Involve parents in what's taught in N.J. schools - Stockton University

Iowas Grinnell College and Seltzer & Co., a polling company in Des Moines, which partner to conduct a national poll each year on the attitudes of Americans towards politics and political figures, as well as hot-button cultural issues, released their latest data Wednesday. The findings regarding controversial books and their accessibility in public schools should hearten librarians and booksellers everywhere.

We run different experimental questions each time on top of the political battery and this time we have books, noted Ellen de Graffenreid, v-p of communications at Grinnell College, regarding the completed surveys of 1,004 adult U.S. residents that was conducted this past week. Three of the 16 questions addressed books in middle school libraries considered contentious or divisive because they explore sexuality, race and racism, or religion.

In response to a question on whether such books should be included in public middle school library collections, a majority of respondents agreed that students should have access to books addressing the following subjects: sexual orientation (56%), racism in the U.S. (76%), gender identity (57%), the Bible (84%), creationism (67%), and the Quran (67%). Interestingly, 10% of respondents were not sure about books on creationism and 8% were not sure about books on the Quran.

A follow-up question asked to what degree various groups should have a role in deciding what books should be included in public middle school collections. A majority of respondents, 57%, said that school librarians should play a major role in making such decisions, while 55% of respondents said students also should, and 53% said families of students should as well. Although 44% of the respondents said that local elected school boards should weigh in on such a matter, only 17% said that state elected officials should get involved.

The third question on the topic of controversial books provided two options concerning views on controversial books: 62% were concerned that materials of value to students could be removed from school libraries due to the current culture wars, while 30% were concerned that materials that were harmful to students would remain on school library shelves.

Americans want decisions about materials in school libraries to be made locally by school librarians, families, school boards, and students themselves, Peter Hanson, a political science professor who is director of the Grinnell College National Poll, said in a statement.

Read more:
National Poll Finds Americans Support Freedom to Read - Publishers Weekly

Ex-N.J. congressmans next campaign will be fighting culture wars in public schools  NJ.com

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Ex-N.J. congressmans next campaign will be fighting culture wars in public schools - NJ.com