As a nation, we’re still wrapping our collective heads around the ugliness of racism and neo-Nazi rallies like the ones in Charlottesville.

I believe this is a dying gasp from a fading, ignorant mindset. Racism isn’t growing, it’s fading. Just look at the rates of interracial marriage and children. The real issue is economic stagnation. For nearly a decade economic growth has been just about the same as the rate of inflation. People aren’t getting ahead and their frustration manifests in the growing support for people like Trump and Bernie Sanders. I’d like to see a focus of re-igniting the economy, so people are earning more and feeling less threatened. Let’s learn from history.

I’m having a hard time imagining the bumper sticker, “Fight racism, cut the capital gains tax,” but a boy can dream.

One of the ways we amplify freedom at the Independence Institute is by amplifying people. That is, we develop talented, creative, hard-working freedom fighters who take their polished skills into other arenas of the battle.

Yet another example is our Ross Izard, who joined us via our Future Leaders Program as an intern working on education policy. We later hired him as a Policy Analyst. We call this our “try it before you buy it” technique. Many of our interns are so amazing, we end up hiring them (while they’re still too young to recognize exploitative salaries). Some, like our Justin Longo, are smart enough to realize that getting a “real” job means you can’t have empty Coors Light cans piling on your desk. Those types never leave, no matter what massive buyouts we offer them. And others, like a now-older Ross, move into roles with our coalition partners.

Ross will be joining ACE Scholarships, helping them to bring private scholarships to working families in other states. We’re retaining him here as a Senior Fellow in Education, so we can still tarnish his reputation by association. That’s his punishment for getting a job that actually pays.

Speaking of unwinnable battles, I have this silly hope that Public Radio will hire a libertarian-leaning reporter or two who can pop their progressive bubble. Michael Roberts, a media critic of Westword, noticed me tilting at this windmill in his latest article and found, after reaching out to Colorado Public Radio, they wouldn’t even talk to him. It’s a strong bubble. He joins me this Friday night on Devil’s Advocate to talk about it. That’s 8:30 p.m. on Channel 12, Colorado Public Television.

Now for me to get really whiny. I grew up on cheesy science fiction, like the old Star Trek and Doctor Who, and it’s fun to see the franchises still going strong. But, in what I see as pushing a social agenda over being true to a beloved character, they’re turning Doctor Who into a woman. Is it possible to support transgender rights and still resist the cause taking over a 55-year-long running character? Read my latest for the Denver Post here.

Think Freedom,

Jon