Reflecting on One Year

Reflecting on One Year

*By Julie Barrett, Founder, Conservative Ladies of Washington

This photo popped up today in my Facebook memories from one year ago today, October 24th. It’s hard to believe one year has passed already. We were just weeks away from Washington Governor Jay Inslee shutting down businesses once again to “slow the spread” of Covid-19, so we knew that this opportunity we had to gather might be the last for some time.

Let me take you back to the beginning…

In November of 2019 one of my lady friends asked me where I find conservative friends. I had recently been kicked out of a couple different neighborhood Facebook groups for speaking my mind (nicely, I will add) about some “sensitive” topics. You know the ones – where if you don’t fall in line with the leftist narrative, you are called everything from racist/white supremacist to a homophobic bigot. This question from my friend got me thinking…” I should create a little Facebook group where I can invite my girlfriends that I know for sure are conservative and then it will start a ripple effect of them inviting theirs and so on.” And so Conservative Ladies of Washington was born on Facebook on November 7, 2019.

I thought my girlfriends and I would meet up for coffee dates and happy hours and share content that was deemed “unsafe” for other spaces on social media. Many of my conservative girlfriends also business-owners, we would be able to network as well. I had no idea what God had in mind for my “little Facebook group.”

Having never been political, I was not well-versed in political-speak and many government processes. I had just been living my life, raising my children, running my business. Having spent 10 years as a single mom I didn’t really have much extra time to devote to government issues and school boards, much less the PTA. It was everything I could do to keep up with paying the taxes and making sure homework was done each night. I was certainly unqualified on paper to lead a political organization. Good thing I had no idea this was where my “little Facebook group” was headed otherwise I probably would have sprinted in the opposite direction.

A few months later, the Covid lockdowns hit, and our group started to grow even more. And then in late May we had the George Floyd protests all over the country with BLM and Antifa rioting and the social media environment was toxic for conservative-leaning folks. Our group grew even larger. It was also a Presidential election year, so the summer of 2020 was filled with rallies and campaign events not just for the president, but for Washington governor and other races. Our group continued to grow.

Come October we had nearly 2000 ladies in our Facebook group. And we made certain, short of a background check, that the ladies we admitted to the group were at least lovers of America. We had begun to have small meetups at restaurants and coffee shops, but we would have more than a dozen ladies show up and at the time you could only have 5 people at a table, and they all had to be from the same household. (I’ve never had so many sisters in my life!!) It was such a huge gift when one of the ladies in our group offered to host an event for us in her Snoqualmie venue.

We had one hundred ladies show up to our event. Ladies from all over the Puget Sound area. Some came with friends, and many came by themselves, excited to meet new friends who they could speak freely around and not feel fear of judgement and condemnation. It was amazing! I will never forget looking around the room at the huge smiles on every single face! The “hum” of lady-chatter and laughter in the venue was like sweet music. Finally, we didn’t have to walk on eggshells. We were free! We had found our tribe!

We’ve been through a lot since that October day at North Fork Farms. I could never have imagined one year ago that we would be facing the tyranny we are facing today. We talked about it, we’ve read about it in history, we know what the Bible says, but it was hard to grasp the possibility that it could become our reality here in America. And yet here we are.

The importance of linking arms with likeminded ladies is greater than ever before during our time. We need each other for encouragement, to empower each other to rise and fight back and to equip each other with the tools that we all need to be able to survive and thrive during these very evil days.

I am honored to be part of this amazing movement called Conservative Ladies of Washington. I wake up everyday with wonder of where God is going to lead us next. I am excited to see what 2022 has in store. We don’t know what the future holds, but we know who holds the future. That gives me a peace that passes understanding and I hope it does for you too.

I would love to invite you to become a subscribing member of Conservative Ladies of Washington. Join our movement, link arms with likeminded ladies!

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Hopeful or Helpless

Hopeful or Helpless

*By Deb Anderson, Conservative Ladies of Washington Education Lead

When I think about the next blog I need to write, I wait for an idea to come to me (of course).  This week, for some reason, I can’t get a lab experiment out of my mind.  It was done in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s by psychologists Martin Seligman and Steven Maier.  I’ve always hated these guys because they use animals in their experiments.  It makes me cringe.  So, read the next bit as fast as you can, maybe, if you’re like me, you can read it with your eyes closed.

            Seligman and Maier were working with dogs and testing their responses to electrical shocks.  Some of the dogs received electrical shocks that they could not predict or control.  The dogs were placed in a box with two chambers divided by a low barrier.  One chamber had an electrified floor and the other was not.  When the dogs were placed in the box and the electrified floor was turned on, a strange thing happened.  Some dogs didn’t even attempt to jump over the low barrier to the other side.  Further, the dogs who didn’t attempt to jump the barrier were generally the dogs who had previously been given shocks with no way to escape them, and the dogs who jumped the barrier tended to be those who had not received such treatment.

To further investigate this phenomenon, Seligman and Maier gathered a new batch of dogs and divided them into three groups:

  1. Dogs in Group One were strapped into harnesses for a period of time and were not administered any shocks;
  2. Dogs in Group Two were strapped into the same harnesses but were administered electrical shocks that they could avoid by pressing a panel with their noses;
  3. Dogs in Group Three were placed in the same harnesses and also administered electrical shocks, but were given no way to avoid them.

Once these three groups had completed this first experimental manipulation, all dogs were placed (one at a time) in the box with two chambers. Dogs from Group One and Group Two were quick to figure out that they only needed to jump over the barrier to avoid the shocks, but most of the dogs from Group Three didn’t even attempt to avoid them.  Based on their previous experience, these dogs concluded that there was nothing they could do to avoid being shocked (Seligman & Groves, 1970).

            Seligman called this discovery “learned helplessness.”  That’s what I couldn’t get out of mind.  It struck me how that could describe what a lot of us are feeling right now.  As I read the posts from such discouraged parents about the school situation, from business owners about the vax situation, from employees who are facing loss of income, they seem so full of despair and helplessness.   Watch the progression of the vax mandate.  It is a clear study of learned helplessness.  Every step, we thought we found a way to get around it.  Three different vaccines were offered for us to take voluntarily.  Many of us chose not to take them.  Case closed.  Then, it was decided if you work in the government, you need the vax (unless, of course, you are in Congress—Congress is exempt from the mandate).  You can avoid the vax if you have a medical or religious reason.  Phew!  We have a way out.  Then, all businesses with 100 employees or more must have the vax.  But you can still have the exemptions.  Then, the medical exemption is taken away.  But you can still have the religious exemption.  Then, if you don’t get the vax, you will lose your job.  And, the religious exemption is now being reversed.  With each phase, we found the unelectric floor and landed there.  We kept jumping over the net to get away from the new shock only to find the floor on the other side was electric.  Soon, like the Seligman dogs, we are so numb and believe there is no way out.  We collapse and refuse to keep trying.  We have learned we are helpless. 

            The government could teach a course on how to cause learned helplessness.  They have known what they were doing all along.  Now, with each post of our despair or discouragement, we tell them their work has been successful.  We have learned.  We are helpless.

            With any theory, there is a discussion of how to overcome the situation.  Medical News Today wrote an article about how to win over learned helplessness.  I’ve adjusted it a bit to fit our situation.

  1. Find a place of support and encouragement.  Whether it is Conservative Ladies, a book study, a church, or a neighborhood group, find that place where you are encouraged, where you are told, “This too will pass.” 
  2. Explore the origins of learned helplessness.  Maybe just knowing there was an evil plan from the very first will make you MAD enough to get up.  I gave a brief idea of how it happened with the vax, but you can follow it with the other issues.  How did we get to aborting a healthy newborn?  How did we get to teaching sex to kindergartners?  How did we get to losing control of our 13 year old children?  There’s always path.
  3. Develop ways to decrease feelings of helplessness.  Prisoners of War always say, they could have everything taken away from them, but they still could control their attitude.  Your attitude can control your feelings.  Your feelings can control your actions.
  4. Identify negative thoughts that contribute to learned helplessness.  When we are inundated with such discouraging posts, decide whether you want to read all of them at one time.  They are legitimate so we don’t want to ignore them.  Maybe, find a way to say something positive in your response to that post.
  5. Identify behaviors that reinforce learned helplessness.  Did you choose not to fight in the early stage before the vax was mandated, before CRT entered our schools.  Did we let the little things go by without a fight?  Did we compromise our own standards with the smaller changes?
  6. Replace thoughts and behaviors with positive and beneficial ones.    Kudos to those who post the encouraging news that some school boards are backing down, some businesses are standing their ground and refusing to fire people.   Choose to find the good that is still happening in America.  Cheer for those who are standing in the front lines.  And, especially this week, VOTE for those who are going to bring about good changes.
  7. Improve self-esteem.  I know for me, your remarks on my blogs help keep me encouraged.  It’s stressful to write these things.  Why would anyone want to read something I’ve written.  Thank you for your steady encouragement.
  8. Work through challenging emotions.  Talk about it with each other.  “I feel hopeless.  Help me see some hope.”  Surround yourself with people who understand and who can find positive things going on.
  9. Set goals and tasks.  Get involved.  What can you do to turn learned helplessness into learned hopefulness.   Set your mind on other things.  Set up an exercise regime.  Go outside and breathe deeply.  Go dance in the rain.  Take a walk during a thunderstorm.  Turn the music on and DANCE.  Go for a long drive alone or with others.  Buy a dog.  Do something you’ve been putting off.

Now is not the time to lay like a dog (excuse the crass analogy) who feels there is no way out.  It is the time to get up and kick learned helplessness in the butt.

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What You Need to Know When Casting Your Ballot

What You Need to Know When Casting Your Ballot

*By Laurel Christiansen

I just finished my Voting Picks for the 2021 General Election for Snohomish County. This is the first time I covered the entire County. Laurel’s Picks – Snohomish County – Conservative Ladies of Washington

Off-year local elections are full of new candidates and it is difficult to know who is the best choice. These jobs are important and many of the people elected use them as stepping stones for advancing up the political ladder. Those running should truly care about the duties and goals of the office they are running for, the results of their actions when elected, and the impact on our community. I’ve tried to find those people.

You’ll notice there are many candidates who list endorsements from State Representatives and office holders from their party, mostly Democrats, as a reason they deserve your vote. So, here is what those people passed just this year and what the people they endorse also support:

The Democrat House and Senate almost unanimously passed over 35 tax increases, including mandatory long-term care insurance( whether you want it or not), a State Income Tax (7 Percent Capital Gains Tax) which is just the start to taxing income in Washington State, and many more. I hear this is just the beginning of the taxes they want to inflict on all of us and more is coming next year.

They passed a dozen bills purposely tying the hands of our police and making it easier for criminals to rob, steal, and harm citizens. Crime is up as a result and our police are demoralized and resigning. In Snohomish County, the County Council cut funding for our Sheriff’s office by 3 percent in 2020. This proved to be unpopular. So, this year the State Legislature did the dirty work and it has impacted our entire State. I’m told that there are several groups that put constant pressure on the Democrat County Councilmembers to further defund police and these groups are not letting up. Some of the candidates running for office on this year’s ballot support these groups.  

They legalized hard drugs, such a heroin, cocaine, fentanyl, etc. for individuals to carry.  These elected Democrats never talk about stopping those who sell these drugs or how they get the drugs into our state.  Illegal drugs sales, drug deaths, overdoses, and suicides are at epidemic levels in Washington State and we are a target for Mexican drug cartels because of the lax drug laws passed with 99 percent of Democrat votes without any Republicans.

They are forcing wage earners to purchase State-run, long-term care insurance that will give very little care if needed. If you move to another state, or you die, or you work in Washington and live in Oregon, you will pay in but never get your money nor will your survivors. This law wasn’t passed for the good of the people—you can buy your own coverage for much cheaper on the open market and you will get the benefits—instead of the State. Don’t be fooled, this is a slush fund for democrats. In January, 2022, a tax passed this year to increase the funds for Family Leave will take effect; coupled with the long-term care tax there will be a new tax totaling 1 percent taken from every wage earner’s paycheck. This is just the starting point—these taxes will be increased way beyond what they are today. Washington State started out with a small gas tax years ago; today we are the fourth highest in the nation with 49.4 cents a gallon. Democrats are dreaming about how much they can make off more income taxes on your home, your car, your retirement,  your stock sales, and your death. They say they only want the rich to pay their fair share but the average person is always their real target.

I make my picks in several ways. I personally know a number of the people elected or running this time. I’m looking for a conservative candidate who truly cares about the job, has knowledge of what it will take to do a good job, and a selfless focus on what is best for their constituents. Then I talk to people involved in politics whom I respect and who know the candidates who are running on both sides. If there are not good candidates in a race; I don’t make an endorsement. Sometimes I choose one that is a lesser of two evils and the negative impact will be less. Sometimes there are great people who put themselves out there and I get excited over those people—Sam Low is one of them; Nate Nehring is another. I love when my sources rave about a candidate; it makes you feel good about the world and we need a lot more of these people.

Voting in this election is the start to doing something positive; it will impact all of us, our children, our grandchildren for years to come. I hope my pick’s inspires you to believe we can still make a difference. Please pass the list on to everyone you know and challenge them to make a difference, too. Then, say a pray for those who have stepped forward; ask God to bless their effort and help us all.

Love and Blessings,

Laurel

Laurel’s Picks – Snohomish County – Conservative Ladies of Washington

Let’s Honor Our Veterans

Let’s Honor Our Veterans

Conservative Ladies of Washington has teamed up with BOAZ Coffee Company to give special tribute and honor to our nation’s veterans this November and especially on Veteran’s Day. Our veterans are the true heroes of this great nation and this is just a small way that we can show our gratitude and appreciation.

But we need YOUR help to make this happen! Are you or do you know a veteran that we should spotlight in this project? Please find directions below to submit your story.

If you would like to show your support for our veterans by purchasing coffee to be gifted to a veteran including a special note. If you would like to send coffee to a veteran in your life, you can enter code HERO at checkout for free shipping. You will find access to all of these options at Home – Boaz Coffee Company

A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself. 
Joseph Campbell

 

Submission instructions.  Please note the submission deadline is October 31,2021 so we can have enough time to compile and edit the slide show to be released November 11, 2021.

  • Please submit your photo, ideally in portrait (aspect ratio 4:5, 1080 x 1350 px) or square (aspect ratio 1:1, 1080 x 1080 px) to keep everything standard. If you cannot do this, please submit and we will do our best to edit ratios.  We are just trying to minimize editing efforts as this is a personal mission and we are not professional editors…we are coffee experts  J
  • Email photos to coffeequestions@boazcoffee.com with the name and branch of the veteran by 10/31/2021.
  • Spread the word! Text or email a friend.  Share or tag our social media posts.  Getting the word out so we can represent more faces will make this campaign more meaningful.
  • In the body of the email with the picture, name and branch, please also include your Instagram or Facebook profile handle(s) along with the profile handle of the veteran (or veterans family) in the photograph (if applicable) so we can tag you when this post goes live. If you/they are not on social media, please send an email address so we can also distribute the slide show via email.  We want each veteran or veterans family to receive the recognition and see the other brave men and women who have stood shoulder to shoulder with them in service to our country.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to email them to coffeequestions@boazcoffee.com

Show Your Papers!

Show Your Papers!

*By Julie Barrett, Founder, Conservative Ladies of Washington

Yesterday the dictator of Washington state, Jay Inslee, once again doubled down on his vaccine mandates, announcing new restrictions coming for public events. Starting on November 15th (because that’s the magic “danger date”) you will have to show proof of vaccination or proof of negative Covid test for all people 12 and over attending “large” events in Washington state. Papers. You will have to show papers to attend indoor events with 1000+ people or outdoor events with 10,000+ people (where do they get these magical numbers anyway???)

Beginning October 25th in King County you will have to show proof of vaccination or a negative Covid test for outdoor events with 500 people or more, indoor entertainment and recreational events or establishments and restaurants and bars. I would venture to guess that other western Washington counties will follow suit soon.

A few friends and I have an ongoing group chat, and this has been a topic of discussion for us. This morning one of my friends asked:

How are you going to proceed with new “show your papers” mandate at the end of the month? Wait it out, not going anywhere, show them papers (cough cough)?

We all started chiming in…I’m sure we were all banging rapidly on our keyboards…

I will not comply. I will only go to freedom loving places.

Showing a paper cough cough is giving in.

Look I just about lost my job. I take this more seriously than 95% of people. This is a hill I will die on. I wish I could say the same for my fellow countrymen, especially conservatives that talk a big game but no action behind it.

My response:

Hell no I’m not showing anything…no negative test, nothing. If a business requires proof of anything I won’t waste my time. The time to stand firm is RIGHT NOW.

This is a defining moment, friends. Showing “papers” (cough cough) – of any kind is compliance. Regardless of how you feel about the vaccine, regardless of if you are vaccinated or not – the idea that American citizens be mandated to show papers to enter a business to receive service is unconstitutional, it’s authoritarian. If we go along with this by showing our vaccination papers or our negative Covid test or our “cough cough” papers, we are essentially saying this is acceptable and we are complying with it.

It’s time to say NO. Remember a year and a half ago when they told us to “stay home save lives?” Now is the time to STAY HOME SAVE AMERICA. Stop going to restaurants that are complying with this unconstitutional mandate and only give your business to the freedom loving establishments. You’ll have to skip the concert or the sporting event. Imagine if a huge percentage of season ticket holders for sporting events said: “not renewing until you end this mandate.” Sports teams would be forced to reconsider as such a loss would be a huge financial hit. As long as we keep playing their game, they will continue to push the limits and enforce more restrictions on we the people.

As my friend said – a lot of conservatives talk a big game, but when push comes to shove, how many of us will put our money where our mouth is? If only a small percentage of people take this seriously…” die on this hill” …we slip further from the freedoms we have long been accustomed to, the freedom so many men and women have sacrificed their lives to give us.

Here’s the good news: there are freedom loving businesses who will not comply with these mandates. Find them and support them well. Be ready to stand with them if they come under fire, and they will.

Giving up the lifestyle you’ve always known may seem like a major sacrifice. It’s a sacrifice but consider the sacrifices of the Americans that have come before us who were willing to DIE so people could live free. If we can’t sacrifice some of our modern-day luxuries, then I guess I would say we don’t deserve a free America.

I’m glad to know that I have friends who also view this as the “hill they will die on.” It feels like we are a small minority, but I hope I am wrong. I hope that as this plays out, we see more and more Americans join us on this hill.

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How Do We Fight Back?

How Do We Fight Back?

*By Julie Barrett, Founder, Conservative Ladies of Washington

I get emails and messages daily asking me “what are we going to do to fight back?”

I know that most people want a tangible action item that they can go do right now, which makes my answer seem too simple. People want to shake things up, make some noise. The way we fight back is simple and often times the silence of it speaks more volumes than if we raise our voice.

What do we do?

WE STAND

We make our decision and we stand firm. We do not waiver. We are aware that our decisions come with consequences and we prepare ourselves and our families for the possibility of those consequences. There is a peace within when you make a decision that you know deep inside is the right decision for you (and your family). The consequences may be rough and uncomfortable, but having your integrity in tact is invaluable.

What we are seeing right now with workers across the country is exactly what I’m talking about. They have made their decision. They’re standing firm, ready to deal with the consequences of their decision. And Americans all over are feeling the effect of their decision. Personally, I am so proud of them and I do not mind, for one minute, any inconvenience it may cause to my lifestyle. Fortunately, this isn’t a choice I’ve had to make professionally, but if I did, I hope people would support me. And the support is astounding!

The heroes are the ones that are standing. It’s the quiet way of fighting back. It’s a David and Goliath moment. These people are what our government considers the “little guy”, the David, if you will. But it’s proving to be very difficult to conduct daily business without the Davids.

We don’t need to ask the government to give us our rights. They are ours for the taking.

Kyrie Irving is a perfect example of STANDING and not letting anyone take your voice.

Fight back by standing firm in your decision. And be prepared, not panicked.

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Letter to WSSDA

Today Conservative Ladies of Washington sent an email to the President and Executive Director of Washington State School Director’s Association requesting a response to the NSBA’s (National School Board Association) September 29th letter to the Biden Administration.

We encourage parents and citizens in Washington to send a similar email to WSSDA leadership requesting a response to the letter and specifically to the 3 questions as outlined in our letter. It’s important to make your voices heard and to hold these organizations accountable. Please respectfully put the pressure on the WSSDA to address these concerns.

CLW letter to WSSDA

WSSDA Letter 10.12

Contact the WSSDA Leadership: Officers/Board of Directors (wssda.org)

We will be sure to update this post when we receive a response from the WSSDA.

 

Join the movement. Become a member of CLW today! Conservative Ladies of Washington Membership – Conservative Ladies of Washington

They Can’t Do It Without Us.

They Can’t Do It Without Us.

*By Julie Barrett, Founder, Conservative Ladies of Washington

 

Over the weekend Southwest Airlines canceled over 1800 flights, accounting for 28% of each day’s service. Other airlines canceled flights as well, but not nearly to the degree that SWA did. Washington State Ferries also had an unheard of number of cancelled routes over the last several days – to the tune of over 100 on Saturday alone. On Sunday, Amtrak tweeted that they were canceling routes due to “crew issues.”

 

 

The mainstream media is claiming the Southwest cancelations are due to weather issues, which is odd considering that these conditions are not affecting the other airlines. The Washington State Ferries are said to be having issues due to crews being quarantined for Covid-19 and being of retirement age. That’s very interesting the timing of these crew shortages with the October 18th vaccine mandate deadline looming. I mean, if I was one of these workers and was making the choice not to inject my body with one of these vaccines and knowing that I could be fired, I would probably want to use up as much of my remaining Paid Time Off (PTO) as possible.

 

I am excited to see workers all across this great nation standing up for their constitutional rights. The threats and coercion by our government are authoritarian and anti-American and if we don’t stand up to them now (regardless of what you choose with the vaccine) they will continue to take more and more of our freedoms away from us. I’ve said it since Governor Jay Inslee first announced these vaccine mandates in Washington state – this is going to be the biggest game of chicken we’ve ever seen. Are they really prepared for the people to stand up and say “NO” and walk away?

 

You have to be vaccinated to travel to many places. How does that work when the plane can’t get off the ground because the pilot chose to practice his medical freedom? People want to dial 911 and have the police show up in response to their emergency. How is that going to work when you have almost 300 Seattle Police officers who are choosing not to get vaccinated and therefore are told they will be without a job on October 18th? And it’s not just Seattle police and it’s not just Southwest airlines.

 

It’s doctors and nurses and other medical professionals. It’s teachers and bus drivers and other school staff. It’s firefighters and paramedics. It’s Department of Transportation workers and construction crews.

 

The people who want to work and are not afraid of Covid are working. But a large percentage of those people may lose their jobs in the weeks to come because they are not vaccinated and aren’t going to be vaccinated – maybe they had Covid or maybe there is a medical reason they can’t get the vaccine or maybe they just don’t want it! There’s a large percentage of people who have not re-engaged in the workforce because they are either getting paid by the government not to work or they are afraid of the Covid and have chosen not to return to work. We are preparing to see the population of people who want to work and are capable of working be terminated for not responding favorably to government threats. How is that going to work out?

 

They can’t do it without us. The travel, the shopping, the food, the coffee, the construction, the law enforcement…none of it can be done without us.

 

What does this look like going forward? I don’t really know, but it is exciting to see people from all walks of life and all professions standing up and saying “NO, you’re not taking away my rights!” Millions of Americans are voicing support for these patriots who are holding the line. #FreedomFlu is trending on Twitter.

 

 

This stops when we the people stand up to this tyranny. I am proud to see so many brave Americans refusing to back down, refusing to be bullied. This is how we fight back and this is how we will win. Standing together, standing for America!

 

Join us! Become a Member Today!

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It’s Time to Rise!

It’s Time to Rise!

*By Julie Barrett, Founder, Conservative Ladies of Washington

Have you been cautious about who you expose your conservative, right-leaning, maybe even just “moderate and sane” political beliefs to? Have you kept your American flag in your garage so your neighbors don’t make the assumption you are some crazy white supremacist, Trump voter…quite possibly involved in the J6 “insurrection?” Have you avoided making statements like “actually, there are only two genders” because you were concerned you could lose your job, lose a friend or be called a homophobic bigot?

The days of walking on eggshells and keeping our views to ourselves (especially when they are based in FACT) are long over. A large part of the reason we find ourselves, our country and our society in this place today is because of our “politeness”, not wanting to ruffle feathers or offend people by speaking out about our views. We must take responsibility for the fact that we have played a part in allowing this to happen.

But it’s not too late!

We can stand up, we can RISE today! We can speak truth, unapologetically, in a respectful way. If people are offended by it – if they’re not going to shop in your store, not going to be friends with you, not going to follow you on social media anymore – that’s not your problem. It’s time to let go of the people who are happy to have us sitting in “polite silence” so we don’t offend them or because we are afraid (yes…AFRAID) that people will call us names and accuse us of being things that we are not. Know who you are, know what you stand for and STAND.

The people on the left do not care if what they say offends you. They don’t care if you won’t shop in their business. They will stop at nothing to run their agenda. So why are we sitting quietly in the corner? It’s time for each of us to say “no more.” There’s a saying I love and refer to often when I’m scared to say what needs to be said…

“Speak the truth, even if your voice shakes.”

Stepping out in boldness often isn’t easy and it almost always comes with a cost. When I look at where we are today I see that the cost of silence is far greater than the cost of speaking up. When I first started speaking up about controversial issues I lost many people I thought were friends. True friends love you even when you don’t see eye to eye on things. I consider it a gift that people who can’t let me be me and stand for what I believe have left my life. It may be lonely for a season, but I have learned that those spaces left have been filled with the right people at the right time and new opportunities are created when I have done what I know in my heart is right.

 

I realize that for many people standing up is going to come with a great cost. You could not only lose friends or family but you could lose a job or your business. I’ve lost all of the above in my life and it is painful . Truth always wins. Light always wins. Always. That doesn’t mean it will be easy or painless but we were not promised an easy life.

 

“I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.” John 16:33

 

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Can You Hear Us Now?

Can You Hear Us Now?

*By Julie Barrett, Founder, Conservative Ladies of Washington

Sometimes the most important thing for us is simply to know that our voices, our concerns have been heard…that what we have just poured out did not fall upon deaf ears.

“We Hear You.” Is that too much to ask?

Is it too much for parents (TAX-PAYING parents, I might add) to ask their school board and school administrators to communicate with us and to let us know that they hear us? Is it too much to ask that they validate the fact that we have concerns? They don’t have to agree, but the simple act of acknowledging our voices and concerns would go a long way.

Anytime a person feels ignored it causes tempers to rise, animosity and resentment. And when it comes to our children, we must be heard. Our protective parental instincts kick into high gear when we feel our children are in harm’s way and especially when we try to address these concerns and our voices are essentially ignored. We are given a platform to share our concerns with school boards only because they are required to do so. They are not required to give us a response.

The decent thing is to respond, whether in agreement or just acknowledgement that something was said.

But there is no decency on our school boards in public education across this nation right now. There is an agenda and if you are a parent who is not willing to go along with it quietly and willingly, you will not only not be heard, but you could likely be reported to the Department of Justice as a “domestic terrorist.”

Parents are rightly upset about a number of issues going on in our public schools (aka government indoctrination centers) right now. Whether it is Critical Race Theory (equity & diversity, racial education & justice, etc) comprehensive sex education, the LGBTQ agenda or Covid restrictions and mandates with masks and testing or like our family, concerns about special needs students receiving the recovery services to which they are entitled. There are countless concerns of parents right now in schools and most of them are completely ignored.

The concerns are ignored in favor of attending to the equity projects and inclusivity and progressivism being pushed in our school systems. This is the priority. Anything else brought to the attention of the school board is not worthy of attention. Not even just not worthy of attention, but if you don’t fall in line with the agenda of the progressive leftists in the education system, you now have the potential to be labeled a “domestic terrorist.”

When you compound these parental concerns with school boards who will not respond and completely ignore the communications from these parents, you are going to end up with frustrated and angry parents. Ignoring parents is resulting in passionate speeches and letters in school board meetings all over America. This does not make us domestic terrorists. The government can call it whatever they want, but good parents are not going to back down and give up fighting for their kids because of some threats by partisan hacks (eh hem, the AGINO Merrick Garland) appointed to positions of authority that intend to trample our constitutional rights. Good parents will keep showing up to the school board meetings. We will keep speaking truth. We will continue to be dignified and rational and non-violent – because violence is not our M.O. We are not like the left. We do not want violence. We also do not want our children indoctrinated and we have every right to stand up against that.

Over the last couple of days as I’ve reflected on the letter from the Department of Justice to the NSBA about how parents will be “handled,” I thought about the many letters I have submitted on behalf of my own 4 children to the school board. I’ve never once received a response. I’ve sat through school board meetings as letters from parents were read aloud and not one letter was acknowledged by any board members. They read the letters and move along to the next thing. This is very insulting to parents who take the time to voice their concerns about their student’s education. I don’t doubt that many school boards operate like the one in my school district. It is no wonder parents have no patience left.

The letter from the DOJ is a fear tactic. It is intended to scare law abiding citizens into silence. They want us to sit down and shut up. We have every right to attend these school board meetings and to have our voices heard. We have an obligation to speak up for our children. Now is not the time to back down, it’s time to double down. We must remain calm, we must articulate our concerns in a non-threatening, non-combative way. We must use facts and truth as our weapons against the lies and deception being used by the schools. And mostly, we suit up in the ARMOR of GOD, be strong and courageous and never give up.

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