Why did Republicans lose?

What is the conservative vision for America?

Image Source: AP News, https://apnews.com/hub/elections.

Political Analyst Jordan Berman asked her audience, “what would it take for you to vote for a Republican in 2028?” The top four answers were:

1. End the war in Iran.
2. Focus on the economy and inflation.
3. Put America first.
4. Change our relationship with Israel.

SOURCE: Unbiased Politics With Jordan Berman, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s90840qHb5o (11/05/2026).

I was saying last year that President Donald Trump’s worst mistake was getting us involved in another war in the middle east. After President George W. Bush’s wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and President Barack Obama’s clandestine drone warfare, most Americans are tired of it.

What do you think conservatives want? What do you think it means to be conservative?

On the flip side, we should also be asking liberals and progressives what heir vision of America especially now that they have power in the national Congress. Then we need to hold them accountable to that vision (and all the unintended consequences of that vision).

What do you think liberals want? What do you think it means to be liberal?

Remember The Souls

The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.

In verdant pastures he gives me repose; beside restful waters he leads me;

he refreshes my soul.

Though I walk through the valley of darkness, I fear no evil, for you are with me.

We walk through darkness in this life unaware of the evil with which we may cross paths, but we do so with hope that we are chosen for eternity. Jesus died for us to give us that opportunity but it requires us to receive that gift every day, maintaining holiness, and living a saintly example for others.

Alleluia, alleluia.
Come, you who are blessed by my Father;
inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.
Alleluia, alleluia.

Image Source: Catholic World Report, https://www.catholicworldreport.com/2021/11/02/all-souls-day-brings-together-many-crucial-themes-of-christian-theology/.

Remember The Saints

“Every saint has a past and every sinner has a future.” – Oscar Wilde (1893)

On All Saints’ Day, Catholics celebrate the lives of all the saints, whose examples remind us of what we might aspire to become.

Their lives remind us that holiness is not necessarily something we are born with, but something we strive toward through faith, sacrifice, repentance, and devotion.

We are all sinners, but none of us is beyond redemption. Perhaps that is one of the most important lessons we can take from the saints: our past does not have to define our future.

May we follow their examples in this earthly life, always striving to become better servants of God.

Alleluia, alleluia.
Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened,
and I will give you rest, says the Lord.
Alleluia, alleluia.

Image Source: West Coast Catholic, https://westcoastcatholic.co/blogs/news/all-saints-day-honoring-saints-and-understanding-their-role-in-catholic-life.

Never Give Power to Those With no Principles

A nation’s founding document should be representative of timeless ideals. The United States Constitution is based on ideals such as individual liberty, private property, and law and order.

I think people who want to dismantle the founding ideals of the United States do not believe in the concept of timelessness, ideas that carry-over between generations, or objectivity. To a person who doesn’t believe in objectivity, consistency doesn’t matter. Any argument that advances their own goals are valid to obtain power by any means necessary. To a person who doesn’t believe in objectivity, the ends justify the means, which is a barbaric philosophical framework.

If the ends justify the means, at what point do you stop?

SOURCE: Warren Smith, YouTube, (October 30, 2026).

Narcissism disguised as empathy.

Narcissism disguised as empathy.

Most do not seek to understand the feelings of others but rather project their own feelings and idealized version of themselves onto others, then treat that false assumption as empathy.

“Someone on the other side of the world is no different than me,” they say with no understanding of that person’s culture.

Pretending like culture has no importance to humans and that one can simply pick up a human in one culture and transplant him to another with zero expectations of what may happen is the most naïve idea of foreign policy. And yet, that idea has infected modern society.

“There is a point in the history of a society when it becomes so pathologically soft and tender that, among other things, it sides with even those who harm it (Friedrich Nietzsche, Beyond Good & Evil, 1886).”

Humans are not “blank slates.” Whether we like it or not, we are shaped by a mixture of genetics, childhood upbringing, and our environment.

SOURCE: Liam Out Loud, https://www.youtube.com/@liam-out-loud

Etymology: “daimon”

Etymology: “daimon”

An etymological explanation of the word “daimon.”

From Greek, to Latin, to English.

The word modern word “demon” has roots in the Greek word “daimon” and it originally did not have a strictly negative context. It simply referred to a “divine or supernatural entity.” It was also used to refer to a “guiding light” in the sense that it was leading one towards a purpose. A daimon could be benevolent, malevolent, or neither.

Eudaimonia is an ancient Greek word combining eu (“good” or “well”) and daimon (“spirit” or “deity”). It translates literally to “having a good spirit,” and is most accurately understood as human flourishing, well-being, or living well rather than a fleeting emotional state of happiness.

Socrates famously referred to his daimonion, an inner divine sign that restrained him from certain actions. It was not equivalent to the Christian concept of a demon possessing or tempting someone.

For the Stoics, eudaimonia was not simply feeling happy. It meant living well through reason, virtue, and harmony with nature.

Associations with the word “daimon” started to turn more negative as more Jewish and Christian texts were translated to Greek. The word became associated with forbidden pagan worship, being attached to evil spirits. The Christian faith dors not leave much room for spirits wandering between the realms of heaven and hell.

By the 13th century, the word “daemon” had entered the English language through Latin and was typically associated with evil.

Am I a walking contradiction?

I’m a 35-year-old journalist who moved from the New Mexico high desert to the East Texas Piney Woods to document the failures of human institutions, while wrestling with whether God exists, humanity is doomed, or everyone is just lying to themselves.

My grandfather said I was born to be a journalist.

Somewhere in heaven, he’s probably hoping I’ll finally write a story with a happy ending.

But I’m also Catholic, so I already know the ending involves suffering, sacrifice, and a mysterious third act nobody can adequately explain.

Let me just have a cup of coffee first, then I’ll figure out the rest.

Don’t judge, for you shall be judged.

“Jesus leaves us no room to decide which one of our fellow human beings is deserving of love, for God loves all his children unconditionally. We, being made in His image, must do the same (Father Daniel Dower, St. Mary’s Catholic Church, Longview, Texas, 10/25/2025).”

None of us can be the ultimate judge of a person, for we will also be judged. It is not our place to force our will on others, for only God knows what is in one’s heart. It is not our place to deal out death, for only God knows the final end. We must not act as God.

Bible verses to reflect on:

Genesis 3v4, Acts 12v21, Roman 12v19, 1 Corinthians 4v5, and James 4v11.

Be the change

Musician Daryl Davis exemplifies virtue in individual agency in the following quote from one of my favorite episodes of The Joe Rogan Experience.

“Everyone has a question posed on them. Do you want to sit back and watch what your country becomes or do you want to stand up and make your country what you want it to be?” – Daryl Davis (The Joe Rogan Experience #1419)

The Joe Rogan Experience #1419 (January 30,2020)

Be the change you want to see in the world. Be the example of what a good man is.

Power corrupts.

Anyone with power ought to be mistrusted to keep leaders honest.