American Homecoming — Reverse Culture Shock and the Race to Survive

When you think of society’s biggest threat, you might imagine villains plotting in shadows. But I have a different take: stupidity is worse than evil. I'm not talking about an IQ test.  I mean a mental laziness that happens when people stop thinking for themselves.  They let slogans, groupthink, or their favorite podcasters do the thinking for them. Under this kind of spell, good people become echo chambers for bad ideas. I mean, evil you can debate. Stupidity?  It just shrugs at logic, waves off facts, and changes the subject to cats.  It’s like trying to play chess with a pigeon—it ignores the rules, knocks over the pieces, and struts around like it won. My advice. Stay WOKE, think for yourself, and don’t hand over your brain—no matter how compelling the pod actor.   Darrell Gartrell 

My guardian angel watches over me closely. Though not deeply religious, I’m often mystified when logic and serendipity intersect, creating scenarios that defy easy explanation. Some of these experiences were chronicled in my personal memoir, where intuitive voices led me to places that yielded unlikely outcomes. Still, as a man educated in math and science, I struggle to find plausibility each time an angel taps me on the shoulder and points the way. This week was no different. For the first time in seven years, my short-term housing business didn’t receive a single reservation for the upcoming week. For context, one or two days without a reservation in a given week is extraordinary; four consecutive days—in this case, Sunday through Wednesday—is unheard of. But it happened. On Sunday morning, I woke early to find the second floor slightly warmer than expected. The guests were still asleep. The second floor is where guests reside, while I lodge comfortably on the first. By 10 a.m., the...