The Red Line - Common sense commentary on policy and politics published in leading national and Connecticut publications.

Republican state legislatures are adopting resolutions banning the teaching of Critical Race Theory (CRT) in public schools. The bans are a reaction to Democrats mandating CRT in public education and in other dimensions of public policy. Bans and mandates are two sides of the same coin.

CRT is a bad penny, first because any version of history and sociology so controversial should not be taught in elementary, middle and high school.

One of the leading proponents of CRT, Ibram X. Kendi says “The only remedy to racist discrimination is antiracist discrimination. The only remedy to past discrimination is present discrimination. The only remedy to present discrimination is future discrimination.”

Is this what we want taught in public schools – that the sins and the oppression of ancestors determine the future of today’s schoolchildren, who are innocent in all respects?

The pandemic is largely over. Now, the challenge is to revive the economy.

In practical terms, that means transitioning from policies supporting people who are out of work to policies encouraging people to get back to work. There is a fierce national debate about how fast to transition. Connecticut is on the wrong side of the debate – and cannot afford to be.

The number of workers in the state’s workforce has plummeted during the pandemic by 188,000 since February 2020, according to federal statistics. This is a drastic 9.7 percent decline, by far the biggest drop in the nation. Only three other states have had declines over 5 percent.

These are workers who are not looking for work or who have left the state.

As drastic as it is, the workforce decline is not the entire story.

Column of the Day

Ali Mayorkas, Keep Faith With Cubans

My family and the Mayorkas family were friends who fled Cuba for a better future in America.

By Leora R Levy, RNC National Committee Member, Wall Street Journal, July 22, 2021 - Posted on Jul. 22, 2021

I know Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas as “Ali,” a childhood friend and the son of my father’s best friend, Nicky Mayorkas.

● Read in Wall Street Journal

Govt Workers Sue CT to Avoid Return to the Office

By Patrick Hauf, Staff Writer, Washington Free Beacon, July 20, 2021 - Posted on Jul. 22, 2021

Public employee unions in Connecticut are insisting their members continue to have the option to work full time from home, citing environmental and legal concerns. Democratic governor Ned Lamont allowed government employees to work exclusively from home during the pandemic and is now resuming pre-pandemic guidelines that allow government employees to work from home part-time with their boss' approval. The unions are refusing to comply with the reopening plans and are demanding a new telework agreement with the government.

● Read in Washington Free Beacon
● Read and comment here on The Red Line

CRT Is Divisive and No Cure; Jobs Should Be Top Priority

Connecticut Employment Has Plummeted. Can the State Recover?