There is a difference between defacing a statue or monument you don’t like and surgically removing the breasts or penis from a minor. My few but cherished readers will see a stark moral difference and not like either one. There is also a difference between changing an army fort name and destroying a memorial in a cemetery.

Without the acceptance of mobs destroying statues, you would not have children on puberty blockers. Teddy Roosevelt’s statue had to be removed from New York City before contemplating the destruction of the Confederate Memorial at Arlington National Cemetery. The problem is that the connection between them is not understood by people who could make a difference, or they are too weak to act or even say something.

The South in general and the Confederacy in particular were the first targets. The ethically challenged and those ignorant of history went with the flow. Many of those same people are now appalled that children are being exposed to drag queens or worse. This is what you get when you don’t challenge federal government officials calling the ancestors of tens of millions of Americans traitors.

There were some warnings. New Yorker Donald Trump vetoed the Naming Commission legislation and Republicans joined with Democrats to override it. Many Southern governors seem to talk a good game but are in reality complying. Governor Youngkin of Virginia said that if the Confederate Memorial is removed from Arlington, he will make sure it stays in Virginia. That is a man who does not get it.

The Confederate Memorial in Arlington National Cemetery is still standing. If it survives the canary lives. We need the fresh air of truth and real history to dominate. No confederate was tried for treason and reconciliation was real. Some children need to be protected from their parents and other adults who would harm them.