When I write stories about what's going on in places like Portland right now, I get so infuriated.
From an outsider looking in perspective, it's hard to pinpoint what upsets me the most: the fact that thugs like Antifa and their ilk have essentially taken over parts of it, including the surrounding areas of where the ICE facility is located, or the fact that Democrat so-called leaders there are just blatantly lying to their constituents about what's happening once the sun goes down?
I wrote about it earlier today, referencing the gaslighting from elected officials who are sharing photos and videos of things looking quiet, peaceful, and serene during the day, with the message being that Portland supposedly isn't "war-ravaged, Mr. President." What they leave out, of course, is that at night is when all the action starts and the havoc-wreaking begins.
The city's feckless mayor, Keith Wilson, repeated the false talking point about there being no violence or lawlessness in Portland when, in reality, Antifa-led lawlessness and destruction have been going on there off and on for years, and it certainly escalated after Donald Trump took office for his second term and put his illegal immigration agenda in action.
READ MORE: Increasing Panic From Oregon Democrats As the Ugly Truth About Portland Is Laid Bare
On one hand, one might look at it and feel sorry that voters are having to put up with this.
But then another thought pops up: Didn't they vote for this - repeatedly? Yes, they did.
I admit it: In the past, I would go down this train of thought and think to myself that if this is what a blue city or state keeps voting for, then they are getting what they deserve. After all, voting for the same people and political party time after time and expecting things to improve doesn't often go too well.
The main thing that caused me to adjust my thinking on it was hearing people say that about my hometown of Charlotte.
It's a blue city, and while not as radical and out of control as Portland or Los Angeles, it can sometimes feel like we're headed in that direction, as Democrats are sometimes gonna do Democrat things.
We saw that here, for instance, with the infamous "inclusive" ordinance on trans folks and bathrooms all those years ago, and more recently, via the layers that have been peeled back on dangerous soft-on-crime initiatives like former Democrat Gov. Roy Cooper's disastrous "Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice."
But while there are indeed people who voted for candidates and policies like that, there are plenty in the minority - like me, like many who are reading this - who didn't.
Anyone who lives in a blue city or state will tell you it's an uphill battle. And maybe this sounds overly idealistic, but you never stop fighting for what's right in the court of public opinion, for your loved ones, your neighbors, your community, your country, because every city and state in America - every nook and cranny, is worth standing up for, even if a majority of voters in those places insist on pushing it down the wrong path.
I'm not saying there's a right or wrong way to view this. But my thought bubble is that even though majorities in blue cities and states vote the way they do, that doesn't mean those places deserve what they get, because there were tens or hundreds of thousands, if not millions, who didn't vote that way - many of whom are doing the hard work in their own way of trying to change hearts and minds in hopes of a different outcome on down the line at the ballot box.
Just my .02.
