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By Bill Sargent and Mark Mansius
In the 1940’s, MGM released the movie, Gaslight, with a plot where a husband sought purposefully to deceive his wife for his own gain. Seeking to convince her she wasn’t experiencing strange events — including the dimming gas streetlights — he falsely convinced her that what she thought was happening, wasn’t. She eventually convinces herself that she’s insane. She was “gaslighted,” hence the name of the movie.
Today “gaslighting” refers to barraging the public with untruths for the benefit of politicians and those in powerful positions; not the public. They rely on “gaslighting” to sell what otherwise would be soundly rejected. Example: Democrats, and some Republicans, backed a Biden-era bill called “The Inflation Reduction Act.” The bill did just the opposite through uncontrolled spending, contributing to prolonged inflation. Spending funds where there isn’t a corresponding income or revenue stream causes inflation, and this bill did just that.
Time after time we see legislation like this coming before the Congress that doesn’t do what it is called, rather the opposite. In the Biden-era out-of-control spending legislation was enacted, primarily by Democrats, completely disregarding the lack of incoming revenue. The real result was record-high levels of inflation (above 20%). Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen claimed the inflation was transitory. She “gaslighted” us.
Here’s a list of some inflation-causing bills enacted during Biden’s four years in office. The:
- American Rescue Plan: $1.9 trillion, sending checks to the taxpayers without revenues to cover it;
- Infrastructure bill: $1 trillion of which only $600 billion targeted transportation infrastructure. Again, without regard to how to pay for it;
- Chips Act: $285 billion with only $52 billion actually targeting computer chip production and development;
- Build Back Better Bill: $2.2 trillion, again without revenues to cover the cost; and
- Inflation Reduction Act: $900 billion targeted to the Democrats’ climate change agenda, not reducing inflation.
Over $6 trillion in extra expenses were authorized during the Biden-era. The Government said inflation was around 10% and transitory. Our experience didn’t square with that. They were “gaslighting” us!
The “gaslighting” continues. Remember the Affordable Care Act that was to reduce healthcare costs while allowing you to keep your own doctor? It’s not affordable, with high premiums and high deductibles causing patients to dip into their own pockets for the differences. It was so bad that the government had to “temporarily” subsidize premium payments. Those subsidies expire the end of this year. The Democrats want to make them “permanent” without consideration of revenues to pay for them. The omission of keeping, and increasing, these subsidies was the reason the Democrats shut down the government for over forty days. Luckily for us, the Republicans didn’t cave this time.
Look at the Democrats’ enablers, the media. Instead of objective reporting, they spin their stories, “gaslighting” us. Example, where did COVID-19 originate, from bats or from a leak at the Wuhan Lab? Or how about propaganda claiming paper masks will protect you and others from COVID? Reliable studies show significant evidence to the contrary. The real data was readily available, yet we were “gaslighted” by those with agendas.
Gaslighting by those in power gave us higher costs, significantly harmed the education of our youth, and gave us a distrust of our government, politicians, and the media. A recent poll found 50% of those between the age of 18 and 39 now favor a communist-type economic system. Why? They can’t afford what used to be the American Dream. Unfortunately they see those who caused the problem as the solution, due in part to “gaslighting.”
Those who caused the problem refer to themselves as progressives. Careful now, they’re “gaslighting” you, they are really degressive and regressive!
