When Good Intentions Become Bad Policy

 Some of history's most consequential disasters began with people who genuinely believed they were doing the right thing. You know the old saying, "The road to hell is paved with good intentions." The French Revolution began with liberty, equality and fraternity. It ended with the Reign of Terror. Prohibition sought to improve American society but helped create a lucrative criminal underworld. Reconstruction sought to rebuild the South and secure freedom for formerly enslaved people, but political corruption, competing interests, and the eventual abandonment of federal enforcement undermined its promise and potential. 

Programs, movements, crusades, laws, so many have been developed and designed to solve a big problem. To improve the lives of others. Yet so many throughout history have failed. Was it because of incompetent leadership and administration, corruption, or both, perhaps. Yet it happens so often. At some point the pursuit of seemingly good ideals becomes more destructive than the problem(s) they were designed to solve. 

History repeatedly demonstrates that societies are extraordinarily complicated. Anything that involves masses of humanity is going to be so. Yet governments and movements routinely assume they can redesign human behavior through legislation, regulation, or ideology. Such has been the doctrine of failed social experiments throughout history. Marxism, Leninism, Maoism, Stalinism, and the various authoritarian regimes built around these doctrines have left behind a legacy of repression, economic failure, and human suffering. Nazism, though rooted in a very different ideology, demonstrated another equally horrifying consequence of political fanaticism and the concentration of unchecked power. China, one of the most populated countries on earth still operates as a socialist state under a dictatorship. Much the same as Russia does. Are they superior forms of government? The ruling parties believe so, the citizenry, not so much. Are human rights respected under these forms of rule? No. 

Some other examples of social engineering failures: the collectivization of agriculture in the Soviet Union, Mao's Great Leap Forward, Prohibition in America, and numerous attempts to engineer economic equality through centralized planning. All of this begs the question: why do intelligent people repeatedly believe they can engineer outcomes that human nature and historical experience suggest are unlikely?

Perhaps the most dangerous phrase in politics and public life is "It's for the greater good." That and perhaps Ronald Reagan's statement "We're from the government and we're here to help." Once people become convinced their cause is morally superior, they can begin justifying almost anything in its pursuit. A few glaring examples: The French Revolution's justification of political executions, Revolutionary movements that became authoritarian, and political leaders who justify suppressing dissent in the name of national security or social progress. The tendency to believe one is on the right side of history makes one less likely to recognize when their actions are wrong or deleterious. 

Now, having said all of the above, think of situations and events occurring in the world today. The war in Ukraine. The riots in Europe. The Iranian "war." I am reluctant to call it a war, I'm more inclined to think of it as a 'relentless, senseless conflict.' Are the movements taking place solving a problem? Are they changing and shaping human behavior for the better? Is there a truly noble cause anywhere in the equation? Can progress be seen or visualized anywhere on the landscape? 

Perhaps the greatest lesson history offers us is that good intentions are never enough. Noble objectives require sound judgment, competent leadership, accountability, and an appreciation for the complexities of human nature. Without those things, even the most admirable ambitions can become instruments of destruction. And history, unfortunately, has given us more than enough examples.

The Danger of Forgetting What we Already Know...

 One of the more curious characteristics of human beings is our extraordinary ability to recognize the mistakes of previous generations while remaining remarkably confident that we won't repeat them. We tend to think of ourselves as more 'enlightened,' more informed, maybe just plain smarter than the generations that preceded us. We are certainly more technologically leveraged. Our economies are certainly more developed and opportunistic. 

Consider the Roman Republic, the French Revolution, the American Civil War, and the Reconstruction Era. Different circumstances, different centuries, but remarkably familiar human behavior. Conflicts throughout history consistently have a common denominator; they all occurred due to a reluctance, inability, or failure to compromise. The dominating force behind all conflicts is one or more of the vile elements of human nature; greed, lust for power, over-reaching ambition, revenge, or perhaps lunacy. 

Consider Russia's invasion of Crimea, then subsequently the invasion of Ukraine. What drove Putin to forcefully invade these sovereign countries causing so much destruction and loss of life? There were some geopolitical advantages to be gained. What was obvious and apparent was that the two countries were once part of the Soviet empire. And Putin had an overwhelming desire to maintain Russian influence. Crimea was relatively easy,  a David and Goliath situation. Ukraine, in spite of what Putin and his thugs thought, proved to be anything but easy. Almost five years into it, and the fighting continues. Diplomatic efforts are underway, but it is more than evident Putin has little interest in ending the conflict. Ukraine has resources, but are they critical to expanding Russia's economy? What exactly are the drivers here; they include imperialism, concerns about NATO, and maintaining Russia's influence over its former territories. 

Russia has suffered approximately 1.6 million casualties in the conflict. Their economy has shifted to primarily supporting the war effort. Civilian industries are facing high borrowing costs, labor shortages, and weak investment. And for what? So Putin can realize his vision of reconstituting at least some of the old Soviet Empire? Perhaps the strongest driver in this case pursuing objectives at an irrational human and economic cost...

Now let's turn to Iran. Long the world's leading sponsor of state-supported terrorism was busy enriching uranium until Trump and Netanyahu laid ruin to those ideals. Since the "war" with Iran began in February 2026, Iran has proved relentless in "not giving up." Their economy is in shambles, the citizenry is suffering with inflation the highest in the world. The value of their currency has collapsed, and there main source of revenue, oil has all but stopped. Every effort at diplomacy has failed. And for what? Do they think the U.S. and Israel will cave and give them full control of the Strait of Hormuz and allow them to build nuclear weapons as they please? Whatever else may be their motivations, there is definitely an ignorance of history and a blatant refusal to learn from it. 

For both of these two examples there are numerous historical events that offer lessons regarding the likely outcomes of both conflicts. But are the leaders in either case paying any attention to those 'lessons?' Do they care? Apparently not. Perhaps it's colossal arrogance keeping them from learning. Or perhaps it's merely the persistence of human nature. 

Perhaps the greatest irony is that history has never been short of warnings. The Roman Republic offers lessons about the dangers of unchecked ambition. The French Revolution reminds us what happens when revenge becomes a governing philosophy. The American Civil War demonstrates the terrible price of allowing ideological differences to become irreconcilable. And Reconstruction reminds us that ending a conflict is not the same as resolving the issues that caused it.

Yet here we are, centuries later, watching much the same human drama unfold.

Perhaps the problem isn't that we fail to recognize the lessons of history. Perhaps it's that those who hold the power to change its course are often the least inclined to acknowledge them.

Technology advances. Civilizations evolve. Economies expand. But human nature remains stubbornly resistant to improvement.

And therein lies the lesson we seem destined to learn, forget, and learn again.

Who Is Sophie Cunningham?

 Sports enthusiasts in the U.S. are likely to recognize the name, but for those of you in other parts of the world, probably not so much. The WNBA (professional women's basketball) isn't nearly as popular as the men's league, but certain attributes are claiming front page news. For all the wrong reasons, I'm afraid. There is tension, conflicts, hate, vitriol and even violence amongst some of the star players. Some of the tensions apparently are rooted in race. 

But the article isn't about the women's basketball, but a recent social media posting from one of the star players. Sophie Cunningham is an All-Star player in the league who has a significant impact on not just basketball but women's athletics. She has a no nonsense attitude and is one of the most unapologetic and impossible to ignore women in sports. 

As she has consistently done in the past, Sophie emphasizes personal growth over political identity. This past Wednesday, a day after the mid term elections, Cunningham reposted a diatribe from Andy Frisella on Instagram.

"One of the strangest things about our culture is how much faith we have placed in elections to change our lives and how little faith we've placed in our own ability to do the same. People will spend months arguing about who sho lead the country while spending zero time considering how they could better lead themselves—and THAT is a much bigger problem than most people realize," Frisella's post read. 

"Because the strength of a country is ultimately a reflection of the character, discipline and standards of there people who make it up. That means you. Politics is downstream of culture. We can keep changing the people in charge, passing new laws and arguing over which party has the answers—but until we change the culture fostering, producing, and tolerating the problems we have as a society, noting fundamentally changes." Personally, I would like to add solving the problems we have as a society as well. 

"A population of weak unhealthy, uninformed and dependent people are a hell of a lot easier to control than a population of strong, healthy, educated and self-reliant people. There is no election, politician, policy or law that can substitute for that—and the best thing about that is the same behaviors that make you a better American also make your own life better quickly. If we want a better America—it starts with better Americans. There is no other way. Personal excellence is the Ultimate Rebellion."

Cunningham responded to and rebuked some people commenting on her post, as she then added a different perspective to her story. It was a blunt quote from boxing great Mike Tyson. 

"Social media made y'all way too comfortable with disrespecting people and not getting punched in the face for it," the post read. I'm sure we've all experienced this phenomenon. 

Cunningham is well-known for being unafraid to make her opinions known, on and off the court. This season she made it clear that she supported the separation of biological men playing in women's sports, a controversial topic here in the U.S.. But her opinion was grounded in the belief in a collective humanity, rather than focusing on political disagreements after the election, unlike some of her WNBA peers. She has claimed in the past that she likes to remain in the middle when it comes to politics, listening to both sides and making informed decisions from there. Apparently, she's doing just that...  Bravo, young lady, bravo!

History doesn't repeat itself, people do.

 We often congratulate ourselves on living in the most advanced period of human history. And in many respects, we do. We possess knowledge, technology, and capabilities that our ancestors could scarcely have imagined. Yet when it comes to understanding human nature, we may not have traveled nearly as far as we believe. The weapons have changed. The borders have changed. The political systems have changed. But the ambitions, fears, prejudices, and rivalries that have shaped human history remain remarkably familiar.

The world has so much history to draw from, and it's become so much easier to do so. Digging through tomes in the stacks is no longer necessary, technological advances have put any topic imaginable at our fingertips within seconds. One no longer needs to rely on their own library for knowledge, the internet has made available the best and most extensive libraries in the world to everyone. And of all the things we could learn about, history will always be one of the most interesting. 

Which I think begs the question, with so many blunders, mistakes, miscalculations, oversights and failures that have happened throughout history, why does humanity seem to repeat them so often. 

One reason is that each time history appears to be repeating itself, each generation believes it faces unprecedented challenges, even when history offers remarkably similar examples. Years, decades, perhaps centuries may have passed, but if a cultural, social experiment failed then, ignoring the lessons of the past certainly wont increase the chances for success today. . But each time, the circumstances of today make it convincing that somehow, it'll work this time. 

There are some basic tenets of human nature that inevitably get in the way of progress. Ambition, greed, fear, tribalism, prejudice, and the pursuit of power transcend generations and civilizations. No matter how advanced our systems of law and social structure may advance, these constants are not likely to ever go away. 

In spite of the availability and accessibility of history, knowing it and understanding its lessons are two very different things. We must learn no only to understand the scope of historical events but the circumstances and reasons they came about. 

What caused them? 

What could have been done to avoid them? 

These can and do include some of history's greatest and most pivotal events. 

History is not a study of failures though. People have demonstrated courage, compassion, ingenuity and the capacity to learn throughout history. History contains many examples of those qualities as well. Perhaps the greatest value of studying history isn't learning what happened to those who came before us. It's recognizing that we are capable of doing the same things, making the same mistakes, and suffering the same consequences. History offers no guarantee that we will learn from it. It simply gives us the opportunity.

When The War Ends, the Hard Part Begins.

For the past fifteen years, as a writer, I have been studying the Reconstruction period following the Civil War; specifically how it affected the Choctaw Indians after displacement from their homeland. This took place during the period of 1839 to 1840. The Civil War began in 1861 and ended in 1865. The Indians were forced to fend for themselves in a lawless land for 25 years before the Reconstruction period even began, which lasted for twelve long years. Since the Choctaws and Chickasaws generally aligned with the Confederacy, they suffered the ravages of the war inflicted on the southern states. 

History has a lesson for every nation struggling to put itself back together.

When we study wars, we tend to concentrate on the battles. We remember the generals, the strategies, the victories and the defeats. We mark the day the fighting stopped and call it the end.

But wars don't really end when the guns fall silent. They end, if they ever truly do, when people learn how to live together again.

American history offers a sobering example.

When the Civil War ended in 1865, the United States faced a monumental challenge. More than 600,000 soldiers had died. Families had been torn apart, communities destroyed, and an entire economic and social system overturned. The country had survived, but survival was only the beginning.

What came next was called Reconstruction.

The questions facing the nation were difficult ones. How should the defeated South be treated? What did freedom mean for four million formerly enslaved people? How could a country restore peace without simply restoring the injustices that had helped bring about the war?

There were no easy answers. There were competing and conflicting visions of justice, forgiveness, punishment and reconciliation. Some Americans believed the nation needed to heal its divisions quickly. Others insisted that healing meant little if the rights of newly freed people were not protected.

Both the desire for peace and the demand for justice were real. The difficulty was reconciling them.

The Thirteenth, Fourteenth and Fifteenth Amendments abolished slavery, established constitutional protections for citizenship and equal protection, and prohibited racial discrimination in voting. These were extraordinary changes. Yet constitutional promises proved easier to establish than to enforce.

Reconstruction gradually lost political support. In 1877, a disputed presidential election was settled through a political compromise that included the withdrawal of remaining federal troops from the South. Over time, many of the rights and protections gained during Reconstruction were undermined, and segregation and racial disenfranchisement took hold. 

The country achieved a measure of reconciliation, but the price was paid disproportionately by those whose freedom and rights remained insecure.

It is a complicated chapter in American history, and perhaps that is precisely why it matters.

Peace and justice are not always enemies, but neither are they interchangeable. A society can become quieter without becoming fairer. It can put its disagreements aside without resolving them. It can declare a new beginning while leaving the underlying grievances untouched.

Eventually, those unresolved grievances have a way of returning.

This lesson isn't confined to nineteenth-century America. Wherever a society emerges from civil war, political upheaval or deep internal division, the same questions arise. How much punishment is necessary? How much forgiveness is possible? What obligations does a new government have toward people who have been wronged? And what happens when the desire to move forward becomes an excuse to ignore the past?

There are no universal answers. Every conflict has its own history, its own wounds and its own circumstances. But history suggests that durable peace requires more than exhaustion, a signed agreement or a convenient political settlement. It requires institutions people can trust, protections that mean something in practice, and a willingness to confront uncomfortable truths.

That is harder than winning a war. It may actually be harder than fighting one.

I have spent years researching the turbulent period following the Civil War for my historical novel, Between the Whistle and the Gun. The more I studied that era, the more I appreciated that rebuilding a nation is not simply a matter of restoring what existed before. Sometimes the old order was part of the problem. Sometimes the challenge is creating something better without allowing the struggle itself to destroy the possibility of a shared future.

Perhaps that is the question every divided society must eventually answer.

Not simply, How do we end the conflict?

But rather, What kind of peace are we trying to build? What exactly does peace look like?

History cannot tell us exactly how to answer those questions today. It can, however, remind us what happens when we fail to ask them.

"The Long Way Home" Press Release

The Press Release for my just released memoir:
 

The Diesel Deal, Is No Deal.

 President Trump's diesel deal with Russia is fraud on the American people. It is a desperate, futile attempt to address Trump's self-inflicted high diesel prices.  The U.S. produces about 5 million barrels of diesel per day, and consume less than 4 million barrels per day. That makes us the world's top diesel exporter. Our diesel exports help ease the energy crunch in Latin America and Europe. In contrast, Russia is no longer an exporter. In fact, Russia was importing diesel from South Korea this summer. Trump's deal requires no concessions from Putin. This weekend, Putin persisted in his savage attacks on civilians even as Trump announced the diesel deal. 

Putin's strategy for achieving his victory over Ukraine is to freeze civilians during Ukraine's harsh winter; hence the continued bombings of the electric grid, fuel production facilities, and even a gas station. Putin continues to attack residential buildings and public buses. Putin is a war criminal. Yet Trump cut him this "deal" for less diesel for an initial shipment of 300,000 tons which is less diesel than we use in a single day. 

U.S. sanctions have squeezed Russia's oil industry and would continue to do so if Trump were not signaling to the world that he is not serious about sanctions with this absurd 'deal.' 

Diesel prices are high at the pump not because of a lack of U.S. supply. Even if Russia were able to export significant  quantities of diesel, the amounts trump has called for in his deal with Putin are next to nothing. The total of all shipments called for in the Trump/Putin deal are 4.8 million tons of diesel, from now through early April 2027. This equals 35.5 million barrels, less than the U.S. uses in just ten days. Trump says the  Russian shipments are intended to ease the strain on the "Global Marketplace," not just the American market. Even in the unlikely event Russia could produce the amount Trump has asked for, it would not reduce prices, not before the mid-term elections, and probably not ever. 

Nevertheless, the deal will provide Putin billions of dollars in revenue. As Trump well knows, Putin uses the military and intelligence assets acquired from the revenue of the 'deal' to commit war crimes in Ukraine and fund Iranian attacks on the U.S. 

So, one can't help but wonder, why is Trump doing this? First, it appears to be an attempt to reduce prices that his unilaterally imposed policies have caused. Obviously, due to the quantities involved that isn't going to happen. If the conflict in Iran continues, which it likely will, prices will continue to increase. Trump is blatantly acting to erode the sanctions against Russia. 

In 2022, Congress enacted the Ending Importation of Russian Oil Act, by overwhelming margins. That legislation bans U.S. imports of Russian diesel unless the president certifies that Russia has reached an agreement to withdraw its forces from Ukraine, that Ukraine has accepted such an agreement, and that Russia no longer poses a threat to either NATO countries or Ukraine. Given present circumstances, such a certification is impossible. As has become usual, Congress sits ignorantly idle. Other acts of Congress require prior notification before major changes in Russia policy. Trump has not consulted Congress on any of his actions regarding Russian sanctions. 

Is Trump taking the American people for fools? Apparently so. Is he ignoring statutes enacted by Congress? Yes. So when will the time come to pay the piper?...

Is College worth it anymore?

 The demand for skilled trades workers in the U.S. right now is at an all time high. U.S. companies are ramping up training programs to expand their workforces. Poaching skilled workers from other companies has become common practice. 

Mike Rowe, CEO of mikeroweWORKSFoundation, which was founded to help the next generation in acquiring the needed training in the skilled trades, says he is amazed to see the renewed focus and demand for these workers. He says he is constantly getting calls from CEO's and industry leaders who are worried about not being able to recruit needed manpower. As a result many large U.S. companies are establishing their own training programs to attract workers to the skilled trades. 

Demand for these workers is strong and expected to get even stronger. In the past, demand for skilled trades workers was centered in the construction industry. Such is no longer the case. Now tech companies building data centers and power plants, defense contractors, home improvement firms, automakers, and more, are all competing for skilled craftsmen. According to Rowe, "Every year when five tradesmen leave the workforce, two replace them. It has been that way for twelve years. Now the math has caught up to us." 

One company in the Midwest did an analysis comparing skilled trade workers, including electricians, HVAC technicians, and plumbers to bachelor's degree holders who don't have an advanced degree and found the trades offer a faster path to financial breakeven with less debt. They found that trade trainees can break even in less than a year starting to earn right after high school or half a year to two years in trade school, given median entry-level wages. A college graduate at the median starting salary who didn't work during high school would break even in about three and two thirds years. 

Rowe said in talking to past recipients of scholarships from the mikeroweWORKS Foundation who've begun careers in the skilled trades, it's shocking how many welders who began three years ago are now earning in the mid-six figures. 

As it is with college graduates as well as skilled craftsmen, it is dependent on the individual, sometimes on the company, and certainly on geography as well. In general, there is a complete disconnect between the idea that you can make six-figures with a skilled trade among many, many people. But it is now a reality. 

"I was just in Plano, Texas and got a tour of a data center there. I met three electricians, all under thirty, all making over $240,000 a year, all poached three times in the preceding 18 months from other projects," he said. He said he never heard those stories ten, twelve years ago when we were just getting started with the scholarship program. Now, I hear them every day." 

Another significant development in America is some colleges are cutting their tuition costs by 40% to 55%, while yet others are freezing tuition costs. These changes are happening now, in 2026, although some of the biggest cuts won't take effect until fall of 2027. This connects directly with what Mike Rowe has been saying for years: families are questioning whether the traditional college route is worth the cost. 

There is ample evidence that colleges are responding to families that are questioning the return on educational investment. The cost and perceived value of a college degree are under increasing scrutiny. Are the colleges lowering costs becoming more affordable, or are they finally admitting that their previous prices were inflated? Evidence suggest a little of both...

 I had this banner made for me by a professional as a free promotion. I like it. After three books I'm now looking for a literary agent to represent me. I'm tired of dealing with the flood of "book promoters" that are filling my inbox. And they're all paid promotions, and expensive. If I had an agent to handle all that my life would be so much better. 

Anyway, I hope you like the banner and that it sparks some interest in reading my book. 

Thanks 

C. Clayton Lewis

The New York City Mayor's Radical Spouse

 Rama Duwaji. Ever heard of her? She's the wife of NYC Mayor Zhoran Mamdani. And if there were ever a radical, unhinged, far left radical, it would be her. She seems hell bent on berating the United States and as anti-semitic as a human can be, yet the mainstream media seems to favor her. Surprising? Of course not. 

Duwaji recently attended an overseas wellness retreat known as the "Women Sanctuary," her third visit this year. The organizers of this event have called for "abolishing Israel" and "cleansing" it of Jews. Attending this type of event is not a 'one-off' for her. Apparently, she is constantly in the company of these types of people. The retreat is only the latest in a long list of events attended by Duwaji that place her political (and perhaps cultural) ideology on full display. 

Duwaji was ostensibly absent from America's 250th anniversary festivities this year so she could attend the "Plants of the Quran" retreat in Mallorca, hosted by the same "cleanse Israel of the Jews" group. She co-hosted a "Mary in the Quran" retreat in Corsica, which recast the Virgin Mary as a "Palestinian woman giving birth under occupation." 

Duwaji and her husband hosted an event this year where they invited as a 'guest of honor' anti-Israel activist Mahmoud Khalil and his family at Gracie Mansion on the anniversary of his 2025 detention by ICE. Khalil, who is not a U.S. citizen, helped lead the 2024 anti-Israel protests at Columbia University. He has called the U.S. a "killing machine" and once boasted: "The top echelons of the U.S. government are coming after me; that means I'm doing something right." He seems to be held in high esteem by Mamdani and Duwaji. 

Duwaji's social media presence is something to behold, and not to be overlooked. There is a binge of 'likes' for posts celebrating and justifying the October 7, 2023 massacre of Israeli civilians. One post she 'liked' called The NY Times reporting on the October 7 violence against Israeli women a "mass rape hoax that had been fabricated."Other liked posts described the attack as resistance, accused Israel of a “vile land grab,” called the Sde Teiman prison a “concentration camp,” and labeled former President Joe Biden a “butcher” over his support of the U.S. ally.

All of Duwaji's social media activity has been claimed to be done in the capacity of a "private citizen." The press apparently has been in acceptance of this nonsense. 

Duwaji provided an illustration for a collection of essays edited by the activist Susan Abulhawa, who called October 7 "a spectacular moment that shocked the world." Abulhawa also called Jewish Israelis "rootless, soulless ghouls" and Israel a "cultureless, rootless human aberration in the form of a manufactured nation. Duwaji's social media has a history from her younger days consistent with her present online behavior. 

There is ample evidence of Duwaji's radicalism, all of which illustrates her hatred of Israel and her admiration for terrorists and murderers. This begs the question; does her husband share her deep-seated, progressive ideology? Does he sympathize with her? Has it been or will it be reflected in his duties and policies governing New York City? 

Electing someone such as Mamdani as mayor does not reflect well on the voters of New York City. If the voters who elected Mamdani were the same bloc of voters to elect the president in 2028, we might have our first ayatollah for president. Duwaji is no ordinary radical. She is the most dangerous kind. 

The Long Way Home. A Memoir. Available on Amazon October 8

Well, it's finally done.

After years of writing, rewriting, researching, remembering, and more than a little second-guessing, The Long Way Homeis now officially published and on its way to Amazon.

This is my memoir—a story that spans a lifetime of places, people, adventures, successes, failures, and some pretty unexpected turns along the way. From growing up in Alvin, Texas, to Texas A&M, and eventually working around the world in the engineering and construction business, I've been fortunate to live a life that has taken me places I never imagined when I was a kid.

Several friends have asked me when the book would be available. Well, I finally have an answer.

Amazon says it should be available within about 3 days, in both Kindle and paperback editions.

The title seems appropriate. Looking back over the years, it really has been a long way home.

I'll post the Amazon link as soon as it's live.

For now, I'm just going to sit back and enjoy the fact that I actually finished the damn thing.

🥂 Here's to the journey.

C. Clayton Lewis