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

It really has been a long way home.

After years of writing, rewriting, remembering, researching, and wondering whether I would ever actually finish it, I’m finally ready to announce the publication of my memoir:

The Long Way Home

I never set out to write a memoir. The idea began with an experience in Iran—a close and dangerous brush with history that happened while I was there working as an engineer during the Iranian Revolution.

But once I began writing about Iran, I realized it was only one part of a much longer story.

From growing up in Alvin, Texas, and becoming the first in my family to attend college, to a 48-year career in engineering and construction that took me around the world—from Saudi Arabia and Venezuela to Iran, Europe, Australia, Indonesia, and places I never imagined I would see.

There were adventures. There were difficult times. There were people I loved and lost. There were successes, failures, unexpected turns, and plenty of moments when I had absolutely no idea where the road was taking me.

For years, I simply lived it.

Now I’ve written it down.

The Long Way Home is not the story of a remarkable man who lived an extraordinary life. It is the story of an ordinary man who happened to live an adventurous and meaningful one.

And after all those years of going somewhere, I finally find myself content to stay awhile.

At home.

Available in ebook and paperback on Amazon now.

Hardcover available soon!

https://www.amazon.com/Long-Way-Home-Memoir-ebook/dp/B0H4W4KS52/ref=sr_1_1?crid=3LOQGYNSG93L0&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.28csWe7Q30Fab0tO_mJaXp2DyTJIMoPVtXtCnxntw365aChCtEhqwMyDuDWnI4-CPNohqbCWed_VWpqfG3aP86HOyOxZR42D6zkngqUBrfMShgnpfnhzED556dpxqOYbcxEuRwKl3_8QUcvhj3aQbDEPfuMtXQJzTtVKquQRlPvMXUbARiIbOwfhUnhWVwPluxyKOAZYg9RgJKznD49-YR6W3jDPEgc80sRF57PFRUY.glpFnnNt07vy1mlob4KhOoVG6aAIF-RQQrV6yZcW3uI&dib_tag=se&keywords=c.+clayton+lewis&qid=1791492607&sprefix=%2Caps%2C204&sr=8-1

Mr. Mamdani, you can't handle the truth.

 At appears that at every available opportunity, Zhoran Mamdani feels he must criticize Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Is this a result of the centuries of conflict and learned hatred between cultures? I think not. Mamdani accuses Netanyahu of various crimes and alleges that he is the source of so much Israeli deceit and treachery, at least the sort that's not endemic among the Jewish people. 

During his address to the United Nations General Assembly, Netanyahu's response reminded me of Colonel Nathan Jessup's response in the movie "A Few Good Men." If you haven't seen the movie, the exchange between Col. Jessup and Tom Cruise's character Lt. Daniel Kaffee is cinematic gold. And, I believe apropos to Netanyahu's response. 

Speaking directly to the antisemitic mayor of New York, Netanyahu issued an accurate indictment of Mamdani's character, judgment, and associations. Netanyahu scolded Mamdani for praising criminals convicted of supporting Hamas. He attacked him for counting among his friends Hasan Piker, as he elaborated for a moment on the streamer's belief that Americans deserved the 9/11 attacks. He questioned why Mamdani welcomed into his home a Palestinian journalist who subsequently admitted that he not only filmed Hamas's atrocities but concealed the footage to avoid embarrassing the terrorist group. Netanyahu even criticized Mamdani's wife for having "liked a post praising the October 7 massacre," and another post that contended that the Israeli city of Tel Aviv "shouldn't exist."

In spite of the New York Times preemptive effort to defuse Netanyahu's criticisms of Mandani, they remain true. Mamdani did heap praise on the Holy Land Five, "who were blamed by a jury for the killing of a 17 year-old Jewish boy from New York City outside Jerusalem." Madani did pal around with Hasan Piker during his bid for mayor despite, or perhaps because of, the streamer's penchant for anti-American and anti-Israeli radicalism. He did embrace Motaz Azaiza, a gadfly Palestinian journalist who recently confessed to filming the events of October 7 and burying the footage, because he didn't want to ruin the lives of the people filmed. Mamdani's wife did like those posts, although she has since apologized for her "harmful" social media habits. Some things that have been done cannot be undone...

Netanyahu also addressed the foremost allegation against him and his country to which the mayor and his comrades are partial: the charge of genocide. Netanyahu described Israel's efforts to protect civilians life. He described the "millions" of texts, calls, and leaflets sent out to alert Palestinian populations of impending Israeli action—an independently verifiable account, though Mamdani and his ilk aren't the least bit interested in verification. Israel issued one million polio vaccinations to Palestinians. Israel distributed two million tons of food into Gaza. That's one ton for every person. Accusing Israel of genocide can only come from the mouths of idiots. 

And how is New York City, since Mamdani's election treating the Jews who have lived there for decades? They are harassed, assaulted,  and stabbed more often than ever before. Antisemitic hate crimes are up 8% so far this year and make up more than half the incidents in New York City. 

Netanyahu said, "Mr. Mamdani, you tried to stop me from coming here. You tried to silence me. Well, you cant silence me. You can't silence the truth." In fact, Mr. Mamdani, you can't handle the truth. 

 Today, Wednesday September 23, 2026, the Senate Judiciary Committee held a hearing on protecting women's sports. Not a single Democratic Senator was in attendance. Not one. So much for bipartisan debate on important issues. The only two Democrats to show up at all were Senator Dick Durbin, D-Ill, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar,D-Minn. Both of them left within the first hour of the hearing and Klobuchar never spoke. The Democrats also did not host a single witness for the hearing. 

Durbin's opening testimony was given to dismissing the issue of trans athletes in women's sports. He instead brought up issues like affordability, getting cellphones out of the hands of children, AI, and trust in government. Prior to leaving, Durbin would "refuse to treat this hearing like a responsible exercise of this committee."

All ten Democratic members of the committee were asked about their absence for either the majority of or the entire hearing. The only time Durbin addressed the issue of the hearing was when he raised concerns for the LGBTQ community, citing a study by the Trevor Project that found young LGBTQ+ are at a "higher risk of suicide," and potential sex verification checks for female athletes a result of protective measures for women's sports, while calling measures a "vendetta." When asked for clarification about the substance of those concerns, Durbin's office pointed to a press release from March 2025 that stated measures to protect women's sports would "subject women and girls to physical inspection by an adult if someone from an opposing team accused them of being transgender." 

Sen. Richard Blumenthal D-Conn., told a reporter that he didn't go to the hearing because he had a classified briefing on the Iran War. When asked about his overall stance on the issue of protecting women's sports, Blumenthal said, "I'm not going to talk about it in the hallway here." Democrats raised the concerns about "inspections" last year ahead of voting for the Protection of Women and Girls in Sports Act, but they were never substantiated in any language within the bill or even any examples of such examinations being used elsewhere. The only verification that has been publicly advocated by anyone has been "cheek swab DNA testing." Once again, the Democrats have completely mischaracterized the issue. 

The party's overall stance on the issue of trans athletes in women's sports has been unpopular. Several major polls; The New York Times, Quinnipiac and Pew Research Center have all shown that more than 70% of all Americans believe women's sports should not permit biological males to compete. 

Ahead of the 2026 mid-terms, many Democrats have distanced themselves from past support of trans athletes without explicitly backpedaling or changing their stance on the issue. The absence of the Democratic committee members at the Wednesday hearing aligns with that recent pattern. The Republicans and witnesses in attendance criticized the Democrats absence. 

Sen. Darlene Graham R-NC, said, "I'm also disappointed our Democratic colleagues left the room, because I think the risk of physical harm is real and has already happened."

Sen. John Kennedy R-La. criticized the Democrats by saying "I'm a little disappointed that my Democratic colleagues left. It's their right, but I'm disappointed."

Sen. Ashley Moody R-Fla. was the most critical of the Democrats who left. "The reason why it is only Republican senators discussing the topic is because the Democrats won't talk openly about the missed opportunities and challenges and what's been happening across our nation for our young women and girls. Shockingly, not one female Democratic Senator has engaged in this hearing or asked you any questions about your experiences, your concerns, your fears or what you may predict may happen in the future if we don't, as you said, lead." 

Currently, there are 23 states in the U.S. that do not have rules prohibiting biological males  form competing in women's sports. California, Maine and Minnesota have engaged in legal battles with the Trump administration over the issue after Trump signed an executive order to protect women's sports last February. 

Nike is taking a beating, and they deserve it...

 Michael Jordan, is widely regarded as the greatest basketball player of all time. He was also the athlete most responsible for transforming Nike from a shoe company into a global sports empire. He once said, "Republicans buy sneakers, too." Jordan made the comment during the 1990 U.S. Senate race in North Carolina, after his mother urged him to support Democratic candidate Harvey Gantt. Jordan confirmed that he made the statement jokingly on a team bus. 

The line endured because it captured a basic business lesson. Companies benefit when everyone, regardless of their politics, buys their products. Nike stopped using common sense. 

After spending much of the past decade injecting left-wing politics into its brand, Nike has now been removed from the Standard & Poor 100, ending a run of nearly 18 years in the blue-chip index. S&P Dow Jones announced the move last week and Nike will no longer trade on the Index after Sept. 21. 

Nike isn't being kicked out of the Index because of questionable and dubious extremely partisan advertising. They're being kicked out because their stock value collapsed. 

Politics didn't wipe out $200 billion by itself. But Nike chose to alienate customers while it was already losing ground everywhere else. The sports apparel giant reached a market value of $281 billion near its peak in November 2021. Nike shares recently closed at $38.10 giving the company a market capitalization of roughly $56.5 billion. The stock was about 79% below its November 2021 record of $179.10. More than $220 billion in market value had disappeared. 

Being removed from the S&P 100 won't put Nike out of business. It will still sell billions of dollars of shoes and sign big-name athletes to sponsorship deals. But the titan of athletic wear is now worth about one-fifth of what it was five years ago and is no longer considered a blue-chip stock. 

Consider Nike's attitude toward China with their behavior in the U.S.. Nike made Colin Kaepernick the face of its 30th anniversary "Just Do It" campaign after he refused to stand for the national anthem, saying he wouldn't show pride for a country that "oppresses Black people and people of color." Nike apparently thought it was a message worth putting on billboards across the nation. 

In 2021 Nike faced blowback from Chinese consumers after the company expressed concern about reports of forced labor involving Uyghurs in Xinjiang. A few months later during an earnings call with then CEO John Donahoe, he made Nike's priorities clear. 

"We're a brand of China and for China," he said. Pretty big contrast with their attitude in the U.S. Nike took a pretty hard stand concerning perceived oppression in the U.S.. But when their business  in a communist country came under pressure, its CEO reminded everyone that Nike had been investing there for more than 40 years, operated thousands of stores and remained committed to the Chinese market. 

Nike was apparently willing to present anti-American messaging at home while continuing to grow in China by assuring Chinese consumers that the company was "of China and for China."

It blew up in their face. 

In 2021 when Donahoe made that declaration, Nike made $8.29 billion in revenue in China. Five years later, they were down to $5.85 billion. Nearly 30% of the business disappeared. 

In 2019, Nike pulled a Fourth-of-July themed Air Max sneaker because it said it could 'unintentionally offend.' A year later, the company launched its "For Once, Don't do it" racial-justice campaign and publicly embraced Black Lives Matter messaging. 

Then Nike partnered with Dylan Mulvaney in 2023 for a paid promotion of women's leggings and sports bras. At the time, OutKick reported that researchers and a Boston's Children's Hospital publication had described Nike as supporting a proposed study involving transgender youth athletes. A Nike executive, speaking to OutKick later said the study "was never initialized' and was not "moving forward." It was later reported that Nike had pulled out after critics had learned of it. 

Nike repeatedly made left-wing politics part of its identity and dared customers to object. Now they have left the S&P 100, its stock down 80% from its peak and its executives are trying to rebuild the product innovation and marketplace relationships that made the company dominant. 

Michael Jordan understood. What Nike failed to understand was they don't have to buy yours. 

Updating the grid...

 The electrical grid in the U.S. is very reliable by most standards. Notwithstanding severe storms, tornadoes, hurricanes, and such, the infrastructure is stable and dependable. Oddly enough, electricity consumption from 2010 to 2020 fell by 1%. Owing to modern innovations such as LED's, efficient motors, stricter appliance standards, the electrical needs of the country went flat for a number of years. This became the norm, until it wasn't. 

The electrical utility industry experienced no growth for over two decades. The financial and practical circumstances surrounding this absence of growth resulted in little to no funding for apprenticeship programs, no training of personnel with specialized skills, and recruiting only to replace those lost to retirement and attrition, if that. The industries that support electrical utilities did the same. Manufacturers of transformers and electrical equipment, steel mills, were all planning based on requirements they had seen for decades. 

Beginning in 2020, electricity consumption has reversed two decades of decline and increased by 7%. Demand for large power transformers, the equipment through which nearly all of America's electricity passes through has surged 116% since 2019. The updating and expansion of power generation, data centers, grid expansion for increased population sparked big increases in demand all within a few years. The utilities and support industries apparently didn't see this coming and were not prepared. 

Roughly 80% of the large power transformers in the United States are now imported. The grain-oriented electrical steel required inside the transformers has but a single domestic producer. Lead times for a standard power transformer have stretched to nearly two and a half years, and even longer for the larger units that connect power plants to the grid. Prices for these critical components have increased more than 77% since 2019. The average transformer in use today is 38 years old, more than 70% of the fleet is more than 25 years old. The utility is finding themselves in the unfortunate position of trying to replace an aging base and build a completely new one with a supply chain that has been neglected for a generation. 

The hardware shortage gets a lot of attention. The human shortage is worse because it can't be expedited. At the present time, there is nowhere in America a person can enroll to learn how to design or build a large power transformer. The few university power engineering programs that still exist don't teach it. Such programs were shrinking before the boom began as students began to turn their interest to software and AI. 

The knowledge to wind a coil, design a core or run a high-voltage acceptance test is a learn-by-doing skill, taught on a shop floor by master winders, test engineers or metallurgists who understand why a core behaves the way it does. This kind of expertise lives in people, rarely written down. Considering that roughly half the utility workforce is now over 45 and a large share of them expected to retire in this decade. A new transformer factory can be built in a couple of years. You cannot create an experienced winder in a couple of years, not can you enroll one either. 

This is the situation no one in the industry planned for. Industrial capability cost nothing to lose and is wickedly expensive to rebuild. It took only 18 months of supply chain stress to expose the gap. It will likely take as much as two decades to close it. Every credible forecast indicates demand climbing through 2050. The impending result: disruption of service. 

The electrical grid and its supporting industries must be treated as growth industries once again. Meaning manufacturers must create new facilities and production lines with the demand forecasts to support them. Apprenticeships, training and recruiting must reflect that of high growth industries once again. Domestic material suppliers must retool and increase production capacity to meet orders. Capital investment must be directed to electrical capacity not just to the data centers that capacity will serve. 

Most of all, it means recalibrating from the status quo that 'worked' for the past 20 years. The industry landscape has shifted and electrical providers must shift with it, in real time. I'm sure many other countries are experiencing the same dilemma.

The Spanish Migration Problem

 This past week tens of thousands of Moroccans swam into the Spanish enclave of Ceute on the African coast within days of the Spanish Supreme Court ruling that no one entering by sea could be denied entry. This follows the launch of a unilateral illegal alien amnesty program by Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez. Sanchez's program has generated more than a million applicants, twice that which was originally estimated. 

There were other factors feeding the crisis. Morocco likely allowed it to happen to pressure Spain on another matter, perhaps to attempt to reclaim the territories taken long ago as part of the Reconquista, Spain's centuries-long war of liberation against its Muslim occupiers. Morocco may have pushed the issue a little too far though; a smaller migrant rush was apparently shut down at Melilla, Spain's other African foothold. This kind of weaponization has been practiced as a form of one-sided war by weaker powers, e.g Turkey, Belarus, Cuba and others. 

The other reason migrant weaponization is effective against Western countries to begin with: the dysfunctional and outdated asylum policies left over from the Cold War.  Those limited policies morphed into pipelines allowing mass illegal immigration. These illegal aliens will request asylum and be supported by Spanish taxpayers until their asylum cases are decided, and even those rejected are not likely to be deported. 

The EU's recent migration pact was presented as a tightening of border controls, but in effect, it will serve to require other EU members to take their "fair share" of the illegals Spain has allowed in. Italy's Prime Minister has threatened to suspend the Schengen Agreement, which allowed passport-free border crossing in Europe. It will be interesting to see how Hungary (who supports strict external border controls) will accept its share of Moroccans illegals.

The timing of the Spanish Supreme Court's ruling on open borders stands in irony to our own Supreme Court's decision just days prior that allowed the president to physically prevent foreigners from crossing the border. Three of our justices that dissented on that judgment shared the suicidal view of their Spanish colleagues, that asylum law in effect applies to foreigners who aren't even in your country yet. 

If there is a saving grace to be founding this latest crisis, it may be that those who chose to violate Western sovereignty may be pushing the limits too quickly. Spain is sending the military to Cueta to restore order, though it remains to be seen whether their mission will be to push back or simply ensure an orderly process. But there is reason to hope given the EU's blessing of Poland's strong efforts to stop forced migration from Belarus. The EU has a big migration problem and it's going to take big measures to bring it under control. Hopefully before the 'collateral damage' becomes unbearable...

The next project...

 After considerable thought and reflection, I have decided on the direction and nature of my next writing project. I have completed two novels now, which have both been rewarding and fulfilling endeavors. The first, took about a year to complete. It was a work of fiction, but based on some possible, precarious events that might take place in the life of an engineer working on projects in various countries around the world. The second novel was a work of historical fiction rooted in family connections. I'm beyond pleased with both works. 

I'm a writer at heart, storytelling is my passion. I'll continue to write for as long as I am able. But after much contemplation, at seventy-two I've decided that based on the twists and turns and the places the path my life has taken me to, my next writing project should be a memoir. 

As fate would have it, some of the places my career has taken me have included some very close brushes with history. How does a very ordinary, unremarkable engineer collide with profound geopolitical events that shape history for decades to come? I don't know the answer to that, but I can tell the story as it happened. This won't be an autobiography, but a story of events and memories and how they changed me and affected the trajectory of my life. 

Does the Radical Left Have Ties to Cuba?

It doesn't get a lot of press attention, but then much of the most corrupt actions of the left don't. Cuba isn't exactly what one would label a 'stable' country. Not economically, not politically, not socially or culturally. Cuba has lived under a dictatorship for the last 74 years, since General Bautista seized power in a military coup. Dictatorships aren't exactly known for thriving economies, hence alliances with other authoritarian regimes are highly valued. 

Soon after the Cuban Revolution in 1959, Fidel Castro turned to Moscow to counter U.S. pressure. In February 1960, Cuba and the Soviet Union signed their first major trade and economic agreement. For the next three decades, Cuba became a key Soviet satellite state in the Western Hemisphere, relying heavily on Soviet oil, weapons and economic subsidies. 

When the Soviet Union dissolved in 1991, Moscow abruptly cut off its massive subsidies and trade support. This triggered a devastating economic depression in Cuba known as the "Special Period." The economic alliance was revived after Vladimir Putin came to power in 2000. Since then Russia and Cuba have steadily rebuilt their political, economic, and military ties. In 2014, Russia wrote off 90% of Cuba's Soviet-era debt. Russia currently supplies Cuba with oil, agricultural products, and financial backing. Cuba consistently backs Russian foreign policy while Russia opposes the U.S. embargo against Cuba. Today Cuba remains a communist dictatorship. Call it what you will, but bottom line, Russia too is a communist dictatorship. If you don't believe that, just try getting crossways with Vlad Putin.  

It's a known fact that Russia interferes in American elections every chance it gets. It's all very clandestine and they're very good at it, and it's not going to end any time soon. But what about Cuba? Not so much as far as interfering in elections, but fanning the flames of leftist radical influence?  According to a new report from the U.S. State Department, yes. 

The Cuban Institute of Friendship with Peoples (ICAP), a Cuban intelligence and influence network, maintains social and financial ties with a number of prominent radical left-wing groups in the U.S. from Black Lives Matter to Code Pink, the State Department says in a recently released report. ICAP was founded in 1960 by Fidel Castro and purportedly exists to promote goodwill toward Cuba through a global infrastructure of 'friendship' and 'solidarity' organizations and deep, longstanding ties to U.S. universities, student groups and activist movements, according to the report. 

The group's network includes more than 2,000 solidarity organizations across 150 countries. Its expansive outreach is alarming, ICAP is run by Fernando Gonzalez Llort, a Cuban spy who spent 15 years in a U.S. prison after being arrested in Miami as part of the Wasp Network in 1998. Former officers of Cuba's Intelligence Directorate have claimed that about 90% of ICAP staff are affiliated with the Cuban spy agency. 

The Cuban regime leverages ICAP's 'solidarity' networks to drive policy, shape activist movements, and maintain a cabal of advocates and agents in the U.S., according to the State Department report. 

ICAP works closely with the U.S. based National Network on Cuba (NNOC), a coalition of more than 60 American groups, including the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), the National Lawyers Guild, Code Pink, and Communist Party USA. While publicly proclaiming a commitment to lobbying for an end to the U.S. embargo, the group actually functions as a key point of contact for coordination between the Cuban regime and the American far left. NNOC works with ICAP to coordinate U.S. delegations to Cuba to hold "solidarity" conferences where American activists meet with Cuban officials to develop strategies for expanding Cuban influence networks in the United States. 

NNOC's propaganda has had a particularly profound effect on young Calla Walsh, who at 16 years of age was celebrated by the New York Times as part of an "influential new force in Democratic politics" for her work on the campaigns of Senator Ed Markey (D. Mass) and Senator Elizabeth Warren (D. Mass). One year later, at 17, she was invited to Cuba. She then visited the country four times between 2022 and 2024. 

Her trips to Cuba ultimately led to her introduction to Fergie Chambers, a Marxist organizer and heir to the Cox Communications empire. Walsh met Chambers at a 2022 conference in Cuba. That meeting seemed to solidify her path to extremism. Today, Walsh is a full-time resident of Lebanon who has transgressed from a progressive to a hardened radical who has been placed on a suspicious persons watch list by the U.S. government for her extensive dealings with the governments of Cuba and Iran, as well as countless U.S. designated terrorist groups. She recently appeared in an Iranian state media interview calling the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei "the greatest anti-imperialist leader" of her lifetime. 

The path to Walsh's radicalization included relationships with several of the groups cited in the report for having close ties to Cuba, including the People's Forum, Code Pink, and the Democratic Socialists of America. 

The People's Forum is one of the most significant left-wing protest groups in America. The group has served as a significant force in the protests against Donald Trump and ICE. They have received substantial financial backing, almost $5 million in 2022, a more than 800% increase from the prior year, owing to the political network of Neville Roy Singham. The People's Forum has played a part in organizing numerous protests, from a demonstration in New York City on October 8, 2023, celebrating Hamas attack on Israel as "an unprecedented liberation struggle," to teaming up with the New York chapter of Democratic Socialists of America to recruit almost 4,000 activists to counter ICE enforcement operations in the city.  

The Democratic Socialists of America has significantly expanded its relationship with, and support for Cuba. In 2019, the DSA announced plans to formally join NNOC. The DAS has since established its own Cuba Solidarity Working Group, has lobbying and campaign advocates, and has sent several official DSA delegations to Cuba. 

In the 1970's, Cuban propaganda turned Assata Shakur, a member of the Black Panthers and Black Liberation Army into the face of U.S. racism, black oppression, and anti-imperialism. Cuban leaders offered Shakur refuge after being convicted of murder and other charges and sentenced to life in prison in the U.S.. Shakur escaped prison with the help of an armed group from the BLA and Weather Underground. She fled to Cuba where she lived until her death in 2025. 

The State Department's report goes on to identify the National Lawyers Guild as having provided support to thousands of George Floyd rioters, and one of the most consistently relevant organizations in Cuba's U.S. network. In 2020 alone, the NLG claims to have coordinated legal support for more than 20,000 arrested protesters during the George Floyd riots. 

The leftist radical ties to Cuba are long-lived and rarely spoken of in the U.S.. Another of the embarrassing faces of the far-left in American politics. Were it not for the support of modern Russia, would Cuba be able to continue this perennial subterfuge?

What's going on behind the scenes with food prices...

With rising food prices, it's human nature and not to mention political bent to place blame. Who or what needs to be identified as the true culprit. All too often, the blame lands on the wrong culprit. 

Many seem to believe that domestic manufacturers and producers are responsible for rising food prices. While politically convenient, this blame game arrantly targets the wrong party while getting the economics of global supply chains, well, backwards. 

One of the key inputs to the American food supply is fertilizer. Its price, like that of other key inputs, is rising. This isn't coming from corporate greed or mismanagement. It's resulting from a combination of global supply chain disruptions, geopolitical instability, and misguided government policies both here and abroad. 

A perfect example of one of the most important, even critical components of the global food supply chain is fertilizer. Increased crop yields depend on it. When crop yields fall, food production declines and grocery bills rise. The production of fertilizer depends on the availability of of a complex combination of materials such as sulfur, ammonia, and phosphate rock. These raw materials are sourced from a variety of global sources and rely on international transportation networks. The supply chains involving these raw materials are currently under significant stress. 

The current war between Russia and Ukraine continues to disrupt key commodity markets and trade routes. Russia produced 7.5 million metric tons of sulfur last year making it the third largest producer in the world. Russia is an oil-rich country and sulfur is a by-product of oil refining. Lately, Ukrainian drone strikes on Russia's oil and fertilizer infrastructure have dramatically cut Russia's ability to supply sulfur. Russia's ammonia exports have also fallen to approximately 80% of pre-war levels. 

Tensions in the Middle East have only added to the uncertainty around energy production and shipping routes. With the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, roughly 16 million tons of fertilizer remain in limbo while geopolitical events remain unresolved. To compound the situation, about half the world's supply of sulfur passes through the strait.

When supplies of critical raw materials shrink and the cost of accessing them rises, prices for consumers will naturally rise. This is completely unrelated to the 'end' market. The market is simply responding to a failure in the supply chain. 

Lowering prices will not come from penalizing producers. The solution will come from relieving the pressure created by global uncertainty. This begins with eliminating policies that unnecessarily raise costs for domestic producers and manufacturers. Permitting delays, burdensome regulations, including those restricting energy development and production all make it more difficult to produce fertilizer in the U.S.. America has abundant resources and tremendous production capability. Government legislators should be doing everything possible to make sure American companies  can source the raw materials they need domestically. 

At the same time, lawmakers need to be acutely aware of misguided trade practices. Raw materials need to be sourced from trusted trade partners, both foreign and domestic. Many foreign producers are facing the same pressures. Countries like China are exacerbating the situation with unfair trade practices of their own. China is the world's largest exporter of fertilizer. However, China has restricted the export of fertilizer and its raw inputs, including sulfuric acid. 

American officials  must pursue policies that promote a level playing field and supply chains that are not subject to global unrest. This leads not only to lower prices but ensures security of domestic food supplies.  If these issues persist through next year's planting season, Americans will be subjected to further price increases than they have this year, as many farmers had already purchased their fertilizer before the current disruptions. 

The laws of economics have not changed, nor shall they. If Washington is serious about protecting food supplies and lowering costs, it needs to distance itself from the blame game. Addressing this crisis requires analyzing what the root causes are, then effecting efforts at where the real problem lies.