As universities continue to push diversity, equity, and inclusion, students are paying the price in high fees and classes that fail to yield a high return on investment.
A troubling recent <a href="https://yaf.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Commedy-and-Tragedy-Report.pdf">report</a> from Young America’s Foundation (YAF) detailed how many students are taking classes rooted in radical leftist ideologies, including Marxism. Some of the radical classes offered at major universities across the country include “Queer Science＆ Tech Studies,” “Existence in Black,” and “Designing Reparations.&#8221;
“We’ve seen this shift in our higher education institutions towards Marxism, towards race and gender ideology, towards this identity politics,” YAF Media Coordinator Rob Tandy told The Daily Wire. “And when you look into the types of views that are spreading across America right now, especially amongst the younger generation, you see this rise in socialism, and you see this rise of acceptance of socialism. Well, that stems from somewhere, and it stems from our higher education institutions.”
Meanwhile, the average public university student borrows roughly $32,000 to attain a bachelor’s degree, with total U.S. student loan debt surpassing $1.8 trillion, according to <a href="https://educationdata.org/student-loan-debt-statistics">Education Data Initiative</a>. A <a href="http://newyorkfed.org/research/college-labor-market">report</a> released last month by The Federal Reserve Bank of New York showed that roughly four in ten recent college graduates — from ages 22 to 27 with a bachelor’s degree — are underemployed, meaning they are working a job that doesn’t require a college degree.
But as college students grapple with crippling debt, universities continue promoting courses that offer little value in the workforce.
At the University of Minnesota — where a 3-credit-hour course costs over $1,600 — students have the option to take a class called “Marx for Today,” a course that “seeks to use Marx, and the Marxist tradition, to develop critical perspectives and solutions to pressing issues of racial injustice, social inequality, and environmental devastation.”
“There’s not a lot of college courses out there that examine the works of Milton Friedman and free-market economics,” Tandy said. “A lot of it talks about how capitalism is inequitable and how socialism may be the most ideal economic system moving forward for our country.”
The University of Pennsylvania offers 3-credit-hour courses for over $5,600, including “Sex Wars,” “Decolonizing French Food,” and “Extreme Heat: White Nationalism in the Age of Climate Change.”
At Syracuse University, students can take 3-credit-hour courses for roughly $8,000 each on topics such as “Critical Whiteness Studies,” “Queering the Middle Ages?,” “Islamophobia,” and “God Sex Death.”
A <a href="https://heterodoxacademy.org/reports/how-politically-diverse-are-university-faculty">study</a> conducted by Heterodox Academy, an academics advocacy nonprofit, confirmed that liberal faculty outweigh conservative faculty at American universities. The ratios of liberal to conservative faculty can range from 2:1 to 82:1.
An ideal, well-rounded education incorporates different perspectives, where students are not just getting “one ideological spectrum,” Tandy told The Daily Wire.
“You’re getting both sides, and you’re getting the facts from both sides,” he said. “And I think that’s what’s important, and that’s what our education system should be.”
“College is supposed to be a place where you’re challenged, where you hear ideas that you agree with and ideas that you don’t,” Tandy added. “But instead, too many students are walking into the classrooms unprepared, and then they realize that there’s only one accepted point of view. And when you’re paying tens of thousands of dollars for an education, students and families deserve better.”

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Universities Push Useless Classes As Students Drown In Debt

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When I was a child, my parents told me not to blame other people for my mistakes. Washington State Democrats apparently weren’t raised so well.
A state that has remained a Democratic stronghold for over 40 years still feels the need to blame its problems on the man in the other Washington.
In <a href="https://wadems.org/press/8-21-26-new-data-washington-unemployment-remains-at-an-elevated-5-thanks-to-republicans-failing-economy/">a recent press release</a>, Washington State Democrats lamented “new data” showing that “Washington has lost 16,600 jobs over the past year.” Of course, they blamed the state jobs numbers on President Trump.
But the data show the opposite.
Contrary to the Democrats’ reporting, Washington’s economy <a href="https://esd.wa.gov/about-us/news-release/2026/washington-unemployment-rate-decreased-slightly-50-july">gained 16,100 jobs</a> from July 2025 to July 2026, according to the state’s Employment Security Department. After The Daily Wire inquired about the discrepancy, Democrats privately acknowledged the mistake and deleted this line from their original statement.
But not only did they fail to issue a public correction; they then turned around and took credit for all the job gains.
After issuing the correction, Washington Democratic Party Chair Shasti Conrad told The Daily Wire that Washington state sets itself apart from the rest of the country.
“Despite economic chaos from the other Washington, our Washington’s Democratic leadership and robust business sector were able to add jobs while the rest of the country experienced a net loss.”
In the press release, Conrad blamed President Donald Trump and his fellow Republicans for the state’s economic decline.
“On the campaign trail, Donald Trump promised to deliver a brighter future for Washington families, but instead all he’s done is try to ruin Washington’s economy, kill off good-paying jobs, and spike prices on just about everything,” Conrad said in <a href="https://wadems.org/press/8-21-26-new-data-washington-unemployment-remains-at-an-elevated-5-thanks-to-republicans-failing-economy/">a statement</a> on Aug. 21. “Now, Washington families are forced to take on further debt or empty their savings account just to afford the essentials or pay their bills.”
It is funny that a state with a Democratic trifecta for the last eight years still blames its problems on Republicans. Washington holds the nation’s longest streak of Democratic governors, last electing a Republican to office in 1980. In political maps of the U.S., Washington remains blue in every variation. Add more rain or remove the mountains, Washingtonians will vote Democrat.
For a state that prides itself on its ability to disconnect from the nation’s red capital in both law and politics, it is telling that Democrats still blame Trump and his Republican conglomerate for the state’s many problems.
Democrats argued that the average Washington family has spent over $3,600 more on goods and services this year because of Trump’s “harmful agenda.”
But Trump’s agenda is not to blame for the state’s expensive goods and services. <a href="https://ofm.wa.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/default/files/public/legacy/agencycommunications/FY2025/Budget%20Reductions%20for%20Fiscal%20Year%202025%20and%202025-27%20Biennium.pdf">In 2024</a>, Democrats put the state in a budget deficit of $10-12 billion over a period of four years. The only way out of this is to tax people more.
Enter the gas tax hike.
Washington boasts the nation’s <a href="https://www.lendingtree.com/credit-cards/study/us-gas-prices/">third-highest gas prices</a>, averaging out to $5.13/gallon, putting it 25% above the national average. But this isn’t a major uptick from the Biden years. In 2022, under Biden, Washington gas price averages rose to $5.56/gallon.
Last year, Washington state Democrats pushed a gas tax that would take the already-high state gas tax from 49.4 cents to 55.4 cents per gallon, with a 2% increase each year to “account for inflation.” Comparatively, the <a href="https://igentax.com/resources/gas-tax-state/">federal government’s</a> gas tax is $0.184/gallon.
While the war in Iran has modestly raised gas prices nationwide, Washington residents could have seen lower prices if not for excessive taxes imposed by Democrats.
In a statement to The Daily Wire, Conrad praised state Democrats for a successful primary, “winning over voters with our message of affordability, lowering costs, and work [sic] to counter the chaos emanating from the Trump-Vance administration.”
But their supposed “message of affordability” is built on statistical errors and an attempt to ignore the taxes they have imposed on their constituents.
It’s time for Washington state Democrats to step up and take responsibility for their actions. If they want to blame imaginary job losses on Trump, they need to credit him for the real job gains they now enjoy.
***
Christina Lewis is a journalism fellow with the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. She graduated from Hillsdale College, where she studied history, politics, and journalism. You can follow her work on X @By_Christina.

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Cooking The Books In Olympia: Deficits, Taxes, And The Phantom Trump Slump

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When I was growing up, the adults in my life warned me about making excuses. Politicians today, however, seem to have no problem justifying theft, especially when the victims appear to be billion-dollar corporations.
While their justifications appear compassionate, the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) are merely setting the stage for anarchy through the abolition of police and prisons throughout the country.
Last Thursday, New York State Assemblywoman Emily Gallagher defended people who steal basic necessities such as toothpaste and soap.
“People who are stealing things like toothpaste, people who are stealing things like soap, and that means if you are stealing those things, you need them,” the Democratic Socialist politician said at a press conference outside Manhattan Criminal Court. “And we are choosing to protect billion-dollar companies, like CVS and Walgreens, over the people who are struggling to get by.”
If Gallagher thinks stealing toothpaste will hurt billion-dollar corporations, then she should think again. An increase in petty theft will hurt law-abiding customers. It’s simple economics.
Businesses set prices based on supply and demand. If people steal goods from stores, decreasing supply, stores will naturally need to raise prices in response to the shortage. Politicians like Gallagher, however, refuse to acknowledge this economic principle.
Gallagher, along with her fellow advocates, insists that thieves are in such desperate need of toothpaste that their “biological need” justifies their actions.
“So I would say that the true crime is that there is such incredible wealth disparity in this city that there are people who can be thrown in jail simply for having a biological need,” Gallagher said at the press conference.
Surely New Yorkers in dire need of soap can get some at their local food bank or homeless shelter. Stealing from stores is a drastic measure that should not turn into the norm. Holding people accountable for their actions not only protects the thousands of jobs sponsored by billion-dollar companies, but it also ensures prices remain level for law-abiding customers.
Gallagher and other New York politicians are calling out Mayor Zohran Mamdani to follow through on his campaign promise to end “broken windows policing.” These “quality of life crimes,” as Democrats like to call low-level crimes, range from stealing a bar of soap to fare evasion.
While Democratic politicians may have a legitimate point when they argue that police should prioritize apprehending more serious offenses, it does not mean law enforcement should turn the other cheek for petty theft. 
Economics aside, what is really concerning about Gallagher’s take is that following the trajectory of her wishes could lead to the abolition of police and prisons. DSA politicians campaign on the promise to do just that.
The DSA’s website links to the Defund The Police <a href="https://defundpolice.org/?link_id=1&amp;can_id=04a644b1fe7888611278bf5b3bcff6d1&amp;source=email-community-resource-hub-training-follow-up&amp;email_referrer=email_1418256&amp;email_subject=community-resource-hub-training-follow-up">homepage</a>, which clearly states: “#DefundPolice means divesting from institutions that kill, harm, cage and control our communities, and investing in violence prevention and interruption, housing, health care, income support, employment, and other community-based safety strategies that will produce safer communities for everyone.”
Step one of abolishing the police is taking away their power to police. That starts with politicians like Gallagher, who claim police have better things to do with their time than doing their job.
Dr. Frances Gill, a member of the DSA’s National Political Committee, acknowledged the organization’s goal to abolish the police. In <a href="https://www.nbclosangeles.com/video/news/politics/newsconference/newsconference-far-left-wing-of-democratic-party-securing-more-wins/3927413/">an interview</a>, NBC4’s political reporter Conan Nolan asked Gill how a rapist would get punished under a system with no police and prisons.
“I really want to avoid getting kind of caught into these hypotheticals and talk more about the reality that we’re actually facing right now, which is that we’re spending absolutely outrageous amounts of money on police and policing,” Gill said in the interview. “And we’re not spending money on things that actually make people safe and feel safe, which is things like actually well-lit streets.”
Tell that to a woman who just got assaulted and see how she reacts. The DSA wants to abolish the police, and it starts with a false sympathy toward those who want soap and toothpaste.
Humans are great at finding excuses for silly little things. Let’s not allow “the dog ate my homework” to become “the dog stole the toothpaste.”
***
Christina Lewis is a journalism fellow with the Intercollegiate Studies Institute. She graduated from Hillsdale College, where she studied history, politics, and journalism. You can follow her work on X @By_Christina.

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How The DSA’s Excuses Cover For Abolishing Police And Prisons

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The Seattle City Council unanimously approved an amendment to its budget on Wednesday that would reallocate $300,000 to fund resources for members of the trans community from across the country who wish to move to Seattle.
A leading Seattle Democrat argued for the amendment, claiming there is an “ongoing crisis and displacement of queer, transgender, and gender non-conforming people.”
“This amendment responds to the ongoing crisis and displacement of queer, transgender, and gender non-conforming people that are seeking refuge from hostile jurisdictions from across the country,” Councilmember Alexis Mercedes Rinck said at the Finance, Native Communities, and Tribal Governments Committee <a href="https://www.seattlechannel.org/mayor-and-council/city-council/2026-2027-finance-native-communities-and-tribal-governments">meeting</a> on August 4.
The $300,000 would go from the city’s JumpStart fund in the Human Services Department to LGBTQ community organizations that will provide emergency shelter, food access, employment support, and other services to trans-refugees. According to <a href="https://seattle.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=F&amp;ID=15739116&amp;GUID=AF193D51-0D29-40BF-B894-4081509CAEAA">the report</a>, the $300,000 is coming from a budget dedicated to building homes in Seattle’s Northgate neighborhood.
Since the project no longer needs the funds, council members have decided what to do with the excess money. Rather than directing the funds toward other problems facing Seattle, the city council chose to spend the money in expanding services for the city’s growing LGBTQ population.
“I just think it’s absolutely ridiculous that in a city that has a housing crisis, sex-trafficking problem, a city that has a serious drug problem, you guys want to give $300,000 away in the name of fictional genocide that’s not occuring,” Ari, a de-transitioner, said at the <a href="https://www.seattlechannel.org/FullCouncil">city council meeting</a> on August 11.
Ari said he also moved from state-to-state like other trans-migrants, eventually landing in Seattle 10 years ago.
“But they’ve moved [the new batch of trans-refugees] because women, adult human females have said they’re not comfortable with males in their bathrooms, in their prisons, in their rape shelters,” Ari said at the meeting. “So they’ve come here to hide so they can oppress women. That’s what it’s really about. And I just think it’s absolutely ridiculous a city council with this many women on it do not know what women are.”
After the public testimony segment concluded, Rinck said she wanted to make it clear to members of the transgender community that they belong in Seattle.
“I want to state to our queer and trans community directly: You belong in Seattle,” Rinck said. “I am glad you are here. You deserve dignity and respect and we are going to do the work to live up to our promise of being a welcoming city.”
Seattle has become one of the hubs for LGBTQ activism. From rainbow-painted sidewalks to Pride-themed Seattle Storm basketball games, the city advertises itself as being one of the most welcoming cities for LGBTQ people.
But that welcome has also raised questions about the city’s broader approach to gender-related issues.
A <a href="https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/hhs-wolves-in-white-coats.pdf">recent report</a> published by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services listed over 200 hospitals that may have engaged in insurance fraud to conduct sex-rejecting procedures on minors. Seattle Children’s Hospital was among the hospitals named on the list.
According to the report, doctors ordered sex-rejecting procedures using diagnostic codes, like “endocrine disorder, unspecified” so that patients could get insurance coverage for their treatment.
“During this same timeframe, nearly $11 million was billed for puberty blockers, including to Medicaid and Medicare, for hundreds of patients between the age of 13 and 17 with a diagnostic code for precious puberty,” the <a href="https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/hhs-wolves-white-coats-executive-summary.pdf">executive summary</a> said. “By definition, anyone 13 or older cannot have a diagnosis of precocious puberty and should not be given puberty blockers at that age for this indication.”

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Seattle City Council Approves Funding For ‘Trans-Refugees’

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In May, India’s Chief Justice Surya Kant decided to make known his thoughts on the country’s young people.
“There are youngsters like cockroaches, who don’t get any employment and don’t have any place in the profession,” Kant said, in reference to college graduates who go into careers like journalism. He later retracted his statement following public outcry.
But by then it was too late.
“What if all the cockroaches come together?” 30-year-old Abhijeet Dipke tweeted on May 15. With that, the satirical Cockroach Janta (People’s) Party (CJP) was born.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
What if all cockroaches come together?
— Abhijeet Dipke (@abhijeet_dipke) <a href="https://x.com/abhijeet_dipke/status/2055493761912741903?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 16, 2026</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.x.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
The CJP’s name is a send-up of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has held political power in the country for over a decade. Thousands of the party’s cockroaches — as they like to be called — are swarming the streets of India, demanding greater accountability in the government and education boards.
They have reason to be angry. India’s education system is going down the drain, and it’s flushing its cockroaches along with it.
Each year, millions of students compete for top spots at colleges and in the government. To say that students’ test results determine their future would be an understatement. In a country where over 65% of the population is under the age of 35 and roughly 11 million students graduate from high school each year, every point earned on a test can be the difference between life on the streets and a well-paying job that will support their families.
But the job shortage is not the only challenge Indian students face as they enter the workforce. Over the past decade, repeated exam paper leaks have plagued the country’s education system, erasing years of students’ preparation and hard work. 
On July 24, the CJP called for the resignation of India’s Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, accusing him of failing to safeguard exams. The next day, he resigned.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
Pune!!! Wow!!! <a href="https://t.co/6JHDzjyE8C">https://t.co/6JHDzjyE8C</a>
— Abhijeet Dipke (@abhijeet_dipke) <a href="https://x.com/abhijeet_dipke/status/2080683292655861874?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 24, 2026</a></blockquote>
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This is a major scandal. Poor Indians often spend their nights under street lamps, using what little glow they can capture to prepare for entrance examinations. Stories fill the Indian tabloids of parents who sacrifice everything they own for their children to study for these tests.
But the CJP does not limit itself to protesting against the corrupt education system. Cockroaches also advocate for greater social change in India, such as freedom of the press and women’s safety.
The CJP has called for media conglomerates to have their exclusive licenses canceled so independent media can flourish. Cockroaches are also voicing their disgust over the increasingly dangerous conditions for women. In New Delhi — which is notorious for being the most dangerous city for women in India.
When women don’t reciprocate a man’s attention, sometimes a man will throw acid on the girl’s face to permanently blind her and disfigure her skin. In addition, when a wife’s family is unable to meet the monetary and property demands of the husband’s family in the form of a dowry, the woman may face severe abuse and even death. By calling attention to what has been going on in India for years, the CJP is showing they want India to be better.
Many prominent Indians have joined the satirical party, including Kirti Azad, a famous cricket player who helped India win the 1983 cricket World Cup. To spread even more awareness, Sonam Wangchuk, a well-known Indian activist, went on a hunger strike for 26 days. This increased the CJP’s popularity and even sparked discussions with members of India’s Parliament. After Wangchuk ended his strike, Modi urged him to follow his doctor’s advice and said he would pray for Wangchuk to have good health.
History is rife with examples of student-led movements that demanded more from their political leaders. Take the Velvet Revolution in Czechoslovakia. Protesters jingled their keys in the air to tell the ruling Communist Party it was time to pack their bags and lock the doors behind them. Despite being met with violence from police, protesters continued to rattle their keys and demand an end to communist rule. The movement was successful and eventually led to the end of communism in the country. 
While CJP protests are largely nonviolent, cockroaches have faced tear gas, police batons, and other acts of intimidation from authorities. But that hasn’t stopped them from challenging corruption and demanding accountability. Only time will tell whether the CJP succeeds in bringing about meaningful change. But if change can begin with the jingling of keys, why can’t it begin with the marching of cockroaches?

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Christina Lewis

Universities Push Useless Classes As Students Drown In Debt

Cooking The Books In Olympia: Deficits, Taxes, And The Phantom Trump Slump

How The DSA’s Excuses Cover For Abolishing Police And Prisons

Seattle City Council Approves Funding For ‘Trans-Refugees’

India’s ‘Cockroach Party’ Is Sparking National Debate