Thankful for Our Blessings
What to Know: Consumer confidence is at a low point, just ahead of the important holiday shopping season.
The TPPF Take: Nothing—not the economic outlook or elections or any other earthly concerns—should make us lose sight of thankfulness.
“My hope is not in political power for the right party, or in federal programs,” says TPPF’s Kevin Roberts. “Hope is something higher, and gratitude is something richer by far. In this season of thankfulness, let’s look up. Let’s raise our eyes from our screens, let’s look into the faces of our families and friends, and remember that we feel thankful because there is One truly deserving of our thanks.”
For more on looking up, click here.
Thankful for Parent Empowerment
What to Know: This year’s elections shows that parent empowerment—letting parents make the important educational decisions on behalf of their families—is a winning message.
The TPPF Take: Support for parent empowerment is strong, even in rural areas.
“Texas politicians, take note: parents aren’t fooled by the false narrative on school choice anymore,” says Texas Tech University’s Professor Alexander Salter. “School choice doesn’t hurt rural districts. If anything, it strengthens them by giving families additional options. Public education dollars should fund students, not systems. It’s time to make school choice a reality here in Texas.”
For more on parent empowerment, click here.
Thankful for the Opportunity to Improve Policy
What to Know: Efforts to address addiction and homelessness through “harm reduction” (such as with the Housing First model for homelessness) without addressing underlying causes are doomed to fail. California proves the point.
The TPPF Take: But we know what works—accountability.
“Thankfully, people do recover, but it does not happen without the guardrails of personal responsibility and accountability,” says TPPF’s Michele Steeb. “Treatment centers that insist on abstinence are disappearing because government funding is no longer available to programs that require sobriety. Government considers the notion that one has to quit drugs to recover from addiction to be passe.”
For more on homelessness and addiction, click here.