Cal Thomas

Semantics are important for how we communicate and define issues. One who controls words controls the narrative. So, take the words migrant and invader. Is there a difference? It's all in how they are perceived by some, and the effect their illegal border crossings have on the U.S. One definition of invasion should focus our attention: “The entrance or advent of anything troublesome or harmful…

The CDC adds to the confusion each time it issues new statements. The latest came last week from CDC Director Rochelle Walensky who said, "everyone wear a mask in indoor public settings in areas of substantial and high transmission, regardless of vaccination status." That has raised the obvious question: Why get vaccinated if you must behave like those who have not been vaccinated? Last Friday…

We have always had them among us: fortune tellers, diviners, readers of palms, tarot cards, tea leaves, stars, horoscopes, discerners of animal entrails, calling on gods of wood and stone, and all sorts of other “seers” who have attempted to convince the gullible that they have the power to predict the future. To some, climate change proponents are little more than modern-day soothsayers that…

RAPID CITY, South Dakota — South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem likes to present herself as a “normal everyday” person “who enjoys life.” Appearing at FreedomFest 21, a gathering of 2,700 conservatives and libertarians, Noem said, “nobody knew who I was until liberals began attacking me every night on the national news.” She’s referring to her conservative views on economic and social issues.

In the 1950s there was a quiz show called “To Tell the Truth.” It has been reborn several times but retained its original format. A celebrity panel would try to discover which one of three contestants was telling the truth, as all claimed to be the same person with identical backgrounds. I thought of that show in relation to the conflicting stories and claims that have come from “experts”…

Retirement plans warn of a “penalty for early withdrawal.” Might that also apply to the withdrawal of American and NATO forces from Afghanistan? If you set aside the victory by coalition forces that expelled Saddam Hussein's overmatched troops from Kuwait in 1991, the U.S. has not won a war since World War II. Not in Korea. Not in Vietnam and now, says President Biden, Afghanistan is a war we…

Most of us recall as children getting into a dispute with another kid and then blaming him for starting a fight. When Mom approached you said, “he hit me first.” The other kid denies it and accuses you of hitting him first.

All politicians tell lies, but the Biden-Harris administration is taking lies to a new level. They now want us to disbelieve what we can see. To paraphrase a quote attributed to the 19th-century British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, there are lies, damn lies ... and then there is Vice President Kamala Harris. More than 90 days after being tasked to stem the record flow of migrants into the…

Cover-ups of sexual misconduct, allegations of racism and intimidation of those who wish to speak their minds but can’t for fear of losing their jobs. It sounds like the dysfunctional ways of the world, doesn’t it? These are just some of the problems the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) will confront this week as their 16,000 “messengers” gather in Nashville. Instead of obeying their…

President Biden has pledged to “help narrow the racial wealth gap and reinvest in communities that have been left behind by failed policies.” He used the 100th anniversary of the Tulsa race massacre in Greenwood, a thriving African American community ravaged by a racist mob in 1921, as the occasion to promise more federal contracts for minority-owned companies and address discrimination in…

Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas is reportedly considering the development of tools that would help America's children discern truth from lies and know when they are being fed “disinformation.” The Washington Times, which first reported the story, says a department spokesperson declined to give details, but that more information would be revealed “in the coming weeks…

In outlining the goal for winning the Persian Gulf War against Saddam Hussein for invading and occupying Kuwait in 1991, Gen. Colin Powell, then the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said, “Our strategy to go after this army is very, very simple. First, we're going to cut it off, and then we're going to kill it.” The ceasefire announced last week between the terrorist organization Hamas…

The Supreme Court this fall will hear a case from Mississippi that bans most abortions after 15 weeks, except in cases of rape where the crime has been reported to police, or the life of the mother is in danger. Lower courts have rejected the law as unconstitutional because of the precedent set by Roe v. Wade in 1973 and reaffirmed and expanded in subsequent rulings, even as the abortion lobby…

Observing the ouster of Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) from her House leadership position and her criticism of former president Donald Trump, reminded me of a '70s TV ad for Listerine mouthwash. The company attempted to use the product's bad taste to its advantage. The ad said: “It's got the taste people hate - twice a day.” The Republican establishment may hate Donald Trump, but they would be hard-…