Dear Editor,

I just saw that President Donald Trump signed executive orders to remove the DEI, Critical Race Theory, and various enforcements of equity that have been absolutely disastrous to our nation. This has less to do with retribution, as the President has pointed out, but rather to increase our ability to compete with our enemies across the world.

Our students have a record low reading ability. We are on a deadly precipice with our education system and it must be overhauled.

Vivek Ramaswamy and Elon Musk were correct about our failing education system. This is not a criticism of our local teachers and administration but of our state and federal institutions that have basically made us less capable of competing on a world level. We are producing students more concerned with feelings and self worth than challenging them on technology and productivity.

Of course it doesn’t take a genius to figure out how this happened. While our young people were spending countless hours goofing around on social media and TikTok. This app is illegal for Chinese youth where this app was created. Youth in China are drilled in math, science and engineering. Our system of education has been a disaster for decades, and now it is catching up with us in a major way.

According to a recent study we are falling hopelessly behind China in technologies. “A comprehensive, 20-year study released by the Australian Strategic Policy Institute in 2024 calculated that China dominates the US in 57 of 64 critical technologies, up from just three in 2007.

The US, which led in a whopping 60 sectors in 2007, now leads in just seven .ASPI based its rankings on cumulative innovative and high-impact research published and patented by national universities, labs, companies and state agencies.”

This is inexcusable.

The Chinese are also ahead of us in fusion technology. This is very dangerous because this will create an energy source not dependent on the environmental or fossil technologies we have today but rather use one that harnesses sun like power.

“China’s Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST), also known as the “artificial sun,” has set a new world record by sustaining high-confinement plasma for an impressive 1,066 seconds.

This achievement, reached on January 20, marks a major step forward in the quest to develop fusion power as a clean and limitless energy source.”

We are also falling dangerously behind in drone technology. China is developing this tech at frightening speed. Imagine a major attack upon the USA with millions of drones run by Artificial Technology. The system would overwhelm our entire country at lightning speed.

If the Chinese continue to surpass us, the Chinese Communist Party will be the lone superpower in the world.

It is time to make drastic changes in our education and culture. We can no longer afford to let our children fall behind. Our nation’s survival depends on this.

“The heart of the discerning acquires knowledge, for the ears of the wise seek it out.” Proverbs 18:15.

Randy Marple

Shadyside