Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez flaunts her ignorance

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez claims she's a college graduate, having earned an undergraduate degree from Boston University. Apparently, a basic understanding of how governments are structured around the world wasn't a graduation requirement. In her recent 60 Minutes television interview, Anderson Cooper asked the newly elected House representative if her policies mirror the failed socialist regime of Venezuela. Laughing at the question, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez replied, "Of course not. What we have in mind and what my policies most closely resemble are what we see in the U.K., in Norway, in Finland, in Sweden." Dismissing the fact that she spoke for an unknown and unidentified collective by employing the word "we" in her response, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez is in need of a remedial world civics class. Having flaunted her ignorance for the umpteenth time, Anderson Cooper failed to follow up by asking Ms. Ocasio-Cortez if she knows the difference between a parliamentary representative constitutional monarchy and a constitutional republic. It's evident her civics education is sorely lacking. I don't know what's more pathetic: the fact that Ms. Ocasio-Cortez is unable to differentiate between a constitutional monarchy and a constitutional republic or the fact that Anderson Cooper may not know, either. If by some chance he does know the difference, did he think by not pointing it out that with the exception of Finland, all three of the other countries Ms. Ocasio-Cortez mentioned have hereditary heads of state or, in the vernacular, monarchs for life? Unlike the U.S. pesident; who is elected for a defined term, either four or eight years, and who presides over a constitutional republic, kings and queens are not elected by the people's vote; they are anointed in elaborate ceremonies and crowned by the country's prevailing religious vicar. A monarch has but one purpose: to lord over his or her subjects. And while it's important to point out that in the 21st century, neither of the kings in Sweden or Norway wields any real power, nor does Queen Elizabeth II, who currently sits on the throne in the United Kingdom, fact is, this centuries-old method of governance remains steadfast and will remain steadfast in the foreseeable future.

It's hard to determine if Ms. Ocasio-Cortez is just naïve or a simpleton spouting talking points. By using the U.K., Sweden, and Norway as shining examples in support of her socialist policies, Ms. Ocasio-Cortez fails to understand, much less acknowledge that the citizenry financially support the monarchy in each of these countries. The price tag? Ten of millions of dollars via taxation annually. If you think a 70% tax bracket, also recently proposed by Ms. Ocasio-Cortez, is outrageous, keep in mind that not only do the working class in the U.K., Norway, and Sweden pay for the monarch, but crushing taxation also supports all of the extended family members of the monarchy; the multiple residences at which the monarch and his family reside, to include the upkeep, maintenance, and renovations of said residences; and the royal family travel and recreational expenses. Let's not forget the massive number of people who serve the royals. Just so you know – the servants don't work for free, and their salaries don't come out of the pocket of the monarch. As the fawning media do so frequently these days, Anderson Cooper purposely dodged the question, but I'm left wondering if anyone in the media will dare to ask Ms. Ocasio-Cortez exactly how her desire for a constitutional monarchy form of government that, in her words, closely resembles Norway, Sweden, and the U.K., and that she hopes will replace the United States constitutional republic government, dovetails with her version of socialism. Perhaps Ms. Ocasio-Cortez also requires a quick history lesson about how the socialists, a political faction she readily identifies with, brutally murdered the Russian ruling monarch, his spouse, and all five of his children and then proceeded to exterminate millions of Russian citizens. While Ms. Cortez may not recall the boring details of Tsar Nicholas II and his family's savage demise by the socialists, I have no doubt she will continue to indulge the media by flaunting more of her effervescing ignorance. "We" can count on it.