The Road To Prescott, California – Thomas Reiner

For Cormac McCarthy fans, the Road to Prescott, Arizona is still a far cry from the wasteland portrayed in McCarthy’s postapocalyptic classic “The Road”. Nonetheless, this Pulitzer Prize winning novel does serve as a warning of the potential for destruction of what many local residents regard  as our bit of paradise.

Prescott has become a magnet for all kinds of people. Many have found our town a refuge from the creeping dystopia of places  like California. But others—hustlers and opportunists–seem to be spreading the disease. It’s time for those of us who call Prescott home and value the heritage and natural wonder of this quintessential Western town to start paying attention.

At the risk of sounding like an alarmist, I must warn that we are drifting toward Californization. Recent zoning decisions and tax hikes have placed Prescott at a crossroads—the proverbial fork in the road between becoming an expensive, overdeveloped and congested California-style city, or maintaining the livable scale of historic Prescott, with free parking and an accessible downtown that is used by locals and not just out of town visitors. Prescott has always had a friendly, welcoming spirit and a long tradition of tourism and hospitality. But recent decisions on downtown development are threatening to turn Whiskey Row into Hotel Row.

A lot of our newcomers are retirees who hail from California. As a group, they are not to blame for forcing change on our community. For the most part, they are traditional Americans who have lost their homes and communities to woke policies and stood by helplessly as demographic change transformed their neighborhoods. They abandoned California because they no longer felt at home there. We should heed these refugees as living witnesses to the fall of what was once the Golden State. From out of control crime, high taxes, and a debased civic culture to a progressive public education system that values social leveling and DEI over academics, they have watched their state turn onto an unlivable, leftist dystopia.

These developments went on steroids during the Government’s 1984-like experiment with social pacification known as COVID mandates. Forced masking and vaccinations, quarantines, shuttered schools and businesses, and the unleashing of vast government expenditures leading to levels of inflation we had not seen in decades. It was a terrifying glimpse into the heavy hand of government we had never before experienced. There is an unmistakable thread connecting the ‘social revolution’ spawned by COVID and the woke politics of anti-ICE demonstrators in New York, Minneapolis, Portland and LA, who are resisting efforts to remove illegals and restore the sanctity of America’s immigration laws.

Although Prescott has a long tradition as a Republican stronghold, we can’t take conservative governance for granted. The left, along with their friends in the legacy media, are becoming more aggressive. The evidence of a shift in local politics is all around us.

Anti-Trump demonstrators are now regularly seen on the courthouse square. Paid protestors are brought in on shiny big buses for ‘No King’ and ‘No Ice’ rallies. Some of them have reportedly become aggressive,  intimidating passers-by with shouting and vulgar epithets. Once marginal groups like Prescott Indivisibles have recently gained a voice in local politics. Left leaning teachers at PUSD indoctrinate the impressionable  young with progressive ideology while a liberal school board demands bigger school bonds and budget overrides. Local Democrats, with the complicity of naïve city council members, recently succeeded in questionably seating one of their own on the Prescott City Council. We ignore these unmistakable signs of Californization at our peril.

For now, our lovely community of Prescott remains a treasure and a refuge. This is a city to love. It’s our home. And it’s worth fighting for.  As President Trump charged us with a raised fist, as blood streamed down his face, we must “Fight, Fight, Fight!”  A living people fights for their future.

But what exactly are we as ordinary citizens to do? This is my call to those who see the danger to get involved. If you are not registered to vote, get registered. Get conservative candidates on the ballot by signing their petitions. Volunteer to be a Precinct Committeeman. Contribute financially to a campaign in any amount you can afford. Put up a yard sign for a candidate who supports your values. Let’s get  Prescott off the road to California and back on the road to protecting our American Heritage and the freedom and traditions of our people.