LA Riots Expose the Bizarre Solidarity of the Western World’s Left‑Wing Machine
Radical groups play leading roles in organizing and amplifying the protests. This is nothing new.
I’ve made no secret of my opinion of California—particularly Southern California (Read my latest piece at Blaze: California’s budget trick is leaving poor patients to die). I believe the state is only truly propped up by the economic engine of San Francisco. Southern California, by contrast, functions largely as a consumer destination—driven by tourism, residual industry, and lifestyle spending. But I don’t see that model lasting. The underlying problems are not being addressed, and in many cases, they’re getting worse. Left to its own devices, California is a failed state in slow motion. Its infrastructure is crumbling, its politics are dysfunctional, and its general public seems to drift further into ideological fantasy with each passing year. Meanwhile, the state’s environmental crises (driven by overpopulation, the absolute worst urban and suburban planning, and unchecked development) continue to intensify. And now, Los Angeles is on fire. Again.
If it were up to me, I’d advocate for a limited population strategy and a form of eco-nationalism that actually protects the land. If the state were made more exclusive, there’s a chance the sentiment of the population might even improve (and yes, I’m treading lightly here). In a rational world, the California coast would be treated as a national park. But of course, that’s where the population lives because it’s the only sliver of the state, and arguably the country, with consistently moderate weather. The development of that narrow strip was a mistake. So we’re stuck with this absurd, weather-driven population clustering, stacked along cliffs, fault lines, and a 20-to-50-mile-wide band of overpopulated livability hugging the coast. It’s ridiculous. California is, after all, a uniquely rich and fragile environment. But any serious attempt to curb overpopulation or rein in reckless urban expansion would be dismissed out of hand. So here I am, just talking, just wishful thinking.
And let’s dispense with the “this used to be Mexico” talking point while we’re at it. That argument is paper-thin and historically incoherent. Before it was Mexico, it was Spain. Before that, it was a patchwork of indigenous tribal lands (Tongva, Chumash, Cahuilla) none of which bore political borders as we understand them today. So what exactly are we proposing? A return based on empathy and a broken chain of title? Should we divvy up Los Angeles by tribal affiliation and start over? The idea collapses under the weight of its own absurdity. The only reasonable path forward is not a revisionist land claim, but a serious effort to integrate indigenous principles—particularly those tied to environmental stewardship—into public life. That’s worth preserving. But the notion that modern California somehow "belongs" to Mexico is not only historically false → it’s breathtakingly lazy.
Regardless, the recent anti-ICE protests have now spiraled into full-scale urban riots, by professional agitators. What started as political outrage quickly devolved into unrestrained chaos: concrete chunks, fireworks, and other objects hurled at police and the National Guard; reports of federal troops and Marines being deployed; fires and vandalism consuming city blocks; and the deliberate destruction of both public and private property. This isn’t protest—it’s a breakdown of civic order. And it’s what the California dominated Democratic party and the professional agitators want.
What’s more disturbing than the unrest itself is the response from the media-political class. The Left’s unified narrative is as rehearsed as it is detached from reality. Within hours, major media outlets across the Western world framed the riots not as civic collapse or criminality, but as a noble uprising. Under the now-standard banner of “social justice,” the messaging fell into place: label the violence a moral reckoning, reframe destruction as speech, and elevate certain key-points as the defining spirit of the movement. This is very clear orchestration.
Left-wing activist groups like CHIRLA and the openly radical Party for Socialism and Liberation are playing leading roles in organizing and amplifying the protests. This is nothing new—it fits neatly into a century-long pattern of left-wing agitation and political violence across the Western world. Their goal is not public dialogue or resolution. Their goal is the professional orchestration of chaos and the control of narrative through media dominance. In the process, truth is drowned out by emotion, and complexity is replaced with weaponized slogans. As with every major crisis in the West over the last decade, moderate or dissenting voices were instantly cast as villains. Express concern about looting? You’re a bigot. Call for law enforcement? You’re a fascist. Even the phrase “law and order” is now treated as dangerous code. The center isn’t just ignored, it’s being erased. And that’s no accident. The left-wing political machine treats ambiguity as betrayal. There is no room for compromise. You are either fully onboard with their interpretation of justice, or you are the problem.
What makes this moment especially revealing is how uniform and uncritical the coverage has become. From L.A. to London, from Toronto to Berlin, the same talking points echo across platforms. The same images are pushed. The same conclusions are reached—without challenge, without nuance, and without regard for the consequences. Honest debate is unwelcome. The machine offers narrative shelter to destructive movements, cultural immunity from accountability, and a global media bias disguised as consensus. And if you push back, you’re dangerous by default.
These aren’t isolated riots. They’re a stress test for what remains of institutional integrity in the West. The grievances may be real, but they are quickly weaponized by a professional political-media complex that turns anger into spectacle and destruction into virtue. What vanishes in this environment is everything that makes democracy functional: moderation, complexity, and the possibility of common ground.
The Left no longer has to win arguments. It controls the frame. And until that changes—until dissent is tolerated again and the political center is allowed to exist—the “middle ground” will continue to burn right alongside the buildings. It’s undeniable now: there is a coordinated, global, left-wing media system, not merely shaping opinion but actively working to undermine capitalism, law and order, and even the very idea of balance.
One more thing: as Hollywood and Southern California’s cultural propaganda machine collapses under its own weight, it can no longer sell the illusion of this region as a promised land. That myth has expired. And without it, the reality is unavoidable—Southern California is no longer a dream. It’s the biggest mess in the United States. And now, the rest of the world can finally see it.
If you want to read more about California’s endless government overreach, read my new book: The Myth of California. The Amazon Kindle version is available now. The full book, paperback and audiobook will be released this summer.
Endorsements for "The Myth of California" -
"California was once America’s “Promised Land” where people flocked to find gold, good weather, and opportunities in everything from movies to manufacturing. It was the agricultural epicenter of the world, known as the “salad bowl” of the planet. But decades of leftist leadership has destroyed everything but the weather. It’s become “Paradise Lost” with homelessness, unanswered crime, and choking tax rates and regulations causing people to flee in stunning numbers to get to places where their families can live without the boot of big government on their necks and cultural cuckoos setting the atmosphere of the lifestyle. Chad Hagan details what happened in his riveting book, “The Myth of California: How Big Government Destroyed the Golden State.” It’s the tragic story of how the irrational left destroys everything it touches and how one state exchanged its gold for garbage. - Mike Huckabee, Former Governor of Arkansas, Bestselling Author, and U.S. Ambassador to Israel
"My father was a car salesman in a town of 800 people in Northern Minnesota. He had one vacation in his working life, and we took a trip to California. He had a friend who had settled in Carlsbad years earlier and wanted to visit. I was 10. My brother was 11, and our sister was 7. We were in awe. It was a modest home, beautifully maintained, with a yard full of fruit trees. We picked oranges and ate them in the yard. We had grapefruit off the trees for breakfast. I dreamed of moving to California for years. No longer! Chad Hagan’s book, The Myth of California, will make you disappointed, infuriated, and then just plain sad. It is a cautionary tale about how politicians can destroy a paradise in one lifetime. Ultimately, unchecked political power serves only itself. The citizens are included only to pay the bills. It is also a testament to how the crazies run the world. Most of us just want to go to work, come home and relax, and build a family and life. The crazies don’t think that way. They are loud, and they vote. Ultimately, politicians whose only interest is in power, cave in to them. (A government permit needed to wear heels taller than 2 inches in Carmel? Spare me!) As Californians now flee in droves, the stories they tell disabuse us of any notion of paradise. This book does that in spades. Read it!" - John Linder, Former U.S. Congressman (GA-7)