Several dozen municipal governments across the U.S. have changed Columbus Day to Indigenous Peoples Day. They contend that Christopher Columbus and other Europeans ushered in centuries of ethnic cleansing and genocide. Injustices of the past cannot be changed by new-age political correctness. And the propensity for historically ruthless treatment of others is common to all races of people. It's dishonest to dismiss that Columbus was a catalyst for an age of exploration and scientific discovery. Self-righteous Columbus-haters today exercise American freedoms that grew out of seeds planted in 1492.

The European Renaissance, the bridge between the Middle Age and Modern Age, began to blossom in the 1300s. It was a rebirth of learning, invention and discovery. Exotic stories of Marco Polo inspired ambitious men to venture out. Emerging nations were enticed by budding commerce with Arab traders who brought spices, tea and silk by caravan from the Orient to the eastern Mediterranean. Italy capitalized on this trade and attained prosperity to move its people beyond daily survival and enable a revival of art and education.