by Kent County Resident
It was only two years after that historic 1987 speech when President Ronald Reagan stood at the Berlin wall, that concrete symbol of the “Iron Curtain” that divided the European continent and defined the post-WWII Cold War, and called on the then President of the Soviet Union: “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall”, that the Berlin wall fell.
Millions celebrated. The West celebrated winning the “war”, millions on the other side simply celebrated “freedom”. An anomaly in the historiography of “wars” — the majority on both sides celebrated the same victor. That should tell us something about the true nature of socialism, an education we sorely need according to Gordana Schifanelli as she warns about the “creeping socialism” in this country.
Gordana Schifanelli, the “home turf” girl running for the Lt. Governor of Maryland, knows the feeling first-hand. Although her country of origin, Serbia, was never officially behind the Iron Curtain of communism, it was one of those “beacons of socialism” in the non-allied movement, and socialism, Gordana never shy of pointing out, once experienced up-close and personal, leaves an indelible impression on one’s soul.
It is no surprise then that so many immigrants arriving from Cuba and other socialist and communist countries embrace American conservatism with its strong traditions of individual rights, and economic and political freedom, Gordana repeatedly points out in her speeches all around Maryland.
Gordana met her husband Marc, an Anne Arundel native, in her home country of Serbia where he was serving as a member of the United States Army Special Forces. One of those Tolstoy-ish romances born in the circumstances of war and peace, but not quite that dramatic she’s quick to point out. They settled in the neighboring Queen Anne County upon returning to the states. They have three sons.
She built two private practices while raising three boys and all her boys are straight A students and National honors scholarship recipients. The oldest son is a valedictorian in the US Army Military college and the middle son is a recipient of Senator Van Hollen’s Nomination to the Air Force Academy and Congressman Andy Harris’s Nomination to the United States Naval Academy. Both boys are Eagle Scouts. Their youngest son is following his brothers’ footsteps and is a young Sea Cadet and a Boy Scout. The Schifanelli Family knows how to raise patriotic and smart children.
Gordana has a graduate degree in economics from her home country, giving her special insights into the follies of the planned economy and the futility of government controlled economic planning. Her 1997 Thesis: “Developing financial markets by using commodity futures and options contracts” brought her the recognition as one of the youngest experts on financial derivatives in the Balkans.
She has also earned a Juris Doctor from University of Baltimore School of Law since arriving to the U.S. In 2009 Gordana Schifanelli was named Reuters’s Top Advisors and in 2011 she was the Finalist at the prestigious International Women of Influence Award.
The past seven years Gordana taught Law and Economics at the Naval Academy.
We need their leadership, strength and commitment. We need Gordana’s wisdom and courage.
It is our turn to raise against the evils of communism, political indoctrination in our schools and support the Cox/Schifanelli vision of “Making our Children Smart Again” and restoring our “America First” values.
