Sunday Smiles

As the incoming Trump administration considers defunding the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the PBS News Hour just keeps hitting the accelerator on their overwhelmingly one-sided promotion of transgenderism. On Friday night, PBS anchor William Brangham supportively interviewed transgender Minnesota state Rep. Leigh Finke (D), best known for a bill called the "Take Pride Act," trying to strip anti-pedophilia language out of the definition of sexual orientation. It would eliminate the sentence  “Sexual orientation” does not include a physical or sexual attachment to children by an adult. The Minnesota-based blog Power Line argued "We might re-name it the 'Take Pride in Abuse of Children Act.'” The networks all ignored this controversy, although they routinely celebrate leftists in state legislatures. None that came up as anchor Geoff Bennett began the promotional gush for transgender "rights": "William Brangham is back to talk with one recent pioneer about how she sees this current moment." A "pioneer." Brangham described the two sides of this debate, and the conservatives were dismissed as offering "vitriol," as if there is no respectable dissent: "My guest is no stranger to both the triumphs and the vitriol surrounding transgender rights in America. Two years ago, Leigh Finke became the first trans person elected to the Minnesota state legislature. And even though she endured numerous threats, she leveraged her position and a Democratic majority to help pass legislation protecting other trans people in her state. Leigh Finke, so nice to have you on the program." Brangham's questions were supportive and open-ended: 1. "As I said, you have been in office almost two years now, but this is a seemingly very fraught time for trans rights in this country, with this past election and all of those attacks, the first openly trans member of the U.S. Congress, and now the Supreme Court case this week. I just wonder how this is — how has this been for you the last few months?" 2. "You were here while the Supreme Court was arguing this case. That case centered around Tennessee's attempt to ban trans care for trans children. And the justices had a lot of different arguments about that case. And I wonder, listening to what they had to say, what stood out to you?" Finke said "it is incredibly difficult to hear people finding reasons to further discriminate and alienate trans people, especially our kids." 3. "It also seemed that the justices wanted to talk about other trans-related issues, bathrooms, sports. Do you feel like this is just the beginning of an ongoing cascade?" Finke concluded "until the conservative Republican institutions realize that this is a human — that they are hurting human people, and they are not just making hypothetical political arguments, they are going to continue." 4. "Yes, we have certainly seen those. I mean, Representative Nancy Mace here in Congress, as soon as we had a trans member of Congress, she introduces a bill to ban trans people using bathrooms that don't conform to the sex of their birth. President Trump has vowed to get trans kids out of children's sports. I mean, do you think that this is, again, just — it seems like the GOP is very interested in pursuing this issue, even though you're arguing it's not really an issue." Finke agreed there is no issue. 5. "President-elect Trump, as you well know, spent tens of millions of dollars attacking Kamala Harris over her stance on trans rights. And some Democrats are arguing that Democrats' embrace of trans rights cost them this election. Massachusetts Congressman Seth Moulton said that the Democratic Party is — quote — "out of touch" on trans issues and said — quote — "I have two little girls. I don't want them getting run over on a playing field by a male or formerly male athlete, but, as a Democrat, I'm supposed to be afraid to say that." What do you make of that argument?"  Finke called it "despicable."

The American church should be embarrassed that Jordan Peterson ate its lunch. And it's not just Peterson; an armada of other influencers have done the same. Peterson’s success should be especially galling because his work is frequently about the Bible. One of Peterson's original claims to fame was a series of lectures he gave on Genesis in which hundreds of thousands of mostly young men watched even though they could be two hours per episode. He just released his own Bible commentary book, "We Who Wrestle with God." Earlier this year, he did a national tour on that theme, selling out theaters around the country. Here in Indianapolis, he sold out a 2,500-seat auditorium with a minimum ticket price of over $100. The audience, in effect, paid to hear him give a sermon on Genesis. People are willing to pay Jordan Peterson to preach to them. Strangely, the church doesn’t seem to be all that interested in understanding the Jordan Peterson phenomenon, much less the rest of the men’s influencer archipelago ranging from the healthy (like former Navy SEAL Jocko Willink) to the dubious (like the infamous Andrew Tate). It has continued with legacy strategies that appeal to some but are clearly not as effective as what online influencers are doing. Some of the appeal of online influencers is understandable. There’s a sort of edgy, transgressive, “bro” vibe. Some of what is being sold here, such as pickup artistry, are things the church should flat-out reject regardless of how big the market for it might be. But there’s a lot more to it than that. They come across as being on men’s side. They don’t see men as the problem to be fixed. Online influencers are willing to provide politically incorrect information too many traditional authorities won’t touch. They’ll note that women initiate the vast majority of divorces — about 70% of them — something you’ll rarely, if ever, hear a pastor mention. They’ll talk about hypergamy, or the fact that women prefer to date and marry up, or at least not down. They also have a curiosity about the world, which is one of the keys to the success of Joe Rogan’s podcast. They also give a tremendous amount of practical advice that you can use in your life. This obviously includes tips on making women like you but also diet and exercise advice, business advice, and more. Again, not all of it is accurate, but a lot of it is very useful. I’ve learned a lot from some of these people myself. Above all, they come across as being on men’s side. They don’t see men as the problem to be fixed. They do more than deliver hectoring “Man up!” lectures. Instead, while they often challenge men to step up, they are cheerleaders as well. And they treat men’s own hopes, dreams, aspirations, and plans as important — not as things that must be entirely sacrificed or given up in order to serve someone else’s agenda. While many of these folks are playful, others treat life with more seriousness than many traditional authorities seem to. Jocko Willink’s idea of “extreme ownership” is a good example. Or the way Jordan Peterson treats scripture as having something vital to say about the human condition. The evangelical magazine Christianity Today, in reviewing his book, said, “Christian readers should learn from Peterson’s boldness, his disposition of awe and docility before the sacred page.” For those of us who are convinced that Christianity is true, it’s incumbent on us to understand why so many people are turning elsewhere looking for answers in life. And we must find a way to articulate the truth in a way they find more compelling than what’s on offer from online influencers.

Axios recently released an article titled “Trump's shadow presidency clouds Biden's final weeks” — and Glenn Beck of “The Glenn Beck Program” has a few thoughts. “Here’s the only shadow presidency that we should be talking about, and that is, who the hell is president right now? It’s not him. I don’t care what anybody says, it’s not him,” Glenn says, adding, “Who is the president of the United States?” “I mean, it’s going so poorly, it’s hard to believe it’s not him,” Stu Burguiere jokes. “Kind of seems central to his governing philosophy. But I think you’re right. It doesn’t seem like he’s really the president.” The Axios article, unfortunately, gets worse. The author writes, “But the norm-busting assertiveness of Donald Trump and his transition team and the rapidly fading relevance of President Biden has given the U.S. something of a two-headed presidency.” “No, here’s what happened. This is not a shadow presidency. This is promises kept. The world is being put on notice right now. There’s a new sheriff in town,” Glenn says. “Now, we can play this two ways. You can understand that the time of insanity is over, and you can start preparing right now to fix that.” “He means what he says. ‘Tariffs are coming.’ So when he calls the new president of Mexico and says, ‘This is what’s coming. You want to play ball or do you want to be outside?’” Glenn says, “He’s doing that with almost everything.” This is what the difference is between Joe Biden and Donald Trump and why the world is now preparing for the new president to take office. “When Joe Biden was the elect, and he was saying, ‘We’re not going to prosecute anybody,’” Glenn explains, “Donald Trump is telling heads of state, ‘Return to law and order.’” “Joe Biden was saying, ‘There’s no law and order here, there’s no sheriff in town,’” he adds. Want more from Glenn Beck?To enjoy more of Glenn’s masterful storytelling, thought-provoking analysis, and uncanny ability to make sense of the chaos, subscribe to BlazeTV — the largest multi-platform network of voices who love America, defend the Constitution, and live the American dream.

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