In this episode of ‘Rush to Reason’, host John Rush delves into the recent social media storm surrounding Erica Kirk and J.D. Vance. Explore how public perception can often become skewed by emotional responses and quick judgments. We discuss the importance of understanding and compassion in interpreting actions and how context can be easily misunderstood in the digital age. Tune in for a candid discussion with callers who share their insights and personal experiences, highlighting the need for grace and empathy in community interactions.
SPEAKER 08 :
This is Rush to Reason.
SPEAKER 04 :
You are going to shut your damn yapper and listen for a change because I got you pegged, sweetheart. You want to take the easy way out because you’re scared. And you’re scared because if you try and fail, there’s only you to blame. Let me break this down for you. Life is scary. Get used to it. There are no magical fixes.
SPEAKER 03 :
With your host, John Rush.
SPEAKER 04 :
My advice to you is to do what your parents did. Get a job first. You haven’t made everybody equal. You’ve made them the same, and there’s a big difference.
SPEAKER 10 :
Let me tell you why you’re here. You’re here because you know something. What you know you can’t explain, but you feel it. You’ve felt it your entire life, that there’s something wrong with the world. You don’t know what it is, but it’s there. It is this feeling that has brought you to me.
SPEAKER 04 :
Are you crazy? Am I? Or am I so sane that you just blew your mind?
SPEAKER 14 :
It’s Rush to Reason with your host, John Rush, presented by Cub Creek Heating and Air Conditioning.
SPEAKER 11 :
And it’s time. Rush to Reason, Denver’s Afternoon Rush, KLZ 560. Beautiful Monday, a little cooler out today, but still a nice day. Hopefully you guys are all starting the week off on the right note. Got several things to talk about today. And first thing, no question of the day from Friday. Name the person who wrote the first algorithm created specifically for machines. And I think it’s Ada, A-D-A. Did I say that right, Charlie? Ada Lovelace is who did that. So it was a lady. So there you go. Today’s impossible question of the day. What is the term? This is good, actually. What is the term for a group of flamingos? Charlie, do you know this answer? I’m surprised Charlie doesn’t know this answer. What is the term for a group of flamingos? I think producer Ann put this in today knowing I’m going to Las Vegas for the SEMA show tomorrow, and isn’t it like famous for flamingos and all that kind of stuff, Charlie, one of the hotels or something? Oh, that’s right. The Flamingo Hotel. Is it still there? Did they tear it down? I don’t know. I don’t gamble. I don’t keep up. I don’t even stay on the strip. So you’re talking to the wrong Las Vegas guy. So anyways, whatever. I mean, teach his own. I’m not a gambler. I work too hard for my money to… put it onto a table or a machine and hopefully get it back. I gamble enough as I always say it this way. I gamble enough as a business owner. I don’t need any extra challenges in that particular area. So those of you that own businesses, you can relate very much to what I’m saying. And I don’t gamble for that reason alone because I do it almost on a daily basis as is. OK, well, I want to open up today with something that not everybody may agree with me on. And I can almost tell you, because I know people that listen to this program, and I’ve seen some of the posts on social media over the weekend, but I have a different stance on this. And there’s been a lot of flack thrown at Erica Kirk and J.D. Vance over their supposed, you know, too much of a hug. I guess I could say it that way. And lots of people on social media, including some listeners, whereby you guys think it’s just awful what they did. I’m not in that camp, by the way. Some of you need to lighten up. Literally. You literally need to lighten up. In fact, I’ll tell you straight up, I think that’s part of what’s wrong with the Christian community today. You’re too uptight. I mean, you talk about people being critical over, well, the way she put her hand around his head and almost looked like they were kissing. OK, she just went through something traumatic. J.D. Vance is there. He’s the vice president of the United States. He’s doing his best to keep things, you know, rocking and rolling and keep things moving ahead with not only her, but the entire organization. And by the way, be a great example for what’s going on for us as Americans. And I think it’s just being extremely, extremely critical of something you don’t need to be. I could be completely wrong. Maybe I don’t have a clue what I’m talking about. Maybe there’s more there than what we all think. I just don’t think it is. I mean, I just looked at that and thought, okay, here’s a guy that is probably in a way more like, you know, a really deep friend or a father figure than anything else. And at the end of the day, I didn’t see a single thing wrong with it. But man, some of you, holy cow, you’d act, really, it sounds like they committed, you know, had a full frontal affair and sex right there in the open all on stage, according to some of you. And I’m not exaggerating in what I’m saying. Some of you literally need to get a grip. It’s not that bad. And I purposely, because when I first started seeing some of the comments, I’m like, oh, geez, what did I miss here? What’s going on? I mean, how big of a deal is this? So I looked, and it’s all over the internet. I went and actually looked at the moment in time. And actually, I didn’t slow it down. I didn’t do slow motion. I did it in real time and looked at the actual event. And oh, my word, you guys are out of control. It’s ridiculous, the amount of criticism that’s there. It’s dumb. I’m sorry. I don’t see it being that big of a deal. Lighten up. Holy cow. And again, maybe I’m completely wrong. If I am, call me, correct me, whatever. Maybe I’m out in left field and I shouldn’t be, but I didn’t see it as that big of a deal. Did you happen to see it, Charlie, by chance? During the break, or now, go look it up, and you can even tell me during the break what your thoughts are. And Charlie’s a good, you know, I bounce a lot of things off him. He’s a good, you know, mentor and a sounding block for me to make sure that I’m not way out in left field and maybe I missed something. Maybe there’s something there that I didn’t see that everybody else did. But, man, I looked at it and I’m like, what in the world are you guys all worried about? I mean, I’m not joking. They have taken so much flack from some quote-unquote Christians where I’m like, oh, my word, you guys are like a brood of vipers. Holy cow. Lighten up. And I know I’m starting off on a heavy foot here on a Monday, but as I was reading through a lot of the comments around social media, I just thought to myself, and by the way, that’s just on my feed. I can’t imagine what it’s been like on a nationwide basis. Oh, my word, people, get a grip. It’s not that big of a deal. Again, maybe I didn’t see something I should have. Maybe I’m not reading as much into it as some of you are. I mean, I just didn’t see it the way some of you are seeing it. Again, if I’m wrong, tell me, text me, call, whatever, 307-200-8222. We’ve got special guests joining us at the bottom of the hour. David Strazeski is going to join us, Sound Planning Group. We’re going to talk a little bit about what’s going on on Wall Street. And there was a big, big deal today. Kimberly Clark buying out the maker of Tylenol for a huge amount of money. We’ll talk about that among other things. But I’ve got a lot to talk about. But I wanted to start off with that because I feel like sometimes our side, A, we love to eat our own. It’s ridiculous sometimes. And I am one where it’s like, you know, people, come on, really, lighten up. You get uptight over some of the dumbest things. So we’ll take a break. I’ll come right back. Roof Savers of Colorado coming up next. Dave Hart is here and wants to take care of you, your roof, all of your needs. As we head down the stretch into winter, make sure you’re all dialed in. He can literally rejuvenate your current roof, having literally tons of life to it, in some cases up to a decade of life to your current roof. Call Dave today. Find out exactly how that would work for you. 303-710-6916.
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SPEAKER 03 :
God. Country. Reason. Now back to John Rush.
SPEAKER 11 :
And we’re back. Rush to Reason, Denver’s Afternoon Rush, KLZ 560. Susan, you’re next. Go ahead. Or first, I should say. Not next. You’re first today.
SPEAKER 17 :
Oh, can you hear me?
SPEAKER 11 :
Yep, I can hear you now, Susan. Go ahead.
SPEAKER 17 :
Okay, okay. So, just a couple of comments on Erica and Vice President Vance. Yeah. I believe I heard this from Vice President Vance himself, is that he and Charlie were friends before he ever got into politics or at the beginning of his political career. So… These couples have been friends for a very long time.
SPEAKER 11 :
Right.
SPEAKER 17 :
And they’ve been close.
SPEAKER 11 :
Right.
SPEAKER 17 :
Great point. And you hear about Usha and how she’s helping Erica and has been there for her. And that’s what close couples do. And I’m totally in agreement with you. There was nothing wrong with that.
SPEAKER 11 :
People are reading far too much. I got a text message a moment ago that at this point, Erica’s grieving process, there should be no hugs with a married man. That is total nonsense, Susan. Absolutely, fully disagree with that. Any grieving woman out there is not even looking at the man as being married, unmarried, and making those decisions. She’s grieving. That is utter nonsense, Susan. Unless you’ve been through a grieving process like that, you have no reason to even say that.
SPEAKER 17 :
Exactly.
SPEAKER 11 :
I’m sorry. I’m not trying to be a jerk with all of this, Susan, but some of this stuff, we eat our own on a regular basis, and we wonder why we struggle inside of our own political party.
SPEAKER 17 :
Exactly. Exactly. I agree. And, you know, people were making comments about her and the president at Charlie’s memorial service, like, oh, they did this or they did that. They were friends as well. So it’s just, it’s ridiculous. Yeah, I agree.
SPEAKER 11 :
And I’m getting mixed emotions. It’s kind of 50-50 on people that are texting in. Some are like, well, no, that’s a precursor to intercourse and so on. It’s like, oh, my word. No, it’s not. It’s not even close. I mean, that’s a grieving widow. To your point, Susan, and I think you made a very well-made point, is they were close couples prior to all of this even happening, prior to him even getting into marriage. politics. I mean, there’s rumors out there that he’s going to leave his wife for her. Susan, I don’t see any of that happening. This is a situation of him trying to be there for somebody that had a huge, huge loss, a sudden loss. Her husband was assassinated. Didn’t even die like a lot of normal people die, Susan. This is a totally different scenario, and people need to give a little grace. I mean, holy cow, are these people vicious.
SPEAKER 17 :
Yeah, exactly. And they obviously probably have not lost a loved one. and have been through the grieving process. I don’t know.
SPEAKER 11 :
I mean, Susan, I’ve been to many things. In my world of late, I’ve been to several of these types of things with people grieving both on my side, the other side. Again, I had two cousins that were murdered. I mean, all sorts of things have happened. And I will tell you right now that a lot of the ladies in my life, granted, they’re family, but was there a similar type of hug to that with some of my own family members from me to them? 100% yes, Susan, and should have been.
SPEAKER 17 :
Yeah. Yeah. And I had that same thing with old friends who came to the funerals of my parents who knew my parents for years. Same thing. So it’s just ridiculous.
SPEAKER 11 :
It is, and again, I wanted to start off the show today just because I feel like our side, sometimes, Susan, we get carried away with stuff that at the end of the day, it’s dumb. It shouldn’t happen. It makes us look like a bunch of fools, and we are our own worst critics, and it’s part of the reason why we don’t win as much as we should.
SPEAKER 17 :
Yep, exactly. I agree.
SPEAKER 11 :
No, I appreciate it. Great insight. I appreciate that very much, Susan.
SPEAKER 17 :
Okay, talk to you later.
SPEAKER 11 :
Thank you. And by the way, that’s coming from a lady. So there was a lady’s perspective on that. And again, I’m getting mixed signals from, or mixed messages, I should say, text messages, not mixed, but I’m getting text messages from both sides of the aisle on this. And frankly, I just think it’s a lot to do about nothing when it’s all said and done. I think some of you are far too critical when it’s all said and done. Andy, what’s up?
SPEAKER 08 :
Hey, John, just thought I’d weigh in, too. You know, not only were people complaining about her, but of course they were complaining about Vance. And this is really insulting. Why do so many people, even on the right, think that we men are just a bunch of slaves to our lust? Okay, and that we can’t, and that if we hug somebody, hug a girl, that all of a sudden it’s some sort of turn on. Don’t they understand we’re people, too? I thought only the left was supposed to look at us this way.
SPEAKER 11 :
Andy, you and I are on the same page on this one. And again, I guess I read a bunch of the – I didn’t, by the way, didn’t see this initially. I was just reading some things this morning on Facebook, on my feed, and I noticed some people commenting on certain things. I’m like, I didn’t see it. It didn’t come across my feed. So I’m like, okay, I guess I better go look this up and really see what all of the hullabaloo is about, Andy. And as I did, I looked at it in real time, by the way, not slowed down, but I looked at it in real time, didn’t even look at a snapshot. I just looked at it in real time, and I thought, hang on. This is the way that, you know, I’ve got family members I’m very close to, again, lost my cousins in a very tragic loss here not that long ago. And I will tell you that, and she’s probably listening, my aunt is listening, did I hug her the way J.D. Vance hugged Erica after my cousins were killed? Absolutely, Andy, I did.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yeah, and there’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. Look, I’m not a big hugger. You know that. I’m German. What can I say? But, you know, Corey, my wife, and I, we were side-hugging the whole weekend just laughing.
SPEAKER 11 :
Oh, that’s ridiculous, Andy.
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, we were just making fun of it. She thought it was hysterical. And if my wife were to hug a guy at work, I would not care at all. And if she were to start making all the guys around her only side hug her, that’s like she’s looking at them and saying, I don’t trust you.
SPEAKER 11 :
Then you’re a weirdo. Sorry, Andy, you just are. And again, I get it. A lot of this, I know, is cultural. Some countries, they hug, and it’s tradition to kiss each other on the cheek, even men-to-men. I mean, there’s all sorts of different cultures and things that happen, and I get it. In America, some are huggers, some are not. I’m kind of halfway in between. I’m not you, but I’m not one that hugs everybody that I see the very first time. I got to get to know somebody a little bit. Now, I will say this, Andy. In this particular scenario, where these two have been family friends for a long time, Would I have had a similar situation happen had I been J.D. Vance? Andy, I can say beyond a shadow of a doubt, yes.
SPEAKER 08 :
Oh, me too.
SPEAKER 11 :
Totally different scenario in that case.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yeah. Well, anyway, I totally agree. Anyway, I just wanted to weigh in because I think it’s really getting annoying for me to have men looked upon as a bunch of predators. It’s like we are almost natural predators. predators. Look, I understand. Teenage boys are very easily turned on. I get that. But come on. You know, this lack, I mean, this amount of distrust in men, isn’t that the whole problem we’ve been talking about for years on the show? That men are so absolutely and utterly distrusted.
SPEAKER 11 :
Well, and Charlie just spoke in my ear, Andy, don’t forget what Biden used to do all the time.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yeah, my gosh.
SPEAKER 11 :
I mean, come on now.
SPEAKER 08 :
I’m sure Vance wasn’t sniffing her hair.
SPEAKER 11 :
Yeah, thank you. I mean, yeah, that would have been Joe Biden. He would have been sniffing her hair.
SPEAKER 08 :
Exactly.
SPEAKER 11 :
I mean, unreal.
SPEAKER 08 :
Anyway, just thought I’d weigh in. Great show. Keep it up.
SPEAKER 11 :
Thanks, Andy. Appreciate you very much, and thanks for filling in tomorrow. Andy, if you’re still listening, he’s filling in for me tomorrow when I go to the SEMA show, so thank you. I got a text message in just now. Agree with Andy. Good God, men are people, too. As you said, these people have never lost a loved one. Oh, my gosh. Yeah, thank you. Those of you that have lost loved ones, especially loved ones where you’re close, like this particular situation, again, I look at it and, yeah, I’m coming against a lot of the people that have come out against them. I don’t see it that way. I think people are reading far too much into this than they need to. Here’s my advice to everybody. Stay in your lane. OK, that’s my advice. Stay in your lane. At the end of the day, not a big deal. There’s much bigger things to focus on than that. And our side looks really, really insensitive right now with some of the things that are going on along those lines. And I mean that sincerely. And some of you listen to the show. You know who you are. And I my suggestion is lighten up. That’s my suggestion. All right. David Strzeski is going to join us here in just one moment. I’ll take a little bit of an early break so we can get back to him and honor his time. We’ll be right back. Dr. Scott Faulkner is up next. Now, Dr. Scott is a doctor, by the way, that’s looking out for your best health care. You heard at the top of the hour the stand from our owner, Don Jr., Don Sr., I should say, Don Crawford Sr., talking about heart attacks and the warning signs and all those different things. We have a doctor associated with us, Dr. Scott, a good friend of mine, by the way, and he is on that same page. He wants to make sure that you stay as healthy as possible. Call him today, 303-663-6990.
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SPEAKER 11 :
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SPEAKER 03 :
The best export we have is common sense. You’re listening to Rush to Reason.
SPEAKER 11 :
And we are back. Rush to Reason, Debra’s Afternoon Rush. David Strazeski joining us now. Sound Planning Group. David, welcome. How are you, sir?
SPEAKER 05 :
Hey, I’m doing fantastic.
SPEAKER 11 :
John, how about yourself? Always a joy to have you. Doing well. I was telling Charlie a minute ago, the only thing is that, I mean, I love that. I don’t love time changes. I didn’t say that right. I mean, it’s always nice, I guess, when we go backwards because you kind of gain an hour. You don’t lose one. Although, you know, I’m kind of a 530 in the morning guy. So now it’s 430. That’s the part about this I hate.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, yeah, no, you nailed it. Obviously, we’re not tied to the same system that we once had when we were agriculturally driven. And so I think that that’s kind of an antiquated idea. You know, maybe coming up on the 250th, it’s one of the things that President Trump will say, you know, we’re not going to have anymore is this fallback. We’d be fine by me.
SPEAKER 11 :
We go to one direction or the other, stick with it and be done with it. That’s my that’s my motto. All right. So talk to us about the markets there. They can tend to be about as flimsy as the time, by the way.
SPEAKER 05 :
You know, we’re at a very interesting place right now. We’ve got a government shutdown. So, you know, if the Fed is data driven, we’re not getting the data coming out from these government agencies. So therefore, it’s pretty tough to be calling balls and strikes. You know, the market is it’s a daily beauty contest. We’re up, we’re down. There’s a lot of reasons why it could be happening. Ultimately, right now, you know, things are still, you know, pretty strong. If we look at the GDP of our nation, I think that we’re doing really well. And according to Truflation, I was just checking it a few minutes ago, we’re at maybe like a 2.6% inflation on a year. Given all the spending that’s been happening right now, that’s pretty amazing. We’re not seeing record, record, record inflation like we could be. So I’m pretty bullish about America. I’m pretty bullish about where we’re going and how some of these things are – coming together, AI is making things more efficient, etc. But, you know, I think that we’re looking at, you know, maybe some of these tech companies being a little bit overvalued. You know, the real world assets and things that we’ve been talking about here in the past, I think are really a more safe and secure way to go. But We just need more diversification inside of portfolios. But I think a lot of families today are maybe more concentrated than they might want to be in the event that we actually get a hiccup.
SPEAKER 11 :
And by the way, I’m with you. And, you know, I kind of have the same feeling. You know, Andy and I talk a lot on Tuesdays about this and do different interviews and so on. And I’m along the lines of. of you in this. And my feeling is the economy isn’t as bad as what a lot of people would say it is. In fact, there’s a polling out today that shows Trump’s polling is down because people think the economy is awful. And I’m like, okay, I don’t know who you’re polling, but for the majority of people I know, it’s not near as bad as what that this particular poll claims it is. On top of that, David, if you could just get the feds, I don’t know, before somebody sends me an email, please, I understand what the Fed does and how things work and that it’s not a direct relation to the 30-year mortgage, but it’s an indirect relation. And my point, David, is if you get those guys more engaged and get interest rates down on mortgages, you’d see a housing boom as well. We’re not seeing that because of what the Fed is doing politically speaking.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, I mean, the Fed, of course, dropped points by 1% right prior to the election or the year was finishing out. And it seemed pretty politically motivated in comparison to where we are right now. Jobs are getting weaker today. I mean, if you look at Amazon, who’s a hometown here in the Seattle area, they had their biggest amount of layoffs in their history just recently. And so there’s more and more today that are – looking at the job market and saying, shoot, there’s not nearly as many jobs available right now. So I think the job market has definitely changed, and that’s one of the other mandates that the Fed has is to keep the job market stable as well as the economy. And so, you know, I think if 70% of our economy is supposed to be the consumer, you know, looking at jobs is a really important measurement for us to be looking at. And it’s, I don’t know, it’s starting on the road.
SPEAKER 11 :
I agree. Now, the government shutdown, let’s jump back to that. What are the sort of, you know, what’s the sentiment or what are some of the predictions on how long it will last? I mean, I got to believe we’re getting close to the end, but am I wrong?
SPEAKER 05 :
You know, who knows? It’s a political chess match. There’s a lot of, you know, non-discussions really happening. We’re either going to do it or we’re not going to do it. I think it’s terrible for the American people. uh, that we can’t, uh, you know, come to agree on, uh, you know, our national credit card and this overspending that’s occurring and that we couldn’t just pass the, uh, the same bill that was passed in March. Uh, but of course there’s political motivations for, uh, the reason that they’re, they’re packing all these States with, uh, with people that may or may not, uh, have been here before and might’ve crossed our border, uh, illegally. Uh, and of course they want to give, uh, they want to give healthcare benefits for that. And, um, So the repeal of the healthcare component, I think, is a really important one. I think that we need to start doging our system. We can’t continue to spend and spend and spend and spend. It sounds like a great idea, but you’ve got to figure out how to pay for it. So what, are you going to take… you know, away something from your family, not a chance. It’s a lot of good sentiment, but it’s not a really good economic answer.
SPEAKER 11 :
No, I agree. And I don’t know, man, I don’t know how much longer it’s going to last. I don’t, I don’t, you know, I’m not keen. I don’t have any insight. Those of you listening, I don’t have any direct line to, you know, anybody that’s going to help, which by the way, David, I don’t know that right now anybody has any direct line on that because it’s a matter of getting one party, literally one party to, you know, sort of, if you would, give in on things that they are holding out for. And by the way, they’re holding out using the American population as pawns in doing so. And they won things that, by the way, the other side is just not going to give in because of the reasons you just said. We’ve got things pretty well finally in check. Inflation is coming around like it needs to be. Yeah, we could get some help from the Fed on the housing sides of things. That would even help out with some of the job stuff. I mean, at the end of the day, there’s a lot of brightness in the future. but we cannot go back to the way of spending money we once were as a federal government, and our side’s going to stick to that, David.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yeah, I think it’s pretty amazing, too, that you see, you know, how do people actually act when, you know, when the rubber meets the road? And the guy to point out is Elon. I mean, to say, you know, hey, our military’s not going to go unpaid. You know, to be a military, in the military, you’re not doing that for the money. You’re doing that as a sense of patriotism. You’re doing that out of a sense of, you know, whatever incentive that might happen there for college or something like this. But, you know, they’re not making a huge amount for him to step up and say, hey, I’m going to back our nation in a real way and make sure that no one goes unpaid. I just got to say, God bless that guy. And I’m excited to see that, you know, that there’s real people stepping up here and putting their money where their mouth is. But, no, this is a political charade. And we’ve obviously got elections here coming up tomorrow. that are endeavoring to be swayed, people to get mad. Hey, I’m not getting paid. I know so-and-so. It’s all headlines. So my guess is that once we get past November 5th, that everyone’s going to be looking at opening up the government here again because this might have been one of the only ways to get people motivated to show up at the polls.
SPEAKER 11 :
Fully agree. Fully agree. David, how do folks get a hold of you, sir?
SPEAKER 05 :
Mystg.com. is our primary website. Pretty cool. We’ve got a little over 200 five-star Google reviews as a retirement planning firm specializing in helping people to save money in taxes, manage money in efficient and effective ways, and ultimately achieve the dreams and goals that they’re looking to accomplish for their family.
SPEAKER 11 :
David, it’s always a joy having you. I appreciate it greatly. Hey, pleasure’s mine, John. You bet. Have a great night, David. Appreciate you very much. Okay. Something I’m going to read that ties into what David was just saying a moment ago about the shutdown and some of the things going on there. I just read earlier today. I’m not going to name the name of the person that posted this, but I’m just going to read what was posted. And again, some of you may have a difference of opinion on this. That’s fine. I have mine, and I’ll explain as I read this. If you’re against SNAP slash EBT, calling it a handout, you obviously don’t understand having a hard life. with various misfortunes. You obviously have risen above the ridiculous cost of living in basically everything. You’re obviously financially blessed. Congrats. I, for one, like many with a conscience, don’t mind paying $14 a month, average cost per citizen. By the way, I didn’t check that. This is somebody saying this. I have no idea if that’s true or not. To ensure people in my region of the planet can have food and be fed. Only a garbage, he says garage human, but only a garbage human would fight against such a thing. My family was on it, and it probably saved us. I was on it after leaving the Army and since, and it helped. By the way, I’ve got a lot to say about this. I’ll get to that in a second. Also, shutting down the government when you have the majority in the House, Senate, and unfortunately the presidency isn’t something you can blame on anyone else. Please quit being mentally deficient. Now, that last part, by the way, is we don’t have… a majority in the Senate enough to overcome some of these things. Otherwise, we would have. So this is, by the way, somebody that is mentally deficient themselves. I’m just going to say it as is. And by the way, I don’t think this is somebody that listens to me. But either way, if you do, you’re the one that’s mentally deficient because your last sentence explains it. But let me go back to the beginning. If you’re against Snap and EBT calling it a handout, you obviously don’t understand having a hard life. A lot of us understand having a hard life, myself included. I’ve told you guys bits and pieces of my life as a business owner, and no, it hasn’t always been rosy red. I know what it’s like to go without. I know what it’s like to feed the kids pancakes at night because there’s not enough other money to buy other types of groceries to feed your kids. I know what it’s like to – are you going to have enough money for the mortgage or not? I know what it’s like to – are you going to have enough money to put gas in the car? Believe me, I’ve been there. Been there, done that. So, yes, I do know what it’s like. And, no, I never took a handout. Unlike this person, I didn’t go on Snap or EBT. I probably could have. Well, not probably. I could have. There was a point in time in my life I could have legitimately, without any problem, even consciously, no problem, I could have taken out bankruptcy, wiped out all of my debt, probably gone on SNAP, EBT, all of that, and you know what? I would have been just fine. I could have done that. And probably would have gotten ahead financially faster had I done so. But that’s, in my book, that’s not tolerable. I can’t do that. It’s not in my DNA. I’ve never once in my entire life taken a handout, and I wasn’t about to then, and I’m not going to do it now. Call it pride, call it whatever you want to, I’m not going to do it. So unlike this person, I figured out other ways to make things happen. And by the way, it’s a four-letter word. It’s called work, W-O-R-K. And some would say, well, John, what if you can’t find a job? You know what? That’s the lamest excuse I’ve ever heard. I grew up in a family. So my grandparents on my dad’s side, they had two jobs during the Depression, each. Sorry, I’m not saying that right. My grandfather had two jobs. My grandmother had one job. Meaning combined, I don’t know how many hours a week they worked. My grandfather worked during the day at one place of business and then went and worked at another place at night. And my grandmother was a bookkeeper and did books during that whole time. And did they make it? Yeah, they did. My point is there’s always work, folks. It’s a matter of how hard do you want to work to go find the work. That’s really what it boils down to. This lame excuse of I can’t find something to do, holy cow, pick up a broom and go offer to sweep floors for somebody if you have to. There’s always work. Always work. It’s a matter of what do you want to do for said work. And before somebody texts me and says that’s not true, yes, it is. I’m an employer, I know. I know how hard as an employer, and I’ve been self-employed since 1986. I will tell you that in my entire career, has it always been easy to hire people? No, it has not. There’s always jobs. Again, it comes down to how willing are you to go get said job? So unlike this person, no, I’ve never taken EBT and SNAP, nor will I. And no, I’m not a garbage person for believing this. I believe you make your own fortune and your own future by what you do and how hard you’re willing to work for it. So this, again, is somebody that is very jaded, very one-sided, thinks that anybody that disagrees with them is mentally deficient when they should be looking in the mirror saying that. Dan, you’re next. Go ahead.
SPEAKER 18 :
So I did look in the mirror, John. When we had our first kid or first couple kids, we were on WIC, and that’s women infant children. And, of course, we had to go have them – looked at or whatever, and then we got vouchers to get the food, right? Right. Well, I didn’t like that at all. So what I did is I was working a retail job, and I knew that when I was in college, the first time, I knew that I really enjoyed accounting. I excelled at it. So I decided to – make some sacrifices with my free time. And I went back to school and I got an accounting job and then I sat to get the CPA license and then pursued, uh, higher paying jobs. And I remember when I finally made, we, we finally went over the, the income limit to qualify for WIC. And my wife at the time was disappointed, but I wasn’t.
SPEAKER 11 :
Yeah.
SPEAKER 18 :
because that meant that I was getting off the government assistance, and I didn’t want to be on government assistance. So I made the decision myself that I didn’t want any government handouts, and I was motivated to make that change. And this is, you know, and you and Andy have talked about it, When you get on the government payroll, it’s pretty impossible to get off the government payroll.
SPEAKER 11 :
Yeah, I say it this way, Dan, all the time, and I really want people to listen to what I say. It’s called the golden rule, Dan. The guy with the gold rules. And in that case, government is the guy with the gold.
SPEAKER 18 :
But it’s not the government’s gold.
SPEAKER 11 :
No, it’s my gold and yours.
SPEAKER 18 :
Right.
SPEAKER 11 :
Exactly.
SPEAKER 18 :
Look, if this guy that wrote this article, if he cares so much about… Then why doesn’t he should go out and help these people by, you know, giving them assistance himself if that’s where he’s being led. Don’t force me to do something that, and don’t get me wrong, I’m not being uncompassionate. Sometimes the most compassionate thing you can do is let people struggle.
SPEAKER 11 :
That’s right. That’s right. Absolutely. Dan, no, you just hit the nail on the head. Sometimes even with our own kids, the best answer is to say no and then let them go figure out and be resourceful and overcome that thing. The problem with all of the whole SNAP and EBT and all of that is for 40 million people. That’s over 10% of Americans on that benefit. Dan, that’s far too many. I mean, I don’t know what a good number would be, but I would really personally, that number should be 1% or 2%, not 10%.
SPEAKER 18 :
No offense, but where is the Church in this?
SPEAKER 11 :
Well, we have gotten rid of our duty along those lines, and we did, you know, frankly, Dan, we screwed up during the Depression. That’s where we messed up. We wouldn’t have this welfare system today had the Church done what they should have done in the Depression.
SPEAKER 18 :
Yeah, we let the government take over.
SPEAKER 11 :
We let the government take over. That’s exactly right.
SPEAKER 18 :
Christ had commanded us to do.
SPEAKER 11 :
Yeah, and because of that, we now are reaping what we sowed at that time, Dan. yeah yeah so and by the way i don’t want to get off on a tangent but and then we wonder why all churches are set up in such a way that we’re all obligated tax-wise this is up your your alley why we’re all obligated tax-wise to be basically structured all the same way and that tax structure was all based upon the salvation army back in the day and the reality is every church has put themselves into a box governmentally speaking that everybody has to play by the same rules Once again, Dan, we allowed government to come in and tell us the rules that we’re going to play by church-wise because we gave that up during that time.
SPEAKER 18 :
And that’s a violation of the First Amendment.
SPEAKER 11 :
Correct. We screwed up.
SPEAKER 18 :
Yeah, so the problem with people on EBT and SNAP is if the government, if the individuals in this program, if they don’t hit rock bottom— They’re never going to change.
SPEAKER 11 :
No, there’s no pain. As you know, Dan, pain causes change, right?
SPEAKER 18 :
Right.
SPEAKER 11 :
Without the pain, there’s no change.
SPEAKER 18 :
I’ve heard it said that when your pain exceeds your comfort, that’s when you’re going to change.
SPEAKER 11 :
That’s right. That’s exactly right, 100%. Yep, spot on.
SPEAKER 18 :
That’s my two cents.
SPEAKER 11 :
Dan, as always, I appreciate you very much. Thanks for your support. Jerry and Greeley, you’re next.
SPEAKER 09 :
John, I couldn’t agree more with what you were saying and what Dan was adding. My parents were young adults during the Great Depression, and they lived in a small rural town in south-central Nebraska, and everybody in that town was devastated. None of those people were to blame. They weren’t high-rolling financiers, but they all suffered greatly. That was a culture that really you don’t see much of anymore. These were good, decent, honest, hardworking people, God-fearing people. And they had a great deal of pride in doing everything they could to support themselves.
SPEAKER 11 :
That’s right.
SPEAKER 09 :
And I get choked up just thinking about it. Oh, no, Jerry, I do too.
SPEAKER 11 :
I mean, I had two sets of parents where they’re grandparents both. I told you the story of my dad’s side of the family and my mom’s side of the family. They were more of what you were talking about and went through some deep, deep, deep struggles. I have an aunt. uh that is deaf to this day because when they were little and she was about two years of age she got really sick and they could there was no way to get to you know no medical care because they couldn’t afford to do anything along those lines and ended up going deaf from you know tonsillitis and some things along those lines so believe me my family knows full well jerry everything that we’re talking about and and yet yet yet my family somehow some way succeeded with all of that
SPEAKER 09 :
And my family, they strived mightily to impart into younger people that we should never, ever look down on anyone based on what they were doing to make a living, because they had done all sorts of menial, manual labor just to barely have enough to eat. And Anyway, they were very big on the work ethic. They were very big on being as self-sufficient as possible, always had a garden, some fruit trees in the yard, mom canned and lived frugally and learned a lot of tremendous life lessons that a lot of young people today, they think they’re going through a great hardship if they don’t have the latest smartphone or if their latte is a little cool at Starbucks.
SPEAKER 11 :
Exactly.
SPEAKER 09 :
And I worry about the country because we’ve lost so much of that morality from earlier generations.
SPEAKER 11 :
Yeah, no, and Jerry, you’re 100% correct. And again, I think what we’ve lost in this country is—and by the way, before I move on, Marxism. I was explaining this to somebody last night. Marxism, Jerry— has caused everything that we’re talking about, because Marxism replaces God Almighty with government. Government becomes that entity that now fulfills all needs. You look to them instead of God Almighty and your own work ethic to take care of yourself, because government is going to do it instead. It is Marxism by the playbook, Jerry.
SPEAKER 09 :
That’s very well said, John. I just wanted to throw in that little bit.
SPEAKER 11 :
I appreciate you, Jerry, as always. Thank you so much for your kindness to me and our show. I mean that sincerely. Thank you. Joe, you’re next.
SPEAKER 06 :
John, I’ve got two quotes for you on this exact topic. One is 250 years old and the other is about 10 years old. And I know I’ve done this on air before, but the first one is for Ben Franklin on the topic of poverty and government assistance. And he said, I am all for doing good for the poor, but I think the best way of doing good for the poor is not making them easy in poverty and I mean, 250 years old, and that is spot on today. Now, you want to hear the one that is only 10 years old? Let’s hear it. You know who Penn Jillette the magician is?
SPEAKER 11 :
Oh, yeah, absolutely.
SPEAKER 06 :
So here’s Penn Jillette. This is around 10 years ago. He said, it is amazing to me how many people think that voting to have the government give poor people money is compassion. Helping poor and suffering people yourself is compassion. That’s right. Voting for our government to use guns to give money to help the poor and suffering people is a moral, self-righteous, bullying laziness. People need to be fed. medicated, educated, clothed, and sheltered. If we’re compassionate, we’ll help them, but you get no moral credit for forcing other people to do what you think is right. There is great joy in helping people, but no joy in doing it at gunpoint. That’s right.
SPEAKER 11 :
And what he means by gunpoint is if you don’t pay your taxes, they haul you off to jail at gunpoint.
SPEAKER 06 :
They haul you off to jail at gunpoint. And that has struck me, John, when I first read that 10 years ago, And people, by the way, yeah, yeah, we’re going to vote for this. We’re going to vote for this social welfare program. We’re going to vote. We’re going to vote to increase this. And they feel self-righteous that they voted, that they’re compassionate, that they voted to give your money to other people. And that makes them feel good about themselves.
SPEAKER 11 :
Yep. You’re right. And by the way, for all you texting in, a lot of you giving examples of the very same things that we have been talking about, myself included, Joe, some of the people texting and talking about some of the jobs that they did to not go down that path and avoid some of that, much like Dan’s story. I mean, Joe, so far, every single texter texting in is giving examples of how they overcame those things. We’ve lost that, Joe.
SPEAKER 06 :
We have. We absolutely have. John, when I graduated from college, I was – I’m deeply in debt. I had a negative net worth. You know, I didn’t come from a rich family. I worked my way through college, still had to borrow some loans. My indebtedness was two times my starting salary. So I came out of college young with a negative net worth, and all I had was my brain and a work ethic, and that’s it.
SPEAKER 11 :
And you know what? It’s amazing that in America, and it’s still this way today, Joe, in America, you can still make it with that attitude.
SPEAKER 06 :
Yep. Again, I got, I mean, my parents helped as much as they could in terms of my college education, but John, I basically, you know, I don’t want to, I don’t want to, I want to give me, they helped as much as they could, John, but I, you know, I had to put myself most of the way through college on my own. You know, I had some scholarships and whatnot, but I came out of college with a negative net worth.
SPEAKER 11 :
Yeah. And by the way, I think a lot of us, myself included, started off at that point in time. My wife was asking me the other day, I’ve got this box in the closet that I stored, and it’s got some financials and tax returns from the late 80s, early 90s. She’s like, why are we keeping that stuff? I said, and this is my exact words, it’s a reminder of what I don’t want to go back to. Because I’ve got tax returns in there, Joe, to where my income was negative. Not positive, negative.
SPEAKER 06 :
Yeah, net loss for the year.
SPEAKER 11 :
That’s right, negative. And real, not paper loss, I mean real negative because I didn’t have a pot to, you know what, in.
SPEAKER 06 :
Yep, yep, yep.
SPEAKER 11 :
So she asked me about that, and I’m like, yeah, I keep those because it’s a reminder of what I don’t want to go back to, and I mean that sincerely.
SPEAKER 06 :
And, John, for anybody who wants to find those quotes on their own, obviously just Google Ben Franklin poverty quote, and you’ll find the poverty. The one on Penn Jillette, a little tricky, by the way, Penn Jillette spells his last name with a J. Right, right. So just do Penn Jillette and compassion, and you’ll find his quote, which I think is amazing. And I’ll just read the first sentence to me again. It’s amazing to me how many people think that voting to have the government give poor people money is compassion. It’s not. Helping poor and suffering people yourself is compassion.
SPEAKER 11 :
That’s right. Well said. Joe, thank you, as always. Appreciate you very much. I’ll squeeze one more in before our last break of the hour. Wyatt, you’re next.
SPEAKER 07 :
Hey, good afternoon, John. Just wanted to let people know, have you ever noticed when you go to a park, whether it be state or federal, it says, don’t feed the bears. They’ll become habituated. Good point. So the same government that tells you not to feed the bears is feeding the people.
SPEAKER 11 :
Yep.
SPEAKER 07 :
Yep, a bunch of hypocrites. And don’t they become habituated?
SPEAKER 11 :
Well, and again, Wyatt, really, if you look at this, and sometimes we all say, you know, why does this happen? And as I explained to somebody that I met for the first time last night, and we got to talking about different things along these lines, and this person asked me, you know, how do you get these young people to understand what’s really going on in the country? And really, Wyatt, again, it’s because of the Marxist takeover of the country And my last comment was, all you have to ask people is, it’s a force versus freedom issue. Our side believing in freedom, freedom to make things on your own, not relying on anybody other than you and Almighty God Himself. Outside of that, it’s up to you to make things work versus Marxism, which wants government to rule over you and be your provider.
SPEAKER 07 :
And as long as you can vote to take money or take things from people that have more than you, they’ve got the… The upper hand. Envy working on them.
SPEAKER 11 :
That’s right. You’re exactly right, White.
SPEAKER 1 :
100%.
SPEAKER 11 :
Yep, you’re correct. Great example, by the way, on feeding the animals. I talked about that Saturday among ourselves, but we didn’t use it, of course, because that’s not the right place for it. But great example, White. Spot on.
SPEAKER 07 :
Have a good day, John.
SPEAKER 11 :
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SPEAKER 11 :
Now back to Rush to Reason on KLZ 560. And we are back. Rush to Reason, Denver’s Afternoon Rush, KLZ 560. And I don’t know about the rest of you, but I’ve got a couple minutes here to close things out. This whole conversation on, you know, SNAP and EBT and all of that. And while I do have a heart for individuals that struggle and so on, but again, as somebody that has been through that myself and folks, I could take an entire multiple three-hour shows and go through example after example after example of things that I went through in my lifetime when it came to struggles and so on. And when you’re a business owner, you go through a lot. Some of you that are, which I have a lot of business owners that listen, you guys know exactly what I’m talking about. Some of you have been texting me, so you know full well what I’m talking about. And again, the only way that I… The only way I knew to overcome it was to work harder. I am not the smartest guy in any room. I’ve never been to college. I’ve had a little bit of training in a few things. I’ve done some seminars and things along those lines. But I am not college educated. I had to learn by the school of hard knocks. And no, I have not always been able to do the things that I can now do today. In fact, I tell my wife occasionally, you know, when I was a kid to think that I would be doing what I’m doing today and even talking to all of you behind a microphone, I would have said you were crazy. Never going to happen. Not not my lifetime. So, no. Did I ever think that I would do the things that I’m doing today? No, I did not. By God’s grace and by a lot of hard work and a lot of examples, by the way, from both sides of my family, not just one side but both sides, on what hard work produces, I knew how to work hard. And there’s one thing I’ve always said, and I’ll continue to say it. I might not be, and I am not, the smartest guy in any room because I’m not, but there is one thing that I am in that room, the hardest working guy there, period. I can outwork anybody. Anybody that knows me knows that’s a true statement. So I’m not the smartest guy, but I can outwork anybody in the room at any given time, even at my age, because that’s the only way I know to get ahead. Something we need to get into the lives and hearts of most Americans that are on SNAP, by the way, because they don’t understand what I’m talking about. So another couple hours coming your way. Rush to Reason, Denver’s Afternoon Rush, KLZ 560.
SPEAKER 04 :
I’m a rich guy.
No Kings, No Clue: Protest Logic Falls Apart