Welcome to the Kim Monson Show podcast. Kim Monson is your host. “Those Host of Worthies.” Co-founder of Liberty Toastmasters Brad Beck conveys his thoughts regarding Independence Day and “those host of worthies” regarding the men of our American Founding. Author Dennis Busch discusses what the lead-up was to the Civil War and Lincoln’s frustration with the inaction of his generals. Show sponsors Karen Gordey, owner of Radiant Painting and Lighting, and RE/MAX realtor Karen Levine share their thoughts about our Declaration. ————————————————————————————– The Kim Monson Show airs on KLZ 560 AM every Monday thru Friday, 6-8 AM MST.
It’s the Kim Monson Show, analyzing the most important stories.
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I find that it takes work to get your brain around these ideas, and it takes work to engage in these conversations.
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The latest in politics and world affairs.
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With what is happening down at the Statehouse, I used to think that it was above my pay grade to read the legislation, and it’s not.
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Today’s current opinions and ideas.
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I see big danger in as much as we will be giving an unelected bureaucrat the power to make rules about what we inject into our bodies.
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Is it freedom or is it force? Let’s have a conversation.
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Indeed, and welcome to the Kim Monson Show. Thank you so much for joining us. You’re treasured, you’re valued, you have purpose. Today, strive for excellence, take care of your heart, your soul, your mind, and your body. My friends, we were made for this moment in history, and I am so grateful for the people I work with. That’s Producer Joe, Luke, Rachel, Zach, Echo, Charlie, and all the people here at Crawford Broadcasting. The show comes to you because of our great sponsors, and thank you to Laramie Energy and Karis Oil & Gas for their gold sponsorship of the show. It is reliable, efficient, affordable, and abundant energy sources that powers our lives and fuels our hopes and dreams. We are pre-recording these shows for Independence Day week. I’ve decided it’s a week and not just a day, and with very special guests. And in studio with me is Dennis Bush. Dennis Bush, welcome. It’s great to have you here.
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My pleasure.
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Okay, where should we start regarding the Battle of Gettysburg?
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Well, I always start usually when talking just history in general. And when teaching or speaking about history, I always make it a point to be as accurate and as factual as possible. History, though, is not an exact science. But then as we have painfully learned recently, science is not an exact science. The important thing about history is to learn from it, and you can’t if it is embellished or distorted in any way. It has to be as factual as much as possible to ascertain what it was, the good, the bad, and even the ugly. Playing on an old Western fondant. Then and only then can we adjust to avoid past failures and mistakes and take full advantages of past successes. Revised or altered history does us all a great disservice. That’s my commercial.
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Well, you’re absolutely right.
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There seems to be considerable discourse on what caused the Civil War or war between the states, depending upon what part of the country you’re from. The actual cause or catalyst was the inauguration of Abraham Lincoln as President of the United States, the first Republican. This precipitated the secession from the Union of 11 southern states over the next several months because they feared that the Republican Party would abolish slavery. which actually was the end result when the 13th Amendment to the Constitution was ratified on 6 December 1865. But in 1861, the platform of the Republican Party went only so far as to stop the spread of slavery into the new Western states, which became Kansas, Oklahoma, Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, Utah, and Nevada. Imagine all of those as slave states. The Southern aristocracy, or the privileged class, believed that if slavery was not allowed to spread into the new states, it would die. They were probably right in that assessment, but their actions of secession precipitated the bloodiest war in American history. On paper, the war should have been over quickly because of the industrial preponderance and much greater population of the North. One of the primary reasons why it lasted so long was the fact that in the beginning, the South had better generals. Why was that? Well, probably heritage. Almost all the really big generals in the Civil War went to West Point. Both sides. So they were friends across the battlefield. Isn’t that amazing? Yeah. But the tradition of the South was the chivalrous cavalry. I mean, that’s why they were much better cavalry soldiers as well in the beginning, not at the end, but in the beginning of the war. And it’s just probably the tradition of military background that these guys served. Yeah. The Union appointed most of its generals politically, and it took several years before they got rid of them. And good generals like Grant and Sherman and Sherrod and all the streets that are named in Denver, Logan.
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For now.
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Yeah, yeah. Waiting for them to change those. But those are all the great Union generals are all those streets that come off Broadway. Yeah.
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question because this was really frustrating for Lincoln, those political generals. It was tough, wasn’t it?
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Oh, yeah. He anguished over it because he knew he was not a professional soldier, but he actually was as good a soldier as anybody that was in the war. His secretary of war, Stanton, actually hated him in the beginning until he really began to realize that Lincoln was a genius. Because they thought he was just a country bump below them, right? Like kind of where I came from, yeah. And me too. But it just took time for these guys to develop. Grant was not even in the Army when the Civil War broke out. He’d been kind of cashiered as a drunk. And so he begged and was given a regiment of troops in Illinois, and then he worked his way on up through the western part of the war until – he’s not even present in Gettysburg. Because Gettysburg was 1863. And Grant was – actually, at the same time, the city of – Grant was sieging the city of Vicksburg.
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Really?
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And they capitulated on the 3rd.
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Oh, when we were preparing for this, you said there was something else that was happening during that time.
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And so all of those great generals, Logan, Grant, Sherman, Sheridan, were in the West. And it took another year or so before they all migrated east. And that’s when the war really turned.
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Okay. Well, and you said in your notes that on paper the war should have been over quickly, correct?
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Oh, yeah. You look at the industrial part of the country was in the north. The south was still very agrarian. Actually, slavery crippled them. in terms of as an economy because they were stuck in this, you know, archaic farming system and never developed. And this really hurt them during the war. They didn’t have the industry. You know, you need industry to support a war. You’ve got to make cannons. You’ve got to make cannonballs. You’ve got to make bullets and rifles. And they never really had anything like the Union did.
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I hadn’t really thought about it, that slavery had just crippled them. Oh, yeah. That’s so interesting. So what’s the next thing we need to know?
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Well, fortunately, an army led by poor leadership going up against a much smaller army led to a brutal war, the deadliest our country has ever endured. And it pitted America. Many instances of brother against brother and father against son. It’s sad, right? It is sad. Gettysburg is probably the most important battle in American history with the possible exception of Yorktown because its outcome would have such a drastic impact on America forever. Would we be one powerful nation or two dysfunctional ones? That was the question. The Battle of Gettysburg pitted the two major armies of that war, the Southern Army of Northern Virginia, commanded by General Robert E. Lee, and against the Union’s Army of the Potomac, commanded by Major General George Meade. And that’s one of the misnumbers. Most people would think it was Grant. But like I said, Grant at that time was out west. It began as the Battle of Chancellorsville ended once more in Union defeat on 6 May 1863. Union General Joseph Hooker, the latest Union commander of that army, and yes, that’s where that notorious name comes from. I don’t know about the notorious name. What do you call prostitutes?
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Really?
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Yeah. You could say he kind of ran a loose camp.
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Okay.
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I see. It’s funny that that’s true, but that’s where it supposedly is derived. He was completely out-generaled by Lee in that battle.
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And if you study that battle— He wasn’t paying attention to what he needed to.
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Well, and they flanked him and just wiped him up. Okay. I can honestly say that Lee was one of the greatest generals this country has ever produced. And yet I can still despise the cause for which he fought. There is no doubt of his greatness as a military commander. I can only think of one contemporary and that would be Dwight Eisenhower. But it’s a subject that I could debate for hours.
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Hours. But somebody would need to know what they’re talking about if they were going to debate you on that. Well, maybe not.
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Anyway, the leadership of the Confederacy knew that the South could not win a protracted war. And so they decided to capitalize on the demoralizing victory over its foe. They strategized to end the war as quickly as possible by sending the Army of Northern Virginia on its second invasion of the North. Its intended mission was to capture Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the capital of that state, and or Philadelphia. There was also an alternate strategy to lure the Union Army of the Potomac into a battle, defeat it once more, and then march on Washington. That would force the end of the war.
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So that was their plan.
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Yeah. So it was a strategy for all the marbles. And Lee carried with him a letter that basically asked the Union to end the war. And that he was going to deliver it personally to Lincoln. That was the end game of this invasion. Wow.
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Wow. Well, I think this is a spot that would be a good place for a break. And so let’s do that. And I get to work with amazing sponsors of the show. I know them all personally, and they all strive for excellence. I have on the line with me Karen Gorday. She is an entrepreneur and business owner. She owns Radiant Painting and Lighting. And we are prerecording these interviews for Independence Week. Karen, welcome to the show. Thank you, Kim. Glad to be here. And wanted to get your thoughts about the Declaration of Independence, of course, was signed on July 4, 1776. But you’re going to be right there on July 4th, yes?
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Yes, I am in the Washington, D.C. area through the 6th and then headed down to Williamsburg for a few days.
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And there was a lot happening 250 years ago, at this time in 1775. And, of course, next year we’ll celebrate our 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence. Karen, what’s your thoughts about our declaration?
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I think it’s absolutely amazing, and I’m really glad we did it, or they did it, 249 years ago.
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Well, and I think that what Jefferson wrote, that we are all created equal with these rights from God of life, liberty, and pursuit of happiness. And I had Brad Beck on with Liberty Toastmasters recently. He said Calvin Coolidge had said, I think on the 150th anniversary of the Declaration, if all men are created equal, and he meant men and women, if we’re all created equal, then that is final. And government should not be coming in picking winners and losers because if we’re created equal, that is final. I think that that’s so powerful, Karen Gorday.
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Absolutely it is. I think you say it best. You can’t have equal rights if you have special rights. And that goes to the founding principles of our country.
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And for government, government is supposed to be impartial at the Supreme Court. Lady Justice has a blindfold. And so that means the government is not supposed to be picking winners and losers. It’s not supposed to be putting forth a specific agenda, which right here on the local level, What you’re watching with what’s happening with this push in Lakewood regarding zoning and the rewrite on the zoning and really, I’ll say forcing. It’s one of those force words by using public policy to pick winners and losers, get a specific outcome. That’s not the way it’s supposed to be. And you realize that right there on the local level there in Lakewood.
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Absolutely. I think that’s what a lot of people don’t realize is the local level is so important because everything starts at the city level and works its way up to the federal level. And so it’s very, very important to watch what’s going on at the city level, the school board level, all of the local level is important. you know, really, really important to our way of life.
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Well, and when I was on city council, I came to the realization because people say, oh, government should be local. And I see many times that special interests or politicians or bureaucrats may be pushing agendas that will pick winners and losers. And if it’s not okay for government at the federal level to pick winners and losers, it’s not okay for government to do that at the local level either. And that’s why we have to keep an eye on it. And that’s, again, why it’s so great the work that you’re doing regarding watching this whole rezoning thing out in Lakewood. We’ve got a little over a minute left. We’re pre-recording this, but you will be back in Virginia and Washington, D.C. area, which is that’s where everything was happening with our Declaration of Independence, of course, in Philadelphia as well. What’s your final thought that you would like to leave with our listeners, Karen Gorday? And also, let’s make sure we get in there, your website, before you give us your thoughts on that.
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Absolutely. I think the final message would be that we really need to protect our rights, our freedom, etc. We can’t let go of the Constitution, the Declaration of Independence. We really need to guard that well. And our website is www.paintwithradiant.com. Or you can call us at 720-940-3887.
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Well, have a great trip and enjoy Williamsburg. That’s going to be super awesome. And we will talk with you next week and wish you and yours a very blessed Fourth of July and Independence Day.
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Welcome back to The Kim Monson Show. Be sure and check out our website. That is Kim Monson, M-O-N-S-O-N.com. Sign up for our weekly email newsletter, and you can email me at Kim at KimMonson.com as well. This week of Independence Day week, we are pre-recording these shows with great guests. And actually, I interviewed Dennis Bush because he has a book that is being released this week of Independence Day week regarding Omaha Beach, the real heroes of Omaha Beach. I can’t wait to get that book published. And you said it’s part of a trilogy, so we’ll just tease that just a little. Book one of a trilogy. But then, as we were talking, he said that he’d studied the Civil War for many, many years, and the Battle of Gettysburg was fought July 1 to July 3 in 1863. I said, how about let’s record something on Gettysburg, and so that’s what we’re doing. So you had said, before we went to break, that the… The Confederate Army had a strategy. They were going to do these different attacks. And that Lee actually had a letter of surrender that he wanted to personally give to Lincoln. So what’s going on at this time?
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Well, they’re going north and they’re going after and getting deep into Pennsylvania. And basically that was to try and lower the Union Army up to try to stop them. But before we get into the battle, there are two very important factors that must be taken into account. The first was that the Union Army, licking its wounds again after Chancellorsville, was slow to respond to Lee’s bold and run. Upon learning this, Lincoln had enough and fired him and replaced Hooker with General Gordon Meade, the V or V Corps commander. So the Union Army would have a new commander going into this major battle. And he had no idea as to where his enemy was when he took command of the seven infantry and one cavalry corps consisting of around 100,000 men. Oh my gosh. Yeah. The other factor was that Lee’s most trusted and capable subordinate, General Thomas Stonewall Jackson, had been wounded in the hand and arm in the aftermath of Chancellorsville by friendly fire. Yeah, his own men shot him. Not on purpose? No, he was out reconnoitering and they, you know, thought it was Union guys. Today he would most likely have survived his wounds. But not in 1863, when medicine was still in the Stone Ages.
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So it was probably infection?
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Well, he died four days later on 10 May from amputation complications that led to pneumonia. So pneumonia actually killed him. It prompted Lee to say before his death, Jackson may have lost his left hand, but I have lost my right hand. prophetic. The great loss of leadership led Lee to reorganize the structure of his 72,000-man army going into the battle, which is never a good thing. He divided his two large infantry corps into three, commanded by Lieutenant General James Longstreet, 1st Corps, and he was the holdover, and Lieutenant General Richard S. Ewell, that was 2nd Corps, and Lieutenant General A.P. Hill, 3rd Corps. Both generals, Ewell and Hill, who had formerly reported to Jackson as division commanders, were now corps commanders. So both armies went into their most critical battle with major upheaval and questions in leadership. And it did have a major impact on the outcome. How so? We’ll see. Okay. I’ll tell you as we go. To make matters worse for Lee was the fact that the Confederate Cavalry Corps, led by the dashing Major General Jeb Stuart, went off on its own to wreak havoc and get headlines in the rear. As such, he left Lee blind as to the whereabouts of the Union Army. When they were finally located in hot pursuit, Lee was vulnerable of being defeated piecemeal. His army was strung out between Chambersburg, which was 28 miles due west of Gettysburg, and Harrisburg, which is 30 miles north-northeast of Gettysburg. So you can imagine his entire army is in that area. But that just opens them up for being defeated in pieces. And so that was not a good thing. It follows, so Lee commanded his forces, once he found where the Union was in pursuit, to consolidate on a town in southern Pennsylvania, a strategic town of the many roads leading in and because of all the roads leading in and out, and it was Gettysburg. He hoped he could consolidate his army there before the Yankees got there. It was a race. At any rate, the place for the battle had been determined. Now it was just a matter of time.
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So I imagine then the Union scouts are probably watching this. They know where he’s at then? Yes? No?
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Well, that’s next. I’ll tell you how they come to me. It’s kind of interesting. The first Confederate troops to arrive was Heath Division of Third Corps on 1 July 1863, who was actually headed for Gettysburg anyway because there was a shoe factory there. Most of the poorly equipped Confederate soldiers were barefoot.
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I can’t even imagine.
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Their uniforms were in tatters.
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But that’s kind of like Washington at— Valley Forge, yeah. Yeah.
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But anyway, he expected— At least this was summer. It was cold during— Yeah, that’s one to my advantage. Actually, it was hot. He expected to find the town defenseless, but ran into a Union cavalry division under Brigadier General John Buford, who was scouting to locate the Confederate Army. Though greatly outnumbered, the dismounted Union cavalry made a good accounting of themselves, holding Heath’s men at bay until two corps of Union infantry arrived at Gettysburg later in the afternoon.
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Okay. So it begins just very small forces.
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Sporadically, yes, because both armies are trying to get to this point, and as they join the battle, it sways back and forth in its first day because first you’ve got a division of Union cavalry holding off an infantry division, which is much larger. And then they get a corps to support them, and then the Confederacy gets a corps to support them. And by then, two large Confederate corps also joined the fray from the north and northwest. An intense battle commenced, consisting of 22,000 Union troops versus 27,000 Confederates. Now remember, the Army of the Potomac, the Union Army, is 100,000. So the rest of these guys are strung out to the south trying to get to Gettysburg. 27,000 Confederates when their army was 72,000. So they’re not consolidated. This actually started off as a small battle that just got bigger and bigger and bigger as the day wore on. It was very unusual for the rebels to outnumber their enemy. They were used to being outnumbered. In this case, they were not, and it made a difference.
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So where is Lee at this time?
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He is still back. He has not gotten to the battlefield yet. And he is trying to move the logistics to get the people to the battlefront. He does get to Gettysburg on day one. Meade does not. He doesn’t come until almost midnight. But anyway… The Confederate troops prevailed and forced the Union soldiers to retreat back through Gettysburg, but fortuitously up onto a ridge of hills to the southeast of town. So ended the first day of battle, the Confederacy having whipped their enemy once again, but they failed to rout them. undoubtedly because of the timid leadership of General Huell, one of the new Corps commanders, right? Stonewall undoubtedly would have continued to press the attack and probably would have succeeded in pushing the Yankees off the high ground. At that time, their hold there was tenuous at best. If that had happened, then the inevitable battle certainly would have been fought elsewhere and might have turned out quite differently.
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So, Dennis, as a layperson, I’ve got to think that, as you say, Jackson would have realized that it’s so difficult to take high ground and so would have pushed them on off of there. Why don’t you think that they did that?
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Well, he was new to command, and he had won a victory. I mean, they pushed the Yankees out of the town. And, frankly, he got cold feet. I mean, this is one of the real contentious issues coming from the battle from a military strategy point, is why didn’t Ewell take the high ground when he could have?
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Right.
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Okay. And see, the high ground is critical in those days.
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Right.
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It still is. It still is, yeah. But the high ground today is an aircraft. Right. Okay. It eliminates the ground itself. But these were high hills that to attack, you would need a three-to-one advantage. Right. If you were really going to be successful, then they were under-advantaged. I mean, they were 72,000 against 100,000 when the day ended. So this was really a tough, tough, tough challenge for the Confederacy.
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Gosh, this is absolutely fascinating. We’ve got a couple of minutes left in this segment, or we can go to break and then come back. What do you think?
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Well, I’ve got one more little short bit here to finish the day. As night fell, the remnants of the Union forces were entrenched overlooking the Confederate Army. Meade arrived late that night at several other corps of his army. He made the decision to go on the defensive and dig in. So Lee would have to shove them off the heights. By morning, a very strong Union line of seven infantry corps comprised a fishhook-like formation linking Culp’s Hill to Cemetery Hill to Cemetery Ridge and terminating just north of Little Round Top. The Union Army owned the high ground, except for two hills on the southern flank.
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But that probably wouldn’t matter that much, would it?
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Oh, they did.
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It did. Okay. This is so fascinating. And we’re pre-recording these shows for Independence Day week. Take a look at the Center for American Values website. They’re doing such great work honoring our Medal of Honor recipients, putting together educational programs. Their On Value series is just great. And check all that out. A good thing to do this week during Independence Day week, that website is AmericanValuesCenter.org. That’s AmericanValuesCenter.org. And we have wonderful sponsors, and one of those is Karen Levine.
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Welcome back to The Kim Monson Show. And they have five locations, Loveland, Aurora, Lone Tree, Westminster, and Colorado Springs. Great specials to get together with friends Monday through Friday. Or you could do some takeout wings during Independence Day week. So just check all that out. They have great wings. And, again, that is Hooters Restaurants. In studio with me is Dennis Bush. And he’s an author, obviously. He’s also a veteran, United States Air Force. Served during the Vietnam War. So thank you for my freedom. I really appreciate it.
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No. In the end, it was all for nothing.
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Well, that’s why we are battling in this battle. Well, the Vietnam War, yeah.
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I lost 19 friends. I mean, when you go to the military academy, you’re going to have a lot of casualties. I can’t imagine how many of my contemporaries at West Point died in that war. Probably three or four times that.
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We were talking during the break. These are people’s husbands and sons and brothers. We have to realize if we are going to put our blood and treasure on the line, we need to make sure that we’re in it to win it and not be messing around. Okay, let’s get back to the Civil War, Battle of Gettysburg, Day 2 and 3. So what happens on Day 2?
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Well, on the morning of the 2nd of July, two powerful armies faced one another, patiently waiting for the other to either flinch or take the initiative. Longstreet, General Longstreet, who was one of Lee’s key subordinates, met up with Lee and expressed his opinion that the right tactics to employ would be to move their entire army around the Union left flank and find a suitable defensive position that was between the Union army and Washington, D.C. Then Meade would be forced to attack them as they were forced at Fredericksburg. and more than likely with similar results. That would effectively end the war. But Lee was aghast and said that the Union army was there and he would attack them there, unless they were foolish enough to attack him, which they weren’t. In hindsight, Lee was clearly wrong in this decision and should have listened to his defensive master strategist. In his defense, it was the first battle without his primary tactician, Stonewall, and we can debate all evening what his suggestion would have been. Lee’s plan was to launch a two-pronged assault on the Union flanks, the ends of the line, an attack from the side or the rear. The experienced divisions of General John Bell Hood and Lafayette McClaws of Longstreet’s Corps, followed by Major General Richard Anderson’s division of Hill’s Corps, was to lead the attack on the left flank of the Union lines. On the Union right, General Ewell’s 2nd Corps was to attack Culp’s Hill and Cemetery Hill when he heard gunfire from Longstreet’s assault. The attack did not start until late in the afternoon, as it took way too much time for Hood and McClaws to get into position. They were probably stalling, as both saw that the daunting attack they were ordered to make would be… When they finally did engage, it was hell on earth. The individual battles all across their lines became infamous on their own. The Peach Orchard, the Wheat Field, the Devil’s Den, and Little Round Top, and one of that hills that I mentioned earlier. They were all notable for their sheer brutality and horrendous casualties suffered by both sides, including the irreplaceable General Hood. At the end of the day, the Union left was pushed back a few yards, but it did not waver and held firm. As a matter of fact, their lines were extended to now include Little Round Top, a hill. On the right flank, Yule did very little as he misunderstood Lee’s orders and so believed that his primary mission was to create a feint, a false attack, a faux attack.
SPEAKER 03 :
How could he get that wrong?
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Well, let me explain that. To prevent Meade from shifting troops from his right flank to his left flank. That’s what he thought he was supposed to do. See, Lee’s leadership style was unlike a demonstrative general like Patton. No, he was very low-key and made suggestions rather than direct orders. But subordinates should make no mistake, they were orders. Lee told Ewell to press the attack if practicable, when what he meant was to press the attack with the full weight of his forces. So Ewell just, again, not working with Lee. Didn’t understand it. Did not understand the style of leadership that Lee exemplified. I love that style because it’s such much more effective than autocratic style. But anyway, the second day ended with both sides licking their wounds, and each army was virtually in the same position as they were at the start of the day.
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But lots of dead and wounded.
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Lots of dead.
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Okay. Okay, day three.
SPEAKER 05 :
Two days of intense fighting had not only resulted in significant casualties on both sides, Longstreet again approached Lee, suggesting his plan to move around the Union left flank was still available. And, of course, the Confederate Army had the advantage. But Lee once again rebuffed his subordinate and proceeded to reveal his own plan to his most trusted general. Now that Jackson was dead. It was based on the fact that Pickett’s division of Longstreet’s Corps had arrived late on the second day and thus was fresh and unbloodied. They were to attack the Union Center, netmarked by the infamous Copse of Trees, which is a small grove. Also included in this bold assault and to the strength of the enemy lines were six brigades from Pettigrew’s and Trimble’s Division of Hill’s Corps. In total, some 12,000 men made this assault. Though most of three divisions comprised the attack, it was forever labeled Pickett’s Charge, an epithet that dogged the man for the rest of his life. He was blamed for the failure at Gettysburg in the South.
SPEAKER 03 :
Gosh, Dennis. So Lee has a reputation as a great general, but it seems to me like that didn’t make sense. And it seems to me like it would have made sense to get in between the Union Army and Washington, D.C.
SPEAKER 05 :
Yes, it did. But the thing was… Stonewall was the tactician. Lee was the commander. Just like Eisenhower was the commander and he had great subordinates who were the attackers. And there’s a difference in the type of general that you have at the top and at the next level. That’s really what it boils down to.
SPEAKER 03 :
And because because Jackson was gone, Lee didn’t he leaned on him. And so when this other general comes in and recommends it, of course, they’re probably there’s a lot going on in Lee’s brain at that time. Yes.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, I think he was tired of the death and he wanted to end the war. And he thought that his strategy would do that. He believed in his army because they had won virtually every battle in the East. Okay. And he just believed so much that his men could do the impossible that that’s what he asked them to do.
SPEAKER 03 :
Okay. So that’s day three.
SPEAKER 05 :
This is day three. This is the great charge. The assault was to be prefaced by fire from something like 160 cannons. Okay. the largest bombardment ever on North American soil. In spite of all that, Longstreet was so convinced that the attack across almost a mile of open fields would fail that he could not even give Pickett the order to charge. He simply nodded. In the end, he was right. The Confederate troops were valiant and advanced under intense Union cannon fire, and once they got closer, intense rifle fire. At one point, they even buckled the Union line, but Meade poured in reinforcements and retook the ground given. This moment was later labeled the high mark of the Confederacy. It was devastating as nearly half of the rebels were unable to make it back to their lines. As the wreckage of three divisions retreated, Lee approached General Pickett and said, General Pickett, sir, see to your division. The totally demortalized commander responded with a heavy Virginia accent. General Lee, I have no division. That, in essence, summed up the results of the Battle of Gettysburg. The next day, Lee led his tattered, demoralized, and crippled army back across the Potomac. General Meade elected to hold his position and let the rebels retreat successfully. He therefore forfeited an enormous opportunity. He had Lee’s army on the wrong side of the Potomac and on the move. If he had pursued and attacked his beaten foe, the war might have ended on that date. But he didn’t, and the war went on for two more bloody years. When Lincoln heard the news, he was beside himself. So during the battle, both sides had an opportunity to end the war, and both failed to do what was necessary.
SPEAKER 03 :
Do you think that Lincoln was beside himself because he recognized that opportunity was lost? Oh, yeah. He just went off.
SPEAKER 05 :
I mean, this is, you know, like I said, he spent most of his time down at the Department of War because they had telegraph. The most common communication back then was telegraph. And he could listen to the messages coming in and keep abreast of it. And this is where Stanton really began to realize how smart Lincoln was because he understood better than a lot of the generals what they needed to do.
SPEAKER 03 :
That is so fascinating. Dennis Bush, thank you for sharing this with us. And again, we are pre-recording these shows because it is Independence Day week. And the Battle of Gettysburg, though, was fought July 1 through July 3, 1863. We get to do this because of our sponsors.
SPEAKER 10 :
We’ll be right back.
SPEAKER 16 :
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SPEAKER 03 :
And welcome back to The Kim Monson Show. Be sure and check out our website. That is Kim Monson, M-O-N-S-O-N dot com. Sign up for our weekly email newsletter. And you can email me at Kim at Kim Monson dot com as well. Thank you to all of you who support us. We’re an independent voice and we search for truth and clarity by looking at these issues through the lens of freedom versus force, force versus freedom. If something’s a good idea, you shouldn’t have to force people to do it. We are pre-recording for this week. A very special guest in studio with me right now is Dennis Bush. He is the author of a book that is being released this Independence Day week, and that is The Real Heroes of Omaha Beach. I can’t wait to get the book. I can’t either. But we’re talking about the Battle of Gettysburg that was fought during the Civil War, July 1 through July 3, 1863. Lee knows he is defeated, demoralized. So what happens in the aftermath?
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, the toll of the battle is appalling. The Union casualties numbered over 23,000. 3,155 were killed outright, 14,531 were wounded, and 5,369 were captured or missing. The Confederate casualties are not as well documented. The best estimate is also just over 23,000 casualties, 4,708 dead, 12,693 wounded, and 5,830 captured or missing. Perhaps worse, nearly a third of Lee’s general officers were killed, wounded, or captured. This amounts to the bloodiest three days in American history. It sounds horrendous, but it was actually much worse. Though estimates are undocumented, perhaps half or more of the 27,000 wounded probably succumbed within the next few weeks because of the lack of medical knowledge back then. Of those who didn’t die, a great many of them were maimed for life with the loss of at least one limb. So the most effective weapon of the battle was the surgeon’s bloody saws. But that is the true cost of liberty. Lost in most statistics was the cost in horses, as almost 5,000 were killed during the course of the battle. It has been estimated that for every soldier, 200 horses were required to support them. Equipment, food, you know, there were large wagon trains that followed every army. And it took lots of horses. And it’s an interesting study about what happened to the horses. But the aftermath here, let’s go. On the afternoon of 19 November, 1863, a ceremony was held in Gettysburg to commemorate the military cemetery there. The principal speaker was Edward Everett, who droned on for two hours. Lincoln, who was invited to attend the ceremony almost as an afterthought, then rose to deliver the requested short remarks. It was over so fast that most in attendance didn’t even hear his words. Lincoln thought that his speech was a total failure. It was days later, and after his speech was widely publicized, that he and the rest of the world realized the greatness of his short remarks. Short, succinct, to the salient point, and from the heart of a nation in parallel. Four score and seven years ago our fathers brought forth on this continent a new nation, conceived in liberty and dedicated to the proposition that all men are created equal. Now we are engaged in a great civil war testing whether that nation or any nation so conceived and so dedicated can long endure. We are met on a great battlefield of that war. We have come to dedicate a portion of that field as a final resting place for those who have here gave their lives that the nation might live. It is altogether fitting and proper that we should do this. But in a larger sense, we cannot dedicate We cannot consecrate, we cannot hallow this ground. The brave men living and dead who struggled here have consecrated it far above our poor power to add or detract. The world will little note nor long remember what we say here, but it can never forget what they did here. it is for us the living rather to be dedicated here to the unfinished work which they who fought here have thus far so nobly advanced it is rather for us to be to be here dedicated to the great task remaining before us, that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to the cause for which they gave their last full measure of devotion. that we here highly resolve that these dead men shall not have died in vain, that this nation under God shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth. Those words mean and apply as much now as they did in 1863. Vote. Now, the battle has been documented by literally thousands of books. Unfortunately, most of them are not very well written. But there are some great authors who are worth reading about Gettysburg. Their names are Bruce Catton, Shelby Foote, and Michael Schera. In addition, there are two great movies you might get hold of and watch. The best is titled Gettysburg, made in 1993, and you can find it online. It was panned by film critics, but what do they know about history? It is an accurate adaptation of Michael Shera’s masterpiece, Killer Angels. I also strongly recommend Glory. This star-studded production released in 1989 tells the story of the 54th Massachusetts Regiment, one of the first African American units to serve in the Union Army. I read somewhere that nearly 150,000 African Americans served in the Union Army, most of them former slaves. If you happen to find yourself in the middle of Pennsylvania, dedicate an entire day to visit the battlefield. You will find it well worth your time. The Park Service has done a marvelous job of preserving and presenting the battle as they have most of the others. When you are there, you can literally feel the souls of the men who perished there. It is truly a sacred place.
SPEAKER 03 :
Dennis Bush, I totally agree. I’ve only been to Gettysburg once, and not enough time. I was driving from New York to Kansas City at the time. But to your point, you can feel it. You can feel it when you’re there, and it does feel like sacred ground.
SPEAKER 05 :
But I recommend you read a bit about it before you go, because you’re going to see this place called the Peach Orchard. Well, if you don’t know that the Peach Orchard said you could walk from one end to the other and never step on the ground, but just the bodies of dead men.
SPEAKER 03 :
And again, this is husbands and sons and brothers and fathers on each of these wars. And what a battle. But the question ultimately was this vision of the Declaration. Are all men created equal? As Calvin Coolidge said, if all men are created equal, then that is final. And they really put their lives on the line to ask that question and to answer that question, Dennis Bush.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, I think that misnomer is the term men. It actually is the species, not the sex. It includes women. Yes. It was never inferred in all this documentation that women were equal to men, but the fact of the matter is they were probably, even during the Revolutionary period, more powerful than the men.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, we’ve got a few minutes. How so? How would you say that?
SPEAKER 05 :
They ran it from the rear, behind, and in the back. But they were certainly—I mean, they were totally influential on there. If you really want to read about—I think it’s Adam’s wife— How much they were involved in everything. And they did it through their husbands because of the stigma of being female. But the fact of the matter is, you know, it’s still true today. Women end up running everything.
SPEAKER 03 :
You heard it here first on the Kim Monson Show. Dennis, we have just a couple of minutes left, and let’s do a teaser for our America’s Veterans Story show that will be on Sunday the 7th regarding your book, The Real Heroes of Omaha Beach. I’ve been thinking about that interview, sharing some tidbits about that interview where you said there’s 12 men that made a difference on that battle. I find it fascinating.
SPEAKER 05 :
Well, actually, I started off to write, I wrote actually two screenplays, thinking that if I sold a book, I would sell a million. Or, you know, if I was good, I sold a million copies. If you make a good movie, you get 25 to 50 million people watching it. And I really was inspired to try to get the story of Omaha Beach to as many people as possible. It’s part of our heritage. So anyway, after failing to find any opportunity to press forward with a screenplay, I decided to write, after my wife passed away, the book about Omaha Beach. Well, after I got up to 260-some pages, I mean 660-some pages, I realized that it was way too big, so I decided to break it into a trilogy. And the battle actually breaks in naturally into three parts. The eastern half of Omaha Beach, which was in command or under the responsibility of the 1st Infantry Division, which is book one. Book two is about the western half of Omaha Beach, which was under the command of the 29th Infantry Division. But fortuitously, also on that end of the beach were a battalion plus two companies of rangers. And they ended up making a huge difference in the battle. The third book is is about Pointe du Hoc, where three companies of Army Rangers assaulted 100-foot-high cliffs to take out six guns that could hit either Omaha or Utah beaches and any of the ships in the channel. And they sent these guys up to make sure they were taken out.
SPEAKER 03 :
It’s remarkable. And so the first book is out now, and people can buy it where?
SPEAKER 05 :
Just go on Amazon.
SPEAKER 03 :
Okay, and that’s the real heroes of Omaha Beach. Dennis Bush, thank you so much. This has been so fascinating about the Battle of Gettysburg. You’re welcome. Thank you. Our quote for the end of the show, I went to Robert E. Lee. He said this. He said, a nation which does not remember what it was yesterday does not know where it is today. So my friends today, be grateful. Read great books. Think good thoughts. Listen to beautiful music. Communicate and listen well. Live honestly and authentically. Strive for high ideals. And like Superman, stand for truth, justice, and the American way. My friends, you are not alone. God bless you, and God bless America.
SPEAKER 14 :
The views and opinions expressed on KLZ 560 are those of the speaker, commentators, hosts, their guests, and callers. They are not necessarily the views and opinions of Crawford Broadcasting or KLZ management, employees, associates, or advertisers. KLZ 560 is a Crawford Broadcasting God and country station.
SPEAKER 07 :
It’s the Kim Monson Show, analyzing the most important stories.
SPEAKER 03 :
I find that it takes work to get your brain around these ideas, and it takes work to engage in these conversations. With what is happening down at the Statehouse, I used to think that it was above my pay grade to read the legislation, and it’s not.
SPEAKER 07 :
Today’s Current Opinions and Ideas.
SPEAKER 03 :
I see big danger in as much as we will be giving an unelected bureaucrat the power to make rules about what we inject into our bodies.
SPEAKER 07 :
Is it freedom or is it force? Let’s have a conversation.
SPEAKER 03 :
And welcome to our number two of the Kim Monson Show. Thank you so much for joining us. You’re each treasured. You’re valued. You have purpose. Today, strive for excellence. Take care of your heart, your soul, your mind, and your body. My friends, we were made for this moment. And thank you to the team. That’s Producer Joe, Luke, Rachel, Zach, Echo, Charlie. And all the people here at Crawford Broadcasting, I so appreciate them. We are pre-recording for this week of the 4th of July with a very special guest. And so excited to have in studio with me Brad Beck. You know him. He’s a regular guest on the show. He writes great essays for the Kim Monson Show. And he also guest hosts sometimes. And you’re just becoming a real pro, Brad Beck.
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, I have a face for radio, so I love doing it. And it’s always a privilege to be in studio with you, Kim.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, it’s great to have you here. And so we’re talking about big ideas this week. Two things. Independence Day, obviously. Also, the Battle of Gettysburg was fought July 1 through July 3. So these are some big, pivotal times in our country. And I wanted to talk about Independence Day. And you’ve written a really excellent essay. So let’s jump into it.
SPEAKER 08 :
Happy to do so. One of my favorite weeks of all the year, not just because you get off of work and you grill and do all the things of gatherings and getting together with friends and family, but I love reading the Declaration of Independence. And more importantly, I’m fortunate enough to listen to a CD that I have from many years ago. In 2010, I had the privilege of listening to Dr. John Ridpath’s who was an incredible objectivist speaker, but more importantly, he was a student of American history. And every time I listened to him on audio or in live on 2010 when I got to see him at the leadership program at the Rockies retreat, I was just amazed at the caliber of his knowledge, his passion, his understanding about the American idea. and freedom, and using reason as the reason why we have these big ideas. So I listened to the Independence Day America Saga. It’s a CD. Hard to find. I looked around just because your audience might be interested in looking for it. There are other things on the Ayn Rand store that people can find about Virginia and Virginians, and I believe they’ve got another series on individualism that he recorded. Okay. What is the name of it again? So the Ayn Rand Institute store has lots of audio recordings that you can purchase. I’ve got the one that is Independence Day, America’s Saga. Okay. And it starts off with Jefferson on a hot, humid day, but not as bad as it had been. Walking out to pay for a instrument that he got because he was always curious and always getting these various instruments from around the world, usually England or France. And he went down to pay for it. And the story of what the day looked like on July 4th. And you sit there and you listen, you imagine. If you’ve ever been to Philadelphia, you can see the cobblestone streets. You can feel the atmosphere. And it’s just a sense of building a story about what life was like in that time at that particular city with what he calls those hosts of worthies. Wow. I just got chills. Yeah. I mean, it’s just and when he says that he chokes up and you feel his emotion come through that audio. So I always find it. I look forward to listening to it again and getting a chance to actually read the document. It’s not long. And yet I’m always finding some other nuance when I read the declaration. It is the mind of man. at its very height. And the original version with the longest segment, which was taken out probably by Franklin and Adams and others that were in the Committee of Style putting it together, which was all about slavery. And unfortunately, it wasn’t addressed at that original time. But go back and look at the original Declaration of Independence penned by Thomas Jefferson, and it is just fabulous.
SPEAKER 03 :
What did he say about Slytherin?
SPEAKER 08 :
of bringing these people from Africa enslaved and then the King George basically condoning it. And this was just a wrong that they recognized, even though many of the founders had slaves themselves.
SPEAKER 03 :
And I have heard that there, and I use this for the word of the day, that Jefferson said it was foisted upon us. Had you heard that at all?
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, so you’ve got to imagine our friend Tom Cranwetter would say, you know, little George Washington, little Thomas Jefferson, little, you know, John Adams. They lived at a time where it was common not only in this country but around the world. Slavery was everywhere. Everywhere. And interesting side note, I just read a little piece on the Trail of Tears and the Five Nations, the Crow and the Cree and all the folks that left from the southeast and went across on foot. And that was force. It was all force during the time of Andrew Jackson. They had slaves. The American Indians had slaves as well on the Trail of Tears. I did not know that. Most people don’t. So it’s endemic in the human experience. It’s always been with us. And the beautiful thing about America and what we should talk about is for the first time in human history, we talked about slavery. The equal, universal, natural rights of all men, meaning men of any color, of any stripe, of any background, just because they’re not here in America, they still had those individual rights. And this country, those host of worthies recognize that. may not have lived it because we were we’re still talking about a more perfect union we are in process the japanese called kazan which is continuous improvement it’s something that we we need to remember and so this idea this high idea of individual rights is so important and so unique that you actually see You know how they talked about climate change and the hockey stick? Well, that’s false. But the real hockey stick was the advancement of human understanding, using reason, using the source of their wealth, which is their mind, around the time of our founding in 1776. I would have loved to have been a fly on the wall. Oh. You’ve been to Independence Hall. No. Oh, my goodness. I’ve never been to Philadelphia.
SPEAKER 03 :
I need to do it.
SPEAKER 08 :
Oh, my gosh. It is amazing, because if you’re a student of history, either they have the actual buildings or a recreation, like Ben Franklin’s house. It’s not standing. But the courtyard and where the house was, and they have a replica out of iron, so you can see what it looked like, his printing house. businesses off the main street. You just get a sense of it. And there’s a beautiful museum right there underneath. You walk down to Independence Hall, you walk to the house, they have a rendering of it that George Washington occupied during that time. Wow.
SPEAKER 03 :
And just to go to Independence Hall. I’ve got to do it. Last year, I got to go to Monticello and Montpelier in Virginia. It was just magical. It was just amazing. So I’m talking with Brad Beck. And we get to do this because we have amazing sponsors. And we are pre-recording our interviews this week for this show because of Independence Week. In studio with me right now is Karen Levine. You know her for everything residential real estate, to buy or sell a home or a new build. Karen, reflecting upon our founding, upon the Declaration of Independence, What’s your thoughts about that?
SPEAKER 13 :
Well, Kim, when you suggested that we would prerecord for Independence Week and the subject matter being the Declaration of Independence, I felt… sort of move to review the declaration. And I think it’s helpful for myself and for listeners to remember why we celebrate July 4th and what happened on July 4th of 1776. And that was when it was announced that we were separating we, the 13 American colonies from Britain. from the British rule, and why were we doing that? It was a formal statement explaining why the colonies regarded themselves as independent sovereign states, no longer subject to British colonists’ rule. The document, primarily drafted by Thomas Jefferson, outlies the philosophical underpinnings of individual rights and the purpose of government, asserting that governments derive their just powers from the consent of the governed. And just revisiting that caused me to pause and think about the journey we have been on here at the Kim Monson Show, the journey we’ve been on in our lives, and some of those freedoms, some of those liberties that have been threatened by history and by things that have happened by those who are governing us and not respecting the governed. And the thing that gives me hope and provides some freedom is the ability to have homeownership. And so I feel honored that I get to help people continue to strive to achieve homeownership and have that freedom to create their own shelter and then develop generational wealth over time.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, and owning your own home, property rights, the right to own your property, whether or not it’s tangible or intangible, was a pretty radical idea that everyday people could do that. But when that happened, well, America happened, where everyday people… could create wealth and go after their hopes and dreams and come up with an idea and strive for excellence. And what happens? Well, America happens. At this particular point in time of reflection, America was founded because government got way too big for its I think there are some parallels now. And that’s why we do the show is we’re in a battle of ideas. And ideas are so powerful. And so your support of the show over all these years, then also to honor our veterans with America’s Veterans Stories, is so greatly appreciated because this American idea is worth conserving, preserving, and passing on to the next generation.
SPEAKER 13 :
I would totally agree. And I And I had this thought, which was a reflection of what Lauren is sharing this week. And it just skipped right out of my brain. So with that said, I think we need to be reminded of the foundings of our fathers and why it was so important to break ties with British rule and taxation. And that’s what I was going to say is Lauren being raised in the Boston area, you know, obviously got… kind of firsthand education of why the T went in the harbor. And I sometimes find myself reminding my friends, why did the T go in the harbor? And the fact that we have the ability to strive for excellence in America, and that we can do that with not overtaxing our citizens, but giving them freedoms to make choice in a marketplace that is more capitalistic.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, absolutely. And Karen Levine, if people want to check out buying, selling a home, new build, what’s that phone number to reach you?
SPEAKER 13 :
Call me at 303-877-7516. Let’s start the conversation, whether you’re looking to sell a home, move up, start home ownership, or looking to invest in property along the front range. I hope I’m a good resource and available to answer questions for you.
SPEAKER 03 :
And that’s Karen Levine for Everything Residential Real Estate.
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SPEAKER 10 :
We’ll be right back. Knowledge is power and preparation leads to success. Call Lauren Levy at 303-880-8881 so that you are prepared for the opportunities in the mortgage market. That’s Lauren Levy at 303-880-8881. Is the outside of your home looking dull?
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Do you strive for excellence as you work with your clients and customers? Does it make sense for you to add a unique and focused branding opportunity to your marketing portfolio? Would you like to access a broad customer base that loves our country and wants to make life better for ourselves, our neighbors, our colleagues, our children and our grandchildren? Then you may be a perfect fit as a sponsor or partner of The Kim Monson Show. To learn more, reach out to Kim at kim at kimmonson.com. Kim would love to talk with you. Again, that’s kim at kimmonson.com.
SPEAKER 03 :
Welcome back to The Kim Monson Show. And thank you to the Harris family for their gold sponsorship of the show. We are pre-recording for this week of the 4th of July and really pleased to have in studio with me my friend Brad Beck. And Brad, when we went to break, you’d mentioned that there had been something in the original declaration by Jefferson regarding slavery. You made the important point that slavery was prevalent throughout the world. At that time, it is here as well. When there are those that want to disparage the founders because they had slaves, they were trying to reconcile this as well, but they were working towards this ideal. But those that want to disparage the founders, I think they want to disparage the founders is what they want to do, because if they were really serious about slavery in America, they’ve got plenty they could do right now.
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, several years ago, it used to be that you could go on two planes to a country and buy a human being. Now you can just go pretty much to any major city in America and buy a human being. It’s called human trafficking, and it’s everywhere, and it’s in every state. And if you don’t think it exists, your head’s in the sand.
SPEAKER 03 :
There’s 85,000 children that have come across that southern border, and the government doesn’t know where they are. That is unconscionable.
SPEAKER 08 :
It is, and it was unconscionable then as well. But the founders knew that it would take time to persuade and using the faculties of reason and discussion and debate that eventually this horrendous institution would be absolved. In, I believe, 1800, Jefferson wrote that he would like this no longer to be an importation in this country. And so there was laws in 1800 to stop it. It didn’t mean that there weren’t still people trying to bring people in, but it continued for several years. And, of course, we had this… incredible battle of brother versus brother in the Civil War. And they tried to overcome it with various bills and legislation in the U.S. Senate and House and arguments and people going back and forth. Bringing in states free and slave. The problem that came in is the South considered people as human capital, as a way of life. And it was very difficult to leave that way of life. I think Jefferson is a perfect example. As brilliant as he was, he could have manumated, which is manumation is paying for the release of his slaves. And he didn’t do it. And the question is why? And I don’t know if we’ll ever know that, but there’s continuing research. I’m hopeful that one day we’ll find something. You know, it’s interesting. I just read yesterday that they found a catch of bottles in George Washington’s basement. I think there was 35. And inside there’s all kinds of fruit fermenting. And the people that put them there… I think 25 out of the 30-some-odd, 32, are in fully tact, and they have pulled out the seeds, the roots, the inner parts of cherries, and they’re thinking, how do we replicate them to understand what the people at that time, that type of cherry? It’s just fascinating. I mean, there’s a lot of history out there that is still unfounded, is my point.
SPEAKER 03 :
There’s probably none of those cherries because George Washington cut down the tree, right?
SPEAKER 08 :
But they probably made a wine or something, a fruit or who knows. But there’s a lot still to be discovered. And through fixing up and restoring these historic places like Mount Vernon, We can find a world of information. This is why archaeology is so important. Because when an archaeologist is digging, it’s not the object in situ where it is found. It is how it’s relation to other objects that are found. There is information there. That’s the sadness of when you have people grave digging around the world, pulling up treasures. The real treasure is the information, not the object. We put value on the object. So I think we need to put more value on our American founding. And that value is understanding the mind of man to use as reason to, for the first time in history… recognize individual rights. It had never happened before. And you ask yourself, why? And Margaret Thatcher, the Iron Lady of Great Britain, once said that Europe was founded on history and America was founded on philosophy. And that philosophy is the rights of the individual, property rights, physical property, intellectual property, the sovereignty of the individual. That is what is so unique about our nation. And so when I look at the United Nations as an example, we’re not all equal. We hold each country up to this equality. But if a nation does not recognize equal natural rights, To me, they’re beneath America. They’re beneath the Western way of thinking. And that may be ethnocentric. I’ll take it. There are people in countries that rule other people, as did popes and potentates and tribal chiefs forever. And people were beholden to them. And it was only when the opportunity to be free, to live free, to think free, to have the information to know how to pursue one’s happiness, that things really started to change. And the founders read the ancients like Cicero and like Socrates and Aristotle. And so they knew what a republic was. They knew what a democracy was. They knew what a theocracy was. And I think they chose rightly a republic. It has democratic institutions, but we’re not a democracy. And when I hear people talk about America, the democracy, or we’re losing our democracy, no, we’re losing our republic with democratic institutions. And those institutions have been usurped by, you name the flavor of, left-leaning philosophies. The progressives, the Antifas, the Black Lives Matter, they’re all left-leaning institutions that have taken over our academic institutions. Our military, one of the most trusted institutions Americans forever have always believed in. I say that, I’ll step back. The early Americans did not want a standing army because they knew what they could do. They could march across the country like they did in Europe. the American military has been trustworthy. I don’t know if I can say that anymore.
SPEAKER 03 :
I don’t know about that either. And we were talking before we went on the air about this new thing where young men ages 18 to 26 have to register for the draft. I’m very concerned about that. I don’t quite understand why. And the other thing that’s interesting is my understanding is it’s not just citizens. It’s any male residing in the country right now. This is a dangerous, dangerous thing to have happen, I think, Brad Beck.
SPEAKER 08 :
We are at a tipping point, obviously. May you live in interesting times, I think is an old Chinese saying, and we are. And I’m optimistic, but I’m also realistic. I have this hope for a better world, a better time. Otherwise, you know, you look at your kids and you go, really? I just don’t know what to do. Or your grandchildren. The other side of it is I know the spirit of the American people. And most people want the best for their families, for themselves. They want to pursue their happiness in a way that is free without encumbering other people, without hurting other people. They want to be free. And the only way that we have innovation and creativity is through freedom. If we’re constrained, there’s no way we can do what we need to do. And you look at countries like North Korea, South Korea. The North Koreans, for the most part, unless you’re part of the elite, are starving to death, always. I mean, they get the minimum. And you talk against the government, you’re gone. Or you’re put in a camp. So you look down at the other border, at South Korea, and it’s a pretty free, democratic country. And you have to ask yourself, okay, why is that? What’s the difference? What’s the difference? Look at the lights at night. I mean, we’ve seen them. The maps. Yeah, the maps at night. Or you look at Hispaniola, Haiti, and the Dominican Republic in our hemisphere. And one’s totally disforested. There’s revolution. And… Amazingly, there’s a big wall, a fence, between the left side of, which is probably appropriate, the left side of the island as opposed to the right side of the island. And they have trees. They have freedom. They have all the things that we have as a republic.
SPEAKER 03 :
It’s such an important distinction. I’m talking with Brad Beck, and we have these important discussions because of our sponsors.
SPEAKER 11 :
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SPEAKER 02 :
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SPEAKER 12 :
Focused and wise marketing is essential for your success, especially during tough economic times. If you love The Kim Monson Show, strive for excellence and understand the importance of engaging in the battle of ideas that is raging in America. Then talk with Kim about partnership, sponsorship opportunities. Email Kim at kimmonson.com. Kim focuses on creating relationships with individuals and businesses that are tops in their fields. So they are the trusted experts listeners turn to when looking for products or services. Kim personally endorses each of her sponsors. Again, reach out to Kim at KimMonson.com.
SPEAKER 03 :
And welcome back to The Kim Monson Show. Be sure and check out our website. That is KimMonson, M-O-N-S-O-N.com. Sign up for our weekly email newsletter, and you can email me at Kim at KimMonson.com as well. Thank you to all of you who support us. We’re an independent voice, and we search for truth and clarity by looking at these issues through the lens of freedom versus force, force versus freedom. If something’s a good idea, you should not have to force people to do it. We are pre-recording for this week of the 4th of July, and a great thing to do to honor This great country of ours is to make a contribution to the U.S. MC Memorial Foundation. They’re raising money for the remodel of the Marine Memorial. And it is so important that we honor those that have given their lives or been willing to give their lives for our freedom. And a great way to do that would be to make a contribution to the USMC Memorial Foundation. And as I mentioned, we’re pre-recording for this week. And in studio with me is Brad Beck. He’s written a really beautiful piece, This Independence Day. But Brad, you mentioned this host of worthies and this idea that all men are created equal with these rights from God of life, liberty, pursuit of happiness. They didn’t know what could happen, but you know what happened? The American middle class happened, where everyday people, where they’re able to keep most of the fruits of their labor and keep their property, the things they think about, the things that they build with their hands. What could happen? Well, everyday people could have their own castle, their own homes, their own whatever. And so I think that’s really unique about the American idea.
SPEAKER 08 :
What’s even more incredible, Kim, is friends of ours who are from all around the world who came here legally, took lots of time and treasure. People from Cuba and Sweden and Mexico and you name it, China. who knew there was something different in the world, and they pursued it to pursue their happiness. And they came here pursuing freedom, the freedom to speak, the freedom to read, the freedom to vote, the freedom to build something for themselves. And they’re the canaries in the coal mine. They see what’s happening to this country, and they see, and I know many of them are warning us, Hey, guys, don’t go down that path. I lived that experience. You don’t want to go down there. And so we as citizens, citizenship has responsibility. And we have to quit saying, well, when I retire, when I have time, when the right issue comes up, find an issue that you’re passionate about and think about. doing something writing a letter to an editor going and sitting in a town hall meeting i mean i know they’re excruciating and a lot of times you won’t understand things but those who have never been to a town hall meeting or a school board meeting and sitting in there’s a childlike quality that they could ask the question you know i was sitting there as an audience member i’ve never been here before can you explain what that vote meant i mean that’s powerful And then say, hey, you know, I’d like to know more. Can we have coffee? Can you explain it? I mean, not to find out things nefariously, but just to get their take on it. And any time I hear people talking about, well, we’re here to help. The government’s here to help. My antennas go up. I don’t need the help, thank you very much. There may be people that do, and I think private enterprise can do a much better job than the government. Government’s job is to protect rights, period. It’s not to give us stuff, not to help us, not to make us necessarily in their mold, but they’re there to protect the rights, to protect us from the criminals and from foreign invaders or potential invaders, and to adjudicate our differences. That’s what the federal government is. Everything else should be at the local level where we have the opportunity to challenge the thought process and the legislation that is pending. Question for you.
SPEAKER 03 :
And that is regarding the local level. First of all, I’ve come to this aha. When we talk about local government. The first place we need to start is ourselves. We are the most local of all government. That’s where we need to start. But there can be people that are tyrannous and local government could be the HOA. We’ve we’ve heard of that.
SPEAKER 18 :
I.
SPEAKER 03 :
believe that even though the the founders thought each of the colonies each of the states would be a petri dish and they could do different things that the lit this litmus test of our declaration of independence that all men are created equal with these rights from god of life liberty and pursuit of happiness any ordinance initiative piece of legislation has to go through that that litmus test before anything can be passed But that’s not the case, that we have different states and counties do different things that are antithetical to that. But I really think that every government should have to have that as a litmus test. What do you think?
SPEAKER 08 :
I would agree. And I go back to Abraham Lincoln’s philosophy. fragments on the Constitution where he talked about that apple of gold, the Declaration, and the Constitution, the frame of silver. And the frame of silver, the Constitution is Robert’s Rules of Order. It’s how you do it, but it takes its direction from the Declaration. In other words, all those things that our founders in Jefferson were talking about that the king did and all the usurpations, they were flipped into our Constitution because the Articles of Confederation were so loosely written. that there was no teeth in them and so you had this federalist anti-federalist back and forth and one of the things that really helped galvanize the union was this idea of the bill of rights because you would put in what the government could not do The problem with it is then you’d have to put in everything. And they didn’t think that as we progressed over time that things would turn out the way they did. They use their reason and their faculties, but they also have mechanisms throughout, you know, Article 5 and, you know, doing different things to prevent the tyranny of the masses. I think local government should remember how they’re formed. You know, it is there to live in a society that respects rights. We’re sovereigns. We should be able to keep what we produce without being encumbered with more taxes that are unnecessary because somebody has a pet project or somebody wants to build a park or a pool for the greater good. Well, I say, OK, that’s wonderful. Convince me. If you can convince me that it’s worth me investing my labor, my time, my treasure into doing something for the benefit of others, I might contribute. But through the force of government, I’m going to push back. Do we really need, even at a local level, another library, another statue, another art in public places? No. Talk to me. Convince me. Convince my neighbors. And let’s figure out a way to do it. Maybe we get sponsorship from a local entity, a business, or a not-for-profit, and we go forward there. It’s a much better way of doing government.
SPEAKER 03 :
Lower taxes, lower taxes, and that’s one of the reasons why I’m president of the Colorado Union of Taxpayers. And I’m a member. Yeah, and the group is doing amazing work. I wanted to just mention, I think you mentioned the Statue of Liberty. And what is written on it, many times those radical activists, extremists, have used those first words to tax us more, to take more and more of our stuff for those that would be less fortunate. But you need to read the whole thing. It says, give me your tired, your poor actions. Your huddled masses. And they stop there and they say, government should step in and do something about it. But you have to finish what it says. Yearning to breathe free. I think that’s so important to recognize that.
SPEAKER 08 :
The idea of the American experiment is based on so many things, but assimilation and belief in those ideas. When you come to America legally… You are given a test to study, to understand our history, good, bad and indifferent. And we need to do it as Americans born here and not enough Americans know our history. It’s funny, my daughter for Father’s Day gave me a book on the American quizzes, you know, chapter going back to ancient Egypt to modern times. And there’s a whole segment in there of the American founding and progressivism and on and on. And I’m reading some of these things, and I’m like, of course, I got that answer, and I got that answer. And then I come to one and go, gosh, I don’t know that. I need to do some research on that. We all need to do more research. And instead of watching or been watching Netflix… Take a half an hour and study. Read a book. Read the Declaration. Yeah, read the Declaration, the Constitution, the Northwest Ordinance.
SPEAKER 03 :
I need to read that. But the Declaration, you’re a co-founder of Liberty Toastmasters. Correct. And we have Liberty Toastmasters table topics once a month. And so I gave them as a subject the usurpations in the declaration. It was so good.
SPEAKER 08 :
Yeah. Yeah. Well, we talk about those big ideas in Liberty Toastmasters. We theme our meetings around them. And I think it’s important. People are afraid of having civil conversations and agree to disagree. That’s okay. That’s what our founders did. They went to taverns, drank their beverage of choice, and debated, discussed, argued. And then they came across different ideas, and they might have incorporated those different ideas to make things better for the society that they wanted to create. And they became better people by doing that.
SPEAKER 03 :
Brad Beck, this is so fascinating. And we get to have these discussions because of our sponsors. One of those is John Boson with Boson Law.
SPEAKER 17 :
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SPEAKER 06 :
All of Kim’s sponsors are an inclusive partnership with Kim and are not affiliated with or in partnership with KLZ or Crawford Broadcasting. If you would like to support the work of The Kim Monson Show and grow your business, contact Kim at her website, kimmonson.com. That’s kimmonson, M-O-N-S-O-N dot com.
SPEAKER 16 :
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SPEAKER 03 :
And welcome back to The Kim Monson Show. Be sure and check out our website. That is KimMonson, M-O-N-S-O-N.com. Sign up for our weekly email newsletter. And you can email me at Kim at KimMonson.com as well. Thank you to all of you who support us. We’re an independent voice and we search for truth and clarity by looking at these issues through the lens of freedom versus force, force versus freedom. If something’s a good idea, you shouldn’t have to force people to do it. That idea should be able to stand on its own merit. And I tell you, a great place of great ideas is the Center for American Values located on the beautiful Riverwalk in Pueblo, Colorado. I’d recommend that you go down there this week and celebrate and honor our Medal of Honor recipients and these great educational programs that they’re doing. You can get more information by going to AmericanValuesCenter.org. That’s AmericanValuesCenter.org. And we are pre-recording this week with special guests. One of those is Brad Beck. He’s in studio with me. And you’ve written this really important piece regarding Independence Day, some of your traditions. I was thinking about, you mentioned Leadership Program of the Rockies. And I went through the program, graduated in 2012. And on the last day of the year, of the Leadership Program of the Rockies year, Bob Schaefer does the, I think it’s the Thomas Paine speech, Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death.
SPEAKER 07 :
Patrick Henry.
SPEAKER 03 :
Oh, Patrick Henry. That’s right. Patrick Henry. Very good. And the year that I was in, we were meeting at a property meeting. over on Bellevue, which is a horse property. And the air conditioning was not working in the facility. And this was in June. It was hot. And you could hear the horses neighing. I think there were some roosters. And then Bob gave that Patrick Henry speech, give me liberty or give me death. And I thought, oh, my gosh, this is kind of like what it might have been like. And so powerful.
SPEAKER 08 :
If you can imagine, those people in Virginia at that time got out of the capital, Williamsburg, and went down to Richmond, where they probably thought that they weren’t being listened to by government, kind of. apropos today dj vu all over again and they went to saint john’s church and they listened to a variety of speeches but then they listened to patrick henry’s speech on that day and there were people soldiers and citizens listening in the you know the windows were open because it was hot and They decided to open it up, and Patrick Henry gave his speech. It was pieced together from remembrance. We don’t know the actual verbiage, but we’re pretty sure of what he said. And so if you ever had a chance to listen to it, it’s powerful. But he’s basically talking about, are we going to live freely or are we going to live in chains? Are we going to live as men or are we going to be supinely on our back holding the phantom of hope? And after his speech, when he threw his hands up and brought one down and said, give me liberty or give me death, and one hand came like a dagger to his heart. And one of the soldiers outside the door exclaimed, bury me here. And he was because the speech was so powerful after this individual heard the story. And if you go to St. John’s Church today, you can see that. without the amplification, people in the gallery listening. Bob did that speech, the Honorable Bob Schaefer did that speech again this year, turned off the microphone and did it beautifully. And you sit there and just go, we as Americans need to know these pieces of oratory and need to understand why they’re important. Why should we read them? And then have a discussion with your family or your friends and say, what does that mean? And is it relevant today? Those are great conversations to have. Too often we’re too busy talking about what’s on social media. And, you know, all that’s going to do is kind of corrupt your mind with so much junk. But there are powerful words and powerful ideas and powerful people at a time where their lives were on the line for our freedom today. And so, yeah, go have a hot dog or, you know, have a beer or, you know, recreate. But for goodness sake, take the time to read the Declaration. Take the time to read those founding bits of oratory or listen to them and try to think how that can apply to your life today. It’s going to go away if we don’t pass it on to our children and our grandchildren. And it’s got to be important to them, too.
SPEAKER 03 :
I feel we’re at the third founding of our country right now. Who are we? Are we going to survive? Are we going to pass this great idea on to the next generation? And, Brad, at the beginning of the show, as you co-host, you now know all the little things that I say. But I’ve added in… In the part where I say we were made for this moment, many times I’ll say in history. We now, this is our time, and we must step forward. And so many people are. But it’s in a big battle of ideas. That’s really what the battles are. The battle was, are men free? Are they equal? No. In the eyes of God, yes, those are big ideas. Ended up they had to fight it out with weapons. We don’t want it to get to that point because the ideas are so powerful. I think that it’s attributed to Stalin is that he said ideas are more powerful than guns. We wouldn’t let our enemies have guns. Why would we let them have ideas? And I think that’s pretty powerful.
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, education is a perfect example. What our children are learning in schools or what they’re not learning. Right. The omission is as important as the indoctrination that has gone on. Now, I’m not against teachers. I’m not against schools. In Colorado, it’s required that a child is compelled to go to school. And that’s great. We need a literate population. But what are they teaching? And we found out during COVID, didn’t we?
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah, and they’re not literate. And they’re not being able to read and write. And young people cannot write cursive. And we’ve got to reclaim these basics. And Colorado is at the tip of the spear. I’m convinced of it. I think something amazing is going to happen here. But we cannot give up. There are those before us, blood and treasure. And, you know, as they were signing the… Declaration of Independence, putting their names on that document, they could hear the cannon, the British cannon, just down the river, not very far away. They knew that they were signing a death sentence. And we can ask no less of ourselves.
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, John Hancock had his signature so big because supposedly King George had bad eyesight. So he wanted to make sure he saw his signature. And of course, hence, we have it. Give me your John Hancock on a document. It was important for them, as I believe Franklin reiterated. Somebody said, maybe it was Jefferson or Adams who said, we will surely hang. It was Franklin. Well, Franklin jumped in and added the line. Oh, okay. Somebody said, we need to hang together, or surely we will hang separately. Right, okay. So somebody started it, and then Franklin finished it. I didn’t know that. Right now, I can’t remember. Too many gray hairs. Uh-huh. But it’s important that these things be talked about, discussed, understood as citizens, free people. We are the luckiest people on the world in this time. I mean, you flip on a switch, you’ve got light, you flip on another switch, you’ve got air conditioning. We’ve got indoor plumbing. We’ve got fresh water. We’ve got refrigeration. We’ve got washing machines and dryers.
SPEAKER 03 :
And they’re trying to take it away under the guise of climate change.
SPEAKER 08 :
Right. And change your climate then. Move over here, move over there, but leave me alone.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, the great thing about freedom is, you mentioned air conditioner, or we have heat in the winter, is that that is our own personal climate. And they want to take away our own personal control over our personal climate. And we have to ask why. But that’s just one thing. It’s really what it is. It’s about freedom.
SPEAKER 08 :
And it’s about control. They want to control us, the people, and don’t want to participate. Otherwise, why do they have 15 homes? I don’t condone success. But if you really want to help change the planet, get out of your private jet and don’t have all those big homes and go to fancy places.
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, and the other question is, how did they get that? Now, if they get it through inheritance, my understanding is that… Let’s see, is it Al Gore? Who’s married to Teresa Hines? Is it?
SPEAKER 08 :
John Kerry.
SPEAKER 03 :
John Kerry. Yeah. Okay, John Kerry’s married to Teresa Hines of Hines Ketchup. Somebody had an idea about ketchup, and they were able to make a great business, and they became fabulously wealthy, and I don’t begrudge that whatsoever. capitalism works yeah however though is is if these people are these bureaucrats are becoming wealthy because of public policy that’s not the way it’s supposed to be and that is the elites of of the past of the kings and the monarchs and the all of that so anyway this is so interesting we’ve got a couple of minutes left so how do you want to button this up and then i’ll ask you for the quote for the end of the show
SPEAKER 08 :
Well, Kim, another tradition I always do is I love listening to music on my porch. I’ll have a cigar and a bourbon and read and listen to friends. We’ll have conversations. We’ll come over. And I love listening to one of my favorite musicians, believe it or not, is Charlie Daniels. I listen to him. Marshall Tucker Band and the Allman Brothers Band and Southern Rock, as they call it, Bluegrass. And I just love that type of music. And there are some lyrics that Charlie Daniels put on a CD that I purchased, believe it or not, at a wonderful Cracker Barrel in Tennessee. And I have all his albums, but I didn’t have this particular song. It’s really a poem set to a guitar called My Beautiful America. Okay. And I’ve done this presentation. I’ve recorded it. People want to go to my website, my YouTube channel. It’s there. And what’s your website? Well, BradleyCraigBeck.com is my website, and I have all kinds of stuff there, mainly for business and just to promote. I want to be in control of what’s said about me. But the quote that is at the end, the part that, you know, around the world there’s beautiful places. But there’s a spirit here that’s unique in America. And the last quote of or portion of My Beautiful America is, quote, This then is America, the land that God blesses with everything. And no Eiffel Tower, no Taj Mahal, no Alps, nor Andes, nor Native Hut, no royal palace can rival our awesome beauty. Her diverse population, her monolithic majesty, America the free. America the mighty, America the beautiful.
SPEAKER 03 :
Brad Beck, thank you.
SPEAKER 08 :
My pleasure.
SPEAKER 03 :
This is awesome.
SPEAKER 08 :
Happy Independence Day.
SPEAKER 03 :
Happy Independence Day. And my friends today, be grateful, read great books, think good thoughts, listen to beautiful music, communicate and listen well, live honestly and authentically, strive for high ideals, and like Superman, stand for truth, justice, and the American way. My friends, you are not alone. God bless you, and God bless America.
SPEAKER 14 :
The views and opinions expressed on KLZ 560 are those of the speaker, commentators, hosts, their guests, and callers. They are not necessarily the views and opinions of Crawford Broadcasting or KLZ management, employees, associates, or advertisers. KLZ 560 is a Crawford Broadcasting God and country station.
The Men of Our American Founding
Welcome to the Kim Monson Show podcast. Kim Monson is your host. “Those Host of Worthies.” Co-founder of Liberty Toastmasters Brad Beck conveys his thoughts regarding Independence Day and “those host of worthies” regarding the men of our American Founding. Author Dennis Busch discusses what the lead-up was to the Civil War and Lincoln’s frustration with the inaction of his generals. Show sponsors Karen Gordey, owner of Radiant Painting and Lighting, and RE/MAX realtor Karen Levine share their thoughts about our Declaration. ————————————————————————————– The Kim Monson Show airs on KLZ 560 AM every Monday thru Friday, 6-8 AM MST.
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