Latest / The Stan R. Mitchell Show / The 1-9-25 edition of The View from the Front podcast.

Transcript

The 1-9-25 edition of The View from the Front podcast. · The Stan R. Mitchell Show

• 0:00
  SPEAKER_00: Hey guys, welcome to the view from the front.
• 0:04
  SPEAKER_00: What is going on, everyone?
• 0:06
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks so much for joining us.
• 0:08
  SPEAKER_00: I really appreciate you tuning in and listening this week.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_00: As a reminder,
• 0:12
  we always have timestamps so you can jump forward to any
• 0:17
  section that you want or
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_00: any bit of news that you want.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_00: I try to include those every week.
• 0:22
  SPEAKER_00: Let me just go ahead and get this out of the way.
• 0:25
  SPEAKER_00: I have got to say that this episode is going to be a doozy episode.
• 0:31
  SPEAKER_00: But before we get into that, first, thanks to all the new subscribers.
• 0:35
  SPEAKER_00: We have had a ton in the past week.
• 0:38
  SPEAKER_00: I had a few social media posts that went,
• 0:40
  SPEAKER_00: I guess,
• 0:41
  SPEAKER_00: viral by my standards and had a ton of sign-ups for the email list,
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_00: which,
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_00: of course,
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_00: I can't totally track how many people listen on Apple or Spotify,
• 0:52
  SPEAKER_00: but a ton of people signed up for the email list alone,
• 0:55
  probably the most we've had in a single week in probably nine
• 0:59
  or ten months or so.
• 1:01
  SPEAKER_00: So I am just super excited about that,
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_00: and I am so thankful to God that the podcast continues to grow,
• 1:09
  and I welcome every single one of you with very widespread arms
• 1:13
  right now.
• 1:14
  SPEAKER_00: So thank you for signing up.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_00: I hope that these messages help inform you.
• 1:20
  you help lower your blood pressure a little bit help you
• 1:23
  believe in America just a
• 1:25
  little more maybe help influence you to even be a better person
• 1:29
  that's the kind of
• 1:29
  things I want to do with each and every episode as you listen I
• 1:34
  want to be a
• 1:34
  SPEAKER_00: positive influence as much as I can
• 1:37
  Let me go ahead and say that I'm going to have a decently long monologue.
• 1:45
  SPEAKER_00: Some real words that I feel need to be said and that have been,
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_00: I guess I would say,
• 1:51
  SPEAKER_00: heavy on my heart that I'm going to share in just a moment.
• 1:55
  SPEAKER_00: But before we get to that serious topic,
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_00: I have to do just a small humble brag if you will allow me to do so.
• 2:04
  SPEAKER_00: Just a small humblebrag.
• 2:05
  And also for you new listeners who probably haven't listened to
• 2:08
  older episodes.
• 2:10
  SPEAKER_00: And when I get something right,
• 2:13
  it feels good because I go out on a limb sometimes and I use
• 2:17
  the best research,
• 2:22
  SPEAKER_00: gut feeling,
• 2:24
  best analysis of history from decades and centuries ago to try
• 2:28
  to sometimes go out
• 2:30
  SPEAKER_00: on a little bit of a limb and just say things that need to be said.
• 2:35
  SPEAKER_00: And this happened three weeks ago.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_00: Three weeks ago in the December 19th edition,
• 2:42
  SPEAKER_00: while everyone was in complete hysteria about the drones over New Jersey.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_00: Complete hysteria.
• 2:50
  SPEAKER_00: You guys remember this.
• 2:52
  SPEAKER_00: During the very height of that.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_00: I just really was researching the issue.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_00: There clearly weren't any answers.
• 3:01
  SPEAKER_00: And I just thought, you know, there's something going on.
• 3:06
  SPEAKER_00: This isn't anything like what's being hyped.
• 3:09
  SPEAKER_00: And I did research and research.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_00: And I shared in the December 19th issue...
• 3:14
  SPEAKER_00: I went out on a limb,
• 3:15
  and while everyone's talking about it being anything from an
• 3:18
  Iranian mothership to
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: China to whatever,
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_00: I said,
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_00: you know what,
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_00: I think these drones aren't that big of a deal,
• 3:25
  SPEAKER_00: and that the news is being overhyped.
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_00: Now,
• 3:29
  SPEAKER_00: if you're listening right now and you're a new listener,
• 3:31
  SPEAKER_00: you're probably a little skeptical,
• 3:33
  SPEAKER_00: so I'm putting in the link here.
• 3:36
  SPEAKER_00: To the Apple Podcast.
• 3:38
  SPEAKER_00: The time stamp is 439.
• 3:40
  SPEAKER_00: Go to the episode notes.
• 3:42
  SPEAKER_00: Go listen to that.
• 3:44
  SPEAKER_00: It's just probably five or six minutes.
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: And you'll say,
• 3:47
  SPEAKER_00: holy cow,
• 3:48
  SPEAKER_00: I cannot believe going back in time,
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_00: you know,
• 3:52
  SPEAKER_00: three weeks or so,
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_00: that Stan said all that.
• 3:54
  SPEAKER_00: Because you know what's interesting?
• 3:57
  What's interesting is I did a news search for this because I
• 4:00
  hadn't heard a thing
• 4:01
  SPEAKER_00: about it lately,
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_00: and there are almost no news stories out there about it.
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_00: Why?
• 4:05
  SPEAKER_00: Because they're basically nothing.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_00: They're probably regularly civilian-owned drones.
• 4:11
  People were totally freaking out,
• 4:13
  which is what I said in the December podcast.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_00: There was grainy videos shot by, you know, handheld phones.
• 4:23
  And then I shared a video from someone who was a lieutenant
• 4:27
  colonel in the Air Force,
• 4:28
  SPEAKER_00: who was a pilot.
• 4:30
  SPEAKER_00: And I said, look, I think this guy's right.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: And if you want to go listen to it, go listen to it.
• 4:35
  But it is a slight humblebrag because I felt like I was taking
• 4:40
  a bit of a risk
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_00: saying that while everyone...
• 4:43
  SPEAKER_00: was completely going out of control about it,
• 4:46
  SPEAKER_00: including local governors,
• 4:48
  SPEAKER_00: members of Congress,
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_00: and there was no real answers out there.
• 4:53
  SPEAKER_00: And I was like, I just don't think this is that big of a deal.
• 4:56
  And I think it's partly because I have tremendous respect in
• 5:02
  the capabilities of
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_00: our military,
• 5:04
  and I knew that there was no way that this was some kind of
• 5:07
  nefarious thing
• 5:08
  SPEAKER_00: happening over our very homeland.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_00: Like, there's no way.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_00: And so as I started digging on it,
• 5:15
  I basically started with that premise where everyone else
• 5:18
  started with the premise
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_00: of what is going on or this is scary.
• 5:22
  I just started with the premise of this can't be that big of a
• 5:26
  deal and then just started to
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_00: Try to figure out.
• 5:29
  And of course,
• 5:30
  if you go listen to that,
• 5:31
  I quoted information from the Department of Defense.
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_00: And you'll just go listen.
• 5:37
  SPEAKER_00: If you got a minute, you can go listen to it.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: But I want to give a slight humble brag,
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_00: because like I said,
• 5:42
  SPEAKER_00: three weeks later,
• 5:44
  SPEAKER_00: not a single news story in the past couple of days is nothing.
• 5:49
  SPEAKER_00: The stories are all basically one to two weeks old.
• 5:52
  SPEAKER_00: No one's talking about it.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_00: Everyone's moved on.
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_00: Unfortunately,
• 5:55
  SPEAKER_00: part of why they've moved on is what we need to get into now,
• 5:58
  SPEAKER_00: which is going to be a bit more serious.
• 6:00
  I'm going to set this up first by sharing the news that I'm
• 6:05
  sure pretty much
• 6:06
  SPEAKER_00: everyone has heard and that everyone is talking about.
• 6:09
  SPEAKER_00: And then I'm going to say some things.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_02: Also,
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_02: in an hour-long news conference yesterday,
• 6:15
  President-elect Donald Trump suggested that he would consider
• 6:19
  military force to
• 6:20
  SPEAKER_02: gain control of the Panama Canal and Greenland.
• 6:25
  SPEAKER_02: and economic force to acquire Canada.
• 6:29
  NBC News senior White House correspondent Gabe Gutierrez has
• 6:32
  more from yesterday's
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_02: news conference.
• 6:35
  SPEAKER_01: In a marathon news conference at Mar-a-Lago,
• 6:38
  President-elect Trump not ruling out using economic or military
• 6:42
  coercion to retake
• 6:44
  SPEAKER_01: the Panama Canal and acquire Greenland.
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_03: You're talking about Panama and Greenland.
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_03: No, I can't assure you on either of those two.
• 6:51
  SPEAKER_03: But I can say this.
• 6:54
  SPEAKER_03: We need them for economic security.
• 6:56
  SPEAKER_03: The Panama Canal was built for our military.
• 6:59
  SPEAKER_01: Trump saying the U.S.
• 7:00
  decision to return control the canal to Panama in the 90s gave
• 7:04
  too much influence to China.
• 7:05
  SPEAKER_03: China's basically taking it over.
• 7:08
  SPEAKER_01: And arguing the U.S.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_01: needs Greenland for national security.
• 7:12
  SPEAKER_03: You have Russian ships all over the place.
• 7:14
  SPEAKER_03: We're not letting that happen.
• 7:16
  The people are going to probably vote for independence or to
• 7:18
  come into the United States.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_01: The provocative comments come as Donald Trump Jr.
• 7:22
  visited Greenland and the Danish prime minister vowed that his
• 7:26
  country's territory
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_01: is not for sale.
• 7:29
  SPEAKER_01: Here is tourists.
• 7:30
  SPEAKER_01: Seeing it looks like an incredible place.
• 7:32
  SPEAKER_01: But his father laying out an aggressive foreign policy, expanding U.S.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_01: influence, even wanting to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico.
• 7:40
  SPEAKER_03: The Gulf of America, what a beautiful name.
• 7:43
  SPEAKER_03: And it's appropriate.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_03: It's appropriate.
• 7:47
  And Mexico has to stop allowing millions of people to pour into
• 7:51
  our country.
• 7:51
  SPEAKER_01: And after mocking Canada as the 51st state,
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_01: Trump is floating the idea of using economic,
• 7:57
  SPEAKER_01: not military force,
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_01: to annex the U.S.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_01: ally.
• 8:00
  SPEAKER_03: Because Canada and the United States, that would really be something.
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_03: You get rid of that artificially drawn line.
• 8:08
  SPEAKER_03: And you take a look at what that looks like.
• 8:11
  SPEAKER_03: And it would also be much better for national security.
• 8:13
  SPEAKER_01: Outgoing Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau responding,
• 8:16
  there isn't a snowball's chance in hell that Canada would
• 8:19
  become part of the United States.
• 8:21
  While overseas,
• 8:22
  Trump is again warning Hamas to release its hostages soon.
• 8:26
  If they're not back by the time I get into office,
• 8:29
  all hell will break out in the Middle East.
• 8:32
  SPEAKER_03: And it will not be good for Hamas.
• 8:35
  SPEAKER_00: So there you have it.
• 8:36
  I'm sure almost everyone listening had heard that news and
• 8:40
  probably been stewing on
• 8:42
  SPEAKER_00: it yourselves.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_00: So how to approach this?
• 8:46
  SPEAKER_00: From an angle of wisdom?
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_00: From an angle of not trying to overreact?
• 8:55
  Just from an angle of just an American citizen who's hearing
• 9:00
  these kinds of words from...
• 9:03
  SPEAKER_00: a president who hasn't even been sworn in yet.
• 9:06
  SPEAKER_00: How to handle those words.
• 9:10
  And I will be honest,
• 9:11
  I've gone through every emotion just from hearing those.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_00: It
• 9:18
  SPEAKER_00: honestly did ruin about half my day.
• 9:21
  I had listened to the entire press conference,
• 9:25
  which in hindsight I almost wish I hadn't.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_00: Part of me wanted to just retreat into the other hobbies and cares
• 9:34
  SPEAKER_00: And things that matter in my life.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_00: And just say to heck with politics.
• 9:39
  SPEAKER_00: Because I was clearly not happy to hear those things.
• 9:43
  SPEAKER_00: As a very proud American.
• 9:45
  SPEAKER_00: As someone who carried a rifle for four years on active duty.
• 9:49
  SPEAKER_00: Two years in the reserves.
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_00: To think that we would use the might of the U.S.
• 9:57
  military to threaten and intimidate neighboring countries is
• 10:02
  kind of a sickening thing to me.
• 10:05
  SPEAKER_00: It's certainly not something you joke about.
• 10:08
  SPEAKER_00: I was also,
• 10:09
  SPEAKER_00: I'll be honest,
• 10:11
  very disappointed in the reactions of people I work with or
• 10:16
  talk with that had
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_00: voted for Trump.
• 10:19
  SPEAKER_00: Many of them were, you know, they thought this was kind of funny.
• 10:24
  SPEAKER_00: They thought this would be great for America.
• 10:27
  There were some talking about manifest destiny like America had
• 10:30
  back in the,
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_00: you know,
• 10:32
  SPEAKER_00: historically 100 plus years ago when we pushed west.
• 10:36
  SPEAKER_00: And that as well made me sick, made me want to disengage.
• 10:43
  SPEAKER_00: Part of me was like, well, I will just ignore it.
• 10:46
  I won't even report on it in the podcast because it's clear
• 10:50
  President Trump is sort
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_00: of-ish or mostly trolling,
• 10:55
  SPEAKER_00: trying to distract,
• 10:57
  SPEAKER_00: trying to change the subject.
• 11:00
  SPEAKER_00: And so part of me was like, I won't even mention it.
• 11:03
  But these are very serious topics,
• 11:05
  and they're said by an incoming president.
• 11:07
  SPEAKER_00: And so I realized I couldn't not speak on them at all.
• 11:12
  SPEAKER_00: And furthermore,
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_00: as the hours passed following that press conference,
• 11:19
  and after the jokes of the late-night comedians had been stated
• 11:23
  and faded away,
• 11:24
  SPEAKER_00: there were members of the House of Representatives,
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_00: Republicans...
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_00: going on news stations such as CNN and saying it was great,
• 11:34
  SPEAKER_00: that this was in a time of excitement,
• 11:37
  SPEAKER_00: that this is something that needs to be talked about and dealt with.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_00: And so it's clear that you can't totally ignore this.
• 11:48
  SPEAKER_00: And so I want to say just a few things.
• 11:51
  SPEAKER_00: First I saw a great quote that someone said,
• 11:56
  SPEAKER_00: and they said,
• 11:57
  SPEAKER_00: you know what,
• 11:57
  SPEAKER_00: it's okay to feel sick about the state of things.
• 12:02
  Now I know I have Republican listeners as well,
• 12:04
  and I'm sure some of them are like,
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_00: laughing or almost scoffing or maybe cheering all this on.
• 12:12
  And I just want to remind them how they felt during some of the
• 12:16
  low parts of the
• 12:18
  SPEAKER_00: Biden administration.
• 12:20
  I would say a good example would be the withdrawal out of
• 12:23
  Afghanistan and what a
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_00: fiasco that was,
• 12:27
  SPEAKER_00: the loss of life,
• 12:29
  SPEAKER_00: the terrible images.
• 12:31
  SPEAKER_00: And I would just say, remember those feelings and
• 12:37
  SPEAKER_00: Just recall how that felt.
• 12:39
  And that will help you understand how those who did not vote
• 12:45
  for Trump and who are
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_00: not happy about what is happening,
• 12:50
  SPEAKER_00: how they're feeling right now.
• 12:51
  And so,
• 12:53
  again,
• 12:54
  we start with the idea that it's okay to feel sick over the
• 12:56
  state of things.
• 12:57
  SPEAKER_00: But then I tell myself, you know, we are a very closely divided country.
• 13:04
  SPEAKER_00: Very closely divided country.
• 13:06
  SPEAKER_00: Almost split right down the middle.
• 13:09
  SPEAKER_00: We've been that way for a good 20 plus years.
• 13:13
  SPEAKER_00: Not sure how it changes anytime soon.
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_00: So, as someone who loves America, I need to speak about...
• 13:21
  SPEAKER_00: So how does one do that without ignoring the news?
• 13:24
  SPEAKER_00: So I can't ignore it.
• 13:25
  How do I try to unify the country,
• 13:26
  which is one of my goals with this podcast?
• 13:27
  SPEAKER_00: How do I do that?
• 13:39
  SPEAKER_00: How do I speak respectfully?
• 13:40
  How do I try to sew up the wounds of this country while at the
• 13:45
  same time we have an
• 13:47
  incoming president talking about using force to invade
• 13:53
  neighboring countries?
• 13:53
  SPEAKER_00: So how do you do that?
• 13:57
  SPEAKER_00: Well, let me begin by saying that this isn't a joke.
• 14:01
  SPEAKER_00: Obviously, a president, in the old days at least, Congress declared war.
• 14:07
  SPEAKER_00: But since the war on terror and before that,
• 14:10
  SPEAKER_00: presidents can take military action pretty much unchecked on their own.
• 14:15
  SPEAKER_00: So this is a serious thing.
• 14:17
  SPEAKER_00: And so those of you who are kind of chuckling about it,
• 14:19
  I would just say that this is not something that I think is the
• 14:23
  kind of thing we
• 14:24
  SPEAKER_00: should be chuckling about.
• 14:25
  I would also say a couple of things as far as on the
• 14:30
  seriousness of it that
• 14:33
  SPEAKER_00: Should America begin to act in such a way,
• 14:38
  SPEAKER_00: then we begin to tear down the laws,
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_00: the international laws,
• 14:45
  SPEAKER_00: and the international norms that say,
• 14:48
  SPEAKER_00: as a country,
• 14:49
  you just can't go take another country because you're bigger
• 14:52
  and stronger than them.
• 14:54
  SPEAKER_00: That is not what civilized countries do.
• 14:59
  SPEAKER_00: And I would further say that this isn't the thing,
• 15:02
  SPEAKER_00: you know,
• 15:03
  I've heard a lot about how America has moved away from being a
• 15:08
  Christian nation,
• 15:10
  SPEAKER_00: and I could go on and on about that for some time.
• 15:14
  But I would say that it is not moral or right or just for a
• 15:24
  country that is more
• 15:26
  SPEAKER_00: powerful to just dominate its neighbors.
• 15:30
  SPEAKER_00: That is not biblical.
• 15:32
  SPEAKER_00: And if you're a Christian listening, please return to your roots.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_00: Read your Bible.
• 15:40
  SPEAKER_00: This is not the kind of thing.
• 15:43
  SPEAKER_00: If we saw a bully do these things on a playground,
• 15:48
  SPEAKER_00: take someone's lunch,
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_00: shove a kid down,
• 15:51
  SPEAKER_00: threaten another,
• 15:52
  SPEAKER_00: we would clearly condemn and try to stop such a thing.
• 15:57
  SPEAKER_00: So besides losing the moral ground,
• 16:00
  SPEAKER_00: the moral high ground of being a beacon in the world,
• 16:03
  SPEAKER_00: a light...
• 16:05
  Besides tearing down the international norms of saying
• 16:09
  countries can't just invade
• 16:11
  SPEAKER_00: whoever they want without the rest of the world having a say in it.
• 16:15
  SPEAKER_00: And besides the pure moral and biblical views of right versus wrong.
• 16:22
  SPEAKER_00: Of not just taking what you can take just because you can.
• 16:25
  I just want to appeal to people's morality,
• 16:32
  to your faith,
• 16:33
  to your humanity.
• 16:35
  SPEAKER_00: Because these are not the things that we should be joking about.
• 16:39
  SPEAKER_00: This is not some funny game.
• 16:43
  SPEAKER_00: This is not some board game of risk or something.
• 16:48
  SPEAKER_00: These are serious words being said.
• 16:50
  SPEAKER_00: These are threats being made against...
• 16:53
  SPEAKER_00: Very close allies, members of NATO.
• 16:57
  SPEAKER_00: Canada has been a longtime tremendous ally.
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_00: Denmark, who owns Greenland.
• 17:04
  SPEAKER_00: Again, why are we threatening another NATO country?
• 17:08
  SPEAKER_00: Now, I know you can spin it.
• 17:11
  And I know those on the right would say,
• 17:12
  that's kind of like an opening position.
• 17:15
  SPEAKER_00: You know,
• 17:15
  SPEAKER_00: the developer has seen land they want to buy,
• 17:20
  SPEAKER_00: and so you just go in and kind of bully them into trying to sell.
• 17:26
  SPEAKER_00: Or, you know, it's just like real estate.
• 17:29
  SPEAKER_00: It's just business stuff.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_00: But this isn't real estate, and this isn't business.
• 17:35
  SPEAKER_00: This is world affairs, and this is something at a far grander scale.
• 17:40
  SPEAKER_00: And it's the place where battles are fought with bullets and blood.
• 17:47
  SPEAKER_00: Not with court orders, with...
• 17:51
  acts of suing each other or defending yourself in court or
• 17:54
  trying to pull together
• 17:56
  SPEAKER_00: investors to buy a property or to compete.
• 17:59
  SPEAKER_00: This is not the same thing.
• 18:02
  SPEAKER_00: And so I just want to remind people,
• 18:03
  SPEAKER_00: just kind of pull the reins back a bit,
• 18:07
  SPEAKER_00: that think about what is being said
• 18:12
  SPEAKER_00: Think about the image it's portraying to the world.
• 18:16
  And let's just all take a deep breath and realize that,
• 18:21
  quite frankly,
• 18:22
  it's wrong.
• 18:23
  SPEAKER_00: There's no other way to say it.
• 18:24
  SPEAKER_00: It's wrong.
• 18:26
  SPEAKER_00: It's also not wise.
• 18:29
  SPEAKER_00: And in fact,
• 18:30
  SPEAKER_00: as we speak right now,
• 18:31
  SPEAKER_00: there are terrible wildfires happening inside the United States,
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_00: in LA,
• 18:37
  SPEAKER_00: in California.
• 18:39
  SPEAKER_00: And as we speak, Canadian aircraft...
• 18:43
  are helping us fight horrific fires that are already taking
• 18:47
  lives that are very devastating.
• 18:50
  SPEAKER_00: Our neighbor to the north is,
• 18:53
  SPEAKER_00: as they've done hundreds,
• 18:54
  SPEAKER_00: if not thousands of times in the past,
• 18:56
  SPEAKER_00: helping us as we have helped them.
• 18:59
  SPEAKER_00: And so, to me, it's not real smart to be threatening a neighbor.
• 19:04
  SPEAKER_00: But let's also be real.
• 19:05
  SPEAKER_00: I'm a nobody.
• 19:07
  SPEAKER_00: I'm just a prior vet with hopefully a good heart.
• 19:12
  That's just trying to help move our country,
• 19:16
  nudge us in a better direction.
• 19:19
  SPEAKER_00: But what I would like to do is quote someone far wiser than me.
• 19:25
  SPEAKER_00: who has spent a lot of time in uniform.
• 19:28
  SPEAKER_00: And I want to share the words from our Secretary of Defense,
• 19:32
  SPEAKER_00: Lloyd Austin,
• 19:33
  SPEAKER_00: that talks about the importance of alliances,
• 19:36
  SPEAKER_00: what's been happening in the past few years,
• 19:40
  SPEAKER_00: and why the kind of rhetoric that we've seen so far from the incoming
• 19:46
  SPEAKER_00: administration is not going to serve us well in the future.
• 19:52
  SPEAKER_00: It's also not going to serve the world well.
• 19:55
  SPEAKER_00: And it's only going to play into the hands of Russia, of China, of Iran.
• 20:01
  SPEAKER_00: And I just want to share some words because they're very well said.
• 20:08
  SPEAKER_00: And the Secretary of Defense spoke at the Reagan Forum.
• 20:13
  SPEAKER_00: And these remarks were made shortly after the recent election.
• 20:18
  SPEAKER_00: So he knew that he would be out of a job soon.
• 20:21
  And Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin gave an incredible speech
• 20:25
  at the Reagan
• 20:26
  SPEAKER_00: National Defense Forum.
• 20:28
  SPEAKER_00: And I just want to quote a few parts of him.
• 20:29
  If you want to read the whole thing,
• 20:30
  I'll put the link in so that you can find them.
• 20:33
  SPEAKER_00: But he really made some great points that I want to share with you guys.
• 20:39
  He begins by stating the obvious,
• 20:43
  which is that the administration would soon be changing.
• 20:47
  SPEAKER_00: And in his wise words,
• 20:48
  SPEAKER_00: he says,
• 20:49
  SPEAKER_00: Secretary Lloyd goes on to say,
• 20:52
  SPEAKER_00: the state of America's defenses is strong.
• 21:10
  SPEAKER_00: He explained that four years ago we were coming out of COVID,
• 21:15
  SPEAKER_00: and as he said,
• 21:17
  SPEAKER_00: I'll quote,
• 21:18
  SPEAKER_00: our allies and partners feared that America had lost its way,
• 21:22
  SPEAKER_00: and American rivals and foes hoped that it had.
• 21:27
  SPEAKER_00: Yet President Biden followed in the bipartisan tradition of U.S.
• 21:31
  SPEAKER_00: global leadership.
• 21:32
  And America and the Department of Defense are far stronger and
• 21:36
  better postured for
• 21:37
  SPEAKER_00: the challenges of the 21st century.
• 21:41
  SPEAKER_00: We invested heavily in our military.
• 21:44
  We helped secure the capabilities that America will need over
• 21:47
  the long term.
• 21:49
  And we provided principled civilian leadership for an
• 21:53
  apolitical military.
• 21:56
  SPEAKER_00: He goes on to say that with bipartisan support from Congress,
• 21:59
  SPEAKER_00: spending is up over $100 billion compared to projections from 2021.
• 22:05
  So if you hear people say that the military wasn't invested in
• 22:09
  enough or is lower
• 22:11
  SPEAKER_00: than it used to be,
• 22:12
  SPEAKER_00: that's flat out false.
• 22:13
  SPEAKER_00: That's part of why I've wanted to make sure I state that.
• 22:16
  And he goes on to talk about the major national security
• 22:20
  challenges that our country faces.
• 22:22
  And I'm going to quote,
• 22:23
  he says,
• 22:24
  that includes coercion and bullying from China.
• 22:29
  It includes imperial aggression from Putin's Russia,
• 22:35
  malice from Iran,
• 22:37
  North Korea and
• 22:39
  SPEAKER_00: and terrorist groups,
• 22:41
  and autocrats worldwide who believe that democracy is a thing
• 22:45
  of the past.
• 22:47
  SPEAKER_00: But we have stood up to Putin,
• 22:50
  SPEAKER_00: stood up to North Korea,
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_00: stood up to Iran,
• 22:54
  SPEAKER_00: stood up to Hamas and Hezbollah,
• 22:56
  SPEAKER_00: and stood up to autocrats and thugs and bullies worldwide.
• 23:01
  SPEAKER_00: We have stood up for American values and American leadership.
• 23:08
  He then goes on to say that America now has an unmatched
• 23:15
  network of alliances and partnerships,
• 23:18
  SPEAKER_00: and that these are one of America's great strategic advantages.
• 23:22
  SPEAKER_00: And this is one of the things I probably should have said earlier,
• 23:26
  SPEAKER_00: but this is why you do not threaten your neighbors.
• 23:29
  SPEAKER_00: Alliances and partnerships are a strategic advantage.
• 23:34
  SPEAKER_00: And you don't even have to just look at America.
• 23:37
  SPEAKER_00: You can look at Russia.
• 23:38
  Russia is getting help from North Korea,
• 23:41
  from China,
• 23:43
  from Iran in its war against Ukraine.
• 23:46
  SPEAKER_00: You need alliances.
• 23:49
  And so those who try to flip it on America and say that we're
• 23:52
  the world's police
• 23:53
  SPEAKER_00: force or we get dragged into things,
• 23:56
  SPEAKER_00: the reality is you need alliances.
• 23:59
  SPEAKER_00: As Secretary Lloyd said, our allies and partners magnify our strength.
• 24:05
  SPEAKER_00: They project our power and they deepen our security.
• 24:10
  And continuing the quote from him,
• 24:13
  and of course,
• 24:13
  President Reagan understood that.
• 24:15
  SPEAKER_00: As he said in 1983,
• 24:17
  the starting point and cornerstone of our foreign policy is our
• 24:23
  alliance and
• 24:23
  SPEAKER_00: partnership with our fellow democracies.
• 24:28
  SPEAKER_00: So, here is a stark military fact, Secretary Lloyd said.
• 24:34
  SPEAKER_00: Our allies and partners are huge force multipliers.
• 24:40
  SPEAKER_00: He goes on to talk about peace through strength.
• 24:44
  SPEAKER_00: How American power projection depends on friends abroad, on alliances.
• 24:51
  SPEAKER_00: And so I wanted to just share part of that because as he said,
• 24:55
  SPEAKER_00: ultimately America is weaker when it stands alone.
• 24:59
  SPEAKER_00: America is smaller when it stands alone.
• 25:03
  SPEAKER_00: There is no such thing as a safe retreat.
• 25:07
  SPEAKER_00: From today's interwoven world.
• 25:11
  SPEAKER_00: That's what he said in his remarks.
• 25:12
  And I've talked about this several times in some recent
• 25:15
  episodes about how even if
• 25:17
  SPEAKER_00: we leave China alone,
• 25:19
  SPEAKER_00: even if we say,
• 25:20
  SPEAKER_00: you know what,
• 25:21
  SPEAKER_00: you can have Taiwan,
• 25:22
  SPEAKER_00: you can have the Philippines,
• 25:25
  SPEAKER_00: people.
• 25:26
  How many times have I reported on the news,
• 25:28
  China is in our communication networks.
• 25:32
  SPEAKER_00: They have people inside our country.
• 25:35
  SPEAKER_00: They literally assaulted.
• 25:37
  They had paid folks assault people who wanted to protest Xi
• 25:42
  Jinping visiting
• 25:44
  SPEAKER_00: California and San Francisco.
• 25:46
  SPEAKER_00: I've reported on that.
• 25:48
  SPEAKER_00: So anyone who thinks that if we just pull back,
• 25:52
  SPEAKER_00: that China's just going to leave us alone,
• 25:54
  SPEAKER_00: I don't think you fully understand the situation.
• 25:57
  SPEAKER_00: They are trying to project power,
• 25:59
  SPEAKER_00: and if you show weakness,
• 26:01
  SPEAKER_00: they will continue to advance and project more power to intimidate,
• 26:06
  SPEAKER_00: to continue to spy,
• 26:08
  SPEAKER_00: to continue to do covert action.
• 26:10
  SPEAKER_00: And so this is why you cannot completely pull back.
• 26:15
  SPEAKER_00: There's not safety in that.
• 26:17
  SPEAKER_00: But you know what there is safety in?
• 26:20
  SPEAKER_00: In alliances and partnerships.
• 26:24
  SPEAKER_00: Secretary Lloyd pointed out, NATO now brings together 32 countries.
• 26:30
  SPEAKER_00: In the Indo-Pacific,
• 26:32
  SPEAKER_00: America has long-standing alliances with Australia,
• 26:35
  SPEAKER_00: Japan,
• 26:35
  SPEAKER_00: the Philippines,
• 26:37
  SPEAKER_00: the Republic of Korea,
• 26:38
  SPEAKER_00: or South Korea as we call it,
• 26:40
  SPEAKER_00: Thailand.
• 26:41
  SPEAKER_00: We have 14 other major non-NATO allies, including Israel, Brazil.
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_00: We have defense partners in India, other countries.
• 26:51
  SPEAKER_00: This is part of our defensive alliance.
• 26:55
  As he points out,
• 26:56
  we have access agreements,
• 26:58
  meaning we can fly in troops or...
• 27:00
  SPEAKER_00: supplies, etc.
• 27:01
  SPEAKER_00: with 40 other countries.
• 27:03
  We have logistics agreements with 120 others that will help feed,
• 27:07
  supply,
• 27:08
  fuel,
• 27:08
  etc.
• 27:09
  SPEAKER_00: or repair our ships.
• 27:11
  SPEAKER_00: 120 countries in the world.
• 27:12
  All of this allows us to project power with our partners where
• 27:17
  we need to,
• 27:18
  SPEAKER_00: when we need to,
• 27:19
  SPEAKER_00: how we need to.
• 27:21
  As he says,
• 27:22
  Secretary Lloyd said,
• 27:24
  Our rivals and foes look at this with envy.
• 27:28
  SPEAKER_00: They see our alliances and they want to wreck them.
• 27:33
  Secretary Lloyd ended his magnificent speech by saying,
• 27:37
  So what do I believe?
• 27:39
  SPEAKER_00: I believe this.
• 27:41
  SPEAKER_00: Peace is not self-executing.
• 27:44
  SPEAKER_00: Order does not preserve itself.
• 27:48
  SPEAKER_00: And security does not flower on its own.
• 27:52
  The world built by American leadership can only be maintained
• 27:58
  by American leadership.
• 28:01
  As President Biden has said,
• 28:02
  American leadership is what holds the world together.
• 28:07
  SPEAKER_00: And from Russia to China,
• 28:09
  SPEAKER_00: from Hamas to Iran,
• 28:11
  SPEAKER_00: our rivals and foes want to divide and weaken the United States,
• 28:16
  SPEAKER_00: to split us off from our allies and partners.
• 28:20
  SPEAKER_00: So at this hinge in history, America must not waver.
• 28:25
  SPEAKER_00: He sums up his speech toward the end by saying,
• 28:56
  SPEAKER_00: And if we forfeit our position of responsibility,
• 29:00
  SPEAKER_00: our rivals and foes will be glad to fill the vacuum.
• 29:06
  SPEAKER_00: I think this is all I want to say tonight.
• 29:08
  I know it's a little different podcast than what I typically do,
• 29:12
  but this is a serious time.
• 29:14
  SPEAKER_00: We've got a change of administration,
• 29:16
  and I just hope that some of what I've said has helped you
• 29:21
  search your own heart
• 29:23
  SPEAKER_00: and your own thoughts on these things.
• 29:25
  If this has helped you in any way,
• 29:28
  maybe send it to a friend or share it on social media.
• 29:32
  SPEAKER_00: I think that's one small thing you can do to help our great country.
• 29:37
  SPEAKER_00: As President Lincoln used to say, public sentiment is everything.
• 29:46
  SPEAKER_00: With it, nothing can fail.
• 29:49
  SPEAKER_00: Without it, nothing can succeed.
• 29:53
  And so that's part of what we're doing in this country is we
• 29:57
  are debating and
• 30:00
  SPEAKER_00: deciding on the public sentiment of this country.
• 30:04
  SPEAKER_00: And public sentiment truly is everything.
• 30:08
  SPEAKER_00: With it, nothing can fail.
• 30:10
  SPEAKER_00: Without it, nothing can succeed.
• 30:12
  And we all play a part in this public sentiment as we debate
• 30:19
  and sometimes argue a
• 30:20
  SPEAKER_00: little bit,
• 30:21
  but mostly just debate our fellow Americans that sometimes we
• 30:25
  disagree with,
• 30:26
  SPEAKER_00: but a house divided cannot stand justice.
• 30:29
  SPEAKER_00: And we live in a great country.
• 30:32
  SPEAKER_00: And we have great people on left and right.
• 30:36
  SPEAKER_00: We have great people in the country.
• 30:38
  SPEAKER_00: We have great people in the cities.
• 30:41
  People that will help you in a heartbeat during any kind of
• 30:46
  natural disaster.
• 30:48
  SPEAKER_00: I've been helped from people that lived in the city.
• 30:50
  SPEAKER_00: I've been helped from people out in the country.
• 30:52
  SPEAKER_00: America is full of great people.
• 30:55
  SPEAKER_00: And I just want to remind us...
• 30:57
  SPEAKER_00: of how great our citizenry is,
• 31:00
  SPEAKER_00: because sometimes the loud voices on the left or the right,
• 31:04
  SPEAKER_00: on the extremes,
• 31:06
  SPEAKER_00: they get magnified,
• 31:07
  SPEAKER_00: they get a lot of attention.
• 31:09
  SPEAKER_00: But I believe that most Americans are good people.
• 31:12
  SPEAKER_00: And so I'm hoping that...
• 31:14
  this message tonight in some way connected with you and that
• 31:18
  maybe you'll share it.
• 31:20
  SPEAKER_00: As a reminder, I also put out a faith podcast called The Search for God.
• 31:25
  I also put out a newsletter that's a moderate newsletter called
• 31:29
  Thoughts from a
• 31:30
  SPEAKER_00: Southern Gentleman.
• 31:31
  SPEAKER_00: I've got links to both of those in the episode notes.
• 31:33
  I always try to end every show by saying that whether you're
• 31:38
  Christian or not,
• 31:39
  SPEAKER_00: you can do this one thing.
• 31:40
  SPEAKER_00: You can be the reason someone smiles.
• 31:42
  You can be the reason that someone feels loved and believes in
• 31:46
  the goodness of people.
• 31:49
  SPEAKER_00: Now,
• 31:49
  SPEAKER_00: if you love the show and you've been listening a while,
• 31:52
  SPEAKER_00: there are several ways you can support,
• 31:54
  SPEAKER_00: including through Venmo,
• 31:56
  SPEAKER_00: PayPal,
• 31:56
  SPEAKER_00: Patreon,
• 31:58
  SPEAKER_00: Substack.
• 31:58
  You can do that for $5 per month,
• 32:01
  or you can do a one-time tip through Venmo or PayPal.
• 32:04
  It's no different than throwing some money in a hat for a
• 32:07
  performer in a town square place.
• 32:10
  Details for that are in the episode notes,
• 32:12
  so you can check all that out there.
• 32:14
  And then I also try to remind people that another great way to
• 32:17
  support the show is
• 32:18
  SPEAKER_00: check out my books.
• 32:19
  SPEAKER_00: I've written 12 of them.
• 32:21
  SPEAKER_00: I typically tell folks they're like Tom Clancy-like books.
• 32:25
  SPEAKER_00: They're military police thrillers.
• 32:28
  And they move fast,
• 32:29
  have lots of twists and turns that you usually don't see coming.
• 32:32
  SPEAKER_00: So I do honestly feel like my writing skills are a gift from God.
• 32:36
  SPEAKER_00: And the books are highly rated.
• 32:39
  SPEAKER_00: So you can check those out.
• 32:41
  SPEAKER_00: With all of that out of the way,
• 32:42
  SPEAKER_00: if you want to reach out to me,
• 32:44
  SPEAKER_00: you can email me at stanormitchell2012 at gmail.com.
• 32:49
  SPEAKER_00: That is in the episode notes as well.
• 32:51
  SPEAKER_00: StanRMitchell2012 at gmail.com.
• 32:53
  SPEAKER_00: If you're going to provide a comment,
• 32:56
  SPEAKER_00: if you don't care,
• 32:57
  SPEAKER_00: please give me at least your first name in your city.
• 33:00
  SPEAKER_00: Or you can state your full name if you'd like to get a little famous.
• 33:03
  SPEAKER_00: I will sometimes read those.
• 33:05
  SPEAKER_00: You can even also record a voice memo in your phone and email it.
• 33:09
  SPEAKER_00: Again, that email is StanRMitchell2012 at gmail.com.
• 33:14
  SPEAKER_00: And with all of that out of the way, I am out of here.
• 33:16
  SPEAKER_00: I hope to catch you guys at the same time and the same place next week.
• 33:21
  SPEAKER_00: Lord willing.