Relatable with Allie Beth Stuckey - May 31, 2022


Ep 621 | Why Banning Guns Won’t Fix It


Episode Stats

Length

59 minutes

Words per Minute

178.30467

Word Count

10,591

Sentence Count

613

Misogynist Sentences

18

Hate Speech Sentences

20


Summary

In this episode, Allie talks about the tragic shooting in Uvalde, Texas, and offers her perspective on the lack of masculinity and lack of meaninglessness in our society. She also touches on gun control and gun control.


Transcript

00:00:00.000 Hey guys, welcome to Relatable.
00:00:02.720 Happy Tuesday.
00:00:04.440 This episode is brought to you by our friends
00:00:06.160 at Good Ranchers.
00:00:07.500 Go to goodranchers.com slash Allie for a discount.
00:00:10.800 That's goodranchers.com slash Allie.
00:00:22.500 All right, guys, I really missed you last week.
00:00:25.700 I feel like I have been gone forever.
00:00:28.400 Today, we are going to talk about the shooting.
00:00:32.780 I won't rehash all of the details that you guys
00:00:35.480 probably have heard a few times now
00:00:38.320 since the shooting in Uvalde, Texas happened last week.
00:00:42.000 But I am going to try to give my perspective on it.
00:00:45.180 This epidemic of a lack of masculinity
00:00:48.620 and an epidemic of meaninglessness
00:00:50.920 that I think our society is suffering from.
00:00:54.360 And then, yeah, I will give my perspective
00:00:56.320 on guns and gun laws and the regulations.
00:00:59.340 Also, the failures and the factors
00:01:01.140 that played into all of this.
00:01:03.400 And so that's what we're going to talk about today.
00:01:05.480 And then, of course, I'm going to round it out
00:01:07.200 with the theological, the Christian perspective
00:01:10.400 on all of this.
00:01:12.120 But before we get into the more serious stuff,
00:01:14.820 I do just kind of want to start it by saying
00:01:17.320 how thankful I am for this podcast.
00:01:20.340 And for you guys, last week,
00:01:22.000 it was supposed to be kind of a break from talking
00:01:25.060 about the news that didn't end up really happening.
00:01:27.820 I wasn't on vacation.
00:01:28.980 I was still home.
00:01:29.800 So it was just kind of, you know, normal day to day,
00:01:32.680 minus the fact that I wasn't preparing
00:01:34.100 for the podcast and coming in.
00:01:35.340 So I did kind of still get a break.
00:01:37.240 But with everything going on,
00:01:38.780 I felt an obligation to bring you as much information
00:01:42.640 and perspective as I could about the shooting
00:01:45.360 and some of the other things going on.
00:01:47.040 And I actually found that I had a lot more anxiety
00:01:50.080 than I typically do in a normal week
00:01:54.920 when I'm doing the podcast.
00:01:56.900 And I was thinking, why is that?
00:01:58.140 Is it just because of the heaviness,
00:01:59.880 the gravity of what we're talking about?
00:02:02.920 Or is it because I use this podcast
00:02:05.540 as a way to externally process everything that's going on?
00:02:10.320 So without the ability to talk to you guys
00:02:13.960 about news stories and the issues of the week,
00:02:17.740 I was kind of having to hold it all inside.
00:02:19.780 Like I couldn't spill everything on Instagram,
00:02:23.000 nor did I want to.
00:02:24.980 And so I just had it, you know,
00:02:26.800 I was like a ball of just anxiety and worry inside me.
00:02:31.180 And I was really, it was good practice though,
00:02:32.900 because I was trying to release that
00:02:36.240 without having the podcast, you know,
00:02:38.760 through prayer and through, you know,
00:02:41.280 my thought processes and all of that.
00:02:44.140 But this podcast serves so many,
00:02:47.220 as so many different things for me.
00:02:48.560 One of them is being able to get out
00:02:51.360 all of the thoughts in my head
00:02:53.520 about everything that's going on.
00:02:54.880 It's actually very cathartic.
00:02:56.480 Also, if you notice the change in my voice,
00:02:59.140 I am a little bit congested, but I'm fine.
00:03:01.960 It's just a little lingering summer cold that I've got.
00:03:04.720 But in case you're worried about that.
00:03:06.340 So I'm thankful for this podcast for a variety of reasons.
00:03:09.980 I'm thankful for you guys.
00:03:11.060 I truly feel like we are a family
00:03:13.000 and I've built a community.
00:03:14.620 And I went through some, you know,
00:03:16.280 I don't know if you would call it drama,
00:03:19.100 but just some like back and forth conflict
00:03:21.840 last week on social media.
00:03:23.420 And I won't rehash it right now.
00:03:26.800 And if you follow, you know what I'm talking about.
00:03:29.000 And you guys were just really encouraging to me.
00:03:31.180 And it can be really,
00:03:32.240 it can be really kind of demoralizing
00:03:34.940 and discouraging when not only are you talking about
00:03:40.720 just some of the most tragic and depraved
00:03:43.860 and heartbreaking things
00:03:46.560 in talking about the stories that we discussed,
00:03:48.940 but also when there are disagreements among Christians,
00:03:51.700 when you feel like you're at odds
00:03:54.020 with Christians that you respect
00:03:55.320 when it comes to political issues.
00:03:56.820 That's what was happening last week.
00:03:58.420 That can just be really hard.
00:03:59.720 It can be really demoralizing.
00:04:01.060 And you guys really buoyed me
00:04:02.600 and gave me a lot of encouragement
00:04:04.680 and shared the arrows, if you will.
00:04:07.240 And I just appreciate that so much.
00:04:09.740 So thank you guys for being who you are.
00:04:11.640 I really did miss you.
00:04:13.080 In a couple of weeks,
00:04:13.900 we'll be taking another break.
00:04:15.200 I think that we will probably
00:04:16.980 pre-record some episodes for that,
00:04:19.300 but just taking another summer break.
00:04:22.760 So just be ready for that.
00:04:24.940 Oh, another thing this weekend
00:04:27.480 is Young Women's Leadership Summit,
00:04:30.100 Turning Point USA.
00:04:31.740 I'll be speaking on Friday.
00:04:33.480 If you're going to be there,
00:04:34.480 would love to meet you.
00:04:35.840 I think you can still sign up
00:04:37.520 and get your tickets and make plans to go.
00:04:40.360 You don't have to be technically a young woman.
00:04:42.600 There's a broad spectrum there.
00:04:44.820 But if you can go,
00:04:46.100 there's going to be a lot of awesome speakers.
00:04:48.380 This is probably my favorite event
00:04:50.800 that I do every year,
00:04:51.780 just because it's amazing to be in a room
00:04:53.400 with so many like-minded and energetic women.
00:04:55.540 So make sure you sign up for that
00:04:57.680 if you haven't already
00:04:59.040 and make sure to say hi
00:05:00.580 if you are there on Friday.
00:05:03.440 All right.
00:05:04.020 One more thing that I wanted to say
00:05:05.760 to just kind of start us off
00:05:07.060 on a positive note
00:05:08.040 before we get down into the nitty-gritty
00:05:11.200 and the mud of what happened last week.
00:05:13.900 I shared this on Instagram
00:05:15.700 and it was something I thought about.
00:05:19.900 It's not a revelation
00:05:20.880 because obviously I knew this,
00:05:22.740 but it was something I thought about last week.
00:05:24.360 Having more downtime
00:05:25.700 and more time to just do
00:05:28.000 the mundane things of life,
00:05:29.580 you know, run errands,
00:05:30.720 go to the park, all of that.
00:05:33.300 And there were so many pleasant interactions
00:05:36.360 that I had with strangers,
00:05:38.620 which is normal.
00:05:39.560 When you go to the grocery store,
00:05:40.800 when you go to the park,
00:05:42.000 when you go to a restaurant,
00:05:44.140 you talk to people that you don't know.
00:05:47.820 You don't know their background.
00:05:49.320 You don't know their political leanings.
00:05:50.840 You don't know what their reaction
00:05:51.920 on social media was
00:05:53.060 to the latest news stories.
00:05:54.960 And yet you have this very pleasant conversation
00:05:57.000 and you like the person.
00:05:59.780 And it made me think about
00:06:01.020 how different reality is from social media.
00:06:04.360 On social media,
00:06:05.260 you don't have the foundation of friendship
00:06:08.020 or just liking the other person
00:06:10.060 before you learn the thing about them
00:06:12.600 that makes you really angry.
00:06:14.020 You first learn about their political opinions,
00:06:16.860 the thing about them that you don't like,
00:06:18.780 and you don't have any kind of friendship foundation.
00:06:21.400 You don't have any reason
00:06:22.680 to give them the benefit of the doubt
00:06:24.100 because you don't even know
00:06:24.980 if you like the person.
00:06:26.220 So you automatically,
00:06:27.440 because of the opinion
00:06:28.540 that you heard them articulate,
00:06:31.560 think the worst thing about them.
00:06:34.720 And I think that we have to consider
00:06:38.480 that person that we think that we hate
00:06:41.280 because they have that terrible opinion,
00:06:42.960 which truly might be terrible.
00:06:44.620 And if we met them in real life,
00:06:46.240 if we saw them playing with their toddler at the park
00:06:49.260 and you struck up a conversation
00:06:50.980 and you talked about the things
00:06:52.080 that you have in common,
00:06:53.260 that you would probably really like that person.
00:06:55.120 That person probably isn't terrible.
00:06:57.220 They're probably not mean-spirited.
00:06:58.680 They probably don't lack empathy and compassion.
00:07:01.320 They could be totally wrong on that particular thing,
00:07:04.480 but you probably wouldn't hate them.
00:07:06.160 I sometimes think,
00:07:07.480 if I didn't know anything about AOC's politics
00:07:10.040 and we just saw each other
00:07:12.460 and I don't know,
00:07:13.600 we sat by each other on a plane,
00:07:15.360 we would probably have a lot in common
00:07:17.500 and maybe,
00:07:18.140 I don't know,
00:07:19.180 this might be too far,
00:07:20.100 but maybe we would become friends
00:07:21.860 or something like that.
00:07:23.060 I think about that often
00:07:24.060 and maybe,
00:07:25.000 and I'm totally speaking to myself too,
00:07:28.060 we should have that consideration
00:07:29.900 before we respond to someone
00:07:31.800 or talk about someone on social media
00:07:33.780 that they are a human being,
00:07:36.480 that if we met them in person as a stranger,
00:07:38.960 we would probably like them.
00:07:40.720 And we have to remember
00:07:42.020 that friendship in the real world
00:07:44.440 gives us a foundation
00:07:45.780 that makes it easier to disagree
00:07:48.420 in a way that still ends
00:07:50.800 in reconciliation and love
00:07:52.740 because you had everything leading up
00:07:55.360 to that disagreement
00:07:56.240 where you shared a lot of things in common
00:07:58.680 and you know that person is not terrible.
00:08:01.580 And so we should consider that,
00:08:03.320 I think,
00:08:03.800 before we judge too quickly on social media,
00:08:07.120 before we try to malign someone's motives
00:08:09.100 or character,
00:08:10.860 they probably are a pretty good person.
00:08:12.760 They just happen to really disagree with you.
00:08:16.060 And I am preaching to the choir
00:08:17.420 because I certainly don't always consider that
00:08:19.500 when I see someone's bad opinions
00:08:21.200 on social media and respond.
00:08:22.960 So just a lesson,
00:08:24.460 a lesson from Allie's break last week
00:08:26.660 that I think we all,
00:08:28.400 me included,
00:08:29.440 need to apply.
00:08:31.180 And before I get into this,
00:08:32.700 I am going to take a pause
00:08:33.640 and tell you about our first sponsor.
00:08:35.060 But this does loop into
00:08:37.220 what we're talking about today
00:08:38.420 because I do think America
00:08:39.800 is uniquely divided in the world.
00:08:42.220 I think we're uniquely partisan.
00:08:43.940 I think we're uniquely vitriolic.
00:08:46.040 I think that we are uniquely emotional.
00:08:49.000 We are uniquely online.
00:08:51.200 And I think that causes
00:08:52.520 a lot of the violence
00:08:54.020 and a lot of the vitriol
00:08:56.100 and just a lot of the hatred
00:08:58.440 and resentment
00:08:59.460 and fieriness
00:09:01.960 of the debates
00:09:03.300 and the discussions that we have
00:09:05.180 that then does
00:09:06.540 kind of lay the groundwork
00:09:07.960 for some of the tragedies
00:09:09.520 that we have seen recently,
00:09:11.340 including the tragedy
00:09:12.300 that we saw last week.
00:09:17.160 Okay, so for those of you
00:09:18.700 who you maybe didn't tune in
00:09:20.520 to the news last week,
00:09:21.660 you just tuned in
00:09:22.600 to Relatable for the News,
00:09:23.700 I do want to make sure
00:09:24.420 that I give you guys
00:09:25.280 some context
00:09:25.820 and some details
00:09:26.600 about what went on
00:09:27.980 without rehashing it too much
00:09:30.420 and in too much detail
00:09:31.560 for those of you
00:09:32.340 who were paying attention last week
00:09:33.860 and you have already heard
00:09:37.300 everything that happened
00:09:38.240 summarized and analyzed
00:09:39.600 quite a few times.
00:09:41.020 So in summary,
00:09:42.320 an 18-year-old killed 21 people
00:09:44.400 last week in Uvalde, Texas,
00:09:46.380 19 children,
00:09:47.780 9 and 10-year-olds,
00:09:48.740 and two teachers.
00:09:50.640 And one of the most tragic stories
00:09:52.400 that I heard come out
00:09:54.400 of all of this
00:09:54.980 is that the husband
00:09:55.800 of one of the two teachers
00:09:57.920 who was murdered,
00:09:59.060 he suffered from
00:10:00.720 a fatal heart attack
00:10:02.040 the next day
00:10:03.120 after she died
00:10:04.980 and they leave behind
00:10:06.380 four children.
00:10:07.560 Can you imagine
00:10:08.760 the trauma
00:10:09.760 that those kids
00:10:10.380 are going through?
00:10:11.340 The heartache,
00:10:12.080 the heartbreak.
00:10:12.600 I pray to God
00:10:13.380 that they have community.
00:10:14.440 I pray to God
00:10:15.060 that Christians
00:10:15.580 would surround them
00:10:16.600 and would take care of them
00:10:17.940 and would meet their needs.
00:10:18.920 There is a GoFundMe
00:10:19.800 for those children.
00:10:20.680 I hope that those funds
00:10:21.680 take care of all the needs
00:10:22.820 that they have,
00:10:23.780 but gosh,
00:10:24.220 their needs go so far
00:10:25.360 beyond financial.
00:10:26.720 They're going to need
00:10:27.420 emotional support.
00:10:28.400 They're going to need
00:10:29.160 probably years of counseling.
00:10:30.800 They're going to need
00:10:31.560 the church to show up for them.
00:10:32.920 They're going to need
00:10:33.740 people to stand in
00:10:36.080 as their parents,
00:10:37.260 as their protectors,
00:10:38.160 as their providers.
00:10:38.880 I am so saddened
00:10:41.020 for those children.
00:10:42.700 I'm saddened
00:10:43.320 for all of these families.
00:10:44.780 I mean,
00:10:44.960 can you imagine
00:10:45.680 the parents
00:10:47.200 who are waking up today
00:10:48.760 hoping,
00:10:49.820 hoping that they can
00:10:51.000 just pinch themselves,
00:10:52.140 that someone will just
00:10:52.800 shake them
00:10:53.240 and they'll wake up
00:10:54.020 from this nightmare
00:10:54.740 who haven't even
00:10:55.940 probably been able
00:10:57.060 to process the fact
00:10:58.160 that their nine
00:10:59.380 and ten-year-old babies
00:11:00.540 are about to be buried.
00:11:03.420 These parents are
00:11:03.960 burying their kids
00:11:04.840 this week.
00:11:05.260 They will never talk
00:11:05.960 to them again.
00:11:06.680 They'll never hug them again.
00:11:08.020 They'll never say
00:11:08.620 goodnight to them again.
00:11:10.280 I mean,
00:11:10.760 it's hard for me
00:11:11.640 to even keep it together
00:11:12.460 thinking about that.
00:11:13.600 I am so saddened
00:11:16.220 for what this community
00:11:17.460 is going through,
00:11:18.280 for what these families
00:11:19.080 are going through,
00:11:19.800 what these parents
00:11:20.920 are experiencing right now.
00:11:22.320 Unless you've gone
00:11:22.980 through it,
00:11:23.380 I haven't.
00:11:24.140 I pray that I never do.
00:11:26.400 I pray that you never do.
00:11:27.800 I don't think
00:11:28.360 that we can imagine
00:11:29.180 the pain
00:11:30.720 of the loss
00:11:31.560 of a child.
00:11:32.160 From what I've heard,
00:11:32.840 it is the most painful
00:11:33.800 experience that a person
00:11:35.000 can ever go through.
00:11:36.340 I mean,
00:11:36.560 of course,
00:11:36.980 losing your spouse,
00:11:37.820 losing your parent,
00:11:38.560 losing your friend
00:11:39.300 is awful,
00:11:40.980 but there is nothing.
00:11:42.360 And I can just imagine
00:11:43.700 it as a mom,
00:11:44.920 even though I can't
00:11:47.600 empathize with it
00:11:48.300 because I've never
00:11:48.780 been there.
00:11:49.320 the pain
00:11:52.220 of losing
00:11:53.020 a child,
00:11:54.260 that child,
00:11:55.000 it's like your heart
00:11:56.360 walking around
00:11:57.420 outside your body.
00:11:58.920 I mean,
00:11:59.100 you would do anything
00:12:00.200 for them,
00:12:01.100 anything.
00:12:01.980 I mean,
00:12:02.200 as soon as you
00:12:03.960 become pregnant
00:12:04.880 and then especially
00:12:06.040 on another level,
00:12:07.740 it seems,
00:12:08.240 as soon as they lay
00:12:08.980 that child on your chest
00:12:09.880 or as soon as you
00:12:11.280 see your adopted child
00:12:13.080 for the first time,
00:12:14.220 like you just know
00:12:14.980 something just hits you,
00:12:15.940 this wave of love
00:12:17.340 and you realize
00:12:18.620 that you would die
00:12:20.060 a thousand deaths
00:12:21.200 for that child
00:12:22.660 just to ensure
00:12:24.860 that they would be okay.
00:12:26.520 So the depth
00:12:27.620 of the grief
00:12:28.280 and the pain
00:12:29.000 that these parents
00:12:29.780 of these families
00:12:30.420 are feeling,
00:12:31.300 oh my goodness.
00:12:32.780 Again,
00:12:33.340 we need to pray
00:12:34.140 for them.
00:12:34.720 We need to pray
00:12:35.320 that the God
00:12:35.900 of all peace
00:12:36.740 would surround them,
00:12:38.700 would fill their hearts,
00:12:39.920 would comfort them,
00:12:40.940 would be with them,
00:12:41.980 that the community
00:12:42.840 would come together,
00:12:43.760 that somehow
00:12:44.420 God would be glorified
00:12:46.080 out of this
00:12:47.160 and that might sound
00:12:48.040 strange to say,
00:12:49.380 but God does use
00:12:51.120 for good
00:12:51.620 what Satan means
00:12:52.560 for evil.
00:12:53.640 He can be glorified
00:12:55.140 in the midst
00:12:55.720 of evil and tragedy.
00:12:57.320 The gospel can go out
00:12:58.780 and be heard
00:12:59.480 and believed.
00:13:01.000 Communities can be rebuilt,
00:13:02.660 although this community,
00:13:04.040 these families,
00:13:04.680 these parents
00:13:05.060 will never be the same.
00:13:07.540 But there can be
00:13:08.720 God glorifying things
00:13:10.120 that come out of this
00:13:10.920 because that is who God is.
00:13:12.820 He brings beauty
00:13:13.700 from the ashes.
00:13:14.900 He redeems
00:13:15.580 that which seems
00:13:16.620 irredeemable,
00:13:17.660 that which seems
00:13:18.740 broken.
00:13:20.100 And so I pray
00:13:20.700 that that's what
00:13:21.180 God would do here.
00:13:21.940 I do pray that the gospel
00:13:23.160 would go out.
00:13:23.900 That's, of course,
00:13:24.400 the last thing
00:13:25.020 that Satan wants.
00:13:25.980 He wants evil
00:13:26.900 to have the last word.
00:13:28.060 He wants evil
00:13:28.700 to rule.
00:13:29.680 He wants wickedness
00:13:31.640 to have the last say,
00:13:34.660 both in this situation
00:13:35.760 and eternally.
00:13:37.240 But we already know
00:13:39.260 because we can read
00:13:40.200 the end of the Bible
00:13:41.000 that that's not going
00:13:41.900 to be the case,
00:13:42.560 that wickedness
00:13:43.060 will not have
00:13:43.780 the last say,
00:13:44.660 that evil will not
00:13:45.540 rule forevermore.
00:13:46.820 Psalm 37 tells us
00:13:48.000 that the wicked
00:13:48.760 one day will be no more.
00:13:50.500 He will fade like the grass
00:13:51.940 and wither like the green herb.
00:13:54.300 And God in his righteousness
00:13:55.560 will rule in perfect peace
00:13:57.060 and he will do away
00:13:57.840 with evil and wickedness forever.
00:14:00.120 There will be no mass murders.
00:14:01.380 There will be no sickness.
00:14:02.340 There will be no more sadness.
00:14:03.600 There will be no more injustice.
00:14:05.880 We know that Satan
00:14:07.180 will not have
00:14:08.200 the last word in eternity.
00:14:10.100 So when people do,
00:14:10.920 when people ask,
00:14:11.620 how can a good sovereign God
00:14:13.840 allow these parents
00:14:15.040 to go through this,
00:14:16.880 allow these children
00:14:17.540 to suffer in this way
00:14:19.720 if he is all good
00:14:20.560 and he is all powerful,
00:14:21.860 he's all knowing,
00:14:22.720 he's all seen,
00:14:23.440 he's everywhere at once,
00:14:24.540 he could have prevented this
00:14:25.780 and that means
00:14:26.500 he chose not to.
00:14:28.180 I understand that
00:14:29.460 and I think
00:14:29.960 that's a good question.
00:14:30.880 I think that's
00:14:31.260 an understandable feeling
00:14:32.440 to have,
00:14:33.160 that kind of doubt
00:14:34.400 and that wrestling
00:14:35.240 and to just kind of
00:14:36.120 let yourself sit
00:14:36.900 in that tension
00:14:37.520 and the discomfort.
00:14:38.760 I would say
00:14:39.520 don't fall back
00:14:41.740 on this idea
00:14:42.400 that, oh,
00:14:43.440 it didn't,
00:14:43.960 you know,
00:14:44.200 God isn't sovereign
00:14:45.140 over this kind of stuff.
00:14:46.900 He couldn't have stopped it
00:14:47.960 if he wanted to.
00:14:48.680 No,
00:14:49.200 God is all powerful.
00:14:50.620 He is all seen.
00:14:51.520 He is all knowing
00:14:52.640 and yet evil happens.
00:14:56.240 Sin entered the world
00:14:57.360 and what I comfort myself with
00:15:00.080 is that God is not
00:15:01.280 sitting on his
00:15:02.260 proverbial hands.
00:15:03.960 God is not apathetic.
00:15:05.320 God is not
00:15:06.160 just waiting around
00:15:08.060 wondering what's going
00:15:08.960 to happen,
00:15:09.600 that he is
00:15:10.480 ultimately
00:15:11.380 sovereign
00:15:13.280 and that
00:15:14.080 he is
00:15:15.300 and will
00:15:16.060 do something
00:15:17.100 about all evil
00:15:18.300 and wickedness.
00:15:19.180 He will destroy it
00:15:20.340 forever.
00:15:21.980 There is a day
00:15:22.900 coming
00:15:23.480 when justice
00:15:24.400 and righteousness
00:15:25.140 and peace
00:15:26.020 will rule.
00:15:28.120 And so
00:15:28.580 when you're wondering
00:15:30.140 why isn't God
00:15:31.060 doing something,
00:15:32.080 God's eternal plan
00:15:33.420 of redemption
00:15:34.060 is always going off
00:15:35.700 without a hitch
00:15:36.400 and all things
00:15:37.480 work together
00:15:38.620 eternally,
00:15:40.000 ultimately
00:15:40.420 for the good
00:15:41.520 of those
00:15:42.100 who love God
00:15:42.880 and are called
00:15:43.480 according to his purpose.
00:15:45.000 Romans 8 28
00:15:45.960 So God
00:15:47.580 will be a vengeful God.
00:15:49.540 He will avenge
00:15:50.220 all bloodshed
00:15:51.820 of innocent people.
00:15:52.800 He will avenge
00:15:53.560 all evil.
00:15:54.440 He will avenge
00:15:55.140 all the works
00:15:56.060 of the devil
00:15:56.680 and all the works
00:15:57.700 of evildoers.
00:15:59.040 He is doing something.
00:16:00.460 He will do something.
00:16:02.140 And that doesn't mean
00:16:02.840 that we can make sense
00:16:03.680 of all evil
00:16:04.260 and all tragedy
00:16:05.000 doesn't mean
00:16:05.380 that it's okay.
00:16:06.160 He certainly
00:16:06.520 doesn't approve of it.
00:16:07.520 He hates sin.
00:16:08.320 He hates transgression.
00:16:09.440 He hates iniquity.
00:16:10.700 He hates the shedding
00:16:11.560 of innocent blood.
00:16:12.400 That's something
00:16:12.780 we see repeatedly
00:16:13.520 throughout Scripture.
00:16:15.320 But we have to trust
00:16:16.840 that God's plan
00:16:17.720 of redemption,
00:16:18.460 that God's goodness,
00:16:19.400 that God's faithfulness
00:16:20.520 is still just as steady
00:16:22.120 as ever
00:16:23.480 and that he is
00:16:24.920 and will do something
00:16:26.620 about the evil
00:16:27.560 that we experience
00:16:28.560 on earth,
00:16:29.280 that the blood
00:16:30.120 of these innocent children
00:16:31.400 and these two teachers
00:16:33.140 who died
00:16:33.600 will be avenged.
00:16:36.120 It one day
00:16:36.800 will be avenged
00:16:38.540 in eternity,
00:16:39.620 but also in this life
00:16:41.120 that's part of why
00:16:41.880 we believe
00:16:42.480 in a justice system.
00:16:44.580 That's part of why
00:16:45.400 we believe in punishment
00:16:46.500 for crime.
00:16:47.620 It is not only
00:16:49.140 to deter crime.
00:16:50.980 It's not only
00:16:51.780 just for punitive measures.
00:16:53.420 It is because
00:16:54.500 we are recognizing
00:16:56.020 the immorality
00:16:57.120 and the wrongness
00:16:58.800 of violating
00:17:00.320 another person's rights.
00:17:02.220 The chief right
00:17:02.820 is the right
00:17:03.420 to not be murdered,
00:17:04.680 the right to life.
00:17:07.400 And so I just,
00:17:08.500 I wasn't even planning
00:17:09.640 to start
00:17:10.540 with all of that,
00:17:11.640 but as I'm thinking
00:17:12.820 about the pain
00:17:14.340 and the injustice
00:17:15.220 of all of this
00:17:16.340 and the confusion
00:17:16.920 that so many must feel,
00:17:18.200 including these parents,
00:17:19.020 I just wanted to
00:17:20.180 remind us
00:17:22.000 that we have
00:17:22.400 a sovereign
00:17:22.940 and very good God
00:17:24.820 who cares
00:17:26.440 and who sees
00:17:27.440 and who knows
00:17:28.320 and is close
00:17:29.920 to the brokenhearted
00:17:31.120 and also hates evil
00:17:33.580 and, as I said,
00:17:35.200 will be doing
00:17:35.960 something about it.
00:17:37.260 He will be doing
00:17:38.160 something about it.
00:17:39.100 And also,
00:17:40.180 I think just a reminder,
00:17:41.420 and this is not something
00:17:42.220 to rejoice over,
00:17:43.500 but it also,
00:17:44.200 it does speak to
00:17:45.500 God's commitment
00:17:46.820 to justice.
00:17:48.100 This shooter,
00:17:48.900 according to
00:17:49.440 Christian theology,
00:17:50.560 unless he repented
00:17:51.820 before he was shot,
00:17:54.820 and killed,
00:17:56.220 he is now
00:17:57.120 suffering
00:17:58.100 the consequences
00:17:59.160 of sin
00:18:00.080 in hell
00:18:00.800 and he will
00:18:02.180 for all of eternity.
00:18:04.920 And so,
00:18:05.940 while that doesn't
00:18:07.020 make our hearts
00:18:08.000 break any less
00:18:09.020 for the children
00:18:10.020 and the loss
00:18:11.200 of innocent life,
00:18:13.000 we can rest assured
00:18:14.700 that he is
00:18:16.260 right now
00:18:17.220 experiencing justice.
00:18:21.600 So,
00:18:22.340 the shooter
00:18:22.760 shot his grandmother
00:18:23.600 as well.
00:18:24.120 As far as I
00:18:25.360 can read,
00:18:26.160 she's still
00:18:26.460 in critical condition.
00:18:27.500 Again,
00:18:28.180 pray for her.
00:18:29.460 The shooter,
00:18:30.440 as I already said,
00:18:31.260 he's deceased.
00:18:32.180 He was shot
00:18:33.880 by Border Patrol
00:18:35.200 and we'll get
00:18:35.620 into more
00:18:36.140 of the details
00:18:36.780 of that
00:18:37.140 in just a second.
00:18:38.300 Also,
00:18:38.720 just a note
00:18:39.080 on praying.
00:18:39.860 I saw
00:18:41.460 someone say
00:18:42.820 on Instagram,
00:18:43.980 a person who
00:18:44.480 was followed
00:18:44.840 by a lot of people
00:18:45.960 saying that praying
00:18:46.960 is obviously
00:18:47.700 not working.
00:18:48.620 Thoughts and prayers
00:18:49.080 aren't working,
00:18:49.680 so we need to be
00:18:50.860 doing something else.
00:18:52.440 Well,
00:18:53.440 we have,
00:18:54.140 you have no idea
00:18:55.920 what prayers
00:18:57.180 are accomplishing.
00:18:58.140 You have no idea
00:18:59.020 what crimes are
00:18:59.740 prevented from prayer.
00:19:00.940 You have no idea
00:19:01.720 what lives are being
00:19:03.020 saved because of prayer.
00:19:04.460 You have no idea
00:19:05.200 the miracles that are
00:19:06.040 happening on a daily
00:19:06.900 basis because of prayer.
00:19:09.040 Prayer is not passive.
00:19:10.720 Prayer is not inactivity.
00:19:12.220 Prayer is not apathy.
00:19:13.720 Prayer is not complacency.
00:19:15.540 Prayer is an activity.
00:19:17.760 Prayer is work.
00:19:19.100 Prayer is doing something.
00:19:24.120 So don't let someone
00:19:26.000 tell you that prayer
00:19:27.140 is just the option
00:19:28.620 that people choose
00:19:30.200 when they don't want
00:19:31.660 to be uncomfortable
00:19:32.320 or when they don't
00:19:33.120 want to do something.
00:19:34.380 Just because something
00:19:35.400 bad happens
00:19:36.320 despite prayer
00:19:37.240 doesn't mean
00:19:38.120 that prayer
00:19:39.380 is doing nothing.
00:19:40.420 Again,
00:19:41.040 God's work
00:19:41.640 does not necessarily
00:19:42.860 make headlines.
00:19:44.160 It's not trending
00:19:44.780 on Twitter.
00:19:45.400 It's not going to be
00:19:46.120 the center of every
00:19:47.540 conversation that you're
00:19:48.440 having.
00:19:48.880 It's not going to be
00:19:49.560 what the influencers
00:19:50.220 are talking about
00:19:50.980 on Instagram and TikTok.
00:19:52.260 That doesn't mean
00:19:52.740 that he's not working.
00:19:53.700 Again,
00:19:54.000 you have no idea
00:19:54.900 the miracles are
00:19:55.560 accomplished because
00:19:56.280 God decided to work
00:19:59.660 through prayer
00:20:00.360 to accomplish something.
00:20:01.940 You don't know
00:20:02.300 the lives saved.
00:20:03.040 You don't know
00:20:03.500 the good that has
00:20:04.100 happened.
00:20:04.540 You don't know
00:20:05.040 the work that has
00:20:05.680 been done
00:20:06.220 because of Christians
00:20:10.120 praying to God
00:20:11.320 who is all-powerful.
00:20:12.320 James 5.16
00:20:13.260 Therefore,
00:20:14.260 confess your sins
00:20:15.020 to one another
00:20:15.540 and pray for one
00:20:16.280 another that you
00:20:16.920 may be healed.
00:20:17.600 The prayer
00:20:18.560 of a righteous
00:20:19.340 person has
00:20:20.600 great power
00:20:22.080 as it is working.
00:20:23.840 Shame on the
00:20:24.660 person who
00:20:25.840 calls herself
00:20:26.960 a Christian
00:20:27.500 who says
00:20:28.940 that prayer
00:20:29.740 is just kind of
00:20:30.560 some supplementary
00:20:31.580 thing.
00:20:32.080 Sure,
00:20:32.260 you can do it
00:20:32.780 because it might
00:20:33.240 make you feel
00:20:33.840 a little bit
00:20:34.440 better,
00:20:35.420 but it's not
00:20:37.420 really accomplishing
00:20:38.340 anything.
00:20:38.980 Not according
00:20:39.500 to the God
00:20:39.980 who created it.
00:20:41.300 Not according
00:20:41.800 to the God
00:20:42.420 to whom we are
00:20:43.400 praying.
00:20:43.800 The prayer
00:20:44.540 of a righteous
00:20:45.140 person,
00:20:45.520 that means
00:20:45.860 everyone who
00:20:46.340 is in Christ
00:20:46.960 because he
00:20:47.440 has given
00:20:47.800 us his
00:20:48.260 righteous.
00:20:48.800 This is not
00:20:49.260 some moralism
00:20:50.420 like you've
00:20:51.200 done a list
00:20:51.720 of good deeds,
00:20:52.700 but the prayer
00:20:53.000 of a righteous
00:20:53.540 person,
00:20:54.140 so the person
00:20:54.580 who is in
00:20:55.040 Christ,
00:20:55.700 has great
00:20:56.400 power
00:20:57.420 as it is
00:20:59.100 working.
00:21:00.480 You are
00:21:00.760 doing something
00:21:01.260 by praying.
00:21:02.220 That's not to
00:21:02.780 say we shouldn't
00:21:03.200 do other things
00:21:03.900 too.
00:21:04.320 Obviously,
00:21:04.700 in regard to
00:21:05.280 abortion,
00:21:06.400 we think that
00:21:06.840 we should be
00:21:07.160 praying for an
00:21:07.620 end to abortion,
00:21:08.520 praying for the
00:21:08.980 women who are
00:21:09.440 considering an
00:21:10.020 abortion,
00:21:10.700 praying for the
00:21:12.140 children and
00:21:12.620 families involved
00:21:13.460 and pray for
00:21:14.620 the people who
00:21:16.120 are performing
00:21:16.740 abortions,
00:21:17.340 all of that.
00:21:18.320 Of course,
00:21:18.980 we believe in
00:21:19.440 praying,
00:21:19.740 but we also
00:21:20.180 believe in
00:21:20.740 going to
00:21:21.660 those clinics
00:21:22.300 and praying
00:21:22.960 with those
00:21:23.360 women and
00:21:23.740 talking with
00:21:24.200 those women.
00:21:24.660 We also
00:21:24.980 believe in
00:21:25.380 legislation.
00:21:26.100 So I
00:21:26.720 understand that
00:21:27.540 people are
00:21:28.000 saying that,
00:21:28.660 okay, you
00:21:28.920 don't just
00:21:29.300 pray, you
00:21:29.640 need to do
00:21:30.040 these other
00:21:30.420 things.
00:21:31.060 Even if you
00:21:31.580 and I,
00:21:31.960 if you are
00:21:32.360 maybe on the
00:21:33.900 more liberal
00:21:34.380 side of this,
00:21:35.360 even if you
00:21:35.800 and I don't
00:21:36.260 necessarily agree
00:21:37.020 on what that
00:21:37.500 legislation could
00:21:38.200 look like,
00:21:38.580 I do understand
00:21:39.660 when you say,
00:21:41.200 okay, but we
00:21:41.820 also need
00:21:42.460 some other
00:21:44.920 action in
00:21:45.840 addition to
00:21:46.980 praying.
00:21:47.460 Okay, I
00:21:48.200 totally get
00:21:48.880 what you're
00:21:49.200 saying and
00:21:49.800 I'm on board
00:21:50.420 with the logic
00:21:51.000 of what you're
00:21:51.920 saying, but I
00:21:52.860 just want to
00:21:53.260 make clear that
00:21:54.340 people who
00:21:54.920 pray are not
00:21:55.900 simply being
00:21:56.460 passive and
00:21:56.940 not doing
00:21:57.380 anything.
00:21:57.920 You are
00:21:58.120 praying to a
00:21:58.700 God who,
00:21:59.180 again, you
00:21:59.460 have no idea
00:22:00.220 what he is
00:22:01.340 accomplishing
00:22:01.920 through the
00:22:02.960 power of
00:22:03.540 prayer.
00:22:04.640 So as I
00:22:05.440 said, there
00:22:06.280 were 21
00:22:08.260 victims, most
00:22:10.360 9 to 10
00:22:10.840 year olds, and
00:22:11.560 then two
00:22:12.960 teachers who
00:22:13.900 were 48 and
00:22:14.800 44, and my
00:22:17.800 goodness, just
00:22:18.380 the ripple
00:22:19.640 effect of
00:22:20.560 these lives
00:22:21.100 lost, it's
00:22:21.640 unquantifiable,
00:22:23.540 and it's,
00:22:24.140 again, so
00:22:24.680 hard to imagine
00:22:26.900 what this
00:22:27.280 community and
00:22:27.760 what these
00:22:28.000 families are
00:22:28.460 going to
00:22:28.740 experience for
00:22:29.400 the rest of
00:22:30.540 their lives.
00:22:32.020 So a little
00:22:32.820 bit more about
00:22:33.560 the shooter, and
00:22:34.140 this is kind of
00:22:34.600 going to segue
00:22:35.160 into what I
00:22:36.900 think is the
00:22:37.320 bigger picture in
00:22:38.660 all of this.
00:22:39.300 So he's 18
00:22:39.940 years old, lived
00:22:40.680 with his
00:22:40.960 grandmother,
00:22:42.020 reportedly his
00:22:42.820 mother struggled
00:22:43.300 with drug
00:22:43.640 addiction, father
00:22:44.800 not a part of
00:22:45.900 his life.
00:22:46.800 He was
00:22:47.020 described by
00:22:47.560 those who
00:22:47.880 knew him as
00:22:48.780 a loner, as
00:22:49.540 antisocial.
00:22:50.540 A friend
00:22:50.800 described the
00:22:51.300 time when he
00:22:51.820 showed up to
00:22:52.220 play basketball
00:22:52.800 in his
00:22:53.140 neighborhood, and
00:22:53.620 he had cuts
00:22:54.060 all over his
00:22:54.540 face, and
00:22:54.920 apparently that's
00:22:56.300 something that
00:22:56.740 he did.
00:22:57.140 He decided to
00:22:57.660 cut his own
00:22:58.120 face over and
00:22:58.900 over again, and
00:22:59.500 he said it was
00:23:00.020 just fun.
00:23:01.340 The New York
00:23:01.680 Post reported
00:23:02.300 that he has
00:23:03.240 documented cruelty
00:23:04.120 to animals.
00:23:04.880 He posted about
00:23:05.460 it on social
00:23:05.980 media.
00:23:06.380 I won't even
00:23:06.760 give the
00:23:07.020 details of
00:23:07.540 that.
00:23:07.840 It really
00:23:08.020 breaks my
00:23:08.500 heart.
00:23:09.400 He reportedly
00:23:10.100 shot at
00:23:10.540 people with
00:23:10.940 a BB
00:23:11.200 gun, again,
00:23:12.040 just for what
00:23:12.760 he considered
00:23:13.280 fun.
00:23:13.980 He threatened
00:23:14.340 girls with
00:23:14.780 rape.
00:23:15.280 He routinely
00:23:15.920 threatened
00:23:16.260 violence towards
00:23:17.040 people.
00:23:17.840 He had had
00:23:18.340 Instagram direct
00:23:19.580 messages about
00:23:20.540 his guns,
00:23:21.240 cryptic messages
00:23:22.020 about wanting
00:23:24.140 to kill
00:23:24.580 people.
00:23:25.640 He said he
00:23:26.340 was bullied
00:23:26.840 because of
00:23:27.360 his clothes
00:23:27.780 and because
00:23:28.160 he's poor.
00:23:29.980 We don't
00:23:30.660 know.
00:23:31.040 We don't
00:23:31.420 know necessarily
00:23:32.140 if that's
00:23:32.620 true.
00:23:33.040 Of course,
00:23:33.680 that's not an
00:23:34.020 excuse.
00:23:34.440 There's a lot
00:23:35.120 of people who
00:23:35.780 are bullied.
00:23:36.160 I would say
00:23:36.560 all of us
00:23:37.160 at one point
00:23:37.740 were probably
00:23:38.320 bullied or
00:23:38.880 probably excluded
00:23:39.640 or probably
00:23:40.520 talked badly
00:23:41.620 about, had a
00:23:42.400 hard time
00:23:42.960 socially.
00:23:43.540 I don't know
00:23:43.860 if there's
00:23:44.180 anyone who
00:23:44.700 just skates
00:23:45.260 through kindergarten
00:23:45.900 through 12th
00:23:46.540 grade without
00:23:47.240 having any
00:23:48.700 sort of hard
00:23:49.540 time making
00:23:50.940 friends or
00:23:51.560 feeling different.
00:23:52.640 He says he
00:23:53.400 was bullied
00:23:53.860 because of
00:23:54.280 his clothes
00:23:54.780 or because he
00:23:57.100 was poor.
00:23:58.160 However, there's
00:23:58.820 a picture of
00:23:59.420 him going around
00:24:00.240 where he's
00:24:00.660 taking a selfie
00:24:01.260 and he's
00:24:01.540 holding an
00:24:01.980 iPhone 13.
00:24:03.920 I'm just not
00:24:04.780 sure you can
00:24:05.240 consider yourself
00:24:05.840 poor in the
00:24:06.760 true sense
00:24:07.120 of the word.
00:24:07.600 He might be
00:24:08.200 not as rich
00:24:08.900 as some of
00:24:09.200 your friends,
00:24:09.700 but can you
00:24:10.060 consider yourself
00:24:10.640 poor with a
00:24:11.420 brand new
00:24:11.740 iPhone 13?
00:24:12.900 Some people
00:24:13.420 also pointed
00:24:14.220 out that the
00:24:15.100 AR-15 that he
00:24:15.980 used was a
00:24:16.420 Daniel Defense
00:24:17.160 rifle, which is
00:24:18.280 apparently almost
00:24:19.040 $2,000 and I
00:24:20.020 think he had two
00:24:20.560 of them.
00:24:21.320 There's a lot of
00:24:22.040 things in all of
00:24:22.620 this that make
00:24:22.920 you go, hmm,
00:24:23.580 not that ultimately
00:24:24.580 I guess that
00:24:25.220 matters whether he
00:24:26.320 was poor or not,
00:24:28.860 but I do think
00:24:29.440 that there is a
00:24:29.900 question like where
00:24:30.520 did he get all
00:24:31.300 of the money to
00:24:32.520 buy these things,
00:24:34.140 especially if he
00:24:34.940 truly didn't
00:24:35.620 have very much
00:24:36.920 money, like how
00:24:38.080 did that happen?
00:24:38.840 How did that
00:24:39.180 work?
00:24:39.400 How did he get
00:24:39.840 the money to
00:24:40.600 buy those two
00:24:41.160 rifles?
00:24:41.520 I think that's
00:24:41.900 something that
00:24:42.300 people should
00:24:42.680 probably explore.
00:24:44.560 Now this is a
00:24:45.220 very typical profile
00:24:46.220 of school
00:24:46.580 shooters, young
00:24:47.760 males, mental
00:24:49.140 health problems,
00:24:50.420 loner, documented
00:24:51.540 threats of
00:24:51.920 violence, cruelty
00:24:52.940 towards people and
00:24:53.860 animals, very many
00:24:54.940 red flags, another
00:24:55.900 huge one which
00:24:56.740 we're going to
00:24:57.060 talk about more
00:24:58.040 in a little bit,
00:24:58.880 fatherless, unstable
00:25:00.620 home life, just
00:25:02.660 not a lot of
00:25:03.200 discipline, boundaries
00:25:04.540 and as I said
00:25:06.160 we'll get back to
00:25:07.340 that in just a
00:25:07.980 second, that's part
00:25:08.680 of the big
00:25:09.460 picture thing.
00:25:10.820 Now a lot of
00:25:12.160 people are talking
00:25:13.440 about the police
00:25:14.180 response, I think
00:25:15.060 understandably so.
00:25:16.460 Now before I get
00:25:17.500 into it, I will say
00:25:18.400 that there is some
00:25:19.320 disagreement, there's
00:25:20.360 some back and
00:25:20.900 forth between
00:25:21.740 conservatives, there's
00:25:22.640 a lot of
00:25:22.940 conservatives who
00:25:23.620 are seeing the
00:25:24.020 reporting around
00:25:24.640 what the police
00:25:25.180 did and saying
00:25:26.120 what the heck, this
00:25:27.040 was total failure,
00:25:29.020 total cowardice or
00:25:30.200 total incompetence
00:25:31.180 and then you have
00:25:32.360 people like Brandon
00:25:32.960 Tatum who I
00:25:33.520 really like, really
00:25:34.840 appreciate his
00:25:36.900 analysis on a ton
00:25:38.900 of things and he
00:25:40.200 is talking to some
00:25:42.100 officers who are on
00:25:43.060 the scene who say
00:25:43.740 that the media is
00:25:44.920 not reporting it
00:25:45.780 well and that we
00:25:47.360 need to look at the
00:25:47.940 other side of this,
00:25:48.700 that they were doing
00:25:49.600 what they needed to
00:25:50.520 do and I would say
00:25:52.460 that they would be
00:25:53.560 accusing the
00:25:54.440 conservatives who
00:25:55.260 are talking about
00:25:55.920 the failures of the
00:25:56.920 police department of
00:25:57.920 spreading misinformation
00:25:59.300 information but let me
00:26:00.320 tell you at least
00:26:01.720 what we know and
00:26:03.400 this to me is a
00:26:04.240 very disturbing
00:26:04.820 aspect of this.
00:26:05.740 You guys know I
00:26:06.780 am so thankful for
00:26:08.020 the police.
00:26:08.800 I think that the
00:26:09.700 police have perhaps
00:26:11.760 the hardest job in
00:26:13.560 America because not
00:26:14.440 only are you putting
00:26:15.140 your lives on the
00:26:16.180 line every day,
00:26:17.040 something that the
00:26:18.100 vast, vast majority
00:26:19.120 of us wouldn't have
00:26:20.060 the courage to sign
00:26:21.300 up for, but you
00:26:23.460 also are dealing
00:26:24.160 with negative PR,
00:26:26.040 negative press,
00:26:27.620 every day,
00:26:28.720 adversarial politicians
00:26:30.280 who want to take
00:26:30.880 your funding away but
00:26:31.780 still expect you to
00:26:33.840 be a perfect police
00:26:35.180 officer who never
00:26:36.360 makes any mistakes.
00:26:38.180 I think law
00:26:38.720 enforcement wives
00:26:39.900 have it really tough
00:26:41.340 and so I thought
00:26:42.780 the whole defunding
00:26:43.920 the police movement
00:26:45.840 was wicked and
00:26:47.980 has caused a rise
00:26:50.160 in crime and
00:26:51.200 murders and it's
00:26:52.180 just a total
00:26:52.660 misunderstanding of
00:26:53.560 human nature like
00:26:54.660 you need law
00:26:55.900 enforcement and the
00:26:57.240 vast majority of
00:26:58.020 officers are the
00:26:59.700 bravest among us
00:27:00.980 and they are some
00:27:04.220 of the most
00:27:05.180 respectful and
00:27:07.260 compassionate people
00:27:08.400 that we have so
00:27:08.840 I'm very thankful
00:27:09.700 for that.
00:27:10.740 But here's why
00:27:11.780 being a police
00:27:13.400 officer and having
00:27:14.300 bad police officers
00:27:15.940 is not the same
00:27:17.280 as just like oh
00:27:17.920 well there's any
00:27:18.600 occupation in any
00:27:19.820 occupation you have
00:27:20.520 bad apples, you have
00:27:21.400 bad accountants, you
00:27:22.080 have bad whatever.
00:27:22.540 Well it's not the
00:27:23.940 same thing as just
00:27:24.540 like having a bad
00:27:25.380 apple teacher because
00:27:26.400 with police officers
00:27:27.540 you hold people's
00:27:28.900 lives in your hands.
00:27:30.260 So when there are
00:27:30.800 bad police officers
00:27:32.240 who are either
00:27:32.860 cowardly or they're
00:27:33.920 corrupt then you're
00:27:35.800 talking about you're
00:27:36.600 not just talking
00:27:37.100 about oh you know
00:27:38.880 someone didn't get a
00:27:40.740 correct like tax
00:27:41.780 return whatever it
00:27:43.000 is.
00:27:43.800 You're talking about
00:27:45.300 someone dying
00:27:46.680 unjustly,
00:27:47.960 unjustifiably because of
00:27:49.780 a police officer's
00:27:50.700 mistake.
00:27:51.140 So police officers
00:27:52.160 are held to a
00:27:53.580 higher standard for
00:27:54.380 a reason because
00:27:55.660 they hold people's
00:27:56.920 lives in their
00:27:57.460 hands.
00:27:58.500 So I do think that
00:27:59.860 there's like some
00:28:00.340 nuance in how we
00:28:01.080 talk about that but
00:28:01.920 that said you guys
00:28:02.740 know how much I
00:28:03.520 respect and I'm
00:28:04.280 thankful for the
00:28:05.140 police.
00:28:05.660 In this case from
00:28:06.800 my perspective what
00:28:07.980 I've read it does
00:28:09.020 not seem like the
00:28:10.320 police did their job
00:28:11.260 well.
00:28:11.780 I know there are
00:28:12.340 other perspectives on
00:28:13.560 that but it's really
00:28:15.160 hard for me to see
00:28:16.440 them because from
00:28:17.680 what I'm about to
00:28:18.380 tell you it looks
00:28:18.980 like they really
00:28:19.960 dropped the ball and
00:28:21.220 that lives were lost
00:28:22.760 because of that.
00:28:24.820 So parents and most
00:28:26.160 of the media are
00:28:27.200 saying they didn't
00:28:28.500 the local police
00:28:29.680 the Uvalde ISD
00:28:32.660 police force did
00:28:33.960 not do their jobs.
00:28:35.700 They didn't run into
00:28:36.580 the fire as they
00:28:37.500 were supposed to and
00:28:38.740 because of that
00:28:39.760 children died and
00:28:41.360 these two teachers
00:28:42.040 died.
00:28:43.200 So it used to be
00:28:44.580 protocol apparently
00:28:45.920 for if there was a
00:28:47.460 mass shooter or a
00:28:48.120 school shooter to
00:28:49.260 kind of barricade
00:28:50.160 the shooter and
00:28:50.880 then the police
00:28:51.420 would create a
00:28:52.200 perimeter until
00:28:53.180 backup came.
00:28:54.480 That used to be the
00:28:55.240 protocol.
00:28:55.680 That's no longer
00:28:56.620 the protocol and
00:28:58.000 the Uvalde police
00:28:58.880 according to the
00:28:59.500 New York Times knew
00:29:00.220 the new protocol and
00:29:01.680 there was a reporter
00:29:02.380 from the New York
00:29:02.880 Times that posted
00:29:03.780 the school shooter
00:29:05.460 protocol that the
00:29:07.280 Uvalde school
00:29:08.280 district knew about
00:29:09.240 and had practiced
00:29:10.200 multiple times that
00:29:11.840 says if there is a
00:29:14.780 school shooter they
00:29:15.740 have to be
00:29:16.200 apprehended by a
00:29:17.100 police officer.
00:29:18.020 The police officer
00:29:18.740 goes in and tries to
00:29:19.660 kill them.
00:29:20.040 If that police
00:29:20.540 officer is shot
00:29:21.560 injured he falls
00:29:23.120 back the next police
00:29:24.140 officer goes.
00:29:24.940 Even if it's just
00:29:25.600 one police officer
00:29:26.700 their job is to try
00:29:28.260 to kill the shooter
00:29:29.100 and the training
00:29:30.680 documents actually
00:29:31.460 say if you are not
00:29:32.980 willing to sacrifice
00:29:34.320 your life for
00:29:35.160 innocent people then
00:29:36.100 you are in the
00:29:36.960 wrong line of work
00:29:38.060 but they did not
00:29:39.080 follow that
00:29:40.120 protocol.
00:29:41.240 They did it the
00:29:42.580 old way.
00:29:43.060 They kind of
00:29:43.400 barricaded or
00:29:44.920 tried to ensure that
00:29:46.000 the shooter stayed
00:29:46.700 in one place
00:29:47.540 two adjoining
00:29:48.220 classrooms and
00:29:49.680 then they made a
00:29:51.540 perimeter around
00:29:52.880 the school and the
00:29:55.060 police chief Peter
00:29:55.920 Arredondo said in a
00:29:57.720 press conference that
00:29:58.380 they made the wrong
00:29:59.780 call.
00:30:00.320 So this is according
00:30:01.020 to Newsweek.
00:30:02.460 At least three police
00:30:03.500 officers initially
00:30:04.980 followed the shooter
00:30:05.700 into the building
00:30:06.360 within minutes but
00:30:07.220 failed to engage him
00:30:08.140 in the next half
00:30:08.640 hour as many as
00:30:09.260 19 police officers
00:30:10.140 piled into a school
00:30:11.120 hallway but were
00:30:12.200 told by Arredondo
00:30:13.280 the police chief
00:30:14.260 to stand down
00:30:15.300 believing that the
00:30:16.220 shooter had
00:30:16.560 barricaded himself
00:30:17.380 inside a classroom
00:30:18.080 and that the
00:30:18.620 children were no
00:30:19.200 longer under an
00:30:20.160 active threat.
00:30:21.100 That part is very
00:30:22.160 confusing.
00:30:23.100 How would you think
00:30:24.200 that the children
00:30:24.640 were not under an
00:30:25.440 active threat?
00:30:26.280 That decision
00:30:26.880 however left Ramos
00:30:28.020 free to carry out
00:30:28.960 his attack within
00:30:30.080 one fourth grade
00:30:30.880 classroom.
00:30:31.520 Stephen McCraw the
00:30:32.640 director of the
00:30:33.140 Texas Department of
00:30:33.800 Public Safety said
00:30:34.780 during a contentious
00:30:35.580 news conference on
00:30:36.280 Friday another 47
00:30:37.800 minutes passed before
00:30:39.040 a Border Patrol
00:30:39.620 tactical team
00:30:40.480 breached the
00:30:41.400 classroom door and
00:30:42.400 shot and killed
00:30:43.180 Ramos.
00:30:44.220 It was a wrong
00:30:44.780 decision period.
00:30:45.860 There was no
00:30:46.260 excuse for that
00:30:46.960 McCraw said.
00:30:47.920 There were plenty
00:30:48.380 of officers to do
00:30:49.240 what needed to be
00:30:49.880 done with one
00:30:50.560 exception is that
00:30:51.860 the incident
00:30:52.460 commander inside
00:30:54.540 believed he needed
00:30:55.460 more equipment and
00:30:56.320 more officers to do
00:30:57.560 a tactical breach
00:30:58.440 at the time.
00:30:59.580 19 officers in the
00:31:01.600 hallway one officer
00:31:03.180 for every child
00:31:04.420 and they didn't go
00:31:07.160 in.
00:31:08.800 Students who
00:31:09.500 survived the attack
00:31:10.360 and parents who
00:31:11.060 were kept outside
00:31:11.900 the school have
00:31:12.480 also reported
00:31:13.140 feeling angry and
00:31:13.920 betrayed by the
00:31:14.560 police response.
00:31:15.660 Police received
00:31:16.140 multiple 911 calls
00:31:17.300 from students who
00:31:18.400 were inside the
00:31:18.960 school urging them
00:31:19.640 to please send
00:31:20.460 police now and
00:31:21.380 describing the
00:31:21.940 carnage before
00:31:22.660 them.
00:31:23.240 In one instance a
00:31:23.960 fourth grade student
00:31:24.480 and police were
00:31:25.040 even responsible for
00:31:25.920 getting one of his
00:31:26.500 classmates shot after
00:31:28.180 asking children to
00:31:29.140 call out if they
00:31:30.300 need help.
00:31:31.740 So he said that the
00:31:33.560 police who were
00:31:34.240 outside of the room
00:31:35.300 I guess yelled
00:31:37.140 inside the classroom
00:31:38.460 and said call out if
00:31:39.380 you need help.
00:31:40.100 I don't really
00:31:41.700 understand the
00:31:42.360 logistics of that.
00:31:44.060 And then one of the
00:31:45.020 children did and the
00:31:47.380 shooter heard her
00:31:48.960 shot her killed her.
00:31:51.120 When the cops came
00:31:52.160 the cops said yell if
00:31:53.320 you need help and one
00:31:54.120 of the persons in my
00:31:54.940 class said help the
00:31:55.820 student told local
00:31:56.460 news outlets the guy
00:31:57.400 overheard as he came
00:31:58.440 in and shot her.
00:32:00.300 Parents who arrived at
00:32:01.040 the school while the
00:32:02.200 shooting was taking
00:32:02.640 place also described
00:32:03.560 scenes in which officers
00:32:04.480 were standing around.
00:32:05.520 Viral videos have
00:32:06.340 since emerged showing
00:32:07.140 police holding back
00:32:07.860 family members while
00:32:08.700 they begged and
00:32:09.260 pleaded for them to
00:32:10.040 do more.
00:32:10.820 Their responses since
00:32:11.660 sparked national
00:32:12.340 outrage with people
00:32:13.460 labeling officers as
00:32:14.560 cowards for failing to
00:32:16.180 protect vulnerable
00:32:16.940 children and teachers.
00:32:19.520 The New York Times
00:32:20.500 reported this when
00:32:21.260 especially when
00:32:22.120 specially equipped
00:32:23.160 federal immigration
00:32:24.080 agents.
00:32:25.120 Hey, by the way,
00:32:25.680 thank God for border
00:32:26.380 control or border
00:32:28.160 patrol that, you
00:32:29.720 know, the people that
00:32:31.080 some politicians in
00:32:32.640 this country demonize
00:32:34.240 as evil as if they
00:32:35.700 don't already have
00:32:36.480 enough to do at the
00:32:37.500 border without any
00:32:38.520 support from the
00:32:39.180 federal government
00:32:39.840 whatsoever, as if
00:32:41.240 their jobs aren't
00:32:42.060 hard enough.
00:32:42.660 Like here they are
00:32:43.300 doing the jobs that
00:32:44.180 I'm not even sure
00:32:44.880 they were really
00:32:45.520 supposed to be doing
00:32:46.640 in the first place.
00:32:47.380 I'm pretty sure the
00:32:48.220 other officers were
00:32:49.100 supposed to be doing
00:32:50.100 them.
00:32:50.600 Thank the Lord for
00:32:51.360 these brave, brave
00:32:53.520 officers or brave
00:32:55.500 immigration agents.
00:32:56.960 They arrived at the
00:32:57.920 elementary school in
00:32:58.620 Uvalde, Texas on
00:32:59.700 Tuesday.
00:33:00.400 The local police at
00:33:01.140 the scene would not
00:33:02.000 allow them to go
00:33:02.720 after the gunman who
00:33:03.460 had opened fire on
00:33:04.440 students inside the
00:33:05.360 school.
00:33:05.600 According to two
00:33:06.620 officials briefed on
00:33:07.460 the situation, the
00:33:08.500 agents from Border
00:33:09.140 Patrol and Immigration
00:33:09.920 and Customs
00:33:10.700 Enforcement.
00:33:11.840 There are politicians
00:33:12.860 who want to defund
00:33:13.880 ICE.
00:33:14.700 So just remember that
00:33:16.160 arrived at some point
00:33:17.400 between 12 and 1210
00:33:18.520 p.m.
00:33:18.920 According to the
00:33:19.500 officials far earlier
00:33:20.620 than previously known,
00:33:22.060 but they did not
00:33:22.580 breach the adjoining
00:33:23.280 classrooms of the
00:33:23.960 school where the
00:33:24.420 gunman had locked
00:33:25.020 himself in until a
00:33:25.880 little after 1 p.m.
00:33:27.140 Members of the
00:33:27.620 federal tactical team
00:33:28.660 killed the gunman.
00:33:30.000 The official said that
00:33:30.920 members of the
00:33:31.480 Uvalde Police Department
00:33:32.720 kept the federal agents
00:33:33.800 from going in sooner.
00:33:34.900 Eventually, the
00:33:36.120 specialized Border
00:33:36.700 Patrol team went
00:33:37.460 into the building.
00:33:38.140 So reportedly, they
00:33:39.120 were frustrated by the
00:33:40.040 Uvalde Police Department
00:33:40.920 saying, no, you're not
00:33:41.740 going to you're not
00:33:42.360 going to go in and
00:33:42.900 they just did anyway.
00:33:44.300 Texas law enforcement
00:33:45.100 officials have said that
00:33:45.940 the gunman was locked
00:33:46.660 in a pair of adjoining
00:33:47.340 classrooms and had
00:33:48.140 already shot a number
00:33:49.180 of students there in
00:33:50.360 the first few minutes
00:33:51.200 with him pinned down
00:33:52.480 there.
00:33:52.800 They said local police
00:33:54.780 initially focused on
00:33:55.640 evacuating students and
00:33:56.740 teachers from elsewhere
00:33:57.520 in the school.
00:33:58.420 Law enforcement
00:33:58.860 officers had initially
00:33:59.860 tried to enter the
00:34:00.640 classroom but fell back
00:34:01.720 after the gunman fired
00:34:02.680 on them, injuring two
00:34:03.920 officers, state law
00:34:05.420 enforcement officials
00:34:06.760 said.
00:34:07.720 There was one woman
00:34:08.580 who she drove, she
00:34:09.800 heard about this because
00:34:10.940 this was posted about on
00:34:12.080 Facebook that this was
00:34:12.960 happening.
00:34:13.660 She heard this was
00:34:14.320 happening.
00:34:14.700 She drove 40 minutes to
00:34:17.040 the school.
00:34:17.960 She tried to run in to
00:34:18.920 get her children.
00:34:19.860 The police officers
00:34:21.400 allegedly handcuffed her
00:34:23.720 so that she couldn't go
00:34:24.860 in.
00:34:25.040 They finally unhandcuffed
00:34:26.260 her.
00:34:26.820 She sprinted into the
00:34:27.840 school.
00:34:28.200 She jumped a wireling
00:34:29.200 fence, grabbed her
00:34:30.140 children who I guess were
00:34:31.000 in another classroom so
00:34:32.020 they hadn't been
00:34:32.600 evacuated and ran out
00:34:34.520 and left.
00:34:36.220 Yeah, that's why, by
00:34:37.460 the way, children don't
00:34:38.600 belong to the community
00:34:39.720 as Kamala Harris recently
00:34:41.440 said because it's parents
00:34:43.180 who are willing to run
00:34:44.060 into the fire.
00:34:45.300 It's parents who care the
00:34:47.580 most about our children
00:34:48.920 who are willing to die
00:34:50.240 unarmed for our children
00:34:51.820 because we love them that
00:34:53.640 much.
00:34:53.840 That's why children don't
00:34:55.680 don't belong equally to
00:34:57.300 everyone.
00:34:57.780 They belong to their
00:34:58.480 parents because parents
00:34:59.900 have the best interest of
00:35:02.180 their children at heart
00:35:03.040 and are willing to
00:35:03.600 sacrifice anything for
00:35:05.640 them.
00:35:05.940 So good job for that
00:35:06.740 courageous mom.
00:35:07.600 How just can you
00:35:08.680 imagine?
00:35:09.720 I mean, I'm just trying
00:35:13.560 to put myself in that
00:35:14.280 situation.
00:35:14.920 You imagine you think
00:35:16.280 that your child might be
00:35:17.060 being murdered inside and
00:35:18.420 you have police officers
00:35:19.380 tasing parents.
00:35:20.380 Apparently that happened
00:35:21.340 holding them back,
00:35:22.480 telling them that they
00:35:23.100 can't rescue their kids
00:35:23.960 and they're also not
00:35:24.720 going in and rescue their
00:35:25.720 kids.
00:35:26.360 Nope.
00:35:27.120 No, that's all I'll say.
00:35:28.320 I'll leave that there.
00:35:29.440 No.
00:35:31.060 So there is a whole
00:35:32.180 timeline and I guess I
00:35:34.460 don't know if I need to
00:35:35.280 get into all of that.
00:35:36.560 I've already kind of read
00:35:37.460 that there were there was
00:35:38.600 a long time that elapsed
00:35:39.860 before kids were in there
00:35:41.860 and rescued.
00:35:42.400 I'm glad that he wasn't
00:35:43.400 able to get out of the
00:35:44.200 classroom and kill more
00:35:45.160 kids.
00:35:45.520 But man, these poor kids
00:35:47.300 in these classrooms were
00:35:48.040 just like fish in a
00:35:48.840 barrel.
00:35:49.920 And just from my amateur
00:35:51.560 perspective, like he
00:35:52.840 should have been
00:35:53.220 apprehended earlier.
00:35:54.200 I'm not saying that the
00:35:55.200 officers weren't right to
00:35:56.240 be scared or that the
00:35:57.860 police chief.
00:35:58.680 I'm sure he thought that
00:35:59.540 he was doing the right
00:36:01.500 thing.
00:36:02.320 Of course, I would be
00:36:04.020 incredibly fearful.
00:36:05.440 I'm not a police officer.
00:36:07.060 Most of us are not police
00:36:08.100 officers.
00:36:08.860 And so I understand the
00:36:10.720 you know, the fear.
00:36:13.100 I would certainly have that
00:36:14.920 fear to probably in their
00:36:16.700 position.
00:36:17.040 But that is the job.
00:36:19.600 That is that is the job.
00:36:20.980 So, you know, if there are
00:36:22.460 more details that come out
00:36:23.620 that enlighten us about kind
00:36:25.740 of how the decision was
00:36:26.640 made and what went on, I'll
00:36:28.100 be happy to correct the
00:36:29.920 record.
00:36:30.380 I'll be happy to, you know,
00:36:33.140 I don't know, correct what
00:36:35.300 I said.
00:36:35.800 But right now for the
00:36:36.820 information that we have, it
00:36:38.280 looks like a really, really
00:36:40.120 bad call.
00:36:40.840 And I don't know if the
00:36:41.660 motivation was cowardice or
00:36:43.620 just ignorance.
00:36:45.260 I'm not sure.
00:36:46.080 Whatever it was, it was the
00:36:47.380 wrong move.
00:36:48.200 It was a bad call.
00:36:49.140 It was a deadly, deadly
00:36:50.980 mistake.
00:36:51.560 And now the families of
00:36:52.980 these children will never
00:36:54.900 be the same.
00:36:57.900 All right.
00:36:58.740 So let's talk about some of
00:37:01.240 the other factors and
00:37:02.240 failures that played into
00:37:03.900 this.
00:37:04.160 We already talked about the
00:37:05.380 police response and we
00:37:07.540 noted before that he had
00:37:08.880 some documented mental
00:37:10.020 health issues.
00:37:11.500 That should have been a
00:37:13.160 red flag.
00:37:14.080 Those should have been
00:37:15.200 documented, recorded.
00:37:17.460 He should have received
00:37:19.300 help before he was able
00:37:22.380 to go buy a gun.
00:37:23.680 He did buy the guns
00:37:24.660 legally.
00:37:25.380 He passed a background
00:37:26.520 check.
00:37:27.280 In Texas, you just have to
00:37:29.100 be 18 in order to
00:37:30.760 purchase guns.
00:37:31.560 You do have background
00:37:32.620 checks on gun purchases
00:37:35.140 made at gun stores.
00:37:39.540 And so he passed the
00:37:42.040 background check.
00:37:42.680 He bought these guns
00:37:43.560 legally.
00:37:43.960 A lot of the things
00:37:45.380 that he had done and
00:37:47.280 he had said probably
00:37:49.540 should have prevented
00:37:50.980 him from being able to
00:37:54.000 purchase these guns.
00:37:55.500 And I'm not just saying,
00:37:56.760 oh, you know, someone
00:37:57.580 says something wacky and
00:37:59.200 therefore their Second
00:38:00.040 Amendment right is taken
00:38:00.880 away.
00:38:01.100 I'm talking about
00:38:01.580 threatening violence.
00:38:02.860 He had threatened
00:38:03.360 violence towards people.
00:38:05.120 That to me, it seems like
00:38:06.160 there should have been a
00:38:07.260 recorded history of that
00:38:09.200 and that someone at some
00:38:10.700 point, school counselor,
00:38:12.040 family should have
00:38:13.920 stepped in and said,
00:38:14.700 you know what, this
00:38:15.540 person's not okay.
00:38:16.500 They need help.
00:38:18.440 We don't have a very
00:38:20.920 good system in the United
00:38:21.880 States to help people who
00:38:23.920 are a threat to themselves
00:38:25.740 and a threat to other
00:38:26.880 people.
00:38:27.500 And part of that is
00:38:29.000 understandable because
00:38:30.200 you don't want to swing
00:38:32.680 too far in the direction
00:38:34.080 of institutionalizing
00:38:35.580 everyone who is
00:38:37.500 different or who says
00:38:38.680 something that is
00:38:39.660 offensive.
00:38:40.020 I mean, we do have a
00:38:41.260 First Amendment in this
00:38:42.040 country.
00:38:42.760 You are allowed to say
00:38:44.720 things that people find
00:38:46.340 offensive.
00:38:47.880 And so you don't want to
00:38:48.960 go too far in that
00:38:49.920 direction.
00:38:50.480 And obviously, you know,
00:38:51.800 I saw some conservatives
00:38:52.640 saying, oh, we need to
00:38:54.060 bring back mental, you
00:38:55.440 know, mental institutions.
00:38:56.660 All right.
00:38:56.940 I understand.
00:38:58.180 But think about the
00:38:59.060 people, the bureaucrats
00:39:00.660 running those institutions
00:39:02.460 and like what they would
00:39:03.660 qualify as mental health
00:39:04.960 problems that would become
00:39:06.140 political and ideological
00:39:07.220 really quickly.
00:39:08.040 I'm not sure how helpful
00:39:09.780 that would be.
00:39:10.720 However, I agree that
00:39:11.680 there needs to be some
00:39:12.780 kind of system in place
00:39:14.820 to try to help people
00:39:17.040 who suffer from these
00:39:18.020 very serious mental
00:39:19.060 health issues and to
00:39:20.840 protect society from
00:39:22.160 them.
00:39:22.940 I don't know the exact
00:39:24.460 answer, but I do know
00:39:25.740 based on his recorded
00:39:27.460 history of violence and
00:39:28.540 cruelty towards animals
00:39:29.660 and a lot of things that
00:39:31.820 he said and did and the
00:39:34.200 violence, the shooting
00:39:36.100 people with a BB guns
00:39:36.980 like that should have
00:39:38.180 been that should have
00:39:39.100 been a red flag that
00:39:40.280 should have prevented
00:39:41.380 him from being able to
00:39:42.640 buy these guns.
00:39:43.780 Now, he also broke
00:39:45.940 lots of Texas gun laws.
00:39:47.640 You have to be 21 to
00:39:48.580 carry a gun in Texas.
00:39:49.620 He was not 21.
00:39:50.760 The school is a gun
00:39:52.100 free zone.
00:39:53.080 And obviously, he
00:39:54.040 violated that because
00:39:55.040 that's what criminals and
00:39:55.840 murderers do.
00:39:56.400 They don't care about
00:39:57.000 gun free zones.
00:39:57.740 Gun free zones are maybe
00:39:58.800 one of the most
00:40:00.300 illogical things in
00:40:01.400 existence.
00:40:02.300 So he broke those laws.
00:40:03.780 He chose a soft
00:40:05.200 target the school
00:40:07.420 being a gun free zone,
00:40:08.700 just like the guy in
00:40:09.400 Buffalo who allegedly
00:40:10.740 said that he chose that
00:40:11.660 area because he knew
00:40:13.140 that people wouldn't be
00:40:14.120 armed.
00:40:14.600 That's what this school
00:40:15.400 shooter did.
00:40:16.120 Schools are soft
00:40:16.660 targets because they are
00:40:17.700 gun free zones.
00:40:18.440 The only people who care
00:40:19.500 about gun free zones are
00:40:20.900 the people who are not
00:40:21.840 going to use a gun to
00:40:22.740 murder people in the
00:40:23.400 first place.
00:40:25.120 The door apparently was
00:40:26.600 dropped was propped open
00:40:27.920 by a teacher.
00:40:28.880 We don't know why school
00:40:30.320 resource officer who was
00:40:31.740 typically present apparently
00:40:32.840 was not there.
00:40:33.960 And then, of course, we
00:40:34.660 mentioned what I think is
00:40:36.280 a failed police response.
00:40:38.620 Now, we know very
00:40:40.020 typically people are
00:40:40.920 making this all about
00:40:41.900 the NRA and the gun.
00:40:44.200 Look, the NRA, as
00:40:45.240 other commentators have
00:40:46.220 noted, is not the
00:40:47.360 powerful force that it
00:40:48.440 used to be.
00:40:49.700 The gun lobby in the
00:40:51.780 United States are really
00:40:52.900 just constituents.
00:40:53.920 They're really just
00:40:54.480 people who own guns.
00:40:55.780 The NRA filed for
00:40:56.760 bankruptcy, I think it
00:40:57.700 was last year or the
00:40:59.280 year before, so they
00:41:00.180 don't have the political
00:41:01.480 sway that they once did.
00:41:03.300 Yes, of course, you have
00:41:04.280 Second Amendment supporters
00:41:05.340 and we have a Second
00:41:06.880 Amendment, okay?
00:41:07.680 So people have a
00:41:08.520 constitutional right to
00:41:10.180 own a gun in the United
00:41:12.240 States.
00:41:12.760 The guns are not going
00:41:13.800 away.
00:41:14.160 We have more guns in the
00:41:15.200 United States than we
00:41:15.980 have people.
00:41:16.860 And you can lament that
00:41:18.720 and you can talk about
00:41:19.880 the problems with that
00:41:21.020 if you want to, but
00:41:22.560 that's the fact.
00:41:23.640 So if you are suggesting
00:41:25.040 that the answer to this
00:41:27.220 problem is that we
00:41:27.920 confiscate people's guns
00:41:29.040 or we ban the sale of
00:41:30.240 guns, then I'm sure that
00:41:31.980 you are sincere.
00:41:32.780 I'm sure that you're
00:41:33.400 sincere.
00:41:33.760 I won't question your
00:41:34.660 motives, but you are not
00:41:35.960 serious.
00:41:36.400 You are not adding any
00:41:38.480 kind of serious
00:41:39.160 contribution to the
00:41:40.020 conversation because
00:41:40.820 that's not feasible.
00:41:42.100 So when people talk
00:41:42.980 about very feasible
00:41:43.780 solutions, like securing
00:41:45.080 a school, making sure
00:41:46.020 there's only one point
00:41:47.040 of entry, many points
00:41:48.140 of exit, but only one
00:41:49.360 point of entry, so you
00:41:50.640 don't, you can't come
00:41:52.560 in, you know, there are
00:41:54.900 doors that go out, but
00:41:56.060 you can't actually open
00:41:57.100 them from the outside.
00:41:58.700 One point of entry, armed
00:42:00.120 guards at that point of
00:42:02.020 entry, ensuring that the
00:42:04.440 schools are secure with
00:42:05.960 not just cameras and
00:42:07.060 possible metal detectors
00:42:08.520 if you need that, but
00:42:09.260 also armed guards so they
00:42:10.780 are not soft targets.
00:42:12.440 I don't think that we
00:42:13.120 need them to be gun-free
00:42:14.060 zones.
00:42:14.380 Again, completely
00:42:15.480 illogical.
00:42:16.420 When you suggest those
00:42:17.440 things, the security of
00:42:18.460 school, you're told that
00:42:19.700 you don't care enough, that
00:42:20.900 you're not looking at the
00:42:21.560 real problem, and then
00:42:23.200 you're mocked and you're
00:42:24.260 scoffed at and you're
00:42:25.160 condemned and you're told
00:42:26.340 all the reasons why that
00:42:27.480 doesn't work, that kids
00:42:28.760 are going to feel like
00:42:29.380 they're in a jail.
00:42:30.280 Look, we protect
00:42:32.140 concerts, we protect
00:42:33.500 athletic events, we
00:42:34.620 protect Congress, we
00:42:35.780 protect state
00:42:36.540 legislatures, we protect
00:42:37.700 Hollywood award shows
00:42:39.000 and celebrities with
00:42:40.400 armed guards, and none
00:42:41.980 of those people feel like
00:42:42.800 they're in jail.
00:42:43.720 So if all of those
00:42:44.720 people and all of those
00:42:45.600 entities and all of those
00:42:46.560 places are worth
00:42:47.260 protecting with people
00:42:49.440 with guns, why aren't
00:42:50.440 schools and students and
00:42:51.440 teachers worth protecting
00:42:52.260 with people with guns?
00:42:54.140 What's better?
00:42:54.960 What's more traumatizing?
00:42:56.600 feeling like, you
00:42:58.940 know, being scared
00:42:59.900 because there are armed
00:43:00.940 guards at your school
00:43:02.240 protecting you, or being a
00:43:04.540 soft target for a school
00:43:05.460 shooting because there's
00:43:06.380 not enough security.
00:43:07.880 But people are mocked and
00:43:09.440 condemned and scoffed at
00:43:10.260 for that because the only
00:43:11.900 acceptable, according to the
00:43:13.120 mainstream media, the only
00:43:14.060 acceptable solution is
00:43:15.720 calling for the
00:43:16.280 confiscation of guns and
00:43:17.640 the ban of gun sales.
00:43:19.440 And that's unserious.
00:43:20.880 That's how you know that the
00:43:22.380 conversation around this
00:43:23.780 really is more
00:43:24.920 performative for some
00:43:26.420 people than anything else
00:43:28.400 because the person who
00:43:30.320 calls for something that
00:43:31.140 is totally unreasonable,
00:43:32.420 the confiscation and the
00:43:33.540 ban of guns, is given
00:43:35.780 more, is called
00:43:37.740 compassionate, more than
00:43:40.160 the person who actually
00:43:41.460 argues for very feasible,
00:43:42.960 very possible solutions,
00:43:44.640 which is securing the
00:43:45.600 school.
00:43:46.520 Now, I'm not saying that
00:43:48.340 there are no conversations
00:43:49.540 to be had about gun
00:43:51.500 legislation.
00:43:52.360 Like, this is not my...
00:43:54.520 You guys know, I don't
00:43:55.500 talk about this very much.
00:43:56.980 I believe that the Second
00:43:58.280 Amendment is incredibly
00:43:59.540 important to protecting
00:44:01.520 American freedom.
00:44:04.040 And I'm thankful for the
00:44:06.080 Second Amendment.
00:44:06.880 I'm thankful for the right
00:44:08.000 to self-defense.
00:44:08.900 And ultimately, it's not
00:44:09.880 just a right to self-defense.
00:44:11.300 It is a safeguard against
00:44:13.200 tyranny.
00:44:14.120 Now, I know what people say.
00:44:15.480 They say, well, the
00:44:16.220 government has nukes.
00:44:17.000 The government has tanks.
00:44:18.000 You're not going to be able
00:44:18.660 to take on the governments
00:44:19.680 with your...
00:44:21.500 with your gun.
00:44:23.000 Well, that's not really
00:44:23.880 what it's about.
00:44:24.820 When the populace is armed,
00:44:26.860 as much as America is,
00:44:28.720 if a government is really
00:44:29.900 going to overtake you,
00:44:31.160 if the government would
00:44:32.240 really try to inflict some
00:44:33.540 kind of totalitarian
00:44:34.960 control on you,
00:44:36.180 they are going to be far
00:44:37.040 less likely to do that
00:44:38.080 when the populace is
00:44:39.100 well-armed.
00:44:39.700 That's just a fact.
00:44:40.620 Because they have to be
00:44:41.880 really sure they want to
00:44:43.460 see the bloodiest day
00:44:45.220 in the country's history.
00:44:46.920 They would have to be
00:44:48.400 really sure that they
00:44:49.160 want to literally annihilate
00:44:50.600 and murder millions
00:44:52.200 of Americans in order
00:44:53.380 to inflict that kind
00:44:54.540 of rule.
00:44:55.800 So, the point of having
00:44:57.800 a well-armed populace
00:44:59.060 is not necessarily
00:45:00.180 that you can defeat
00:45:01.360 a government entity
00:45:02.340 that has nukes.
00:45:03.480 It is to make
00:45:04.420 the calculation,
00:45:05.440 the risk calculation
00:45:06.560 of the government,
00:45:08.460 if they were assessing
00:45:09.600 that kind of thing,
00:45:11.340 really difficult.
00:45:13.820 Really difficult for them
00:45:15.000 to justify that kind
00:45:16.820 of mass bloodshed.
00:45:17.760 So, that's really
00:45:18.340 what the Second Amendment
00:45:18.980 is for.
00:45:19.500 It is supposed to be
00:45:20.180 a safeguard against tyranny.
00:45:21.640 Yes, it's for self-defense.
00:45:23.100 Yes, it can be for
00:45:24.260 hunting as well.
00:45:25.440 That is, you know,
00:45:26.360 why people exercise
00:45:27.920 the Second Amendment
00:45:28.700 mostly.
00:45:29.700 But it is supposed
00:45:30.620 to be a safeguard
00:45:31.240 against tyranny.
00:45:32.640 And so, you guys know
00:45:33.780 that I am pro-Second Amendment
00:45:36.000 for all of those reasons.
00:45:38.140 I don't, but we also know
00:45:39.640 that there are restrictions
00:45:40.560 on gun buying
00:45:41.380 and that there are
00:45:43.380 limitations.
00:45:44.080 And I am open
00:45:45.740 to hearing any policy
00:45:48.040 that would have
00:45:49.740 truly prevented
00:45:50.700 the school shooting,
00:45:52.680 any feasible policy
00:45:53.820 that would have
00:45:54.400 prevented the school shooting,
00:45:55.620 that would make it
00:45:56.800 impossible or improbable
00:45:58.340 for bad guys
00:45:59.700 to have guns
00:46:01.940 without inhibiting
00:46:03.060 the rights of good guys
00:46:04.500 with guns.
00:46:06.720 I am for that.
00:46:07.960 I think that every conservative,
00:46:09.500 every gun owner
00:46:10.840 is for that.
00:46:11.500 How can you keep guns
00:46:13.260 out of the hands
00:46:14.180 of bad guys
00:46:15.100 without inhibiting
00:46:16.660 the right of self-defense
00:46:18.780 and gun ownership
00:46:19.860 of the good guys?
00:46:21.580 I've seen some people,
00:46:23.000 I saw one person,
00:46:24.280 not some people,
00:46:25.040 I'm sure there are other people,
00:46:26.040 but one guy,
00:46:26.680 he posted a video
00:46:27.520 destroying his AR-15.
00:46:30.360 And, you know,
00:46:31.000 he can do that.
00:46:31.900 That's his,
00:46:33.020 that's his right
00:46:34.280 to do that.
00:46:35.040 And maybe it's just symbolic,
00:46:36.260 but if it were really
00:46:37.180 just symbolic,
00:46:37.760 why would you need
00:46:38.380 to post a video about it?
00:46:39.780 And I'm just,
00:46:40.920 I'm through,
00:46:41.540 I am actually confused
00:46:42.800 about what that accomplishes.
00:46:45.460 What does that accomplish?
00:46:47.380 If like the AR-15
00:46:49.720 or the gun,
00:46:51.080 when it is not in the hands
00:46:52.840 of someone
00:46:53.440 who is going to commit murder
00:46:54.660 or do wrong,
00:46:55.840 is not actually dangerous.
00:46:59.100 Taking away guns
00:47:00.560 from people,
00:47:01.920 law-abiding,
00:47:03.060 responsible people
00:47:03.780 doesn't make anyone safer.
00:47:06.040 Doesn't make anyone safer.
00:47:07.600 There was this Sacramento gun,
00:47:09.000 gun confiscation program
00:47:11.500 that offered a $50 gift card
00:47:13.660 for people to turn in their guns,
00:47:16.260 which is just awful.
00:47:17.280 A gun is way more than $50.
00:47:18.860 You're exploiting poor people.
00:47:20.320 Only poor people
00:47:21.080 are going to participate
00:47:21.700 in that program
00:47:22.340 because they're desperate
00:47:23.020 for half a ticket gas
00:47:24.100 in California.
00:47:25.000 So they're going to give up
00:47:25.960 their ability
00:47:26.460 to defend themselves
00:47:27.300 so they can get gas.
00:47:29.140 Guess who didn't
00:47:29.800 turn over their guns?
00:47:31.500 Criminals.
00:47:32.440 People who are committing murder.
00:47:33.980 They're not turning over
00:47:34.840 their guns.
00:47:35.300 And so all of this
00:47:38.120 is kind of illogical.
00:47:39.900 It's illogical.
00:47:40.840 You would be punishing
00:47:42.880 law-abiding people
00:47:44.720 by confiscating guns,
00:47:46.260 not the people
00:47:47.100 who are actually dangerous
00:47:48.360 when they have guns.
00:47:50.020 But then, like I said,
00:47:51.200 I'm not against
00:47:52.220 feasible restrictions.
00:47:53.800 I do want to talk about
00:47:54.820 H.R. 8, though,
00:47:56.620 that people are saying,
00:47:58.140 oh, we need to pass H.R. 8.
00:48:01.520 This would help things.
00:48:02.400 So H.R. 8 requires
00:48:03.940 universal background check.
00:48:08.740 So right now,
00:48:09.800 in many states,
00:48:10.720 you don't actually have
00:48:11.660 to have a background check
00:48:13.240 to buy a firearm
00:48:14.520 in like a private sale.
00:48:15.820 So like from a friend
00:48:17.180 or from someone
00:48:17.940 who doesn't actually
00:48:18.700 work at a gun shop.
00:48:20.820 You don't have to have
00:48:21.980 a background check.
00:48:22.540 You only have to have
00:48:23.260 a background check
00:48:23.940 if you actually buy it
00:48:25.120 from a store
00:48:26.160 in a lot of states.
00:48:29.100 And so H.R. 8
00:48:30.000 would require
00:48:30.840 a background check
00:48:31.780 in all sales of guns.
00:48:33.800 All right.
00:48:34.440 I don't know entirely
00:48:35.780 what's in the bill
00:48:36.600 and why exactly
00:48:38.100 Republicans are against it.
00:48:39.440 I'm sure that they could
00:48:40.600 give their reasons.
00:48:42.100 But that has no correlation
00:48:43.720 whatsoever.
00:48:44.580 It has no correlation
00:48:45.400 whatsoever to the mass shooting
00:48:46.680 in Uvalde
00:48:47.420 because he bought it
00:48:48.780 from a gun store
00:48:49.420 and he passed
00:48:49.980 the background check.
00:48:51.140 Now, if you want to talk
00:48:51.800 about raising the age
00:48:53.400 of being able to buy guns,
00:48:55.800 if you want to talk
00:48:56.360 about different kinds
00:48:57.160 of limitations,
00:48:57.720 you can talk about that.
00:48:58.660 But at least make
00:48:59.640 some kind of policy proposal
00:49:00.960 that has some kind
00:49:02.260 of correlation
00:49:02.920 to what actually happened
00:49:04.620 in Uvalde.
00:49:05.660 People who are just saying
00:49:06.700 just do something,
00:49:07.820 just do something
00:49:08.640 that's not actually
00:49:09.600 compassionate.
00:49:10.740 Let's look at feasible solutions
00:49:12.180 and let us not put
00:49:13.800 off the table
00:49:14.500 like the cultural issues,
00:49:16.900 the background issues,
00:49:19.020 the underlying issues,
00:49:20.400 the moral issues
00:49:22.020 that are really there,
00:49:23.060 the security issues
00:49:24.080 that are really there,
00:49:24.840 the failure of police
00:49:26.120 that is there.
00:49:26.780 If your only solution
00:49:28.180 is to take away
00:49:28.860 people's guns
00:49:29.420 or to confiscate AR-15s,
00:49:31.280 then again,
00:49:31.900 that's not a serious suggestion
00:49:33.860 because it's not going
00:49:34.760 to happen.
00:49:35.680 AR-15s are the most popular
00:49:37.000 rifle in the United States.
00:49:38.240 There are millions
00:49:38.880 that are in circulation
00:49:39.800 and they're really not
00:49:41.460 any functionally different
00:49:42.860 than most hunting rifles.
00:49:44.680 They are a semi-automatic rifle.
00:49:46.300 The vast majority of guns
00:49:47.360 are semi-automatic,
00:49:48.360 including handguns.
00:49:49.800 They're different
00:49:50.340 than handguns.
00:49:51.040 AR-15s, of course,
00:49:51.840 are different
00:49:52.220 than handguns.
00:49:52.780 The reason that they're used
00:49:55.800 is not necessarily
00:49:56.760 because they are more lethal
00:49:58.180 than any other long gun.
00:50:00.960 They are more lethal
00:50:01.940 than some other kinds
00:50:04.000 of long guns,
00:50:05.120 but they are mostly used,
00:50:09.840 gun experts say,
00:50:10.860 because of the copycat effect
00:50:12.120 and also because of
00:50:14.800 how they look.
00:50:16.100 So they're a semi-automatic rifle.
00:50:17.720 When Kim Kardashian says
00:50:18.760 that we need to get rid
00:50:19.780 of semi-automatic guns,
00:50:21.300 she has no idea
00:50:21.940 what she's talking about.
00:50:22.900 Almost all guns, again,
00:50:23.960 are semi-automatic,
00:50:24.860 including handguns.
00:50:25.900 When Biden says
00:50:26.620 that we're getting rid
00:50:27.340 of like nine millimeters,
00:50:29.120 I mean, again,
00:50:29.640 you're talking about
00:50:30.120 most handguns
00:50:31.020 that are used for self-defense.
00:50:32.760 And so, again,
00:50:33.660 we have to bring
00:50:34.240 feasible solutions
00:50:35.080 to the table.
00:50:35.660 We have to have
00:50:36.040 some kind of
00:50:36.740 like knowledge of guns.
00:50:38.780 There is no,
00:50:39.560 AR doesn't stand
00:50:40.360 for assault rifle.
00:50:41.260 It stands for arm of light.
00:50:42.600 There is no one definition
00:50:43.740 of assault weapon.
00:50:45.240 That's why it's really difficult
00:50:46.320 to actually ban assault weapons
00:50:48.300 because no one has
00:50:49.160 a specific definition of it.
00:50:50.520 A lot of the policy proposals
00:50:52.400 being put forth
00:50:53.140 are either just like
00:50:54.260 not going to happen
00:50:55.160 because we have so many guns
00:50:56.300 in the United States
00:50:56.960 or they have no correlation
00:50:58.240 to the mass shootings.
00:51:01.400 So, I am not against,
00:51:03.480 again,
00:51:03.900 having conversations
00:51:04.900 about legislative solutions
00:51:06.400 in addition to
00:51:07.240 some of the other
00:51:08.060 moral issues
00:51:09.520 that we're talking about here.
00:51:10.960 But,
00:51:11.820 but,
00:51:12.460 like,
00:51:12.960 again,
00:51:13.340 they have to have
00:51:14.100 some kind of grounding
00:51:15.500 in reality,
00:51:16.740 just clamoring
00:51:17.520 to do something,
00:51:18.440 just yelling at the sky
00:51:19.440 that you want something
00:51:20.180 to be done.
00:51:20.900 That's not actually
00:51:21.680 compassion
00:51:22.160 and it's certainly
00:51:22.840 not wisdom.
00:51:25.600 The fact is,
00:51:26.860 is that America
00:51:28.180 has a high mass
00:51:29.960 shooting rate,
00:51:30.760 a high murder rate
00:51:31.600 for the developed world,
00:51:32.580 a high gun crime rate,
00:51:34.380 not because
00:51:36.060 of the number of guns.
00:51:38.020 Because gun ownership
00:51:38.940 over the past 50 years,
00:51:40.520 according to some data,
00:51:41.400 it's gone down.
00:51:42.480 In 2016,
00:51:44.200 according to
00:51:44.780 the Washington Post,
00:51:45.580 it was the lowest
00:51:46.620 percentage of gun ownership
00:51:47.780 that we have had
00:51:48.400 in 50 years.
00:51:49.040 I think it dropped
00:51:49.580 to 36%.
00:51:50.600 It typically hovers
00:51:51.460 around 44%.
00:51:52.620 Other outlets say
00:51:54.240 that it stayed
00:51:54.820 basically the same
00:51:56.040 since the 1970s.
00:51:57.340 Now,
00:51:57.500 with population growth,
00:51:58.460 that might mean
00:51:58.900 that there are more guns.
00:52:00.200 But,
00:52:00.780 the percentage
00:52:01.320 of gun ownership
00:52:02.460 really has not increased
00:52:04.180 over the past 50 years.
00:52:06.000 And yet,
00:52:07.740 depending on the definition
00:52:09.760 of mass shootings,
00:52:10.780 the mass shootings
00:52:11.660 have increased.
00:52:13.620 And so,
00:52:14.060 it doesn't really
00:52:14.900 make logical sense
00:52:15.740 to say that it's
00:52:16.460 the prevalence of guns.
00:52:17.520 Also,
00:52:18.000 if you look at the data
00:52:18.860 on the highest homicide rates
00:52:20.460 in the United States,
00:52:21.740 there is not a correlation
00:52:22.900 to the highest,
00:52:25.240 the states with the highest
00:52:26.240 number of guns,
00:52:28.420 the highest gun ownership,
00:52:30.200 the most gun ownership
00:52:31.100 in the country,
00:52:31.720 Montana,
00:52:32.180 Wyoming,
00:52:32.600 Alaska,
00:52:33.080 Idaho,
00:52:33.540 West Virginia,
00:52:34.220 Arkansas,
00:52:34.620 Mississippi,
00:52:35.520 Alabama,
00:52:36.300 South Dakota,
00:52:37.340 and North Dakota.
00:52:38.560 The highest murder rates,
00:52:39.840 Mississippi,
00:52:40.320 Louisiana,
00:52:40.780 Alabama,
00:52:41.240 Missouri,
00:52:41.700 Arkansas,
00:52:42.200 South Carolina,
00:52:42.800 Tennessee,
00:52:43.920 Maryland,
00:52:44.560 Illinois,
00:52:45.360 New Mexico.
00:52:46.480 The lowest murder rates
00:52:47.880 include Idaho,
00:52:49.400 Maine,
00:52:49.640 Vermont,
00:52:50.040 New Hampshire,
00:52:51.120 Utah,
00:52:52.200 Iowa.
00:52:53.040 These states have some
00:52:54.400 of the laxest gun laws
00:52:56.040 in the country.
00:52:57.560 And so,
00:52:58.260 it's just not incredibly clear
00:52:59.620 that lax gun laws
00:53:00.860 cause more homicides
00:53:02.420 or more gun crimes.
00:53:03.580 Actually,
00:53:03.860 there's no data
00:53:04.900 that's really showing that.
00:53:06.560 And there's not really
00:53:07.920 strong data that's showing
00:53:09.100 that there is a relationship
00:53:10.960 between high gun ownership
00:53:13.720 in a state
00:53:14.220 and high gun violence.
00:53:16.760 There's just not a whole lot
00:53:17.880 of strong data
00:53:19.020 when it comes to that.
00:53:19.840 What there is strong data for,
00:53:21.960 and we'll kind of close out on this.
00:53:23.440 There's more that I have to say,
00:53:24.460 but I don't,
00:53:25.580 we'll have to continue this tomorrow.
00:53:27.000 What there is strong data for
00:53:28.360 is that fatherlessness
00:53:30.180 is causing an epidemic
00:53:32.360 of violence,
00:53:33.620 especially among young men.
00:53:36.160 My friend Samuel Say
00:53:37.300 wrote this incredible article
00:53:38.480 on his blog,
00:53:39.480 and he talked about
00:53:40.480 some statistics.
00:53:41.720 He said 63% of teenagers
00:53:43.280 who commit suicide
00:53:44.140 are fatherless.
00:53:44.920 72% of adolescent murders
00:53:46.620 are fatherless.
00:53:47.680 75% of adolescents
00:53:49.200 in rehab centers
00:53:50.040 for drug use
00:53:50.860 are fatherless.
00:53:52.180 60% of rapists
00:53:53.700 are fatherless.
00:53:54.360 85% of teenagers
00:53:55.480 in prison
00:53:55.940 are fatherless.
00:53:57.160 75% of the most cited
00:53:59.040 school shooters
00:53:59.600 in America
00:54:00.060 are fatherless,
00:54:00.840 just like the teenager
00:54:01.940 who walked into
00:54:02.660 Rob Elementary School
00:54:03.600 to murder 21 people.
00:54:06.440 A 2012 study
00:54:07.220 on juvenile male inmates
00:54:08.380 found that fatherless boys
00:54:09.940 are 279% more likely
00:54:12.220 to carry guns
00:54:13.180 for criminal behavior.
00:54:16.280 And then he goes on
00:54:17.420 to say that he was in 20 fights.
00:54:18.840 Samuel Say was in 20 fights
00:54:19.820 before he was 18 years old.
00:54:21.260 He also grew up
00:54:22.720 without a dad.
00:54:23.720 That is part of the profile
00:54:24.880 of most of the young men
00:54:26.620 who commit violence.
00:54:28.200 That,
00:54:28.680 and not only did they
00:54:30.340 not have a strong male figure
00:54:31.800 in their life,
00:54:32.400 there is also an epidemic
00:54:34.040 of the demonizing
00:54:35.580 of healthy masculinity.
00:54:37.120 Look,
00:54:37.320 there is nothing
00:54:37.900 more dangerous
00:54:38.560 in the world
00:54:39.160 than a man,
00:54:40.460 a young man
00:54:41.160 who is idle,
00:54:42.140 who has nothing
00:54:42.760 to live for,
00:54:43.500 nothing to do,
00:54:44.640 no one to fight for.
00:54:45.860 Men were created
00:54:46.620 for good,
00:54:47.640 honorable fights
00:54:48.360 to defend
00:54:48.980 and to provide
00:54:49.600 for their family
00:54:50.260 and community.
00:54:50.800 When we are taking
00:54:51.740 that away,
00:54:52.600 when we are inundating
00:54:54.000 younger generations
00:54:54.900 with instant gratification,
00:54:56.300 when we are exchanging
00:54:57.440 reality for virtual reality,
00:54:59.180 when we are exacerbating
00:55:00.860 the mental health issues
00:55:01.820 that already exist
00:55:02.600 by pulling them
00:55:03.260 into virtual learning,
00:55:04.640 by isolating them,
00:55:05.840 by addicting them
00:55:06.620 to social media
00:55:07.460 and technology,
00:55:08.560 we are making matters worse.
00:55:10.800 On top of all of that,
00:55:12.260 we are dealing with
00:55:13.140 not just a crisis
00:55:13.820 of fatherlessness
00:55:14.660 and meaninglessness,
00:55:15.820 but also godlessness.
00:55:17.940 And I know
00:55:18.380 other people,
00:55:19.360 there are people
00:55:19.900 will say,
00:55:20.280 well,
00:55:20.360 other countries
00:55:20.960 aren't Christian
00:55:21.540 and they don't deal
00:55:22.160 with the same problems
00:55:22.820 that we have,
00:55:23.340 so it must be the guns.
00:55:24.640 Look,
00:55:25.280 America's decline
00:55:26.760 and religious affiliation
00:55:28.600 and community-centered
00:55:30.200 activities has,
00:55:33.660 we've experienced
00:55:34.700 a very quick
00:55:36.080 precipitous decline.
00:55:37.700 It hasn't been
00:55:38.480 something that has
00:55:39.920 slowly happened
00:55:40.740 over time.
00:55:41.360 It has happened
00:55:41.900 very quickly
00:55:42.640 over the past
00:55:43.340 20 to 50 years
00:55:44.640 and we haven't been able
00:55:46.040 to catch up to,
00:55:48.200 keep up with
00:55:49.040 the change of morality
00:55:50.260 and the values
00:55:51.240 and the loss
00:55:52.100 of identity
00:55:52.820 and purpose
00:55:53.700 that we have experienced
00:55:54.720 as a country.
00:55:55.440 On top of all of that,
00:55:56.560 as I said
00:55:56.980 at the beginning,
00:55:57.480 we're very political,
00:55:59.060 we're very vitriolic.
00:56:00.780 In somewhere like the UK
00:56:02.040 and a lot of countries
00:56:04.940 in Europe,
00:56:05.420 they just don't have
00:56:06.580 the same kind
00:56:07.640 of division
00:56:08.400 and rhetoric
00:56:09.580 and politicization
00:56:11.280 that we have
00:56:12.280 as a country
00:56:12.980 and really America
00:56:13.760 has always been like that.
00:56:15.540 So why does this
00:56:16.320 happen in America?
00:56:17.240 I think some of those
00:56:18.420 characteristics
00:56:18.980 are a part of it.
00:56:20.120 I'm not going to say
00:56:20.820 that the prevalence of guns
00:56:21.780 has absolutely nothing
00:56:23.040 to do with it.
00:56:24.040 Obviously,
00:56:24.460 that's a commonality
00:56:25.520 in mass shootings.
00:56:26.560 So I'm not going to say,
00:56:27.580 oh,
00:56:27.740 that has absolutely
00:56:28.920 access to guns
00:56:30.460 has nothing to do with it.
00:56:31.720 I just think that
00:56:32.460 we've always had access
00:56:33.480 to guns,
00:56:34.120 but now we are dealing
00:56:35.480 with a crisis of immorality
00:56:36.820 and meaninglessness
00:56:37.660 and purposelessness
00:56:38.780 and godlessness
00:56:39.420 that has happened
00:56:40.060 so fast
00:56:40.980 and fatherlessness
00:56:42.400 that has happened
00:56:43.220 so fast
00:56:44.000 and our young men
00:56:46.080 are bearing
00:56:47.160 the brunt of it.
00:56:48.240 They're bearing
00:56:49.000 the brunt of it.
00:56:49.800 They need mentors.
00:56:50.900 They need help.
00:56:51.740 They need hope.
00:56:52.960 They need purpose.
00:56:54.060 They need good fights
00:56:55.240 to fight.
00:56:56.300 When we demonize
00:56:57.100 the family,
00:56:58.000 as so many groups have,
00:56:59.720 including Black Lives Matter,
00:57:00.840 who said they want to disrupt
00:57:02.080 the nuclear family
00:57:02.940 and want nothing to do
00:57:03.800 with fathers.
00:57:04.740 When we disrupt
00:57:05.520 the family,
00:57:06.560 no-fault divorce,
00:57:07.920 separating sex
00:57:08.820 from marriage,
00:57:09.560 separating procreation
00:57:11.720 from sex,
00:57:12.460 like we take away
00:57:14.940 the foundation
00:57:16.140 of any healthy
00:57:18.000 values-centered society
00:57:20.300 and unfortunately
00:57:21.420 we are going to continue
00:57:22.940 to bear the consequences
00:57:24.480 of that
00:57:24.960 and not only that,
00:57:26.440 the mental health problems
00:57:27.580 that we have
00:57:28.120 cannot be treated
00:57:29.040 by the psychology
00:57:30.680 industry today
00:57:31.760 because it has been
00:57:32.940 so inundated
00:57:34.100 with an ideology
00:57:34.940 that actually demonizes
00:57:36.280 masculinity
00:57:37.000 and demonizes
00:57:38.380 the Christian values
00:57:39.700 like being made
00:57:42.940 in the image of God
00:57:43.820 that actually help
00:57:45.180 and heal
00:57:45.740 some of the fractures
00:57:46.780 that we are experiencing today.
00:57:48.040 So we have a lot of problems.
00:57:49.320 America has a lot
00:57:50.080 of unique problems
00:57:51.060 that all speak to this.
00:57:52.440 This particular instance
00:57:53.280 had a lot of unique problems
00:57:54.480 and failures and factors
00:57:55.500 that played into it.
00:57:57.160 And again,
00:57:57.520 I'm not against talking
00:57:58.680 about the gun issue.
00:57:59.800 I'm not.
00:58:00.760 But we have to bring
00:58:01.940 all solutions to the table
00:58:03.420 and reason together.
00:58:04.980 One thing we know
00:58:05.880 for sure
00:58:06.700 is that the fatherlessness
00:58:08.620 in the Bible
00:58:09.260 are a category
00:58:10.000 of vulnerability.
00:58:11.560 They're a category
00:58:12.220 of oppression.
00:58:13.260 So we as Christians
00:58:14.180 need to ask
00:58:14.780 what we are doing
00:58:15.500 to run into the fight
00:58:16.300 for them
00:58:16.880 to mentor young men
00:58:20.300 to try to create meaning
00:58:21.620 and cultivate purpose
00:58:22.660 for the men
00:58:23.860 in our communities.
00:58:24.880 How are we
00:58:25.920 bridging that divide
00:58:27.820 and building friendships
00:58:30.000 and creating mentorship
00:58:31.280 and discipleship
00:58:32.520 for this group
00:58:35.240 that is the common demographic
00:58:37.240 in all of these situations?
00:58:39.780 And then also
00:58:40.760 how are we
00:58:41.780 infusing hope
00:58:43.280 and infusing kindness
00:58:45.760 even while speaking
00:58:47.160 the truth
00:58:47.620 as passionately
00:58:48.340 as we can
00:58:49.180 into every sphere
00:58:50.840 that we occupy?
00:58:53.180 And I think that,
00:58:54.760 you know,
00:58:55.040 that's for all of us.
00:58:56.000 That's for all of us
00:58:56.980 something to kind of
00:58:58.000 take home
00:58:58.440 and apply for ourselves.
00:58:59.320 And again,
00:58:59.940 don't think
00:59:00.940 that love
00:59:01.800 and that prayer
00:59:02.820 doesn't have great power
00:59:04.380 because it absolutely does
00:59:06.300 even if there are
00:59:07.660 political aspects
00:59:08.640 to consider
00:59:09.220 in all of this.
00:59:10.220 All right.
00:59:10.460 I know that was
00:59:10.900 kind of a rushed ending
00:59:11.840 but that's all
00:59:12.360 I had time for today.
00:59:13.360 We'll be back here
00:59:14.380 tomorrow and Thursday
00:59:16.100 with other good stuff
00:59:18.080 and some good interviews
00:59:18.920 that I know you guys
00:59:19.700 are going to enjoy
00:59:20.600 and hopefully
00:59:21.020 will be an encouragement to you.
00:59:22.320 All right.
00:59:22.780 We will be back here tomorrow.