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Glenn's Show Prep

Accomplishment Builds Self-esteem, Not Participation Trophies

January 09, 2017
Staff

WRITER

So you got a medal for coming in last? No wonder you feel bad about yourself. It turns out accomplishment builds self-esteem, not participation trophies.

In an interview that's gone viral, author and motivational speaker Simon Sinek nails the four main reasons for Millennial unhappiness: poor parenting, social media, impatience and environment.

"Who was it that was standing against the awards for last place?" Glenn asked on his radio program Monday.

Why conservatives, thank you very much.

Working hard to overcome challenges makes you feel capable and smart. The other failed strategies, combined with the overwhelming presence of social media, make you feel entitled, unhappy and disconnected.

Listen to this segment from The Glenn Beck Program:

Below is a rush transcript of this segment, it might contain errors:

GLENN: Welcome to the program. So glad that you're here. Let's go with Simon Sinek in an interview that he did about millennials, in front of a crowd about, what is -- what is really happening with millennials? And how do we reach out to millennials? What do we need to do to get them truly engaged? Because there is a sense of entitlement there. Listen.

SIMON: The generation that we call the millennials, too many of them grew up subject to -- not my words -- failed parenting strategies. You know, where, for example, they were told that they were especially all the time. They were told that they could have anything they want in life, just because they want it, right?

They were told -- some of them got into honors classes, not because they deserved it, but because their parents complained. And some of them got A's, not because they earned them, but because the teachers didn't want to deal with the parents.

GLENN: Can we stop for a second?

Who's -- where did that failed parenting strategy come from? Let me reverse that: Who was it that was standing against the awards for last place?

PAT: Oh, conservatives.

STU: Right.

JEFFY: Yeah.

GLENN: Conservatives were all saying --

PAT: Yeah, we begged you not to.

GLENN: "This is not going to work. This is not going to work."

PAT: My gosh, at the top of our lungs, we were screaming that.

GLENN: Right. Right.

So I think the first thing, we just need to put on the chalkboard, just point number one: Not all of America was behind this --

PAT: In no way would Simon recognize that. But it's a fact.

GLENN: I think he would. I think he would.

PAT: I don't think he would, but we should ask him.

STU: And to back Simon with the stats on that, in 1940, 14.9 percent of college grades were A's. 14.9 percent. Today it's 45.3 percent.

PAT: Yeah, it's even worse in the Ivy League schools. Even worse.

GLENN: They're that much smarter.

STU: They're that much smarter, right.

Think about that, when he talks about people achieving these things without achieving them, I mean, there's no way -- if it's true that they're that much smarter, then the classes should be harder. You shouldn't be giving half the grades an entire -- not just one school or one class, all of college, half of them are A's.

PAT: And we should have the greatest school system in the world year in and year out.

GLENN: In the world. And it doesn't happen that way.

Anyway, he goes on to diagnose the problem.

SIMON: Participation medals. You got a medal for coming in last, right? Which the science we know is pretty clear, which it devalues the medal and the reward for those who actually work hard. And that actually makes the person who comes in last feel embarrassed because they know they don't deserve it. So it actually makes them feel worse. Right?

GLENN: Hello.

SIMON: So you take this group of people. And they graduate school, and they get a job. And they're thrust into the real world.

And in an instant, they find out they're not special. Their moms can't get them a promotion. That you get nothing for coming in last.

And, by the way, you can't just have it because you want it. Right?

And in an instant, their entire self-image is shattered. And so you have an entire generation that's growing up with lower self-esteem than previous generation. The other problem, to compound it is we're growing up in a Facebook, Instagram world. In other words, we're good at putting filters on things. We're good at showing people that life is amazing, even though I'm depressed. Right?

GLENN: Okay. Stop for a second. Notice that the first problem -- he wrapped all of that -- failed parenting strategies. He wrapped that up with the diagnosis of what? What does he say that all led to? This is such a huge, huge problem. What does he say?

PAT: Social media.

GLENN: No. Uh-uh. That's point number two.

PAT: Looking for --

STU: Self-esteem.

PAT: Self-esteem.

GLENN: He said the lowest self-esteem on record.

STU: Which is crazy. Because it seems every strategy today is to make them have higher self-esteem. But it fails.

GLENN: But it fails. Because you're not having to actually accomplish anything.

PAT: Because it's artificial. It's artificial. You can't tell somebody they're great if they're not.

GLENN: They know it.

STU: That's why we can't handle Jeffy.

JEFFY: Good to have you back, boy.

GLENN: When they're on the team and they know that nobody is really listening to me. I'm not -- I'm just on this team for whatever reason. I've got pictures of the boss.

PAT: Uh-huh.

GLENN: People know, "I'm not making a difference. Nothing I do is really helping anything." When you have that, low self-esteem kicks in. They want -- I hear this from employee after employee after employee. I just want to do something that makes a difference.

So when they're saying low self-esteem and when millennials say, "I want to make a difference," what they're saying is, "I have low self-esteem. I have to do something that means something." This is what is propelling them, I believe, in their boots on the ground kind of activities, where they say, I don't want to just talk about it. I want to go out and do it.

They've heard the talk about how special they are their whole life. They know they're not. They know that's a lie. And because of that, they have low self-esteem.

So now they're really motivated to stop talking about it and go actually do it, but getting there is the hard part.

SIMON: Everybody sounds tough, and everybody sounds like they got it all figured out. And the reality is, there's very little toughness, and most people don't have it figured out.

And so when the more senior people say, "Well, what should we do?" They sound like, "This is what you got to do." And they have no clue.

(laughter)

Right?

So you have an entire generation growing up lower self-esteem than previous generations, right? Through no fault of their own. Through no fault of their own. They were dealt a bad hand, right?

Now, let's add in technology. We know that engagement with social media and our cell phone phones releases a chemical called dopamine. That's why when you get a text: It feels good. Right?

So we've all had it where you're feeling a little bit down or feeling a bit lonely. And so you send out ten texts to ten friends. You know, hi, hi, hi, hi. Because it feels good when you get a response, right? Right?

It's why we count the likes. It's why we go back ten times -- and if it's going -- if my Instagram is growing slower, did I do something wrong? Do they not like me anymore?

The trauma for young kids to be unfriended. Right? Because we know when you get it, you get a hit of dopamine, which feels good. It's why we like it. It's why we keep going back to it.

Dopamine is the exact same chemical that makes us feel good when we smoke, when we drink, and when we gamble.

In other words, it's highly, highly addictive. Right?

We have age restrictions on smoking, gambling, and alcohol. And we have no age restrictions on social media and cell phones, which is the equivalent of opening up the liquor cabinet and saying to our teenagers, "Hey, by the way, this adolescence thing, if it gets you down..."

But that's basically what's happening. That's basically what's happening. Right? That's basically what happened. You have an entire generation that has access to an addictive, numbing chemical called dopamine, through social media and cell phones as they're going through the high stress of adolescence. Why is this important?

Almost every alcoholic discovered alcohol when they were teenagers. When we were very, very young, the only approval we need is the approval of our parents. And as we go through adolescence, we make this transition where we now need the approval of our peers.

Very frustrating for our parents, very important for us. It allows us to acculturate outside of our immediate families into the border tribe. Right?

It's a highly, highly stressful and anxious period of our life, and we're supposed to learn to rely on our friends.

Some people, quite by accident, discover alcohol and numbing effects of dopamine to help them copy with the stresses and anxieties of adolescence. Unfortunately, that becomes hard-wired in their brains. And for the rest of their lives, when they suffer significant stress, they will turn to a person. They will turn to the bottle: Social stress, financial stress, career stress. That's pretty much the primary reasons why an alcoholic drinks, right?

What's happening is, because we're allowing unfettered access to these dopamine-producing devices and media, basically it's becoming hardwired.

And what we're seeing is, as they grow older, they -- too many kids don't know how to form deep, meaningful relationships. Their words, not mine.

GLENN: Okay. Stop. Stop.

PAT: Uh-huh.

GLENN: Jeffy say it. Where am I taking that?

JEFFY: Go ahead, Glenn. It's all you.

GLENN: That is exactly -- this -- this adds fuel to the fire of my concern about gaming the way it's being done with virtual reality and what is coming. It is -- it is giving you a full -- soon, a full sensory gratification. You will get what you -- what you want.

JEFFY: No need for any other human.

GLENN: No need for human interaction.

PAT: Yeah. As soon as the --

GLENN: And they won't know how to do it.

PAT: As soon as the VR thing is perfected, it will be the artificial thing they're looking for. But it's just that, it's artificial.

GLENN: So what do -- how do we not become Japan? Seriously, Japan, they can't get people to breed. They cannot get people to have sex with one another.

Now, I don't know what weird stuff is happening in Japan that stops that, but it's not happening in Japan. And they're -- there won't be any Japanese people left, you know, in 100 years.

PAT: Yeah, their replacement rate, is it negative now?

GLENN: It can't be negative.

PAT: It's almost zero. But it certainly -- it's at an unhealthy level for sure.

GLENN: Yeah.

PAT: It's at an extinction rate.

GLENN: Yeah, it's past the point of no return.

PAT: Uh-huh.

GLENN: So when we -- now we're encouraging people not to have relationships.

Now, Saturday, I heard my son -- he was in the kitchen. I was in the kitchen. And he was playing, I don't know, Minecraft or something. And he was playing it with two friends together, and they each had boxes up on the -- you know, up on the screen.

JEFFY: Yeah.

GLENN: They were two girls that he was playing them with. Who were his friends.

And I saw normal interaction. I was listening to them while I was working in the kitchen and listening to them. And it sounded like absolute normal interaction. So what's the problem with that?

I'm trying to diffuse myself from being so phobic about that. He seems to have normal interaction. It's just different. It's just not --

PAT: Third person.

GLENN: But he's still looking at them.

PAT: Yeah. Uh-huh.

STU: I think just, what is normal interaction, changes. It's something we talked about with going to a concert. You go to a concert and all you see are phones. And every person like me or older says the same thing: Why don't you experience the freaking show you paid for instead of filming it?

JEFFY: That is it.

STU: But that is how they experience the show. They don't experience the show by looking at the show. They experience the show by holding up their phone and recording it so they can post it later. That is their experience at a concert.

GLENN: Yes.

PAT: And some artists are starting to push back against that. Right? Was it Adele?

JEFFY: Yeah. She's hollered at her audience before.

PAT: "Would you put the phone down and just watch the show -- enjoy the show. Experience the show."

JEFFY: I would say: You cash the check, I'll watch it any way I want. Sing.

PAT: Yeah. Yeah.

GLENN: I will tell you though that it happens all the time. When I meet people, we'll go out places -- there's one person, if we're in a group, there's one person who I never actually interact with -- usually a parent standing there with a phone, and they're only talking to me through the phone or talking to their child through the phone stop we never make eye contact. And I always feel bad because I feel like they were ripped off.

PAT: Yeah, they missed it. They missed it.

GLENN: They never had that personal connection. They did through the phone.

PAT: But we'll get to experience it later, Glenn.

GLENN: I know. It's weird. It's weird.

PAT: That is weird.

GLENN: Now, this.

Last week, we talked about the coastal buffers and how they weaken hurricanes at landfall. Now scientists are calling this a lucky phenomena. Scientists are discovering how incredibly prepared Mother Nature is for dealing with natural disasters.

By the way, do you remember -- we have to play this. The -- what's her name from -- in Congress from California that said the Sierra Nevada is soon -- like seven years or ten years -- she said this about ten years ago. Won't have snow.

PAT: Is that Boxer?

GLENN: Yeah, it was Barbara Boxer. We have to find that. Because they're about to have 20 feet of snow from the last week and a half. I think they had 3 feet drop on them yesterday alone.

Anyway, Mother Nature is prepared for disasters. If you're caught in a natural disaster like a hurricane or some other emergency, are you prepared to feed your family? My Patriot Supply is there right now with a 72-hour emergency food kit.

Now, this is something that the Department of Homeland Security -- everybody who is reasonable would say, "You should have three days of food." Because we are such a society that runs to the store -- I love that -- we talked about it yesterday when it snowed here in Dallas. It was just flurries yesterday morning here in Dallas. And I see -- I see the flurries. And my kids immediately repeat that viral video from that comedian up in New Jersey. Got to get the milk. Got to get the milk. Got to get the milk.

You see a snowflake, and you realize, "Got to get the milk." Because I've got nothing in my house. 72-hour emergency food kit right now. Ten dollars per family member for three days. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And all the snacks and the drinks and everything else. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner for three days, $10. 800-200-9031. 800-200-9031. Save over 60 percent right now. Ten dollars. Family of four, for 40 bucks. PreparewithGlenn.com. That's preparewithGlenn.com.

(OUT AT 8:23AM)

GLENN: So we've been listening to Simon Sinek talk about the problem that the millennials face. And really, not by their fault. They were raised with bad parenting strategies that many of us have fought against for a long time, and now we realize, "Oh, gee, everybody gets a trophy isn't healthy for society." And so now, how do we get out of this? You want to go to his solution?

PAT: Yeah.

GLENN: Yeah. Here's his solution.

SIMON: Which leads me to the fourth point, which is environment. Which is, we're taking this amazing group of young, fantastic kids who were just dealt a bad hand. It's no fault of their own. And we put them in corporate environments that care more about the numbers than they do about the kids.

GLENN: Okay. Stop for a second.

PAT: I'm sorry. It's not a corporation's responsibility to raise children when they're 32 years old.

JEFFY: When all they care about is making money.

GLENN: Hold on just a second.

PAT: Come on.

GLENN: We may be speaking different languages. So let me go there first.

PAT: I'm speaking English. You are speaking?

GLENN: I'm learning to speak progressive.

(laughter)

GLENN: I'm learning to speak the language that is being spoken all around us.

PAT: Yes, you are. Yes. So how do you put this in a progressive way?

GLENN: So what he's saying here is, I think you're hearing this in a progressive way. I think if I would rephrase --

PAT: Especially knowing him, yeah --

GLENN: I agree. I agree. So let me now say it this way.

First of all, do we generally agree it is their responsibility to fit in the world? The world doesn't -- the world doesn't shapeshift for you.

PAT: Right. The millennials have to fit in.

GLENN: You have to find your way in.

PAT: Yes. Yes.

GLENN: So when he says, at no fault of their own, you can say, yes -- society raised them. Their parents raised them in a certain way. And they were used as guinea pigs to experiment on, something that we took all eternal principles and threw them out the window and said, "Hey, being first is just as good at being last," right?

So through that part, no fault of their own. However, once their life starts to fall apart, it is their responsibility, correct?

PAT: Yeah, there's personal responsibility at every step, right?

GLENN: Every step. But when you're a kid and everything in society is training you to go one way, you generally don't say --

PAT: It's difficult.

GLENN: -- well, that doesn't make sense to me.

STU: Over your life you should reexamine those things, of course.

GLENN: But what does it take for you to reexamine your life?

PAT: It takes a crash. You have to hit a bottom.

GLENN: Something has to go wrong.

STU: The most common.

GLENN: Something has to go wrong. And it could be just as much, I keep getting these trophies, and I feel like crap. I keep getting -- I keep getting everything I want, and I'm not happy at all.

That's the most likely crash. But that crash will lead to suicide.

JEFFY: And that crash is coming.

GLENN: Yes.

JEFFY: He cites some numbers.

GLENN: Suicide. So that crash is a crash of no self-esteem. Because nothing has ever given you self-esteem because you've never been taught what self-esteem comes from. And that is accomplishment. Okay?

PAT: Yeah.

GLENN: Doing something. Even if it is -- it's like -- when you go clean your house or when you were a kid and you cleaned your room, you felt good after cleaning your room.

PAT: Yeah. Even though you didn't want to, to begin with.

GLENN: Correct. There's something to be said for accomplishment.

So now, let me show you what he just said, I think, about, it's the corporation's responsibility. No, it's not.

Well, yes. Kind of, it is. We'll go there next.

The government is WAGING WAR against these 3 basic needs

NICHOLAS KAMM / Contributor | Getty Images

The government has launched a full-on assault against our basic needs, and people are starting to take notice.

As long-time followers of Glenn are probably aware, our right to food, water, and power is under siege. The government no longer cares about our general welfare. Instead, our money lines the pockets of our politicians, funds overseas wars, or goes towards some woke-ESG-climate-Great Reset bullcrap. And when they do care, it's not in a way that benefits the American people.

From cracking down on meat production to blocking affordable power, this is how the government is attacking your basic needs:

Food

Fiona Goodall / Stringer | Getty Images

Glenn had Rep. Thomas Massie on his show where he sounded the alarm about the attack on our food. The government has been waging war against our food since the thirties when Congress passed the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938. They started by setting strict limits on how many crops a farmer could grow in a season and punishing anyone who grew more—even if it was intended for personal use, not for sale on the market. This sort of autocratic behavior has continued into the modern day and has only gotten more draconian. Today, not only are you forced to buy meat that a USDA-approved facility has processed, but the elites want meat in general off the menu. Cow farts are too dangerous to the environment, so the WEF wants you to eat climate-friendly alternatives—like bugs.

Water

ALESSANDRO RAMPAZZO / Contributor | Getty Images

As Glenn discussed during a recent Glenn TV special, the government has been encroaching on our water for years. It all started when Congress passed the Clean Water Act in 1972, which gave the government the ability to regulate large bodies of water. As the name suggests, the act was primarily intended to keep large waterways clear of pollution, but over time it has allowed the feds to assume more and more control over the country's water supply. Most recently, the Biden administration attempted to expand the reach of the Clean Water Act to include even more water and was only stopped by the Supreme Court.

Electricity

David McNew / Staff | Getty Images

Dependable, affordable electricity has been a staple of American life for decades, but that might all be coming to an end. Glenn has discussed recent actions taken by Biden, like orders to halt new oil and gas production and efforts to switch to less efficient sources of power, like wind or solar, the price of electricity is only going to go up. This, alongside his efforts to limit air conditioning and ban gas stoves, it almost seems Biden is attempting to send us back to the Stone Age.

4 signs that PROVE Americans are hitting rock bottom

Spencer Platt / Staff | Getty Images

As we approach the presidential election in November, many Americans are facing dire economic straits.

Glenn has shown time and time again that Bidenomics is a sham, and more Americans than ever are suffering as a result. Still, Biden and his cronies continue to insist that the economy is booming despite the mounting evidence to the contrary. But who is Biden fooling? Since the beginning of the year, gas has gone up an average of 40 cents a gallon nationwide, with some states seeing as much as a 60-cent per gallon increase. And that's just the tip of the iceberg. Foreclosures and bankruptcies are on the rise, evictions are surging, and America is experiencing a record amount of homelessness. We can't survive another Biden term.

Americans across the country are hitting rock bottom, and here are four stats that PROVE it:

Evictions

John Moore / Staff | Getty Images

Across the country, people are being evicted from their homes and apartments. Between 2021 and 2023, evictions increased by 78.6 percent. With inflation driving up prices and employers struggling to raise wages to compensate, rent is taking up an increasingly larger percentage of people's paychecks. Many Americans are having to choose between buying groceries and paying rent.

Foreclosures

Justin Sullivan / Staff | Getty Images

Renters aren't the only ones struggling to make their monthly payments, foreclosures are on the rise. This February saw a 5 percent increase in foreclosures from last year and a 10 percent increase from January. More and more Americans are losing their homes and businesses.

Bankruptcies

Chris Hondros / Staff | Getty Images

High interest rates and inflation have driven bankruptcies through the roof. Total filings have risen 13 percent and business bankruptcies rose 30 percent in 2023. It's getting harder and harder for businesses to stay afloat, and with California's new law requiring most restaurants to pay all employees a minimum of $20 an hour, you can expect that number to keep climbing.

Homelessness

FREDERIC J. BROWN / Contributor | Getty Images

The result of all of these issues is that it is getting harder and harder for Americans to afford the basic necessities. January of 2023 saw a record-breaking 650,000+ homeless Americans, a 12 percent jump from the previous year. More Americans have hit rock bottom than ever before.

Stop blaming Gen Z for the problems WE created

Editor's note: This article was originally published on TheBlaze.com.

I want to talk to Generation Z. I’ve seen some clips of you complaining about your 9-to-5 jobs on social media and how life is really hard right now. To be honest, my first reaction was, “Suck it up, buttercup. This is what life is really like.” In a sense, that’s true. But in another sense, I think you’re getting a bad rap. You are facing unique problems that my generation didn’t face — problems that my generation had a hand in creating.

But I also think you don’t understand the cause of these problems.

I would hate to be in your position. When I was your age, we didn’t have to deal with any of the challenges you’re facing. In one sense, your life has been tough. At the same time, compared to previous generations, your life has been very easy. Everybody was rushing to save you, to protect you. You were coddled, which makes your life harder now.

You’ve grown up with social media and the definition of narcissism: somebody gazing into the pond looking at themselves all the time. I don't mean this as an offense, and I am not just including you in this. We’ve become a culture of narcissists. It’s all about “me, me, me, me.”

If you end up thinking more collectivism is the solution, then you haven't done enough homework.

You’ve been in territory that my generation never had to enter. You’ve already navigated a landscape that we didn't have to, where nothing is true, and you can’t trust anybody. I wouldn’t trust anybody either if I were in your position. But I do know a few things to be true and a couple of things I can trust.

First, life is worth it. Life is tough, but it is worth it in the end.

Second, life is not about stuff. As a guy who is kind of a pack rat, I can tell you that none of that stuff will create happiness in your life. In fact, I think your generation has a better handle on happiness in some ways than anybody in mine. You’re starting to realize that pharmaceuticals may not be as good as natural solutions in a lot of situations, that the huge house may not be as satisfying as just having a smaller house, that living your life instead of having to work all the time may be a better way to live.

I want to talk to those of you who feel like it’s not worth even trying to go to work because you’ll never get anywhere. You work 40 hours a week or more, and you still can't afford a place to live. You’re still living with your parents. You can’t afford food. I think you're right to feel frustrated because the problems you're facing weren't always the case.

I blame a lot of the current problems we’re facing today on the hippies. That may be wrong, but I hate hippies. Hippies have been screwing things up since the 1960s. While on their socialist march, they have become everything that they said they were against: lying, greedy politicians. They just won’t let go of their power even though their time has passed.

These are the people who have come up with policies that make you feel like this is the way the world is. I hope I can convince you that it doesn’t have to be this way. This isn’t the way our country has always been. We don’t have to keep these people in power. Actions have consequences. Votes have consequences. These people allow crime, looters, squatters, riots, and somebody needs to pay for that.

You say you can’t afford health care. I understand. Since Obamacare passed, the cost of individual health insurance has doubled. You need to remember that politicians promised that if we passed this massive health care overhaul, it would mean a savings of $2,500 per family. You're in school. You must know that $2,500 savings is not the same as an 80% increase. Moreover, the cost of hospital stays is up 210%. I understand when you say you can't afford health care at these costs. Who could afford health care? Who could afford insurance?

The generation coming of age is right to feel frustrated.This mess — with high costs and a massive debt burden — was not of their making.

Iwant to talk to Generation Z. I’ve seen some clips of you complaining about your 9-to-5 jobs on social media and how life is really hard right now. To be honest, my first reaction was, “Suck it up, buttercup. This is what life is really like.” In a sense, that’s true. But in another sense, I think you’re getting a bad rap. You are facing unique problems that my generation didn’t face — problems that my generation had a hand in creating.

But I also think you don’t understand the cause of these problems.

If you end up thinking more collectivism is the solution, then you haven't done enough homework.

I would hate to be in your position. When I was your age, we didn’t have to deal with any of the challenges you’re facing. In one sense, your life has been tough. At the same time, compared to previous generations, your life has been very easy. Everybody was rushing to save you, to protect you. You were coddled, which makes your life harder now.

You’ve grown up with social media and the definition of narcissism: somebody gazing into the pond looking at themselves all the time. I don't mean this as an offense, and I am not just including you in this. We’ve become a culture of narcissists. It’s all about “me, me, me, me.”

You’ve been in territory that my generation never had to enter. You’ve already navigated a landscape that we didn't have to, where nothing is true, and you can’t trust anybody. I wouldn’t trust anybody either if I were in your position. But I do know a few things to be true and a couple of things I can trust.

First, life is worth it. ≈

Second, life is not about stuff. As a guy who is kind of a pack rat, I can tell you that none of that stuff will create happiness in your life. In fact, I think your generation has a better handle on happiness in some ways than anybody in mine. You’re starting to realize that pharmaceuticals may not be as good as natural solutions in a lot of situations, that the huge house may not be as satisfying as just having a smaller house, that living your life instead of having to work all the time may be a better way to live.

I want to talk to those of you who feel like it’s not worth even trying to go to work because you’ll never get anywhere. You work 40 hours a week or more, and you still can't afford a place to live. You’re still living with your parents. You can’t afford food. I think you're right to feel frustrated because the problems you're facing weren't always the case.

I blame a lot of the current problems we’re facing today on the hippies. That may be wrong, but I hate hippies. Hippies have been screwing things up since the 1960s. While on their socialist march, they have become everything that they said they were against: lying, greedy politicians. ≈

These are the people who have come up with policies that make you feel like this is the way the world is. I hope I can convince you that it doesn’t have to be this way. This isn’t the way our country has always been. We don’t have to keep these people in power. Actions have consequences. Votes have consequences. These people allow crime, looters, squatters, riots, and somebody needs to pay for that.

If you end up thinking more collectivism is the solution, then you haven't done enough homework.

You say you can’t afford health care. I understand. Since Obamacare passed, the cost of individual health insurance has doubled. You need to remember that politicians promised that if we passed this massive health care overhaul, it would mean a savings of $2,500 per family. You're in school. You must know that $2,500 savings is not the same as an 80% increase. Moreover, the cost of hospital stays is up 210%. I understand when you say you can't afford health care at these costs. Who could afford health care? Who could afford insurance?

You are also starting your life with thousands of dollars in debt. Your parents didn't have that burden. People used to be able to work their way through college and graduate debt-free. Others were able to get jobs that quickly paid off their debt. You can't do that now. Once the government said that they were going to guarantee all student loans, university costs skyrocketed, and it hasn't stopped. You can thank the progressive President Lyndon B. Johnson for that.

The people who created this mess cannot fix it. But it can be fixed.

You are also starting your life with thousands of dollars in debt. Your parents didn't have that burden. People used to be able to work their way through college and graduate debt-free. Others were able to get jobs that quickly paid off their debt. You can't do that now. Once the government said that they were going to guarantee all student loans, university costs skyrocketed, and it hasn't stopped. You can thank the progressive President Lyndon B. Johnson for that.

Once the government said that they were going to guarantee everybody’s college tuition, universities found out that they could just charge more because the government would give you virtually any amount in your loan. And they have been charging more and more ever since. In 1965, the average college tuition was $450 a year. Adjusted to inflation, that's $4,000 a year. You're currently paying an average of $26,000 a year as opposed to the inflation-adjusted $4,000.

What happened? The answer is always the same: government regulations. Gas is up. Why? Government regulations. Can't afford a house? Well, that's due to several things. Many of them revolve around the fed and our national debt. But the simple answer is the same: government regulations.

Moreover, the U.S. government has run a staggering national debt. We have been concerned about it forever, but the people in power haven't been listening to your mom and dad and people like me. A lot of other people just thought, "Oh, well. We could get away with it. We're the United States of America, after all. Somehow or another, it will all work out."

People like me have been saying, "No. We can't pass this on to our children." You're now seeing what we have passed on. When you say that the adults are responsible for creating this world of problems, in some ways, you’re right. We were lied to, and as many people do, they want to believe the lie because it makes them feel better.

There are big lies being pushed in your generation as well. You're being told that a man is a woman and a woman is a man. At the same time, you’re being told that gender doesn't even exist at all. It makes us feel better to go along with the lie because we don't want to hurt anyone's feelings.

My generation believed the same kind of lie about our national debt. We were told that we could spend all this money on subsidized programs because it would provide you, our children, with a better life. Some people warned, "Wait, how will they pay this off? This will cost them." We didn't want to believe them. The lie sounded better, and it was easier to believe that than the truth. We never saw the consequences, and even if we did, they were always way out in the future. Nobody wanted to listen to the doomsday people saying, "No. It's going to come faster than you think."

And that time is right now. Our government now is printing $1 trillion every 100 days. That's never been done before. We have more debt than any country has ever had in the history of the world. But we’re not alone. Every country is doing this. They’re going into debt like we’ve never seen before, and we’re all about to pay for that. It’s going to make your life even harder.

There are Democrats and Republicans who still believe in spending all kinds of money and getting us involved in every global conflict. Then there are constitutional conservatives who believe that we should conserve the things that have worked and throw out the things that don’t and follow our Constitution and Bill of Rights. You haven't really learned about those most likely. But you should. All of our problems are caused by the government and the people who feel they can bypass the Constitution. That's what this election is really all about.

You might say, “I don’t really care. I don’t like either of the political parties.” I know a lot of people who don’t like either of them, but one is going to try to cut the size of this government and one is going to spend us into collapse.

The people who created this mess cannot fix it. But it can be fixed. You need to learn enough about the truth, about why this has happened to us, and about how our Constitution lasted longer than any other Constitution in the world. The average is 17 years. This thing has lasted hundreds of years. Why? How? And why is it falling apart today? That's what you should dedicate some of your time to figuring out today.

You can complain about the way things are. I complain. Everybody complains. But don't wallow there. Learn what caused this. And if you end up thinking more collectivism is the solution, then you haven't done enough homework. They always end the same way, and that's exactly where we're headed right now. We can either repeat the dreadful past of nations that have tried it before us, or we can choose freedom, liberty, and prosperity. The ball is in our court.

Government's SECRET crackdown on preppers threatens YOUR right to grow food

Glenn recently had Representative Thomas Massie on his show to sound the alarm about an important yet often overlooked issue affecting what we eat. Whether you're trying to be prepared to weather a catastrophe or just trying to keep food on the table without resorting to eating bugs, it's more important now than ever to source local food. Unnoticed by most, our right to eat home-grown or locally-sourced foods is under attack. The government doesn't just want a say in what you eat; they want you vulnerable and dependent on their system, and they are massively overstepping their bounds to ensure your compliance with their goals.

How did the attack on your food begin?

Government overreach on food can be traced back to 1938 under the autocratic eye of FDR with the Supreme Court case "Wickard v. Filburn." The case was pretty straightforward, but the results were devastating. The case began with the Agricultural Adjustment Act of 1938, which sought to control national food prices by placing limitations on how many crops farmers could grow in a season.

Filburn was one such farmer, who was allotted 11.1 acres of wheat to plant and harvest annually. Filburn planted and harvested 23 acres, arguing that the extra acres were not headed for the market, but were used for personal consumption. After being penalized for over-harvesting, he fought his case all the way up to the Supreme Court, arguing that Congress did not have the authority to regulate crops that never left his farm.

Unfortunately for Filburn (and the rest of us), the Supreme Court didn't agree. They ruled that the mere existence of that extra wheat—whether it left Filburn's farm or not—had an effect on the national value of wheat. Congress assumed the power to regulate just about anything that could be roped under the umbrella of "interstate commerce."

Under the precedent set by Wickard v. Filburn, Congress might bar you from growing tomatoes in your backyard, because it could affect national tomato prices. This was a major blow to our right to feed ourselves, and that right has been eroding ever since.

How is our right to feed ourselves under attack today?

Last June, the Virginia Department of Agriculture shut down Golden Valley Farms, a small Amish farm owned and operated by Samuel B. Fisher in Farmville, Virginia. Golden Valley Farms had started out selling dairy products, primarily, and processed some meat for personal consumption. However, by popular demand, Fisher began selling meat.

Fisher initially hauled his animals to a USDA processing plant, paid to have them processed, and then hauled them back. This process was time-consuming and costly, and Fisher's customers didn't want the meat processed by the plant. A survey done on Golden Valley Farms customers found that an overwhelming 92 percent preferred meat processed by Fisher. So naturally, Fisher began to process more and more meat for his customers.

Moreover, COVID shut down the USDA plant, which made it impossible for Fisher to process the animals by the USDA anyway, though the demand for meat was greater than ever. Fisher made the call to process 100 percent of his animals himself and didn't look back. That was until June when the Virginia Department of Agriculture caught wind of Fisher's operation and shut it down. The VDA seized all of Fisher's products, and he wasn't allowed to process, sell, or even eat his meat. Then they loaded it up in a truck and left it at the dump to rot.

Nobody ever got sick from eating meat from Golden Valley Farms. This was NOT about "health and safety." This was about control. The fact is that informed adults were not allowed to make a simple transaction without the government sticking its slimy fingers into Fisher's business and claiming it was somehow for "our benefit." But it's not for "our benefit." It's so they can regulate and control what we buy and what we eat, and they cannot stand it when we operate outside of their influence.

What comes next?

Where does this end? With so much of our ability to feed ourselves already eroded, is it too late? Is it going to get worse? Before long, will it be illegal to eat eggs from your chickens or pick vegetables from your garden without getting government clearance first? Fortunately, a solution is already in the works.

Kentucky Representative Thomas Massie recently told Glenn about a new constitutional amendment designed to limit government overreach regarding food production. The proposed amendment reads as follows:

And Congress shall make no law, regulating the production and distribution of food products, which do not move across state lines.

The amendment is still on the drawing board and has not been formally introduced to Congress yet. But this is where you come in. Call your representative and tell them to support Massie's amendment and take a stand for your right to provide sustenance for you and your family.