How to Stop the Seismic Cultural Shift Threatening the Next Generation

March 15, 2017

WRITER

America is facing a moral and cultural crisis like never before. In his new book, Fault Line: How a Seismic Shift in Culture is Threatening Free Speech and Shaping the Next Generation, author and journalist Billy Hallowell explores the battle being waged against our foundation through the mainstream media, the entertainment industry and the educational system. He also offers practical steps for all Christians to take and provides advice on how to respond to these growing problems. Hallowell joined Glenn Wednesday on radio for a lively discussion.

Listen to this segment from The Glenn Beck Program:

GLENN: I'm going to look something up here. I'm looking -- I'm reading Billy Holloway's book Fault Line. And he says how to be able to solve this, one, you have to be informed. I think we're informed on this story.

PAT: Yes.

JEFFY: We are.

PAT: I think so.

GLENN: Then don't tell me what you believe, live what you believe. What are your values and beliefs?

PAT: Okay.

JEFFY: We put on the red, white, and blue flag. We believe in America, amen.

GLENN: Okay. Got to make sure you're living it.

PAT: Right.

GLENN: So the people that were wearing the red, white, and blue, they were living what they believe. It wasn't about -- it was team spirit for their school. Why is it that somebody else is -- why is there a problem here? Most likely because people on the other side took offense. That was coming from them. Not from the other side.

PAT: Right.

GLENN: They took offense to it because they weren't informed on the subject. They didn't know these guys did this all the time. And they're not living their principles of, I am a refugee from a very oppressed place, and I'm coming to the United States for shelter.

PAT: And the United States is taking me in. So I should enjoy seeing those --

GLENN: Hello. I'm grateful that I live in a place with diversity.

PAT: Yeah. How about the fact that I'm at a basketball game looking at other students wearing red, White, and blue, rather than I'm looking out the window at an ISIS fighter slicing the head off of somebody? How about that?

GLENN: All right. All right. All right. All right. Okay. I got it.

Let me -- can I get Billy Hallowell on?

Billy Hallowell has a new book called Fault Line: How a Seismic Shift in Culture is Threatening Free Speech and Shaping the Next Generation.

This is really important to pay attention to. Because the facts and figures in this book are accurate. And they are going to fundamentally transform us. Billy, welcome to the program.

BILLY: Hey, thanks for having me.

GLENN: So let's go to -- you talk about in the book, you say, you know, one of the biggest faults we have -- and I don't want to misquote you, but basically that it is the line between being tolerant and being relative. And we have slid into moral relativism, where we need to be tolerant, but it has been used against us. How do we -- first, give me the facts or the stats on this. And then tell me how to fix that.

BILLY: Yeah, we've got over half of the country saying that it's up to cultures to figure out what they think is moral. Right? So there's this baseline of morality that's completely gone. I mean, the majority of us are saying, oh, you just have to decide for yourself what you believe to be true. And that's specifically true with millennials. Fifty-one percent of millennials believe that truth is relative. So you have a big problem there.

And so that's sort of the starting point. How do we fix it? Well, you've got to acknowledge the problem first, which is that the Hollywood content we've seen, media universities, all three of those have really reshaped the culture. We've allowed that to happen. And we've allowed that to happen because so many of us have disengaged.

So my big solution to this, and this is from a 30,000 foot level in fault line is that we've got to get engaged. We have to make good Hollywood content. We have to make -- you know, get involved in media. We've got to be professors. We've got to be out there. People who are Christians, conservatives, people who are complaining -- you know, it's great to complain, but what are you going to do to fix the problem?

PAT: Yeah, we got to -- we have to make an impact in the culture. It's interesting that you note in the book, Billy, that 35 percent of millennials have no faith whatsoever. They're atheist or agnostics. Is it 35 percent?

BILLY: So that number, in fact -- and it's crazy because every two years, you know, a new study will come out. It was 2015 that Pew first came out saying it was about 34, 35 percent.

PAT: Wow.

BILLY: Now we've got a poll out saying it's about 39 percent. Now, those people are -- and here's sort of the hope. They're atheist, agnostic, or just unaffiliated. And the biggest chunk are unaffiliated.

But those are the people who we're going to lose, right? If we don't go out there and bring the message to them, we're going to totally lose them.

But the hope is, hey, they're not agnostic, they're not atheist. They believe in something. But because of this chaos that we've created in culture and that we've allowed, they're just not sure what that is. So would he give you to get that message to them.

GLENN: But, Billy, I think the churches are approaching -- most of the churches -- many of the churches are approaching these things all wrong. They're still coming at it with the -- with the -- with the same style of message. The message has to remain true. But the same style of message. And if -- if it's not the same style, it's just the -- the same kind of almost judgmental message. Except now it has, you know, fog machines and -- and rock bands behind it. People are not -- millennials are not interested in talk. They're interested in, show me the results. Do it.

BILLY: Absolutely. And so we've got a lot of Christian actors, which is great, right? A lot of Christian journalists, which is wonderful. But we need actors who are Christian, directors who are Christian. I mean, look at Hacksaw Ridge. Look at some of these films that tell really good stories. And I think Christian moviemaking is great. God's Not Dead. All that is fine. If you want to preach to the choir, that's great. But that is not going to solve this problem. We have got -- I know you've talked about this a lot over the years. We have got to get engaged.

And I think the whole point here, you know, with this book is to show the problem, right? These numbers -- you mention the statistics. A lot of us don't know. We kind of have a feeling that Hollywood is off. The media is off. Universities are off. We see these anecdotal examples. But we don't really have the data.

And I wanted to really put that data out there and sort of show that there's this triangular dominance and sort of what I call this progressive privilege that has existed in these areas for too long. And, yes, we've got to complain about that, like I said. But we have to figure out how to tell the stories and do it in a way that reaches people and shows them, not just tells them, the message.

STU: There was a video that came out, it went viral, Billy, right after the -- after the election, that I saw a lot of people posting. And it was -- you know, a lot of the left was kind of coming out and saying, how could this have happened, Donald Trump won. Here's a guy who, you know, said he was going to grab women in ways and look how crass he is. How is this -- the culture allow this. The culture is getting so much more crass.

And this person pointed out, hey, wait a minute. Have you guys noticed that every piece of our culture -- forget the president -- every piece of our culture has become more and more crass over a long period of time, and it's been cheered on by the left.

And you really go through that in the book, in that the development -- as we've gone through on television and movies, has become much more advanced to that -- the anti-faith sort of side. And many people haven't even noticed it.

BILLY: Well, and that's why, you've got to look at the numbers, from like 2007, 2002, to 2014 and 2016. When you look at what Gallup has measured and others have measured. I mean, moral acceptability on so many issues.

Even -- even polygamy, you go down the line, it's insane, because of the relativism, what people are now willing to accept. We've got, you know, 67 percent of the country saying that having a baby, you know, outside of marriage is morally acceptable. Seventy-two percent, saying divorce is morally acceptable.

And these numbers have changed dramatically, even within the last decade, decade and a half. And we have been pushing -- we have allowed this to be pushed out. We haven't been effective in our messaging.

And I think, you know, Fault Line really kind of leaves people convicted a little bit. And I hope, you know, it has us thinking, how can we do this? Not all of us can be directors, actors, you know, professors. But, you know, we have to figure out how -- how we can at least encourage people, good people who have their values in check, to enter into these arenas.

GLENN: I have to tell you though, Billy, the answer really is living it ourself.

Look, Donald Trump -- you can blame Donald Trump on a lot of things if you want to talk just about him to the left. You know, they try to, "Well, you take responsibility for him." You know who Donald Trump is? Donald Trump is the first Howard Stern president. That's what he is.

PAT: Hmm.

GLENN: He's a guest on Howard Stern that loved Howard Stern. Played hard. And we all laughed. And we all thought it was great. And some stood against and said, "No, this is immoral. This is wrong." And those people were driven out of society because they have sticks up their butt. But this became the mainstream culture.

And, look, that's just how guys talk. Yes, they do talk that way. On Howard Stern.

And now we seem to have a problem. The left does. Because they don't -- they don't like that.

Well, okay. But you -- you were fine with it. You were totally fine with it in Hollywood. If anyone dare says like clean films -- or clean pure flicks, whatever that is, where they want to edit and make things less crass, how dare you don't touch my art.

BILLY: Well, they've created this environment.

GLENN: Right.

BILLY: They've created this very environment, which is so fascinating to me. Everything that Donald Trump has represented and everything that both candidates represented in the general is basically what they have created.

And so they're kind of relishing in that and trying to figure out, you know, well, how did we get here? Well, turn on prime time TV, and you'll figure out how we got here. There's nothing you can watch with your kids outside of The Middle and maybe a couple of other shows. So...

GLENN: We tried to say that this is why character matters in the '90s when the women's organizations were defending Bill Clinton as just a rogue.

No, that's like saying what Donald Trump said, well, that's all the way men -- no. If that is the way men behaved, men shouldn't behave that way. Those are boys that behave that. Men do not behave that way. But it requires us to be consistent. And I like this about your book.

You know, you talk about how most people can't even tell you what they believe. 95 percent of Christians, according to Billy in his book, cannot tell you what they believe. Well, that's a real problem.

The first thing we need to do is figure out what we believe. And then live it.

BILLY: Absolutely. Living it out. That's the example we set, right? So we've got to do that. And we've got to encourage other people, particularly millennials, because that's the generation this most impacts. Although, I'm sure the generation behind them will be hit even harder by this. We've got to figure out how to have that presence. But doing it by living it first, I think is the most important. And that's what I encourage in Fault Line. And people can get more information at HallowellFaultLineBook.com.

GLENN: Billy Hallowell. The name of the book again is Fault Line. Billy wrote for TheBlaze for a long time. And I'm so proud of you. And proud of your success and to see where you're going. Thank you for everything you're doing. Billy Hallowell.

BILLY: Thank you, appreciate it.

GLENN: The name of the book again is Fault Line.

Critical theory destroys truth and justice

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

Critical theory once stood out as the absurd progressive notion that it is. Now, its maxims are becoming an integral part of ordinary political discourse. The more you repeat a lie, the more you will believe it, and this is the very dangerous place in which we find ourselves today.

Take this critical theory maxim as an example: If we desire justice, we must sometimes champion what may appear superficially as injustice. It's a necessary evil, if you will, the necessity of “controlled injustice.”

By using truth through fabrication and controlled injustice for justice, we’ll save the republic. We’ll be acting in a noble way.

This definition of justice is defined by the “oppressed,” not the “oppressor.” It is the greatest happiness for the greatest number. To achieve this justice, however, we need to endorse acts on occasion that, while seemingly unjust, serve a higher purpose. It will ensure the stability and the unity of our republic, and this may manifest in ways that seem contradictory to our values. But these are the necessary shadows to cast light on “true justice.”

And isn’t that what we are all after, anyway?

Here’s another critical theory maxim: Sometimes we find the truth through fabrication. Our pursuit of truth sometimes requires a strategic use of falsehoods. The truth is a construct that has been shaped and tailored to promote the well-being of the collective.

We sometimes need to accept and propagate lies designed by "the system” — not the old system, but the system that we’re now using to replace the old to get more justice through injustice and more truth through fabrication.

We’re engaging in a higher form of honesty. When we fabricate, it’s for the right reason. We are reaching up to the heavens fighting for a higher sort of honesty. To fortify the truth, we occasionally must weave a tapestry of lies. Each thread, essential for the greater picture, will ultimately define our understanding and ensure our unity under this infallible wisdom.

The election is coming up. Does this maxim sound familiar? Many think it is imperative that we secure our republic through election control to maintain our republic. Sometimes, we might need to take actions that by traditional standards might be questionable.

The act of securing elections requires cheating. It's not mere deception. It is a noble act of safeguarding our way of life. We're on the verge of losing this democracy, and without deception, we will lose it.

To ensure it doesn't fall into the hands of those we know will destroy it, we may have to make a few fabrications. We're fabricating stories to be able to control or secure the republic through our elections. By using truth through fabrication and controlled injustice for justice, we'll save the republic. Therefore, we'll be acting in a noble way. Stealing an election from those who wish to harm our society is truly an act of valor and an essential measure to protect our values and ensure the continuation of our just society.

If we desire justice, we must sometimes champion what may appear superficially as injustice.

I know it's a paradox of honor through dishonor. But in this context, by embracing the dishonor, we achieve the highest form of honor, ensuring the stability and the continuation of our great republic.

Let this be heard, far and wide, as a great call to patriotic action. As we advance, let each of us, citizens of this great and honorable republic, consider these principles. Not as abstract or paradoxical but as practical guides to daily life. Embrace the necessity of controlled injustice, the utility of lies, the duty to secure our electoral process, and the honor and apparent dishonor. These are not merely strategies for survival. They are prerequisites for our prosperity.

We all have to remember that justice is what our leaders define, that truth is what our party tells us. Our republic stands strong on the values of injustice for justice, honor through dishonor, and the fabrication of truths. To deviate from this path is to jeopardize the very fabric of our society. Strength through unity; unity through strength.

We've heard this nonsense for so long. But now, this nonsense is becoming an instituted reality, and we are entering perilous times. Don't be fooled by the narratives you will hear during the march to November. Never let someone convince you that the ends justify the means, that a little bit of injustice is needed to achieve a broader, collective vision of justice, that truth sometimes requires fabricated lies and narratives. If we do, justice will cease to be justice, truth will cease to be truth, and our republic will be lost.

Top 5 MOST EVIL taxes the government extorts from you

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"In this world nothing is certain but death and taxes." -Ben Franklin

The injustice of taxation has been a core issue for Americans since the very beginning of our country, and it's a problem we have yet to resolve. This belief was recently reignited in many Americans earlier this month on tax day when the numbers were crunched and it was discovered that the government was somehow owed even more hard-earned money. As Glenn recently discussed on his show, it's getting to be impossible for most Americans to afford to live comfortably, inflation is rising, and our politicians keep getting richer.

The taxpayer's burden is heavier than ever.

The government is not above some real low blows either. While taxes are a necessary evil, some taxes stretch the definition of "necessary" and emphasize the "evil." Here are the top five most despicable taxes that are designed to line the IRS coffers at your expense:

Income Tax

Joe Raedle / Staff | Getty Images

"It would be a hard government that should tax its people one-tenth part of their income." -Ben Franklin

On February 24th, 2024 we hit a very unfortunate milestone, the 101st anniversary of the 16th Amendment, which authorized federal income tax. Where does the government get the right to steal directly out of your paycheck?

Death Taxes

Dan Mullan / Staff | Getty Images

"Now my advice for those who die, Declare the pennies on your eyes" -George Harrison

Not even in death can you escape the cold pursuit of the tax collector. It's not good enough that you have to pay taxes on everything you buy and every penny you make your entire life. Now the feds want a nice slice, based on the entire value of your estate, that can be as much as 40 percent. Then the state government gets to stick their slimy fingers all over whatever remains before your family is left with the crumbs. It's practically grave-robbery.

Payroll

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"The power to tax is the power to destroy." -John Marshall

What's that? The nice chunk of your paycheck the government nabs before you can even get it to the bank wasn't enough? What if the government taxed your employer just for paying you? In essence, you make less than what your agreed pay rate is and it costs your employer more! Absolutely abominable.

Social Security

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"We don't have a trillion-dollar debt because we haven't taxed enough; we have a trillion-dollar debt because we spend too much." -Ronald Reagan

Everyone knows the collapse of Social Security is imminent. It has limped along for years, only sustained by a torrent of tax dollars and the desperate actions of politicians. For decades, people have unwillingly forked over money into the system they will never see again.

FICA

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"What at first was plunder assumed the softer name of revenue." -Thomas Paine

FICA is the payroll equivalent of Social Security. Your employer has to match however much you pay. It means it costs your employer even more to pay you—again, you'll NEVER see that money. At this point, are you even working for yourself, or are you just here to generate money for the government to frivolously throw away?

5 DISTURBING ways World War III will be different from previous wars

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Has World War III begun?

Over the weekend, Iran launched an unprecedented attack against Israel involving over 300 missiles and drones. This marked the first direct attack on Israel originating from Iranian territory. Fortunately, according to an Israel Defense Forces spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, 99 percent of missiles and drones were successfully neutralized by Israeli defense systems. Iran claimed that the operation against Israel had concluded and that no further offensive was planned, although the possibility of another attack is still present.

This has left many people, including Glenn, wondering the same thing: did we just witness the start of World War III?

Glenn recently had a World War II Air Force Veteran as a guest on his TV special, who told stories of the horrors he and his brothers-in-arms faced in the skies over war-torn Europe. This was a timely reminder of the terrors of war and a warning that our future, if it leads to another world war, is a dark one.

But, if Glenn's coverage of the Iranian attack revealed one thing, it's that World War III will look nothing like the world wars of the twentieth century. Long gone are the days of John "Lucky" Luckadoo and his "Bloody Hundredth" bravely flying their B-17s into battle. Over the weekend, we saw hundreds of autonomous drones and missiles clashing with extreme speed and precision over several different fronts (including space) simultaneously. This ain't your grandfather's war.

From EMP strikes to cyber attacks, here are FIVE ways the face of war has changed:

EMP attacks

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The entire modern world, on every level, is completely dependent on electricity. From your home refrigerator to international trade, the world would come to a grinding halt without power. And as Glenn has pointed out, it wouldn't even be that hard to pull off. All it would take is 3 strategically placed, high-altitude nuclear detonations and the entire continental U.S. would be without power for months if not years. This would cause mass panic across the country, which would be devastating enough on its own, but the chaos could be a perfect opportunity for a U.S. land invasion.

Nuclear strikes

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Nuclear war is nothing new. Many of us grew up during the Cold War, built fallout shelters, and learned to duck and cover. But times have changed. The Berlin Wall fell and so did the preparedness of the average American to weather a nuclear attack. As technology has advanced, more of our adversaries than ever have U.S. cities within their crosshairs, and as Glenn has pointed out, these adversaries are not exactly shy about that fact. Unfortunately, the possibility of an atomic apocalypse is as real as ever.

Immigration warfare

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The strategy of strangling an opposing nation's economy to gain the upper hand is a wartime tactic as old as time. That's why the Border Crisis is so alarming. What better way to damage an opponent's economy than by overburdening it with millions of undocumented immigrants? As Glenn has covered, these immigrants are not making the trek unaided. There is a wide selection of organizations that facilitate this growing disaster. These organizations are receiving backing from around the globe, such as the WEF, the UN, and U.S. Democrats! Americans are already feeling the effects of the border crisis. Imagine how this tactic could be exploited in war.

Cyber shutdowns

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Cyber attacks will be a major tactic in future wars. We've already experienced relatively minor cyber strikes from Russia, China, and North Korea, and it is a very real possibility that one of our adversaries inflicts a larger attack with devastating consequences on the United States. In fact, the WEF has already predicted a "catastrophic" cyber attack is imminent, and Glenn suggests that it is time to start preparing ourselves. A cyber attack could be every bit as devastating as an EMP, and in a world run by computers, nothing is safe.

Biological assault

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Don't trust the "experts." That was the takeaway many of us had from the pandemic, but something less talked about is the revelation that China has manufactured viruses that are capable of spreading across the globe. We now know that the lab leak hypothesis is true and that the Wuhan lab manufactured the virus that infected the entire world. That was only ONE virus from ONE lab. Imagine what else the enemies of America might be cooking up.

The government is WAGING WAR against these 3 basic needs

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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

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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