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Glenn's Show Prep

Morning Brief 2022-06-07

June 07, 2022
Chris Brady

Top of Hour 2
GUEST: Alex Berenson
TOPIC: Discussing his lawsuit against Twitter for banning him for 'COVID misinformation.'

Top of Hour 3
GUEST: Brad Meltzer
TOPIC: Discussing his two newest books: 'I am Dolly Parton' & 'I am I.M. Pei'

CB, JB, SK, RR

Domestic News...

Biden's America: Germany airlifts baby formula to Texas
A plane carrying more than 110,000 pounds of specialty baby formula from Germany is expected to land in Fort Worth later this week.

From firebombing protesters to lying FBI agents, a two-tier justice system sharpens in focus
While holding firm in its promise to prosecute J6 offenders to the max, Biden's Justice Department made a curious move last week. It withdrew its own plea deal with two lawyers accused of using Molotov cocktails during George Floyd riots in NYC and allowed the defendants to plea to different charges that carried less prison time.

Proud Boys charged with ‘seditious conspiracy’ related to Capitol riot
Prosecutors said they had encouraged people to attend the "Stop the Steal" rally, obtained concealed tactical vests, protective equipment, and radio equipment, dressed “incognito”, lead the crowd onto Capitol grounds, stormed past barricades and “assaulting law enforcement officers.”

Adams calls NYC’s criminal justice system ‘laughingstock of our entire country’
Adams lashed out at prosecutors and judges Monday for cutting loose suspected shooters to unleash more gunfire on the Big Apple’s streets — saying the “bad guys no longer take them seriously.”

NY Gov restricts gun ownership to 21 and up, bars citizens from buying body armor, bulletproof vests
Unelected New York Governor Kathy Hochul also signed a law establishing a "task force on social media and violent extremism" which requires those suspected of "bias-related violence and intimidation" to be reported to authorities.

Pols ignore mass shootings we can do something about: gang violence
It doesn’t make any sense to strike a pose against gun violence in general without taking on this scourge in particular — unless striking the pose is the point.

New York Officials Fear Supreme Court Ruling Will Mean More Gun Crime
Across the city and state, authorities are bracing for a ruling, expected from the United States Supreme Court this month, which could strike down a century-old New York State law that places strict limits on the carrying of handguns.

Video shows man violently toss woman onto Bronx subway tracks
Newly released video captured the horrifying moment a man violently tossed a 52-year-old woman onto the subway tracks in the Bronx on Sunday.

Far-left Philly DA blames NRA for shooting
But the mayor says there is 'no price to pay for carrying illegal guns'

9 Big Things We Learned From The Michael Sussmann Prosecution
While we have learned much from the Sussmann prosecution, we still don’t know whether Durham intends to hold the Crossfire Hurricane team responsible.

Soros spent $40 million to elect 75 ‘social justice’ prosecutors: Report
Soros and his groups have helped to elect prosecutors in whose cities jailings have plummeted and crime has surged.

Babylon Bee: Emperor Palpatine Builds A Bigger, Even More Powerful Death Star Equipped With A 9mm
The Death Star's blast is now said to be so powerful it can blow the core out of a planet.

Politics...

Biden wants to get out more, seething that his standing is now worse than Trump’s
Frustrations are mounting and the window for a political revival is closing.

Radar Online: White House Refuses To Comment On Hunter Biden's Naked, Illegal Gun-Toting Pictures
According to Radar, the gun was illegally obtained as Hunter lied on an application about his past drug use. Making a false statement on a federal criminal background check, known as ATF Form 4473, is a violation of federal law under Section 922(a)(6) of the U.S. criminal code.

Definitely didn't slip his mind: Biden issues D-Day remembrance tweet hours after his bedtime
Biden issues D-Day remembrance tweet after skipping it his first year in office... late in the evening, as the day already passed in France.

Joe Biden on track to take more vacation days than most recent presidents
Biden is on track to take more vacation days than his recent predecessors and, if he continues at this pace, will spend more than 550 days on vacation.

Unrelated Movie Review: Weekend at Bernie's II
This time out, the inept trio pack themselves off to St. Thomas, in search of the $2 million Bernie embezzled.

Poll: Most Americans say Trump only somewhat to blame or not really to blame for Jan. 6
Only 45 percent of Americans say Trump was “solely” or “mainly” responsible for the rioting on Jan. 6, the new polls says, according to NBC News, adding that 55 percent say Trump was only somewhat responsible or not really responsible for the Capitol riots.

CNN Pollster Says Republicans Are In The 'Best Position' For Midterms In Over 80 Years
Enten collected public support for both parties at this point in the midterm cycle from 1938 to today and found Republicans are up by 2-points on the generic ballot. “It beats 2010 when Republicans were up a point...”

NY Times: Democrats Can Win This Fall if They Make One Key Promise
Polls show that roughly two in three Americans oppose overturning Roe and almost 60 percent support passing a bill to set Roe’s protections in a federal law. What’s more, polls showed a rising number of voters listing abortion as their top midterm issue.

California voters poised to decide primary races for governor, senator and 52 House seats
The most populous state in the nation has some competitive races to follow as well as some high-profile incumbents up for reelection.

Matthew McConaughey meets lawmakers as Capitol Hill talks guns
McConaughey expressed support for raising the minimum age to 21 nationwide to purchase so-called assault weapons, in particular AR-15s, and implementing a national red flag system. He also backs background checks and a national waiting period.

AOC calls out Dems who won’t say ‘Latinx’
Polling data indicates most Hispanics don’t use the term or virulently object to it.

Economy...

Gas Prices Have More Than Doubled Since Biden Took Office
According to AAA, the nationwide average for a gallon of regular fuel reached a new record of $4.87 on Monday, a 101 percent increase from the $2.42 when Biden was inaugurated in January 2021.

More states hit $5 a gallon gas prices
In total, more than one out of every five gas stations nationwide are now charging more than $5 a gallon for regular.

A record-high Social Security cost-of-living adjustment in 2023 may affect program’s depletion dates
The last time the federal agency announced a bigger annual bump was in 1981 when there was an 11.2% increase.

Housing wealth gains a record $1.2 trillion, but there are signs the market is cooling
In total, the nation’s so-called tappable equity stood at $11 trillion, or two times the previous peak in 2006.

Kim Dotcom Predicts ‘Great Economic Reset’, Is Crypto a Solution?
The internet entrepreneur and political activist took to Twitter with his predictions of economic collapse.

Punctuality Is Having a Moment
“Fashionably late” falls out of fashion after more than two years of remote work, when, for many people, there was no good reason to be tardy.

Border...

Up to 6K join new caravan through Mexico, call for Title 42 repeal
The caravan began its journey from Tapachula, less than 10 miles from Mexico’s border with Guatemala, a departure timed to coincide with the start of the Summit of the Americas in Los Angeles.

WAR News...

Top EU diplomat blasts Putin for airstrike on massive grain terminal in Ukraine
"Another Russian missile strike contributing to the global food crisis. Russian forces have destroyed the second biggest grain terminal in Ukraine, in Mykolaiv," EU Rep Josep Borrell said on Monday.

Guerrilla attacks deep inside Russian-controlled Ukrainian territory signal a rising resistance to Russian occupation
The Kremlin-backed mayor of the Ukrainian town of Enerhodar was standing on his mother’s porch when a powerful blast struck, leaving him critically wounded.

MONKEYVID-2219...

Australia leads the way on New World Order
“It has been revealed Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews has a data agency to monitor Victorians’ everyday activities, including social media sentiment and credit card transactions. It was set up as part of the government’s Covid response in August 2020.

Here We Go Again: Biden’s CDC Recommends Masks For Monkeypox
The CDC upgraded the monkeypox alert to level 2 on Monday, advising travelers to practice enhanced precautions, including wearing a mask.

82 million COVID-19 vaccine doses discarded in US: Report
Nearly 11% of distributed doses in the United States have reportedly gone to waste from December 2020 through mid-May.

Entertainment...

Paramount sued over ‘Top Gun’ copyright
The family of the author whose article inspired the original 1986 “Top Gun” is suing Paramount, stating that the studio failed to reacquire the rights to Ehud Yonay’s 1983 article, “Top Guns.”

Suit claiming Kevin Spacey sexually abused teen can move forward, judge rules
When Rapp was 14, Spacey allegedly “grazed” his buttocks and laid his body partially across him before the teen was able to “wriggle out” of Spacey’s grip.

Media...

NY Times: Violent Crime Is Up as Cities Lose Police Officers. What Now?
What happened in Uvalde is especially bad for the reputation of the police because it dispels the machismo and heroism that are so often trotted out when law enforcement does something wrong, including killing someone who is unarmed.

Democracy Dies At The Hands Of Taylor Lorenz And Every Other Bad Hire At The Washington Post
The Washington Post is doubling down on its lie-ridden articles and supporting problematic staff like disgraced doxxer Taylor Lorenz.

Washington Post suspends reporter without pay for retweeting joke
David Weigel had shared a tweet that said, "Every girl is bi. You just have to figure out if it's polar or sexual," after which, fellow reporter Felicia Sonmez said it was "fantastic to work at a news outlet where retweets like this are allowed."

Europe...

Boris Johnson Survives ‘No Confidence’ Vote
Johnson carried the vote 211-148 — a majority of 63 — despite needing only a simple majority to retain his office.

Middle East...

Israel’s Government Teeters Again, Losing Vote on Law that Supports West Bank Settlers
The vote’s failure — from defections within the governing bloc and a power move by usually pro-settler opposition lawmakers — could topple the government and throw a lifeline to former Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

South America...

Colombia’s presidential race will decide if the country goes the way of Venezuela
“My political awakening came in the late 1960s when I saw my father cry over the death of Argentine revolutionary leader Ernesto ‘Che’ Guevara,” recalls Gustavo Petro, former urban guerrilla and hard-left candidate who could become Colombia’s next president.

Environment...

Biden to invoke Defense Production Act for clean energy
The upcoming announcement said Biden would "take steps to provide U.S. solar deployers the short-term stability they need to build clean energy projects."

Biden Waives Solar Tariffs In Massive Win For Chinese Industry
The move came in response to complaints from the green energy industry and Democratic lawmakers that an active Commerce Department probe into Chinese companies’ tariff violations was slowing the admin’s clean energy goals.

I Rented an Electric Car for a Four-Day Road Trip. I Spent More Time Charging It Than I Did Sleeping.
Our writer drove from New Orleans to Chicago and back to test the feasibility of taking a road trip in an EV. She wouldn’t soon do it again.

LGBTQIA2S+...

The 100 Most Influential Queer Books of All-Time
Today, transphobia is rampant among the queer community, and there are still plenty of issues (biphobia, acephobia), histories, and experiences that the best-educated queer person needs to be willing to open themselves up to and learn more about.

Texas lawmaker to bring bill to BAN minors from drag shows
"The events of this past weekend were horrifying and show a disturbing trend in which perverted adults are obsessed with sexualizing young children."

I’m in a relationship with my 1998 Chevy Monte Carlo - and our sex life is so special
Nathaniel suffers from objectophilia, whereby individuals develop strong sexual or romantic feelings for a specific inanimate object. Some academics have theorized that the condition could be linked with autism.

Education...

WSJ: Biden’s decision on student loan forgiveness is likely to come in July or August
There’s no precedent for such a move.

Facebook Factcheckers Are Wrong: An Illinois School Is Changing Grading Based On Race
There is a very clear reason school administrators are implementing these changes, and it has everything to do with race.

Health...

Volcano burn survivor removes face mask for first time
Stephanie Browitt was one of 47 tourists exploring the volcano on Dec. 9, 2019, when it erupted, spewing gases, rock and ash. Twenty-two of the tourists were killed, including Browitt’s father and younger sister.

Technology...

Musk accuses Twitter of ‘resisting and thwarting’ his right to information on fake accounts
“Mr. Musk reserves all rights resulting therefrom, including his right not to consummate the transaction and his right to terminate the merger agreement”

Why Elon Musk and Bill Gates, two of the world’s richest men, can’t help but feud over Twitter
“Bill is an opinionated guy and so is Elon. So [the spat] doesn’t surprise me. But I don’t think Bill particularly likes it.”

Apple announces editable text messages
Apple also announced that it is bringing multiple notable updates to its Messages app. These include an edit button and the ability to unsend a message and mark threads as "unread."

Science...

Glenn's Tarot Card Reading For June 7, 2022
Aquarius - Life can be all rainbows and sunshine for you. You have so many things that you are optimistic about and ought to be for good reason. There's nothing you cannot accomplish.

NASA reveals new, next-gen spacesuits
“When we get to the Moon, we will have our first person of color and our first woman that will be wearers and users of these suits in space,” said Vanessa Wyche, director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

UFO spotted during the Queen's Jubilee celebration?
“Just watched the BigJetTV angle again, this goes WAY too fast to be a drone or balloon in the wind. I'm inclined to say this is a genuine [Unidentified Aerial Phenomena]."

UFO at the Miami Air and Sea Show?
In the clip, a jet plane is seen flying over a large crowd of people at the beach. Then something small seemingly emerges from the water, and shoots straight up at a great speed.

Sports...

First 'trans' cheerleader in NFL to make debut with Carolina Panthers
While NFL cheerleading squads had allowed men to join the roster starting in the late 90's, Lindsay will be the first man who claims he's a woman to join.

Walmart heir expected to purchase Denver Broncos for record-setting $4.5 billion
If the final purchase price ends up being $4.5 billion, that would smash the American record for most money ever paid for a sports team. The record is currently held by the Nets, who sold for $2.35 billion in August 2019.

Pickleball is the Hamptons’ hottest amenity
It is a cross between, tennis, ping-pong and badminton, and its the trendy 'sport' to play.

Animals...

Video: Cow Causes Chaos On Oklahoma Interstate, Cowboys Save The Day
A local TV helicopter captured footage of cowboys taking down the cow on the streets of OKC.

2007: Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, cu labores definitionem mel, ex nisl conclusionemque sed

2012: Ea sed ocurreret disputando, amet salutatus pri ex, dico facer nec ea. Ad nonumy insolens eos, sed cu facete ornatus urbanitas, ut euripidis dissentiunt eum.

2020: Nam diam saperet accumsan ea, id tacimates dignissim cum, id mea audiam ceteros.

Russell Vought’s secret plan to finally shrink Washington

Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

Trump’s OMB chief built the plan for this moment: Starve pet programs, force reauthorization, and actually shrink Washington.

The government is shut down again, and the usual panic is back. I even had someone call my house this week to ask if it was safe to fly today. The person was half-joking, half-serious, wondering if planes would “fall out of the sky.”

For the record, the sky isn’t falling — at least not literally. But the chaos in Washington does feel like it. Once again, we’re watching the same old script: a shutdown engineered not by fiscal restraint but by political brinkmanship. And this time, the Democrats are driving the bus.

This shutdown may be inconvenient. But it’s also an opportunity — to stop funding our own destruction, to reset the table, and to remind Congress who actually pays the bills.

Democrats, among other things, are demanding that health care be extended to illegal immigrants. Democratic leadership caved to its radical base, which would rather shut down the government for such left-wing campaign points than compromise. Republicans — shockingly — said no. They refused to rubber-stamp more spending for illegal immigration. For once, they stood their ground.

But if you’ve watched Washington long enough, you know how this story usually ends: a shutdown followed by a deal that spends even more money than before — a continuing resolution kicking the can down the road. Everyone pretends to “win,” but taxpayers always lose.

The Vought effect

This time might be different. Republicans actually hold some cards. The public may blame Democrats — not the media, but the people who feel this in their wallets. Americans don’t like shutdowns, but they like runaway spending and chaos even less.

That’s why you’re hearing so much about Russell Vought, the director of the United States Office of Management and Budget and Donald Trump’s quiet architect of a strategy to use moments like this to shrink the federal bureaucracy. Vought spent four years building a plan for exactly this scenario: firing nonessential workers and forcing reauthorization of pet programs. Trump talks about draining the swamp. Vought draws up the blueprints.

The Democrats and media are threatened by Vought because he is patient, calculated, and understands how to leverage the moment to reverse decades of government bloat. If programs aren’t mandated, cut them. Make Congress fight to bring them back. That’s how you actually drain the swamp.

Predictable meltdowns

Predictably, Democrats are melting down. They’ve shifted their arguments so many times it’s dizzying. Last time, they claimed a shutdown would lead to mass firings. Now, they insist Republicans are firing everyone anyway. It’s the same playbook: Move the goalposts, reframe the narrative, accuse your opponents of cruelty.

We’ve seen this before. Remember the infamous "You lie!” moment in 2009? President Barack Obama promised during his State of the Union that Obamacare wouldn’t cover illegal immigrants. Rep. Joe Wilson (R-S.C.) shouted, “You lie!” and was condemned for breaching decorum.

Several years later, Hillary Clinton’s campaign platform openly promised health care for illegal immigrants. What was once called a “lie” became official policy. And today, Democrats are shutting down the government because they can’t get even more of it.

This is progressivism in action: Deny it, inch toward it, then demand it as a moral imperative. Anyone who resists becomes the villain.

SAUL LOEB / Contributor | Getty Images

Stand firm

This shutdown isn’t just about spending. It’s about whether we’ll keep letting progressives rewrite the rules one crisis at a time. Trump’s plan — to cut what isn’t mandated, force programs into reauthorization, and fight the battle in the courts — is the first real counterpunch to decades of this manipulation.

It’s time to stop pretending. This isn’t about compassion. It’s about control. Progressives know once they normalize government benefits for illegal immigrants, they never roll back. They know Americans forget how it started.

This shutdown may be inconvenient. But it’s also an opportunity — to stop funding our own destruction, to reset the table, and to remind Congress who actually pays the bills. If we don’t take it, we’ll be right back here again, only deeper in debt, with fewer freedoms left to defend.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Britain says “no work without ID”—a chilling preview for America

OLI SCARFF / Contributor | Getty Images

From banking to health care, digital IDs touch every aspect of citizens’ lives, giving the government unprecedented control over everyday actions.

On Friday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer stood at the podium at the Global Progressive Action Conference in London and made an announcement that should send a chill down the spine of anyone who loves liberty. By the end of this Parliament, he promised, every worker in the U.K. will be required to hold a “free-of-charge” digital ID. Without it, Britons will not be able to work.

No digital ID, no job.

The government is introducing a system that punishes law-abiding citizens by tying their right to work to a government-issued pass.

Starmer framed this as a commonsense response to poverty, climate change, and illegal immigration. He claimed Britain cannot solve these problems without “looking upstream” and tackling root causes. But behind the rhetoric lies a policy that shifts power away from individuals and places it squarely in the hands of government.

Solving the problem they created

This is progressivism in action. Leaders open their borders, invite in mass illegal immigration, and refuse to enforce their own laws. Then, when public frustration boils over, they unveil a prepackaged “solution” — in this case, digital identity — that entrenches government control.

Britain isn’t the first to embrace this system. Switzerland recently approved a digital ID system. Australia already has one. The World Economic Forum has openly pitched digital IDs as the key to accessing everything from health care to bank accounts to travel. And once the infrastructure is in place, digital currency will follow soon after, giving governments the power to track every purchase, approve or block transactions, and dictate where and how you spend your money.

All of your data — your medical history, insurance, banking, food purchases, travel, social media engagement, tax information — would be funneled into a centralized database under government oversight.

The fiction of enforcement

Starmer says this is about cracking down on illegal work. The BBC even pressed him on the point, asking why a mandatory digital ID would stop human traffickers and rogue employers who already ignore national insurance cards. He had no answer.

Bad actors will still break the law. Bosses who pay sweatshop wages under the table will not suddenly check digital IDs. Criminals will not line up to comply. This isn’t about stopping illegal immigration. If it were, the U.K. would simply enforce existing laws, close the loopholes, and deport those working illegally.

Instead, the government is introducing a system that punishes law-abiding citizens by tying their right to work to a government-issued pass.

Control masked as compassion

This is part of an old playbook. Politicians claim their hands are tied and promise that only sweeping new powers will solve the crisis. They selectively enforce laws to maintain the problem, then use the problem to justify expanding control.

If Britain truly wanted to curb illegal immigration, it could. It is an island. The Channel Tunnel has clear entry points. Enforcement is not impossible. But a digital ID allows for something far more valuable to bureaucrats than border security: total oversight of their own citizens.

The American warning

Think digital ID can’t happen here? Think again. The same arguments are already echoing in Washington, D.C. Illegal immigration is out of control. Progressives know voters are angry. When the digital ID pitch arrives, it will be wrapped in patriotic language about fairness, security, and compassion.

But the goal isn’t compassion. It’s control of your movement, your money, your speech, your future.

We don’t need digital IDs to enforce immigration law. We need leaders with the courage to enforce existing law. Until then, digital ID schemes will keep spreading, sold as a cure for the very problems they helped create.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

The West is dying—Will we let enemies write our ending?

Harvey Meston / Staff | Getty Images

The blood of martyrs, prophets, poets, and soldiers built our civilization. Their sacrifice demands courage in the present to preserve it.

Lamentations asks, “Is it nothing to you, all ye that pass by?”

That question has been weighing on me heavily. Not just as a broadcaster, but as a citizen, a father, a husband, a believer. It is a question that every person who cares about this nation, this culture, and this civilization must confront: Is all of this worth saving?

We have squandered this inheritance. We forgot who we were — and our enemies are eager to write our ending.

Western civilization — a project born in Judea, refined in Athens, tested in Rome, reawakened in Wittenberg, and baptized again on the shores of Plymouth Rock — is a gift. We didn’t earn it. We didn’t purchase it. We were handed it. And now, we must ask ourselves: Do we even want it?

Across Europe, streets are restless. Not merely with protests, but with ancient, festering hatred — the kind that once marched under swastikas and fueled ovens. Today, it marches under banners of peace while chanting calls for genocide. Violence and division crack societies open. Here in America, it’s left against right, flesh against spirit, neighbor against neighbor.

Truth struggles to find a home. Even the church is slumbering — or worse, collaborating.

Our society tells us that everything must be reset: tradition, marriage, gender, faith, even love. The only sin left is believing in absolute truth. Screens replace Scripture. Entertainment replaces education. Pleasure replaces purpose. Our children are confused, medicated, addicted, fatherless, suicidal. Universities mock virtue. Congress is indifferent. Media programs rather than informs. Schools recondition rather than educate.

Is this worth saving? If not, we should stop fighting and throw up our hands. But if it is, then we must act — and we must act now.

The West: An idea worth saving

What is the West? It’s not a location, race, flag, or a particular constitution. The West is an idea — an idea that man is made in the image of God, that liberty comes from responsibility, not government; that truth exists; that evil exists; and that courage is required every day. The West teaches that education, reason, and revelation walk hand in hand. Beauty matters. Kindness matters. Empathy matters. Sacrifice is holy. Justice is blind. Mercy is near.

We have squandered this inheritance. We forgot who we were — and our enemies are eager to write our ending.

If not now, when? If not us, who? If this is worth saving, we must know why. Western civilization is worth dying for, worth living for, worth defending. It was built on the blood of martyrs, prophets, poets, pilgrims, moms, dads, and soldiers. They did not die for markets, pronouns, surveillance, or currency. They died for something higher, something bigger.

MATTHIEU RONDEL/AFP via Getty Images | Getty Images

Yet hope remains. Resurrection is real — not only in the tomb outside Jerusalem, but in the bones of any individual or group that returns to truth, honor, and God. It is never too late to return to family, community, accountability, and responsibility.

Pick up your torch

We were chosen for this time. We were made for a moment like this. The events unfolding in Europe and South Korea, the unrest and moral collapse, will all come down to us. Somewhere inside, we know we were called to carry this fire.

We are not called to win. We are called to stand. To hold the torch. To ask ourselves, every day: Is it worth standing? Is it worth saving?

The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. Pick up your torch. If you choose to carry it, buckle up. The work is only beginning.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Stop coasting: How self-education can save America’s future

Joe Raedle / Staff | Getty Images

Coasting through life is no longer an option. Charlie Kirk’s pursuit of knowledge challenges all of us to learn, act, and grow every day.

Last year, my wife and I made a commitment: to stop coasting, to learn something new every day, and to grow — not just spiritually, but intellectually. Charlie Kirk’s tragic death crystallized that resolve. It forced a hard look in the mirror, revealing how much I had coasted in both my spiritual and educational life. Coasting implies going downhill. You can’t coast uphill.

Last night, my wife and I re-engaged. We enrolled in Hillsdale College’s free online courses, inspired by the fact that Charlie had done the same. He had quietly completed around 30 courses before I even knew, mastering the classics, civics, and the foundations of liberty. Watching his relentless pursuit of knowledge reminded me that growth never stops, no matter your age.

The path forward must be reclaiming education, agency, and the power to shape our minds and futures.

This lesson is particularly urgent for two groups: young adults stepping into the world and those who may have settled into complacency. Learning is life. Stop learning, and you start dying. To young adults, especially, the college promise has become a trap. Twelve years of K-12 education now leave graduates unprepared for life. Only 35% of seniors are proficient in reading, and just 22% in math. They are asked to bet $100,000 or more for four years of college that will often leave them underemployed and deeply indebted.

Degrees in many “new” fields now carry negative returns. Parents who have already sacrificed for public education find themselves on the hook again, paying for a system that often fails to deliver.

This is one of the reasons why Charlie often described college as a “scam.” Debt accumulates, wages are not what students were promised, doors remain closed, and many are tempted to throw more time and money after a system that won’t yield results. Graduate school, in many cases, compounds the problem. The education system has become a factory of despair, teaching cynicism rather than knowledge and virtue.

Reclaiming educational agency

Yet the solution is not radical revolt against education — it is empowerment to reclaim agency over one’s education. Independent learning, self-guided study, and disciplined curiosity are the modern “Napster moment.” Just as Napster broke the old record industry by digitizing music, the internet has placed knowledge directly in the hands of the individual. Artists like Taylor Swift now thrive outside traditional gatekeepers. Likewise, students and lifelong learners can reclaim intellectual freedom outside of the ivory towers.

Each individual possesses the ability to think, create, and act. This is the power God grants to every human being. Knowledge, faith, and personal responsibility are inseparable. Learning is not a commodity to buy with tuition; it is a birthright to claim with effort.

David Butow / Contributor | Getty Images

Charlie Kirk’s life reminds us that self-education is an act of defiance and empowerment. In his pursuit of knowledge, in his engagement with civics and philosophy, he exemplified the principle that liberty depends on informed, capable citizens. We honor him best by taking up that mantle — by learning relentlessly, thinking critically, and refusing to surrender our minds to a system that profits from ignorance.

The path forward must be reclaiming education, agency, and the power to shape our minds and futures. Every day, seek to grow, create, and act. Charlie showed the way. It is now our responsibility to follow.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.