Pesky Facts - Breakpoint | Wave AI Podcast Notes

Summary4 min read

Podcast Summary: Breakpoint – "Pesky Facts"

Host: John Stonestreet
Co-author: Dr. Timothy Padgett
Date: May 28, 2026
Episode Theme:
A critical look at how postmodern ideas, particularly those championed by Nietzsche and Foucault, have unraveled objective truth in Western culture—leading to a climate where narratives and ideologies distort facts, especially in the context of the Israeli-Hamas conflict.

Overview

In this episode, John Stonestreet discusses the decline of an objective sense of truth in contemporary culture, tracing its philosophical roots to figures like Friedrich Nietzsche and Michel Foucault. Stonestreet examines how their influence has contributed to a climate in which facts are subservient to narratives and how this shapes public perception, especially in contentious international events.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Philosophical Background: Nietzsche & Foucault

Nietzsche:
- Broke from the belief that moving "past God" would necessarily lead to progress.
- Thought deeply about the real-world consequences of a world without God.
Foucault:
- Considered the most widely cited source in Western academia.
- Took Nietzsche’s thinking further: “Foucault epitomized and encouraged the chaos of postmodernism in what he said and how he lived.” (John Stonestreet, 01:17)
- Believed education was not about learning, but about societal control, famously asserting, “every educational system is a political means of maintaining or of modifying the appropriation of discourse with the knowledge and the powers it carries with it.” (John Stonestreet paraphrasing Foucault, 02:06)
- Held that reality is “always socially constructed,” and that truth is an illusion; only power and ideology remain.

2. Postmodern Consequences in Today’s Culture

The West is deeply shaped by these ideas, leading to a world “where truth doesn’t matter because it doesn’t exist. There are only self-referential ideologies now.” (John Stonestreet, 02:32)
Memorable quote:
- “In a postmodern era, people are more willing to believe in the unbelievable because, as the academic disciples of Nietzsche and Foucault have been taught, there is no truth, there's only power.” (John Stonestreet, 04:01)

3. Real-World Example: Competing Narratives about Israel and Hamas

Cites a recent in-depth report on the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel, which revealed deliberate and horrific acts, including sexual violence used as a “calculated strategy.”
- “According to one of the report's authors, and I quote, ‘the most important finding is the fact that the sexual violence on October 7 and against hostages in captivity has been a calculated strategy by Hamas.’” (John Stonestreet, quoting report, 03:08)
Contrasts this with a New York Times op-ed by Nick Kristof, which accused Israelis of similar acts without substantiated evidence.
- Kristof’s sources were anonymous; Hamas report sources included victims and videos.
- Even colleagues at the New York Times “expressed doubts about many of his claims, about his sources, and of course, about the timing of it all.” (John Stonestreet, 03:40)
- The most serious accusations were described as “basically anatomically impossible.”
Insight:
- “Trending narratives often supplant facts in today's world. In fact, they become facts for people already convinced of how the narrative should go.” (John Stonestreet, 03:59)

4. "Facts Don’t Care About Your Feelings" Flipped

References Ben Shapiro’s maxim: “facts don't care about your feelings.”
Observes that today, “the mark of a world shaped by postmodern ideas is that feelings don't care about pesky things like facts.” (John Stonestreet, 04:31)

5. Implications for Society and Faith

Suggests that without a sense of transcendent truth, “everything is up for grabs.”
Eternal concepts like truth, justice, and morality “have no meaning. They're only tools to be wielded in service of an agenda.” (John Stonestreet, 04:18)
Concludes that the victims of these “bad ideas” are “the people who count on the truth to know what's good and what's real.” (John Stonestreet, 04:46)

Notable Quotes & Moments

On Foucault and Postmodernism:
- “Foucault epitomized and encouraged the chaos of postmodernism in what he said and how he lived.”
  (John Stonestreet, 01:17)
On narrative over fact:
- “In fact, they become facts for people already convinced of how the narrative should go.”
  (John Stonestreet, 03:59)
Closing line:
- “Truth is a victim of these bad ideas, and so are the people who count on the truth to know what's good and what's real.”
  (John Stonestreet, 04:46)

Important Timestamps

00:45 – Episode introduction; Nietzsche, Foucault, and the rise of postmodernism
01:17 – Foucault's influence: “Foucault epitomized and encouraged the chaos…”
02:06 – Foucault on education and power
03:08 – Hamas report and the use of sexual violence as a strategy
03:40 – Kristof’s NYT op-ed and narrative manipulation
04:01 – “People are more willing to believe in the unbelievable…”
04:31 – “Feelings don’t care about pesky things like facts.”
04:46 – Closing: the true cost of abandoning objective truth

Tone and Language

The tone is urgent, analytical, and reflective, frequently invoking cultural observation alongside theological critique. Stonestreet employs clear, direct language, often paraphrasing complex philosophical concepts for a broad Christian audience.

Summary:
This Breakpoint episode earnestly critiques our culture’s abandonment of objective truth, drawing a line from postmodern philosophers to present-day confusion and misreporting, using the example of Israeli-Hamas conflict coverage. Stonestreet warns that a worldview without transcendence leaves everything vulnerable to subjective manipulation, and calls Christians to recognize both the roots and real-life impact of these troubling cultural trends.

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Transcript3 lines

[00:02]
A
The cultural challenges facing Christians today are not slowing down. That's why the Colson center is committed to forming believers to live with clarity, confidence and courage in every sphere of influence. Through initiatives like the Colson Fellows, Truth Rising, the Study, Colson Educators, and breakpoint, we're equipping Christians for this moment and the generation to come as we approach our fiscal year end on June 30th. Your support helps keep this work going and expanding to reach more Christians across generations. A help us reach our $1,000,000 goal@colsoncenter.org May that's colsoncenter.org May.
[00:45]
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Welcome to breakpoint, a daily look at an ever changing culture through the lens of unchanging truth. For the Colson Center, I'm John Stonestreet. Unlike a lot of his fellow atheist contemporaries who thought that moving past God would be an exercise in scientific and moral progress, 19th century German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche was willing to push the implications of that as far as they could go. And then came French philosopher Michel Foucault, the most widely cited source in all of Western academia. A student and an interpreter of Nietzsche, Foucault went even further in his imagination about what a world without God would look like without moral absolutes, without fixed human identity, and in the living out of what he believed, Foucault basically was unparalleled. Foucault epitomized and encouraged the chaos of postmodernism in what he said and how he lived. In his writings, many of which are thoroughly and intentionally unreadable. He pushed the idea that education should be used as a tool of societal control, not just as a means of learning. As he put it, every educational system is a political means of maintaining or of modifying the appropriation of discourse with the knowledge and the powers it carries with it. And that was an inevitable application to education of his idea that reality is not fixed but always socially constructed. The world Foucault believed is what we make it. Truth doesn't matter because it doesn't exist. There are only self referential ideologies now. The consequences of Foucault's ideas and influence can be clearly seen across the west, especially in a quite recent competition of news stories. On one hand, the recent exhaustive report describing what happened on October 7, 2023, the full revelations about Hamas surprise attack on Israel, includes details so horrific I could not share them here. Not only were the slaughter and torture beyond what one would expect humanly possible, it was planned that way all along. As a CNN article about the report noted, the goal for Hamas wasn't resistance or the liberation of Palestine. It was, and I quote, to maximize pain and suffering. According to one of the report's authors, and I quote, the most important finding is the fact that the sexual violence on October 7 and against hostages in captivity has been a calculated strategy by Hamas. Now, just before that report released, the New York Times published an op ed by Nick Kristof. In it, he claimed that the Israelis were practicing sexual torture on their enemies. In contrast to the meticulous research of the report about Hamas, he even people in his own newsroom expressed doubts about many of his claims, about his sources, and of course, about the timing of it all. Not to mention the most dramatic of his accusations are basically anatomically impossible. Now, those who find Christof believable will likely discount the details of Hamas's atrocities that are contained in the report. While Kristof's sources were anonymous, the report sources were victims and the live feed videos from Hamas that were shared on social media. However, trending narratives often supplant facts in today's world. In fact, they become facts for people already convinced of how the narrative should go. In a postmodern era, people are more willing to believe in the unbelievable because, as the academic disciples of Nietzsche and Foucault have been taught, there is no truth, there's only power. Now, of course, there is more blame to go around, but we certainly would not be here without Michel Foucault. And in a backwards kind of way, he was right. Once we strip God or any sense of transcendence from life or reality, everything is up for grabs. Eternal concepts like truth, justice, and morality have no meaning. They're only tools to be wielded in service of an agenda. Ben Shapiro famously says that facts don't care about your feelings. Well, the mark of a world shaped by postmodern ideas is that feelings don't care about pesky things like facts. Truth is a victim of these bad ideas, and so are the people who count on the truth to know what's good and what's real. For the Colson Center, I'm John Stonestreet with Breakpoint. Today's Breakpoint was co authored with Dr. Timothy Padgett. If you're a fan of Breakpoint, leave us a review wherever you download your podcast. And for more resources or to share this commentary with others, go to breakpoint.org.
[05:03]
A
America is celebrating 250 years of freedom. This year, our friends at Alliance Defending Freedom are asking to take this opportunity to pray for America. From our country's founding Americans have been praying people in every season, Christians have turned to God for wisdom and guidance. Now America could use our prayers again. ADF is inviting you to commit to five days of Prayer for America this year, thanking God for how he's blessed us and asking him to equip us for the future. When you sign up, you'll receive daily messages over the next five days with specific prompts and encouragements about how you can be in prayer for our country. Commit to pray for America today. Visit joinadf.com breakpoint to sign up or text Pray 250-83848.