The Primary That REALLY Matters | Guest: Katy Faust | 5/19/26

Summary

Steve Deace Show | "The Primary That REALLY Matters"

Date: May 19, 2026
Host: Steve Dace (with Todd Erzin, Aaron McIntyre)
Guest: Katy Faust (Greater Than)

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Episode Overview

This episode of the Steve Deace Show focuses on the “primary that really matters” — the Texas Attorney General runoff, with particular emphasis on the candidacy of Chip Roy. The discussion weaves through current political events, the dangers of internal division within conservatism, the cultural ramifications of “gay marriage,” and the ongoing collapse of institutions—both in politics and pop culture. The second hour features guest Katy Faust, who explains the real-world impact of redefining marriage and offers practical, compassionate advice for Christian engagement amid social disruption.

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Key Segments & Discussion Points

1. News Recap and Opening Commentary

[00:01–05:14]

• International Negotiations Stalled: Trump announced a pause in strikes against Iran at the request of Middle East allies, pending new negotiations. Skepticism abounds about their seriousness after weeks of alleged stalling ([00:01]).

  • Steve Dace: “It’s unclear how or why or even whether this round of negotiations is any different than the delay install games Iran has played for weeks now.”

• Mangioni Trial Update: Evidence decisions, notoriety of supporters outside court, troubling apathy toward the murder victim.

• Outrage Over Gender-Related Medical Practices:

  • Texas Children’s Hospital settles for $10 million after performing “meatball surgery" (gender-affirming surgeries) on minors post-ban. Required now to set up a “detransition clinic.”
  • Steve Dace: “Providing free care to kids who went through these grisly meatball surgeries and regret them.”

• Women’s History Museum Debate:

  • Congressional amendment requires featured women to be biological women. Democrat outrage ensues.

• Spencer Pratt Mayoral Candidacy:

  • Pratt capitalizes on celebrity attack pieces—delivered in a parody of "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" ([03:30–04:36]).

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2. The Real Primary: Texas AG and the Breakdown of Conservative Unity

[07:32–21:37]

• Democratic Collisions Over Gender:

  • Mockery of Democrats for their inability to define “woman” ([07:32]).

• Gas Prices, Iran, and Normie Politics:

  • Macro issues (fuel, Iran), but emphasis on “normies” (regular conservatives) needing to recognize the insanity of the opposition.

• Kentucky & Internal Conservative Fratricide:

  • The Massie primary: petty internal squabbles, especially between Trump and Rep. Thomas Massie, are fracturing the coalition.
  • Steve Dace: “This is fratricide. It’s brought the worst in everybody.” ([11:22])

• Trump’s Tactics Explained, but Not Endorsed:

  • “I even get why Trump’s doing it. I understand how kingdoms operate. He is king, and you guys made him king. … What I don’t get is why Massie has allowed this to get as personal.”

• Call to Focus Attention on the Texas AG Primary:

  • Steve extols Chip Roy’s integrity and necessity for principled fighters in government, contrasting him with placeholder politicians.
  • Sees the Roy-Paxton runoff (“the real primary”) as having generational importance for conservatism, Texas, and the nation.
  • Steve Dace: “If you do not go out and vote for Chip Roy today, within a year you’re going to regret it.” ([19:35])

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3. Why This Matters for the Entire Nation

[21:38–26:06]

• Aaron McIntyre:

  • Argues the Texas AG race is a bellwether for the whole country, underscoring both Roy’s authenticity and the consequences if he loses:

  “If Chip Roy loses in a place called Texas, the flat earth has won in two years after what we thought was the political miracle of our lifetime with Donald Trump rising.” ([22:04])

• Urgency for Civic Engagement:

  • Steve emphasizes that progressive ideology is undeterred even in defeat and conservative citizens can’t respond with complacency:

  “If your reaction to this is anything other than ‘let’s get to work, urgency,’ … citizen is probably not one of them.” ([25:11])

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4. Trump’s Looming Senate Endorsement & More Intra-GOP Dynamics

[26:06–29:30]

• Trump set to endorse in Texas Senate runoff—speculation over Paxton vs. Cornyn.
• Reflections on the corrosive impact of personal grievances in primaries (especially for Massie post-bereavement).
  • Aaron: “If you do not have an anchor that is outside and above Donald Trump … you’re going to get crushed from it.” ([28:12])

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5. America’s Heritage, Rights, and the Need to Teach It

[33:24–43:16]

• Steve promotes his new children’s book:

  • A defense of Christian-inspired American heritage, correcting public misconceptions about the Declaration of Independence and rights coming from God.
  • Critiques mainstream news (clip dissecting MSNBC’s Katie Tur):

  “You can’t put God above the Declaration of Independence because the Declaration already does it.” ([36:45])

• Historical Retelling:

  • Todd recounts the battles of Lexington & Concord and the colonial ethos of rights from God, not government.

• Why This Matters Today:

  • If we are “one election away from our entire way of life being upended,” it’s because we have let godless government replace that foundational belief.

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6. Guest Segment: Katy Faust and the Consequences of “Gay Marriage”

[50:24–63:12]

Katy Faust—Public Enemy #1 for Upholding Family Realities ([50:24])

• Faust’s “Confession”:

  “I have two very, very offensive beliefs. The first one is children need their mother and father. … The second very offensive thing that I believe is children should not be bought and sold.” ([50:52])

• How “Gay Marriage Did This”:

  • Redefined parentage, normalized unrelated adults raising children, enabled acquiring children without adoption screening, and fostered the commodification of children.

  “Gay marriage did it by redefining parentage, by saying biology is no longer a factor in terms of determining who should be able to take home a vulnerable newborn from the hospital.” ([52:31])

• All Slippery Slope Arguments Came True:

  “All of our slippery slope arguments … in the 1990s and 2000s were all 100% true.” – Todd ([54:37])
  Katy: “The pearl clutching religious bigots had it right for some reason.” ([54:46])

• Practical Christian Engagement:

  • Navigating neighborly relationships with same-sex families:
    • Validate children’s longings for fathers without criticizing caregivers—“careful validation.”
    • Katy: “It makes sense that you’re asking these questions because you do have a father out there … and you do deserve somebody in the backyard throwing the baseball around with you.”

• Resource for Navigating These Realities:

  • GreaterThanCampaign.com offers upcoming eBook on defending children while loving LGBT-identified family and neighbors.

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7. The Role of Discomfort in Christian Life

[65:16–77:13]

• Anecdote about Mother Teresa:

  • “Your discomfort is not even remotely the issue in any of this … your discomfort is actually a sign that that’s where you’re supposed to be.” ([66:24])

• Steve:

  • Discomfort is essential:

  “If the Lord has placed you in a position of discomfort, it is exactly because you are right where you are supposed to be.”
  “You will not be able to finish your race without some discomfort.” ([67:30])

• Aaron:

  • “There is no me time as a Christian, there is only us time. … You must smash those idols.”

• Endure:

  • The Christian's first calling is to “endure”—not necessarily win, but finish.

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8. Pop Culture Decay & Iconoclasm: Spin Magazine’s Top 10 Bands

[79:42–95:46]

• Mocking Spin Magazine’s List:

  • Beatles at #1 is the expected, but then “veneer of legitimacy” is followed by what the hosts call "iconoclasm" and intentional “virtue signaling” (e.g., Ramones at #2).
  • Steve’s rant:

    “How are the who not on this list? … Queen’s not on this list? … What are we doing here with this list? This is retarded.” ([87:29])

• Aaron:

  • “Nothing’s even approaching a shared cultural greatness that breaks in for everybody. … I’m awesome and my tastes are awesome, and I won’t compare it to anything that is objectively great.” ([88:20])

• Steve (on cultural subversion):

  • “They are seeking to contaminate … they are not blinded by their worldview—they are driven by it. … That is why there’s no way to do this without being uncomfortable to some degree.” ([90:02])

• Theme:

  • The left’s iconoclasm even destroys prior subversion—nothing is safe, the “subversion is the point.”

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• Steve Dace ([19:35]):

  “If you do not go out and vote for Chip Roy today, within a year you’re going to regret it.”

• Aaron McIntyre ([21:49]):

  “Because this is a bellwether. ... If Chip Roy loses ... we’re all screwed. And it’s time for Iowans to prepare for ... one of the worst candidates for office I’ve ever seen. He’s probably winning, too.”

• Katy Faust ([50:52]):

  “I confess, Steve, I have two very, very offensive beliefs. The first one is children need their mother and father. ... The second very offensive thing that I believe is children should not be bought and sold.”

• Aaron McIntyre ([66:24]):

  “Your discomfort is actually a sign that that’s where you’re supposed to be.”

• Steve Dace ([67:30]):

  “If the Lord has placed you in a position of discomfort, it is exactly because you are right where you are supposed to be.”

• Todd Erzin ([77:13]):

  “We don’t win the race, we finish the race. And that takes endurance, and that takes enduring some uncomfortable, uncomfortable situations for sure.”

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• [00:01] — Top headlines: Iran, Mangioni trial, Texas Children’s Hospital settlement, National Women’s Museum, Spencer Pratt
• [07:32] — Democrat women/Culture war
• [11:22] — Kentucky primary fratricide, Trump vs. Massie
• [19:35] — The Chip Roy primary: critical importance for Texas and the nation
• [21:38] — Aaron: The whole nation will regret Roy’s loss
• [25:11] — Steve: On citizenship and urgency
• [26:06] — GOP Senate endorsement speculation; intra-party fractures
• [33:24] — American heritage book promo and critique of public misunderstanding
• [50:24] — Katy Faust segment: Family, “gay marriage,” and children’s needs
• [58:01] — Practical advice for Christian interaction with same-sex families
• [65:16] — Embracing discomfort and Christian endurance
• [79:42] — Pop Culture Tuesday: Critique of Spin’s “Top 10 Bands” and cultural iconoclasm

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Summary Takeaways

• Texas AG Runoff (Chip Roy): Framed as the most consequential race for both the state and national conservative movement.
• Internal Fracturing: Conservative infighting (Massie/Trump) risks weakening their coalition.
• Culture Wars: Decay in institutions (family, church, media, pop culture) traced to abandonment of transcendent standards and the consequences of "progressive" victories like gay marriage.
• Faith in Practice: Christians and conservatives must prepare for personal discomfort if they hope to preserve foundational values—comfort is not the goal, endurance is.
• Pop Culture’s Decline: Even rock-and-roll lists are now arenas for compulsory iconoclasm and the erasure of shared standards.
• Katy Faust’s Message: Children’s rights, parental bonds, and truth matter—despite threats, ostracism, and media attacks. Christians must learn both to defend and love, walking a practical path between proclamation of truth and personal connection.

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For More:

• Visit GreaterThanCampaign.com for Katy Faust's resources on children's rights.
• Steve Dace’s new children’s book, Why Independence Day: America Is Great Because God Is Good, explores America’s Christian heritage and can be preordered on Amazon.

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Transcript

[Steve Dace]

It's the Steve Day show. And here's what happened while we were away, brought to you by bombs or no bombs? President Trump has allegedly pressed the no bombs button for now, saying on a post on Truth Social that the leaders of the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Saudi Arabia requested he hold off on another round of strikes planned against Iran scheduled for today because serious negotiations are underway, including Iran giving up its nuclear aspirations. It's unclear how or why or even whether this round of negotiations is a any different than the delay install games Iran has played for weeks now. President Trump adds, it's a very positive

[Todd Erzin]

development, but we'll see whether or not it amounts to anything. We've had periods of time where we had we thought pretty much getting close to making a deal and didn't work out. But this is a little bit different, okay?

[Steve Dace]

A judge in the Luigi Mangioni case ruled Monday that some evidence cannot be used at trial, but the gun and notebook found on him when he was arrested will be fair game for jurors. Meanwhile, members of the Mangione devoted fan base showed up outside the Manhattan courthouse to show their support, seemingly unbothered by the fact that a man is dead. Brian Thompson, the United Healthcare CEO Mangione allegedly gunned down in cold blood.

[Katie Faust]

Brian Thompson, that's all.

[Todd Erzin]

I'm the same. That's all I want to say. Brian Thompson, his mom, that lady who said something on Inside Edition. I said what I said I don't

[Katie Faust]

give a f. His children are better off without him. They need to learn to not be like their dad and enjoy the blood money.

[Steve Dace]

Also in New York City, Mayor Zoran Mamdani says, I cannot help but think

[Todd Erzin]

of the words of our 40th President Ronald Reagan. He famously said the nine most terrifying words in the English language are, I'm from the government and I'm here to help. It's a good quote, but I disagree.

[Steve Dace]

Yeah, we know. In San Diego, five are dead after a shooting at the region's largest mosque. Authorities say two teenage suspects opened fire at the Islamic center of San Diego on Monday, killing a security guard and two other men outside the mosque before the suspects were found dead a few blocks away from believed self inflicted gunshot wounds. San Diego's police chief said the violence being investigated as a possible hate crime. Texas Children's Hospital, the largest children's hospital system in the country has reached a landmark settlement with the Department of Justice and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, agreeing to pay more than $10 million in penalties after allegedly continuing to perform meatball surgery in the name of gender on minors in secret, even after Texas made it illegal. Five doctors involved are permanently terminated. Under the agreement, the hospital must now fund the nation's first detransition clinic, providing free care to kids who went through these grisly meatball surgeries and regret them. Meanwhile, lawmakers are expected to pass the Smithsonian American Women's History Museum act authorizing a National Mall site so construction can begin. An amendment was added to the bill ensuring the women featured in the museum are, in fact, women. That was enough to send the Democrat Women's Caucus into a tailspin. They put out a scathing statement calling the language discriminatory. And all four Democrats on the House Administration Committee voted against the bill. And finally, we may be at the point where we should start taking notes from LA mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt. In recent days, he was the target of a couple of hit pieces, notably from tmz, who tried to claim he's lying about where he really lives, claiming he doesn't actually live in the Pacific Palisades and is instead staying at the historic posh Hotel Bel Air. It's an interesting line of attack given that Pratt's house, you know, burned down on Mayor Karen Bass watch. Nevertheless, Pratt is leaning into it now.

[Todd Erzin]

This is a story all about how my life got flipped, turned upside down, and I had to take a minute

[Steve Dace]

to run for mayor.

[Todd Erzin]

I'll tell you how I became the prince of a town called Bel Air. In West London, Los Angeles. Palisades in my backyard is where I spent most of my days feeding hummingbirds, relaxing all cool, avoiding all the bums outside of the school. When a couple politicians, the world are no good, started making trouble in my neighborhood, I got at one little fire. My mom got scared and said, you're moving in with Harvey Levin in Bel Air. I pulled out from my lot about seven or eight and I yelled to

[Steve Dace]

the rubble, yo ho.

[Todd Erzin]

Smell ya. Later, I moved to my kingdom. I was finally there to sit on my throne as a prince of Bel Air.

[Steve Dace]

It's incredible. And that's what happened while we were away.

[Todd Erzin]

Absolutely. One of the greatest political ads I have ever seen. I don't think anybody shocked Democrat women don't know what a Democrat or don't know what a woman is. Okay. And it's there's a big primary today, but probably not the one you've heard way too much about. We'll get into that and more here next on the Steve Day Show.

[Aaron McIntyre]

Greetings.

[Todd Erzin]

Happy Tuesday. Welcome to the Steve Day show, here live and on demand on BLAZE tv. Radio and podcast. Steve Dace, here I am at Home Command because I've got to catch a flight to D.C. right after today's show. I'll be doing tomorrow's show from Washington D.C. our nation's capital. I've got a couple of meetings that I've got to go to there here at the last minute. And then Thursday you're going to get a special Evergreen edition. Our good friend Seth Gruber on the current state of the American church heading into his event coming up in Denver at the first weekend at Brave Church in Denver, first weekend in June. I'll be one of the speakers there. It's called the Last Stand. He's going to premiere his new movie there as well. We'll get into all that and more with Seth coming up on Thursday's show. But that's why I'm here. Todd erzin and Aaron McIntyre are back there in our posh studios. Good to see you fellas. And you are where you need to get the best night's sleep you possibly can. And that's where you can with our friends over at Dream. And now with Dr. They're Made. You can get that best night's sleep and more affordable than ever before with a huge discount. I'll tell you about in a second. Now what is Dream? It's made with a powerful blend of all natural ingredients like Reishi, magnesium, melatonin and more. All right. And they and it's by Americans for Americans. They want you to have the best night's sleep. So you are ready to go out there and be that rugged individualist that that manifestation of American exceptionalism. So how about just $39 either best selling dream powder for just 39 bucks comes out to like $1.25 a night. Would you, would you spend $1.25 for the best night's sleep that you deserve? I think you would. So do it right now with dream. Go to shopbeam.com steve use the code Steve and get my exclusive offer for up to 40% off beams dream Powder with my discount code Steve. You can get their best selling dream powder right now for just 39 bucks. If you've been meaning to fix your sleep, this is the time get Dream. They're best selling sleep powder for up to 40% off now@shop beam.com Steve using the code Steve for up to 40% off. Is anybody I assume no one is surprised. Democrat women want non women celebrated.

[Steve Dace]

No Democrat.

[Todd Erzin]

What Exactly. Exactly. Great work by the way by the by the GOP to point that out and to get them to expose that. But the. We're up against this level of. Of reckless retardation, and now we need to keep pointing it out because while we all know this and we are at the point now, we've all kind of just moved on and just assumed it's a sunk cost. A lot of normie Americans still do not know this. And yeah, hey, I. I'm not a big fan of the price of gas right now myself. I'm Iran war talked out. Frankly, I'm not even going to address it again. How many times? How many rounds is this now? Well, we're close to a deal. I. I don't know how you make a deal with demoniacs, but whatever, okay, to me, either, you know, put a moat around him or kill him. I'm not sure how you'd make a deal with demoniacs, but what do I know? But do I wish gas was, you know, 341 down the street right now instead of 4:41? Sure. Do I wish it was 241 down the street right now instead of four hundred forty one? Yeah. But Normies have got to decide. You know, is it. Let's say that the gas prices don't move at all, Right? Well, your decision is literal. Insane people make every serious moral decision in your country or you pay a crappy gas price. So I think we have to keep reminding people that these are these normies, that these are literally insane people. That's one thing we have control over. We don't have any control over how ultimately epic fury will be settled and ultimately what will happen to fuel prices. We do have some control over reminding at every opportunity normie voters exactly who it is that we're up against. I want to talk about a primary today, though, if you guys will indulge me for a minute. And it's not the one that is. That has generated all the heat and attention. And frankly, I cannot wait for that one to be over. I have. I've just seen too many of my friends go at each other. The Kentucky primary, I think, is just. It's bringing out the worst in virtually everybody. And I tend. I don't know who Ed Gallerine is. You know, I have no idea what his record is. No clue. First heard of this guy a few months ago when he had a Trump endorsement. I don't know. I do know Thomas Massie. There was a time I thought he was among the finest men we had in the US Congress. He's done several things in the last year. I think particularly because he's allowed Trump to get under his skin and he's made it personal that I just have shaken my head at. And just the latest being the day before your primary, you're doing a show with the Young Turks. I have no idea how many rural Kentucky primary voters are reached by going on the Young Turks. And I think those are decisions you make when you, when you, when you've, you. You played into Trump's gambit and you let it get personal. I think you do stuff like that. I think the kind of, you know, alpha nerd that Tom used to be, Similar to Tucker, you just don't see. You don't see. You don't see Tom laugh and smile. Am I wrong? You don't see him laugh and smile like he used to. And I just, I think that it's brought out the worst in everybody. I love Stephen Miller to death. You guys know that. He's one of my favorite members of this administration. I think I've seen him. Community noted 4 times in the last 24 hours. You guys see this?

[Steve Dace]

No.

[Todd Erzin]

I think I counted four community notes against Stepen Miller in the last 24 hours. I, I just think this is fratricide. It's, it's brought the worst in everybody. All right. Lauren Bobert's like, I love Trump. I love Thomas Massie. He's voted with me on everything. Trump's like, well, now we're going to primary. Lauren Bobert, what. I mean, the whole thing has brought out the worst in every. And most divorces do. Most people don't walk out of divorces feeling better about themselves most of the time, despite the lies the culture tells you about it. And that's what you're kind of watching here. You're. You're kind of watching a divorce take place. And I think there will be. You know, I don't agree with them all the time, but they are a vital part of our coalition. And I, I do think you're. We. We risk. We're not in any place right now to be losing voters, to be just jettisoning off people from our coalition, unless what they're doing is just blatantly immoral. I don't think. I don't think. I don't think Mr. Massey's done things that are politically wise on several occasions in the last year, which has put him in a position where in just, even in the last few months, I would have predicted even a few months ago, he's going to win, and convincingly. Now, I'd be mildly surprised if he did. But I don't think we're accusing him necessarily of doing anything blatantly immoral. Maybe politically unwise, not savvy, questionable, but not necessarily immoral. But I could see this costing us a permanent fissure within our libertarian faction in our base. I could see that. And I'm, you know, I probably have the most offensive position of them all, which is typically how I roll, which is enough. Can we. Can we go after John Thune as hard as Thomas Massie? How many times have I been saying that? I mean, I just. I even get why Trump's doing it. I understand how, you know, I understand how kingdoms operate. And he is king, and you guys made him king. He's the king you want, you know, so I. I completely get why he's doing it. Massie has defied him on multiple occasions, including on many of the bills he cares about the most. And then on top of that, has played into Democrat talking points of Trump being a pedophile and everything on the Epstein file. So I. I get why Trump is doing what he is doing. Doesn't mean I agree with it, but I get it. What I don't get is why Massie has allowed this to get his personal. And if he had not, he probably would be coasting to a reelection, as he has the previous times Trump's tried to take him out. But he didn't let that happen. But here we are. Instead. I want to talk about another primary, and this one hasn't gotten nearly as much attention. And I think this is actually the most important primary tonight. Chip Roy is one of the finest men I've ever known. Let me say that again. Chip Roy is one of the finest men I have ever known. Haven't always agreed with Chip. Him and I have even gotten to shouting matches about things in the past. But, dude, there have been days Aaron thought he's gonna have to break up fist fights between me and Todd, straight up. This used to just call be called being men. Now, of course, it's a. It's a whole thing. But let me just tell you, the amount of people whose word I trust more than Chips is a very small short list. And I've had a lot of exposure to this system over the last 20 years, being here in the first in the nation caucus state. It's given me an opportunity to. To meet a lot of big names. I would have never otherwise had an opportunity to do so. And Chip is just among the finest men that I know. I understand that his first name right now for a Lot of Texas primary voters is Congressman Chip Roy. And people are all pissed off at Congress, but. And I, hey, mostly deservedly so, but. But he's not your problem. He's been one of the people trying to fix it. Chip's not getting rich off of this, not getting rich off the system. He is an earnest public servant in many respects. He is the model of what all of you within the sound of my voice say that you want. Even when you disagree, you're going to know what he really thinks and why he really thinks it and he'll tell you. And sometimes you can move them. Many times you can't because again, that's what men used to be like, not easily moved. Otherwise, what was the point of having the position that you previously had? Doesn't mean it can't happen, but it won't easily be so. And Ken Paxton has been an absolute superstar as Texas Attorney General. I'm well aware, well aware of the ind. The, the personality situation between Paxton and Roy. I'm fully aware of it. And my position is Ken Paxton's been an absolute superstar. If anything, I think he's making a mistake running for Senate. He'll be able to wage far less battle on a day to day basis against the spirit of the age than he was going to be able to as Texas Attorney General. On the other hand, I'd much rather have Ken Paxton on the, on the days when he is given that opportunity to like confirmations. I'd rather have Ken Paxton making those votes than John Cornyn every day and 10,000 times on Sunday. Even though the two men do not like each other for reasons that are complicated, it's not even close who the better option is of carrying on the, the level of warfare against the spirit of the age that Ken Paxton has successfully wielded. And I'm just going to tell you right now, mark my words, polls show this thing is really close. Chip was down considerably, has considerably now closed the gap. This is winnable today. Would not have said that a month ago. I was kind of playing Taps a month ago privately, but this is winnable today. But I am telling everybody within the sound of my voice right now, listening to me in the state of Texas, if you do not go out and vote for Chip Roy today, within a year, you're going to regret it. You're going to regret it. It is more important than ever before that we have trusted warriors in positions, the three most important positions I would pick that we could vote for. We can't vote for Supreme Court Justice. We can't vote for Secretary of State. We can't vote for Attorney general. So the three most important positions that I would say today that we can vote for given the state of the country are president, governor and state attorney General. That's your joint chiefs of voting staff right there. That's the joint chiefs of staff for voters right there. That triumvirate president, governor, state attorney general. And given what we are at, where we are at right now and what we're up against right now, it is adamant that those three positions have to be filled by people worthy of being shot at. If your president, your governor or your AG aren't worthy of being shot at, either figuratively or figuratively with accusations and everything else like Paxton has faced or literally like Trump has faced, if you're, if, if the Republican you have in those three positions isn't worthy of being shot at by your enemies, get a different Republican. Those three spots have to all be filled by people stone cold killers of this for the as far as the spirit of the age is concerned. And this is a generational opportunity to continue Paxton's legacy and further it. And I promise you, if you live in the state of Texas today and you don't take advantage of this, you're going to regret it and it won't be very long that you will. This is, we cannot have a C plus B minus higher for Texas Attorney General. This has got to be Sherman marching to Atlanta level stuff. That's what Paxton has been and you need the sure fire thing. Chip has stood up to this system and stood up to President Trump. Stood up to President Trump at times I didn't think that he frankly should and again, that's why I respect the hell out of him. One of the true last real men we have left and Texas, if you don't make him your attorney general today by having him win that runoff that essentially is going to win determine who wins the general. If you don't have him win today, you're going to regret it and it won't take very long. You already have a placeholder governor in a state that again needs a stone cold killer. You already have a placeholder governor. You cannot replace Ken Paxton with a placeholder. I'm just running to be something Attorney General and maybe Ma Middleton will surprise me. Kind of think that you won't seen this one a million times like that Leonardo DiCaprio gift. I I've seen this one, you know, minus a beer and cigarette in the hand, the cigarette in the other. I've seen this One, there's really only two kinds of politicians, folks. Those who want to do something and those who want to be something. And I can spot the guys who want to be something a mile away because they're a dime a dozen. What's rare is the guys who want to do things, and that's Chip. And so that's really the most important primary today. Gentlemen, I turn it over to you. Your thoughts?

[Aaron McIntyre]

The only thing I disagree with is you were a little too narrow in your scope there when you telling them that they. You will regret it. Oh, we. The entire nation is going.

[Todd Erzin]

Great point. Yep.

[Aaron McIntyre]

Because this is a bellwether. Yes, he's a congressman, but if you're a voter and you're like, there's this murkiness about who Chip Roy is, and, like, he's made it abundantly clear in. In ways that are undeniable, that if you're paying attention at all, he's not Congress. He's doing everything to not be Congress. So it's. It. The. The fault is totally with you. If he's now unacceptable, despite everything he's done and you're a Texas voter and you can't figure this out, it. It. We're all screwed. We're all screwed. And it's time for Iowans to prepare for. Like Randy Feedster, one of the first Republican candidates. Nay, one of the worst candidates for office I've ever seen. He's probably winning, too, because that's just who we are, apparently. We. We. We can't be bothered. We just. It's not even a shiny thing. We want the. We Chips. A shiny thing. We won't take it. But here in Iowa, I mean, we got no room to be cocky. Good grief. If Chip Roy loses in a place called Texas, the. The flat earth has won in two years. After what we thought was the political miracle of our lifetime, with Donald Trump rising, it just means we need to reevaluate everything, which we won't because we don't want to, because we like things comfortable. I mean, honestly, Chip Roy not losing. Is this to the head?

[Steve Dace]

You know, there's a clip going around this morning of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries talking about wanting to crush the soul of supporters of Trump and MAGA at all. That's how progressives think. Yes. What happened in 2024, the election of 2024. I wish it would have been treated like this and seen like this by members of Congress instead of the general zeitgeist, which I still believe at the time. The general zeitgeist did see that election as a mandate, apparently. You know, Republican members of Congress, most of them did not get that message, of course, Chip Roy notwithstanding. Even so, progressives still dominate our institutions. They still dominate our federal government. They still have a supreme advantage. And yet, even with that supreme advantage, even with, hey, maybe we should moderate people like Hakeem Jeffries and others, their goal is to double, triple, quadruple, down on the crazy, the rhetoric, what have you. That's how they think. There is no defeat or no victory that is final. You know, when I see high ranking members of this administration over the weekend, multiples of them, Secretary of State, Secretary of War, president, vice President, all speaking openly, to varying degrees, about the need for America to return to her founding faith, we should not take that for granted whatsoever at all. In fact, the reaction when we see those high ranking officials doing that, completely unashamed, completely unembarrassed, and forcefully out in the open in public, the reaction from the rest of us should be, what's our excuse? What's our excuse? The reaction from us should be, actually, that should embolden me to be a better citizen, to be more engaged, to try to engage those who are not engaged or emboldened. But all too often the answer is, let's rest on our laurels. Oh, it's a good time for a little slumber, a little folding of hands. That is not the reaction that we can have if we want to call ourselves, legitimately call ourselves a citizenry. Because if your reaction to this is anything other than let's get to work urgency, let's keep building, start building if needed, then you can call yourselves a lot of things. Citizen is probably not one of them.

[Todd Erzin]

A couple of corollaries to this conversation. Yes, I know the primary is a week from today, but early voting begins today for the runoffs. So the election is actually today. I mean, it starts today. It's not the system I like, it's not how I do it, but it's the system we have. So, yes, I understand it's May 26, but early voting began today. Secondly. One second. Pardon me, guys. Thank you. President Trump just announced that he is going to be making an endorsement in the Texas Senate GOP primary runoff around lunchtime today. So any thoughts on. On that? I told you before, when he announced his endorsement, I had a bad feeling. Is going to be Cornyn. I think it was going to be Cornyn in the main primary. And then I think that Ken Paxton pulled off one of the most deft maneuvers I've ever seen from a politician by coming out a day later and saying, listen, I'll drop out of the race like Trump said. The the who he doesn't endure should do, provided that John Cornyn will vote against the filibuster in order to bring the SAVE act to the floor. He called everybody's bluff with that. Absolutely. I know we always say there's no such thing as Ford E CHS except that one that was some 4D chess, and it probably won him a Senate seat or at least this nomination, because today I do think that Trump's gonna end up endorsing Ken Paxton today. But what are you guys instincts? What do you think?

[Aaron McIntyre]

I'm trusting you on this.

[Todd Erzin]

Who knows?

[Steve Dace]

Who knows?

[Todd Erzin]

So now I'm doubting Trump also.

[Steve Dace]

I saw Trump also endorsed Daniel Horowitz's favorite governor, Brad Little. I saw that as well. So who knows?

[Todd Erzin]

All right. Well, now I'm nervous. I was pretty confident a minute ago, but now I'm nervous.

[Aaron McIntyre]

I'm just. I'm Texas in general, and everything about it just really pisses me off. It just does.

[Todd Erzin]

Just fake you've got a couple of minutes. I've not given you guys an opportunity or that much of an opportunity. Do you want to go back and address saying I said about the Massey primary today?

[Aaron McIntyre]

Well, these are. These. Everything about Trump from the beginning has been challenging, disorienting. It's every. Every one of us has to make our own decisions accordingly on how we navigate this. I will just say if you just. If you. If you do not have a. An anchor that is outside and above Donald Trump, you, no matter who you are, you're going to get crushed from it. And again, you. Not today. But you meant, you mentioned it yesterday. Vis a vis Massey, you know, the man lost his wife two years ago. That may be the whole thing with him kind of being unmoored, unbalanced, I don't know. But it's very unfortunate.

[Steve Dace]

I don't know. I seem to recall back when this primary kind of started getting geared up, or it was looking like it was headed towards a primary and Donald Trump would be involved. I seem to remember telling everyone who had listened that I hope everybody has fun and nobody gets hurt. It seems like that seems like that message, that advice, that wisdom, if I may say so myself, has not been heeded because it seems like nobody's having fun and a lot of people are getting hurt.

[Todd Erzin]

Yeah. Yeah. That's why I can't wait till this one is over. All right. When we come back, another painful moment. We have to address. Stay tuned, The steve day show. All right, back here on the Steve Day show and and we are powered by our friends over at Relief Factor. If you're struggling with too much chronic pain in your joints, like your neck, your back, your knees, your hips, it's probably because you've got too much inflammation in those joints. And that's where Relief Factor comes in. Now, we're not going to sit here and promise you anything. We're not going to give you any kind of guarantees. It's, you know, we're not selling snake oil, copper bracelets here or magnets. All right, it's not a potion, not an antidote, it's a supplement. But over the years, over 1 million people have taken the three week quick start that I'm about to suggest you do the same and follow suit with. 70% of them saw such great results, they ended up sticking with the product long term. A supplement created by physicians though who can prescribe drugs. But they wanted to avoid all those side effects and see if there was a drug free way to deal long term with what's causing that pain. And that's something. Well, it's Relief Factor. So why don't you see if you don't see a difference in your pain in three weeks or less, especially now. Here's the best part. It's only gonna cost you 20 bucks to find out. So we're dealing with 70% odds here for just $20 to find out. So make the make, make that decision today. Give it a shot today. Go to Relief Factor today@Relief Factor.com Try the three week quick start. It's just 20 bucks@Relief Factor.com all right. Coming up in the next hour of the show, Katie Faust from Greater Than is going to join us and she is getting attacked from all sides. She's going to tell us why. And then Spin magazine has come out with its top 10 list of rock bands of all time. We're going to attack that list from all sides coming up on Pop Culture Tuesday here at the end of the show. And then I've got to hit jet. Literally got to jump on a big old jet airliner, Steve Miller and head out to D.C. todd and Aaron will have the overtime for you today. If you're a Blaze TV subscriber, don't miss that and all the other exclusive content we provide for [e-mail] dace use the code dace to get a discounted subscription today at blazetv.com dace code dace for $20 off then tomorrow I'll be doing the show from D.C. we'll have a regular order program. It's just I'll be on the road and then Thursday I've got to travel back. And so a special Evergreen edition with our good friend Seth Gruber in advance of his big event coming up here in just a couple of weeks at Brave Church in Denver, the Last Stand. You can go get information on that online. Look for the Last Stand and Seth Krueber. We have an all star lineup of speakers and then they needed some schmucks just to fill out the roster. And that's where I come in. So I'll be at that event as well. And I wouldn't brave the Denver TSA for just anybody because you guys know how. I mean, you guys know, man, I'm already saying my prayers, doing the training, eating my vitamins right now. All right. In advance of the Denver tsa. But I'll do it for Seth. All right. And I think you're going to be pretty pumped up with the conversation that you'll get a chance to hear from Seth on the state of the church coming up on Thursday show. And then I'll be back in studio on Friday for the day. Scroop. All right. But now I want to spend a few minutes reminding everybody why my next book is very much needed. It's the conclusion of my trilogy of children's books on America's Christian heritage. Why Independence Day? America is great because God is good. Here's a preview.

[Steve Dace]

Every Fourth of July, we light up the sky. We wave our flags, we celebrate. But if your kids asked you why, could you tell them the real story? It's a story that starts 3,000 years before 1776, a story most people have never heard told this way. A miracle in the desert, a miracle on Christmas night. Commandments carved in stone, a constitution written on paper. What's the connection? This 4th of July, give your family the story they've never been told, the one that explains everything.

[Todd Erzin]

Indeed. Our 250th birthday, folks. It is an event 3,000 years in the making. And in this next book, we, we are going to walk you through all of that history so you know where our heritage came from. Your children know because they're not going to get taught it in the government schools today. And then they are given inspiration and conviction that now one day soon, it'll be their turn now to secure that heritage for their children and their grandchildren. And I hope that you're encouraged and and inspired reading it to them as their parents and grandparents and aunts and uncles as well. But we're number one right now. The number one best selling Christian children's book bestseller in America. Sorry, Ben Carson, who's number two? All right. But we're number one right now, so thank you, guys. This has been a very successful pre launch for why Independence Day America Is Great Because God is Good, which doesn't release until one week from today. Get your pre order in now on Amazon. All right. And if you want to know why this book is necessary, Right before we get to Todd's latest countdown, his top 10 events leading up counting down to independence in America. Right. If you want to know why this book is necessary and if you want to know what your children are being taught instead of what's in this book, watch this clip. What about this passage from Mike Johnson declaring that our rights do not derive from government, they come from you, our

[Katie Faust]

creator and heavenly Father.

[Todd Erzin]

Is this him putting God over the declaration of independence?

[Katie Faust]

McKay?

[Todd Erzin]

Well, you know, I actually think that that idea is not wholly uncommon. I mean, the idea that we have certain inalienable rights that come from God can be read in a fairly benign way, which is basically that we have innate human rights that our Constitution and our government, our democratic government are meant to codify. Right. That idea is not totally abnormal. I think that the thing that, you know, might alarm some people is some of the rhetoric that we heard at this rally that we are in a spiritual battle. Right. That the forces of good and evil are at work here and that that partisan politics is injected directly into the spiritual biblical rhetoric. We have heard that for the last couple of years.

[Aaron McIntyre]

It's been ratcheted up more and more, especially since Donald Trump lost in 2020.

[Todd Erzin]

And it can lead to some pretty dangerous places if it's not Captain Trump. So first of all, it's the Declaration of Independence that says we hold these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights. So Katie Tur her questions, right. The Declaration of Independence is the document that says that our rights come from God and not government. That's what's in the document. It's, You can't put God above the Declaration of Independence because the Declaration of Independence already puts God above it. It's right there in the, it's in the Declaration itself. It says that there. Yeah. So, yeah, so there's that. All right. But then the rest of the answer, well, as long as these rights don't come from God, but they're pre existent human rights, then it's really not that offensive. Well, who would decide what pre existent human rights we have? And if humans can decide what pre existent rights we have, then guess who can take those away? Humans can do the same. And that's the reasonable take on that panel. That was the reasonable take that we showed you. You can't share a country with this because it's thoughts from a different country than ours. These are not the thoughts that framed and started our country. At best, these are foreign thoughts and I'm using that term on purpose. At worst, they're anathema and intended to undermine on purpose. So that, that. And by the way, this is msnbc, folks, after its rebrand. This is where they got rid of Joy Reed and a few other crazies who are really, really crazy. This is now their attempt at a rebrand is the clip that you just saw. It's why this book is needed right now. It's why I've done this trilogy of children's books on America's Christian heritage. Because we, we clearly skipped much of a generation and passing our heritage on. So you can pre order your copy today. America is great because God is good. That's the subtitle to my latest, my 14th and latest book, why Independence Day releases nationwide next week. Pre order your copy right now on Amazon. You guys have been great. Like I said, we're the number one best selling new release in all Christian children's books. So apologies to Ben Carson, you're number two. So we're in good company there. So let's keep it going folks. Thank you very much. Pre order your copy at Amazon today. And we're going to keep it going with Todd's top 10 events counting down to independence here in America.

[Aaron McIntyre]

Todd, Steve, the only thing missing there, you should have gone full ramen king, you know, eating the uncooked ramen.

[Todd Erzin]

And yes, I love that pointing over

[Aaron McIntyre]

your shoulder declaration of my God. It's just pathetic. Well, shall we? The British attempt to crush colonial insurgency movement once and for all ended up being immortalized as the shot heard around the world by Ralph Waldo Emerson and served as the beginning of the American Revolutionary War. The battles of Lexington and Concord on April 19, 1775 raged over 16 miles from from Boston to Concord, where the colonial militia had been storing arms in anticipation of the fighting to come. A tip about the British plans to raid the Concord armory reached Paul Revere the day before and led him on his famous midnight ride which rallied the militiamen with the help of the now famous One if by land, two if by sea. Lantern signal at the Old North Church, The British suffered 73 dead and 174 wounded, compared to 49 killed and and 41 wounded for the militia, a ratio which filled them with confidence and resolve to see their cause through. The second Continental Congress quickly gathered which would steer the course of colonial governance. For over the course of the war a declaration of the causes and necessity of taking up arms was issued In July of 1775, the final draft of which was written by John Dickinson with contributions from an earlier draft by none other than. Than Thomas Jefferson, quote, if it was possible for men who exercise their reason to believe that the divine author of our existence intended a part of the human race to hold an absolute property in and an unbounded power over others, marked out by his infinite goodness and wisdom as the objects of a legal domination, never rightfully resistible, however severe and oppressive the inhabitants of these colonies might at least require from the Parliament of Great Britain some evidence. Are you listening, Katie Tur? That this dreadful authority over them has been granted to that body. But a reverence for our great creator, principles of humanity and the dictates of common sense must convince all those who reflect upon the subject that government was instituted to promote the welfare of mankind and ought to be administered for the attainment. To that end, obviously Thomas Jefferson was just getting warmed up, giving the message that now Katie Tur and others are willfully lying about, because the lie is the point. And it was now time for the Continental Congress to also make the most important decision it would ever make by appointing the general for a continental army. His name, you may have heard of him, was George Washington. The 43 year old declined a salary and said at the call to duty before him, quote, I am truly sensible of the high honor done me in this appointment. I do not think myself equal to the command I am honored with, end quote.

[Todd Erzin]

That'll preach right there. And you know, if we could go back and just reset that clip for a second. If we could give it the most, the most benefit of the doubt with the, I guess, reasonable gentleman on the rebrand and msnbc. If we're giving him the most benefit of doubt, he, you, you could interpret it that he's essentially saying we have liberty by law. And that's what the Magna Carta was. But this is why the Magna Carta didn't work. It wasn't sustainable. Because if, if you have liberty by law, or that's another way of saying by, by governing authority, then you're always one Pharaoh away from one who doesn't know. Joseph, you're always one election away from your entire way of life could be upended. By the way, doesn't it feel like we're one election away from our entire way of life getting upended constantly around here? Weird, because that's what happens when you're godless. Something will always rule. Something will always be worshiped. So if we're not going to say that our rights come from God and therefore government is accountable to that exact same God to secure those God given rights, as are those that it's governing, then eventually the government will put itself in that position, which is exactly what had happened by the time of King George iii. And that's why our founders had to go to a higher authority than government. God. We have no king but Jesus. Our rights come from God, not from government. And it's not putting God over the Declaration of Independence. It's the wording of the Declaration of Independence. It's what it actually says. The Declaration is just declaring something that's already true. It's a codification. It's not a conjuring. So this, folks, this entire conversation that we're having here is why this book is desperately needed. Not just for the kids now, but for parents and grandparents. When Charlie Kirk talked about Deuteronomy was the most quoted book by the Founding Fathers, what does that mean? We're going to get into all of that. That's all going to be a part of this book. So get your copy today, pre order your copy today. All right. Why Independence Day? America is great. Because God is good. And you can pre order it right now at Amazon Releases one week from today. And thank you guys again. It's number one and bestselling new or bestselling new release children's Christian books in in the country, according to Amazon. So thank you guys very much for that. Keep it going. And it completes the trilogy of why Thanksgiving and why Easter? As well. Why Independence Day? America is great Because God is good. Pre order right [e-mail] all right, next hour we're going to get into this spin magazine Top 10 rock band rock Bands of of all time. Because there's a larger point here. It's not just for me to rant and rave, although that's part of it. But there's a larger point we want to make on Pop Culture Tuesday, we'll get into that. And then next hour we're going to be rejoined by our good friend Katie Faust, and she has started an organization called Greater Than that. Has its goal essentially to overturn Obergefell to get rid of gay marriage in America. And one thing you're going to see from Katie if you follow her work online, is she is constantly posting gay marriage to this, gay marriage to that, gay marriage to this. That essentially every single one of the slippery slope arguments we made during those marriage fights of the 90s and 2000s all turned out to be sadly, prophetically true. But what happens when we go from the philosophical debate and the philosophical battle to now this is something we have to look at practically. It's in my family, it's in my neighborhood, it's in our schools, it's in my own relationships. How do we confront that? How do we stand a narrow road and love our neighbor as we love ourselves while at the same time not accepting that which God says is wrong? So I don't want us to just have a philosophical conversation with Katie. We're going to get into the, the practical aspect of this too, as it's metastasized in the post Obergefell world. Going to get an add in more with Katie Foust coming up here in hour two. Stay tuned. All right, back here with hour two on Blaze tv, Radio and podcast. I'm Steve Dase alongside Todd erzin and Aaron McIntyre. You can let us know what you think about what we think via the stevedace.com inbox. Email the show stevedace.com that's D E A C E like us on Facebook, me, we and Gab. You can follow mevedayshow on x Instagram and TikTok. Also make sure to subscribe to our new YouTube channel, a show on YouTube. And then finally, if you are a podcast listener, thank you. You're the biggest part of our audience so we certainly appreciate you all the more. Make sure if you haven't done so yet, hit the subscribe or if you're on Apple itunes follow button to make sure that you never miss a single episode of this show. And you can also, as tens of thousands of you already have, leave us a five star review and thank you for each and every one of those. And thanks to our friends over at Masa Chips, they sponsor this segment of the show. If you are looking for healthy snacking, look no further than masa. Just three ingredients, that's it. Organic corn, sea salt, 100% grass fed beef, tallow. That's it. No, no seed oils, no mystery chemicals, just real food. The way that you're snacking used to be. And they taste absolutely delicious. I know what you're gonna think, why is it in such a small bag? Because you can't eat as many of them as you can when they're full of chemicals. And you get full a lot in a lot less time. So that's great news. Plus, the other great news is their cousins or maybe their twin brothers, the Vanity Crisps, I think those are even better. The standard potato chips, I think those are even better than the masa tortilla chips. Whether you want to go with those or the masa tortilla chips, use the code DACE for 25% or off your first order. All right. MASA M A S A masachips.com Code DACE masachips.com Code Dace for 25% off your first order with the code [e-mail] we welcome back to the program as we kick off our two here, good friend of the show, Katie Faust joins us from Greater than. And Katie, it's good to see you again. How are you?

[Katie Faust]

I'm really good, Steve. Thanks for letting me chat with you and your audience today.

[Todd Erzin]

You bet. We just wanted to bring you on because we're just trying to figure out what is wrong with you.

[Katie Faust]

Well, I'm public enemy number one, Steve.

[Todd Erzin]

Yes.

[Katie Faust]

Why I believe all the wrong things.

[Todd Erzin]

Yes. Why are you hated? Why is hatred of you all over my social media feeds? Why are your hometown newspapers criticizing and condemning you? Clearly, you have done something wrong and now is the time when we want you to come forth and confess, Katie. So the floor is yours.

[Katie Faust]

I confess, Steve, I have two very, very offensive beliefs. The first one is children need their mother and father. And I'm not going to apologize for it. I do still believe it, even though the Seattle Times spent 2,000 words describing in detail my childhood, my family, where my husband used to work, where he currently works, how much our nonprofit brought in, and the neighborhood where I live. The second very offensive thing that I believe is children should not be bought and sold. And even though there's been incredible amounts of pressure put on me by the state's largest newspaper, that also happened to mention the location of my speaking event last Saturday night. I don't think that I'm going to change what I think about all those things. I think that children need, deserve and have a right to their mother and father. It is supported by the social science, by 400 years of common law, by 100 years of supreme Court precedence, by all of the best statistics that we have. It's even recognized by the five major religions of the world So I don't think that I'm going to go with the 10 years, the virtual five minutes of history that is pretending like a child's own mother and father are optional in their life. And I'm not going to recant that. I think that children shouldn't be bought and sold. And the very real connection that the commodification of children has to the legalization of gay marriage. So here I stand.

[Todd Erzin]

Well, so much for confessions then. That seemed more like a proclamation. You say this a lot. I see this online a lot. Gay marriage did this. All right, explain what you mean by that.

[Katie Faust]

So sometimes you'll see headlines, for example, a Chinese couple in California that has procured what began as 21 children and now it's up to 27 surrogate born children that were mass produced under new Obergefell driven parentage statutes in California. Or you'll see a same sex headed couple that has violently abused their children, the children that have been placed in their home, often through surrogacy and these Obergefell driven parentage statutes. Or you'll see situations of an elderly man who is raising surrogate twins also through the redefinition of parenthood, parenthood that has been mandated by gay marriage. You can look at a lot of different things happening in the world of modern families, all that destroy and reject the natural contours of the family that is biologically mandated. And you can trace, you can go upstream and you can see that gay marriage did this. Gay marriage did it by redefining parentage, by saying biology is no longer a, a factor in terms of determining who should be able to take home a vulnerable newborn from the hospital. Gay marriage did it when it removed the expectation that a child's own mother and father are going to be in the home all the time. And that you can normalize unrelated adults sharing living spaces with kids, which always, always increases risk of abuse and neglect. Gay marriage did it because it created new pathways for people to acquire unrelated children without the kind of adoption screening that the rest of us adoptive parents had to undergo if we wanted to bring an unrelated child into our house.

[Todd Erzin]

House.

[Katie Faust]

Gay marriage did it as it relates to the cultural ways we think about family, the technological ways that we are severing children from their mother and father, and the legal ways that we are detaching children from their mother and father and reattaching them to biological strangers. Gay marriage is responsible for so many of the different dystopic scenarios that children find themselves in that often put their development, identity and Safety at risk.

[Todd Erzin]

That's all.

[Katie Faust]

That's all.

[Todd Erzin]

So essentially all of our slippery slow arguments that may you that we used against this in the 1990s and 2000s were all 100% true.

[Katie Faust]

The Pearl clutching religious bigots had it right for some reason.

[Todd Erzin]

All right, you and I agree completely with every syllable you just said in the meta, in the philosophical, in the theological. Let's talk about this in practicum and try to make this very personal to a lot of people in our audience, myself included. We had a lesbian couple move next door to us here in our, We've lived in the same house now. It'll be 20 years and a few weeks and we had a lesbian couple move next door to us a few years ago. And it's kind of, from what I understand, a bit of a sordid story. One was maybe a teacher and the other was a student who was about to graduate. And you're kind of a, that kind of a scandal kind of a thing. All right, well, they are quote unquote married now and, and have used surrogacy to have two children who are absolutely adorable that I see playing out on my street this time of year in particular on a frequent basis. And I would imagine, given what I'm about to say, that if this is true of someone like me, whose job professionally is to confront these things, who, who signed up for all of the treatment that you are now getting. I volunteered for this duty from day one. I, I, I am not a victim. I knew what I was getting. My sound like a victim when you were pointing out what they tried to do to you. You understand this is a sunk cost of standing up to those who shake their fist at God in the spirit of the age. You totally get that. I get that as well. Where things get more complicated is when human relationships are included. And this is why really, every previous generation of human society, no matter how craven or depraved, didn't do things like what we're doing here to avoid these kinds of conversations. Well, of course, Even in honor cultures. Of course. I don't want my daughter raped in a, you know, in the, the men's latrine. What are we doing here? Right, okay. Exactly. So at this time of year, I walk like 40 miles a week. I see these kids all the time, okay. And I am very much torn. I'm polite as much as I can possibly be. My heart breaks for them that their mothers have denied them a dad. I'm not, I gotta be honest, I'm not entirely sure what the line is of love your neighbors, you love yourself, and affirmation here because I certainly don't want to click on every stereotype their mothers have probably told of people like me and they're saying about me, well, look what's next door to us in the exact opposite. Like it's the upside down. Right? And so this is now something that is happening all throughout America right now. Okay? And yes, when you have the obvious story of the two obvious tranny dudes, okay, who are, who are raping their children, that one's an easy one. And especially because you don't know who any of those people are and they probably don't live next door to you. Stuff gets real though, Katie, when it is in your neighborhood or right next door to you. Right? And so if I can feel this tension, given the world that I'm in, and I love the tension, I signed up for it. In fact, when there's not tension, I'll try to create some because it just feels like something's wrong. Okay, so, but, so if I am sensing this tension, I cannot even imagine with the average person who didn't sign up for this, who did not want a country that literally went insane, what, how they pro possibly navigate it. So what words of encouragement in practicum do you have for these scenarios?

[Katie Faust]

Very good. So go to greater than campaign.com and subscribe. We are about to publish a little 20 page ebook on how do I defend children and love the people in my life who identify as lgbt. Because all of us have this scenario, Steve. All of us have somebody in our immediate family living next door to us that is raising a family or stepping away from this. True. The truism of mother, father, child need to go together and be elevated in policy. So I wrote 20 pages on this because like you, I've lived this. Like my mom is in a same sex relationship with her partner. They've been together for 40 years. I pray that I am the top of their list. When they think about people that they can call in times of need, have there been challenging conversations? Yes. Has it been tense at times? Yes. But there is no way that you are going to be able to forsake truth or forsake loving the people in your life who are image bearers of God, who are stepping away from the truth of marriage, family and parenthood. So here's my high level advice, okay? It is no accident that they moved in next to you, Steve, because you're actually going to be able to create something that those kids need and I only know this because we've cataloged the stories of children with same sex parents for close to a decade now. Those kids are hungering for a man. They hunger for a father. They hunger for male attention. They hunger for paternal love. Why? Because that's not an optional component of a child's social emotional diet. They need it like food. And so they're starved of it, though. They're starving of this critical. They have plenty of mother's love. It sounds like they have stability, but they're missing the third component, the third critical staple of their emotional diet, and that is paternal love. So I don't know if those lesbians are letting your kids have any, their kids have any interaction with you, but if they do, what you'll notice is they linger around you, they're curious about you, they, they want to get your attention. They may hang out in the garage if you're working on your car, or if you invite them over and you are playing with your own kids, they'll try to get kind of close to your kids and be like, maybe he'll throw the ball to me next. Because they're hungering for something. And the terrible thing about these kids is they will find a way to meet their hunger for male attention. It just probably is not going to be in a way that is protective and one that has their long term best interest in mind. Fatherless children are vulnerable children. Fatherless children are targets for exploitation because they are so hungry for male involvement. And there's a lot of men that are happy to be involved in their life, but not for the better. They happen to be living next door to a man who probably would. Now, a lot of people will be in these situations with their, their niece who's married to a woman and raising sperm donor children. And he is the, he's the uncle that they see a couple times a year. And they may hear because I know these kids, I know the kids that are now adults that are talking about their stories. They're going to hear things like, why aren't you my dad? Can you be my dad? Can I call you dad? Or who is my dad? Where did he go? Does he know I exist? Does he love me? I want a dad. And these kids are not saying it because somebody's saying, you should have a dad. This arises naturally in children. Children long to be known by their mother and father. It's insane, instinctual, and in fact, what. Here's the opposite. These kids are told, you're so lucky to have two moms. And the problem is. Then they think, well, there must be something really wrong with me. Everyone's telling me I'm lucky to have two moms, and yet I fantasize about this man that I've never met that my mother say is just a donor and that means nothing to me. And yet I can't stop thinking about him. I wonder if I've passed him on the street. Like, does he know who I am? Does he want me? Would he want me if I reached out to him? So here's the other. Here's the other thing that you can do for these kids. It's what I call careful validation. When they're under 18, you don't want to trash the people that they're living with. They probably have feelings of love and loyalty to the people raising them. But you have to tell them that they're not crazy. You have to carefully validate the longings that they have. You have to say, it makes sense that you're asking those questions because you do have a father out there and you're an awesome kid and he's really missing out because you're really fun to be with and you're a great boy and. And you do deserve somebody in the backyard throwing the baseball around with you. So you carefully validate their natural longings without critiquing the people that are raising him. It is a. It is a. A tightrope, but it's one that biblical Christians have got to learn to walk.

[Todd Erzin]

Great advice, Katie. How can people learn more about your awful work that has turned you into a Persona non grata for the spirit of the age?

[Katie Faust]

The terrible, bigoted website where we are going to overturn gay marriage because it victimizes children is greater than campaign dot com. Go and subscribe. You can follow me on X K A T Y underscore Faust. And that's where you're going to get my opinions about everything, for better or worse.

[Todd Erzin]

Always good to see you, Katie. Thank you.

[Katie Faust]

Thanks, Steve.

[Todd Erzin]

You bet. All right, so, gentlemen, I want to continue this conversation, the impracticum part of this conversation, because everything that we warned against, and I was involved in a lot of those battles back in those days, everything we said, everything we claimed was going to happen, everything we warned about has all happened. It's, it's, it's. And it's not even anything prophetic. We just, you know, read the owner's manual of the Universe and did the math. Okay. And, you know, the Bible doesn't tell us what already happened. It tells us what always happens and what currently is happening. So we're here now, right? We're here now. We. We face this in our own company. A few years ago. I love Dave Rubin to death. As a person, he's been great to me. But I. I remember, you know, when the news of his surrogacy with his partner hit and Ali and I were, you know, we kind of went this way on this company, and a lot of the other people that were here at the time went the other way. And that was kind of uncomfortable. I mean, there's just things I. I'm not permitted to validate as a believer. My. My life is not my own. I was bought at a high price, and that high price was the life of my Lord that he laid down on my behalf. And regardless of how much of a high regard I may have for you as an individual, I don't fear the one that can condemn me or ridicule me or troll me or destroy the body. I fear the one who do all those things and then cast the soul into hell. But as we were just discussing with Katie, that's not as easy to do in practicum. And all throughout audiences like ours right now and in our own lives now we are facing these situations in practicum because we've allowed this social contagion to break free of the biblical Christian morality that we previously had in every other generation to contain it. Your thoughts?

[Aaron McIntyre]

Well, you know, I. I have a short story about Mother Teresa. She was actually scheduled to come visit a church, and a gentleman I was talking to was waiting for her to show up. And another person who was waiting to show up maybe providentially fell right there on the church on the hard floor and had a epileptic seizure. And everybody kind of panicked. Just the seizure right in front of you, not knowing quite to do. And Mother Teresa is also coming, and she happens to come at. Right at that time. And she sees everybody just kind of watching this go on. And she gets down next to and holds them and just tells everybody he's down here, he's not up there. Your. Your comfort is not even remotely the issue in any of this. And that's when she said. When she says what you're called to, Katie says, what you're called to as a Christian, your discomfort is actually a sign that that's where you're supposed to be. We keep thinking like other people on the cul de sac. Are you a Christian or not? Your discomfort is the sign, the gift from God that you are right where you need to be.

[Steve Dace]

Amen. And this is going to touch impact, if it hasn't already. Your life, your family's lives, your neighbors lives. It will, it will. Inevitably in our culture, I think it's almost an inevitability. Unless you're living under a rock on top of a mountain somewhere, this is going to impact your life some way somehow. So you're going to have to wrestle with how you are going to deal with all of these issues. You're going to have to. Yes, you can have things in the open hand. Like Katie was saying. That was some great practical advice. Yeah, you need to be kind to those kids of the lesbo couple next door or the gay couple next door, whatever you want to call them, whatever label the culture gives them. You need to be kind to their children. You need to model Christlike love for them. Yet at the same time, there are going to be boundaries there. Maybe you start to be friendly with your neighbors. Does that mean that you let them into all parts of your life? Absolutely not. There's going to be, there's going to be boundaries. So the sooner you start to wrestle with this, the better.

[Todd Erzin]

I'd say let's talk about, and go back to the beginning of both your points there about if you're placed in a situation of discomfort as a believer, then you're probably right where you're supposed to be. And one of the things you see throughout. Let's just look at the Gospels. We could do this through all the scriptures, but let's just use the Gospels because that's the period of time in prophetic history when God became a man and was with us, Emmanuel, God with us. And I know we are coming out of a generation of mixed sermons and all the, all the stuff we have lamented and disdained on our show. I don't have to repeat all the tropes of the sweater vest and everything else. You guys know all that stuff by now, chapter and verse especially because I'll have to probably bring it up again relatively soon. All right. But what that has produced is a generation of believers who think that if, if, if their faith is causing friction, that must mean they have done something wrong. And the exact opposite is true. If the Lord has placed you in a position of discomfort, it is exactly because you are right where you are supposed to be. Right where you are supposed to be. I mean, the ultimate example of discomfort, the cross, not a comfortable experience for our Lord. But. But even before that, in his humanity, all he experienced was discomfort. He was born into a literal genocide in the middle of his childhood. His family had to up and move to a, to a foreign country. No, they weren't illegal aliens. They moved to another. They never, they were never not under the jurisdiction of the Roman Empire. They were never not subjects of the Roman Empire. Egypt was a province of the Roman Empire at that time. Thank you. Cleopatra and Mark Antony, right? So that part, that trope that the left brings out every Christmas time is not true. But what is true? I mean, think about when you were growing up and you had established relationships. I went through this a lot as a kid, by the way, but how traumatic it was when mom and dad said, hey, we're moving. You know, my wife went through this as an army brat. Right. You know, she'll tell you about the white walls in army housing because you, there was no need putting stuff up. You had no idea how long you're going to be there and when you're going to have to go. Okay. So, I mean, I met my wife who was born from Nuremberg, West Germany, a country that doesn't even exist anymore by way of America Online. There's a lot of travels. As a graduate of Fort Campbell, Kentucky high School, and she was living in Granville, Michigan at the time we connected on the Internet. A lot has to go on to get from point A to point D there. There's a lot of points in between. So it's traumatic to do that in our day and age. Now you're doing it in antiquity and you're not always safe and you're facing all kinds of pirates, barbarians, raiders on the road. How about having to confront false religious leaders right to their faces and in front of large crowds? These weren't online posts. These weren't even letters. These were confrontations, face to face, direct confrontations. The parts of, of. Of our Lord's life that the Gospels tell us about are dripping with discomfort. Dripping with that's a little cringe. Dripping with that was awkward. How many times the disciples like that was awkward. Did we have to go there? I mean, did we have to say that there's no way to do this now if we're going to follow him. The good Lord, the good. The good news is we don't have to endure for him all that he already endured for us. We will not have to repeat those steps in total. We won't. It is finished. However, we will have to do at least some of it to walk that path. The Lord was very clear about this to his own disciples and they lived it. And the only one who did not, they tried to make him live it. And then when they gave up trying to kill him, they just banished him to the middle of nowhere and let him die alone. So we are going to have to endure some of this. And there is just something unique about going to church in these massive suburban mausoleums, monasteries, I guess we would call them, testimonies to our own largesse. And I go to one of those because our church grew so much that we had to go there. But why did we, why did it grow so much? Because our pastor actually taught the word not. He didn't water it down. And if anything, I think his teaching, since we've got into this shiny new building, has got even edgier, if anything, than what it was before. Shout out to Pastor Jesse. So I, I, I. We're a little soft, maybe a lot soft. And you will not be able to fulfill the calling that your Lord has on your life. You will not be able to finish your race without some discomfort. And then ultimately, we are not here. This is, this is the years of John Piper, men who preached a faithful gospel, but taught that the gospel was like, parallel to the culture. When the cross itself is a perpendicular design, it's an intersection. That era is over. John Piper's Minneapolis is a bleep hole. Tim Keller had no prophetic impact on the greatest city in America within a decade after his death. It is now ruled by an Islamist. This idea that the gospel is some quiet life of contemplation. I used to call it Protestant monasticism or evangelical monasticism, but we just built our monasteries right, you know, where the wealthy people lived. At least when the Catholics tried it, they went to the middle of nowhere and then total depravity found the monks out there in the middle of nowhere. And so that's why they gave that up. That's why Christianity, actually, throughout much of its history, beginning at its, at its nascent stages, it was the city religion, not the rural religion. It was the city religion. The paganism was still out in the rural areas. In this modern age, we've figured that there are places we can carve out that we can just kind of do what we want to do and the world won't come for us. And it's very clear now that that is not the case. And this is going to have to get uncomfortable so that your children and grandchildren even have a shot to be tempted by the comfort that you and I enjoy right now. Gentlemen, I'll turn it over to you for the final few minutes and your thoughts on that.

[Aaron McIntyre]

Well, one of our favorite lies as Christians certainly Christian men is when they talk about their me time. Here. Here's a little news flash. It's when it. When you decide to be a Christian, there's a very low number of which your time is actual me time, and it's round. And even when you're doing something on your own, which is okay, it's still not me time. Because other people are watching other, often your children, and they are weighing and measuring about what you value and what you think is important. There is no me time as a Christian. There is only us time. God is by definition us time. Trinitarian. He is relationship. Everything you do as a Christian is us time. And that is very, very hard for people to contemplate right now, which is why they get very angry with me. You must smash those idols. You don't have a choice.

[Steve Dace]

Yes. And we've dug ourselves a deep hole. A deep hole, culturally, as a church. And you know the old adage, when you're digging yourself a hole, keep digging till you come out in China.

[Aaron McIntyre]

Exactly.

[Steve Dace]

Aaron, put down the shovel. And you gotta scratch and fight and claw your way out. When these Seattle Times, or whatever that rag is, is writing hit pieces on somebody like Katie Faust, who I didn't even know of, I think maybe this time yet, last year or a year and a half ago, you want to know what fighting, scratching, and clawing looks like? It's that it's taken that it's taken that that's what it looks like. Steve, you got a few scars. Todd, you got a few scars. I have one or two as well. And we're pretty lucky to get to do what we do. I mean, we get to, you know, we get to share our beliefs, our opinions for a living. But we still have some of those scars. The fighting, scratching, and clawing after putting down the shovel is really going to define you as an individual and us corporately, as a church, as a nation, as communities. That's what it's going to take.

[Todd Erzin]

Exactly. The number one command that we have as believers is what Alfred says to Batman. Endure. That's. That's our number one command. Endure. We don't win the race, we finish the race. And that takes endurance, and that takes enduring some uncomfortable, uncomfortable situations for sure. Pop culture. Tuesday's next. The Steve Day Show. If I can't hold it, I'll just say, I gotta peek. You guys talk. I'll be back in a minute. All right. Back here on the Steve Day show, we're powered by our friends over at Fast Growing Trees. They are who you want to go to because they have the largest and most trusted online nursery in the country, thousands of trees and plants. That's why they've got over 2 million happy customers. Here's another reason why. It's their alive and thrive guarantee. It promises that your plants are going to arrive happy and healthy. So maybe you're also thinking, but you know what? All I do is just kill plants. I'm a cereal plant killer. Don't worry, they're plant experts. They'll help you not just plan what's right for your landscape or your home and choose the right stuff, but you're also going to learn from them how to care for them every single step of the way. So they've got great deals right now for all your spring planting essentials, including up to half off on their select plants. But if you have never gone to fast growing trees before, you can take an additional 20% off right now off of your first purchase. When you go to fast growingtrees.com and use the code DACE. Take an additional 20% off at fast growingtrees.com right now. Use the code DACE at fast growingtrees.com Use the code DACE for an additional 20% off at fast GrowingTrees.com all right, you guys ready for some pop culture Tuesday? And then I gotta head out of here and let you guys take it out of the overtime because I've got to head to D.C. and catch a plane. So let's close with something. Really, you guys ready for this?

[Aaron McIntyre]

Well, is there any other kind?

[Todd Erzin]

All right, Spin Magazine has come out with their top 10 bands of all time. All right, I'm just going to read the list and then we'll have commentary on it. Because I think just reading the list provides commentary in and of itself. Okay, number one is the Beatles. Number two, the Ramones. 3. Led Zeppelin. 4, Bob Marley and the Whalers. 5. Nirvana. 6. Parliament Funkadelic. 7. The Clash. 8. Public. The Public Enemy. 9. The Rolling Stones. 10. The Beastie Boys. All right, before I give any kind of a breakdown of this deep well of retardation that is this list, let me get a reaction from you two gentlemen to what you just heard and saw up on your screens.

[Aaron McIntyre]

That's exactly what I would expect from Spin Magazine. I'm not shocked at all. And really, nothing new has come along the way to change a list that could have been made 10 years ago and still stood the test of time. So you have to just mess around and break stuff to have a list that you want people to look at and talk about, which we are. So I'm just not even remotely surprised that this is what they did.

[Steve Dace]

The Ramones. Did you do this intentionally to get a rise out of yourself, Steve? Yes, because we used to do these top 10 lists quite frequently on buy, sell or hold, and it would just break you. Yes, yes, but I'm pretty sure the Ramones sitting at number two takes the cake.

[Todd Erzin]

No question.

[Steve Dace]

It's like they were formulating this list. What would grant us some veneer of legitimacy while we completely iconoclast rock history here? Putting the Beatles number one and then barfing for numbers two through ten. I mean, I don't. I don't mind Led Zeppelin at number three. That's fine. Again, veneer of legitimacy. And then Bob Marley. It's just. It's like the. It's like the Michael Scott dinner party episode. The Beatles, Ramones, Led Zeppelin, Bob Marley. Snip, snap, snip, snap, snip, snap.

[Aaron McIntyre]

It's just I'm actually encouraged. They still have the Beatles, Led Zeppelin, and the Rolling Stones.

[Todd Erzin]

I love that. That's how low your standards have gotten for pop culture. That they're three out of 10 and you're like, you know what? This is not as bad as I thought.

[Aaron McIntyre]

Yes, yes, I'm absolute. That. I'm not lying. I'm not spinning. Spinning the fact that they found a way to say we can't go far enough to take these three out. Hey, maybe you're saying there's a chance.

[Todd Erzin]

Let's take these one by one. At least let me do it. The Beatles, as a number one, are easy. I mean, essentially, they're the antecedent to all pop music you've ever heard. All modern pop music you've ever heard comes from one of two places. Elvis or the Beatles. Everything is an emulation or an evolution of what they began. Particularly in the case of the Beatles, because they evolved as a band. And there's six years that they were prevalent in the United States. From the time they landed in February of 64 to when they broke up in April of 1970. Those six plus years, they evolved in multiple levels. They created modern psychedelic music with Sgt. Peppers, they were the Mod Band. They were the I Want to hold you'd hand band. They were a. A grunge band. They were grunge. You listen to the White Album, if you listen to Abbey Road or Let It Be the way they were dressed. They were grunge before they were the Seattle scene, before most people even were in Seattle, were Born. So the amount of times that they evolved, the amount of different stylistics that they patterned, they're the cuneiform of pop music. They should be number one. I don't have a clue how the Ramones are even on this list, or even anywhere, anywhere close to it. Led Zeppelin would be the next closest thing to the Beatles in terms of, pardon me. Much of the heavy metal hard rock that you heard growing up, particularly in the 80s and 90s, were all. All were derived from Led Zeppelin. They're the reason that Dave Grohl from Nirvana and Foo Fighters both would consider them to be essentially his godparents of music. They patterned a lot of what we know, arena rock, and they did it with only one top 20 billboard hit because they refused to narrow their songs down to three or four minutes to make the Billboard charts. And then the greatest selling band of the 1970s. I'm even okay if you want to put Bob Marley and the Wailers on this. Although, let's be honest, no one cares about the Wailers. It was all about Bob Marley. That's like saying Bob Seger should now be here because of the Silver Bullet Band, when really they were all his songs and his vocals. So if you made a top 10 list and he was on it, given that he did pioneer in mainstream an entire genre of music, I don't really have a problem with it. But it's not a band. It was just him. They were just backups. If he's on the list, then Bob Seger and the Silver Bullet Band has to be on the list. Nirvana, they were pioneers of a genre that largely died out. They were, they were, they supernovaed. You know, when you and I went to college, we got Pearl Jams ten and Nirvana's Nevermind and the Orientation Packet. Todd, by the time most of, most of us, most of us had finished college or grad school, that genre of grunge had pretty much burned itself out. So I have no idea why they're on the list. I don't even know who Parliament and Funkadelic are, and I'm proud of it. The Clash is a joke, okay? It's a joke. I mean, some great songs in the early 80s, but no other claim to be on the list. Public Enemy, of course, has. What Are We Doing Here other than just Woke Virtue Signaling the Rolling Stones at number nine is a complete joke. They've got to be way higher than this. And then Beastie Boys on the list. I have no idea why they're on the list. I. I don't here's some. Here's some that are kind of missing. Okay, maybe the, the. The group that has the greatest selling album of all time, Their Greatest hits, Volume one. I think the Eagles might belong on the list somewhere, Mr. Erzin or McIntyre. I think they need to be here somewhere. Maybe, maybe, maybe, maybe the Eagles might need to be. How about, I don't know, one of the top three best selling albums of the 1970s. Original albums. Maybe Pink Floyd, you know, Dark side of the Moon. How about the Wall? Maybe Pink Floyd think they might need to be here somewhere. Maybe somewhere. How are the who not on this list? The third member of the, of the. The original, you know, British wave of the 1960s. We have the Stones, the who and the Beatles. How are they not on this list? I mean, we could, we could do this all day. Queen's not on the list. I mean, what are we. But U2 is not on the list.

[Aaron McIntyre]

That's what I was just going to say. You, with you. What is U2? What's the most recent band that everybody would agree that is in the conversation for the top 10, which was my earlier point about we do we need a new top 10 list? Like what's the most recent band that is like pushing the envelope?

[Todd Erzin]

I don't even know who it would be. I don't. Maybe you too, frankly. How about AC dc? I mean, Back in Black is next to Thriller, the greatest selling album of the 1980s. How's ACDC? Not only on this list, The. The best selling original album of all time until Thriller was Fleetwood Mac. Rumors. I know you're a big Fleetwood Mac guy, Aaron. How are they not on this list? Over. I mean, what are we doing here with this list? This is retarded.

[Aaron McIntyre]

We're doing what we do with everything else. It's iconoclastic.

[Steve Dace]

Yeah, I mean, it's Spin magazine. Yeah, Spin magazine. That's what we're doing here.

[Aaron McIntyre]

I'm not from. This is the least shocking list I've ever seen in my life.

[Todd Erzin]

Now, you used a key term there. Iconoclasm. Define that for us.

[Aaron McIntyre]

Todd, you. You always say it's a fancy stained glass word for smashing stained glass windows, but you know, breaking the things that are the standard bearers. They don't. They don't believe in standards other than their standards.

[Todd Erzin]

And so they, they seek out existing standards and they wish to subvert them. It's. It's a purposeful act is what you're saying.

[Aaron McIntyre]

Yeah, and it's why, I mean, movies suck now, music increasingly.

[Todd Erzin]

That's exactly where I was going to go next. Keep going.

[Aaron McIntyre]

Yeah, yeah. I mean, music is. Like I said, nothing's even approaching a shared cultural greatness that breaks in for everybody. You know, we're all living in our curated silos now. And so there's, it's. And by definition my s, you always Jack Black in High Fidelity or whatever. We just have millions of Jack Blacks anywhere. And I'm awesome and my tastes are awesome. And I won't compare it to anything that is objectively great. That's where we live now.

[Todd Erzin]

That's exactly why I wanted to talk about this. Well one Aaron is correct. I just wanted to vent about it. But there's a broader conversation to happen here. If you're wondering what happened to a lot of the pop culture that you grew up with and loved and, and why it's largely been stymied. You know, we were, I had poker night with my, my monthly poker game over here with my buddies that we've been doing for like 30 years and, or 20 years. And we were watching some old college football in the background. We were watching some, some. An old college football game from 1999 in the background. And the commercials, the CGI in those commercials, guys from 1999 is better than a lot of the CGI you are seeing in 100, 200, 300 million dollar production budgets today. And you ask yourself, how is this possible when technology is way better than it was a quarter century ago? Why is it that they start these new lines of comics and. And they fail right away? Why? Why, why is a woman voicing Aslan in the Chronicles of Narnia later this year? Why everything that. Todd. Go ahead, Todd.

[Aaron McIntyre]

And you want to blow your mind. Why are we doing right now what we're doing to college sports? It's the same thing. And actually that's the worst one because that's the one with the greatest addiction right now.

[Todd Erzin]

The goal is to people that don't appreciate the, the, the, the, the, the old magic that these things are tied to on purpose, attach themselves to it so they can deconstruct it. I mean, maybe there's a great market for a les. For a lesbian driven science fiction space opera. Go create one. I don't know. Maybe there is. I just know that Star wars was not created to be a, a lesbian science fiction space opera. But the people who did it and failed and may have forever taken a brand that was already on life support and irrevocably tarnished it, they not only are not sorry for it, they are proud of it. And. And it's your fault that you did not appreciate what they were trying to do. This is a level of religious zealotry. One of the. One of the. If I do say so myself, since it's my book. But one of the underrated things I write about in depth a decade ago in a nefarious plot is when the enemy, when nefarious, talks about anything at all, no matter its origins, whether its origins are explicitly Christian or not, whether its origins are even explicitly godly or not. But anything at all that may cause us to more seek what is good, true and beautiful. The enemy is against. The enemy is against anything at all that may inspire us to rise above our base natures. Anything at all that might provide some sense of hope as opposed to despair, some sense of beauty as opposed to ugly and utilitarian, and some sense of truth as opposed to moral and epistemological subjectivism. Anything at all they oppose with all their might. Down there, Nefarious says this list is an example of this. The the goal is to undermine. The goal is to subvert the subversion. To paraphrase another one of Todd's lines, the subversion is the point. They do this on purpose. They write trannies into your favorite stories on purpose. They are seeking to contaminate It's a male and act. They're not blinded by their worldview. Listen now. They're driven by it. They're not blinded by their worldview, they're driven by it. They know exactly what they're doing and they want to do it. And they're doing it on purpose. Because this ties into the conversation we just had last segment. They are fine with being uncomfortable because that's what courage of conviction leads them to, your hatred of them. They're not interested. If there's no accommodation, they're okay with it. You're all just racist, misogynist, xenophobic, homophobic bigots. Anyway, you and I are trying to find ways to accommodate them when no accommodation is forthcoming, nor will it be over offered. This is why there's no way to do this without being uncomfortable to some degree. Because the retardation here goes so far down that they'll even take a list like this. And many of the musical acts that I just mentioned were morally subversive in their day. Fleetwood Mac's greatest album and one of the greatest selling albums of all time is about the Almost every track on that album is about the fact they were all sleeping together and they were all breaking up with each other and they didn't trust one another and they had to record much of that album separately from one another. That would have been considered morally subversive in the in at the time. Your parents probably they loved that album and knew the backstory if they knew it were abhorred that you were listening to this as often as you were. But now you've got to subvert which you've already subverted all the way down. All the slippery slope arguments are true. They're batting a thousand. We don't ever slouch to Gomorrah. We sprint. Guys, I'll give you the final word before we get out of here today. And then I got to catch a plane.

[Aaron McIntyre]

Well, I just can't wait for the comforts of a 24 team college football playoff.

[Steve Dace]

Yeah. Amen. Amen. That is such a great. That is such a great point. That's. This is in the vein of being wise as serpents and innocence as doves. Because you could hear what Steve just said. Subverting that which has already been subverted. Any good semblance of, I don't know, a unity shared culture. Even if it was. Even if the messages themselves at the time were subverting the unity and shared culture. Anything that unifies, anything that brings people together, anything that is even the scantest hint of good, true and beautiful, that too must be subverted as well.

[Todd Erzin]

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