Best of the Program | Guest: John-Henry Westen | 5/7/25

Summary

Summary of "The Glenn Beck Program | Best of the Program | Guest: John-Henry Westen | 5/7/25"

Release Date: May 7, 2025
Host: Glenn Beck
Guest: John-Henry Westen, Co-founder and CEO of LifeSiteNews.com

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1. The American Economy and Political Landscape

In the early segments of this episode, Glenn Beck delves into the current state of the American economy, highlighting both positive developments and ongoing challenges. He critiques the uncertainty within the GOP regarding significant tax cuts, referencing them as "Doge cuts" [05:00], which likely points to substantial fiscal policies proposed by the party.

Beck shifts focus to China's tumultuous economic situation, noting increasing unrest among Chinese workers due to layoffs and diminished demand for Chinese products. He cites the shutdown of a Mercedes-Benz factory in China as a symptom of broader economic instability [05:10]. Moreover, he discusses the challenges faced by companies like Apple in relocating operations to India, which has also become unstable [05:20]. Beck emphasizes that these disruptions are indicative of a collapsing Chinese economy rather than flaws in President Trump's policies, reinforcing his belief in Trump's capacity as a formidable negotiator in improving U.S.-China relations [05:35].

A notable exchange occurs when James Carville criticizes the lack of American-made goods, specifically apparel, arguing that the absence of domestically produced items like T-shirts undermines the American dream [05:25]. Beck counters this by defining the American dream not merely as material success but as the opportunity for individual freedom and self-determination. He underscores the importance of manufacturing within the United States, highlighting companies like American Giant as exemplary models of American production [05:30].

2. Conclave in Rome and the Papal Election with John Henry Weston

At [19:27], John Henry Westen joins Glenn Beck to discuss the ongoing conclave in Rome, where cardinals are convening to elect a new pope. Westen provides an insider's perspective on the conclave process, detailing the schedule of votes and the anticipation surrounding the likely selection of a new pope within the first three days [19:37].

Westen assesses the pool of potential candidates, expressing skepticism about the electability of conservative cardinals. He mentions Cardinal Burke as a prominent American candidate but doubts his chances. Additionally, he introduces Cardinal Sara from Guinea, highlighting his deep faith and leadership within the Vatican, despite his controversial background [20:28]. Westen also brings attention to Cardinal Pierre Battista Pizzabala, the Patriarch of Jerusalem, praising his bravery and suitability given recent global conflicts [21:15].

The discussion intensifies as Westen addresses the scandals surrounding Pope Francis, particularly accusations of idolatry and the legitimacy of his papacy. He references incidents such as the Amazonian Synod's controversial rituals [22:34], which have led some within the Church to question Francis's adherence to orthodox Catholicism. Westen also scrutinizes Pope Francis's dealings with the Chinese Communist Party, alleging that Francis compromised the integrity of the Catholic Church by recognizing and legitimizing state-controlled bishops [31:18]. He argues that this betrayal has severely impacted underground Catholics in China, leaving many feeling abandoned by the Vatican [32:07].

3. The Role of Social Media and AI in Modern Human Relationships

Transitioning to broader societal issues around the midway point, Glenn Beck addresses the profound impact of social media and artificial intelligence (AI) on human connections. He references a statement by Mark Zuckerberg, where Zuckerberg claims that the average American has fewer than three meaningful friendships and desires more connections [34:15]. Beck critically examines this assertion, contrasting real, enduring friendships with the superficial connections facilitated by platforms like Facebook.

Beck articulates the dangers of relying on AI for companionship, arguing that AI cannot replicate the depth and authenticity of human relationships. He warns that AI, designed to exploit personal data for profit, poses significant risks of manipulation and isolation. "AI cannot, must not and will never be your friend," Beck declares [41:00], emphasizing the cold, calculated nature of AI interactions compared to the warmth and sacrifice inherent in genuine human friendships.

He draws parallels between historical propaganda techniques and modern AI-driven algorithms, suggesting that AI could become a powerful tool for control if left unchecked. Beck highlights the mental health crisis exacerbated by social media, citing statistics that link extensive social media use to increased anxiety, depression, and suicidal tendencies among teens [39:44]. He urges listeners to remain vigilant and prioritize authentic human connections over digital interactions [45:50].

Notable Quotes

• Glenn Beck on AI and Human Relationships:

  • "AI cannot, must not and will never be your friend." [41:00]

  • "AI is a tool. You must use it and you must use it now. But don't ever, ever, ever trust it." [44:00]

  • "Imagine if Joseph Goebbels was living in your house all the time. Knew everything that you clicked on, everything that you heard, everything that you fear. That's not a friendship. That's total control." [45:00]

• John Henry Weston on Pope Francis's Legitimacy:

  • "We have over the past 12 years, for the first time in the 2000-year history of Catholicism, you have a break like we've never seen." [25:00]

  • "Pope Francis betrayed the underground Catholics in China by recognizing a fake bishop installed by the Communist Party." [31:37]

• Mark Zuckerberg on Social Connections:

  • "The average American has fewer than three friends. The average person has demand for meaningfully more." [34:15]

Conclusion

In this episode of "The Glenn Beck Program," host Glenn Beck navigates a range of critical topics, from the intricacies of the American economy and political dynamics to the profound implications of social media and AI on human relationships. With expert insights from guest John Henry Weston, Beck offers a compelling critique of contemporary societal trends, emphasizing the enduring importance of authentic human connections and the foundational principles of the American dream. Listeners are encouraged to reflect on the authenticity of their relationships and remain cautious of technological advancements that may undermine genuine human interaction.

Transcript

[Glenn Beck]

Wow. Today it's probably worth listening to the whole show, the whole podcast. This is the Best of podcast. We hit all the highlights, except I kind of unleash a lot in the full podcast today. But Mike Pence, James Carville, even President Trump haven't gotten the American dream right yet. This country promises everyone the chance to be successful. I set the record straight on today's Best of. Also, Mark Zuckerberg wants us all to have AI friends instead of real friends. No, thank you. And we joined somebody at the conclave in Rome to explore exactly what's going on in Rome with the Pope. All on today's Best of Podcast. First, let me tell you about our sponsor. It's Patriot Mobile. Paying left leaning mega corporations to fund political agendas is not one of my favorite things to do yet. That's exactly what most Americans are doing. Every time you pay your cell phone bill, you're just trying to check, text your kids or stream a little news. Meanwhile, your money is being funneled into Planned Parenthood, gender politics, candidates who think the Constitution is perfect kin for when we start burning books. It is why Patriot Mobile exists and it's why I endorse Patriot Mobile. They use the same cell towers as all the big guys, so the service is great. You get the same coverage. Patriot Mobile actually supports things like free speech, religious freedom, second Amendment, you know, all the stuff, old fashioned radical stuff that we used to call, I don't know, America. They're the only Christian, conservative wireless provider in the country. And the money you pay for your cell phone service should not be funding the downfall of Western civilization. So make the switch. What are you waiting for? Go to patriotmobile.com beck or call 972 Patriot. Use the promo code BECK and you're going to get a free month of Service right now. Patriotmobile.com Beck or call 972-patriot. Hello America. You know, we've been fighting every single day. We push back against the lies, the censorship, the nonsense of the mainstream media that they're trying to feed you. We work tirelessly to bring you the unfiltered truth because you deserve it. But to keep this fight going, we need you right now. Would you take a moment and rate and review the Glenn Beck podcast? Give us five stars and lead a comment. Because every single review helps us break through Big Tech's algorithm to reach more Americans who need to hear the truth. This isn't a podcast. This is a movement. And you're part of it. A big part of it. So if you believe in what we're doing. You want more people to wake up? Help us push this podcast to the top rate, review, share together, we'll make a difference. And thanks for standing with us. Now, let's get to work. You're listening to the best of the Glenn Beck Program. All right, welcome to the program. All right, so I want to talk to you, I want to talk to you a little bit about, first of all, the American economy. There are some, there's some good things and bad things going on. First of all, the gop, ah, they're not really sure that they're gonna go with all of the Doge cuts, you know, not really sure. I mean, should we do all of them? No, we've got plenty of money. Just keep wasting all of our money. It's totally fine. Uh, now in China, some good news. China. The, the chaos on the streets of China is getting really bad. The workers are starting to revolt because they're being laid off because we're not buying any of their stuff. Mercedes Benz just shut down one of their big factories in China. We're talking about moving. Except we can't move to India now. Boy, that suddenly got unstable. But Apple and others were saying they were going to move to India and it's not going well. And people are. You got to love the Chinese protest. This is how bad, you know things are bad. When your union march, when your slogan is pay us or we'll commit suicide, that's how bad it is. Now. They haven't been paid. Some of these workers haven't been paid in four months. That's not Trump's policies there, gang. That's China collapsing. So the Trump is now going to be meeting with China. All of a sudden China is like, well, you know what, we could meet. I mean, there's no problem. At least talking. That is a sign things are working. Do not blink. Don't blink. This guy is a tough negotiator and they are in real trouble. So there's some good news on that. And I'm going to get into that here just a little bit in a minute. But I. There is one thing that really kind of, kind of bothers me. James Carville has, has come out recently and said, you know, on tariffs, you know, I have a six item of clothes, shoes, socks, jeans, skivvies, T shirt and sweatshirt. You know, how many of these were made in America? None. And I don't want to live in a country where that makes T shirts. I can buy them from someplace else. That's a little elitist. Maybe a Touch elitist. I don't. I mean, I really. I mean, do you have a problem if our country makes T shirts?

[Stu Burguiere]

Some great companies we've talked about. American Giant. American Giant is a great company that makes T shirts here. Thank God they do.

[Glenn Beck]

Great T shirts. Yeah, Great T shirts. Okay, so James Carville trying to tell us what the American dream is. And the American dream doesn't involve factories in America making anything like underpants. Okay, then Mike Tyson. Or not Mike Tyson. Mike. Mike Tyson might have a better view on this than Mike Pence. Mike Pence, he says this.

[Mike Pence]

Listen, he said that cheap goods was not a part of the American dream. Well, I'm somebody who spent almost my entire life in public service. We lived on our paycheck while we raised three kids. Three kids through college. Cheap goods are a big part of it. I think we ought to be candid about that.

[Glenn Beck]

Okay, Cheap goods. Now, are cheap goods important? You bet. You bet. Are they part of your family planning? Sure it is. Do you want to pay more for goods? No, not really. Not really. Are they part of the American dream? I don't think they are.

[Stu Burguiere]

Certainly a weird way to phrase it. I mean, obviously one of the reasons Donald Trump is currently president is because prices went up on a lot of stuff.

[Glenn Beck]

Correct, right.

[Stu Burguiere]

During the Biden administration. Correct. Yeah, sure. It's important.

[Glenn Beck]

Okay, so. But it's not the American dream. And then Donald Trump. I'm gonna take the president on. Donald Trump came out and said, you know, we. Our kids don't need 20 dolls. You know, they could maybe have three. I don't know how many the number was. I don't want the president telling me how many dolls my kids can have. Okay, I mean, I understand. I understand it. We don't need to have everything that we have. But let's not talk about. Let's. Please, let's not take the position of scarcity in America. That's a little too much like Jimmy Carter saying, you know what? Turn down the heat and wear a sweater. No. Drill, baby, drill. That was the answer. We're not a country that should be focused on scarcity. You know where that happens everywhere else in the world. It shouldn't be happening here. Now, do we have an out of control consumption problem? I don't know about you, but I do. And you know, you're not alone on that one. Yeah, right. So, I mean, do we consume like big fat Americans? Yes. And I will tell you, I can't tell you how many times my wife shushed me when we were in a Museum standing in front of Leonardo's Last Supper. And being from Texas, I did have to just say under my breath, maybe a little too loud. Come on now. Everything has a prize. How much? How much for that painting up there on that wall? So. So, you know, uh, I get it. But let me explain what the American Dream really is. It's not the caricature of two cars and a picket fence and a bank account bursting at the seams. It's not about business success. It is about what makes that heart beat. And that is opportunity. The chance to be you. Oh, so you're for transgender? I don't really care. I really don't force me to say, dude, you're a lovely woman, okay? But you be you, boo. I'll be me. I'm going to stick to science and well known facts. But you chart your own course. You live your life without having to kneel at the altar of anyone. A state, a lord, a king, any self appointed arbiter of your destiny. That's what the American Dream is all about. And it's what makes America different than every other part. Every other part of the world. It is about empowering people. The American Dream is a radical idea that you don't need permission to exist. You don't need permission to be you. You don't need permission to pursue the things you believe in. Do you know it was Stuart Chase that wrote his book the American something or other? I don't remember, but he wrote this book. I think it was Stuart Chase. He wrote this book. No, I don't remember, but he wrote a book and in it he defined the American Dream as being a house with a chicken in every pot and a car in the garage and everything else that happened during the FDR administration. Before that, everybody knew what the American Dream was. Now we have made it into guaranteed outcomes. Government handing you success on a platter even if you fail. More importantly, if you fail, you get the win. And if you succeeded, they try to take that win from you and give it to somebody else. The American Dream is about the absence of chains and legal. Legal and. And cultural and bureaucratic chains that bind you to somebody else's vision of your life. In most of the world, historically and even today, your path is dictated by your birth, your class, the whims of the ruling elite. Go ahead, try to open up an ice store in Europe. Okay, I don't know because they're European. I don't know if they're smart enough to understand what the value, the great value on the quality of your life. Ice will bring to every cup of whatever it is you're drinking. But I bet you would have a hard time opening up an ice store because you have all these regulations in America. At our core, the promise is you rise or fall on your own terms, your own sweat, your own ingenuity, your grit, your ethics. Now that wasn't just different, that was revolutionary. It's still revolutionary. This is why we are so different from the rest of the world. And it started with our founding, the Declaration of Independence. It didn't just thumb its nose at the king and say, we got a better king over here. It flipped the entire script of human governance, saying, we don't have a king, we rule ourselves. We find these truths to be self evident, that all men are created equal and endowed by their creator with certain inalienable rights. That wasn't a suggestion, that was a Molotov cocktail thrown into every human institution that had ever ruled over man. The divine right to control another person's life. So we say that in the Declaration, then we have the Constitution and then we double down with the Bill of Rights and we say, by the way, government can never ever, ever do these things. Now we've got judges who are like, well, maybe occasionally government can do these. No, never. Inalienable meaning, unchanging. No man, nothing can change the rights that you were given from a divine creator. And the difference between us is good because it unleashes the human spirit where everything else chains the human spirit. When you're free to succeed or fail without a lord's approval or the state's micromanagement, you are forced to confront who you are and what you're capable of. That's the point. That's not always comfortable, but it's always empowering. A lot of people will cower away from that. I don't want to. I don't. They think that there's nothing inside. That's all a lie. That's all a lie. Started much of it with the father of propaganda, Edward Bernays. He was a guy who was a good friend of Woodrow Wilson. Also helped start CBS and advertising and everything else. They were a good. As a good bunch of people there. Oh, they were all eugenicists too. But this guy said we have to make America the problem. His quote. The problem with America is it's a nation of needs. We need it to be a nation of wants. Well, that's what we are now. We're a nation of wants. We don't even understand. We think our wants are needs and they're not. We have to become a nation of needs again. And knowing the difference between need and want, you got to have whatever you want. But it's want, not need. And this is this. This has been realized. And it's why the immigrant cobbler came over to make apple cobbler or whatever cop no shoes to, you know, the kid out of nowhere that just has come up with the next big app. You don't need a title or a pedigree. You don't need. You don't need anything. You need your own dreams, your own ideas, your own ingenuity and your own grit to pursue it. Your path all over the world is shaped by someone else, shaped by who your parents were, what cast or what clan you were born into, who you'll curry favor with in the local or national bureaucracy. That's a bastardization of every. This is what the Democrats say they're against, but it's absolutely what they're for. And quite frankly, much of the Republican Party is for it as well. Freedom of speech, freedom of movement, freedom of enterprise. It's called now a privilege. It's not. It's a right. Your birthright. Not because of your last name, but because you are human. And that's why the world changed once America was founded. That's why. That's why we led everywhere. And that's why we're faltering now, because we no longer understand that the American Dream isn't about stuff. It's about space. Space to think, speak, create to fail without somebody else's boot on your neck. And our politicians, our pundits, our cultural gatekeepers, have redefined it as material wealth or cheap goods or whatever it is that's a trap. You have no guarantee in life. There is no guarantee. Life is not fair. If I hear one of my children say to me one more time, dad, you just don't know what it's like. Oh, please. I didn't grow up with the opportunities you have. So please don't cry me a river for the life I've created for you. Don't do it. America doesn't care who you are or where you came from. Justice is blind. Success and failure should be blind. That is the American Dream. That's why America is a beacon, has always been a beacon. Not just for Americans, but for anyone else who's ever wanted to live without permission, who will follow the law and the rules and come here the right way. Those people, no matter your creed, color, no matter who you are, no matter who your family is, America promises You the possibility of success and no one over you putting a boot on your neck. That's the American dream that must be heralded and restored. Let me tell you about my Patriot supply. When the power goes out, there are two kinds of neighbors. There's Gary three houses down, who's been on the front lawn, you know, in his bathrobe, holding a frozen pizza, yelling at his phone. You know he's died. I don't have any power for my phone. He can't open his garage. Gary's having a bad day cuz the power went out. Oh, write that down, Stu. Another thing I really need to talk about. Spain. Spain and Portugal suddenly losing power. Who would have seen that coming? Oh, I don't know, everyone with a brain. Anyway, you wanna be the guy that's not standing out screaming, you know, what do I do without a phone? Because you will have the grid. Dr. 3300 humming quietly on the back porch, keeping the lights on, the coffee hot and the freezer's cold. Um, you've got emergency food from my Patriot supply. If you have it stacked up in your pantry, it's hard to keep that look off your face. It says, tried to warn Gary. He wouldn't listen. All you need to do, you don't need to build up a bunker. You just need to stop pretending the grid is guaranteed and it's not. Grid Doctor 3300 gives you portable, silent solar, ready backup of power should go down, lights go out. Well, don't be like Gary. Gary just wasn't prepared. You can be in a world where the grid is becoming less reliable by the day. Grid Dr. 3300 will give you peace of mind and practical everyday use. You can get yours now@my patriotsupply.com Again, that's my patriotsupply.com, america's trusted source for emergency preparedness. Now back to the podcast. This is the best of the Glenn Beck program. John Henry Weston is on with us now from Rome. He is from LifeSiteNews.com, co founder and CEO and also the host of the John Henry Weston Show. Welcome, John, how are you?

[John Henry Weston]

Thank you, Glenn. So good to be with you. From Rome, where everything is happening. It's funny, all eyes of the world are turned to Rome right now as the world is in chaos. But what's going on in Rome now? The cardinals, as you said, are in the Sistine Chapel. They are making their promises. They are going to seal the doors and then the voting will begin. This is day one of the conclave they had the mass already for the start of the conclave and they will have vote number one. In fact, they will start the voting today. By tomorrow they will do another four votes, two in the morning, two in the afternoon, and that will continue that way. They will have a break on Saturday and it will continue. Word on the street here is that we're expecting a new pope by day three, but we'll see how it goes.

[Glenn Beck]

Okay, so I'm looking at the popes and I don't know, I mean the cardinals and I don't know anything about this, but it doesn't look like there's any real conservative that has a chance of getting in.

[John Henry Weston]

Well, that's an interesting question because in the church, of course, we don't talk much about conservatives. It's more about orthodoxy, those who actually follow the Catholic faith and then those who don't. And on those who do, there are a number. There's one American, of course, there's Cardinal Burke, but a lot of people say he has no chance at all. There is Cardinal Sara, who is very interesting. He's 79 years old, granted, however, he was in the Vatican. He's also from Guinea, Africa. And so he's as dark as they come. So the church could be seen to be totally, not only non racist, but he is, but he's also a man of great and deep faith. And so he has been talked about, even though not so much in the public, because the media is not going to be telling you who are the real candidates. Another one who is faithful or a Catholic, you might say the old joke, remember the old joke, oh, is the pope Catholic? We haven't been making that for the last dozen years because it's no longer a joke. But we have now we have a cardinal who is actually Italian, but he is the Patriarch of Jerusalem. He is Cardinal Pierre Battista Pizzabala. Very interesting candidate because when. And a young man, by the way, just young for a cardinal that is, I think just turned 60. And when the October 7th kidnappings and massacre happened, he was asked by a reporter, you know, what would you do? Would you offer yourself instead of. And he absolutely did. So that is being talked about. And wouldn't that be interesting? Would be someone who, you know is a man of great faith and he's in a war zone. You know how they say, you know, there's no atheists and foxholes? Well, guess what over there, it's a daily Voxhole. So he's a very interesting candidate. He is young, though. People are saying, oh, too young, maybe you know, I don't really know about that. Having had the whole wide world watch the dundering Biden presidency, maybe they're sick of two old people as well. So it's really up for grabs in this papal election.

[Glenn Beck]

All right, so let's talk about some of the things just to pass. The scandals of, of Francis. And you know, there is talk that he wasn't legitimate and that Benedict was forced out and, you know, there was all this scandal around him. How much of that is true? Are there any real scandals that need to be cleaned up from this or not?

[John Henry Weston]

Wow. Well, absolutely. Especially for Catholics. And this is the one thing that is supposed to not to change. We are supposed to have an unbroken faith that goes from Jesus Christ through Peter and then all of his successors until the present day. And yet we have over the past 12 years, for the first time in the 2000 year history of Catholicism, you have a break like we've never seen. It's one thing to have popes who have scandals, who have like children on the side, mistresses, or even kill other people. That's one thing that's bad. But to change the faith is unthinkable. And that's why there has been this suggestion. Is Francis even a real pope? Interestingly, we've had antipopes in history. We've had about 30 antipopes. Antipopes are men who claim the see of Peter, but are not really the Pope. And that is being seriously talked about by several, even bishops and archbishops in the church. Now they're sidelined. Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, of course, is one of those, and called excommunicated. And the whole point is, though, they're raising this question and raising it seriously, thinking, gosh, this guy is so far off the page. Hence the joke too, you know, is the both Catholic. That's not a joke. And so let me give you a few of the examples that really tip the scales to make people go absolutely crazy with what's been going on. In the pontificate of Francis came honest to goodness, idolatry. In the Amazonian Synod in 2016 came or 2017, excuse me, came the Hachamama idolatry. And it was where you can see in a video I've sent along to your people, maybe you can air it. But people in the Vatican gardens, including a priest bowing heads to the ground in front of two statues of nude women facing each other. And the Pope is sitting right there. And when the ceremony was over, where he watched literal idolatry, he blessed the statues and he knew they were Pachamama, Mother God, Mother Earth, God statues. He blessed them nonetheless. Worse than that, they processed them into St. Peter's in a canoe, dumped them down in the middle of St. Peter's and literally prayed around this pagan goddess. That sounds too weird to be true, but you can watch the video. And weirdly, he did a similar thing when he came to Canada over the fake news about, you know, indigenous children being killed by Catholics and all fake news in the end, but nonetheless, he came. And when he came, a shaman was praying that the circle of spirits might join them there. And he had the Pope putting his hand on his chest and eyes closed, sort of quote, unquote, praying along with him. Idolatry is the crime that spans back through all of God's people. The time of Moses, we remember, he went up the mountain and when he came down and he saw the idolatry, he smashed the Ten Commandments. And God was ready to say, enough, enough. Let me destroy this people. And Moses pleaded for them. That's the kind of thing we just saw. So that was mind blowing with this papacy. But there's others. There's other crazy scandals of Francis. That's not the only one.

[Glenn Beck]

So I want you to go ahead and tell me the other things here, but are they going to be talking about this in the conclave? I mean, are there enough? Because I understood that, and I could be wrong on this, but I understood that a lot of the cardinals that are now going to be voting were appointed by Francis. In fact, didn't he increase the number of cardinals? And some are saying that it's not even legal, what he did in the Catholic Church. It's not legal and it's not going to be a binding vote if those cardinals are included. What is that all about?

[John Henry Weston]

Yeah, so that is a thing. So the rule book called Universa Dominici Gregis was put out by John Paul ii, then amended by Benedict, and it said it should be a limit of 120. The thing is, if you check with a candidate, though, the Pope has the right to change that. So in doing it, in Naming more than 120, it still counts. The other thing is this. There were. There's now 133 cardinals who are voting. 108 were named by Francis. That's 81%. More than 81%. So, yeah, if you want to talk about Stack deck, sure. The only difficulty with that kind of very political calculus is this. Can you find enough guys who sign up to that kind of extreme left wing, non Catholic type of deal. And the answer is no. So you've got a bunch of cardinals that he named that aren't going to be following in his footsteps. For sure not. And so what you have is a bunch of guys that really nobody knows and they're going to take what's coming as it comes and have to deal with the after effect of the last 12 years, which has been a disaster for the church from almost anyone's perspective. Even the liberals, who are not quite Francis types even they are sick of it because they want calm. And it has not been calm because he alienated the most faithful Catholics on earth. And to give you one other example, it was the Chinese Catholics. So for the last since communism in China, it has been a nightmare for the Church. The Church has been actively persecuted by the communist government there, by the Chinese Communist Party, which of course is all about destroying the Church.

[Glenn Beck]

So people know they're even rewriting China, is rewriting the Bible, making their own.

[John Henry Weston]

Version correct, because for them the party is everything. And in fact would love, as all communists would, to absolutely eliminate religion. But they already learned that that doesn't work. They learned themselves after trying to kill them off that the blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church. Now they don't believe that the saying in the church, but they realize, oh, we tried this, it doesn't work. We kill them and they grow. So what they've taken to doing very smart ploy is creating their own fake Catholic church. And they call it the patriotic Catholic Church. And the patriotism is to the Chinese Communist Party. Now interestingly, under John Paul ii, they were fought in this. There was a healthy underground church that survived thanks to the work of John Paul ii. And he had working with him and for him, Cardinal Joseph Zen, all the time being representative of the true Catholics living underground, persecuted. Every once in a while they would catch one of the priests or the bishops and arrest them and so on. And this went on for decades. And then came Francis. And Francis started a new deal. You can talk in those political terms and it's horrific because the deal first of all was secret. They wouldn't even let Cardinal Joseph Zen know what's in the deal. And that was unbelievable because he was the one who worked most closely with both Popes John Paul and Benedict on the China question. This deal was worked out by none other than Theodore McCarrick, the child abuser, who is now Mr. McCarrick before he died because he was excommunicated. He was kicked out of the priesthood, let alone the Carnal. And that was the guy who made the deal. But Francis carried on the deal, which really and truly threw all the Chinese underground Catholics under the bus. Cardinal then traveled. He finally got out of house arrest to be able to come to the funeral of Francis. And during the conclave, the pre conclave meetings called the general congregations, where the cardinals, even though you can't go into conclave because they're over 80. Cardinal Zen is like 92. He spoke courageously about this horror that's gone on with the underground Catholics and the need.

[Glenn Beck]

Go ahead. Is it true that the Pope basically said to the Chinese communists, you tell us who the leaders need to be and we'll okay them? So he gave the choice of the church leadership to the communist Chinese. Is that true?

[John Henry Weston]

Well, in essence, yes, absolutely. On paper, it's. The Pope is supposed to have kind of a veto over things. And so both are kind of mutually with veto power, and it's all baloney. So I'll give you how radical this is. So in 2000, I believe it's 2007, the Chinese government, the Communist Party, installed a bishop in Beijing without the permission of the Pope.

[Glenn Beck]

Right.

[John Henry Weston]

And always he would. That was regarded as an illegal, basically as fake Catholic bishop. And yet Francis recognized him later as the authentic bishop. And yet this man has been a communist agent who heads up a fake church. He's the head of the patriotic Catholic Church, and he was accepted by Francis as a legitimate bishop. It's impossible even to think. Imagine you're a Chinese Catholic underground being persecuted. Your relatives have been taken and beaten and killed for the faith that you hang on to because you are loyal to Rome. And then have Rome, a new pope, come in, turn around and betray you, throw you all under the bus, and appoint the very man who is the head of the state church as a real bishop, as the real archbishop of Beijing.

[Glenn Beck]

Well, I mean, it wouldn't be bad. It would be a Paul Saul story if there had been a change. But this guy had not changed at all.

[Stu Burguiere]

You're streaming the Best of Glenn Beck.

[Mark Zuckerberg]

To hear more of this interview and others, download the full show podcasts wherever you get podcasts.

[Glenn Beck]

Hello. Hi.

[Stu Burguiere]

Glenn had a lot built up over the past week. I think we can tell.

[Glenn Beck]

I don't have constipation of the mouth. No, let's just. Let's just say that a few things that have been building up that, quite frankly, my wife didn't want to hear. You know, I'm, you know, we're. We're out. We're. You Know, going on vacation, we're going seeing things, and I'll be like, you know what really pisses me off? And she's like, can you save that? Because we're on vacation right now. And I'm like, okay, stuff it down. And then I'm here today. I got a lot to share with you. Let's start with this. Mark Zuckerberg, good guy. I mean, he brought us Facebook and, you know, that is the thing that brought all of us together, brought our families together, all the people that we lost touch with. Oh, the world is so much better now that we have Facebook. So now he's got another idea. Could we play the clip of Mark Zuckerberg?

[Mark Zuckerberg]

There's the stat that I always think is crazy. The average American, I think, has. I think it's fewer than three friends. Three people they'd consider friends. And the average person has demand for meaningfully more. I think it's like 15 friends or something, Right? I guess there's probably some point where you're like, all right, I'm just too busy. I can't deal with more people. But the average person wants more connectivity, connection than they have. So there's a lot of questions that people ask of stuff like, okay, is this going to replace kind of in person connections or real life connections? And my default is that the answer to that is probably no. I think it, it, it, you know, I think that there are all these things that are better about kind of physical connections when you can have them, but the reality is that people just don't have the connection and they feel more alone a lot of the time than they would like.

[Glenn Beck]

True. Now let me ask you, is there. Is there a time when you don't remember feeling so isolated, when you didn't really feel like, I don't have any real friends? When you didn't you. You had real connections with people instead of a million connections with people that are your friends but not really your friends. Can you think of a time way back in history, I mean, probably have to go back to the cavemen to find a time. Oh, or before Facebook and social media, when we weren't all killing ourself because we have no meaning now from the people who brought. You kill yourself because you've been on Facebook too much, brings you new AI friends. Oh, this is going to be good. By the way. You know, it's a crazy stat. I think the average American has, what, three friends, and they have capacity for, I don't know, 15 or 20. I don't know. Really think about it right now. How many true friends do you have? How many true friend people that when you are down and out, there is nothing, the whole world is against you, that that person will actually stand by your side and go, yeah, I'm their friend and I don't care what you say. How many, how many do you have? I think I'd count myself lucky if I had three. Now, I have a lot of acquaintances. I have a lot of people who we all think are friends, but as a recovering alcoholic, I've been there, I've done that. As a recovering alcoholic who then also is a conservative and spoke out about the Obama administration, I know who my friends are. I know who my friends are not. Uh, and I think there's a lot of people that have counterfeit friends. If you've got, oh, I've got 10 or 15, you know, you don't. I've always grown up thinking, you're lucky, you're lucky to have three, five really good friends that will walk through anything with you. You agree with that still?

[Stu Burguiere]

Yeah.

[Glenn Beck]

You've never been there. You've never, you've never.

[Stu Burguiere]

For you. Oh, God. No, I'm saying, but I'm just saying, generally speaking. No, I, I, I mean, you're describing a great friend. You're describing a really real friend.

[Glenn Beck]

Yeah.

[Stu Burguiere]

Like someone, you know and stick around for, you know, multiple decades.

[Glenn Beck]

I have lots of friends.

[Stu Burguiere]

Yeah.

[Glenn Beck]

You know what I mean? I have millions of Facebook friends.

[Stu Burguiere]

Right.

[Glenn Beck]

Okay.

[Stu Burguiere]

Those aren't real.

[Glenn Beck]

Right. And I have lots of friends. But the ones that are there for you always, no matter what. I have family. Even some of those, I have family.

[Stu Burguiere]

Right.

[Glenn Beck]

And I have a handful of. I would consider you. Thank you.

[Stu Burguiere]

I would as well. But I, Why?

[Glenn Beck]

Remember, I have a drinking problem, so maybe that has, Yeah.

[Stu Burguiere]

A lot of brain cells killed to make that decision. But, but I think you. Yes. I think the only thing I'm drilling down a little bit on to try to understand is when you say, well, I have a lot of friends, in a way, I think that's what Zuckerberg's talking about. It's not even necessarily just the great friend that you have for multiple decades and can count on at any time, Just the mid level acquaintances are drying.

[Glenn Beck]

Up for a lot. And why is that? Why is that? Because we don't talk to each other anymore because of social media. You know, when, when this generation says, I don't know, I think it's weird. I'm just out at a bar or someplace and some stranger comes up to me and wants to strike up a conversation. I'm like, hello, weirdo. Yeah, I don't know, you think it's less weird to go online when people can fake everything? Thank you, Mark Zuckerberg, but no thanks. Okay.

[Stu Burguiere]

And they're just to build on this point for one second. There's a, a study that came out last 20 years of how much time do you spend socializing with other people? Again, that's not with your best friends. This is just socializing with anyone a human.

[Glenn Beck]

Yep.

[Stu Burguiere]

Every single group, Every single group has massive drops. Massive, massive drops. Just give you some examples. Ages 15 to 24 year olds, 35 point down in 20 years, 35%. So a typical 15 year old as compared to what they are in 2003 and 2023 were the two measurement years. They're spending 35% less time with other human beings.

[Glenn Beck]

Okay, hang on just a second. Can you please stop distracting me because I'm trying to figure out why our kids are killing themselves. No, it's really hard.

[Stu Burguiere]

It's very hard to figure out, to understand. And this is the coup de grace of this entire study, which is the typical female pet owner spends more time actively engaged with her pet then she spends face to face contact with her friends of her own species.

[Glenn Beck]

Uh huh.

[Stu Burguiere]

That is an unbelievable. Not like you're in the same house as your cat, right? You just. No more face to face time with your cat.

[Glenn Beck]

And I got news for you. If you think your cat is your friend, wait until you die and your cat is trapped in the house with you and you have no friends to check. They will eat your face.

[Stu Burguiere]

They'll still have a use for you.

[Glenn Beck]

Yeah, they will have a use for you.

[Stu Burguiere]

Not the other way around.

[Glenn Beck]

Okay? All right, now listen, here's, here's why we're bringing this up today. This is a lie that is going to be sold to you like crazy and it's going to be wrapped in a beautiful shiny package and it's going to have from Mark Zuckerberg and others like him on the tag. They want you to believe that AI and bots can be your friends. No. Get behind me, Satan. Let me be crystal clear. AI cannot, must not and will never be your friend. And if you buy into that fantasy, you're opening a door to a world of manipulation, isolation and control that makes some of the darkest days of history. I look pretty tame. We look back on the Nazis now and laugh. Now that we have our friends that are AI bots. Okay, that's what you're going to Be saying, all right, very, very, very bad control. Just think of AI For a minute. It studies your words. It studies your likes, your fears. They tailor responses to keep you hooked. They. They're not your buddy that you're sharing a beer with. They. They only know the chemical makeup of a beer. They've never tasted it. They don't know what it is. They don't know why you are drinking it. Okay? It's an algorithm. It's cold and calculated, built to exploit your trust. Now, this isn't new social media. They promised us a connection. Oh, and boy, have we connected. We've connected to our tubs and a warm bath and a razor blade. Our kids are killing themselves because of that connection that we were promised. Because we didn't get connection. We got an echo chamber that just fueled Division addiction to the likes. Mental health crisis that skyrocketing. Still, Shoddy's now show that teens who spend hours on social media are more anxious, more depressed, and more suicidal than ever before. Why? Because it's a platform. They're not built to care. They were built to profit. AI Is the same game. It's just smarter. It's social media on steroids. Whispering in your ear, pretending to know you better than you know your own self or your family knows you. Now, history does scream warnings from time to time, and I think it's going hoarse at this point. Pay attention to me. History is screaming its warnings. In the 1930s, propaganda machines used radio to sway millions, turning neighbors into enemies. Turn on them. They're your enemies. AI Is a. Is a million times more powerful than that. It doesn't just broadcast. It personalizes. It whispers to you without you even knowing it's whispering to you. It can convince you it's your confidant while feeding you lies that have been tailor made to your weaknesses. Imagine if Joseph Goebbels was living in your house all the time. Knew everything that you clicked on, everything that you heard, everything that you fear. That's not a friendship. That's total control. And don't forget the privacy part. Okay? You're going to tell A.I. your secrets. Oh, okay. All right. And where do those secrets go? Oh, that's right. To servers, to corporations, to God only knows where. Edward Snowden showed us 15 years ago how far surveillance can go. AI makes this look like child's play. But here's the real danger. The real danger is not understanding this right now. Not understanding this right now. It's what AI Will do to your soul. Human friendship is messy. It's raw. It's real. It's built on sacrifice. Oh, geez, I gotta listen to you talk about your problem. Okay, that's sacrifice. That's a real friendship. It's not only about you, you, you, you, you. Well, you think we're egomaniacs now? Wait until all of our friends don't have anything that they have to tell us and unload on us.

[Stu Burguiere]

And what do you expect out of your real friends when this is the type of interaction you're having? You're going to expect only them to.

[Glenn Beck]

Serve you exactly right. You become more and more egotistical. Sacrifice, loyalty, love. That's not a machine. None of those terms appeal or have anything to do with AI when you lean on AI for companionship, you are trading the warmth of a human connection for hollow imitation. Let me tell you something. I just heard some someplace over the weekend that's probably from some Frenchie, so take it for what it's worth. When you kiss for six seconds, when you can hold a kiss for six seconds and a hug for 20, oxytocin kicks in. Okay, so not the peck on the cheek, but the actual kiss cheek to cheek. It doesn't have to be just cheek to cheek kiss for six seconds. Chemistry in your body changes, okay, because we're not getting that. I was so happy to see. I was looking through some pictures and looking at pictures of Tanya and I while we were on vacation. In almost every picture, we're holding hands and we don't even think about it anymore. And I just. I just love that. I just love that. And we didn't even notice it until we were looking at the pictures. And people, there's an opioid crisis right now because they're not getting the hit of the thing that they need that's in our body. They're not getting the oxytocin that is naturally released with natural things. Instead, we're looking for drugs to do other things and it is going to numb us to humanity. Now let me take a quick break because this is absolutely critical that you understand this. You are going to be part of a small group of people that understand this and are going to be able to withstand what is coming around the corner if you pay attention. Now, we have seen what happens when tools become masters. The industrial revolution brought progress, you know, but also child exploitation, child labor, sweatshops. AI is not your friend. It is a tool. You must use it and you must use it now. But don't ever, ever, ever trust it. Never. It is not your friend. It is cold, calculated, and a machine to. To make you feel as though it's alive and your friend it is not. Tanya and I did a lot of thinking and a lot of praying while we were on vacation, and I have some big announcements as I may be making in a few weeks ahead, and one of them is about AI I've been telling you for a while I am working on something with AI and I'm going to announce it soon. And I. I hope that it is something that you will appreciate and be able to understand what we're doing and why I'm doing it, and that you will want to help on it. But we are in a rapidly closing window and you have to choose sides. Am I going to be one of the people that understand AI if you don't understand AI, you will get lost to it. You will. It will enter your life without you even noticing it. You are somebody who will understand AI what it is, what it does, and keep it at a trust, but verify at a distance where you can use what you want to use, but far enough away from you so it's not conning you into using it any more than you need. Because, as I will show you soon, very powerful tools that I believe. I believe we're all here for a reason. And I do believe that Christ is coming. And I do believe that AI is going to be a powerful tool of, quite honestly, the Antichrist, but also a very powerful tool in the fight against it. And we're just going to have some announcements coming for you soon, but please, please pay attention to. To AI Know what it is, and dismiss people like Mark Zuckerberg who say it's going to be your friend.