Ep. 1740 - BREAKING: "Free Palestine!" Yelled After DC Tragedy

Summary

Podcast Summary: The Michael Knowles Show - Ep. 1740 - "BREAKING: 'Free Palestine!' Yelled After DC Tragedy"

Release Date: May 22, 2025

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Introduction

In Episode 1740 of The Michael Knowles Show, host Michael Knowles delves into a series of pressing political and cultural issues, emphasizing the perceived manipulation and misinformation propagated by mainstream media and liberal ideologies. This episode features discussions on the Trump administration's stance on South African white farmers, the troubling rise of the "Free Palestine" movement, and the implications of liberal philosophies on societal values. Additionally, esteemed guest Jeremiah Johnston joins the conversation to explore historical and physical evidences supporting Christian faith.

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1. Trump's Oval Office Performance and South African White Farmers

Michael Knowles opens the episode by addressing a controversial move by the Trump administration to accept white South African farmers as refugees fleeing persecution. He criticizes the mainstream media's immediate dismissal of these claims.

• Notable Quote:
  • "And yesterday, President Trump treated both the president of South Africa and more importantly the media to a private screening of public calls to genocide the whites all in the Oval Office." ([01:00])

Knowles describes a dramatic scene where President Trump confronts media representatives and the South African president, Cyril Ramaphosa, highlighting the alleged persecution of white farmers. The performance is portrayed as a strategic move to expose media dishonesty and corruption.

• Key Points:
  • Media Denial: The mainstream media's reluctance to acknowledge the persecution of white farmers.
  • Trump's Confrontation: Trump forces media and South African officials to watch incriminating footage, challenging their narratives.
  • Implications: Suggests the media's complicity in misinformation and the necessity for alternative media voices.

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2. The "Free Palestine" Movement and the DC Tragedy

The discussion shifts to a tragic event in Washington, D.C., where a young Jewish couple was murdered by a suspect chanting "Free Palestine."

• Notable Quote:
  • "This is one instance where I sincerely hate to say I told you so." ([06:50])

Knowles expresses frustration with the "Free Palestine" movement, arguing that it lacks coherence and fosters violent ideologies. He critiques the coalition-building efforts of conservatives and liberals, emphasizing the incompatibility with radical leftist factions.

• Key Points:
  • Incoherent Movement: "Free Palestine" is described as lacking a unified and rational basis.
  • Violent Extremism: Association of the movement with violent actions, such as the DC tragedy.
  • Coalition Challenges: Difficulty in forming effective political coalitions due to divergent ideologies within the movement.

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3. Interpretation of James Comey's "86" Post

Knowles examines a post by former FBI Director James Comey, interpreting the cryptic message "8647" found in a beach photo.

• Notable Quote:
  • "You could use the phrase 86 in a way that does not involve killing. Okay?" ([14:00])

Through a detailed analysis, Knowles suggests that Comey's use of "86" could be a veiled threat against Trump, reflecting ongoing tensions and the potential for misinterpretation in politically charged environments.

• Key Points:
  • Cryptic Messaging: Analysis of the ambiguous meaning behind "8647" in Comey's Instagram post.
  • Contextual Interpretation: The possibility that "86" refers to removing or eliminating threats, potentially aimed at Trump.
  • Political Tensions: Highlights the strained relationship between Comey and Trump, and the broader implications for political discourse.

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4. Leftist Violence and Devaluation of Life

Addressing another act of violence, Knowles discusses a leftist individual who perpetrated a terrorist attack by burning down an IVF clinic, linking it to liberal ideologies.

• Notable Quote:
  • "This ideology, rather than terrorist attacks among its adherents, adding that philosophy itself is dangerous because it promotes the devaluation of life." ([17:30])

Knowles argues that certain liberal philosophies, particularly utilitarianism, inherently devalue life by promoting actions like euthanasia and abortion, leading to extremist behaviors.

• Key Points:
  • Pro-Mortalist Ideology: Examination of the belief that human existence should be minimized to prevent suffering.
  • Historical Parallels: Comparison to Catharism, a medieval heretical movement that promoted the devaluation of life.
  • Modern Implications: Connection between liberal philosophies and contemporary acts of violence, suggesting a philosophical underpinning to extremist actions.

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5. French Veil Ban and Islamic Influence

The conversation progresses to France's expansion of the veil ban to include children, positioning it as a defense against Islamic cultural infiltration.

• Notable Quote:
  • "They can't totally change the standards and the norms. So if you look around, if you walk around Paris and everyone's wearing a burqa, you're not really walking around Paris, are you?" ([25:00])

Knowles supports the French government's move, citing historical battles where Western civilization repelled Islamic invasions. He frames the veil ban as a necessary step to preserve French cultural identity and prevent further Islamic dominance.

• Key Points:
  • Cultural Preservation: The veil ban as a measure to maintain France's Christian heritage and prevent Islamic cultural takeover.
  • Historical Context: Reference to historical battles like Poitiers and Lepanto as examples of Western resistance to Islamic expansion.
  • Modern Implications: Suggests that accepting Islamic practices like the veil undermines Western norms and values.

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6. Starbucks Dress Code Protest

A segment addresses protests by Starbucks employees over a new dress code, which mandates wearing black T-shirts and standard pants beneath their green aprons.

• Notable Quote:
  • "They don't have the right to overthrow the National Labor Relations Act. They're imperiling every civil right that we have." ([37:53])

Knowles critiques the employees' protest as exaggerated and unfounded, mocking the notion that a uniform dress code violates constitutional rights. He humorously deconstructs the employees' arguments, suggesting their complaints are trivial compared to genuine threats to civil liberties.

• Key Points:
  • Exaggerated Claims: The protest is portrayed as an overreaction, with employees claiming civil rights violations over dress code changes.
  • Mocking Rhetoric: Knowles uses sarcasm to highlight the disparity between the employees' concerns and actual threats to civil rights.
  • Underlying Themes: Reflects broader frustrations with perceived frivolous activism and misplaced grievances.

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7. Political Coalitions and Media Ownership

Knowles discusses the importance of strategic coalition-building within conservative politics, contrasting it with the Democratic Party's fragmented alliances.

• Notable Quote:
  • "The Republicans are in a pretty good spot right now because we've made common cause with the people we should make common cause with." ([39:50])

He emphasizes that conservatives have successfully aligned with blue-collar workers, certain ethnic minorities, and health-conscious individuals, forming a robust political coalition. In contrast, Democrats are criticized for their incoherent alliances with radical leftists and moderates, weakening their political effectiveness.

• Key Points:
  • Effective Coalitions: Successful alliance of conservatives with key demographic groups.
  • Democratic Fragmentation: The Democratic Party's struggle to unify under a cohesive platform due to conflicting factions.
  • Strategic Media Ownership: Reference to Trump Media and Technology Group as an effort to counter mainstream media bias.

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8. Introduction of Jeremiah Johnston and The Shroud of Turin

The episode concludes with the introduction of Jeremiah Johnston, who previously featured in an episode about the Shroud of Turin. Johnston shares his firsthand experience visiting Turin and discusses physical evidences supporting Christian belief.

• Notable Quote:
  • "The image is fading, Michael, off the Shroud. And we're not guaranteed to always have the image with us." ([45:56])

Johnston recounts his visit to the Shroud exhibition, interactions with physicists and caretakers, and the scientific efforts to preserve the relic. He highlights the significance of tangible religious artifacts in reinforcing faith through empirical evidence.

• Key Points:
  • Firsthand Experience: Johnston's visit to Turin and observations of the Shroud's current state.
  • Scientific Preservation: Efforts to maintain the Shroud using argon gas to prevent deterioration.
  • Faith and Evidence: The role of physical artifacts in providing concrete evidence for religious beliefs.

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Conclusion

Episode 1740 of The Michael Knowles Show offers a critical examination of current political and cultural issues from a conservative perspective. Michael Knowles addresses media bias, the dangers of radical political movements, and the importance of strategic coalition-building. The episode underscores the tension between liberal ideologies and conservative values, advocating for informed discourse and preservation of traditional societal norms. With the inclusion of Jeremiah Johnston, the discussion also bridges the gap between faith and empirical evidence, reinforcing the show's commitment to exploring profound and often contentious topics.

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Notable Quotes Summary:

• Michael Knowles:

  • "And yesterday, President Trump treated both the president of South Africa and more importantly the media to a private screening of public calls to genocide the whites all in the Oval Office." ([01:00])
  • "This is one instance where I sincerely hate to say I told you so." ([06:50])
  • "They don't have the right to overthrow the National Labor Relations Act. They're imperiling every civil right that we have." ([37:53])
  • "The Republicans are in a pretty good spot right now because we've made common cause with the people we should make common cause with." ([39:50])

• Jeremiah Johnston:

  • "The image is fading, Michael, off the Shroud. And we're not guaranteed to always have the image with us." ([45:56])

• James Comey:

  • "It's off the menu." ([16:10])

These quotes encapsulate the episode's key themes, emphasizing the confrontation between conservative viewpoints and liberal challenges, the critique of media integrity, and the interplay between faith and reason.

Transcript

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

This is Dr. Jordan B. Peterson. Watch parenting my new Daily Wire plus series May 25th. We're dealing with misbehaviors with our son. Our 13 year old throws tantrums.

[Michael Knowles]

Our son turned to some substance abuse.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

Go to DailyWirePlus.com today the Daily Wire/Memorial Day sale is live now. Get 40% off your annual membership. Use code [e-mail] couple weeks ago, the Trump administration announced that it would accept white farmers from South Africa and as refugees fleeing rape and murder and overt persecution by their own government. The media, of course, immediately denied that any such persecution was happening. So yesterday, President Trump treated both the president of South Africa and more importantly the media to a private screening of public calls to genocide the whites all in the Oval Office. I'm Michael Knowles. This is the Michael Knowles Show. Welcome back to the show. Very special guest coming up later. You know, I had a Michael and on the Shroud of Turin, which has gotten about a bazillion views across social media and I'm really glad that people are getting shroud pilled and coming into faith. Well, anyway, the expert that we had on for that interview, Jeremiah Johnston, just got back from Turin and he has a lot more to tell us, including about some of the top evidences even beyond the Shroud, physical, historical evidences for Christ. I have a lot more to say but first I want you to go to tryarmora.com knowles do you ever wonder what gives elite athletes, business moguls and high performers, Many are turning to Amra Colostrum. Now, you know me, I'm not the biggest athlete in the world. However, I asked Mr. Davies, I said, you know, what do you think about Armra Colostrum? Are you colostrum pilled? And Mr. Davies is a huge, huge fan and he's kind of a beefcake. He's kind of like a dick athlete, that kind of thing. This remarkable superfood is nature's original whole food supplement. Containing over 400 bioactive nutrients that work at the cellular level, armor helps build lean muscle, speeds up recovery time and enhances over performance without relying on artificial stimulants or synthetic ingredients. Whether you're running a company, pushing your limits in training or simply looking for a natural advantage in your daily life, Armra Colostrum optimizes your body's systems for peak performance and sustained energy. We've worked out a special offer for our audience. Right now you will get 15% off your first order. Go to tryarmra.com knowles k. W L E S or enter knowles to get 15% off your first order. T R Y A R M R A dot com Knowles. This performance yesterday in the Oval Office, even by the standards of a great showman like Trump, was really top notch. Trump is sitting there with Cyril Ramaphosa, the President of South Africa. This is as the media have been denying that there's any persecution of white farmers in South Africa. This is as President Ramaphos is calling the white refugees from South Africa cowards as well. Everyone's downplaying the issue. Trump's got not only the president there, but also all these reporters. And he says, hey, dim the lights, roll the tape. Look at the president. Ramaphosi. He's there. He just kind of smirks, kind of nods a little. Oh, yeah, shoot to kill, Shoot the Boer, kill the farmer. Laugh. He laughs. He's laughing at kill the farmer, kill the Boer.

[Reporter]

What are you talking about? What are you talking about? You know, you ought to get out of here. What does this have to do with the Qatari jet? They're giving the United States Air Force a jet. Okay. And it's a great thing. We're talking about a lot of other things. It's NBC trying to get off the subject of what you just saw. You are a real. You know, you're a terrible reporter. Look at this. White South African couples say that they were attacked violently.

[Jeremiah Johnston]

And then Trump, when will you go.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

And see for yourself if it is?

[Reporter]

Well, I could do that. Look, here's burial sites all over the place.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

They're all.

[Reporter]

These are all white farmers that are being buried. And he asks about a jet that was given. You ought to be ashamed if you say that.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

I'm sorry I don't have a plane to give you.

[Reporter]

I wish you did.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

Okay. What an amazing performance. This performance was a microcosm of everything you've seen on the South African Africana refugee issue over the past. I was gonna say several weeks, really several years or more. At this point. We say, hey, the white farmers in South Africa are being targeted and raped and murdered not only by street criminals, but also by some of the biggest political leaders in their country who go to rallies, ANC rallies, or economic freedom fighter. Ral. Shoot to kill. Kill the farmer, kill the boa. Shoot, shoot, shoot. And, you know, that seems really bad, don't you think? And everyone says, that's not happening. That's not happening. Forget about it. That's not real. So Trump forces them all to watch it, and what do they do? Immediately the reporter says, oh, we can't talk about that. We can't talk about whites being persecuted in South Africa. What about the Qatari jet? Qatari jet? What are you talking about? Forget about that. Pay no attention to the man behind the curtain. What about, you got a good on an airplane for the air Force from Qatar? Can you please talk about that? Please talk about anything other than the persecution of white people in South Africa. And Trump just totally knocks him down. Yeah, whatever. You're a joke reporter. I'm gonna keep talking about this. Then he starts pulling up all the news articles, because occasionally, maybe not with the TV news, but occasionally you get a report out here. Look, look at this report, look at this report. And all the establishment media journalists in the room, they say, no, no, stop, stop. One person yells out, you should, if you care about this issue, you should go over there. We shouldn't talk about this now. You should just go over there and see it yourself. Everyone goes, yeah, I suppose I could, but what about this report? What about this report? What about this report? And then finally, the President of South Africa himself goes back to the same stupid line that the joke reporter had used. He goes, well, I am sorry that I do not have an airplane for you. And Trump brushes that one off too. He goes, yep, well, you should have, if you had one, I would have taken it anyway. Let's keep talking about the real issue that all you people want to deny. That is undeniable now because I have forced you to watch it on the biggest stage on earth, that is the Oval Office. Everyone's talking about how Trump totally destroyed the president of South Africa with facts and logic, that what Trump did yesterday was not primarily an attack on the president of South Africa. It was primarily an attack on the media. Because the media have revealed themselves to be liars, to be corrupt, to be dishonest, to be awful propagandists. And so Trump had to become the media. People are knocking Trump cuz he has this media company, the Trump Media and Technology Group. Why did he have to create that company? Because the media and big tech platforms kicked Trump off. And so between his first term and his second term, he said, well, I guess I'm just, I'm gonna be the media now. Look at me, look at me, look at me. I am the media now. We are the media now. That's what he said. And so while all of these credentialed genius journalists denied the reality that was happening in front of our faces, Trump said, okay, well, I'm gonna get to the biggest stage in the world. And I'm gonna show everyone that we're right and you people are liars. Absolutely. Right. Now, speaking of death and killing, really awful story out of Washington, D.C. last night, which is that this young Jewish couple was attending a Jewish event, the American Jewish Committee Gala, and they were murdered. As they were leaving the event, they were shot by what appears to be a single suspect. And what was that suspect chanting as he murdered them? Free. Free Palestine from Hamas. Free Palestine. There it is. There is the Free Palestine movement in America. This is one. You know, I often, I joke, I say, I hate to say I told you so, but I really secretly like to say I told you so. This is one instance where I sincerely hate to say I told you so. I said on the show yesterday or the day before the clip went viral that I just can't really get on board with the Free Palestine stuff that I've tried. I've got an open mind, you know, I'm not exactly all that tied to the state of Israel. I don't really care. I don't really believe in the historical or religious arguments for Zionism as an ideology. My broad support of the state of Israel is much more prudential and practical, and it's not really all that ideological. But I said I've tried every way from Sunday to make a case for the Free Palestine movement, and it just doesn't seem coherent to me. I just don't really see how you can make an argument that the state of Israel was not justified in going to war against Gaza and even continuing that war because of the hostage situation. And I can't really see how you make an argument if you believe in the principle of the Westphalian system of nation states generally. I don't see how you can really make an argument against the existence of the state of Israel, which is, I think, the end of all the Free Palestine stuff, because that's what the phrase means. Free Palestine, from the river to the sea, obliterate the state of Israel and get the Jews out of the land. So I just don't. I just couldn't make a coherent case for it. There's another aspect, though, which I have talked about on this show over the years, but this really drives the point home. Politics involves coalitions. You need different groups of people who are not going to agree on everything, who don't totally jive together to come together in a coalition to do something. And sometimes coalitions make sense, and sometimes they don't make sense. And I've tried as best I can to figure out how the Conservatives could have a common cause with the Free, Free Palestine types, and it just doesn't really work because you could say, all right, Trump comes in and he changes the political coalition, so he brings in a lot of blue collar workers. Well, I can be in coalition with blue collar workers. I already have great sympathy with and common cause with blue collar workers. So that's an easy coalition. How about the Maha moms? You know, the crunchy granola moms who Trump brought into the coalition? Yeah, that's fine. I can have common cause with them. They're a little kooky sometimes, but that's okay. My wife got rid of the seed oils in our home. That's okay. It kind of makes sense. At least it's not totally discordant when it comes to the Free, Free Palestine people. That movement is led by frothing lunatic leftists who are inclined toward violence, like the guy who shot that Jewish couple last night. That movement is led by Greta Thunberg and keffiyeh wearing left wing nutjobs at Columbia University. And Islamists. Basically, the most sensible part of that coalition are the Islamists. Okay? So it just doesn't really make sense. And these people, like political leftists, broadly, are a little too inclined toward violence for my liking. And it just, I just don't. I can be in a coalition with people I disagree with. I can't go all the way to being in a coalition with Greta Thunberg. Okay, that's not gonna work. It's not. I don't want the baggage that comes with that coalition. I don't want the ideology behind that coalition. Doesn't make sense. It. This doesn't really work, guys. And then when you see the apotheosis of that movement, which is this leftist unmoored from proper morality, coming out and murdering a couple, a couple of civilians for attending a gala, you just say, oh, okay, I want nothing to do with this. I want absolutely nothing to do with this. As I've said from the beginning, the intractable problem about the Israel Palestine conflict is that the rational desire for both sides is at least the ethnic cleansing of the other, not necessarily genocide. But people think that those two things are the same, but they're actually not. Ethnic cleansing. And just refer to the removal of people from an area. And it's clear from the Israeli perspective, you would say, okay, well, Gaza has proven itself to be an unacceptable security risk on its borders, so they can't tolerate the status quo, which is a territory governed by Hamas. That's totally unacceptable. Any nation state would say that. And then from the Palestinian perspective, they are open in their calls, really, for genocide, which is from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. I don't think they're just talking about moving the Jews out of there. I think they're talking about killing them all. So you're in this intractable problem. I'm not denying the complexity of that problem or the historical complexity of not only Zionism, but going back millennia. But are you on the same side as the free, free Palestine guy? I'm not. I'm not. Sorry, I'm out. Not on the same side as Greta, not on the same side as Columbia grad students, not on the same side as that murderer in D.C. hold on for one second. Hold on. Before we go on, you need to go to balanceofnature.com, use promo code Knowles. Balance of Nature Fruits and veggies is the most convenient way to get whole fruits and vegetables daily, especially if you're focused on creating a healthier, happier lifestyle. Nature is pretty good at giving us the nutrients we need through our fruits and vegetables. So balance of Nature takes fruits and vegetables, freeze, dries them, turns them into a powder and puts them into a capsule. You take your fruit and veggie capsules daily, and then your body knows what to do with them. Balance of nature is just one ingredient of a balanced lifestyle, has no intention to replace a healthy diet, exercise, sleep or any other healthy habits. It is intended to be used in concert with other healthy habits. I absolutely love balance of nature, especially for someone like me who, when I'm home sweet little Elisa makes me all my fruits and veggies and I'm nice and healthy. When I'm on the road, it's a little bit more sus. It's a little more dubious. So if you get your balance of nature, then you're good. You're covered. Go to balanceofnature.com, use promo code knowles for 35% off your first order as a preferred customer. Plus, get a free bottle of fiber and spice that is balanceofnature.com promo code knowles More Death really is kind of a depressing show today, isn't it? Hopefully. Well, this doesn't involve direct death. This involves potentially a call to murder. That would be from James Comey, former FBI director, who posted a picture from the beach, and it was little seashells and stones or something like that. And it says 8647 8647. What does that mean? Comey just writes cool shell formation on my beach Walk. Cool shell. Hey, cool clock. Ahmed. Similar meaning 86 means to get rid of something. And people have an outcry right now against James Comey. And they say, well, he's talking about murdering Trump. And then Comey responds. He says, I don't think of it as murder necessarily. You know, you can 86 a dinner order, you can 86 an employee. It doesn't necessarily mean murder. Here is Comey defending himself. You.

[James Comey]

Is this Instagram?

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

Instagram, yes.

[James Comey]

You grammed this. You were walking down the beach. What happened? You were walking down the beach and you saw this on the beach?

[Colin]

Yeah, my wife and I, Patrice, were walking on the beach and saw those numbers in shells on the beach.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

Somebody else did this?

[Colin]

Yeah, somebody else did it. We were on a walk, preparing for this week, the rollout of my book. She looked at it and said, why'd someone put their address in the sand?

[James Comey]

All right, $2,000.

[Colin]

We stood at it trying to figure. Looked at it, trying to figure out what it was. And she'd long been a server in restaurants. And she said, you know what I think it is?

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

Yeah.

[Colin]

I think it's a reference to restaurants. When you'd 86 something in a restaurant, right.

[James Comey]

It's off the menu.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

Yeah.

[Colin]

I said, no. I remember as a kid, you'd say 86 to get out of a place. This place stinks. Let's 86 it.

[James Comey]

I was a bartender. You would 86 a customer if they were getting drunk. Like, that's 86 of them. Like, give him a low proof alcohol, something like that.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

Yeah.

[Colin]

And so I said, I think it's a clever political message. And she said, you should take a picture of it. I said, sure. And then she said, you should Instagram that. And boom.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

This guy, he won't even own it. He says, my wife's fault. Blame my wife. Give me a break. Look, I'll be the one conservative out there who won't totally dogpile on James Comey, because I actually think there can be an innocent interpretation of 86. You could use the phrase 86 in a way that does not involve killing. Okay? And James Comey is a weirdo with artistic pretensions. Do you remember he posted after the Mueller report came out during the first Trump term, and Trump didn't go to the gulags? Comey was so upset, he posted a picture of himself in a forest looking up at trees, and it said, so many questions. I thought, what are you? Are you a Columbia graduate student? Are you one of these people with artistic pretensions? So sure, Comey could have had an innocent motive here, but you need to have the context of President Trump having almost been murdered twice, One time with a bullet hitting his ear, coming within, what, 1 20th of an inch of blowing his brains out. Don't you think in that context, you maybe shouldn't put out the message that could easily be interpreted to be a call to murder the president, especially as the leaders of your political party, up to and including Joe Biden, repeatedly justified the assassination of Trump by saying that he poses an existential threat to the country. Don't you think within that context, either James Comey is the dumbest person, dumb as the rocks that he posted on his Instagram, or he understood how this could be interpreted and just didn't care? I don't know. I'll let you decide which is the more charitable interpretation. Okay, one last story on death. We do one more on death. I know we've done death for 15 minutes, but one last. It's a slightly different story on death. Another leftist terrorist came out. I talked about him on the show a week or two ago. He burned down an IVF clinic. And you'd think because a lot of the serious criticisms of IVF come from the right, you'd say, oh, no, is he a right winger or is he a pro lifer? But no, pro lifers and right wingers just generally don't behave like that. The left is much more inclined to behave in this violent, unruly way, which is in part why we can't make common cause with them in coalitions. But the guy was on the left. He wasn't a pro lifer at all. He was a pro mortalist. This from the Telegraph. They've got a pretty good expose on this guy. Says he appeared to subscribe to an ideology that humans should cease to exist to prevent future suffering and that having children is fundamentally immoral because they could not consent to being born. So this is a radical example of an ideology that is common among liberals. The notion that humans could cease to exist. We might call for humans to cease to exist in order to prevent future suffering. The idea that the goodness of life is just measured by maximizing the pleasure that it brings and minimizing the suffering that it brings for the greatest number of people. That's just a form of utilitarianism developed by Jeremy Bentham and John Stuart Mill, Very, very mainstream liberal philosophers. The notion that having children is fundamentally immoral because they can't consent to being born. Therefore, the idea that consent is the highest, if not the sole Moral criterion that is at the heart of liberalism, liberalism, which diminishes the role of virtue, which diminishes the role of morality, and simply places consent at the highest peak, consent predicated on a dubious definition of liberty that suggests that liberty is neutrality in choosing rather than willing, predicated on knowledge. And that's it sounds like a little bit of a word salad if you're not familiar with these philosophical debates. But the liberal conception of liberty, meaning just being able to pick whatever you want rather than forming a goodwill and intellect so that you can do what you ought to do, which is what the smart statesmen and political thinkers in our civilization have understood liberty to be. This is mainstream liberalism through and through, taken to its logical conclusion. One last line from the Telegraph says it primarily promotes suicide. This ideology, rather than terrorist attacks among its adherents, adding that philosophy itself is dangerous because it promotes the devaluation of life. So similar ideologies to this have cropped up over time. I don't mean to just place the blame solely at the feet of liberalism that has existed for about 300 years. There was an ideology, a religious movement in the 12th and 13th centuries and up to the 14th century really called Catharism or Albigensianism. And it was this heresy that spun off of Christianity, which said that life is bad, basically, this life is bad, the world is bad, the body is bad. And so it discouraged marriage, it promoted suicide. It was a death cult, and it would have destroyed Europe had the Catholic Church not led a crusade against the Albigensians and gotten rid of them properly. So these kinds of death cults, these kinds of ideologies crop up a lot over time. We're in one of those now. We're in one of those now because even you see the headline there. This ideology promotes the devaluation of life. Well, if the philosophy that undergirds it is utilitarianism, that's just kind of the basic liberal philosophy now promotes the devaluation of life. Oh, you mean like abortion? Would you say abortion. Cause abortion says life is less important than the choice of consenting adults. Would you say that promotes the devaluation of life? How about contraception? The premise of which is that life is a bad thing, a thing to be avoided. How about euthanasia? So called euthanasia. It's just suicide at the end of your life? Well, suicide is always at the end of your life. It's suicide primarily for older people or people who are suffering, people who are sick. But we all suffer, we all get sick, we all age. Wouldn't you say that that promotes the devaluation of life? There really does not appear to me to be much of a difference between the pro mortalist who blew up that IVF clinic and the mainstream liberal philosophy. It's just that this guy followed that philosophy to its logical conclusion. Whatever you're thinking, whatever I'm saying, we're gonna take a pause for a second so that you can text KNOWLES to 989898 this July there is a global summit of BRICS nations in Rio de Janeiro. The bloc of emerging superpowers that includes China, Russia, India and Iran are meeting with the goal of displacing the US Dollar as the global currency. They're calling it the Rio Reset. As BRICS nations push forward with their plans, global demand for US Dollars will decrease, bringing down the value of the dollars in your savings. While this transition will not happen overnight, the Rio Reset in July marks a pivotal moment when bricks objectives move decisively from theoretical possibility toward becoming a reality. Learn if diversifying your savings into gold is right for you. Birch Gold Group can help you move your hard earned savings into a tax sheltered IRA in precious metals. Claim your free info kit on gold by texting my name Knowles Knlas to 9898 98. You know I'm a little bit of a gold bug. Got a decent amount of gold in my portfolio and especially these days I'm very happy that I do with an A rating with the Better Business Bureau and tens of thousands of happy customers. Let Birch Gould arm you with a free no obligation info kit on owning gold before July and the Rio reset. Text KNOWLES to 989898 Today, speaking of IVF, a lady has just gone viral on Instagram for speaking out about the perils of conceiving a child through donor sperm. This lady, I guess is a lesbian. She posts a picture of herself and another lady and they have two little kids and she says as the headline here I wish I knew this before using a donor. A donor. What's a donor? She says. This goes on for a little bit, so I'll just pick the best parts. She says. Today is International Donor Conception Awareness Day. First of all, I am calling for a complete and total shutdown on made up holidays until we figure out what the hell is going on. We used to have liturgical feast days in the church, you know, based on Saint so and so and Saint this and that. And now we have like five of these holidays every single day. But it's for things like International Donor Conception Awareness Day Anyway, this lady has a really good point. She says, I'm endlessly grateful for my beautiful twins and how they came to be. Okay, are you? But. Here comes the but. There's also so much I wish I had known before using a donor. I was young and naive and excited. There were things I wasn't told and I didn't ask. I didn't understand just how unregulated the sperm donation industry is. In many places there are no enforced limits on how many families can use the same donor. So you end up in a world. In a world in which in one town you might have 50 half siblings. Which makes dating a little difficult down the road because as she says, there's no national tracking system, no centralized registry, no one's keeping count. I didn't know that donors can stretch the truth on their applications. No one is seriously validating their medical history, education or identity. So you go there, you say, I want the sperm of Mr. Gigachad, who's 6 4, blond hair, blue eyed, graduated from Harvard Medical, doctor and a lawyer and a triathlete. The guy could write it on his application. There's really no way of verifying it. I wish I had known. To listen to donor conceived adults, this is key here. Many speak openly about the pain, identity, struggles and emotional complexity that can come from not knowing who contributed half of their DNA. Even that phrase, who contributed half of their DNA. You mean who their dad is or who their mom is? In the case of homosexual men who do this. But in this lady's case, who their dad? Do you think dads matter? Do you think. Let me try to use the liberal language. Do you think representation matters? You know, they say we need more women to be involved in corporate America. We need this company to have half of its executives be women. We need this company to have half of its employees be women. Oh yeah? Well, what about the family? Should the family have half of its parents be women and half be men? If you think men and women each have something to contribute to the world, don't you think that would certainly be true of the bedrock political institution, the family? I love that this woman says the pain of donor conceived adults. Adults who are people who were conceived with the intent to deprive that person of his natural mother or his natural father. Awful. These are the closest relationships you're ever gonna have. Just about. I didn't think about the fact that sperm banks are for profit companies. Sometimes money is put ahead of ethics, transparency and long term consequences. I wish I had understood that. When you're Using a donor, you're not just making a decision about your future. You're making decisions that will have a lifelong impact on your children. So true. She goes on and on and on. Most importantly, my advice is center your future child in every decision you make. Good on this woman for looking at the issue at least somewhat honestly. The problem for her last piece of advice is when you conceive a child via a sperm donor, you are immediately denying the needs of your child because your child needs his mommy and his daddy. The moment you do that, you are neglecting the needs of your child, denying the needs of your child, putting your own selfish desires before the natural needs of a child. You're starting off on the wrong foot. And some people do it out of ignorance. Many people, I think, do it out of ignorance. But we're becoming more aware. We're discussing this novel technology in ways that finally involve ethics and morality. And it's gotta stop. These sperm banks, these for profit companies, which are just one aspect of the Baby Store Incorporated. Gotta go. It's deeply wrong. It is contrary to human dignity. It denies the legitimate rights of children. It is totally disordered, and it turns human beings into commodities. Gotta go. If even the lesbian moms who do this, who create babies in this way, are recognizing it, you should too. Speaking of kids, France, there's good news out of France. I mean, that's a shocking headline. There's good news out of France. France is expanding a ban on veils in public to children. France already has a ban on veils in public. Now, I actually kind of like the veils. You know, I know in the west everyone knocks the hijab. I think the hijab can look perfectly nice. I like it when women veil in church, in mass. And so I don't mind a little modesty. I think the west could use a little more modesty, actually, for all the things we're gonna knock our Muslim friends for. That's not one. But the burqa, the full dress, the whole thing, it's too much. Okay? It's too much. And more importantly, even it's not our culture. So if you look around, if you walk around Paris and everyone's wearing a burqa, you're not really walking around Paris, are you? Because whatever makes Paris Paris has kind of ceased to be. It's like you're walking around some city in the Middle east, and I don't want to walk around some city in the Middle East. It's like you're walking around a Muslim city. I don't want to walk around a Muslim city. I want to walk around Paris in France, the first daughter of the church. That's a Christian city because we're a Christian civilization and Muslims can come and visit sometimes, that's fine, but they can't take over. They can't totally change the standards and the norms. So previously the veil ban said adult women can't wear the burqas in public, but kids can. And that didn't make a lot of sense. So Emmanuel Macron, President of France, his political party has called for a ban on young girls wearing the Islamic veils in a new law against Islamist entryism after a government report showed that the Muslim Brotherhood has been waging a multi generational campaign to infiltrate Western institutions and reshape the west into an Islamic civilization. This gets back to my point earlier on coalitions, you know, and taking the side of, like Islamists, Islam has, and I actually have a grudging but reasonable amount of respect for Muslims in many ways. I can speak to Muslims about serious things much more easily than I can speak to Western liberals and secularists and atheists. So this is really nothing against the Muslims per se. It's not exactly hostile or antagonistic. But Islam as a cultural force has been attempting to invade and conquer the west for 1400 years. Immediately immediately after the founding of Islam in the seventh century, they were on the move trying to conquer the west, and they were largely successful. And they made it 150 miles outside of Paris by the year 732, the Battle of Poitiers. And only because Charles the Hammer, grandfather of Charlemagne, was able to turn them back did they not conquer the west. In the 8th century, they obviously conquered Iberia, controlled Spain and Portugal and all that area all the way up until the Reconquista in 1492 when Ferdinand and Isabella finally put the final nail in the coffin of the Islamic Iberia. And then Christopher Columbus went and sailed the ocean blue and discovered America. But it's been a long time. And it wasn't just the Battle of Poitiers. It was the Battle of Lepanto, 1571. It was the Battle of Vienna. Largest cavalry charge in history. It was again and again and again. They keep trying to come in and conquer the west and. And now we kind of invite them in. We say, oh, yes, take over. Turn churches into mosques. Oh yes, change whatever customs you want. I don't think that's a good idea. You have to ask yourself, was it good? Even if you're a kind of centrist lib was it good that the west turned Islamic invaders away at the Battle of Poitiers and the Battle of Lepanto and the Battle of Vienna. Is it good that we resisted the Islamization of the west at those periods? I think most people, even many centrist libs, would say, yeah, that was good that we weren't overrun by Islam and Christianity wasn't blotted off the face of the earth. Okay, well, if it was good then, it's good now. And this kind of law in France is good. And we should see more of these kinds of laws. They're not a threat to free speech or free expression or the great wonderful liberal ideas that didn't build our civilization. They're a defense of our civilization, and it's a necessary defense at that. Speaking of dress codes and rights, finally we're going to get to the most important news story of the year. The Starbucks employees who are protesting their dress code this week. Do not miss the Daily Wire plus Memorial Day sale. Get 40% off an annual membership with code DW40. Stream all your favorite daily shows ad free from the most trusted voices in conservative media. Ben Shapiro, Matt Walsh, Ya boy, Yours truly, and more. You will also unlock our full entertainment library and the premiere of Parenting, Dr. Peterson's brand new series premiering this Sunday only on DailyWire. Plus go to DailyWirePlus.com, use code DW40 to join now and save 40% on all annual memberships. My favorite comment Yesterday is from puffinstuff117. He says, Michael, what the hell are you talking about? Who paid you to try to convince us that less privacy is good? The only people that should have cameras on them 247 are criminals. Okay, hold on, hold on. I knew I anticipated some of this reaction from the liberal and libertarian wonderful people in our audience, but I said in response to the Nancy Mae story about how we need more privacy everywhere and you know, you're not allowed to have a security camera. Your boyfriend's not allowed to have a security camera in his apartment. I said, well, look, that's, that's one conclusion. But if you wanna look at the glass half full here, you should recognize you don't really ultimately have privacy. Because even if you think that you have privacy, God is watching you. Now, I would rather God watch me. God who is merciful. I would rather God watch me all the time than have the government watch me all the time or have some private corporation watch me all the time. But it is a fact of our culture that we just have cameras on us. Basically all the time. Everyone is a roving cameraman because of their cell phones. And there are security cameras everywhere. And if you don't want to be caught on a friend or a stranger's security camera, don't walk naked through their apartment because you're just going to know. And maybe that's not fair. Maybe you say, well, 20 years ago that wouldn't have been true. Yeah, but it is true today. And just to jar you out of your liberal perspective here a little bit, the idea of privacy is like the greatest possible good. That is a very modern liberal idea. Man is not primarily an isolated individual. We are social creatures. And when we in our civilization at least used to recognize that God could see what we were doing. And so character is the thing you do when you think no one is watching. We need to behave ourselves a little bit better. I think maybe we need to decenter Privacy is the greatest good in our civilization. And I think we need to maybe buff up virtue and behaving as you ought and manners and just propriety. I think we need to. I'm not saying we totally get rid of privacy. There's a place for privacy in certain instances. But maybe we put propriety over privacy. Maybe propriety is a little bit more than privacy, a little more important. What do you think? I don't know. That's gonna get me in trouble again. But so what? You're not here for me to suck up to you. You're not here for me to pander to you. No sir. You're here for the truth. You're here for me to tell you how much I hate to tell I told you so. Okay, speaking of threats. No, sorry. Speaking of dress codes, I have to get to this story. I've been teasing it all week. A couple weeks ago I played a clip of Starbucks employees whining and screaming about how they had a new dress code and how this was a terrible violation. And what was the dress code? The dress code said they had to wear black T shirts and normal looking pants. By the way, Starbucks employees wear a green apron over their clothing already. So it's not as though this was changing all that much about their appearance. And I love Starbucks. I'll be contrarian conservative on that too. Actually, the only thing I'm being contrarian in is admitting that I love Starbucks. Plenty of conservatives love Starbucks. They just don't want to admit it cause they think it's not fashionable or what. Starbucks is great. They've got the largest public bathroom program in the history of cities around the World. The coffee is pretty good. It's a little expensive, but it's just a well run corporation. Even when there are extremes from a small percentage of the baristas like these people who have now gone further to claim not only is the new dress code an imposition, it is a violation of all of their civil rights.

[Michael Knowles]

We just demand that Starbucks follow the law. They don't have the right to overthrow the National Labor Relations Act. They're imperiling every civil right that we have. Not just worker, but not just as workers, as union workers. But that's the framework that all of our rights are under. So all of our rights are in danger. And the only thing we can rely on is each other and taking direct action in solidarity.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

Perfect, Colin.

[Colin]

Exactly what Jacob said.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

Perfect. It's up to us to stand up for our rights and for our. Love it. Thank you, guys. No contract. Having to wear a black T shirt for four to eight hours a day in exchange for a pretty decent wage and benefits, that violates every one of their civil rights, apparently. The Second Amendment. Gone. How can you carry a gun if you wear a black T shirt? The right to prevent foreign soldiers from being quartered in your house. That's done. That's done. If you have to wear a black T shirt, how could you possibly. Your Fifth Amendment right, your First Amendment rights, your. The 22nd Amendment. How could you possibly prevent a president from running for a third term if you have to wear a black T shirt? I don't know. Are all of our civil rights. I don't think they're all threatened by the black T shirt. I think the Starbucks employees are gonna be just fine. It'll be okay. There are serious threats to our democracy, notably the Democrat Party. That's not my phrase. It's not me throwing bombs and being a cheap polemicist. That is the phrase of former Democrat presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.

[Jeremiah Johnston]

Could we not also say if ostensibly.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

There hasn't been a fair primary for The Democrats since 2008, are they not.

[Jeremiah Johnston]

Also a threat to democracy?

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

We. Fair enough. That is. That is. Yeah, I'm not gonna argue with that point. And that's why I'm proudly an independent. There it is. You heard it from the horse's mouth. Is that the horse's mouth? That's part of the horse. I think Bernie Sanders says you're right. The Democrats are a threat to democracy. That's why I'm proudly an independent. Except you weren't an independent when you were running for president as a Democrat. You heard it from him. On this point of political coalitions, I guess that's the through line today. The Republicans are in a pretty good spot right now because we've made common cause with the people we should make common cause with blue collar workers, certain ethnic minorities, women, married women in particular, with the people concerned about health and wellness, the anti corporate, anti elite kind of figures. That's good stuff. We've kept out certain groups that we don't wanna make common cause with cause they're poison our coal. Democrats have not done that. Democrats have let in a lot of people who are damaging their coalition and Democrats as a result of that. Because you have this incoherent coalition of the radicals. Burn it down. Abolish prisons, open borders, river to the sea. All of this kind of discordant craziness. Also with the moderate part of the Democrat Party that just can't get along with them at all. They can't really do anything. And because of that, the only way that the party can continue to operate is by tightening its grip. So you have the party elites who say, we're not going to have a fair primary, we're not gonna let Bernie sand, we're gonna give the debate questions ahead of time to Hillary Clinton. They're gonna have to tighten their grip. And so then you have this even clearer contradiction, which is that the Democratic Party undermines democracy within its own party. Even their presidential candidates admit it. Now, turning to deeper matters, not just mere partisan politics, but to what undergirds all of politics, all of human conflict, which is religion. I am very pleased to be joined by Jeremiah Johnston, who you saw on the Michael and episode for the Shroud of Turin. It's one of our best performing episodes. I think when you factor in all of the varying media platforms it was on. Jeremiah brought in a life size or real life version of the Shroud. It's a facsimile, obviously, but Jeremiah just saw the actual Shroud over in Turin. Jeremiah, thank you for coming on the show, Michael.

[Jeremiah Johnston]

You're a scholar and a gentleman. It's so great to be back with you, my man.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

I say it to myself in the mirror every morning, every day. I'm brushing my teeth now. You have not only I want to hear what you saw in Turin and your experience of the Shroud in person, but I also want to hear, I know you've got an upcoming project on other physical proofs of Christ, because I think what really jazzed people about the Shroud of Turin episode is that in our modern age, we think that everything is just ethereal. And outer space, and you can't really touch anything. And we have this view of religion that involves just taking a leap of faith that has nothing to do with reason in some ways, as opposed to reason, blah, blah, blah. And you think like, no, this is the burial cloth of Christ. Like, no, we have relics and religious artifacts, and we actually have physical, tangible objects that pertain to our faith and pertain to spiritual matters. So before we get to some of those, what did you see in Turin? What was your experience there?

[Jeremiah Johnston]

Well, first it was surreal. I was in the eight day exhibition in Turin, Italy that took place. You were just talking about feast days and holy days in the earlier monologue. And it was fascinating to me because I'm in the actual tent sponsored by the Carlos Acutis Foundation. There's thousands of people walking through. And I finally get to the exhibition with the Shroud, and a stranger literally looks at me across from the Shroud and says, I saw you on Michael Knowles. There I am in Turin, Italy. So they actually liked, I think, the Michael Knowles show better than actually seeing the Shroud in Turin. But it was amazing.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

It's Italian solidarity, really, is what it's exactly right.

[Jeremiah Johnston]

You're an og.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

You're there with the Blessed Carlo Acutis Foundation. So Carlo Acutis, for those who don't know, he's the first millennial who's on his way to be canonized a saint by the Catholic Church. And so you're there and how many people are there? I mean, I don't want to see the Shroud in person.

[Jeremiah Johnston]

It was thousands every day. They had to turn it off. I collabed with them on several projects. And being in front of the Shroud, which is in the St John Cathedral, the tent was outside. It was a virtual experience for those that couldn't get in to see the actual Shroud in the cathedral, it was incredible. And not only that, I went to the Museum of the Holy Shroud just down the road with the Chapel of the Holy Shroud. I saw the first ever picture taken. We showed it on the Michael and broadcast that we had together on the podcast. But I saw the actual photo from 1898, Michael. That kicked off the worldwide fascination. I saw the box that the Shroud survived the fire in. And I talked most importantly to the physicists, the mathematicians, the chemists, those that are in charge of caring for the Shroud. And I learned a lot of fascinating details, such as the two greatest enemies right now of the Shroud are light and oxygen. And this is why The Shroud did not go on full public display this year. I interviewed my friend Enrico. I can call these guys my friend now because Enrico is in charge of changing the argon gas twice a year for the reliquary, which looks like something right out of Star wars, that protects the shroud right now, Michael. They change it twice a year. It's 99% argon gas, 1% oxygen. To preserve the shroud. And something I wanted to share as a follow up. The image is fading, Michael, off the Shroud. And we're not guaranteed to always have the image with us. That's why programs like yours are so important, where we can expose people while we still can to the great evidence for our faith. There's somewhere I could share.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

Speaking of the film, I think we have a little bit of footage of your visit.

[Jeremiah Johnston]

You're the only one in the world who has ever been able to duplicate what could have caused the image in the Shroud of Turin.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

The Shroud, unlike any other grave cloth, contains an anatomically perfect image of a body.

[Jeremiah Johnston]

What is the probability that the man of the Shroud is anyone other than Jesus?

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

It's one thing to see it on television. It is a whole other thing to witness it firsthand.

[Reporter]

The red of the blood was more, let's say, red.

[Jeremiah Johnston]

The kind of light energy it would take to produce the image that we have on the shroud of Turin.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

34 billion watts.

[Jeremiah Johnston]

Do you believe that the man of the Shroud is Jesus of Nazareth?

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

I must believe, right?

[Jeremiah Johnston]

Right.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

I must, because the numbers caused me to be sure. Why? Is the carbon dating wrong? Or is it wrong?

[Colin]

That is, something went wrong.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

So the question is why? Maybe this is what science is pointing to us now more than ever, that maybe this is a resurrection cl. It's piqued my interest. Now, I'm also interested in the other physical proofs of Christ. So we'll get to that in the Membrum Segmentum. For right now, just listen, folks. If you want to hear about The Jesus discoveries, 10 historic finds that bring us face to face with Jesus, you need to. Well, you can go get the book, I guess, eventually. But you can also go to the Membrum Segmentum right now. If you're the hoi polloi watching publicly, too bad. Fork over your cash.

[Jeremiah Johnston]

Become a member of the Light.

[Dr. Jordan B. Peterson]

These lights cost money to keep on. And we will be joined by Jeremiah Johnston at Daily Wire. Plus, if you want to become a member, use code Knowles. You get two months free on all annual plans. We'll see you there.