12.5.24 Demonstrations outside the Supreme Court, families harmed by transgender procedures, and medical care in Gaza

Summary

The World and Everything In It - December 5, 2024

Episode Overview: In this episode of The World and Everything In It, WORLD Radio delves into pressing societal and international issues. The program features demonstrations outside the U.S. Supreme Court concerning transgender procedures for minors, personal stories from individuals who regret such procedures, and a harrowing account of medical care in Gaza amidst ongoing conflict. Additionally, the episode covers significant international political developments in South Korea and France, NATO's defense spending debates, a high-profile shooting in New York City, drug seizures in Mexico, and the controversial pardon of Hunter Biden by President Joe Biden.

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1. Demonstrations Outside the Supreme Court: Transgender Procedures for Minors

Key Discussion: The episode opens with a focus on large gatherings outside the U.S. Supreme Court, where families and individuals affected by transgender procedures share their experiences. The Supreme Court is currently deliberating on Tennessee's law banning hormone injections and surgeries for minors inconsistent with their biological sex.

Personal Stories:

• EL Palmer’s Journey (13:19 - 18:12):

  • EL Palmer recounts transitioning during adolescence, experiencing anxiety, dropping out of school, and undergoing multiple gender transitions. Her story highlights the emotional and physical toll of transgender procedures, culminating in detransitioning at age 19 with permanent bodily damage.
  • “I've realized that hiding my past self is what I tried to do when I transitioned, and I don't want to do that again.” – Adam Lowe [17:55]

• Claire Abernathy’s Experience (14:21 - 17:05):

  • Claire Abernathy began medical procedures at 14, including hormone treatments and a double mastectomy by age 16. She emphasizes the irrevocable nature of these interventions and the regret associated with them.
  • “I've been detransitioning for about three years, and I've just now sort of come to the conclusion that this is all wrong.” – Adam Lowe [14:53]

• Parental Perspectives (15:25 - 17:28):

  • Ryan Clark, a father from New York, shares his distress over his daughter receiving puberty-blocking medication without his consent, highlighting the challenges parents face in making medical decisions for their children.
  • “I don't expect my relationship with my kids to kind of be repaired.” – Kristin Flavin [15:59]

Legal and Cultural Debate:

• Court Proceedings (06:56 - 12:37):

  • The legal battle focuses on whether medical professionals should have the authority to perform gender-affirming procedures on minors without parental consent. Inside the courtroom, Justice Samuel Alito questions the efficacy of such procedures in reducing suicide rates among transgender youth.
  • “There is no evidence in the studies that this treatment reduces completed suicide.” – Justice Alito [11:30]

• Public Demonstrations (07:30 - 12:41):

  • The public square outside the Supreme Court is divided, with supporters of both sides expressing deep-seated concerns. Jared Land, a Cornell student, argues against government intervention in personal bodily decisions, while Don Land criticizes gender-affirming care for minors.
  • “No one has the right to consent for kids to be sterilized… Kids’ innocent needs to be protected.” – Don Land [08:38]

Expert Analysis:

• Somil Varadia and Cal Thomas provide insights into the implications of the Supreme Court's rulings, emphasizing the need for the medical field to acknowledge past mistakes in transgender treatments.
  • “Unless the actual medical field can simply say we have been mutilating and abusing kids, then we as a society just have not returned to normal.” – Adam Lowe [17:28]

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2. International Political Developments

South Korea’s Political Turmoil (01:10 - 02:00):

• President Yoon Suk Yeol faces massive protests demanding his resignation amid accusations of pro-communist infiltration in parliament. In a swift legislative response, lawmakers voted unanimously to nullify Yoon's declaration of a murder emergency martial law.
  • “Any political disagreements need to be resolved peacefully and in accordance with the rule of law.” – Cal Thomas [02:03]
• U.S. Secretary of State Tony Blinken welcomes the withdrawal, stressing the importance of adhering to democratic principles.

France’s Government Shake-Up (02:22 - 03:10):

• France experiences its first successful no-confidence vote in over six decades, ousting Prime Minister Michel Barnier due to contentious budget proposals aimed at reducing the massive deficit.
  • “The National assembly approved the no confidence motion by 331 votes, a minimum of 288 were needed.” – Kristin Flavin [02:22]
• President Emmanuel Macron is expected to outline the next steps following this significant political shift.

NATO Defense Spending Debate (03:10 - 04:44):

• NATO Chief Mark Ruta urges European countries to increase their defense expenditures to at least 2% of their GDP, arguing that current spending levels are insufficient for maintaining deterrence.
  • “It is simply not enough if we want to keep our deterrence at the level it is now.” – Mark Ruta [03:25]
• The discussion references past pressures during Donald Trump's administration to boost defense spending and the ongoing political implications of Pete Hegseth's potential nomination as Defense Secretary.

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3. Crime-Related News

New York City Shooting (04:15 - 05:55):

• A masked assailant fatally shoots the CEO of United Healthcare, Brian Thompson, in broad daylight on a Manhattan sidewalk, igniting a massive manhunt across the city.
  • “The shooter ignores numerous other pedestrians, approaches the victim from behind and shoots him in the back.” – Kristin Flavin [05:23]
• Police are investigating the motive behind the attack, with no immediate suspects identified.

Fentanyl Seizures in Mexico (05:54 - 06:39):

• Mexican authorities seize over a ton of fentanyl pills in Sinaloa, marking the largest synthetic opioid haul in the country’s history.
  • “This is the biggest catch of the synthetic opioid in the country's history.” – Kent Covington [05:54]
• These raids follow President Trump’s threats to impose tariffs on Canada and Mexico over drug and migrant flows across the border.

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4. Medical Care in Gaza

Dr. Firoz Sidwah’s Experience (20:49 - 26:29):

• Dr. Firoz Sidwah, an American trauma surgeon, recounts his two-week mission in Gaza amidst the ongoing conflict. He describes the dire conditions in hospitals, which are overwhelmed with casualties and suffering from severe shortages of medical supplies.
  • “It looked and smelled like a zombie apocalypse because that's kind of what it was.” – Cal Thomas [21:36]
  • “Gaza's half children. There's kids literally everywhere.” – Cal Thomas [21:40]
• Humanitarian Crisis: Hospitals are stretched beyond capacity, with instances of children being fatally shot and medical staff operating without essential supplies like gloves.
  • “I was literally like making incisions in people without gloves on, which I've never had to do before.” – Cal Thomas [25:15]
• Conflict Impact: The war has led to widespread famine risks and the looting of aid supplies by rival factions, exacerbating the humanitarian crisis.
  • “The desire to protect civilians while routing Hamas is creating impossible situations.” – Dr. Sidwah [23:21]

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5. U.S. Supreme Court Case: Tennessee vs. Scrimmedi

Legal Arguments and Public Debate (06:56 - 12:37):

• The Supreme Court case United States v. Scrimmedi centers on Tennessee's law restricting gender-affirming medical procedures for minors. The justices are evaluating whether these restrictions uphold constitutional rights or infringe upon parental and individual rights.
  • “Any political disagreements need to be resolved peacefully and in accordance with the rule of law.” – Cal Thomas [02:03]
• Public Demonstrations:
  • Supporters and opponents of the law gathered outside the Supreme Court, illustrating the deep cultural divide on the issue. While some advocate for state regulation to protect children, others argue it suppresses parental rights and personal freedoms.
  • “We're not discriminating against care here. What we're doing is defining what care means.” – Tennessee State Senator Adam Lowe [12:16]

Supreme Court Proceedings:

• Inside the court, debates focus on the efficacy of gender-affirming treatments in reducing suicide rates among transgender youth. Justice Alito challenges the claim that such procedures effectively decrease suicidality.
  • “There is no evidence in the studies that this treatment reduces completed suicide.” – Justice Alito [11:30]
• The Court is also deliberating the role of legislative versus judicial authority in setting medical regulations for minors.

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6. President Joe Biden Pardons Hunter Biden

Controversial Pardon (26:29 - 30:33):

• President Joe Biden recently pardoned his son, Hunter Biden, amidst accusations of corruption and unlawful activities ranging from his position at Burisma to alleged money laundering through LLCs.
  • “This letter covers all of that and likely more.” – Kent Covington [27:14]
• Political Repercussions:
  • Critics argue that the pardon undermines the principle that no one is above the law. Cal Thomas emphasizes the need for justice to be impartial, stating, “In theological circles, pardon is usually granted after repentance and statements of remorse.” [30:33]
  • Conservative commentators like Liz Wheeler view the pardon as protection of the Biden family's interests and potential prevention of further investigations by figures like Cash Patel, Trump’s nominee for FBI Director.

Public and Political Reaction:

• Republican James Comer criticizes the pardon as evidence of a corrupt political system where fairness is compromised.
  • “The claim no one is above the law should be discarded as untrue and never used again.” – James Comer [29:02]
• The episode discusses the broader implications for political cynicism and the erosion of faith in governmental institutions.

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7. Local Stories and Additional Segments

St. John's Episcopal Church Bells Restoration (19:22 - 20:06):

• Leah Stukerjergen spearheaded the restoration of the historic bells at St. John's Episcopal Church in Dallas, overcoming significant logistical and financial challenges. The innovative use of a smartphone-controlled system now allows for automated bell ringing.
  • “The rector's smartphone directs the strikes and swings of the bells.” – Mary Reichard [19:22]

Upcoming Content:

• A teaser for future episodes includes interviews with Jon Stonestreet on Culture Friday and Colin Garbarino reviewing new streaming offerings.
  • “Tomorrow Jon Stonestreet is here for Culture Friday with more analysis...” – Lindsay Mast [30:33]

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Conclusion: This episode of The World and Everything In It presents a comprehensive overview of significant societal debates, personal narratives, and international developments. From the contentious Supreme Court case on transgender youth to the dire humanitarian crises in Gaza, and the political fallout of presidential pardons, WORLD Radio offers in-depth analysis and diverse perspectives. Listeners are encouraged to engage with these topics critically, reflecting on the complex interplay between law, personal rights, and global events.

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Notable Quotes:

• “I see this as protecting youth.” – Adam Lowe [07:57]
• “We will hide that child from their parents, put them in a host home and pay for their transition.” – Kristin Flavin [09:10]
• “Unless the actual medical field can simply say we have been mutilating and abusing kids...” – Adam Lowe [17:28]
• “In theological circles, pardon is usually granted after repentance and statements of remorse.” – Cal Thomas [30:33]

Timestamps Reference: All quotes are referenced with approximate timestamps corresponding to their appearance in the transcript to facilitate easy location within the podcast.

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Stay Informed: For more in-depth coverage and updates on these stories, subscribe to The World and Everything In It on Apple Podcasts and support WORLD Radio’s mission of providing biblically grounded sound journalism.

Transcript

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

Families and individuals hurt by transgender procedures gathered at the Supreme Court yesterday to tell their stories. I'm Julianna Chan Erickson, and in a few minutes I'll tell you about their concerns. Stay with us.

[Mary Reichard]

Good morning. Big crowds outside the Supreme Court yesterday as parties inside debated medical attempts to change the sex of minors. We'll hear those personal stories from people waiting outside.

[Lindsay Mast]

And later, an American doctor in Gaza trying to make sense of everything he's seen.

[Cal Thomas]

It's all completely unnecessary. We're not getting anything out of this.

[Lindsay Mast]

And world commentator Cal Thomas on the pardon of Hunter Biden's numerous crimes, known and unknown.

[Mary Reichard]

It's Thursday, December 5th. This is the world and everything in it from listener supported World Radio. I'm Mary Reichard.

[Lindsay Mast]

And I'm Lindsay. Good morning.

[Mary Reichard]

Up next, Kent Covington has today's news.

[Kent Covington]

In South Korea, protesters out in force for a second day marching to the presidential palace in Seoul calling on President Yoon Suk Yeol to resign. And some members of Parliament agree. An official in parliament heard there announcing a motion to impeach the president. That came one day after Yoon declared a murder emergency martial law because he said pro communist forces sympathetic to North Korea had infiltrated parliament. But Lawmakers swiftly voted 190 to 0 to force Yoon to rescind that declaration, which he did. And in Washington, Secretary of State Tony Blinken said the U.S. government welcomed Yoon's statement, withdrawing that order. In our judgment, any political disagreements need.

[Cal Thomas]

To be resolved peacefully and in accordance.

[Kent Covington]

With the rule of law. South Korean law says parliament must vote on the measure two to three days after it's offered. Meantime, in France, lawmakers on Wednesday voted to oust the prime minister and the first successful no confidence vote in more than 60 years. World's Kristin Flavin has more right wing.

[Kristin Flavin]

And left wing members of parliament joined together to vote on a no confidence motion. The vote came amid fierce opposition to Prime Minister Michel Barnier's proposed budget, which called for significant tax income increases and spending cuts. Barnier argued the measures were needed to tackle France's massive budget deficit, which is expected to exceed 6% of the country's GDP, double the EU's recommended ceiling of 3%. The National assembly approved the no confidence motion by 331 votes. A minimum of 288 were needed. Barnier was appointed in September and becomes the shortest serving prime minister in France's modern republic. President Emmanuel Macron is expected to address the nation today to outline next steps. For World I'm Kristin Flavin with President.

[Kent Covington]

Elect Donald Trump set to take office next month. NATO chief Mark Ruta is again pushing for European countries to ramp up defense spending. Each NATO member is expected to spend at least 2% of their GDP on defense, but some members aren't even doing that. Ruda says members must step up regardless of who's in the White House, not because of Trump, but I believe strongly, and I know many allies believe strongly, that 2% is simply not enough. It is simply not enough if longer term we want to keep our deterrence at the level it is now, ruda said. NATO is in a solid position right now, but without greater defense spending, it may be much more vulnerable in the future. During Donald Trump's first term, NATO members, under heavy pressure from the US President, significantly increased defense spending. And Trump recently threatened not to defend delinquent NATO member states. And Donald Trump's embattled nominee for defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, is vowing to fight on and to continue making his case to the Senate despite some accusations of misconduct and a lot of negative press.

[Kristin Flavin]

I owe an answer to the members of the United States Senate who are.

[Lindsay Mast]

Going to vote for a confirmation here.

[Kristin Flavin]

And my meetings with them have been fantastic.

[Kent Covington]

And indeed, if Republican senators have reservations about Hegseth, they're not saying so publicly. Senator Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee he was.

[Kristin Flavin]

Able to lay out what he would.

[Mary Reichard]

Do to modernize the U.S. department of Defense, what he would do to put equipment and artillery in the hands of the war fighter.

[Kent Covington]

Exeth has faced accusations of past sexual misconduct and alcohol abuse, though his current colleagues at Fox News have come to his defense, vouching for his character. Recent media reports claim that the president elect's transition team is now considering alternatives to Hegseth, including Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. But for his part, Hegseth said Donald Trump personally reiterated his support for him in a phone call on Wednesday. Investigators in New York City are still looking for answers after a masked assassin gunned down the CEO of United Healthcare in broad daylight on a Manhattan sidewalk Wednesday. NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenney.

[Kristin Flavin]

The shooter steps onto the sidewalk from behind the car. He ignores numerous other pedestrians, approaches the victim from behind and shoots him in the back. The shooter then walks toward the victim.

[Adam Lowe]

And continues to shoot.

[Kent Covington]

The suspect reportedly lied in wait for Brian Thompson outside a hotel before opening fire. The shooting sparked a manhunt for the suspect throughout New York City. Mexican soldiers and Marines have seized more than a ton of fentanyl pills in two raids in the northern state of Sinaloa in what officials are calling the biggest catch of the synthetic opioid in the country's history. The raids came days after President elect Donald Trump threatened to impose a 25% tariff on products from Canada and Mexico unless they cracked down on the flow of migrants and drugs across the border. I'm Kent Covington. And Straight ahead, the U.S. supreme Court considers a case pitting parental rights against what's best for children. And later, an American doctor eases suffering in Gaza. This is the world and everything in it.

[Lindsay Mast]

It's Thursday the 5th of Dec. This is World radio and we're glad you've joined us today. Good morning. I'm Lindsay Mast.

[Mary Reichard]

And I'm Mary Reichard. First up on the world and everything in it, the United States takes Tennessee to court.

[Somil Varadia]

We'll hear argument this morning in case.

[Kristin Flavin]

2347 7, United States v. Scrimmedi, that.

[Lindsay Mast]

Kicked off more than two hours of debate yesterday. At issue is a Tennessee law that prohibits doctors from providing hormone injections and surgeries that are inconsistent with the biological sex of minor.

[Mary Reichard]

We will get into the legal issues on Monday's legal docket. But for today, we'll hear the debate in the public square around so called gender affirming care for minors. Washington bureau reporter Carolina Lumeta spoke with people gathered outside the court.

[Carolina Lumeta]

Demonstrators stamp their feet and pull out hand warmers standing in front of the Supreme Court for dueling rallies. On the left side, members of the ACLU wave pink and blue flags and dance to a DJ's music. To the right, conservative organizations rotate speaker after speaker to support a controversial Tennessee law. While the justices considered the constitutional questions in the chamber, the crowd out front found themselves on opposite sides of the cultural divide.

[Adam Lowe]

I understand what the other side is saying in terms of they see it as protecting youth. But I mean, I see this as protecting youth.

[Carolina Lumeta]

I mean, Jared Land is a student at Cornell University in New York. He views the case as an instance of the government telling people what to do with their bodies.

[Adam Lowe]

The ability to express yourself is so important to feel comfortable in your own body. And I think that both sides need to come together and realize that we all just want to be ourselves. We all want to like feel true to our bodies. And I think there's a lot of empathy to be garnered that people aren't willing to talk to each other, that this is a really concerning part here.

[Carolina Lumeta]

On the other side of the plaza, Don Land waves a black and pink sign that says no one is born in the wrong body.

[Kristin Flavin]

No one has the right to consent for kids to be sterilized. If a child wanted to drink alcohol, does the parent have the right to consent for them to drink alcohol or get a tattoo? It's not right. Kids innocent needs to be protected, and no one has the right to consent to transgender ideology for their kids.

[Carolina Lumeta]

Land filed a referendum against a law in her state of Washington that allows the state to shelter children away from their parents and provide transgender procedures without parental consent.

[Kristin Flavin]

They will hide that child from their parents, put them in a host home and pay for their transition. And there are no age restrictions on that. It labels parents as abusive because they won't affirm their child. So, yes, the Tennessee law would be a wonderful blueprint.

[Carolina Lumeta]

Nationwide, parents on the pro transport said they worry about suicide rates if their children are not affirmed when they question their gender. And they believe that part of that affirmation should include medical interventions like hormone treatments and body modifications through plastic surgery.

[Kristin Flavin]

Well, at 14, my daughter absolutely knew who she was a heck of a lot better than I knew who she was.

[Carolina Lumeta]

Ann Eliason is a mom from Richmond, Virginia. She waves a sign that reads fight like a mother for trans rights.

[Kristin Flavin]

So that's a big piece of it was listening to her and letting her be the expert on who she was. Also together we sat down with doctors and we studied the science and the healthcare and the medicine behind all of it and made sure that the choice she was making was her choice and that she was educated on the science behind it.

[Carolina Lumeta]

She argues that children like hers will plunge into depression and suicidal ideation if the Tennessee law stands.

[Kristin Flavin]

Gender dysphoria. I've never experienced it, but I watched her go through it. It's crippling and it's horrifying for her, and her life depended on getting through that, with the assistance of doctors who were trained to help her get through that.

[Carolina Lumeta]

The Trevor Project, a pro LGBT organization, reports that suicide attempt rates among transgender youth jumped to 72% between 2018 and 2022. They claim laws that affirm biological sex caused the spike. Concerned parents outside the Supreme Court cited those numbers in advocating for further access to transgender procedures. Inside, Justice Samuel Alito asked ACLU lawyer Chase Strangio about suicide rates.

[Kristin Flavin]

Do you maintain that the procedures and medications in question reduce the risk of suicide? I do. Justice Alito maintain that the medications in question reduce the risk of depression, anxiety, and suicidality, which are all indicators of potential suicide.

[Carolina Lumeta]

Justice Alito then brought up data in a study commissioned by the National Health Service in the United Kingdom, published earlier this year.

[Kristin Flavin]

But on page 195 of the cast report, it says There is no evidence.

[Kent Covington]

That gender affirmative treatments reduce suicide.

[Kristin Flavin]

What I think that is referring to is there is no evidence in the studies that this treatment reduces completed suicide. However, there are multiple studies, long term longitudinal studies, that do show that there is a reduction in suicidality, which I think is a positive outcome to this treatment.

[Carolina Lumeta]

The justices also argued about who bears the responsibility for deciding where to draw the lines for medical regulations, courts or legislators. Back outside the court, Tennessee State Senator Adam Lowe discussed the original intent of his state's law.

[Kristin Flavin]

We're not discriminating against care here. What we're doing is defining what care means.

[Carolina Lumeta]

He says his legislature is not suppressing parental rights, but rather regulating the state healthcare system.

[Kent Covington]

I will say that the legislature with.

[Kristin Flavin]

This bill operated within its authority with.

[Kent Covington]

Goodwill to provide the best care possible for Tennesseans.

[Somil Varadia]

And I hope that the justices see it that way.

[Adam Lowe]

Rocky Top, you'll always be.

[Carolina Lumeta]

Reporting for world. I'm Carolina Lumeta in Washington.

[Mary Reichard]

Coming up next on THE WORLD and everything in it, families harmed by medical attempts to change their children's sex. Yesterday's oral arguments drew many people to Washington, including parents hurt by attempts to change the sex of their child and people who underwent procedures they now regret. World's Julianna Chan Erickson has their story.

[Adam Lowe]

Puberty is hard, especially for girls.

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

EL Palmer is a female, but her journey to adulthood took a detour.

[Adam Lowe]

During puberty, I was anxious. I stopped going to school before elementary school even ended and I dropped out of school for three years.

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

Palmer spent her time online, where she was groomed by transgender influencers.

[Adam Lowe]

I experienced having no friends in real life when I was transitioning and then cutting off whoever I knew before I transitioned because I didn't want anybody in my life who knew me as my old self.

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

When she finally returned to school three years later, Palmer came back as a boy. But about three years after that, she realized it was a mistake.

[Adam Lowe]

A lot of people just think that everyone who transitions is very happy and it's kind of the right thing for everyone. And if you know yourself, then you'll be happy. But the problem with teenagers is that you don't know yourself. You're trying to figure out who you are.

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

She returned to living as a woman at age 19, though with permanent damage to her body. And she's not alone. Claire Abernathy was 14 when doctors began medical procedures to change her body.

[Adam Lowe]

There was eight months between being referred for gender therapy and getting my breasts removed. That's crazy.

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

Abernathy started calling herself transgender when she was 10 years old. By age 12, she suppressed her menstrual cycle with birth control pills. Two years later, doctors put her on testosterone and performed an irreversible double mastectomy.

[Adam Lowe]

I've been detransitioning for about three years, and I've just now sort of come to the conclusion that this is all wrong. And I've just now started listening to other detransitioners and accepting sort of how bad what happened to me was.

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

Abernethy and Palmer hope the legal battle unfolding at the Supreme Court will make the stories of detransitioners more visible to the public. And it's not just children who are harmed by these procedures. Some parents say they've been blindsided by medical interventions.

[Kristin Flavin]

This all happened behind my back. I had no idea until it had already happened.

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

Ryan Clark is a divorced father of two from Rochester, New York. During the custody battle, his daughter received her first injection of the puberty blocking medication Lupron when she was 11. After Clark's ex wife signed off on the injection, he says he's tried to understand why doctors, therapists, and the courts won't let him make medical decisions for his children.

[Kristin Flavin]

I've kind of reached a point in my court case where everything's impossible. I don't expect my relationship with my.

[Adam Lowe]

Kids to kind of be repaired.

[Kristin Flavin]

However, this needs to stop for all kids, you know, and if my story can be a catalyst to help stopping it for all kids, then I'm gonna tell it until.

[Somil Varadia]

Blue in the Face January.

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

Littlejohn says she too was blindsided when her 13 year old daughter began identifying as transgender.

[Kristin Flavin]

And this was after three of her friends at the local middle school also started suddenly identifying as transgender. My daughter had no previous confusion up until this announcement. And so it really thrusts my husband and I into this world that we were completely unaware of.

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

Lil Jon's daughter eventually desisted and is now living without gender confusion. She hopes the Supreme Court will rule in Tennessee's favor and uphold the state laws protecting children from transgender treatments. But more importantly, Little John says there's a safer way to help children work through their distress.

[Kristin Flavin]

The truth is, the vast majority of these children will resolve their distress if they are not affirmed in a false identity or medically or socially transition. And so I would encourage parents to do your research.

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

But even doing research is complicated by the fact that many respected medical organizations still promote so called gender affirming care.

[Adam Lowe]

Unless you actually fix this from a medical perspective, unless the medical field admits that what they're doing is not only completely insane. It's anti science. It's anti ethical. This is not really like an actual return to sanity.

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

Somil Varadia is a doctor in California trained in family medicine. He says he was alarmed by what was happening in his profession and he hopes the medical field owns up to its mistakes.

[Adam Lowe]

Yes, the Supreme Court may dictate terms to like society, but unless the actual medical field can simply say we have been mutilating and abusing kids, then we as a society just have not returned to normal.

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

For EL Palmer, the greatest healing has come through being honest with herself and others about her story.

[Adam Lowe]

I've realized that hiding my past self is what I tried to do when I transitioned, and I don't want to do that again. I don't like that it happened, but I like that I feel comfortable enough to share it with people.

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

Reporting for world, I'm Julianna Chen Erickson.

[Kent Covington]

Additional support comes from season two of Eyewitness Silent Night, the student led podcast drama following time travelers, to the first Christmas on Podcast Apps or at the letter I witnesspod.com and from Dort University. Dort's new online MBA program prepares aspiring Christian business leaders to serve and excel in the world of business until all is made new.

[Mary Reichard]

The bells of St. John's Episcopal Church in Dallas called people to church for more than 100 years. Until the 1980s when the bells fell silent for want of repair, efforts to fix the problem seemed insurmountable. Missing parts, faulty new parts, rain delays, not to mention the cost. Well, enter a determined widow named Leah Stukerjergen. Her late husband, Dennis, wanted to pay to repair the bells. So along with some skilled volunteers, his wish was granted on Thanksgiving weekend. Now, a fun twist to the story is the rector's smartphone, which directs the strikes and swings of the bells. So no human is needed to pull the rope and swing the bell.

[Lindsay Mast]

Well, a clapper on the back to them.

[Mary Reichard]

Yeah, it's the world and everything in it. Today is Thursday, December 5th. Thank you for turning to World Radio to help start your day. Good morning. I'm Mary Reichard.

[Lindsay Mast]

And I'm Lindsay Mast. Coming next on THE WORLD and Everything in it, an eyewitness in Gaza. Now, this is a war story, so you may want to press pause and come back later if you have young ones around. But do come back because it's an important story.

[Kristin Flavin]

Right.

[Mary Reichard]

And you have about 20 seconds to do that. Well, this week, a major supplier of aid to Gaza suspended deliveries after armed gangs looted two of its trucks since the war started. Israel says it's been trying to get food and medical supplies to the civilians in Gaza, but Israel says Hamas is stealing aid and using places like hospitals to hide. And now the nearly 2 million people living there have been on the brink of famine for months. With hospitals running out of supplies.

[Lindsay Mast]

Here's World's Mary Muncie with what one doctor saw in Gaza.

[Kristin Flavin]

Last March, Dr. Firoz Sidwah followed a hospital bed through a European hospital in Gaza. People slept on the floor along the hallway.

[Cal Thomas]

It looked and smelled like a zombie apocalypse because that's kind of what it was.

[Kristin Flavin]

He was following his patient into the operating room. A little girl walked by and he fist bumped her.

[Cal Thomas]

Gaza's half children. There's kids literally everywhere.

[Kristin Flavin]

Sidwa is an American trauma surgeon who spent two weeks in Gaza with the World Health Organization. At the time, there were 1,500 people admitted to the 220 bed hospital and it was serving as a shelter. Some of the families hung up sheets around their living quarters. The gurney Sidwa was following snagged on one of them. Before the war, European hospital was a place where the wealthy paid to get procedures done. Now it's one of the last few operating hospitals in the region and it's helping anyone who can get there. Since Hamas attacked Israel from Within Gaza on October 7, Israel has been on a mission to get hostages back and destroy the terrorist group, meaning Hamas put Palestinians in the middle of a war. There are reports that dozens of Palestinians were killed overnight by two Israeli airstrikes in northern Gaza. The UN again warning that the Gaza.

[Mary Reichard]

Strip could reach total famine in just six weeks.

[Kristin Flavin]

Two UN agencies say Palestinian gangs who were rivals of Hamas violently looted nearly 100 aid trucks last week after entering Gaza. Some experts say Israel is doing everything possible to reduce civilian deaths while still routing Hamas. Sidwa does not believe October 7th was justified, but he does believe many people in Gaza feel oppressed and caught in the middle. That's why he went there.

[Cal Thomas]

I'm used to dealing with death. That's not such a problem for me. But I don't like. I don't want us imposing death on other people for when there's no reason for it, when there's no benefit to it.

[Kristin Flavin]

In October, sinhwa and over 200 other doctors signed an open letter to President Joe Biden calling for an arms embargo. Their letter includes reports of children starving and people living in desperate poverty. Many also said they witnessed children shot in the head. On his first day in Gaza, Sidwell was touring the hospital when he saw two children lying next to each other. Both were on ventilators with bandaged heads.

[Cal Thomas]

The nurse kind of pointed to her head and just said, shot, shot.

[Kristin Flavin]

Sidwan and another doctor couldn't believe two little kids would be shot in the head, so they assumed the nurse meant shrapnel wounds.

[Cal Thomas]

But then I looked at them and I was like, they don't look like they were in an explosion.

[Kristin Flavin]

As he and the other doctor examined them, they realized the children were already dead. They looked at their CT scans.

[Cal Thomas]

Sure enough, they both had bullets in their heads.

[Kristin Flavin]

Sidwa recorded a total of 13 children shot in the head in 14 days. He thinks there were more. He just didn't write them down.

[Cal Thomas]

We regularly saw children shot in the chest, shot in the arms, shot in the legs. But for obvious reasons, the ones that had single shots to the head or sometimes even a shot to the head and the chest were the ones that really stood out.

[Kristin Flavin]

Sidwa and the other doctors don't know who shot them or why. Many likely caught stray bullets. But Sidwa doesn't think all of the wounds were accidental. Sidwan others took pictures of the children and their X rays. When I asked the Israeli Defense Force about claims that they were to blame, a spokesperson said that they work to protect children and civilians and that they are not committing war crimes. I couldn't contact Hamas. Sidwa had brought 800 pounds of supplies with him. Other doctors brought more, more, but they still ran out of many of them. By about halfway through the trip, we.

[Cal Thomas]

Had one mass casual event where we just kind of ran out of gloves. There just were no gloves.

[Kristin Flavin]

The water had also stopped running, a semi regular occurrence while he was there.

[Cal Thomas]

I was literally like making incisions in people without gloves on, which I've never had to do before.

[Kristin Flavin]

He didn't write down details about any patients that day. And there were other days like that where there was too much going on in the moment and he couldn't remember what happened at the end of the day. But he'll never forget some of them, like a little girl named Yuri. He and other doctors operated on her for about 30 hours over 10 days before she was stable enough to evacuate to Egypt.

[Cal Thomas]

There's hundreds of kids like her just at European Hospital, and there's thousands or maybe even tens of thousands in Gaza. It's just, it's impossible.

[Kristin Flavin]

Even if you could somehow transfer them to us, he says, the country just wouldn't have enough ICU beds. It's overwhelming. But he's going back in January to deal with it the best way he can. One person at a time. Reporting for World, I'm Mary Muncie.

[Lindsay Mast]

Today is Thursday, December 5th. Good morning. This is the World and everything in it from Listener supported World Radio. I'm Lindsay Mast.

[Mary Reichard]

And I'm Mary Reichard. On Sunday, President Joe Biden pardoned his son Hunter. World commentator Cal Thomas says it's time to return to the political ideal of justice for all.

[Somil Varadia]

Clearly, President Biden didn't mean it last June when he responded to a question from David Muir of ABC News about whether he would pardon his son Hunter.

[Kent Covington]

Will you accept the jury's outcome, their verdict, no matter what it is?

[Somil Varadia]

Yes.

[Kent Covington]

And have you ruled out a pardon for your son?

[Somil Varadia]

Yes. He repeated that assertion on other occasions. So did his press secretary, Corinne Jean Pierre, many more times.

[Mary Reichard]

We've been asked that question multiple times.

[Kristin Flavin]

Our answer stands, which is no. It's still a no.

[Mary Reichard]

It will be a no.

[Kent Covington]

It is a no.

[Kristin Flavin]

And I don't have anything else to add. Will he pardon his son?

[Julianna Chan Erickson]

No.

[Somil Varadia]

The day after the pardon, Jean Pierre was asked by a reporter accompanying the President on his trip to Africa whether her and the President's previous statement should be considered lies. She responded, one of the things that.

[Kent Covington]

The President always believes is to be.

[Mary Reichard]

Truthful to the American people.

[Kristin Flavin]

That is something that he always truly believes.

[Somil Varadia]

Presumably, she said this with a straight face, to paraphrase Bill Clinton in a different context. I guess it depends on what the meaning of the word truth is. It will be clear to many that the President's original pledges were made before the election for political reasons.

[Kristin Flavin]

There.

[Somil Varadia]

There was no way he was going to let Hunter go to prison, especially since he is privy to so much inside information about what Republicans believe to be corruption in the Biden family. The Hunter pardon again proves George Orwell's line in his novel Animal Farm, all animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others. Kentucky Republican Representative James Comer chairs the House Oversight Committee. He's been investigating alleged Biden family corruption for months. From Hunter's highly paid position as a board member of the Ukraine gas company Burisma, even though he had no experience in the energy industry. To the 20 LLCs comer believes to have been used for money laundering for the benefit of Biden family members, including 10% for the big guy, as Hunter apparently referred to his father, the pardon covers all of that and likely more. The claim no one is above the law should be discarded as untrue and never used again. Biden's pardon of Hunter has led many to theorize there's something lurking underneath, which is meant to also protect Hunter from charges that came to light in 2018. Conservative commentator Liz Wheeler writes, Hunter Biden joined the board of Burisma in 2014. By pardoning Hunter for any crimes he may have committed from 2014 to 2020, Joe Biden is protecting his family's criminal cartel. Wow, close quote. She adds that Biden also seems to be protecting Hunter from Cash Patel, Trump's nominee to head the FBI. Patel has vowed to reform the law enforcement agency. President Biden's pardon of his son will contribute to the growing cynicism many have about politics, politicians and Washington. Fairness might demand that Joe Biden should pardon President Elect Trump. Trump ensuring that the former special counsel Jack Smith won't be able to resurrect charges he recently withdrew that would guarantee Trump is not prosecuted after the end of his second term. I'm confident that won't happen. While the Constitution grants absolute pardon power to the president, it doesn't distinguish between those that are morally justifiable and those which are not. In theological circles, pardon is usually granted after repentance and statements of remorse. This acknowledges there is a law to which all people are expected to conform. To receive a pardon absent repentance makes a mockery of the law and suggests it can be unequally applied. I'm Cal Thomas.

[Lindsay Mast]

Tomorrow Jon Stonestreet is here for Culture Friday with more analysis of Yesterday's Land Supreme Court case and Colin Garbarino reviews two new streaming offerings, including a biblical drama with big name actors he says should have stuck closer to the source material. That and more Tomorrow. I'm Lindsay Mast.

[Mary Reichard]

And I'm Mary Reichard. The world and everything in it comes to you from world radio. The world's mission is biblically objective journalism that informs, educates and inspires. The Apostle Paul wrote to his I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom, preach the Word, Be ready in season and out of season. Reprove, rebuke and exhort with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching but have itching ears. They will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. Verses 1 through 4 of 2 Timothy chapter 4 go now in grace and peace.