Critical Thinking with Andrew Coppens

It's the end of a short week here on Critical Thinking, so Andrew is bringing you his best and worst takes of the week featuring the truth the left doesn't want you to know about Thanksgiving and the whole Indians and Pilgrims debate. Also, Canada's Human Rights Commission believes Christmas and Easter are bigoted holidays because they are the only non-secular holidays on Canada's statutory holiday list. Also, Donald Trump goes dishonest against Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and apparently believing murder is bad is a strictly religious belief. Hmmmm...strange.

Human Rights Campaign came out with it's report on trans murders in America, on National Day of Trans Remembrance (of course), and it wants us to know there's an epidemic of trans murders happening in America. Is that true? Is the White House just parroting false information once again? Well, we're going to dive in to the data and get you an answer on this #TruthOrFictionTuesday. Also, is Northwestern's David Braun the national CFB Coach of the Year? What about ageism and Joe Biden and what about Jim Harbaugh's absence and its affect on Michigan heading in to "The Game" this weekend?

Self-described Anarcho-capitalist and Libertarian, Javier Milei, won Argentina's Presidential election over the weekend. It should be something to celebrate for the liberty movement, but instead, many took time to crap all over the win by applying their own purity tests to him. We discuss that, plus Janet Yellen wants you to know aid to Ukraine for school teachers and first responders is so important we must go in to further debt here in America for it. Oh, and Bidenomics isn't being sold correctly, so Americans need more messaging in order to understand just how well it's going. Who wants to tell her?

After giving you some history of the evil beginnings of compulsory public education from the 1850's onward, we fast-foward to today, where Chicago Teachers Union and the Illinois Federation of Teachers are attempting to kill off a privately-funded, but publicly-accessible scholarship program for school choice called the "Invest in Kids" scholarship. Joining me to talk about the CTU's role in all of this, as well as why what happens here matters to what's happening in your neighborhood, your city, your state is Mailee Smith, a staff attorney and Senior Director of Labor Policy at the Illinois Policy Institute. Guest Info: https://www.google.com/search?gs_ssp=eJzj4tVP1zc0TKs0LTCxNMwzYPTiyU3MzElNVSjOzSzJAAB9bwkI&q=mailee+smith&oq=mailee&gs_lcrp=EgZjaHJvbWUqBwgBEC4YgAQyBggAEEUYOzIHCAEQLhiABDINCAIQLhivARjHARiABDIGCAMQRRhAMgYIBBAjGCcyBggFECMYJzIHCAYQABiABDIGCAcQRRg90gEIMzA1M2owajeoAgCwAgA&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8 Background Links: $1.5 Million Lobbying since June by Illinois Teachers: https://www.illinoispolicy.org/teachers-unions-hand-nearly-1-5-million-to-lawmakers-ahead-of-invest-in-kids-vote/ Majority of IFT Spending Goes to Chicago: https://www.illinoispolicy.org/reports/majority-of-ift-spending-goes-to-chicago/

I know you think of public school as a way to better ones self, climb the social ladder and give you the tools to be anything you want to be. Except, that's not the real history of public schools and not what those who are protecting them competition today are actually fighting for. On today's program I look at the history of how and why public education became a thing in America and if it's something we should be fighting to save or to blow up completely. Reading Material: https://fee.org/articles/public-schools-were-designed-to-indoctrinate-immigrants/

The third and allegedly final debate prior to the 2024 GOP Primary race beginning went down last night in Florida and I've got some things I loved and hated. Chief amongst the hated was Nikki Haley's lame abortion answer, basically telling GOP voters you better take a "you do you, boo" stance on abortion or you're a bad person. Also, Vivek did some good and some bad and Ron DeSantis did his best to showcase leadership and results. Oh and NBC did a good job too?

Whether it was a big loss for pro-lifers in Ohio or the Team MAGA and GOP choice for governor in Kentucky getting blown out or more state legislatures flipping, 2023 election night was not good for the Republican Party. Yet, so many believed it would be. Why? What in the past or the present would suggest such a thing would happen? Maybe it's time to realize that the left is a movement and the GOP is just an empty shell that cares about draining your pocketbook and lining theirs too. Maybe it's time to realize that personality doesn't trump plans? Just saying.

Ever notice that not a single one of the "I'm just Pro-Palenstine, not Pro-Hamas" protestors ever criticize Hamas? Ya, us too. Also, what is or isn't coming the way of Jim Harbaugh and Michigan football and is Joe Biden the responsible party for all the chaos in America and abroad? In the final show with both Andrew and Pat behind the mic, we take a look at all those #TruthOrFiction statements and more. Yes, the show is changing as we look to impact our world and the discussions in it in a very different way. Pat is stepping away from being in front of the mic to helping me behind the scenes and the show will move from being a daily show to a twice-a-week show going more in-depth on specific topics and talking to thought leaders and those with expertise — challenging them to prove their work and thoughts, just as I hope they challenge mine.

Full disclosure, we recorded this episode on Thursday night and just as we began recording news broke about the United States attacking Iranian-backed targets in Syria. So, all of this played out in real-time for you. Also, we see Kamala Harris tout Aussie gun laws, both the best and worst Abortion take at the same time and Tim Brando gives us a great take on the needs of college football going forward. Oh, and a brand new #RichardOfTheWeek is crowned as well.

A recent poll about the Hamas attack on Israel told us that overall, Americans do not support what Hamas did, there was no justification for it. Yet, a majority of the 18-24 crowd and a near majority of the 18-34 groups actually say Hamas was justified. Proof is in the unrepentant support of Hamas by the NYU Law School Student Bar Association President and the protests around college campuses everywhere. How is this generational divide happening? Also, are those same people calling on the government of Azerbaijan to stop its ethnic cleansing of Armenians living in their ancestral land? The silence is deafening. Oh, and we've got your NFL and College Football picks too!

Just hours after indicating support for Tom Emmer, Donald Trump turns around and knifes the 3rd GOP nominee for Speaker of the House right in the back. What in the sam-hell is going on out there? Also, Biden and stages don't get along very well, The Blaze makes a bold move towards independent and parallel economies and there's no need for reading, writing or math in Oregon for the next decade. I'm sure that's going to go well. All that and more on a #WTFWednesday edition of Critical Thinking.

Senate Minority Leader, Mitch McConnell wants us to believe that the war in Ukraine is good because it's propping up parts of the U.S. economy. That's right, because nearly 40% of the Ukraine aid is spent here to help with the depleted stockpile of weapons we are sending to Ukraine, we must keep the war going y'all. Also, Michigan football be in some big trouble and what about free speech for international students in America? Ron DeSantis has some thoughts and so do we on this #TruthOrFiction Tuesday!

It's that time of the week, where Andrew and Pat discuss the best and worst takes of the week that was, featuring a blubbering Rashida Tlaib, Canada voting to allow the mentally-ill to off themselves and not one, but two great takes from Libertarians in Hannah Cox and Justin Amash. My heart be still! Don't forget to grab yourself some of the best coffee out there from a brand that cares about its coffee and not your politics: https://coffeebrandcoffee.com/discount/CriticalThinker?ref=m597JEC6V_ceI

Clint Russell and others have told us that Israel has a right to self-defense, but only if it doesn't kill a single civilian. Also, Israel needs to go back to the '67 borders and stop indiscriminately killing Palestinian woman and children. Is the Anti-War position of the Libertarian left clouding them from seeing the realities that exist? Also, a woman "only" sleeps with 300 people in 365 days, AOC goes after Ron DeSantis on "refugees" and a 4th grade teacher turns Winnie the Pooh in to a nightmare for her 4th grade classroom. All that and more on a #WTFWednesday edition of #CriticalThinking.

It's a #TruthOrFiction Tuesay and we want to know whom is showing Presidential Leadership when it comes to the Hamas-Israeli conflict. Turns out, only one person seems to and his name is Ron DeSantis. From bringing people home in droves to standing firm on refugees from Gaza and that Hamas is preventing its own people from escaping their war, he's doing what others only talk about. Also, smoking is cool again and will the winner of the Ohio State-Penn State matchup this weekend take the Big Ten?

Many claim to be free speech absolutists, yet Pro-Hamas protests and anti-semitic rhetoric from around the globe is challenging many people's tolerance of abhorrent speech. We discuss a video from London in which radical Islamic speech crossed all sorts of lines, yet no consequences were felt in a place in which any anti-Islamic talk would be met with harsh justice. So, how does one deal with wanting free speech, yet wanting laws that exist where they do to be applied equally? Or should we still be advocating for abolition of all speech laws, especially hate-speech laws? Also, what is the tie-that-binds all of these things together? How is it that Queer activists are marching in support of a group who would just assume murder them for their lifestyle? It's a one-word answer — Marxism.

This level of coordination? The amount of terrorists it took to pull this off? Iran's deep involvement? How did Israeli and American intelligence miss this attack? It's a question many have been asking and the answer lies in what has been taking place since 2014 — a massive 'spy ring' within the American political and intelligence world. One that led to us having to move all our assets out of Iran and burning our ability to gather intelligence that likely would've tipped us off to this Hamas attack. Also, is Marxism not just a political ideology, but a worldview? If so, is it a demonic worldview? I break down Marxism vs. the Ten Commandments for you and I've got your most ridiculous #WTFWednesday to date. Marxism vs. The Ten Commadments: https://blog.timothyplan.com/2019/07/why-socialism-violates-all-ten-commandments/ Iranian Spy-Ring in America: https://www.tabletmag.com/sections/israel-middle-east/articles/iran-spy-ring-robert-malley-lee-smith

Not all Dems are really socialists, but all socialists strangely seem to be lining up with Hamas after their unprovoked and indiscriminate attack on civilians in Israel. Also, are Trans Lesbians real lesbians? The U.N. says so. What about Kevin McCarthy's ouster as speaker and the role America can or can't play to assist Israel because of it. Oh, and Tim Ballard needs to not run for office? All that and more on today's #TruthOrFiction Tuesday edition of #CriticalThinking

Hamas launched an unprovoked and surprise attack on Israeli land and people from all over the world over the weekend. The stories of innocent lives taken in brutal fashion are terrible to hear and see, yet somehow a battle over the moral high ground has also broken out. The US and Israeli's created Hamas and are reaping what they sowed, some say. Others believe this to be a totally immoral act. Where does the truth lie? It's way more complicated than black and white in some ways, in others, it's very simple. Also, it's Columbus Day or as the left tells us, Indigenous Peoples Day. Why are we destroying Columbus and heaping love on all Native tribes? It's such a strange thing to do given the realities of Columbus' life and the history of the tribes of the Caribbean and North America. We examine this phenomenon too. Hamas Origin Story: https://ciaotest.cc.columbia.edu/journals/jps/v41i3/f_0025591_20939.pdf

Hillary Clinton suggests some reprogramming for the MAGA Forever Cultists, Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson can't find the time to do his job because he's got a wife and kids y'all and what would it take to get to pre-pandemic levels of "housing affordability?" The answer might shock you. Also, Chip Roy tells the "you're a RINO" crowd where they can stick it and Nancy Mace's presidential future forecasted by her total grifter status in the GOP.

Lately, the refrain from the left when asked about the evidence against Joe Biden, Hunter Biden and the rest of the Biden Crime Family has been that there is nothing illegal about unconditionally loving ones son. Let us critically think through that idea. Also, what if I told you that you had a 1-in-800 chance of a severe adverse event if you got the Pfizer COVID shots? Is that bad? Well, it's actually historically bad, yet they are still pimping them to us all. Strange. Finally, we talk some Big Ten and NFL football — giving you our picks for both this week.