The world is full of noise, but this weekly dispatch is a signal. Every week, I filter hundreds of articles, podcasts, and videos to distill the essential, convicting clarity you need for understanding reality and flourishing together.

"On the other hand, the fact that their core demand wasn’t met shouldn’t obscure the fact that Democrats won the shutdown handily and may yet secure something like total victory depending on how the next three months play out."

"To conservatives of a certain age, it’s surprising because we were weaned after 9/11 on a “clash of civilizations” between the liberal West and the Muslim East that would supposedly make peace impossible."

“No other president would permit an underling to flaunt his racist rhetoric, display blatant animus toward a cross-section of Americans, and peddle his xenophobic, violent schemes. But Trump—until now—has gobbled up all the hate and lies Miller has dished out. “ open.substack.com/pub/contrari...

"He did not retaliate when he was insulted, nor threaten revenge when he suffered. He left his case in the hands of God, who always judges fairly." - 1 Peter 2:23

Why Most Marketing Agencies Fail to Deliver: The Inside Story with Behdad Jamshidi

What's the story you'll tell them?

Thank you for following along. This will be my final post for the year as I embark on my annual break and reflection time! I'd encourage you to join me in winding down as well as taking a break from social media and content creation. #Break #Rest #Rejuvenate

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“Having refused to abide by election results, connived to overturn them, and incited insurrectionist violence to subvert the constitutional order, Trump is the most significant internal enemy the republic has faced since the Civil War."

"The peace prize is a totem of the rules-based international order that governed the world for 80 years until Trump returned to office in January. Handing it to the man who’s overseeing that order’s destruction would be a bit like awarding the Nobel Prize in medicine to Robert F. Kennedy Jr."

"Ten years into the MAGA era, ardent “America First-er” Marjorie Taylor Greene was deemed an enemy of the revolution on the same weekend that careerist establishmentarian Lindsey Graham was being bathed in Trump-generated cash."

"In the current sweeps conducted by United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents across that country, some people are being deported or threatened with deportation based on faulty knowledge of their actual status."

“Trump also seems to be contemplating a war against Venezuela (or whomever) to distract attention from his activities inside the grift bubble."

“the book says that during the war, the German press was so heavily censored that when news of Germany’s capitulation reached the population, they were absolutely struck dumb."

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“The similarities between what is happening today and what I witnessed in Vladimir Putin’s Russia are frightening: the creation of an oligarchy, the proclamation of a one-party system, and, perhaps most troubling, a promised crackdown on free speech."

“By the year 2025, American politics were stuck. Stuck like two rams battling on a narrow bridge."

“In addition to public opposition and courts’ stinging rebukes, Republican governors have begun to slam Trump publicly, a rare sign of dissention within the GOP."

Trump DOJ Cover-Up of Epstein-Trump Files Saying Case Closed

“Why it matters: Paired with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's speech urging military leaders to embrace the new MAGA military or resign, Trump's comment lays bare his intention of bringing in new generals he views as more aligned with him.“ www.axios.com/2025/09/30/t...

“Seeing masked federal agents and soldiers on our nation’s streets was a visceral reminder of the small role I have played in making this moment a reality."

“..it’s not a coincidence that Carlson is only laundering Fuentes now, when there is no longer a bulwark in the form of a young conservative leader who draws a bright line at what Fuentes is selling.” open.substack.com/pub/bethelmc...

“According to Jesus, the only way to resist the downward cycle of violence is by refusing to mirror the violent injustices of the world, because violence only begets more violence. It must never be used to resist evil but instead must be borne and suffered (Romans 12:21; 1 Peter 5:6–11).”

“The effort to create authoritarianism is more likely to lead to a breakup of the state than to a total regime change."

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“C.S. Lewis has a passage in Mere Christianity in which he warns against indulging in “the sheer pleasure of thinking your enemies are as bad as possible.” That indulgence is what I am trying to ward off here. It is, Lewis cautions, a step toward becoming devilish ourselves.”

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"It keeps happening. Since the ascendance of Donald Trump, with depressing regularity, right-wing men have been outed for using the most vile rhetoric."

“You can tell what sort of right-winger someone is by how they react to Nancy Pelosi’s retirement."

“While violence destroys and disintegrates, loving our enemies and praying for our persecutors leads to our becoming whole, just as our Father is whole (Matthew 5:48)."

“Let’s start with the obvious. Trump would love to stay in the White House forever. Stepping aside may be one of the hardest things he’ll ever do, second only to handing over the presidency to Joe Biden in 2021."

Split Second Decisions in High Stakes Situations

“We are already seeing more and more Americans realizing that Trump is likely driven not by faith but by the desire for power and profit."

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“You can take away what belongs to people without knowing how they achieved or attained it. The guy who cheats the farmer at the county fair does not know how to farm. The guy who profits from curated crypto scams does not understand the world economy.”

This Is Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Scale! (It's Not What You Think) >>> www.youtube.com/watch?v=VImP...

“In theory, if they were behaving rationally, both sides would be trying to woo, persuade, recruit the enemy flock, recruit the rank and file of the opposite party."

"Leaders of Young Republican groups throughout the country worried what would happen if their Telegram chat ever got leaked, but they kept typing anyway."

“One of our deep psychological needs is to see ourselves as right and good. We will post-hoc rationalise why we made choices, why our perspective is correct, sometimes in the face of strong conflicting evidence."

Loved this insight from Jack Briggs in my latest Share Life podcast episode! ‍ Check out our full conversation on YouTube to dive deeper! 🎙️👇 ‍ youtu.be/n50UKjwOGdY ‍ #ShareLife #RoleModel #RippleEffect

“Donald Trump lost. This election was all about him. In the two key gubernatorial races, Mikie Sherrill’s and Abigail Spanberger’s margin of victory precisely reflected Trump’s disapproval ratings in the exit polls conducted in their respective states."

“President Thomas Jefferson, self-styled champion of republican methods, was putting his finger on the scale here. It is hard to pretend otherwise."

“5. A dislike of Jewish power and influence, manifesting itself most clearly in wanting to end the US special relationship with Israel” open.substack.com/pub/richardh...

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“Fuentes is a young streamer who has built a small media empire on peddling ideological fentanyl to deeply bitter young men. His schtick is a cocktail of Jew-hate, misogyny, and assorted other bigotries, with a side of general sexual deviance and even occasional pedophilia-laundering."

"Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of the bones of the dead and everything unclean."

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“Blueprint surveyed voters nationwide on 25 actions President Trump has taken during his second term, asking whether each is authoritarian and whether voters support or oppose them. ‍ Among voters overall, all actions tested receive majority opposition.”