Member Training – Are People Attracted To Liberty Because Of You?

Member training from June 2nd, 2025.

That nights training centered on the importance of personal conduct in advancing the cause of liberty, emphasizing how our demeanor, respect for others, and awareness of social cues shape our ability to inspire and lead. Through the lens of George Washington’s Rules of Civility, we explored how small, everyday behaviors—such as showing courtesy in conversation, dressing appropriately, and maintaining reverence in sacred settings—can either attract or repel those seeking godly liberty. Rather than prioritizing popularity over principle, we must strive to be examples of integrity, ensuring our words and actions reflect a commitment to higher standards. Ultimately, the discussion encouraged self-reflection: Are we contributing to the problem or the solution? Are we living in a way that inspires others to seek truth and freedom? Our ability to effectively promote liberty depends not just on our knowledge, but on the respect and dignity we demonstrate in every interaction.

Help support ad free content with a one time donation or becoming a member today.

TRANSCRIPT

Our Father in heaven, we come before you this evening, this Tree of Liberty Society meeting, and ask for thy blessings upon each one, that thy spirit would guide and direct Ben and all those who participate, both those that instruct us as well as those of us listening. We may be receptive, our minds would be sharp and alert, and be able to comprehend and grasp the message. that is given. We may be advanced and grow in a knowledge of thy ways and the principles of liberty and righteousness. Please guard and protect Ben and his family as well as each one. And we are grateful for the labors of Ben and all who labor so diligently and faithfully to bring these meetings, the instructions and councils to our attention. We ask for thy blessings to be with us this night. And ask in the name of thy son, Jesus Christ. Amen. A few things here. So again, as we've said, this one tonight is going to have a little bit more. We've got, I think, some time for it. And it leads itself to more interaction. But please, you know, if you've got a comment or a question, please make sure that you raise your hand and I'll call on you.

And so we don't want anybody just blurting stuff out. So just as a... As a courtesy for everyone else, make sure if you've got something, just raise your hand and we'll call on you as time permits. So I really want to get into this. This is an important thing as much as understanding correct principles are. As individuals, we want to behave in a way that's going to be effective, right? It's talked about a lot in training where people ask questions of, you know, what's an effective way to discuss this? What's a principle that we can tell people? What's something that we can say? to help other people understand and believe and apply the things that we're talking about. And so as important it is to understand those things and to say those things, the kind of person that we are is going to be a large aspect of our people attracted to liberty because of us.

Are we a detriment to the cause or are we a benefit to the cause? And that's going to be, you know, something that's very important. So I hope all of us want to be a benefit to the cause. And so not only do we have to be knowledgeable, but we have to have principles, but we have to be individuals that behave in a way that will be positive for the cause. So again, as always, the purpose of training is to build understanding of principles. that build free nations, expose the conspiracy and build an effective resistance to that conspiracy. And so this is in following those ideas. And so what we're covering tonight is going to hopefully lead all of us to personal reflection and how we're doing on these things.

As we go over tonight's principles, I hope that we will all ask ourselves if we are contributing to the problem or contributing to the solution and see. what we can do to be more attractive to those seeking godly liberty okay i want us all to think about what are we doing and are the things that we're doing is it is it saying somebody looks at us are are we somebody that is saying is that's when when we look at us like hey that's a guy that i want to be like i want to be a part of what they're a part of i want to do what they're doing because of uh what we put forward to others So, but I also want to make sure that we understand that what I'm not talking about is popularity over principle, right?

I'm not talking about being the most popular guy, meaning, you know, we give up a principle because we want to be popular and liked by others. That's not what I'm talking about. This is how do we be the example that lead people to liberty without giving up principles, without... not talking about conspiracy, right? We still talk about conspiracy. We still talk about correct principles of liberty, but we're doing it in a way that people are inspired by, that they look up to, that they're happy. We are the light that the Lord talks about in the scriptures. The Lord says that we are supposed to be the light of the world and a city that is set on a hill cannot be hid. Neither do men light a candle and put it under a bushel, but on a candlestick, and it giveth light unto all who are in the house. And so that's what the Lord has admonished us all to be, is to be the example to others, that they're looking to us, that we are a light. A light is something that is attractive, that others are drawn to and they want to be a part of.

And so we need to ask her, right? Are we living in a way that will cause others to want what you have so that they do what you do? And it's good and it's effective and it's nice, right? Because, you know, there is a movement within, especially within Christianity, to be all-inclusive. That, right? That we look like everybody else. There was an ad campaign a few years ago about how, you know, I'm a skateboarder and I'm a Mormon or I'm a this and I'm a, you know, that. And it was all about how you don't have to change to be a follower of Christ. You can follow him just the way you are. And so, but if we're not setting a higher standard, right? If we're just like them or we look like we don't have anything special. Why would they think that we have something special to offer them? We should be something different that they're looking up to.

They say, that's not what I have. I want that, right? Whether it's the lesbian or just the guy that's just going through life as just a skater bum or that this other picture is somebody at a black tie event and he's just come there as a kind of a sloppy dress guy, right? And so if that's who we are, People see us as that. They're not going to be attracted to us. They're not going to say they've got something to offer. They're going to say they're just like me. They're not going to help me be better. And so they're not going to want to be a part of us. And so that's something that we need to look at as we consider these things. That's what it means to be a light to the world, that we are better than everybody else, but that we are an example of something that will lead them to what they want, that will lead them to true. happiness and true joy so um we want to be attracted to those who want godly liberty okay so is what we're doing appropriate for the situation that's going to be really helpful that the idea of being a you know self-aware uh you know culturally self-aware we're not like this uh girl that's in this business meeting and everybody else is on their computer and doing work while she's just sitting there blowing bubbles right if we don't know Or even if we don't think it's appropriate or we don't think it's appropriate situation, we don't know if it's appropriate.

We should ask ourselves. This is how we can help ourselves. We can ask ourselves if others might think that our behavior is distracting, irreverent. or otherwise inappropriate for the situation, right? Something that's appropriate for the baseball game is not going to be appropriate for sacrament meeting. And so we have to look at where we're at and what's appropriate for the situation. And are we going to be a distraction? Are we going to be seen as somebody that's not serious about what it is that they're doing, right? And if we really don't know, we ask ourselves, maybe this is something that's new to us. This isn't something that... grew up with and so it's okay to ask right is this appropriate for the situation because it's better to look a little bit ignorant one time on that issue than to be obnoxious all of the time because we didn't want to look stupid we we need to make sure that we're not putting our pride ahead of you know attracting others to the cause and so we want to be a good example and so if we need help with that we need to ask And so I want to bring us to a resource that we should all have access to.

It's available in archive. It's available as a PDF, as a pre-PDF, or you can buy physical copies of it in most places. It's a short, small book called George Washington's Rules of Civility and Decent Behavior in Company and Conversation. So it's a list of 110 maxims. He copied down as a young man. And so it's not a long book because each page is just that axiom. It's just that little, that phrase. We're going to go through a few of them. I'm not going to do all 110 tonight. Maybe we could, but I'm not going to. But I'm going to go over some key ones and encourage all of us to find a copy of it, whether it's that PDF at archive.org or whether it's buying a copy of it online. whatever it is i'm hoping that this encourages us to study more on our own on this topic um and get a copy of that and make it a part of our uh our daily reading it's kind of like a 110 proverbs right yeah i actually wrote it when he was 14. moses just said oh oh you can you got the mic yeah when he wrote his 14 it's pretty it's amazing how different uh the culture was where 15 year old john quincy adams is the ambassador to russia and George, 14 year old George Washington is writing a book about how to have decent behavior in public.

So some of the core ideas that are in this include showing respect for others, regardless of their rank or station, speaking thoughtfully and avoiding gossip or boasting, practicing restraint in body language and tone, acting with dignity and modesty at all times. So, of course, this was written in the 1700s. So some of it's going to be written in some old English. I did try to update the language to kind of modern day applications to make it easier for us to see how it applies to us. But, you know, if you don't like the way that he put it, just sit back for a second. Right. And just kind of what's the intent that he's trying to get across? And then how can I apply that intent? Right.

And so and as we internalize. each value our overall demeanor and behavior will improve that's just as we study things and we and we look at things that change that's why we've talked about before the importance of the media that we consume right if we are watching garbage our demeanor will become garbage things we associate with the music that we listen to the movies that we watch it's it's vital because it changes who we are and so this is one of the things that we're spending our time studying and looking at it's going to change who we are and it's going to improve and we're going to be somebody that others look to as an example and look up to and want to hear more about what it is that we're doing and become a part of what it is that that we're doing and so again on the other side right just like i'm not talking about giving up principle to be popular i'm not right i'm not just thinking that i'm better than everybody else as we see you know this is kind of the culture that we have today of people go into walmart in their pajamas and if you heard of a website called the people of walmart you can see where our culture is going and and how that's not a good thing and so it's not about that it's it's important that we lift each other up and a part of that is ensuring that we're the best example that we can be to others and so um as a part of that it's it's learning these principles and then applying these principles and being a positive influence on other people. Not about saying that you're better than others, but showing them a better way.

So I want to go over a few of Washington's rules of civility and get your thoughts and input on what are some applications of these? What are some of your thoughts on them? So we have the first one is every action you take when you're with others should show respect for the people around you. now i think you know maybe on its face it sounds a little bit um self-evident and like no duh water's wet now i guess there's debate on whether water's wet or not but the point is that's a saying and meaning just you know it's it's obvious it's self-evident but really what that means just like the word morality over time has um been changed or been lost to most people today you know morality is um I don't steal. I don't kill. And, you know, I generally don't hurt other people. And that makes me a moral person.

But that's not what morality was, you know, 100 years ago. And so showing respect for others is the same thing. The idea of respect is a concept that is foreign to a lot of folks. Let's see here. Mark, yeah, you have your hand raised. Yes, I think the important message here comes from the definition of respect. I think he's probably referring to common courtesies, allowing the person to make their statements, ask questions, and do maybe some active listening with the person. So treat people respectfully doesn't mean you respect their position or respect them. And so I think that's what he means here, because there are many a person these days. I have no respect for godly reasons. Yeah. I think another way that we show respect, like you have people at a play or a movie and they're chatting it up and being real loud and disturbing the movie.

That's not respecting the people around you, right? There's ways to behave and that show respect to others, whether you're interacting directly with them or not. But the example you give is perfect. But also just... social interactions, whether you're interacting directly with individuals or you're in a group of people, there are ways to show respect to them, whether you're directly interacting with them or not. I think what you're saying is just adding a next step to what I was saying, respect the common courtesies. And as a common courtesy, not to speak up while other people are listening to something, interrupt them. And it's also respected. You can view it as a respecting. rights of the other people. People have a right to hear that performance and not be interrupted. Right. Can you imagine if you're at like a a classical music performance.

They're playing piano and violins and just a classical music performance. And all of a sudden you start a mosh pit and you start screaming and starting a wave and that kind of stuff. That's not the time or the place for that type of a thing. And it's not showing respect for those that you're with. Moses says you should never do that. I agree. But I was just giving an extreme example. Any other thoughts on showing respect for others around you? Let's go to the next one. I'm not sure how to raise my hand here. Oh, there you go. Yeah, go ahead, Simon. So on the bottom of the page, of the window, I don't know if you're on your phone or if you're on a computer. Yeah, I'm on my phone. So if you tap your phone, there's an option for, on the chat, there's a thing to raise your hand. I'm sorry, on participants, there's a thing to raise your hand. But go ahead. It's under React. It's under React. Thank you. Oh, okay. All right. Thank you. We'll look at that in the future.

Yeah, just in this contrast to society today, the contrast is almost 180 degrees the opposite way. It's every action people are taking in today's society is to get respect from others or to force others to respect them. And it's completely flip-flopped. just something i've been noticing in today's society absolutely for sure we want to be a counter to that right okay number five this is the fifth one i'm not you can see i'm not going all over all of them um so the fifth one is if you cough sneeze sigh or yawn do it quietly and politely don't talk while yawning and cover your mouth with your hand or a tissue and turn away from others so again it's one of those things right a lot of these are hopefully common sense but sometimes they're not and this is again this is another way we show respect to others where we're we we care about you know them and we're and so we're not doing inappropriate bodily functions in front of them and so you know um we are we're respecting them and their ability not to have to see the inside of your mouth or when you're you're yawning or something and and so we're we are being appropriate in the appropriate situations. Feel free to just to raise your hand anytime, anybody.

I'll go through them unless anybody else, any other comments. The next one is don't kill bugs or deal with anything gross like spit or dirt where others can see. If you notice something unpleasant on the ground, discreetly cover or clean it. If someone quietly helps clean something off your clothes, thank them politely. So, you know, you see something on the table or you notice, something on somebody's you know shirt um or you see something that that shouldn't be there don't draw attention to it because then it's kind of like the coughing and sneezing loudly if you're drawing attention to something then you're you are um taking away from the situation that you're in and so if you know can you imagine if you're at uh church and all of a sudden you know somebody is you know crushing a bug in front of everybody and And how, you know, on the podium and pointing out how gross that is that they're doing it. It's distracting and it's not respectful to those that you're around.

And so we need to make sure that we're learning to be discreet on the things that, you know, are around us. We don't have to draw attention to everything that's going on. The next thing is keep a friendly and approachable demeanor, but show seriousness and respect when the situation calls for it. And so, you know, we should be friendly with people. I think I've been accused of having, this is a problem of mine, a shortcoming of mine where I'll think that I'm smiling and that I'm happy and people will say, what's wrong? Or they'll say, hey, smile. I'll be like, I thought I was. And so we need to make sure that people can see us as approachable, that we're not intimidating, but do it in a way where we're not being jokey, that we're building relationships with people and that they can know that we are. sober, sober-minded. And not everything is a joke. And so when the situation is appropriate, we're serious about it and we're respectful of those that are around us.

Any thoughts, comments so far? Okay. Go ahead and move on to the next one. Oh, we didn't go through. So we'll just do 28. If someone approaches you for conversation, stand to acknowledge them as a gesture of courtesy. So if somebody approaches you, you're sitting down. It's not considered polite company to stay sitting down and shake their hand. You should stand up and you acknowledge them, either shake their hand, give them a hug, whatever it is, and as a courtesy. And you are essentially, as he goes on and explains this, if you don't do this, you're not, you're kind of thinking of, you're showing them that you don't care about them coming to say hi to you, to visit you. And you're basically telling them that you don't want their presence there. Mark, go ahead. Yes. You need to unmute. Whoops. Yeah.

I've seen this in the last 10 years since I moved to Utah about four times at least where I go up to talk to somebody and we're on good terms and so forth. And they continue just to ignore or they'll talk to somebody else and just not ignore the presence like, you know, even five, 10 minutes. So, you know, I've always learned that to be just. disrespectful. I mean, you could just acknowledge a person or ask them to wait a moment. But I've been seeing this. And I think it's a for me, it's probably a passive aggressive sort of thing that they want to express aggression in a passive way. But I don't know if anybody else has seen that. I think it's multiple things. I might be a part of it for sure. I think we're more of a passive aggressive culture in Utah. But I think it's also just like I was showing that picture of the people at Walmart in their pajamas. I think it's just a degradation of the culture. A lot of people don't even know that that's an appropriate thing to do.

And so I think that's a part of it as well. Samuel, I'll make sure I unmute. Sam? It wasn't unmuting. Can you hear me? Yep, sure can. It seems like it is too as well as a sign of pride. They have to condescend to say hello or to acknowledge you or anything. Yeah. It's too much for him. So we want to make sure that we don't fall into that, you know, appearance, avoiding the appearance of evil. 34, when engaging in conversation, prioritize the other person's thoughts and perspectives before your own, especially when speaking with someone in a position of authority or seniority. Allow them to initiate the discussion rather than taking the lead yourself.

So this, you know, I'd like to get some of your thoughts on why do you think he said that? this really is kind of a different idea in today's culture where we try to think everybody's equal and that everybody's opinions are the same. And we want to have, of course, everybody wants to, especially if certain attitudes is that an individual wants to, they feel that their opinions or that what they want to say are more important than others. And so they don't allow others to. be able to do that and so you know we ask questions or just you know of the other person it's it's polite to encourage them to lead the conversation instead of you being kind of a conversation hog uh mark yes i'm not sure why it's not unmuting there we go at the beginning of my career i was a psychologist therapist and a counselor for about four years. And one of the things we learned to do, and this ties into prioritizing the other person's perspective, and if we do prioritize that, they're more likely to... prioritize our own, our perspective, or at least consider it. But one of the techniques we use in counseling is called active listening.

And simply stated is reflecting back to the person what they've said to you, both of the content and the emotions. And that's a way of showing value to them and knowing that it lets them know that they were heard. And that goes a long ways in conversation and also them paying attention to what you have to say. It's called active listening. You can look it up, I'm sure, online. You're not just being condescending. You're showing that you heard them and that you listened to what they said and that you understood it. Absolutely. You don't have to do it in any condescending way at all. Right. 37, when conversing with others, maintain a respectful posture, avoiding leaning in too closely or staring directly at them, and be mindful of personal space by keeping a comfortable distance. Some of this, we kind of have the opposite problem today where you have, especially the younger generation, they are so used to looking at their cell phones all day long that to get somebody to give eye contact is very difficult today. But it's also disconcerting to stare at an inappropriate length of time at the same location.

So, right, we're getting we're violating their personal space. We want to make sure that we're giving them enough space or being mindful and that we're looking at them at the at a reasonable and respectful way or, you know, length of time. Forty to keep your words and actions in line with the dignity of the situation and with whom you are speaking. It is absurd to act like a clown with a prince, right? Again, you're knowing your audience. You're like, what are the people that I'm around? What will they respect? What will they not have respect for? What will they think is ridiculous? And what will make them want to listen to you or not listen to you? And not just a clown with a prince, but knowing your audience, knowing... the situation that you're at right if you're a clown at a funeral making jokes being silly being stupid and if you're that's not winning friends nobody's going to think that you're hilarious because you're doing that it's it's rude it's tactless and so you need to know the situation that you're at you need to know the people that you're around and and be aware of what's you know expected in those types of situations and so that you're behaving in a way that people will respect you because they know that you respect them And that you are somebody that they can look up to for the things that we're talking about. Any comments, thoughts? Yes, Mark. Yeah. Yeah. And advancing or promoting liberty.

That's a very dignified process. It's a very serious process. It's a godly process. So we shouldn't be doing anything that suggests that it's not. We shouldn't be on our cell phones unless we're looking up something regarding the subject or something like that. We maybe shouldn't be even answering the phone. So all those types of behavior shows that this is a very serious subject. Absolutely. Any other thoughts? OK, so number 47 is don't make jokes at or about sacred things. Kind of going along with the last one right there is, you know, there if you're making a joke about sacred things, about serious things, then people are going to think that you don't treat it seriously. And so why would they treat it seriously if you don't treat it seriously? And, you know, if we're especially like godly things, what we're doing is hopefully godly. And so we want to make sure that people know that we treat it as godly and that we're not making jokes about things that are especially sacred or serious. Number 51, present yourself as if you were representing esteemed individuals, avoiding ripped, dusty clothing or appearance, but see that you are well-kempt and don't approach others while or if you are in a state of uncleanness. Right. I mean, and this is, of course, in scenarios, right?

You're at work, you're, you know, you're a miner and so you're covered in coal and you're on your way home and you're getting gas. It doesn't mean you go home and clean up when you're running out of gas and you need to go get, you know, gas. But in the situations, if we have an event that we have to go to, make sure that we have taken the time, we've planned, we've shown the respect to others by saying this is an event that I want to be on time to. And that shows respect and that we care about them to be on time. We care about the topic that's being covered by being on time. And that when we arrive, we've shown that we've treated this with such a seriousness that we've made sure that if we are in a situation where we're going to be unkempt, that we've made sure we've been able to get cleaned up and we look appropriate for the situation. And so that, again, another way of showing that you treat what you're doing seriously, because if you're not willing to do that, that means you're not treating the situation seriously. You don't think it's serious. You don't think it's worth the time to be on time.

You don't think it's worth the time to schedule to make sure that you are addressed appropriately. And so others are going to say, well, you know, if you don't think so, then I don't think so. Carmen, yes. Well, I'm not sure how long ago it was, but. And it could have been during the Nixon administration. One of our women's teams was invited to the White House to receive commendations from the president for their performance in the Olympics. It was the Summer Olympics. And so this women's team, and there were at least 10. 12 women in this team and almost two of almost every single woman in that team they wore flip -flops and let me tell you the backlash that came off of that said that we still cared about what you look like and you should also you should not have been wearing casual flip flops to this meeting with the president of the United States and nothing else was spoken about it. Everything that you saw in the newspapers and magazines later on, it was everybody commented about their feet. Very negative. Yeah.

That's something that I've noticed at churches in the past 20 years is You know, it used to be where you dressed your finest when you went to go to the house of the Lord. And that doesn't mean that, you know, if you're poor, you don't have to wear the most expensive clothes, but that you wear the best that you have, that you present yourself the best that you have for the Lord. But we've gone to flip flops as very, very, very common at church the last 20 years. And so we're, we're showing that we don't treat it in the seriousness that it deserves. The next one is associated with those of... Oh, I'll go back. There's a comment on that one. Mark, yes. Yes, this ties into what we've been saying regarding the previous one and this one, is that I see this tremendous amount of irreverence towards God from people that claim to be Christians more and more over the years.

And if we're showing irreverence towards a godly subject matter, you know, based on his law... I think we are indirectly showing irreverence to him. And I think we need to think about that when we consider to be light in our thoughts and our seriousness about godly matters. I agree. Absolutely. 56, associate with those of good quality. It is better to be alone than in bad company. So I'd like to hear your thoughts on this, but I think there are two main reasons for this. On one side, is those that you associate with will rub off on you. Kind of like the same thing with the media that you consume. Those that you associate with, you will start to be like them.

And so you should associate with those that will help you be better. And so at the same time, right, if you are with that, if you are associating with those that don't inspire, that don't help you be better, that are... doing the opposite of the things that we have gone through tonight, then others are going to say, you don't think that that's serious. Otherwise, why are you associating with that kind of a person? And so people will see the people that you associate with and think that must be the kind of person that you are. And so it's important for our own development as well as for being the light for others to look to that we are associating with those so that way we're not... degrading ourselves. Mark, yes. There you go. It reminds me of the axiom. If you lay down with dogs, you get up with fleas. Yep. Absolutely.

81, stay out of others' business and don't approach those that are already speaking in private. Right? You know, if you kind of overhear somebody saying something and you're like, well, what are you guys talking about? Right? There's the... old Mormon motto was mind your own business. And there's a lot of if they wanted you to hear it, then they would have told you. And so it's rude to put somebody in a position where they don't want to talk about it to bring it up. And so it's mind your business and don't approach others that are already speaking in private. If somebody's got a private conversation, you have a little bit of a distance between the two of you. So you're not able to really eavesdrop on their conversation. but you're close enough and you make eye contact so that they know that you're there and that when they have a you know a break in the conversation or an opportunity then they can talk to you but you know you are giving them space so you're not in interfering in their conversation you're on eavesdropping on it and you're not interrupting them and you're staying out of their business any thoughts on any other reasons why this might be an important thing and a good example mark That can be very difficult if you're in a, say, a group and it's a political meeting and they're discussing politics and there's one or more people there are absent. or saying something that's actually harmful to the advancement of liberty, it's very tempting to, even if you've been standing by for a while and you're listening, not to join in on that topic.

Now, I agree, you should definitely not bring up a different topic, but it's really difficult to hear evil and just sit back and do nothing. Now, if we're in the conversation, then I think it's very important that we always oppose evil when it's being stated. We have an obligation to do so. Sure. Absolutely. And, and, you know, there's, there are very few exceptions to, to this rule 81. Cause I think generally it is that you just mind your own business. You know, somebody's talking about some private thing and, you know, just it's not your business. Don't, don't worry about it. And, and don't bring it up. You know, somebody, even if you know, maybe something about them, if you're in public and you're like, you know, how's that disease that you've got going on, you know, and you say it real loud, it's, you know. If they want to tell you about their disease, they'll tell you. Leave it alone. And so it's important for us to really have decorum in these things. Carmen, go ahead.

Yeah, you got to be careful because they might be talking about you. Yep. Micah. Yeah, I know in scriptures it says to basically agree with your enemy when you're... conflict with them like face-to-face um so sometimes opposing evil is really important but sometimes it's really important to lie to evil um and you know a lot of times it's like uh for example i was at some event a few weeks ago and somebody somebody in the gaggle which i wasn't quite in that gaggle I heard them say like oh yeah it's it's abortion's fine you know or something like you know it's I support that or whatever and it's just like you know what am I even going to go I'm just going to go over there and cause problems you know because like this person is just they're just wicked it's so like there's nothing to change their mind about you know they like they're just so casual and like Like, oh, yeah, I got to do it, you know, like acting like it's a right, you know. And so it's just it's really it's really good idea to not not always directly fight evil, but it's really good to lie to evil people. Because information is really important.

And I kind of think that's a lot of the basis as to what that's about. Disinformation campaigns are common in military tactics. So, yeah. You know, if you got somebody, you overhear somebody saying, oh, we're going to go around collecting people's guns. And you're like standing up. You're like, the right of self-protection is a God-given right. Like, you're just putting a target on yourself for them to go. Yeah. And so, yeah, you've got to use that strategy. Yeah. And what would be far better in that situation than directly opposing them would be to keep your mouth shut and let everyone know that those are the guys we need to kill when they come walking around the corner. You're like, you know, because otherwise nobody knows what they're doing. They're just like, but having, being able to leverage that information is really important. Yeah. Yes, Mark. Yeah. The rule I use. If I could advance liberty by joining in or confronting somebody who's advocating something evil or tyranny, tyranny is a good example, then I will. But if I go over there and it's just somebody like what was just said, you're casting your pearls before sows, the pigs, then why do it? You're not advancing liberty. So it's only when you are confident. And when I do this, it's when people are standing around and I hear the evil. And if I just stay there, it implies to some extent agreement with that evil. So it does often need to be exposed.

But if it's not going to do any good to go over there and confront them about abortion, then why waste the time? Okay. So we break it down. It's the importance of being. socially self-aware of your surroundings, right? You're at a library and you're sitting there and listening to music and you're singing along real loud. That's just totally inappropriate. Or you're in a business setting and you're looking like a slob and you're not a good representative of the business. Or you're in a meeting and you're on your phone, not paying attention. We have to follow social cues. We have to be socially self-aware and know our audience, know the situation that we're in. act appropriately. We really need to increase our awareness in this way. And there's this skit that I wanted to share with you that gives a good example of some of these things where individuals are lacking self-awareness and we want to avoid this at all costs. No sound. Oh, oops, wrong button. Okay. Thank you.

I'm going to, I forgot that I was sharing that I did that. But I forgot to share the sound. Okay. How much longer is this going to go on? Do you think I need to hear this? Put it to your ear and just talk. What's going on, guys? And if you're busking? What'd you say? And you're busking in Chicago or something? Tips are accepted. Thank you. Dude, it's good to see you. How you been? Dude, I can't focus. It's like operation over here trying to pick up my fork with your leg kicking. What are you, live on the San Andreas Fault? Uh-oh. Sometimes? Oh, my. When my leg gets tapping. What time are you thinking you're going to get there tonight for Shannon's thing? What's tonight? Shannon's thing? I don't know. What is Shannon doing? Actually, I'm thinking about it. Maybe it's a girl's thing only. I wouldn't mention it to her. You guys hear the big news? A new edition coming March. Dude, no. Sorry. I was going to tell you guys all individually. They're getting a new couch. Micro suede. It's going to be nuts. It's on layaway. until he gets his Christmas bonus, and then it's gonna be on, uh, staying up away.

My phone has been so weird. I'm sorry if I butt dialed you. I was really nervous I was gonna butt dial, like, Logan Paul or, like, Trey Kennedy, you know, while he's filming a video or something. Moot Swing Skull for, like, Correct Opinions podcast, you know, like, all these, I didn't want to interrupt that. Hi, good morning. Yeah, thank you for asking. I, uh, went through the Starbucks drive-thru and said, you know what? I want to pay for the next three people behind me. Delta lost all my bags, and you know how it is losing a bag in Aruba. Who to call? I can't do something Saturday at 8 a.m.? uh to 8 30 because that's why i volunteer at the soup kitchen i know you asked if i wanted to get drinks but i just wanted to let you know that that is a time when i'm not available oh great baby shower sheila thank you for having me the ones on the bottom are the least stale so i mean i know we're eating but let's talk cool enough i mean i know we're eating but like my wife live birth story let's talk about it so there we were she was spread eagle right there on the kitchen floor anyone else want help hey dude Wow, you look bigger.

No, it's not a bad thing. You just, you know, winter's coming. You don't even really have an ankle. It just goes from calf to foot. Did you get stung by a bee? Your face, it looks like, just puffy. Have you guys seen the new Top Gun yet? If I could, would get better. The baby's sleeping. The baby's sleeping. We could leave the. What'd you say? Uh, the baby. was sleeping well this is a little uncomfortable now ain't it see you guys uh i'm taking your down we're gonna have a crazy weekend uh nothing but strip clubs for us she's five years old oh she knows it's a guy what's the problem it's like raising canes like chicken strips okay i'm sorry i'll fix it when i get back love you too i didn't know she was i know he's an idiot can it go louder the birds can get angrier if you know what i mean what are you thinking out man actually they just bought the local periodical newspaper and so you thought i was saying addition i'm saying edition you shut up actually that's pretty good they're having a baby hope you guys have a plunger because uh about to take the browse the super bowl first time in a long time trey i love the new house this has got a ton of potential you know get some new paint on this no we already renovated oh this is thousands of dollars to make it look okay well this is sorry this is a big sink this is oh this is yeah You do a lot of dishes. We didn't actually, that was already there. So that's the one thing.

Will you excuse me a second? Dude, what are we watching? Oh, I'm just teaching them a little history lesson. They're loving it. Dude, it's saving pride in Ryan. It's very historically accurate. Veterans say it was a lot like what D-Day actually was. Did veterans have three-year-olds watching in the room with them, Jake? I'm sure you've all seen or know somebody that has done these things or that does these things. And so. If you've seen any of those things that you do yourself, I would highly recommend and encourage and implore with everything that I can that you stop. Let's see here. Yes, Mark. Yes, in developmental psychology, we assess certain conduct at a certain age when your child learns. He jumped from a five-year-old. to one year old back and forth back and forth that's three-year-old behavior that's funny but tied into this couple of quick things is values it shows that he has the values of a little tiny child candy and and the passive aggressiveness uh both of them uh with a table and and talking about needing a paint job or whatever he said there You see the lack of empathy, the self-centeredness you see with very young children, and the grossness for a reaction to get attention. But I think real important is the values. So much of what you're talking about tonight, what was the subject title of tonight's program? Yeah, being a good example for liberty. Yeah, right. And so you're seeing all sorts of conduct that interferes. with that, but they don't have the values if somebody would value liberty. Even if they understood it, they're not likely to value it because of their values.

Yeah. And that's, even if you think that, maybe they think they have the values, but they're showing to others that they don't. And so I think that's a key point to bring out. Do we promote liberty with three-year -olds? So it's important for us to be able to recognize that, right? We have that self-awareness and we need to act in a way that shows that we are an individual that has been changed and made better by what we're doing. And so as we look at George Washington's Rules of Civility, what's the bottom line? We have to ask ourselves, is how I'm behaving going to be seen by others or the person I'm talking to as something they're going to respect and want to be around? Does how I act or present myself reflect positively on the things I hope to accomplish for liberty? Are others going to see me and what I'm doing as a light that cannot be hid or as something annoying that they're going to want to hide or to avoid? And is the way I present myself a good look that will attract the kind of people we want for the cause of liberty? So these are the things I hope that we will contemplate and that we will study those rules of civility and make these things a part of our lives and so that we can be a good example, that we will be that light that the Lord talks about so that we can be a people that are attracting others of good high moral character to the cause of liberty. We are a little bit over time, so let's go ahead and close up and then we can have open forum. We can talk about this, ask more questions. But Linda Stoll, will you give us the closing prayer? You just got to unmute if you're available. Thank you. Thank you.

Our dear Father in heaven, as we come before the close of this evening, we're grateful for the principles that we've been able to. think about discuss and learn more about we ask that bless us that we will each be thoughtful in our demeanor that we will show respect to others and that we will conduct ourselves in the way that would be helpful to the cause that we're so interested in building and sending for this time we ask that bless us that we might have thy spirit and guidance to be with us this following week as we Act upon the things that we've learned and as we continue to gain more information and knowledge. These things we pray for in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen. Amen.