Soldiers, Psychologists, and Nonsense: A Wednesday Wake-up Call

Remember when common sense wasn't breaking news? Today's episode tackles the bizarrely newsworthy announcement that men won't be allowed to compete in women's Olympic sports. We break down why this decision from the US Olympic Committee should never have been necessary in the first place and why the terminology being used by some news outlets completely misses the mark.

We also explore a peculiar border incident where Mexican soldiers armed to the teeth accidentally wandered into New Mexico while hunting drug traffickers. When they surrounded American volunteers searching for lost migrants, the confusion that followed raises questions about border security and international protocols that rarely make headlines.

The most frustrating segment dives into what can only be described as psychological gaslighting - a supposed expert claiming that complimenting your partner is actually harmful. We dismantle this nonsense piece by piece, exposing how overthinking basic human interactions creates problems where none exist. It's a perfect example of how "expertise" sometimes veers into absurdity.

The episode wraps with personal reflections on Navy boot camp experiences and the two enduring lessons that stuck: attention to detail and teamwork. These straightforward principles have applications far beyond military service, shaping approaches to challenges in everyday life. What early life lessons continue to guide your path today? Share your story and join the conversation about the wisdom we carry forward from our formative experiences.

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Liberty Line each week on Sunday, look for topics on my X file @americanistblog and submit your 1-3 audio opinions to anamericanistblog@gmail.com and you'll be featured on the podcast. 

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Chapters

• 0:29 Olympic Committee Bans Men from Women's Sports
• 1:45 Mexican Soldiers Accidentally Cross US Border
• 3:35 Debunking "Harmful Compliments" Psychology
• 8:31 Boot Camp Lessons: Discipline and Teamwork
• 9:50 Question of the Day

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:15

Good morning, happy Wednesday. I have a couple of short stories here for you. First of all, breaking from yesterday, the US Olympic Committee has officially banned men from competing in women's sports, following pressure from President Trump. The fact that this is even a story is just amazing to me. Now, some news organizations used transgender women. There's no such thing as transgender women. We need to knock that nonsense off right now. So Nick Sorter is the one that I am repeating here. He says the US Olympic Committee has officially banned men from competing in women's sports. Hallelujah and praise the Lord. I mean, come on, that we are even sitting here, that I am even sitting here. Repeating those words to you is just dumbfounding, is it not? I mean, how in the world did we even let this become a thing? All right, but now we don't have to worry about the Olympics allowing men to compete in women's sports. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. We just have to worry about other things now, other organizations.

Speaker 1: 1:31

Okay, heavily armed Mexican soldiers accidentally cross US border, surround Americans while looking for drug traffickers and gunrunners. This is from the New York Post. And here we go More than a dozen heavily armed Mexican soldiers accidentally crossed over the US border into New Mexico while searching for drug traffickers and gun runners and instead surrounded two American volunteers scouring the desert for lost migrants. On Monday, abby Carpenter and James Holman not related to Tom Holman, different spellings, okay volunteers for the humanitarian group battalion search and rescue that aids in searching for migrants lost in the southern New Mexico desert came across the 18 confounded soldiers with the Mexican army. According to the border report, the soldiers had no idea that they'd crossed the border. Uh-huh, that they'd crossed the border. They told carpenter and holman that they were looking for drug traffickers and gun runners gun runners and asked what the pair was doing in mexico. According to the outlet, carpenter whipped out her phone to show them her gps tracker, which confirmed that they were in the us.

Speaker 1: 2:54

I never felt threatened. When I got nervous was when I showed them that we were in the United States and that I had my phone out and we were documenting. They were there when they shouldn't be. That's when I got nervous like, oh, we shouldn't have our phones out taking pictures of them in the US soil, why not? Yes, you should, idiot. After realizing they'd grossly overshot their destination, the soldiers quickly pivoted south back toward the border. Yeah well, I would hope so.

Speaker 1: 3:24

Okay, you can go finish reading that if you would like. I don't think it's a big, huge story whatever, but it's something different than the same old crap that's out there right now. All right, so here's another one for the New York Post. This is such BS right here. It's such gaslighting. It is so dumb I don't even know why. It's an article and it's a fairly long one too.

Speaker 1: 3:47

Complimenting your partner could actually be harmful. Expert warns Two things you should never say. Now, this term gaslighting I was first introduced to it a few years ago. My daughter used it actually one time. She was talking about something else and I'm like what in the world is gaslighting? I had to look it up and I still didn't even get a good definition of it. But here we go. This is what gaslighting looks like to me. Now I could be wrong, but this is what I think gaslighting looks like.

Speaker 1: 4:17

Compliments can certainly go a long way in making someone feel special and loved, while you might think everyone loves a little flattery. One expert, one expert. I would like to know what his expertise is. Maybe they'll tell us down the line here. One expert warns that some compliments may have unattended negative impacts on romantic relationships. Gaslighting number warning right there. Okay. So here we go.

Speaker 1: 4:45

Psychologist Dr Mark Travers explained in Psychology Today that sometimes what we say to thank our loved ones for their supportive behavior might be altering it. This is such bullshit. This is such bullshit. This is such bullshit. It just says his name. It doesn't say he's a psychologist, but it doesn't give him any. It doesn't explain what his credentials are other than he's a psychologist. Compliments can be disarming. They make us feel chosen and understood in ways that other words rarely do. The psychologist explained but sometimes the praise that feels the most flattering is also the praise that teaches us to edit ourselves. This is such bullshit. Oh I swear wear, oh, okay. So over time our words intended to flatter someone can actually nudge a person to perform, conform or shrink themselves to stay liked and continue to receive praise. This is such BS I cannot believe. This is even in an article.

Speaker 1: 5:57

Consider the compliment. How are you always so calm If your partner grew up playing the peacekeeper in chaotic situations? This compliment might feel like overdue recognition. Yet it can also come across as a reward for their silence. I swear that's the gaslighting part right there. Do not believe this nonsense. This is such BS. I can't even. I don't want to be like Hunter Biden and start throwing out all the cuss words here. I'm going to try to keep it clean, but I mean, I mean. And so the compliment how are you always calm? Well, first of all, the word always implies that they're always like that. So you're not really changing their behavior by telling them how are you always calm? And, first of all, it's not a compliment, it's a freaking question. How are you always so calm? Why is that a compliment? That's a question. Okay, and, like I said, the word always implies that they've always been this way. So you're not teaching them any kind of new behavior. You're not trying to train them into being silent and to edit themselves. This BS, it's just BS.

Speaker 1: 7:09

So it goes on to say when emotional suppression is praised in adult relationships, it reinforces the message that your worth lies in being agreeable and low maintenance. Trevor said Look, by the time you're an adult, you're probably the personality you're always going to be. I'm 58 years old. Trust me, I've tried my best to change my personality and I just can't do it. My real self always still comes out. Trust me, I try to remain calm, I try to remain even and steady, but nope, my silliness always freaking shows its ugly head.

Speaker 1: 7:46

This, this specific type of praise given to your partner, could cause them to feel that they must remain calm, even when they're not. They may. There's nothing wrong with remaining calm me, I try to remain calm all the time, but I can't do it. They may feel encouraged to keep that mask on. What mask? There is no, no mask. Keep that mask on. This guy is full of crap. Okay, that's what I'm going to say about that, and we're going to move on, because I think that's just utter nonsense. All right, we need to I. Because I think that's just utter nonsense, all right, we need to, I guess, have the question of the day.

Speaker 1: 8:22

Okay, so in boot camp, mr Shawn has asked me to share some of my experience in boot camp. There are two things that I learned in boot camp and of course, I went. I was in the Navy, so that went to the Navy boot camp. It's a lot different from the Army or Marines. I think the Navy boot camp is kind of easy. It from the Army or Marines. I think the Navy boot camp is kind of easy. It's only eight weeks long, or at least it was when I was there.

Speaker 1: 8:44

I went in at 18 years old, like a week after I graduated high school. I went in. I went in weighing 145 pounds, came out eight weeks later, 118. Never had it, never exercised in my life before then. I was never an athlete, so I didn't understand the discipline of exercise and all of that. But when I got to boot camp, we exercised a lot. We also went to class, we did all kinds of things, but the two things that they drilled into our heads and the two things that I walked away with from boot camp are pay attention to detail and teamwork. Those are the two things that I took with me from leaving boot camp. So my question to you is what are some lessons that you learned early on in life that you still carry on today? That's the question of the day. Thanks for listening. I appreciate y'all and see you next time. See you tomorrow.