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    Edifice of Trust Podcast

    The Edifice of Trust is a podcast that provides discussion and analysis of today’s current events from the perspective of America’s Founding Principles. Based on Enlightenment philosophy as espoused by John Locke and economic freedom as described by Adam Smith, the host, Victor Bolles, provides listeners a path toward understanding current events from these timeless principles. Many Americans believe that the country is moving in the wrong direction, the podcast tries to point out a new course that everyone can support.
    en100 Episodes

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    Episodes (100)

    Our Only Hope

    Our Only Hope
    The Founders of America thought that democracy was the best tool to secure the blessings of liberty to its citizens. And, although not perfect, our democracy did a pretty good job of doing that while also providing prosperity. But right now America appears to be heading in the wrong direction and democracy does not seem to be helping. In this podcast, the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles, looks at how to make democracy a better tool to fulfill its intended function – securing liberty.

    NO LABELS' Fatal Flaw

    NO LABELS' Fatal Flaw
    The No Labels organization is trying to get on the ballot in all 50 states for a presidential candidate yet to be named. Such a candidate might be able to save us from another Biden or Trump presidency but will do nothing to save us from the increasing divisiveness and extremism of our mainstream political parties. In this podcast, the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles discusses what it will take for No Labels or anyone to get this country back on track.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enFebruary 22, 2024

    Ameriphobia

    Ameriphobia
    A recent op-ed in the Wall Street Journal called the Michigan city of Dearborn a center of jihad and antisemitism. The mayor of Dearborn xed (tweeted) that the article was Islamophobic. The progressive left has changed the meaning of the word phobia and now uses it as a means to deflect criticism and avoid addressing the issues raised in the critique. In this commentary we examine the use of the word phobia as a tool of cancel culture.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enFebruary 13, 2024

    Understanding Diversity

    Understanding Diversity

    A lot of people think that diversity is a good thing. But is it? People have to go out of their way to be diverse. Left to their own, people will self-segregate into groups with other people similar to themselves. Blue collar workers don’t want to hobnob with a bunch of chardonnay sipping, hors d’oeuvre munching intellectuals. They prefer to down a cold one with their buddies over at the bowling alley. In this podcast, the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles, delves into how diversity can actually benefit society.

    Can DEI Be Saved?

    Can DEI Be Saved?
    Recent commentaries in the Wall Street Journal set forth competing visions on whether Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programs can be saved or should be eliminated. In this podcast, the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles, compares the two viewpoints and draws conclusions on which viewpoint seems more valid.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enJanuary 26, 2024

    An Age of Agency

    An Age of Agency
    Ian Rowe, an educator in the Bronx, writes that developing a sense of agency is essential in liberating poor and minority kids from a dreary future of poverty. More than that, he has been on the streets providing kids with liberating education and teaching them American values for more than a decade. In this podcast, the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles, looks at some of the strategies employed by Mr. Rowe and how we can use them to help our own kids and grandkids.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enJanuary 22, 2024

    Urgent Priorities 2024

    Urgent Priorities 2024
    Once again, while our so-called political leaders are completely absorbed by their campaigns for reelection, they ignore the urgent national priorities that need to be addressed, or worse, use those issues as political levers to galvanize their base at the expense of the American people. In this podcast the Edifice of Trust host, victor Bolles, revisits those priorities that have become even more urgent as we enter a tumultuous election year.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enJanuary 09, 2024

    Mislabeled

    Mislabeled

    how mislabeling political beliefs and governmental policies creates confusion and contributes to the divisiveness wracking our country.

    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enDecember 15, 2023

    The Attraction of Victimhood

    The Attraction of Victimhood
    Why do so many people in America identify as victims, the victims of an oppressive system? What is the source of this feeling? Why do so many people believe that they have no ability to live their lives as they see fit but look to the power of government to solve their problems? In this podcast, the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles, investigates the root causes of this spreading syndrome which runs against the most essential of American values – agency.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enDecember 07, 2023

    Dr. - not Mr. - Spock

    Dr. - not Mr. - Spock

    Scientific inquiry is the process where we learn more and more about our universe through experimentation to support or disprove our theories. But increasingly, we are asked to make drastic, expensive and irreversible decisions based on a consensus of scientists as if there were no more need for further inquiry or experimentation. In this commentary we discuss how political activists assert that the science behind their progressive policies is “settled” by which they mean unassailable and not up for further discussion.

    War in the Levant

    War in the Levant
    If you call the swath of land east of the Mediterranean Sea the Levant instead of Israel and Palestine, you can see the recent conflicts in the region with a new perspective. The part of the Levant that is now Israel was settled by Jewish refugees from Europe who defeated Arab Muslims in the region that had defeated the Roman Byzantines who had defeated the Judeans who had defeated….I think you get the idea. In this commentary we look at the Israeli/Hamas war from a different perspective.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enNovember 15, 2023

    The Slippery Slope of Fairness

    The Slippery Slope of Fairness

    Politicians are always promoting new laws and government programs to make things more fair. But fairness is not a good standard on which to base laws and programs because fairness is subjective and different people have different, and often completely opposite, ideas on what is fair. In this podcast the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles, discusses an alternative standard that can unite people who have different concepts of what constitutes fairness.

    Making Sense of Irrational War

    Making Sense of Irrational War
    To our Western minds the horrific attack on Israel by the Hamas terror group was irrational and incomprehensible. But even more irrational and incomprehensible have been the protests in support of the genocide espoused by Hamas across Europe and America. In this podcast, the Edifice of Trust host, victor Bolles, looks at the ideology willing to support an attempt to wipe an entire nation from the face of the Earth.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enOctober 24, 2023

    Shared Values and Common Goals Part One

    Shared Values and Common Goals Part One
    America has not been this divided since the Civil War. But poll after poll show that Americans left, right and center share many of the same values. So what is driving us apart. It is in the narrow self-interest of our political leaders to drive us apart for their political advantage. In this podcast, the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles takes a closer look at the ubiquitous nature of self-interest and how it affects our lives.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enOctober 17, 2023

    Deficit of Hope

    Deficit of Hope
    From the dark days and widespread pessimism of the early 1980s, Ronald Reagan’s optimistic speeches gave American reason to hope for a better future. We are again living in dark days but today’s politicians give us little reason to hope for a better future. In this podcast, the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles examines how today’s politicians are not leading the American people to a better future.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enOctober 11, 2023

    Numbers Guy

    Numbers Guy
    Is America suffering from a plague of psychic epidemics? Swiss psychiatrist Carl Jung wrote that man has no adequate protection from psychic epidemics which can be more devastating than anything in nature. The divisive nature of American politics is creating psychic epidemics on both the left and the right that will even more devastating than Dr. Jung predicted. In this podcast, the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles, investigates some of the psychology behind the rage that is consuming American politics.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enSeptember 22, 2023

    BILLIONAIRES SHOULD NOT EXIST

    BILLIONAIRES SHOULD NOT EXIST
    Climate activists, parroting Bernie Sanders, hold up signs declaring “BILLIONAIRES SHOULD NOT EXIST” to justify vandalizing the property of rich people. But if billionaires did not exist we would be lacking many of the modern products and services we have come to rely on, like smart phones, flat panel televisions and lens replacement surgeries. In this podcast, the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles looks at why the progressive left does not understand the role billionaires play in a free market economy.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enSeptember 12, 2023

    Peak China?

    Peak China?
    Has China reached its peak of economic power as many talking heads and think tank fellows are writing and podcasting about? The reality doesn’t matter, only the perception of strength or weakness matters, and how that affects the thinking of Xi Jinping. And if President Xi believes that China has reached its economic peak, the countdown to confrontation with the West has begun. In this podcast, the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles, investigates reports that China has reached a crossroad and discusses how we must prepare to meet that challenge.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enSeptember 08, 2023

    Our Precarious Liberty

    Our Precarious Liberty
    The Declaration of Independence states that we all are endowed with the right to pursue happiness and the things that make us happy are usually in our self-interest. Government often makes policies that are supposed to serve the common good but that do not match the self-interest of everyone. It is not easy to find the correct balance between the common good and the liberties of citizens. In this podcast, the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles looks at the current policies of our government to determine if it is unduly constraining the liberties we have an unalienable right to enjoy.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enSeptember 01, 2023

    Surviving in a Multipolar World

    Surviving in a Multipolar World
    The world is changing, and if you are one of the billions of people who have benefitted from the Western rules-based world order, not in a good way. Change, of course, is inevitable. But countries that hope to survive in changing conditions, and possibly even thrive, need to prepare for a future that is not yet clear. But even as the world changes, the US seems distracted by divisive domestic issues that often seem trivial. In this podcast the Edifice of Trust host, Victor Bolles, reviews how the world is changing and suggests how to prepare for the future.
    Edifice of Trust Podcast
    enAugust 22, 2023