Tag: film

Antisemitism: Never Again is Now

Antisemitism: Never Again is Now

Show Summary: After the Holocaust, Jews and the rest of the world pledged “never again.” But a mere two generations later, Evelyn Markus had to flee the EU’s antisemitism for America—only to find antisemitism on the rise here too. What happened? And why?

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Original Air Dates: Nov 16 & 17, 2019 | Dr. Evelyn Markus

This Week: A look at the rise of “acceptable hate”: antisemitism. The world seems to have forgotten the Holocaust, because right now antisemitism is surging again in Europe. And lest you think this is merely “anti-Israel”, you need to know that Leftist politicians have been spotted in marches where shouts of “Hamas! Hamas! Jews to the gas!” have filled the streets.

How is this happening? And why?

Antisemitism: Big-Government Sponsored Hate

Big government demands conformity from its subjects. And uniformity. You must be part of the group and those outside the desired conformity, are labelled dissidents, and targeted for hate. And even removal. We’ve seen it before throughout history with the Holocaust but we’re seeing it again now in places like Hong Kong.

Surprisingly, we’re also seeing it from the Left right now in the EU and even right here in the U.S. It’s not just the Left’s embrace of socialism that’s worrying, it’s the fringe elements of hate: antisemitism. While not unique to the Left, hatred of Israel and, by extension, Jews, seems to have become almost mainstream within the Far Left.

This is deeply worrisome. Especially to someone whose parents lived through the Holocaust.

Why Antisemitism Matters

Because the rise of antisemitism gives rise to hate of all sorts. The snowball effect of hate spreads and it becomes mob hate – not just the hate of individuals but of hate directed to an entire race.  The mob hate finds its way to those in power who begin to preach the politics of hate and the hatred of a race simply because of their existence.

This week, we’re pleased to welcome Dr. Evelyn Markus, an activist against antisemitism. An author and speaker, she is the hand behind Never Again is Now, a terrific film about not forgetting the lessons of the holocaust  in the face of rising antisemitism in Europe and even right here at home

Never Again is Now

"Never Again is Now" film by Dr Evelyn Markus, the troubling rise of antisemitism
“Never Again is Now” is available on Amazon Prime

Dr. Markus’ parents lived through the worst of the politics of hate. After The Netherlands were conquered, the Jews—who had been welcomed and lived a quiet, wonderful life in The Netherlands—were targeted by the Nazis.  Then, after what they thought were incidental acts of discrimination, the Jewish people realized too late that things were growing out of control.  Forced to wear yellow stars affixed to their clothes and before long, entire families were loaded into trains without knowing where they were going. And it was too late to stop it.

And, cruelly, neighbors turned on neighbors. Even worse, collaborators turned in those in hiding or who might have escaped. Neighborhoods were emptied never to see many of their once friends, ever again.

Dr. Markus’ parents survived the Nazi occupation — miraculously escaping with their entire family intact when many of their friends had only a few family members survived or were wiped out altogether.  Dr. Markus talks to us about her parents’ life, what it was like for them to go through it all, and the very real world of seeing how good people behaved when their lives were at stake.  Some who you’d think would be brave crumbled, while others who hardly appeared destined for greatness, did great things.

Antisemitism on the Rise? Again?

But Dr. Markus’ story doesn’t end there. That’s really just the beginning. Her story is about her realization that—despite the shadow of WWII and so many personal stories of loss—that antisemitism was rearing its ugly head in Europe after 9/11. Things became so bad that she left Europe, only to realize it was spreading in her newly adopted  homeland: the U.S.

Join us for a spellbinding look at the rise of hate. And what can be done, what must be done.

Podcast Version

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Current I Spy Radio broadcast areas. Click for full-size map.

Five Different Times, on Seven Different Stations. Listen anywhere! All stations stream live!

Saturdays
10a – 11a: KFIR 720AM (entire Willamette Valley) | Direct Link to KFIR Live Stream
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Sundays
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Links & Info

  • The movie is Never Again is Now and is available via Amazon.com; free for Amazon Prime members, $7.99 for non-members.
  • Dr. Evelyn Markus’s websites: JoinNeverAgainIsNow.com 
  • You can follow Dr Markus on Twitter
  • Is it Holland or Netherlands? Yes. Sometimes. Maybe. Both. (via Holland.com)
  • HUNDREDS of Orthodox Jews Chant “Four More Years!” at NYC Trump Fundraiser on Tuesday — Donate $5 Million to Reelection Campaign (Gateway Pundit, Nov 14, 2019)
  • Ans van Dijk – Jewish collaborator who betrayed 145 jews to the Nazis, including her own brother and his family. (via Wikipedia)
  • When Did the World Find Out About the Holocaust? (via Jewish Virtual Library)
Christians Go Over the Walls the Left Keep Putting Up

Christians Go Over the Walls the Left Keep Putting Up

Show Summary: Storytelling is incredibly powerful. We’re hard-wired for it. Is that why the political Far Left, Facebook, Twitter, and Hollywood are all trying to censor the Right—especially Christians? (Jump to podcast…)

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To download the show, right-click the mic, and then “Save Link As…” or use the handy player below

Original Air Dates: Oct. 26th & 27th, 2019 | Dallas Jenkins & James Hirsen

This Week: There are many breaking news stories this week that center on the Flynn case and those who were in power that manipulated events, and then the messaging, to create illusions through storytelling techniques. It’s in the same vein of Disinformation, which we’ve recently covered. This week we take a break from all the breaking news of the Russian collusion hoax, except for one thing, how storytelling is usually won by the far-left.

Using Storytelling Techniques over Facts

People love a good story and if it’s presented well and is intriguing, it becomes believable. To the point that stories can become more believable (and certainly more memorable) than the reality.

Is this why mainstream media stories have taken on the fascination of a reality TV show? They’re staged with heroes and villains in ways that borrow from storytelling techniques to make their version of the story more believable than the facts themselves. Like Trump and Ukraine quid pro quo.

Hollywood: Epicenter of Storytelling

The political Left does this with far more skill than the Right. Hollywood certainly knows this with the billions they make off of storytelling. And that’s where they get you twice, because many times when news stories become too much reality TV, folks turn to “entertainment” as a way to escape—only to be listening to storytelling that often goes against their beliefs and values.

Hollywood has created a vacuum of messaging when Christians allowed the Far Left to take control and stopped going to movies (like who can blame them?), which allowed Hollywood to gravitate to their liberal counterparts in politics and the media.

Going over the Walls: The Chosen

But as in the story of David and Goliath, small nuggets of Christian storytelling continued to rise through the noise. And Christians are finding ways around the Hollywood paradigm. Enter Dallas Jenkins—director of the series, The Chosen—who raised $10 million dollars online, the largest amount ever from online crowd-sourcing for a film series.

The Chosen is a tremendous series about the life of Jesus told from a unique perspective. Staying out of Hollywood’s normal methods for creating and distributing a film, Mr. Jenkins went directly to the people, who in turn stood up to support this incredible project. And it paid off.

The Chosen: Breaking Down Barriers

With the funding he needed, Jenkins created a stunning series with all of the production value you’d see in even more expensive projects, like Amazon’s Jack Ryan series. Created as a multi-season series, the first four episodes are now free to view if you go to thechosen.tv, where you can download it as an app, watch it on your laptop, or stream to your TV.

Tune in this week to hear what has made this series so successful and why, with hundreds of films and TV shows already out there about Jesus, theirs has been such a success.

Hirsen: Why Hollywood Targets Christians

Then we welcome back James Hirsen, who continues the discussion of the different ways filmmakers, that Hollywood studios don’t support, are using to get their storytelling into the mainstream. He discusses the shift in the way stories will reach consumers in this evolving technical world—and how the far-left has been able to maximize their hold on Hollywood, through culture and lifestyle.

Hollywood and The Left’s Censorship

But with all these fascinating stories and their end-around on Hollywood, there is a deeper movement by the Far Left to censor the political Right and especially Christians. Censorship is the new weapon in their attacks. We’ve already by Democrat candidates like Kamala Harris to actually censor the President of the United States from Twitter, (which would force him to use the Leftist media to try to talk to the American people.

Make no mistake. This is not mere “persuasion” attempts. This is a genuine effort to silence opposition of the Left. (See every socialist and communist nation ever.) And the Left and Hollywood are getting support for their censorship from an unlikely place.

Tune in to hear what happened when one director decided to push back.

Podcast Version

Never Miss an I Spy Radio Show!

Coverage Map of I Spy Radio Show broadcast areas, as of November, 2018
Current I Spy Radio broadcast areas. Click for full-size map.

Five Different Times, on Seven Different Stations. Listen anywhere! All stations stream live!

Saturdays
10a – 11a: KFIR 720AM (entire Willamette Valley) | Direct Link to KFIR Live Stream
11a – noon: KLBM 1450AM (Union County) | Direct Link to KLBM Live Stream
11a – noon: KBKR 1490AM (Baker County) | Direct Link to SuperTalk Live Stream
7p – 8p: KWRO 630AM (Oregon Coast & Southeastern Oregon) | Direct Link to KWRO Live Stream

Sundays
8a – 9a: KWVR 1340AM (Wallowa County) | Direct Link: KWVR Live Stream
7p – 8p: KAJO 1270AM or 99.7FM (Grants Pass/Medford) | Direct Link: KAJO Live Stream

 

Links Mentioned

  • Download the first four episodes of The Chosen by heading to TheChosen.tv
  • Fox News: “’The Chosen’ $10M crowdfunded show out now: ‘Experience Jesus in a way that’s never been done before’” (April 16, 2019
  • James Hirsen’s bestselling book is Tales from the Left Coast
  • His articles can be found at JamesHirsen.com
The Good, the Bad, the Ugly — and The Redemeed

The Good, the Bad, the Ugly — and The Redemeed

Show Summary: This week, we take a break from our usual focus on Big Government. It’s not as if politics doesn’t have fiction and fantasy but we’re taking a look at Hollywood—and especially the Christian film industry.

Download the podcast of this week's I Spy Radio Show
To download the show, right-click the mic, and then “Save Link As…” or use the handy player below

PLUS! See below on how to get a free movie credit from Christian Cinema. No commitment, no monthly fees. Just download a free movie to try them out.

Did you miss the show? You can download the podcast but see here for when, where, and how to listen to I Spy Radio

Original Air Dates: Aug. 12 & 13, 2017 | Bobby Downes & James Hirsen

With it being August, and with everyone focused on recreation, this week we take a break from politics to take a look at movies and film making. Not that there isn’t a lot of fiction in politics, of course. In particular we look at a growing segment of the film industry: the Christian film market.

Christian Film Industry

This is an enormous market. There are tens of millions of people in this market segment who’d like to watch films without all the explicit sex, swearing, and lack of morals that are standard in so many of Hollywood’s films today.

Beyond the Mask - a Christian film industry productionWhile Hollywood is aware of this market, they have difficulty reaching it. All too often, it’s because they simply don’t understand it because they don’t have the same viewpoints or background. It’s like the NY Times, trying to write news stories for Conservatives. A lot of times, it just doesn’t work. The author doesn’t have the same mindset and just can’t resist getting in a dig at the very people they claim they’re trying to reach.

Beyond the Mask -The leading mercenary for the British East India Company, Will Reynolds has just been double-crossed and now is on the run in the American Colonies. Read more…

To learn about the Christian film market we turn to the experts that do get it. Our first guest, Bobby Downes, is the CEO and founder of ChristianCienema.com, a marketplace for Christian films made by Christians for Christians. Think of it as the iTunes for Christian movies. We discuss the difficulties facing Christians in Hollywood, and how his company has been a driving force behind raising the quality standards  for Christian films. It used to be Christian films were seen as second-rate or poor quality but a quick look at their site will dispel that notion. Instead, these Christian films understand Middle America, and use film to communicate the positive messages of Christianity through entertaining, high-quality feature films.

Don’t miss Christian Cinema’s FREE offer! Go to www.ChristianCinema.com/radio and you will get a free movie credit just to try them out.  No commitments, no monthly fees. Just good entertainment.

James Hirsen

Then we talk with James Hirsen about the continuing nonsense in Hollywood and why they don’t put out top Christian movies like they did in the Golden Age of Hollywood. Is there really a hostility there or is it hype?  We discuss the notion of being blackballed for exercising free speech, California’s secessionist movement (yes, they really are pushing it) and their continuing confusion over why Trump won. Here’s a hint: now they’re actively recruiting “movie stars” to run for office. Is there a chance they could win?

Perhaps they’re getting mixed up on the difference between being popular and populist politics.

Links Mentioned

  • Free movie credit from Christian Cinema! Download a movie on them just for trying them out! No commitments, no monthly only ever pay for the movies you want.
  • Beyond the Mask (movie & trailer)
  • Check out ChristianCinema.com – think of them as the iTunes or Netflix of Christians films. Watch films on any device using their apps. (It worked great for us on the Amazon app for FireTV/Amazon Prime.)
  • Christian Cinema releases top one hundred picks (ChristianCinema.com)
  • James Hirsen’s article, Dems Seek out Celebrities to run for Office (Hirsen, Aug. 7th, 2017)

Related Links