A Good Guy With a Gun and the Dangers of Power

On August 3, 2022, Kim Monson examines Hannah Arendt’s warning that evil thrives on apathy with guests Eric Odlin discussing the CD7 Congressional race, Lawrence Reed exploring self-defense and the corrupting nature of power, and Derek Kennison sharing his experience facing federal charges for attending the January 6th rally.

The Battle for Colorado’s Seventh Congressional District

Start listening at 20:32 – Hour 1

Eric Odlin, Republican candidate for Colorado’s CD7, warns that progressive policies bear direct responsibility for the current economic and energy crises affecting working families. Odlin contrasts his approach with Democrat opponent Brittany Pedersen, who voted in the Colorado legislature to increase gas taxes and impose new fees on deliveries and ride-sharing services even as inflation surged.

The combat veteran emphasizes that his candidacy stems not from political ambition but from concern for his family’s future. Recent polling shows the race within two points, making it a pivotal contest for House control. Odlin stresses that taking back the House represents the only path to stopping what he describes as radical progressive agendas that produce the opposite of their stated goals.

“Progressive policies are directly responsible for the economic crisis, the energy crisis. They’ve made it harder for working class families in Colorado to survive.”

Eric Odlin, CD7 Congressional Candidate

Self-Defense, the French Revolution, and the Corrupting Nature of Power

Start listening at 31:45 – Hour 1

Lawrence Reed, President Emeritus of the Foundation for Economic Education, defends the Greenwood Park Mall hero Elisha Dickin against critics who questioned whether a man who killed an active shooter could be called a “good Samaritan.” Reed argues that Jesus himself instructed his disciples to arm themselves at the Last Supper, and that the biblical command to turn the other cheek referred to insults, not lethal attacks. Dickin put his own life at risk to save others, fulfilling the scriptural ideal that there is no greater love than laying down one’s life for friends.

Reed then examines two architects of the French Revolution’s Terror, Louis-Antoine de Saint-Just and Maximilien Robespierre. Both men appeared pleasant and articulate before acquiring power, yet once in control they became pitiless executioners who sent thousands to the guillotine. The American Revolution succeeded where the French failed because Americans genuinely committed to constitutional limits on government. George Washington famously walked away from power after two terms, while no significant French revolutionary figure voluntarily relinquished authority.

Drawing on Hannah Arendt’s coverage of Adolf Eichmann’s trial, Reed warns that evil rarely advertises itself. Eichmann appeared shockingly ordinary, a bureaucrat following orders rather than a monster. Evil arrives dressed in platitudes about equality, social justice, and the common good, making vigilance against its encroachment essential.

“Evil can come in all kinds of packages. And don’t ever assume that if it comes calling that it would be stupid enough to advertise itself as such.”

Lawrence Reed, FEE President Emeritus

Facing Federal Charges for Standing Outside the Capitol

Start listening at 71:27 – Hour 2

Derek Kennison, a California business owner and church security volunteer, describes facing five federal felony charges despite never entering the Capitol building on January 6th. FBI and SWAT teams raided his home at 6 AM on February 19th, using flashbang grenades, robots, and pointed weapons at his young daughter. Kennison explains he traveled to Washington as volunteer security, carrying only medical supplies. When he saw open doors at the Capitol, he told his companion it looked like a trap and chose not to enter.

The charges against Kennison include conspiracy for traveling with friends, obstruction of Congress for standing outside a building, and destruction of evidence for leaving a chat group. Because someone else in his indictment carried a pocket knife, all defendants received deadly weapons enhancements that elevated misdemeanors to felonies. Approximately 35 to 40 people remain incarcerated without trial dates since January 2021. Kennison rejected a plea deal and intends to take his case to court, despite facing potential sentences of 80 years plus domestic terrorism enhancements.

“I was standing there. I had medical gear. I had a backpack that was nothing but medical gear. All my friends, we all had medical gear.”

Derek Kennison, January 6th Defendant