American Thought Leaders

4.9 (1.1K)
POLITICS
UPDATED SEMIWEEKLY

At a time when our nation is portrayed as increasingly polarized, media often ignore viewpoints and stories that are worthy of attention. American Thought Leaders, hosted by The Epoch Times Senior Editor Jan Jekielek, features in-depth discussions with some of America’s most influential thought leaders on pertinent issues facing our nation today.

1D AGO

The Monument That Almost Wasn’t: The Remarkable Story Behind Canada’s Anti-Communist Memorial | Ludwik Klimkowski

A few months ago, Canada unveiled its national memorial to the millions of victims of communism. In this episode, Ludwik Klimkowski, chair of the Tribute of Liberty, gives us a tour of the memorial and reveals the 17-year battle to realize it as the group navigated changing political winds. “This is a memorial to those who still struggle. This is the memorial given to those who still want to escape. This is the memorial to those who are still sitting in prison, whose organs are being harvested,” Klimkowski says. The memorial was inaugurated last year, although the final elements on the Wall of Remembrance are still under development. Views expressed in this video are opinions of the host and the guest, and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.

50 min
3D AGO

Victor Davis Hanson: How Trump Is Upending the Status Quo, From Beijing to Gaza to Kyiv

In this episode, we sit down again with Victor Davis Hanson, a classicist, military historian, senior fellow at the Hoover Institution, and author of two dozen books, including most recently “The End of Everything.” In this interview, we dive into the multifaceted dimensions of what he describes as Trump’s “counterrevolution” in the foreign policy space, from Canada to China to the Middle East to Ukraine and Russia. What might the end of the wars in Ukraine and Gaza look like? Should Trump have accepted a plane from Qatar’s royal family? Was it a good idea to lift U.S. sanctions on Syria’s new leader? Is there any truth to rumors of friction between Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu? Is it possible that Trump actually, in some sense, wanted Mark Carney to win and become Prime Minister of Canada? And how can the United States ensure the Chinese leadership upholds their commitments in a trade agreement, given their track record of not following through? Views expressed in this video are opinions of the host and the guest, and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.

1h 22m
6D AGO

‘Criminal State’: Unmasking the CCP’s Whole-of-Society Espionage Playbook | Nicholas Eftimiades

There are few people who understand the workings of Chinese espionage as well as Nicholas Eftimiades. After a 34-year government career—including time at the CIA, Department of State, and Defense Intelligence Agency—he’s now a professor at Penn State University’s Homeland Security Program and a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council. “China uses what we call a whole-of-society approach to conducting espionage. … We’re not talking about thousands [of people]. We’re talking about tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of people engaged globally in carrying out the CCP’s will,” Eftimiades says. Views expressed in this video are opinions of the host and the guest, and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.

55 min
MAY 16

How One Journalist Is Shattering Echo Chambers: Isaac Saul

“One of the major driving factors of the extreme polarization that we’re living through right now is that most news consumers can very easily … tune in somewhere where they are just being force fed worldviews and perspectives that confirm all their priors,” says journalist Isaac Saul. “Think about what media outlets are really making their audience uncomfortable on a regular basis, and there’s very few of them,” he says. After writing for a wide variety of media outlets and seeing some disturbing trends, Saul decided to found Tangle, a newsletter that puts viewpoints from both the left and the right side by side. Views expressed in this video are opinions of the host and the guest, and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.

54 min
MAY 14

What the Mental Health Industry Doesn’t Tell You: Laura Delano

“This system I had been turning to for help through all of these years, through the most formative years of life, that I had been assuming existed to take care of me ... was actually a system of control. And I just hadn’t seen it for what it was, because I had never said no to it before,” says Laura Delano, author of “Unshrunk: A Story of Psychiatric Treatment Resistance.” For 14 years, Delano was a “professional mental patient,” as she puts it, after being diagnosed with bipolar disorder when she was a teenager. Now she wonders whether the dominant, medicalized approach to mental illness is actually making us as a society sicker. “Sixty-five million American adults and 6 million American children are currently on psychiatric drugs, and there are zero off ramps for getting them off these drugs safely within the mental health industry. Zero,” she says. “This is not about being ‘pro’ or ‘anti.’ This is about using straightforward, honest language to talk about what these drugs are, to talk about our limits of knowledge around what these drugs are and how they actually affect us, and then to let people make their own decisions from there based on their own life circumstances.” In this episode, we dive into Delano’s story and discuss the dangers of relying solely on medical treatments to treat mental health issues and of rapidly withdrawing from psychiatric drugs. Views expressed in this video are opinions of the host and the guest, and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.

57 min
MAY 11

How Did Trump Impact the Canadian Election? | Brian Lee Crowley

“Donald Trump is looming so large in the Canadian consciousness right now,” says Brian Lee Crowley. “And I have seen a lot of my compatriots running around like chickens with their heads cut off, saying, ‘Oh my God, Donald Trump is a mad man. You can’t understand what he’s doing. There’s no rhyme or reason to it.’ And I looked at what Donald Trump was doing, and I thought, ‘Okay, I don’t have to like it. That’s a separate question. But if the question is, ’Can I understand it?' The answer is yes.” Crowley is the founder and managing director of the Macdonald-Laurier Institute, a Canadian think tank whose work is often cited by the Canadian Parliament. “What exactly is the difference between Canada and America, or Canadians and Americans? It’s not that it’s difficult to answer because there aren’t differences. It’s difficult to answer because the differences are subtle and hard to express,” says Crowley. “Remember that America broke away through a violent revolution from the crown and the United Kingdom—from Great Britain. Canadians never experienced that.” In this episode, we dive into the recent election in Canada, Trump’s comments about Canada as America’s 51st state, and what the future of United States–Canada relations may look like. “Canada exports 50 percent of everything made in the private sector, and the vast bulk of that, like 90 percent, goes to the United States. But [in] the United States, by contrast, foreign trade, or international trade, only represents barely 25 percent of the amount of the American economy, and that’s diversified across all of its trade partners. So, while for Canada, the relationship with the United States is existential, for America, the relationship with Canada is convenient, nice—not existential.” Views expressed in this video are opinions of the host and the guest, and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.

1 hr
MAY 9

How Intermittent Fasting and Dietary Changes Can Reduce Cancer Risk: Dr. Paul Marik

Dr. Paul Marik is a pulmonary and critical care specialist and a founding member of the Independent Medical Alliance, formerly known as the Front Line COVID-19 Critical Care Alliance. “Our healthcare system is completely and utterly broken. From the top to the bottom, it’s a broken, dysfunctional system,” says Marik. “If you do an experiment, it should be reproducible. And I think that’s the most important qualifier of good science; the results are reproducible, because then, it’s likely to be true.” Best known for his revolutionary, lifesaving protocol for Sepsis and for being the second most published critical care physician in the world, Marik is now focusing his efforts on the treatment and prevention of cancer. “Intermittent fasting, in which the body was designed to eat for a while and then to starve for a while, is not a difficult concept. The human body wasn’t designed to snack and eat all the time, which is what people seem to do. And that has serious metabolic consequences, with high insulin levels and insulin resistance,” says Dr. Marik. “Vitamin D is effective in preventing cancer, but it’s also very effective in the treatment of cancer.” Views expressed in this video are those of the host and the guest and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.

53 min
MAY 7

Harmeet Dhillon: Inside Trump Admin’s Shake-Up of the DOJ’s Civil Rights Division

How is the Trump administration transforming the Department of Justice’s civil rights priorities? Joining us today for a deep dive is DOJ Assistant Attorney General Harmeet Dhillon of the civil rights division. Their jurisdiction includes a wide range of constitutional issues, from religious freedom to Title IX protections, race-based discrimination, and enforcing voting rights laws. The views expressed in this video are those of the host and the guest and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.

1h 5m

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4.9

out of 5

1,114 Ratings

Fantastic Podcast

6d ago

Thee Truth!

I never miss an episode! Always excellent!
Blessed to have Epoch Times!

May 1

recolli

We received an Epoch Times news paper in our mailbox at the beginning of Covid. Checked out the website, and this family has been blessed for the real world news ever since. Talking a bit about the “controversial” info at work labeled me a conspiracist. The interesting thing about that, is as it all progressed, I had coworkers coming to me for more info and specifically the name of Epoch Times where I was getting my information. And they checked it out for themselves. The Great Barrington Declaration was a huge one for me also! (I worked in an “essential” Industry so was out and about every day)
My Favorite Interview Show

Apr 14

xbreskir

American Thought Leaders is the reason I subscribe to the Epoch Times. Always top notch interviews of true thought leaders.
Caroline Glick

Mar 30

thankful 'n glad

Thank you so much for this timely interview. Praying for Israel, for her & Bibi.
News for serious people

Mar 22

GenoRingo

News the way it should be - well researched, thoughtful, and professionally delivered. No emotion, crying, or tantrums like you get from CNN and MSNBC. Jan Jekielek and his staff are old school pros.
Santiago Peña

Jan 26

LA Zorro

I almost made the passed on this interview, boy am I glad I didn’t. Learned so much about President Peña and the country of Paraguay. I didn’t realize what a strong ally we had in Paraguay. It appears Mr. Peña has big plans for his country and it can only help all of Latin America to see how well a democracy can improve the standard of living for its people. Excellent interview I’m going to follow their progress.
One of the Best

11/04/2024

MkeY234Z62

I challenge you to find a more intelligent and informative hour in the category of news/ current events. If you watch an hour of cable news, network news, legacy print journalism, or radio you will get dumbed down propaganda. This podcast delivers for anyone seeking to expand their horizons and dive deep into a topic. The 9/25/24 episode on marks**ism was worthy of journalism award. Something you’ll never find on TV sandwiched between pharmaceutical advertisements! I applaud the host, the Epoch Times, and even Apple for bringing these gifts to the public.
Love the long form interview

05/27/2024

Wireless805

Learn a lot
REACT19

04/13/2024

Mr. Texas Dog

Your interview with Dr Wallskorg is an outstanding must listen to session. I’ve been working on one of Naomi Wolfe’s Pfizer clinical trial review teams. Massive reform is needed now. The mRNA platform should be halted ASAP. People need to go to prison. They knew. They know. “Safe and Effective”, “masking”, “6’”, “science”…never, ever forget the FDA approved this for children AFTER they knew. This is not a vaccine. It never was. It is not a mRNA shot. It IS a mRNA platform. Pharma is looking to broaden their market reach to use in other products. Dr. Wallskorg is correct about being on an island, even among loved ones. Know you are not alone. Find at least one other. We’re here. God bless you Jan. God bless us all.
Masterful but…please hear me out.

05/10/2024

Apanda76

I’m very disappointed in this podcast and how it’s covering the horrors happening in Palestine. Makes me question the over all integrity of this organization that I’ve enjoyed up until now Thoughtful and relevant. I love your vibe. I learn so much! Thank you …concerning the Chloe Cole episode and transgenderism…from a centrist view and as an aunt to a trans man that had similar experiences, but a happier ending I gotta say… His journey has been way different and much more well adjusted. He knew he was trans at 3. I witnessed it. No one made him that way. Maybe vaccines or hormones in the environment or whatever but nothing in his control. Even with absolute support it was a challenging journey for him. To be different and feel wrong in his body. It wasn’t peer pressure or to be cool. And not everyone’s story is as tragic as hers. His is having a happy beginning to a life as an adult male. I believe Chloe is 100% genuine but is also telling a story about others in way that is too broad of a view… …and I ca feel from her a very genuine pain. I can totally believe she’s being rejected by people who now won’t accept her and that’s messed up and must hurt. The people she knows probably are the way she says but if she was dealing with mental health issues growing up and isolation she would be drawn to others who are the same. My nephew has had his own set of challenges but overall well adjusted in his early 20s with an amazing girlfriend. He doesn’t do drugs. Super responsible. In college. Funny kid. Creative. My sister did good with him. My Republican and conservative dad paid for his top surgery. Even my dad could see “she” was a “he”. He was chill and discrete about his process by choice. But he’s also been supported early on. (I personally would have made him hold off until 18 on hormone blockers if he was my kid but I think looking back it was the right choice) He waited til he was 18 to have top surgery. I’ve never seen him more confident and light in his body afterwards. But I also can see how Chloe’s experience happened the way it did. I am very impressed with her courage to speak out because there is not a voice of caution and you can’t speak out even for balance and not get called transphobic these days. But she can. I just want to caution giving conservatives a very skewed perspective. There is the extremists but there are genuine trans people just doing their thing and not regretting it and not spewing mental Illness everywhere. Also LOTS of people do drugs for lots of reasons. Can’t put that on trans people. Anyway I loved this episode and I love Jan’s sensitivity with this. I hope you will keep the same sensitivity towards a person like Chloe but who has had a different and better outcome. Ultimately we all just need to foster self love and self acceptance and maybe chill on the medical side until a persons body and mind has developed while we hold love and acceptance for the process. That would help a lot of trans kids take their time and figure it out without major pressure and risk and then they can transition as an adult. Happiness is an inside job. No matter your body. Period. Start there and the outcomes will just be better. As a society I feel there is a middle ground that has not been established yet. If I didn’t witness my nephews process I would probably feel like a lot of conservatives… but it’s a real thing. The politics of it is skewing a realness that deserves some respect. And drag shows for kids is something all together different and wrong. My nephew would agree. I wish Chloe all the best and I hope she keeps speaking truth to this reality that I imagine others might find themselves in. Stories like hers show that caution is warranted when it comes to children and when medical evolution is moving to fast too soon.