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--:-- Georgia Howe: This episode is brought to you by LifeLock. Between two-factor authentication, strong passwords, and a VPN, you try to be in control of how your info is protected. But many other places also have it, and they might not be as careful. That's why LifeLock monitors hundreds of millions of data points a second for threats. If your identity is stolen, they'll fix it. Guaranteed or your money back. Save up to 40% your first year. Visit LifeLock.com slash podcast for 40% off. Terms apply.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: More details have emerged about the mass shooting in Indiana, including details about the citizen hero who took down the shooter. His actions were nothing short of heroic. We discuss what police have revealed and the concealed carry law that went into place just days before the incident.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: I'm Georgia Howe with Daily Wire editor-in-chief John Bickley. It's July 23rd, and this is your Saturday edition of Morning Wire.
--:-- John Bickley: Thanks for waking up with Morning Wire. We have the news you need to know. While you can't control tomorrow's headlines, you can help shape them by hiring the right people and fast, which is why you should check out Indeed. Indeed is the hiring platform you can attract, interview, and hire all in one place. And now with Indeed, businesses only pay for quality applications matching their sponsored job description. Join more than 3 million businesses worldwide that use Indeed to hire great talent fast. Visit Indeed.com slash wire to start hiring right now.
--:-- Georgia Howe: We now have more information about a mass shooting in an Indiana mall that was cut short by an armed citizen. Within moments of a gunman opening fire in a mall food court, 22-year-old Eli Dickin took decisive action, drawing his own firearm and killing the shooter before any more lives could be taken.
--:-- John Bickley: Here to discuss more about Dickens' heroic actions is Daily Wire reporter Tim Pierce.
--:-- Tim Pierce: So, Tim, what more have we found out?
--:-- Tim Pierce: Well, to begin with, Dickens is still not speaking to the media and may not for some time as his attorney said his client will remain silent until the police finish their investigation into the shooting.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Now, that's not a bad idea considering the context, but it's hard to see how Dickens gets into any legal trouble over this.
--:-- Tim Pierce: Dickens was legally carrying his handgun under a new Indiana constitutional carry law that had gone into effect just days earlier on July 1st.
--:-- John Bickley: The law allows Indianans to conceal carry a handgun without a permit. Now, there are some exceptions in cases such as the person is underage, was convicted of a felony, or has what is deemed to be a dangerous mental illness.
--:-- Tim Pierce: There was some controversy over whether Dickon was lawfully carrying in the mall because the mall itself bans weapons on the premises.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The state law does allow property owners to enforce such bans, but it's very unlikely that the mall will pursue legal action against Dickon, given the circumstances.
--:-- John Bickley: The owner of the mall has already praised Dickon's actions as heroic.
--:-- Tim Pierce: Right. It doesn't sound like they're going to take any action against him.
--:-- Tim Pierce: It's also worth noting that many supporters of laws like Indiana's constitutional carry say that the gun ban policies such as the malls actually attract would-be killers because they see such places as soft targets.
--:-- Georgia Howe: We don't know if that was the case here, but certainly we do know that mass shooters have specifically targeted such places in the past.
--:-- Tim Pierce: Dickin obviously acted very fast, and we're told that he actually hit the shooter from a pretty impressive distance.
--:-- John Bickley: Did he have military or law enforcement background?
--:-- Tim Pierce: Incredibly, no. Dickin had no formal military or police officer training. Everything he knows about handling a weapon he apparently learned from his grandfather.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Police estimate that just 15 seconds had passed between the gunman firing his first shot and Dickon taking him out.
--:-- Tim Pierce: Even more incredibly, Dickin hit the gunman with eight of 10 shots from about 40 yards away, which would be impressive even for somebody with professional training.
--:-- John Bickley: Unfortunately, even with Dickin's quick response time, the shooter was still able to kill three people and injure two more, which just emphasizes how quickly situations like this can escalate.
--:-- Tim Pierce: Now let's look at the legal aspect of this. The constitutional carry law had just gone into effect in Indiana, and that was kind of controversial.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Tell us about that.
--:-- Tim Pierce: Yeah, there were some pretty serious debates in Indiana before the law passed, and actually the chief of the state police was one of the most vocal critics of the law.
--:-- John Bickley: He's concerned that the law will put police officers at greater risk.
--:-- Tim Pierce: If you choose to support this bill, you will not be supporting us. You'll not be supporting your frontline officer.
--:-- Georgia Howe: What are the arguments against the law?
--:-- Tim Pierce: Well, critics say that more people carrying more guns increases the chances of a situation escalating into something more serious.
--:-- John Bickley: Critics also contend that armed civilians are more likely than not to be shot by responding police officers who have to assess the situation and take action quickly.
--:-- Tim Pierce: And to be clear, we've seen numerous instances of this very thing happening.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Critics also say that good guys with guns rarely stop crime.
--:-- Tim Pierce: According to researchers at Texas State University, of 433 shooting attacks in the U.S. between 2000 and 2021, just 22 were ended by an armed civilian.
--:-- John Bickley: On the other side of that argument, however, are proponents who say that a study like the one the Texas State researchers conducted can't account for all the times that the mere presence of an armed civilian stopped a shooting before it began.
--:-- Tim Pierce: And we know that many mass shooters specifically pick targets that are unlikely to put up much resistance, at least initially.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So those criticisms do carry some weight.
--:-- John Bickley: That said, one big challenge these proponents face is it's incredibly hard to quantify the magnitude of the deterrent effect.
--:-- Tim Pierce: Well, regardless, we're glad in this instance, the good guy with the gun intervened.
--:-- John Bickley: That was Daily Wire reporter Tim Pierce. Coming up, millennials fall behind their parents financially, and John Cleese speaks out about cancel culture and its effect on America.
--:-- Georgia Howe: If you like this podcast, subscribe to our Morning Wire newsletter available exclusively to Daily Wire members. Get the Morning Wire newsletter delivered straight to your inbox when you join at dailywire.com slash subscribe. Use code MORNINGWIRE to try a Reader's Pass membership and get your first month for only 99 cents.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: Millennials are growing up. The generation which once had a bad reputation for being lazy is now ahead of their parents when it comes to their 401ks, but they're trailing behind in terms of total wealth.
--:-- John Bickley: Here to give us some insight into millennials' financial situation is Daily Wire's Charlotte Pence Bond.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: Yeah, John, thanks for having me. So millennials are technically saving for retirement earlier than their baby boomer counterparts. They're putting money into retirement funds in their mid-20s, which is about 10 years earlier than when their parents started saving.
--:-- Georgia Howe: And according to one study, they have higher balances in their 401ks than Gen Xers did at the same age.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: One reason for this is millennials are prioritizing their 401ks over home ownership.
--:-- John Bickley: A recent report from Charles Schwab found that three quarters of boomers and Gen X expect to own a home in retirement compared to only 50% of millennials.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: By contrast, more than 60% of millennials plan to prioritize travel during retirement.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Another reason millennials are saving is because they have to. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, in 1981, 84% of full-time employees at big corporations took part in a pension plan.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: But by 2021, traditional pension plans have nearly disappeared. Only a quarter of civilian employees have the option of investing in a pension plan. So 401ks necessarily go up as pension plans disappear.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Exactly. And despite the higher savings rate millennials feel great about the future.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: Around 72 of millennials are concerned about their ability to be financially secure in their retirement, while only 43% of boomers felt that way.
--:-- John Bickley: A recent survey also showed that the majority of respondents ages 18 to 35 said that they didn't see a point in saving for retirement until things were turned to normal.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: I spoke to Samantha Ducharme, who is 22 years old and has been saving up for retirement on her own, but she still isn't feeling great about the future either.
--:-- Georgia Howe: I mean, I wouldn't say I'm extremely optimistic. I'm happy that at the end of the day, I'm going to have some money to fall back on, but the money that I'm continuing to save now might not mean as much in the future.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: So I think I'm expected to retire with like $300,000 just from what I'm doing now. That's probably not going to be a whole lot of money come 20 years from now.
--:-- John Bickley: So millennials are starting to save earlier because they don't have a built-in safety net, but they're still not in a great financial situation.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Why is that?
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: Yeah, so Federal Reserve data from 2021 showed that millennials between 28 and 38 years of age make up a majority of the workforce, but only about 6% of household wealth.
--:-- John Bickley: So in terms of total wealth, they're way behind past generations.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: One major factor could be student loan debt.
--:-- Georgia Howe: A good chunk of millennials graduated college in 2008 when the economy was in a recession, so many had a rocky start to their careers.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: 40% of millennial households had student debt that was over 40% of what they make as income.
--:-- John Bickley: And this ties into some recent action in Congress and by President Biden.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: What's the latest there?
--:-- Georgia Howe: Yes. So President Biden has offered student loan debt relief to some workers, but on the retirement issue, Congress looks set to amend U.S. retirement law this year.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: The bill would change some of the rules around saving, making it easier for employees to join retirement plans through auto enrollment, allow for tax-free catch-up payments, delay mandatory withdrawals, and even set fewer penalties for emergency withdrawals.
--:-- John Bickley: We'll see if any of those policies are passed and if they would have any impact.
--:-- Charlotte Pence Bond: Thanks for the reporting. Thanks for having me.
--:-- Georgia Howe: That was Daily Wire's Charlotte Pence Bond.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: British actor and comedian John Cleese is known around the world for his pointed and insightful portrayals in hits like Monty Python and A Fish Called Wanda. Now age 82, Cleese is speaking out against cancel culture.
--:-- John Bickley: Here to discuss is Carrie Sheffield, Senior Policy Analyst at Independent Women's Voice.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: Thanks for having me, Georgia.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Actor and comedian John Cleese, who a lot of listeners might know from Monty Python, has spent a lifetime poking fun at political correctness.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: He's also been a defender of other stars who questioned the politically correct doctrines.
--:-- Georgia Howe: For example, some fans may remember J.K. Rowling was canceled for criticizing transgender ideology and Cleese defended her.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: Most recently, Cleese has come out against woke comedy, declaring that there's no such thing as a woke joke.
--:-- Georgia Howe: When it comes to woke humor, he said, quote, it might be heartwarming, but is not going to be very funny, close quote.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: And he's actually capitalizing on this stance. Last year, the UK's Channel 4 announced that it was developing a comedy series with the actor titled John Cleese, Cancel Me.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The channel says it will, quote, set forth into the minefield of cancel culture to explore why a new woke generation is trying to rewrite the rules on what can and can't be said, close quote.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: Now, I recently caught up with Cleese at Freedom Fest, an annual gathering of libertarians in Las Vegas.
--:-- Georgia Howe: I think that the woke ideas are by and large wrong and are the result of young people not really understanding a lot of human psychology.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: They should look at the research that has been done on the effect of overprotective parents a degree of protection which You don't want overprotective parents because it produces very weak and unhappy children.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So Cleese is pointing the finger at parents for the rise of weak and unhappy children.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: And that's what he ties to wokeness.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Right. And Cleese told me he thinks that over the past five decades, America has been in decline.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: America's in crisis. And I'm extraordinarily frightened about what's going to happen to it.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Because when I came here, I thought this was such a smart country. It was so much more intelligent than Britain in the 60s and 70s.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: I was friendlier, it was well organized, and now nothing works very well. Everyone hates everyone.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Now, that's a hard clip to listen to because I think he's pointing to some concerns that a lot of Americans have.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: And apparently, Cleese is actually a longtime California resident, so he's got some experience with this.
--:-- Georgia Howe: What does Cleese think the answer is?
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: Right. It was a poignant conversation about America, and some social science backs him up.
--:-- Georgia Howe: For example, organizations like Pew Research have tracked a marked decline in American social trust in recent decades.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: In terms of solutions, Cleese is a progressive on the economic front, and he said generally that he thinks America's social cohesion is at stake.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The most important thing is that people are at the very least courteous and polite to each other. And at a better level than that are caring for each other.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: And that where you have that, you have happier communities than you do when there's a high degree of individualism.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Cleese didn't bring it up directly, but there's a lot of evidence that Americans' trust in community institutions is low.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: For example, posters with Gallup have found that social trust in major institutions like government, big business, and religious organizations has declined significantly.
--:-- Georgia Howe: So Cleese believes the way to rebuild American society is to rebuild a stronger sense of community.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: Well, an interesting perspective from a famously astute cultural critic.
--:-- Georgia Howe: Carrie, thanks so much for reporting.
--:-- Carrie Sheffield: Thank you.
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--:-- Georgia Howe: Other stories we're tracking this week. The heat wave affecting large parts of the U.S. caused the price of natural gas futures to rise 48 percent as power plants try to keep ACs running.
--:-- John Bickley: Ivana Trump was buried on Wednesday at the Trump National Golf Club Cemetery in Bedminster, New Jersey.
--:-- Georgia Howe: In response to community backlash, Dave Chappelle's stand-up show in Minneapolis was canceled on Thursday, hours before he was set to take the stage.
--:-- John Bickley: Washington, D.C. schools are requiring students 12 and older to be vaccinated against COVID.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The two men involved in the human smuggling incident that left 53 migrants dead in the back of a tractor trailer in San Antonio were indicted on Wednesday.
--:-- John Bickley: If convicted, they could face the death penalty.
--:-- Georgia Howe: A California high school canceled a potential plan to put a planned parenthood clinic on campus after parents protested.
--:-- John Bickley: An art detective recovered a sacred relic that was stolen in early June. Thieves robbed a French monastery of many religious artifacts on June 2nd, including a reliquary that houses lead vials believed to hold Jesus's blood.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The sacred artifact was returned to the detective's doorstep a few weeks after the heist.
--:-- John Bickley: Excavation began on a historic church in Williamsburg, Virginia, where archaeologists anticipate finding over 40 graves.
--:-- Georgia Howe: The Baptist church predates the Revolutionary War, making it one of the oldest black churches in the country.
--:-- John Bickley: Thanks for listening to Morning Wire. We created this show to bring more balance to the national conversation.
--:-- Georgia Howe: If you love our show and you stand with our mission, consider subscribing, leaving us a five-star rating, and most importantly, sharing our podcast with a friend.
--:-- John Bickley: That's all the time we've got this morning. Thanks for waking up with us.
--:-- Georgia Howe: We'll be back tomorrow with the news you need to know.
