The Daily Show: Ears Edition - Day Two of Trump's U.K. Visit & Why Young Americans Love Socialism | Amber Scorah

Episode Date: June 5, 2019

President Trump downplays protests during his U.K. visit, Jaboukie Young-White chats about socialism with Bernie Sanders, and Amber Scorah discusses "Leaving the Witness." Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

You're listening to Comedy Central. Finding great candidates to hire can be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. You might get a lot of resumes, but not enough candidates with the right skills or experience. But not with Zip Recruiter. Zip Recruiter finds amazing candidates for you fast. And right now you can try it for free at Zip Recruiter's smart technology identifies top talent for your roles quickly. Immediately after you post your job, Zip Recruiters' powerful matching technology starts showing you qualified people for it, and you can use Zip Recruiter's pre-written invite to apply

message to personally reach out to your favorite candidates and encourage them to apply sooner. Ditch the other hiring sites and let Zip Recruiter find what you're looking for, the needle in the haystack. Four out of five employers who post on Zip Recruiter get a quality candidate within the first day. Try it for free at this exclusive web address. Zip Recruiter. the smartest way to hire. Hey everybody, John Stewart here.

I am here to tell you about my new podcast, the weekly show.. It it it. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. to to the. to to to to to to to to to the. the. to to to to the, the, the th, th, th, th, the th, the th, the the th, the th, the the the the the the the th. th. the th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the. the. the. the. the. the. the. the the the the the the the the t ti ti ti ti. ti. ti. the the the the the the the the the the the smartest way to hire. Hey everybody, John Stewart here. I am here to tell you about my new podcast, The Weekly Show. It's going to be coming out every Thursday. So exciting. You'll be saying to yourself, TGID. Thank God it's Thursday. We're going to be talking about. All the things that hopefully obsess you in the same way that they obsess me. The election. Economics. Earnings calls. What are they talking about on these earnings calls? We're going to be talking

about ingredient to bread ratio on sandwiches. And I know that I listed that fourth, but in importance it's probably second. I know you have a lot of options as far as podcasts go, but how many of them come out on Thursday? I mean, talk about innovative. Listen to the weekly show with John Stewart, wherever you get your podcast. June 4, 2019. From Comedy Central's World News Headquarters in New York, this is the Daily Show Dandy show, everybody. Thank you so much for tuning in. Thank you for coming out.

Oh yeah! Oh yeah! I'm Trevor Noah. Our guest tonight is the author of the new memoir, Leaving The Witnesses. Amber Scora is joining us, everybody. It's going to be a great conversation. Also on tonight's show, Rihanna changes her name. Djibouk Young White learns the truth about socialism,

and President Trump touches the queen. So let's catch up on today's headlines. First things first. Happy Pride month. First things first, happy Pride Month, everybody. Yeah. Happy Pride Month. I love Pride so much. It's so joyful and fun, although I will be honest,

sometimes watching a Pride parade makes me very insecure. I mean, like some of these guys, when they're like, I'm out of the closet, I'm like, God damn, was there a gym in the closet? Why do you look so good? And I'm not being a hater. Like, if anything, I admire their restraint. Because if I look like that, forget Pride Month. I'll be celebrating Pride the to'round.

Yeah. are turning blue I'll be like that's pride. Anyway, everywhere around the world, people are celebrating Pride Month, except for Russia, where they're saying everyone has to cut that shit out. The Rocketman movie seen here was a very different version than when people in Russia got to see. So the movie about Elton John was heavily edited there. Scenes showing homosexual activity and drug use were deleted from the film shown in Russian theaters.

Russian news agencies reported that the distribution company said the scenes were cut to conform with Russian law. Wait, let me get this straight. Russia wants a movie about Elton John, but without the gay parts. Do you also want fast and furious without the cars? Huh? Because then you're just watching a movie about male patent boldness. That's all it is, my friends.

That's all it is. And I'll be honest, Russia. I don't think that this is about you hating parts of Rocketman. I think this is about you hating parts of yourself. Yeah, think about it. Your president rides shirtless on a horse. You love partying in nightclubs, and your capital looks like a magical dildo factory. You're running from yourselves, comrades.

And if you're wondering, if you're wondering, what would Rocketman even look like without homosexuality and drugs? Well, we were able to get our hands on the Russian version, and this is the entire movie. My piano teacher thinks I'm good enough for a scholarship at the Royal Academy of Music. I love vaginas, the feeling inside. Yeah, not as good. All right, moving on to some other news, Rianna. She's recently made news for her successful fashion line. Forbes has just declared her the richest female musician in the world. And now, she's dropped a new video that might be the most surprising release of her career. Riana being unapologetic about how to pronounce her name.

The pop star is once and for all settling the dispute on how to say it. She wants everyone to know it's Riana, not Riana. Hello British book is Riana, and I want to welcome you to Paris where I'm launching the team is home. Riana? What? What? It's like finding out that Beyonce's name is actually pronounced Bay once? Like, what?

And here's the thing, I don't mind if you change your name, but going from Riana to Riana is too small for my brain to remember. No, I feel like a name change has to be big, you know, like going from Puffed Daddy to P. Diddy, I can do that, you know? Or Prince to Symbol, right? Or Rkelly to Correctional Inmate 4725. These are changes I can get behind. But Riana, no. You know what makes it even worse is that she wrote a whole song called What's My Name? That would have been the perfect time to tell us your name. She should have been like,

Rianna, that's my name. Reianna, you're pronouncing it's wrong. And finally, it's graduation season. And a West Virginia high school principal is leaving his graduates with one final lesson, although it's not the lesson he wanted. A high school principal is facing major embarrassment today. He gave a speech at his school's graduation ceremony, which one of his students thought she'd heard the speech before, from of all people, actor Ashton Kutcher.

Be smart, be thoughtful, be generous. Inspiring words from a high school principal at graduation, but one graduate thought the speech sounded a little familiar. It's really three things. The first thing is about opportunity. The first thing is about opportunity. The second thing is about being sexy. The second thing is about being intriguing. And the third thing is about living life. And the third thing is about living life. In conclusion, I love my wife Mila Kunus. Good night. Good night. I got to give this principal credit though. At least th. At th. At th. At th. At th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi. thi, th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the. the. the. the. theee. the. the. thee. the. the. the. thi. the. the., everybody. Good night. I've got to give this principal credit, though.

At least he changed sexy to intriguing. I like that. Yeah, because even he knew it would have been awkward if he was like, congratulations, class of 2019. Stay bangable. Blahbubbr. So, yeah. He's still hashed in quittlion. Here's the thing about the story that I find intriguing, and by that I mean sexy.

He could have picked Martin Luther King Jr., or Nelson Mandela or Eleanor Roosevelt, but of all the speeches he stole, Ashton Kutcher from the 2013 Teens Choice Awards? Like, now it makes me wonder if he does this every year. Maybe he only steals from award shows. Like maybe last year he was like, students, I'm a let you finish, but Bay once had the greatest video of all time. All right, that's it for the headlines. Let's move on to our top story.

Today was day two of President Trump's visits to the UK. And last night, the UK. And last night, the world's cutest White Walker, Her Majesty the Queen, hosted an official state dinner in honor of Trump's favorite thing, himself. The President's first day, ending in grand fashion, with a dinner at Buckingham Palace, surrounded by royalty. The very best China, crystal and gilded silver on display for the President and 170 other guests.

The President praising the Queen. A great, great woman. But possibly breaking Royal Protocol when appearing to touch her back as she stood up. When he put his hand on the back of Her Majesty Queen, you just don't toucest the Queen. That's right, you just don't don't to to to touch to touch to touch to touch to touch to touch to touch to touch to touch don't to touch don't to touch don't to touch don't touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch touch the qoe the Queen he put his hand on the back of her majesty Queen, as well, you just don't touch the Queen. That's right, you just don't touch the Queen. You don't touch the Queen! These people need to calm the fuck down, right? Donald was just being nice.

If Trump really wanted to break protocol, I don't think he'd be touching the Queen's back. Guys need to calm down. Plus, I think England takes it too far with the whole breaking protocol of the Queen thing. Like, there's so many different rules, random rules about being around royalty. Like, for instance, did you guys know that you're not allowed to turn your back on the queen? Yeah. That's crazy. So everyone is just like backing up, their like bumping into statues on the way out. It almost makes it seem like the queen is a grizzly bear or something. Just if you turn your back to her, she'll attack, all right? Also, don't leave any garbage around.

She'll get into it. Here's one of the crazier ones. There's a rule that asking the Queen personal questions is strictly forbidden. Yeah. Which I bet they only put in place because otherwise someone might look at the Queen and just be like, what exactly do you do here anyway? Like, why am I paying taxes for you to live in a palace? So look, man, I don't think Trump touching the Queen was offensive.

What was offensive was Trump's outfit for the big dinner? I mean, people, what's with this tuxedo? How can a man have access to the nuclear codes but not a tailor? Huh? What is this? What is that? What is that? Like, I knew Robert Pattinson was picked to be the new Batman, but now I guess we also know who's going to play the penguin.

What is that outfit? And while Trump spent the evening being embraced by the royal family, there was a whole different kind of party going on outside the next day. This morning across London, large protests against a president who's deeply unpopular here. Thousands spilling into the streets of London. Some Brits are making clear their dislike of him. The giant side-by-side projection of his and former President Barack Obama's UK approval

ratings or the USS McCain hat. We saw a return of the so-called baby Blimp Trump. That's a large version of Donald Trump, an inflatable one of him in a diaper. Oh wow. Man, British protesters are no joke. Tens of thousands protesting Trump, and this was in the rain,

which I know to them is a summer day, but that's not the point. And you know what's really interesting about Britain is that even conservative British people don't like Trump. It's really strange. I'm talking about like pro-Brexit people who share many of his views. They'll be like, there's too many bloody immigrants. It's time to shut down our borders. And you be like, so you guys like Trump? Oh God, no, not him, not him. He's the worst immigrants of all. Now obviously British protesters are taking to the streets to make Trump feel unwelcome in the UK, but for Trump, protests are like Eric.

He just pretends they don't exist. As you hold talks with the current Prime Minister, the leader of her Majesty's opposition has been addressed in a protest rally against your visit in Trafalgar Square. As far as the protests, I have to tell you, even coming over today, there were thousands of people cheering. And then I heard that there were protests. I said, where are the protests? I don't see any protests.

I did see a small protest when I came, very small. So a lot of it is fake news. Oh, man. Oh man. Trump is thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, thu, thi, thu. thu. thi, thi, tho-a, tho-a, tho-a, tho-a, tho-a, tho-a, tho-a, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, thu. thu. thu. th. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thu. thr. thr. thr. thr. thr. throa. throa. tha. tha. tha. throa. throa. thr huh? Because he doesn't go with one excuse. He gives you all of them, and you can pick which one you like best. Huh? He's like, the people were cheering. I see no protest.

I saw a small protest, but it was a fake protest. And I didn't see it. I didn't see it. I didn't see it. Now, contrary to what the president said said, to what to what to what to what to to to to to to to to to to to to to the president the president the president the president the president the president the president the president the president the president to the president the president to the the to the to the to to the the the the the to to the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the. the. the the the the. the. the the the the. the the the the. the the th. th. th. t. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. t. to. the. the. t. to what the president said, the protests were not small, okay? It's estimated that tens of thousands of people marched in the streets, which is not small. Like, how does Trump always get this wrong? All right?

First, his inauguration and now this, it's almost like Trump is dyslexic, but just for crowd sizes, and also for words. And here's the thing, people in the UK the UK the UK the UK the UK the UK the UK the UK the UK the UK the UK the UK the UK the UK the the the the the the the the the the the thiukeukeckckckcke, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, thi, tha, tha, tha, tha, tha, tha, tha, tha, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t, t. tha, tha, tha, te, te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te.e. te. te.e. te. te. te. te. t's the thing. People in the UK weren't just protesting because they hate Trump. They're also against a potential UK-US trade deal which would bring American insurers into Britain's health care system, which they don't want. And so today, President Trump was asked about this in a press conference,

and his answer wasn't exactly reassuring. Do you agree with your ambassador that the entire economy needs to be on the table in a future trade talk, a trade deal, including the NHS? I think we're going to have a great trade deal, yes. I think we're going to have a great and very comprehensive trade deal. With the NHS, should the NHS be on the table? I can't hear him, what? It's the National Health Service. He says, should the National Health Service be on the table? Look, I think everything with the trade deal is on the table. When you're dealing on trade, everything's on the table.

So, NHS or anything else, there's a lot more than that. But everything will be on the table. Okay. Obviously Trump has no clue what they're talking about. And he's doing a good job of hiding it. It's just like, look, everything's on the table. NHS, NHL, DTF, all on the table. It's all there, all there, all on the table. I mean, Teresa May had to straight up give him the answer.

In fact, now that she's leaving office, maybe that could be her next job. Yeah, just standing next to President Trump, wherever he goes, explaining shit to him, you know? Just be like, the G7 is an alliance of international superpowers. That woman is the prime minister of New Zealand. That's a salad. Yes. It's made of vegetables. Vegetables, what are those? You know McDonald's fries? Yeah, I love those. It's the before. So the mommy of the f the f the f the f the f the f the f the f f f f f f f f f f f f the the the the th the th. th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. the th. the th. the th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the g. the g. the g. th. the g. the g. the th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's the. It's the the. It's th. It's th. It's th. It's the the the the toe. the the the the th. the the the the th. the the th. It's the th know McDonald's fries? Yeah, I love those. It's the before.

So the mommy of the fries, yes, it's the mommy of the fries. Wow, I love it. We'll be right back. Finding great candidates to hire can be like trying to find a needle in a haystack. You might get a lot of resumes, but not enough candidates with the right skills or experience. But not with Zip Recruiter. Zip Recruiter finds amazing candidates for you fast. And right now you can try it for free at zip recruruiter.com. Sliprecruiter's smart technology identifies top talent for your roles quickly. Immediately after you post your job, zip recruiter's powerful matching technology starts showing

you qualified people for it. And you can use zip recruiters pre-written invite to apply message to personally reach out to your favorite candidates and encourage them to apply sooner. Ditch the other hiring sites and let Zip Recruiter find what you're looking for, the needle in the haystack. Four out of five employers who post on Zip Recruiter get a quality candidate within the first day. Try it for free at this exclusive web address, Zip Recruiter. Again, that's Zip Recruiter.com. Zip Recruiter, the smartest way to hire. Hey, everybody, John Stewart here. I am here to tell you about my new podcast, the weekly

show coming out every Thursday. We're going to be talking about the election earnings calls. What are they talking about on these earnings calls? We're going to be talking about ingredient to bread ratio on sandwiches. I know you have a lot of options as far as podcasts go, but how many of them come out on Thursday? Listen to the weekly show with having a moment in American politics right now. And that's freaking a lot of people out. So we sent our newest correspondent, Djibuki Young White, to find out why. For years, grumpy old white dudes have been telling us that socialism is total bullshit. Socialism leads to decline and ruin. This system crushes human souls. But as the Daily Show's new

senior youth correspondent, I know that millennials right now think socialism is totally on trend. I pop Somali and hit the street to find out why even though the olds hated, the kids love socialism. I think socialism is great. I think you should definitely help whoever you could at any situation. I f-foo socialism just because I f-foo anything that's helping black people out. Okay. So you're socialism curious? Yeah, little.

I'm in college. Right. Do you hate billionaires? Lo-key, yeah? You look at Jeff Bezos. I mean, I think the idea of socialism is on point. I mean, I don't really know what socialism means. To be completely honest with you,

oh, it's okay, we're all confused. If there are only someone we could talk to, someone with some deep experience on the subject. When I started doing this sort of piece on socialism, I knew that there was really only one politician who I can talk about it. So I guess my question is do you know AOC? Sure. And what's her availability like if you could put us in touch? Maybe. But you want to speak to her? Yeah maybe. Oh well I just figured you know. Seriously you can't talk socialism in America without going to the O.G. Senator Bernie Sanders. I believe in a society where all people do well not just a handful a billionaires. Could he be the oldest millennial in America?

You know that capitalism has given us a bunch of really dope things, right? iPhones, cars, hamburgers, the Avengers movies, the opioid crisis. So why are young people, like myself, very open to socialism? Your generation, the younger generation, will in all likelihood, have a lower standard of living than your parents. Your generation is leaving school more deeply in debt, having a much harder time finding affordable housing. The jobs that you get will pay less so the idea of creating a society with more egalitarianism so I think is very appealing to young people. Okay, shh, shh, shh, shh, shh. Yeah, I feel the burn.

I see what you're talking about now. I admit it, Democratic Socialism looks pretty fine on his tinder profile. But are we going to vibe when we meet IRL? If you go to countries like Denmark or Sweden, you're going to see very little poverty. You could leave your job, you could start a new business. You and your family their their their their their their their thia thi, yeah, yeah, thi, yeah, I I I thi, yeah, I thi, yeah, I thi, yeah, I thi, I thi, I could thi, I could thi, yeah, I could could their, I could thi, yeah, I thi, I feel, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'll, I'll, I', I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I. I, I. I, I, I. I. I, I. I, I. You could leave your job. You could start a new business. You and your family still have health care as a right. So I could quit the Daily Show and be fine. Absolutely.

Well, it was a great meeting with you. Ha ha ha ha. So under President Bernie, we'd be more European, like Denmark or Narnia. But try telling that to the haters. It's a terrible system. It's never worked. And in order for it to work at all, you've got to kill several million people to make it work. Carol Markowitz has written on why socialism needs to be canceled forever, period. Millennials have been raised in such prosperous times. They just think that, oh, we can make it even better with this insane plan to share the resources.

You know, I would love capitalism if it just weren't for all the sick people and all the poor people who can't afford health care. Is there a way for me to enjoy capitalism without those things? If the solution is socialism, it's going to make us all equal in our poverty. But if everyone is poor, isn't that kind of cool? Because we're all experiencing the same things. It'll be like, hey, the breadline was extra long today. And I'd be like, oh my god, yeah, it was. That guy is super observant and, like, funny. Not so much, no.

I was born in the Soviet Union. My great-grandfather was was was was was was was was killed was killed was killed was killed was killed in a gulag because he owned a business and socialists decided that was no longer legal. That's truly horrific. Would Bernie be sending small business owners to force to labor camps? Obviously Soviet Union was in authoritarian society with no democratic rights and I think if you know history you'll know the democratic socialists stood up and fought against that. You can look about what existed in the Soviet Union or in Venezuela. That is not what I'm talking about at all. So no one's going to the gulag.

Well, except... No. Okay. are not socialist democracies, but authoritarian states, led by corrupt, ruthless, and paranoid dictators. But I do have one real problem with socialism. I like money. You know, TV's going kind of good for me right now, and I'm thinking of writing a successful book. Is socialism still for me if I'm a millennial millionaire?

I made it depends on what's your heart. If what you say in your life is all I want to do is make as much money as I possibly can. And screw everything else. I don't give a damn... Yeah, no, I don't think democratic socialism is your cup of tea. But if you have a decent heart and you say, look, I'm doing really well. But you know what? I also want to be a contributor to the well being of society.

So I'm liking the socialism thing more and more. Chibuki Young White everyone, we'll be right back. Welcome back to the Daily Show. My guest tonight is a third generation Jehovah's Witness who takes us inside the faith in her memoir called Leaving The Witness, exiting a religion and finding a life. Please welcome, Amber Scora. Welcome to the show. Thank you. So happy to be here.

You've written an intriguing book that takes us on a journey through your life. You know, it starts off in a place that many people are familiar with. Growing up in a very religious household as a Jehovah's Witness. Now, people may not be familiar with that part as the religion, but everyone's grown up, or many people have grown up religious, and you begin this journey that slowly changes over time. Let's start with that part before we really reveal where your journey takes you. What is it like to be a Jehovah the? I mean, because we laugh from the outside. I know you do. No, no, really. I've heard the joke. Yes, people are just, you know what I mean? The knocking on the doors and the people, like, like the, like as a Jehovah's Witness. Did you know about that, or were you completely oblivious? I thi. thi. the they, were, were, were, were, were, were, were, they. th. th. th. th. th. th. they. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, thi. I they. I tho, tho, tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I tho, I the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I thr. I thr. I thr. I thr. thr. tho. tho. th too. th too. too. too. th th tooooooo. th thooooo. I tho. tho. tho. thhovah's Witness. Every time, if in a movie, there was a joke about a Jehovah's Witness or in a comedy show, we kind of liked it

because it kind of, we would laugh along with it and it was like, at least we were getting some attention. Maybe it was a way of being in the world because we lived kind of cut off from the world in our own way. Interesting. But you know, Prince was a, happened. Oh, that's an interesting one. Yeah. There's a part of the book that I really enjoy. It's early on where you talk about how you would go to these houses and you would knock on people's doors and some of these neighborhoods were really rich and fancy and some people would cuss you out. Some people would

threaten you and tell you leave. Other people wouldn't answer but the the book where you say I would come back the next year and I would I I I I I I I would the the the the the the I would the the I would the the. And I would the the. And I would the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the their. their their the the the th. the. the. the. th. And th. And th. And th. And some th. And some th. And some th. And some th. And some th. And some th. And some th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And. And. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. And th. the. th. they. they. the. the. the. the. the. the. they should be dead by now. Was that a was that a weird moment for you or did you just push it to the back of your head? I mean I guess it was we had been taught from being very young that the world was going to end any day like in our children's books there was centerfold spreads artists' conceptions of what Armageddon would look like we were just little kids th. the the the their their their just their just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just just their just their just their just their just their just their just their just their just their just their just their just there are pictures of like fire coming down from heaven, wiping out all the people, basically all of you, no offense. So yeah, I think it was something that was constantly on our mind and that's why we lived the way that we did because we thought the world was ending. I mean, why do you think we spent so much time preaching? It's right. It wasn't that much fun. Yeah, we believe. And there was a certain smugness, you know, like where we felt like we had the truth

and we were sharing with people and if they didn't listen, well, too bad. You truly believed in a way that I find admirable because in the book you talk about how you left America and moved to China to preach and to be a missionary. And China, for those who don't know is one of the country's way it's illegal to do, because, because, because, because, because, because, because, th, th, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, the, and, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, th, the, th, the, the, thi, thi, thi, true, true, true, true, true, true, true, true, true, truly, thi, thi, thi, the, the of the countries where it's illegal to do that. You're not allowed to preach religion's people, you're not allowed to be a missionary. So that like takes a real level of belief. Why China and why would you take that risk? I think that there was probably, I mean I had been raised as a Jehovah's Witness, so I did fully believe it. mind were pure that I thought I was saving people's, sorry, I thought I was saving people people's lives. Right. But I think also there was probably some latent thing in me where I wanted an adventure.

Because when you're a Jehovah's Witness, as most of you probably know, a lot of people don't open their door. Yes, we know. We know. You know, slam the doors. And so, you know, that gets gets that gets that gets gets gets, that gets, that gets, that gets, that gets, that gets, that gets, that gets, that gets, the little, that gets, the little, that gets, the little, the little, the little, the little, the little, the little, the little, the little, the little, the little, the little, the little, the little, the little, the little, the little, the the the the their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, they....................................................... I think that that was part of it too. And you know if you went to a country where no one had ever preached before it feels like fresh territory. It's like you got new blood. Right. It's an interesting world that you take us into. What's really beautiful though is when you start witnessing the change is because you go out to be a missionary to these people out there to tell them about being a Jehovah's Witness. And in a strange way, it's almost like they start converting you because you meet people

who tell you about the world, you meet people who show you a different perspective. And that started to shift your views on religion, in what way? Yeah, that's exactly what happened in that. I think when I was at home, well, first of all, I didn't get that far. I didn't really, you know, come to the point where someone would sit down and listen to me and, you know, listen to me, go through our books and study with them in my hometown. But in China, more people would listen to what I had to say. And I think being in a different language and a different culture, I learned Mandarin, learning that language, it's not just like a language where you can just translate from English.

You really have to kind of excavate your mind and change the way you think in order to speak it. But also, there was the strange side effect of being in this country where, as we all know, there's not a lot of freedom. But for a Jehovah's Witness in China, there was a lot of freedom. witness in China there was a lot of freedom because the organization anywhere else in the world is very structured and quite insular and you have a lot of meetings and preaching that you do and in China because the work is done

secretly under you know it's under ban there suddenly I just had a lot more freedom and time on my own and also the opportunity to meet people and to talk more deeply with them right people who weren't Jehovah's Witnesses. Honestly, I don't pass judgment because, as I say, many of us have grown up extremely religiously. And those levels of religion are defined across religions. You know, some people would label Jehovah's Witnesses a cult. They would say it's completely a cult. Others would argue that any religion can become a cult depending on how you practice it.

When you look at your life now, you left the religion. And one of the hardest parts of leaving the religion was how you were cut off from your family and your society. It feels like that in of itself, it lends itself more to being culti than other mainstream religions in a way. Like, what was that like for you? Yeah, I think there's a scene in the book where one of the characters tells me I'm in a cult, and I react very strongly.

I felt really angry and I was adamant that that wasn't true. Does anyone who's in a cult ever know they're an cult? That's, you know, I don't think they do. Except the leader, hopefully. Yeah, maybe. But it was when I started to have doubts and questions and started to leave. I think when you try to leave a group and then strange things start happening, that can be when it starts to occur to you that maybe you might have been a cult way. Yeah. So for example, as you said, if you're, you know, I wasn't like I was ranting and raving or about it. I wasn't like like like like like like like in like in like in like in the church like in the church like in the church like in the church, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, you, you, you, you, like, like, like, like, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, you, to, to, to, to have, to have, to, to, their, their, their, their, their, their, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, you, you, like, you, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, like, a cult way. So, for example, as you said, if you're, you know, I wasn't like I was ranting and raving or about it. I wasn't like in the church being like, this is wrong,

but I mentioned a couple things, maybe some doubts that I had had, and very quickly, my community just shed me as a person. And that's quite a big thing for people who have been taught to build their their their their their their their their to build their to build their life around the community. So that felt strange. And then I think the further, you know, I got one step away after that happened, and the further I got away from it, I would start to see other things, examine other things like the different beliefs that they have, and whether they cause harm, whether they cause harm. I think that's a good gauge their religion, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, I'm, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, I'm, their, their, I'm............. their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their.... I their. I their. I their, their, their, their, their...... I their. I. I. I. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. I'm. th. tha. tha. to. to. to. the. the. the. the. the. the. th. th. the. their. their. tha. their., could be a cause for harm. So for example, Jehovah's Witnesses don't believe in taking blood transfusions,

even if it saves your life. And so that's caused thousands of deaths. So that's, when I started to think about that more, with a little bit of distance, it started to me feel like, it's not that much different than drinking Koolade. So there's little signs along the way that starts to make me feel that it was a group that was not really a positive, didn't have a really positive effect. Right.

When we look at this journey, you are traveling into a religion, through a religion and then out of the religion. The one question I always have for people is, what do you then replace that with in your life? Because I mean religion is such a big part of your world if you are deeply religious. Where have you turned to since then? I mean you talk in the book about suffering tragic loss, you know you lost a child. Many people would lean on religion in those moments. What have you now turned to in your life to replace that stability? Yeah I think that when we go through th th tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho tho thu thu thu thu thu thu thu thu thu thu thu tho thu to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to the the the the the the the the the the the the their their their their their their their their their their their the their their their their to. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. te. toe. toe. that when we go through difficult times or tragedies, the impulse, there's some instinct in us as humans is to

look outward to try and look for something to absolve or like to heal the pain and when you no longer believe, for me it wasn't a choice to believe the try and then kind of like just, scales fell from my eyes to use a biblical term, and then didn't, it wasn't possible for me to just get returned and believe something again. So I think the big thing that comes to mind is that when I was in the religion, I felt like I had the answers to every question, like anything, why do we die? Why is they're suffering?

And then that felt really meaningful? But when you leave the religion the thiiiiiiiiii that that that that that that that that that that thi thi the the the the the the the the, I the, I the, I the, I the, I the, that the, I the, the the the the the the the the the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, thtrue, well if an answer isn't true then it's not meaningful. So basically when you have some future hope that you no longer believe in, what do you have? You don't have a fictional future in front of you, you have what's in front of you now. And for me just being present in the world and knowing that now my life is finite, it's not going to go on forever. It's kind of made me see the world as a more like the beauty in the world. And even in not having all the answers, I think there's a lot of magic. There's a lot of mystery that we can't know right now, but that can be something that's really meaningful and interesting to consider. Right. And as far as when my son died, the thing with, you know, when we do look at the world, there's also pain, there's no denying that. But even I think that the pain that

of course I carry with me due to the loss of my son, the flip side of it, of that grief is the depth of the love that I had for him. And so to me I think when I consider that love of the mother and the child the child the child the child the child the child thruuuuill. thi thi thi thi that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that that I that I that I that I that I that I that I that I that I that I thi. thin. thin. the the the the the the the the the the the the the toda.a.a.a.a theeeateateate. that that that that that that that that that and the child, it really is a transcendent love. And I experience that love without religion. So to me, I think that life just has meaning inherently. It's just that I've treated in maybe the future for the now. It's a beautiful journey and it's a really powerful book with some wonderful insights. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. Thank you so much.

Thank you so much. The Daily Show with Covernoa, Ears Edition. Watch the Daily Show weeknights at 11, 10 Central on Comedy Central and the Comedy Central Act. Watch full episodes and videos at the Daily Show. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and subscribe to the Daily Show.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and subscribe to the Daily Show on YouTube for exclusive content and more. This has been a Comedy Central Podcast. John Stewart here. Unbelievably exciting news. My new podcast, The Weekly Show. We're going to be talking about the election, economics, ingredient to bread

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