A WORLD GONE MAD
A Progressive Liberal News Podcast
Veteran Television, and Radio Broadcaster Jeff Alan Wolf offers his Observations on the issues (many issues) of the week with a fearless liberal bent. His solid delivery, and dry common sense approach sets him apart from other liberals that populate Talk and Commentary Podcasts”
Jeff Does NOT Pull Punches.
He does NOT Make comments that are “SAFE”.
He tells the Truth.
(He Tells It As He Sees It)
He Is Very OPINIONATED!
He says the things Out Loud YOU’RE
already thinking.
Jeff is Unfiltered, Unspun, A little Unhinged, but offers a lot of Common Sense.
This Podcast could make you MAD.
This Podcast could make you SMILE.
Regardless, it WILL make you THINK!
A WORLD GONE MAD
Why People Are Fearful About Trump?, My Listeners Give Their Comments
Fear has a face, and for many Americans, it's wearing a political mask. As my listeners share their raw, unfiltered experiences following Trump's return to office, a tapestry of anxiety emerges that extends far beyond policy disagreements into the fabric of everyday life.
Through powerful testimonials collected from my podcast listeners, I uncover the real-world impacts of our divided political landscape.
One listener worries about skyrocketing utility bills due to natural gas export policies, while another lives in daily fear of losing benefits as she watches "peaceful people rounded up and deported without due process." These aren't abstract concerns – they're the lived realities reshaping how Americans view their future and security.
Perhaps most heartbreaking are the fractured relationships left in the wake of political division. One listener can no longer discuss politics with her adult children, creating a painful family rift. Another has lost contact with her sister-in-law entirely. Across the country, holiday tables will sit half-empty as politics determines who remains in our inner circles. Never in the history of our country has there been such a divisive person like Trump!!
The psychological toll is equally concerning. One of my listeners admits "the daily chaos is bad for my mental health," while yet another experiences what she describes as "daily emotional trauma." These emotional wounds reflect a deeper national anxiety about the direction of democracy itself, with concerns ranging from local issues to global stability – as our international listeners remind us that American politics creates ripple effects worldwide.
Even those standing up against political extremism face difficult choices, as demonstrated by a Democratic Facebook group administrator who, despite supporting my podcast's message, feared association with me might jeopardize his entire group. When fear silences even allies, what hope remains for honest dialogue?
What's happening in YOUR life as political tensions rise?
Call 833-399-9653 my voice mailbox, or email aworldgonemadpodcast@gmail.com to share your story.
Subscribe and comment on Apple and Spotify to join this vital conversation about healing our divided nation.
AWorldGoneMadPodcast@gmail.com
This is a world gone mad. This is a world gone mad, mad, mad, mad, mad. It's another day in a world gone mad. I'm Jeff Allen Wolfe and I'm back again to give my commentary on the news. Thank you for joining me. Okay, here we go.
Speaker 1:Apprehension kept off balance, fear All of these emotions I'm finding from some of the listeners of my podcast, and it's understandable. Of course. I'm not putting anyone down for feeling any of this by any stretch of the imagination. A lot of people feel like they've been punched in the face or the gut. They are concerned for themselves and their family members because of Donald, the delusional dictator. I'm going to share with you what some of the listeners have shared with me on what they're feeling and what they're going through. After I asked all of them a question, I also want to give you another example about fear and feeling lost because of Donald Trump.
Speaker 1:There is an administrator of a Democratic Facebook group that I know because I'm a fellow administrator of my own Facebook group. Now this particular person with his Facebook group was letting me post my links for my podcast to his members, and this happened to me today, and here's what this person texted to me. Let's call him Mark. That's not his real name and this is verbatim from Mark. I'm sharing this with you to show you how scared people are about being involved with other Democrats who are standing up against Donald, like I am. This is what Mark texted me.
Speaker 1:Jeff, our group is a private Facebook group and I think your work, your podcast, would get better coverage in other ways than in my Facebook group. I appreciate you and the work you're doing. When Facebook has removed you for obvious reasons that it might jeopardize the group and my group could be shut down if I continue to post for you when they have, for whatever reason, shut you down. There are potential legal and ethical questions I have. Mark continues All the best with your work. I still support you, but I think it's better for you to find other ways than Facebook, such as blogs, public speaking for groups, television, radio, etc. Signed Mark Fear. Our Facebook group could be shut down if I continue to post for you when Facebook, for whatever reason, shut you down. For whatever reason they shut me down. Seriously, mark, I'm standing up and speaking out against Donald the Delusional and his lunatic supporters. That's why Facebook blocked me.
Speaker 1:Mark is scared of being guilty by association. This is what we've come to everyone Disarray among fellow Democrats, scrambling to find a foothold and throwing other fellow Democrats under the bus. We are in a sad state of affairs when we say, hey, jeff, go do what you're doing. Affairs when we say, hey, jeff, go do what you're doing. I support you, but I just don't want anybody to know I support you because you know I don't want to get into any trouble from others by supporting you. Yes, that's actually what was said to me this morning from Mark, from that other Facebook group.
Speaker 1:So people are jumping the ship, you know, leaving the leadership role, and they're standing up for what they claim they believe in, such as democracy and free speech. They believe in it. They just don't want to get hurt by being noticed, and in this case, by Facebook, according to Mark. And what happens because of this action? Republicans win. Republicans love what's going on.
Speaker 1:All of us Democrats like chickens with our heads cut off, scared and running for cover because, god forbid, we stand up for what we believe in in this country, in democracy and freedom of speech. Love it, jeff. Pat on the back, keep doing it, do what you're doing, but I don't want people to know why I'm part of your team or helping you in any way whatsoever. I don't want to get hurt by being associated with you. A lot of us are giving in and giving up, and I promise you that is not the way to do things. Let's all stand by our convictions and not dump on each other as Democrats or people who are against Donald. We need to be strong together. Okay, I promised you I was going to tell you what people's thoughts were to a question I asked them in my Facebook group. So I asked members of my Facebook group the following question how has Trump being back in office again directly affected you and your family? Please elaborate with your answer and I'll share these thoughts with you. Kate gave me her thoughts Already.
Speaker 1:High electric bills that could get expensive is paying rent in the not so distant future due to the orange skid mark in America's underwear. Deciding to lift the export limits on LNG natural gas exports when Biden was in office, she says he knew that unlimited LNG exports would cause electricity to continue to skyrocket, so he imposed a limit on LNG exports. The natural gas industry, she continues, would much rather sell LNG to the EU countries since the Russian invasion of Ukraine than to the US, since the EU countries are willing to pay double what we pay. To make matters worse, we have an expected demand increase of 4%, which isn't much but will add to the already low supply. The natural gas industry, she continues, isn't working on bringing back our supply to where it was before the Russian war, because higher profits selling it abroad happens, as we all know. Low supply plus high demand equals higher prices, which means higher natural gas bills and higher electric bills, since natural gas is used to make electricity. To make matters worse, kate continues, the orange skid mark decided to reverse the solar tax credits in his big ugly bill, which means people who are planning to get solar installed will have to get it done by September or October of this year at the latest, to have it operational by December to take the 30% tax credit. These solar credits and there was others I believe were supposed to be in place until 2032. Trump said no. This will be a huge blow to the solar industry. So some very deep concerns from Kate, and it shows you how one person like Donald can affect people's thinking and safety and security, because people understand that Donald is dangerous.
Speaker 1:Here's another member who responded to my question. Elizabeth's concerns are the following. I live in fear of losing my benefits daily. I watch our democracy disappear daily as peaceful people are rounded up and deported to other countries without their due process. I see a madman take a chainsaw to agencies without any regards to the harm he may cause. He in fact says empathy is the downfall of our country. I see all my private information and data collected by hackers. Now I hear that they're consolidating all that hacked data into one massive program. For what purpose? Elizabeth continues Republicans screamed deep state for most of the past eight years. Why aren't they understanding this is a deep state move? Her thoughts show the palpable concern A lot of us have about the policies from the Trump administration. No rhyme or reason, just things being decided to affect all of us in a negative way. Here's another response from Renatus. That's nothing. We in Asia live under the fear of an international economic crisis and possibly World War III, with Trump enabling it. This is not localized people to the United States. These feelings that Renatus is bringing up of fear are global because of Trump. She fears it affecting her, which means beyond our borders, worldwide, and the threat of World War III is front and center in her mind.
Speaker 1:Another response from my member Dee. It feels like daily emotional trauma to me. Dee says Just the chaos and seeing people attacked and, you know, drug into vehicles by masked men. The way they're doing it actually makes it easier for kidnappers to get away with it, who are not even ICE, let alone the horror of it being ICE in the first place. Just knowing that every institution is under attack, dee says, and all so that billionaires become wealthier. I'm wondering if Medicare will still pay for appointments as it has, and sorry for children that will be cut off from their medical care, who need it so desperately. She continues, and every day wondering what horror will be brought to our attention next.
Speaker 1:Dee concludes Fox News and Newsmax make me furious with their never-ending propaganda. So D not only do we have to deal with the lies from Donald the dictator, but the ridiculous press such as Fox and Newsmax reinforcing and promoting Donald's beliefs. And the answers kept coming, listeners, this one from Vicky. It literally is breaking my heart to see what he is doing and seeing people I love blind to it due to the right-wing media lying daily. There should be a way to reinstate truth in broadcasting so that people can trust what is being said. Vicki concludes higher prices, lower morals and the trauma of seeing people drug off the streets hurt me personally to the soul. I feel for what Vicki's saying. It hurts to the very bone. I understand that and as far as reinstating truth in broadcasting, I'm doing the best I can with my podcast.
Speaker 1:This following comment gets to the core of things. This is from Teresa. She says the daily chaos is bad for my mental health. My husband voted for Trump and now is in danger of losing his job. You know a lot of us are feeling what she's feeling. You know a lot of us are feeling what she's feeling. We're feeling it physically, emotionally and mentally because of Donald not caring one iota for this country. She brings out how people had supported Trump by voting for him and now themselves are in danger from feeling the ramifications from him and, in her case, with her husband losing his job.
Speaker 1:And a comment from a man Thank you, doug. He says. As an aging gay man, I fear that all of the progress mates in Stonewall will be wiped out in an instant. The radical right agenda, fueled by a flagrant misunderstanding of Christianity, is to wipe out all non-hetero, non-white, non-males and females who will not obey them. Secondly, doug continues I fear that the crumbling of the rule of law will lead to lawlessness on a larger and much more violent scale. I pray daily that God will powerfully move the heart of the dictator wannabe into full-blown cardiac arrest. Doug, I agree with you Lawlessness. How can we trust that, if we locally have an issue, that the police will come to our aid in our community and not base their decision on our color or sexual orientation or anything else like the way we look or who we voted for?
Speaker 1:The answers kept coming to me from my members and you could hear the hurt, pain and fear in everyone's response. Here's a handful more okay from Sandra. Sandra, I have strong feelings about what he is doing. I cannot discuss this with any of my three grown children. They know how I feel and I know how they feel. So it is a strain on our family. I failed to reach them in their younger learning years as I was too busy making a living, she says, and overseeing a household. Sandra concludes I really didn't care so much until Trump stepped into the picture and started destroying our democracy.
Speaker 1:Sandra, how much does this ring true for the rest of us? We're family, our family are being affected. Family members taking the side of Donald and some family members siding with us, a total disconnect with some of the people we love. Lori commented political disagreements have fractured family ties. How true that comment is, lori. You're coming off a place from the previous comment. See the theme people, family ties. We don't talk to people. We can't go to holiday events or other happenings because we're afraid that if we say anything it would trigger an argument amongst each other. This never used to be like that. Everyone I'm not talking about squabbles among family members. I'm talking about conflagrations with people during the holidays, because they're them and we're us. They love Trump, we don't. It's sad.
Speaker 1:And finally, the last response from Susan and her replying to the question I asked how does Donald, what did he do to affect you and your family or what will happen in the future? Do you fear? Susan restates what Lori and previously before the comment was. Susan says I've lost close friends and I'm no longer in contact with my sister-in-law. Susan. Same thing going throughout Every time I come across this. That's the biggest issue Losing close friends and family ties. I, susan, no longer talk with my half-sister and some friends who are no longer in my circle because of their belief in Donald and they think that what's happening is okay. It is not. Never has there been such a divisive person such as Donald Trump in our country. That's a fact. Okay, everyone, your comments, your feedback. What is your answer to the question I asked them? What is Donald doing that hurts you and your family? Or for the future, what are you worried about that has already happened to you or may happen very shortly.
Speaker 1:833-399-9653. 24-7 toll-free voicemail system in North America and Canada. No one's picking up, it's just a mailbox. Okay, I'm going to give you the email, but I'm going to go back to the old email because the new one I created does not work for some reason. Somehow it was corrupted, so sorry to jump you around, everyone. Expect emails from a world gone mad podcast at gmailcom and you could reply to a world gone mad podcast at gmailcom. Let's hear from you, the listener. These are important issues in our country today and being silent is not the answer and your silence does not help at all.
Speaker 1:Also, check out the new, reinvigorated Facebook group. I'm trying again, even everything that I have going against me about Facebook. It's called A World Gone Mad. Some of you are on there, fine. Some of you have never joined. Check it out. Look it up. A World me about Facebook. It's called A World Gone Mad. Some of you are on there, fine. Some of you have never joined. Check it out. Look it up A World Gone Mad Facebook. If you need a direct link, email me, I will send it to you. We have a great group and we just picked up 160 members in the last 24 hours. And don't forget to subscribe and leave comments on Apple and Spotify for my podcast. That's how you can help me, everyone and my podcast grow in the rankings. I want to thank all the members from the Facebook group and other sources for replying to the question that I asked about Donald Trump. With all that being said, here's the uplifting story for this episode.
Speaker 1:Smoking rates fall to the lowest ever, led by our young people and a changing culture. Two national smoking surveys in the UK and the US, which both concluded last October, showed that smoking rates were among the lowest ever observed. The national smoking rates in the US, based on a survey of 1.77 billion people 54,000 households are falling across the board, with the largest decline seen in America's youth across the board, with the largest decline seen in America's youth. Places with historically lower rates of smoking saw more modest declines, while areas with higher rates saw the most dramatic declines. Seniors and those aged over 50, though, were quitting at significantly slower rates than youth. The findings were reported in a JAMA study with data collected from 1992 to 2022 to establish nonlinear trend lines that could be projected out into 2035 for the sake of informing health policy state by state. Stone, an assistant professor at UC San Diego, said that the national smoking prevalence is predicated, via the data, to fall below 5% by 2035 on a national level, state by state. California, utah, hawaii, colorado are even projected to be significantly under the recommended target of 5% by that year. The rapid decline in smoking among young adults is clear evidence that the smoking epidemic will come to an end in our lifetime, said Dr Stone. In tandem, the UK has also made great progress, with smoking rates hovering around 11.5% nationally, sitting even lower among 18 to 24-year-olds at 9.8%. This equates to just 6 million adult smokers out of a population of 68 million.
Speaker 1:So the question do you have a history of smoking? Is almost always included on medical forms and during examinations and doctor's visits as a variable. It must be controlled for in all studies on the impacts of any activity on human health for the work to be considered seriously rigorous science. This is because smoking is linked to the incidence of, and or the worsening of, virtually every major killer in the West, including cancer, heart disease and metabolic disorders. Now, folks who are or have been non-habitual smokers, who can start and stop whenever they want, may find the characterization of smoking as an epidemic slightly harsh, but the impact that commercial tobacco cigarette usage has had on national health systems and individuals and their families is so significant as to be unquantifiable.
Speaker 1:You know I smoked whence when I was six years old, that's right. I started smoking at six. My neighbor, when I asked him what's that? And he said it's a cigarette, young man, and he gave it to me to try. Now, before you blast my neighbor many, many years ago, he did it deliberately and he told my dad what he did. I had such a bad reaction at six years old to the cigarette that my neighbor gave me. I never smoked again. Thank you, a big shout out and props to my neighbor for doing that when I was six years old. This is a world gone mad. I'm Jeff Allen Wolf. I'll be back again Friday. I really hope to hear from you. This time, I could use your energy and input. Otherwise, I'm sitting in a room talking to myself. Stay hopeful. There is chaos in the world, can't you see? And we need to stand up and preserve our democracy. This is a world gone mad. This is a world gone mad.
