『Sasha Talks, September 15, 2026』のカバーアート

Sasha Talks, September 15, 2026

Sasha Talks, September 15, 2026

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Sasha Talks with Sasha Laghonh Around the World in More Than 80 Days: Faith, Freedom, and Global Perspective with Larry Alex Taunton Author and cultural commentator Larry Alex Taunton joins Sasha Laghonh to talk about his book Around the World in More Than 80 Days, sharing stories from Nigeria to China and warning about growing threats to free speech in America. A Book Sparked By Colin Kaepernick Sasha Laghonh opens the show by introducing Larry Alex Taunton, the American author, columnist and cultural commentator known for appearances on CNN, Fox News, Al Jazeera America and the BBC, and for previous books including The Grace Effect and The Faith of Christopher Hitchens. She welcomes him to talk about his newest work, Around the World in More Than 80 Days, and asks how long the project took to complete. Taunton explains that three years of research and travel preceded roughly eight months of actual writing. Asked what prompted him to test whether America still deserves its reputation for greatness, he points to Colin Kaepernick, the former NFL quarterback whose kneeling protests and alliance with Nike struck Taunton as symptomatic of a generation ignorant of both its own opportunities and the realities of life elsewhere. He set out, he tells Sasha, to demonstrate both points at once. Mapping A Global Itinerary Sasha asks whether Taunton planned his route or improvised as he assessed each country's climate. He describes a carefully constructed itinerary built around a short list of nations that could plausibly compete for the title of world's greatest country, alongside former Marxist states and African nations grappling with the spread of Islam, chosen to give readers a fuller picture of how most of the world actually lives under some form of authoritarian rule. The project, he says, visited 35 countries in all, though eight were left out of the final book to keep it readable, with 26 countries making the cut. He credits Jules Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days as inspiration for the adventure format, noting that his team used the same variety of transportation Phileas Fogg once did. The result, he says, is meant to entertain while quietly educating readers about the wider world beyond America's borders. Surprises, Middle Class, And Traveling Sons Despite having already visited roughly 40 countries before this trip, Taunton tells Sasha he still encountered surprises, discovering that Donald Trump carries real popularity in non-Islamic parts of Africa and that Americans are unexpectedly well liked in Vietnam. He insists the book is not a blanket celebration of the United States, since the journey also revealed things worth admiring elsewhere. Sasha asks about the American middle class compared with its counterparts abroad, and Taunton argues it remains better off, though he warns that could erode under different tax and economic policy. Two of his three sons, Christopher and Zachary, joined him for portions of the trip, though he kept them away from the most dangerous stops. Zachary documented the journey in video blogs for his own generation, and Taunton says both sons, already well traveled and loving of their country, came home with a deepened appreciation for the United States. Danger In Nigeria And A Denied Visa The conversation turns to risk, and Taunton recounts traveling to Nigeria at the invitation of a bishop to document Christian persecution, citing a figure of roughly 100,000 Christians killed globally each year, mostly by Muslims. He describes being driven six hours through territory patrolled by Fulani herdsmen militia, hidden in a darkened Toyota Sequoia, and visiting villages where families had been murdered or enslaved. He declined an offer of armed security, reasoning it would make him a bigger target, and instead relied on blending in and following local advice, noting that even a concealed handgun would be useless against the AK-47s common in such regions. Sasha asks about visa troubles tied to his profession, and Taunton reveals China denied him entry after he refused to sign a pledge not to write anything negative about the country, though he had already visited Hong Kong seven times during the trip. Warnings About Censorship And The First Amendment Asked whether the First Amendment is being abused, Taunton says he sees Chinese-style censorship taking hold in America, pointing to social media platforms shutting down accounts belonging to the sitting president, his press secretary, and The New York Post. He argues Americans have historically been trusted to weigh distasteful or sensational speech for themselves, and that ceding that judgment to tech companies is dangerous. Pressed on where the First Amendment stands in five years, he predicts the United States is drifting toward the restricted speech norms of Britain, France and Germany, and warns the Second Amendment could face similar erosion if Joe Biden is elected. He places responsibility on a culture that abandoned real ...
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