“This is so sick and so dark and so evil”: Johnnie Moore chronicles atrocities in the Middle East

June 12, 2015

Writer

For months, Johnnie Moore, author of Defying ISIS, has been rallying Christians in America to save those being persecuted in the Middle East. He’s heard some disturbing news out of Iraq and Syria, and has chronicled 20 atrocities that have taken place just this week. He shared a few of the stories on radio this morning. Trust us, after this interview you’ll know why Glenn is uniting people to stand for the Christians under attack.

GLENN: We started -- we started the week with a kickoff of something called never again is now. Where we are standing up for the Christians and for the Muslims who aren't Muslim enough and the homosexuals and anybody else that ISIS says we should kill. We're standing up for them. Never again is now. Stop the genocide over in the Middle East. We'll call a spade a spade. It is about Islam. And these Islamists have got to be stopped.

And so we're going to wake up our churches. We're going to wake ourselves up. We're going to wake our neighbors up. And then we'll put our backbones into it, and we're going to send aid over to those guys. Did you hear just yesterday that one of the guys who was just in his church, he was former military, got up and told his preacher, said, I got to do something about it. Went over, signed up, and was fighting with I think the Kurds and was just killed.

But he made a difference. He made a difference. Will we be brave enough to stand? At least stand in our own community and say, enough of -- this is crazy, what we're doing in this country is crazy.

Let's start talking about something that is real. And real injustice. Every life matters. Not black lives. Not white lives. Not blue lives. All lives matter. Young, old. Born and unborn. All lives matter.

Johnnie Moore who is -- put a new book out called defying ISIS. He's currently in Washington, DC, where he'll be speaking at the Coptic Solidarity Conference this weekend. Johnnie, how are you, sir?

JOHNNIE: I'm great, sir. Great to hear your voice.

GLENN: So, Johnnie, you're a millennial who is tired of watching people sit around on their hands and do nothing. Tell me about what you're seeing happening in the country now.

JOHNNIE: Well, it's amazing what's in the last week alone, a lot of people are waked up. It's really, really remarkable. I've been traveling around the country for a solid month just trying to get the temperature of where people are. I've been in places with poor people and rich people. I've been to rural churches and urban churches. I've just been everywhere. And it seems like we've finally reached a moment where this has boiled over enough for people to pay attention. And I think the message that you're sending across the country, that never again is now is something that people are really, really grabbing on to. But we have to do it quickly. Glenn, I just sat down a few minutes ago to write the list of atrocities I've heard this week from Iraq and Syria. Now, my list has about 20 things on it. I mean, it's unbelievable.

GLENN: Give me some of them, Johnnie.

JOHNNIE: Well, one of them, the latest Christian martyr is an 80-year-old lady. So in the Nineveh plain, where we thought there weren't any Christians left, ISIS found one. Because she wouldn't submit to them, they burned her alive. An 80-year-old Christian woman. It's unconscionable.

By the way, in Libya this week, you know, ISIS found a group of Eritrean refugees, like the Ethiopians, and they're mainly Christians. They kidnapped them. They're holding them hostage. We can use our imaginations as to what they aim to do with them. You know, the only church left in Mosul. They had already broken the cross off the church. The church is still standing. So what they did two days ago, ISIS turned it into a mosque. Not only did they turn it into a mosque, Glenn, they call it the Mosque of the Mujahideen. So this is the mosque that is the center of their jihad.

In Egypt, ten Coptic homes were burned to the ground in a single village, and ISIS sympathizers in Sudan, you know, having imprisoned a couple of pastors in Pakistan. They're trying to take land away from a number of churches. The Baghdad municipality in Iraq openly admitted this week that 70 percent of Christian homes in the city have been seized illegally. It's crazy. Then, by the way, we have the special representative of the secretary general of the United Nations. Right? For sexual violence. This is a woman. This is what she does. She faces sexual violence all around the world. So this is from the UN. They tend to not exaggerate. If anything, they try to moderate their comments. And what this woman said was -- she said that ISIS is now selling women on their slave markets for the price of a pack of cigarettes. That's not from some right-wing activist. That's from the United Nations. For a pack of cigarettes. They're advertising in their jihadist literature now that they have new girls. They've kidnapped new girls. So if you come join our fight, for the cost of a pack of cigarettes, you can buy all of them you want. That's this week.

GLENN: This is sick. This is just so sick and so dark and so evil. And evil will grow and grow out of control if good doesn't stand up. But, you know, it's -- I really think that, Johnnie, we can't just -- good is not going to defeat this. God is going to defeat this. This is absolute evil. And, you know, in World War II, we had God. You know, there was God in our country. We have done everything to insult and turn our back on God. And if the people of God -- this is still a country that is 78 percent Christian. At least they claim to be. I would bet you that about 30 percent of this nation is actually Christian. That they -- they're more than just a casual profession of, yeah, I'm Christian. About 30, 40 percent of this country is still, I will stand up for it if push comes to shove. I hope. Maybe it's 10 percent. I don't know. But that group needs to stand up. Be seen. And be doing something. We need to start putting our backbone into what our tongue professes.

JOHNNIE: Yeah, and here's the fact. The fact is, if I could just describe what I just described a moment ago to someone listening to us talk and they call themselves a Christian and it doesn't immediately compel them to do some kind of action, whether that's call a congressman, whether it's provide a donation to help people that are in harm's way, whether it's gather their church community to pray, whatever it is -- if you are not immediately compelled to act, that is your moral compass screaming at you inside of you.

Because here's the difference, Glenn, between what happened in World War II and what happened now. What happened in World War II happened when we didn't have the information age. We didn't have a 24/7 news cycle. We didn't have Twitter and Facebook. This stuff was not in front of our face every day. Not a single person in the world, Christian or otherwise, can say they don't know what's happening in Iraq and Syria. In fact, it's even worse than that. We discovered this week that ISIS had actually self-published their maggot Amazon system. That ISIS had actually gone into Facebook, and they were selling their stolen artifacts on Facebook. They infiltrated our systems. To Amazon and Facebook's credit, they immediately shut it down as soon as they found out about it. This is everywhere. It's on our commercial enterprise. It's on Twitter. It's on Facebook. It's on YouTube. It's in our face all the time. We know what's happening. If you ask yourself why these atrocities happen, they happen for two reasons. There are those willingly to commit them. And there are those willing to remain silent when they do.

GLENN: So, Johnnie, I think, quite honestly -- I mean, I can trace it all the way back to -- to Father Abraham, where good starts, you know, going against evil and trying to wipe out his children. And it goes back and forth and back and forth. And we see the Star of David appear as the sign of the Jew to, you know, to be gathered up and to be put away. Years and years -- centuries before Hitler does. And it always mutates. And it always learns its lesson. But it always has the same marks about it. Evil learns. And it has gone from -- from the Germans. And the German people to the hijackers were from Hamburg, Germany. And it has mutated now. And it has gone to the Middle East. And this genocide is sitting there. And they're not starting with the Jews this time. They're starting with the Christians. They're starting against anything that stands up against them. And what you just said about the -- you know, the internet. I find it -- I find it fascinating that the stakes this time are much higher than they were in World War II. And I mean this. We're still playing for the globe. That's exactly what Nazi Germany was playing for. They were playing for the globe. Global domination. That's the same thing ISIS is playing for. This caliphate is just the beginning. They want global domination. So we're playing for the same thing. But here's -- here's where I up the ante. What you just said, in World War II, we didn't know for sure, you could get away with saying, well, I didn't know for sure. We didn't have that information, did we? Now, every single citizen does. So our souls are in jeopardy.

JOHNNIE: It's a moral issue for each of us as individuals. And, by the way, ISIS doesn't aim to infiltrate our country and the West. They're already here. It's a different game. It's a different game than ten years ago. You know, if you wanted to join al-Qaeda ten years ago, you had to travel to Afghanistan. You had to learn Arabic. You had to live in rudimentary conditions.

Now, in this battle in the last decade, a new battle, you can sit in the privacy of your own home. You get trained and inspired in front of your computer screen, and then you take your American passport and you go over to Turkey and walk over a border or you go across the street. Just stop and think about this for just a minute. Just yesterday, in the United States of America, a 17-year-old kid pleaded guilty in Washington, DC, for recruiting for ISIS. And when he stood in front of the judge, he didn't try to justify it. He didn't say he wasn't guilty. He said unashamedly, he said with more commitment to his hate than most Christians I know are committed to their compassion and their faith, he said without wavering: I am guilty. I aimed to recruit for the Islamic stated.

Seventeen years old, in the United States of America.

GLENN: Johnnie wrote the book Defying ISIS. It's available in bookstores everywhere and also on Amazon.com, but something that everyone should read. And, Johnnie, I sure appreciate everything you're doing. If you want to contact him. He's fantastic at speaking at church and everywhere else. DefyingISIS.com is where they reach you?

JOHNNIE: That's where it is.

GLENN: Okay. Johnnie, thank you very much. I appreciate it.

JOHNNIE: Thanks for having me.

GLENN: If you are moved to action, I would ask that you would do two things: I would ask that you would go to mercuryone.org and you would end the week where we started. And that is, donate your time and anything that you have. If you have five bucks or 100 bucks, we have a 15,000-dollar donation the other day from one of our listeners.

PAT: Nice.

GLENN: And donate to mercuryone.org. We are sending supplies over and we are -- believe me, before we send anything over, we will show you everything that we're doing. We'll show you who our partners are. We're making sure it doesn't fall into the wrong hands. We're very, very careful on it. I hope to be going over with the donation. But we would like to have a staggering donation to make. And you can help us by going to mercuryone.org. Also, you can change your Facebook photo. You can change your Twitter photo. And grab something from never again is now on mercuryone.org. And then I would ask you that you would join us in this movement.

Now, I have -- I have Martin Luther King's pledge that he had everybody sign when they decided to join him. We have updated it for the times. But we really have changed very little of it. And it's up on GlennBeck.com. And I want you to download that. And I want you to sign it.

I want you -- when you sign up, I want you to sign it and say, you're in. Because what's happening in Birmingham, Alabama, on 8/28 and 8/29 is the beginning of a movement. I talked about it on last night's television show. Somebody said, why don't we just get together? Why don't we all go to McKinney, Texas because there's a march with a whole bunch of -- I said, because we're not ready, that's why. We're not ready. We're not disciplined enough.

There is trouble coming. And we better all stand together, and we better be disciplined enough. So make a donation at mercuryone.org. Decide whether you're in or out. And join us there at mercuryone.org. Consider joining us on 8/28. And 8/29. May I ask that you would join us in Birmingham, Alabama this August 28th and 29th. Be a part of history because I'm telling you, I felt this when we went over to Israel. I felt this when we did Washington, DC. This is historic. Restoring Love, which happened at the Dallas Cowboys Stadium. Was the largest volunteer event ever in American history. The first time Dallas Cowboys Stadium has ever been sold out for a speaking event. So that was cool history. This, I believe, is like Restoring Honor, this is going to be historic. Bring your family and join me in a historic moment. Never again is now! Mercuryone.org.

'Rage against the dying of the light': Charlie Kirk lived that mandate

PHILL MAGAKOE / Contributor | Getty Images

Kirk’s tragic death challenges us to rise above fear and anger, to rebuild bridges where others build walls, and to fight for the America he believed in.

I’ve only felt this weight once before. It was 2001, just as my radio show was about to begin. The World Trade Center fell, and I was called to speak immediately. I spent the day and night by my bedside, praying for words that could meet the moment.

Yesterday, I found myself in the same position. September 11, 2025. The assassination of Charlie Kirk. A friend. A warrior for truth.

Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins.

Moments like this make words feel inadequate. Yet sometimes, words from another time speak directly to our own. In 1947, Dylan Thomas, watching his father slip toward death, penned lines that now resonate far beyond his own grief:

Do not go gentle into that good night. / Rage, rage against the dying of the light.

Thomas was pleading for his father to resist the impending darkness of death. But those words have become a mandate for all of us: Do not surrender. Do not bow to shadows. Even when the battle feels unwinnable.

Charlie Kirk lived that mandate. He knew the cost of speaking unpopular truths. He knew the fury of those who sought to silence him. And yet he pressed on. In his life, he embodied a defiance rooted not in anger, but in principle.

Picking up his torch

Washington, Jefferson, Adams — our history was started by men who raged against an empire, knowing the gallows might await. Lincoln raged against slavery. Martin Luther King Jr. raged against segregation. Every generation faces a call to resist surrender.

It is our turn. Charlie’s violent death feels like a knockout punch. Yet if his life meant anything, it means this: Silence in the face of darkness is not an option.

He did not go gently. He spoke. He challenged. He stood. And now, the mantle falls to us. To me. To you. To every American.

We cannot drift into the shadows. We cannot sit quietly while freedom fades. This is our moment to rage — not with hatred, not with vengeance, but with courage. Rage against lies, against apathy, against the despair that tells us to do nothing. Because there is always something you can do.

Even small acts — defiance, faith, kindness — are light in the darkness. Reaching out to those who mourn. Speaking truth in a world drowning in deceit. These are the flames that hold back the night. Charlie carried that torch. He laid it down yesterday. It is ours to pick up.

The light may dim, but it always does before dawn. Commit today: I will not sleep as freedom fades. I will not retreat as darkness encroaches. I will not be silent as evil forces claim dominion. I have no king but Christ. And I know whom I serve, as did Charlie.

Two turning points, decades apart

On Wednesday, the world changed again. Two tragedies, separated by decades, bound by the same question: Who are we? Is this worth saving? What kind of people will we choose to be?

Imagine a world where more of us choose to be peacemakers. Not passive, not silent, but builders of bridges where others erect walls. Respect and listening transform even the bitterest of foes. Charlie Kirk embodied this principle.

He did not strike the weak; he challenged the powerful. He reached across divides of politics, culture, and faith. He changed hearts. He sparked healing. And healing is what our nation needs.

At the center of all this is one truth: Every person is a child of God, deserving of dignity. Change will not happen in Washington or on social media. It begins at home, where loneliness and isolation threaten our souls. Family is the antidote. Imperfect, yes — but still the strongest source of stability and meaning.

Mark Wilson / Staff | Getty Images

Forgiveness, fidelity, faithfulness, and honor are not dusty words. They are the foundation of civilization. Strong families produce strong citizens. And today, Charlie’s family mourns. They must become our family too. We must stand as guardians of his legacy, shining examples of the courage he lived by.

A time for courage

I knew Charlie. I know how he would want us to respond: Multiply his courage. Out of this tragedy, the tyrant dies, but the martyr’s influence begins. Out of darkness, great and glorious things will sprout — but we must be worthy of them.

Charlie Kirk lived defiantly. He stood in truth. He changed the world. And now, his torch is in our hands. Rage, not in violence, but in unwavering pursuit of truth and goodness. Rage against the dying of the light.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

Glenn Beck resurrects the 9-12 Project to support Charlie Kirk's family

Glenn Beck is once again calling on his loyal listeners and viewers to come together and channel the same unity and purpose that defined the historic 9-12 Project. That movement, born in the wake of national challenges, brought millions together to revive core values of faith, hope, and charity.

Glenn created the original 9-12 Project in early 2009 to bring Americans back to where they were in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. In those moments, we weren't Democrats and Republicans, conservative or liberal, Red States or Blue States, we were united as one, as America. The original 9-12 Project aimed to root America back in the founding principles of this country that united us during those darkest of days.

This new initiative draws directly from that legacy, focusing on supporting the family of Charlie Kirk in these dark days following his tragic murder.

The revival of the 9-12 Project aims to secure the long-term well-being of Charlie Kirk's wife and children. All donations will go straight to meeting their immediate and future needs. If the family deems the funds surplus to their requirements, Charlie's wife has the option to redirect them toward the vital work of Turning Point USA.

This campaign is more than just financial support—it's a profound gesture of appreciation for Kirk's tireless dedication to the cause of liberty. It embodies the unbreakable bond of our community, proving that when we stand united, we can make a real difference.
Glenn Beck invites you to join this effort. Show your solidarity by donating today and honoring Charlie Kirk and his family in this meaningful way.

You can learn more about the 9-12 Project and donate HERE

The critical difference: Rights from the Creator, not the state

Bloomberg / Contributor | Getty Images

When politicians claim that rights flow from the state, they pave the way for tyranny.

Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) recently delivered a lecture that should alarm every American. During a Senate Foreign Relations Committee hearing, he argued that believing rights come from a Creator rather than government is the same belief held by Iran’s theocratic regime.

Kaine claimed that the principles underpinning Iran’s dictatorship — the same regime that persecutes Sunnis, Jews, Christians, and other minorities — are also the principles enshrined in our Declaration of Independence.

In America, rights belong to the individual. In Iran, rights serve the state.

That claim exposes either a profound misunderstanding or a reckless indifference to America’s founding. Rights do not come from government. They never did. They come from the Creator, as the Declaration of Independence proclaims without qualification. Jefferson didn’t hedge. Rights are unalienable — built into every human being.

This foundation stands worlds apart from Iran. Its leaders invoke God but grant rights only through clerical interpretation. Freedom of speech, property, religion, and even life itself depend on obedience to the ruling clerics. Step outside their dictates, and those so-called rights vanish.

This is not a trivial difference. It is the essence of liberty versus tyranny. In America, rights belong to the individual. The government’s role is to secure them, not define them. In Iran, rights serve the state. They empower rulers, not the people.

From Muhammad to Marx

The same confusion applies to Marxist regimes. The Soviet Union’s constitutions promised citizens rights — work, health care, education, freedom of speech — but always with fine print. If you spoke out against the party, those rights evaporated. If you practiced religion openly, you were charged with treason. Property and voting were allowed as long as they were filtered and controlled by the state — and could be revoked at any moment. Rights were conditional, granted through obedience.

Kaine seems to be advocating a similar approach — whether consciously or not. By claiming that natural rights are somehow comparable to sharia law, he ignores the critical distinction between inherent rights and conditional privileges. He dismisses the very principle that made America a beacon of freedom.

Jefferson and the founders understood this clearly. “We are endowed by our Creator with certain unalienable rights,” they wrote. No government, no cleric, no king can revoke them. They exist by virtue of humanity itself. The government exists to protect them, not ration them.

This is not a theological quibble. It is the entire basis of our government. Confuse the source of rights, and tyranny hides behind piety or ideology. The people are disempowered. Clerics, bureaucrats, or politicians become arbiters of what rights citizens may enjoy.

John Greim / Contributor | Getty Images

Gifts from God, not the state

Kaine’s statement reflects either a profound ignorance of this principle or an ideological bias that favors state power over individual liberty. Either way, Americans must recognize the danger. Understanding the origin of rights is not academic — it is the difference between freedom and submission, between the American experiment and theocratic or totalitarian rule.

Rights are not gifts from the state. They are gifts from God, secured by reason, protected by law, and defended by the people. Every American must understand this. Because when rights come from government instead of the Creator, freedom disappears.

This article originally appeared on TheBlaze.com.

POLL: Is America’s next generation trading freedom for equity?

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A recent poll conducted by Justin Haskins, a long-time friend of the show, has uncovered alarming trends among young Americans aged 18-39, revealing a generation grappling with deep frustrations over economic hardships, housing affordability, and a perceived rigged system that favors the wealthy, corporations, and older generations. While nearly half of these likely voters approve of President Trump, seeing him as an anti-establishment figure, over 70% support nationalizing major industries, such as healthcare, energy, and big tech, to promote "equity." Shockingly, 53% want a democratic socialist to win the 2028 presidential election, including a third of Trump voters and conservatives in this age group. Many cite skyrocketing housing costs, unfair taxation on the middle class, and a sense of being "stuck" or in crisis as driving forces, with 62% believing the economy is tilted against them and 55% backing laws to confiscate "excess wealth" like second homes or luxury items to help first-time buyers.

This blend of Trump support and socialist leanings suggests a volatile mix: admiration for disruptors who challenge the status quo, coupled with a desire for radical redistribution to address personal struggles. Yet, it raises profound questions about the roots of this discontent—Is it a failure of education on history's lessons about socialism's failures? Media indoctrination? Or genuine systemic barriers? And what does it portend for the nation’s trajectory—greater division, a shift toward authoritarian policies, or an opportunity for renewal through timeless values like hard work and individual responsibility?

Glenn wants to know what YOU think: Where do Gen Z's socialist sympathies come from? What does it mean for the future of America? Make your voice heard in the poll below:

Do you believe the Gen Z support for socialism comes from perceived economic frustrations like unaffordable housing and a rigged system favoring the wealthy and corporations?

Do you believe the Gen Z support for socialism, including many Trump supporters, is due to a lack of education about the historical failures of socialist systems?

Do you think that these poll results indicate a growing generational divide that could lead to more political instability and authoritarian tendencies in America's future?

Do you think that this poll implies that America's long-term stability relies on older generations teaching Gen Z and younger to prioritize self-reliance, free-market ideals, and personal accountability?

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