The Bad Roman

Patrick Carroll, a scholar and teacher of Biblical economic philosophy, dives into the provocative idea that taxation may equate to slavery. He explores biblical narratives to illustrate God's stance on taxation, arguing that it leads to oppression. Carroll critiques the legitimacy of modern governance and champions personal charity over state intervention. The discussion also touches on spiritual freedom, market competition, and the values of servanthood over authority, inspiring listeners to rethink their relationship with authority and engage in peaceful resistance.

Author and self-proclaimed ‘aspiring peacemaker,’ Jason Porterfield, returns to the show to walk Bad Roman co-hosts, Craig Harguess and Abby Cleckner, through his new book, Fight Like Jesus: How Jesus Waged Peace Throughout Holy Week.     Come Spring we tend to look straight to Easter, to the miracle of the resurrection, but just how much do we miss when we forget the why and how of what led up to Christ’s crucifixion? By taking an in-depth look at each day in the final week of Jesus’ life, Jason’s book is a guide and game-changer for any Christian who still thinks Jesus died to protect us from a wrathful God.    God is love! He is not a hammer or sword-wielding warrior, but a force of mercy, humility, and reckoning. How often do we forget this today? How often do we use the bible to justify violent means to imagined peaceful ends?    This episode is a challenge to you to look at yourself, your actions, and if they reflect what you think you believe. It can be easy to think we are on the right side of the resurrection, that we, of course, are on the side of Jesus, but it is just as easy to fail to see we are the ones plotting against the way of peacemaking, that we are the ones holding the hammer over our savior on the cross. We invite you to listen with an open mind, to humble yourself to the folly we all are susceptible to fall into in the midst of miracles.  To learn more about Jason's work and message connect with him on  Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. For options of where to buy his book please visit his website (just in time for Easter!!).   For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-54   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com

David Hathaway is the sheriff in a county of Arizona that borders Mexico. He does not believe the government is the way to solve our problems, but he's in office for now so no tyrannical person will be. He's doing what he can to protect everyone in his large family as well as his ranch and personal freedom. He has refused his governor’s offer of troops to patrol his portion of the border. He works to show everyone in and near his county God's love. His consistent experience with the church and other freedom-lovers spewing wild hate when it comes to the wall led him to write a book on immigration and several articles for Lew Rockwell and the Libertarian Institute. Jesus instructed us to love our neighbor and our enemy. So regardless of how you view them, it makes no sense to attack people for crossing a man-made line in the sand. But a lot of Christians and anarchists who stand on principle for many other issues completely change their tune when it comes to the wall and Mexico. Many of us are hoping to someday be a part of a voluntary society. We often ask: would a sheriff be a part of that? David shares his thoughts. Also, we all know the mainstream media hides the truth from us. But they are pretending so hard that COVID is terrible, they’re completely ignoring the fact that suicide and overdoses killed more people during the lockdown than this “epidemic” did directly. This is tragic and affects so many families, but people hide in the shadows, not realizing they are, unfortunately, the norm.   For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-53   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com  

Scott Horton provides the truth about current events with historical context. He has a way of weaving together seemingly unconnected events to paint a big picture most people cannot see for themselves. He is the director of The Libertarian Institute, editor of antiwar.com, and runs a popular podcast called The Scott Horton Show. Scott returns to The Bad Roman once again, in the midst of a media frenzy around Putin’s war with Ukraine, to remind us (and educate us) on the ongoing war, and general disruption, the United State of America has been wagging in Yemen and the Middle East. What we’re doing in Yemen is illegal. We are providing every kind of support (besides troops) to Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Al Qaeda as they bomb and blockade the Houthi people in the north. Children are starving. And what do we even gain from this? A bit of money for a corporation? A feeling of world domination? There is a long, complicated history of us meddling in the Middle East that led us to this point. Scott Horton sorts it out for us.  To learn more about Scott Horton and his work, you can follow Scott on Twitter. buy or listen to his books about the war in the Middle East. If you are interested in learning more about the situation and Yemen and the middle east check out episode 23, our first interview with Scott.   For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-52   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com

In this episode, Alexandre Christoyannopoulos, author of Christian Anarchism, Tolstoy's Political Thought, and Essays in Anarchism and Religion, joins your host Craig Harguess alongside our beloved Bad Roman contributor, Nicholas Harrelson, from across the pond. He literally wrote the book on Christian anarchism. Alex is French and Greek, he is from Belgium and has lived in the UK since 1997. He holds a BA in economics, a MA in international relations and European studies, and a Ph.D. in politics and religion. He has studied all the major thinkers in anarchism and written several academic publications, which you can (and should) explore on his website. In addition to being an expert scholar on Christian Anarchy, Alex is a teacher, lecturer, and Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy. On the show, he shares what he has learned, about Jesus and Anarchy and how we can better examine our own philosophy on the topic. The episode is a wide-ranging conversation that covers everything from pacifism and turning the other cheek to Romans 13 and the many strains of anarchism – how we can all work together? Was Jesus really an anarchist?   For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-51   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com

In this episode, David shares his strategy for changing the direction of the world. If we want to see political change, we must change the hearts of the citizens. In order to do this, we must imitate Jesus. On his radio show, A Neighbor’s Choice, and also on his online exclusive podcast and film series, THINGS HIDDEN, David has interviewed personalities like Ron Paul, Jordan Peterson, and Slavoj Žižek.    David’s shows look at current events through the lens of anthropology and imitate what Christ did while He was on Earth.    If we want to see political change, we must change the hearts of the citizens. To do this, we must imitate Jesus. We can lead them away from the state and to Christ by healing, developing new technology, and sharing victims’ stories.    For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-50   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/257771975934770  (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com

In this episode, we are joined by long-time Bad Roman contributor, Abby Cleckner, to discuss her article from July 2020, Never Follow Orders. We are all capable of horrible things. With this knowledge in mind, It is important that each of us take responsibility for our actions, consider carefully why we are doing what we do, and don’t blame those in authority over us for our actions.   Studies have proven that the majority of people will do anything, even harm another person, if someone in authority demands or instructs them to. Understanding that we are all susceptible to committing atrocities if we find ourselves in positions of power or under the command of those with power, enables us to be honest about the consequences of allowing individuals and organizations to acquire too much of it. When we deny that we are capable of doing horrible things, we erroneously begin to respect the authority of another person more than that of God’s or our own values.   Abby Cleckner has contributed several articles to our blog and is now co-host for The Bad Roman Podcast! This episode was recorded before she accepted that position. You can find her on Facebook and Instagram.      For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-49     Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog     Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links     Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/257771975934770  (Bad Romans Only!!)   About our sponsor: Blockchain Trading Co. aims to be the leading DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization) in DeFi (Decentralized Finance) by fostering a community for purveyors of fine digital assets. Whether you are new to crypto and DeFi or you've already begun your journey around the block...chain, Blockchain Trading Co. provides you with a community of people passionate about digital assets.   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com

In this episode, we take the podcast in a bit of a different direction. We are anarchists, but we've brought in someone who works within the state to improve citizens’ lives through the legislature. Justin Cornett started For All Tennessee so he can act as a go-between from citizens to their representatives.   For All TN listens to citizens’ needs and works to get them taken care of them by passing bills. This organization is different because its members vote on which issues to pursue, and the company is not controlled by money. For more information, visit For All Tennessee or email info@foralltn.org.   At The Bad Roman Project, we wish the state didn't exist. But the fact is, it does. I (Craig) have been learning that people won’t immediately jump to anarchy from their brainwashed state. We have to meet them where they're at. We have to find ways to make them see that they don't want to be controlled by an authority, especially one who only cares about them as long as they're contributing financially to the government.   Part of the work Justin is doing is spreading knowledge to average citizens about the unfair and unconstitutional laws they are abiding by. He opens their eyes to what the government is doing and encourages them to join him in pushing their local representatives in a different direction. This is a step towards freedom, a step towards taking control of what's ruling their lives and realizing how harmful the government is to their community.    For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-48     Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog     Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links     Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/257771975934770  (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com About our sponsor: Blockchain Trading Co. aims to be the leading DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization) in DeFi (Decentralized Finance) by fostering a community for purveyors of fine digital assets. Whether you are new to crypto and DeFi or you've already begun your journey around the block...chain, Blockchain Trading Co. provides you with a community of people passionate about digital assets.

For this year’s year-end roundtable (YERT), we have six guests and friends of the podcast, each with a different view on education to have a discussion on homeschooling in 2021. Our guests are Abbey Cleckner, Kerry Baldwin, Jordan, Nathan Moon, and Chris and Karin Polk, most of who grew up attending public schools. A few of the pannel are, or have been, teachers both within and outside of the public school system. A couple of them currently offer training or courses to adults about how to think for themselves, skills they feel they see as lacking in current public curriculums. In this episode, we ask questions like, are schools are a training ground for compliant citizens who will pull whatever lever they are told without question? Does the system set teachers and students up to struggle? Most of the panel currently homeschool their children and view it as the only real way to protect their family values and provide an education tailored to their specific childs’ interests. They also discuss how formal education influences people’s understandings and perspectives on how the world works, in terms of politics and social structures in society. If our public school system was created to make a compliant labor force, with no desire to question the system or learn on their own, then we must encourage our children to pursue their personal interests, to learn how to think and enable them to with the tools to do it themselves. Control of our children’s education starts at home. Homeschooling might seem like an impossible dream but, especially in the last couple of years, families of every background have found a way, and there are endless resources for innumerable methods to teach the next generation.   For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-47   Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog   Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links   Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/257771975934770  (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com   About our sponsor: Blockchain Trading Co. aims to be the leading DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization) in DeFi (Decentralized Finance) by fostering a community for purveyors of fine digital assets. Whether you are new to crypto and DeFi or you've already begun your journey around the block...chain, Blockchain Trading Co. provides you with a community of people passionate about digital assets.   Join the Discord Server: https://discord.gg/a3Mvb8nukR  

Former Green Beret Ian Minelly joins us in this episode to talk about Christians and the military. Ian joined the army after college because he didn’t have a better direction for his life. After many years, he became a Christian and chose not to reenlist. Ian now serves as a pastor at a Southern Baptist Church, has written several books about different issues, and encourages young Southern Baptist church kids not to join the military.   As Christians, we are called to love, not kill. Ian has seen firsthand how the work our military does is not accomplishing any good; it is harming innocent people -- both the foreign nationals and the US soldiers. He is a Southern Baptist pastor now and works to change people’s perspective on the state and how it relates to Jesus and the church.     For Full Show Notes: https://www.thebadroman.com/show-notes/episode-46     Blog submissions: thebadroman.com/contribute-to-the-blog     Connect with us on social: thebadroman.com/social-links     Want to get more involved? Request to join the private discussion group on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/257771975934770  (Bad Romans Only!!)   No King but Christ Network: nokingbutchristnetwork.com   About our sponsor: Blockchain Trading Co. aims to be the leading DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization) in DeFi (Decentralized Finance) by fostering a community for purveyors of fine digital assets. Whether you are new to crypto and DeFi or you've already begun your journey around the block...chain, Blockchain Trading Co. provides you with a community of people passionate about digital assets.     Join the Discord Server: https://discord.gg/a3Mvb8nukR