Ashamed of America on the World Stage

My friends, today’s Toddcast turned into something deeper than I initially planned. What started as commentary on Olympic athletes publicly expressing “mixed emotions” about representing the United States became a much broader reflection on gratitude, history, and what America actually represents—especially on the world stage.

When athletes stand beneath our flag and say they’re embarrassed by this country, it tells us something important. Not about free speech—they absolutely have the right to say it—but about how far cultural contempt for America has been normalized and even rewarded by the media. Shame is now treated as virtue. American Pride is treated as something suspect or outdated.

Here’s the truth: America is not perfect. It never has been. But it is good. And more than that, it has been uniquely good—historically, morally, and structurally—in ways the average person doesn’t even begin to understand. From defeating totalitarian ideologies in the 20th century, to advancing freedom, prosperity, innovation, and faith around the globe, the United States has played an unmatched role in shaping a freer, better world.

You can dislike policies. You can criticize politicians. You can even strongly oppose administrations. I’ve done all of that— and I’ve done it when either party has been in charge. But being embarrassed to be American is something entirely different. That mindset only exists when people compare America to a fantasy utopia that has never existed anywhere on earth.

I shared why loving your country doesn’t mean denying its flaws—and why gratitude matters more now than maybe ever. We talked about history, the Cold War, Ronald Reagan, constitutional principles, and the dangerous erosion of American confidence happening right in front of us.

This is a conversation worth sharing.

Thanks for letting me rant.

Conservative, not bitter.
Todd

🇺🇸 Olympic athletes expressing “mixed emotions” about representing America
🎙️ Why free speech doesn’t mean freedom from criticism or accountability
🧠 Media incentives that reward public contempt for the United States
🛂 Immigration enforcement falsely framed as “polarizing”
📜 Constitutional principles that made America a nation of citizens, not subjects
🌍 How the United States shaped a freer world despite its imperfections
🔥 Why shame is treated as virtue while gratitude is treated as weakness
🏛️ The danger of comparing America to a fictional utopia instead of reality
🕊️ Loving your country while acknowledging its flaws isn’t hypocrisy—it’s maturity

The Stack of Stuff honors the memory of Rush Limbaugh by keeping his iconic phrase alive — only this time, it’s digital. These links give you context for today’s Toddcast, including pieces that back me up, push back, or simply lay out the facts so you can decide for yourself.

For more on today’s Toddcast, visit today’s Stack on our website and dig in.

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My friends, yesterday I reminded you of the male boxer who won gold in women’s boxing in 2024, then openly admitted he has XY chromosomes. So it comes as no surprise when I tell you there’s another trans athlete at the 2026 Winter Games. But this story is of less interest to the leftist media – and here’s why.

This athlete is competing in the correct division. A biological female who says she’s a man is still competing in the women’s category. No rules bent. No fairness violated. No demand that the rest of us participate in her fantasy.

This story doesn’t force policy changes or coerce acceptance. It doesn’t turn personal belief into a public mandate.

And that, my friends, has always been the issue.

My friends, there is a version of Christianity being pushed in our culture right now that should trouble every serious follower of Jesus—not because it talks about love, but because it redefines it.

Jesus gave us two clear commandments: love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength, and love your neighbor as yourself. He said this summarized the Law and the Prophets. That part is not up for debate. Christians are absolutely called to love others—fully and sincerely—considering them better than themselves.

But love, biblically understood, has never meant affirming every belief, desire, or behavior. In fact, if that were true, what would why would we be called to repent of anything? Scripture tells us to speak the truth in love, not to replace truth with good vibes.

That distinction matters—especially when politicians like Andy Beshear invoke “Christian love” to justify policies that permit minors—read children—to undergo irreversible medical interventions. The modern political definition of love says: accept everything, question nothing, affirm always. But that is not the Gospel—it’s a distortion of it.

Real love seeks a person’s ultimate good, not just their immediate comfort. By that standard, allowing children to take puberty blockers or undergo body-altering medical procedures is not compassionate. It’s reckless. We don’t allow minors to get tattoos. We don’t allow them to sign binding contracts. We don’t allow them to make permanent decisions in far smaller matters because we recognize a basic truth: children are still forming, still learning, still developing.

To suggest they are capable of making permanent medical decisions about their bodies—decisions rooted in an ideology that denies biological reality—is not loving. It’s dangerous.

Christians should be the first to say: we love everyone enough to tell the truth. And the truth is simple, even if it’s unpopular. Men are men, women are women, and no amount of hormones or surgeries can change that reality. Promising otherwise has already created devastation in countless lives, many of which are only now coming forward.

Love doesn’t mean silence. Love doesn’t mean surrendering truth to political pressure. Love means protecting the vulnerable—even when it costs us cultural approval.

If we allow the Radical Left to redefine Christian love as moral capitulation, we lose both love and truth. And that is something faithful Christians should simply refuse to do.