My son has an observation he often shares with me. He says if one person says you’re a jerk, well, that’s one opinion.
But if most people say you’re a jerk, well, you are a jerk.
That’s why I always like to check myself by talking to people I respect.
For many years one of my favorite writers has been Eric Metaxas. Besides the cartoonist, Scott Adams, Eric is #1 on the list of current public figures I’d love to have as a friend. When I saw he was on the list of media people who wanted to interview me for my new book, I called immediately.
He’s smart, witty, and there’s just no denying the appeal of a writer who likes to profile historical figures like the Protestant Reformer Martin Luther who led the first successful revolt against the Catholic Church, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the pastor who defied Hitler and was executed in the last days of the war, or William Wilberforce, a nineteenth century British politician who was likely to become Prime Minister, until he decided to dedicate his life to ending slavery in the British Empire.
After the interview ended we talked for a few minutes off-camera and I told him I was a “Big fan of the Eric Metaxas Gallery of Theological Action Figures.”
“Hey, that’s a good line,” said Eric. “Do you mind if I use it?”
“Be my guest,” I replied.
We hung up and I thought, “I just gave him a funny line he’s going to use at cocktail parties. Yeah, me and Eric, we’re buddies, now.”
Okay, maybe that’s stretching it a little bit, but he asked great questions.
And I got the sense he was really trying to understand my points. With his oval glasses he reminds people of Harry Potter, and there I was trying to convince him I wasn’t Voldemort.
Back to my son’s point about how people react to you. Eric Metaxas is in no way a member of the Health Freedom movement, but he has that old-fashioned skill of asking people questions, then listening to the answers. It was a conversation, in the classic sense of the word, a dialog which in the best circumstances educates both parties.
But what would the Eric Metaxas audience think of me? Was I a jerk?
It seems I made a good impression. Five days after the interview was posted on YouTube there were 5,375 views, 360 likes and 6 dislikes. That’s a little more than a 98% approval rating.
I guess I’m not a jerk.
I hope you enjoy the interview. I’d love to hear your reactions on what you think was going through Eric’s mind as he was talking to me.
Opinion by Kent Heckenlively, JD
Be sure to order Kent Heckenlively’s new book with Dr. Judy Mikovits, PLAGUE OF CORRUPTION from Amazon which you can do RIGHT NOW!
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Kent’s book PLAGUE was released by Skyhorse Publishing, in 2014 and is now available in paperback with NEW material.
The book is co-authored with Judy Mikovits PhD. It is an indictment of the “Fake Science” we find so prevalent in the US.
Thank you so much, Kent, for all your work over the past 9-10 years and some. I really appreciate you and Dr Judy Mikovits and all who take a reasoned approach to what is happening medically and politically.