In this episode, we speak with Lucy Biggers, head of social media at The Free Press and a former climate activist who has completely rethought the story she was telling the world and herself. Lucy shares how she went from a left-wing digital newsroom steeped in oppressor–oppressed ideology and climate doomsday content to slowly "re-educating" herself, especially after COVID lockdowns made her question what the climate movement was really asking of ordinary people.
We talk about how smart, idealistic young people get pulled into movements, from climate activism to "Free Palestine" marches and democratic socialists like AOC and Zohran Mamdani, often in search of purpose, belonging, and someone to blame. Lucy walks us through the emotional cost of changing her mind in public, losing old followers, gaining new ones, and learning to stand on principle instead of group approval.
We also go bigger: what's happening in our universities and K–12 schools, the rise of extreme voices on both the woke left and the conspiratorial right, and why Lucy still believes in American exceptionalism, free thinking, and the courage to say, "I was wrong" as an act of wisdom, not shame.
Quote: "I debunk the fear around climate change because people deserve the truth, not terror."
Quote: "So many young people today are operating from a state of fear." — Yelena
Quote: "I lived half my twenties believing America was evil — I was completely swept up in it."
Quote: "It was ground zero for oppressor–oppressed ideology. I didn't realize how deep it ran."
Quote: "Activism became my meaning, my identity, my way to feel good about myself."
Quote: "The world shut down and emissions fell only 5%. I thought—what exactly do they want from us?"
Quote: "I gave myself space to think for the first time in years."
Quote: "I had to develop a stronger center of truth than the pushback waiting for me."
Quote: "I'd do anything to fit in — that's how the ideology hooks you."
Quote: "I wasn't deprogrammed overnight — I had to re-educate myself page by page."
Quote: "Six billion dollars from Qatar changes what gets taught. Money goes a long way." — Polina
Quote: "America is imperfect — but exceptional. Most of the world can't tell their kids to 'follow your dreams.'"
Quote: "You see a headline, you don't read the article, and your brain absorbs fear as fact."
Quote: "I lost thousands at first — then gained tens of thousands who actually want the truth."
Quote: "My real friends stayed. The ones who left were never real in the first place."
Quote: "It's the same psychological pattern: well-meaning young people taught a black-and-white story."
Quote: "In 2019, I would have been banned for simply asking questions."
Quote: "CO₂ is 0.04% of the atmosphere. How did I not know that after years covering climate?"
Quote: "There's a crisis of meaning — causes become the new church." — Yelena
Quote: "I used to think 'Marxism' critiques were crazy. Now I see they were right."
Quote: "When one person stands up, it creates a resonance that gives others permission to do the same."
Quote: "Feeling like a victim is a dead end — you can't build a life from that mindset."
Quote: "She never had space to change — her entire identity depends on that worldview."
Quote: "It's time for new institutions — maybe even a Free Press University."
Quote: "Extremism on the right mirrors extremism on the left — it's the same loss of grounding."
Quote: "Not everyone stands on principle — the last two months showed us that clearly."
Quote: "Each side finds someone to blame. No one wants accountability." — Yelena
Quote: "He hasn't moved — everyone else has." — Polina
Quote: "If you follow me anywhere, follow me on Instagram — it's where I speak most freely."
Quote: "Wisdom is having the courage to say: I was wrong."
