The World and Everything in It: November 25, 2024

JENNY ROUGH, HOST: Good morning! The doors of justice begin to open all around the world.

AUDIO: We see that where justice is missing, people are going to suffer. And that justice is what helps people flourish in life.

NICK EICHER, HOST: A special report for you today on Legal Docket.

Also today, the Monday Moneybeat with economist David Bahnsen. The Trump economic team is taking shape. We’ll talk about it. And the WORLD History Book.

AUDIO: My wife uses Swanson TV turkey dinners and make your husband lucky too.

Leftover turkey turns a food supplier into a multi-million dollar business.

ROUGH: It’s Monday, November 25th. This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Jenny Rough.

EICHER: And I’m Nick Eicher. Good morning!

ROUGH: Time now for the news with Mark Mellinger.

MARK MELLINGER, NEWS ANCHOR: Hezbollah fires heaviest missile barrage at Israel in months » Hezbollah launched 250 rockets into Israel Sunday, wounding seven people. It’s the heaviest attack from Hezbollah on Israel in months. It followed deadly Israeli airstrikes in Beirut.

Israel also struck a Lebanese army center near Tyre, killing one soldier and injuring 18 more. Israel expressed regret, saying the strike targeted Hezbollah militants, not Lebanese forces.

All this is happening as negotiators press on with cease-fire talks aimed at ending the fighting.

The EU’s top diplomat, Josep Borrell…

BORRELL: We must pressure the Israeli government and maintain the pressure on Hezbollah to accept the U.S. proposal for a cease-fire.

Israel says it did intercept some of the rockets Hezbollah fired Sunday.

NATO, Ukraine to hold emergency talks about new Russia missile » NATO and Ukraine will hold an emergency meeting Tuesday after Russia’s launch of an experimental, hypersonic missile last week in its war on Ukraine.

The missile, named Oreshnik, reached Mach 11, carried non-nuclear warheads, and caused no fatalities.

But Russia says Oreshnik missiles could be fitted with nuclear warheads, and leader Vladimir Putin says the launch of several of the missiles at once fitted with just conventional warheads… could rival the impact of a nuclear weapon.

Russia called the strike retaliation for Ukraine using new long-range missiles supplied by Western allies, including some from the U.S. green-lighted by President Biden.

President-elect Trump’s National Security Advisor nominee, Congressman Mike Waltz, tells Fox News Sunday…

WALTZ: We need to bring this to a responsible end. We need to restore deterrence, restore peace, and get ahead of this escalation ladder rather than responding to it.

NATO leaders called Russia’s strike an escalation. The Czech Republic has since pledged more air defense support for Ukraine.

Democrats, GOP react to Trump Cabinet » President-elect Trump has told Republican senators he wants to hit the ground running when he takes office January 20th.

Trump wrapped up naming his major Cabinet nominees over the weekend. His goal is to have the new Republican Senate start confirmation hearings right when it convenes in early January,

Tennessee Republican Senator Bill Hagerty told ABC’s This Week...

HAGERTY: He wants us to have these hearings done quickly and expeditiously. I’ve said I’m more than happy to work through the weekends as long as it takes.

Republicans will hold 53 Senate seats, meaning each nominee can only afford to lose three GOP votes to ensure approval.

Democrats say they’ll be evaluating each nominee closely. Senator-elect Democrat Adam Schiff of California, on NBC’s Meet the Press...

SCHIFF: The president has a right to nominate anyone who’s qualified, who has good judgment and good character. It doesn’t mean he’s guaranteed Senate approval of whoever he nominates, and some of these nominations are deeply problematic.

Democrats have expressed concern about Defense Secretary nominee Pete Hegseth, who’s accused of sexual assault and Director of National Intelligence nominee Tulsi Gabbard, who some Democrats have accused of being too friendly toward Russia.

NETANYAHU: [Speaking Hebrew]

Three arrested in UAE rabbi killing » Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reacting during a cabinet meeting to the killing of a rabbi who’d gone missing last week in the United Arab Emirates.

Sunday, Israel confirmed Rabbi Zvi Kogan was killed in the UAE in what the Israeli government calls a ‘heinous antisemitic terror incident.’ Emirati officials arrested three suspects, but offered few details.

Kogan managed a kosher market in Dubai that had been the target of several online protests by Palestinian supporters.

A spokesman for the U.N. Security Council called Kogan’s death a horrific crime against all those who stand for peace, tolerance, and coexistence.

Texas approves Bible-based curriculum for public schools » The Texas Board of Education has given its okay to optional Bible-based lessons in public elementary schools. The board is also offering extra funding to schools that use the curriculum.

Amanda Tyler with the Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty opposes this move, saying it could alienate some students.

TYLER: It’s compulsory to go to school. Kids of all faiths and none attend Texas public schools. And so it infringes on religious freedom to teach these Bible stories in ways that will be devotional.

But supporter Mary Elizabeth Castle with the group Texas Values says students have a First Amendment right to learn about Bible references they’ll encounter in other subjects like American History.

CASTLE: Actually, they’ll be a great benefit to students to help them be culturally and functionally literate.

Castle also says 300 common everyday phrases come from the Bible, and the lessons will help students better understand them.

The lesson plans instruct the teachers to explain that the Bible is a collection of ancient texts and that its different parts are the core books of the Jewish and Christian religions.

Winter storms could affect Thanksgiving travel » Winter weather could disrupt Thanksgiving travel this week.

In California, storms have caused flooding and landslides, with heavy snow forecast in the Sierra Nevada through tomorrow.

The Midwest and Great Lakes will see rain and snow today, while the East Coast faces wet, breezy conditions on Thanksgiving. National Weather Service meteorologist Rich Otto says one possibility is…

OTTO: A coastal storm that tracks into the Northeast, and this would be for Thanksgiving day into Friday, with a mixture of likely rain along the coast and some snow for the inland location.

Forecasters expect better travel weather by Sunday, though temperatures will drop in the East while warming out West.

I’m Mark Mellinger.

Straight ahead: a special Legal Docket report on legal reforms and international justice in Africa. Plus, getting serious about the U.S. debt on Moneybeat.

This is The World and Everything in It.

JENNY ROUGH, HOST: It’s Monday the 25th of November. Glad to have you along for today’s edition of The World and Everything in It. Good morning. I’m Jenny Rough.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher. Time now for Legal Docket. Well, Jenny, as you know, one of the reasons we have this Legal Docket segment is to examine the United States justice system. It’s a really good system. Not perfect. But a system with core values that provides access to justice.

ROUGH: Right! Today, we’re going to home in on some of those core values and unpack what the phrase “access to justice” really means. Which seems fitting this Thanksgiving week.

EICHER: It is a time to be thankful for many things, including our Constitution and the fact that its rights extend to all. But sometimes the virtues of our system of justice are most visible when we see in places where they were never known. So on that note, we’ll step away from our standard Legal Docket fare for this special report.

ROUGH: Justice isn’t always putting the bad guy away. Sometimes it’s simply the unjustly accused being set free. And in Uganda, that’s not always so easy. But in recent years, Uganda has been making legal reforms to open up access to justice. And those reforms are now spreading across the continent of Africa.

LAURYN EASON: I think it was our second day in the prison.

That’s Lauryn Eason. Last spring, this American lawyer volunteered for a prison project in Uganda.Eason was paired up with an Ugandan law student. Together, they looked over a client’s file.

The client’s name was Rose. Eighteen months ago, when Eason learned of the case, Rose wasn’t so happy.

EASON: This woman, who was a maid, had been accused of stealing money and some clothes from her boss.

Now for a long time, in Uganda, if you were arrested for breaking the law, you sat in prison and awaited your trial date no matter the offense.No workable bail system. No Sixth Amendment right to a speedy trial. The wait could take up to five years.
Rose’s file was handwritten. Because there’s no electronic filing system either.

EASON: Sometimes you can’t even read the handwriting. So I said, “Okay, let’s call her over here.” And when she stood up, I thought, Oh, she looks really young!

It was an adult prison. But Rose had been sent there as a teenager. As they talked, Rose’s story didn’t match up with the written confession.

EASON: There’s no public defense here, so most people don’t ever have any sort of defense attorney.

Maybe she committed the crime, maybe not. Not much education. Limited English.

EASON: And so it's just, you can imagine how inaccessible justice can be.

Inaccessible justice. Eason and the Ugandan lawyer-in-training were trying to change that. That’s why they were there.

EASON: I just felt something was off, but I didn’t know what it was. And so, I truly believe this was the Holy Spirit, I just felt compelled to ask her: “How do you know your boss?”

Rose’s dad had died a year ago. Her family was poor. A neighbor told her he had a job for her in Kampala, five hours away from home. The neighbor said:

EASON: The boss was very strict, but the money would be good.

A red flag. Eason asked Rose how much money the boss had paid.

EASON: And she said, “Well, she paid me for like a week, and then she stopped paying me. And I was not allowed to have the money. I was not allowed to leave. I could not see my family.” And I’m like, Ah! She’s a victim!

A victim of domestic labor trafficking. Labor trafficking is the most common type of trafficking worldwide. It happens in the United States, too.

One way to fight it? Opening up access to justice. Thankfully, the principles of due process are spreading across not only Uganda, but the entire continent of Africa.

DANNY DEWALT: It’s been the privilege of my life to be a part of working in Africa.

This is Danny DeWalt. He’s the executive director of the Sudreau Global Justice Institute. It’s based out of my alma mater, Pepperdine law school.The Global Justice Institute works with African judiciaries on legal reforms.

DEWALT: This principle we have in America of you’re innocent until proven guilty—just because you’ve been accused of something doesn’t mean you’re automatically guilty. And yet that’s a prevalent sort of human instinct that if someone says something about you, the first instinct is there must be some truth to it, or it’s completely true, not you’re innocent until you’re proven guilty. So that takes work. That takes effort. And you have to build a system around those values.

Last month, chief justices and top judges from 14 African countries gathered at Pepperdine’s Switzerland campus to do just that. Nothing like this has happened before. And listening to them meet and exchange ideas, honestly, it felt like watching history in the making.

One item on the agenda? Solving a common problem: too many cases.

These countries have an enormous backlog of cases. More people are in prison awaiting trial than actual convicts serving time.

DEWALT: In prison without ever talking to a lawyer, without anybody telling them their rights, without ever knowing when you’re going to go to court.

Kenya’s Chief Justice Martha Koome says that because so many defendants are in pre-trial detention, it leads to another problem.

MARTHA KOOME: The prisons are overcrowded. Therefore, we need to do something about the congestion of prisons.

In Kenya, a prison built for 800 people may house as many as 1,400. In Uganda, some are at three times capacity. Here’s DeWalt again:

DEWALT: And so they’re sleeping like sardines in shifts of eight hours. And for 24 hours. You sleep, and then you’re up for 16 hours, and somebody else goes to sleep. It’s so overcrowded.

By the time the defendant’s case finally comes before the court, he or she may have already served his or her sentence—and then some. Justice has two sides. DeWalt says, ideally a defendant shouldn't be deprived of rights. But on the other hand, the guilty have to be punished.

DEWALT: A healthy justice system is going to have due process and it’s going to have, again, a fair shake for people who are accused of crimes, hold them accountable if the evidence shows they’re guilty, but not falsely imprison them or unduly imprison them if they’re not.

DeWalt’s idea of justice is grounded in God’s revelation.

DEWALT: So we know that it’s His design and His heart that every one of the people that He has created and made in his image, He wants them to flourish. We see that where justice is missing, people are going to suffer. And that justice is what helps people flourish in life.

To address the legal backlog, many African countries are introducing the concept of plea bargaining: the negotiation between a defense lawyer and a prosecutor that leads to agreement on an appropriate sentence for the crime. Then, a proposal to the judge for approval.

At first, that caused concern. Here’s Chief Justice Alfonse Owiny-Dollo of Uganda

ALFONSE OWINY-DOLLO: When plea-bargaining was introduced … there were many questions. People would doubt. People would say, “How can you negotiate punishment?”

But plea bargaining doesn’t necessarily mean being let off easy. It brings justice swiftly and efficiently. DeWalt again:

DEWALT: And not waste all the resources of time and money to go to trial when they’re just going to plead guilty and admit that they did it.

With the prison projects, Ugandan judges, along with Ugandan and American lawyers travel to the prisons by bus. They set up tables in the courtyard: one for the prosecution, one for the defense lawyers, and one for the judges. Negotiations began. And all sides work hard to make sure the sentence is fair.Chief Justice Owiny-Dollo said it’s a monumental success.

OWINY-DOLLO: In five years, 35,000 cases were resolved. 35,000 cases.

And the idea is spreading in the most American of ways.True story: Chief Justice Faustin Ntezelyayo of Rwanda learned about Uganda’s legal reforms … on social media!

FAUSTIN NTEZILYAYO: I like social media

One day he was browsing the Judiciary of Uganda’s page.

NTEZILYAYO: I found out they were conducting a program of plea bargaining in one prison of Uganda, and then Pepperdine University was the one that was helping the Judiciary of Uganda to do so.

So they set up a prison project in Rwanda.

NTEZILYAYO: Amazingly, up to now, you know, two years of the program running, 15,000 people are out of the prison because they have finished their sentences. I can see that it is a good, a very positive, outcome from this program.

But challenges remain: a shortage of judges, for one thing. Kenya, for example, has opened new courts all over the country, but now needs to fill the vacancies. Here’s Chief Justice Koome:

KOOM: Judges are retiring. They get old. I have 18 adjudicators working in 40 locations. So that requires a lot of energy to solve cases.

Another challenge: Defendants are clamoring to get in line for these prison projects, even if their case isn’t suited for plea bargaining. They just want to get out. But plea bargaining is designed for those who are guilty. 

And that brings us back to where we began, the story of Rose. Her case was really tough because even though Uganda has a law that protects trafficked victims, Rose’s case didn’t meet the technical requirements under it. And she did steal money, although Rose and her boss dispute the amount, which complicated matters. Only a trial would resolve that factual dispute. So, Rose chose to plea, and she was released from prison. Eason walked her to the exit.

EASON: We get to the prison doors, and I’m like, “Are you ready?” And she’s just beaming.

Hours later …

AUDIO: [Rose sigh of relief]

Sighs of relief and Rose’s happy reunion with her family. Of course, plea bargaining will never be a perfect solution. Not in Africa or the U.S. But Eason says:

EASON: It's just a reminder, I think that God is the God of justice and that we do the best that we can on this side of heaven and that one day all will be made new.

And that’s this week’s Legal Docket.

JENNY ROUGH, HOST: Coming up next on The World and Everything in It: The Monday Moneybeat.

NICK EICHER, HOST: Time now to talk business, markets, and the economy with financial analyst and adviser David Bahnsen. David heads up the wealth management firm The Bahnsen Group. He is here now. Good morning to you, David.

DAVID BAHNSEN: Good morning, Nick, good to be with you.

EICHER: Alright, the economic policy side of the cabinet is filling in, David, and I’ve been looking forward to talking with you about it. The big job is Treasury and I’d like to begin with the controversy that broke into the open … a behind-the-scenes row, a tussle, first reported in The Wall Street Journal and then The New York Times between the head of the transition, Howard Lutnick, and a billionaire hedge-fund manager Scott Bessent … both of whom were vying for the Treasury post. Even Elon Musk weighed in on the side of Mr. Lutnick to become treasury secretary … and frankly, I thought that might’ve meant done deal. But Mr. Lutnick wound up at Commerce … and it looks like Mr. Bessent will become Treasury secretary. Do you see that as a good outcome?

BAHNSEN: Well, it did have a good outcome. And the tussling was not even as much directly between Mr. Lutnick and Mr. Bessant as it was between Lutnick and some of the people that wanted to see Bessant. And I think that ultimately, in the end, President-elect Donald Trump is going to make these decisions.

This one, of all the different appointments so far, was clearly the one that had the most back-and-forth and the most behind-the-scenes drama. And, you know, there’s a few things that I know I probably shouldn’t share, but what I will say is I think President-elect Trump went through a good process to get there, and that I would much rather have Scott Bessant as Treasury Secretary than some of the other possibilities.

So I’m happy with that outcome, and to the extent that some greater chaos and dysfunction behind the scenes was averted and dealt with, that’s a good thing. As we’re sitting here talking, we don’t yet know the National Economic Council director. That’s going to be an important pick, and from what I’m hearing—and literally, just moments ago, I got off the phone with some very, you know, connected advisers to the administration—I think it’s between two Kevins: Kevin Warsh, who was also a candidate for Treasury, and Kevin Hassett, my colleague at National Review.

Both of them, I think, would be absolutely fantastic. So there’s sort of an orbit, Nick, of economic people, the vast majority of which I really do like. There’s a couple out there that I hope don’t end up with a position. I think that you want people who get things done. You want people that support a free-market agenda, deregulation, pro-energy policies, and that believe excessive taxation is an impediment to economic growth, and that believe in a strong, stable dollar. You know, that’s the general worldview that you’re looking for here. It isn’t all that complicated. And I think Scott Bessant is a guy who knows financial markets.

My worry, if they had put someone who was more of a loyalist and more of almost kind of a Trump MAGA fan versus being a real economic and global thinker at Treasury, is that we would have had some problems. And Scott Bessant is going to do a good job there, and I’m happy.

EICHER: So, couple things … David … on Bessent. I’d like to know what you know about this … that Bessent as he was coming up in the world of finance that he was a protege of George Soros, that’s one. But No. 2, I found this so interesting, and I’d like to hear your view on it: This was something Bessent said on the eve of the 2024 election. I’ll quote a few sentences.

“We are going to decide whether we are going to grow our way out of this debt burden, and I think we can, through deregulation, energy independence & dominance in the U.S., and a growth mindset. I feel very strongly that this is the last chance to grow ourselves out of this.”

I’d love for you to dive into that, David, but first, the Soros matter … Scott Bessent isn’t for radical politics and soft-on-crime, leftist district attorneys, is he?

BAHNSEN: No, and this is something I wish more people understood. George Soros has a very large foundation, think tank, activist, political, lobbying endeavor, and Scott Bessant has never had anything to do with any of that. George Soros also had to make his money somewhere, and it was in the world of finance, and about 25% of Wall Street has touched George Soros’s hedge fund at one time or another, working there, working for a counterparty, doing business together, trades.

Scott Bessant was a global currency trader with Soros. Stan Druckenmiller and Jim Rogers are very well-known billionaire hedge funders who also worked with Soros that are considered very libertarian or right-wing minded. So Soros as a financier and Soros as an ideologue are two different eras of Soros, and Bessant deserves to not be associated with the radical Soros.

Now, by the way, like Trump, and like a lot of other people, including Ronald Reagan, he used to be a Democrat. But he’s been an incredibly thoughtful Republican who can articulate why he became a Republican, why he’s an economic conservative, and why he believes in an American freedom message. He can articulate it very well, and so I don’t have any worries whatsoever about Scott’s bona fides, and I’ve spent time with him discussing these things at great length, and that’s not something I would say about every candidate.

The issue you bring up about what he said the day before the election is fascinating. I agree that there are a lot of components to what are going to be necessary to address the U.S. debt fiasco. I don’t believe that we’re only going to be able to grow our way out of it. And I don’t think Scott really believes it, either.

But I do think that’s an important political messaging, because you need growth to lead so that you can inspire the people for the necessary adjustments, cuts, austerity, and entitlement reform that are going to be necessary. Right now, no one has any incentive to do anything because there’s no step in the right direction. There’s no momentum. So it feels hopeless and helpless, and people just think kicking the can down the road is the best way to go.

If you start moving the needle with growth, then there’s an ability politically to alter the conversation. But nobody has been willing to talk about growth. At the end of the day, I actually think our opportunity to only grow our way out of it was about 10 to 12 years ago, and I think we missed that boat. There will end up being pain to deal with this debt fiasco. But I think Bessant’s right that the message you have to have—especially, by the way, the day before an election—is growth-oriented. That’s what has to lead. And no one’s been willing to start there.

EICHER: Running through my cabinet flash cards here, just a flurry of people named … as we’ve said Bessent at Treasury, Lutnick at Commerce. A new Labor Secretary nomination announced Lori Chavez-DeRemer … moderate Republican who lost a congressional seat in Oregon …. We mentioned the Energy Secretary nominee Chris Wright. Linda McMahon as Education Secretary, Scott Turner at HUD, the Housing secretary. Russell Vought as budget director, running OMB, the office of management and budget. The economic team’s pretty much in place … what do you think overall?

BAHNSEN: Well, you don’t, in the sense that I sure hope to the heavens that they block this Labor Secretary. And I don’t think they will, because I think you’re going to have as many Democrats vote for her as Republicans. But Laurie Chavez-DeRemer out of Oregon was just nominated over the weekend as Labor Secretary, with the support of the teachers’ unions, the labor unions, and again, President Trump ran on a pro-worker policy.

She supported California A.B. 5, which is one of the most radical pieces of legislation that I’ve ever seen pass, trying to reclassify independent contractors as employees. She has the support of Randi Weingarten, who was the head of the teachers’ union and became rather infamous during COVID for wanting to keep schools closed for years upon years.

This appointment is by far the one that’s most concerning to me, ideologically, philosophically, and in terms of the movement. She’s opposed to Right-to-Work states, and so I don’t know what’s going to happen there. National Economic Council still has to be named. Your point: Education, Commerce, Treasury, State, Defense—they’ve all been named. The Defense Secretary is going to have a tough time getting through the hearings.

So we don’t really know where all of these are going to go. CDC got named over the weekend with a very, very strong pro-lifer. So, you know, you’re right, a lot more of these have been appointed or nominated than normally has been before Thanksgiving. But there’s still a few that are up in the air about confirmation, and a few that are to be determined. So we’re moving the ball, but there’s more work to be done.

EICHER: David Bahnsen, founder, managing partner, and chief investment officer of The Bahnsen Group. If you’re not subscribing to David’s regular market writing, you can find out more at dividendcafe.com. It’s free, and of course, as I say, you will receive it in your inbox. David, thank you. I hope you have a great week and Happy Thanksgiving.

BAHNSEN: Thanks so much, Nick, and Happy Thanksgiving.

JENNY ROUGH, HOST: Today is Monday, November 25th. Good morning! This is The World and Everything in It from listener-supported WORLD Radio. I’m Jenny Rough.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher. Up next, the WORLD History Book.

Two years ago, a tech company releases a powerful Artificial Intelligence product that changes the way people research and write.

Also today, what to do with Thanksgiving leftovers? Nearly 70 years ago a food supplier turned tons of extra food into a multi-million dollar business.

ROUGH: But first, the life of a famous Bible illustrator. Here’s WORLD’s Emma Perley:

EMMA PERLEY: 220 years ago, a small, sickly baby is born to a poor family in England. As he grows up, John Kitto takes refuge in books to get away from the harsh reality of poverty. At eight years old he receives some formal education, but is sent to work three years later. Kitto never goes back to school.

At 12 years old, he begins helping his father with the family roofing business. One day as Kitto clambers up the ladder with some supplies, he takes a misstep. He falls 35 feet to the ground, hitting his head. When he wakes up at home, he’s surrounded by friends, and Kitto sees that they’re writing to communicate … Voice actor Ed Phillips reads from his journal:

ED PHILLIPS: I was very slow in learning that my hearing was entirely gone … I said in great astonishment, "Why do you write to me ? why not speak ? Speak ! speak !" Those who stood around the bed exchanged significant looks of concern, and the writer soon displayed upon his slate the awful words — " You ARE DEAF."

Kitto turns to shoemaking at a workhouse, and he feels isolated.

But he eventually makes good friends at the factory. He starts praying more often and works hard. As he studies the Bible, he becomes convinced that God is calling him to missionary work.

PHILLIPS: Were it possible, O my God, that I could become a minister of Thy Word; that I could be permitted to point out to erring sinners the paths of peace and salvation. What more could I desire of Thee?

Kitto continues to grow in his faith, reading a wide range of Christian books. He is offered a job as a printer at a missionary college, because of his theological knowledge.

And he eventually travels the world, taking in the landscape of the Middle East and its culture.

PHILLIPS: At a very early period of life, and in the midst of untoward circumstances, and of occupations which left me the least possible leisure, I was a diligent collector of all the odds and ends of knowledge that fell in my way.

Kitto returns to England to design Bible illustrations, inspired by his travels. Unlike most other illustrations of the time, his portraits show careful research and cultural knowledge. He anonymously publishes the first volume covering Genesis to Ruth in 1836, and the work is widely praised. Kitto immediately sets out to create another. And another. He tells a friend of his labors,

PHILLIPS: It has been of infinite advantage as an exercise on my own mind. It has afforded me an opportunity of bringing nearly all my resources into play.

Kitto contributes 23 books to Christian scholarship, including nonfiction history books and a 3 volume Pictorial Bible. He passes away in Germany on November 25th, 1854. He was 50 years old.

Next, after the Thanksgiving season of 1953, food corporation Swanson puzzles over what to do with 260 tons of leftover turkey.

The corporation buys 5,000 aluminum trays. They then arm employees with spatulas and ice cream scoops. In an assembly line, they fill the trays with turkey, sweet potatoes, gravy, peas and cornbread dressing. And voila! They’ve just prepared a Thanksgiving-themed dinner …

AUDIO: They take you away from the everyday, to a world where the food makes you want to stay. Those real sensational international frozen dinners from Swanson!

Although Swanson isn’t the first company to sell frozen prepackaged meals, its version sees huge success. For only 98 cents, a home cooked meal can be ready in 25 minutes.

Convenience—combined with the rise in family dinnertime around the television set—makes these TV dinners an affordable and appealing choice. Audio from a 1955 Swanson commercial.

AUDIO: Lucky me! My wife uses Swanson TV turkey dinners, and make your husband lucky too. Get Swanson TV turkey dinners …

Within the first year, Swanson sells 10 million Thanksgiving dinners. Their success inspires other companies to capitalize on frozen meal production. TV dinners eventually decline in popularity due to health concerns, as they’re quite high in saturated fat and sodium. But at least 128 million Americans still eat frozen meals every year.

Finally, on November 30th, 2022, OpenAI launches ChatGPT. Audio here from an ABC News interview with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.

AUDIO: I think people really have fun with it and they see the possibility and they see the ways this can help them, this can inspire them, this can help people create, help people learn, help people do all of these different tasks.

What does ChatGPT have to say for itself on this anniversary? We asked it to find out …

OpenAI built on their GPT-3.5 model, a powerful AI designed to understand and generate human-like text. The tech company trained it using a massive dataset of text from the internet.

This approach helped the AI learn to respond more naturally and accurately in conversations. The launch made ChatGPT a hit for casual chats, professional tasks, and creative projects. It quickly became a widely-used tool.

OpenAI has stayed true to its mission: to make AI safe, useful, and available to everyone, proving that technology can truly help shape a better future. As of November 2024, ChatGPT continues to be a leading AI language model, with over 200 million weekly active users worldwide.

Well, there’s no humility there…

Large language models like ChatGPT have become a huge part of daily life in the two years since its launch. Everything from search engines to cell phones have embraced the technology.

AUDIO: What I hope instead is that we successively develop more and more powerful systems that we can all use in different ways that get integrated into our daily lives, into our economy, and become an amplifier of human will.

But the tool is only as good as the material it samples, leading to concerns about biased and outright false returns.

That’s this week’s WORLD History Book. I’m Emma Perley.

NICK EICHER, HOST: Tomorrow: what can we expect for US policy and the middle east under a second Trump administration? We’ll talk about it. And, we’ll meet a musical composer inspired by creation…and its creator. That and more tomorrow.

I’m Nick Eicher.

JENNY ROUGH, HOST: And I’m Jenny Rough.

The World and Everything in It comes to you from WORLD Radio. WORLD’s mission is biblically objective journalism that informs, educates, and inspires.

The Psalmist writes: “My eyes long for your salvation and for the fulfillment of your righteous promise. Deal with your servant according to your steadfast love, and teach me your statutes.” —Psalm 119:123, 124

Go now in grace and peace.

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