Higher Learning with Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay - Another Glitch from Mitch, and Coco Gauff Rightfully Goes Off

Episode Date: September 1, 2023

Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay react to the latest incident of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell freezing up in front of the press (21:51), before discussing the heat-related death of a UPS driver (42:35). Then, an argument on 'Love & Hip-Hop: Atlanta' sparks a conversation on anti-Blackness (58:59), and Coco Gauff vs. Laura Seigemund ends in white tears (1:12:33). Hosts: Van Lathan and Rachel Lindsay Producers: Donnie Beacham Jr. and Ashleigh Smith Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Yo, yo, yo, thought warriors. What is up? How are learning. It is on. It is I, Van Lathen, Jr. And it's me, Rachel and Lindsay. Rach, I see that you're quicker on the uptake this time. You know what?

I went and watched it because you were like, that's going to sound so different when people listen to it or watch it. And I watched it and I was like, he's right. I got to come with it. I got to be quick. I got to pick up right where you left off. You were right. You were right. I got to be quick on the uptake.

take. The uptake isn't very important. What's your opinion on the uptake, Rachel? In what sense? I mean, you know, wow. Brownie's on the uptake. You ever think that you're, that you're too mean to the dogs? Okay. Okay. Let's give this some context because you're you're going to pay for Brownie when Brownie re-injures that leg. I'm trying to give him some freedom. You're accusing me of being mean. I'm trying to give Brownie free. by not putting him in his little cage. And here he is acting up. Somebody came to the door.

That's why. Okay, so me and Brownie came to the house. No, I wasn't. Brownie, everyone knows Brownie has had ACL surgery. He is three weeks post-surgery. That surgery was very expensive. Little dogs are prone to re-injure their leg because they're just like zealous little beings and they can't sit still.

So I was taking Brownie on a field trip over to your house. because you say I'm so mean. I was trying to get him out of the cage. And he kept nipping at Bozeman. He kept wanting to bite Bozeman. And you felt sorry for him. And you were like, he wants to play. Let him play.

And I was like, are you going to pay for his expensive surgery? No, he needs to sit on that blanket and chill and be happy he's out of the house. I'm not mean. Bozeman was just chilling. Bozeman. I know. He's so cute. Bozeman is a hundred pound dog

he was looking at Browning and he was like I like him he's trying to bite me but that's okay eventually I'll get through to him which never happened They calm down around each other but they couldn't be all upon each other

You know Brownie Brownie's there he's injured He's trying to figure things out me and Brownie connected Leave Brownie alone He was captivated by you You guys, Van would be up and talking and walking around, and Brownie was just mesmerized by you. He was tilting his head.

He was watching your every move. That's why Van bonded with him because he found a new friend. I mean, you knew Brownie, but you really got to, like, really got to see Brownie. And you guys bonded. He's very soft. He's a soft dog. He's, he's an easy, he's like a, you start pitting Brownie and, you, you start pitting Brownie. and you start to feel your stress like cascade away.

He's a soft, nice dog. And then sometimes he'll be yapping and then you'll pet him and then he'll stop yapping. And they'll be like, yeah, that's all I wanted with some love. I'll be sending him over for you as your little stress reliever when he's fully healed. Where are you, are you, you're heading off. You're going on a trip. I'm going on a trip. I'm going to Europe first time in five years.

I've been five, no, four years, four years. Okay. Since our honeymoon. Tell us about your trip. I'm going to Italy first time. I feel like I've been all around, but never to Italy. I'm going to Rome, and then I'm going to Sorrento and city hopping in the coast from there. And then I'm going to Paris.

I've never been to Paris either. So it'll be fun. It's very necessary. I'm very excited to go. I'm just really looking forward to releasing and resetting and maybe feeling a little inspired. It's be, feel inspired by Europe, huh? Yeah, like, you know, escape, vacation, the scenery, the water, just being in something, a new country. Donnie, drop the song.

Donnie, don't try to answer me. Only listen to my OGs. Fucksy street rap, bitches, bitches is phonys. food stamps and purse bitch next year a bad bitch i order the oist the fetichini served with the boo gets rich white nigga put a ring on it he just couldn't wait told me i was gorgeous carrot size of the rock is a you know how i'm rocking hood bitch with an expensive taste i got this white nigga brown pussy in his face cut it all donnie Why?

Why? Why? It's going. I can't stand you. You're not funny. And neither are you, Donnie. You need to stop being an accessory. You need to start saying no, Donnie.

I think that timing was nice. So that's all. That's all going to. Donnie on the uptake. Oh my God. Who is that? What song is that? I tell you what.

I'm very happy that you're going to Europe. Wait, what song is that? Oh, man. So there's this girl that's going viral because of what she said. She actually was spitting. I don't know who that is. It's something that's going viral around TikTok, or not TikTok, around Twitter, because this guy had this boot set up and he's like, he puts that beat on.

He goes, just come. rap to the beat. And then different people get up and they rap to the beat or whatever. And then she got on there and she started going crazy. And she had a rap about white guys and everybody's kind of mad. So I was like, Donnie, we got to find a way to spring this on Rachel. So I was set up. You were definitely set up. You were set up with all of the questions. I didn't know where it was going to go. But I knew at some point that was going to be useful in this particular podcast. Rich, I got to tell you something. What's wrong?

I'm almost to the end of your season, man. I knocked out a couple on the plane. What? On the plane? Yeah, I knocked out a couple of the plane. What week are you in? Oh, I don't know. I'd have to think about it.

Have you seen the parents? Have you seen my, well, my, my uncle and my, my mom, because my dad, my dad won't come. It's after hometowns. Okay. So we're in Spain. Okay. Yeah. So let me tell you something real quick.

First of all, a couple of people that I, that, you know what? No. No, just tell me this. No, please. I hate when people do that. A couple of people what? And then don't say anything else. No, it's, there are a couple of guys that I haven't brought up because of, not,

not haven't brought up. Oh, that's great. I just got some good news. from Gibral. Congratulations to my friend Gibral, my brother, Jabrille, and a big, huge announcement that he just made, he just popped in

right there on the, on the, on the whole deal. Oh, look, I have to be honest with you, Rachel. Congratulations, Gibral. Congratulations to Gibral. I have to be honest with you, Rachel. Your season of the Bachelorette is first rate high quality entertainment. I'm glad you're enjoying it.

First of all, to me, it's obvious that Brian was going to win. Not to the people watching it in real time. Really? Who do they think was going to win? Eric? Peter. America was obsessed with him. And actually off camera, I told him people are going to be obsessed with you.

Why did you say that towards him? Because he's like the quintessential bachelor type guy, Midwest, nice guy, attractive, but comes across like I don't really know how attractive I am. And he was going to be, there's always that one person who like, this world doesn't make sense to. Like I know I'm coming on this show and I know what happens at the end, but this world doesn't make sense. and I was like, they're going to be obsessed with you. Does he live here in L.A.? No, Wisconsin. Hmm.

And remember, I used to live in Wisconsin. I'm licensed to practice or I was. I let my license lapse, but I could re-up. I have a Wisconsin spar license. But he didn't move here in L.A. Like, after the show? Before the show. Like, years before he, like, years before he tried to model out here was,

it didn't work out for him, so we moved back to Wisconsin. So he had been in Wisconsin before the show. You guys, look, look at the way you're looking at him. This is so disgusting towards me. He is a handsome guy, though. He had good hair. I like gray hair. He was very handsome.

Brian, he just beat the shit out of his name. So that means you got to the part with the guy who never dated a black woman. You're past that. Okay. I mean, look, this is the kind of stuff that I was, that I was, like, prepared for in the show. I think I liked you on the show more than I thought that I would. Like, you handled it. You were going to say more than I do now.

That's what I thought you could be. No, you handled everything so well. Like, it was almost like, Rachel, dare I say, you were born to be a Bachelorette. You do the Bachelorette hand gestures well. like when you do like this. Okay, guys. We have something in store for you. It's very easy to get caught up in the world.

I mean, you got to think about it. I'm treated like I'm an A-list celebrity. I'm flying at like first class, top hotels. Someone's waiting on me, hand and foot, whatever I want I get. I've got all these men doting over me. You underestimate the emotion, which is the toughest part of it. But, yeah, it's easy to just like fall into the world. Peter Krauss.

Oh, gosh, you're down dark cold. I am. You're supposed to be doing this already as you're watching it. So it's the ending that really had people in a tizzy where people were pissed. Why were they pissed? You have to watch it.

Okay, I'll see you. And look, here's my thing. I think that you, should reconnect with Bachelor World. Not the bad parts. Oh, God. Not the bad parts. Okay.

You're a Bachelor World pioneer. Not the bad parts. I don't want you to reconnect with anything toxic. But do you hang out with all of your Bachelor friends? Was Whitney and Bachelor? Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Which one?

What was she? Which Bachelorette was she? She was on Nick's season with me as a contestant. As a contestant. That's right, because you were a contestant. test them first. So I'm friends with several of the girls that still that I was on that season with. So when your dad was mad about you doing batch, he wasn't mad about you being the bachelorette. He was mad about you going on the bachelor's show. He didn't care

about me because like nobody in my world watched the show. So we all underestimated how big of a deal. It's like we knew it. We were like, do people still watch it? My friends, family, No, I think I had one friend. So my dad was like, are you going to come back and be a lawyer? Are you going to lose your job? And I was like, I can lose my job. They're still going to let me practice. And he was like, do it.

They did not care about the bachelor. It was the bachelorette that my mom was like, they're going to crucify you. Pretty here. Speaking of that. She's very nervous. I think we should talk about something that was left unresolved in the last podcast. What was that? We asked the judge who his favorite rapper was,

and he had an answer, would you care to tell everybody who the judge said he really liked? My dad said that he likes Curtis Blow. That is the most judge answer. I was like, what? He said run DMC, but he was like, he was like Curtis Blow. That's so crazy to me. It took me by surprise, too.

I mean, first of all, I could basketball is my favorite sport. I let the way they triple up and down the court. My favorite shot is the elite you. And that's not the discurtis vote, but I could see, I could see the judge like really getting it,

really getting into that. These are the break. Bring it up, bring it up, bring it out. Your dad was probably on that at the brakes, man. You know what I'm saying? I was like, okay. Okay. Okay.

Curtis Blow. I don't know who I was expecting. More like maybe like a Sugar Hill gang. And I said that and he was like, no. I was like, oh, okay. We have a real opinion. How old is the judge again? 71.

Okay. Hold on for a second. This is the judge. We don't hear anything. We don't hear anything. There's no sound. Where's it coming out of? Donnie, you couldn't hear that?

No. But Donnie, just him, him bobbins. Yeah, that's definitely going here. We shouldn't have said anything. Rachel, me and Rachel are reuniting in New York tomorrow. Yeah. And we're all going to get together. And we don't know where we should have dinner, Rachel.

Kalika van Charles. We don't know where we should have dinner. We're going to let the thought warriors call it. All right. I'm not talking about you putrid sons of bitches over on the Reddit either. You said you were going to be nice. Oh, I'm sorry. The Reddit can chime in if they want.

We love you guys. You guys, first of all, you're talking to me, Rachel. I wonder how people responded to what you said. But before I get through this, I want to let people know. choose where Rachel and I and Kalika and Charles and everybody should go to dinner tomorrow in New York. Tell us where we need to go. It's going to be in Manhattan. Okay.

I'm not driving to Staten Island or anything like that. It's going to be in Manhattan. So keep it. Oh, I got to come to Manhattan. Okay. Where are you going to be at? I mean, I'm right there. I'm in Brooklyn.

I'll literally be right. I'm right over the bridge. Like, it's fine. So you guys got to tell us a good place to go to dinner. So that'll be your job. Reddit, I'm sorry, Reddit. Reddit, feel free to chime in. Love you, love you, love you, love you.

Love to love your Reddit. Okay. And then we'll go to dinner wherever you guys say. If it's whacked, this is the last bit of trust that's out there. If it's whack, just know. It's a bunch of bullshit. Okay. Rachel, how did people respond to you chastising them over the whole Joe Osteen situation?

I mean, there was another post. that was like Rachel would rate her apology, which I wasn't apologizing, but Rachel wouldn't give this apology rating a good rating. You know, people were like,

this is, Rachel wants to be smart and dumb at the same time. Rachel, Rachel wants to act like she's, she's from Texas and she's, she's from Texas and, you know, she went to a church. Of course, she's,

she, knows that all evangelicals are homophobic. Like, it's like, just like random things. And it's like things that I didn't even say. You know what I just realize is I said that more for myself because it made me feel okay, not because I was trying to win people over. I just needed to get that out. Like, if I, I will be exhausted trying to always get people to like me or to prove myself

to people. I don't do that for you all. So I wasn't expecting for people to say, you know what, Rachel has a point. It just felt good for me to do it. You know, people who want to hate are going to hate. For me, it did. Do you, what was the last time you apologized to Rachel?

I'm sure it was to Brian for something. Really? Yeah, I'm sure I apologize to something for Brian. Why are you shocked that I would have to apologize or the fact that I did apologize? That you would. I wouldn't think, look, because here's the,

the thing. I don't, I don't get apologized to very much. Like, I don't even seek apologizing from like ladies because me even saying, hey, you did something, ends up in me apologizing. So, so I'm, I'm not, I'm surprised at that. Let me be clear. I don't do something that I'm like, oh, I'm so sorry. Now I might take a second after discussion. And then I'm like, you know what, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. But, like, I'm not always great at it. And I don't apologize that often, but I'm sure the last time I did apologize to something,

it was to Brian. Let me tell you something right now, Rachel. We're going to move on and get to this entire deal, but I won't let you know something. You have, you carry a heavy, a heavy, a heavy load in terms of what people expect from you. And even if you fall short with not understanding the connections between homophobia and evangelical Christians, that doesn't mean that you don't have this plump guy right here on your side.

This milk done of a man will never, ever, ever play you ever, ever, you'll never get played by me. It doesn't matter right or wrong. You want to be a part of Joel Osteen's congregation. is you, Osteen, Pat Robertson, I can't wait. You're like one of the righteous

gemstones. Like, and, and it's funny as hell. And so, um, that just don't even worry about what people say. This is the home team.

Cloy the Alien, Ashley, Donnie, Van, Raich. Don't worry about him. Brian Browning. I'm good.

I'm good. I'm good. I'm good. I'm good. I'm good. Yeah. Yeah. I had to let that go a long time ago.

But thank you. Glad to have the home team support. We just got some screeners. Van and Rachel, we're excited to inform you that you are now able to do the Continental from the world of John Wick's screeners via Peacock on Media Village. Are you excited to watch these screeners? Have you seen? Are you drinking?

Just apple juice. Rach. I'm in vacation. mode. You're in vacation mode. I'm in vacation mode. I've been packing. I was Blair in music.

Donnie and Ashley, though, I was listening to Just Gotta Make it before. I am so in vacation mode. I'm riding this podcast. I'm so glad our interview didn't happen today. That was such a, that was like a gift to me. I'm just, because I'm in vacation mode. Rachel's in vacation mode.

We're not in vacation mode. We've got to talk about relevant things that are going on. And you guys, there might be some hard truths in this podcast that you're not ready to hear. It's facts. All right. On the side of this break, Mitch fucking McConnell glitched out again. It's facts. We'll talk about it on the other side of the break.

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dash terms. Okay, here's a deal. Don't mute your mic, don't. Don't laugh. Oh, shit. Don't laugh, guys. Don't laugh. I don't think it's funny.

Mitch McConnell was caught buffering again and it's facts and it has sent shockwaves up and down the political talking head sphere of the world he's doing a talk and he seems to have a situation

where he pauses and almost loses time We got some audio. It's better on video, but just to give you an example of how he kind of stopped and what is essentially happened to him, seemed like something medically was going on or is going on with Senator McConnell. This is what happened. What are my thoughts about what? Running for reelection in 2026.

Did you hear the question, Senator, running for reelection in 2026? All right. I'm sorry, you all. We're going to meet a minute. Senator. Any. Okay. Somebody else have a question.

Please speak up. Cut it off. Okay. So you saw it was around 30 seconds right there. Shades of something that happened to him earlier this year, when a similar thing started to happen, this actually happened at press availability in Kentucky. Over a month after it happened in the Capitol in July, his office has attributed both of these incidents to lightheadedness, saying that Mitch McConnell would seek a physician's

advice or examination to see what's going on here. That has happened. And he's been given a clean bill of health from his physicians. But a lot of people, it leaves a lot of people wondering, Mitch McConnell, who's 81 years old, if he is fit to hold his office. He is the minority leader in the Senate, a man of incredible power in American politics, but he's had a slew of personal accidents and health setbacks, should I say? And people are wondering if he can operate in the capacity, the incredibly important capacity of Senate minority leader. And I mean, it makes all the sense in the world while they're asking that. The last time we talked about this, which as you mentioned, wasn't that long ago, I said, I don't feel like he has to tell people what his doctors are saying.

You know, if he can move forward and do his job and, you know, hold his title and do what he needs to do in that position to, you know, like can actually do that and function in that way, then fine. But I said he didn't have to tell us. Now that it's happened twice, that we know of, it's a different story. I feel like you have to look at it in a completely different way because just a couple it all together. We know that he fell back in March of this year. We know that he took weeks off. He had a concussion because of that. And the story is that he's been on the decline since that concussion in March. We've seen now twice where he seems to be paralyzed in the moment. if you look at him physically, he looks sick. He looks bad. He looks like he's had significant weight loss. He barely moves his face as he talks. He moves slower than we've seen him in the past. He's not as vibrant as a man as he used to be. And I think that all of that and seeing it in such a public way and in this way now twice, you have to talk about it. It is alarming. And it's particularly an issue because, one, he's

not up for re-election until 2026. And we're coming up in an election year. He obviously is a strong voice within the party. And he's been the leader, majority or minority leader since 2007. It also calls into question, like, who's going to step into that role and be that voice and that public figure in 2024? Let's just say that a Republican wins, um, uh, the president. let's say eventually a Republican wins the Senate. He's not equipped to do that at the moment. So who's going to step in? And I think for the first time ever, the party's having to consider what it looks like for a person to step into that role since 2007.

And what kind of effect will that have on the party? What will their leadership look like? Will it be a MAGA person or a middle or someone who's been opposed to Trump? It's not going to be somebody who's been opposed to Trump. Well, one of the guys they're looking at At least agreed that the election was not Fraudgeon What a fucking terrible low bar

It is. The bar is low. The bar is low. So there are a couple of people out there. Minority Whip, Jean Thune, accomplished chair from Wyoming, John Barrasso, Senator John Cornyn from Texas.

These are people that McConnell got in touch with after all this happened, I guess, to circle the wagons, rally the troops. All those guys are potential successors to Mitch McConnell. Donnie, I want you to play something I just sent you, which is Vice President, which is President Biden's reaction to Mitch McConnell's health scare. And, Rach, I want to get your thoughts on what President Biden had to say.

I just heard literally coming out. And Mitch is a friend, as you know, not a joke. We've always, I know people don't believe with that case, but we have disagreements politically, but he's a good friend. And so I'm going to try to get in touch with him later this afternoon. I don't know enough to know. Do you think he's true to serve and should run for the election? Okay. So.

That was it? That's it. That's it. So there are a couple of things here for me. And they all are kind of in the same deal. Number one, kind of a good moment for Joe Biden. Let's just be honest. I knew you were going to say that.

It's facts. Kind of a good moment for Joe Biden in. Joe Biden, who's been riding the out to lunch, sleepy train here for a couple of weeks now with people on both sides criticizing what they feel is his mental acuity was on top of it right there. and if you put him side by side with Mitch McConnell he fucking looks like Malcolm X. That's how sharp he looks. It looks like one of the greatest orders of all time.

Okay, so that's one thing. Just looking at the optics of it. Number two, people know that these guys are close, that they have a friendship. And obviously people know that people on opposite sides of the political aisle have friendships. that's if you know anything about politics you shouldn't be shocked at that but the fact that they are so close and the fact that you see similar criticisms of them right now is illuminating to me

because I think that we think of these people as left-leaning politicians or right-leaning politicians first, but we really should think of them as politicians first. I say that because the Senate has an average age of about 65. The House a little lower. It's around 57 years old, right? There is a certain brand of political arrogance that America is definitely falling victim to right now. We've talked about it. We've ate around the edges of it here on the podcast.

But I know people, young, ready, capable political voices in states around this country that aren't being silenced because they're left, because they're right. I don't know any on the right, but I'm sure that there are some, because they're black or because they're white, they're being silenced because they're young. And there are a lot of people in various states in various positions of power that are simply too selfish and arrogant, their identities are too connected

to these positions that they hold in order to step aside and let a new generation of people leave. And when we talk about patriotism and all of this different stuff, we talk about, oh, what you would do for America. Sometimes patriotism or sometimes duty is about what you won't do for a cause. And what you won't do is center yourself when it's time for you to go sit your old ass down somewhere. And that's not a problem that is exclusive to the right.

That's not a problem that's exclusive to the left. I'm going to be a respectful enough person not to not. name any names, but these motherfuckers are too old. They're old. They're old on the left up there. They're old on the right. They're old. That's a fucking guy, Mitch McConnell right there that controls the finances for his party,

has the purse strings, makes live important decisions. Right? With all due compassion to what he's going through, because I don't want to turn it to a demon, this motherfucker is too old. Get the fuck out of it. Yeah. I am someone who said, I personally think that fucking Joe Biden is too old.

Too old. Not what I like to see in a commander-in-chief. Too-oh, he's too old. Mitch McConnell's too old. Joe Biden's too old. He's too old. So what's your, what's the cutoff then for you? Or is it not a cutoff?

It's in the way that they act, right? Because the argument could be made that Trump's right after Biden. but Trump doesn't present as old as Biden does. I mean, they're close in age. Here's the thing, though. So is there a cutoff? Here's the thing. Trump's age doesn't necessarily stop him from being mentally nimble.

You know, we know that from vagina. Vigina. You know, and things like that. He's been that way. It's easy. It's easy. But Trump's age. You like it.

You like that. You can't. I'm a laugh every time. Every time. You like that. But let me tell you how Trump's, how Trump's age hurts him and hurts America. Is that he's so hardened.

He's got so many years of being the same fucking piece of shit that Donald Trump, in my opinion, is not out to learn anything. There are two ways that have it, that, that, that, that, the two ways that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, The two ways, shall say, that having these relics and these fossils in these offices hurt. One is that sometimes they're too old to be great at their job. Sometimes they're mentally compromised, right?

But almost all the time, almost all the time, they are too set in their ways to really attack, be available to and accept new methods of thinking. They got the same donor base that they always have. It's like they got the same aids that they have. They have the same thing. There's a point to where you need fresh minds and fresh takes. Even if it's the same bullshit, you need something new. That's like life.

Take your ass on and go do something else. It's golf time, Mitch. It's golf time for Joe. I think that's time. It's golf time for Trump in their very minimum security prison. Does it also highlight that more of like what Mitch McConnell represents at this point is just a title and a role and a figurehead because he's been in place for such a long time and in this position and what he represents for the party? Because the fact that he fell and he had a concussion, he'd been gone for weeks, he wasn't making decisions. Somebody else was.

So it's almost as if just their presence alone is what's important for these parties and on both sides more than it is about them actually making decisions because somebody else is making those decisions with Senator Feinstein Feinstein, Feinstein, I always say that one. I don't know this for sure

but I would think that somebody else is making decisions. Okay, let me ask you a question. Let me ask you a question. Who is that person? I don't know. Who is that person making the decisions for her? Who is this person making these decisions for Mitch McConnell? Who is the person making the decisions for President Biden potentially?

Who is that person? Okay. Their administration. Okay. What I'm saying is you, if you don't know who those people are, you live here in California. If you don't know, if Diane Feinstein is too old to make decisions, if she's, if her health is not to the point to where she can make decisions. The question is who's making them. and if you don't know who's making them,

then you don't know who you elected. And so what I'm saying is, and I'm not saying that a lot of these things aren't really done by, some of these people aren't public. Anyway, I'm not saying it at all. But what I am saying is that, you know, at a certain point, we're talking about a job. Y'all, I don't mean to be an asshole,

but it's a fact of life that we're all going to deteriorate, in some way and at some point not be able to rock the mic in the same way that we used to. And we're looking at a bunch of people who don't want to step aside. And this is part of the intractability in this country's political thought that we don't really discuss. We talk about black versus white. We talk about left versus right, but we do not talk about young versus old. It's time for some of y'all motherfuckers to go. need to go to Italy. Go to Lake Cuomo, visit. You did your duty. It's over.

But that's my point that the party is so caught up in the look and what it is traditionally supposed to be in represent rather than actually the person making those decisions and making change or listening to what the ideas of the party should be or what they want to be rather than the identity, right? It's focused on the identity. And that doesn't just include like, I look this way, so I'm supposed to vote this way. It's also the identity of the politicians within the party. And I think that that's what this moment is highlighting because it doesn't seem, and maybe they secretly are, it doesn't seem like anybody's telling Mitch that you need to step down.

Question, one more question for you on this. If Mitch McConnell does step down, does this make Biden look bad? Because your first point was Biden looks like Malcolm X right now compared to a McConnell. if McConnell removes himself, does that make Biden look bad? So McConnell won't remove himself. Just saying. Let's just say it's worse than it is.

Like, let's just say he actually really has an issue. So let me tell you what the deal is. In order for Mitch McConnell, because it's 2026, right, it's a couple of years, in order for Mitch McConnell to remove himself, in order for him not to be there, he would have to die. And the reason is because Kentucky has a Democratic governor. And if Mitch McConnell isn't there, that governor then appoints somebody into that Senate

position. And they're not going to give up that spot. What's more likely is that what's more likely is that Mitch McConnell steps down as minority leader and let somebody else who is a little sharp or a little bit more with it handle that prodigious duty. But in terms of stepping down, and like stepping away from the Senate before he's up for election, that ain't going to happen. Once again, demonstrates the precarious position that we're in

with how ultra and hyper politicized things have become. Now, I'm not saying that there's ever a time where you would have wanted to lose numbers in the Senate if you're the right or the left. But it's not about what you want now. It's about what can't happen. So the people of Kentucky essentially

can't get the best representation, which I do not think Mitch McConnell can give them. They can't get the best representation right now. No. Because the political stakes are too high. The political stakes are too high for this motherfucker to take his ass somewhere and hang out and get better and have a fun time with the time that he has remaining on this planet.

Right. He's like, the asshole that Mitch McConnell has been. I'm not going to wish death on it. The son of a bitch jerk dick fuck. that he's been, I'm not going to wish death on. But they can't do that because the political stakes in this country right now are just too high. Things are to such a degree that that blank slate of a politician has got to stay there. They will weaken at Bernie's his ass around Kentucky and around America for another two years before they let them go. They can't do it.

And to be honest with you, look, I am not, and I've said it here before, I'm. I am not going to look at the results of the country right now and say that the Biden administration is doing a bad job. They haven't delivered what I voted them in for. They haven't delivered, I must keep saying it, justice and policing, police reform. They haven't delivered voting rights. There hasn't been a lot of the things that I thought, that I hoped that they would address that they've done. However, you're looking at a pretty decent economy, an economy that's surging. you're looking at people going back to work.

You have to be fair about those things. But that doesn't mean that you need that guy there for another four years because I don't know if he can do it. So what I'm saying is I'm calling upon some of these people who say that they love America and love their constituents to love them enough to grease somebody else to leave. Same thing happened with RBG. We could talk about this all day long. Should have fucking retired. But you didn't and you goddamn passed away.

God bless you and I hope that you're resting well. But the reality is after that happened, somebody came in and now we're in trouble. Yeah. It's weird. All right. It's fine. You know, it's whatever, man.

People want to get their jokes off. It's fine. Get your jokes off. I'm not going to scold anybody for getting jokes off by Mitch McConnell. I don't care. It's not for me. It's not for me to do, but I'm... Did you know about one in three people with plaques psoriasis may also develop psoriotic arthritis,

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collapsed while he was making deliveries near McKinney, Texas last Wednesday, 101 degrees. Initially refused a trip to the hospital but entered care days later and died on Sunday. Cooling systems won't, UPS secured air conditioning for their truck. in the most recent contract, which is a fucking crazy situation. UPS employees secured air conditioning for their trucks in their most recent contract. It's wild.

It's wild. All right, man. 86% of the members approved it early in this month. They won't start being installed into next year and the company will begin putting AC in all new small packing vehicles. Esteban Chavez, a 24-year-old UPS driver, passed away while delivering packages in Los Angeles last June. June senators introduced a new bill promoting new occupational safety and health standards

to protect workers from heat-related injuries. There's got to be some reason they don't have air conditioning their trucks. Let's save this one. I don't feel like I know enough about this. What do you mean? There's got to be some reason. The reason is to save money. That can't be it.

Does Amazon have it? Hold on. Actually, keep the topic. Hold on. I'll just say, there's got to be some reason why they didn't have air conditioning in their trucks.

That seems cruel and fucked. Did you know that they didn't have air conditioning? No. Oh, I did. The doors are always open, but I assume that they had air conditioning in UPS truck. No, the doors are off,

and I always knew that they didn't have air, and I always assumed it was strictly for money purpose. What other logical reason? There it is. Last year, UPS spokesperson told CBS MoneyWatch that installing cooling systems and delivery trucks was not feasible because of their frequent stops. In a statement this week announcing the air conditioning changes, UPS said,

we have always remained open to solutions that keep our employees safe on hot days. Let me tell you something that people have been talking about for a while. I see stuff all the way back. The only solution is air. What do you mean you've been looking at other solutions? And the reason that they don't is because of money. It's always what it comes back to. The only solution is to have air.

It's 101 degrees, particularly outside when this person passed away, lost their life tragically. It's something that I consider could have been a preventable thing. It's even hotter inside those outfits that they wear and inside that vehicle. It's even hotter. And they're moving around. round back and forth. It's, listen, Texas, particularly, first off, there's no federal or state standard that specifically protects workers from heat illnesses. Texas has the highest related

deaths, heat-related deaths, than any other state. And Greg Abbott, that demon down there, signed a bill that particularly combats labor laws and specifically does. doesn't allow, and this is with construction workers, but it's related to heat. They're out there. It's hot. They're working this construction doesn't allow them to take water breaks. Stop. So basically this death star bill that they called it. And we've talked about it briefly on the podcast. This death star bill says that cities can't make laws that go beyond what the state laws. And that includes being able for in certain cities. Like it was Austin. I think it was Dallas, maybe San Antonio, for construction workers to have certain water breaks. They got rid of that. So Texas has Greg Abbott, their leader, has no desire to even combat what's happening right now. They're letting OSHA step in.

But OSHA doesn't have laws that are particular to protecting workers from the heat. It's just about safety. They're working on that, but it isn't in place. And as you pointed out, this has been a point of conversation for a long time. And they're just now that it's getting even more traction starting to address it. And it's a huge problem.

Three people this summer have lost their lives in Texas that we know of. It's report experts say that it's probably more than that. They just are relating it to other causes rather than heat. I think we have to ask ourselves a couple of questions here. And hopefully these are questions that people have been asking themselves. But maybe they have. And there are many different fronts that we have to ask ourselves these questions on. like everybody wants their stuff

everybody wants their packages everybody wants their packages I get excited when a package comes do you Drew you get excited when I love a package I know it's coming I know it's coming yeah so

every like like you know it's fine but I'm looking at situations to where we are careening down the road of just, but we're already there, really, just completely losing any sort of emotional connection to the experiences and conditions of human beings that we depend on for different

things. Like, I'm wondering how is it that I didn't know that the guys delivering the packages to me didn't have air conditioning in their trucks. Every time I see them, they look like they just got out of Asana. Every time.

Every time you see them, they're dripping with the sweat and they're moving fast. Hey, UPS, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep, beep. Thank you very much. Boom, back in. You know, boom, back in, gone, going, going. And for a lot of guys that I knew

that grew up in the neighborhood, UPS was one of those jobs that like literally if you couldn't if you couldn't go to the NFL or the NBA you tried to get on with UPS sure like you tried you tried to get good benefits good pay work deliver some packages come back home I just think that you know when we talk about this we talk about climate change I was watching the BBC earlier and they were talking about how climate change affects or will affect the continent of Africa and just how that continent is being ravaged by climate change, how that's all affecting us, you know? And back to the topic before this, we need to empower serious people that care about the lives of individual human beings

and collective human beings over like stock prices. And that seems like, an easy decision to make, but it's not, it's not an easy decision for a lot of people, because you have to ask yourself if you're willing to pay a little bit more for UPS delivery so that somebody can ride in a car or truck with air conditioning, because it will cost UPS more money to air conditioning their rides. It will. And they will then pass that cost on to you. So the question is, how much more are you willing to pay so somebody doesn't fall out in the Texas East?

And that's a question you got to ask for yourself. That's it. But it's also asking these companies, how much is a life worth to you? Oh, we know that answer. We know that. It's not, we can't, so we can't rely on the company. It's going to take the people

of a given society, community, or country to decide they stand with other people. And that's what, how do you do that? Because as you pointed out, which is so true, especially now we live in a society where we want everything super fast. I feel like any delivery that I asked for, I want it to express. Like, I don't want to wait three to five business days for. We want it now. And part of that is the Amazon effect.

It's right. We want it immediately. And so that puts the pressure on these workers to work longer hours. I got a package the other day at 10 p.m. at night. And I was like, who is working at 10 p.m. at night delivering packages. That's because... Soup kitchen. That's because of the demand on us.

So when you say like, okay, it's not going to be the company. It's got to be us putting the pressure. So what does that look like? Same thing we did to affect other businesses. We just don't use it. The first thing it looks like is being informed and understanding the plight and the issues that workers in various different industries are facing. there can't be any solidarity without information.

You have to know the conditions that people are in. You have to know the conditions that you're in in in order to have solidarity. You have to know what it means to be a worker, to be a person. You have to know that, right? That's why unionization and things like that are so important because more than even collectively bargaining,

it's sharing information. I know what you're going through. You know what I'm going through. but outside of even specific industries. I'm talking about in society, we have to understand what people are going through to give us these little inconveniences, these little conveniences, should I say,

that we could really live without. Like we could really live, we could, it wouldn't hurt anybody to get that package on a Friday and 7 Thursday. And I'm the same way. It wouldn't hurt anyone. But what will hurt somebody and hurt a family and hurt a bunch of people

is somebody dying of heat stroke in the Texas heat. That hurts. And that, hurts permanently. You never forget that pain. You never get that person back. So even one of those, even one of those, is worth seriously looking into how much UPS or any other company like that is looking out for their employees. And to your point, how various municipalities around Texas have been hamstrung in setting standards that best reflect the health and happiness

of their citizens, how the statehouse is doing that to them. And I should say that that Death Star Bill was signed. A judge just blocked it yesterday, which is a good thing. I don't know how long that will last, but it has not gone into effect. I just want to put that out there. Also, I think a lot of it, too, you talked about being informed. we don't know what a heat-related illness necessarily feels like. And so if you go to OSHA.gov, they did an educational campaign to explain,

because like we all could be affected by the heat. It's hot as hell right now in Los Angeles. You feel at the moment you step out. So it explains to you symptoms of what it is to feel like you're suffering, you know, or on the verge of suffering like a heat stroke or some type of heat-related illness. So, you know, share that with somebody who, you know, works on, you know, construction side or might be driving one of these trucks or your local male man, male woman. Like, do smell person. Do share that, spread that out there because you're right about being informed.

And that information is out there. We just don't always know where to get it. I also say this real quick. You guys love to use the Reddit and the Facebook and all of that stuff to get your takes off. and that's very important, but also if something is happening in your place of work and you want to discuss it,

if something's happening unfairly to you or someone that you know, please feel free to put those accounts in places where we can bring light to them and hold corporations feet to the fire about the way they're treating people. That's what I would like to see.

That's what I would like to see this stuff used for. Maybe start being nicer to them first. No, it's not about that. I'm trying to help them. It's not about being nice. Okay. It's not about being nice.

I'm trying to help them. Okay. So look, you got a problem at work. It's sort of a whole separate thing. Higher learning, we will hold these people's responsibilities. We will hold them responsible, should I say, for the way you guys are being treated. All right? I do want to say this.

I'm shit on a lot of corporations. But I have to do this or else I wouldn't be me. I've shoot on a lot of corporations and I'll continue to call out corporations, even though I'm funded by a corporation, even though we all have to work for corporations. Corporations are entities that are soulless. You're screaming out of a corporation. You're screaming into the void. They only exist to make money and exist to feed themselves. That's why you have to demand something back from the corporation.

and I wouldn't be doing, I wouldn't be myself, if I didn't give you guys a, a situation with the corporation I thought was actually pretty good. Okay. I was in Atlanta a couple weeks ago doing a show. This is not paid.

This is not in any way. No one put me up to this. It's an endorsement. There you go. Thank you very much. I glitched out. I had a Mitch McConnell. He said no jokes. it's a description. It happens to me from time to time.

I glitch out. You guys know on the podcast. Yeah, we all do. Yeah. I did a show for a revolt called Bet on Black. And the show is essentially a black shark tank where black entrepreneurs pitch their businesses. And after they pitch their businesses,

money is awarded to them. Grand prize was $200,000, but then there's $100,000, then there's $50,000, and there's $30,000. Every show, somebody won $20, $10,000. When you add up the number of shows that we did, there was a hell of a lot of money that went into black businesses.

And I have to be honest with you, I was impressed with the amount of money that was given to these businesses and Target was the sponsor of the show. And when we got to the end, you know, show hasn't come out yet, so we're not going to talk about

who won or anything like that, but when we got to the end, the moment of seeing people take all of these businesses which are grounded and rooted in community and to see how they reacted to having that in their hands. I don't want to say,

I'm sure they are horror stories, and I'm sure, but what I'm saying is in that particular spot, I would say big up. I would say big up. And I also say this. Philanthropy or charity does not, this is an investment,

but philanthropy or charity does not substitute for changing systems or deconstructing it. But I would be lying if I didn't say that after that watching black women, black people who have started these different initiatives to help people, businesses to help people, to see them get funding and stuff like that if I wasn't moved by.

I said that I would say, you know what? This one particular time, big up, big up. So I'll say big up to Target. That's great. Let's talk about loving hip-hop.

Rachel, let's say that you got an argument with one of your many white friends that you have. It was a bad argument. Okay? It was really bad. Like super bad.

Got bad. Like, are we fighting? Like, that kind of bad? Like, are we using hands? Maybe you threw a cup. Okay. You threw a cup. What?

Okay, throw a cup. You threw a cup. You're like, I'm mad. I'm going to throw a cup at you. She threw a cup at you. You threw a cup back. You guys are cup fighting. And this white friend called you a monkey.

Is there any possible way that this woman, your friend, could not be a racist in your mind. Of course she's a racist. I'm still stuck on the cups. The moment you're going to call me a monkey, there are no more cups that are going to be thrown. Of course you're racist. I would honestly think if my,

if this worst situation and my white friend called me a monkey, I would think that they had always been calling me a monkey in their head and that they were waiting for the moment that they could call me a monkey in real life. It's facts. This happened. on Love and Hip Hop Atlanta. Okay.

Erica Mina was in a back and forth with Spice. And we're covering this because... Fans of Love and Hip Hop fan. I'm not a loving hip hop fan. I don't watch the show, but if you turn the show on, you'll be entertained by the shit. You know what I mean? I used to watch it faithfully.

Yeah, I'm sure you did. Erica and Spice gotten to it. And the word monkey was used. Donnie, give me the chaotic and disturbing audio. What the fuck? Eric, I cannot believe you. You just called his girl a monkey. Okay.

And later on, she goes on to make monkey noises at spice. Makes monkey noises at spice. Erica Mina is, I think, of Puerto Rican descent. She's Latina. She's Latina. But, I mean, we should be specific now. because it's time to talk about it. She's, let's see, Erica.

Erica Mina, this is an American actress. Let's see. Erica Mina. Puerto Rican and Dominican. Puerto Rican and Dominican. Okay, so does Erica Mina have the coveted Afro-Latina tax? She would say it.

I mean, I don't think she said she's Afro-Latina. Okay, so you don't think that she says she's Afro-Latina. Okay. So you don't think that she says she's African-Latina. Afro Latina. Grant, I haven't watched in years, but when I used to watch, I never saw her identify as Afro Latina. It's okay. Not Afro Latina. Okay. And, you know, it's important to, it's important to understand how people identify and all of that. Not that this changes any of this stuff, but it would be a slightly, slightly different conversation if she was black just because we'd be asking why. It would be self-hatred and not hatred coming from outside of a community. We'd be asking why. We'd be asking what the hell of the thing is I would never call a black person a monkey. Even though people have done that, you know, Muhammad Ali called gorillas, Joe Frazier,

guerrilla in Manila and all of that stuff. Wrong, wrong, wrong, but wholly different if it's coming from outside. Okay, so here's the thing about this. Eric Camina is a racist. Okay. And that's the bottom line. And there are a lot of people that are going to say, hey, van, don't you know that Eric Camina was in a relationship with some.

Safari. She was with Safari. She has kids with Safari. All of that stuff. Here's the thing that you guys have to understand. Having an anti-black attitude, you can't fuck your way out of that. You can't birth your way out of that. You can't hip-hop your way out of that. You can't dance your way out of it. There's no proximity to blackness, even if blackness is inside of you, that divorces you away. from having anti-black attitudes, thoughts, and emotions. Yep. There's no black communion. There's nothing that you can take, right? Nothing that you can put in your mouth, right?

That I'm not a racist. I'm not anti-black. It doesn't work that way. And it doesn't work that way for any of this stuff. Right? It doesn't work that way. You can have, I'm sure most of you have, I'm sure most sexists have mothers.

I would venture to say that all sexists have mothers. I think every misogynist has a mom. Doesn't mean you're not a misogynist. You might even like her. It doesn't mean you're not as misogynist. It just doesn't mean that, right? A lot of misogynists have sisters. A lot of misogynists have women that they have sex with.

It just, there's nothing. These are constructs of thought that live inside of your mind. okay if you look at a darker skin black lady and monkey comes into your brain you got work to do that's it if you look at a darker skin black lady and you think oh a monkey there's a monkey monkey monkey uh you got work to do and doesn't matter how many niggas dicks you sucked and i don't mean to say it like that but i since we're being raw we're being raw it doesn't matter how many people doesn't matter how many friends you got Don't matter how many.

It doesn't matter. None of that matters. You looked at a black woman. You said monkey there it is wearing. Due to work. She says that she said something about her son. I'm not sure that she did. She said your son doesn't like it.

True, that's a blow that's probably low. Cool. Cool. Get it. When you insulted her and called her a monkey, you didn't go low with her. You went low with all of us. So everybody that's like,

that's doing a little gymnastics to do this? Nah, don't do the gymnastics. Is that what you're saying? Are you seeing people be, because I did not read the reaction to this. Are you seeing people, because that's a bigger issue. Are you seeing people, and by people, I mean black people, taking up or excusing what Erica did?

Some. Women? Yeah. Some. But overwhelmingly, what would you say it is? I don't know. I can't speak with a whole. Well, this is why I ask about it.

And this is why it's, it's obvious. racist. She obviously has a very, it's not even subconscious. It is in front of her mind how she views black women, period. The problem is, and the reason I ask you of what, or I guess what I'm thinking and why I ask you what you're seeing people say is because Erica Mena has been so immersed or adjacent to us since we, since she has been on our television screens, that I wouldn't be shocked if certain people are like, that's just Erica. She's being crazy. She's wild and excuse that behavior, which is why I asked. In that moment, the person narrating it was not Spice if you watch the clip. What I would have loved, she just basically is like, Erica,

you know you were wrong for that. But why is Erica wrong for that? And I feel Erica is very uplifted and to somewhat praise. She's been on love and hip hop on multiple cities for years. I feel like I've been watching her since love and hip hop started. And she's been, you know, celebrated in a way or admired in a way by us. And so what I need is for black people who are fans of the show, who are fans of Erica, to call her out, call it for what it is, and don't excuse this type of behavior. You have to understand that if Erica so easily said that, I don't care if it was out of anger, she's always felt that way.

Black children don't excuse it, her being with a black man or men. in general, don't excuse it. Her being pretty, her celebrity, all of that does not excuse the fact that she's a racist. And it's up to us to say, you know what, you don't need to be on love and hip hop anymore. You don't need to be affiliated with this. You clearly don't have a respect for black people,

even though I would say black people who have made you famous. All facts. Also, I would like to add this on for my black brothers. sisters. The grace that you give people culturally, you never get. You don't get it. So somebody electric slides their way into the culture. We like them because they could dance, they can sing, whatever, whatever. They electric slide their way into the culture. Ooh, we love them. They do that little dance. Oh, my God, they can rap. They can do all that stuff like that.

Then they come out with the nigger. Nigger. nigger nigger nigger monkey nigger i hate black women uh nigger nigger nigger whatever their proximity to us for so long makes us feel like we know them so we grant them a little bit of mercy and grace because quiet as it's kept black people are they're they like grace they like i messed up whatever whatever because we got to do that a lot a lot of times we don't love crime I've said that before, but sometimes we got to love criminals because in our neighborhoods, some of the kids that we know sometimes don't turn out so well, okay? Or sometimes they turn out in ways that are adverse to their own sentient stuff.

So sometimes, you know, it happens, right? So we can be forgiven. We can be forgiven to the individual. I'm excusing what they do, but loving them through it anyway. So we're used to that. Here's the problem with that. the problem with that is it weakens the strength

to me of the self-identifier. If you do not call out and destroy negative attitudes about you, in my opinion, you're giving cover and affirmation to those attitudes. Absolutely. If somebody doesn't get their ass kicked

for saying that a black woman is a monkey, you're kind of agreeing that she's a monkey. And other cultures, they kind of know that. That's why they'll let you hang out. They'll let you do all of this stuff. But the minute that you run a file,

they say, get the fuck out. It don't matter what it is. They're not dealing with that shit. Get the fuck out. Relax. Get out. There ain't no black Gina Rodriguez's, inside of

Latin culture. There are none. You jump in and you say a bunch of crazy shit and whatever. Nah, they're not. They don't exist. Somebody's going to be like,

nah, you need to get the fuck out. Get out. Now, I'm not saying that they're not black people who are anti-Hispanic and treat.

No, I'm not saying that at all. We have a lot of biases too. But we don't, we don't give, they don't get no cover. So here's a deal. Makes no sense to go back and forth about this.

Eric Camina, called Spice a monkey that is an anti-black slur meant to dehumanize black women, black people until further notice Erica Mina is

a vile, racist woman. Over. Yep. Done. Easy work. On to the next topic. Yeah, go ahead. Yeah, go.

No, no, you got it, Rachel. What are you going to say? No, no, no. I agree with you. No, because I just can see it now. The tears, the crying, that's not what I meant. I just, guys, she should not be. And this goes for like, Mona Scott.

Don't put her back on love and hip-hop. She was talking about you, me, us. Don't bring her back. Don't bring her back. She's replaceable. You can have somebody else who could be angry and the drama that Erica brings every single single. season. Don't bring her back. So. And if she does, I would love to have her come on the show and

talk about why she felt like Erica need to go back on the show. Oh, Mona will definitely go on the show. Mona will definitely come on the show. This episode is brought to you by Weather Tech. Everyone knows Winter is the MVP and making a mess. You don't need WeatherTech floor liners in the summer, unless you hit the beach or go camping. Then you'd want a cargo liner. Or a road trip goes sideways. Ketchup goes rogue, ice cream drips. Yeah, you'd be pretty happy about those weather tech seat protectors. So just to be clear as the mud, you're inevitably going to step into the summer. You don't need weather tech unless you plan on doing summer.

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with whatever comes next New sweet green wraps hit different Order now at order. Dot sweetgreen.com U.S. Open's going on right now Have you ever been to the U.S. Open? No, it was going on

No, it was going on as we passed by we got here. I saw people at the little thing. Yeah, I still have time I'm still there. I've never been either. I've never been. But one thing I do know about tennis and black women is that black women are constantly what it seems like a topic of conversation.

We continue to dominate in the sport and make our presence known. But we are also very misunderstood from Serena, from Venus to Serena to Naomi to now Coco. So U.S. Open is going on right now. Cocoa Gough. We are all familiar with her. What was it? This week? This week, it just started. And in her first match in the U.S. Open,

she played Laura Sigamund. Donnie, you know what? Sigamund. Siegaman. She played Laura Sigamint. And in this match, Laura, or Coco, I should say, you could see her getting upset.

She was visibly frustrated by Sigerman's pace throughout this match, right? She was constantly, Sigman was constantly taking her time. Should be noted that Coco is 19 years old. Sigamin is 35 years old, 35, 36 years old. Sigamin is taking her time. Sigemin is from Germany. Coco represents the U.S. All of that is important.

She was flirting with the serve clock time, which it is my understanding. I'm not well versed on tennis rules, but I think that's a newer rule. So she was taking her time on her serves. She wasn't ready for golf serves on the other end. And it was this back and forth to where golf was kind of, you could see her getting upset,

but she eventually went to the umpire and complained and said, hey, hey, you're not calling out these things. She's violating the serve clock time. You know, she's sitting down when she's not supposed to be sitting down during breaks. All these different things.

Donnie, you have the audio. Can you play it? You're calling the score like six seconds after the point is over. Yeah, okay. She's 100% ready. She's never ready. She's 30-ball rallies. It's two balls going on normal speed. As any ref here, I go at medium-paced speed.

She's... But she can't. It's at first step. Every game. Second-second, her server. But my turn, she has to be ready. Okay. Well, well said.

You can hear... You can hear the crowd. They're cheering. They were booing Sigmund throughout this because of her violations and because of what she was doing. They obviously recognize it. Cocoa Golf goes on to win, lost the first one, three, six, but goes on to win the other two match the other two, six, two and six, four. Afterwards, Sigerman goes to the press conference, takes the mic, she's asked the question, and she breaks down in tears. Donnie can play the clip.

They treated me like I was a bad person. Would I enjoy more if you played a great shot and people would scream and give you the respect you deserve for your performance in that moment? Yes, you enjoyed more. And what do I play tennis for? I'm 35. What do I play tennis for? I made good money.

I'm not going to probably reach my best rankings anymore, not in singles. I play out there for the people. I play for the effort. I can still play. my body is giving me the chance to play a little bit more. And I know there are fans out there that appreciate fighting and not giving up and just good sport. And yeah, I think it's the first time I'm crying in a press conference.

I thought, you know, as a tennis player, you are a performer. You owe the people. You owe the kids that watch. You're all the people that buy tickets for a lot of money. and I'm just a bit I mean, at the end of the day I go home and I can look at myself and I can say, I did a great job

but did I get anything from the people for that? Maybe it's not zero, maybe it feels like zero right now but it feels pretty much like a flat zero. Okay, Cocoa Golf. We don't give a fuck. Cocoa Goss, Laura Stigerman. I already said, Germany, versus U.S.

35 years old versus 19 years old. The one I didn't say is white versus black. Van, she just served for you on a platter, your favorite dessert, which are the tears of white women. That is your favorite thing to soak up. Is it not?

Is it not? What's her name again? Laura Siegerman. Laura, we don't give the fuck. You do love her tears. You do love her tears. Laura,

Laura, shout out to you, Laura. And I don't wish anything bad on you. I don't. All the stuff that you've been through so it was hard. Out there playing tennis. You've made great money. You said that during the thing.

She did. It's cool. Sometimes you get emotional and you cry. I don't fucking care. I don't care about what you got going on. you're out there on the tennis court do what we've been doing man overcome

you'll pull yourself up by your bootstraps your tennis straps get back out there and do your thing stop playing slow get out there and get your ass kick now go ahead and take it on the chin all right I'm not in it's unfair to you Laura

because I'm not in the right mindset to be compassionate to your tennis travails fucking get over it get your strings tightened and a nigger will see you at the tour championships

okay because we're not I don't give the fuck about it play fast right basically it's over I'm gonna care about that

you're mad because you lost of course you got booed you're representing Germany this is the U.S. Coco's the hometown favorite no I'm just on the court yeah what you'll be for the Germans you're not the beef with the

Oh, oh, you're holding on to grudges. Okay. No. Stop. Stop. Stop. I'm just saying they did denasify. They're supporting.

They're supporting. They're supporting who's representing the U.S. It's the U.S. open. It's here. They're cheering for Coco. She's a favorite. They also don't want to see you slow down the pace of the game. Coco's bringing something to the game.

The girl Coco played next with 16. And I'm not being an ageist here. I'm just saying, yes, your body is allowed. you to play, but your body's not allowing you to win. Let's just be honest. She won the set. She did the good. She did well. She took a set up on. She won the first one. So look, I'll say this. That's why I'll ask you. Because the rules were on her side.

I'm why I was on her side. I mean. That's a question. What could a white woman at this point, at this point? What could a white woman cry about that you would be on her side? I want everybody to answer this question. Oh, there's a lot of things. There's a lot of things. Tell me.

Like if she was being abused. Okay. You know what I mean? Like physically abused, like the white, hearing some of the white women's stories about the Me Too movement. How about this? Outside. Oh, now they're going to be parameters. Okay, go ahead.

I got to be parameters. Outside of that type of abuse, what could a white woman cry about that you would care about? That's not my friend. That's not your friend. because I'm going to be honest with you. I would even be annoyed with your friends if they cry. Well, they're not your friends. So that makes sense.

They're like, I'm biased. I'm biased. They're my friend. I look at them in a different way. So, like, there might be an issue that they have that as a friend, I'm going to be a friend. I'm not going to be like, why if you're fucking tears, you don't have anything to cry about.

I bet you are that way. I don't know what I'm saying. Okay, that's twice. He was accused when you're shocked. I apologize. and now too, you're shocked that I'm a friend. Do you remember on making the band?

I'm a great friend. Do you remember she says that all the time? Do you remember on making the band? Do you remember this? Donnie, do you remember this on making the band? Which part? I think it was the first or second making the band. Would a dude cried?

And Puff went off on him. The white rapper cried. And Puff lost it. And Puff said, try being a black man in America. It's all gravy. It's fine. It's fine. It's fine.

She cried. White women can cry. Everybody can cry. She's crying because she lost. If she had won, she would not have been crying. She's crying because she lost. Sigmund.

Shout out to you, Sigmund. Sigerman. Sigerman? It's Sigerman? Shout out to you, Siegerman. Hopefully you'll come back. Don't call her a monkey, though. like that's the next thing that happens

the next thing that happens is first they cry and then the niggas come out. I know how it goes. I know how it goes. Mailback, let's go. Mailback time. Time to read your letters and then we'll reply to them.

Oh, it's mailback time. Write us with your queries and we'll chime. And all right, this one is a two-parter. First part is from Aeron Dog, Braun Boy. Then, Rachel is stuck in a movie and has to survive the whole thing. You have three minutes before the movie starts to give her movie survival advice. What movie are you confident you could coach her through?

And what would you say? Number one is Predator. Number two is 28 days later. And number three is Jurassic Park. Great question. Is she by herself? Sounds like that. Rachel is stuck in the movie.

She's probably with the characters of the movie, but it's just racial. Okay, so she's with the characters in the movie. Yeah, I think so. Okay. So one and two. It's a zombie movie. You're gone.

You're out of you. And one and two. Three. You're going to stick. Yes. Because you can survive. Because the survival rate in Jurassic Park is actually pretty high. Only the bad people

die. In these first couple movies, almost everybody fucking dies. So what I would say if it's a Jurassic Park, stay close to Lord Dern, the white woman, and you'll be okay. No, because if one of us goes, I'm not staying next to the white woman.

One of us goes, it's me. Then you, well, I would say this is what I would say. In Jurassic Park, I would say, be nice. Be a good person. Because I don't think that Samuel Jackson's character dies in Jurassic Park. I cannot remember. He definitely does.

You just see his arm. You just don't see it. Right. He's like, hold on to your butts. And you see his arm with the, with the technology. You're right. I can't remember. Yeah, he does. But I will say in that, and he kind of was a cool dude, but he was working for the bad people. So all I would say in that situation is, I mean, the reality. What's his name's daughter was black? Jeff Goldblum's daughter was black.

She lives. Okay. It has to be Jurassic Park because you have no chance. to survive against the predator or against... I feel like zombies. You know, I watch a lot of Walking Dead. I feel like... Nah. I'm going to watch that tonight.

28 days later? It's a good one. Yeah. Is it a remake? Which one do I watch? It's just 28 days later. It's like a guy wakes up. So there's only one.

Okay. Well, no, no. There's 28 days later. Then there's 28 weeks later. 28 weeks is 28 weeks after 28 days. It's 28 days. after the thing happened. So yeah,

watch, you have no shot. All right, what's the next one? All right, next one is from ghost Blacula. They complimented

this past question and said, I also wonder what survival advice Rachel would give to Van if he were stuck in the season

of the Bachelorette. How would he survive a season as a contestant? How would we know if he's here for the right reasons? Oh, my God. Man,

you would be out so quickly. Really? Like, you would be torn, right? because a part of you would be calling bullshit on the producers trying to get stuff out of you,

but then your curiosity would want you to stay. You'd be like, I gotta see where this is going. So, like, you would be having so much fun, and we always call it the greatest social experiment that, like, that would drive you to want to stay longer. So what I would tell the guys on my season, the ones I was really into, the key to survival is telling them

that you need to talk to the psychiatrist. That is the best way Like when I became the Bachelorette, it was a part of my deal. I was like, I have to talk to the psychiatrist. It's your, first off, they demike you. So producers hate that. You can stay in there for hours and it's your connection to reality. I would talk about what was happening in the real world.

We'd talk about the different people. I'd talk about me. She would talk about her. And it was like my saving grace, my sanity. And so I would tell the guys, that's what you need to do. she's not there anymore, so I can't speak to who's representing now. But that's what you need to do to survive. And for you, someone who's a believer in therapy and all that, that would be it.

Because you would be like going crazy because like you do. Like you go crazy in that world. And then you go to psychiatrists and you're like, okay, it's a reset button until next week. That would be the key to survival. Let me tell you something, Rachel, you underestimate me. You underestimate me. I would walk that. I would walk that cock all the way to the finish line, baby.

I just said your curiosity would drive you. You wouldn't be there for the right reasons. No, no, you wouldn't be there for the right reasons, though, to answer the other question. That cock all the way to the finish line. People wouldn't even. People have, I'm charming. I'm charming. I could play sports.

I could do all of that. I would be, I've seen the show now. Didn't I just say? You would? You said that what you said was, this is me, Mr. Insecure, I only heard the negative. So what you said was I would be out quick. I don't think I would. No, I said you would be calling it out, but your curiosity would drive you to want to stay.

Like you'd want to see it through. Oh, you would absolutely. And you would be a producer favorite because there's always somebody that producers love that they like to push through because they like them. If it was a white woman, I could guilt my mom. way all the way through to the thing. I don't think that works on the white men women on these shows. They're not, they're already not checking for you.

It would work with me. Well, you know what? I know enough about their culture to get in with them and then at the end pull out the giggick-gag-g-gillot weapon. Oh, you know, yeah, you like him, huh? Yeah, you probably would.

He's probably something. They cut all that out. Remember, this is the tape show. I know, but I would tell her and it would be in her mind. Yeah, you probably would. I can, I see why you like, Jason. He's probably more culturally of your, you know, your speed. For me, a guy like myself, it's just like love is like anything else. I have to work twice as hard.

I have to make people see the real me. I really have to commit and invest into people. Whereas a guy like that, you know, he probably has every look. It looks like he's a fucking surfer. Look at him right there. She's laughing. But for me, you know, I really have to connect with somebody deeply for them to get through this exterior.

It's like, it's a hard thing. It's a hard thing to do in the world. it's a hard thing to do in love, you know? I'm not somebody who looks at someone else and just looks at them by their skin color. I want to know the person. And sometimes I feel like it's a little bit more harder for people to do that with me because of...

You'd be a producer's dream. You'd be a producer's dream. You would get so caught up in the world. You'd be having the time of your life. It's fun. I'm telling you, I'm telling you, one tear drops down her eye. One tear. one tear and then I catch it.

And I use it to plant. And you eat it. A little Dale baby. You know what I mean? Chipping Dale. Chipp and Dale. I'll find a Dale. I'll find a chip.

And then I'll be gone. Third show, we're off. And then we break up because I was just trying to get famous. All right. What's the last one? All right. Last one is from Bernadale. This was quick.

What's one place in the U.S. that you've never been to, but we'll really love to visit. Montana. I've been to Montana. It's great. You have? Yeah, I've been up there. You know what my place is? What?

Sun Valley, Idaho. Is that where the rich people go? Yep. I want to know what makes people who go to Sun Valley, Idaho, then turn around and think they can treat the people who drive their industry forward like shit. I want to know what makes people who go and hang out in Sun Valley, Idaho, forget that it is the talent of writers, actors, people like that, that are the lifeblood of your business.

I want to make what, I want to know what about Sun Valley makes a car think that it can drive without the gas. I want to know what about Sun Valley makes a plant think it can grow without the sun, without the engine, without the energy, without the creativity, without the passion of the people that I've been making this stuff happen

for the last 150 years. That's what I want to know. So I want to go to Sun Valley so I can come back vapid and greedy and with very little self-awareness about the people, their sacrifices, their creativity, and their passion that makes certain industries go.

So that's why I want to go. Wow. All right. Well, maybe somebody will take you up on that and give you. Rachel, why don't you finish your goddamn drink? I'm over here getting on my soapbox. I kept it the whole way. I skipped it. We're down for a couple of weeks.

You want to tell the people? Yeah, we're down. We're down. Guys, you already heard Topic podcast. I'm going to Italy. I'm going to Paris. If you have any recommendations,

I'm going to Rome for a quick minute. Then island, not island hopping, city hopping in the Amalfi Coast, home-based Sorrento. We're going to Paris. So if you have some suggestions, drop those in the Reddit.

Or DM me? We do have, interview with JuCJ that's dropping next week. Yes. Yes. Van was very excited. I was excited. He really goes into a lot of detail. He wasn't shy to answer any

question. So that's a fun interview. It's a treat for you guys as you're celebrating the long weekend, Labor Day weekend. But yeah, we'll be off two weeks. We will be back September 18th. No. Tuesday,

September 19. We will will be back. But enjoy the JuCJ interview. We need some time off. Or maybe I do. I'm speaking for Van. I need some time off to reset so I can come back better for you guys mid-September. Take your thinking caps off, but do not stop learning. I am Van Laithen, Jr. And I'm Rachel Lynn Lindsay. Bye, guys.