The Daily Zeitgeist - Killer Selfie! Republicans Energized By Assault 10.5.18

Episode Date: October 5, 2018

In episode 246, Jack and Miles are joined by writer and Reality Bytes podcast host Courtney Kocak to discuss Chris Evan's retiring as the role of Captain America, updates on the Kavanaugh investigation, selfies causing deaths, how hugs can make you happier, the city of Houston trying to shut down a sex robot brothel, and more! FOOTNOTES: 1. Chris Evans Officially Wraps Playing Captain America2. Chris Evans to Retire as Captain America After 'Avengers 4'3. Democrats’ Kavanaugh assassination is reuniting the right4. Republican enthusiasm surges amid Supreme Court battle5. Brett Kavanaugh, Christine Blasey Ford hearing spurs more division - CBS News Poll6. Is Kavanaugh Helping Republicans’ Midterm Chances?7. Here are the top ways people die while taking selfies and “being cool”8. Hug It Out: Study Shows Hugs Really Do Make Us Happier, Especially On Hard Days9. City Council amends SOB ordinance to block sex doll rental shop10. WATCH: Wild Belle - Keep You (Video) Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Kay hasn't heard from her sister in seven years. I have a proposal for you. Come up here and document my project. All you need to do is record everything like you always do. What was that? That was live audio of a woman's nightmare. Can Kay trust her sister or is history repeating itself? There's nothing dangerous about what you're doing.

They're just dreams. Dream Sequence is a new horror thriller from Blumhouse Television, iHeartRadio, and Realm. Listen to Dream Sequence on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, and culture in the new iHeart podcast, Sniffy's Cruising Confessions. Sniffy's Cruising Confessions will broaden minds and help you pursue your true goals. You can listen to Sniffy's Cruising Confessions,

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Trust us, it's out of this world. In California during the summer of 1975, within the span of 17 days and less than 90 miles, two women did something no other woman had done before, try to assassinate the President of the United States. One was the protege of Charles Manson. 26-year-old Lynette Fromm, nicknamed Squeaky. The other, a middle-aged housewife working undercover for the FBI. Identified by police as Sarah Jean Moore. The story of one strange and violent summer, this season on the new podcast, Rip Current. Hear episodes of Rip Current early and completely

ad-free and receive exclusive bonus content by subscribing to iHeart True Crime Plus only on Apple Podcasts. Hello, the internet, and welcome to Season 51, Episode 5 of The Daily Zeitgeist! For Friday, October 5th, 2018, my name's Jack O'Brien, a.k.a.

I'm Jack in the set, O'Brien. a.k.a. I'm Jack in the Sad O'Brien. And I'm thrilled to be joined, as always, by my co-host, Mr. Miles Gray. What a gang, what a gang, what a gang, what a mighty psych gang. Gotta great again now. And that is a What a Man, a.k.a. If You Were Not Alive in the 90s, because I know a lot of y'all are 13 years old who listen to this show. But that is from The Drizzle at NSCadsen. a.k.a. if you were not alive in the 90s, because I know a lot of y'all are 13 years old who listen to this show. But that is from The Drizzle at NSCadsen.

I don't know. I probably botched and butchered your entire handle, but that is you, and a shout-out to you. Good man. Good sir. And I apologize for not remembering who gave me the Jack and the Sad O'Brien, a.k.a. that's on me, guys. Do you, boy.

I'll shout you out in a future episode. Man, I was going to be like, of course people know what a man, what a man, what a man, what a mighty good man is. That's me joking. But yes. No, but I wonder, people are young.

No, you'd be surprised, though, how sometimes people really don't know even even the biggest hits from uh the late 90s the biggest hits all the biggest hits well we're thrilled to be joining our third seat by the very funny host of the reality bites podcast courtney kosick kosak what's that part in that that's not his forte pronunciation right as you can i'm it's actually a running joke on our show. Oh, okay. I never get anyone's name right. Oh, wonderful, wonderful.

Then we're not alone. No, no. How are you? I'm great. Where are you from originally? Minnesota. Oh, that's right. And you were saying that's why you're prepared for the...

I'm not prepared. The Scandinavian winters. I grew up there. I hated it. And now when I go back, especially weather-wise, I am just like, my hair is standing up the whole time in the winter.

So you can lose your cold immunity a little bit, huh? Yeah, especially if you don't really have it to begin with, and then you come to California. Then you're spoiled. Did you just hate it the whole time you were growing up there? I always knew that I wanted to leave. I mean, Minnesota has some nice qualities, but

Right. The winters. No smog. Wow, what's that like? Do you hate beans? Do I hate? Oh, yeah. That was like on the hater app. Do you think that's from casseroles? That's crazy.

No. People in Minnesota like beans. I, that's crazy. No, people in Minnesota like beans. I grew up liking beans. Minnesotans love like the most horrendous Mexican food. Right. And I feel like

that is just. So again, yeah, these are just hot takes for people to seem like they're edgy. We were talking to Brittany, one of our sales folks

who is from North Carolina and their most hated food was cottage cheese, which is a fine thing to hate. I don't blame, I don't begrudge anyone for hating cottage cheese. But that's like a movement. But then she was like, yeah, we used to eat cottage cheese on hot pasta. That was just the sauce. Like they would just put cottage cheese on hot noodles.

So it's like, there's always like a complex relationship to it. Because you don't want to act like you're one of the just any old Minnesotan. So then you say, oh, I'm one of the people who doesn't like beans. Yeah, the Chick-fil-A thing is such bullshit. That's virtue signaling. Yeah, I walk by the one on Sunset all the time. It's just swarming with people. Always packed.

Yeah. Always. All right, Courtney, we're going to get to know you even better in a moment. But first, we're going to tell our listeners what we're going to be talking about today. We're going to pour one out for Chris Evans in his role as Captain America. He is officially stepping down from that position, I guess. We're going to talk about a study of places that you shouldn't take selfies, I guess. We're going to talk about just the overall conservative backlash to the

Kavanaugh hearings, continuing to talk about that, because that seems to be the main story this week in the aftermath of last week's hearings. We're going to talk about how that backlash is translating into the polls. We're going to talk about how hugs really do make us happier and sex bots. But first, we'll just put that out there.

Courtney, what is something from your search history that is revealing about who you are? You guys, I knew that I had to do this. And then I... Okay, I'm glad to see that. We didn't spring this on you. No, I knew that this was coming.

And I was like, oh, I'm curious. What have I been Googling? Like, I don't even know. I'm excited to look tonight. And then I get home, totally forget, and delete. Your search history? I cleared my cache. Hold on, hold on.

What are you hiding? What are you hiding? No, I know. I felt like. That's a very elaborate story. You could have made some shit up and then you're like, well, I don't know what happened suddenly. It's so Kavanaugh.

It was just like, I was like, what am I? So I don't know. So the thing you were searching is how to clear your cache so that nobody finds out the horrible things you've been searching. I feel like it's all been really practical stuff, but I was like, this is psychologically weird. Wow. What browser do you use? Safari? Chrome?

Chrome. And you totally just cleared your browsing history. Here is the backstory on that so i never do this but i i uploaded an episode of my own podcast drunk because it was time and i anyway it was time to upload something drunk it was no it was time for it to come out okay and i i it wasn't perfect the way that i entered everything it was was all a little bit wonky. Like when I went back the next day, I was like, and I had been with a friend who just gets me to drink more than I normally would. And I was like, oh, this is bad.

So then it wouldn't refresh fast enough. Right. Like on iTunes. So that's why I cleared my cat shakes. I was like, is there some. Oh, got you. Is it just my computer? You like misspelled the title. No, we're like remembering that you're an cleared my cat shakes. I was like, is there some... Oh, got you. Is it just my computer? You like misspelled the title.

No, we're like remembering that you're an idiot from last night. You're like, what's Realty Bates? And your show is about the movie, right? Reality Bites. It's about Winona Ryder and Ethan Hawke. No, it's like a pun. Yeah. Just about that movie.

Sex and Dating in the Digital Age. Oh. So complex. What did you think about that hater app? Yeah. In the context of your show. Or I guess in general, because you talk about this stuff all the time. Oh, right.

Because of apps. Like using hate to unify people or unite people or bring them together. Yeah. I haven't been on Tinder for a while, but I do feel like there were clear messages that people would try to say. And it was great because honestly it helps you avoid a landmine. If they have some Trump comment or just something, then you're like, oh, okay, maybe I don't need to fuck with this guy. Right, right, right. Right, right.

oh, okay, maybe I don't need to fuck with this guy. Right, right, right. Right, right. My wife and I went to this marriage preparation thing years ago when we were first getting married. And we lived in Missouri at the time. So I went up and told the story of how we met. And it was in college and stayed up all night talking about some book we read.

And then I went first. And then there were 30 other dudes, and literally every one of them was like, well, I realized she could shoot a buck. And I was like, hell, that's pretty cool, man. And then every single one after that said it. So I was just this cuck in Missouri. Everyone was like, you fucking loser.

So I've been on the other side of that, where I don't know how to signal that I'm a cool dude. Wait, so was this like that movie License to Wed? Where like you had to go like meet with like, you know, wasn't that the movie with John Krasinski where like the priest was like, and now I think y'all know each other well enough to be married.

I don't know. I don't know that movie but it's a thing that has to happen in the Catholic church. You like go to some Catholic thing. Oh yeah, that's like because it's Robin Williams. He's like the reverend and then it's a thing that has to happen in the Catholic church. You like go to some Catholic thing. Oh yeah. That's like, because it's a Robin Williams. He's like the Reverend.

And then it's a, it's Mandy Moore and John Krasinski trying to have like a traditional wedding. I'm so sad I missed this. But for Zeitgang. I only watch awful movies on Sundays. It's the way I go to church. For any Zeitgang who are in a pre-K and a classes in Missouri, just say that you love your future wife because she can shoot a

buck. Also, shout out to I think there's two people who listen to the show that are getting married this weekend. Oh, yeah. And I forgot your names, but I did see the message so if you know it's you because you messaged, but yes, bless your union. And for $75,000, I will come out there and

marry y'all. And they met because they were both on the subway across from each other listening to it. And they both made the same face. And they were like, wait, are you listening to Jack O'Brien sing also? You're on a silent train and your backs are turned. You go, foot no. Right. What?

Is it you? The only thing that makes people's face cringe like that. What is something you think is overrated, Courtney? Overrated. Okay. Surprise parties. I just had a birthday. Wow.

And I, no, listen, I've been throwing people surprise parties for years. Honestly, it's my specialty. Oh, really? Oh, wow. I love to do it. And I always thought like, oh, I'm sure it's so fun for it to happen to you. Right, right. And then I was legit surprised. I thought that my friends forgot my birthday, and I was, like, did some things.

I, like, bitched about it to my boyfriend, and then I, like, planned another thing with them and, like, reminded them that it was for my birthday. Wow. Just because I was, like, you know, I just want them to know, but it doesn't matter that they didn't take any initiative. And then it happened. And I was like, totally fucking, I was just disoriented. I was like, so I couldn't enjoy it for, I mean, it was so sweet of them.

But the first like. The buildup, you were like, man, fuck these people. The first 90 minutes was me just being like, oh my, what conversations did I have? Right, right, right. Do I trust these people? Right. Wow. Yeah, it's a weird thing.

It's like for up until the surprise, it's like let's trick this person into thinking we don't like them that much. I know. Wait, was that the tactic you used when you surprised somebody? You play ignorant and you're like, oh, is it your birthday?

I don't know. Yeah, like I don't make a big deal. I did the same stuff that they did. It feels horrible. So maybe this and you're like, oh, is it your birthday? I don't know. Yeah, like I don't make a big deal. I did the same stuff that they did. It feels horrible. So maybe this is them being like, yeah, not so fun now, is it, huh? Fucking have me thinking I don't have any real friends. Yeah. No, I felt loved, but also scared.

It's funny. Someone I know had a surprise birthday. And on Instagram, I saw like they posted the video of them walking in the lights coming on the surprise and like she started crying and I got like emotional and I started searching

for videos on YouTube of like compilations of people getting surprised at birthdays just to feel something and I felt it that's why I'm like when you said it

I was like man it's very special for me to watch someone else but I get the gaslighting up until that point can feel awful. And maybe that's the release.

Many people were just crying because they're like, I honestly thought I had to cancel all of you motherfuckers. That's right. That's so real. What is something you think is underrated? Okay, because, so Friday the 5th, Stars Born comes out. And I got to say, I went to a press screening, but I'd previously seen the trailer,

and I was like, what a pile of garbage. Like, I cannot even. The trailer had you thinking that? The trailer had me just feeling like this was just going to be the most hack thing I'd ever seen. Did you have the audio turned off or something? How did you think it was a pile of garbage when Lady Gaga gets on and goes, oh, oh, oh, Because the way that it was cut together, no.

It was just like, did not. You were in love with it? I'm a fan of the trailer. Well, you know what? To be honest, we're only fans of that one part where Lady Gaga starts singing, because that was like, whoa, bruh. She believes in herself. She's a star.

But I think prior to that, we were like, man, look at this old Bradley Cooper. I know. And Bradley Cooper. So I carried that feeling with me into the screening. And I made a joke to the person next to me. Or not really a joke. I was like, this is going to be terrible. Are you ready?

In the first 10 seconds, he's shaking his drink. Well, spoiler alert. He drinks in it? He totally drinks, and he takes pills. And then after those frames, I was immediately regretted what I said, because it was amazing. Wow. It was so good.

I'm reformed. That makes me feel good that just based off the sound of her singing, I was like, I'm going to see it based off this one clip of audio to know that that translates to a film. The story's really good. I cried. Oh, wow. So everyone should go see it. I still can't get over Miles's inner monologue at that part.

Wow, bro. She believes in herself. She a star. Inside, I'm saying. Inside, I'm like, damn, she did it. She's really a star, though. It's almost like she's being born before our eyes. Yeah, I'm excited.

I'm corny. I'm seeing it this weekend. Super producers Sophie and Anna are going to see it with the Bechdel cast this evening. Oh, nice. Yeah. It's going to be a... It's totally believable that Lady Gaga is a star. And I feel like that's why the trailer wasn't effective to me.

But watching her not be a star and then fall in love with this man and become a star is like a whole experience. She believed in herself though. She really did. Because she was all reluctant. He was like, come on stage. And he believed in her. Come on stage. She's like, no.

And then she's just fucking no. Finally, what is a myth, Courtney? A myth. Cossack? Yes. I don't know. I mean, I told you guys, I have like Kavanaugh hangover, but just the idea of on the serious tip that there's like a model victim and like that's the only shit that we should take seriously

or like that, I don't know, women do act in, there's like a right way and a wrong way to act and it's so messy. Right, that we have such rigid definitions of. And I would think like, and I'm sure the Zeitgang, I'm not breaking any ground here, but like I've been shocked by the conversations that I've seen on Facebook of people that I was just like, I didn't even know you guys were out here, like women with really weird views. Yeah, I think it's really brought out a lot of that kind of stuff, too, especially I mean, I don't go on Facebook that much, but even just in reading social other social media platforms and reading like op eds that are written, you're like, wow, there are many diverging ways of looking at this. And on one hand, you think objectively this makes sense in only one way to people.

But I think we see that there are many other ways to interpret this for people depending on their ideology or what they think the stakes are. Because I think for some people, they're like, is this going to be a thing about letting someone, even if you take aside the allegations against him, just his conduct and even talking to senators and his temperament or whatever, that that would be enough. But then other people, I think, yeah, they're bringing all kinds of other metrics into this as to why. Yeah. We should look past that because he's going to be good at this one thing or he's, you know, this is all because we live in a culture where you know

men are just being victims of like uh deceptive women yeah yeah we're gonna talk about this in a little bit but there's a a new book called good and mad by i think rebecca tracer and she writes that white male rage is like our national religion we like look to angry white men to tell us when something should be upsetting us or something like that. It seems like, yeah, I've been completely shocked by that. That's actually what we're going to be talking about in the next segment of the show after our first break. But first, we got to talk about important stuff like that Chris Evans is hanging up his shield. He's no longer going to be Captain America.

And also, the Hollywood Reporter has fired all their copy editors, apparently, because in the article about it, they said he eluded to retiring the character in a profile in the New York Times. And so two quick things. I don't know that I care about this because doesn't the actual character in the comic books, doesn't he change who the person

behind the shield is multiple times? I never read Captain America. That makes sense. I feel like most characters are like that. But I don't know. Does anybody know? Chris Evans, like, what is he going to do? What else can you do?

He's like so, yeah. I don't know anything. He just like blends into me. He did that one movie with the little girl who's like a genius. That's like the last non-Captain America film gifted. That's what it was. And I only remember because I had to do a junket for it. But other than that, I feel like he's only been Captain America.

Yeah. Yeah. He's like a saltine cracker. I don't know what he's going to do after that. I mean, he was, I guess when you look at it, he's Captain America, Avengers, Avengers, gifted, Captain America Civil War, Avengers, Scott Pilgrim, Fantastic Four, Captain America. Before we go, don't remember that one, and Not Another Teen Movie. I mean, let's not forget that. Snowpiercer.

Wait, was he cocky blonde in Not Another Teen Movie? Was that the name of the character? I did not watch. His name was cocky blonde. Not Another Teen Movie is actually in that. His name was Jake Wyler. Yeah, Jakey, Jakey, Jakey, about to make a big mistakey. That's actually what the cocky blonde said to Chris Evans.

So you are fully on the Not Another Teen Movies. Check out Not Another Teen Movies. It's actually underrated. Fuck. Does this bother you guys when you see just complete copy editing sloppiness? Because I'm not pedantic like that. I'm a fucking grammar Nazi. I've always been.

I don't like it. I don't know. I grew up getting that shit drilled'm a fucking grammar Nazi. I've always been. I don't like it. I don't know. I grew up getting that shit drilled into my head. Right. And so I've absorbed that sort of like rigid, like this is what this word means. And you better know how to spell there, there,

and there. Like those kinds of things really bother me, but it's not even, I don't know. I was just saying like the other day I read something where there was a bunch of typos and I started kind of dismissing the person who wrote it. Cause like, you're not even taking the time to like proofread this or whatever. And I feel bad because I'm not that I've never made a grammatical error in my life or whatever,

but there was like a Harvard business review article that like helped me justify my thinking. Cause they were saying that candidates who apply for jobs who have less typos or no typos or properly proofread their stuff there was like a correlation between that and like how effective they were as an employee but I don't know I mean whatever yeah I mean education system has failed everybody at this point I feel like I get it on both sides it's like I I freelance right you know and I know that people don't have budgets for that kind of stuff. But also, like, it needs eyes to, like, there needs to be a certain level of integrity of the work. Sure. Or, like, it totally takes you out.

Yeah. I mean, when I read things from publications I respect and I find grammatical errors, I'm like, ah, come on. You don't know how to, the difference between affect and effect? Just Google it. Develop an OCD. Affect and effect, I can kind of forgive a little bit more than allude and elude. Because those aren't even like the same. They're not pronounced the same. Allusion versus elude.

Their meanings are nowhere close to one another. So come on, Hollywood reporter, get your shit together. But yeah, I also recognize that it's not their fault that they can't afford copy editors anymore. We're living in a new world, man. Yeah. We're in a post-grammar era. And a lot of like, Mark Twain was a decent writer

and he was also like like talked shit about grammar. Yeah. Look, I don't. Whatever. You know what I mean? Do what you want to do and I'll interpret your shit however I need to. But I don't. I won't go as far as to completely say I will definitively make a conclusion about somebody based on how they write.

No. But in the context of like if I'm reading from like an actual publication where like people would aspire to want to write for you, at the minimum, you'd think that, you know, people who are reading it would not find grammatical errors. Yeah. That's all. So anyways, just back on the subject of Chris Evans, he said, officially wrapped on Avengers 4. It was an emotional day to say the least. Playing this role over the last eight years has been an honor to everyone in front of the camera, behind the camera and in the audience. Thank you for the memories.

Eternally grateful. So this is after Avengers 4. He's not quitting before his storyline is over. But it does seem like I've heard this from after the first Avengers that he was thinking about hanging it up. Oh, really? He just didn't want to do it. I bet the fans are kind of weird whenever you're a superhero character. Especially Captain America, I'm sure you get some interesting characters.

But he's not going to save himself anything by quitting now versus after another one or two. Well, who is it going to be? Because I know some people who are Captain America fans don't like his liberal politics. Right. When you tweet out here tweeting like just, you know, facts and shit. But maybe John Krasinski can be the new Captain America. That would actually make sense. I could honestly based on like where his career is being sort of like, is he a conservative?

Yeah. Wait, is he not? What are his politics? I don't know. Because he always plays from the office yeah yeah because he's like been in like benghazi movie he's been in a benghazi movie like the kind of roles he's been in were like films that like kind of have these certain i mean cultural bends like if you're gonna go make a film about like the the brave people of

benghazi now he's jack r, which is sort of a moderate role, but definitely from Tom Clancy, who is like a probably voted Republican his entire life. A Quiet Place. We were wondering if possibly the subtext of that film was about being a vocal conservative. Right, and that you have to be quiet. You can't say your conservative views out loud

or the brown monsters will hear you and come and get you. Oh my God, this ruins my idea of John Krasinski. Well, he'll always be Jim from The Office. For me, that's why I can't take anything seriously after that because even when I watched Jack Ryan, I don't know how I got through that shit. Oh, you watched it? Oh, I watched it.

Wow. And the whole time I was like, in the beginning I was like, oh, interesting because Carlton Cuse was one of the showrun I was like, in the beginning I was like, oh, interesting, because Carlton Cuse was one of the showrunners from Lost or whatever. And you could tell there was sort of like this retrospective memories coming up to sort of inform the narrative or whatever. But then there were times when I just looked at him like, bro, you are just fucking Jim from The Office.

Right. Way more buff now. Right. And it was a little more weird because it felt like he was like, what's up, homie? Yes, Jim. Right. But now I got fucking muscles. Right. And it was a little more weird because it felt like he was like, what's up, homie? Yes, Jim. Right. But now I got fucking muscles. Right.

Chris Pratt is, I don't trust his politics. Like, I feel like he's probably, some weird shit's going to come out about him at some point. Yeah. Like that he votes Republican, I guess, is the weird shit I'm referring to. But we'll see. All right. We're going to take a quick break, and we'll be right back.

I've been thinking about you. I want you back in my life. It's too late for that. I have a proposal for you. Come up here and document my project. All you need to do is record everything like you always do. One session. 24 hours.

BPM 110. 120. She's terrified. Should we wake her up? Absolutely not. What was that? You didn't figure it out? I think I need to hear you say it.

That was live audio of a woman's nightmare. This machine is approved and everything? You're allowed to be doing this? We passed the review board a year ago. We're not hurting people. There's nothing dangerous about what you're doing. They're just dreams. Dream Sequence is a new horror thriller

from Blumhouse Television, iHeartRadio, and Realm. Listen to Dream Sequence on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. How do you feel about biscuits? Hi, I'm Akilah Hughes, and I'm so excited about my new podcast, Rebel Spirit, where I head back to my hometown in Kentucky and try to convince my high school to change their racist mascot, the Rebels, into something everyone in the South loves, the biscuits. I was a lady rebel. Like, what does that even mean? I mean, the Boone County Rebels will stay the Boone County Rebels with the image of the Biscuits. It's right here in black and white in print. A lion. An individual that came

to the school saying that God sent him to talk to me about the mascot switch. As a leader, you choose hills that you want to die on. Why would we want to be the losing team? I'd just take all the other stuff out of it. On the segregation academies, when civil rights said that we need to integrate public schools, these charter schools were exempt from that. Bigger than a flag or mascot. You have to be ready for serious backlash. a flag or mascot.

You have to be ready for serious backlash. Listen to Rebel Spirit on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, I'm Bruce Bozzi. On my podcast, Table for Two, we have unforgettable lunch after unforgettable lunch with the best guest you could possibly ask

for. People like David Duchovny. You know, New Yorkers have a reputation of being very tough, but it's not. It's not that way at all. They're very accepting. Jeff Goldblum. Are you saying secret fries? Secret fries.

What? That's what you're saying? Yeah. And Kristen Wiig. I just became so aware that I'm such a loud chewer. My husband's just like, sometimes I'll be eating and he'll just be looking at me. I'm like, I'm just eating. Like, I don't know how else to chew.

Table for Two is a bit different from other interview shows. We sit down at a great restaurant for a meal and the stories start flowing. Our second season is airing right now so you can catch up on our conversations that are intimate, surprising, and often hilarious. surprising, and often hilarious. Listen to Table for Two with Bruce Bozzi on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This summer, the nation watched as the Republican nominee for president

was the target of two assassination attempts separated by two months. These events were mirrored nearly 50 years ago when President Gerald Ford faced two attempts on his life in less than three weeks. President Gerald R. Ford came stunningly close to being the victim of an assassin today. And these are the only two times we know of that a woman has tried to assassinate a U.S. president. One was the protege of infamous cult leader Charles Manson. I always felt like Lynette was kind of his right-hand woman.

The other, a middle-aged housewife working undercover for the FBI in a violent revolutionary underground. Identified by police as Sarah Jean Moore. The story of one strange and violent summer. This is Rip Current, available now with new episodes every Thursday. Listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. And we're back. And I wanted to read briefly from a New York Post opinion piece. The New York Post is, in case you don't realize, is owned by Rupert Murdoch, is like a conservative paper. And this article was linked from the Drudge

Report. It is their top trending article in the New York Post today. It is titled, Democrats' Kavanaugh assassination is reuniting the right. Brett Kavanaugh is no longer a mere Supreme Court nominee. His name is now a veritable conservative cause, one that has united the right for the first time since the 2016 primary sent Republicans quarreling over Trump and never Trump. Whatever the outcome of the immediate contest, it's increasingly clear that Democrats and the media establishment made an enormous miscalculation by waging total war against Kavanaugh and his family. So I'll stop there for now. this week now is that by asking this man about a sexual assault that somebody 100% identified him as having committed, the left somehow like fucked themselves in the midterms? I don't know. I mean, again, as we record this, the Senate is probably voting to confirm him. Right. Or at least in the procedural vote.

And then over the weekend, he'll be fully confirmed as a Supreme Court justice because the FBI report came out and all the votes that mattered, like Jeff Flake and Susan Collins and Lisa Murkowski were like, don't see anything new here. So I got the cover I need to make this a yes vote. Right. need to make this a yes vote. And yeah, I think now that we're, it seems like there's a lot of energy now with this too, feeling that the confirmation is basically a done deal,

that it's like, oh yeah, okay, we got our win. But yeah, I don't know if that's necessarily going to, that means that they've turned a corner in terms of how the rest of the potential voters are viewing these midterm elections. I totally see how, yes, it has become a cause in the sense that, like we were saying, this has become more of like another culture war battle than one about whether or not someone should be a Supreme Court justice.

It's just it's us versus them. And everyone's putting on blinders to the world just to kind of see that battle out through that lens. But I don't know what I was saying because I'm so sort of deflated by everything that's happened. Right. It's sad. It's really sad. And it's just a weird feeling because last week felt like, I don't know, I felt like a raw nerve kind of as just a woman and seeing other women relive so much trauma. But feeling like for a second, like, I feel stupid for even feeling like this. But I was like, this matters.

Like this. And it does matter. It does. Yeah, you shouldn't feel stupid. We're dealing with you. But like, I was like, you know, maybe there will be a different outcome. And now it just feels like no. Right. Yeah. It really

reminds me more and more of the aftermath of the Access Hollywood tape because it was like, well, this is clearly disqualifying. Well, surely this is disqualifying. Right. Surely not a single woman will vote for Trump and surely

at least 50% of the population will be outraged at Kavanaugh and you know the way that he was allowed to come on and just shout at senators yeah while she was like had to be nice and mild-mannered uh Dr. Ford and no it's just i think it's never what we expect because we're so far apart but the fact that this is like the breaking point beyond which the conservative half of the country is just like well now we're really pissed off was trying to take somebody to task for well i don't know if it's sexual no i don't think it was that, because they're not looking at it as an issue about sexual assault. They're looking at this as Democrats just don't want a conservative judge.

Yeah. And they're completely divorced from the reality that everyone else is operating in. This is a man who is trying to hold one of the most distinguished legal positions in this country who has many credible allegations of sexual misconduct and assault against him. That's what we're talking about. But they're just like, no, no, y'all are haters because it's conservative and we're about to win the Supreme Court and you're pulling out all the stops. And no one has a really logical or like an argument that makes sense that dismantles what people on the left are concerned about in terms of Judge Kavanaugh.

It's also like, that's your only guy? Like, come on. That's not your only guy. But again, when you look at sort of like what his past looks like and what his opinions are, that you can see why Trump especially would like this person to be a Supreme Court justice versus like, well, Amy Coney Barrett was like the other person that a lot of the people like in the Senate were like, you should go with her because there's not a paper trail and it'll probably be easier to get this person confirmed than the guy who's like 10 years of documents we have to like throw in the shredder. Right. I also don't think those numbers are going to hold.

And I hope it's just, i hope i'm right but i think if kavanaugh is confirmed the gop people that are fired up are gonna that's gonna subside a little bit and like there's gonna be a ton of liberal women and allies and whatever that are like super fired up we'll see i'd yeah i mean i think the analysis that I've seen that I think some people are saying that that this might just be a blip. But there are other people who are saying that, you know, the left and Democratic women were already motivated. And for whatever reason, this has just brought conservatives together more than any other issue up to this point, that they were having a difficult time rallying conservatives. And then this public display, just, you know, they would rather a world

run by Brett Kavanaugh than an unknown future. Sure. And I mean, the other thing that this is really, I mean, the other reason why it's so deflating too, is now we're at a point where, I mean, the other thing that this is really I mean, the other reason why it's so deflating, too, is now we're at a point where I mean, there's always been deceptive politicians and people, you know, taking advantage of people's lack of understanding of the law and things like that. But like we've seen like full tilt just lies like straight out of the mouths of these senators on the right, as if we're just so stupid that we think what they're saying is true. Like they're just lying through their teeth. And that's the other thing that's like, we're like, oh, we're at this stage now, too. Or we're just we have full on blatant lying. And like I said, there's always been this kind of, you know, deception going on. But when you have people saying things like, oh, no one can corroborate this and we've done a thorough investigation.

No, you have not. And I think one of the other talking points that the right's been using, which I think misses the point, is that, well, we interviewed people and we did something thorough, isn't actually addressing the point here, is that the point of having this investigation, not just a background check, an investigation is to get at some idea of what the truth is in this matter, not whether how thorough they like whatever metric they will they talk to 150 people over six investigate no no that's

what we're talking about we're trying to get to the bottom of what happened with dr ford and brett kavanaugh what happened with miss ramirez and brett kavanaugh what happened with julie swetnick and mark judge and brett kavanaugh like those are the things we're trying to get at not just well we interviewed people who we told the FBI they could talk to and then that's it therefore we have our cover yeah that's almost the biggest worldview shake in the like yeah I mean whatever you women have always been treated in a certain way and like that part isn't necessarily a surprise but the fact that the truth can be like publicly so unimportant or like that you can just,

you can just clearly lie. We all know what lies look like. And some of them, you know, especially in his testimony, like some of the things that he said, we can prove that that's not, yeah,

that's straight up perjury. And we have like, say things like perjury is a felony and it's like, okay, so this right there must be an asterisk next to that that i didn't see right perjury being a felony unless you're trying to become a supreme court justice and tip the courts just in just in a situation where it would be the most important that you held that sure value yeah i just i don't know that, you know, it's like I talked about last week after Trump's press conference where everybody that I was paying attention to was like laughing at what a, you know, he was coming across how people were laughing with him at the U.N. instead of laughing at him, even though that clearly wasn't true. And then you look on the right and people are like, that's why he's our president.

Because and it just I just wonder if we're perceiving two separate realities. Like, well, yeah, when you say that, like, they're just lying through their teeth and must think we're stupid. I wonder if they don't think they're lying, if they think we're lying when we talk about this. It's so weird to look at. I've read a couple or happened upon a couple articles that were clearly right-leaning, and it is weird to digest them

and think of people reading them the way that I read the news that I do. reading them the way that I read the news that I do. And yes, like yes, we are living in two parallel universes. It's so bizarre. Yeah, I mean, we talked closer to the 2016 election about the fact that after the Access Hollywood tape was released, there was this movement in a small Colorado town of women for Trump that like kind of like it was the day after that this like coalition of women formed and yeah I don't know it just seems crazy that that was the thing that was

the thing that motivated them to like rise up and and then now I'm sure after having to support Trump and judge Roy Moore like Kavanaugh seems like probably not the worst a literal altar boy right I mean you know I think there's also the thing about psychologically right if you just think someone is trying to smear you because they're haters not based on fact it's easier for you to look past that shit and just be like, y'all are being unfair. Like, this is stupid. Yes. This is being stupid.

Like, we shouldn't even be having this conversation in the first place. Exactly. And I think there's a bit of that, too, when everything is so partisan that you just look at it through that and like, no, you're just trying to take shots. Like, I'm still this team. Like, get the fuck out of here with this shit. And I think that is a lot of the attitude and why people are looking past this because they're not even looking at it as, you know, it's about these allegations. Like, no, you're just

trying to bring the dude down. Also, internalized misogyny is like real, you know, like for the women that I've seen posting who I know, I know who they are. And so then I have to like put it in the context of their life. And I'm just like, oh, God. oh god right yeah like what are some examples of like names of people no i'm just kidding of like thing the type of thing you've seen people post that's a smear right but what are the like what are the rhetorical defenses they're offering oh just well the biggest thing i would say is just like our consent culture is broken and then they'll be like worried about their son who's like five or whatever I don't yeah it's just

been yeah when everyone's like it's a scary time for men I'm like oh men of color right oh oh okay this is the other thing right because if you're like a middle class white person you can be like oh boys will be boys but if you are a person of color man oh you're a thug and you're a person of color man oh you're a thug

and you're older and you know better and you're a criminal so and for middle class white people they are getting up in arms to defend the most elitist like upper class like silver spoon up his ass like boot on your head person. Grandpa buried at Yale. Right, exactly. I don't know. It seems like the... What do we do? The stuff that conservatives are choosing to hang on to from the past

seem like they're the bad parts and like the inefficiencies. Sure. Like the patriarchy and the fact that people got away with crimes and inequality and shit like that. Yeah, it seems like this entire experience has suggested a new reality to me, wherein a big portion of the country has looked at the Me Too movement and been like, this is not a good thing.

This isn't black and white, that this is a good thing. This is people overstepping their bounds and like that's a scary thing when you're talking about empowering people who haven't had power for a long time like that worries them yeah well it's just like the things we've failed to overcome in this country like if progress in the u.s is like a video game i think racism is the boss before the final boss, which is patriarchy. Because clearly we were able to vote in a person of color as president. Right.

But when it became a binary choice between a man and a woman, in the last one it was like, let me see where this goes. And then now when you see how this is going down, you're like, oh shit, like this is, patriarchy is in survival mode now. It's so deep.

Where it's like, yo, we can't concede this. Because if that happens the whole shit comes down and it's wild to think that now we're in this age too where it's just more overt right like the u.s the america and most western culture has always been you know a patriarchy but now like we're living in just straight up in your face like white supremacist capitalist patriarchy like just boom like so what is now because they're almost like yeah she's lying or I believe her to a point but not when it means that I have to sacrifice something I'll believe it to the point until it doesn't if it doesn't affect me then I

can believe it I honestly have never felt like I have been in a historical wave I don't even know how to describe this before but like i feel like you know people during the civil rights movement it's like i'm sure it they could feel the pieces of change or whatever and like didn't know exactly where it was gonna land and like i'm that's it feels like that right now it feels like feels like all this stuff is happening. And yeah, it feels like the levee is about to break. And it's just such a bizarre feeling. Yeah.

Well, again, and like you're saying, Jack, this has reunited the right to a certain point because they've had to circle the wagons to have a full defense of their guy, of Brett. And a lot of pollsters, like you're saying, they're actually saying it's measurable, the excitement that Kavanaugh has brought or the attack on Kavanaugh has brought. Because they're saying, oh, wow, enthusiasm amongst Republicans has jumped. There's been more small-dollar donations as compared to previous years in a certain direction.

Now, I can see how that is, like, especially right now, because you have a you have a some kind of event for people to sort of identify with and then pick sides. But I think there is still a lot of momentum from the left going into this. And I think is as deflating as it is, you know, the only way we can try and fight back at the very least is to take have the House go blue. Right. So there is some chance of these, you know, the Democrats to be able to subpoena documents around this sham investigation to understand what Chris Wray was talking about with the White House. And, you know, if anything was ignored, if any leads were ignored during this investigation. But it's interesting. Like, I think enthusiasm may be up, but I can see it both ways. You can see where Republicans are saying,

hell yeah, we got this guy in. Let's keep this energy going into the midterms. Or it could be Democrats are like, yo, fuck this. And I'm totally deflated. What the fuck matters anymore? Right. Or go the other way. They say, no, fuck this. I'm going to the polls. I'm dragging every motherfucker I know with me to go vote because this is the only thing we have to fight back with. And I could also see Republicans being complacent too because like, all right, we got our guy in. He'll overturn Roe v. Wade or whatever the fantasy is. And then all's well that ends well.

Yeah. I mean, I think it requires a certain amount of faith that progress will continue into the future and that we, you know, will be like, according, you mentioned the civil rights movement. And, you know, I'm sure at the time, like people could tell that they were living through an important moment in history. But at the same time, same time, nationwide, Martin Luther King Jr. was pretty unpopular at the time of his death. And I don't know. I think now we look back and we're like, wow, that much of the country was on the wrong side of history. And I think we can't just comfort ourselves in being like, well, we're on the right side of the history and

history will judge because we're also at a turning point where from a practical perspective, it just, it feels like, yeah, like you were saying, the levies are ready to break and like, they could just be like, you know, send the country back in a different direction. Yeah. I think, you know, ultimately, measurably, there are more people who think this is wrong. And I think that's the one positive I can glean from that. Unfortunately, the way our government is set up is that there is some people who have an inordinate amount of power who aren't necessarily representing a plurality of Americans. So there's that. But again, we operate in this representative democracy where

those numbers matter. And I just hope people can sort of get in touch with the idea that at the very least, there are people out here who do think this is wrong. They might not be as politically engaged, but that's also part of this process too, is really getting people in touch with the idea of there is a way to participate in this and do something, but not just be like throw your hands up and just kind of say like, oh, well, fuck it. Or, yeah, well, we'll see what happens. No, like we really have to put our feet on the ground and do something. Yeah.

Another thing you're seeing now is that enthusiasm on the left among young people is starting to flag. And like that, that just can't happen. Like the, the young folks like really need to get out there and motivate each other. Yeah. Because I mean, yeah,

that, that's what they expect. That's what the people who like built all these systems and built the patriarchy have expected is that young people don't vote and they, they're counting on that. And it seemed for a while, like young people don't vote and they they're counting on that and it seemed for a while like young people were gonna you know shock the world and come out and vote in unprecedented numbers but now you know polling is starting to show flagging enthusiasm and that just that can't happen yeah so people if you're listening we have to keep it up because that's all we can do.

And I mean, who knows? Again, in this fucking world we live in right now, in three days, some shit could come out that completely re-energizes the left or the right. I don't know. And that's the one thing is like it's hard to just be resigned to the fact that anything is going to stay the same forever. Because what we've realized is that nothing is permanent. Right. All right. We're going to take a quick break, and we'll be right back. I've been thinking about you.

I want you back in my life. It's too late for that. I have a proposal for you. Come up here and document my project. All you need to do is record everything like you always do. One session, 24 hours. BPM 110, 120. She's terrified. Should we wake her up? Absolutely not. What was that? You didn't figure it out? I think I need to hear you say it. That was live audio of a woman's nightmare. This machine is approved and everything? You're allowed to be doing this? We passed the review

board a year ago. We're not hurting people. There's nothing dangerous about what you're doing. They're just dreams. Dream Sequence is a new horror thriller from Blumhouse Television, iHeartRadio, and Realm. Listen to Dream Sequence on the i horror thriller from Blumhouse Television, iHeartRadio, and Realm. Listen to Dream Sequence on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. How do you feel about biscuits? Hi, I'm Akilah Hughes, and I'm so excited about my new podcast, Rebel Spirit, where I head back to my hometown in Kentucky and try to convince my high school to change their racist mascot, the Rebels, into something everyone in the South loves, the Biscuits.

I was a lady rebel. Like, what does that even mean? The Boone County Rebels will stay the Boone County Rebels with the image of the Biscuits. It's right here in black and white in print. They lying. An individual that came to the school saying that God sent him to talk to me about the mascot switch. As a leader, you choose hills that you want to die on. Why would we want to be the losing team? I'd just take all the other stuff out of it. On the segregation academies, when civil rights said that we need to integrate public schools,

these charter schools were exempt from that. Bigger than a flag or mascot. You have to be ready for serious backlash. Listen to Rebel Spirit on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Hey, I'm Bruce Bozzi. On my podcast, Table for Two, we have unforgettable lunch after unforgettable lunch with the best guest you could possibly ask for. People like David Duchovny. You know, New Yorkers have a reputation

of being very tough, but it's not. It's not that way at all. They're very accepting. Jeff Goldblum. Are you saying secret fries? Secret fries. What? That's what you're saying?

Yeah. And Kristen Wiig. I just became so aware that I'm such a loud chewer. My husband's just like, sometimes I'll be eating and he'll just be looking at me. I'm like, I'm just eating. Like, I don't know how else to chew. Table for Two is a bit different from other interview shows.

We sit down at a great restaurant for a meal and the stories start flowing. Our second season is airing right now so you can catch up on our conversations that are intimate, surprising, and often hilarious. that are intimate, surprising, and often hilarious. Listen to Table for Two with Bruce Bozzi on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This summer, the nation watched as the Republican nominee for president was the target of two assassination attempts, separated by two months. These events were mirrored nearly 50 years ago when President Gerald Ford faced two attempts on his life in less than three weeks.

President Gerald R. Ford came stunningly close to being the victim of an assassin today. And these are the only two times we know of that a woman has tried to assassinate a U.S. president. One was the protege of infamous cult leader Charles Manson. I always felt like Lynette was kind of his right-hand woman. The other, a middle-aged housewife working undercover for the FBI in a violent revolutionary underground. Identified by police as Sarah Jean Moore. The story of one strange and violent summer. This is Rip Current, available now with new episodes every Thursday. Listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts,

or wherever you get your podcasts. And we're back. Oh, wow. What a break. Miles holds his breath the entire break. The whole time. Yeah, it's pretty incredible. It's mostly because of the smog.

Oh, God, the smog is bad. Speaking of the smog is bad. Just to that point, though, every time as a kid when I would go somewhere that was not shitty L.A., I always was like, the air. You were breathing with parts of your lungs that you didn't know existed. I would cough up auto parts and shit. Oh, my God. It's true.

Sorry. Just love clean air. I think that's why I like the Pacific Northwest. Shout out to British Columbia, too. So researchers in India have been analyzing all the ways that people have died taking selfies over the past years. And this does not seem like it's an exhaustive list because I think they only clearly identified a couple hundred.

About 259 total. Right, about 259, give or take. Give or take.001 within the margin of error. But these were the ones where it was undoubtedly like somebody was looking at them as they backed into a, you know, industrial jet engine while trying to take a selfie or whatever. Yeah.

They just looked at articles that first they used articles that were like, so person dies trying to take selfie or whatever. And I mean, it is, it is an interesting thing to study because a lot of it like the things they're saying is most of these people they are just risking their lives just in the pursuit of looking cool

like in the in the flex in the search for likes here's my hot take okay we could afford to lose 250 right 100%

hey it's a Darwin award for sure right look if you if you're out here climbing a motherfucking antenna that's 300 feet in the air to just do a selfie and you fall off that shit. No. I'm sorry. I don't feel.

But you knew what was going on. You didn't even use safety equipment. But it's interesting. They broke down sort of based on the reports that they did collect. Because it's hard to know because selfie isn isn't a like a recordable cause of death right so they will have to look but they found the top way to go for these people that they looked at while taking a selfie was drowning so that would be people being washed away by a wave on the beach and or capsizing in a boat some people were just getting into water without knowing how to swim

so yeah in those cases i'm sorry. That is a tragedy. But the Darwin Awards, they do move on. The next one was transportation. So that is the biggest risk they were saying was people clicking a pic in front of a moving train. So a lot of people were getting hit by trains or maybe hanging out the side of a train trying to do it. or maybe hanging out the side of a train, trying to do it. I remember there was the woman in that one video, the one woman who was hanging out the side of the car,

dancing on the gram, and then she got hit by a light pole. Her friend was too close to a light pole, but half her body was out of the car, and she hit her head on a light pole and died. Did she die? Yeah, she died. Jesus. So there's even shit that's not even really the selfie, but the flex on the gram, because you just want to be geeky.

Right. Thwack. Also, the third they were saying was from falls and fires. So people climbing shit, falling off tall shit, or being near a fire. Running into a house fire. I don't know. Instead of trying to drag out a person who's stuck in there,

you take a selfie. You just go live. You're like, watch me be a hero. Oh, did you guys see the person who got into the accident? He had some sort of social media following. This was like a few weeks ago. And there was someone dying in a car that he caused the accident. Oh, he was a boxer.

He caused the accident. And he was like Facebook living instead of helping this mother who wound up dying. That's crazy. That should also be a crime too. If you're in a position to help somebody and you choose to go live on the ground, that's a felony right there. That's 15 to life. And then the last one they were saying was like animal mauling, electrocution, and firearms. And they note most of the fatalities involving pigs with firearms occurred in the United States.

Aha. Of course. Well, it's interesting because, I mean, another sign that they did not capture all of them is that this was a study done in India. And while they only captured 14 deaths in the U.S., they captured 159 in India. So it's just they were focusing more on India. I think this is a snapshot into probably what could be a much wider global study around this. Almost definitely is.

Yeah, I think, you know, because like there's some countries have or some areas have like no selfie zones. Right. Too, because they're like, we don't even, people aren't even looking where they're going. I know when I was in Japan, a lot of people had selfie sticks and are near the train platform where the wires above are electrified.

So they're like, yo, you could just straight up zap yourself. And they have signs are like, yo, don't let us catch you with a selfie stick near these live wires. But yeah, I mean, This is the new smoking, though. This is like how people are killing themselves to try and look cool.

We really are just getting stupider, man. But I mean, look, I mean, you know what I mean? What I mean in the sense that our sense of vanity and like social one-upsmanship is like starting to go into a place even more now where you can like record like really actually avoidable death. Right. But again, you know, this is where society is moving, you know? Mm-hmm. What's the craziest place you ever took a selfie?

Jack. I don't really take selfies. Wow. That's why you'll live to be 300. Because I just have that photographer who follows me around at all times. How many photographers have you burned through who have lost their life? Lost a few of them. Lost a few, yeah.

Unrelated. What about you? I don't think I have a good one. Also, like, I'm not that type of person. Right. I would not, like, I'm scared of heights. Like, anything that could potentially kill me, like, I'm trying to stay away from it. Yeah.

Yeah. Good for you. Yeah, me too. I'm a coward. How about you, Miles? I'm trying to stay away from it. Yeah. Yeah.

Good for you. Yeah, me too. I'm a coward. How about you, Miles? When I was in London, I was on the London Eye and I got out of the fucking pod and I climbed on top of the car and I tried to get the selfie

with the town in the background and it was lit. But I took it down because I didn't want to inspire any copycats. But yeah, I'm the same way. Like, I think the most is like, I'm like seated and I'll take a selfie or like, yeah, even walking.

Like also the idea when I see people like walking and like selfie at the same time, like I kind of cringe for them. Yeah. I mean, but you know, I've probably done something like that. Like been walking like on on vacation and taking a picture and not realized I was in the middle of the street or something like that and could have gotten hit. Wow.

Uh-oh. Yeah. Think about your kids, Jack. Yeah, I know. Before you're trying to flex on the gram. It was before kids. Oh, shit. Well, then, you know, flex away.

BK. BK Broiler. Hugs really do make us happier, you guys. Says who? Says Carnegie Mellon University. Okay, okay. They're smart. I'll buy it.

In Pittsburgh, they did a study where they found that people who are huggers have better overall health and stronger relationships. And so this isn't just people you're in a romantic relationship with. This is people who say, I'm a hugger, get in here. And that is definitely a move that I do not have that level of comfort with just acquaintances. Yeah, I know. I saw you high-fived your one-year-old. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

He was like, Daddy, pick me up. And I was like, hey, put it here, pal. Nice to meet you, yeah. He was like, Daddy, pick me up. And I was like, hey, put it here, pal. Nice to meet you, son. You a good man. I aspire to be more of a hugger. But yeah, my initial instinct

is not as warm. But I also feel like this study could have been sponsored by Ecstasy. So do we even know if this is valid? So there's a bunch of stuff like this where

the study of touch is becoming, like there's a whole industry that we, at my last job, we interviewed like people who had started these cuddle parties and all these different things where it's just basically finding a synthetic way to replace like touch because people used to, I guess, see each other in person more often and so have more physical contact with other people. And there's just a certain amount of that that we apparently as a species need. We need to touch one another. touch one another and there's even like this weird study where they looked at NBA teams who like how often they touch each other during games and found that teams who touched each other were like more successful had like more assists per game and that has apparently been taken on as like gospel in the NBA because if you ever see like during free throws, everybody touches the shooter. But almost like it's a thing they have to do. That they've just been told, yo, touch his hand.

There's not even eye contact. It's like, let me swing my arm. Right. It's just very workmanlike. And whoever's at the half court line, it's like a no look. The guy's shooting. He's like, all right, did you get me? OK.

Yeah. Yeah. Obviously. I was a candy striper when I was a kid, and they always wanted us to, like, touch the people in the nursing home and, like, rub their hands or, like, rub their feet. And that was not necessarily our favorite thing to do. What? Yeah, they're like, you have to rub their feet.

I mean, it was part of the job, but, I mean, I see how that can be really important. Oh, yeah. Especially if you're starved for it. Right. Or just, yeah. I mean, man, a hug really can go a long way. But I guess this is also like, I feel like even without the actual study itself, I think most people would be like, I have a feeling if you did a study about hugs, we would find a positive benefit. Yeah, for sure.

Yeah. I think it's probably more beneficial than I had anticipated. I think Big Hug is behind this study. Big Hug. The hug industry. But it is interesting because it's one of those things that you can't necessarily monetize. And so, therefore, it probably is culturally underrated in America. Unless it's ecstasy.

Right. And even then, nobody's making clean money off of it. Big Molly behind it. Big MDMA. Big Molly. MDMA, NBA. You see what I'm saying? There's a through line here. Now for the more dystopian way that people might solve the lack of human contact. A Canadian sex doll company has plans to open a shop in Houston

where customers can rent one of their sex bots. Yes, but bot, they only use that term because they moan the robots. Oh, cool. So it's not totally like a sentient AI being. Moaning lifeless bodies. But it's supposed to be a sex bot that looks like a human. It's hyper-realistic skin and like that feels real and i'm like you know this it's meant to look like a human being and so yeah people would go in i think they have

a shop in toronto where people rent the dolls for like a half hour hour and you know use them as they would at the location and And the mayor of Houston was like, nah, I think we're good on a sex bot brothel or whatever. And they felt like it was unnecessary, unwanted. And their religious groups got involved. And that's when it started getting weird because they were using this really tired argument where they always try and conflate sex work

with sex trafficking. And they're saying if they have these sex doll brothels, it will quote, ultimately harm men, their understanding of healthy sexuality and increase the demand for the prostitution and sexual exploitation of women and children. Now, I understand that as a concern, but I think we're also in an age where we can have actual real conversations around like our sexuality consent things like that without sort of going down the immediate road where it's like oh sex workers are evil sex work is evil oh you think we're at that point based on this conversation yeah yeah i know shit also it seems like a weird my utopia argument a little bit in that like i could see a religious argument for the sex bots.

Right. You know what I mean? Yeah. Like if you're so worried about sex work or whatever like maybe try to put them out of business. What's the difference between somebody you know like using a fleshlight or like a dildo like you know like there's all these unhuman

ways to get off or whatever. Right. And like using this whole like it's a gateway to sex trafficking. I don't know. I don't see how this is necessarily going to lead to the sexual apocalypse that the religious right thinks it will. But this shit is always so religiously motivated. You don't have actual groups who advocate on behalf of sex workers or things like that. Being like, oh, no, no, no, no, you actually don't want this. Yeah. You know, it's only these groups who, I think the main group that came out against this is called Elijah Rising.

Okay. And they are a Christian nonprofit seeking to end sex trafficking, in part, through prayer. Okay. in part through prayer. Okay. So they'll teach you to pray, but this thing that doesn't really harm people that would replace sex trafficking, they're not on board with that?

I also just want to say, if you have a weird kink, like some Republicans have been known to have, like maybe, yeah, I'm kind of pro this. Yeah. I don't see the problem it's a fucking this is a sex doll if that's how you do that's how you get off then whatever like i don't understand but again i think that's where this happened also i feel like in louisiana too around sex workers

where there was like a huge crackdown that without actually acknowledging the agency of some sex workers and like that there's that if you're if's consensual sex work, there's why are we vilifying that? Yeah. But this is this is just this is with a doll. Yeah. It does get tricky with. Yeah. Just of course.

And whether they're, you know. Yeah, because some sex workers may not be fully have their own agency and maybe, you know, working for like a pimp or something who is fucking wild, abusive and shit like that. But I think there is also in the Internet age, which I think this is actually going around, was the idea of like back page and websites that allowed sex workers to just be their own manager and coordinate their own appointments that they were taking that away, which eventually would drive people to the more seedier version of sex work, which involves pimps and things like that. Yeah, and I have noticed just in keeping an eye on the front page of Drudge and other conservative websites that sex bots is a constant, there's just a constant drumbeat of new story about sex bots, new story about sex bots. new story about sex bots.

And I think it's probably A, because it's the same way that like when the internet first became a thing, they were like person murdered on the internet and like, you know, just anything to, because they had a chat with the person they murdered like five days before, you know, it's just the new scary thing.

But maybe it's also like you were saying that they are uh excited that they can get their kink yeah kink satisfied yeah you know they're just looking out for humanoids exactly uh courtney it's been a pleasure having you here it was a pleasure being here where can people find you um i am on social media at uh courtney my last name is k-o-c-a-k um and check out my podcast reality bites with a y and is there a tweet you've been enjoying um guy branham he's the best yeah this was in in response to Kimmel's comment last night about stand-up being a meritocracy. And so he was just making fun of that. He was like, stand-up comedy is a perfect meritocracy where the best people succeed

and the bad people don't, just like being president of the United States. Hey, presidential is presidential. There you go. It's a meritocracy. Wow. Not exactly. Yeah. As a comedy writer, I'm going to tell you, nah.

Yeah. You can tell just from how Louis C.K. has been able to operate. Yeah, right. Wait, Kimmel said that it was a meritocracy? Yeah. A pure meritocracy? Yeah. He was just basically like, the cream cream rises and it always works like that.

Easy to say when you the fucking cream. Yeah. Right. You know, that's like when. And listen, I want to work for you, Jimmy. It's not that. It's just. Yeah.

It's not how it works. Yeah. But Jimmy, you know, like there's also people out here. Help. Help this meritocracy. Prove the meritocracy by hiring these people that are the cream, too. You know what I mean? Cream reach down and bring up the cream.

Exactly. Miles, where can people find you? Oh, you can find me on Twitter and Instagram at Miles of Gray, G-R-A-Y. Tweet I like is from Aparna. And it says, does FBI now stand for forget about it? So, yeah, I don't know.

It might. Tweet that I've been enjoying is from Super Producer Ana Hosnia, who tweeted, So Mensa got at Jamie Loftus help suspended from Twitter because she posted a screenshot of a thread on her life. That actually happened, you guys. Yeah. We talked with Jamie was the guest on yesterday's episode. She talked about how she infiltrated Mensa because she thought it was funny because Mensa is a ridiculous organization full of people who need to be told that they're smart every day.

And they like somebody threatened her life in a Facebook group. Yeah, we read it. Yeah, we read the thing from some dude who was like, there are murders. There are people in this group who've done the unmentionable. And she posted that she did a screenshot. And then her tweet was like basically like a summation of what this person was saying. there are murders, there are people in this group who have done the unmentionable. And she posted that. She did a screenshot. And then her tweet was basically a summation of what this person was saying. It's like, if you threaten our mental glamour organization, we will kill you. And then somebody reported that, clearly from Mensa. And they were like, you said we will kill you.

So that's threats. So you've got to go. But let's be real. Come on, Twitter. You've got to. I mean, we already know you're fucking up, but Jamie ain't do shit. No. I'd be able to make a joke.

That's really fucked up. This is the second time Twitter's kicked Jamie off. First time was because the IOC got mad that she made fun of figure skating and now Mensa's just getting mad. It's like just the wackest groups of old.

Hey, but she's the leader we need. I know. She reminds me of my dog at the dog park where she's running around getting everybody all excited. She's just, you know, look, if you can incur the wrath of these organizations, I think you're doing good. Yeah. Yeah, I should say Miles also tweeted, you know you're achieving great things when you pose a threat to organizations like the

Olympic Committee and Mensa. That is why Jamie Loftus. Help is our one true queen. Also Twitter, what the fuck? And finally, I also like to tweet from Yousef Roach. Somebody linked an article that said Disney has ordered a Lilo and Stitch live action adaptation

and he tweeted, if I saw a Stitch in real life, I'd beat it to death. Which I 100% agree with. What is that? Was that an alien? It was an alien that looks like a koala bear. Like a rat. Mixed with a rat. Mixed with a gremlin.

Anyways, you can follow me on Twitter at Jack underscore O'Brien. You can follow us on Twitter at Daily Zeitgeist. We're at The Daily Zeitgeist on Instagram. We have a Facebook fan page and a website, DailyZeitgeist.com, where we post our episodes and our footnotes. We link off to the information that we've talked about in today's episode as well as the song we ride out on. You can also find that information in the show notes.

Show notes. Show notes. Miles, what song are we going to ride out on? This is a track by a band. I think they're a duo. They're sisters. They're called Wild Bell. And this song is called Keep You.

And, you know, it's got some reggae vibes to it, a little bounce to it. But they're kind of like a multi-genre, psych, pop, reggae, funk, rock kind of group. But this is Wild Bell Keep You. All right. We're going to ride out on that. We will be back on Monday. Have a good weekend, everyone. Bye. Sing song again and again You wrong me twice and I keep coming back

Sing song again and again You wrong me twice and I keep coming back Tell me what the matter is, little man I've got a pretty face and I wear a nice dress Tell me what the matter is, little man I've got a pretty face and I wear a nice dress Why can't I keep you? Keep you? Why can't I keep you? Keep you? Me too Every minute that I spend on you

I give you honey and I give you two All the other women that you treat so rude Cry, cry cause you make them blue Running over town like you got no nerve Sleeping in the shanty of a brand new girl call me at the nancy for a formation why can't i keep you? Keep you Why can't I keep you? Keep you

Why can't I keep you? Keep you Thank you. I can't. Bye. guitar solo Thank you. I'm not going to lie. Kay hasn't heard from her sister in seven years. I have a proposal for you. Come up here and document my project. All you need to do is record everything like you always do. What was that? That was live audio of a woman's nightmare. Can Kay trust her sister, or is history repeating itself?

There's nothing dangerous about what you're doing. They're just dreams. Dream Sequence is a new horror thriller from Blumhouse Television, iHeartRadio, and Realm. Listen to Dream Sequence on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Curious about queer sexuality, cruising, and expanding your horizons? Hit play on the sex-positive and deeply entertaining podcast, Sniffy's Cruising Confessions. Join hosts Gabe Gonzalez and Chris Patterson Rosso as they explore queer sex, cruising, relationships, and culture in the new iHeart podcast, Sniffy's Cruising Confessions. Sniffy's Cruising Confessions will broaden minds and help you pursue your true goals.

You can listen to Sniffy's Cruising Confessions, sponsored by Gilead, now on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes every Thursday. Señora Sex Ed is not your mommy's sex talk. This show is la plática like you've never heard it before. We're breaking the stigma and silence around sex and sexuality in Latinx communities. This podcast is an intergenerational conversation

between Latinas from Gen X to Gen Z. We're your hosts, Viosa and Mala. You might recognize us from our first show, Locatora Radio. Listen to Señora Sex Ed on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. There's so much beauty in Mexican culture, like mariachis, delicious cuisine, and even Lucha Libre. Join us for the new podcast, Lucha Libre Behind the Mask, a 12-episode podcast in both English and Spanish about the history and cultural richness of Lucha Libre. And I'm your host, Santos Escobar, emperor of Lucha Libre and a WWE superstar. Listen to Lucha Libre Behind the Mask on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever

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