The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 10.31 Ridiculously Strange & Confusing Mueller Conspiracy Mess, Shane Dawson, & More

Episode Date: October 31, 2018

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Sup you beautiful bastards hope you're having a fantastic Wednesday Welcome back to the Philip DeFranco show and let's just jump into it and the first thing we're gonna talk about today is this very interesting But also incredibly concerning news coming from the World Wildlife Fund this week They released a new report about wildlife populations around the globe and the results were not good And as far as how bad are we talking about according to the report which looked at data from 1970 to 2014 60% of vertebrate animals have been wiped out and the situation is most concerning in Central and South America and the Caribbean, where wildlife populations have declined by 89%. And in addition to that, freshwater ecosystems have also declined by 83% worldwide.

In fact, 6 billion tons of fish and invertebrate have been taken from the world's oceans since the 1950s. Half of shallow water corals have also been lost in the past 30 years. And here, if things continue, the report says that up to 90% of the world's coral reefs might be gone by mid-century. And on top of all of that, they reported that one fifth of the Amazon has disappeared in the last 50 years. So one of the questions connected to this is why? Why is this happening? And according to the report, the main reasons for decline

are the over-exploitation of species in agriculture, as well as land conversion, which is commercial or agricultural land development. With the report noting that only one quarter of land on Earth is free from impacts of human activity. Now when it comes to land conversion, the WWF says that globally forest degradation has actually slowed, which is good news, and that appears to be thanks to reforestation efforts and plantations. But forest degradation is still accelerated in tropical forests.

And so that's incredibly bad news for wildlife populations, because tropical forests contain some of the highest levels of biodiversity on Earth. And so with that said, it brings us to, well, what are the experts saying? What does this mean for the future? And according to Mike Barrett, executive director of science and conservation at the WWF, it means, quote, we are sleepwalking towards the edge of a cliff. If there was a 60% decline in the human population, that would be equivalent to emptying North America, South America, Africa, Europe, China, and Oceania. This is the scale of what we have done.

This is far more than just being about losing the wonders of nature. Desperately sad, though, that is. This is actually now jeopardizing the scale of what we have done. This is far more than just being about losing the wonders of nature. Desperately sad though that is, this is actually now jeopardizing the future of people. Nature is not a nice to have, it is our life support system. We also have professor Bob Watson, one of the world's most eminent environmental scientists, warning that the destruction of nature is as dangerous as climate change. And he said about the report, to human well-being culturally and spiritually, as well as through the critical production of food, clean water and energy, and through regulating the Earth's climate, pollution, pollination and floods. The Living Planet report clearly demonstrates that human activities are destroying nature at an unacceptable rate, threatening the well-being of current and future generations. Another thing of note is that this report's coming out around the same time that China's making some news of its own regarding endangered animals. And that's because this week, China announced it has now legalized the use of endangered tiger and rhino products for quote, medical purposes.

And this is huge news on its own because it reverses a 1993 ban on the international trade of tiger bones and rhino horns. But at least on the surface level, there appears to be some restriction. China State Council saying in a statement that they can be used for medical research and healing as long as they come from farmed animals.

Adding, powdered forms of rhino horn and bones from dead tigers can only be used in qualified hospitals by qualified doctors recognized by the state administration of traditional Chinese medicine. The council also adding that any illegal trade of rhino and tiger products would be subject to, quote, severe crackdowns and that illegal products would still be confiscated. But when you look at the situation, it's still confusing as to why they would do this, at least for the proposed reason. I say this because back in 2010, the World Federation of Chinese Medicine Societies issued a statement saying that there was no proof tiger bone had medical benefits. It was also the same year they removed rhino horn and tiger bone from its list of approved products for patients.

And in addition to this, you have many conservationists saying this could be devastating. Reportedly, worldwide, in the wild, there are only about 3,900 tigers and 30,000 rhinos across five species. And once again, this is for horn and bone, which has been said in the past that there is no actual benefit. And in recent years, there are reports that leaders in this field discourage the use. And I will say, I think there are certain situations where you say, uh, respect the culture, right? It's a different culture, you gotta respect it. I think it makes sense. This, in my opinion, is not one of those.

It's not like, oh, it turns out rhino horn, it cures cancer. It doesn't seem like there is an actual benefit here, but you're using medicine as a loophole. And as far as the report in general from the WWF, that's just horrifying. And finally, I guess regarding the report, for me, it's more of a question to you. When you hear these things, you know, just the the utter destruction, when you hear that, do you feel like, ah, well, what can I do? I'm just one person, or do you end up feeling like, you know what, I need to become involved? And I ask because at different points in my life, I've definitely felt both.

But in addition to that question, what I'll leave you is if you do want to get involved or you want to find out more you just want to you want to throw yourself into this. I'm gonna link down below to several resources including the WWF, some we've talked about in the past regarding reforestation. There are a lot of ways we can and we probably should. That's where I'm gonna leave that one. And then we should talk about or at least mention some of these industry entertainment quickies. First up we had probably one of YouTube Premium's biggest wins, Cobra Kai, in the news. This because in addition to the series getting a 100% Rotten Tomatoes rating, the pilot episode, which isn't behind the YouTube Premium paywall, has passed over 50 million views. And while we don't know how many people then signed up for YouTube Premium because they really enjoyed the pilot,

or actually how many people then followed the series through, it is still by far the most successful YouTube Premium pilot. I mean, this thing got double the views of the other YouTube Premium successes. You know, Joey Graceffa's Escape the Night, Vsauce's Mind Field, Foursome. Which also, talking those large numbers, it's important to mention Shane Dawson. It's now been almost two weeks since his Jake Paul documentary series ended.

With it, Shane ended up pulling numbers just I've never seen before. The most viewed episode garnering 22 million views, and the entire series as a whole getting 141 million and still growing. Which are also wild numbers when you consider that he did this on his own. But I also mention Shane because articles have now popped up regarding what his next documentary could be. And those articles saying that it could be or he may want it to be Justin Bieber. This because Shane Dawson tweeted at Justin Bieber, I'd really love to talk to you about a project I'd love to do with you. I know you probably won't see this, but if you do and have a sec, let me know.

Which I will say, if that ended up happening, that would be fascinating. Not just from a content standpoint, but just from a standpoint of the evolution right as the time goes on mainstream celebrity versus digital celebrity The lines are blurring, but it still would be a massive shift But also one that maybe the numbers warrant the final bit of industry news is kind of a shout out and congratulations to Joe Penna Aka you old schoolers probably know him as mystery guitar man Joe Penna was one of the OG youtubers He also actually he sang one of our old jingles He was actually in the news earlier this week because his first feature film Arctic it ended up being an official selection at this Year's con film festival and the news now broke that his second feature film which is called stowaway

They have now on boarded the fantastic Anna Kendrick I just wanted to share that story because it's awesome seeing people that got their start on YouTube just taken it to the next level And then let's talk about this incredibly odd story around Robert Mueller So you may have seen the news this week that special counsel Robert Mueller referred allegations to the FBI that a woman was offered money to Make false accusations against him and according to a statement from Mueller's spokesperson Peter Carr, contacted by a man with a British accent who asked questions about Mueller. She claimed that in 1974 she had been a paralegal for a short time at Pillsbury, Madison and Sutro, that being a law firm where Mueller also worked at that time. And so this man with a British accent, she said, claimed to work for Surefire Intelligence and said that they had been hired by GOP activist and conservative radio host Jack Berkman. And adding that after the man had Parsons download an encrypted communications app called Signal, where he reportedly said,

I want you to make accusations of sexual misconduct "'and workplace harassment against Robert Mueller, "'and I want you to sign a sworn affidavit to that effect.'" And reportedly, the man then offered to pay off Parsons' credit card debt and pay her $20,000 if she did it. And in the email, Parsons said, "'He knew exactly how much credit card debt I had, "'right down to the dollar, which sort of freaked me out.'"

Also, according to Scott Stedman, who was one of the reporters that received this letter, Parsons wouldn't speak to them over the phone, so parts of her story and identity have not been verified. And in a tweet, he said, "'I found the woman to be unreliable. "'She wouldn't get on the phone. "'She wouldn't give to them over the phone, so parts of her story and identity have not been verified. And in a tweet he said, I found the woman to be unreliable. She wouldn't get on the phone, she wouldn't give me any other contact information. She did, however, give me the phone number of the intermediary who allegedly offered this money on behalf of Berkman.

And in messages to Stedman, the alleged intermediary confirmed the story, but again Stedman said that it felt like he was too eager. And we also had Matt Hyams, director of public relations for the law firm that Parsons claimed to work for. We saw him saying that they have, quote, "'No record of this individual working for our firm.'" However, the accusations laid out by the person claiming to be Parsons are very similar to ones that were made by another woman by the name of Jennifer Taub. And she's a woman who contacted Mueller's office

earlier this month. And she's a professor at Vermont Law School, and she says she received an email on October 22nd from a man using a Surefire Intelligence email address. And reportedly that email said, "'It's my understanding that you may have had "'some past encounters with Robert Mueller. "'I would like to discuss those encounters with you.

"'I believe a basic telephone call "'for which I would compensate you "'at whatever rate you see fit inside reason "'would be a good place to start.'" And reportedly the email went on to say, "'My organization is conducting an examination "'of Robert Mueller's past. "'Tell me a decent method to contact you

"'by telephone or signal, which would be ideal, "'and a beginning rate to talk with you "'about all encounters you've had "'with Special Counsel Mueller. "'We would likewise pay you for you about all encounters you've had with special counsel Mueller. We would likewise pay you for any references that you may have. Lastly, I would appreciate your discretion here as this is a very sensitive matter." And Taubes said she didn't respond and instead just forwarded the email to the special counsel's office. We also saw a Twitter account identifying itself as Surefire Intelligence releasing a public statement saying, quote, Surefire Intelligence does not comment on current, past, or future operations, nor the lack thereof. Our firm assists businesses and individuals with complex and sensitive matters,

many of which are confidential under attorney-client privilege." And adding, finally, "...Surefire Intelligence always conducts itself well within the limits of legal and ethical standards and categorically denies and rejects any claims that suggest otherwise." So all of that kind of brings us back to Jack Berkman, which you may have heard of earlier in the year because he offered to pay $25,000 to FBI whistleblowers for information exposing wrongdoing during the 2016 election. And more recently, he's been teasing that a story about Mueller was around the corner. In fact, two weeks ago in a Facebook video, Berkman alleged that Mueller is an alcoholic

and has a history of harassment, but adding that his team was still investigating the claims. That's right, we now have four independent people. We're trying to get one of them to come out, and we think we're getting very close. We have four good sources that tell us Bob Mueller carries around a flask. He's an old school guy. He's basically an old tell us Bob Mueller carries around a flask. He's an old school guy. He's basically an old school drunk. He carries around a flask. He carries it

and drinks straight booze. Then around the same time these allegations were made public, Berkman announced that he would have a press conference tomorrow where his client would make allegations against Mueller. In a tweet he wrote, some sad news. On Thursday, November 1st at the Rosslyn Holiday Inn at noon, we will reveal the first of special counsel Robert Mueller's sex assault victims. I applaud the courage and dignity and grace and strength of my client." And after the reports of the Parsons allegations were out, Berkman tweeted again saying, "...the allegations of paying a woman are false. The left is trying to defend Mueller against sex assault allegations, so they attack me in desperation. The establishment media knows that Mueller may go down over this.

They want to deflect attention." And then in a Facebook post, Berkman claimed that Parsons does not exist, saying, "...the special counsel once again has abused his power. He ordered the FBI to investigate whether I paid a certain woman. The only problem is that this woman, Lorraine Parsons, doesn't exist. Mueller acted without doing the slightest bit of research. He has but one goal, deflect attention from him onto me.

Well, Bob, by week's end, our nation will know you as nothing but a sex offender. Berkman also telling Newsweek that his team had been investigating tips for six months and said, quote, we've come up with a universe of five girls and the first is willing to come for Thursday also saying about Parsons allegations It's completely false. I don't know this woman

No one on my staff knows that name He separately told Fox News that the woman coming out on Thursday had an encounter with Mueller in New York City in 2010 and that he Has a signed dossier from her and so with this story one of the big questions that has popped up is who are the people behind These allegations and specifically there have been a ton of questions around surefire intelligence Which is the company at the center of these allegations. Its homepage states that it is a private intel agency that quote, designs and executes bespoke solutions for businesses and individuals who face complex business

and litigation challenges. The company boasts offices in Los Angeles and Irvine, California, New York, DC, Tel Aviv, London, and Zurich. They also boast a number of investigative services that include intelligence, asset tracing and mapping, in-depth due diligence and counterintelligence. Another page claims that they've carried out a couple different investigations. And the details there are pretty vague, but they include things like identification of fraud spanning from Israel to China, and proving the theft of intellectual property in Vancouver and New York. But, thanks to a number of journalists picking this apart, it seems like it's just a weird, crazy front.

Chris Guidener, a reporter and editor at BuzzFeed, tweeted a registration for Surefire Intelligence as a Delaware LLC on October 9th, 2018. Scott Stedman, one of the several reporters who received that original letter we talked about, he said he went to the address listed on their website in Irvine and apparently Surefire isn't even listed in the building's directory. The company that is at the address that is listed is a law firm that says we have absolutely nothing to do with that company. Stedman also pointed out that Surefire plagiarized from an actual intelligence firm called Black Cube. And so as you can tell things are getting very shady very quick. You also had Jane Mayer for the New Yorker finding that a LinkedIn profile for a Surefire employee by the name of Matthew Cohen. It looks like an edited photo of Jacob Wohl who's a 20 year old conservative who you may even have seen even if you don't know

who he is. He replies to Trump tweets a lot and so he'll often pop up near the top. And you also had another reporter and researcher finding that multiple LinkedIn profiles for people that apparently work for Surefire They are in fact just edited pictures of other people including celebrities. For example, their so-called Tel Aviv station chief It's Israeli supermodel Bar-Rafaeli. Head of government relations appears to be just some stock photo model. Also their financial investigator in Zurich Christoph Waltz. Who knew all these people had side gigs? And finally one of the most interesting pieces here is that NBC reported that one of the phone numbers on the Surefire Intelligence website it led to the voicemail of Jacob Wohl's mother. And they also reported that his email is tied to the domain records for Surefire's website.

So you may be wondering, other than someone that leaves comments to Trump tweets, okay, who is Jacob Wohl? He described himself in his Twitter bio as a 20 year old financier and political commentator, conservative, Trump supporter, Zionist, and writer for the Gateway Pundit. He's also been tweeting in response to this story, writing, Very credible allegations are set to be made against Robert Mueller. Mainstream media is scrambling. They're accusing me of offering to pay accusers with zero proof and zero evidence. Also calling it a coordinated smear campaign. Also making the accusation that someone inside Mueller's office likely sent out the hoax email claiming to be a woman offered payment to make an accusation against Mueller. He also tweeted out a Gateway Pundit article which reported on the allegation.

And they had included screenshots of what was said to be a confidential raw intelligence document there. They have since updated that article and removed those documents, writing, Note to all, we have removed the original article authored by Jacob Wold due to concerns that have been brought to our attention as to the validity of the article. Please note that under most circumstances our authors do not require prior approval to post. We do, however, reserve the right to remove or edit their article should the situation require, as we are currently doing in this case." But here's what's really weird about that. I took screenshots of when they had the post up.

Also, thanks to the Wayback Machine, there are archived versions of that page. The piece, which the Gateway pundit later attributed to being originally written by Jacob Wall, it has no mention of Jacob in the original article, only saying that it was authored by Jim Hoff. So unless it's a common practice for the site to not attribute the article to the person that actually wrote the article, that's very strange. But that's what's there. They said that they're going to be interviewing Jacob, they'll be posting something soon. Also adding that the Berkman press conference is still on for Thursday. Also in addition to that there have been a lot of articles poking holes in Wall's background. You have the Daily Dot publishing an article

about how many times Jacob has recycled the same story about hearing liberals in a coffee shop in LA talking about how good of a job Trump is doing. We also saw the Daily Beast publishing an article in June of 2018 about Wohl's shady financial dealings. According to them, the hedge funds he says he founded faced national and state investigations, adding that this was at least in part

because of customers that claimed that he scammed them. For example, Wohl was investigated by the National Futures Association, which is an authorized financial regulator. Promotional material for the hedge fund called NEX Capital Management was referred to as unbalanced in their presentation of profit potential and risk of loss. The NFA also noted a complaint from one of Wohl's investors. He said he wired Wohl $75,000 that had apparently grown to $89.5,000. But when the investor tried to withdraw the account, he received $44,000 with Wohl citing losses. And after that, NFA agents showed up to NEX's offices, which turned out to be a home in LA.

Wohl's dad then got involved. He apparently emailed the NFA after they went to the supposed company address twice, warning of legal action and a restraining order. Reportedly, the NFA ended up giving Wohl a lifetime ban from registering with them. And there are other articles out there regarding models and possible plagiarism with ProPublica. But the main point is you get the idea of things that have happened, things are being talked about, and what's happening right now. And as far as what happens next, I don't know, I'm gonna be watching closely.

There are reports out where they've talked to the likes of Harry Litman, former Deputy Assistant Attorney General, and he has said, if the basic facts of the scheme hold up and there is apparently at least one corroborating witness, Tom, Merkman is in jeopardy, adding that the most straightforward charge

could be obstruction of justice, with experts adding that if Wohl was a knowing participant in this alleged scheme, then you're possibly talking about a conspiracy charge. But as far as if that 100% is what actually happened, as far as if those charges could be placed, we're gonna have to wait to see what comes out regarding accusations and the investigation.

But with all of that said, I do pass the question off to you. What do you think about this whole mess? And that's where I'm going to end today's show. And of course, remember, I wanna hear from you, whether it be the last story, the first one, anything in between that stood out to you that you want to sound off on.

Let me know what you're thinking in those comments down below. Also, while you're at it, if you liked today's video, hit that like button. If you're new here, hit that subscribe button. And also, if you missed either yesterday or the day before his Philip DeFranco show, you can click or tap right there to watch those.

But that said, of course, as always, my name's Philip DeFranco. You've just been filled in. I love yo faces and I'll see you tomorrow.