The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 10.9 Hurricane Milton Just Got Worse, Billie Eilish is DONE, Youtube Mom’s $22M Abuse Lawsuit & More News

Episode Date: October 9, 2024

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Starting point is 00:00:00 Sup, you beautiful bastards. Welcome back to the Philip DeFranco Show, your daily dive into the news. We have a lot to talk about today, but first, I've got two great quick announcements. The first being that if you wanna try some of that fantastic coffee we have over at wakeandmake.com
Starting point is 00:00:13 that thousands of beautiful bastards like yourself are enjoying every month, right now you can snag our flagship light, medium, and dark roast, or even all three for up to 50% off your first purchase. And secondly, this is now day one of month two of our International Coffee Club, where you buy a subscription and every month
Starting point is 00:00:28 you get a new coffee from a new place or you're always trying something new. This month, batch 002 is a single origin from El Salvador. It's a medium roast. And the big thing with this club is you gotta get in while you can because we're only opening 50 new spots every month. So yeah, whether you're adventurous
Starting point is 00:00:41 and you wanna join the club or you wanna just enjoy one of those fantastic staples, go to wakeandmake.com and get what you want while you can. But like I said, we have a lot of news to talk about today, so let's just jump into it. This is a news show. Oh my God. Piper Raquel's mom has reportedly settled the massive $22 million abuse lawsuit that was filed against her. And while the terms and the amount settled were not immediately made clear, this is huge. Because to give you background, Piper Raquel is a 17 year old YouTuber
Starting point is 00:01:11 and her mother Tiffany was sued back in 2022 by 11 teenagers who were featured on Piper's channel. They were all part of Piper's so-called squad at one point and they allege that Tiffany inflicted emotional distress on them while she was producing content for Piper's channel, claiming that they sustained both physical and emotional injuries from harassment, molestation, and abuse.
Starting point is 00:01:27 And some of these allegations are incredibly disturbing, with Tiffany being accused of making comments about children's genitalia, shouting graphic things at them, and telling them to be sexy and sexually aggressive on camera. She was also accused of inappropriately touching minors on their legs, thighs, and bottoms, and even selling her daughter's underwear
Starting point is 00:01:43 to a man who liked to sniff it. And then on top of all that, some of the accusers also claimed they weren't paid for the use of their likeness to promote Piper's content. But there's also seeing following the allegations, YouTube demonetizing Piper's channel. But of course, all of this now bringing us to today with the case reportedly settled
Starting point is 00:01:56 and the lead attorney telling the Daily Mail that he wants to commend the kids who took action and adding, they're smart and brave. What they went through was grotesque. I look forward to watching them thrive as young adults. With one of the plaintiffs also telling the outlet that the suit was quote, never about money, saying it was to make sure she couldn't do what she did to me, to another kid. My youth was stripped away at a very young age because of Tiffany Raquel. But for now, you know, I'd love to know your thoughts on this situation, the settlement. And also,
Starting point is 00:02:19 I guess, if you think that more should be coming. What are your thoughts on if a settlement isn't enough accountability or punishment considering the accusations against her? And then, by the time that you're watching this, what's been described as the storm of the century is either about to hit the coast of Florida or it's already too late. Or because Hurricane Milton is projected to make landfall late Wednesday night
Starting point is 00:02:35 or early Thursday morning, by which time it's expected to have doubled in size. With winds, as I'm recording, hitting 160 miles per hour and forecasters predicting storm surges of between 10 and 15 feet. Though this is by the time that it makes landfall, they say that it'll likely downgrade to a category four with winds of around 130 miles per hour,
Starting point is 00:02:53 which to be clear is still fucking insane. And that's just the hurricane. You have meteorologists warning that Milton could also bring several tornadoes from scattered thunderstorms that may be triggered across central and southern Florida. And so as of right now, you've got some 50 counties
Starting point is 00:03:04 under an official state of emergency, as well as 11 counties home to nearly 6 million people under mandatory evacuation order. Which is why over the past few days, we've seen one of the largest evacuations in the state's history. I mean, you just look out there, it's one side of the interstate completely empty,
Starting point is 00:03:18 the other completely clogged up. But this also is it's impossible to know exactly how many residents have left. And we know from anecdotal accounts that some are hunkering down. Manatee County Jail, for example, which holds around 1200 inmates in a mandatory evacuation zone, reportedly not evacuated.
Starting point is 00:03:31 With them instead stocking up on supplies and sandbags and simply planning to move inmates to the top floor of the two-story building if it floods. So if they get 15 feet of water, I'm not sure how that's gonna work out. Also with this, right, you have people who either won't leave or can't leave because they simply have nowhere to go. Like with residents of certain mobile home parks
Starting point is 00:03:46 were just battered two weeks ago by Hurricane Helene. Right, and there you had one disabled veteran telling NBC that he and his wife have been sleeping in their car since Helene wrecked their mobile home, saying, right now I'm homeless and scared to death. I'm worried about getting on my feet. I just want a home. I don't care what kind of home.
Starting point is 00:04:00 With them also adding there along with other tenants that the trailer park's owner is still making them pay the $750 monthly plot rental fee, even though their homes are now uninhabitable. But this also is the company denied that when asked. Also, in addition to that, there have been a few less sympathetic individuals who totally could have left and definitely should have,
Starting point is 00:04:15 but strangely haven't. Like for example, Caroline Calloway, who's been dubbed the world's worst influencer. Though that for reasons outside of this, right? Reportedly, she defrauded hundreds of fans out of creative workshops that never happened, spent a six-figure advance for a book deal that never materialized,
Starting point is 00:04:28 and sold her own skincare line named Snake Oil. But now it appears that she's staying put even though she lives on the water in a mandatory evacuation zone and flatly stating on Instagram, I'm going to die. It's zone A, mandatory evacuation. Listen, I didn't evacuate.
Starting point is 00:04:43 I can't drive, first of all. Second of all, the airport is closed. Third of all, the last time I evacuated for a hurricane, I went to my mom's house in Northport. Her whole street flooded and we were evacuated after three days without power and food or running water by the US military. It was very traumatic.
Starting point is 00:05:03 But regardless, the next 24 hours are gonna be horrifying. It is very expected that a number of people are gonna die from this. Right now, if you're in the danger zone, you're pretty much on your own with officials saying they're not coming for you until the storm's over. And actually, speaking of which, Governor DeSantis has hundreds of search and rescue personnel
Starting point is 00:05:17 are ready to jump into action as soon as Milton passes. Also, if you feel compelled to help, you can donate to a number of charities. But this, also the National Center for Disaster Fraud, is warning people to watch out for scammers posing as charities for these hurricanes. So if you're thinking about it, just remember these things. Ignore unsolicited communications,
Starting point is 00:05:32 don't click on links from unknown sources, and be suspicious of anyone using high pressure tactics to get you to donate. And also, always donate directly to an organization rather than through some intermediary and go directly to their website rather than clicking through links. But yeah, with all that said,
Starting point is 00:05:46 for now we're gonna have to wait to see what the next 24 hours has in store for Florida. And to you and yours that are gonna be impacted by this, you are in our thoughts. Good luck, be safe. And then this man lied, abused his position of power, got an innocent couple killed, and y'all, that is just the beginning.
Starting point is 00:06:02 This is Gerald Goines, and he spent more than three decades working as a Houston police officer. But now he's been sentenced to 60 years in prison for the 2019 deaths of Dennis Tuttle and Regina Nicholas. You see, back in 2019, Dennis and Regina were shot along with their dog while officers were executing a no-knock warrant, with court documents saying
Starting point is 00:06:18 that Regina was shot multiple times and Dennis returned fire before he was also shot multiple times. With this, four officers, including Goines, were injured in the shootout and the couple was pronounced dead at the scene. But with all this, according to prosecutors, this raid should have never happened.
Starting point is 00:06:31 Right, because in order to actually get the warrant that resulted in the deaths of Regina and Dennis, prosecutors say that Goines falsely claimed that a confidential informant bought heroin from the couple's house, which Goines did admit to. And two witnesses, right, another officer and the judge who signed the warrant also said that if Goines had told them the truth, the raid would have never happened.
Starting point is 00:06:46 Though it was also noted that a small amount of weed and cocaine was found in the house. But the big thing that we're talking about today is this was just the final example in a pattern of wrongful drug arrests and convictions of innocent people during Goines' career. With the probe into this botched raid blowing the cover off of a serious corruption scandal
Starting point is 00:07:00 within Houston PD's narcotics unit and with Goines specifically. An audit of the narcotics unit found that often, officers weren't thorough in their investigations and lacked supervision. They also made hundreds of errors in their cases, which led to a review of thousands of their cases, resulting in prosecutors dismissing a bunch of them.
Starting point is 00:07:15 Goines' cases specifically had extensive issues, including failures to properly tag drugs and discrepancies with expenses. And according to the National Registry of Exonerations, 27 people who faced drug convictions in cases that Goines worked on were exonerated once his misconduct was revealed. And this is dozens of pending cases that he worked on were also dismissed following a review
Starting point is 00:07:32 by the Harris County District Attorney's Office. With DA Kim Ogg saying, "'Gerald Goines has been a stain on the reputation "'of every honest cop in our community, "'a community that he terrorized through corruption "'worthy of the movie Training Day.'" And in his sentencing, prosecutors asked for a life sentence while Goines' attorneys asked for a minimum sentence
Starting point is 00:07:48 of five years. With them arguing that he dedicated his life to keeping drugs off the streets and saying, we still don't believe legally that he is guilty of the crime of felony murder, and we look forward to having the appellate courts review this. But notably, this is not the only case Goines is facing.
Starting point is 00:08:00 He's also facing federal charges surrounding the botched drug raid involving violating constitutional rights, obstructing justice by falsifying records, and three counts of obstructing an official proceeding. And this is the Tuttle family has also filed a lawsuit in federal court against the city of Houston as well as the officers involved in the raid, including Goines.
Starting point is 00:08:16 With Ryan Tuttle, Dennis' son, saying that he hopes that this case will spur police reform across the country. And if it's happening in Houston, it's happening everywhere. We have to set a precedence. We have to make sure this stops. Then in some quick celeb drama online conversation news,
Starting point is 00:08:32 we have Billie Eilish out there wishing we knew a little less about her. And it's got a number of people divided. You see, she just did this recent profile for Vogue where specifically she talked about her sexuality. In some of her more recent music, Billie has sung more about her sexuality, about liking girls and all of this,
Starting point is 00:08:44 kind of following her accidentally coming out during an interview with Variety. And when that outlet followed up on that, she felt like they were outing her on the red carpet. So it was an immediately rocky start to discussing this part of her life publicly. And she just told Vogue that, quote, "'I wish no one knew anything about my sexuality
Starting point is 00:08:57 "'or anything about my dating life ever, ever, ever. "'And I hope that they never will again. "'And I'm never talking about my sexuality ever again. "'And I'm never talking about who I'm dating ever again." And this, you know, spawning some discussion and debate. Some think that if she's gonna be singing about girls, people are gonna know. If it's in her art, there's no way around people knowing.
Starting point is 00:09:13 But this, as others argued, there's a huge difference between singing about your sexuality in a fun way and having to go into detail about it in interviews, on social media, revealing your privacy to strangers. But some noting that in Billie's case, the internet has not always been friendly to her on this topic. And some saying when she showed her interest in women,
Starting point is 00:09:27 she was called a queer baiter. When she came out, y'all invalidated her feelings because she didn't have much experience with women. And when she sings about her attraction for women, y'all call her predatory. I don't blame her at all. What fucking more do you want from this girl? As well as y'all have a discourse
Starting point is 00:09:39 about this woman's sexuality every year on this app, and you have the guts to get mad when she's fucking tired of it. Right, and because that discourse has been so loud, it's not a surprise that elsewhere in the interview, Billie revealed that she's deleted all social media apps from her phone, adding that she feels like she's found a really good mixture
Starting point is 00:09:52 of balancing her private life and public personal life by making sure I feel like myself, and I'm not only being satisfied by the external validation. Because for a while, she said she only cared what others thought, and quote, "'If I was happy in my life, "'it was because people loved me on the internet. "'And if I was happy in my life, it was because people loved me on the internet. And if I was upset in my life, it was usually because people didn't. And so now while she's not necessarily fully online, she feels like she's removed herself
Starting point is 00:10:11 from some of the toxicity, which I will say as someone that gets a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of a fraction of her attention, it really does feel like over the longterm, the only way to maintain sanity is to pull away from social media because there's no way you can ever actually control what people are going to say or think, right? And all of that just makes me think of that classic saying, you can't control what people do. You can only control how you respond to it. And sometimes the best response is to just leave. Of course, that becomes harder when the thing you're talking about is social media and that pays your bills. It's why over a long enough period of time, anyone in any sort of spotlight has a love-hate relationship with it. Then to
Starting point is 00:10:43 take a break from the news for a second, how many of you kicked off 2024 by promising to finally turn that passion project into profit, right? Launch a business or a profitable side hustle, right? Whether big or small, like for me, it was small. I've been wanting to launch my book club for months now, but that procrastination that I was dealing through,
Starting point is 00:10:59 that recently ended thanks to my friends over at Squarespace, right? I mean, in less than an hour that a Franco book club was born. And it's all so easy because Squarespace has the, I mean, in less than an hour that a Franco book club was born. And it's also easy because Squarespace has the tools that you need to create and just showcase things or sell content, courses and products, physical and digital, all online.
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Starting point is 00:11:25 with drag and drop editing that makes site design incredibly simple. There's no coding required, right? And with Squarespace having been a trusted partner and sponsor of the PDS for years, I can honestly say it is a breeze. And I mean, we use them for a number of things. We leverage Squarespace for our very own daily newsletter,
Starting point is 00:11:39 The Daily Dip, where over 50,000 of you beautiful bastards keep up with our coverage and your inboxes. There's also giveaways. And also now you can get the PDS show notes with sources over there. But the main thing, right? Kickstart your own digital space today with a free trial at squarespace.com slash phil
Starting point is 00:11:52 or scan the QR code on the screen. And hey, don't forget to use code phil for 10% off when you're ready to launch. That's squarespace.com slash phil. And then, New York City's government is in shambles right now as the administration of the embattled Mayor Eric Adams is just falling apart.
Starting point is 00:12:06 But I mean, ever since he was formally indicted by the feds on various corruption charges, there's been a wave of resignations. We're talking in total, as of recording, seven major figures of the city's government, with the most recent now being first deputy mayor Sheena Wright yesterday. And that's huge,
Starting point is 00:12:19 because Wright has been a longtime ally of Adams. So I mean, her resignation really shows just how little faith many people have in his continued leadership. Also, her exit coincides with that of her husband, school chancellor, David C. Banks, and her brother-in-law, deputy mayor for public safety, Philip B. Banks III.
Starting point is 00:12:33 Also, no, it is definitely not suspect that so many people related to each other have high ranking positions in the city government. Not at all. But also, with this situation worth mentioning, others were seemingly forced to resign. Like for example, former chief liaison to Muslim New Yorkers, Muhammad Bahi, because he actually got arrested and charged with federal situation worth mentioning, others were seemingly forced to resign. Like for example, former chief liaison to Muslim New Yorkers, Muhammad Bahi,
Starting point is 00:12:47 because he actually got arrested and charged with federal witness tampering, as well as destruction of evidence in connection with Adams's indictment last month. With one of the ways he allegedly messed with witnesses being by ordering them to lie to federal agents. And on top of that, he's allegedly the guy who made the scheme that a construction company used
Starting point is 00:13:01 to funnel money to Adams through straw donations done by employees. But then also there were those that were just fired, like Rana Abasova. And she specifically was a longtime staffer who's believed to have been instrumental in helping Adams get illegal donations and luxury travel upgrades.
Starting point is 00:13:13 However, she's also among the first that investigators looked at and believed that she's actually working with them now. But then also of the few that do remain, they don't seem any less suspect, right? Like chief advisor, Ingrid Lewis Martin, who recently had her phone seized in her home search by investigators.
Starting point is 00:13:26 And then I think I'm gonna kind of leave this part here, cause I think we're gonna be here all day if we go over every single person charged in connection with this and why. So instead here is just a helpful graph that the New York Times has made. Also with this whole situation, another thing that a lot of people are keeping an eye on
Starting point is 00:13:39 right now is what Governor Kathy Hochul is gonna do, right? And that cause she has the power to sack Adams, but she hasn't. Instead, she told him late last month to clean up his house, and many of these resignations might be related to that. But really, other than that, she's been quiet about their conversation, saying,
Starting point is 00:13:51 "'I've talked to the mayor about what my expectations are, "'and I don't give out details of private conversations.'" And in line with this, Adams has appointed Maria Torres Springer as first deputy mayor to replace Wright. And unlike most of his senior officials in the past, Torres Springer actually has a long history of working in government, and was even praised by her former boss under the
Starting point is 00:14:07 Bloomberg administration who said, there is no one more qualified to be first deputy mayor than Maria Torres-Springer. She has a wealth of experience, creativity, and the ability to manage large groups of city employees. She is decisive and communicates clearly. But then finally for now, perhaps one of the craziest things with all this, Adams is currently saying that he still plans to run again. So this is definitely one to keep an eye on in the coming weeks and months for us. But then, unfortunately, we have to talk about
Starting point is 00:14:30 how some people still to this day have a hard time wrapping their head around the idea that ingesting toxic metal is bad for you. And I say that because this week, the EPA finalized a rule requiring water utilities to replace all lead pipes within a decade. It'll also establish a national inventory of lead service lines and require that utilities take more aggressive action to all lead pipes within a decade. It'll also establish a national inventory of lead service lines and require that utilities
Starting point is 00:14:46 take more aggressive action to remove lead pipes, even on homeowners' private property. It also lowers the level of lead contamination that'll trigger government enforcement. Finally, it puts in place the first ever national requirement to test for lead in schools that rely on water from public utilities. So while all of that may sound uncontroversial,
Starting point is 00:15:01 it has been consistently challenged ever since Biden's EPA started talking about doing this. For example, you had 15 Republican state attorneys general writing to the agency claiming, among other things, uncontroversial, it has been consistently challenged ever since Biden's EPA started talking about doing this. For example, you had 15 Republican state attorneys general writing to the agency claiming among other things that the benefits of removing lead pipes, quote, "'may be entirely speculative.'" Though also, you know, you did have 14 democratic AGs
Starting point is 00:15:15 writing to the EPA expressing concern that fewer lead service line replacements would be occurring in low income communities. But in any case, right, with that and with this latest news, we need to be clear, right? The benefits, they are not speculative, right? This is all happening 40 years after Congress determined that lead pipes posed a serious risk to public health
Starting point is 00:15:30 and banned them in new construction. Though, despite that, it's estimated that more than 9 million homes across the country are still supplied by lead pipelines, which are the leading source of lead contamination through drinking water. And no amount of lead is considered safe to consume. When kids drink lead contaminated water,
Starting point is 00:15:44 it can cause irreversible developmental delays, learning difficulties, and behavioral problems. And in adults, it can also lead to increased blood pressure, heart disease, decreased kidney function, and even cancer. And so with all that, the EPA estimates that when this new rule is fully implemented, it'll protect up to 900,000 infants from having low birth weight,
Starting point is 00:16:00 which comes with all sorts of potential issues and prevent up to 200,000 IQ points lost in children. Now with all that said said, of course, it's not going to be easy or cheap. The EPA has projected that replacing all of them could cost at least $45 billion. So this also, as the American Water Works Association and the Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies have estimated that the effort will cost twice as much as that. But this, as we have the question of, well, what is the cost of doing nothing? And actually with that, one of those groups, the American Water Works Association, they actually threw a wrench in EPA efforts to deal with this issue with a lawsuit back in 1991.
Starting point is 00:16:28 And that leading to a rule that critics have said has been ineffective. And of course, since then, people across the country, especially in low-income communities and communities of color, they have continued dealing with the consequences. So much so that according to a 2023 analysis by researchers at Harvard,
Starting point is 00:16:40 the benefit of replacing lead pipes outweighs the cost by a ratio of 35 to one. And this is also, it's not like we don't have any money for this. That bipartisan infrastructure law that Biden signed back in November of 2021, it already dedicated $15 billion towards lead service line replacement. It's not something he's forgotten about. Biden spoke on this issue in Wisconsin this week. In fact, at one point, going after the state's Republican Senator Ron Johnson
Starting point is 00:17:00 for previously criticizing the infrastructure law as a radical agenda. I'm going to restrain my Irish side here. What's better than a well-marbled ribeye sizzling on the barbecue? A well-marbled ribeye sizzling on the barbecue that was carefully selected by an Instacart shopper and delivered to your door. A well-marbled ribeye you ordered without even leaving the kiddie pool. Whatever groceries your summer calls for, Instacart has you covered. Download the Instacart app and enjoy $0 delivery fees on your first three orders.
Starting point is 00:17:30 Service fees, exclusions, and terms apply. Instacart, groceries that over-deliver. I don't think there's a damn thing radical about protecting kids from lead poisoning. But for now, that is where we are. And it's gonna be very interesting to see where all this goes. Because there are very real challenges ahead of tackling this issue. More discussion needs to be had in order to do this effectively.
Starting point is 00:17:52 But the one definite thing is it does seem like something actually needs to be done. Infrastructure is never a sexy topic. It's usually an afterthought. And then when something breaks or someone gets sick, people are like, I can't believe this happened. But people have been having the important and boring conversations and asking to fix these things.
Starting point is 00:18:08 Then, you know, everyone talks about big tech, big pharma, big banks, but what about big beef? And I'm not talking about the kind that YouTubers and rappers love to have with one another. No, instead, we've got to talk about the alleged conspiracy among meatpackers to maintain oligopolistic control over the beef market. Right, because for decades after government trustbusters
Starting point is 00:18:24 broke up the beef industry back in the 1920s, the top four companies reportedly only controlled about 25% of the market. But after President Reagan deregulated the economy back in the 1980s, mergers and acquisitions have since put nearly the entire beef industry, some 85% of it, into the hands of those four companies. Or we're talking about Tyson Foods,
Starting point is 00:18:40 Cargill, JBS, and National Beef. And the effect of that corporate concentration is twofold. First, on one end, they squeeze sellers, so cattle ranchers and farmers get paid less for their livestock. And then on the other end, they squeeze buyers, so beef consumers get charged more for the product. With now all of that bringing us to the recent news that McDonald's, a company that we usually think of
Starting point is 00:18:57 as the bad guy, now claiming to actually be a victim. With it now suing the big four in federal court and accusing them of violating the Sherman Antitrust Act by artificially limiting supply. And in their complaint, McDonald's alleges that this so-called conspiracy became visible around 2015. With them explaining that before then, the price per 100 pounds of cattle
Starting point is 00:19:12 had historically stayed within 20 to $40 of the price per 100 pounds of wholesale beef. But since then, those two prices have diverged. So by 2021, the difference had ballooned to $156, which means retailers have to pay a lot more and that's ultimately reflected in their menu prices. And so according to the chain's president from 2019 to 2024,
Starting point is 00:19:29 the average price of a McDonald's menu item rose 40%. Though of course, with all of this, the price of beef, it's only one factor, right? I mean, tons of different things caused inflation during the pandemic, but also a big key thing is that McDonald's isn't alone here. Target, BJ's, Gordon Food Service, and Glacier Foods
Starting point is 00:19:43 also filed antitrust suits against the big four meatpackers back in December, with JBS in particular settling a class action suit for $52 million in 2022. And all of this is the beef industry has caught the attention of federal officials and lawmakers in recent years as well. In 2020, the Justice Department reportedly sent subpoenas to the Big Four as part of an antitrust probe. And the year after that, nearly 30 Congress members sent the DOJ a very strongly worded letter suggesting that it was time for the government to quote, determine whether the stranglehold large meat packers have over the beef processing market violate our antitrust laws and principles of fair competition. So right now,
Starting point is 00:20:12 I mean, who knows? Maybe we're actually on the verge of not only breaking up big beef, but all the other monopolies and oligopolies that have gained scrutiny recently. Right from Google, Meta, Amazon, Ticketmaster. I mean, there's countless things happening right now. Though also with that, a part of this is gonna depend on what happens this November and beyond. But then in wild international news, we're gonna talk about how the greed of a high ranking UN official left thousands of people
Starting point is 00:20:34 waiting for homes that have never been built. Because this news centers around a guy by the name of Vitaly Von Schellbein. And that because he was second in command at the UN Office for Project Services or UNOPS, which if you've never heard of is completely understandable. It's a pretty obscure office that, quote, provides infrastructure, procurement,
Starting point is 00:20:48 and project management services for fellow UN agencies and national governments. Right, and with that, in 2015, the agency had stockpiled tens of millions of dollars in excess fees paid to it by its partners. So von Schellboim and his boss, they decided to lend the money to fund profit-making projects building homes and renewable energy in the developing world.
Starting point is 00:21:03 Of course, first, they had to decide where to invest. So that same year, they throw this party in a 5,000 square foot apartment on the Upper East Side in Manhattan, which is where they met a British businessman by the name of David Kendrick, as well as his daughter, Daisy. Not long after that, in 2017,
Starting point is 00:21:15 UNOPS gave a $3 million grant to a conservation group run by Daisy, who, by the way, was a recent college graduate. And not only that, she had just set up her group as a nonprofit a year earlier, but never obtained approval from the IRS for a tax exemption as a charity. And also with that, she had just set up her group as a nonprofit a year earlier, but never obtained approval from the IRS for a tax exemption as a charity. And also with that, UNOBS never said how,
Starting point is 00:21:29 out of all the world's environmental groups, it had chosen Daisy's group for such a big wad of cash. But of course, it just gets worse from here, right? For one, right, what did Daisy do with that money? Well, she produced a video game and a website promoting awareness of environmental threats to the world's oceans, as well as a pop song about the ocean that was recorded by British singer Joss Stone. There, notably control of the song to the world's oceans, as well as a pop song about the ocean
Starting point is 00:21:45 that was recorded by British singer Joss Stone. There, notably control of the song and the right to sell it went to a for-profit company that Daisy's dad was a director of. With Stone also later saying that she agreed to record the song for free, believing that it was a fundraiser for the UN. But still, this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Starting point is 00:21:59 Because in 2018, UNOPS announces it's gonna be making its first loans to business. And over the next two years, according to UN records, it lent nearly $25 million to companies investing in renewable energy in Mexico as well as $35 million to a company with plans to build housing in countries around the world. And surprise, surprise, there was one thing
Starting point is 00:22:15 that these companies had in common, Daisy's dad, David Kendrick. And now with all that, you have the UN saying that all $58 million that UNOPS entrusted to Kendrick has been lost. And in the end, reportedly not even a single house was ever built. And that's even after either Von Schellboim
Starting point is 00:22:29 or his boss attended events in these countries celebrating the launch of the projects. With his boss saying in Ghana in 2019, for example, this landmark project will not only give Ghana's future generation access to affordable housing, but will also give the people teaching that future generation the opportunity and security to own their own home.
Starting point is 00:22:45 So of course, with all of that, there eventually came a point where all of this couldn't be ignored. One of Kendrick's companies eventually admitted it had used the UN's loan to pay off other loans. And although the companies eventually repaid $6 million, it reportedly wasn't even enough to cover the interest on the loans.
Starting point is 00:22:58 With that, von Schellboim's boss resigned in 2022, reportedly after being asked to do so by UN leadership. And as far as von Schellboim himself, well, he was first put on administrative leave with at the time one former UNOPS official describing him and the rest of the agency's senior leadership as quote, "'A corrupt cabal that is only interested in money.'" But then after an investigation, von Schellboim
Starting point is 00:23:15 eventually being fired, fined one year's pay and ordered to repay all of the money that he pissed away. But also like, here's the thing, UN investigations are rarely made public. So for a long time, there's been all these unanswered questions, at least right for the rest of us. And in the words of the New York Times, we were still asking,
Starting point is 00:23:29 why did a 20-year veteran of the United Nations defy auditors and common sense by entrusting his agency's entire investment portfolio to a man he purportedly met at a party? Now we have some answers. With an internal UN court finding that von Schellboim committed fraud and quote, blatant misconduct
Starting point is 00:23:45 by failing to disclose gifts from Kendrick. With him apparently receiving interest-free loans, home repairs, a new Mercedes, and a $1.2 million sponsorship for his teenage son, who is a tennis player. And apparently even his son knew something was up. After receiving the sponsorship, he reportedly sent an email to his dad saying,
Starting point is 00:24:00 "'This is insane. How is this possible? I'm not even a good tennis player yet. With von Schellboim then replying, part of my job is to make insane things happen. Though still, with all that said, the court did not find proof that von Schellboim had explicitly promised to provide UN money in exchange for personal gifts.
Starting point is 00:24:17 So notably, it said that while he was taking money, he intentionally misrepresented facts to make Kendrick's companies look better. And then his boss, right, the one that resigned in 2022, she apparently wasn't in on the deal. With the recent court ruling blaming her for, quote, "'Extraordinary deferral to Von Schellboehm "'on the investments.'"
Starting point is 00:24:31 She did an email, and at the time, she rejected the idea that she had done anything wrong. So seemingly, the idea is that she was either incredibly trusting, lazy, and or stupid. But with all this, it does appear that there are countries that have criminal investigations going on. It's just that currently, a UN spokesperson would not comment on which countries
Starting point is 00:24:45 had opened criminal investigations into von Schellbein. But then I wanna do two final things. One is a congratulations, and the other is kind of a brand new mini segment. The first being a congratulations to Sarah P, the SeatGeek prize winner who just won $500 in our weekly SeatGeek giveaway towards her choice of SeatGeek tickets.
Starting point is 00:25:00 With Sarah saying she's hoping to see another Bad Bunny concert if she can. And for the rest of y'all, that's right, SeatGeek and The Daily Dip are still giving away up to $1,000 in tickets, and you should definitely enter today if you haven't already. You just add code PDS to your SeatGeek app profile for a chance at the weekly $500 prize, no purchase necessary. Also, $1,000 prizes are available to Daily Dip subscribers who add code PDS,
Starting point is 00:25:17 newsletter doubling entries and winnings. So definitely get in on that if you haven't already. But then, as promised, right, the brand new mini segment. Because I thought it might be fun that in addition to every now and then throwing in a comment com at the end of the show, maybe doing a question and answer. Ideally about something that's not news so we can kind of decompress after I just overwhelmed your brain with all the news. So given it being me, there's always going to be a little bit of news or research in something. And that, as it turns out, is somewhat true with the first question for this segment.
Starting point is 00:25:42 Because when I opened up to receive questions over on Instagram, I got a variety of things that were kind of based around, what are you eating in a day? But I've had a big health journey over the last three years, especially on Instagram, I've kind of posted more about it. And so that makes sense that there's more questions there. And so to that, I kind of just have three things. One, I just try not to think of anything as bad foods.
Starting point is 00:26:00 I go, hey, let me try to stay under 2,400 calories a day on average, ideally, but also really outside of breakfast, I'm not counting calories. And that's because too, really one of the only things I keep track of through the entire day, it's not protein. I know everyone's like protein, protein, protein, and yes, protein matters, but for me, the key is fiber. Increasing fiber in my diet over the last three years
Starting point is 00:26:18 has been a fucking game changer. You know, I try to hit my fiber goals with actual foods instead of things like Metamucil and stuff, but you know, whatever gets you there. And that's probably one of the biggest things that'll affect the most people watching this right now. And that's because reportedly only 5% of people in the US meet the Institute of Medicine's recommended daily target
Starting point is 00:26:33 of 25 grams for women and 38 grams for men. And as research and reports have noted, eating a fiber rich diet is associated with better gastrointestinal health and a reduced risk of heart attacks, strokes, high cholesterol, obesity, type two diabetes, even some cancers. It also slows down the absorption of glucose.
Starting point is 00:26:48 It evens out our blood sugar levels. It lowers cholesterol and inflammation. Right, so for like lunch today, I had this salad and a bunch of veggies. Though honestly, I just overstuffed myself today. But then finally three, there is one thing that I have every single morning. I call it my morning DeFranco caffeine protein bomb.
Starting point is 00:27:04 And I was actually gonna do this segment and share this with you on Monday, but I had a little accident with trying to shoot outside of my office. Here's that. Good morning. I am so cold. I need to get my day started. I need to work out. It is just weirdly cold this morning. I think I might work out in a hoodie. So today is a light upper back day. It is, uh, yeah, I try to, I try. Well, shit. I think I might work out in a hoodie. So today is a light upper back day. It is, uh, yeah, I try to, I try to... Well, shit. I think I broke the camera. Okay, so maybe I've only partially broken the cam... Nope.
Starting point is 00:27:34 Hey, it's Tuesday. I can't believe I got it so fast. All right, we're back. So while my breakfast constantly changed from one of five things that I constantly cycle through, there's one constant. A little DeFranco caffeine protein bomb. It starts with either one cup of Wake and Make coffee or today, two espresso pods.
Starting point is 00:27:51 Oh, and there's Lindsay. Hansy as usual. How'd you sleep? No, not good. No? I got a case of the hot legs. A case of the hot legs? Sometimes my legs just get so hot,
Starting point is 00:28:04 like, but then they get too cold when I put them out. Yeah. And I, oh, you're filming. I mean, I'll take it. I'm having a conversation with you. It's made worse when Billy's there. That Billy. Ruining everything. Also, I don't know why I don't just have it poured directly onto the ice. Are you scared to cross it out? Yeah. Then we have a quick pour over of the Fairlife Protein Shake. It's 150 calories, 30 grams of protein. It's better with chocolate, but I only had vanilla left. You then mix it with a spoon that's too small for the cup and enjoy.
Starting point is 00:28:44 You are now ready to conquer the world and or possibly poop in the next 30 minutes. Then it's downstairs to the gym for a quick 45 minute workout and 30 minutes on the treadmill. Then hopping into the car to go to an actual breakfast at an actual restaurant to say that you were around people at least one part of the day. A little veggie scramble, potatoes and biscuit, delicious. And then I came back and started making this show to inform and or ruin your day. But yeah, I think initially I might do this segment one time a week at the end of the show. And if you wanna be one of the people that asks me a question, you can go follow me over on Instagram, Philly DeFranco.
Starting point is 00:29:08 But that is gonna be it for your Wednesday evening, Thursday morning show. And just remember, my name's Philip DeFranco. You've just been filled in. Eat more fiber and I'll see you right back here tomorrow.

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