The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 11.22 The Truth about THAT Video, Belle Delphine, Hero Richard Fierro, Alabama Failed Again, Iran, & More

Starting point is 00:00:00 Sup, you beautiful bastards! Welcome back to the Philip DeFranco Show. I got a big ol' show for you today, the affiliate of the brim kind. But before we jump into it, I just gotta say, thank you. Y'all are making this new beautiful bastard drop the biggest one easily of the year, possibly ever. And yeah, there's part of me that gets it. You're one click away from getting that emotionally exhausted flower power or classic gear. So damn comfy, the sports gear for you non-sports people. One day we'll all be skeletons. Hail Santa. And the surprise runaway hits that are the high quality journals for, you know, world domination plans or feelings, water bottles so you remember to hydrate, you dummy, and the best fucking candles you will ever buy. But I always expect failure and hope for success.

Starting point is 00:00:38 Yes, one, thank you. And two, if you haven't gotten in yet and you want to, it's only available for limited times. Get in now. But like I said, buckle up, hit that like button if you like these long shows, and let's just jump into it. Starting with news that's way heavier than I open these shows with normally, it's very important for me to highlight and touch on this, because it starts with the idea and the quote that, in a tragedy, you need to look for the helpers. It's an important statement from an important man, and it's important to follow through on that. Which is why I think it's important that we talk about this information that recently surfaced

Starting point is 00:01:05 about the Colorado Springs Club Q shooting. Right, because we heard that there was a hero who took down the shooter before police arrived, and we now know who that was. Meet Richard Fierro. He's a decorated combat veteran who completed four deployments in Iraq and Afghanistan over his 15 years of service.

Starting point is 00:01:18 And reportedly, he was at Club Q over the weekend with his wife, their friends, their daughter, and her boyfriend, and they were just enjoying a drag performance when the shooting started. I grabbed him by the back of his little cheap armor thing and i pulled him down the young man that was that was late he was hiding there had jumped up with me i don't know if he helped pull me to hold him down or not i have no idea okay that guy did the

Starting point is 00:01:39 same act i amazing pull the dude down pin him against the side and just started. Oh, I think he went for his pistol. I don't know. Either way, I grabbed the pistol from him. And then I told the guy, move the AR, the kid in front of me, he was at his head. I said, move the AR, get the AR away from him. And the kid did it. And then I started wailing on this dude and I'm on top of him. I'm a big dude, man. And this guy was bigger. And I just kept wailing on him. And I told the kid in front of me, kick him in his head. Keep kicking him in his head. I'm yelling 911. Somebody call 911. One of the performers walked by or was running by. And I told her, kick this guy, kick this guy.

Starting point is 00:02:17 And she took her high heel and stuffed it in his face or his head or whatever she could hit. OK, this is this is in Colorado Springs, man. This ain't right. And you had police arriving shortly after. They saw Fierro covered in blood, and so he was tackled and handcuffed. Though later, when they actually realized what happened, he was released before going to the hospital

Starting point is 00:02:37 where his wife and daughter were. His daughter had broken her knee while running away. Two of his friends had been shot, and his daughter's boyfriend, Raymond, was nowhere to be found, with the family horribly later receiving a call on Sunday informing them that Raymond had died in the shooting. I mean, just looking at and talking about this story in general, it's hard not to get emotional, but I think what really hit me was this interview that Fierro did with the New

Starting point is 00:02:55 York Times where he said, my little girl, she screamed and I was crying with her. Driving home from the hospital, I told him, look, I've gone through this before in downrange. When this happens, you just get out on the next patrol. You need to get it out of your mind. That's how you cured it. You cured it by doing more. Eventually you get home safe. But here I worry there is no next patrol. It's harder to cure. You are already home. And that touches on something I think is very important to remember. I'm pointing to a helper here and you have many calling Fierro a hero for saving potentially dozens of lives, but taking down the shooter so quickly but it's important to remember that fierro is a real person this happened in the real world that for for us this is a story some can relate to the fear all can be horrified by it but we shouldn't expect

Starting point is 00:03:33 fierro to be like happy about the praise that he's getting i feel for every single person in that room i feel no joy i'm not happy. I'm not excited. That guy is still alive and my family is not. Because Fierro and his family, they were just one family affected. There were so many others injured. Raymond was just one of five killed in the shooting. The others being Ashley, Paul, Daniel, Aston,

Starting point is 00:03:58 Kelly, Loving, and Derek Rump. With Fierro pointing to them in a press conference saying that he mourns their deaths, those lives that were taken at the hands of this monster. I tried to save people and it didn't work for five, okay? There's five people that aren't home right now. And I thank God and it's Thanksgiving. I went through this at Thanksgiving in Iraq, man. We lost the dudes. I don't know what else to do. I really hope people kind of use this and shake someone's hand, give someone a hug, give them a kiss. These are good people, man.

Starting point is 00:04:28 These were all kids. So of course, I feel like I say this along with everyone that watches this show. I think our hearts and our love and our well wishes go to these families that are affected, everyone impacted by this horrible tragedy that shouldn't have to deal with this fucking needless violence,

Starting point is 00:04:41 this ignorant hate that gets stirred up by motherfuckers just trying to grift. But luckily, in the face of all this, we have Richard Fierro's, people who are allies and run towards the fire. And then Joe Biden just made history, but for a reason that has many Democrats wondering about the future. Because Joe turned 80 years old on Sunday, making him the first octogenarian to ever serve as president. Which means if he runs again and he wins re-election, then he would be 86 by the time that he leaves office if he's not killed by like super coronavirus or whatever the fuck nature is going to throw at us next. And just to give you an idea of how long ago he was born, it was 1942,

Starting point is 00:05:13 and I searched up the biggest news events of that year. And there you had U.S. carmakers switching from making cars to making war materials because they were in World War II. The minimum draft age was lowered from 21 to 18. And the Manhattan Project just started. So with Biden's age and this potential runway, you have people concerned about his mental acuity, especially because of things like his famous gaps, though there you have others defending him, arguing that that's just his stutter. America is a nation that can be defined in a single word. I was going to foot him, excuse me. Also, looking at this story, I was interested to see how many other octogenarians are working. Turns out he is in a small but swelling demographic of Americans.

Starting point is 00:05:46 With some reports finding that a little over 5% of octogenarians are actually working, which is slightly down from last year, but is well above the 2.53% recorded in 1980. With researchers saying that doubling since then is because of several factors. Things like better healthcare, more education, more age-friendly jobs in the economy, changes in retirement benefits, and an increase in the Social Security full retirement age. And that last part is a key thing because people who continue to work are generally placed in two categories. Those who just really love their jobs and those who just need the money. The unfortunate truth is that tons of senior citizens simply have no choice but to stay in the labor force because they don't have enough savings, they have huge health care costs,

Starting point is 00:06:19 they have a dependent family member or some other reason. And this is something we saw get worse during the pandemic. With a poverty rate for people over 65 increasing from 8.9% in 2020 to 10.3% in 2021. And understand, that would be far higher if not for Social Security, which keeps people out of poverty more than any other government program. We're talking 22.5 million people, according to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. But then, of course, there's the other group, willingly working, loving it. Maybe they find a job so enjoyable or they just need some purpose in their lives. Plus, sounds like capitalist propaganda, but it's said that it can have health benefits. One study, for example, finding that working longer in one's life is

Starting point is 00:06:51 associated with lower risk of mortality, depression, and diabetes in both men and women. Also, just because you're retired doesn't mean you're not working. Some people retire so they can start businesses, volunteer, or just do other things they find fulfilling, with one expert calling it a working retirement. Specifically, that trend is expected to continue into the future. By 2026, the Population Reference Bureau says that more than one in four men will be working past the age of 65. And personally, for me, really? Writer Chris added again, you're letting their comments go to your head. I said, hey, give me a little fun way to exit the story. This motherfucker wrote, because for me, I'm going to be filling you in for another 40 years at least. And I just hope that when I'm 70, I won't still be using Belle Delphine for thumbnails.

Starting point is 00:07:28 Fuck you, Chris. What do you have against a 2% higher click-through rate and an extra 140,000 views? She's a lovely lady doing very interesting things in a field that's growing. But also, I've gone back and forth on this. I don't think that I am going to retire. This is the fucking sweetest gig in the world. I mean, it's stressful at times. But as a former 21-year-old kid who had no sense of community who got it from this i'm not letting

Starting point is 00:07:48 this shit go ever if not for you for the people i make angry that energy just fuels me and then this was probably the weirdest requested story to cover in today's show you've got a bunch of controversy backlash and a debate because brace yourself tiktoker sparks debate by walking girlfriend on leash and asking strangers to watch her. He calls her a rescue. Eventually, a man actually holds the leash. I just need to pop into the store. Thank you so much.

Starting point is 00:08:12 I'll be right back. Thank you. Thank you. Oh. My master doesn't allow me to speak unless others speak to me. Ugh. So the video apparently split people. Some people love it, some call it

Starting point is 00:08:27 cringe, some actually pissed off, saying these other people aren't consenting to participate in your play, and saying they were forced into non-consensual kinks. But also, just so we're on the same page, you know this is what they wanted, right? Like, do you think before they filmed this, they were like, man, I hope no one's weirded out or offended by this. We live in a society that

Starting point is 00:08:44 has an attention economy. And it's something I often think about but especially now i saw chris rock the other night he had this whole spiel about how americans are addicted to attention and it's true because i think we have a huge chunk of the population that doesn't give a shit about the difference between being famous and infamous it is not about why you're known just that you are but also i don't really have strong feelings about this clip because i mean we talk about so much fucking horrible on this show i'm like oh this is nothing but also I'm not surprised it blew up. In addition to having an attention economy, we have a reaction economy. I mean, at the end of the day, that's kind of all TikTok is. It's like, hey, what do you think about this? Does this make you happy or triggered? Never leave.

Starting point is 00:09:13 But hey, I'm just me. I don't know if you see it like me. Let me know if you do or really any thoughts so far. And then I want to take a second to thank a fantastic sponsor, the PDS, KiwiCo. KiwiCo makes hands-on projects for kids that are designed to be much more than just a toy. Projects are designed to teach kids about educational concepts like engineering, science, art, and math, while being really fun at the same time. They sell one-off crates in their store, along with subscription lines for all ages. And each project is designed by experts, tested by kids, and KiwiCo includes everything you need, so you don't need to worry about running out for extra supplies.

Starting point is 00:09:40 And, you know, I absolutely love how it provides hours of entertainment for the kids, and provides opportunities for special moments with them. Every day we don't with them, we lose the opportunity too, which is why I jumped to be able to do these projects together, like the next one, the domino machine. And not just for you and yours, KiwiCo is a great option for holiday gifting. They work really hard to create these kind of like, whoa, awesome moments that you in turn can give awesome. So head on over to KiwiCo.com slash DeFranco and get your first month free. And then Alabama is really bad at killing people. Well, I don't know a ton about Alabama. For some reason, I feel like they would be good at it. So it's surprising. But yesterday, Alabama governor and

Starting point is 00:10:12 100% real alive woman who is definitely not 10 cats weakened at Bernie Zing, a Corpse K. Ivy, requested a pause in executions and an extensive review of the processes. And as far as why she did this, the state just had its second failed lethal injection in just the past two months, making it the third overall since 2018. And according to reports, all three of the executions failed because prison workers were unable to properly attach IVs to administer the injections. As well as back in July, the state also experienced a three-hour delay due in part to the same problem with starting an IV. While that execution, unlike the others, was ultimately completed, you had to reprieve U.S. Forensic Justice Initiative, the leading anti-death penalty group, claiming the execution was botched. So as a result, you have Ivey asking the Alabama Attorney General to withdraw the motion seeking execution dates for the only two prisoners with cases pending before the state Supreme Court. And

Starting point is 00:10:54 also, a key thing, asking the AG not to seek any more executions for death row inmates for now. Also, just so you don't get it twisted, Ivey made clear in her statement, this isn't about the ethical implications of the people they're putting to death, rather saying, for the sake of the victims and their families, we've got to get this right. I don't buy for a second the narrative being pushed by activists that these issues are the fault of the folks at Corrections, or anyone in law enforcement for that matter. I believe that legal tactics and criminals hijacking the system are at play here.

Starting point is 00:11:19 And while it's not exactly clear what she was talking about there, you had some saying she might have been referencing purposefully dehydrating yourself so your veins collapse, or taking some drugs that could cause you to clot almost immediately. But whatever she meant by those comments, it was met with executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, an anti-execution non-profit, saying that her comments on all of this were just complete nonsense. Though also praising the decision overall, but still adding that the investigation needs to be conducted independently, saying, The Alabama Department of Corrections has a history of denying and bending the truth about its execution failures, and it cannot be trusted to meaningfully investigate its own incompetence and wrongdoing.

Starting point is 00:11:51 Adding that Alabama is unique in its level of incompetence in setting execution IV lines. And continuing, unless and until Alabama is willing to admit the truth, look itself in the eye, and undertake meaningful reforms, it should not be carrying out executions. But, as far as what happens next, this is a developing situation. The AG's office will ultimately make the decision here. And as of recording this, they have not indicated what they're going to do. But in the meantime, I want to pass the question off to you. What are your thoughts here? And then the auto industry is getting more infuriating. Imagine a world where you buy a car and they put some of the features behind a paywall. Like you got to fucking buy DLC in a video game. That might sound

Starting point is 00:12:22 ridiculous to you, but that's exactly what Mercedes-Benz is doing with their electric vehicles. For $1,200 a year, customers can unlock performance boosts such as improving their car's 0-60 time by like 0.8 to 1 second. They also get substantial horsepower boosts and torque boosts as part of this subscription. And for many, this sounds awfully familiar

Starting point is 00:12:37 to the controversy BMW found itself in, where they added heated seats to every car only to lock them behind a paywall. Or when Subaru put its remote unlock feature behind a subscription. Or when Tesla artificially limited the battery life of its lower-end models. And consumers are understandably like, what the fuck is this? I bought a car that can do all the things, but I can't do all the things unless I give you even more money? You already paid for it to be in the car. Or because if like what we were talking about was like a

Starting point is 00:13:00 cloud-based service, such as like navigation or AI, that could maybe make sense. It could require monthly upkeep to maintain servers and upgrades. But like in Mercedes' case, these cars already have the power that they have installed. It's not like they need to maintain servers to maintain the performance. It's just for the greedy sake of it.

Starting point is 00:13:15 And at most, if I try and do that bullshit thing like playing devil's advocate, maybe there's a world where it's cheaper to mass produce a single model of an engine rather than multiple different ones, potentially saving you more money in the long run because of the way you're manufacturing but even with that i think it exposes the companies for being greedy fuckheads because while yeah i know it's not the case with a lot of stuff usually when it comes to cars if i'm buying like the same

Starting point is 00:13:36 the same fucking brand of car if i pay more i'm expecting it's because i'm getting more stuff in the thing but ultimately whether this continues it's going to come down to you if I pay more, I'm expecting it's because I'm getting more stuff in the thing. But ultimately, whether this continues, it's going to come down to you. If you pay for what these companies are offering, they will continue to fuck you in the ass with a smile. Because why wouldn't they? Right, in video games, people complain about loot boxes and like card unpackings and shit like that, but they still offer it because a fuck ton of people embrace it. So at the end of the day, with this car bullshit, it comes down to you. And then Iran is another step closer to having a nuclear weapon. Ah, I've seen this movie before. I hate it. So you have state media reporting the Fordo nuclear plant has boosted its uranium enrichment to 60%. Granted, that's still below the more than 90%

Starting point is 00:14:12 needed for a nuclear bomb, but it is miles above the 3.67% limit agreed on as part of the 2015 nuclear deal that Trump abandoned. Also, and this is a key thing, this is just for this plant. Iran's already been enriching to 60% at the Natanz plant since early last year, after Israel reportedly detonated an explosive at the site, knocking out its power, with that also being one of the many suspected Israeli sabotage operations in recent years. Some believe it to be in the form of cyber attacks, as well as others just outright assassinations of Iranian scientists. Because not only does Israel desperately want to keep Iran from obtaining nukes, it also wants to cripple Iran's leverage in negotiations over the nuclear deal. And this, as Israel has been armed with its own nuclear arsenal,

Starting point is 00:14:46 which actually 152 countries condemned in a UN General Assembly vote last month, with 152 demanding it give up its nuclear weapons, and just five not being included there, including Israel itself, the United States, Canada, and two island nations. But also, Iran has been subject to its own condemnations from the international community as well, with the International Atomic Energy Agency voting last week to censure the country for failing to cooperate with its investigators. And that resolution is the reason that Iran says that it decided to ramp up enrichment at the Fordow plant today, also

Starting point is 00:15:10 reportedly feeding gas to its new, more advanced centrifuges at Natanz. Meanwhile, diplomatic talks to revive the nuclear deal between Iran, the US, and Europe have stalled for months. And remember, this is all happening while there are massive protests happening inside of the country, which have become top priority for both sides. But I guess long story short is that if nothing changes from where we are and where things are headed, saying the tensions are going to increase is really underselling how horrifying the situation could get. And then shit is crazy in Maricopa County again, which I think that we shouldn't be surprised by this. We should really expect this to be an every two year occasion because in Arizona, which is a battleground state, we saw Democrats winning key positions, including

Starting point is 00:15:43 governor and a Senate seat. So as a result, you had some Republicans making a big stink. With Maricopa County, which it makes sense, it includes Phoenix and more than half the population of Arizona at the center of it. With the state's attorney general, Mark Brnovich, who put county officials under investigation in 2020, now penning a letter demanding answers from issues with printers. Right as we've talked about on the show before, election officials in the county have confirmed that printers at 70 of the county's 223 polling stations produced ballots where the ink was too light to be processed by vote counting machines. But those authorities have repeatedly insisted that this was just a mechanical issue, not an instance of fraud or anything more nefarious, and that no one was denied the right to vote. A fact that was backed by an Arizona judge who denied a Republican request to extend voting on Election Day.

Starting point is 00:16:19 Now, notably here, Brnovich's letter basically just calls Americopa officials to investigate the matter, which they're actually already doing, and issue a report accounting for a variety of run-of-the-mill questions. But experts say that this is a clear attempt to undermine trust in the election, or as the Washington Post explained, that letter and the broader effort to undercut confidence in the results in this one particular county are neither fundamentally procedural nor constrained in scope. Instead,

Starting point is 00:16:40 the county is once again a target of widespread Republican backlash, primarily because the county once again is the reason a particularly aggressive state Republican party suffered unexpected electoral losses. This is part of a much more widespread effort that goes beyond the AG. For example, Carrie Lake, the election-denying conspiracy theorist, Trumper, who lost the race to be governor, has still refused to concede the election.

Starting point is 00:16:58 And in fact, she is literally saying, quote, I believe at the end of the day that this will be turned around and I don't know what the solution will be, but I still believe I will become governor. She also seized on the printer issues to claim that her voters were disenfranchised, sharing video testimonials of those people describing glitches that they encountered. But, according to reports, all of those videos lack any claims that these people were actually unable to vote. And some of them literally conclude by saying they were still able to cast their ballot. Beyond that, it's also been reported that just hours before Lake was projected to lose lawyers for her campaign and for the Republican National Committee, spoke on the phone with a lawyer for Maricopa County.

Starting point is 00:17:26 With that lawyer, who is literally a Republican, recounting how an RNC attorney told him that there were, quote, a lot of irate people out there and that the campaign can't control them. A remark he understandably took as a threat. And a key thing here, he is not the only Maricopa official who has faced threats. In a press conference just yesterday, the Maricopa County Sheriff said that there have been a large number of threats targeting election officials in Arizona. In fact, it was recently confirmed that those threats were so serious that Maricopa County Supervisor Bill Gates, no relation, was moved to an undisclosed location amid concerns for his safety. This is because even though he is also a Republican, he is widely pushed back against claims of fraud both in 2020

Starting point is 00:17:59 and 2022. And so I guess all of this is to say, put this story and stories like it in the back of your head and then pull it to the front of your mind every two years or so. Vote like it's your last chance to vote because the people that are losing do not like the way you are voting. You get comfortable or exhausted, you don't want to fuck with politics, politics will fuck you. Simply put, remember crazy is at the gates. And then, did you know that there's a way to earn Bitcoin and cash back on everyday purchases? Well, thanks to our fantastic sponsor Lolli, you can. Lolli is the leading Bitcoin rewards app that gives you free Bitcoin and cash back on everyday purchases? Well, thanks to our fantastic sponsor, Lolly, you can. Lolly is the leading Bitcoin rewards app that gives you free Bitcoin and cash rewards every day on your coffee, meals, groceries, and gas refills. And with Lolly's new card boost, you can add cash and Bitcoin reward boost to any credit or debit card and earn up to 10% back on your everyday purchases at 10,000 plus stores like Chevron, CBS, Dunkin, and more.

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Starting point is 00:19:17 at the Anti-Defamation League. And we talked about how people become radicalized, how hate gets normalized. And that normalization, that mainstreamification is what creates such major threats to democracy. With Dr. Blazik noting, and I feel like pointing out, the obvious that Donald Trump had a pretty big role in that. The new Mitsubishi Outlander brings out another side of you. Your regular side listens to classical music. Your adventurous side rocks out with the dynamic sound Yamaha. Regular you owns a library card. Adventurous you owns the road with super all-wheel control.

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Starting point is 00:20:33 what a lot of people on the extreme right were saying, including the notion of the deep state. He just sort of found a kind of NBC friendly, I think that's what his show The Apprentice was on of taking these concerns and and making them palatable. So the masses consume it in this digestible way and the power of extremism grows. With Siegel explaining that as more people with fringe beliefs get a voice in public discussion, the Overton window moves further and further. Makes what is unacceptable more acceptable. And it's no surprise when we see such a volume of that,

Starting point is 00:21:06 you know, whether it's on our social media feeds or elsewhere, that it'll eventually be represented in our day-to-day lives, in our government. And when it comes to extremism reaching our government, I mean, we saw that play out in the midterms. Yeah, the red wave never came. It was more of a drip drop at at least 176 Republican candidates who denied the 2020 election results won their midterm races. And that means millions and millions of people are supporting those views. And unless something drastically changes, that number is likely going to continue to grow. So the issue of radicalized people holding positions of power is something experts are

Starting point is 00:21:36 especially concerned about with Dr. Blazek adding. All these things that look like they would have been part of a Klan rally 30 years ago are now in mainstream political ads. It only takes a small number of people to create incredible amounts of chaos. And the concern that those of us that do this work is they aren't isolated in rural areas. They're also in the military and law enforcement and first responders. I mean, we've got data now that there are, there are oath keepers in elected office across the country.

Starting point is 00:22:08 And all this just further inflames the extremism and division we see today. When you take the time to think about it, and I understand not wanting to, it's incredibly scary because the information's like right in front of us. Or we live at a time where surveys found that two in five Americans say that a civil war

Starting point is 00:22:20 is at least somewhat likely in the next decade. With, and it's a key thing here, strong Republicans being the group most likely to say so this is americans of all beliefs think that political violence is on the rise and will continue to remain that way for several years with dr blazek explaining that because the far right is inclined to push back against change against new directions for america they are more likely to turn to violence but the maleness of it also includes the notion that violence is a way to get there. To make America 1950 again may not be done at the ballot box.

Starting point is 00:22:51 It may be done at the end of a gun. And, you know, experts have noted that for extremists, social media has become a massive tool in spreading all their messaging and even calls for violence. With Siegel specifically putting a lot of the blame on tech companies for allowing this. This wouldn't happen if not for the ability for extremists to exploit social media, for these companies to frankly almost not care about how their platforms were being abused and exploited to promote conspiracy theories and narratives that, again, support extremists. I mean, the ability to communicate disinformation and conspiracies is the lifeblood of extremist movements. And while of course social media can bring good things, it also allows conspiracies to thrive. You know, that's not a new concern.

Starting point is 00:23:30 We've talked about this. People are freaked out. But also there does appear to be heightened focus on the situation as of late with Elon Musk's acquisition of Twitter. There's been an increase in hate speech and the use of racial slurs. It's something that Siegel said the ADL

Starting point is 00:23:41 has been watching out for, but also stressing. This is a longstanding issue. This is not new to Musk. But with Musk specifically, there are more specific concerns. And on top of the hate speech stuff, there's worries about misinformation spreading more easily and Musk apparently firing content moderators who track abuse. So you had Siegel also adding. Based on, you know, early returns, if you will, extremists feel that maybe Twitter is

Starting point is 00:24:02 going to be a safe space for them. And just think about that. Extremist feeling that Twitter should be a safe space is not a sentence any of us should feel comfortable with. But as these issues of indoctrination and radicalization pop up in all these different corners, it's still hard for a lot of people to wrap their heads around how easy it is for this to dismantle democracy. And that's something Dr. Blazik actually said he learned to appreciate over spring this year when he spent time in Ukraine working to get refugees to Poland. It was a reminder of how fragile democracy is that we sort of assume that authoritarianism

Starting point is 00:24:31 could never happen here. I mean, there's no guarantee that the United States as we know it will exist in perpetuity. But he also wasn't all doom and gloom, right? He gave hope for people's ability to fight against these forces. Sometimes I'm Dr. Worst Case Scenario, where I'm here to tell you, you know, get ready. You know what's about to hit the fan. But there's also incredible amounts of resilience and spirit and people to resist that. As far as how people resist, how do you prevent people from becoming radicalized to hate? Siegel said the one basic thing is just trying to be an ally, standing up for targeted groups. But also a key thing is education and dismantling misinformation, right? Debunking it before it gets normalized. How do we make it so that somebody

Starting point is 00:25:13 who's presented with hate or disinformation, you know, has access or critical thinking to understand why that's false, why that's dangerous. Though in many cases, that can be easier said than done. People are selling us cars and potato chips and sodas all the time in the same platforms that they're trying to sell us their political ideas in the same spaces that they're trying to sell us their hate. So it's just not easy for an average consumer or person to sort of tell the difference between a QAnon conspiracy theory and something that's legitimate.

Starting point is 00:25:51 And for his part, Blazik's actually working on a federal grant dubbed the Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships, or CP3, which seeks to prevent targeted violence and terrorism via community frameworks. And something else that Blazik said that really stuck with me was talking about credible messengers. And that most likely it's not going to be like this shining knight on a hill. It's going to be the person right next to you. If you've got somebody who's at risk of radicalizing, becoming violent, they're going to listen to a college professor or a cop or a politician, but they might listen to a coworker or a family member or somebody in their neighborhood that they have a beer with.

Starting point is 00:26:20 You've got a grievance, and I'm sure your grievance is right. The economy sucks. You know, where is the good middle class job? How can anybody buy a house? And those grievances are completely legitimate. Let's find a way of dealing with that that doesn't include violence, that doesn't include hate crimes and spewing, you know, anti-Semitic conspiracy theories. You know, since this has been a heavy topic, I do want to end with some optimism because we collectively with our voices and our choices and our actions get to decide what this moment in time means. Or as Siegel said, I don't think this time is going to be remembered solely

Starting point is 00:26:54 for the hate and the violence. It's going to be remembered for what good people did to push back against that. And I think it's up to all of us to have discussions about this, not to be afraid of it. And frankly, make combating hatred and extremism just as sexy as it is for some people who buy into it. I think that's how we're going to be remembered. And I think ultimately we will prevail. And so that is the note that I'm going to end on. And of course, I do want to pass the question off to you. What are your thoughts here?

Starting point is 00:27:21 That is it for me. This is going to be the last episode for, honestly, I think it's the longest break we've taken in a long time. Until next Monday. I know, five whole days. Actually, it's closer to six. Uh-oh. Don't you dare forget about me, though. Because I'll be right back here fully rejuvenated because I get to hang out with family.

Starting point is 00:27:35 Or completely depleted because I got to hang out with family. But until then, I'll leave you with this. It might be weird, but sometimes we just got to hear the words. You're doing a great job. Thank you for being you. We all have stumbles along the way, but I know that you will find your way. I love yo faces, and I'll see you soon.

Starting point is 00:27:52 Oh, and have a great fucking day.

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