The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 1.13 LA Fires Expected To Get Worse, 24 Dead & Strong Winds Returning, TikTok Refugees Flee to REDNote, &

Episode Date: January 13, 2025

Subscribe for New shows every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, & Thursday @ 6pm ET/3pm PST & watch more here: https://youtu.be/qy27PE-rRak?si=RZFpKuu_eg_bIM5-&list=PLHcsGizlfLMWpSg7i0b9wnUyEZWI-25N3 Kickstart your passion project with a free trial today: https://www.Squarespace.com/Phil  & enter offer code “Phil” to get 10% off your first purchase!  Get 50% OFF Your First Bags of WakeandMake.com Coffee right now! And maybe even join our international travel club! – ✩ TODAY’S STORIES ✩ – 00:00 - New Wave of Winds Could Wreak More Havoc in LA 10:28 - As TikTok Ban Looms, Users Prepare for a Post-TikTok World 14:10 - Sponsored by Squarespace 15:18 - Experts Skeptical About Prospects of Potential Non-Addictive Pain Pill 18:26 - Biden Admin Issues New Rules to Guide the Global Spread of AI  22:33 - Comment Commentary  ——————————   Produced by: Cory Ray Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks, Matthew Henry Art Department: William Crespo Writing/Research: Philip DeFranco, Brian Espinoza, Lili Stenn, Maddie Crichton, Chris Tolve, Star Pralle, Jared Paolino  ———————————— For more Philip DeFranco: Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-philip-defranco-show/id1278424954 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6ESemquRbz6f8XLVywdZ2V Twitter:   https://x.com/PhillyD Instagram:   https://instagram.com/PhillyDeFranco Newsletter: https://www.dailydip.co TikTok:   https://www.tiktok.com/@philipdefranco?lang=en ———————————— #DeFranco #LAFires #HasanPiker ———————————— Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Let me be clear with you on this. While we have seen some positive updates, the LA fires are in no way over and the worst could be yet to come. So there's a lot we need to talk about, starting with where we are right now, because the fires have reportedly burned over 40,000 acres for some 150,000 people to evacuate

and damaged more than 12,000 structures. But in fact, California Governor Gavin Newsom saying he thinks that these fires will be one of the worst natural disasters in the history of the United States. And to that point, early accounting actually suggests that these fires may be the nation's costliest disaster ever in terms of damage and economic losses. I mean, as much as $150 billion, according to a preliminary estimate by AccuWeather. Though, of course, right, the destruction that we're seeing

here, it's not all dollars and cents. We're talking about human lives as well. And there, unfortunately, as expected, the death toll has risen to now 24 and counting, with the Eaton Fire alone killing 16 people, making it one of the deadliest in California's history, and the Palisades Fire being responsible for the other eight deaths. And this is the true death toll may be higher with, I mean, at the very least, another 16 people being reported missing in the areas of the two fires. Now, with all that, right, the good news that we've seen is that the firefighters have been making progress suppressing some of the blazes over the weekend. Right, I mean, for example, after burning more than 23,000 acres,

the Palisades fire has been 14% contained according to Cal Fire as of recording this. And then as far as the Eaton fire, which has ripped through more than 14,000 acres, that's now at 33% contained. And while I know that those percentages might not seem very high, I mean, keep in mind that on Thursday,

the containment percentage for both the Eaton and Palisades fire were at one point both listed at 0%. And so with that, this weekend, it allowed some people to return to previously evacuated areas. With also nearly all LA Unified School District campuses across the city being reopened today though, students were encouraged to wear masks

on their way to school. And that after more than half a million students were out of school last week because of the fires. Though, of course, some aren't returning to the schools because they've literally been destroyed by the fire. And this also is at least seven schools in the district are reportedly still affected by mandatory evacuation zones or burn damage.

But again, this is in no way over and it could in fact get worse this week. I mean, currently you have fire crews and resources being preemptively deployed to high risk areas as now dangerous winds are again expected to sweep through the area this week. I mean, you have wind gusts expected to pick up today, reaching speeds in excess of 70 miles an hour by Tuesday.

With people like Brian Hurley, for example, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service cautioning that while the winds this week may not be quite as strong as they were last week, their long duration, that could make the fire risk worse. And also hitting on that, you had a firefighter in Altadena telling the Wall Street Journal,

we're not leaving for probably two weeks. We're gonna be constantly patrolling. Though it really is these next few days that really have people worried. With Hurley, the meteorologist, saying, Tuesday into Wednesday is a particularly dangerous situation and today won't be a picnic either. With the matting, this uptick in winds will fuel extreme fire growth and lots of folks are going to have to prepare to evacuate. And actually with that, forecasters have issued a rare fire danger alert known as the particularly dangerous situation red flag warning for tonight through Wednesday morning,

which notably is the same level of alert that was issued when the fires began last week. Also a very big thing here, a key takeaway is that is a warning that's normally issued only once every few years, but this is now reportedly the fourth time there's been one in just the past few months. So of course, that's part of the reason there's been

so much conversation around climate change. Overall, 15 of the 20 most destructive California wildfires in history, they've reportedly taken place in the last 10 years. With those now including the Palisades and Eaton fires. And with that, Climameter, an international initiative focused on understanding extreme weather in the context of climate change,

it has released a new rapid attribution study finding that human driven climate change has played a role in these latest fires. And specifically here, claiming that temperatures are warmer by up to five degrees Celsius, the air is 15% drier and conditions are 20% windier. And then going on to say, he described the strengthened winds,

higher temperature and drier conditions triggering January, 2025, California wildfires to human driven climate change and natural climate variability likely played a minor role. But then also with that, this climate driven disaster is actually forcing the government

to walk back environmental protection. With for example, Governor Gavin Newsom now signing a broad executive order suspending state environmental rules for rebuilding after fires. And with that, we've seen outlets like the New York Times write it. The order is likely to be the first

of several permit streamlining measures issued by state, county, and city agencies in the wake of the devastating fires across greater Los Angeles. This executive order reportedly covering all of Los Angeles and Ventura counties and directing state agencies to coordinate with local governments

to remove or expedite permitting and approval processes during rebuilding. And possibly most significant here, they've waived permitting requirements under a landmark environmental law called California Environmental Quality Act, otherwise known as CEQA. With them explaining that disaster-driven suspension

is a CEQA, they'd normally require rebuilding property owners to at least make some effort to comply with the law while the order announced yesterday was a full waiver. But also it's not crazy that Newsom is doing this. I mean, California has already been dealing with an affordable housing shortage in these fires. They're obviously gonna make it worse.

And in fact, we're now already seeing reports of wildfire evacuees facing price gouging in the rental market. Though with that, we saw California's attorney general vowing in a news conference this weekend that anyone seeking to take advantage of the wildfire victims will be held accountable and saying, we've seen businesses

and landlords jack up the price. It's called price gouging. It is illegal. You cannot do it. It is a crime punishable by up to a year in jail and fines. And with that, you also had the AG issuing a warning to others seeking to profit from people suffering, namely looters.

With it even being reported there that National Guard personnel, as well as city and county law enforcement, have stepped up patrols even as firefighting efforts have continued. And actually, as of recording, around 29 people have reportedly been arrested in fire zones, including one burglary suspect who allegedly dressed as a fireman to try and evade authorities. Though also, to be clear, not every arrest has been for looting, right? Some of the arrests are for curfew violations. With the context being there that any area under a mandatory evacuation order is off limits to non-first responders. And in other areas, a 6 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew is in place.

But then also with that, besides being a very real issue, looting is just one topic that's now become a source of political disagreement. With it, for example, becoming part of an ongoing back and forth we've been seeing between Newsom and Elon Musk. Right in here, we saw that after Newsom said in an interview that there would be zero tolerance for looting, you had Musk resharing a post wrongly claiming, Newsom and California Democrats literally decriminalized looting, barring police from arresting looters and prosecutors from prosecuting them. Now he's opposed to looting. And then to that, you had Newsom writing, stop encouraging looting by lying and telling people it's decriminalized. It's not. It's illegal, as it always has been.

Bad actors will be arrested and prosecuted. Also, I will say, besides this specific interaction, Musk's been accused of using his ex-account to stoke fear and anger in relation to the fires. People saying that he's spreading misinformation and resharing and commenting on Pose, casting blame on everything from DEI to immigration. And as far as this whole back and forth with Newsom, you had things like, for example, the governor hitting back yesterday at Musk's statements, blaming democratic officials and all levels

of California government for alleged mismanagement, making the fires worse. For example, claiming that environmental regulations, including one meant to protect an endangered fish, had helped create a water shortage that has hampered firefighting efforts, which notably is also a claim we've seen president-elect Trump make.

But in response to all this, you had Newsom yesterday sharing a clip from a live stream that Musk did, where he spoke with LA firefighters in which one seemed to push back on water availability being an issue. All right, what about water availability? Was water availability, I understand that was not an issue in Malibu, is that correct? Was it water? Yeah. So there was water. We have several reservoirs that we use a lot. Now, just an example, if we have one building

burning, we could flow a thousand gallons a minute on that one building with the hose lathes that we put in to stop it. You can imagine 1,000 gallons per house we couldn't do, right? So the amount of water we're flowing, there really is no water system that's going to keep that pace. Right. And so basically he's saying that the issue is just that firefighters had just been using so much water that the system or any system couldn't keep up with demand. And notably that tracks with what experts have been saying. With one expert even reportedly saying that no water system in the world

could have handled these fires. So with that clip, you had Newsom writing, Elon Musk exposed by firefighters for his own lies. So this also notably as Musk has received praise for Tesla reportedly deploying eight cyber trucks equipped with the Starlink terminals to help with internet access. Now also with this whole situation,

I gotta say it really does feel like an all hands on deck situation. Like seemingly everyone is trying to pitch in. I mean, even had Ukrainian president Zelensky writing on social media, "'Today I instructed Ukraine's Minister of Internal Affairs "'and our diplomats to prepare for the possible participation "'of our rescuers in combating the wildfires in California.'

"'And adding 150 of our firefighters are already prepared. And this is your fire crews from several other states, as well as even Mexico and Canada and nearly 1000 incarcerated people from California's prison system helping fight the fires. So I will say with that last one, right? We've talked about it before. It is controversial because despite risking their lives

on average, they only make between $5.80 and $10.24 per day, which is why you've had many arguing that the program is exploitative and saying that they're not making enough money considering the risk they're taking. But this is reportedly for people behind bars. This is actually a very coveted job.

Reportedly, most inmate fire crew members also receive time credits, often getting two days off their sentence for every day they serve on a crew. With one formerly incarcerated firefighter even telling the LA Times, every single firefighter that is out there right now, "'I'm sure they're proud to be there.

"'But also every single one of those people "'has signed away their rights for any sort of compensation "'if they die on the fire ground.'" And then actually with all this, over the weekend we got an even closer look into what this all looks like on the ground. With us seeing among other things, political commentator, Hasan Paik,

are actually going out and interviewing some of the incarcerated firefighters on a stream. And one of the things you definitely see is them sort of echoing a sense of pride. The return that we get is our second chance at life. You know, this is a pilot program. You know, a lot of us made decisions before our brain was able to develop,

before the age of 25, you know? So, I mean, this is our second chance and this is our second chance to prove it. But these second chances, they're not always easy with reports knowing that once these inmates are released, many have trouble getting firefighting jobs even though they have all this experience. Which is why we saw Hassan writing and many agreeing

that many deserve this chance, that they do not deserve to be cast aside and dehumanized. And among those who agree with this idea, you had Kim Kardashian who advocated for them over the weekend, calling them heroes and urging Gavin Newsom to raise their wages. But some people even starting fundraisers to support incarcerated firefighters.

But for now, that is where we are. Though, again, this is a rapidly developing situation and there are huge concerns over the next few days. So if you are out there, if you are near there, please be safe. If you get an evacuation order, follow it. But also with that, they say, if you feel unsafe, you see something, evacuate.

And then with all of this, for anyone watching, I'd really love to know your thoughts on really any aspect. I know we covered a lot here, but I'd love to hear from you in those comments down below. And while you're maybe leaving that comment or you're just digesting that story, let me say, hey, welcome back to the Philip DeFranco Show. You daily dive into the news, how people are covering it and how people are responding. It is once again looking like we are going to have a wild week. So just remember, I will be here with you and for you on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday at 6 p.m. Eastern,

3 p.m. Pacific. But then going back to the news, we really need to talk about how it's looking like TikTok is going to be banned in less than a week and also talk about the world post-ban. Because this last Friday, the Supreme Court heard arguments over a law that would ban TikTok in the United States by January 19th if it's not sold by ByteDance, which is a China-based parent company. And even though right now nothing is set in stone, it does look like the court is likely to uphold the law. Now with that, there are still a lot of ways this could play out.

Maybe it goes away, maybe it gets saved. No one knows, a lot is up in the air. But the prospect of the ban, it's no longer some like in the distance, mythical, hypothetical, far off notion. And starting with what we do know is that if it is banned, it will likely be removed from app stores very quickly. But if it's already on your phone,

it probably won't disappear. It might go dark though, or at the very least without updates, it will eventually become too buggy to use. And then also on that note, you had Forbes actually doing a report noting that there could be security risks for TikTok users who choose to keep the app on their phone post-ban.

Because you may not realize it, but TikTok updates pretty frequently. And even though most bring new features or squash bugs, some also address security concerns. And so if millions and millions of people have an app that can't be updated in response to potential security threats, well, Forbes said that the app will just become a honeypot

for attackers who want to exploit that vulnerability. And so with everything that's happening, it's not surprising to find that people are starting to look elsewhere for their scrolling needs. Now with that, there are some that would go, oh, well, they're just gonna go to Instagram Reels. But if you search Reels on TikTok, all you'll find are people saying,

fuck Reels, fuck it in the face. Whether it be that they just hate the content or functionality or more recently the actions of its owner, there are a lot of people that aren't happy. So instead, seemingly in part to stick it to the US government, some are choosing to download an app known in the States as Red Note, which you may or may not have heard of.

But it is literally the number one app in the app store as I'm filming with many calling it China's version of TikTok or Instagram. With places like TechCrunch explaining that it started back in 2013 and it hits a lot of the right notes for creators looking for a TikTok alternative. Saying it has a layout that's similar to Pinterest, it is typically thought of as China's answer to Instagram, and critically, it boasts a number of social shopping features. And what we've seen is a lot of soon-to-be TikTok refugees very interested. Like, would that not be the biggest f*** to the government ever of like, oh, you're going to take TikTok away because you're worried about Chinese security threats? Just to show you how little we give a f***,

we are going to move to the actual Chinese version of this app. Truck month is on at Chevrolet. Get 0% financing for up to 72 months on a 2025 Silverado 1500 custom blackout or custom trail boss. With custom trail bosses available, class exclusive Duramax 3 liter diesel engine and Z71 off-road package with a 2 inch factory suspension lift. You get both on-road confidence and off-road capability. Dirt road ahead? Let's go! Truck month is awesome! Ask your Chevrolet dealer for details.

When does fast grocery delivery through Instacart matter most? When your famous grainy mustard potato salad isn't so famous without the grainy mustard. When the barbecue's lit, but there's nothing to grill. When the in-laws decide that, actually, they will stay for dinner. Instacart has all your groceries covered this summer. So download the app and get delivery in as fast as 60 minutes. Plus enjoy $0 delivery fees on your first three orders. Service fees, exclusions and terms apply. Instacart, groceries that over deliver. So also with that, we've seen TikTok blowing up of people have already downloaded it, talking about now they're learning Mandarin thanks to the other

users on the app already. Meanwhile, you also had others noting things like, people are going there willingly and giving them their data willingly because these servers are located deep in China. So it's just interesting, you know, do they give TikTok back to us because of this? Like, it's like their worst fears are actually coming true.

It's not just like the boogeyman. So I will say with everything here, right, this is a short period of time so far. This has happened pretty hot and fast. And so there is the question of will the interest for this specific app sustain? But then others also noting that it could end up facing scrutiny from US authorities as well.

They're also not the only app that people have been looking to as a TikTok alternative. When I say this is number two in the Apple App Store is Lemonade, which one, some outlets notice sort of like a combo of Instagram, TikTok, and Pinterest, but also two, like TikTok, it is also owned by ByteDance. And even though Lemonade is not specifically named in the law banning TikTok,

it does generally apply to all apps owned and operated by ByteDance. So Lemonade's future is also kind of in trouble. And so for now, we're just gonna have to wait to see how this plays out. Creators and consumers alike are gonna continue trying to look for what the next spot is

if this ban goes through like it's expected. And so with all that, we'll have to wait to see how this plays out. Creators and consumers alike are gonna continue trying to look for what the next spot is if this ban goes through like it's expected. And so with all that, we'll have to wait to see how this week ends regarding the ban itself. And for you, I mean, if you use TikTok, what is your move? And I mean that both for people that create on the platform as well as just use it as a way to consume media.

And also I'll say, hey, if you ever wanna ban proof the Philip DeFranco show, here's all my social. I post reels, TikTok shorts. If there's a way to consume it, I'm throwing it at your face. And I'm going to try to more actively use Blue Sky and X. And then we'll get to more news in just a second. But first I got to say, listen up, right? 2025 is going to be the year that you take that side hustle or that passion project to the next level. And I know how that procrastination life goes. I was sitting on a

book club idea for ages. And thanks to our friends and sponsor over at Squarespace, DeFranco's book club went from an idea to something done in an hour. And if my simple ass can do it, so can you. Especially because Squarespace has the templates and tools that you need, whether it's just creating or selling your content, courses and products, physical and digital, all online. It's simple. You just upload and customize your content with a powerful fluid engine editor. And there's so much flexibility. You can charge a one-time fee, sell subscriptions. And if you need a starting point, they've got a ton of stunning professional templates

with drag and drop editing that makes site design incredibly simple. No coding required. You know, Squarespace has been a trusted partner to the PDS for years. And if you still haven't given them a try, ask yourself, what is holding you back? I mean, we even leverage Squarespace

for our very own Daily Dip newsletter, where tens of thousands of you guys keep up with our coverage in your inboxes in the morning, take part in daily polls, giveaways, and even access our PDF show notes with sources and links. So kickstart your digital space today with a free trial at squarespace.com slash phil, or just scan the QR code on screen. And when you're ready to launch, use code phil for 10% off. Remember, squarespace.com slash phil. But then let's shift gears to potentially game-changing medical news, right? Because the FDA might be about to approve a new

non-opioid pain pill that is allegedly non-addictive. Something that would be completely revolutionary, introduce a whole new class of painkillers, but you do have some experts skeptical, right? And so the drug in question was developed by Vertex Pharmaceuticals and it's called Sizzetragy. With Vertex right now having an application pending

before the FDA, that could be approved by the end of this month. And if it gets approved, the drug would then be used to treat relatively short-term pain. Now to understand why this is such a big deal and why this drug is fundamentally different from opioids, you kind of need to know some basics about how the body processes pain. So when you experience pain, say from a broken bone, nerve endings, and the impacted parts of your body, they'll send signals to the spinal cord and then brain, which makes you feel the pain. And the way that opioids work is by targeting the brain directly and changing its perception of the pain. And the way that opioids work is by targeting the brain directly and changing its perception of the pain.

And the way that opioids interact with the brain chemistry can also produce pleasure and a kind of euphoria, which is also why they're so addictive. But it's said that cezetrogene works to stop pain earlier in the process before it can even reach the brain, with it specifically blocking the path that pain signals travel through before reaching the spinal cord.

So that is similar to how local anesthetics like Novocaine work when you go to the dentist to have a cavity filled, but on a bigger scale here. And a very big thing with this is that clinical trials have shown success in people recovering from two types of surgeries with moderate to severe short-term pain, with a safety study that monitored participants

over about six weeks also showing positive results. But we've also now seen a number of experts cautioning about getting too excited, at least just for right now. And there's a few reasons for that. First of all, while the studies on short-term pain seem positive, cezetrogene really doesn't hold a candle to opioids when it comes to chronic pain.

Now with that said, Vertex is still looking into whether it can be safely and effectively used for chronic pain. But there, I would know that one highly anticipated trial that measured the drug's effect on sciatica failed to show any meaningful improvement over placebo. And that, as some experts are saying, that unless this drug can help with long-term pain,

it really can't substantially change the amount of addiction in America. Because when you look into the actual numbers, only a small number of patients who receive short-term opioid prescriptions after simple surgeries actually end up getting addicted. The bigger addiction risks come with people managing chronic pain.

And then beyond that, some researchers have argued that the trials so far have been too short to measure the safety of taking this drug for an extended period of time. Because when we're talking about first of its kind drugs, like side effects can become known even after a very intense and thorough FDA review. And this is also, there are people who are apprehensive

about whether the drug is actually addiction free. And there's understandable trust issues there. It's not a secret that pharmaceutical companies downplayed the risks of opioids while aggressively marketing them in the late 1990s and 2000s to grow what eventually became a multi-billion dollar industry. And there is a massive, almost incomprehensibly big financial incentive with this drug.

There is an enormous demand for alternatives to opioid painkillers, even just for short-term pain. Hell, Vertex itself has estimated that 80 million adults in the US receive prescription medication for short-term pain every year. And so if the company gets FDA approval for its drug, financial analysts say that the company's portfolio of painkillers and development,

it could bring in multi-billion dollar annual sales within a decade. But I also wanna say at the same time, others have expressed cautious optimism, saying that we're still in the early days. With for example, the Institute for Clinical and Economic Review, which is an influential nonprofit

that analyzes the cost effectiveness of proposed prescription drugs, rating this drug as promising but inconclusive. But for now, we're gonna have to wait to see what happens, starting with what the FDA decides here. But then, in different news, Joe Biden just took a parting shot at the AI industry. Specifically, it seems geared towards China, and among others, NVIDIA is pissed. Right, so what happened is that the Biden administration just issued some new rules today, with specifically this new policy imposing quotas on the sale of advanced computer chips that make AI possible. And essentially, these new rules divide the world into three categories, close allies of the United

States, countries that are already subject to arms embargoes, and everybody else. Now, the first category is the United States and its closest allies, including the UK, Japan, and Taiwan, and they can freely buy AI chips whenever and however they want. Then, in the middle, you've got most of the world, like India, Brazil, and NATO members like Poland, which are facing some restrictions, but specifically there being a cap on the number of advanced chips that they can buy. And that cap is reportedly intended to allow most AI projects,

but prevent the completion of massive data centers needed to develop new powerful AI models. With it also worth noting there that the cap in that category reportedly can go up, but only if the countries and companies make special agreements with the US government. But then finally, you have that third category, right? The no-goes, the ones where exports

of high-end AI chips are completely banned. What you see here is that this bunch of countries include countries that are already blocked from US arms sales, like Russia, Venezuela, and maybe most importantly, China. And I say most importantly there, because one of the main goals of these rules is reportedly to stop China from getting the tech

that they need to produce advanced AI. With the Washington Post, for example, reporting that China has dodged previous sanctions meant to slow their AI development, partly by getting US tech through other countries. And as far as why it said that it's so important to target China here, it's because both the US and Chinese governments

have expressly stated that AI will be central to future military and economic competition between the two. With, for example, Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo telling the AP that these new rules are critical to the US maintaining leadership in AI and the development of AI-related computer chips. And adding, as AI becomes more powerful, the risks to our national security become even more intense. And this is you have Gregory Allen, for example, who previously worked on AI policy at the Pentagon and is now a think tank director telling the Post, I think the White House views

the next few years as all that we have before a very genuinely transformational moment in AI, and it matters a lot that the United States gets there first. With also Biden's National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, arguing that this framework allows for the U.S. to keep the most cutting-edge AI developments with us and our closest allies. With it making sure, quote, that capacity does not get offshored like chips and batteries and other industries that we've had to invest hundreds of billions of dollars to bring back on shore. But as you can imagine, not everyone's super happy with these new rules and there has been a tidal wave of backlash. And one of the biggest names that we've seen is Nvidia, which makes sense considering they control a massive majority of the chip market.

With Ned Finkel, their vice president for government affairs, calling this rule, quote, unprecedented and misguided and adding, rather than mitigate any threat, the new Biden rules would only weaken America's global competitiveness, undermining the innovation that has kept the US ahead. With also Oracle's executive VP

slamming these new restrictions in a blog post last month before they were officially issued, calling them at the time dystopian and warning that it could lead to US companies losing the global lead in cloud computing. Now also with this, I will say, it's not all tech companies that are pushing against this with, for example, Microsoft's president Brad Smith saying

that the company is confident it can quote, "'Comply fully with the rules high security standards "'and meet the technology needs of countries and customers "'around the world that rely on us.'" Though what is very much worth noting here is that this rule comes just a week before Trump's inauguration and there is a 120 day comment period,

which means that ultimately it will be up to the Trump administration if and how these rules take effect. Though that does not guarantee it will not go through. And that is because officials from Biden's admin reportedly told the New York Times that these new rules have bipartisan support and that they have been consulting with Trump officials about them. And with that, I would say nothing's guaranteed there, right? Words are words, and we need to see what actually takes place. But also we could see Congress potentially shoot this down. And here we've seen the information technology

industry council asking them to step in to overturn these new rules if Trump doesn't. But for now we really don't know which way the wind's gonna blow. But yeah, you have places like the Washington Post reporting that there's some Trump advisors and cabinet picks have taken a firm stance against China and could favor these new rules.

But also Trump has indicated that he's looking to be more accommodating for US tech companies. And companies left and right, including OpenAI, they have taken steps to appeal to his administration, especially with its new economic blueprint. So it's very big news with very massive implications, but it's not done just quite yet. But then finally today, let's talk about you and the last episode of the Philip DeFranco Show in some commentary brought to you by Wake and Make Coffee. Because right now over at wakeandmake.com, just a click or a tap away, not only can you get the best damn coffee that's ever touched those pretty little lips of yours, but you can get a bag or three for up to 50% off right now. And we keep it good and simple.

You can get one of our three famous staple roasts, Guiding Light, Happy Medium, or Dark Matter. And or you can join the International Coffee of the Month Club, where every single month, you just get a brand new roast delivered to your door. But with that one, I will say to maintain quality, we only let in like a certain number of new people in every month. So yeah, just remember, wakeandmake.com up to 50% off right now. But diving into those comments, there were understandably a lot of comments about the LA fires as well as our deep dive into the WEA system problems, especially because I think an hour or two after we uploaded that show, there was a false alert that was sent out. With MDG noting,

the fact that you posted the segment about the alert system like an hour before they sent out an alert to evacuate to all of LA by accident is crazy. I had my cat in the carrier and was about to rush out the door by the time they sent out the false alarm alert over 10 minutes later. Meanwhile, there's also a lot of conversation

about the severity and intensity of these fires. It's I'm saying, don't ever underestimate fire. If they tell you to evacuate, do it ASAP. Fire will outrun your car. It will jump roads and have the next streets ablaze before you get there. Those embers you hear about aren't just a few glowing hot bits mixed with wind.

They are literally a blow torch that ignite anything they touch. Don't wait for the fire to hit your street before you leave. By then it's too late. Another is saying, thank you for including the footage of the wind blowing the embers. I thought I pictured hurricane force winds spreading the fire, but wow,

that video really brought understanding. There was also a fair share of commentary and conversation around insurance companies dropping coverage. Some like Jason saying them dropping fire insurance pretty much guarantees that land developers will scoop up the property for pennies on the dollar afterwards.

With others saying it reminds them of part of the Twisters plot line. Though there you also had some people pushing back, replying with things like as predatory as insurance companies are, it's really not unreasonable for them to refuse to cover fires in a fire zone. It's like refusing to cover a pack a day smoker

for lung cancer. And actually over on Instagram, where we posted updates around this situation, some replied with things like, why on earth would they offer fire insurance in a place that was so clearly going to have constant fires due to incompetent management? Also, the government puts a law in place

where they couldn't raise their rates, so. You also had others just angry about the misinformation that's being spouted while all of this is developing. Many others also sharing their, their family or their friends' experiences with this fire. All of which really hit on how terrifying and devastating this is. Because when we talk about these situations

and kind of the grand scheme or the top level numbers of how many acres were burned or buildings were destroyed or even lives lost, you don't get into the individual pain and suffering that it causes. Some of that gets kind of glossed over because it is so huge. Also in those comments, I'll say there was a lot of conversation around that Virginia hospital

that got indicted or that doctor who was doing needleless surgeries for profit. With many of the comments echoing, "'The hospital story is literally what happens when the medical system is run like a business. Why can we not learn that not everything should be run like a business?' With others adding,

"'Until we have a single payer federal system funded by everyone, this will continue to happen. And saying we need to nationalize healthcare point blank. But then finally on a lighter note, some of you were just amused by me saying that God is testing us, but I guess I didn't study for this one.

Which I will say, I'm glad whenever I can provide just a smidge of levity to just a nightmare of a show. But also some of y'all saying that you'd like it on a shirt or a mug to which I'll say, maybe. We have a drop coming Wednesday and I might be able to make this a last minute edition. I'll see. But that, my friends, is the end of your Monday evening,

Tuesday morning dive into the news. And remember, I'm now fully back for 2025. So I'll see you every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday at 6 p.m. Eastern, 3 p.m. Pacific. Thank you for watching. I love your faces. And I'll see you right back here tomorrow.