The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 2.12 “A Super Bowl Massacre”… Was Taylor Swift Super Bowl Used As Distraction for Israel Pummeling Rafah?

Episode Date: February 12, 2024

Click my CoPilot Fitness link https://go.mycopilot.com/PhilipDeFranco to get 14 days FREE with your own personal trainer! Buy The New https://BeautifulBastard.com Drop While You Can! –✩ TODAY’S ...STORIES ✩ – 00:00 - Trump and Biden Play Political Tug of War over Taylor Swift During Super Bowl 02:18 - Dozens Reported Dead in Rafah After Israel Launches Massive Strikes 10:16 - Dancers in Washington Push State Legislature to Adopt “Strippers’ Bill of Rights” 12:57 - Sponsored by CoPilot 14:00 - Valentine's Chocolate Costing Too Much? Blame Extreme Weather 15:45 - Crowd Smashes, Graffitis, and Torches Self-Driving Taxi in San Francisco 18:33 - Despite Public Perception, Violent Crime Is Going Down  21:19 - Your Thoughts on Thursday’s Show ——————————   Produced by: Cory Ray Edited by: James Girardier, Maxwell Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks Art Department: William Crespo Writing/Research: Philip DeFranco, Brian Espinoza, Lili Stenn, Maddie Crichton, Star Pralle, Chris Tolve  ———————————— #DeFranco #TaylorSwift #SuperBowl ———————————— Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript
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Starting point is 00:00:00 Sup, you beautiful bastards. You're watching the Philip DeFranco Show, and we got a lot of news to talk about today. We've got last night's wild Super Bowl and all the Taylor Swift weirdness. Why the hell chocolate just got so expensive? We're close to a stripper's bill of rights. The war on robots is taken to the streets.
Starting point is 00:00:14 We have to talk about how in the shadow of the Super Bowl, Israel absolutely pummeled Rafa and what that means moving forward. And then there's even more we gotta talk about, so let's just jump into it. Starting with Taylor Swift won her first Super Bowl last night in her first season. But they're playing both ways, getting three and a half sacks on Pretty Boy Purdy, throwing an absolute dime to Mecole Hardman to close out the game,
Starting point is 00:00:34 and yet she was still robbed of Super Bowl MVP. Sorry, Mahomes, you know it's true. But, uh, my stupid jokes aside, wild Super Bowl last night. I didn't even have a dog in the fight, and I was stressed for y'all. Like, I'm a Jets fan, I don't know what it's like to be stressed out in January, February. So congrats KC fans. Better luck next year, Niner gang. That was a tough beat. But also there was a lot playing out last night that didn't necessarily have to do with football. Because the crazy stupid shit I was saying about Taylor Swift, that was obviously jokes. But at the same
Starting point is 00:00:59 time, there was also a lot of other stupid crazy shit being said about her. It was just like baseless. People have been saying that it's scripted for the Chiefs to win, and then like Travis Kelsey was going to propose to Taylor Swift, and they were going to be like, vote for Biden and get a vac shot. No, no, there's going to be like a hypnotist trying to convince you on the screen. But you did have Trump and Biden talking about this and her last night. Trump putting out a thing essentially saying that it'd be impossible for her to back Biden this year, and writing on Truth Social.
Starting point is 00:01:23 I signed and was responsible for the Music Modernization Act for Taylor Swift and all other musical artists. Joe Biden didn't do anything for Taylor and never will. There's no way she could endorse crooked Joe Biden, the worst and most corrupt president in the history of our country, and be disloyal to the man who made her so much money. Besides that, I like her boyfriend Travis, even though he may be a liberal and probably can't stand me. Which, there's a lot to unpack there. But for some context on the thing that we're actually going to talk about, Trump was referencing a law that updated the rights of musicians and songwriters. It was actually applauded by the industry. Though notably after his post, you did have a lawyer involved in the act telling Variety he wasn't responsible
Starting point is 00:01:53 for it, saying he probably doesn't even know what it does and all he did was sign it. But that's neither here nor there. Then as far as Biden, he went a different route, but he and his team leaning into the jokes that the whole thing was just some democratic plan. Tweeting just like we drew it up, along with that dark Brandon photo where red lasers shoot out of his eyes. Joking about just the ridiculousness of the conspiracy. Though that post arguably was ill-timed. Because while so much of the country was paying attention to Super Bowl Sunday, something else was happening. Because Israel used the opportunity, or just happened to pick this time frame to launch massive airstrikes on a major population center in Gaza, where over a million people had fled conflict. In the middle of the night, local time, Israel carried out a wave of airstrikes on the southern city of Rafah. According to Israeli
Starting point is 00:02:32 officials, the airstrikes were used as cover for an operation to successfully rescue two hostages. But this is Gaza's health ministry said that the effort to save two hostages resulted in the deaths of at least 67 people, and those numbers could rise. And while you have Israel claiming that many of those killed were militants, the Gaza ministry said 70% were civilians. Though, and I always try to stress this when we're especially talking about this situation, like many competing claims with everything that we're seeing, none of this has been independently verified as I'm recording. But there's also seeing reports that the Palestinian Authority's official TV stations putting the number at 74, while the Palestine Red Crescent Society is saying more than
Starting point is 00:03:02 100. We have people on the ground in Rafah saying two mosques, several residential buildings, and 10 sheltering people were hit in the hour-plus long strikes by Israeli planes, tanks, and ships. And at 1.49 a.m. local time, just minutes after the kickoff of the Super Bowl, Israeli officials said IDF soldiers broke into the building where the two hostages were being held. Meanwhile, you had an IDF spokesperson claiming that Israeli forces fired on nearby buildings to disrupt Hamas's communications
Starting point is 00:03:24 and warplanes fired on Hamas targets in the area. The Washington Post also reporting the, quote, exchanges of heavy fire erupted in several places between the troops and Hamas fighters. Right, and a big thing here is that while these attacks are super significant, because while Rafah is no stranger to airstrikes, it is the last population center that Israeli troops have not entered. And so as a result, it's become a major shelter for displaced Palestinians. Right, it's been widely reported that over 1.4 million people have fled to the city as more and more civilians are being displaced by Israel's military operations in the north. So what that means is that more than half of Gaza's entire population
Starting point is 00:03:53 is now crammed into the city that housed just 300,000 people before the war. And this after last week when Netanyahu announced that Israel was preparing to send troops into Rafah, sparking widespread international backlash. Because among a number of other reasons, the humanitarian situation there is insanely grim. Many people are surviving in makeshift shelters or tents, and they're supported almost entirely by the small flow of humanitarian aid that's allowed to enter from the Egyptian border, but falls far short of fulfilling needs. You have aid groups saying that the city is so crowded that families have been forced to sleep on the streets, and that food is so limited that people have started eating grass. Which is why the UN and
Starting point is 00:04:23 aid providers have repeatedly said that a military advance on Rafah would be absolutely devastating for civilians. Further exacerbating an already catastrophic situation with people running low on food, water, medicine, and other essentials applies. And again, this is the UN and other groups have said that most of the people in Rafah have already fled their homes and have nowhere else to go. So invading an area already full of refugees would be inhumane and result in mass casualties. Those concerns have also been echoed by many of Israel's top allies, including the UK and even the US. Hell, even the fucking Biden administration, which has faced a ton of backlash for just blindly backing Israel,
Starting point is 00:04:52 saying a military offensive in Rafah without proper planning would be a disaster. With the Biden admin saying they didn't support such an operation at the time. Just yesterday, Netanyahu had a 45-minute call with Biden where the president told the prime minister the ground invasion in Rafah should not proceed without a plan to ensure the safety of civilians. And a senior administration official telling the Washington Post that much of the call focused on the possibility of an extended humanitarian ceasefire, something that could allow for hostages to be released. And adding that protection for Palestinian civilians is a constant discussion between us and the Israelis, and the security of civilians in Rafah during an Israeli offensive is a huge question. And going on to
Starting point is 00:05:23 reaffirm that the U.S. can't support any plan that doesn't secure civilian protection that was actually planned, prepared, and implementable. But then, just hours later, Israel launched this massive attack on Rafah. And while Netanyahu has asked the military to draw up plans to evacuate Rafah, there are a lot of concerns about where these people can actually go. And in an interview with ABC that aired yesterday, he tried to downplay the situation. I mean, at one point, seeming to just lie outright about how many people are in the city and insisting that they'll have places to go, but not providing specifics. You've directed the Israeli defense forces to evacuate Rafah in advance of this ground invasion. Where are those people supposed to go? This is 1.4
Starting point is 00:05:58 million people, many of whom have fled northern Gaza. I mean, they're living in tents. Where are these people supposed to go? Well, Rafah is a very small percentage of Gaza, and I think it's about 10% or 15%. I mean, the estimates... An area north of Gaza that has already been cleared. Well, there's an estimate of 1.4 million people in that area right now.
Starting point is 00:06:18 And as the German foreign minister said, they can't just disappear. Where are they supposed to go? No, well, the areas that we've cleared north of Rafah are plenty of areas there. But we are working out a detailed plan to do so. And that's what we've done up to now. We're not cavalier about this. This is part of our war effort to get civilians out of harm's way.
Starting point is 00:06:40 It's part of Hamas's effort to keep them in harm's way. But we've so far succeeded, and we're going to succeed again. But then he never elaborated beyond saying plenty of areas north of Rafah have been cleared. And also many have cast doubt on that, noting that Gaza is only around 25 miles long and six miles wide. And so much of the area north of Rafah has been destroyed or is literally an active conflict zone. And this is a city is also as far south as people can go before the border with Egypt, which has refused to let refugees in. When asked if he was concerned at all about the fact that so many allies and key players in the region have warned against a military operation in Rafah, Netanyahu just brushed it off, making it clear that he intends to move
Starting point is 00:07:11 forward with his plan. But the Biden administration says it will be a disaster if you go into Rafah in this way. And it's not just the Biden administration, it's your allies in the region. I mean, we've heard from the Egyptian foreign minister that it would be a disastrous consequences. The UAE is warning of exasperating the catastrophe, the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. I mean, aren't you, is any of this giving you second thought about going in and doing this? The answer is, John, they don't have to give me second thoughts about taking care of the civilian population, along with the provision of the necessary humanitarian aid. We've been doing it and I've been directing it systematically. Victory is within reach. It has to be understood. And victory will be the best thing that will happen, not only for Israel, but for the Palestinians
Starting point is 00:08:00 themselves. With him then also going on to try and justify the planned offensive because it'll help save hostages, saying he believes there are enough Israeli hostages still alive to warrant this offensive. Also echoing that in a statement posted on X, where he also made it crystal clear that the attacks during the Super Bowl, they were just the start, and he plans to go ahead with this plan, saying,
Starting point is 00:08:15 Only continued military pressure until total victory will bring the release of all our hostages. We will not miss any opportunity to bring them home. But there you had a lot of people pushing back on that, arguing that saving two hostages is not worth the deaths of all those other people. Another is just saying that he's using the idea of hostage rescues as a way to justify massive strikes on Raf. Right, this is he's losing support. Many pointing out that the Israeli military has only rescued three hostages throughout the entire war, including the two last
Starting point is 00:08:39 night, which also means that more hostages were killed in Israeli operations to save them than the number of hostages who have actually been saved. Instead, the vast majority of hostages were killed in Israeli operations to save them than the number of hostages who have actually been saved. Instead, the vast majority of hostages who have actually been saved were released during the one-week ceasefire last year. Notably, all of this as Netanyahu has publicly shut down Hamas's proposed terms for a ceasefire literally the same day that he announced that he was preparing Israeli forces to push in Rafah. And so as all of this is playing out, we also saw plenty of people saying that Netanyahu knew
Starting point is 00:09:01 how bad the attack on Rafah would look, which is why he chose to do it during the Super Bowl, when Americans were distracted. And all this is we're even seeing reports that Biden is tired of his bullshit. With numerous sources telling NBC that Biden has been disparaging Netanyahu in private and is angry about his inability to get the prime minister to change his military tactics. With a report saying that he is specifically mad about Bibi's refusal to agree to a ceasefire. We also saw last week Biden approve an order that cut off military aid to countries that break international rules for protecting civilians.
Starting point is 00:09:25 A move that's been widely seen as directly aimed at Israel. But this is you have experts saying the real challenge with that directive will be whether the U.S. actually enforces it. Or whether it actually follows through with the threats to cut off weapons and aid to Israel. Because while Netanyahu has made it clear that he does not give a damn what Biden and other allies say. If the U.S. were to actually cut the flow of the millions and millions of dollars they give in military assistance to Israel, who knows what would happen? Or what kind of domino effect would we see in a number of avenues? So it's going to be very interesting to see if the U.S. actually follows through here, if they actually take a stance, or if they're just going to continue limp-dicking it with Netanyahu, who just keeps using U.S. taxpayer money to disobey him, all while making what is already
Starting point is 00:09:59 a humanitarian disaster, at the very least. So much worse, and guaranteeing the killing of more and more innocent civilians. But as we wait guaranteeing the killing of more and more innocent civilians. But as we wait to see how all of this plays out, of course, I'd love to know your thoughts here. I know we covered a lot. It could be on the timing, your opinions in general. Also, I'm interested to know if your opinions have shifted over the weeks and months. And then, let's talk about the stripper bill of rights. Because that's not the name of my sexy gender swap revisionist history hip-hop Broadway musical about the founding of the United Sexy States of America, though I am looking for funding. But rather, it's what hundreds of adult
Starting point is 00:10:29 dancers in Washington are fighting for right now, with this dancer-led advocacy group called Strippers or Workers pushing the state legislature to adopt the Strippers' Bill of Rights. Because it turns out, as it stands right now, dancers put up with an absolute ton of shit. Absurdly high club fees, total lack of security, threats, harassment, and even assault in some cases. With people like Ava, a former dancer, sharing their stories, telling the AP about a time that she gave a man three lap dances only for the guy's car to decline. With him then getting absolutely belligerent and aggressive, but then no manager stepped in and the club had no security guards. Ava and a waitress had to try to get this guy and his equally belligerent friends out of the club themselves. And then despite having to do all of that herself and
Starting point is 00:11:03 going through all of that by herself, she was still expected to pay the $200 club fee, even though she never got the $140 she was owed for the dances. And then she learned another dancer had dealt with that exact same guy just two days earlier, same outcome and everything. And even going on to say the lack of security and training and the lack of support between the management to the dancers creates this culture where customers know that they can come in and not pay. They can come in and assault dancers and they can come in and pretty much do whatever they want. And again, that's just one small example. There are countless stories of dancers being harassed by DJs for a cut of their tips, threatened and assaulted by customers, or blacklisted from the clubs for
Starting point is 00:11:35 reporting abuse by managers. So these proposals in front of the Washington state legislature would offer greater protections for those dancers from customers, co-workers, and club owners, with it including things like requiring a security guard in each club, keypad codes to enter the dressing rooms, training on preventing sexual harassment and violence, de-escalation training, and signs stating dancers aren't required to hand over their tips. Plus, club fees would be capped at $150,
Starting point is 00:11:56 or 30% of what the dancer made during a shift, whichever ends up being less. But as far as if this is going to get through, that remains to be seen, because while the state Senate actually approved a stripper's right bill last week, and it's now currently in front of the state House of Representatives, a very important thing to note is that the Senate bill reportedly clears the way for clubs to serve alcohol while the House bill doesn't. And that's incredibly important because that's what left a similar bill in legislative purgatory last year. Because a very big thing
Starting point is 00:12:17 is that currently alcohol sales are not allowed in strip clubs in Washington. It's a restriction that actually most states do not have. And that by itself is also an important aspect because according to Madison Zakwu, the campaign manager for strippers or workers, that's actually limiting the potential earnings for club owners and causing them to charge dancers more in club fees. In fact, Zakwu saying that adding the protections outlined in the strippers' bill of rights while continuing to ban alcohol sales will put these clubs and dancers in jeopardy. Saying we don't want clubs to shut down now or in the future
Starting point is 00:12:40 because that will just put everyone out of work and then put them in even riskier or more dire situations. You know, as we wait to see if history is going to repeat itself, that this is going to fizzle out again, or if this is going to become a law, I'd love to know your thoughts here. What are your thoughts in general regarding the stripper bill of rights? What are your thoughts about the difference between allowing alcohol sales or not? I'd love to hear from you. And then when your goal is to start working out or working out more, that can be challenging. And you've heard me talking about Copilot because I'm digging how the app operates. Because it feels like they operate on my terms,
Starting point is 00:13:06 which works for me. I mean, through all the travel I do, or just all the schedule switch-ups, or hell, festivities, like just this last Super Bowl Sunday, Copilot has my back. So also, thank you Copilot for being a sponsor of the PDS. You know, because I can't always stick to my routine, but that is okay.
Starting point is 00:13:18 Coach Devin's the king of going with the flow, changing it up for me when needed, making it interesting, keeping me in the game. And if you're looking to make changes this year to your health or just ready for change in general, either way, the first step is easy. You just start with an onboarding call. You connect with a coach and then they may customize workouts tailored to your needs. Then you just communicate your goals with your coach, which also may change up, but that's okay because they'll set you up for success. You know, when I started, I was like, let's work on some show muscles first. But then that evolved
Starting point is 00:13:42 into, hey, I want overall strength. I don't want to worry about flexibility. Stuff is getting a little too tight. You know, I'm living proof that Copilot helps me attain my goals as well as shoot for new ones. The small changes that you make today really can enhance your life in ways you never thought possible. So if you want to join me on a fitness journey, just click my Copilot link down below or scan the QR code to get 14 days free with your own personal trainer. And then it's just two days away and more expensive than ever. Valentine's Day. With a recent survey from the and more expensive than ever. Valentine's Day.
Starting point is 00:14:09 With a recent survey from the National Retail Federation finding that Valentine's Day spending on spouses and partners is expected to reach a record $14.2 billion this year. And the total spending for Valentine's festivities is expected to top $25 billion. Regarding the list of planned gifts, you know, you have the usual suspects, 57% of people planning to buy candy for their partner, 39% buying flowers, 32% planning a night out, and 22% going with jewelry. And if you're looking to get your partner some, let's say, candy this year, you're probably also going to be taking a look at that price tag. Because you might find yourself wondering, why the hell is chocolate so expensive? Because as it turns out, many major candy manufacturers and even small chocolate shops have raised their prices recently. And that's in part because the cost of cocoa, a key ingredient
Starting point is 00:14:43 in making chocolate, it's never been more expensive. With the prices breaking records this month for the first time in nearly 50 years. Because according to the BBC, cacao prices reached $5,874 per ton on the New York commodities market last week. That is roughly double what it was at the start of last year.
Starting point is 00:14:57 And it's not just a price hike for Valentine's Day. These prices have been steadily going up. And there, we can all thank extreme weather. Because as it turns out, around 70% of the global supply of cacao beans come from Ghana and the Ivory Coast. And they've been battling this El Nino sea temperature phenomenon,
Starting point is 00:15:10 meaning rainfall patterns are all messed up and long, hot, dry spells have led to rough growing conditions for cacao beans. And so between that and farmers already battling crop diseases and pests, harvests are coming up short, which means that supplies are slamming, global prices aren't gonna be going down anytime soon,
Starting point is 00:15:23 especially because throughout 2023, while these problems were developing, many companies were actually absorbing the cost and using up stockpiles. But now, more than before, we're going to see these companies passing off the cost to consumers, which is also why you have NPR saying that some people have already started to switch to cheaper chocolate and they're also buying less of it. Hell, even Hershey, one of the world's largest chocolate manufacturers, has cut 5% of its workforce. And that after the price of cacao played a part in their underwhelming fourth quarter earnings. And then the war on robots is here and it looks drastically different than what I thought it would look like. Because this ain't going down with T-1000s. And instead it was kind of a bunch of just maybe inebriated people
Starting point is 00:15:56 beating the shit out of a driverless robo taxi. Because on Saturday night in San Francisco's Chinatown, right? It's lunar new year. People are out, they're celebrating, setting off fireworks. And around nine o'clock, this robo-taxi owned by the company Waymo, it comes rolling down the street. Nobody's inside. We all of a sudden see this crowd form around it, bringing it to a halt.
Starting point is 00:16:12 And then for some reason, someone reportedly jumps on the hood and smashes the windshield. But that then followed by another person. Seconds later, onlookers clapping in approval. I guess at that point, people were like, well, if two people are doing it, we can just do this, right?
Starting point is 00:16:23 And shit went wild. With dozens of people surrounding the car, some breaking windows with skateboards, at least one spray painting graffiti. Another audibly shouting. 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.
Starting point is 00:16:50 Download the Instacart app and enjoy $0 delivery fees on your first three orders. Service fees, exclusions, and terms apply. Instacart. Groceries that over-deliver. I got the f***ing deliver! And so at some point,
Starting point is 00:17:04 someone tosses a firework into the car, which I have to say, you know, I'm against breaking the law, but a pretty cool looking crime. Though for the cops, fine, I don't think you can use that as part of your defense. But you know, it created this show on social media until the fire department showed up and doused it with fire. Wait, doused the fire. Yes, they doused it with more fire, Phil, you genius. They put out the fire. These weren't firefighters from Fahrenheit 451. But ultimately, you know, now we have the police investigating and no arrests have been reported so far. As far as if this was supposed to be something bigger, if there was a motive, that is unclear. Notably, you did have a Waymo spokesperson telling Reuters this was a one-off event. Though it
Starting point is 00:17:34 is understandable why some would go, you know, is this part of a bigger thing? Because San Francisco has absolutely become America's top hotspot for anti-driverless car protests. For example, last year, an anonymous activist group called Safe Street Rebelled grabbing headlines for their so-called coning stunts. With them darting out into the road, simply placing an orange traffic cone on the car's hood, then running away. With dozens of videos showing them the car completely immobilized until someone comes and removes the cone. You also have more common stuff, like random people stopping the cars, jumping on them, or trying to get inside. And all of the activity really flared up last August when California regulators voted to let Waymo and Cruise run their vehicles at all hours
Starting point is 00:18:04 of the day. Though notably, Cruise was almost immediately forced to cut its fleet in half after a string of accidents and traffic jams. And then in October, the company had to pull all its vehicles off the road because the state suspended its permits. Right in that, after a woman who was hit by a regular car got thrown in front of a self-driving car, with her then dragging her 20 feet and pinning her on the ground. Even last week, there was an incident where a Waymo car collided with a cyclist, causing minor injuries. And that's also kind of like one of the most high-profile cases. There are also things like them running red lights, blocking crosswalks and bike paths,
Starting point is 00:18:29 getting stuck in newly poured concrete, and hitting and killing a dog. Also, fire and police officials have counted dozens of times where robo-taxis got in the way of rescue operations. Them doing things like refusing to move for first responders, driving through yellow tape, blocking firehouse driveways, and running over fire hoses. Though this is the companies argue in their defense that, you know, these incidents, while they did happen and they are sensational, they're rare and often unavoidable. And saying that their self-driving cars are actually safer than regular human controlled vehicles. Right. Essentially having the argument that humans every day do far worse at a higher rate. And it very much appears right now that we're just going
Starting point is 00:18:58 to see more of this. Because Waymo has now expanded his robo taxi service to Phoenix and it's aiming for Los Angeles and Austin next. And then do you feel like like in the last year or two, like, violent crime's just been increasing? Like, it's everywhere. And well, the thing with that is, uh, you're actually wrong. You're not in the minority. In a recent Gallup poll, three quarters of Americans believed that violent crime had increased over the past year. 63% saying there was either a very or extremely serious crime problem. Which, I mean, that's the highest in the poll's history going back to the year 2000. But, according to FBI data, by the third quarter of last year, violent crime actually dropped 8% across the country compared to the same time a year before.
Starting point is 00:19:30 Which is wild, not only because it's so different than what a number of people feel, but because that is the sharpest drop we've seen since the 1990s. With property crime also falling over 6% to what would be the lowest level since 1961. And all this after in 2022, violent crime falling back to pre-pandemic levels. Because as you might remember, yes, during the pandemic, crime soared. So what a lot of us are feeling might just be lingering from that. Because during that time, overall violent crime spiked 5% and murders in particular exploded by nearly 30%. With all of that bringing us to the question of, okay, well, if we went back to pre-pandemic levels in 2022, why did we see even more of a drop in
Starting point is 00:20:02 2023? Looking into it, it's actually hard to pin on any single factor. You have experts pointing to a generally improving economy, people returning to their pre-pandemic way of life, a range of new local policies. And interestingly, some people have found it surprising that in some places, violent crime has gone down even as the number of police officers has as well. Like in Minneapolis, for example, where the number of active cops has fallen from 900 in 2019 to just 560 now, with more resources there being devoted to non-traditional policing methods instead. So you have people debating whether that crime drop there happened because of that or despite that.
Starting point is 00:20:32 But then still, there's the other question of, well, why do people feel like crime is going up? And again, there's a number of likely factors people debate. And of course, media plays a big role in shaping perceptions of crime, which is, I think, why it's important to, you know, care about the news, but also understand that most news is like dog hit by car, not dog successfully crosses the street. And then when egregious stories pop up, it's important to think, okay, is this going to be
Starting point is 00:20:52 kind of more of a zebra or are these horses? Or maybe a better way to think of it is like, is the reason this is being reported on because it is so egregious and out there, or is it because it is part of a growing trend? And I'm not saying it's always one way or the other. It's just something you need to keep in mind when consuming news. Also, you have some guessing and arguing that when people see more homelessness, which has risen sharply in recent years, they feel like their neighborhood is generally getting worse, and they conflate that with crime.
Starting point is 00:21:14 But then also, a really big factor seems to be partisan politics. Because going back to that Gallup poll I mentioned at the top, I found a very big gap. Finding that 92% of Republicans, 78% of Independents, and 58% of Democrats believe crime is rising. And then again, a number of these things are interconnected, right? Specific kinds of news coverage and all that. Though I do want to mention this story with the mention of a violent crime. Tomorrow, we're going to be talking about the Houston megachurch shooting. As I'm finishing
Starting point is 00:21:37 up today's show, more and more information's coming out. I want to make sure in covering it, I'm not giving you some like half-baked thing, and then it turns out there's other information that goes against that or there's more detail. So know that we have eyes on it. We will be talking about it, but it's a timing thing. And then finally, we have yesterday today. We take a dive into the comments on the last video and see what y'all had to say. And there, one of the most liked comments was being uncomfortable about the Jenna Ortega movie relationship is the whole point. And Kat replying, it's like that tweet, people treat women in their 20s like children.
Starting point is 00:22:07 It's a damn movie for fuck's sake. And Hopeless Romantic responding, I feel it's insane how many people seem to think that anything shown in media is an immediate and firm 100% approval of said thing. They don't bother to think about the message or the relevancy to the real world. They see it and waggle their finger as if announcing something you don't approve of is more important than context. You know, there I've seen a lot of interesting debate play out. And comments like the last one I just mentioned. People saying, you know, a TV show or a movie about said thing isn't going, hey, this is what always happens or hey, this is us co-signing this. A story can just exist. So then on the other side, you're going to have people saying, you know, what we consume in the media, it is important. One of the stories and situations that comes to mind is, you know,
Starting point is 00:22:39 that real world couple that I called the real world gone girl situation. You know, you just look at how that couple got completely slandered and went through this nightmare story. Then, you know, in that debate, you have people saying, you know, there has to be some personal responsibility. It's not the creators of that book or that movie that are responsible for detectives being lazy, like, hey, it looks like what happened in that one movie. But with all that, again, I still have not seen this movie that everyone is debating about. And for me, it's just been very interesting to see everyone debating about this online. Also, got to address this comment. Trevor the Batman said, calling it a sex video in the title instead of just sex scene is some top tier clickbait. And
Starting point is 00:23:12 yippee to Snoop saying, I know, right? I was Googling a bunch of stuff just catching viruses. So I just want to say, when we put out this title, I did not think that it was clickbait. It is a sex scene, but the title was referencing how this video on X was blowing up. So well, technically, I think that title is accurate. I also see your point in how it could be seen as clickbait. And even if it's only seen that way by like 10 to 15%, there's maybe a little bit too inside baseball. It's actually in my best interest to stay away from things that would be seen as like clickbait from any percentage of people because it actually hurts us in trying to get recommended to that person again in the future. Title is changed. I was jump scared myself. So one, thank you for sharing your opinion, even though it wasn't, you know, someone just patting me on the future. Title is... Ah, changed. I just jump scared myself.
Starting point is 00:23:45 So one, thank you for sharing your opinion, even though it wasn't, you know, someone just patting me on the back. And two, it's just another small reminder of why I like having a conversation with you in addition to putting out the show. I think it helps me grow and evolve, which on that note,
Starting point is 00:23:56 Silver Screen Fiend said, one of the best parts about being a long-term PDS fan is getting to enjoy the growth that's taken him from lovely lady of the day to a 10-minute deep dive into gentle parenting. Yeah, I mean, you know, when you're not when you're not growing, you're dying. But that is where your daily dive into the news is going to end today. But as always, you beautiful bastards, do not worry, because my name is Philip DeFranco. You've just been filled in. I love your faces and I'll see you tomorrow.

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