The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 2.13 The Ohio Train Derailment Scandal Exposes A Lot, Multiple UFOS Shot Down, KSI, & Today's News

Starting point is 00:00:00 The strained derailment in Ohio is incredibly concerning for a number of reasons we got to talk about. The U.S. was shooting down UFOs left and right over the weekend. KSI's in his prime wordplay. We got to talk about the worst best Super Bowl. And actually, we're going to talk about all that and so much more on today's brand new Philip DeFranco show. So buckle up, hit that like button, and actually, quick awesome announcement. As I warned, most of the clothes I dropped last week are no longer available on beautifulbastard.com. But I did get a bunch of demands during that time period.

Starting point is 00:00:24 So for at least the next day or two, we brought back the classic emotionally exhaustive design. We put it on a bunch of colorways that we've never offered before. I'm treating this like a test. Running this many colors can actually blow up in our face sometimes, but being able to learn the difference between what you guys say you want and what you actually buy, that is gonna be just so helpful. So jump in on that while you can. First come, first serve down below, but that said, let's just jump into it. There could be a major environmental disaster brewing in Ohio right now, and we have very little official information about it. So let me break this down for you. On the evening of February 3rd, 50 cars of a Norfolk Southern train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, near the border with

Starting point is 00:00:55 Pennsylvania, starting a large fire, with firefighters not able to immediately address the blaze because some of the train's cars were carrying toxic chemicals. This including vinyl chloride, a toxic flammable gas that's known to cause cancer in humans. It's typically used to make certain plastics like PVC, and while studies have shown it is most dangerous in high-volume prolonged exposure, it emits dangerous byproducts when ignited. With one of the most concerning byproducts being phosgene, a chemical that was literally weaponized in World War I and can cause vomiting and breathing trouble.

Starting point is 00:01:20 And another being hydrogen chloride, which can irritate the skin, eyes, nose, and throat. So with this, you had Ohio officials announcing that they would be doing a controlled release of vinyl chloride to prevent a more dangerous situation. With Ohio Governor Mike DeWine explaining in a statement last Monday, the vinyl chloride contents of five rail cars are currently unstable and could potentially explode, causing deadly disbursement of shrapnel and toxic fumes. And going on to say that the controlled release process involves the burning of the rail cars' chemicals, which will release fumes into the air that can be deadly if inhaled. So as a result, all the residents in a 1 by 2 mile radius were told to evacuate or face arrest. This including the nearly 5,000 residents of East Palestine as well as others in Pennsylvania's Darlington Township who were within the blast zone.

Starting point is 00:01:57 But honestly, being arrested would probably be the least of someone's worries if they actually tried to stay. With DeWine warning they could face death or be at a high risk of severe injury, including skin burns and serious lung damage. And later that day, we saw officials conducting that controlled release, which caused a very alarming looking plume that was so thick, it was recorded by the satellite of the National Weather Service Cleveland. But by Monday, the Norfolk Southern Railroad said the release had been completed successfully. And on Wednesday, you had a representative for the Environmental Protection Agency saying it was collecting air samples and all of the readings we've been recording in the community have been at normal concentrations, normal backgrounds, which you find in almost

Starting point is 00:02:27 any community. DeWine also echoing that in a statement the same day informing all of Accuees they could return home and saying air quality samples in the area of the wreckage and in nearby residential neighborhoods have consistently showed readings at points below safety screening levels for contaminants of concern. Based on this information state and local health officials determined that it is now safe for community members to return to their residences. And saying that air monitoring will continue and that residents can have the air in their homes as well as water in private wells tested for free. So by all official accounts, everything's totally fine. But many residents were understandably wary, especially amid reports of lingering negative effects.

Starting point is 00:02:58 And a key thing I really want to hit on is that this situation is very weird and sticky right now. Because a lot of the reporting here is coming from unverified claims circulating on social media, but also official sources have been oddly quiet about addressing these stories or even really providing follow-ups. So with that said, you know, we've seen reports of livestock and wild animals becoming sick and even dying since the derailment. Though again, many of those claims come from unverified sources and pictures on social media. But also, an official did confirm that dead fish had been spotted in nearby waterways.

Starting point is 00:03:24 With the EPA also saying some of the chemicals carried by the trains had seeped into the waterways and were immediately toxic to fish. But they also claimed it had taken actions to minimize that and that drinking water was protected. Meanwhile, residents have told news outlets about lingering odors, with one telling the Washington Post that on some nights the air smells like an over-chlorinated swimming pool and his eyes burn. And so some residents who have the ability to go elsewhere have opted not to return to their homes for the time being, with one telling the Post, the amount of chemicals that were spilled and burned don't simply just go away. I don't believe there is any way to know the full effect until enough time passes, and that just isn't worth

Starting point is 00:03:54 the risk. And here's a key thing. That is not a concern of just some random Joe Blow. That concern has also been echoed by experts who say that any residual chemical emissions pose a danger to people in the area. With Dana Barr, professor of environmental health, explaining, if you have a very small amount of vinyl chloride that was present in an area, it would evaporate within minutes to hours at the longest. But the problem they're facing here is that it's not just a small amount. And so if they can't contain what gets into the water or what gets into the soil, they may have this continuous off-gassing of vinyl chloride that has gotten into these areas.

Starting point is 00:04:20 And adding, I probably would be more concerned about the chemicals in the air over the course of the next month. Other experts have also voiced their worries about the possibility that the plume may have created dioxins, which are formed from burning chlorinated carbon materials. And very notably, not only are dioxins actually worse carcinogens than vinyl chloride, they stay in the ground and body for years. And in addition to dioxins, some leaders in public health have also flagged the possibility of uncombusted vinyl chloride vapors hanging around the area.

Starting point is 00:04:42 This including Dr. Lynn Goldman, the Dean of George Washington University's School of Public Health saying, "'Until there's been a thorough assessment, "'the soot as well as any other materials "'should in my opinion be treated as contaminated "'by vinyl chloride and or dioxins "'or other contaminants until proven otherwise.'" And this is both leading experts and local residents

Starting point is 00:04:58 have expressed skepticism about whether the EPA has enough data to actually determine if the area is safe. And to that point, the whole situation has been further complicated by the way that officials have been handling a lot of the information. The EPA has not even released a full list of chemicals the train was carrying. A fact that a former EPA regional administrator called unconscionable. This has also not been published by the National Transportation Safety Board.

Starting point is 00:05:17 This lack of knowing is creating a lot of doubt, skepticism, and theories that officials are not being fully transparent. Theories which were further stoked by a bizarre incident we talked about last week where a reporter was arrested during a news conference where DeWine was discussing the derailment. And unfortunately, this is just where we are now, and we're gonna have to wait to see what new information they put out there, and how everything plays out. And unfortunately, it's not like a wait and see, you know, that's gonna be kind of interesting.

Starting point is 00:05:37 It's, you know, the small matter of if this is another environmental disaster that government officials mishandled and end up harming a lot of people. And in the meantime, there are already several lawsuits floating around, including one seeking medical testing and another that accuses Norfolk Southern of negligence, with many different groups saying that this should be a warning for possible train derailments that are due to corporate interests gutting rail protections, which is something that we're going to talk about, but I mean, even that alone could fill an entire show. So for now, this is where we are, and I'll pass the question up to you.

Starting point is 00:06:01 What are your thoughts with all this? And then, let's talk some quickie entertainment news. The Super Bowl happened last night. Philly fans, how you feeling? Kansas City fans, how you feeling? And with that, how'd you feel about that last holding penalty? Some have said this proves that the NFL's rigged.

Starting point is 00:06:12 Others saying at the very least it shows the refs are not consistent. Saying that up until that point, for the most part, they'd just been letting the players play. And people in that group kind of just upset because they didn't get to see it play out the way that it might've played out. But as far as if it was a whole,

Starting point is 00:06:22 James Bradbury, who was actually flagged for the play, he actually came out in support of the ref's call. I pulled a jersey, you know, they called Holden. I was hoping they would let it ride. Also, for the non-sports people that watch the Super Bowl, was it me or did most of the ads suck? I can maybe recall three of them and in a week, really only the Tubi ad's gonna be the one that like stays in my head? Where they tricked probably millions of people into thinking someone grabbed the remote. Which side note, Tubi, I don't know if you realize this,

Starting point is 00:06:48 but I think you inadvertently got a lot of kids yelled at for a second. There's just something about electronics. When something messes up, people are like blame the kids. Although I will say, while I already don't remember what was in the actual ad, you had Logan Paul and KSI putting out a Super Bowl ad for their drink Prime. Which I mean, whether you love them or hate them,

Starting point is 00:07:03 you cannot deny it's kind of historic. It really highlights how big creator-led brands can become. And then, simple question, are you looking for low-hanging fruit to cut costs and save where you can with your business? Because with postage rates increasing again, Stamps.com has the best discounts in the industry. So thank you, Stamps.com slash Phil,

Starting point is 00:07:19 for being today's fantastic sponsor and providing a way to help small businesses. Y'all, Stamps.com automatically tells you your cheapest and fastest shipping options with rates you can't find anywhere else, like up to 84% off USPS and UPS. Are you selling products online? They seamlessly connect with every major marketplace and shopping cart. I mean, I just love how convenient and cost-effective this is for me and my business. I get to get all my mailing and shipping done without even leaving my house.

Starting point is 00:07:41 And you can print official US postage from your computer 24-7. They even send you a free scale so you'll have everything you need to get started. Plus, need a package pickup? Easily schedule it through your Stamps.com dashboard. Stamps.com saves me time and money, freeing me up to produce the show, create the next beautiful bastard drop, spend more time with my family. I don't work to work, I work to live. This helps me do that. So set your business up for success when you get started with stamps.com today. Sign up at stamps.com slash phil for a special offer that includes a four-week trial plus free postage and a free digital scale. There's no long-term commitments or contracts. Just go to stamps.com slash phil. And then, y'all, over the weekend, the U.S. shot down three UFOs over North America. And yes, UFOs. Until the O is no longer U, they're UFOs. The first engagement

Starting point is 00:08:23 happened over northern Alaska Friday afternoon. The object was about the size of a small car and was initially intercepted by F-35s, with pilots observing no identifiable equipment or markings, just that it was silverish-gray and cylindrical. And some of the pilots reported that the object was messing with their plane's sensors, while others said that it was hovering but also had no visual propulsion. Biden ordered the object to be shot down, and an F-22 shot it down, giving it its second air-to-air kill ever, and its second that week. They also say they still can't find this UFO. It allegedly fell onto a frozen lake below and broke into pieces. So they say they've been unable to find the wreckage, and then the

Starting point is 00:08:51 next day, another UFO is detected over Yukon, Canada. This one was described as small and cylindrical, and it was shot down by an American F-22 that was under the command of NORAD. And with this one, they also say they've been unable to find the wreckage of this UFO. Then later that night, another UFO is detected on radar in Montana, with F-15 scrambling out of Portland, flying to Montana, but once they're there, they can't find anything. We fast forward to Sunday afternoon, and that UFO over Montana is now over Lake Michigan. They close the airspace again to shoot it down, only then to lift the restriction. The U.S. then follows this object until it's over Lake Huron, where an American F-16 shoots it down.

Starting point is 00:09:20 It was reportedly octagonal in shape, it had strings for a payload, but no payload attached. And again, they're saying they have no idea how it was floating and they still have to find the wreckage for it so of course one of the biggest questions with this is what the hell are they shooting down well when the pentagon was asked last night if this was aliens they said they weren't ruling anything out and so that answer obviously generated the type of response that you'd expect and so they immediately backtracked and said there is no indication of extraterrestrial activity so they're saying we didn't shoot down E.T. trying to phone home. So the question is, okay, well, are we looking at balloons again?

Starting point is 00:09:48 And well, there, I mean, you have a Pentagon spokesperson saying they haven't been calling them balloons for a reason. Without the wreckage or at least any information regarding the wreckage, it's hard to make an accusation as to what these are or who they belong to. But that also brings us to another key question. Why are we seeing so many incidents happening right now, seemingly out of nowhere? Well, after the Chinese spy balloon, NORAD removed the filters from the radars north america is a very busy airspace so norad was filtering out mostly everything that wasn't an icbm or a cruise missile reportedly once they took those filters

Starting point is 00:10:12 off they suddenly started to find way more stuff in the airspace which also raises the question of has north american airspace just been completely saturated with foreign spycraft all this time and we just didn't know it and here's the thing while we're waiting to get more information the absence of it i mean that's really only fueled Chinese-American tensions. Because after all the Chinese spy balloon stuff that we saw earlier today, China accusing the U.S. of having flown spy balloons over China more than 10 times. Though the U.S. denying these claims, saying any claim that the U.S. government operates surveillance balloons over the PRC is false. And adding, it is China that has a high altitude surveillance balloon program for intelligence

Starting point is 00:10:43 collection that it is used to violate the sovereignty of the U.S. in over 40 countries across five continents. And here's the thing. I'm open to receive new information, but there are a number of experts saying there is reason to believe that China is lying here. Noting that for China, they just release a balloon and the jet stream takes it to the United States. But saying for the U.S. to send a balloon over China, it would have to travel across the entire world to most or several countries minimum in order to fly over the country. And then Putin said it again, y'all. But this time, Russia's being accused of setting up a plot to overthrow the Moldovan government. According to Moldova's president, the plan involves military trained saboteurs camouflaged in civilian clothes who will undertake violent actions, attack some state

Starting point is 00:11:15 buildings and even take hostages. And saying that the whole point of this is to try to get Moldova back into Russia's orbit, have it help in the war next door and kill its plans to join the European Union. And it's actually not surprising that Russia might be trying to pull this off. They used a lot of this playbook to take over Crimea back in 2014, so we know at the very least it's somewhat successful. Not to mention that Russia has a long history of involving itself in Moldovan affairs because they say they want to protect a small Russian minority in a breakaway region that borders Ukraine. And for Moldova, it might not actually take that much to topple the government,

Starting point is 00:11:40 which has been struggling with crisis after crisis. First off, its prime minister recently resigned after 18 months of crisis. The oldest issue is the fact that it's already one of the poorest nations in Europe. Then there was a war in Ukraine which forced the government to really double down on its pro-European stances despite a sizable number of pro-Russian citizens. And that latter group has been weaponized by pro-Russia oligarchs who recently caused a massive series of protests by allegedly causing an energy crisis. Although to be fair, it's just as likely the energy crisis was caused by decades of mismanagement and corruption in the country. But you know, from here, it remains to be seen and if attempted coup actually does happen. Though notably, Russia has been successful in the past in weaponizing corruption to destabilize countries and Moldova would be a big prize to

Starting point is 00:12:14 help with the war in Ukraine. Then, the earthquake in Turkey and Syria has now killed a confirmed 36,000 people. That's according to their latest death toll, which far surpasses the expected 22,000 we first reported, making this the worst quake in decades. There's also tens of thousands of people injured, with many still being pulled out of the rubble a week after the initial quake, leading to jaw-dropping videos like this one of a woman who's been trapped there for five straight days finally getting rescued. And while the rescuers are rightfully getting praise for their heroism, at the same time, the property developers are being condemned for their systematic neglect, with in fact Turkish authorities issuing arrest warrants for 113 of them for their involvement in the construction of buildings that collapsed during the earthquake.

Starting point is 00:12:49 This because they allegedly skirted around regulations to rev up a construction boom in earthquake prone regions. But also, some see this as an effort by the government to divert attention away from its own failure to heed experts warnings for years that many buildings were unsafe. But regardless of who is responsible here, people are still suffering in the affected areas. With millions homeless and below freezing temperatures on a nightly basis, and as many as 800,000 without adequate meals. And this is the UN aid agency's warning that the death toll is likely to double in the coming days. And again, if you can and you want to help out,

Starting point is 00:13:15 I'm going to put links down below where you can donate in the description. My heart goes out to everyone affected by this tragedy. That is where I'm going to end today's show. As always, thank you for being a part of these daily dives in the news. On days where we have to end like this, I just want to say again, if you have someone in your life that you care about, let them know, hold them close, say I love you. You never know what's coming around the corner. But on that note,

Starting point is 00:13:35 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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The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 2.13 The Ohio Train Derailment Scandal Exposes A Lot, Multiple UFOS Shot Down, KSI, & Today's News

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