The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 2.24 RUSSIA INVADED UKRAINE! WHAT NOW?! Misinformation, Bad Takes, Trolls, Devastating Economies, & More

Starting point is 00:00:00 Sup, you beautiful bastards. Welcome back to the Philip DeFranco Show. I am fresh off a 1 a.m. trip to the emergency room. Fun times. The good news is it appears that they figured out what it was. The bad news is that it appears that it's gonna take a few days for me to not be in pain. But today is too important of a show to miss, so hit that like button, you beautiful bastards, and let's just jump into it.

Starting point is 00:00:20 Now, first up today is the U.S. is throwing out sanctions and trying to flex its military muscle to deter Russia. The Pentagon is also now wondering whether we have a certain muscle to flex. And this because in a press release from the military health system, they worry that the new batch of soldier recruits are too weak to fight an actual war. With Army Major John Mark Thibodeau saying, The Nintendo Generation soldier skeleton is not toughened by activity prior to arrival, so some of them break more easily.

Starting point is 00:00:40 Which one, how dare you assume my console of preference, sir? The two, the release going on to add and claim that Gen Z can't graduate from basic training without hurting themselves because of their, quote, more sedentary lifestyle compared to previous generations. With Fort Leonard Woods physiotherapist, Army Captain Lydia Blondin saying, we see injuries ranging from acute fractures and falls to tears in the ACL to muscle strains and stress fractures, with the overwhelming majority of injuries related to overuse. So essentially their TLDR is video games are making y'all some weak motherfuckers. But you do have critics coming out saying

Starting point is 00:01:08 this is weird coming from the Pentagon, especially because they literally recruited some of those exact Gen Z soldiers straight from Twitch. Like I don't know if you remember the National Guard, Navy, Army, and Air Force all had Twitch eSports teams that came under fire a couple of years ago for what many considered predatory recruiting practices. A wave of gamers asking questions about war crimes

Starting point is 00:01:24 in the chat, as well as a proposal by AOC to ban the military's presence on Twitch, ended up pressuring it to pause its activity. And that's without mentioning the seemingly flip-flop narrative that the military health system recently put out with another press release just a week ago saying that video games, especially first-person shooters, enhance cognitive performance. Or the fact that it's hosted a free online game called America's Army for around 20 years to recruit young people and only announced it's taking down the servers this month. Plus some research suggests that gamers make exceptionally good drone operators. So for many, this anxiety from the Pentagon

Starting point is 00:01:49 about fragile Gen Zers is probably just another kids these days sentiment. So a lot of this ends up feeling like this bizarre phenomenon that we've seen in recent years, mostly from the more conservative and kind of older crowd being obsessed with what they refer to as the decline of masculinity and especially they love mentioning testosterone.

Starting point is 00:02:03 Like how people who went to Harvard love talking about Harvard, these people love mentioning their T-levels, throwing out words like cuck, soy boy, beta. I always said in my next life I want to come back as a Democrat, but I'm not sure I can get my testosterone that low. But ultimately, with all of that said, with this story, and of course everything that I'm going to touch today, I'd love to know your thoughts in those comments down below. And then, just when we all thought the story was done for good, it reaches out of the ground and grabs your leg like a cliche horror movie. And that's my dramatic way of introducing the story about trucker protests in Canada, with the most recent update being that

Starting point is 00:02:31 basically Justin Trudeau is revoking the emergency powers given to law enforcement now that the protests in Ottawa are done and the border blockades are cleared, saying the situation is no longer an emergency, therefore the federal government will be ending the use of the Emergencies Act, and adding we are confident that existing laws and bylaws are sufficient. Well, this is a quick story and update. It is a meaningful one, right? Because Trudeau first invoked the act last week, but lawmakers only ratified it Monday night, and it gave police the authority to declare no-go zones, freeze bank accounts, and order tow trucks to help clear blockades, among other measures. One of the big criticisms of this Emergency Act were people

Starting point is 00:02:57 saying he's going to extend this, he's going to abuse the power. But what's actually happened now is Trudeau has revoked it earlier than he was even required to. But from that, and before we jump into the biggest and heaviest story today, I'd like to take a second to thank the sponsor of today's show, Squarespace. You know, I've been partnering with Squarespace for years now, and I have to say, if you're getting your business off the ground, or creating a place to share your homemade goods, new favorite hobby, current obsession, or even a personal blog to get all those thoughts out of your head, no matter what it is you're doing, Squarespace is there to help.

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Starting point is 00:03:45 And when you realize you love it, make sure you enter an offer code phil to get 10% off your first purchase. And then it finally happened. The thing we spent weeks knowing would happen, reporting on it, despite even some high profile people saying that it's laughable to think that it would happen. And even as I hoped that the information was wrong, it wasn't. Russia has launched a full scale invasion across Ukraine early Thursday morning local time. In a televised speech, Russian president, Evil Fuckface Vladimir Putin justified the actions by pointing

Starting point is 00:04:08 to his defense treaties with the breakaway states in Donbass and adding, I decided to conduct a special military operation. It aims to protect people who have been bullied and subjected to genocide by the Kiev regime for eight years. For that, we will strive for the demilitarization and denazification of Ukraine and will bring to justice those who committed multiple bloody crimes against civilians, including Russian civilians with the Russian Foreign Ministry later tweeting out a similar statement But to be absolutely clear here the narrative that Ukraine has engaged in some kind of genocide against the people in Donbass is completely false and No serious proof has ever been provided as far as Ukraine allegedly being run by Nazi supporters

Starting point is 00:04:38 There's only like two pieces of quote-unquote evidence They try and use when I say that because part of it comes from history. In World War II, when some Ukrainians initially accepted German troops as liberators from Soviet Russia, they came to regret that decision and millions of Ukrainians died fighting the Nazis. And in more recent times, there are a few far-right Nazi-aligned militia groups running around in the Donbass region fighting, with images of these groups constantly being spread by Russian media as if this is how Ukrainians are as a whole.

Starting point is 00:05:01 But understand, they are fringe groups fighting in a relatively lawless region. Also, Putin's claim that Ukraine is a Nazi state are especially laughable when you consider that Ukrainian President Zelensky is Jewish. And speaking of Zelensky, it appears that he tried up until the last second to figure out a diplomatic solution. Hours before the invasion, he pleaded directly to the Russian people, telling them, you've been told I'm going to bomb Donbass. Bomb what? The Donetsk Stadium where the locals and I cheered our team at Euro 2012? The bar where we drank when they lost? Luhansk where my best friend's mom lives, with him even calling Putin right before the invasion order was given, but he was essentially left on voicemail. Also around the same time as Putin's

Starting point is 00:05:30 speech, an emergency meeting of the UN was held, but Ukraine was understandably not having it, especially because the meeting was actually run by the Russian ambassador, and by the end of the meeting, Ukraine's ambassador told his Russian counterpart, There is no purgatory for war criminals. They go straight to hell, Ambassador. But despite all those efforts, shortly after Putin's speech, Russian forces started targeting Ukrainian assets. First, civilians in major Ukrainian cities were woken up early in the morning by the sound of missile attacks and air raid sirens.

Starting point is 00:05:54 Russian missiles seeming to target airports, warehouses, ports, military bases, and in the capital, they hit administrative military buildings. Though, that said, as to be expected with this, there are plenty of reports that missiles have also hit civilian buildings. And since all this, Russian forces have made reports that missiles have also hit civilian buildings. And since all this, Russian forces have made a large breakthrough in the Donbas region and began to encircle Kharkiv, Ukraine's second largest city. With Russian forces reportedly alongside Belarusian allies also crossing the border into northern Ukraine and they're making their way to Kyiv. There was also reportedly intense fighting near the Chernobyl nuclear power plant.

Starting point is 00:06:19 Something Zelensky called a declaration of war against the whole of Europe because of how dangerous damage to the containment facility could be. However, it looks like as of recording this, Russian forces have managed to take the site, inching the northern forces that much closer to Kiev. And in the south, Russian forces crossed into Ukraine from Crimea, while missile attacks have also been reported in Odessa and Mariupol as well. You have Zelensky announcing that the country has faced serious losses amid the early stages of the Russian campaign and that at least dozens have died. But I also don't want to get too much more into the specifics of the military situation as it's extremely fluid and concrete information is very hard to get, which

Starting point is 00:06:47 even with my reporting is something to keep in mind. Now that said, there are reports of Ukrainian losses in some areas and of Ukrainian victories in others. The president also pleading with NATO to make the country a no-fly zone, which would help the Ukrainians a lot militarily, but it is also extremely unlikely because NATO would need to get directly involved in forcing Russian planes down. With their hesitation, probably aided by the perception that Putin is willing to use nuclear weapons, with him saying, anyone who tries to stop us, or who threatens our country or our people

Starting point is 00:07:10 should know that Russia's response will be immediate and lead to consequences of a kind that you have never faced in your history. But that also hasn't stopped all NATO members from urging for more action. With the Baltic countries extremely concerned about what's going on there, because they have a long history

Starting point is 00:07:22 of facing Russian domination and fear that they could be next. Now with all that said, since the fighting began, we've seen major reactions from politicians, regular citizens, and even markets around the world. First, looking at everyday people, many, many Ukrainians are trying to flee their cities and go west, leading to massive traffic jams.

Starting point is 00:07:35 And for those who haven't left, the day has been spent hunkered down in their homes or the subway, which doubles as a bomb shelter. And to get an idea of what this journey has been like, you can look up Zepla, an American streamer that's lived in Kyiv for years. About a week ago, she actually left the city, and over the last few hours,

Starting point is 00:07:46 she's been tweeting about her ongoing experience making her way to Poland from Ukraine. We also saw groups helping Ukrainians stuck abroad with no way to get home. For example, there's a massive video game tournament going on in Poland with plenty of Ukrainian players stuck there, and so companies and organizations like Team Liquid have opened up their doors

Starting point is 00:07:58 to Ukrainian players so they can have a place to stay while all of this goes down. Also on social media, you had a number of people taking shots at and dunking on a number of influencers, including Hasan Piker. And this because he was one of the many people that was spreading the narrative that it's laughable that Russia would do anything. With him tweeting last week, Listening to NPR reporters confused about why the people on the ground in Ukraine are calm when a Russian invasion is imminent is hilarious. They're confused why no one's taking money out or leaving towns.

Starting point is 00:08:20 Maybe it's because the Ukrainians don't watch American news every day. And this is the hill I will die on. Russia cannot launch an urban counterinsurgency war in a neighboring country with 44 million people with or without NATO support. This is why I've been saying he won't invade Ukraine, not because of anything else. He's a bad person, not a mad one. But to his credit some, unlike a number of other influencers I've seen, he has kind of owned the mistake. Sharing a tweet that argued many analysts in Moscow thought the build-up was bluff and writing himself, didn't think a regional power would act so irrationally. I know Putin doesn't care about lives, but these actions also directly harm his geopolitical interests. I've admitted my mistakes, I got things wrong, I hope Ukrainians are safe. Then, looking at the stock markets,

Starting point is 00:08:53 many took a beating as the news broke and as oil shot up past $100 a barrel. And as far as politicians, most have been speaking out against Russia, but you've also seen a kind of politician that's trying to lay this at the feet of President Biden, who for the longest time has been saying this is going to happen, though he's been kind of mocked for saying so. For example, you had Tulsi Gabbard seeming to prep herself for a job interview with Russia Today, tweeting out, "'This war and suffering could have easily been avoided

Starting point is 00:09:14 "'if Biden admin slash NATO had simply acknowledged "'Russia's legitimate security concerns "'regarding Ukraine becoming a member of NATO, "'which would mean US NATO forces right on Russia's border.'" Which one is clearly bullshit given Putin's quote, "'justification' for what's happening. Right, trying to make Ukraine seem like a Nazi state, but also I think it's concerning when you have someone

Starting point is 00:09:29 who served in Congress that's just kind of repeating Steve Bannon's and Russian propaganda groups talking points. But for the most part, like I said with other politicians, it seems like standing with Ukraine and condemnations of Russia has been kind of the status quo. Right, shortly after hostilities started, President Joe Biden issued a statement calling the attack unprovoked and unjustified.

Starting point is 00:09:44 Accusing Putin of starting a premeditated war that will bring a catastrophic loss of life and human suffering, and adding, "'Russia alone is responsible for the death "'and destruction this attack will bring. "'The world will hold Russia accountable.'" And with that, the US, European Union, UK, and seemingly members of the G7 have promised

Starting point is 00:09:57 massive, crippling sanctions against Russia for these actions. And as President Biden announced today, these will involve freezing the assets of certain Russian oligarchs and largely blocking many Russian and Belarusian companies alongside their biggest banks from raising new money or partaking in the world economy. And one of the bigger things, you have Ukrainians asking Russia to be removed from the SWIFT banking system, which would essentially freeze them out for most parts of the global economy. Though it is unclear if this step would be taken as it's largely considered a nuclear option.

Starting point is 00:10:19 On top of that, the UK just banned all Russian aircraft from its airspace, although it remains to be seen if the EU or other NATO members will follow their lead. But notably, some of the most important reactions right now have actually come out of Russia. In Moscow, for example, thousands reportedly took to the street to protest the war, and similar demonstrations were held in other Russian cities, which I commend them for doing. That's a huge risk considering demonstrations

Starting point is 00:10:36 against Putin's policy are a quick way to end up in a Siberian prison. So to all of those Russians, you are bamfs for standing up to that fucking monster. And finally, the last thing I wanna touch on is how this has played out online. Shortly after the fighting broke out, World War III was trending and a ton of people were memeing about it, which has resulted in a number of people pointing out things like, please stop tweeting World War III as a joke. A country

Starting point is 00:10:53 full of innocent Ukrainians is currently being bombed. Though some have accused Ukraine's Twitter account of memeing what's happening. Though I think you could easily argue that is not a meme, this is just a social version of political cartoons. Like this one that Fox News put on their Instagram this morning. That's not a meme. That's a political cartoon. Something long, well-established, whether you agree or don't agree with the message. Though, with the memeing, while it's insensitive, it's relatively harmless. And the really concerning thing is the amount of misinformation that's out there right now.

Starting point is 00:11:16 That is definitely harmful. There's a ton of footage out there going around like it's from this conflict when it's clearly not. With some of the biggest offending clips we notice while researching this. For example, this isn't a Russian paratrooper invasion, but a video of a drill that's also years old. Also, this is for sure not Ukraine and is likely an animation. Not to mention that flak cannons like this

Starting point is 00:11:31 haven't been used in decades by modern militaries. Also, this is from the video game Arma 3, and that is from a military parade. There's no plane that's going that close or flying in a formation like that during an actual conflict. While we're talking about misinformation, I feel like I really need to stress

Starting point is 00:11:43 to any viewers in Ukraine, do not listen to Russian trolls. There is an increasing amount of misinformation being spread, including claims of Poland has closed its borders. This is not true. They are open and no visas are required, just a passport. They're ready and very willing to accept refugees from the conflict. Russia has a very well-established misinformation arm. So be careful, and even though there's chaos right now and there's an urgency in the moment, try to check sources. But ultimately, that is where the story ends for now. I mean, it's still a developing situation. The moment I post this, it's probably already going to be two to three hours late on the newest developments,

Starting point is 00:12:12 which actually, if you want more up-to-date information on this, I post throughout the weekend over on TikTok. My name over there is Philip DeFranco. We've been covering this topic in depth for over a month now, so follow there. But ultimately, that's the story. And regarding any aspect, I know we talked about a lot. I'd love to know your thoughts on this crazy, crazy, horrible and unjustified situation. But ultimately that is where the story and today's show ends. As always, thank you for watching, liking, supporting,

Starting point is 00:12:33 some common sense news coverage. I love yo faces. From here, I'm gonna try to sleep some of this off, but as always, my name's Philip DeFranco, you've just been filled in, I love yo faces and I'll see you next time.

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The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 2.24 RUSSIA INVADED UKRAINE! WHAT NOW?! Misinformation, Bad Takes, Trolls, Devastating Economies, & More

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