The Philip DeFranco Show - PDS 9.26 The Russell Brand Situation Just Got Worse, 5 Puppies Found in Freezer, Epstein, & Today's News

Episode Date: September 26, 2023

Click here https://www.seed.com/defranco and use code DEFRANCO to get 25% off your 1st month’s supply of Seed’s DS-01®  Daily Synbiotic + Free shipping!  Go to http://hellofresh.com/50defranco and use code 50defranco for 50% off plus free shipping. https://beautifulbastard.com/ NEW Beautiful Bastard Drop! “Bearly Functioning” Tees & Hoodies,   Spooky Season Gear & More! Ends at Midnight! Go Buy http://WakeandMakeCoffee.com 50% OFF select orders! This new batch won’t last long. Catch up on our latest PDS: https://youtu.be/4OCaX0N0bJ8?si=hhA_qJv5CaokzOmC Check out our daily newsletter! http://dailydip.co/pds  Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/phillydefranco/?hl=en  –✩ TODAY’S STORIES ✩ – 00:00 - U.K. Police Investigating Russell Brand Claims 03:09 - Chess Grandmaster Hans Niemann Denies Controversial Cheating Claim 04:50 - JP Morgan to Pay $75 Million For Enabling Epstein  06:30 - Amusement Park Ride Stuck Upside Down for Half An Hour 07:57 - Woman Arrested for Keeping Dozens of Dogs, Including Dead Ones, in Her Home  08:53 - SAG Authorizes Strike Against Video Game Companies 09:49 - Sponsored by Seed 10:46 - Perdue Farms, Tyson Foods Face Child Labor Inquiry  12:08 - New Orleans Braces for Massive Drinking Water Crisis 13:15 - White House Warns Gov. Shutdown Will Hurt National Security 15:38 - Supreme Court Rejects Alabama’s Congressional Map — Again 17:14 - Russian Black Sea Fleet Commander Seen in Video After Alleged Death 18:37 - Sponsored by HelloFresh 19:38 - Idaho Schools Are Crumbling - Despite a $25 Million State Fund to Help Them  24:51 - Your Thoughts on Yesterday’s Stories ——————————   Produced by: Cory Ray Edited by: James Girardier, Maxx Enright, Julie Goldberg, Christian Meeks Art Department: William Crespo Writing/Research: Philip DeFranco, Brian Espinoza, Lili Stenn, Maddie Crichton, Star Pralle, Chris Tolve  ———————————— #DeFranco #RussellBrand #EthanKlein ———————————— Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Today, we're talking about the Russell Brand situation getting worse, allegations growing, and now Ethan Klein claiming that he's trying to silence critics too. We've got a horrific scene from a theme park where passengers were dangling upside down for half an hour. Louisiana's on the verge of a major water crisis. The looming government shutdown's worse than you think. It turns out it's a bad idea to applaud a Nazi in Canadian Parliament. Why this Idaho school situation exposes a huge national crisis. And possibly one of the most disturbing hoarder news stories I've ever seen. We're talking about all that and so much more on today's

extra large Philip DeFranco show. You daily dive into the news, but first a very quick reminder, you only have a few hours left. If you want to get in on the surprise drop, I did over at beautiful bastard.com where after midnight, you'll no longer be able to get the barely functioning tea hoodie or cropped hoodie, but my body hurts and I hate the government. Can we cuddle and watch spooky movies, tea or crew or the, I just want to make enough to comfortably live the lifestyle I'm currently living uncomfortably flower power, tea, hoodie or crew. But remember, if you only buy things one or two times a year, I got a really huge drop coming October 16th that features all this. With that said, we got so much news to talk about today. So let's just jump into it.

Starting with... resulting in tons of reactions online. And now, those claims are also resulting in a police investigation in the UK, with London's Metropolitan Police releasing a statement that did not specifically name Brand, but included enough details to make clear he was the subject of this, saying, Following an investigation by Channel 4's dispatches and the Sunday Times, the Met has received a number of allegations of sexual offenses in London. And also adding, They've received a number of allegations of sexual offenses committed elsewhere in the country and will investigate these.

With that statement also adding that the claims are not reason, and encouraging anyone who may have been a victim of sexual misconduct to contact the police no matter how long ago the incident was. And Brand has already denied the allegations here, but also the investigation comes as he's also in the news for a handful of other reasons, including that he's been demonetized on YouTube. And he's now asking fans to financially support him by paying for a subscription to his Rumble. Redoing streams where he's saying that he's being silenced and he's battling for free speech. But then you also have online creators like Ethan Klein calling him out,

saying on the H3 podcast yesterday that Brand actually sent him a legal notice after covering the allegation, something that he claimed was hypocritical amid Brand's own free speech tirades, and actually tweeting about the situation a few days ago by saying, Legit rapist Russell Brand doesn't like free speech when it's about him. He used his new video addressing rape allegations to claim our podcast about him. But then going into more detail on yesterday's podcast, where he said that he was hit by two claims from Russell over two different clips they use in the podcast while talking about it. One being an old radio appearance they referenced, the second being

footage from a recent video Russell posted following the allegations with Ethan saying, It just seems a little weird. Like, obviously, part of you goes like, oh, it's probably automated. But two different claims, both by Russell Brand on our video. And I'm never claimed by these goons, by these types of guys, you know what I mean? Because this is their whole thing, like, I'm free speech. Oh, you're probably gonna go to jail. There's like a good chance he's gonna go to jail.

You're gonna need a lot more money than the revenue from this video to pay that s*** off. But ultimately, that's where we are with this right now. Of course, it's a developing situation. We're gonna have to keep an eye on it if there's more fallout, more developments, also what's happening with the police investigation right now. Of course, it's a developing situation. We're going to have to keep an eye on it if there's more fallout, more developments. Also, what's happening with the police investigation. But in the meantime, I'd love to know your thoughts on this news. And then, with most sports, if you see someone excelling, you might be like, oh, I wonder if they're on the juice.

But when it comes to chess, it's the only sport where if someone's doing good, you're like, do they have anal beads inside of them? Because that's the conversation happening right now around chess grandmaster Hans Niemann. To put all this into context, Niemann shook the chess world by beating Magnus Carlsen, who was considered to be the best chess player on earth in a tournament last year. But refusing to accept the outcome, Carlsen withdrew from the tournament and claimed that Niemann had cheated. Then, for some reason, a rumor gained traction on the internet that Niemann not only cheated, but he did so with a vibrating sex toy up his ass that his coach used to send remote signals to him. Which, to be clear here, there is no evidence of this, and probably because it's just so ridiculous, Neiman never addressed it, but he did deny ever cheating during an in-person

match though. He admitted to cheating during two online games when he was 12 and 16 years old. And so to fight back against the allegation, he filed a $100 million defamation lawsuit against Carlson, another grandmaster whom he accused of amplifying the claim and chess.com with him suing the website because it released a report alleging that Neiman had likely cheated at more than 100 online games But then in June a judge dismissed the suit and in August They resolved their dispute out of court with chess.com and banning his account and Carlson acknowledging that there was no evidence Neiman cheated during Their initial game together

But the big reason this is in the news right now is that Neiman went on Piers Morgan last night and delivered what many had Been waiting for a denial. Have you ever used anal beads while playing chess Not a question. I ever thought I'd ask a guest, to be honest, but... Well, you know, your curiosity is a bit concerning, you know. Maybe you're personally interested, but I can tell you no. And so that pretty much settles that, unless you think that he's lying, in which case nothing but an x-ray of his empty rectum would probably convince you.

But, I mean, assuming Nielsen really is an honest player, this sucks for him. Because no matter what the truth of the situation is, he will forever be known to a group of people who don't care enough to read past headlines as the guy who cheated using anal beads. And then, J.P. Morgan is paying $75 million to the U.S. Virgin Islands over claims that it enabled Jeffrey Epstein.

The Virgin Islands were home to Epstein's infamous estate, and Epstein banked with J.P. Morgan Chase for 15 years between 1998 and 2013. Last year, we saw the Virgin Islands hit the bank with a lawsuit claiming that it just turned a blind eye and continued to finance Epstein amid his misconduct. And so this case was ready to go to trial next month, but now we've seen this massive settlement.

And as we always see in these situations per NBC News, the settlement does not require J.P. Morgan to admit liability, though the bank says they do regret any association with Epstein. And notably, this settlement does involve several commitments to prevent human trafficking and help survivors. With the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Justice releasing a statement saying that a large portion of these funds will go to local charities to support victims of human trafficking

and domestic violence, as well as to DOJ initiatives in the Virgin Islands to enhance public safety and combat crime. With $10 million specifically going to provide mental health resources for Epstein's victims. And on top of all that, you have the bank reportedly making new commitments to identify, report, and cut support for potential human trafficking by setting up new procedures to contact law enforcement, terminate accounts, conduct employee training, and more. The U.S. Virgin Islands Attorney General Ariel M. Smith sang in a press release,

this settlement is a historic victory for survivors and for state enforcement, and it should sound the alarm on Wall Street about banks' responsibility under the law to detect and prevent human trafficking. Our DOJ tirelessly pursued this enforcement action to make it substantially harder for traffickers to finance their crimes in the future, and we are confident this settlement will help achieve that goal. And then on top of all that,

JP Morgan also announced that it reached a separate settlement with James Staley, a former executive that the bank sued this year. He was in charge of the Epstein account, and JP Morgan claimed he covered up Epstein's actions, but the details of that settlement are confidential. Though notably, this $75 million settlement is just a little bit compared to the whopping $290 million settlement J.P. Morgan already agreed to pay over a suit brought forward by Epstein's victims.

And then, there's something a little bit wrong with all of us that love roller coasters. Like, the more that you think about it, really. You're strapping yourself to some clunky machine that just whips you around so what, you can simulate what it feels like to almost die? You just edge in life. And again, I say that as someone that loves roller coasters, who's jumped out of an airplane. But with roller coasters, if something goes wrong, things can happen like what happened to these people at Ontario's Wonderland theme park this week, right? Because they made the poor decision to go on the lumberjack ride, which is this ridiculous contraption with two hydraulic arms shaped like axes that swing back and forth like

a pendulum and occasionally loop around 360 degrees. And wouldn't you know it, it suddenly just stops at the tippy top, leaving all the passengers stuck hanging upside down 75 feet in the air. You know, when I say upside down, I mean straight up, 90 degree angle. They couldn't be in a worse spot. And so they're just dangling there with a crowd gawking from down below. And from the writer's perspective above, you can hear them screaming. But at one point you hear park staff ask their megaphone, is everyone doing okay up there? To which everyone shouts back in unison, no. One writer even telling CBC News that people were panicked and one person even vomited. And then nearly half an hour after getting stuck, the ride finally came down. Only four or two then go back up again. Because apparently the hydraulic arms had to finish the rest of the ride before its passengers could

actually be evacuated. With one 11-year-old boy even later saying, so the ride kept going and we were all like, no, please, I don't want to get stuck again. Then finally it came back down, everyone got off, and only two people were reportedly treated for chest pain before being released. So I guess you just remember anytime you get on one of these things, it is not 100% safe. The machine meant to make you simulate feeling like you're going to die may sometimes do too good of a job of that. But also, isn't that kind of the fun?

And then, you ever open up your freeze and you're like, oh my god, there's five dead puppies in here. Well, probably not, but you're not like 48-year-old April McLaughlin, whose neighbors ended up reporting foul smells and hoarding conditions at her Arizona home to the police, authorities finally getting a search warrant. And reportedly, when firefighters arrived, the air quality was so horrendous that they had to wear special breathing equipment, which made absolute sense because inside, they found not only the freezer carcasses, but also 55 other dogs starving and dehydrated,

with most of them being elderly or special needs, living in this shithole that was literally covered in feces and urine. And so now April has been charged with 55 counts of animal abuse, 55 counts of animal cruelty, and one count of vulnerable adult abuse because her elderly mother also lived in the home, with her reportedly telling police she had been running an animal rescue out of her home for a year, but took on too many dogs,

and adding that she didn't think there was anything wrong with storing food next to the dead puppies. And as for that godforsaken house, the conditions were so awful it's now been condemned, meaning that it's actually illegal for anyone or anything to live there, which just tells you how criminally disgusting it must have been for the past year. And then, while the writer's strike appears to almost be over, SAG strike could actually be getting bigger soon. Since July, film and television actors have been on strike against the major studios, and now union members have voted to authorize a strike against video game companies. With the Guild's interactive media agreement having been under

negotiation since last October, there are reports noting that this covers things like voice work, motion capture, stunts, and more for video games. With SAC announcing yesterday that union members voted 98% in favor of the strike, though, the statement also clarified, the strike authorization does not mean the union is calling a strike. The next bargaining session is scheduled for September 26th, 27th, and 28th, and we hope the added leverage of a successful strike authorization vote will compel the companies to make significant movement on critical issues where we are still far apart. Right, and this currently as SAG is negotiating with companies like Activision, Disney Character Voices, Formosa Interactive, Epic Games, WB Games, and more. But they're asking for things like wages to keep up with inflation, protection against artificial intelligence, and basic safety precautions. We'll have to wait to see what comes from negotiations, but if this space struck, it wouldn't be the first time. And notably, the last one that happened in

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poultry producers in the country, are now in the middle of a child labor scandal. Or because they are the focus of an investigation by the Labor Department for having children as young as 13 working overnight cleaning their slaughterhouses. And notably, federal law prohibits minors from working in meat processing because it's too dangerous. In fact, this inquiry comes after the New York Times Magazine shared the story of Marcos, a 14-year-old who nearly had his arm torn off in a Purdue plant in Virginia, where reportedly he was cleaning the inside of a conveyor belt when the machine kicked on and dragged him across the floor, cutting open his arm.

With the kid having to get three surgeries and still his arm is limp, his hand is frozen into a claw. Now, notably, these children aren't being employed directly by Tyson and Purdue themselves, but rather the cleaning agencies they outsource to. And the Labor Department is reportedly including these cleaning companies in their inquiry. And another key thing that you should remember from this story is that this investigation comes just six months after the Labor Department fined one of the largest sanitation companies $1.5 million for employing over 100 children to clean meat processing plants in eight different states. Now with all this, Purdue said that they are aware of the investigation and said in a statement, we take the legal employment and safety of each individual working in our facilities very seriously and have strict longstanding policies in place for Purdue associates to prevent minors

from working hazardous jobs in violation of the law. But I'm also saying they're conducting a third party audit in child labor prevention and protection measures within their company, including their contractors. However, with Tyson Foods, they say it was not made aware of the investigation and has yet to comment. And as far as the labor department, they say their wage and hour division is handling the case and cannot provide any details right now.

And then, New Orleans is on the brink of a massive drinking water crisis. Right now, you've got saltwater from the Gulf of Mexico threatening to seep into fresh water supplies for millions of people in the city and surrounding areas. And just yesterday, you had the governor of Louisiana officially requesting that Biden grant the state a federal emergency declaration to free up assistance from the federal government. And that, coming shortly after the mayor of New Orleans also signs an emergency declaration for the city due to the saltwater situation. With this saltwater intrusion coming as a severe summer drought has seriously shrunk the Mississippi River, causing historically low freshwater levels and currents. Because the mouth of the river is below sea level, some saltwater from the Gulf of Mexico typically creeps in, and usually the river's flow is so powerful that it just pushes it out.

But because of the severe drought conditions, the river is not strong enough to stop that intrusion. And despite efforts to block the saltwater from seeping in, officials warn that it'll soon contaminate freshwater supplies. And that could have major consequences because many local water treatment facilities just aren't equipped to handle such high salt content. So it poses a health risk for the public water systems that rely on those sources. And already we're seeing the impacts of this in other parts of the state.

In fact, a parish south of New Orleans has been under a drinking water advisory since June due to the intrusion of salt water. And you have officials projecting that salt water could impact places further upstream, including New Orleans, in a matter of weeks. So if you're there, prepare, and for the rest of us, we'll be keeping a close eye on this situation. And then, are you ready? It's government shutdown time. And the fun thing is while this happens all the time, this feels like the most dysfunctional Congress has ever been. One of the biggest concerns is that a government shutdown would undermine American national security. That's what you had the White House saying in a statement today, accusing Republican extremists of playing partisan games with people's lives and marching our country toward a government shutdown that

would have damaging impacts across the country. And the statement explaining that if the government did shut down, service members, including our 1.3 million active duty troops, would keep working, but they wouldn't get paid until funding is available. What's more, hundreds of thousands of civilians in the Department of Defense would also get furloughed, which the White House said would affect the ways in which the department manages its affairs globally, including the vital task of recruiting new members of the military. Adding, all of this would prove disruptive to our national security. Though a very important thing is that national security isn't the only thing that's going to be impacted, right? The tens of millions of people who rely on government food programs could lose access to essential services. I mean, you have the agriculture department saying that

food benefits provided to 7 million mothers through the Women, Infants, and Children program would be cut within a matter of days. Free and reduced price school lunches for kids in need would also end very quickly. And if the shutdown lasts for a while, food stamp benefits that 40 million people rely on could also risk running out of funding. And the hit to the economy could be absolutely massive, with the government estimating that the five-week-long partial shutdown between 2018 and 2019 cost the U.S. economy $3 billion. And while federal workers eventually get paid back,

businesses that rely on the federal government can't recoup the money they lost. Though do not worry, the members of Congress that caused all this pain and strain still get regular paychecks. You know, just a fun little perk for all of them, but especially the few far-right Republicans that are gonna drive us into this shutdown,

which, hey, I hope doesn't happen, but we're now less than five days away. And while the Senate is set to advance a bipartisan stopgap plan to extend government funding for a little bit longer and provide more time to reach a deal, the GOP can't even get on board with that. And the dumbest thing of all is there's probably enough support from Democrats and moderate Republicans in the House to pass the Senate version of the bill. Right now, it seems unlikely that House Speaker Kevin McCarthy will bring that to a vote.

That's because the far-right members who were single-handedly holding the government hostage have said that they will remove McCarthy as Speaker if he proceeds with a vote on legislation that didn't include their demands for massive cuts. Now, that said, there is a way for the House to maneuver around McCarthy if he refuses to bring a stopgap measure for a vote. But, big thing there, that could take weeks and would require support from both Democrats and Republicans. So as a result, you have people close to the matter saying

McCarthy will be forced to decide between bringing a vote on a bill that could result in his ousting as Speaker or plummeting the federal government into a shutdown. And it really all just boils down to a question of how stupid, stubborn and or selfish are you? Because what happens here will affect the livelihoods of millions and millions of Americans and U.S. national security. And then it's like Groundhog's Day. The Supreme Court has rejected Alabama's congressional map again. I mean, we've been covering the situation from the get-go. Back in June, the Supreme Court struck down Alabama's map and ordered the state to redraw it,

upholding a lower court ruling that found that it had discriminated against black voters. This after the Republican legislature had made just one of Alabama's seven districts majority black, even though nearly one in three voters in the state are black. And even though the legislature was explicitly told to redraw the map so at least two districts had a black voter majority, or at least close to it, the GOP just decided to go ahead and totally ignore the court ruling, instead forcing through a map that increased the makeup of black voters in one district from 30 to 39 percent. Because 39 percent, of course, is what we all consider a majority or close to it. And so unsurprisingly, a federal court once again struck down that map, absolutely

tearing Alabama a new asshole in an insanely harsh decision earlier this month and ordering that the map be redrawn by an independent cartographer. But of course, Alabama Republicans whined to the Supreme Court asking them to revisit the issue once again. But today, the Supreme Court basically said, leave us the fuck alone. We already told you no. The justice is actually refusing the GOP's emergency filing request to reinstate the newer map this morning without offering an opinion. And so it seems like this is finally the end of this long, stupid Alabama saga. But a key thing is this is expected to have far reaching implications that go beyond Alabama. Right. And as The Washington Post explains, the case has been closely watched because of an unprecedented number of challenges to congressional maps that are advancing in courts throughout the country.

Enough to give one political party or the other an advantage heading into the 2024 elections. I mean, just Alabama alone could give Democrats another seat once the map is properly redrawn. And federal judges in both Georgia and Louisiana have made similar rulings about illegal racial gerrymandering in those state maps. So even if Alabama alone can't flip the slim Republican majority in the House, taken all together, these cases could actually change the balance of power in Congress. And then over the last few days, Ukraine has managed a major success by taking out a ton of Russia's leadership in the Black Sea, including the fleet commander, or at least that's what they claim, while Russian sources are now providing video claiming to show the commander working after that strike. But what we do know for

sure is that late last week, Ukraine managed to strike the capital of Crimea, where notably the Russian Black Sea fleet is based. While they hit strategic targets all over the city, the main target was the fleet's headquarters, which seemed to have been heavily damaged. From there, Ukraine claims that nearly three dozen officers were killed, with the biggest prize being Admiral Viktor Sokolov, who heads the fleet. Which means such high-ranking officers being killed in any modern war is exceptionally rare and can have major repercussions for how well the Black Sea Fleet operates. But here's the thing. Only Ukraine is claiming that Sokolov is dead. Russia not only refused to confirm his death, they put out a video today showing him at a meeting. However, you have tons of people quick to accuse that video of being

doctored, with accusations like Sokolov doesn't really move at all in the video. So we likely won't know the truth for some time, as Russia is unlikely to admit that Ukraine managed to pull off such a strategic victory if they did. But dead or not, the strike that we saw, which was done with Western missiles, shows that the aid that we're giving Ukraine is working. Not to mention that they are actually making headway in their counteroffensive in the South, leading to rumors that Russia is evacuating Crimea. In short, lots of tanks and other vehicles that we gave them have been destroyed in the process, which is why places like the U.S. have agreed to send Ukraine more modern tanks recently. Like, that's unfortunately how war works. It's not like Russia suddenly lost its ability to actually blow up tanks. But also,

one of the craziest things that we've seen is how much of this war is being fought online, or the war of perception, the war of opinions, with the Sokolov situation just being the most recent. And then, y'all, fall schedules don't always leave you with time to spare. You've got kids going back to school, new activities, it all adds up, and most of us don't have a lot of time left to spend in the kitchen. But thanks to today's sponsor, HelloFresh, you don't always leave you with time to spare. You've got kids going back to school, new activities, it all adds up. And most of us don't have a lot of time left to spend in the kitchen. But thanks to today's sponsor, HelloFresh, you don't need to spend all evening in the kitchen to whip up a wholesome meal.

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I mean, honestly, it is a no-brainer. So try America's number one meal kit today. And then nothing highlights how horrible government bureaucracy is, quite like the threat of the ceiling falling on your child's head at school. Because that's the reality for many kids in Idaho, despite there being a multi-million dollar fund being available for unsafe schools to renovate. One example would

be the Salmon School District. Before it closed, their middle school would cancel classes when it snowed because of the risk of the roof caving in, the floors buckling, and the foundation was crumbling. With the school board trying six times in seven years to raise enough support for a tax increase for a new facility, but they could never get over the threshold needed. And that's because, fun random fact, Idaho is one of only two states that require a two-thirds vote in support of a bond to pass it. So even though there is majority support, 53% of the community is saying, we need this, they can't get the bond they need. And in fact, one school board member recently said in an interview, unless an existing school actually falls to the ground andand becomes unusable,

"'I don't perceive them ever passing a bond.'" And in 2012, we saw the school board and superintendent turning to the state because they offer money through a program created to allow school districts to borrow money to repair unsafe facilities and locations that couldn't pass a bond. However, there, the state panel found that while Salmon Middle School problems

did pose safety hazards, they weren't bad enough to warrant a new facility. So instead, the program offered them funding for new roofing and seismic reinforcements, with the money they were offered being just a fraction of what the district had pushed for in their community when trying to get their bond approved.

Or we're talking only $3.6 million compared to the 14 million they were looking for and needed. And so that news was met with dwindling enrollment numbers and it forced the school board to close the doors to Salmon Middle School, instead having to put trailers with no bathrooms or sinks alongside the elementary and high school buildings for the students.

And then with the closing of the middle school, the district used only half of that funding for the portable buildings and repairs to the elementary school. But even today, a decade later, the middle school building still stands as this foreboding sign while the school district battles the new and old problems in their other buildings.

And understand, this is hardly a new problem. Educators have been sounding the alarm on this about crumbling schools in Idaho for decades. Right back in the 90s, a group of superintendents, districts, and parents sued the state over inadequate funding. And a statewide assessment found that 71 facilities across the state, we're talking about 10% of the buildings used for instruction, they were considered dangerous or at least had serious problems. One high school was deemed straight up unsafe to

occupy, but even without the money to fix it, the school stayed open for years. And finally, in 2005, the Idaho Supreme Court ruled in favor of the educators, saying the state's, quote, reliance on loans alone to pay for major repairs or the replacement of unsafe school buildings was inadequate for the poorer school districts. The court also saying that lawmakers had a responsibility to make sure that these schools were receiving adequate funding. And the following year, lawmakers moved to address that problem, starting with the obvious one, lowering the damn two-thirds majority requirement for bond approval. However, that barely ended up seeing the light of day before it was squashed. And instead, they created a bill that only sort of solved the problem, which is where the Public School

Facilities Cooperative Funding Program comes in. That program was intended to help districts that couldn't get the necessary bonds to repair their facilities. But the problem there was that they set the bar way too high, saying that only districts whose buildings present, quote, an unreasonable risk of death or serious bodily injury or unreasonable health risk would qualify. And even if a district does qualify, there are so many strings attached to that deal, it deters many from even applying. If approved within the program, district officials have to give up complete control of their schools to a state-approved supervisor, with them even giving them the power to dismiss the superintendent. And then the state will impose a tax on the community to repay the loan, which is obviously a major deterrent

considering the community already shot down the bond proposal in the first place. But that may also be intended. With the former executive director of the State Board of Education, Mike Rush, saying, it was created to be, frankly, difficult to use. Awesome. Sounds so smart. And in fact, since its inception in 2006, the public school facilities cooperative funding program has only been used twice. With Rush going on to say that he felt the program was designed to push the community into approving a bond with the threat of a state takeover. And also one of the big hangups people have with this program specifically is that it doesn't fully address the court's ruling.

Where the justices rule that the problems weren't just with safety, but with creating an environment conducive to learning. And while there can obviously be value for a program specifically solving problems of safety within schools, for schools like this district, you have Rush saying, for those of us in the educational environment,

we wouldn't say that's the kind of facility we'd want to send our kids to for the next 20 years. Granted, they may not die while they're going to school. That's not the only criteria one might want to have for your kids. And still today, a decade after the repairs were made to the elementary school, the conditions within the facilities remain a point of contention within the district and community. With, for example, one parent saying, We got a new roof on a turd over there. They could have offered us some resources or some education or opportunities or some sort of lifeline.

But they just didn't. The kitchen is drawer and cabinet handles made of string. The plumbing is failing and causing sewage to back up into the kitchen. The water fountains only offered brown water for years. And a list of things goes on and on. In fact, the kitchen isn't even ADA compliant, where there are no ramps or anything to allow students in wheelchairs access to the lunch line. And many of the problems are the same ones the district was fighting 10 years ago, with crumbling foundations and uneven floors just being a few of the many. And I really don't know if you live there, how you can be hopeful. Because

the district, even as recently as 2019, tried to pass a bond to build a new facility again, and they garnered a lot of support. And they ended up only, crazy to say only because a simple majority should be able to do it, but only getting 58% of voters on board. And so every year, who suffers? The kids. Because we already know, thanks to so much research, when you have bad facilities, it affects the educational outcomes of those kids. And remember, the money is there. And the only reason those in government right now can give to why these kids are suffering is it is what it is. Well, guess what, motherfuckers?

You don't get to say that when you're the ones that can make it what it is. Hey, how I want to end this story is to pass a question off to you specifically about your experiences. What if you go to school or you have kids go to school in Idaho, what's the experience been? But also for anyone outside of Idaho, does any of this ring close to home for you? Let me know in those comments down below. And then let's talk about yesterday today, where we take a look at yesterday's show, where he covered so many news stories and dive into those comments to see your opinions, your feelings, and your reactions. But definitely a lot of the conversation around yesterday's show having to do with Canada or that whole whole scandal around Canadian parliament giving a standing

ovation to someone who fought for the Nazis, with y'all saying things like, as a Canadian, what happened feels humiliating, saying not only do we look like a joke, we screwed over our ally internationally, the Russian propagandists will have a field day with this. Others adding, as a Canadian, I wish my government would stop embarrassing us on the world stage for five goddamn minutes, with some saying there was a lot of blame to be shared, others specifically pointing the finger at Rhoda, which actually on the note of Canadian House Speaker Anthony Rhoda, you had tons of people saying,

hey, even if this was a genuine mistake, we just have no confidence in you anymore. And actually this afternoon, we saw Rhoda listening to that pressure and hand in his resignation, which will take effect at the end of the day tomorrow. With Rhoda once again apologizing and adding, the public recognition has caused pain to individuals and communities, including to the Jewish community in Canada and around the world, in addition to Nazi survivors in Poland, among other nations. I accept full responsibility for my actions.

And for those unfamiliar, I mean, this kind of resignation in Canada is extremely rare. Though, notably, it follows an outlier situation like cheering on a Nazi. But, I mean, as far as who's going to replace him, that's reportedly going to come down to a secret ballot election. So we'll have to wait to see what happens there. But also, in those comments yesterday, there was a lot of conversation around loneliness. Well, the focus of the news I was covering was more about Gen Z. People of all different generations were chiming in. With people sharing things like, as a millennial, the loneliness thing still hits hard. I had issues before the pandemic, but now it feels like meeting people and making a connection

is borderline impossible, especially when it comes to things that don't cost a bunch of money to keep up with. It's not just technology that's leading to the issue, but also the focus on not wasting time and getting that bag. I think hustle culture has caused massive damage to connection building and in conjunction with the pandemic completely changed how people can hope to make connections going forward, as well as crazy how the loneliness story came up today because that was on my mind the whole day. I'm 21 and not in college, so it's very hard to find people my age to be friends with. I literally went to the city today to hopefully meet new people. I wish everyone luck on battling loneliness. You also had people pushing back at some of the aspects of the story

yesterday, saying, as someone who worked as a cashier for years, I cringe whenever someone tries to blame the loneliness situation on things like self-checkouts and other things that make it so you don't engage with the store clerk while shopping. I remember the regulars who'd use this as their outlet for social interaction. They'd hang around way longer than they needed and expected you to listen and react to everything they had to say. It was always uncomfortable and not a mutual friendship at all. I didn't like half the shit you said, but I was held hostage by the fact that if I wasn't polite to you, I'd get fired. Though finally, there was a smattering of people that just like being by themselves. Like Nick, who said, as someone who prefers to be alone, it always intrigues me whenever I see people

struggling with loneliness. The older I get, the less I seem to care about interacting with other people, while at the same time, I feel more emotionless than I have ever been. I do have a And that is where we're going to end today's massive dive into the news. Thank you for watching. For more news, you need to know I got you covered right here. You can click or tap, or I got links in the description. But as always, my name's Philip DeFranco. You've just been filled in. I love your faces, and I'll see you right back here for more news tomorrow.