A Lot Of Noodle Boys

Summary

Armstrong & Getty On Demand — "A Lot Of Noodle Boys" (Nov 20, 2025)

Podcast: Armstrong & Getty On Demand
Hosts: Jack Armstrong & Joe Getty
Episode Theme: Geopolitical Tensions, AI, and Modern Society
Note: Ads, intros, outros, and non-content segments have been omitted.

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Episode Overview

This episode dives into three primary themes: international power struggles (with a focus on Ukraine, the Middle East, China, and Japan), the promise and perils of artificial intelligence (AI), and current American sociopolitical oddities. Jack and Joe mix sharp analysis with irreverent humor, keeping the conversation brisk and full of memorable moments.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Ukraine War & International Deals

[00:27–02:16]

• The hosts discuss recent diplomatic developments regarding the Ukraine war. President Trump is pushing for an end to hostilities, seeing it in transactional terms, potentially at Ukraine’s expense:
  • Jack: “We've been working with Putin to come up with a plan to end this thing without Ukraine's input. ...they've rejected it immediately.”
  • Joe: “Trump is so intent on ending the bloodshed, which is admirable. ...he doesn’t relate to the fact that Ukrainians don’t want to get bullied out of their own country and Vladimir Putin is an ideological zealot.”
• Skepticism towards Trump’s view: Concern that any temporary cessation could simply allow Putin to rebuild his forces for another attack.

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2. Middle East Ceasefires & Chinese Aggression

[02:16–05:44]

• Joe highlights ongoing fighting despite nominal “ceasefire” in the Middle East.
  • Quote at [02:16]: “Ceasefires in the Middle east look a lot like war anywhere else.”
• China–Taiwan Tension:
  • China uses “The Pen and the Gun” strategy—media mobilization and militaristic plays—to prepare society for confrontation over Taiwan.
  • Joe: "State-owned drama... troops are only receiving approval for war-themed plays. Other genres are being rejected."
  • Japan signals readiness to respond militarily, with their Prime Minister's warnings provoking a direct (and ominous) threat from a Chinese diplomat.
  • Jack [05:26]: "They threatened to cut the head off the leader of Japan."
• Discussion of Japan’s military capabilities and demographic challenges.

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3. The 'Noodle Boys' Digression and Social Trends

[06:12–07:08]

• Conversation about Japan’s aging society, with Jack coining the episode’s title:
  • Jack [06:43]: “A lot of noodle boys.”
  • Joe [06:52]: “Can’t lift their chopsticks over their heads. Weaklings ain’t got no chicks. They just look at porn.”
• Both agree the U.S. faces similar generational and motivational difficulties.

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4. Geopolitics at the Dinner Table & The Rise of Regional Tensions

[07:08–08:14]

• Anecdote: Joe prefers deep conversation about current events over small talk; Jack avoids food discussions at restaurants.
• Regional arms race: Japan, Korea, the Philippines, and the U.S. are all growing wary and preparing militarily in response to China.

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5. China, AI, and the Race for Technological Supremacy

[08:22–13:28]

• Jack reports on a podcast with AI experts:
  • China is 6–12 months behind on AI but preparing to leverage developed technology for massive robotics deployment.
  • Jack [09:56]: “They’re really ramping up getting ready for production of robot dogs that will rip your throats out or other kinds of robots...”
• Elon Musk’s prediction: AI and robotics could make U.S. GDP 10x larger, ending poverty and making all goods/services abundant.
  • Jack [10:50]: “Robotics, AI, and robotics will eliminate poverty and transform the economy...”
  • Joe [10:55]: “Our GDP with no employment, it’s going to all be taxed and redistributed.”
• The paradox of abundance and meaninglessness; concern over who controls the wealth.
  • Jack [12:03]: “If a robot can do anything you can do, but better, how do you find meaning?”

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6. Societal Consequences & AI Fears

[13:28–17:46]

• Debate over societal adaptation to mass AI unemployment:
  • AI “winners” might become a new elite, while many may languish in purposelessness.
  • Listener Paolo’s letter: Some will take opportunities to improve themselves, while others will become “degenerate, purposeless lumps.”
  • Concerns that third-world nations will be left behind and become more destabilizing.
• Political polarization around AI is inevitable but not yet established.

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7. Funeral of VP Dick Cheney — Political Observations & Human Moments

[17:51–22:29]

• Live commentary on the high-profile funeral (Cheney), with attention to body language and social awkwardness, especially Kamala Harris sitting alone.
  • Jack [18:52]: “Kamala Harris sitting in a row, completely alone, reading through the program. Why don’t you have any friends? Where’s your husband? ...You’re sitting in a row completely alone.”
  • Joe [19:18]: “She’s a pariah. I mean, yeah... It’s not a good look.”
• Joe tells a humorous story about Dan Quayle almost T-boning him in a golf cart.
• Reflections on Cheney's legacy—contrasting seriousness of political figures of the past with today's performative partisanship.

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8. COVID Relief Fraud & Public Sector Corruption

[22:31–24:39]

• News about Florida Democrat Congresswoman Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick indicted for stealing $5 million in COVID disaster funds for her campaign.
  • Jack [23:50]: “$5 million. Partially because there was so much Covid money sloshing around. Trillions of dollars.”
  • Observations on the difficulty of tracking pandemic relief funds and the broad, easily-abusable legislation.

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9. Current Political and Social Satire

[25:14–27:26]

• Jokes about Joe Biden’s age as he attends the funeral.
• Comments on Al Gore’s wealth from “climate change crap.”
• Casual banter about sports analysis with former presidents and vice presidents.

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10. Europe, Innovation, and Welfare States

[33:42–35:03]

• Europe’s lack of technological innovation is attributed to suffocating regulation and robust welfare states.
  • Joe [34:18]: “You know who's never mentioned in any context except like regulation is Europe. Can you imagine somebody saying a French company has made a huge leap forward in the technology of the future? Ah...”
• The consequence: European economies are large, but nearly inert in tech development.

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11. Chicago Public School Travel Scandal

[35:03–36:48]

• Inspector General’s report: Chicago schools spent lavishly on trips, mostly with COVID money, often unapproved or outright rejected but still taken.
• Jack [36:24]: “You know why you do that? Because you’ve seen it around you for so long. You know nobody is going to check up on you. The culture is you can get away with it.”

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Memorable Quotes and Notable Moments

• "A lot of noodle boys." — Jack Armstrong [06:43]
  • The quip that lent the episode its title and became shorthand for discussing Japan's demographic and societal challenges.
• “Trump is so intent on ending the bloodshed, which is admirable... he fundamentally misunderstands the conflict or doesn’t care.” — Joe Getty [01:25]
• "They threatened to cut the head off the leader of Japan." — Jack Armstrong [05:26]
  • On China's provocations towards Japan over Taiwan.
• “Robotics, AI, and robotics will eliminate poverty and transform the economy. There will be no shortage of products and services for anyone.” — Jack quoting Elon Musk [10:50]
• “If a robot can do anything you can do, but better, how do you find meaning?" — Jack Armstrong [12:03]
• “Soon the unproductive will be gone, most likely being too lazy even to procreate. Only those adapted to the new world will remain. That's evolution.” — Listener Paolo, read by Joe Getty [16:28]
• "Europe's economy is as big as the United States... and they produce like practically nothing new tech wise at all." — Jack Armstrong [34:54]
• “You're doing nothing. You're sitting at home doing nothing. Who's sending you a check?” — Jack Armstrong [30:50]

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Timestamps for Notable Segments

• Ukraine/Russia “peace” deal: [00:27–02:16]
• Middle East, China-Taiwan, Japan threat: [02:16–06:12]
• ‘Noodle Boys’ discussion: [06:43–07:08]
• China's AI ambitions/robot dogs: [08:22–10:50]
• Elon Musk's AI productivity projections: [10:50–12:52]
• Purpose and meaning in an AI world: [12:52–13:28]
• Listener Paolo's AI/social adaptation email: [15:53–16:28]
• Kamala Harris at Cheney funeral: [17:51–22:29]
• COVID relief fraud by Democrats: [22:31–24:39]
• European tech/innovation stagnation: [34:18–35:03]
• Chicago schools' lavish travel: [35:03–36:48]

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Conclusion

This episode is a whirlwind of topical insight, from global power recalibrations and technological leaps to the ironic inertia of aging societies and the persistent realities of government waste. Armstrong & Getty's signature blend of wit, skepticism, and cultural criticism keeps the conversation grounded and entertaining, making the broad topics both accessible and thought-provoking—even for those new to the news.

Recommended if you want: sharp takes on world affairs, AI's future, and social commentary, delivered with humor, sarcasm, and a dash of irreverence.

Transcript

[Jack Armstrong]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[Announcer]

Broadcasting live from the Abraham Lincoln radio studio at the George Washington Broadcast Center. Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty.

[News Reporter]

Armstrong and Getty.

[Joe Getty]

And now here's Armstrong and Getty.

[Jack Armstrong]

The Kremlin still sounds non committal, saying it's still too early for a call between Presidents Trump, Trump and Putin. President Trump has sounded determined.

[News Reporter]

I've actually stopped eight wars. I have another one to go with Putin.

[Jack Armstrong]

I'm a little surprised that Putin stake it longer than I thought. But no sign of input from Ukraine. Past plans, including handing territory to Moscow, have been deal breakers for Kiev. Approaching Zelensky when he is politically weakened by recent corruption charges against his government might make this a time to strike a deal. Wow. So we've got the Secretary of the army who we heard from, we had clips of earlier this week, he's over there. And some of our diplomats and it looks like, sounds like we've been working with Putin to come up with a plan to end this thing without Ukraine's input. I mean there's nothing for Ukraine to like in this so called peace plan. And they've rejected it immediately.

[Joe Getty]

Right. I don't know what's going on starters at least.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah. What is going on there. What is? What is.

[Joe Getty]

I don't know. Trump is so intent on ending the bloodshed, which is admirable. He's seeing it like a real estate deal and a. He doesn't. I don't think he can relate to the fact that Ukrainians don't want to get bullied out of their own country and Vladimir Putin is an ideological zealot. Trump can't relate to either of those things. I think he fundamentally misunderstands the conflict or doesn't care. He just thinks too many people are dying. This is stupid. We gotta stop it and. Or we're not gonna finance the weapons anymore.

[Jack Armstrong]

He doesn't think that if he found a way, even if Keev agreed to this and it stopped temporarily, that Putin would just be okay rebuilding some of our equipment, get some more people aged up and trained up and then we'll grab some more. Right. He doesn't think that would happen.

[Joe Getty]

I don't know. I don't get his Ukraine policy at all. I haven't. And is constantly chasing after Putin like a lovesick teenager. I mean, Putin has no interest. None. Speaking of headlines and peace and lack of it, I love this one. Ceasefires in the Middle east look a lot like war anywhere else. From the Wall Street Journal. Hezbollah and Hamas are both rearming and rebuilding their forces and launching semi regular attacks now. And Israel is now blasting them away and saying, no, we're not going to let them rebuild during this quote unquote piece. So more on that to come, but of more immediate concern, I think to the United States. China, quite a story here. China is priming its people in the world for a new pressure campaign on Taiwan. Their strategy, known as the Pen and the Gun, employs a domestic media campaign and aggressive rhetoric toward Taiwan and its friends. For instance, and by the way, that's a Mao Zedong quote. The Pen and the Gun, the pan is China's state television and all of the arts and media in China, they're preparing the domestic Chinese population for a new phase of pressure against Taiwan. Its primetime slot is filled with new historical drama the Silent Honor, which lionizes Communist party agents operating in Taiwan. Back in 1949 after the Nationalists fled there following their loss to Mao's forces, a bunch of espionage. Some of the agents get caught and executed, their martyrs for the cause of unification. That's the buzzword. State owned drama. Troops are only receiving approval for war themed plays. Other genres are being rejected.

[Jack Armstrong]

Wow, that's. That's a whole of society gearing up for war when you're. The plays being performed in your country have to be about war.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. Boy meets girl only if boys in the army and girl makes bullets for him and he kills the capitalist running. Wow.

[Jack Armstrong]

And then you combine that with a clip we played yesterday of that new Japanese prime minister saying, hey, we're all in on. We consider this an existential threat if China takes Taiwan. So we ain't putting up with that in Japan. They ain't been in the game in a long time, but historically they don't play around.

[Joe Getty]

No, no. Sometimes going a bit far anyway. China speaking. Okay. Now under the gun, Chinese leadership is focusing on neutralizing Taiwan supporters, notably Tokyo. To Jack's point, following Japanese Prime Minister Sanay Takaichi. Takachi Her November 7 warning that a Chinese seizure of Taiwan would trigger Japan's involvement in any conflict. In a response that shocked the world, China's Consul General in Osaka posted a threat to X to cut off Takaichi's dirty neck. The post was later deleted, but people close to Beijing's decision making said it was a deliberate state sanctioned action designed to test Japan's resolve. Wow.

[Jack Armstrong]

They threatened to cut the head off the leader of Japan.

[Joe Getty]

Well, she, they said she's got it coming.

[Jack Armstrong]

Oh boy. Meanwhile, I didn't have this on my bingo card. As people like to say these days, war between Japan and China.

[Joe Getty]

Meanwhile, China. China's military signaled its readiness to escalate last weekend, sending four armed China Coast Guard vessels close to an island chain that both Beijing and Tokyo claim as their own. Meanwhile, in the skies, Japanese fighters rush to intercept a Chinese military drone hovering near Japan's westernmost island and the closest point to Taiwan.

[Jack Armstrong]

I have no insight into Japan's current military capabilities. They've just rearmed recently.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, they were allegedly entirely defensive, which I was going to say, whatever that means. I can imagine some of what it means, but, yeah, they have not had a force that can be sent abroad to wreak havoc in a long time. Health. Four generations practically. On the other hand, they are tough and disciplined people. Not a lot of kids, though.

[Jack Armstrong]

Nope.

[Joe Getty]

Not a lot of young people. They're an incredibly old society.

[Jack Armstrong]

A lot of noodle boys.

[Joe Getty]

Pardon me?

[Jack Armstrong]

Noodle boys. That's like a really skinny, kind of half effeminate.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, right. Can't lift their chopsticks over their heads. Weaklings ain't got no chicks. They just look at porn. Yeah, a few of those ourselves.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, we do.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah.

[Jack Armstrong]

Flipping noodle boys.

[Joe Getty]

Well, you know, I was out to dinner last night with friends, and the table kind of divided the men folk into women folk. Right about in the middle, there's three couples.

[Jack Armstrong]

Three couples.

[Joe Getty]

Four couples. And the guys wanted to talk geopolitics. Oh, I was so happy. It was so great.

[Jack Armstrong]

Oh.

[Joe Getty]

Because small talk, I just, I. I can't. I just can't.

[Jack Armstrong]

You know what I can't handle? You know, this. At a restaurant, talking about the food. I just, I can't sit here and talk about the food.

[Joe Getty]

Not even a little.

[Jack Armstrong]

You're at a restaurant, a little is fine.

[Joe Getty]

But you go to a ball game, you refuse to talk about baseball. What?

[Jack Armstrong]

This is perverse. Foodies want to talk about the food the whole time.

[Joe Getty]

That's the only thing that's a little too much.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah.

[Joe Getty]

Anyway, we were talking about how China is kind of up against a clock in a way, because Japan is rearming and definitely waking up to the threat of China, as is South Korea, as is. Is rm, the Philippines, among other, you know, countries that. Not to mention the United States. It's all getting spicier and spicier.

[Jack Armstrong]

And that. Exciting. So I took in a podcast yesterday. I take in podcasts every single day, read stuff about. I'm fascinated by the only one.

[Joe Getty]

This is the only podcast that ex and been misinformed.

[Jack Armstrong]

This popular one, the last invention that this guy. It's been around for A while. And he interviews all the top AI people just asking about this and that topic. And anyway, they were talking yesterday about China and AI. One thing that I hadn't thought of but makes sense is the CCP is scared to death of anybody on earth getting AGI artificial General Intelligence going. They just think that'll be a real threat to their control one way or another, whether it's them or who else that it gets loose in the world. So they don't like the idea. Chinese are six months to a year behind us currently. We talked earlier in the week. The Wall Street Journal had a big story recently about how China's got a whole of country effort to try to catch up. But according to this podcast and the experts they were talking to, a lot of the top people in China think there's no catching up to the United States and that their only hope right now is to invest in building the robots with the AGI technology that others come up with, whether it's us or whoever else. It'll be us. But so they're really ramping up, getting ready for production of robot dogs that will rip your throats out or other kinds of robots that will work in factories so you can be so productive and all that sort of thing as soon as the technology gets out. So they've decided, okay, so we're not going to be able to catch the United States, but when they develop it, we're going to take it and we're going to do way better than the United States. And at utilizing the technology, they're like trying to be a step ahead of us, which is pretty interesting.

[Joe Getty]

You had me at robot dogs ripping out my throat.

[Jack Armstrong]

If it can be as productive as some people claim. I came across this from Elon Musk yesterday where he was saying, see if I can find those quotes because it was really interesting, but how incredibly productive I could be or our economy can be. I don't know if I can find it really quick, but he was talking about it being 10 times. This is what Elon said yesterday. Robotics, AI and robotics will eliminate poverty and transform the economy. There will be no shortage of products and services for anyone. Basically anyone will be able to have any products they want. The productivity gains from AI and robotics are astounding to think about. I think it could increase the economy by a factor of 10 or more.

[Joe Getty]

Our GDP with no employment, it's going to all be taxed and redistributed.

[Jack Armstrong]

Our GDP could grow 10 times or more because of AI. And so there'll be so Much money sloshing around that nobody will have to work. I've never heard anybody explain, like, who's going to be in control of this money and dole it out How. I mean, is everybody just going to get an equal amount?

[Joe Getty]

I'll tell you exactly how. Signed history.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, right, but so the idea that government, it's all going to run through the government, everybody's going to get an equal amount of the spoils of AI and the government, of course, will keep their 10%, 20%, 80% share of it and just do whatever the hell.

[Joe Getty]

And it's worth pointing out our dystopian technical overlords at these giant corporations now that will churn out this incredible, incredible volume of economic activity. They're just going to put up with it if the government tells them to do X, Y or Z, no, they'll own the government. The more or less like, you know, well, was somewhat true for a while. Now it's small donations from lunatics online that really run the government.

[Jack Armstrong]

This was in an interview. The audio is not very good or I'd be playing it for you. But he ended with, the bigger challenge may be finding meaning in life. If a robot can do anything you can do, but better, how do you find meaning? That might be the biggest question. Might be. Might be. It is absolutely, definitely, a hundred percent the biggest question. And the idea that that's just kind of a side topic when nobody needs to work, that has never happened in the history of the beast. And you think that's just kind of a side topic.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah.

[Jack Armstrong]

And you say with a smile on your face and great enthusiasm, AI will make us 10 times more productive. No, nobody will be poor. Everybody will have as much as everything they want. What? Oh, and by the way, finding meaning in life might be difficult, but anyway, back to the stuff you'll have.

[Joe Getty]

What? People look back at the Progressive Era of the early 20th century, where the Progressives really, really believed in putting policy in the hands of experts and technocrats and scientists and stuff like that. And what they came up with was horde eugenics and Nazism and all sorts of stuff like that. We don't want the scientists in charge of society, we want them in charge of science. Then we the people. It's like, you know, excuse me, civilian control of the military. We do. We need the policymakers to be developing policy, not Elon Musk.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, well, I got. I got one more thing on that topic, just a little bit when we come back and then we can move off it. But lots of other news of the day. Stay here.

[Announcer]

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[Joe Getty]

The head of the Louvre museum announced.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yesterday they will install 100 new surveillance.

[Joe Getty]

Cameras and have them running by the.

[News Reporter]

End of the year. And I'm being told someone just stole the cameras.

[Jack Armstrong]

That's kind of funny.

[Joe Getty]

Europe.

[Jack Armstrong]

So let me. I gotta deal with this. So my son's the driver who picks up my son and takes him to school as I'm a full time single parent. Just texted with a flat tire because nobody learns how to fix a flat tire in the modern world. That's the end of your day if you get a flat tire. As opposed to give me 10 minutes and I'll change it. Which is the way it used to work. But that is not society anymore. Okay, sent my text here. We were, we were talking about AI, right? Were we not?

[Joe Getty]

We were.

[Jack Armstrong]

And China and all that sort of stuff. And then Elon Musk saying AI is going to make our economy 10 times more productive, maybe more so nobody will need, nobody will want for anything. We'll have so much money in productivity, our GDP will be so high there will be no poor people and everybody will have everything they want. And he said it might be a problem that people will feel purposeless. You think?

[Joe Getty]

Oh my God.

[Jack Armstrong]

Anyway, this also is an interesting idea around the whole AI thing is. Let me find it. I'm sorry, I got all discombobulated when I had to order a lift for my son to pick him up.

[Joe Getty]

Understood.

[Jack Armstrong]

I mentioned this earlier in the show. 90% of our GDP growth last year was AI related. So that's amazing. Before anything has even happened. But I can't find what I was looking for. Go ahead, do what I.

[Joe Getty]

That's too bad. Got this note from frequent correspondent Paolo about a couple of the fears of AI and he says I think and definitely hope our fears about ar the modern day equivalent of my grandmother saying what is the world coming to? This will be the end of us. And he talks about a bad actor acquiring and maliciously wielding overwhelming power. And our best hope is that we get there first and are good actors. But he points out power corrupt. So anyway, well.

[Jack Armstrong]

And once the AI becomes general intelligence or superintelligent. It's going to do whatever it wants. So good actors, bad actors kind of goes out the window at that point.

[Joe Getty]

Let's not forget that many people will. Oh, far less concerning threat. It will become unnecessary for people to do traditional work to comfortably exist and many will turn into degenerate, purposeless lumps. He says let's not forget that many people will not turn into degenerate, purposeless lumps. They will take the opportunity to improve and elevate the human condition. They're the people who matter. As long as the unproductive do not perturb the perturb the productive. It's a tragic but transitory condition. Soon the unproductive will be gone, most likely being too lazy even to procreate. Only those adapted to the new world will remain. That's evolution. There's. There's a lot of truth there. But I would point out the wrinkle being the third world and really anyone who's not part of the great AI, you know, wealth, boom, they will become increasingly angry and threatening and they will perturb the hell out of us.

[Jack Armstrong]

I did come across this yesterday, and maybe unless we can impress them that at least so far with AI, the parties, the Republican and Democratic Party haven't latched onto a side. It's kind of spread equally with accelerators and doomers and that sort of stuff. At some point, the parties are probably going to be either for it or against it somehow. But that hasn't happened yet. It'll become polarized like every other one of our issues, one way or another won't help.

[Joe Getty]

Yuck.

[Announcer]

Armstrong and Getty.

[Jack Armstrong]

As of the original recording of what you're about to hear, the funeral is about to begin for Vice President Dick Cheney. And we've got it live on the cable television. And all the important people are filing in for. Oh, looks like Al Gore's bailing him out. Or is that Dan Quayle bailing around? Anyway, so we're watching Dan Quayle coming to the rescue. Maybe he knows the feeling.

[Joe Getty]

So we're watching Dan Quayle, who almost T boned me in a golf cart a couple of years ago. Never forget.

[Jack Armstrong]

So all the heavyweights of the past are filing into this big church for the Dick Cheney funeral. He was the vice president under George Bush, if you didn't remember that. Anyway, what we were having fun with during the commercial break is Kamala. Everybody's sitting next to people and talking and laughing and. And blah, blah, blah, chattering away. Kamala Harris sitting In a row, completely alone, reading through the program. Why don't you have any friends? Where's your husband? You don't have anybody to talk to? Nobody. You came up completely alone. You're sitting in a row completely alone. What is going on there?

[Joe Getty]

Hmm?

[Jack Armstrong]

Doesn't that seem odd? If I were her, since she might be running for president, I'd have come in later when the pews are more full, so I would be sitting down with people. I wouldn't walk into this. You know, I've been this guy at the party many, many times. I go and everybody else has people they're kind of jumping up with and talking to and knowing I don't know anybody. So I'm standing over here by myself. She is that person at this funeral.

[Joe Getty]

Well, she's a pariah. I mean, yeah, yeah. She could come in anytime she wants. I agree. It's not a good look.

[Jack Armstrong]

So I have. I am the sort of person that if I see that person at a party, I go over them and talk to them, because for some reason, it makes me uncomfortable when I see other people that are by themselves. Dan Quail has done that with Kamala Harris. He's leaned over from behind the row. He's full in, and he was having a very animated conversation with Al Gore. I'd love to know what those two former vice presidents were talking about. Anyway, he leaned over to engage her in conversation because she's looking kind of uncomfortable and weird there by herself. They're both vice presidents. Yeah.

[Joe Getty]

Compassionate Midwestern man. You know what? It's time I forgave him for almost t boning me in a golf cart.

[Jack Armstrong]

Al Gore. Who knows what he's talking about.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah.

[Jack Armstrong]

I tell the massage therapist that my abductors are sore, and that gets them in the area I need to go. Then if I shift my weight slightly, the next thing I know.

[Joe Getty]

Wow. Every Jepstein. Wow. Oh, one more Dick Cheney note. I can't remember who wrote the piece. Read a great thing on. Well, about Dick Cheney's legacy. But how ridiculous at the time of the Iraq war and afterward, how ridiculous the narratives were that it was a war for oil, that he was just trying to make Halliburton rich, and blah, blah, blah. And if you look at his writings and his interviews and papers, it's infinitely clear what he wants to do. Just like the US didn't manage the Soviet Union, it managed to drive it out of existence. He thought the. The wellspring of Islam, of fascism. The Middle east needed to be defeated. We needed and it was, you know, it ended up being naive and fairly unsuccessfully the idea of starting a democracy and having it spread because it's a much better system of government. But he was absolutely trying to knock back the. The. The fertile ground of terrorism because he knew what a threat it would be. I prefer, you know, islamism.

[Jack Armstrong]

I also read several pieces on how much more serious about their job. People like Dick Cheney were not that many years ago than everything we've had recently in both parties where it's all performative. Get you on a cable news show saying stuff that ain't true. Anyway, good news.

[Joe Getty]

Internet fundraising, the great poison in our system.

[Jack Armstrong]

Mike pence has come in and sat down next to kamala Harris in the row known as the bucket of warm spit. All the vice presidents sitting there together, having had. Having been one heartbeat away from the presidency, yet having really no power or duties in their job, which is the interesting thing about that position. Jack. You go to a party and you see kamala Harris standing alone in a corner.

[Joe Getty]

Do you go talk to her?

[Jack Armstrong]

I would. I'm that kind of guy. I've done that. I've always done that. I don't know why. It makes me uncomfortable that somebody there is uncomfortable, even if it's not my party. I do try to roll Harris.

[Joe Getty]

Oh, I would. Out of sheer curiosity. Yeah, okay. Yeah. Hoping she'd say something stupid. I would be doing it for nefarious purposes, not kindness and compassion like jack. But there you have it.

[Jack Armstrong]

Maybe it's because I've been that person so many times that I do that.

[Joe Getty]

Oh, yeah, sure. Of course. Yeah, yeah.

[Jack Armstrong]

That's probably why I do do that. I was a new kid in school sitting there by himself at the lunch table. So I. I know exactly what that's like. Anywho, we got a bit of a scandal here. I find this kind of funny. Like cbs news was just covering this little scandal because it's a democrat. They say a Florida congresswoman has been stealing money from fema. Now, if it were a republican, it would. They would have a republican attached to it. Republican congressman. But when it's a democrat, it's just a congresswoman. Anyway, here's the report from CBS.

[News Reporter]

I'm Sheila Sherphilis McCormick, Democrat for Congress. When Sheila Sherphilis McCormick was running for a seat in the u. S. House In 2020, the Department of Justice says the Democrats stole $5 million in COVID 19 disaster funds to support her congressional campaign. A federal grand jury indicted Sherfalis McCormick and several co defendants. Wednesday. Prosecutors allege a health care company she ran with her brother was overpaid $5 million in FEMA funds for a vaccination staffing contract. They say the company received that money in July 2021, and Sherfelis McCormick used it for her campaign. The funds were routed through multiple accounts to disguise its source, they say, and a portion of the money was funneled to friends and family who donated to the campaign.

[Jack Armstrong]

Wow.

[Joe Getty]

5.

[Jack Armstrong]

$5 million. Partially because there was so much Covid money sloshing around. Trillions of dollars. I remember when Steve Hayes of the dispatch was talking about that when the f first multi trillion dollar package got signed into law. And he said, we'll be unraveling this for decades. Where all this money went. It's just such a large amount of money, nobody keeping track of it. It got passed so fast. And the language is so broad about, you know, improving this sort of. I mean, you could. You could extrapolate to mean anything.

[Joe Getty]

Justice in environmental, urban, you know, dynamic zones. Right? Yeah.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, you saw the tens of millions.

[Joe Getty]

Being ripped off by inmates and the Russian mob and the north Koreans. Everybody was getting their piece.

[Jack Armstrong]

Matt, there's Joe Biden has filed in. Joe Biden is sitting there with his wife and, oh, there's George W. Bush and his wife Laura. And George W. Bush was the president over Dick Cheney, as we all know. But there's Joe Biden. I'm just saying everybody's gathered. It's a funeral to all the people. There's no point in gathering again in a month or two. But it's his birthday. It's Joe Biden's birthday. Yeah. It's his 83rd birthday today. That's right. Yeah.

[Joe Getty]

He is a. I saw the headline. Happy birthday to America's worst living president.

[Jack Armstrong]

That's right. He's two weeks older than my mom. So that reminds me, my mom's birthday is coming up in just a little bit. That's how I always kept track of Joe Biden's age, because he's the same age as my mom. But hey, Joe, you could just climb into the box next to Dick Cheney. Everybody's here. They just. They change the name on the little paper and sing the same songs.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, yeah. George W. Bush was the guest on the Manning cast during Monday night football.

[Jack Armstrong]

Oh, really?

[Joe Getty]

This past Monday night.

[Jack Armstrong]

How was it?

[Joe Getty]

It was actually very funny. Although George W. Is a sarcastic son of a gun and. And he does not give a damn anymore. And he was ripping Peyton for the number of TV commercial season.

[Jack Armstrong]

Oh, really? That's funny.

[Joe Getty]

I mean teasing him till it became uncomfortable.

[Jack Armstrong]

That is pretty funny. That is pretty funny.

[Joe Getty]

I know that. Come on, Joe. You got one foot already in there. Just go ahead and climb on in.

[Jack Armstrong]

George looks really old.

[Joe Getty]

W. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. He is. Yeah, he is very sharp, though. Very, very sharp mentally. He hadn't lost a step. It didn't sound like conversationally.

[Jack Armstrong]

Laura looks exactly like she's always looked. She has not aged. Joe Biden looks 1 million and 6. His wife looks evil as she is. True. Having been the president there for a couple years and lying dead.

[Joe Getty]

The country. That's right.

[Announcer]

And everyone knows it.

[Joe Getty]

That's right. We do. Margie.

[Jack Armstrong]

Al Gore is probably the richest person in those two rows because he ripped us all off for all the climate change hockey stick movie thing. So he's the happiest guy there. He looks. He's the most comfortable in his own skin looking person there. And it's probably because he's almost a billionaire from all his climate change crap that he got going. He probably thinks you all, you all kept playing the political game. I knew better. I got out of it and did this whole Inconvenient Truth book and movie. I became gazillionaire. I went around getting massages with happy endings and my life has been pretty good, allegedly.

[Joe Getty]

Oh, there's a strong denial there from the former vp. Are we supposed to say talk about prize picks here, Michael? Is that right? Yeah, Prize picks. The easiest and most fun way to get involved in fantasy sports all seasons long is prize picks. I say seasons because it's easy. All you do is pick more or less on at least two player stats. If you get your picks right, you can cash in and you your team. Your lineup is, if you will, could include players from multiple sports.

[Jack Armstrong]

Here's my tip on the more or less. Always go more with Luca. God, is he on a roll. He's having one of the greatest seasons ever. Anywho, right now you can follow other Prize Picks players directly on the app. This is a really cool, cool idea. Copy their lineups. Don't take the time to come up with your own. Find somebody who's really good or a celebrity partner or whoever and you just hit the follow button and check out every lineup they create in the new feed tab.

[Joe Getty]

On Price picks and on Prize Picks. How you play is up to you. If you want flexibility, choose Flex Play where you can get paid even if one of your picks misses. Download the Prize Picks app today. Use the Code Armstrong to get 50 bucks in lineups. After you play your first five dollar lineup. That code again is Armstrong to get 50 bucks in lineups to have fun with. After you play just a five dollar lineup, you don't have to win. It's automatic prize picks.

[Jack Armstrong]

It's good to be right to briefly wrap up the AI conversation we're having before the break because I didn't get to what I was going to get to. So the parties have not like latched onto a view of AI yet which is kind of interesting because it's the.

[Joe Getty]

Biggest thing going and good in my opinion.

[Jack Armstrong]

It is good. But isn't it inevitable that the Democrats be. Have a certain view of AI and Republicans have a certain view And I think that's how it's going to work out. But I heard somebody say yesterday and I thought it was pretty good, all this talk of it's going to eliminate, you know, somebody use the example of screenplay writers are going to lose their jobs. Yeah, that's not as appealing as a fear as it is for the. There are many millions of people going to a job they hate today that they get no satisfaction out of. Many, many, many, many millions of voters who are in that situation. They're not writing screenplays or record producers or whatever voiceover actors that are gonna lose their jobs. No, they got a job they hate. And the idea of AI coming along and eliminating it and I, you know, at least I don't have to do that anymore probably sounds pretty appealing.

[Joe Getty]

Well, if they can make up for the income.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well that, that, that's the assumption. That's what Elon was saying. We're gonna have 10 times the GDP in this country. There's gonna be more than enough money sloshing around. That's not gonna be a problem at all according to him. I just, I can't imagine again who's gonna be collecting the money how and doling it out in what way. That that gets glossed over every time this topic comes up. How do you think this is going to work? Are the companies going to privately dole out money to people? Why would they do that? So I guess the government will have to have like just incredibly high tax on all these amazingly productive companies and then dole out the money to everybody or.

[Joe Getty]

It occurs to me that if the, if Elon's right and he has a history of over promising a little bit, but if the economy is say 10 times what it is now, productivity wise, well then a fairly small percentage of that would feed, clothe and Medicaid everybody. Right?

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, that's their satisfaction.

[Joe Getty]

So you wouldn't have to have enormous taxes because the economy would be so huge.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, but what. You're doing nothing. You're sitting at home doing nothing. Who's sending you a check?

[Joe Getty]

The government. Yeah, I was just, I was saying that it isn't necessarily going to be an 80% tax because it doesn't need to be. But who's. So we're going to have a class of people who, who like have trillions of dollars. Then the rest of us will be waiting for our government checks. Yeah, we've tried that in different versions. It doesn't work.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, I guess there'll be more of us than them, so we'll be able to vote for how big our checks are supposed to be.

[Joe Getty]

They will own the government. The, the masses will not have any real power. I just, how could we.

[Jack Armstrong]

I don't want to be a doomer on this, but I just can't possibly break out of, of that mindset because I can't imagine this turning out well.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, yeah. Part of me would love to live long enough to see it happen. Well, you're going to.

[Jack Armstrong]

Unless you plan to be dead in four years. I think you're gonna see.

[Joe Getty]

I don't feel great. Okay.

[Jack Armstrong]

If anybody has any thoughts on that, I'd love to hear what it is. Text line 415. What is it?

[Joe Getty]

295 KFC.

[Jack Armstrong]

Sometimes I forget the number. 4152 November. No, I got it written down somewhere. There it is. 415295, KFTC.

[Announcer]

Armstrong and Getty.

[News Reporter]

President Trump says he will host New York City Mayor elect Zoran Mandani at the White House on Friday.

[Jack Armstrong]

The President has clashed repeatedly with the self declared Democratic socialists over the past few months.

[News Reporter]

President Trump threatened to withhold federal funds from New York City if Mandani was elected.

[Jack Armstrong]

Mandani says he hopes their meeting will.

[News Reporter]

Benefit New Yorkers who struggle to afford.

[Jack Armstrong]

The most expensive city in the country. Now I expect them to just be on their best behavior and it to be fine. But I was watching Brian Kilmeade on Fox and Friends today. He said the mom Donnie Trump meeting there in the Oval Office is going to make Trump and Zelinsky seem like, I don't know, something much calmer. Right.

[Joe Getty]

Oh, now I'm excited.

[Jack Armstrong]

I know. Wouldn't that be something? Wouldn't that be something? Anyway, so that'll happen tomorrow. Hey, I just going to call him.

[Joe Getty]

Domi to come me right to his face.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, yeah, I hope so. Or is mom dying going to say some of the you know, things Netanyahu needs to be arrested sort of things he says, by the way, I threw it out during our commercial we did a little bit ago. Luka Doncic, 26 year old Los Angeles Laker from Europe so far this season, he is now the leader of the team. LeBron James is definitely not and he says so averaging 35 points, nine rebounds, nine assists. That's quite a season he's having. Quite A. For 35 points, nine rebounds, nine assists. He's 26. He has been a first team all NBA five years in a row. He's 26.

[Joe Getty]

Wow. It's the only thing Europe's doing productively these days. Churning out great basketball players and sending them over here. I was thinking when we were talking about AI and the big companies and the tech bubble, but if it is, and then China and they're racing to get AI Baba the. You know who's never mentioned in any context except like regulation is Europe. Can you imagine somebody saying a French company has made a huge leap forward in the technology of the future? Ah, when was the last time? Or British or even Sachemans. They're paralyzed by their welfare states.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, they are. And that, that is why, that is why between regulation and just not being dynamic all the way around, if you're a young Steve Jobs, you don't feel like you can start a computer company in your garage and grow it in an environment like France or England.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, we actually. That's funny, it reminds me, we had a story a number of months ago about young tech entrepreneurs who had come to the US and learn what they need to learn and start companies and think, you know what, I'm bringing this back home. And then it was so suffocating back home that they went back to the US or just went elsewhere.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah. The European economy is as big as the United States economy and they produce like practically nothing new tech wise at all.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, yeah. And we're rushing to francify ourselves as quickly as we can in the United States. Disappointing. Speaking of which, for nearly two years the Office of Inspector General has been investigating travel spending at Chicago Public Schools. Have you heard about this?

[Jack Armstrong]

No.

[Joe Getty]

The report found questionable, excessive and exorbitant travel spending across the district, fueled in part by federal Covid relief money.

[Jack Armstrong]

Big.

[Joe Getty]

Back to that topic that the administrators in the union hacks and everybody else just used to feather their own nests. Broken travel expense process with no official oversight, lavish out of state conference stays and unapproved trips abroad. Uh, since the pan. This is Chicago Board of Education Inspector general since the pandemic. And after CPS lifted its travel ban, costs skyrocketed. CPS spending on overnight travel. Travel expenses more than doubled. When we dug deeper into it, we found much of the spending was questionable. The report found eight schools used more than $142,000 of CPS funds to pay a vendor for 15 staff trips to Finland, Estonia, Egypt and South Africa. Thirteen of the 15 trips were not pre approved, as is required. One trip was even rejected, but the employees went anyway.

[Jack Armstrong]

You know why you do that? Because you've seen it around you for so long. You know nobod is going to check up on you. The culture is you can get away with it. That's how you end up with that level of theft.

[Joe Getty]

Well, and specifically, Chicago is absolutely mobbed up by the Democratic Party and the. The unions, teachers unions. They own the city and they do whatever they want. And fu Taxpayers, we're going to use your money for whatever we want.

[Jack Armstrong]

Wow. If you missed a segment, get the podcast. Armstrong and Getty on demand.

[Announcer]

Armstrong and Gettysburg.

[Jack Armstrong]

This is an I heart podcast.