Here's Some Absinthe. Have A Good Time.

Summary

Armstrong & Getty On Demand: Here's Some Absinthe. Have A Good Time Release Date: January 14, 2025

In this engaging episode of the Armstrong & Getty On Demand podcast, hosts Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty delve into a variety of pressing geopolitical issues, media critiques, and societal trends. Skipping over the usual advertisements and intros, the conversation centers primarily around the potential ceasefire in Gaza, the upcoming Senate hearing of Pete Hegseth, diversity in firefighting, and the shifting drinking habits among younger generations.

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1. Prospects of a Gaza Ceasefire

The episode opens with a discussion on the optimistic signs emerging from the Biden administration regarding a potential ceasefire in Gaza. Referencing a recent Greenlight ad segment, Jack and Joe explore the dynamics of the proposed agreement.

Notable Quotes:

• Joe Getty [03:27]: “The New York Times includes Trump warning, 'all hell to pay unless the hostages are freed by the day he becomes president.' And apparently Hamas believes that's true.”
• Jack Armstrong [04:00]: “I would suggest a huge dose of trust yet verify even in thinking about this alleged agreement.”

The hosts express skepticism about the longevity and implementation of such a deal, highlighting historical precedents where frameworks in the region have often fallen apart. They discuss the influence of Trump's assertive stance on Hamas and the role of mediators like Qatar and Egypt in brokering the deal.

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2. Pete Hegseth's Senate Hearing and Media Critique

Transitioning from international affairs, Armstrong and Getty scrutinize the Senate hearing of Pete Hegseth, Trump's nominee for Secretary of Defense. They critique the media's handling of Hegseth's background, emphasizing the reliance on anonymous sources and perceived biases.

Notable Quotes:

• Pete Hegseth [20:23]: “Because our left wing media in America today sadly doesn't care about the truth. All they were out to do, Mr. Chairman, was to destroy me.”
• Jack Armstrong [22:06]: “We as a society have to understand that it's not the way it used to be. Now they'll trot out absolute crap and we just have to say no.”

The discussion highlights the alleged smear campaigns against Hegseth and the broader issue of media accountability. The hosts question the validity of claims made without substantial evidence and advocate for more transparent reporting practices.

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3. Diversity Initiatives in Firefighting

A significant portion of the conversation addresses the efforts to increase diversity within firefighting forces, particularly focusing on the inclusion of more women. Armstrong and Getty debate the effectiveness and intentions behind Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs.

Notable Quotes:

• Jack Armstrong [07:28]: “It's about preparedness for war and winning war. It's not a jobs program.”
• Joe Getty [09:03]: “I've never heard anybody even come close to that opinion.”

They criticize what they perceive as superficial diversity measures that do not necessarily translate to improved performance or address underlying issues within the firefighting community. The hosts argue that merit should take precedence over demographic quotas.

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4. The Rise of Romanticism over Rationalism in Public Discourse

Delving into cultural commentary, the hosts discuss the influence of thinkers like Ta-Nehisi Coates and the shift towards romanticism in societal narratives. They argue that emotional and subjective perspectives are often prioritized over empirical evidence, leading to polarized and less effective discourse.

Notable Quotes:

• Jack Armstrong [13:07]: “Right and wrong, true and untrue do not move him. This is what I wanted to get to because this is the umbrella over every topic we've talked about.”
• Joe Getty [14:36]: “My lived experience is more important than the facts.”

Armstrong and Getty express concern that prioritizing feelings over facts hampers constructive debate and policy-making, perpetuating divisions on critical issues like race, gender, and international conflicts.

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5. Gen Z's Changing Relationship with Alcohol

Towards the latter part of the episode, the conversation shifts to societal trends, specifically the declining alcohol consumption among Generation Z. The hosts explore whether this shift is beneficial or indicative of deeper issues such as increased anxiety and fear of vulnerability.

Notable Quotes:

• Jack Armstrong [42:11]: “Kat writes, this inability to tolerate the friction of ordinary interaction at work or elsewhere is an obstacle when it comes to connecting with others.”
• Joe Getty [43:23]: “They are terrified of all of that stuff.”

The hosts debate the implications of reduced drinking, pondering whether it reflects a healthier lifestyle choice or a symptom of heightened societal pressures and psychological challenges faced by younger individuals.

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Conclusion and Upcoming Topics

As the episode wraps up, Armstrong and Getty tease upcoming discussions, including further analysis of Pete Hegseth's Senate hearing, the implications of decreasing alcohol consumption among youth, and historical perspectives on conflict resolution like dueling. They encourage listeners to subscribe and stay tuned for more in-depth conversations in future episodes.

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Final Thoughts:

This episode of Armstrong & Getty On Demand offers a blend of geopolitical analysis, media critique, and cultural commentary. Hosts Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty provide their perspectives on complex issues, engaging listeners with a mixture of skepticism and insightful observations. Whether debating the feasibility of a Gaza ceasefire or examining the societal shifts in Gen Z's drinking habits, the conversation remains robust and thought-provoking.

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For those interested in the detailed discussions and analyses presented by Armstrong and Getty, subscribing to the Armstrong & Getty On Demand podcast ensures you stay informed on a wide array of topics shaping our world today.

Transcript

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[Jack Armstrong]

Ch ch Ch.

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[Jack Armstrong]

Broadcasting live from the Abraham Lincoln Radio Studio at the George Washington Broadcast Center, Jack Armstrong and Joe Getty. Armstrong and Getty. And now here's Armstrong and Getty with.

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Regards to the situation in Gaza, the President echoing what US Officials have been saying both in private and in public over the last 24 hours, suggesting that a deal could be reached sometime soon, that it could be on the cusp of being announced. You know, it's been a really long time since we have heard this kind of optimism, at least coming from inside the Biden administration. But sources have been telling us over the last day or so that they do believe a deal could be announced for a cease fire in Gaza and the release of hostages from Gaza in.

[Joe Getty]

The next coming days, in the next couple of days. And those two things go together. They're going to give back the hostages and Israel is going to agree to pull their troops out of Gaza. And even the New York Times says this is all being instigated, pushed by the looming deadline of Biden not being president and Trump being president. And even the New York Times includes Trump warning, quote, all hell to pay unless the hostages are freed by the day he becomes president. And apparently Hamas believes that's true.

[Jack Armstrong]

Right? Well, I would suggest a huge dose of trust yet verify even in thinking about this alleged agreement. First of all, it has to actually be agreed to. Frameworks have a history of falling apart in this region. But secondly, because I do believe Trump's threats are A, legitimate and B, motivating the hell out of the scumbags in a Hamas to make a deal. But then there's the question of implementing it and having everybody live up to their side of the agreement. I'm sure extremely skeptical.

[Joe Getty]

It's being mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the United States. And obviously Israel and Hamas are involved with their own particular needs and everything like that. I gotta believe Qatar and Egypt are saying to Hamas, look, the jig is up, right? Do you want to be pummeled into dust or, I mean, what are you going to gain out of that?

[Jack Armstrong]

Right? Yeah, I would, I would certainly hope so.

[Joe Getty]

I'm more optimistic than you. For no reason other than it just has echoes of 1979, 1980, when Reagan came in and the hostages came back from Iran and a brand new administration that looks like a hard ass. Everybody thinks, okay, there's a new sheriff in town.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, I'm, I am really interested to hear what the provisions are for a ceasefire from Israel's point of view because they still, and they no longer suffer under any delusions about this. They are still facing an enemy that has sworn to wipe them off the face of the earth in their founding charter. So it's difficult to strike up a deal for long term harmony with somebody who answers that description.

[Joe Getty]

Boy, they are, they are not near as tough as they were before. And they don't have the backing of their really only supporter, Iran anymore because Iran is barely functioning themselves as a military. And to me, the big story is do Israel and the United States together either take out that nuclear program in Iran or go full regime change. I think both of them are on the table. And who knows with Trump?

[Jack Armstrong]

I would agree. I would agree. And this is the contrast between Trump, for better or worse, and Biden is. I think Trump and his people get that doing nothing is to do something.

[Joe Getty]

Absolutely. Barack Obama did not understand that at all. Don't do stupid s was his motto. Well, not reacting to Bashar Al Assad's chemical weapons is stupid S. It led to more bad things.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, constant passivity is some of the stupidest s you can do. So a completely different topic. Well, it's tangentially related. I guess there are a handful of things that have come together in my head. Pete Hegseth's hearing is going on right now in front of the Senate. Between the idiot protesters and the tough questioning of him and his forceful advocacy of a more fighting, man oriented military as opposed to a giant bloated bureaucracy. That's a jobs program. I'm loving that discussion. You have the LA fire situation where Karen Bass and Gavin Newsom are trying to blame it on climate change when their preparedness was terrible over the years and over the previous months. And Karen Bass going to Ghana for no good reason just because she likes expensive junkets with the forecast being horrible in L. A. I didn't realize the firefighting program, a jobs program for women because not enough women want to be firefighters. Just ridiculous.

[Joe Getty]

I didn't realize till yesterday. So her trip to Ghana, okay, you're going to go somewhere, fine, whatever. That doesn't bother me. Politicians make all kinds of trips I hate and everything like that. She got there, the fire started and she stayed. She didn't even leave early. Now that's criminal. I mean. Well, it's not criminal, it's malpractice.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, and again, it was just a celebrity junket. There was no reason for her to be there whatsoever other than a vacation. But I'm thinking about, you know, the LA firefighters, how they, they have done this big DEI thing to get more women firefighters because not that many women want to be firefighters. And who cares if, if who cares how many women, how many firefighters in LA county or LA are women? Who cares? Anybody? Only these activists do. Gooders. It's possible not many women want to be. And has there been a fire victim in the history of fires or a medical emergency for that matter. Maybe accepting giving birth by the freeway. Has there ever been a person as the firefighters are fighting to put out the fire that's gonna reduce your home? Dash, who said, yeah, it's cool that they're doing this, but man, I'd like to see some more diversity.

[Joe Getty]

Well, I think we've gone so far the wrong direction. We should flip it around. Is there do you know anybody that seems to be in favor of rejecting a woman who's otherwise qualified physically to do the job?

[Jack Armstrong]

Of course not.

[Joe Getty]

I don't know a single human being that just from a misogynistic, sexist standpoint wouldn't want a qualified woman to do be a firefighter.

[Jack Armstrong]

Nobody.

[Joe Getty]

I've never heard anybody even come close to that opinion. Yet we've gone so far the other direction, as if that's the norm to bring in people that aren't qualified in the military and firefighter and cops and all kinds of different examples, you know.

[Jack Armstrong]

And this is such a good topic, I was actually heading toward going to a more a 30,000 foot view of it. But I like the topic. I have heard people say the sexual dynamics in like combat.

[Joe Getty]

Sure, different topic.

[Jack Armstrong]

A combat unit could be difficult. Or managing a submarine, for instance. And that's a legitimate discretion because as Pete Hegseth is forcefully trying to point out in front of the Senate, it's about preparedness for war and winning war. It's not a jobs program. What is your first purpose to winning conflict? Anyway, having said that, I've been reading there's a great piece by the editors of the National Review about the British rape gangs scandal and how horrific it is. And one of the most horrific aspects of. Well, every aspect of it's horrific, come to think of it, but they go fairly into depth. And I wish we had time with how the local and national governments covered up for all of this. The rape of children refrained from pursuing justice to avenge the rape of children to avoid endangering. Quote. And this is one particular city Rotherham's qualities of diversity and harmony of community relationships because the rapists were primarily Muslims of Pakistani heritage. Anyway, we'll go bigger on that at some point. But the thing I really wanted to get to is another great piece I read by a fellow by the name of Tal Fort gang who's a. He's a thinker and a writer, but he's talking about Ta Nehisig or Tana Hashi, however you're supposed to pronounce his adopted name, Coates. Recent book the Message and what a load of crap it is. Because anytime it runs into a Wait, what you just said is factually untrue. He just says, look, don't get caught up in facts. Don't. Don't let complexity get in the way of justice. And it lands him on network TV and gets him glowing profiles in elite media. Despite openly aiming to tackle questions way beyond his depth and, and, and how he doesn't operate on a level of rationality. I'm zooming through the description of the preliminary part of this. He says, I've heard that side of the story, but he's not obligated to explain explain why the other side of the story is wrong. Because right and wrong, true and untrue do not move him. This is what I wanted to get to because this is the umbrella over every every topic. We've talked about this segment from the LA firefighters to soldiers to illegal immigrants. We were talking about earlier, the sanctuary cities. You've got literal child rapists and they won't tell the feds, hey, we've got to let this child rapist out. He's an illegal immigrant. Let's get him out of the country to protect all Americans or other immigrants. But they don't want to talk about those facts. And here's where Fort Gang gets to his main point about coats. And you're going to recognize this among so many progressives and this is the reason we call California Cal Unicornia where realism goes to die. Fort Gang writes his writings are romantic works. They fit perfectly the Encyclopedia Britannica explanation of the late 18th century rejection of enlightenment rationalism. Romanticism, quote, emphasized the individual, the subjective, the irrational, the imaginative. Imaginative, the personal, the spontaneous, the emotional, the visionary and the transcendental. Coates idea is to stir feelings such that you could say, I don't care what arguments you give, I feel the conclusions in my bones and nothing will move me from it.

[Joe Getty]

Clearly true.

[Jack Armstrong]

How many times have you run into people like that? The very idea that the conflict he's talking about, Israel, Hamas could be complicated, says Coates, is horse ass. He repeatedly writes that nothing could justify the status quo in Israel. Really? Nothing? Not even wars of annihilation, genocidal terror groups who kidnap babies and murder entire families in their beds. That doesn't justify the status quo. A rationalist sees both sides and tries to propose a proper balance between Israel's security concerns and Palestinians dignity interests. Right. That's reasonable. A romantic feels the whole situation is wrong and refuses to entertain evidence that his feelings might not tell the whole story and proposes overhauling all of it. Categorical refusal to even acknowledge facts or arguments that contradict one's intuitions animates so much of our public discourse on race, gender, crime about just about anything that can arouse human passions, and it marks our cultural trends. The subjective has pride of place over empirical, the feelings in the unvire verifiable over the logical. He is the leader of it doesn't matter what your facts are. This is what I feel. Which is no way to run a society, man.

[Joe Getty]

Right. My lived experience is more important than the facts.

[Jack Armstrong]

Right?

[Joe Getty]

Yeah.

[Jack Armstrong]

God, you cannot govern with that. You really can't.

[Joe Getty]

No. It's taken hold a lot of places.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, it has. Because it feels good. For one thing, it makes people feel really self righteous and. And if their peer group are also romantics, they get loads and loads of ego gratification by spouting the nonsense. You're right. Way to go, man. Way to go.

[Joe Getty]

We gotta take a break, but I'm looking at the TV and Richard Blumenthal, Senator, Democratic Senator, is questioning Pete Hegseth. The fact that he Everybody just ignores the fact that he pretended he was some sort of Vietnam hero and it was a complete lie.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yes, stolen valor.

[Joe Getty]

And now he gets to question incoming SEC deaths with some authority is just amazing.

[Jack Armstrong]

Including one guy who actually served and served honorably.

[Joe Getty]

Wow, that's some story. Anyway, any highlights from that we'll have for you and other stuff coming up.

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[Joe Getty]

This whole tick tock thing keeps getting more complicated. Yet another app from the same company doesn't doing a similar thing. Would it get around the law anyway? Maybe. We'll have to talk about that later.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, yeah, there's a lot to be said, but we will hang in there and get to it when we can. Pete Hegseth is testifying in front of the Senate right now about his nomination to be Secretary of Defense. And he said some really great things so far. And man, he unleashed on the news media. Let's hear it.

[Pete Hegseth]

And time and time again stories would come out and people would reach out to me and say, you know, I've spoken to this reporter about who you really are and I was willing to go on the record, but they didn't print my quote. They didn't print any of my quotes, or I've worked with you for 10 years, or I was your accountant, or I was your chief operating officer, or I was your board member, or I was with you on a hundred different tour stops for Concerned Veterans for America. No one called me. No one asked about your conduct on the record or off the record. Instead, a small handful of anonymous sources were allowed to drive a smear campaign and agenda about me. Because our left wing media in America today sadly doesn't care about the truth. All they were out to do, Mr. Chairman, was to destroy me. And why do they want to destroy me? Because I'm a change agent and a threat to them. Because Donald Trump was willing to choose me, to empower me, to bring the Defense Department back to what it really should be, which is war fighting.

[Joe Getty]

That's some of it. Trump could have named anybody and they would have made up all kinds of crap to try to bring him down. Just because it's Trump. That includes today, by the way, New York Times. Their big splashy front page story today was how the FBI didn't do a real background check. And MSNBC is wall to wall on this story. And then interviewing every Democrat. Can you believe the FBI didn't do a full background check? I know it's outrageous. Since when does the FBI not do full. But it's all based on some unnamed sources who claim the FBI didn't do a full background check. So once again, it's that same story.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah, I'm not sure what to think about Pete Hegseth is SecDef. I love his ideas, but this is. I think this is a bigger issue. We've had this soc media change from an anonymous source, especially if it's just like one or two is very, very thin gruel to base a story on, particularly a story of any importance and it probably shouldn't be done. And somebody's got to have a great reason to remain anonymous. And I still publish the story. We've gone from that to absolutely any half wit crackpot or mental illness case. I'm thinking about Judge Kavanaugh's hearings. Who is willing to trot anything out even if there's contradictory evidence that's more than good enough because it's exciting. So it's. It is a media failing, as Hegseth was saying. But we as a society have to understand that it's not the way it used to be. Now they'll trot out absolute crap and we just have to say no. You name your sources. Let's hear them talk on the record or I don't care what you just wrote.

[Joe Getty]

New York Times article centers around one of the stories floating around about Pete that he is accused of committing some sort of sexual crime in which at the time no charges were filed when the police were looking at it and Pete Hegseth wasn't sec Def nominee. And this woman claims that the FBI did not interview her. It's possible they got all the information they needed without interviewing her and thought she's a nut. I have no idea.

[Jack Armstrong]

Right. Could be the eye of the beholder.

[Joe Getty]

I have no idea.

[Jack Armstrong]

I don't think you can be cynical enough about a couple anonymous sources. Please.

[Joe Getty]

This thing about bringing back duels. The idea of dueling is really interesting. Among other things we got on the way, so stay tuned.

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[Jack Armstrong]

Has been Eaten by ants. Wow.

[Joe Getty]

So Pete Hegseth is on the Hill being grilled. Should he be Sec Deaf or not? The senators are trying to advise and confirm or not. And we'll have a clip of that coming up in a little bit where they get into women in combat, which is clearly one of the knocks the Democrats are going. With this segment, Joe is gonna talk about young people not drinking as much and whether that's good or not. And I'm gonna talk about bringing back duels. How did I get it here? So I've been mentioning that I'm reading this book called Paris and Ruins, about the year 1870 to 1871 in Paris. I got started on that by. When I was in Washington, D.C. i went to the National Art Museum, one of the great museums, art museums in the world. It's among the big seven, or whatever they call them. And they had a display, just coincidentally, of Paris, 1870, there going on. And because it was December, instead of standing in a long line, I just walked up and looked at everything. And it was all about the Impressionists in 1870 and the role they played in politics in that, what they call that horrible year in France where they went to war with Russia and then had violence in the streets. And Napoleon III was driven from the country and they had a revolution, and it was really, really rough time, lots of debs, etc, etc. But at one point in the book, it mentions Manet, I believe, not Monet, but Manet the father, Impressionism, having a duel with some other dude, and the way they described the duel and how they. They all ended up laughing about it and drinking afterwards and everything like that. And I thought how weird that dueling ever was a thing, ever. And, you know, I mean, it killed Alexander Hamilton. I mean, it's just so crazy that dueling ever became a thing. Then I come across this in the New York Times the other day. I've never read a book by Randall Collins. He is a sociologist who, according to this New York Times review, is brilliant and has written many, many fantastic books that I have got to get into. And his latest book is called Violence, among his masterworks of sociology. Listen to this. It is a work of lucid and compelling theory that attempts to clarify when and why moments of tension erupt into actual violence, as in what are the conditions that caused the first punch to be thrown at a bar fight instead of the conflict dissolving into slurred threats? Or what causes two children to come to blows on the playground instead of shuffling to opposite sides of The Sandbox. He covers domestic abuse, boxing matches, pillow fights, prison violence, excessive police force, soccer hooligans, crowd violence, mosh pits, the 911 cockpit fight and more, which sounds just fascinating.

[Jack Armstrong]

That's wide ranging.

[Joe Getty]

And then this, which I want to at least read this portion of the book. Collins, the author, sincerely and convincingly suggests that drug gangs organize pistol duels instead of resorting to chaotic drive by shootings and street fights. And I read a little more about that and yes, it was a way that developed over time to deal with the whole, you've insulted my manhood, I can't put up with this. And found a way to like really narrow it down to very little violence or no violence at all, as opposed to you gotta drive by some house and spray off a bunch of shots or set it on fire back in the day or whatever you would do and, and have things get completely out of hand. It was a way to manage the whole, you know, he gave me a hard look in this kind stand situation.

[Jack Armstrong]

So you had one hatfield and one McCoy square off. Then everybody considers it done right, considers it over.

[Joe Getty]

It has been dealt with so it doesn't have to go on for weeks or months or years. Another, it's another Chesterton's fence. To me, we didn't understand how this arose in society. It clearly serves a purpose. I don't think there's any bringing it back. But how much better would that be if the Bloods and the Crips or the whatever, Ms. 13 or whoever the heck had some sort of system of dueling where you settled these sorts of beefs one on one? Maybe you shoot over their head, maybe a guy dies, but it's like you said, over and done with. Fascinating.

[Jack Armstrong]

Go back to selling drugs to school children.

[Joe Getty]

Fascinating culturally though, that, yes, somehow arose a, a pressure valve release that was less damaging to society.

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, right. If we let this go, it's going to get completely out of control to an unjustified scale. Let's settle this. Yeah, yeah. How interesting our time is. Is the opposite of that just any. And, and it's, it's interesting how hypocritical all of this is because a lot of the very, you know, political forces that decry violence are more than willing to participate in it given half an excuse.

[Joe Getty]

I think the example with the two.

[Jack Armstrong]

Painters, I mean, I can wreck a city, I can burn down stores, I can assault cops, I can beat down anybody who gets in my way. But if a cop raises a billy club, that's a horror that cannot be tolerated.

[Joe Getty]

Right. I think the example of the duel with the painter and somebody else was he had slept with his, the other guy had slept with his girlfriend or something like that, which could have, you know, and like in a couple of gangs could erupt into maybe years long battles with hundreds dead and, and more injured or you deal with it just two people, they shoot each other. It's over. My honor has been saved. We're done with.

[Jack Armstrong]

Right, right. Yeah. And, and I let you save your honor. So I'm off the, the hook too.

[Joe Getty]

My main point with this is not just duels, it's just culture and, and, and the way human beings and societies come to remedies and then we forget them somehow and have to start over once again.

[Jack Armstrong]

And this is, you know, a wiser man than me ought to take on this, this topic, but it's better to have the passive acceptance of 50 times more violence than to actively participate in a very small amount of violence to protect, to Prevent rather that 50 times as much violence.

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Right.

[Jack Armstrong]

So you get sins of omission are like okay to the nth degree, but a single sin of commission is completely verboten. That's interesting.

[Joe Getty]

I thought so.

[Jack Armstrong]

That's some thought provoking shiznizzle right there, folks. Okay, those of you who come for the jokes about people's, you know, private parts are probably a little confused. But anyway, a thought provoking.

[Joe Getty]

So young people are drinking less, you say?

[Jack Armstrong]

Yes, they are. No, I didn't. But yes, they are, as it turns out. And I think after a break we can talk about that. It is weirdly connected to the previous discussion. But they're drinking way less and it's probably a bad thing, right?

[Joe Getty]

I think I know where you're going with this, but as a guy's got a couple of teenagers who I don't particularly want drinking a lot. This is an interesting topic. And we got some highlights from the pig Pete Hegseth hearing as they're getting into women in combat and all kinds of different subjects today. Stick around, I hope you can.

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[Jack Armstrong]

Your TV is. Wasn't that delicious? So good. Your bill, ladies.

[Joe Getty]

I got it.

[Jack Armstrong]

No, I got it. Seriously, I insist.

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[Joe Getty]

Don't be silly.

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[Jack Armstrong]

Okay.

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[Jack Armstrong]

Rock, paper, scissors. Shoot.

[Joe Getty]

No.

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[Joe Getty]

I saw a tick tock video the other day with a mom in a van with her kids driving into school jamming this tune. And they're all singing along and I thought, that's kind of funny. Bunch of little kids singing about getting drunk in the afternoon.

[Jack Armstrong]

That's funny. Jack is Gen Z is ditching the booze. Morticum.

[Joe Getty]

Right? So Pete Hegseth, Trump's nominee to be Secretary of Defense, is being grilled right now by Tim Kaine. Maybe you remember him. Hillary Clinton's running mate wanted to be vice president and all. I do. I'm just reading the words up on the screen. I haven't heard it yet. We're going to go big on this in hour four. Had some stuff on there. He's saying to Pete, you cheated on your wife, you had an affair, you claimed Jesus as your Lord and savior. That's just all the stuff I read. So that's getting some pretty personal stuff right there.

[Jack Armstrong]

Wow, wow, wow. Fireworks. And substantive and important discussion of what the nature of our fighting forces ought to be in the way the Pentagon ought to be run. So something for everyone will go big next hour. Stay tuned. If you don't get next hour, you got to go somewhere. Grab it later by podcast. Subscribe to Armstrong and Getty on Demand. So Gen Z is ditching booze. Now this, this piece kind of New York centric. They're talking about how zoomers want a wild night on the town they won't wake up regretting. Instead, young adults are getting the social fixes at sober friendly gathering hubs and alcohol free bars that have been sprouting up in which some say is a sign of changing times. Well, clearly the times are always changing. That's what happens with times says. Oh, they quote a bunch of. We're supposed to call them zoomers. Do I have to?

[Joe Getty]

What does that mean?

[Jack Armstrong]

Generation Z.

[Joe Getty]

Okay.

[Jack Armstrong]

Anyway, they quote a bunch of 20 somethings, including a din spelled really weirdly age 22. I think our generation is very aware, like a lot of us are activists. And I think that awareness influences our drinking habits.

[Joe Getty]

You think we drink more?

[Jack Armstrong]

With all the stuff we're hearing about the world constantly, you'd think we'd want a distraction. But I think our phones are distraction enough so we don't need as much alcohol.

[Joe Getty]

All right, Aiden, here's some absinthe. Have a good time.

[Jack Armstrong]

And they go into describing this various game clubs and alcohol free bars and stuff. Here's another Youngster, Uriel, age 26.

[Joe Getty]

Anybody with a normal name.

[Jack Armstrong]

No quote what? When people of the previous generation think of drinking, they think of binge drinking. They think of going to a bar, slamming back 12 drinks and being hammered the next night. Why are you speaking for me, sweetheart? They think of the idea of cracking open a six pack before they go to bed.

[Joe Getty]

You know what? This is the mirror image of something else that's unpalatable. So as you get older, everybody has a tendency to think the current young crop of kids are just going to ruin the America. They're just degenerates. And then the flip side of that is every new young group of people think they're superior to all the people older than them. Both of those things are hard to take.

[Jack Armstrong]

It's a thousands year old tradition as a matter of fact.

[Joe Getty]

Right.

[Jack Armstrong]

Says 23 year old Lee. Spelled weird too. I do drink. When I do, I'll probably have like one drank, says Kathleen. Oh, a normal name quote. I think people in my generation are more conscious of their health and don't see drinking as a social obligation. You know, in defense of these youngsters, some reporter asked them why, why do you even ask them? They don't know anything. They're young, they're dumb.

[Joe Getty]

But there are, there are statistics to back.

[Jack Armstrong]

But their bellies are flat and they're good looking. So ask them.

[Joe Getty]

There are statistics to back this up though, right? That young people are drinking 100%.

[Jack Armstrong]

Oh yeah, it's, it's been cataclysmic for the hard liquor industry. Beer has plummeted. Even the your like White Claw type hard ciders and seltzers and stuff that were so hot what it 10 years ago. If you listen to country, if you.

[Joe Getty]

Listen to country music, every young person in America is drinking whiskey and White Claw all day long.

[Jack Armstrong]

Yeah. Yeah. Well not so much apparently. Anyway, I thought that was interesting and you know, everybody quoting in the article pitches it as we're more healthy and aware. And I was reminded of an absolutely brilliant piece I read by Kat Rosenfield who was writing for the Free Press. And she opens it. I can't resist because it's one of my favorite scenes too. And it's not just because I'm a drinking man. She talks about toward the end of the Lord of the Rings trilogy, after all the adventuring is done and they're back at the Shire and Frodo and Sam and Pippen and Mary are drinking at the local pub. Anybody who's seen the movies remembers this scene. And Sam, who has courted death and adventured over the world, sees the girl he's always had a crush on. And you can see in his eyes I've had these adventures. I'm gonna go ask her out. But first he takes a big swig of his ale or whatever they're drinking.

[Joe Getty]

Whatever hobbits drink, right?

[Jack Armstrong]

He throws back his pint and she and Kat writes, this moment is good because so many of us recognize it. Many of our best and bravest moments started with a shot or two of liquid courage and yet contemporary narratives about young people and drinking are all markedly and overwhelmingly negative optimizers. That's a term I never use. Warn that alcohol is an addictive poison. Activists cite the link between drinking and sexual assault. And young celebrities who might have once made headlines for partying can instead be touting the benefits of sobriety. And she has links to the various articles.

[Joe Getty]

Why did you quote some things that are true for a tiny percentage of people as if that's everyone? I mean, what's the point of that?

[Jack Armstrong]

Tiny percentages of what?

[Joe Getty]

Tiny percentage of drinkers become alcoholics. Tiny percentage of drinkers commit, you know.

[Jack Armstrong]

Crimes or die of some, you know, alcohol related cancer or get raped or whatever. But, but then Kat gets on to the point that I think is is really, really good. In spite of the narrative that Behold the zoomers in their glorious sobriety. So much smarter, healthier and more sensible than the sloppy barfing generations that preceded them. Now that's good writing because that's the.

[Joe Getty]

Only kind of drinking you do. Sloppy, barfing drinking.

[Jack Armstrong]

But scratch the surface of Gen Z's sobriety and what you find isn't wisdom so much as fear. Fear of vulnerability, fear of failure, fear of being out of control. We're not talking about completely out of control, but out of complete, total, every second control. This is a generation that is both highly conflict averse and virtually allergic to risk, particularly when it comes to markers of autonomous adulthood. Driving, working, sex, working, going out for a few drinks. They are terrified of all of that stuff.

[Joe Getty]

Working is a problem because you kind of have to work to support yourself. And, but I was gonna ask, I said I was gonna say, is this tie in anything to lack a willingness to want to get a driver's license, Your lack of willingness to want to drink?

[Jack Armstrong]

100%. The bosses of Gen Z employees report that they can't make eye contact, they can't take criticism and even ask questions when they don't know how to, or they're even AF to ask questions if they don't know how to do something.

[Joe Getty]

Using the word they a lot. Always got to throw this in on the Armstrong and Getty show. They didn't raise themselves.

[Jack Armstrong]

Exactly, exactly. And I'm, you know, I'm always heading there with my free range parenting screed. But this generation after you know what, to that point, Kat Rosenfield writes, this inability to tolerate the friction of ordinary interaction at work or elsewhere is an obstacle when it comes to connecting with others. But more, and perhaps more importantly, it stands in the way of fun A thing with which zoomers are not well acquainted after a highly regimented childhood and an over scheduled adolescence. Not their fault. Packed with resume building activities, this generation isn't just more anxious and depressed than their predecessors. They're so tightly wound and mistrustful of others that they would rather die than let their guard down. Which rules alcohol right out. I'm reminded of the famous move. I don't look to the Germans for much instruction on anything other than maybe building auto bonds and engineering. But the German insurance industry came out several years ago in a giant story in Europe that was ignored in the US because it was so uncomfortable. The German insurance industry said hey, make playgrounds fun again and quote unquote dangerous. We have raised generations of kids who have no sense of their own, their own abilities. They have no developed risk assessment skills all of childhood to a large extent. And if you look at it as a strictly anthropological, you know, topic. Childhood is about gaining skills and learning risk management. And if you don't let kids risk anything and fall down and skin their knees and get bloodied, make mistakes and get in trouble and get lost and find their way back not just once but over and over again, then you're going to have adults who are terrified.

[Joe Getty]

That's really interesting. I'd like my kids to stay away from inebriates as long as possible, but I don't want them to be unable to have a job or ask a girl out for a date or call the place and order a pizza or any of those things. So.

[Jack Armstrong]

Right. Would you send your kids off to college having not tried alcohol?

[Joe Getty]

I went off to college having not tried alcohol. I don't know if it did mean any harm, but yeah, I don't think that bothers me. It depends. I guess it'd be the reason. Are you afraid of it?

[Jack Armstrong]

Well, right, right.

[Joe Getty]

I don't think I was afraid of it. I just didn't run with a crowd.

[Jack Armstrong]

That did that and everything went great or not. Depends on the individual. Of course my daughters knew what alcohol does to them before they went to college. I thought that was important.

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Huh.

[Joe Getty]

Interesting.

[Jack Armstrong]

If you missed your thoughts, 415295 kftc or drop us a note. Mailbagarmstrongygetti.com if you miss a segment yes.

[Joe Getty]

You can find our podcast Armstrong and Getty on Demand. You should subscribe. Then it will automatically show up. We're going to talk a lot about Pete Exith in hour four and play some clips.

[Jack Armstrong]

Armstrong and Getty.

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