I'm On The Fence & It's Sagging

Summary

Armstrong & Getty On Demand

Episode: I'm On The Fence & It's Sagging
Date: January 28, 2026
Host: iHeartPodcasts
Main Hosts: Jack Armstrong, Joe Getty
Contributors: Michael, Katie Green

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Overview

This episode of Armstrong & Getty is a lively, fast-paced discussion weaving together major news headlines, cultural trends, and the hosts’ trademark irreverent banter. Major topics include a bizarre attack on Rep. Ilhan Omar, California legislative grandstanding, exercise and “friction maxing,” social media lawsuits compared to Big Tobacco, and the ethics of weight loss drug litigation. The hosts also dig into headline news, riff on personal anecdotes, and exchange memorable quips.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

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1. Ilhan Omar Attacked at Town Hall

Timestamps: 01:14–02:25, 15:37–16:10

• Incident Recap: Rep. Ilhan Omar was sprayed with a “foul smelling substance” during a public event in Minneapolis.
• Reactions:
  • Michael highlights the fear factor: “Which would be scary AF if it happened to you. You’d be immediately wondering, is that bleach? Is it poison?” (01:35)
  • Armstrong & Getty condemn the act as dangerous, regardless of their political disagreements with Omar.
  • Trump’s immediate public skepticism (implying it was a staged attack) is criticized as irresponsible:
    “That’s not helpful. … Come out hours after an attack on an official as skeptical that it wasn’t fake.” (02:31)

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2. California Lawmakers’ Anti-ICE Grandstanding

Timestamps: 02:46–04:05

• New Proposal: California lawmakers target companies profiting from ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement), echoing similar performative measures like travel bans.
• Joe Getty lampoons the political theater:
  “You can probably catch a ride on one of the Learjets of one of the many billionaires who are leaving California. ... It’s so naked. It’s so obvious. Oh, we got to do something that shows we’re against ICE.” (03:13)
• The hosts point out the logistical absurdity of these bans for businesses and college sports teams.

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3. Jump Rope, Exercise, and Excuses

Timestamps: 04:05–08:33

• Personal Anecdotes:
  • Michael talks about muscle soreness and buying a top-rated jump rope for $15, emphasizing the accessibility of exercise.
  • The team jokes about tricks, double-unders, and the perils of crisscross moves.
  • Reflection on barriers to exercising: “There’s nothing stopping you or me from getting cardiovascular exercise. The best jump rope you can buy in the world is 15 bucks. And you got a floor.” (05:06)
• Social Satire:
  • The decline of traditional childhood games (“Are they all staring at an app that’s making them depressed and anxious?” 06:08)
  • Joe Getty quips, “Gavin Newsom has banned jump ropes because…” (06:22)

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4. Technology & “Friction Maxing”

Timestamps: 08:53–12:10

• TikTok Clip:
  • Friction maxing—“the process of building up our tolerance for inconvenience”—is described in a dizzying, rapid-fire style.
  • The hosts critique high-speed, edited videos, linking them to anxiety and loss of attention span:
    “No wonder kids are anxious and on medication. Everything on TikTok is edited that way. That like, made me anxious.” (09:17)
• Debate on whether adding “friction” (e.g., using a cookbook, shutting off location sharing) is beneficial.
• Comedic skepticism:
  • Armstrong: “Why do I want more friction, Katie?”
  • Getty: “It’s because it’s good for you. I think it slows you down.” (11:01)
• “The most anxiety inducing thing I’ve done so far today was listening to that.” (11:20)

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5. Major Lawsuits: Social Media & Weight Loss Drugs

Timestamps: 12:26–29:12

A. Social Media Addiction Lawsuit (Big Tobacco Comparison)

• News Recap: Major trial begins in LA, accusing platforms like Meta and YouTube of addicting kids, leading to mental health issues. TikTok and Snapchat already settled.
• Hosts’ Analysis:
  • Michael: “The only thing I took away from the one law class I took in college is you can settle at any time.”
  • Joe Getty draws a sharp comparison:
    “The Mariana Trench is not as deep as their pockets.” (18:34)
  • Discussion of the core legal challenge—causation: Can platforms truly be blamed for mental health outcomes, or is this a “money geyser” for trial lawyers?
    “It’s extremely difficult to prove that social media ‘caused’ any individual’s problems…” (21:27)
    “The big media company, the social media companies are evil and I hate them… but this case is the wrong way to get to what we want…” (20:45 & 23:13)
  • Potential for public benefit: Internal documents revealed may expose willful disregard by Big Tech.

B. Weight Loss Drug Litigation

• Early Signs of Big Lawsuits: With so many users, even rare side effects equal large numbers of adverse events and law firm interest.
• Michael: “Would you get on one of these weight loss drugs or not?”
  Joe Getty: “Coin flip. I’d want to know more. … I’m on the fence. Probably break the fence as fat as I am, but I’m on the fence.” (29:04)
• Discussion wraps with humor on the uncertainty and legal risks.

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6. Headline Review with Katie Green

Timestamps: 12:57–16:28

• Ilhan Omar’s reaction referenced again: “I’ve survived war.” (15:37)
• Wide-ranging news: Trump warning Iran, Bill Belichick’s Hall of Fame rejection, Bruce Willis’ dementia, coyote at Alcatraz, neuroscience of shoes, and more.
• Media Satire: The Babylon Bee: “Tragedy as entire studio audience drowns in flood of Jimmy Kimmel’s tears.” (16:10)
• The hosts return repeatedly to dissecting media coverage, political performativity, and hypocrisy.

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7. Miscellaneous: Russia-Ukraine Update and Franklin’s Wisdom

Timestamps: 29:22–30:50

• Russia is accused of hitting a passenger train—“about as big a war crime as you can come up with…” (29:22)
• Benjamin Franklin Quotes:
  • “Keep your eyes wide open before marriage, half shut afterwards.” (30:06)
  • “He that drinks his cider alone, let him catch his horse alone.” (30:19)

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8. Listener Mailbag

Timestamps: 31:01–36:29

• Great listener reactions to recent thoughtful pieces and teaching methods.
• Criticism from “Sideshow Bob” regarding tribal thinking among MAGA supporters and intelligent conservatism (33:21).
• Ongoing listener discussion of the overreach of social media and Big Tech—whether lawsuits or social pressure is the answer.
• Satirical predictions about Super Bowl halftime protests and nostalgia for simpler times (“arguing over a nipple”).

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Notable Quotes

• On targeted performative politics:
  “It’s so naked. It’s so obvious. Oh, we got to do something that shows we’re against ICE.” – Joe Getty (03:13)
• On exercise excuses:
  “There’s nothing stopping you or me from getting cardiovascular exercise. The best jump rope you can buy in the world is 15 bucks. And you got a floor.” – Michael (05:06)
• On TikTok/Gen Z content style:
  “No wonder kids are anxious and on medication. Everything on TikTok is edited that way. That like, made me anxious.” – Michael (09:17)
• On social media lawsuits:
  “The Mariana Trench is not as deep as their pockets.” – Joe Getty (18:34) “This is a shakedown. … There’s subtlety here because the social media companies are evil and I hate them. But this is the wrong way to get there.” – Joe Getty (20:45)
• On weight loss drugs:
  “I’m on the fence. Probably break the fence as fat as I am, but I’m on the fence.” – Joe Getty (29:04)
• On marriage and compromise (Ben Franklin):
  “Keep your eyes wide open before marriage. Half shut afterwards.” – Joe Getty, quoting Franklin (30:06)

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Segment Timestamps

• Ilhan Omar Attack: 01:14–02:25, revisited at 15:37–16:10
• California Lawmakers on ICE: 02:46–04:05
• Jump Rope/Exercise: 04:05–08:33
• Friction Maxing/TikTok: 08:53–12:10
• Major Lawsuits (Social Media/Weight Loss): 12:26–29:12
• Headline Rundown: 12:57–16:28
• Russia-Ukraine & Franklin: 29:22–30:50
• Listener Mailbag: 31:01–36:29

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Tone and Language

Conversational, witty, and skeptical, with a balance of pointed satire and sincere concern. The hosts toggle between sarcasm, social criticism, self-deprecation, and genuine analysis—delivering an episode that’s both thought-provoking and entertaining, true to Armstrong & Getty’s distinctive style.

Transcript

[Jack Armstrong]

This is an iHeart podcast, guaranteed human.

[Joe Getty]

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, Armstrong and Gary. Live from Studio C, senor, a dimly.

[Michael]

Lit room deep within the bowels of the Armstrong and Getty communications compound. And hey, y', all. Today, Sorry, I'm trying to screen capture something on the TV because that's an important story we got to get to.

[Joe Getty]

Oh, today on hump day.

[Michael]

We'Re living under the following headline.

[Joe Getty]

He's only Holman or Ilhan. Oh my.

[Michael]

He's only. That's pretty booty.

[Joe Getty]

I like them both.

[Michael]

Yes, they're both. Thank you, Michael.

[Joe Getty]

Hey, you're very kind. Thank you.

[Michael]

It's pretty good. Yeah.

[Joe Getty]

Tom Holman gonna bring a little sanity, a little calmness, a little diplomacy to the situation. Minneapolis, meanwhile, speaking of Minneapolis, which apparently is the center of the universe, all of a sudden, some yay, some yo ho sprayed Ilhan Omar with a quote unquote foul smelling substance at her town hall. Which is rude indeed.

[Michael]

Yeah, I walked up to her as she was speaking and sprayed something on her, which would be scary AF if it happened to you. You'd be immediately wondering, is that bleach? Is it poison? Is it, you know, one of those crazy Russian things that kills you or is it nothing? But you'd be frightened as hell.

[Joe Getty]

Often in a Muslim country it would be acid to punish a woman, say, for having a boyfriend.

[Michael]

And while I find her abhorrent, I do not like of this sort of thing happening at all because it could grow and grow and grow and everything could completely fall apart. So this sort of thing is not good. Of course, Trump immediately went to the. Did she do it to herself? Seems like her. Seems kind of, seems like sort of thing she would do. False flag syringe, which I'm not sure that's good. I mean, somebody was going to say that. I don't know if it needs to be the president.

[Joe Getty]

Right there. Article 2 of the Constitution. The chief executive will faithfully execute the.

[Michael]

Laws and own the libs and, and come out hours after an attack on an official as skeptical that it wasn't fake.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah.

[Michael]

That'S not helpful. Anyway, there's the headline I just grabbed off the tv. This is in California, lawmakers set to announce new plan targeting companies profiting from ice. So if you're a company that deals with ice in any way make a profit, lawmakers are gonna what, tax you.

[Joe Getty]

Or what, you sell them their shoelaces or you Sew their patches or something like that. Yeah. Gavi in California are gonna punish you for being with the fascists. All right, you know what? You can probably catch a ride on one of the Learjets of one of the many billionaires who are leaving California. Yeah, yeah, I know. It's just so naked. It's so obvious. Oh, we got to do something that shows her against ice. What do you think we could do? Let's. Oh, for goodness sakes. These are nice American businesses. They've got a nice client. All right.

[Michael]

It's a federal government, right?

[Joe Getty]

Shut up.

[Michael]

You like the government. I don't.

[Joe Getty]

God. You know what this is, though? This is straight out of the same brilliance that gave us Gavi Newsom's travel banned 43 states or whatever it was, including the states he went to all the time. Time. And all the sports teams, the California collegiate sports teams are like, what are we supposed to do with this? And finally, they had to suspend it all because it was so stupid.

[Michael]

My arms are really sore, so it's hard for me to not keep thinking about every time I reach for something because I did a new exercise the other day. So any think you're working out, and then you do a new exercise, and you realize, here's a muscle that I haven't been exercising at all, apparently, because this one is like, ah, what are you doing to me?

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. Went after the pecs yesterday, and my boy Dave, he warned me, let's start easy on that, because you don't need them screaming at you tomorrow.

[Michael]

But I had mentioned that I bought a jump rope. The New York Times wire cutter had said they'd done reviews of all the best jump ropes in America. And here's the best jump rope you can buy. It's only 15.

[Joe Getty]

What's the delta between the best one and the worst one? I mean, I bought a jump rope.

[Michael]

A couple years ago, and it. You couldn't jump rope with it. It was so crappy. It was just that the material is made of or something. You just couldn't jump rope with it.

[Joe Getty]

That's it. If they're too light.

[Michael]

Yeah, that's what it was. Anyway, so I bought this $15 jump rope. Best jump rope in America.

[Joe Getty]

Wow. So that's your Cadillac of jump ropes. 15 bucks.

[Michael]

Yeah.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. There you go.

[Michael]

So, yeah. Which was my point, kind of is just like, there's nothing stopping you or me from getting cardiovascular exercise. The best jump rope you can buy in the world is 15 bucks. And you got a floor. So that's pretty much all you need and, but so my son and I have been doing lots of jumping rope. He's been jumping rope like crazy, which is a great thing, jumping rope while he watches TV and everything like that. Oh yeah, but I was doing it yesterday. So I mentioned on the air the other day, man, if you jump rope for five minutes and you said five minutes, one minute. That is correct. How many people in America could jump rope for one minute? As a percentage, I'll bet it's single digits.

[Joe Getty]

It's low. I'll absolutely concede it's low. Having done that for. That was my big exercise thing for a while in like the early, early.

[Michael]

What do you think, Katie? You hang around gyms. What percentage of people do you think could do jump rope for one minute?

[Katie Green]

I'm going with your single digit.

[Joe Getty]

It wouldn't be a lot.

[Michael]

Cause that it is. That'll kick your ass.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, yeah. So the average 8 year old girl in America, do they still jump rope? Do little girls still jump rope or are they all staring at a, an app that's making them depressed and anxious?

[Michael]

That's a good question. I don't know if little girls do jump rope anymore.

[Joe Getty]

Probably a jump roping video game and get criticized brutally by their peers.

[Michael]

Or does the, the rope hearken back to white supremacy somehow and you just can't have jump ropes in schools.

[Joe Getty]

That was really good. I didn't see that coming, but that was good. Gavin Newsom has banned jump ropes because.

[Michael]

Yes, Michael, you do any tricks with.

[Joe Getty]

The rope or you just do regular.

[Michael]

I'm doing tricks.

[Joe Getty]

Okay.

[Michael]

I'm making it go over my head, then under my feet and then repeat. That's all I'm doing. What sort of tricks do you want me to do? The crisscross and the.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, yeah, I'll bet you could. You get sucked into the Muhammad Ali jumping rope, you know, wormhole, rabbit hole on YouTube. He did all sorts of fun stuff.

[Michael]

Oh yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Katie Green]

Throw in a dance move.

[Michael]

I, back when I was good at jumping rope, I could do, you know, every once in a while do the, the, the double per job where you.

[Joe Getty]

Go, oh yeah, yeah.

[Michael]

But I've never been able to cross my arms. I almost strangled myself once. So I don't want to try to get on my. Roll it around on the floor with the jump rope around my neck trying to.

[Joe Getty]

Another good one is you alternate to jump five times just on your right foot, then switch five times.

[Michael]

Oh, that's a good one. That is a good one. Yeah. My son come downstairs and I'M My face is blue and I get this thing around my neck.

[Joe Getty]

Help me.

[Michael]

Because I tried to do the crisscross. Don't want that. That's no good for anybody. But, man, what a simple exercise to do. My point the other day, if you got a floor, you can do push ups, you can do sit ups, you can jump rope. There's so much exercising you can do. And we all. I've done this myself, you know, as soon as I get a gym membership or first of the year or whatever, when I. The right shoes get here or whatever.

[Joe Getty]

You know, and my Lululemons.

[Michael]

Exactly. Then I'll exercise. But not until. Because I gotta have the right, you know, situation going on is why I don't exercise.

[Joe Getty]

Oh, I'm so bad at that. I finally busted myself on that. You know, I'm not gonna practice my guitar. I'm just gonna buy a new piece of equipment, a new stump box or, you know, whatever. I'm not gonna go to the gym. I'm gonna buy some athleisure wear in preparation for going to the gy. Feels like I'm on the case. It feels like I've begun the project.

[Michael]

One of my. My son takes guitar lessons. He had them yesterday. And the. The teacher who's really freaking good has a sign on his wall, like ten commandments of guitar lessons or something like that.

[Joe Getty]

And.

[Michael]

But number one is new equipment will not make you better. It's the number one commandment.

[Joe Getty]

You ought to mind his own business.

[Michael]

Which is a pretty good one. Let's start the show. Officially, they got one thing I want to tease that I can't wait to talk about. I'm Jack Armstrong. He's Joe Getty on this. It is Wednesday middle January 28th. We're running out of January, people. The year 2026, where I'm strong and getting. We approve of this program.

[Joe Getty]

All right, then, let's begin. Officially, according to FCC rules and regulations.

[Michael]

Here we go at Mark Friction Maxings.

[Jack Armstrong]

Is the process of building up our tolerance for, quote, inconvenience. One way is to stop sharing your locations that you have to ask, where are you? Stop using ChatGPT. Buy a cookbook, Text your friends for advice. Go to the grocery store, invite people over without cleaning, babysit for someone. These are just like things that we, you know, used to do all the time, but that now we have really tried to replace with technology.

[Michael]

Oh, all right. So here's. Here's. Here's a problem I've got with all of that. No wonder kids are Anxious and on medication. Everything on TikTok is edited that way. That like, made me anxious. I couldn't keep up with what she was saying. I need that, like, written so I can read it one phrase at a time.

[Joe Getty]

Well, right.

[Michael]

To edit everything so tight like that, make it so fast.

[Joe Getty]

Wow. I have comments on the substance, but I like yours even better. There was no time to contemplate the meaning of what was being said.

[Michael]

No she hits me.

[Joe Getty]

Or to assess whether it was an appropriate example or appreciate the wisdom of it. It was just a machine gun spray of words.

[Katie Green]

It also causes you to rewatch the video.

[Michael]

Ah, there you go. Which is what I would happen if I had it on my phone. I would, I would hit it like three times to make sure I heard all of it. Now they've got three clicks instead of one. There you go. Good one, Katie. That's why, that's why we needed a young person on the show.

[Joe Getty]

They're here.

[Michael]

Figure these things out. But even middle aged, right? What did they call exactly? Somebody who's not elderly. That's what we needed.

[Joe Getty]

So friction maxing.

[Michael]

Friction maxing.

[Joe Getty]

Friction. You know, if you're a young lover, you need some hints, call me, I'll let. Got a couple ideas.

[Michael]

That sort of friction I don't believe.

[Joe Getty]

Okay, so the idea is do the traditional stuff, put in the work, but invite friends over without cleaning the house. That one mystified me.

[Katie Green]

Yeah, same here.

[Joe Getty]

I mean, I get, get a recipe out of a cookbook and, and just be a little more traditional, a little more deliberate, a little more slower paced. But what the hell does having a dirty house have to do with it?

[Michael]

What's.

[Joe Getty]

We'll have to play that again.

[Michael]

We will later and go through that. What's the, what's the concept though? Friction, masking. Maxing.

[Joe Getty]

Why do I want.

[Michael]

Why do I want more friction, Katie?

[Joe Getty]

It's because it's good for you. I think it slows you down, takes you back through the days.

[Katie Green]

Yeah. The days before the Internet.

[Michael]

Okay.

[Joe Getty]

You know, it's funny that the rat attack tat tat tat video is telling me to slow my life down. Yeah, yeah, but I think that's the idea.

[Michael]

That's the most anxiety inducing thing I've done so far today was listening to that. Thanks for the friction maxing.

[Joe Getty]

What was the matter with it? Did you have a problem with it? Would you have a question? Do you have some question?

[Michael]

Would you like to make a comment?

[Joe Getty]

Would you like to post a comment below? Go ahead.

[Michael]

I can't live my life like that. I know my brain is not plastic enough at this point. Neither is anybody else's.

[Joe Getty]

It'll make you insane.

[Michael]

Speaking of the Internet, the social media trial, which could end up being a really big deal, started yesterday in Los Angeles. And I want to go through a little bit of that coming up. What day one was like and what they're trying to accomplish now. Two of the companies have already settled out of court, but you still got the big dogs with the deep pockets in there. So we'll get to that. We also have Katie's headlines on the we have Katie's headlines on the way. God, it stresses me out just talking that fast.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, slow down, people.

[Michael]

Touch grass. We got Katie's headlines on the way.

[Joe Getty]

Stare Armstrong and Getty.

[Michael]

Hope you're doing okay. Got a lot of different things to talk about today that I'm excited to getting into. Excited about getting into. I don't know, there's a sentence in there somewhere.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, yeah. I think, you know, you assemble those words. Yeah, I get what you mean. Yeah. Yeah. There's a couple of huge lawsuits taking place. Not only the social media stuff Jack mentioned, but the GLP1, the weight loss, drugs, the first rounds of really scary kind of lawsuits are coming. To what extent are they legit standing up for our interest as humans? To what extent is it a money grab by the trial lawyers? We will discuss. So much to talk about. Let's figure out who's reporting what. It's the lead story with Katie Green. Katie.

[Katie Green]

Well, the lead is still Minneapolis with big networks. Ms. Now in Minneapolis, far right influencers frame ice resistance as terrorism. ABC Minneapolis live updates. Stephen Miller says CBP may have not followed protocol. And NBC DHS report does not say Freddie attacked officers are brandished a gun as Kristi Noem claimed.

[Michael]

Yeah, that's a big one. At their own report at this point says nothing about the phrases the secretary used moments after the shooting, which was about as ill advised as anything could be.

[Joe Getty]

Put it out in writing. It's not like somebody stopped her coming out of the bathroom and she said, well, it looked like, all right, terrible. She's got to go. She's terrible.

[Katie Green]

From the Financial Times, Trump warns Iran, quote, time is running out for deal to avert US Military action.

[Michael]

Yeah, so what? What does that possibly mean? We'll find out. I guess they will find out. Yank them out by their beards, put.

[Katie Green]

Them on a plane from the Wall Street Journal. The baffling snub that kept Bill Belichick out of the hall of Fame?

[Michael]

What is that? Reporters mad at him because he wouldn't answer questions all those years. He's obviously a Hall of Fame coach, so what is that?

[Joe Getty]

No, there are just a handful of reporters on the 50 vote committee. It's a lot of owners, general managers, a couple of whom had personal beefs with the ridiculous Belichick and decided to just give him the middle finger and deny him entry for one year.

[Michael]

Yeah, I don't like that.

[Katie Green]

This article was hard to read. Page Six. Bruce Willis doesn't know he has dementia according to his wife.

[Michael]

Yeah, sure, that happens at some point.

[Katie Green]

Yeah. From the New York Post. On a happier note. Coyote indulges in endless bird buffet after making the daring 1.5 mile swim to Alcatraz.

[Joe Getty]

Wow.

[Michael]

Got over there and thought, this is awesome.

[Joe Getty]

The birds have never seen. Seen a coyote before. I can eat them.

[Michael]

They just stand there. The bird buffet.

[Katie Green]

This one from study finds. Can shoes alter your mind? What neuroscience says about foot sensation and focus.

[Joe Getty]

What the. What?

[Katie Green]

I brought this one because of Jack. And Michael's wearing the wrong shoe size for years.

[Michael]

Yeah, I'll take a look at that. Actually, I'm a shoe guy, so maybe there's some science behind it that could help justify my. What? I like.

[Katie Green]

This one from cnn. Quote, I've survived war. Elon Omar attacks, reacts to spray attack.

[Michael]

Did she actually say that? Oh, my God.

[Joe Getty]

We will assess whether indeed it was a false syringe operation or not. Coming up. Stay with us. Her reaction was surprising.

[Katie Green]

Yeah, she went after him with her fist cocked.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, she was gonna go give him one. Or is it because she knew he was a crisis actor?

[Katie Green]

And finally, the Babylon Be tragedy as entire studio audience drowns in flood of Jimmy Kimmel's tears.

[Michael]

Yeah, he cried the other night. We didn't play that.

[Joe Getty]

But what was boohooing about this time? The shootings in Minneapolis.

[Michael]

Oh, something about it. Yeah.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah.

[Katie Green]

He was going over the names of the victims of. I started to bring in the waterworks.

[Michael]

There were two headlines there I want to comment on, but I don't remember what they were. I'll have to revisit that. Marco Rubio is before Congress today and he's going to talk a little bit about what's going on with Venezuela, which apparently is still a thing. Obviously it's still a thing since we run it using my finger quotes. But also with Iran, whether we're going to war with Iran, so.

[Joe Getty]

Right, right. Yeah. Both really interesting questions. There's a lot there. Venezuela now our subsidiary or whatever that is. So I don't know.

[Michael]

There's a ginormous trial that could end up in gazillion dollar payouts about social media and also could really alter the landscape going forward for all kinds of stuff on. Can bring you up to speed on what that is. It started in LA yesterday, among other things. On the way. I hope you can stay here.

[News Reporter]

Armstrong and Getty, Tick Tock settling a major social media lawsuit ahead of a landmark trial in Los Angeles County. The lawsuit claims social media companies including TikTok, Meta and YouTube have engineered their platforms to addict children to their product, in part through unlimited scrolling and notifications, ultimately leading to mental health issues. TikTok no longer part of this suit. Snapchat also settling Meta, insisting it has made meaningful changes for young users. YouTube says the allegations are not true.

[Michael]

Yeah, this is going to be something. Zuckerberg's going to be on the stand in the next couple of weeks. So is the person in charge at Google. So as mentioned there in the news report, Snapchat and Tick Tock have settled before the case began. One of them right before it started yesterday. The only thing I took away from the one law class I took in college is you can settle at any time because the professor said that like 9 million times. Which is a, which is a decent point. But the two remaining people, Zuckerberg, Facebook and Google. The term deep pockets does not do it justice for a lawsuit.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, yeah. The Mariana Trench is not as deep as their pockets.

[Michael]

Yeah. It makes the tobacco companies look like your. Your local gas station.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah.

[Michael]

And people are comparing this to the big tobacco lawsuits of the 90s, which were, you know, changed all kinds of things and gazillions of dollars and, and all that. I just don't know how comfortable I am with the road they're going down on this. It centers on one 19 year old who is suing, claiming that she got addicted to social media platforms due to their design features that led to her mental health problems and that they designed this on purpose. What percentage of Americans are addicted to social media or something online? Like 90% of us. We all should have sued to see if we end up being the one chosen. Because if you win, how much money does this person get?

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, I've, I'll bottom line it for you when you want, but I don't want to, you know, cut off the discussion. I'm just literally before I bring my Solomonic wisdom to bear, I'm just trying.

[Michael]

To lay out what the trial is. Jury selection started yesterday. And here's the deal. The Plaintiffs accused these platforms of using addictive features like Infinite scroll, which I think is just handy autoplay videos like.

[Joe Getty]

The all you can eat buffet of media. You got to know when to stop.

[Michael]

Recommendation algorithms, which we all kind of like and that they claim contribute to depression, eating disorders, self harm and suicide in young users, then that might be where the rubber meets the road. Whether or not they knew they were causing these, you know, various social harms, depression and all that, and whether they did it on purpose. What's going to get exciting is the trial is going to involve thousands and thousands of internal documents that they've gotten from Google and Facebook about how these platforms operate. I find it hard to believe they're going to find any that say, yeah, and then we'll get them as depressed as we can. And I came up with a new algorithm that I think will make them suicidal because they're claiming that they're doing.

[Joe Getty]

It on purpose, which, yeah, I think we need to get into my bottom line and then we can go from there. So I agree with the Wall Street Journal editorial board that this is a shakedown. It's the plaintiff's bar. The tri lawyers essentially smell a giant payday. There's subtlety here because the big media company, the social media companies are evil and I hate them. They are, and I think they are fully aware of the damage they're doing and they don't care because they're profiting mightily. I despise them with every fiber of me. But as we know from the people.

[Michael]

The reports that have come out that the people that work at these companies won't let their kids have phones and social media.

[Joe Getty]

Right, yeah. Which is probably all you need to know. But they, they point out that it's extremely difficult to prove that social media, quote unquote, caused any individual's problems. Given the way human psychology works. You got personal experience, you got personality, online exposure, parenting. For instance, the plaintiff in the Big LA case was exposed to domestic abuse in her home as a young child, which may indeed have made her much more vulnerable to whatever harm might come from social media. So to what extent is Mark Zuckerberg, who again is Satan, to what extent is he responsible versus the abuse, for goodness sakes? Let's see here. Let me quote from the Journal. Individuals with compulsive personalities are at higher risk for mental illness. There may also be more likely to become addicted. Studies also find that parenting style is a crucial mediator in the relationship between social media use and mental health. Such confounding and mediating factors undermine the plaintiff's claims of causation.

[Michael]

But, but all of these specifics that just get to. To making your product more desirable. Like potato chip companies making their potato chips more delicious so that you want to eat more of them or there are gazillions of examples of that sort of thing. What, are you going to beat up a company for trying to make their product as you want to use it as much as possible? The American Idol says, we'll announce the winner right after this, then goes to commercial. They're doing that to maximize. I mean, this is what. Of course, it's infinite singing scrolling.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, I know.

[Michael]

They're just trying to keep me around longer. Yeah, they are.

[Joe Getty]

So as, as much as we all love a good, simple good guy, bad guy narrative, I think this case is the wrong way or these cases are the wrong way to get to what we want to get to, which is people understanding the dangers of this stuff. Now the one great thing that might come from the trial, and you really caught my. When you mentioned that thousands of documents, internal documents are going to come to light because when we hear them say in their own words, hey, our studies show that this just crushes self esteem in adolescent girls, we ought to try to do something about this. And then somebody says, well, we could alter the algorithm. And somebody else says, no, don't do that, man. That would cut engagement too much. We just got to live with the downside. When we hear their just horrifying disregard for people equals happiness, People will start to realize what I've realized. These companies, they couldn't give a tenth of a crap about your health and happiness. They just want your attention and your money. They're evil. Knowing somebody is evil before your interchange with them begins is really helpful.

[Michael]

Right? I don't like being put in the position of defending the social media companies because I don't, I don't like. I wish the Internet had ever been invented, honestly. So. But okay, so every gambling company, they designed it specifically so you would use it more often. Or, you know, my potato chip example, they design, it's horrible for you. You should never eat potato chips. But they designed them. Their ads make it look healthy and then they made it so delicious that your brain wants more of them. And the taste goes. I mean, television shows, they advertise a show, I'm watching football and they advertise for something for Monday night and now I'm gonna watch that. And they've got me watching every day because they keep advertising new stuff that I like. When does the when does the algorithm cross the line into it's something evil versus keep you engaged or us saying coming up next will tell you the best exercise for your heart. And you stay tuned. That's our algorithm. I don't understand where you cross the line, all right?

[Joe Getty]

And neither does anybody else. But this is again, a giant gushing money. Mine was the oil well thingy is what I'm going for for plaintiff's attorneys who. A geyser is a good word. Yeah, a money geyser. Michael, thank you for the trial lawyers who have ruined America through rampant lawsuits. We all know that, right? So it reminds me of watching one of those videos online where two Mexican drug cartels are shooting at each other. Who am I rooting for in this scenario? Just the poor, beleaguered, unhappy, you know, kids. I'm certainly rooting for them, but this is not the way to get this done. Although, again, the stuff it will expose, I think will be useful.

[Michael]

But it's a jury trial, and I used the example yesterday of the whole Roundup lymphoma thing. There have been people get tens and tens of millions of dollars suing Monsanto. Is that who makes Roundup? The weed killer?

[Joe Getty]

I think somebody else bear owns them now.

[Michael]

I think maybe doesn't matter for claiming that it causes lymphoma. There's no science connecting it. But you get that in front of a jury and the jury thinks, ah, it sure sounds like it might have them. Besides, and this is the main thing with juries, which is horrible, they're so rich, what difference does it make? You wait until they get to Google's net worth and Facebook and get that in front of a jury. A jury might award $3 billion to one of these people out of hatred.

[Joe Getty]

For social media and markets and the rich.

[Michael]

Who can blame them? And hatred of just flat out hatred of the rich.

[Joe Getty]

Right? That's not justice, that's just a money geyser, as Michael characterized it. You know, those miracle weight loss drugs. Hope your colon doesn't explode. More on exploding colon syndrome. Stay with us.

[Michael]

Let's see the way you did that. You teased that. Now I'm going to stay tuned longer. Your algorithm is designed to make me stay here longer.

[Joe Getty]

Yes, it is, you fool.

[Michael]

And so. And so I won't be working or exercising or teaching my kids Spanish, all the important things I want to do in my life. You have ruined by teasing another story.

[Joe Getty]

Well, I'd like to think you can maybe do them later while you're doing. Anyway, you know what I'M gonna do. I'm gonna add rough greens to my dog's food. Don't change your dog's food. Just add rough greens. Which supports your dog's long term health by providing live bioavailable nutrients including essential vitamins, minerals, probiotics, digestive enzymes and omega oils.

[Michael]

Yeah, this is an interesting situation. If you got a dog, you know that changing food is a fairly big deal. They might not like it and they, they poop funny for a while and all these different sort of things. But. So you're not changing your dog's food, you're just adding this to it. Just add rough greens. Rough Greens is offering a free Jumpstart trial bag. All you do is cover shipping. Use the discount Code Armstrong to claim.

[Joe Getty]

Your free Jumpstart trial [e-mail] Antioxidants, anti inflammatory compounds. Good stuff. Again, that's ruffgreens.com Rough Greens.com Use that code Armstrong, you get a free Jumpstart trial bag. Don't change dog's food. Just add rough greens and watch the health benefits come alive. Roughgreens.com use that promo code Armstrong. Excuse me. Woof.

[Michael]

My, my final comment on this trial is I think it's guaranteed. Really interesting things are going to come out of it, whether it's fair or not at the end, which it almost certainly won't be.

[Joe Getty]

And unlikely anyone's colon explodes. Stay with us.

[Michael]

So there's a lawsuit around the new weight loss drugs.

[Joe Getty]

There will be many of them.

[Michael]

Oh, really?

[Joe Getty]

It's the old 98% of people do great. If there are a billion people doing something, 2% is a lot of people. So we'll talk about some of the side effects and the lawsuits coming up.

[Michael]

With your knowledge right now. Would you get on one of these weight loss drugs or not?

[Joe Getty]

Coin flip. I'd want to know more.

[Michael]

Really?

[Joe Getty]

I'm, I'm on the fence. Probably break the fence as fat as I am, but I'm on the fence.

[Michael]

I'm on the fence. And it is sagging. It is struggling to stay upright. We've got mailbag on the way. Stay here.

[Joe Getty]

Armstrong and Getty.

[Michael]

How are the peace talks going with the Russia, Ukraine war? Well, Russia just hit a passenger train with a bunch of rockets, which is about as big a war crime as you can come up with attacking a civilian passenger train out in the middle of nowhere. And. Yeah, so that's good. More on that later.

[Joe Getty]

All right, here's your freedom loving quote of the day from Benjamin Franklin sent along a great list by Marty and Lincoln, who just got done with Walter Isaacson's great biography of the great man.

[Michael]

It's a good book.

[Joe Getty]

A couple of short ones that are both kind of amusing. First, keep your eyes wide open before marriage. Half shut afterwards. You know, that's. That is actually a really interesting.

[Michael]

Absolutely is.

[Joe Getty]

Make sure you know who you're marrying to whatever extent is humanly possible. Then afterward, there's gonna be a lot you have to forgive.

[Michael]

Yeah. Cut them some slack and they'll cut you some slack. And that would help. Yeah.

[Joe Getty]

Trust me. Yeah. As a guy who needs slack. And then this one. He that drinks his cider alone, let him catch his horse alone. Interesting. As an introvert, I'm not sure I like the tone of that. But if a guy's not going to be a good neighbor and come over and have a nice cider with you, I don't know.

[Michael]

So you don't want to hang out with me and, you know, at the barbecue, but you're going to call me and ask me to help you move the couch? What the hell?

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, that's.

[Jack Armstrong]

That's the.

[Joe Getty]

The gist of it. Yeah.

[Michael]

Interesting.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. Poor Richard's Almanac. Just a font of that sort of thing. A geysers. Michael. Michael, here's. Here's Mailbag.

[Michael]

Drop us a note.

[Joe Getty]

Mailbagarmstrongandgetty.com A lot of reaction to the Jonathan Haidt piece on how the devil would harvest the souls ruin the next generation. Just absolutely wonderful writing. It's under Hot Links or we've got a special blog post on armstrongandgetty.com Anyway, a lot of people reacting to that, including Ana Luisa and Sunny La Mesa, who enjoyed it and says and recommends C.S. lewis's Screwtape Letters as a great similar piece of thinking about. How do you ruin people's souls?

[Michael]

Yeah, that's good stuff, too.

[Joe Getty]

It is. It really is. I recommend, even if you're not a Christian or not particularly religious, it's absolutely worth a read. Okay. And then let's see. This is.

[Michael]

Do we have time for this?

[Joe Getty]

Yeah. Jason teaches at a private micro school. Jack, are you familiar with that term? No. I can imagine what it is. I've heard of parents getting together with like five other families and hiring a teacher or tutor. And I think that's probably what this is to homeschool, but in a group. Anyway. I glean stories you present on the ANG show, and I write SAT style comprehension tests to have my students practice on similar format, question styles, etc. The idea was to inform the students at the same time I was giving them SAT practice, which sounds like really good teaching. The article from Jonathan Haidt that you talked about the other day is a good example of the kind I use in my practices. Blah, blah, blah. Fascinating. Unfortunately, it may not be very good preparation. One of my top students took the ACT recently and reported back to me that when he got to the reading comprehension part, he was so bored by the liberal articles, he found it hard to focus on the material he was so accustomed to. My practice articles that the ANG show provided for me, discussing how AI companions threaten mental health or great inflation by Mumdani's Proletariat, or Chapter 1 of the Fifth Act, America's End in Afghanistan. The stuff he's used, Blah, blah, blah. He got distracted by how banal the content was. Wow. So we've spoiled the kids with being too interesting. I apologize.

[Michael]

Okay.

[Joe Getty]

Please do better for the sake of the children. Rights. All right, let's see. Okay. Sideshow Bob writes brainwashed. You often say the left just follows orders, but you let MAGA off the hook. Their every thought is dictated by their leaders. I've seen so many of them this week saying that carrying and especially having a second magazine is implied intent. And so essentially the feds were justified to shoot the guy. He was going to massive massacre the feds. They turn on a dime. We seem to have lost intelligent conservatism. You know, I heard it put by one writer that what, some fake conservatives. I don't know. I just. Some people who switch their principles on and off depending on what their side is saying at the time are. Are saying tread on me. We want big, powerful paramilitary style government officials coming and shooting us if we disobey them.

[Michael]

That's good.

[Joe Getty]

It's like a flag, the Gadsden flag that says tread on me. Yeah, I'm not comfortable with that at all.

[Michael]

You know, an unreported enough part of that whole shooting was the noise. When you watch those videos with the sound everybody blowing those whistles and beating those drums. Can you imagine being in law enforcement? People are being attacked everywhere. Guy had his finger bit off the day before. Somebody attacked him or whatever. Bam, bam, bam, bam, bam, bam. Somebody comes up, people are shoving and everything like that.

[Joe Getty]

God.

[Michael]

Trying to make a sane decision in that environment. It'd be impossible.

[Joe Getty]

Yeah, there's absolutely plenty of fault on all sides. Let's see this from David. Social media is evil. We know. So ridiculous.

[Michael]

Stop your whining.

[Joe Getty]

Don't use smartphones. If they win, we're all doomed. Doomed I say. So he's with me. He wants more awareness and social pressure as opposed to lawsuits. Although, you know, if the lawsuits are appropriate. Dear Puka the Pudge Warrior and old Fancy Jack. Right. Ryan from Houston. Normally I leave my tinfoil hat on off for the weekends, but I feel substandard. Rabbit, also known as Bad Bunny, is the type of self important blowhard that.

[Michael]

Must might just try stunt at the.

[Joe Getty]

Halftime of the big game. I can see Rabbit yell f ice than him and a group of true believers glue themselves and refuse to leave.

[Michael]

I actually would be kind of surprised if something like that doesn't happen. I I know a fair amount of Bad Bunny just for my son because he lives in that world of music and I'd be surprised if he doesn't make some sort of statement or pulls off a shirt that's got a, you know, words on it or something.

[Joe Getty]

Right, Exactly. Well, you know the Joe get a Getty policy for if somebody glues themselves to something, you leave them there.

[Michael]

Yeah.

[Joe Getty]

And start the second bed lie in it. Yeah.

[Michael]

Let let Drake May and the offense run you over.

[Katie Green]

Right.

[Joe Getty]

They'll just get trampled. Every time the teams come up the field they'll think, oh no, please not.

[Michael]

A first down, please.

[Katie Green]

Oh right.

[Michael]

I shouldn't have glued yourself to the field, moron.

[Joe Getty]

Then Ryan says, I wish we could go back to the normal times of arguing over a nipple. Don't we all, Ryan?

[Michael]

Yeah, I agree those were good times.

[Joe Getty]

Areola.

[Michael]

Technically, but was there an attack on a congressperson or did she stage it? We'll get to that story an hour too.

[Jack Armstrong]

Armstrong and Getty this is an I heart podcast. Guaranteed human.