Armstrong & Getty On Demand
Episode: "No One Looks Like That!"
Date: August 26, 2025
Host: Jack Armstrong (with guest host Craig Gotwells)
Podcast: iHeartPodcasts
Episode Overview
This episode of Armstrong & Getty features Jack Armstrong hosting solo (with Joe Getty vacationing in England), joined by frequent contributor Craig Gotwells (formerly known as "the Obamacare lawyer"). The conversation traverses a range of contemporary topics—from navigating the US healthcare system and getting second medical opinions, to the transformative impact and risks of AI, and then pivots to a robust discussion on the realities of the Russia-Ukraine conflict. The episode closes with a lighter commentary on current events in baseball and the contentious remodeling of restaurant chains like Cracker Barrel and Hooters.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Navigating Second Medical Opinions
[00:16 – 04:45]
- Jack introduces the challenge of getting a second medical opinion, highlighting how it's often suggested casually but can be a complex and emotionally fraught process.
- Craig details the mechanisms by which second opinions are obtained, depending on your insurance type (PPO vs HMO) and the challenges of leaving your primary doctor or group.
- For PPOs, the easiest way: choose a different PCP in a different group and start the diagnostic process anew.
- For some, consider paying out-of-pocket for a direct-care doctor for an independent view.
- Jack shares a personal anecdote on how medical advice often seems based on guesswork, especially with serious illnesses.
Notable Quote:
"There's way more guessing than I ever believed was the case. And you can talk to a couple of different people and they have completely different opinions."
— Jack Armstrong [03:55]
2. The Rise and Risks of AI in Legal and Everyday Life
[04:46 – 17:22]
Efficiency and Pitfalls in Professional Use
- Jack and Craig discuss AI’s dual role—as a tool of incredible productivity and as a potential job displacer.
- Craig, as a lawyer, describes using ChatGPT to summarize and compare large, complex contracts, saving significant time but needing final expert review due to AI’s tendency to “hallucinate” or introduce inaccuracies.
- Jack expresses concern that non-experts may risk more by relying on AI outputs.
Notable Quote:
"If you weren't a healthcare attorney, for example, and you didn't know where it was wrong. Because it's wrong. As you guys have reported, it's wrong...but when you're already an expert in an area...it saved me four hours."
— Craig Gotwells [07:21]
Which AI Tools for What?
- Craig prefers:
- ChatGPT (paid version) for legal and writing tasks.
- Google Gemini for spreadsheet tasks.
- MidJourney for image generation and unique presentation visuals.
- Jack is intrigued by MidJourney and notes he hasn't tried Gemini yet.
AI in Academia and the Telltale Signs
- AI-generated content is rampant in education, making it difficult for teachers to assess student work authenticity.
- Both agree that AI-generated writing can usually be spotted by:
- Overuse of long dashes (“—”)
- Excessive or odd emoji use
- Insertion of literal “lines” (dividers) in memos/letters
- AI detectors (available online) are used by professors to catch fakes.
Notable Quotes:
"The long dash, the ridiculously long dash that none of us ever grew up using. But AI uses like it's going out of style."
— Craig Gotwells [14:14]
"54% of everything on LinkedIn is AI generated...it's higher now."
— Craig Gotwells [16:01]
The AI Images Problem
- Jack feels AI images are immediately “off”—“no human being looks like that”.
- Craig shares a college intern's trick: deliberately adding typos to their own writing to avoid AI suspicion.
3. The Russia–Ukraine War: Hardheaded Realism versus Idealism
[18:15 – 30:04]
Media Spin and Reality Checks
- Jack plays a segment from Russian FM Sergey Lavrov denying targeting Ukrainian civilians.
- Jack summarizes Russia’s history of brutal tactics, calling Lavrov’s statements “a load of crap”.
Should the US Keep Arming Ukraine?
- Craig represents a “radical pragmatist” viewpoint:
- Ukraine vs. Russia is not a fair fight—Russia is a nuclear superpower and will ultimately prevail unless the West is prepared to intervene directly.
- US and EU arms shipments only “prolong the meat grinder” rather than allow a swift end.
- Argues that realpolitik (“might makes right”) is the historical and likely future norm.
Notable Quote:
"All we're doing in Ukraine is prolonging the bloodbath. We're making it so that they lose a little more slowly and that more people die...And Russia's gonna win because they have...a 7 or 10 to 1 advantage in manpower."
— Craig Gotwells [21:16]
- Jack floats the domino effect argument: "If Putin gets away with it, won't China be emboldened to take Taiwan?" Craig and Cato’s Justin Logan respond: that’s always been the world’s way; the recent era of “international norms” was a short-lived historical anomaly.
- Both express emotional difficulty reconciling these views with the suffering on the ground, but see little alternative given nuclear realities.
Notable Quote:
"Ultimately, I view war as might makes right. So unless we're willing to go stand there and fight against them, I just think all we're doing is playing games. We're depleting our own weaponry, and we're not doing any favors to the world."
— Craig Gotwells [21:16]
- Jack acknowledges a possible shift in his own thinking after hearing this argument.
4. Lighter Topics: Baseball, Cracker Barrel, and Breastruants
[31:44 – 37:25]
Baseball in Sacramento
- The Oakland A’s are playing at a minor-league stadium in Sacramento; Jack expresses amusement at the intimacy and excitement for local fans.
- Surprise: The Milwaukee Brewers have the MLB’s best record, beating the expensive LA Dodgers.
Casual Dining and Hooters’ Identity Crisis
- Ongoing debate around Cracker Barrel’s interior redesign (“woke or not?”).
- Discussion on “casual dining” and specifically the “breastaurant” genre (Hooters).
- Hooters’ attempts to rebrand amid business losses: perhaps lengthening shorts, but still upholding style/image standards.
- Jack questions how these hiring and image requirements will fare under scrutiny from “body positivity” advocates.
"All of my red flags are going up because here comes the body positivity people going, well, technically, according to my doctor, I'm perfectly healthy."
— Jack Armstrong [36:21]
- Both agree Hooters’ appeal is somewhat baffling, as most sports bars have similar attire and personnel.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
On the healthcare system:
"The main thing I learned from when I had cancer is there's a lot of guessing. There's way more guessing than I ever believed was the case."
— Jack Armstrong [03:55]
On AI efficiency and danger:
"It saved me four hours...but when you're already an expert in an area...it did. Within like 10 minutes, I had this unbelievable chart."
— Craig Gotwells [07:21]
AI’s signature writing style:
"The long dash, the ridiculously long dash that none of us ever grew up using. But AI uses like it's going out of style."
— Craig Gotwells [14:14]
The modern workplace and AI:
"54% of everything on LinkedIn is AI generated. I swear to God, it's higher now."
— Craig Gotwells [16:01]
Stoic realpolitik on Ukraine:
"All we're doing in Ukraine is prolonging the bloodbath...Russia's gonna win because they have...a 7 or 10 to 1 advantage in manpower."
— Craig Gotwells [21:16]
The new world order:
"Warfare has always been about might makes right."
— Craig Gotwells [28:36]
Timestamps for Key Segments
- [00:16] – Introduction, Joe Getty’s absence, show theme
- [00:43 – 04:45] – Second medical opinions and challenges
- [04:46 – 11:02] – AI use in law and business; efficiency vs. accuracy
- [13:23 – 17:22] – AI’s impact on academia; detecting AI-generated content
- [18:15 – 30:04] – The Russia-Ukraine war: US and global response, pragmatism vs. idealism
- [31:44 – 37:25] – Baseball in Sacramento; Cracker Barrel and Hooters rebranding; “casual dining” musings
Episode Tone & Style
The episode maintains Armstrong & Getty’s signature conversational, irreverent, but intellectually curious style. Jack and Craig combine humor with skepticism, and their banter covers practical how-tos as well as big-picture, often controversial, geopolitical analysis.
For Further Engagement
- Find Craig Gotwells at: gotwalls.substack.com
- Archived episodes and segments: Armstrong and Getty On Demand