Armstrong & Getty On Demand - "The A&G Replay Wednesday Hour Two"

Release Date: December 24, 2025
Hosts: Jack Armstrong & Joe Getty (with Katie)
Producer: iHeartPodcasts

Overview

In this replayed holiday episode, Armstrong & Getty bounce from light holiday banter to wide-ranging, sharp-witted discussions on current social phenomena. Major topics include South Korea’s collapsing fertility rate and its cultural consequences, shifting attitudes toward marriage and family among young Americans, America’s mounting personal debt crisis fueled by “buy now, pay later” culture, and quick riffs on current events. The show rides on the duo’s trademark mix of dry humor, statistical analysis, and cultural skepticism, with occasional guest insights from Katie.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Are Jack & Joe Working Christmas Eve?

• [03:19] The hosts jokingly explain this is a replayed show:
  • “No, we're not working on Christmas Eve. We worked really hard to get it in our contract that we wouldn't be working today. So you're not hearing us live.” (Jack, 03:19)
  • “I'd hate to make both Jesus and Santa Claus angry. So yes, we're taking the day off, but hope you're enjoying some really good A and G replays. Dig in. Merry Christmas.” (Joe, 03:27)

2. Political Capsules & JD Vance as “the White Ibram X Kendi”

• [05:00–07:06] Joe brings up two potential discussion topics:
  • Why is South Korean fertility so low?
  • “J.D. Vance is the white Ibram X. Kendi” — Joe summarizes this piece, contrasting Vance’s earlier nuanced writing on rural hardship with his shift toward grievance politics for popularity.
    • “It seems as though he's decided it's much, much better politics to work the grievance side of the aisle and tell people you're being cheated and the world is stacked against you and I will be your savior...” (Joe, 05:23)
    • Also references the broader American shift from mobility for work to an expectation to never leave one’s hometown.

3. Deep Dive: South Korea’s Collapsing Fertility Rate

• [07:09-16:40]

• Startling Statistics & Projections

  • South Korea has the lowest fertility rate in the world at just ~0.8 children per woman.
    • “Its population optimistically is projected to shrink by over two thirds in the next 100 years if current fertility rates persist.” (Joe, 07:09)
    • “I remember from reading America Alone by Mark Steyn ... it's like compound interest, the way it works. And it's astounding how quickly you run out of people.” (Jack, 07:43)
  • Historical South Korea fertility rate fell from ~6 in 1960 to 0.8 in 2020:
    • “1960... over 6 children per woman. 1970... 4.5. 1980... 2.7. 1990... 1.8. 2000... 1.5. 2010... 1.2. 2020... 0.8, I think.” (Joe, 08:38)

• Why So Low?

  • Cultural and economic pressures on women:
    • Biggest gender employment gap in the OECD due to career penalties for motherhood.
    • “27% of female office workers report being coerced into signing illegal contracts, promising to resign if they become pregnant or get married.” (Joe, 11:47)
    • “South Koreans work 130 more hours per year than Americans, and 430 more than Swedes.” (Joe/Katie, 11:36)
    • Emphasis on intense educational attainment for children with 80% attending evening cram schools (“hagwons”) and the country’s obsession with material success.
    • High suicide rates and social misery.
  • Cultural drift:
    • “Cultures are like individuals. They can get diseased. And just because a culture is something doesn't mean it should be...” (Joe, 13:26)
    • Jack comments on parental motivation:
      • “A lot of what you and I do probably is because we got kids out there... It's one of the biggest motivators in world history.” (Jack, 14:43)

• Historical Policy Shifts

  • In the 1960s, South Korea advocated for smaller families to spur economic growth but may have overcorrected by embedding low-birth values into national culture.

4. Attitudes Toward Marriage, Settling Down, and Family

• [26:20–35:54]
• The hosts examine a Free Press essay by Freya India about social pressure (or lack thereof) for young women to settle down.
  • “I keep hearing about how there’s too much pressure to settle down as a young woman... My whole life I’ve only ever felt the opposite—an overwhelming pressure to be single.” (Joe quoting, 26:20–27:07)
• Katie and Jack discuss how pressure shifts by age and culture:
  • “I know a bunch of people that are in their 20s... that's the last thing on their mind... then there's the pressure, all your friends around you are married. When are you gonna find your guy?” (Katie, 27:18)
  • Joe notes that, in modern liberal enclaves, single, “child-free” women are seen as strong and wise, with settling down almost stigmatized:
    • “The young woman who settles down has always been seen as wasting her potential... The single, child-free, even divorced woman is strong, wise, and knows her worth.” (Joe quoting India, 29:08)
• Philosophical discussion about why some feel internal clocks ticking, while others see little external pressure.
• Jack reflects on rural vs. urban expectations around marriage and “better things to do” than family.

5. Economic Anxiety: The “Buy Now, Pay Later” Culture

• [39:17–46:16]
• Joe introduces a Wall Street Journal piece warning of a debt-fueled crisis:
  • “America's buy now, pay later economy is showing signs of an emerging debt crisis everywhere.” (Joe, 39:17)
  • Serious credit card and auto loan delinquencies have climbed to 2008-09 recession levels.
• Jack’s debt-phobia:
  • “I don't like this story. I'm a I don't buy it until I can afford it sort of guy... We all get brought down by a financial collapse.” (Jack, 39:34, 39:41)
• “Buy now, pay later” use spans half the population—especially the young, concert tickets to groceries.
• Lenders not reporting debt to credit bureaus, hiding true risk.
• Mortgage debt-to-income ratios now far more risky (69% in 2024 vs 28% in 2012).
  • “Seven out of 10 of you us. Yeah, I don't think. I do have a risky debt to income ratio.” (Jack, 45:30)
• FHA and other agencies have quietly reduced or deferred millions of mortgage payments to keep delinquencies down.

6. Miscellaneous Moments & Light Banter

• Drug Cartels & News Spin

  • Media confusion over whether the “Cartel de la Solis” in Venezuela is real or a narrative invention, tied to shifting political talking points.
    • “Back when that was happening... US Labels Maduro Tide Cartel de La Solas as a terror organization. It's not a cartel per se is the current headline in the the ap.” (Joe, 21:34)

• Seattle Homelessness & Political Change

  • [22:10-23:05] Homeless encampments near the Space Needle, Microsoft relocating conferences for safety, and the upcoming shift leftwards with Seattle's new mayor.

• Humor & Personal Stories

  • [46:16] Jack’s high schooler’s cologne overuse:
    • “It smells like you're on a date with four high school sophomore boys right now in my house.” (Jack, 47:01)
  • [44:02] Babylon Bee-style government renaming:
    • “The Social Security Administration is going to be renamed the Charles Ponzi Memorial Retirement Plan...” (Jack, 44:02)

Notable Quotes by Timestamp

• On South Korea’s Population Crisis

  • “They will have only six great grandchildren between them. Wow. Yeah. Yeah.” (Joe, 07:09)
  • “As soon as you become very successful and safe, you stop having kids.” (Jack, 09:15)

• On Work-Life and Fertility

  • “In South Korea, mothers’ employment falls by 49% relative to fathers over 10 years. In the US it falls by 25%. In Sweden, by only 9%.” (Joe, 10:30)
  • “South Koreans work 130 more hours a year than Americans, and about 430 more than Swedes.” (Joe, 11:36)

• On Contemporary Social Pressures

  • “My whole life I’ve only ever felt the opposite. An overwhelming pressure to be single.” (Freya India, quoted by Joe, 27:07)
  • “The single, child-free, even divorced woman is strong, wise, and knows her worth.” (Freya India, quoted by Joe, 29:08)
  • “Announce you’re getting married in your twenties and complete strangers will rush to tell you horror stories about affairs and divorce and heartbreak. Why would you do that to yourself?” (Freya India, quoted by Joe, 29:58)

• On Debt Culture

  • “Serious credit card and auto loan delinquencies have climbed to the level of the 2008-09 recession.” (Joe, 40:04)
  • “According to a recent survey, about half of consumers have used a buy now, pay later service. This is not a niche. This is half—wow.” (Joe, 43:09)
  • “Seven out of 10 of you us. Yeah, I don't think. I do have a risky debt-to-income ratio.” (Jack, 45:30)

Memorable Moments and Tone

• Banter and Sarcasm:

  • Throughout, hosts are self-aware, irreverent, and playfully skeptical about official narratives, especially regarding political spin or cultural trends.
  • Jack's recurring, tongue-in-cheek theory: “Because South Korean men can't satisfy their women's.” (Jack, 07:06)

• Pull-no-punches Cultural Commentary:

  • Jack and Joe readily point out uncomfortable truths or offer sharp critiques of prevailing social trends.
  • Use of recurring gags (e.g., “the chicken” cartel, government name parodies).

• Engaging Sidebars:

  • From family life and parenting to off-the-cuff observations about rural versus urban America, the episode blends serious data with personal anecdotes and comic asides.

Timestamps for Key Segments

| Time | Segment | |--------------|--------------------------------------------------------------| | 03:19 | Holiday banter – why this is a replay | | 05:16–07:06 | JD Vance/white Ibram X Kendi capsule summary | | 07:09–16:40 | South Korea fertility & cultural analysis | | 26:20–35:54 | Pressure (or lack thereof) to settle down and have children | | 39:17–46:16 | America’s “buy now, pay later” debt crisis | | 44:02–44:49 | Babylon Bee-style agency renaming, government satire | | 46:16–47:28 | High schooler cologne story, closing banter |

Summary

This hour of Armstrong & Getty blends statistics, skepticism, and storytelling to explore the societal consequences of South Korea’s population collapse, why marriage and childbearing seem increasingly delayed (and sometimes even stigmatized) in America, and how widespread reliance on “buy now, pay later” schemes could be pushing the nation toward another debt-fueled crash.
The tone is comedic yet critical, offering both data-driven insight and wry personal reflections. The message? Social and economic trends have real, unforeseen consequences—so listen mindfully, question your culture, and maybe don’t buy concert tickets on installment plans.