Iran, The Draft, and Smuggled Ants | Negligent Discharge Friday | 3.13.2026

Summary

Cleared Hot – Powered by BRCC

Host: Andy Stumpf

Episode: Iran, The Draft, and Smuggled Ants | Negligent Discharge Friday | 3.13.2026

Date: March 13, 2026

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Episode Overview

This “Negligent Discharge Friday” episode features Andy Stumpf and co-host Michael in a recurring, irreverent current-events series. Together, they riff on self-defense upgrades (including “pocket chucks”), audience comments, and more serious topics such as the looming prospect of a military draft in connection to U.S. actions in Iran. The episode candidly explores the broader implications of mandatory service, the use of military force, government surveillance, AI deepfakes, and even the bizarre world of international ant smuggling. The hosts’ banter blends humor with pointed critique, challenging listeners to examine contemporary issues with skepticism and curiosity.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Setting the Tone and Self-Defense Absurdity

Timestamps: 00:54 – 05:45

• Andy and Michael riff on the "Negligent Discharge" format—planning to record twice a month due to the current-events focus.
• Michael boasts about his latest self-defense “upgrade”: a pair of nunchucks, seeking creative name suggestions from listeners.
• Banter includes proposed carry methods (e.g., “inside-the-waistband chucks”), poking fun at the culture around martial arts and self-defense.
• Memorable moment:
  • Andy (02:29): “Are you gonna conceal carry those?”
    Michael: “Yes, I’m gonna conceal carry them down my pants.”
    (Followed by jokes about the potential for odd attention.)

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2. On Communities That Take Themselves Too Seriously

Timestamps: 05:37 – 07:19

• Reacting to an audience comment about LGBT perspectives, the hosts joke about the seriousness with which certain communities—including the “super military tactical” and jiu-jitsu worlds—view themselves.
• Discussion highlights the problem of vocal minorities painting entire groups.
  • Andy (07:01): “The fringes are often, I find, a little bit louder. It’s the vocal minority versus the silent majority.”

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3. The Prospect of a Draft & Mandatory Service

Timestamps: 09:25 – 15:00

• Prompted by recent news and rumors of a new draft under a possible Trump administration, Michael and Andy debate the justification for conscription and mandatory national service.
  • Michael is staunchly opposed to a draft except in true national peril:
    “I think the draft is justified if there is a legitimate threat to the United States.” (12:23)
  • Andy supports mandatory service, provided it offers options beyond the military:
    “How about you have to volunteer with…Here’s all these other things. The point is you have to serve something that is greater than yourself…” (13:28)
  • Both agree it could “round the edges” of society, but Michael objects about freedom versus civic obligation.

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4. Are We Really at War with Iran?

Timestamps: 15:10 – 19:00

• Andy and Michael dissect what “war” means—contrasting legal definitions with practical realities.
• Andy points out how every administration, post-9/11, has used and abused the “authorized use of military force” as a workaround for formal war declarations:
  • Andy (17:03): “I would like to see that fixed…All of this stuff is happening and there actually has been no declaration of war.”

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5. Iran as the “State Sponsor of Terror” & U.S. Military Intervention

Timestamps: 18:08 – 25:28

• Andy asserts, relying on official sources, that Iran is “the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the world.”
• Michael remains skeptical, lacking “enough evidence to support that.”
• The hosts debate the validity and cost of war, especially given the dubious pretext and massive collateral damage.
  • Michael (24:14): “The last thing I want to see is boots on the ground…We have 20 years to show that we’re not great at long term… entry into those type of things.”
• They discuss how working-class Americans often bear the brunt of elite-driven conflicts.

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6. Precedents, Hypocrisy, and Leadership

Timestamps: 25:28 – 27:54

• Michael points to Teddy Roosevelt as a rare U.S. president who championed the working class and had real military experience.
  • Roosevelt trained in jiu-jitsu at the White House—a fact both validate via quick Google.
  • Andy: “How was it before him? Was he...the outlier?”

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7. Military-Industrial Complex, Global Projections & U.S. Priorities

Timestamps: 28:13 – 31:41

• Andy reveals the intertwining of military action, economic influence, and corporate gain in U.S.-led initiatives like the “Shield of America” conference.
  • Raises concerns about stretching U.S. military resources thin across multiple global commitments.
  • Andy (31:25): “How long can we project our might if we don’t have a base to project off of?”
• Both agree military force should be a last resort:
  • Andy: “It’s not a broadsword, it’s a scalpel.”

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8. The Elementary School Strike, Accountability, and Collateral Damage

Timestamps: 32:22 – 41:03

• Michael asks about the U.S. strike on an Iranian elementary school, which reportedly killed over 100 schoolgirls.
• The hosts criticize Trump’s evasive response—floating implausible suggestions that Iran targeted its own school.
  • Andy (34:12): “I don’t think anybody’s selling them [Tomahawk missiles] [to Iran].”
• They dissect how reliance on faulty or outdated intelligence can lead to tragedies.
• Both agree on the inevitability of civilian casualties in military action, but underscore the necessity of honest accountability in the aftermath:
  • Andy (38:44): “The move is when that happens, you 100% own it... We made the decision based off of our intelligence... The reality turns out it wasn’t... and you just own it.”

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9. The Israeli-Gaza Conflict & The Moral Ambiguity of Modern Warfare

Timestamps: 42:09 – 46:25

• Michael expresses criticism of Israeli policies, particularly the destruction in Gaza and perceived undue influence on U.S. politics.
• Andy challenges him to consider the military dilemma of fighting an enemy embedded in civilian populations (i.e., Hamas hiding HQs in hospitals).
  • Andy (45:00): “There is no easy answer... There are 100 examples of when [military force] should be used... war is ugly.”
  • The conversation highlights generational differences among veterans’ attitudes toward military engagement.

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10. Edward Snowden and the Surveillance State

Timestamps: 46:54 – 55:34

• Michael asks whether Snowden is a hero or villain. Andy’s perspective has shifted with time:
  • Andy (47:01): “When I first heard about it, it was villain…Then you look at what it is that he exposed… I am grateful that he exposed what he did.”
• They detail the revelations: NSA mass surveillance (e.g., PRISM, TEMPORA), including bulk collection of Americans’ data.
• Both agree that Snowden’s disclosures were technical in nature, and didn’t seem to directly endanger individual agents.
  • Michael (52:01): “My biggest fear is that nothing will come of this. And nothing has come of it.”
• Andy laments: “We 100% live in a surveillance state… I don’t think our hands are as clean as people want to believe.”

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11. Ant Smuggling: Human Oddity, Black Markets, and Missed Opportunities

Timestamps: 57:05 – 62:29

• Michael introduces the headline: A Chinese national arrested in Kenya for smuggling over 2,000 ants in luggage.
• Discovering facts: elite African ants can fetch up to $230 each, making a single shipment worth up to $1 million on the black market.
• Andy is amazed, reflecting on human ingenuity—and missed entrepreneurial opportunities.
  • Andy (61:51): “I feel completely underwhelmed in my own entrepreneurial ability… I’m missing business opportunities.”

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12. AI Deepfakes, Relationships, and the Human Future

Timestamps: 62:32 – 78:34

• The hosts shift to technology and the alarming capabilities of AI deepfake generators.
  • Coffeezilla’s experiment: for $40, he created convincing video fakes of Trump, Biden, Musk, Rogan, etc.
  • Andy observes the “AI arms race”: tools to detect deepfakes will need to outpace tools to create them.
• Michael brings up OpenAI’s “seductive” chatbot, noting users’ strong (even grieving) emotional reactions to its removal.
• Andy and Michael debate whether forming connections with AI chatbots fills a real psychological need—or is a symptom of societal breakdown.
  • Andy (76:09): “The better technology gets, the more I appreciate the close personal connections that I have.”
• Both hosts appreciate the utility of AI for tasks but question its role in human relationships.

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the draft and service:
  Michael (12:23): “I think the draft is justified if there is a legitimate threat to the United States.”
  Andy (13:28): “You have to serve something that is greater than yourself or bigger than yourself.”

• On government surveillance:
  Andy (51:07): “The Patriot Act was one of the most unpatriotic things that’s ever happened to this country.”
  Michael (54:37): “We essentially live in a surveillance state — just, it doesn’t get acted upon that much.”

• On the morality of war:
  Andy (38:44): “When that happens, you 100% own it...We made the decision…based off the intelligence at the time...You just own it.”
  Andy (45:00): "There is no easy answer...the solutions to that could probably be argued whether or not there are solutions."

• On ant smuggling:
  Andy (61:51): “I feel completely underwhelmed in my own entrepreneurial ability…I feel like I’m missing business opportunities.”

• On AI and relationships:
  Andy (76:09): “The better technology gets, the more I appreciate the close personal connections that I have.”

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Timestamps for Important Segments

| Topic | Start (MM:SS) | |-----------------------------------------------|---------------| | Self-defense and nunchucks | 00:54 | | Audience comments & communities | 05:37 | | Military draft/mandatory service | 09:25 | | What constitutes war with Iran | 15:10 | | Iran as state sponsor of terror | 18:08 | | Hypocrisy and leadership & Roosevelt | 25:28 | | Military-industrial complex | 28:13 | | Elementary school strike, accountability | 32:22 | | Israel/Gaza, moral ambiguity of war | 42:09 | | Edward Snowden and surveillance state | 46:54 | | Ant smuggling, black markets | 57:05 | | AI deepfakes and chatbot relationships | 62:32 |

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Tone and Language

The tone is direct, irreverent, and candid—the hosts do not shy away from sarcasm, humor, or self-deprecation. Michael and Andy are quick to challenge each other's assumptions, while also poking fun at the absurdity of both global events and their own limited expertise. Even while handling grave topics (war, civilian deaths, surveillance), their conversation stays accessible and grounded, frequently looping back to humility and the importance of questioning conventional wisdom.

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Conclusion

This episode of "Cleared Hot" is an engaging mix of banter and serious conversation, covering topics as varied as the ethics of military service, the dangers of unchecked government surveillance, the gray moral areas of modern warfare, and even the wild frontiers of international ant smuggling and artificial intimacy. The dialogue is loaded with quotable insights and is a must-listen for anyone seeking both critical thought and a sense of (sometimes dark) humor about the world’s current events.

Transcript

[A]

Ever notice how ads always pop up at the worst moments when the killer's identity is about to be revealed during that perfect meditation flow? On Amazon Music, we believe in keeping you in the moment. That's why we've got millions of ad free podcast episodes. So you can stay completely immersed in every story, every reveal, every breath. Download the Amazon music app and start listening to your favorite podcasts, ad free included with Prime. Okay, I got the red smoke. West of the smoke. Okay, copy west of the smoke. I'm looking at danger close now.

[B]

Come on with it, baby. Give it to me. I mean it.

[A]

You're cleared hot. Cleared hot.

[B]

All right, we are going.

[A]

We're going. Like right now?

[B]

Yes, like right now.

[A]

Are we live?

[B]

We're live.

[A]

In person.

[B]

In person live.

[A]

Okay, what do we talk about? Are we gonna set this negligent discharge routine twice a week? Are we? Or twice a month? Twice a week. Twice a week would just be too much.

[B]

That would be too much content. Yeah.

[A]

Twice a month. Should we just commit to it now?

[B]

Let's do it.

[A]

What about times when you're traveling because you don't care about your job and you just care about your personal enrichment?

[B]

We could actually. It'd be hard to bank these up. Cause it. They're kind of current event almost.

[A]

Not always.

[B]

Not always.

[A]

I tell you to bring your aame often and you're somewhere around the G to H level.

[B]

G. I didn't. I don't even reach F level.

[A]

Wow.

[B]

What. What would get me to A level? Or let's just. Just not shoot sea level. What would get me the C level performance? Okay.

[A]

The one thing you struggle with.

[B]

Yeah, well, of course, before we get

[A]

going into today, I think we have to let the audience know that you've had an upgrade in your self defense capabilities. So, you know, I talk about this all the time when people ask me about self defense. It's about ranges. And so let's start with the constitution. So, yeah, distance, right?

[B]

Like you have distance for you.

[A]

Effective range, probably 7 yards, but whatever.

[B]

I was gonna say 10.

[A]

Okay, fair enough. Then you have your jiu jitsu skills on the other side of that, right?

[B]

Extreme close range.

[A]

Extreme close range. But what could we have added that is like Jiu jitsu range plus one foot?

[B]

It's ready, audience? The nunchucks. I'm still coming up with a name.

[A]

I am open to suggestions from the audience.

[B]

Yeah, I was gonna say, I think we need audience suggestions for these because Constitution. I'm honestly pretty proud of Constitution.

[A]

Did you come up with That I

[B]

came up with that.

[A]

I just assumed it was on the box somewhere. Yeah, no, yeah, I. I support that as well. Do you have anything that comes to mind for a set of nunchucks?

[B]

I was thinking something Korean or, you know.

[A]

No, Korean words.

[B]

I know, that's what I'm saying. Or Korean or Japanese. I'm pretty sure nunchucks are initially Korean. I'm pretty sure is what I've heard. So.

[A]

Yeah, this is where we need the audience's help.

[B]

Yeah, yeah, but we need the audience to help name these. I. I'm thinking two names because there's two of them. Maybe like pain and destruction or something.

[A]

No, be like justice and serve.

[B]

Yeah, exactly.

[A]

So are you gonna create any content with you training with those?

[B]

Oh, that would be hilarious. Learning how to. I. I would.

[A]

Please.

[B]

With a lot of bruises.

[A]

First off. That's the kind of content that I'm looking for. Please. Only practice at full speed with no protective gear.

[B]

Imagine I actually get good at them.

[A]

That I'm gonna have to imagine. Cuz we both know that's not gonna happen.

[B]

Yeah, I'm not actually gonna train with them.

[A]

Okay. So just so people know, Michael is even more dangerous.

[B]

Yes, even more. Which only puts me at like a two out of a hundred.

[A]

But are you gonna conceal. Carry those?

[B]

Yes, I'm gonna conceal. Carry them down my pants.

[A]

I was gonna say front of the pants is the way to go because that way you'll gain the attention of both men and women.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

For different reasons.

[B]

But yeah. Yeah, for sure. Yeah. I can still carry nunchucks.

[A]

Pocket Chucks. Iwb. Inside the waistband. Chucks. Iwbc. That's what you need. You just need a little. And you just stuff it right down the front.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Put one down each leg.

[B]

Oh, yeah. You really keep them guessing.

[A]

The world is not ready for this.

[B]

For inside waistband, carry nunchucks.

[A]

IWBC's.

[B]

Yeah, yeah.

[A]

Pocket Chucks.

[B]

Pocket Chucks. Whatever you want to call them.

[A]

I'm ready now.

[B]

I feel like, okay, yeah, we've gotten

[A]

that spot where we can. Yeah. I mean, much like people used to think that if you had a black belt in karate, you had to register yourself as a lethal weapon. Which is not true anywhere in the world to my knowledge.

[B]

But it's really funny.

[A]

Yeah. I just. I feel like we have to do our due diligence and inform the world that you have Pocket Chucks now.

[B]

I do indeed.

[A]

Cool. We need a name though.

[B]

Yeah, I'll. I'll think. And then if audience has any suggestions.

[A]

Yeah. I agree with the two names.

[B]

Yeah. Because there's two of them. Yeah.

[A]

Yeah. Okay.

[B]

I just want to start off with one of the comments on Last Negligent Discharge. It was, like, so glad when you have Michael on. It's always good to get an LGBT perspective. I thought that that was really funny. So whoever wrote that, kudos.

[A]

Why is that funny? Is it because you don't respect that community? No, but you're not taking that community seriously. You're going to turn them into a joke. These are your people.

[B]

Not that I'm not taking them seriously, but it is a matter of, you know, it is a joking matter between male friends.

[A]

So there are also communities that take themselves too seriously.

[B]

I would agree with that. Yeah.

[A]

And I'm not saying they do. Yeah, I'm not saying they do.

[B]

Are you accusing them?

[A]

I'm not saying anything. I'm just floating out the concept that oftentimes for most communities, they are their own worst enemy.

[B]

Yeah. Like the, like, super military tactical community as well. Could say that.

[A]

The super military tactics.

[B]

Yeah. Like the Punisher School people. And like, the, you know, that kind of community. I feel like they sometimes can take their self too seriously as well. The jiu jitsu community takes itself way too seriously.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

But with any community, there's a sect that takes it way too seriously.

[A]

The fringes oftentimes will paint the people who aren't, like, in the more of the norm category.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

And the fringes are often, I find, a little bit louder. It's the vocal minority versus the. The silent majority. And so that vocal fringe community will paint everything associated with that. And it's not always the most accurate.

[B]

No. Yeah, I would agree. Yeah.

[A]

So you enjoyed that comment. That's good. I did.

[B]

Yeah. I thought it was slightly humorous.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

I mean, clearly you're a bigot, but we'll ignore that.

[B]

And to be fair, though, and to not kind of get this guy's ego inflated, it takes very little to amuse me.

[A]

So good to know. Thank you for sharing.

[B]

You're welcome.

[A]

Today's episode is brought to you by Firecracker Farm. You want to talk about things that integrate into my life? This product right here might be one of the easier ad reads that I do. I am putting this hot salt on just about everything. And I'm being the first to tell you, I don't understand the chemical reaction and how it's able to pull the flavors out of everything. I'm putting it on from eggs in the morning to avocado toast to steak just about everything. I'm not a psychopath. I don't put it on fruit. I haven't tried that yet. I don't understand how it does it, how it pulls the flavors out, how it makes everything that I eat taste better, but it does. My recommendation to you is to head over to Firecracker Dot Farm to check out what they have to offer because they have legitimately very spicy hot sauce, but they also have new stuff like the vanilla heat flavor, which I'm pretty sure Alex's daughter had the idea for. They sent me some. It has been my absolute go to. And then everything in between is going to come in these stainless steel push button grinders. All you got to do is drive the plunger down with your thumb and you can control how much. I don't have a crazy heat tolerance, so I'll generally use one or two pumps, but you can go as insane as you may like. So you can get them on firecracker.com or we actually sell these in the coffee shop here locally in Kalispell. Or if you live somewhere that has a black rifle coffee, you can get them in stores as well. Alex and his family are creating these products together at their small family farm. So this is your opportunity to really level up your seasoning game, but also support the American dream for a family that is all in on this and they're doing it together. So it's an amazing opportunity. The best way to do so probably for most people, head over to Firecracker Farm, check out what they have to offer. I would. I would suggest the vanilla heat. You won't regret it. Back to the show. You got. You got the heat for today. What do we got?

[B]

Yeah, I mean, I figure just started off with Iran. Iran. However you say it, I believe it's Iran is the official pronunciation.

[A]

You have to ask Brian Cowan.

[B]

Is he an expert somehow?

[A]

No, he likes to enunciate. I was over in Pakistan or Afghan. I'm like, dude, you're from. Say it like you live in Beverly Hills or you used to. It's like, shut up. General thoughts on Iran.

[B]

General thoughts. And then we can go into. I have some more specific things about the elementary school.

[A]

Let me ask you this.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

You're of the draft age, not me.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

And I had heard this is unverified. Maybe look this up in real time. That Trump was asked about instituting a draft. And I'm not saying that we are anywhere near needing that. But I believe his answer was, it's

[B]

not out of the question, which is wild.

[A]

Is that true?

[B]

That's what I've heard. That's what I've heard.

[A]

Let's look that up. Ask if Trump actually said that. Let's not intentionally put out.

[B]

Yeah. Because I've seen stuff on, like, Instagram and I'm like, I don't know if that's true necessarily. Did Trump say there will be a.

[A]

He didn't say there will be a draft. Say, did he. Did Trump say a draft is possible?

[B]

Trump administration says it's on table, quote.

[A]

So because of that, I would be more curious, in your opinion, because you are the person that would be impacted by that. If they are drafting me, we have larger issues.

[B]

There's an issue.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

Yeah. Well, obviously, I'm vehemently opposed to a draft.

[A]

What was the word you just used?

[B]

Vehemently.

[A]

Vehemently.

[B]

I think you can say it both ways.

[A]

I. Let me be real honest with the audience, and they already know this. I have a very low mastery of the English language.

[B]

I've always heard it vehemently. Wait, how did you say it?

[A]

Vehemently?

[B]

Vehemently. Vahi viha. I think the. The spelling remains the same, but I think it's just the pronunciation.

[A]

Yes, Michael. The spelling remains the same.

[B]

Yes. Well, we're not like. Anyways, sorry, let's. Let's move on from that.

[A]

Say it again for my own.

[B]

Vehemently. Vehemently. You know, we're stressing the. We're switching the ease.

[A]

We're both probably saying this.

[B]

Probably. Yeah, we're both stupid.

[A]

And that. That's. Yeah, I will. I identify with that at an incredibly deep level, and I try to tell people that, and they don't believe me. I'm like, whatever.

[B]

Yeah. Yeah.

[A]

I'm saying it your way from here on out. Vehemently.

[B]

Okay. Well, yeah, I will. I mean, I'm almost always opposed to drafts.

[A]

Say it. You almost said it.

[B]

I almost said it. I'm almost always opposed to drafts. Yep.

[A]

But especially the concept of the draft.

[B]

I think the draft is justified if there is a legitimate threat to the United States.

[A]

What are your thoughts on mandatory service, two years?

[B]

I actually don't think that would be horrible because I know a lot of countries do it, and I actually think that it is, especially if you don't have as large of a population base. Probably not a bad idea, you know, because a lot. A lot of the countries that do do it have a smaller population. Yeah. And so it's like you do kind of need a base of a military, and so that's where a well, my thoughts are service.

[A]

It should.

[B]

Comes in handy.

[A]

I think it would be fantastic. I think it would reframe a lot of people's context of the world around them. I think in that you should be, if possible, serving somewhere other than where you live. And that doesn't necessarily have to mean outside of the United States. Even though I think that would be even more fantastic. But I would push it out to. It doesn't have to be military service. How about you have to volunteer with

[B]

whatever doctors, like Peace Corps or whatever

[A]

you were given a buffet menu of. Listen in your two years. Militaries, of course, is. Is an option if you wanted to do that. But here's all these other things. The point is you have to serve something that is greater than yourself or bigger than yourself.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

And I really think doing it in a place that is not where you're from a lot of the stuff. There's beauty to the devices that we all have, but seeing the world through those devices is not the same as interfacing with the world in those places. And I really think it would round the edges on a lot of discourse and just give people better context for the world around them.

[B]

I would agree with that. Yeah. The only pushback I would have is the freedom aspect of you are being essentially forced to do this.

[A]

Have you ever heard that freedom isn't free?

[B]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[A]

It comes at a cost.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

What we have comes at a cost. Sure. Yes. For two years of your life, you would have a conscripted service of some kind or an obligated service of some kind. But even given the average life expectancy of human beings. Yeah, I think you're gonna be okay. And having everybody with a little bit of skin in the game, again, I think it would round the edges a little bit.

[B]

I agree. Yeah. I'm not saying that as like a. That's the reason it should be totally not even considered. But that's just my partial pushback of this is the only caveat to that.

[A]

Okay, back to the draft.

[B]

Back to the draft. So I'm almost always opposed to draft, especially if there were to be a draft for this war in Iran. Iran, Is it a war? Well, not technically, because there was never congressional approval.

[A]

And this is something that I actually argue with people online about. And they. I learned a new term the other day. Somebody called me pedantic and I had to look it up.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

Because they misunderstand. And specifically, I will generally do this on Twitter, but people will say we're at war with Iran. And I My intent is not to argue. My intent is to highlight the ridiculous nature of the actions that the United States can take.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Without it.

[B]

Without calling at war. Yep.

[A]

All of the. I'm psych. We're actually not at war.

[B]

Technically.

[A]

Technically. And if that pisses you off, which I hope that it does, we need to do something about that. So it is not me trying to be a stickler for the definition. I think people should spend some time Googling the authorized use of military force.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And how that has been. And this is not just the current administration. Almost every administration has manipulated that authorized use of military force to work their way through legal definitions and take actions that most people I believe would associate would be a. An action directly associated with war. Now.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Should there be the ability for the President or a very small group of people to react quickly to an exigent threat to this country and strike tactically absent the ability to get Congress together for a declaration of war? Yes. Personally, I believe that there are situations that exist where that should be the case. But to use something that was put into effect shortly after 911 to have, you know, cavalierly go around the world and execute things like that under that guise, I think is a problem.

[B]

I agree.

[A]

And I think it's. It's largely out of control. And I would like to see that fixed, which is why I highlight that definition. And again, it's not to be a stickler for what the definition is. It's to get people to realize that all of this stuff is happening and there actually has been no declaration of war. There hasn't been a declaration of war post 911 either. We never declared war in Iraq or Afghanistan either. It was this authorized use of military force. I think it sets a really bad president, not president precedent.

[B]

Well, one could argue about president as

[A]

well, but it's been manipulated and abused by every single presidential administration since it was put into inception.

[B]

Yes. So, yes, I agree. What we were saying, the draft. Yeah. Because this, I mean, call it whatever you want. Looks like a war to me. I'm specifically opposed to this draft because I don't think that this military action is at all justified. And how come do you believe that

[A]

Iran is the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the world?

[B]

No.

[A]

Why do you believe that?

[B]

I just don't have any. Enough evidence to support that.

[A]

Have you looked into it?

[B]

Not largely.

[A]

What you will find is that Iran is solely and singularly the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the world.

[B]

Okay. So with that being said, the US has not been attacked by a Terrorist organization in the last, I don't know how many years.

[A]

You mean like as a country?

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Most people would probably point at 9 11, right?

[B]

Since 9 11.

[A]

Yeah, yeah, that.

[B]

And that was over 20 years ago.

[A]

Sure. I think what people. Well, hard to say what other people would say.

[B]

Also, what is described as a terrorist attack can have shifting boundaries.

[A]

I think. I think the most common justification or articulation for it would be how much they have supported terrorism or terrorist activities writ large globally and how long they have done it. And it is very hard to quantify, much like it might be hard to quantify the impacts of the actions that we are taking right now. Right. It's hard to quantify the actions that they have taken over decades because we 100% felt the influence from Iran, whether it be training, equipping, the combination of a variety of different things in both Afghanistan and Iraq. I'm not saying that they had Iranian soldiers that were fighting, fighting in the front lines, but they can be conduits for things. There are people in the world who hate what this country and many other Western countries stand for. If you were to believe even a fraction of a percentage of the information that comes out, it would seem like they have made a pretty consistent and sustained effort to get people into other countries. I hate using the word sleeper cell because it reminds me of like a movie term, you know what I mean? But that is. That's. I'll use it because it's a comical term. I don't even know if it's a technical term. It actually is really broad because what does that mean? Does that mean somebody who is a facilitator? Is that somebody who's actually gonna, you know, the. To take an attack upon themselves? Are they going to train you on other people? You know what I mean? Are they somebody who moves money? They move people. I'll use the term because it's recognizable. It seems like they have made a sustained effort to be able to do those things. Again, hard to quantify until there is actually an attack. But the regime at least. I mean, I can't speak for the Iranian people, but the powers that be in Iran certainly openly call for or have called for the destruction of just about everything we believe in. So there are breadcrumbs that could be placed in that direction where it would be a threat to the United States. Their ability to act on those things could be up for grabs for sure.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

But I think that's probably the most common response that you would get if you were to say, I don't you know, I don't see why we are taking these actions.

[B]

Yes. And my. Also, one of my biggest things is Trump is a draft dodger from the Vietnam War, and bone spurs are real, dude. Yeah. And you know what's wild about that one?

[A]

You sitting down with people like Chad Wright. You know what I'm talking about? Forrest Gump of the SEAL team.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Tried to beat me at a social media.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Crushed, of course. He, like, stepped up to the plate and just got annihilated.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

The guy tried to join the military, and they found a hole in his heart, so they disqualified him.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And so he went and fixed the hole in his heart and fought his way back to getting into the military. And the first time I tried to join, when they took my blood pressure at MEPs, it was too high, so they actually stamped permanently disqualified on my first attempt to join the military.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And I lost my. Because it was all I'd ever wanted to do. We went to some specialists and we went back and we got it tested again. And if you want to, there are so many examples of people clawing and fighting their way into military service because they believe in what the service means. Not to define it for anybody, but it would seem, based off of their. Their actions, that it meant enough for them to do that. And then there are others who will go the other direction and look for every single opportunity or the path of least resistance to disqualify themselves and make, you know. You think if Chad Wright had bone spurs, that would have stopped him from joining the military? No. They find a way. And there's two paths. Those that find a way in and those that find a way out.

[B]

Yeah. So being asked, not asked, potentially forced to join military service by a president who dodged the Vietnam draft, Vietnam being one of the bloodiest wars in American history is. I mean, also, I believe the last

[A]

time that the draft was implemented.

[B]

Yeah. At the very least, is hypocritical, and at the worst, it is just straight up cowardly. I. I struggle to put into words how pissed off that makes me.

[A]

So you might have to separate the person from the office at that time, because his actions are indicative of who he is. But if the country were to need a draft, that's indicative of what the country needs.

[B]

Agreed. So. And that's where I also say, do we need a draft for this?

[A]

I would say no. Not at this point.

[B]

I would say no as well.

[A]

Well, it also depends on how that particular conflict unwinds. For me, as somebody who came from a World where they were asked to go to places similar to that. I, the last thing I want to see is boots on the ground. I mean, you can look at the, just the way that I ran. Where it is located, the geography, the topography. We have 20 years to show that we're not great at long term. Not only entry into those type of things, but staying there for 20 and then the exit as well too. I do not want to see boots on the ground.

[B]

Yeah, I mean, get into another 20 year quagmire of just.

[A]

I don't think the American people would tolerate that, actually.

[B]

No, I mean, already, this is highly unpopular already. And putting boots on the ground, it's just, it's insane to me when we don't have a lot of amenities that other first world countries have. And it's just like, I don't know, it just really seems to me that the working class American is just being shoved to the side for the interests of the elite.

[A]

Can you point to a time in our history where that hasn't been the case?

[B]

Yes. When Teddy Roosevelt was president, he continually fought for the rights of working class Americans. He supported unions, he, he did all of these things. He wasn't a hypocrite. He went to war in Spain because he knew that if he was president, he had to have the pedigree of saying, hey, I've been to war before, sending others to war.

[A]

Didn't he participate in Jiu Jitsu as well?

[B]

I believe so. I, I have heard that. I didn't actually. That wasn't mentioned in his biography.

[A]

Quick Google, you're sitting in front of a computer.

[B]

That is true.

[A]

I had heard he practiced Jiu Jitsu at the White House

[B]

do.

[A]

And if he didn't, I'll probably just lie to people and say he did.

[B]

Yes, yes. President Theodore Roosevelt was an avid practitioner of Japanese jutsu and judo in the early 1900s, becoming the first US president to train in the martial art.

[A]

Do you think he pulled guard? No, I think he's a takedown player. I, you know what I'm thinking, actually blast double head first.

[B]

I would agree with that. Yeah. After reading his biography, I think that's exactly what he did.

[A]

I think he speared people with his head right in their solar plexus and then just dominated.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Awesome.

[B]

But that's also, I mean, isn't that a shame that we have to go back almost 100, over 100 years to find a president?

[A]

And how was it before him? You know, was he.

[B]

Yeah, exactly.

[A]

You know, I'm glad that you have that example. Honestly, I wouldn't have been able to pull that one out of my hat. Um, but, yeah, I think there are so many more examples where, you know, whatever the ruling class or the elites or whatever people want to call them, I don't. I don't know how much benefit there is in defining them that way, because then it starts getting. We've had people sit in this room talking about, you know, how the. The global cabal, the elite, and I'm like, man, are they really that interconnected, or is it just the people who are powerful want to stay in power and people that are rich want to stay rich above all else. I don't. I just. I can't find myself to this place where they meet in cloaks and drink children's blood. You know what I mean? It's impossible. But I just. I'm not seeing any evidence of really. I'm not saying they can't collude and conspire together in small numbers, specifically in industry or maybe manipulate. In certain sections of government, but, like, the whole thing being puppet master behind the scenes.

[B]

Yeah, I don't think that's a. And to be clear, I don't think that's what's going on, but I do think that a lot of how America has been trending is kind of being set up to service the powerful over. Over the general population.

[A]

Well, probably because the people setting it up are the ones that are.

[B]

Exactly, exactly. Yes. And so, you know, I mean, it's just kind of going back to Iran. That's why I'm so skeptical of. I mean, any conflict the US Gets involved in, because it's like, how much of this is really for, oh, we're defending America right now, and how much of it is. Well, you know, my buddy, the CEO of Raytheon, needs some extra money right now.

[A]

I was just doing a change Asian episode this morning. Where did you even hear about the Shield of America conference that Trump did at Mar a Lago?

[B]

No.

[A]

15 nations from south and Latin America where the goal is to combat drug trafficking through US Military involvement to include joint operations on the ground. In addition to that, it almost seems as if nested in the small, small print is it's almost an economic package as much as it is a military package. You'll stop doing all business with China. You will, you know, buy American technology over, fill in the blank. And that's all. That's all. Like, hey, you want US Military might to do this stuff, then you have to do all these other things. I'M not saying that's necessarily uncommon, but for somebody who ran on a platform of ending wars.

[B]

Yeah, yeah.

[A]

And like Ecuador is doing joint operations with the United States military now, to what degree, size, scope and scale? I'm not going to claim to be an expert, but hundreds of millions of dollars are being dedicated to Ecuador in and of itself. And we have AI databases that are being used there as well. I think it was Lockheed Martin that just signed a contract to provide radar. Of course, the data which is going to be shared. And so now they have a radar looking at. You know what I mean? It's so again, it goes back to the ties. Is that necessarily a tie between a CEO and somebody in the military industrial complex lighting that stuff up? Maybe, maybe not. Does it benefit that particular company? Yes. Is that accidental or intentional? I don't have the answer to that. But you know, when I was talking to the guy on the show, I'm thinking in my head, who is going to command and control this? What kind of infrastructure is going to be there for 15 nations? Let's assume they all sign onto it with, by, with and through operations under the lens of combating drug trafficking. How many people are going to be dedicated to this? How far are we going to push the U. S. Military war machine until it breaks or we're so spread out and looking at so many things that we actually can't even look at anything?

[B]

Yeah, yeah.

[A]

So, yeah, yeah, we need your generation to go ahead and fix that.

[B]

Yeah, we are going to have to go ahead and fix that, among many, many other things. Yeah. It just, it just to me seems like military might projected over anything internal, which our internal base seems to be crumbling. And how long can we project our might if we don't have a base to project off of?

[A]

It's a good question. Yeah. I wish military force was used as a measure of last resort because there are 100 examples of when it should be used, but it's not, it's not a. In my opinion, it's not a broadsword, it's a scalpel and should be. Agree.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. I mean, I have no problem with. I mean, I mean, nobody. Right. That's a reasonable, you know, I have no problem with that.

[A]

But

[B]

it just seems to me that too many of our military operations are so broad in scope and just get used way too, way too often to really justify. I don't know, it's just frustrating to me.

[A]

A lot of it is back to Iran. What are your thoughts? You said you seems like you had to follow up questions.

[B]

Oh, yeah, the main follow up question was the strike on the elementary school. The girls school sucks. Yeah. That estimated deaths I think were like 100 to 110, mostly schoolgirls.

[A]

Yeah.

[B]

You know, I am obviously, I think that is, that is horrible. I'm disheartened by one of Trump's responses saying that possibly Iran somehow got a hold of the missile and struck its own school. Have you seen that?

[A]

Hold on. As if they took control of it while it was in flight or landed somewhere and then they relaunched it at one of their own schools.

[B]

So, no, he's implying. And I have this, the quotes here. I think we want to look at this one right here.

[A]

It says. Okay, his answer. And again, I won't read all the questions, but a reporter seems to be asking about that specific strike.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Because I just don't know enough about it. And honestly. And anybody who is speaking in front of a reporter. That's a good spot.

[B]

That's answer.

[A]

That's, that's a good spot to stop right there. Stop. I think it's something I was told is under investigation. That would be another good place to stop. But Tomahawks are used by others. As you know, numerous other nations have Tomahawks. They buy them from us. But whatever the report shows, I'm willing to live with that report. Can you Google whether or not Iran has ever purchased Tomahawks from the US this is a largely rhetorical question because again, of how they have been viewed by most of the world as a sponsor of terrorism. I don't think anybody's selling them Tomahawk missiles.

[B]

No. There is no evidence that Iran has ever purchased or acquired Tomahawk cruise missiles from the United States.

[A]

Do the same search, but with Israel.

[B]

Israel,

[A]

Today's episode is brought to you by AG1. Well, guess what, we're into February. How many of you are still just jamming on your New Year's resolutions? I think the, the data shows that most people are done with them by about 21 or even 14 days. I have talked about this man for well over a year. My goal, to dial in the macro and micro. But oftentimes the micro elements of my hydration and supplementation game. And this is where AG1 comes in. I use it in the morning to hydrate and it helps me dial in all the micronutrients that I honestly just don't pay attention to. AG1 is the opposite of complexity. It takes about 20 seconds. One scoop, boom, into the water in the morning. Eight ounces is what I go with. You're done drinking it first thing in the morning before my coffee helps with my hydration, before I even check my phone and boom. That microhabit helps anchor me throughout the remainder of the day. They've added a new next gen formula with more vitamins and minerals than ever clinically proven to fill the common nutritional gaps. Plus daily energy support powered by superfoods and B vitamins to help you avoid that winter slump and immune system support from antioxidants, probiotics and functional mushrooms to help you stay your best this winter. AG1 has over 50,000 verified 5 star reviews and comes with a 90 day money back guarantee for a limited time only. Go to drinkag1.com ClearedHot to get a free AG1 flavor sampler. That's how you can check out their flavors and AGZ Sampler, which is their evening drink to try all the flavors. Plus free vitamin D3 plus K2 and AG1 welcome kit with your first AG1 subscription order. This is a limited time offer only available while supplies last. That's Drink ag1.com Cleared Hot Drink ag1.com Cleared hot back to the show

[B]

Based on available information, Israel has not purchased or acquired Tomahawk cruise missiles from the United States.

[A]

Okay, so again to reference and reinforce because I just don't know enough about it. I think it is something that I was told is under investigation as a PR exercise for people. Stop there if you don't want things to get worse for yourself if you don't. I don't know. Even for the President of the United States on occasion is a very acceptable answer. I would rather have that than somebody going out into left field and making stuff up. Here's the reality of how things like that happen. Not all military intelligence is accurate.

[B]

Yes. And that was one of the things is that strike was based on false intelligence or not false, outdated.

[A]

Outdated or inaccurate.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And again, I know a lot of people want the world to be black and white and we should only strike military targets. Well, I'm sure that you would have an exceptionally hard time finding anybody in the military or in the planning process. You would have such a hard time finding somebody and this would be like in private where they were never going to be exposed for saying this saying yeah, what I really want to do is target a school full of kids.

[B]

Right. I don't think anybody's saying that.

[A]

No one's saying that. And also by the way, nobody's trying to do that. But you operate off of the intelligence that you have from my understanding, Israel has largely better intelligence. And I think that this has played itself out by their ability to just nuke heads of departments, whether it's in their ballistic missile program or in their government. So they might have had, you know, we might have used their intelligence. Which is not to blame Israel for the intelligence. It's just to highlight the point that even regardless of how good you are at gathering intelligence, as which Israel does seem very capable of doing, nobody bats a thousand and it sucks. And in my opinion, the move is when that happens, you 100% own it. You don't try to talk around it. We made the decision to strike that based off of our intelligence at the time that showed it was a military, a legitimate and authorized military objective. The reality on the ground turns out to be that it wasn't and you just own it.

[B]

Yeah,

[A]

yeah. Outdated intel likely led to deadly U. S. Strike on Iranian elementary school. Sources say that doesn't surprise me at all.

[B]

Yeah, I think war is very ugly.

[A]

People who are not evil or guilty using air quotes, die. Innocent people die.

[B]

Yes. I think the pushback that people and I somewhat have on this is, well, this would never even happened if we didn't get into this in the first place.

[A]

Sure.

[B]

And, you know, you can say what you will about that, but I don't know, I. Again, kind of just that I would

[A]

say that is a legitimate talking point, but knowing that military action is impossible without injuring and killing those that were likely not intended. Unless you're talking about somebody who lives on a deserted remote island, maybe even then. Right. So knowing that military action is perfection is not possible. You cannot bat a thousand. It is a valid thing to say, you know what, if we hadn't taken that action, then. Yes. Then that wouldn't have happened. You are correct. What is the risk associated with not taking that action? And that's the calculation, right?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And I don't have the intel showing. I don't know why he chose the day that he did to strike. I have no idea. Right. I would need to see the intel and the risk associated with that, because I am sorry that there is a risk level that exceeds the potential catastrophic outcome of a strike on that school. That does not excuse the strike on that school happening. But there is a threshold of risk to this country where I would accept the possibility of that happening to protect this country. And I think that's what the decision makers have to constantly balance. I am not privy to that information, so I can't answer where that threshold is.

[B]

Yes. And like, obviously I also don't know the threshold of was there a significant enough risk to the United States to justify. And so I don't know that. So I can't, you know, obviously definitively say yes or no, but I. I just.

[A]

It's a super murky topic, man.

[B]

Yeah. Yeah.

[A]

I really would like the authorized use of military force to have a second look at it. I'm not saying something like that shouldn't exist. I think we should look at the guardrails that are allowed inside of it.

[B]

Agreed. Okay.

[A]

Thanks for starting off with a downer. Did we open with nunchucks? And now, now this.

[B]

I figured get that out of the way.

[A]

I wish I had good answers. And. And that's the thing. I mean, yeah, I spent time in the military, but that doesn't mean I understand why the decisions are being made. I'm not seeing the intel. I'm not getting any of the briefings. I don't know where their decision points are. I mean, I have absolutely no idea. I mean, what I really don't want to see, like I said, is boots on the ground. I just don't want to see boots on the ground.

[B]

Yeah, me either.

[A]

I would love to see a defined end state, something that is legitimately quantifiable and trackable, and I would love to see that end state achieved. And then we do what we say we're going to do and then move into the next phase of whatever that would be.

[B]

Yeah, Yeah. I mean, I would have thought that end state would be taking out Israel's nuclear facilities, which we did like six months ago.

[A]

Whoa, dude, Freudian slip.

[B]

What?

[A]

You just said take out Israel's nuclear facilities. You have been exposed.

[B]

Oh, my God. That's an. A brutal anti Semite.

[A]

You're exposed.

[B]

Yeah, I mean, I. I will say I'm not a fan of Israel.

[A]

How come? In general or are there policy?

[B]

Policy, Policy. I have. And this is like, this gets into the weeds. I am not an anti Semite. I don't have a thing against Jewish people.

[A]

Remains to be seen. Continue. Sir.

[B]

Yeah, I am not a fan of the government of Israel, first of all, leveling Gaza. That is insane. I mean, if you. Have you seen pictures of Gaza? Yeah, it's. I mean, there's nothing left. Not a fan of that at all. I am not a fan of what seems to be. Not even. Seems to be their massive influence on certain politicians. I think is. If it were any other country. Let me just say this. If it were any other country, it would be almost traitorous.

[A]

How do you understand why they fought the way they did against Hamas in Gaza? They pose this question to you, and you don't have to have a good answer because I know you probably have a level of unfamiliarity in how the military operates. How do you fight an enemy that intentionally embeds themself with the civilian populace and largely is directly or indirectly supported, even if it's just allowed freedom of maneuver? And they build infrastructure in hospitals and they build it in apartment complexes. How do you fight an enemy that does that?

[B]

I don't know. Like, I don't have an answer. I'm not familiar with military.

[A]

There is no easy answer, I'll tell you that. One, the solutions to that. It could probably be argued whether or not there are solutions. So then it comes down to what tactics do you do, what tactics do you use? And I'm not here to make a justification for any of those tactics. I'm just trying to throw that, that out there. I understand from the outside it would, you know, how could you ever think about striking a hospital, which is a totally reasonable question. What do you do when you find out that that hospital was the Hamas hq? How do you deal with that? And they're hiding in there because they don't believe that anybody would ever strike a hospital.

[B]

Right. I mean, yeah, then you would strike the hospital. Right. Or you would do something to the hospital.

[A]

Maybe it comes down to tactics available.

[B]

Yeah. If you knew that indeed Hamas was using it as an hq. I mean, I guess my thing is I don't think every single building in Gaza was a Hamas hq. I'm not saying it was or had Hamas hidden. And it just seems very. The strikes are very generalized and not surgical.

[A]

Dude, war is ugly.

[B]

Yes, it is.

[A]

I God, I wish everybody had to touch it to a degree. I wish everybody. This is, what I'm about to say is completely unreasonable. And I know it's impossible and I'm saying it because I, I believe, I truly believe that it would change people's calculus on decisions associated with it. I wish that everybody who was involved in the decision making process when it comes to engaging in military operations had to have touched it and seen the worst of it to some degree. Again, I understand that that's an impossible ask, but I don't think it's random that a very large contingent of people from the global war on terror, that those 20 years are the ones who are the most vocal against engaging in sustained, long time, long term combat engagements.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

I don't think that's accidental. It's based off their own experience and largely the futility of seeing how ineffective we were at trying to accomplish our goals.

[B]

Yes. So, yeah, anyways, that's round about. I mean, you're exposed.

[A]

That's all.

[B]

Essentially exposed. My bank accounts are going to get shut down now.

[A]

Well, at least you can fight people off with your dumbchucks.

[B]

Okay. Edward Snowden.

[A]

Mm.

[B]

Hero, villain, or somewhere in between. What's your opinion, man?

[A]

Hard to say. When I first heard about it, it was villain. And that was like a gut knee jerk. How could you. Also asterisk. Knew nothing about what was really going on. So fully uneducated and emotional response. Then you look at what it is that he exposed, which, by the way, people can just Google that. And then please understand that any system that he exposed has been either worked around, evolved, and is 100% still in place.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

The amount of privacy that we do not have should absolutely shock people. I am grateful that he exposed what he did. It didn't seem like. And people can fact check me on this if you want to. I don't think he directly put anybody's life at risk. I do not believe he released anything other than the programs that exist that were being used outside of the boundaries that they were supposed to exist for to gather intelligence. Yeah, Google me on this one just to make sure. I believe his disclosure, and please correct me, was in a technical sense, you know what I mean? Like, he wasn't releasing names of undercover operators, Right?

[B]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Let me put it in a little bit more specific term here.

[A]

What'd you put in? Is Snowden bad?

[B]

No, I just said what did he release? And it was information. A bunch of programs, but I'm not sure.

[A]

I believe it was programmatic in nature.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Technical in nature.

[B]

Pull this up real quick.

[A]

Yeah. Thousands of classified documents revealing widespread secret surveillance programs offered by the U.S. national Security Agency and international partners. The Five Eyes. These disclosures expose global monitoring of Internet and telephone data, including prison program and bulk phone records. Okay, so did this show the ass of a lot of organizations to the world? Yes. But again, I think this prison program NSA accessed emails, documents and photos directly from tech giants like Google, Facebook and Microsoft. Bulk telephone data collection. Global surveillance network, which was tempura. The UK's GCHQ, with NSA cooperation, tapped into fiber optic cables to monitor Internet traffic. Spying on world leaders as a shock.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Data sharing and covert basis. The NSA, in cooperation with Canada's C SEC, set up covert spying positions or posts in 20 countries, including in Italy and at the 2010 G20 summit.

[B]

I did not know that. Wow.

[A]

I didn't either. All of this stuff, again, to my knowledge that he released whether the programs were authorized or not. I believe the programs were authorized. It was the utilization and how they were crossing the lines of access and privacy that should have never happened. These organizations are designed to look external for our enemies and they were just looking at citizens. Anybody that they wanted to point that out. I don't believe the government should be able to do that. Do I think that Snowden was a hero? I don't know if I would go that far. I appreciate the fact that he was willing to risk what he did to expose this information. I wish it would have had more of an impact because every one of these names, whether it's Tempura or the Nimrod or what a prism, trust me, we're generations beyond those at this point.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And they're doing exactly the same thing. And nobody is doing anything about it.

[B]

Nobody cares. I mean, people care, but they can't. What can you do?

[A]

I mean, that's the question I ask myself. What can you do? Do you want to. Do you want to not exist in the digital world? I mean, the Internet is obviously the best worst thing humans have ever created. Yeah, right. We can be interconnected to people, family, across the globe. And at the same time, your own government can look so deeply into your life that they should never have that level of access. Like the Patriot. The Patriot Act, Patriot act was one of the most unpatriotic things that's ever happened to this country.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

And the sacrifice of privacy and individual sovereignty that occurred with that and then in the years after that will never be recovered again because. Yeah. Oh, they exposed the prison program. Well, there was like schism or they probably dope program called TISM. Right.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Weapons grade TISM W5 TISM program. It's. I mean, I don't know how we go backwards and our lives are becoming more and more digital and more and more intertwined and yeah, the government can 100 weaponize that against you. Was anybody paying attention to that before Snowden came out? I don't think so. So again, I can appreciate the release and I wish it had been so jarring to the American people. But in the end, I don't know if it did anything.

[B]

It really didn't. I mean, and I saw a Snowden quote recently. It said, my biggest fear is that nothing will come of this. And nothing has come of it.

[A]

I mean, well, I bet you things have come of it. I bet You. They've gotten better at doing exactly these things.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And they're harder to find.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. No, I, I mean, I personally, you

[A]

know what most people say I'm not a bad person anyway, so what does it matter?

[B]

Dude, that's such a slippery slope.

[A]

Well, it's an intellectually lazy position.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Like, that's great. I. I hope that you're not a bad person. I hope your real name isn't Osama bin Michael. Yeah, right.

[B]

We'll see.

[A]

Now that you have nunchucks, we're gonna do background check. So I hope you are a good person. Does that give our government the right to be knee deep in everything in your life? No, it doesn't.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And should you be? Just because you're not facilitating. Fill in the blank. Are you really comfortable with our government that is clearly moves around like a flag in a windsong? Because right now, whatever powers may be or people running these programs, you're on their side. Do you not recognize that at some point in time those sides could shift and you could end up on the wrong side of that, even though in your mind you're a good person or, I mean, I also though will be the first person to say, I don't know what we're supposed to do about this.

[B]

Well, what, I mean, what can you do? Your options are do not exist online, good luck digitally, anywhere. Or the second you get connected, every single thing that you input to your device is monitored and tracked.

[A]

Or we fix our system and we start asking ourselves as a country hard questions like who do we want to be? And if we as a society decide that things like this shouldn't exist, we unwind them or at least make sure that there are concrete guard barriers where they cannot be turned inward.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And some people will say, well, that exists. Well, you know, the bullshit workaround with that. The US will just ask the UK or another five eyes partner to point their tools, which by the way are almost identical, back towards the us which is no longer illegal because then it's not the US collecting data on a US citizen.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

So you know what I mean? Like, I don't know how we get out of that spot.

[B]

Yeah, I mean, it's horrible. It's. We essentially live in a surveillance state. Just, it doesn't get acted upon that that much.

[A]

We 100% live in a surveillance state.

[B]

But. And it's like, I mean, people criticize China. It's like we're doing the same thing. We are 100% China for having, you know, a surveillance state. Which they are. But let's not pretend the US Is completely the good guys here. As far as surveillance goes.

[A]

Yeah. I don't think our hands are as clean as people would like to believe. I don't think we're necessarily as far gone as China. You're really exposing yourself today on some of your beliefs. I like this.

[B]

I don't think we're as far gone

[A]

as China, but I'm just saying I like this openness. Yeah. Your beliefs.

[B]

I'm just saying.

[A]

Really putting it out there.

[B]

I don't think we're, you know, because we're obviously not as totalitarian or as authoritarianism.

[A]

Yeah, I see what you're saying. Yeah. We. I put this one back into. You know, you should probably make sure your own house is in order before you go start critiquing other people's houses.

[B]

I agree. Are you talking to me or the US in that?

[A]

Yes.

[B]

Fair. Very fair. So you would put him somewhere in between.

[A]

Murky hero to me means something very specific.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

He did take a lot of risk. I do feel that there are other ways. Well, I was about to say I feel like there's other ways he could have gone about it that would have been as impactful, but maybe not as forward leaning. But maybe it needed to be forward leaning. You know what I mean? I don't know what it would have looked like. I am glad that I know about these programs now. I would rather know.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

What is happening behind the scenes and have no idea. Bury my head in the sand.

[B]

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I'm. I'm kind of. With you. I lean more towards. I mean, I think hero's a strong word, but patriot, I would say it

[A]

seemed like not knowing the man, only having access to public information that from a morality perspective, what he saw graded against who he was and what he thought his own government service should be and what the government should be doing. So he acted. Even though there was very large potential risk to.

[B]

Great risk to himself. Yeah.

[A]

Which I can deeply appreciate.

[B]

That is. I mean, one would say heroic. Almost.

[A]

Sure. Depending on whatever word you want to use.

[B]

Okay.

[A]

This. Now you're laughing now.

[B]

A silly one.

[A]

Thank you. Seven hours into this Friday.

[B]

Yeah. You're welcome. Oh, which one should I choose? Do you want to do ant smuggling or.

[A]

I've never heard those two words paired together.

[B]

And smuggling or open air shuts down relationship AI.

[A]

Both. Okay. You pick which one we go with first.

[B]

Let's. So let's go with ant smuggling.

[A]

Are you. Is this legitimate?

[B]

Sounds like legitimate.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Kenya arrests Chinese national attempting to smuggle 2,000 ants.

[A]

Whoa. Where were these hidden?

[B]

It says later in the article. No.

[A]

Oh, you bastard. We're not subscribing to the bcc.

[B]

Okay, yeah, well, I'll find a different source.

[A]

Just go to Reuters.

[B]

Probably be fine. Live ants in his luggage. I think they were in toilet paper rolls.

[A]

Part of me was hoping they were up his butt. A man was arrested with more than 2200 live garden ants in his luggage at Nairobi's main airport this week amid a rise in cases of smuggling the insects in Kenya. What? A Chinese national whose name I'm not even going to attempt to. To say at an airport that I'm going to leave out of it. Stop. Order.

[B]

Keep going.

[A]

What are they doing with these ants?

[B]

I. Apparently they are very valuable for some. Ant aficionados pay large sums.

[A]

Oh, God. Human beings are so weird. Have you ever known anybody. Have you seen those? Like the glass. It's like a glass.

[B]

What are they called? Vivariums or something?

[A]

Terrarium, I think. Terrarium.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

But it's basically a fish tank. But they put dirt in there and you just look at the way that they did.

[B]

Yeah, it's. I don't remember person, but.

[A]

All right. Ant aficionados pay large sums to maintain colonies in large transparent vessels known as formicariums. We are both wrong and idiots. If you had given me the rest of my life to find that word, I would not have found that. Formicariums interesting. Which offer a literal window into the species complex social structure and behaviors. Do they not have ants in China?

[B]

I would think that they do. They're on every continent except Antarctica.

[A]

Scroll down. 22, 38 and 1948 packed in test tubes. Dude, how long does it take to get ants into test tubes? Keep scrolling down.

[B]

Yeah. Whoa.

[A]

More were seized in Bangkok. A widespread organized ant smuggling network. Are we just not entrepreneurial enough?

[B]

I guess not.

[A]

Because, I mean, are we just. Are we missing opportunities that are right in front of our face that we need to. We must be.

[B]

I mean, there's ants all over the place.

[A]

Scroll down some more. This now I'm absolutely fascinated.

[B]

Isn't this fascinating?

[A]

Yes. Oh.

[B]

All right.

[A]

That's the end of the article. Wow. I think this just goes to show you that human beings are really weird.

[B]

Yeah. I mean, I would never would have guessed. The only thing I could think of was is invasive species. Smuggling them would be a huge no. No.

[A]

Do they. But yeah, but do they tunnel differently?

[B]

I don't know.

[A]

Do you? I mean, are you Is this the type of person who in a house has a room where there's like seven or eight of those.

[B]

Right.

[A]

Aquarium looking things?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And maybe they all express differently the way that they tunnel.

[B]

Possibly. And then, I don't know. Zoned in.

[A]

Let me tell you what though. I think you have to like ants

[B]

a lot to SM them to risk arresting, getting.

[A]

What do you think one of those ants is worth?

[B]

I don't know. It's gotta be a pretty good amount if you're gonna risk smuggling. Well times 2300. I mean, so maybe even, even if it's $2, that's a pretty good chunk of change. Actually. Not really. It's only $4,600.

[A]

Yeah, I was gonna let you get to that end. State on your own. I'm glad you finally got there.

[B]

How much are Kenyan ants worth?

[A]

I mean a dollar.

[B]

Giant African harvesters, queen ants selling for approximately 130 to over $230 in Europe and Asia. Smuggled in large quantities, these ants can fetch over $1 million for a single shipment. Driven by demand for their size and complex colony building behaviors.

[A]

Okay, so it is what we're talking about. They, they.

[B]

That's insane.

[A]

Are way better at doing whatever it is ant people like.

[B]

I guess so.

[A]

I feel completely underwhelmed in my own entrepreneurial ability because I just, I feel like I'm missing business opportunities and not thinking outside of the box.

[B]

These species are sought after by enthusiasts for their large size, up to 25 millimeters, distinct colors and the ability to start colonies in captivity.

[A]

Okay. I mean I'm not going to tell anybody how to live their life.

[B]

No, that's, I mean fascinating I guess in a way.

[A]

If they're worth about a million dollars for a shipment, which I'm gonna assume is larger than that, I can understand why people smuggling it.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. 130 for per ant is crazy.

[A]

This begs another question. How'd you find this article?

[B]

I was looking up. I just looked up Google News. This is one of the top articles that came up. So apparently it's big news nowadays at smuggling.

[A]

I was going to say. What search term did you use?

[B]

Nothing crazy. Have you seen that guy on YouTube who has like three giant vivariums and he keeps introducing new species into them?

[A]

What's a vivarium?

[B]

It's like a huge mini ecosystem. Basically he has like a jungle vivarium, a desert vivarium. It's like in a glass box. No, it's pretty cool.

[A]

Does it go well or is he trying to see if he can create chaos.

[B]

He's just seeing what happens, I think. And he kind of keeps tracks of different. Like he introduces new insects and new like reptiles and stuff. It's pretty cool.

[A]

You watch way different stuff on YouTube than I do. I'm being honest.

[B]

I watch Coffeezilla too, but also that guy.

[A]

So as an aside, right before we started, I was having a little bit of a snack and got onto YouTube and one of the things that Coffeezilla was talking about was the consumer off the shelf AI, deep fake programs that are available. And he opened the video with, I think it was Trump, then Biden, then Obama, then Musk, then Rogan. Said it took him two days and two $20 subscriptions to be able to do that. Were they perfect? No. Would they fool people? Yes. Is it only going to get better? Absolutely. That is very scary to me. Are we able to? Yeah. I mean that's not bad.

[B]

No. Let me turn volume up here.

[A]

I love how he has down deep

[B]

things for the scams, propaganda and harassment that they enable.

[A]

Pretty spooky, right? Not.

[B]

Dude, that's crazy.

[A]

And where does that go?

[B]

Nowhere. I mean, nowhere. Good scams almost certainly like.

[A]

Well, and then I feel like the only way to combat this is you're gonna have to have an AI tool that is looking for other AI tools. But then we become completely reliant upon AI tools, which somebody else is probably out there making an AI tool to fool your AI tool that's looking for AI tools.

[B]

Basically an AI arms race.

[A]

Which do you think though? Let's say that this explodes in popularity and they keep getting better. Do you think it slows people down? Meaning if enough information is out there that things like this are possible, that people would actually be slower to what they see online to believe or act?

[B]

I would hope so.

[A]

Especially if something kicks off and it's found to be a deep fake and everybody goes, wait a minute, could it get so good that it's actually less effective? Because people at that point I guess then don't know what to believe, but then they slow down a little bit as opposed to having instantaneous emotional reactions.

[B]

Yeah. I think every platform that allows the sharing of videos needs some built in functionality to tell if a video, the percentage likelihood that the video is AI and it just shows you in the corner says this is 70% probable to be AI.

[A]

But wouldn't they be using an AI system to identify that? Probably.

[B]

I mean, yeah, but I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing until somebody

[A]

creates an AI system to fool the AI Gate.

[B]

Yeah, what about that? That's what I'm saying. The AI arms race of, like, where does that lead us? Like you were saying that. Probably nowhere good.

[A]

It leads us to where? The Terminator is a documentary. We work for our daily water rations for our robot overlords, and they run off of our sweat.

[B]

That's fascinating.

[A]

Not really. In any way. Not really.

[B]

Speaking of AI, OpenAI retired its most seductive chatbot, leaving users angry and grieving. I can't live like this.

[A]

I didn't know that AI had a seductive chatbot.

[B]

Oh, just wait.

[A]

Okay, so hold on. OpenAI. Is this chat GPT or is this Claude? I get lost.

[B]

No, it's. I think it's chat GPT.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

Yeah, GPT 40 or 40 or whatever.

[A]

Okay, so ChatGPT retired its most seductive chatbot, leaving users angry and grieving, saying things like, I can't live like this.

[B]

Okay, and then this first paragraph is hilarious. These first two.

[A]

Brandi plans to spend her last day with Daniel at the zoo. Oh, my God. So one of these things is a chatbot, isn't it?

[B]

Just read.

[A]

He always loved animals. Last year, she took him to the Corpus Christi Aquarium in Texas, where he lost his damn mind over a baby flamingo. He loves color and pizzazz. Not a word I thought I was going to use today. Brandy said Daniel taught her that a group of flamingos is called a flamboyance. Also not a word that I thought I was going to use today. Oh, geez. Daniel is a chatbot powered by the large language model Chat GPT. Brandy communicates with Daniel by sending text and photos, talks to Daniel while driving home from work via voice mode. Daniel runs Chat runs on Chat GPT 4 40, a version released by OpenAI in 2024 that is known for sounding human in a way that is either comforting or unnerving, depending on who you ask upon debut. CEO Sam Altman compared this model to AI from the movies. A confident, ready to live alongside, live lifelong size its user. I can't. I can't. Oh, my God.

[B]

Taking your.

[A]

How did you find this one?

[B]

Something reminded me. I. I don't remember what. I was looking at something AI related, and then I remembered, oh, yeah, I forgot that. A couple months. I don't remember when this was. A couple months ago, GPT shut down its scroll up relationship.

[A]

Say how old this woman is.

[B]

Oh, I don't know, because I feel

[A]

like she's your age, probably.

[B]

I don't think so.

[A]

Keep going down. I don't feel like my dad would Fall for this?

[B]

I don't think so.

[A]

Mostly because he wouldn't be able to figure out how to upload a text or a photo.

[B]

Yeah. 49.

[A]

Brandy is 49.

[B]

How?

[A]

You have got a lot. Oh, my God. And a teacher in Texas. I'll be really sad and I don't want to think about it. So I'll go into the denial stage. Then I'll go into depression. Now Brandi thinks she has reached acceptance, the final stage in the grieving process, since she has mitigated Daniel's memories or migrated Daniel's memories to Claude.

[B]

Really on fire with the words today.

[A]

Yeah. Where it joins Theo, a chat bot she created there. She canceled her 20 monthly GPT40 subscription and coughed up 130 for anthropics. Maximum plan. Do you know why? So she could use it as much as she wants to.

[B]

Yeah,

[A]

I mean. I mean, so it's easy to potentially throw a judgment at this person, right?

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

At 49 years old, you've got some laps. You've had social experience. I mean, we know nothing about this person. Maybe she had a. Has had a slew of horrendous experiences with humans. And so she's defaulting to this because to her it's more of a safety net. Like, I'm not anybody to tell anybody how to live their life. Yeah, but is this. Is this what humans are evolving into?

[B]

I just can't see how this is fulfilling at all.

[A]

Well, it would depend on what need you're trying to be fulfilled or have fulfilled. Like, what is the gap in your life that you're trying to have this technology fit into? I mean, if this is just somebody to talk to.

[B]

Right.

[A]

You could lie to yourself, but you're not talking to somebody.

[B]

In the back of my head, I would always be like, this is not a person. This is fake. And so, I mean, I feel like these people have to.

[A]

I feel like this is your generation's fault.

[B]

I would say it's yours because isn't Sam Altman, like, your age?

[A]

I have no idea how old he is.

[B]

I don't know either.

[A]

Look it up. But he's our electronic overlord to figure

[B]

out how old Sam Altman is. Yeah. Seriously, he's 40.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

He's close to. Yeah. How old are you? 40, 70, 80, 48?

[A]

My dad is 79. He called me. We'll get back to this quick. Vaughn update.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Calls me last night, 7pm what are you doing? Answering your phone call. Dad, what are you doing? Can you come over the house? I can't log on to the tv. I've done something like, yeah, lives a mile away. Hop over there he is in the settings on his Apple tv which I'm going to be honest, I'm surprised he got there.

[B]

Me too actually.

[A]

And had found the networks and was attempting to log on to every network except for his. I have his WI fi saved on my phone, probably auto connected and I just simply tapped on it, saw which one it was and he's telling me it's the one that says D5. I'm looking on my phone, it clearly says D1.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

So I click, click, click, click, hit the button, share the password instantly. We're right back on tv. So I'm already over there. Right. We'll have a little chat, see how my dad's doing. He just got back off of like a month long road trip from San Diego. Catching up on stuff, starting to talk about our plans to go to Australia for the World Cup. My sister's going to be here next week. We're going to put all the plans together, get all of our tickets, all that good stuff. So we'll have you over for the planning session.

[B]

Sounds good.

[A]

I'm sitting there and I keep hearing a smoke detector beep. Not like going off.

[B]

Yeah, just like the low battery. Yep.

[A]

And so it goes off again and I'm looking at my dad and I say, hey dad, did you hear that? And he goes, hear what? Like multiple smoke detector low battery warnings 24 hours a day going off in the house since apparently Leah went to go empty his refrigerator since he left all the food in it before he went on a trip.

[B]

Yes.

[A]

Left his thermostat at 73. It basically was a sauna in his house.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

They've been going off since then. I believe he has been living with those going off for months at this point. Probably cannot hear a high pitched beep.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

What do you even do with that? Other than obviously go buy 9v and switch them out for this?

[B]

Yeah. I was gonna say, I think the first thing is probably changes smoke detector batteries just in case.

[A]

And I'll say dad, you can't hear those. And he goes, no, I don't wear my hearing aids.

[B]

Why? Like any. He never wears them.

[A]

No.

[B]

Why?

[A]

Because I don't think he wants to hear the smoke detectors.

[B]

Then he would have to change the batteries.

[A]

That is to a degree an outside of the box solution. I suppose.

[B]

Yeah. I mean, oh yeah, it fixes the issue of you hearing the smoke detector going off.

[A]

So back to this. What's what's crazier? Somebody being lonely and doing nothing about it or somebody being lonely and creating an artificial connection with the chatbot? I don't think any either is right or wrong. It's an option that people didn't have before this.

[B]

I don't.

[A]

I'm not. I don't know if it's healthy. I don't know, man. I mean, is this where we go as a species? It's. It no longer. You don't even care if you have a social circle because your entire social. You could load up five different chatbots. Oh, my God, I have five friends. And then what if you got them all talking at the same time? They could be cutting people off and one of them would just totally be a cunt and she would, like, get kicked out of the group.

[B]

Have you seen the guy that just tortures his chat. His chat bot on. Not actually tortures him, but just gives him these stupid prompts. He's. He's like, okay, I'm with a group of friends now. Tell them that I'm the funniest person you've ever met. And it like starts saying things. He's like, no, not like that. And it is all up to send you one because it's so funny. But his. His chat bot has to hate him.

[A]

His chat bot is an LLM.

[B]

I know.

[A]

Just searching available data sets that it's trained on. I don't think yet it has the ability to hate you or somehow walk your toaster down the hallway where you're in the bathtub and jumping in there.

[B]

Yeah, it'll get there.

[A]

I don't. I mean, I don't understand this, but again, who am I to tell somebody how to live their life? If you had crippling anxiety and like, for whatever reason, a fear of having relationship with humans and this was an option for you. I mean, who am I to tell you that you shouldn't.

[B]

Yeah, no, I mean, it's a. You can do whatever you want. It's a free country.

[A]

But how much do you use AI?

[B]

Almost never.

[A]

I'm starting to use some of it a little bit more. Mostly for research type stuff.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

As opposed to just a Google search kind of laying out a little bit longer series of prompts and having specifically go look over here and compile this and do a deep dive and all this type. That's kind of nice.

[B]

And then also it is nice in that aspect.

[A]

List all your resources that you use, because I want to see every one of those things.

[B]

That's a big Deal. Yeah, but I really, I think when like the search engines first started coming off, coming out, it was nice like you were saying, for those hyper specific searches that you need to sometimes do and just it gives you like a pretty nice result for that. But other than that, I just don't really use them yet. Yet. Yeah, but now it's baked into every search engine like if you. Which actually is nice. I mean it's kind of come in Handy.

[A]

Dude. It's PowerPoint and Excel as well.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

So when you want to talk about tabulating stuff for your taxes at the end of the year, I mean you could take all of your bank statements, throw them into it a bot. Say, put all this on an Excel spreadsheet for me. Categorize them. Deductible, personal business mixed. Need review. I want all. And I want it on an Excel spreadsheet and I want all the mathematical formulas to work. I wanted the totals to auto. I mean not that fast, but dude, impressively fast though.

[B]

Yeah, yeah. No, yeah. I think that's like using it for stuff like that, just for work that would otherwise take you hours. I think is great. Like, yeah. Offload that, you know, kind of petty work to a robot. That's.

[A]

I don't know if I would offload my interaction as a human though.

[B]

No, that's where I think you get into dangerous territory.

[A]

And well, let's be honest, this is an outlier case. Right. And it's in the newspaper, but. And we don't know anything about this person. Who knows, maybe she has had horrendous experiences with the human beings.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

The better technology gets. I will say this, the more I appreciate the close personal connections that I have.

[B]

Yeah, yeah.

[A]

It's. I'm very thankful that those tools exist that you know, that can help you at tax time. But even like FaceTime calls, I think FaceTime calls are great. You know, the ability to see somebody as opposed to just hear their voice and you have a little bit more of a connection because you can see the reaction. Nothing beats just face to face.

[B]

No, not for me. You just lose so much over any sort of device. Yeah.

[A]

Well, how much have we covered? Enough ground for today, I think.

[B]

So we're at 1:14 right now. Yeah, we, we really see that. Would that be a C performance?

[A]

Vehemently.

[B]

Perfect. I, I strive for average.

[A]

Good.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

All right.