Holmberg's Morning Sickness – 09-23-25: A Happy Morning, Ravens Schadenfreude, Tylenol Controversy & End-of-World Predictions
Episode Overview
In this lively September 23, 2025 episode, John Holmberg and co-hosts (Brady, Bret, Toledo) unpack Monday Night Football’s Ravens loss—delighting in the misery of Baltimore fans and quarterback Lamar Jackson. The team also riffs on new Trump-pushed guidelines about acetaminophen during pregnancy and the latest “apocalyptic” preacher’s prophecy about the world’s end. The signature brash humor, biting sports opinions, and wild rants are in full force.
Key Discussion Points & Insights
1. Holmberg’s Joy Over Ravens’ Loss (00:40–12:00)
- John is euphoric over the Baltimore Ravens’ Monday Night Football defeat, especially Lamar Jackson’s poor play, sacks, and postgame look.
- “You know, there's that preacher saying the world's gonna end today. Perfect. You don't want to end it on that note. Yes, I do.” (01:13, John)
- Heavy roast of NFL player aesthetics, especially Lamar Jackson’s grill and hair.
- Holmberg leans into over-the-top hate for the team and its fans, calling them “degenerates” and “uneducated imbeciles.” (03:30)
- Uses the moment to philosophize on the value of “hating” things:
“Hate is the greatest gift ever given to the human body. You have to be hateful to know what true joy is. ... Do not buy into the nonsense—hate is great. Hate brings joy. Without it, there is no joy.” (06:23, John)
- Memorable Moment: A blind listener, Sean Rockefeller, texts that he agrees Lamar Jackson is ugly, prompting John to cackle:
- “Lamar Jackson looks like Sam Jackson and Steve Buscemi had a baby, then threw the baby into the Plinko board on The Price is Right.” (11:22, Sean via John)
2. Grills, Jewelry Teeth & Societal Judgment (09:51–14:30)
- The crew dives deep into player “grills,” mocking the trend and speculating about cost, cultural significance, and how their own dads would react.
- “I've never once seen anyone with a grill and thought, there you go, you're going to be the CEO. I just think you look stupid.” (14:00, John)
- Paul Wall’s 2000s-era grill hustle comes up, with ridicule of how “meth mouth” is the look from afar.
- Ongoing class- and city-based ribbing of Baltimore—"where’s my government check?" (14:20)
3. Trump’s Acetaminophen Guidelines for Pregnant Women (17:22–24:30)
- The team discusses the controversy after Trump recommended new caution for pregnant women using Tylenol, contrasting public outrage at Trump with their own "what if?" approach.
- “If Trump came out and said, we cured cancer and it’s Oreo cookies, people hate him so much they won't even give him the benefit of the doubt...” (17:37, John)
- Jokes about “feta cheese” panic among pregnant women and highlights ever-changing medical guidelines.
- Discusses how people judge health advice more by who delivers it than by research:
“If it was Anderson Cooper that says Tylenol… Everybody like, ‘oh, jeez, this is something.’ And he doesn't know any different than you.” (20:09, John)
- Touches on the increasing rates (or broadened definitions) of autism, the Tylenol-autism pseudo-link, and parents’ desperation for cures.
- “It was two out of every 100 pregnancies, like sixty years ago. Now it's 37 that will have a form of autism.” (23:42, John)
4. Rapture Watch! End-of-the-World Preacher Predictions (29:21–41:48)
- The hosts lampoon a preacher’s prediction that the world will end on September 23rd, with escalating debate over time zones, the logistics of Jesus “appearing,” and how rapture believers behave.
- “So it’s already started for some people… wouldn’t they get the news that it’s begun by the time we woke up?” (30:22, John)
- John relentlessly insults those selling their possessions in advance, saying it’s mostly “poor people who life has not worked out for… rooting for Jesus to come back real fast so they don’t have to work.” (32:15)
- “I don’t see anybody with a Ferrari giving their cars away.” (33:13, co-host)
- The crew brainstorms on how to exploit rapture believers, e.g., selling “holy apparition” home cameras with a fake “demon detection” upcharge.
- “Dummy season is 12 months a year.” (39:38, John)
- On the time zone paradox:
- “Jesus shows up in a time zone, don’t tell the others… Gonna surprise them in an hour.” (35:34, John)
5. Holmberg’s Theory of Hate & Happiness (Continuous, esp. 06:23, 11:50, 26:50)
- The philosophy: one must embrace passionate hatred (of a team, musician, etc.) to truly know joy when they fail.
- “If you hate me and when I stumble and it brings you joy, consider me Jesus. That's wonderful. Good for you.” (26:50, John)
- Co-hosts share their own “joyful hatreds”—including Jimmy Buffett and Aaron Rodgers—for comic effect.
Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments
- On hate as a motivator: “Stop teaching your kids love is the answer… Find a true, passionate hate. It makes you appreciate love.” (06:23, John)
- Listener roast: “Lamar Jackson looks like Sam Jackson and Steve Buscemi had a baby, then threw the baby into the Plinko board and The Price is Right.” (11:22, John quoting listener Sean)
- On grills: “I've never once seen anyone with a grill in their mouth and thought, there you go, you're going to be the CEO.” (14:00, John)
- Rapture logistics: “So it's already started for some people… would we have not heard about this?” (30:27, John)
- Class envy and apocalypse: “I don't see anybody with a Ferrari giving their cars away. Successful people look at this and roll their eyes. Poor people are like, maybe we're lucky and we get to go to paradise and then I don't have to get up and go work at the Dollar Tree tomorrow.” (33:13, co-host + John)
- On exploiting doomsday believers: “No one actually believes in ghosts. And that would prove it again. Not at all.” (39:35, John)
- On hating Jimmy Buffett: “When Jimmy Buffett passed away, you were… oh, I was dancing. I had the little Arby's hat on and everything…” (26:48, co-host & John)
Important Timestamps
- 00:40–08:00: Ravens’ loss, hat/hair/life roasted, philosophy of hate
- 09:51–14:30: NFL player “grills”, socioeconomic jabs
- 17:22–24:30: Trump’s Tylenol comments, public overreaction, autism side-rant
- 29:21–41:48: Rapture prediction, time zone debate, poking fun at doomsday believers, entrepreneurial ghost-cam
- 26:41–28:40: Sharing joyful hatreds, e.g. Jimmy Buffett
Tone & Language
The episode is relentlessly sarcastic, often crude, and unapologetically anti-PC—Holmberg and crew combine hyperbolic sports grudges with irreverent pop-science banter. Listeners are hit with Chandler Bing energy turned up to foulmouthed radio shock-jock, with side banter, inside jokes, and a pointed Arizona-local flavor.
If you missed it:
This episode is a wild ride, blending cathartic sports smack talk (at the Ravens’ expense), skepticism of politics and medicine, and lampooning of end-times believers—all through Holmberg’s signature philosophy that a good, healthy hate is essential to truly joyful living.
