Part of the Problem | Ep: "Man, That Was Quick"

Date: October 21, 2025
Host: Dave Smith with Robbie “the Fire” Bernstein
GaS Digital Network

Episode Overview

In this episode, Dave Smith and Robbie Bernstein dive into the collapse of the Israel-Gaza ceasefire, the rapid unraveling of hopes for lasting peace, and the broader implications of U.S. foreign policy in the Middle East. They also dissect American intelligence failures, the moral absurdities of collective punishment, the persistent role of Benjamin Netanyahu, and how U.S. policy continues to impact lives on the ground. The show critically dissects media narratives and highlights how quickly vindication for “cynical” anti-government pundits can turn tragic.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

[00:56] Opening Banter & Tour Updates (skip for summary)

• Dave and Rob share comedy tour news and thank the audience in Tampa.
• Transition to the main topic: the rapid fade of the much-touted Israel-Gaza ceasefire.

[02:43] Ceasefire Collapse: “Man, That Was Quick”

• Vindication with Regret: Dave reflects on being quickly proven right about the fragility of the ceasefire.

  “Whenever me and you are vindicated, it's always a situation where we wish we weren't… You wish you weren't right about this.” (B, 02:43)

• Many on the right (notably Steven Crowder) criticized Dave for not celebrating the ceasefire—but events have since proven skepticism deserved.
• Ceasefire Reality: Within days, Israel resumes heavy attacks; 60–70 reported dead including civilians.
• Wishful Thinking: Early celebration for “historic” peace (Nobel talk, etc.) was, in their view, misplaced.

[08:10] Who Broke the Ceasefire? “Grace Towards Hamas”

• Robbie points out that Israel claims Hamas violated the truce first, but suggests more nuance:

  “I don't understand why they would give up the hostage leverage and then instantly want to be provoking and attacking the Israelis. It seems more likely... that it must be individuals that maybe didn't receive stand down orders or even more hardline terrorists than Hamas itself.” (C, 08:10)

• Urges both sides not to seize on every potential slight to break peace; Israel, especially, shouldn’t use minor infractions as pretext to resume attacks.
• Dave concurs, emphasizing the tribalism of political sides and the difficulty of knowing the exact truth in such complex situations, but stresses U.S. interest is clear: “we want to see this thing end.” (B, 09:31)

[12:00] Collective Punishment & U.S. Involvement

• Even as ceasefire is “wounded and flopping,” Israel has cut off increased aid to Gaza—seen as particularly cruel:

  “Therefore, Israel gets to just immediately punish the civilian population for that... with like these desperate, war torn people now don't get the aid that they need. It's just like, I think it's, it's just very hard for anybody who's a civilized person to support that.” (B, 13:28)

• U.S. role: America continues to fund Israeli policy that is “not in our interest.”

[17:01] Trump’s Position & Structural Deadlock

• Robbie predicts trouble for Trump if the situation devolves through minor infractions:

  “I don't know how Trump just continues to send arms over to Israelis and not pretend like he's owned by Netanyahu.” (C, 17:01)

• Dave explores the impossibility of peace under current structures:

  “If you say to any of the people who support Israel, well how about a two state solution? They'll give you a million reasons why you can't... and if you go, well, how about a one state solution? ... So by default they're like, well what is the other answer? And that's the status quo.” (B, 18:00)

• The perpetual rule-without-rights over Palestinians prevents sustainable peace and makes advice like “be Gandhi” ring hollow, as perpetual hopelessness leads to more violence.

[26:00] 60 Minutes Interview Breakdown

• Clips from 60 Minutes featuring Trump envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner are dissected.
• Key Revelations:
  • After Netanyahu’s intervention, Hamas quickly responded positively to the ceasefire plan—contradicting U.S. intelligence which predicted rejection.

    “We were hearing that Hamas was positive on the deal. And yet...the CIA ...were suggesting that Hamas was going to say no.” (A, 26:44)

  • Dave’s takeaway: U.S. intelligence is consistently biased toward war escalation, sometimes influenced by foreign (Israeli) interests.

    “It’s such a coincidence that that's always the direction that the intelligence seems to lead us in...toward a war and never away from one.” (B, 28:35)

[33:32] Israeli Actions, U.S. Frustration, and Sabotage of Peace

• Witkoff and Kushner admit feeling “betrayed” when Israel bombed a negotiating team, severely disrupting chances for continued negotiations:

  “You would think any other country would be like, we're done with you.” (C, 39:46)

• Dave’s analogy: If someone’s dependent on you and still undermines you, that’s intolerable—yet Israel gets away with it.

[41:08] On the Ground in Gaza: Genocide & The Limits of Narratives

• Witkoff likens the destruction in Gaza to “a nuclear bomb,” but denies genocide.

  “It looked almost like a nuclear bomb had been set off in that area… Would you say now, having been there, that it was genocide? No, absolutely not.” (E, 41:14–41:39)

• Dave and Robbie question whether traditional definitions (war/genocide) even apply:

  “It's really hard…to consider something a war when the other side doesn't have a government.” (B, 45:32)

  • Civilian population is collectively punished; if everyone is a “human shield,” is everyone fair game?

[52:15] Netanyahu: The Fall Guy?

• Dave wonders if Netanyahu is being set up to take the blame for the war’s atrocities.
  • “It just seems to me like maybe he's being set up here to be the fall guy.” (B, 51:00)
• Robbie is more skeptical, positing that Netanyahu is too self-interested for such an outcome, but notes he may have “cards up his sleeve” for political survival.

[58:00] Hostages, Missed Opportunities, and the True Obstructionists

• Dave finds it indefensible Israel did not immediately pursue negotiations to return hostages, as “every second would be precious.”
• Information from the 60 Minutes interview points to Israel, not Hamas, as the main obstacle to peace:

  “It seems overwhelmingly conclusive that they could have pursued that and weren't... at least from the Israeli government, they just were not doing everything they could to get these guys out.” (B, 58:00)

• U.S. and media fixation on hostages was used to justify war—outrageous if peace could have come sooner.

[61:02] Asymmetries, Hypocrisies, and Media Narratives

• New videos show Hamas executing suspected collaborators; pro-Israel commentators seize on this to attack critics.
• Dave counters:

  “Did any of the critics of Israel say that they supported that? Also, our government's not funding it, so, like, it's just a totally different thing. There's just this crazy asymmetry.” (B, 61:02)

• Lack of fair trial, presumption of innocence, and the immense hypocrisy when Israel’s far larger civilian death toll is glossed over.

Notable Quotes & Moments

• “If you love the country, you got to be against the government because they're always corrupt regimes, you know.”
  — Dave Smith [02:45]
• “If Israel's interested in peace and want to move forward with this, they kind of can't instantly take every excuse to go, oh, this thing's over. We're now going to go back to killing innocent civilians.”
  — Robbie Bernstein [08:10]
• “There's this obvious leverage that we have over Israel… all you have to do is threaten to stop funding the thing.”
  — Dave Smith [22:55]
• “Reports indicate that when Jared Kushner was a teenager, he gave up his bedroom for a night so that Benjamin Netanyahu... could sleep there while visiting.”
  — Dave Smith [35:27]
• “If you were held in captivity somewhere and there were any way that I could get you out of there, I wouldn't be dragging my feet on it. Every second would be precious.”
  — Dave Smith [58:00]
• On destruction in Gaza: “It looked almost like a nuclear bomb had been set off in that area.”
  — Steve Witkoff [41:14]
• “It’s fair to say that what was done was inhumane.”
  — Robbie Bernstein [50:30]

Summary Table of Key Segments

| Timestamp | Topic/Event | |-----------|---------------------------------------------------------| | 00:56 | Opening Banter, Comedy Tours | | 02:43 | Ceasefire Collapses – Vindication & Regret | | 08:10 | Who Broke the Ceasefire? | | 12:00 | Israel Withholding Aid – Collective Punishment | | 17:01 | Trump’s Dilemma, Structural Deadlock | | 26:00 | 60 Minutes Kushner/Witkoff Interview Dissected | | 33:32 | Israeli Actions Undermining U.S. Policy | | 41:08 | Ground Realities, Genocide vs. War Questioned | | 52:15 | Netanyahu’s Future | | 58:00 | Hostages & Peace Process Sabotage | | 61:02 | Hypocrisy and Media Narratives |

Tone & Takeaways

• Critical, skeptical, and somber: Dave and Robbie maintain their signature libertarian contempt for government/media narratives and the failures of U.S. foreign policy.
• Insistence on nuance: Both hosts refuse to play tribal games, consistently denouncing violence against civilians—regardless of side—while recognizing U.S. complicity and the moral absurdity of current policy.
• Sobering reality: Whether discussing intelligence failures, collective punishment, or political posturing, the conversation returns to the human cost and the deliberate perpetuation of conflict, rather than progress toward justice or peace.

Final Word

This episode offers a sharp, skeptical, and deeply informed libertarian take on current events in Israel and Gaza, emphasizing the tragic swiftness with which cynical predictions become reality, and the ongoing complicity of the American state—regardless of which party is in power.