Business News: DOGE Finding Billions in Government Inefficiency - Progress in Reverse for Haters - Crypto Stalling - Ryan Kaboom!

Summary

Right About Now with Ryan Alford
Episode: Business News: DOGE Finding Billions in Government Inefficiency - Progress in Reverse for Haters - Crypto Stalling - Ryan Kaboom!
Release Date: February 13, 2025

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Overview

In this episode of Right About Now with Ryan Alford, host Ryan Alford engages in a dynamic discussion with his co-host Chris Hansen and guest David Caldwell, delving into pressing business news topics. The conversation spans government inefficiency, the evolving business climate under the Trump administration, the current state of the cryptocurrency market, and unconventional investment avenues like sports cards and exotic fungi. The trio offers insightful perspectives, blending business acumen with a touch of personal anecdotes, making complex topics accessible and engaging.

Government Inefficiency and DOGE's Impact

The episode opens with a critical examination of government inefficiency, specifically highlighting the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). Ryan Alford underscores the significant financial savings DOGE is achieving by eliminating redundant contracts and streamlining operations.

Ryan Alford [16:03]: "I saw a post on Sunday, it's canceled 22 leases that were not being used at all in the past six days, saving this year alone $44.6 million."

Chris Hansen elaborates on the sheer scale of these savings, noting that DOGE aims to cut $2 billion a day, projecting to reach $4 billion by the weekend to meet an annual target of $1 trillion.

Chris Hansen [18:30]: "2 billion a day. And Elon said today they by this weekend, they're going to hit 4 billion in cuts a day. And that's the only way that they will get to a trillion this year."

David Caldwell provides real-world examples of inefficiency, citing exorbitant costs for simple items like metal washers and Styrofoam cups within federal agencies.

David Caldwell [12:15]: "The contracted rate they were paying equated to $1,000 per Styrofoam cup."

Business Climate under Trump

Ryan reflects on the business climate changes since Trump's election, contrasting it with the previous administration. He emphasizes the positive strides made under Trump's leadership, particularly in fostering a business-friendly environment.

Ryan Alford [04:35]: "Compare that list to four years of Biden and Harris, and I mean, it's hard to dispute the fact that he's making some real difference in a positive way from my standpoint."

David Caldwell echoes this sentiment, expressing optimism about the current administration's approach to business management.

David Caldwell [06:07]: "I think we're seeing someone who knows how to run a business doing their job."

Elon Musk's Leadership and Public Perception

A significant portion of the discussion centers around Elon Musk's leadership style and the public's mixed reactions to it. Ryan criticizes the unwarranted backlash against Musk, arguing that his business-focused approach is beneficial for the economy.

Ryan Alford [08:31]: "People are getting upset at Elon, saying he's not qualified... it's what Elon's doing. He's trying to create a healthier business as America."

Chris Hansen adds that the inefficiency within government contrasts sharply with Musk's proactive measures, highlighting the importance of outcome-driven leadership.

Chris Hansen [10:20]: "What is actually happening from this policy and how is it impacting the bottom line? Everyday American outcomes matter, politics don't."

Crypto Market Trends

Transitioning to the cryptocurrency sector, the hosts discuss the current stagnation and future prospects of major cryptocurrencies like Dogecoin (DOGE) and XRP. David Caldwell provides insights into institutional investments and potential market shifts.

David Caldwell [19:41]: "Our whole currency is going to change, whether that's our banks are just going to be on blockchain... I think historically March is a really big month in the cycle."

Ryan remains cautiously optimistic about Bitcoin, emphasizing its limited supply and growing institutional acceptance as factors that could drive long-term value.

Ryan Alford [22:07]: "The more people are involved in it, the more people that are invested in it, it's going to drive the value up."

Sports Cards vs. Crypto as Investments

Shifting gears, the conversation veers into alternative investment opportunities, particularly sports cards. Chris Hansen shares a personal story about his son's unexpected find of a valuable "kaboom" card, highlighting the thrill and potential profitability of sports card collecting.

Chris Hansen [27:48]: "Clayton... had a $700 kaboom in his pocket from a $25 box and a $4 pack. It was awesome."

The hosts compare the unpredictability and excitement of sports card investing to the more volatile cryptocurrency market, suggesting that while crypto has long-term potential, sports cards offer immediate rewards and enjoyment.

Ryan Alford [27:34]: "But that's what makes it fun though. That's what it makes it fun."

Cordyceps Fungus and Its Market Impact

In a lighter yet intriguing segment, the hosts explore the burgeoning market for cordyceps fungi, a high-value commodity now making its way into mainstream outlets like Whole Foods. Chris Hansen expresses surprise at the exorbitant prices, comparing it to "the wagyu beef of mushrooms."

Chris Hansen [30:14]: "Cordyceps... worth four times its weight in gold. Traditional medicine says it cures almost anything."

David Caldwell humorously remarks on the potential value of cordyceps, likening it to a hidden gold mine.

David Caldwell [30:34]: "I didn't know I was sitting on a freaking gold mine."

Closing Insights

As the episode draws to a close, Ryan Alford emphasizes the importance of supporting winners in various sectors, be it government efficiency, innovative businesses, or emerging markets. He advocates for a results-oriented mindset, encouraging listeners to focus on tangible outcomes rather than ideological divides.

Ryan Alford [37:26]: "Let's start rooting for the winners. Get that hate out your heart. Let's look at the results of things rather than how they're being sold to us."

Chris Hansen echoes this sentiment, reinforcing the episode's overarching theme of celebrating and aligning with successful endeavors to foster growth and overcome societal insecurities.

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Notable Quotes

• Ryan Alford [04:35]: "Compare that list to four years of Biden and Harris, and I mean, it's hard to dispute the fact that he's making some real difference in a positive way from my standpoint."

• Chris Hansen [18:30]: "2 billion a day. And Elon said today they by this weekend, they're going to hit 4 billion in cuts a day. And that's the only way that they will get to a trillion this year."

• Ryan Alford [37:26]: "Let's start rooting for the winners. Get that hate out your heart. Let's look at the results of things rather than how they're being sold to us."

Conclusion

This episode of Right About Now with Ryan Alford provides a comprehensive look at current business inefficiencies and the proactive measures being taken to address them. Through insightful discussions on government efficiency, leadership in business, and emerging investment trends, Ryan and his guests offer listeners valuable perspectives on navigating today’s complex economic landscape. The blend of serious analysis with relatable anecdotes ensures that the episode is both informative and entertaining, staying true to the show's mission of educating and entertaining its audience.

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For more insights and updates, visit www.RyanIsRight.com or follow @rightaboutnowshow and @ryanalford on Instagram.

Transcript

[Ryan Alford]

This is Right about now with Ryan Alford, a Radcast Network production. We are the number one business show on the planet with over 1 million downloads a month, taking the BS out of business for over 6 years in over 400 episodes. You ready to start snapping necks and cashing checks? Well, it starts right about now.

[Chris Hansen]

What's up, guys? Welcome to Right About Now. I'm Ryan Alford, your host. We're always talking about. Hey, we always write, you know that, but we're always talking about what's now. Not about the future, not about the past, but about today. This is about getting you ahead in business and in life and ultimately making it all happen. And, hey, I got the king of making it happen. I got two of the kings. Chris. What's happening, brother? Down in Miami.

[David Caldwell]

What's good, bro? How are you today?

[Chris Hansen]

I'm good, man. Hey, I'm pumped. Got my brother from another. He is David Caldwell.

[Ryan Alford]

What's up, David, man, Life is good, bro. Appreciate y'all having me on.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah, man. X NFL business mentor, consultant, professional badass, and just all around good guy.

[Ryan Alford]

I appreciate him.

[Chris Hansen]

Run you over and then pick you up and tell you something good.

[Ryan Alford]

Appreciate you, bro.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah, man, y'all both in the Miami. It's like the land of opportunity, right?

[Ryan Alford]

It really is, bro.

[Chris Hansen]

Like.

[Ryan Alford]

Like everything when you're down here. I don't know about you, Chris, but when I'm down here, everything is just a different form of inspiration. You know what I mean? You got to make sure you're not getting caught up in, you know, comparing yourself too much. But it is a. It is good in some ways. Give you that added inspiration.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah, well, I'm inspired. Just. Just the fact that you're here. I don't know if it's that or if it's just Exponent, you know, you got to get some of this. Maybe both, you know, Exponent plant powered. Hey, Powers, the podcast, the Spot. Hey, that's. It's what makes this work, people. You know, you get the content, we give you the sponsors. And look, I don't work with anybody I don't like. That's why I drink fusion energy. Exponent X marks the spot. Drink Exponent Drink exponent.com and Drink Exponent on Instagram. Official energy drink of the show. So, guys, talking a little news today. We talked pre episode, and Chris and I have been, you know, talking like last year, we'd have these news episodes that even just once a week we'd go interest rates. What are we talking about? Biden's Naps. What. What are we talking about now? It's like, damn, it's been like. And we got to do it. That's why we're doing it too. This week, Chris and I are doing another show. Like, we got a two in one. There's so much news happening. Trump's making moves like them, love them or hate them. It's not about politics, but it is impacting news. And I like what I see overall. David, I don't know your perspective, but, you know, a lot of the things that are happening, they're getting attention, but we don't know the impact yet. Right. So I don't. I get excited that it feels like there's progress, but we don't have necessarily results, but we'll see. What do you make of the kind of the business climate overall with everything that's going down?

[Ryan Alford]

Well, I had Tesla before, I guess Trump won. And I remember the day, the day that or the day of the election. It was probably around like 9:00, 10:00, when it was looking like Trump was gonna win. And I just happened to get an alert from Robinhood and I just saw my Tesla, you know, jumping out. Now it's eased up a little bit, but that, to me, shows a lot more about how we're not truly appreciating what Elon Musk is bringing to the table. And there's a lot of people just hating on it for the wrong reasons. What I like to call just hustling backwards. But overall, you know, with since Trump's, you know, one, I did a list. Like, I had to write down a list because I was so confused. I'm like, why do people hate him so much? I understand the emotional aspect, especially with everything being so divisive and, you know, the other side or all different sides trying to make race such a big issue or lgbtq, all the woke ideology. But when you actually put pen to paper and write down the stuff that he's been able to put in play, we'll see what the results are as we move forward, but just the stuff that he's been able to put in play. Compare that list to four years of Biden and Harris, and I mean, it's hard to dispute the fact that he's making some real difference in a positive way from my standpoint.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah. And I mean, that's interesting from your perspective and knowing, you know, that that feels a little bit of the universal sentiment, I think, with people that, like you said, are hustling forward, you know.

[Ryan Alford]

Right.

[Chris Hansen]

But we'll See. I just think government has been so stuck in its ways. It's like it's been accepted. We've accepted how slow they've enacted things. Well, we'll get to that tomorrow. We might have a shutdown in three weeks. Well, you got three weeks to figure that out. Like, what are we doing? Like, none of this stuff happens in real life, in real business. You know, my mortgage don't wait three weeks. You know, like, I gotta make money today. I gotta get stuff done today. And the government, with all this inefficiency is allowed to operate at these levels because we tolerate it. And that's not even talking about necessarily whether I agree with every policy or not. It's more with which the speed, with the action taking place. Because if there's no action, it's just a lot of hot air. And that's what I think is refreshing, if nothing else is. We seem to be bringing people to the table around the. The whole block here. It doesn't seem as. Doesn't seem as politicized as. It was kind of heated coming through. I think a lot of that is. It feels like it's dissipating a little bit now. Look, I know the other side's complaining about shit, but, like, it's. I don't know. Chris, what do you think?

[David Caldwell]

I'm. I agree. I mean, I think there's a lot being done. I think we've yet to see the ripples from what's being done. You know, I think you can't turn around a ship on a dime. Right. So I'm extremely happy with the speed of how things are going, and I. I'm just happy that people are working because it felt like for four years there was just kind of not much going on. And if there was anything, it was extremely negative. Right.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah.

[David Caldwell]

Like our withdrawal from Afghanistan, for example, like, that was the beginning of that presidency from what I remember, or early into it. But I mean, I'm stoked, man. Like, I can tell the sentiment amongst business owners is better. And as a business owner, I just feel like I'm seeing someone who knows how to run a business doing their job.

[Chris Hansen]

Right.

[David Caldwell]

Like, I'm like, oh, this looks like what people should be doing.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah, so exactly.

[David Caldwell]

You know, more will be revealed, and there's a lot of upset people, but I think we've got a lot of talented people from a lot of different aspects and areas all coming together, trying to, overall, I think, trying to, you know, help the country out of genuine love for the country.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah. And I'M okay if there's even a little bit of selfishness in it, if it's moving things forward, you know, like. And I think you got a little bit of that going on. I'm not stupid. You get all these business guys, they know pandering to the President isn't a bad idea. But it does seem to be, I don't know, like we're rowing, at least for the people that matters, in the right direction or the same direction with some of the business units. Because if everybody's fighting, you don't get anywhere. I'm talking about like the business people. Not necessarily, you know, the left's going to do what they're going to do. But I think it's really fascinating to see how people are defending. I'm going to go down, like, the Doge route, the Department of Government efficiency. Go figure. Did we ever think we'd see the day that that would even try to exist? Government and efficiency in the same word. The worst run business on the planet is the post office, and that's run by the government. And so some. We're actually going to get efficient in this place. And we're hiring business people that have built some of the most successful companies. And the only people getting their ruffles feathered are the people that aren't doing anything, sitting at home collecting a paycheck. It's crazy. David.

[Ryan Alford]

Yeah, to your point, I mean, that's like what stands out to me the most about Elon, the fact that people are getting upset at Elon, saying he's not qualified, we didn't vote for him. And it's all people that didn't vote for Trump saying that, like, as somebody who did vote for Trump, that's exactly what I voted for. That was one of the things that I voted for that I thought, who better to examine a business than Elon Musk? And what we're seeing is a lot the difference between politicians and business people. Politicians just leverage US money. They want to take time to do certain things because their goals are totally different than an actual business that needs to stay in the black, that needs to be profitable, that has other employees that are relying on the success of that business. We're seeing the difference. And it's almost like one of those things where you come in and you have an audit. The people that are getting upset, or let's say, let's say the gym teacher comes in, the gym teacher comes into class and says, hey, everybody, who's out of shape, who, who can't pass these certain Tests, we're highlighting you and we're gonna put you out there on Front Street. The people that can pass the test are not tripping. It's the ones that can't pass the test that are sitting there nervous, trying to say, this is wrong, we shouldn't have these testing. And whole time the test is just to make sure that we'll become healthier. And that's what Elon's doing. He's trying to create a healthier business as America. And people are getting upset and allowing politicians to finesse them into thinking that, well, Elon Musk is gonna steal your Social Security number. Elon Musk is probably the last person that needs to steal your Social Security check. He's good. Like, you know what I'm saying? It's just, it's just so like, you're more upset about the person exposing how our money's being spent than the actual people that are spending it in all these crazy ways. It's wild to me.

[Chris Hansen]

They got to make up shit that doesn't make sense because there's no other thing to do, right?

[Ryan Alford]

Right.

[Chris Hansen]

Like that's the only thing we got to get on this soapbox. I call it the Department of Government. Out comes. We need outcomes from the government. You know, like, that's the problem. You have all these politics going on. There's no outcomes. It's like, oh, we debated this and we debated that and all that. Oh, we won. Okay, well what's the fucking outcome? Like, what is, what is actually happening from this policy and how is it impacting the bottom line? Everyday American outcomes matter, politics don't. And so I, I'm excited there's going to be some outcomes, I can tell you that.

[David Caldwell]

You know, I feel like all the evidence, they're, they're, you know, these videos every day of, hey, this is more waste we found, right? Like I saw a video of, it was metal bushings, right? For screwing in, you know, appliances. It was for airplanes. And it will usually would cost like $3 at Home Depot was $80,000 for a bag of bushings. And then there was another example of like styrofoam cups at the Pentagon. The contracted rate they were paying it equated to $1,000 per Styrofoam cup is what they were paying. I don't, I'm hearing real time, tons of abuse, right? As a business guy, you're like, that makes no sense. Keep running it, Keep going. And they're attacking these little like 22 year old hacker guys that are in there you know, doing all this. You want a 22 year old and it's like, all right, well, you're cool with a 22 year old going and picking up a gun and fighting for our country? One, two. What you said, you think this kid can't get your Social Security number already? Like if the, if he's, if he's basically hacking for the White House, right? Give me a break. Like, you're gonna steal your credit. Come on. Yeah, we have a bunch of lawyers that are really politicians. We need more business people in politics and less attorneys.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah, exactly. I mean, what do you make all these cuts they're finding? David.

[Ryan Alford]

Yo, it's wild. I saw that one on the. Whatever it was. What is it called? Bushings. I don't even know.

[David Caldwell]

Yeah, it's like metal washers.

[Ryan Alford]

I think essentially I saw that one. And what's so funny is now you'll see like, guys like Bill Gates and a lot of these other people saying, well, it's only 1% of the spending. And it's so funny because I don't know y'all. I'm sure you guys have dealt with people that have successful businesses. 1% to a business person is totally different than 1% to a politician. 1% to a business person can be the difference in like make or break the outcome of the success of their business. 1% to a politician is like, oh, it's not. It's nothing to even worry about. And it's. To me, it's even bigger than the. With the actual money, if you want to fund condoms for whatever group overseas. It's actually, I just asked myself, like, why are intelligent people doing things that don't make sense? And to me, that's when there's something else there. There's. Okay, I'm trying to funnel this money to, you know, it's really not going to condoms. It's just something that will write off and then obviously that's getting collected whether.

[David Caldwell]

Just make something up for the expense sheet, guys and, you know, write a check to myself.

[Ryan Alford]

Right? And then. But, but what's so crazy about it is. And then even to the point where you said about the age, the age thing is so weird to me because I think we forget how young a lot of leaders and revolutionaries were even in the history of America. You look at like, MLK wasn't that old. Fred Hampton was like 22, 23, leading a whole group. So all of these people, they're just making excuses and they're getting finessed by politicians that are just leading Them in whatever direction. The politicians are probably sitting back like, yo, we can't believe these people are actually following it. But the people just get emotionally attached to these agendas and become fanatics that they'll just go with whatever.

[David Caldwell]

I think Andrew Hamilton was like 23, like one of the founding fathers. Like they were in their like early 20s when they basically wrote the Constitution.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah. I mean, and then we got wow.

[Ryan Alford]

I mean like Jefferson and Autumn.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah, they were 81 year old president.

[David Caldwell]

Or did Pelosi's complaining about the hackers like Pelosi, do you even know how to do an Excel spreadsheet? Well, maybe because maybe to track her stocks that she's insider trading.

[Chris Hansen]

But outside of that, her assistant's mother's assistant knows how to track her Excel sheet, you know. Yeah, I mean, exactly. So I saw this. Get this here, here's the impact of DOGE so far. They wrote in a post on Sunday, it's canceled 22 leases that were not being used at all in the past six days, saving this year alone $44.6 million. Imagine us as a business trying to. Obviously I have seven offices and I use one of them. Okay. On January 29, it said that it eliminated 85 contracts related to DEI at more than a dozen federal agencies worth roughly $1 billion to the American economy. It said Muscados have also focused on the US Agency for International Development as a target. Potential Savings USA was created in the early 60s to deliver aid around the world. The agency controls and operates out of Six nations and employs 10,000 people. Its website went dark and its employees were barred entry into headquarters on Monday. Others had their work put on hold. They weren't doing anything. You know, the 2% of the workforce that was actually working in the office couldn't get in. It was mainly the janitors that were cleaning unnecessarily like it's wild, man.

[Ryan Alford]

That's.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah, the volume of inefficiency that is. And look, it's something this large, you know, there's an inefficiency going on. I got a small team and there's a little bit of inefficiency. It's just sort of the nature of the beast. But some of this stuff is just. It's mind numbingly stupid what we were spending money on. And the ma. The amount of people that have jobs that aren't really jobs that are being paid to quit that job. And it's like, and here's what's going to happen. These people are going to say, oh no, I'm not going to take that bailout or whatever to quit. Well, then you're going to be fucking fired in about six months. So I take the money.

[Ryan Alford]

And it's perspective. It's the difference between looking at something from a business owner's perspective and somebody that only feels that they can be a worker. A business owner perspective is looking like, nah, we can't be paying these people if they're not doing the job. That money can be going towards something else, going towards building the business. Workers are like, well, I'm okay with staying at home knowing that you're not gonna be as efficient getting your work done like nobody at home. You know, I'm sure everybody listening. If you disagree, you could just say you're the special person that will get more work done without having anybody on top of you or without having that work environment. But let's just be real. Like, that's why we have coaches from a young age in sports. Like, if a coach says, hey, you guys do your conditioning on your own, do you think everybody's gonna do the conditioning at the same level if the coach was there? So. And I feel like they're being gracious with that. They're tell telling people like, yo, if you want to come back, you can come back. If not, we'll even give you, what is it, like, eight months severance.

[Chris Hansen]

Eight months.

[Ryan Alford]

So it's like the fact that people are still complaining about that just shows entitlement on a whole nother level. And it just shows exactly why Elon has to be. Exactly how Elon is. So. And I think it's a testament to his leadership as far as, like a business owner even being willing to hire young folk. Young folk. They have more understanding around social media and a lot of these things than us. And I feel like the best leaders, they're going to hire different people from different ages, different. Right. Diversity.

[Chris Hansen]

Right.

[Ryan Alford]

Diversity is what we're looking for. So diversity of age because people are able to solve different solutions just based on their different experience growing up. So I see that as a plus. I see people just rooting against winners, man. It's just a lot of this is just people's insecurities coming to light.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah, exactly. They're up to 2 billion a day is what they're cutting.

[Ryan Alford]

2 billion a day?

[Chris Hansen]

2 billion a day. And Elon said today they by this weekend, they're going to hit 4 billion in cuts a day. And that's the only way that they will get to a trillion this year. And he says they're on pace to do it. That's how.

[David Caldwell]

Even if you could find a way in your business. Right. In any of our businesses, and let's just use a small number, $200 a day would make a huge impact in 90 of businesses in America. Right?

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah.

[David Caldwell]

I don't know what the math is, but what is that? 200 times 365.

[Chris Hansen]

A lot of money.

[David Caldwell]

I don't know, 800,000 or 80,000, I don't know which one it is, but regardless, say it's $80,000, right?

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah.

[David Caldwell]

That's a shitload. I mean, dude, that's two more employees for you.

[Ryan Alford]

Yes, a lot.

[Chris Hansen]

Exactly. And what do you guys make of what's happening with crypto? Let's go down that road for a minute. Like, I, I gotta admit, like I'm, I'm not a crypto expert. Chris is our crypto expert. And mind you, this segment of the podcast, this is not investment advice. We are not professional financial advisors.

[David Caldwell]

I'm not an expert, but I was.

[Chris Hansen]

Like pumped and excited and I'm not losing any money and I've just got it riding, but it's like I can't make out what's happening, Chris. What's happening, Chris?

[David Caldwell]

That's some billion dollar question, brother. I mean, I've been, I've talked to a lot of people over the weekend, a lot of my buddies that are pretty heavy in it. Yeah, it's definitely not following the usual trend as close as it typically does. But you know, the assumption is you have a lot more institutional money moving into cryptocurrency now, banks, countries. Right? Yeah, I think, I think our whole currency is going to change, whether that's our banks are just going to be on blockchain, which they probably already are. I think there's a lot of stuff going on behind the scenes and I know there is from a more corporate integration standpoint. Credit card companies starting to integrate blockchain processing, stuff like that. So you also had a lot of liquidity sucked out of the market from big events like ftx. That whole crash that sucked a ton of money out of daily day traders hand. So got a lot of money that would usually be trading that's just not moving right now. And I think a lot of that money is supposed to get dispersed out from that settlement, sometimes the next few months. However, I'm still very confident in crypto. I mean, I think historically March is a really big month in the cycle. So, you know, like Ryan said, everybody's down a little bit right now, but if you Zoom out of the picture. It's like the stock market, right? It's still. It's still looking good. And in my opinion, in the short term, it's looking like you're going to make some great gains. So I would not sell. I would buy more.

[Chris Hansen]

And I got three letters. Three letters. Xrp. I needed to go up, baby. That's all I need. You know, that's like 70 cents. We're sitting at like 280. I need that. I need 10x. We need like $10.

[David Caldwell]

You know, word is it's going to do pretty well. And I had a buddy yesterday even said, he goes, you know, I've never been an XRP fan, but he's like, I'm a believer now, you know, And I think there's a lot of. Because of that, XRP has a lot of contracts with the government and there's a lot of stuff with the banks going on. And allegedly what XRP is really doing is trying to replace the SWIFT system in the banking system when you send international wire transfers and stuff like that.

[Ryan Alford]

Yeah.

[David Caldwell]

So if that.

[Chris Hansen]

David, are you in on this crypto shit?

[Ryan Alford]

I was in a low. I. Bitcoin.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah.

[Ryan Alford]

On bitcoin, I have no issue with it. You know, to me, I look at it as if. And I don't have the best understanding for it. You guys can probably explain it better than me.

[Chris Hansen]

I'm just. I'm a bet. I'm a. I'm a gambler, baby. I like to ride the winners. I don't have to understand it. I just.

[Ryan Alford]

The more people are involved in it, the more people that are invested in it, it's going to drive the value up. And if they're not making more of them, it just seems like, you know, a very limited resource and the price is just going to keep going up eventually. It seems like people are. I mean, it definitely. I feel like it's gained the respect of a lot of people and institutions that tried to just kind of act like it wasn't going to be a thing, an overnight type of thing, but I mean, when you look at it now, it definitely seems like it's going to be here for the long run.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah. And I've been moving, like, what I was going to spend on crypto into sports cards. My four boys have gotten into the sports card bug, so we've been opening rip, rad rips, rapid packs, get in some NFL football cards. That's. That's at least fun, you know, and nothing like getting my son on Sunday, watching the Super Bowl. And, you know, it became a snore fest pretty quickly, unfortunately. Go Eagles. I was pulling for the Eagles. Not because I'm a. I love greatness. I just. I like the Eagles, and I, like. I have a lot of respect for Hertz. One of my favorite players out of Alabama. I don't count whatever that stop at Oklahoma was. He was an Alabama player. Anyway, back to the. Back to the sports cards. Clayton's my oldest, and he's the kind of the least engaged in it. And he's open. It's like a 25 box of cards. And then the packs are like six packs, and he's sitting there next to me. And then this one particular box, there's one type of card that's, like, super rare. It's. They're kind of cheap cards, but they have these cards called kabooms, and they're worth like 500 to $5,000 a card. And my son sitting next to me opening a pack, and I thought he was totally, like. Like, some of my sons will go, oh, man, look what I got. And he'll hold up, and it's the shittiest guy ever. Like, shittiest card. And Clayton goes. He's looking through it, and he's naming names, and he goes, like, okay, my home. Oh, that's a pretty cool card. And, like, just base cars that, you know, worth a couple dollars, whatever. And he goes, kaboom. And then he goes to the next one. And I heard him say it, and I'm like, he's trolling me. He's trolling me. But I was like, clayton also doesn't know cards as well as my other younger sons. And I said, wait, what? You just say Clayton? He said, I got some card with kaboom on it. I said, give me those cards. He had a $700 kaboom in his pocket in his hand from a $25 box and a $4 pack. And right in the middle of the super bowl and had, you know, and I. If I hadn't heard him say it, he would have thrown them on the table like every other card. It was awesome. My. The kids, my three other boys were, like, jumping up and down. They couldn't believe it, you know, but it was. It was fun. It was just funny because I thought he was trolling me. But sports cars are more fun, you know? Like, hey, you get to get them. I needed David Caldwell. You got a sports card out there, right?

[Ryan Alford]

I don't know if. If so, I never got one. I need to look into that. I Need to look into that.

[Chris Hansen]

What was that? 20? What?

[Ryan Alford]

Time for college? Give me one for my college. I'll enjoy that one.

[Chris Hansen]

You need that. You needed that name, image, likeness to come around when you were in college, right?

[Ryan Alford]

Yeah. I tell you what, it probably wouldn't have been. It wouldn't have been anywhere close to a lot of these big name schools. But there is something to say about being one of the larger fish in that smaller pond. You can still get appreciated, you feel me? So yeah, we definitely would have had you at least some meals covered. Maybe a little piece of that ranch.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah, yeah, exactly. But anyway, sports cars.

[David Caldwell]

Buy a scooter.

[Chris Hansen]

You know what I've learned, right? Sports cars are popular, man. The number of people. Like I post on social all the time. I'll post my business. I get, you know, hundred this, hundred of that. I've had no fewer than I don't know how many people when I post about the sports cars that coming out of the woodworks going, oh man, that's a good guy. I'm like, damn, these things are more popular than I realize anyway. It's a lot of money in that shit. Can't believe it.

[Ryan Alford]

Anyway, are you guys big on like, I feel like I used to collect the sports cars and then once it turned into like all the other cars, I couldn't keep up. Like the Pokemon, you know what I mean? I was into the sports cars.

[Chris Hansen]

27 variations of every card. Now that's what's hard to keep up with. So like you'll have Patrick Mahomes in a pack or like a set, like Prism is like a name of one of them and that same picture of Patrick on the same brand of card will have like 27 variations of the color or a hologram. Nothing changes. But like the overlay of the colors. On top they have a green diamond, a black diamond, a red diamond. And like one of them is super rare and the all of the others are worth like 5 or 10% more than the base card. It's hard to keep. You gotta like scan the card to know what. You could be sitting there holding a 700 card or holding a 7 cent card and they look this much different.

[Ryan Alford]

But that's what makes it fun though. That's what it makes it fun.

[Chris Hansen]

It is fun. The boys love it and there is a lot of money in it. But you know, ripping packs is fun. It's kind of, it is kind of like gaming. You're sitting there going up, up, but.

[Ryan Alford]

I don't know what you're gonna get Man.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah, exactly. And ironically, it was a worthy. The wide receiver. The kaboom card was worthy from Kansas City's team, the wide receiver. So that was pretty cool. And he was like, on screen. Right?

[David Caldwell]

Right.

[Chris Hansen]

When all that transpired, I was like, this is fun. Anyway, get into those sports cards. It's more fun than crypto, but crypto's probably got the longer term upside. I see that XRP to ride, baby. Chris, tell your XR people to pump that stuff, man.

[David Caldwell]

I'll let them know. Shoot them a text when we get off.

[Chris Hansen]

I know.

[David Caldwell]

Turn it on, boys.

[Chris Hansen]

David, I know you talk news every week. I mean, what's catching. What else is catching your eye this week? I mean, what else you got coming?

[Ryan Alford]

I'm a lot on the. It's funny, you know what? So a lot with politics, and it almost goes back to a point which you guys said earlier, like, and relating it to sports, like, outcomes, you know, and I feel like that's what I'm pretty much paying attention to. I mean, sports is cool, but my new sport is politics. That's what I like to learn about. Just seeing how people leverage power. Like, it's just actually exciting for me. But. But you're right, you know, just. Just being able to look at the outcome of things and the results rather than the intent. So whether it's dei, whether it's anything else, I just kind of look at it like, what are the results of it rather than how people are trying to sell it to me on how is it actually impacting certain things. So from a news perspective, definitely Trump is big, super excited about what RFK Jr hopefully will do with a lot of the, you know, being willing and having the courage to go against the fda. Big pharma. Like, that's what I'm here for. I'm here for all that. Just creating a better culture for us to be healthy in rather than to be reactive with all the pharmaceutical medicines and whatnot. So I'm excited about, you know, him bringing together all different types of people. RFK Jr that's one of the guys that I was really rocking with before he dropped out. So I'm optimistic. I'm optimistic. So, yeah, I know a lot of people are. Are miserable and upset, but I really feel like that's just because they're getting bamboozled in some ways and not realizing the. The actual opportunities that are in front of us.

[Chris Hansen]

Yep. I got one last article I want us to hit on. Yeah, this is gonna. This is a little sideways, but the money is crazy. It Says it's kind of goes down our other shows route. Chris, this has hit my thing. Cordyceps fungi. They're selling in Beijing for $136,000 a pound and have made their way into Whole Foods. Talking about a show called the Last of Us that's on hbo. I had no idea it was that big a market and it went for that. Did you know that it's cordyceps?

[David Caldwell]

I had no idea. I mean, I've got some here. I didn't know I was sitting on a freaking gold mine.

[Chris Hansen]

But yeah, you're going, I got those.

[David Caldwell]

Bricks of the cordyceps in the trunk, come pick them up.

[Ryan Alford]

Playing car.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah. But says throughout the whole playing card game. Yeah. Says which grows on the corpses of ghost moth larvae is worth four times its weight in gold. Traditional medicine says it cures almost anything. And they're also now calling it the Himalayan Viagra.

[David Caldwell]

So it's natural Viagra?

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah.

[Ryan Alford]

For the natural, you know, you got to get the natural.

[David Caldwell]

I think it's good for blood flow, from what I recall.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah. You still take that mushroom complex, Chris?

[David Caldwell]

No, I haven't been taking it lately because I was getting like too amped up on it. Like it was really give me too much energy. Yeah, it was a mushroom blend.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah.

[David Caldwell]

Like 12 different mushrooms, I think. And I also. I take other stuff that I think has mushrooms in it already. Like even now, like you can find energy drinks or pre workouts that'll have cordyceps in it and lion's mane typically.

[Chris Hansen]

But I feel like they. They compound this stuff and it gets so powder, like by the time you actually take the pill, it's like how much is really going through your bloodstream? Yeah, that's just the skeptic in me, I think.

[Ryan Alford]

What do you have at the house, Chris? You got the powder? What do you use the powder?

[David Caldwell]

No, I've got some capsules. Like I tried.

[Chris Hansen]

He's storing rails of cordyceps.

[David Caldwell]

Yeah, it's better than cocaine.

[Ryan Alford]

Get it to the brain.

[David Caldwell]

Oh, God, that Himalayan Viagra keeps me pumping all day, baby.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah, no wonder it was you. He's misusing it. Yeah, suppositories.

[David Caldwell]

You don't need a pre workout. You just need some cordyceps. I tried alpha brain, you know, that's got cordyceps in it. There's a ton of stuff, but I don't know, I tried to simplify a little bit on. On that because it was just too much blend. I think if I could find a cordyceps only supplement, which I Probably can try it out, but it sounds pretty expensive.

[Chris Hansen]

I just couldn't believe $136,000 a pound. I've seen cordyceps in a lot of different substance. I take now. I mean, I was wondering why I was feeling so amped, but now I know why. Now I'm kidding. It's more that I see it in a lot of things. I just had no idea that cost that much.

[David Caldwell]

I mean, I think a lot of it's grown hydroponically now like in the US So maybe it's probably like wagyu beef versus normal beef. Right? Like they got like the wagyu of cordycet mushrooms.

[Ryan Alford]

Yeah, I'm sure.

[Chris Hansen]

Finally the betting world has increased now that ESPN bet and all that other stuff is out there. I read that there was like over a billion dollars like bet on the Super Bowl. And there's an article we'll give them. Bloomberg.com is highlighting two guys that spend $10,000 a weekend gambling. They're professional gamblers just on sports. And it's like everything from ping pong to. I'm like this. The article should be called Degenerate. I think that's what that's called. But supposedly they're doing all right. But I'm like, you know, I got to see the receipts on these gamblers that say they're making money. But. But the industry as a whole is gotten. I mean, it's bonkers how much money is wagering on these games? Like anybody. I didn't, I know I used to do it like 10 or 15 years ago.

[Ryan Alford]

I can't do the sports betting, man. Yeah, I just, I don't know. I don't know. It's hard for me to bet on anything if I'm not participating in it. You get me going. If I'm. If I'm playing in it or something, then I'll bet. But other than that, you know, I wonder if. So this is what I was even thinking about the sports betting because I always think like the house is going to win.

[Chris Hansen]

Right?

[Ryan Alford]

The house is going to win.

[Chris Hansen]

Of course they are. They're the ones that are the business.

[Ryan Alford]

Right, but is this the difference between casinos with the sports betting now? Because you can have, let's say, sponsors in a different way than going into the casino. Those companies can actually make a lot of their money just on having sponsors and whatnot. Or I don't even know if they're allowed to sponsor. I don't even know what the rules are. So it almost gives them the opportunity to. I Guess feed the people that are betting within their platform a lot more or give them a bigger piece of the pie, whatever it is. Because they're getting so much sponsorship money. So I don't know. I'd rather do that than go to the casino and play what's the slots or something like that. But, yeah, I don't know.

[Chris Hansen]

I don't know.

[Ryan Alford]

Teach their own if they want, though. If they want to throw 10,000 into it, and if they could show me a history of some wins, I put some money in it.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah, yeah. Chris, we've talked about this. We know you don't bet. No anymore. But I've only done it, like, I've done it recreationally.

[David Caldwell]

Just when, like, everyone in the room is doing it, I'm like, all right, sure, let me try to get involved in it. I've never made money on it.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah. The only thing you're betting on is those brunettes at the bar that you don't drink at. But, you know. But they do, right? Yeah. Miami. David, are you single?

[Ryan Alford]

No.

[Chris Hansen]

All right, so just.

[Ryan Alford]

No, no, man, I've. I've. Shoot, man, I bet I've had a. A relationship probably for the last. It's almost 20. It's like 20 years now, but on and off, on and off. Like, I'm super transparent about it.

[David Caldwell]

It's.

[Ryan Alford]

Man, it's the toughest thing in the world. It's the toughest thing in the world because it's like no matter what you do, you still rely on somebody else to do something on their end. I guess it's like any other partnership, but a little less. I guess you got a little more. And that just goes to show you, when you have emotions involved in certain decisions, things can. I don't know, you can muddy the waters a little bit.

[Chris Hansen]

We're gonna get you talk your commitment issues where to get you a vibe science to talk here.

[Ryan Alford]

See, that's what I'm saying. Say, like, if this. If this wasn't a relay, if I didn't have so many emotions in it, and I was just taking my own advice. I told you I would have cut her off a while now. I'm just jok. Probably would have cut me off, too, but, yeah, I don't know. Relationships are just tough, man. To each their own. That's. That's the one thing that I've been learning, man. To each their own. We're in Miami, so I try to bring her here every so often just so she can see the landscape of the competition out here for her Just to make sure she's on her toes and we keep it moving from there.

[Chris Hansen]

Yeah, there we go. All right, gentlemen, topical news of the week. Appreciate y'all coming on. Any final words?

[Ryan Alford]

I got final words, man. I'm tired of people getting pissed off at winners. It reminds me of Cat Williams interview with Shannon Sharp when Shannon Sharp was bringing up something. And Cat says you have, like, I think he said this, I don't know, word for word. You have a strong affiliation with losers, and I don't understand why. So, yo, let's start rooting for the winners. Get that hate out your heart. Let's look at the results of things rather than how they're being sold to us. And like I said, man, when everybody's winning, when more people are winning, then it's. It's a lot easier to get over those insecurities. So that's. That's my final message, man. Let's. Let's align ourselves with winners and what it takes to win.

[Chris Hansen]

Wise words from a wise man. Like, we're going to leave it there, Chris. Yeah, appreciate you guys. Chris Hansen down in Miami, David Caldwell. David, where can I keep up with you on the socials?

[Ryan Alford]

Oh, yeah, so Instagram, Ohgi underscore I am. And then on YouTube, the OG Network. That's OHGI again network on Instagram as well. But yeah, you'll see me hopefully in a lot of what you guys got going on, so they'll be able to tap in there. So love it.

[Chris Hansen]

David, man. Appreciate you, brother.

[Ryan Alford]

Absolutely appreciate y'all as well.

[Chris Hansen]

Hey, guys, you can find Rus Ryan is right.com you'll find highlight clips, links to David's social, Chris's social, my social, all the social you can get. That's what we're doing here. We're spreading the good word. We're telling you about what's now, how to get ahead, how to think, and how to ultimately win, baby, win. We'll see you next time on Right about now.

[Ryan Alford]

This has been Right about now with Ryan Alford, a Radcast network production. Visit ryanisright.com for full audio and video versions of the show or to inquire about sponsorship opportunities. Thanks for.