Full Show PT 3: Friday, January 16 [Vault]

Summary

The Bert Show – Full Show PT 3: Friday, January 16 [Vault]

Date: January 16, 2026
Podcast: The Bert Show (Pionaire Podcasting)
Cast: Bert, Kristin, Abby, Cassie, Tommy & others

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Episode Overview

This lively episode delves into two broad themes:

1. Unusual Life Experiences — The cast and callers share personal admissions of things they've never done that most people have, sparking a series of fun, surprising, and sometimes heartfelt confessions.
2. The Ethics of Infidelity Websites — Later, the show hosts a spirited debate with the operations manager of AshleyMadison.com, a website that connects married people seeking affairs, about the "myth of monogamy," societal choices, and personal responsibility.

Through honest, humorous chats and a heated ethical debate, the episode showcases The Bert Show’s hallmark blend of authenticity, wit, and inclusiveness, inviting listeners to reflect and laugh along.

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1. Who’s Never…? Odd Life Experiences

(00:00–19:47)

Main Discussion

• Posing "The Impossible": The show launches with Bert announcing a question that “will pertain to absolutely nobody” in their audience: Has anyone never read a book, cover to cover? (00:05)
  • The cast muses about how each random topic they bring up somehow always finds a listener who relates and calls in.
  • Reference to Victoria (“Sporty Spice”) Beckham’s confession that she’d never read a book, which beats their prior random topics. (00:41)

Key Listener Calls and Stories:

• Miriam, 21, HR Manager:

  • Has never read a book “cover to cover.” Used Cliff Notes throughout school and college.
  • “I'm totally literate, but whenever I was in school, I would read Cliff Notes.” (02:31)
  • Says she doesn’t feel left out in social situations—she reads summaries for context.
  • “If it’s a good book, I’ll read the summary... if people are talking about it.” (05:02)

• Cecilia, 28:

  • Left school in 10th grade; can read magazines, but never finished a book.
  • “My kids read books, but I don’t read them.” (06:20)
  • Kids often destroy books instead of reading them.

• Brian, 29, Computer Programmer & Fitness Trainer:

  • IQ 165, college educated, never read a book cover to cover; uses reference books, reads chapters, finds reading boring. (08:55)
  • “I've never read more than a chapter at one time.” (10:14)
  • Attributed his lack of interest to never being encouraged to read as a child.

• Maria:

  • Calls as an avid reader (3 books a week), expressing disbelief that others don’t read and reflecting on the lost value of imagination and vocabulary.
  • “Reading cultivates an imagination and a vocabulary that you don’t have if you don’t read.” (10:43)

Other Unusual “Nevers”: Rapid Fire Admissions

(13:08–19:47)

• Never been to New York (Host, 35 years old)—reluctance due to a past negative experience with accent-based discrimination. (11:51)
• Bert: Never drank an entire can of Coke. (13:26)
• Never seen popular movies (E.T., Breakfast Club, Raiders of the Lost Ark)—The cast bonds and teases each other. (13:51)
• Never flown on a plane (Kyle, 23, Dad works at airport).
• Callers with other surprises:
  • Never chewed gum (grosses him out).
  • Never eaten seafood (lifetime vegetarian).
  • Never had a hamburger (Brooke, 18).
  • Never owned a cell phone (Trisha, 30).
  • Never seen the ocean or real mountains.
  • Never had a beer (Lane, 23, college grad).
  • Never eaten anything green (Brandon—“It’s the texture”).

Memorable moment:

• “What do these people do when they're laying on the beach?” – Cast, reflecting on non-readers (10:33)
• “That makes my heart hurt.” – Cast, in response to caller who never ate veggies (21:36)

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2. Phone Prank: Fake University Credits Call

(21:53–26:31)

A classic Bert Show prank, calling “Sarah Brittany” at the library, pretending she’s 28 credits short for grad school.

• "We did not like 38 of those. So gone." (22:56)
• Escalates as the prankster doubles as "supervisor," creating confusion and frustration.
• Sarah: “This is absolutely unbelievable. I am not leaving the campus...” (25:50)
• Ends with the big reveal and laughter.
  • "You had my heart going a thousand miles a minute!" – Sarah (26:22)

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3. AshleyMadison.com Debate: The Ethics of Infidelity

(26:35–46:01)

Guest: Darren, Operations Manager of AshleyMadison.com

Topic: Is monogamy a myth? Does a site for married people seeking affairs reflect reality, or just enable cheating?

Key Points & Arguments

• Darren’s Position (AshleyMadison.com):

  • Claims monogamy is largely a myth, especially as humans now live so much longer.
  • “We were meant to propagate the species... our needs for a mate change as well.” (28:14)
  • The site is “accepting human nature and the human condition”—addressing reality, not causing affairs.
  • Divorce is not always desirable or possible—so for some, a “safe” environment for affairs is preferable.
  • "We’re servicing an existing market." (33:51)

• Bert’s Nuanced Response:

  • Agrees men may be instinctually non-monogamous, but choices and self-control are real. (29:52)
  • “I also believe you can control that.” (29:52)

• Melissa’s Direct Challenge:

  • Rejects biology as an excuse: “If you choose to be married... that is your choice and your fault alone.” (29:04)
  • Her anger peaks at Darren’s justifications—calls out the site's enabling.

• Erin's Critique:

  • Points out inconsistency: divorce is “pretty acceptable” these days, so why not just get divorced rather than cheat? (31:10)
  • “If your children are so important... but they’re not important enough not to go to your website…” (31:44)

• Callers React:

  • Angela: “He’s like the drug pusher on the street who says, ‘I’m just out here selling crack to people who are going to do it anyway.’” (40:08)
  • Sherry: Points out Darren’s own history with infidelity and calls him out. “Bless your heart, that’s all I have to say.” (42:30)

• Darren's Rebuttal:

  • Stresses that people who want to cheat will find a way, with or without such sites (44:22).
  • Cites high-profile cheaters, like Clinton and Prince Charles, as evidence that risk doesn’t prevent affairs (41:55).
  • Admits to substantial site traffic (over 535,000 members; average user lifetime spending of $147). (43:38; 45:38)

• Cast Closes with Final Jabs & Disbelief:

  • “It has never been more accepted to have an adulterous relationship than it is right now.” – Bert (45:40)
  • “It’s a new cool thing to do. It’s like a little baby chihuahua in your purse.” – (45:50)
  • Ongoing sarcasm about the site's marketing, ethics, and profit motive.

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Notable Quotes & Timestamps

• “I think I've got the one question that will pertain to absolutely nobody in the Burt show listening audience.”
  – Bert, (00:05)

• “I am 21. Graduated college, too? …Have never read a book because you read the CliffsNotes? … Yep.”
  – Miriam, (02:41–02:51)

• “Reading cultivates an imagination and a vocabulary that you don’t have if you don’t read.”
  – Maria, (10:43)

• “I just never in school I’d read, but I would lose interest, so I just put it down and never read it all the way through.”
  – Cecilia, (06:07)

• “We are not just animals… we have brains, we have decision making power, we know right from wrong.”
  – Erin, (36:23)

• “I’m just saying that people do screw around, people do cheat on their spouses, and for those people, we want to offer a safe forum to explore those feelings.”
  – Darren/AshleyMadison, (39:07)

• "He’s like the drug pusher on the street..."
  – Angela, (40:08)

• "It has never been more accepted to have an adulterous relationship than it is right now."
  – Bert, (45:40)

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Highlighted Segments & Timestamps

• The Book Reading Challenge (00:05–12:00)
• Callers Share Their “Never Have I Ever” Moments (12:00–19:47)
• College Credit Prank Call (21:53–26:31)
• AshleyMadison.com: Ethics Debate & Listener Calls (26:35–46:01)

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Tone & Atmosphere

• Casual, real, and comic — The cast rib each other and listeners with good-natured humor, even as they touch on personal insecurities.
• Candid and challenging — Especially in the AshleyMadison interview, the team digs in with sharp, opinionated questions, unafraid of confrontation.
• Interactive and inclusive — Listeners’ voices drive the “never have I ever” conversation, and in the AshleyMadison segment the hosts ensure multiple perspectives—caller outrage, guest defense, and moral critique—are all aired.

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Summary Takeaway

This episode perfectly captures The Bert Show’s mix of laughter, relatability, and cultural critique. From quirky personal admissions to fiery ethical debate with a controversial guest, listeners are both entertained and provoked—reminded that everyone has something they've never done and that issues about love, choice, and morality are rarely black and white.

Transcript

[A]

Hey, the Burt Show. I think our game stops today.

[B]

You got it?

[A]

I think I've got the one question that will pertain to absolutely nobody in the Burt show listening audience.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

Because we've joked on this show, I mean, we've had the most random conversations, and it seems like there's at least one person listening in our audience that says, oh, they're talking about me. And then they call up, I've got it. I've got it.

[D]

Today.

[E]

Nobody is gonna be able to relate to this.

[A]

Nobody will call today.

[E]

Okay.

[A]

Okay.

[E]

All right.

[F]

Is this gonna be like, have ever gotten someone fired from Neiman Marcus for trying to give water to your dogs?

[A]

Well, we would get a call on that.

[F]

Well, you already know she won't come on with us, so I figure you're just trying to be the winner.

[A]

All right, here it is, cuz. Victoria. I should say Sporty Spice. Victoria Beckham just released a book. And while she was doing a press conference the other day, she confessed she has never read a book.

[E]

No, no.

[B]

Is that. That's what she says she's never read Victoria Beck. When she Posh Spies, she was.

[A]

This says 40. Spice. Okay, posh.

[B]

But she. How old is she? She's in her 30s, right?

[A]

Gotta be.

[B]

And she's never read a book, she says.

[A]

I mean, she's gone through school. She says she has never read a book. I don't even know how that's an entire book.

[E]

Cover to cover, finished a novel.

[F]

This is probably like you, where you've never had a full coke. Like, she's probably dabbled in it, but never read the entire thing.

[A]

Has never read a full. Full book before.

[C]

Okay.

[A]

All right. Is there any Bert show listener that has never, ever read a full book before COVID to cover?

[B]

Can you. That. And you're literate.

[A]

Doesn't necessarily have to mean that. Not one Dick and Jane book.

[E]

Okay.

[A]

Not one Run Spot Run. Not Clifford the Big Red Dog.

[E]

If you've read a children's book cover to cover, then you can't call.

[A]

You can't call no book. Nothing from COVID to cover.

[E]

I think you might be right.

[A]

404-741-1005. There are three lines lit up right now already.

[E]

No, look at them.

[A]

All right, we'll take them after Chef 5.

[F]

Look at this. This is virtually all of Stockbridge 5.

[B]

You said Jeff said that. Jeff said it.

[A]

Miriam says, stand back. Birch show. I have never read a book. Hello, Miriam. Hey, good morning.

[G]

Good morning.

[A]

You have never, ever read a book cover to cover?

[G]

No, I grew up with a nanny who never read us any books. And I would just look at the pictures. I'm totally literate, but whenever I was in school, I would read Cliff Notes.

[B]

How old are you now?

[G]

I am 21.

[E]

Did you graduate from high school?

[G]

Graduated college, too?

[A]

College. And you've never read a book because you read the CliffsNotes?

[G]

Yep.

[A]

Never read.

[B]

You never read Are youe There, God? It's Me, Margaret.

[E]

You never read the lion, the Witch in the Wardrobe?

[B]

Yeah.

[C]

Nope.

[A]

Never.

[B]

Oh, you missed out, have you?

[A]

Now, you said that you've read the CliffsNotes. Have you ever actually opened up a book and started reading it? Then around page, I don't know, 104, you're like, this isn't working for me.

[G]

Of course.

[A]

And how far have you gotten in any of these books? Halfway. Three fourths of the way, probably half.

[G]

Probably, like the front part of it and then the end part of it.

[E]

What do you do for a living?

[G]

I'm a manager.

[F]

Of what?

[G]

Human resources.

[A]

Oh, come on. And you've never read a book? I'm fascinated. Well, you got 21, went to high school, went to college, got the diploma. Have never read a book cover to cover.

[C]

I ain't never done read no book.

[G]

Burt, where'd you go to college?

[F]

I ain't got no need for no book learning.

[E]

Where did you go to college?

[G]

In Pennsylvania.

[B]

Yeah, it's not a Southern thing, guys. Well, I think.

[A]

Where in Pennsylvania? I'm just curious.

[G]

I'd rather not say. Yeah.

[A]

You didn't go to a school called iup, did you?

[D]

No.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

It's my wife's school, but it's. Well, no, I'm curious. Well, yeah, she's 21. I'm curious as someone who's older, because I know I didn't start enjoying reading until I was out of school, so I've probably read more books. Yeah.

[A]

Y.

[E]

Had to read.

[A]

You're forced to read books.

[B]

I know, but I did the CliffsNotes, too, and I did the skipping around. I'm just curious that. Not on your personal time, you never read full books.

[C]

Harlequin romance novels. You get a little.

[B]

Because I. I mean, I definitely read more books as an adult than I did in school. For sure, because it was not assigned anymore. You know.

[A]

I still get very, very bored reading books. I mean, they have to get my attention in the first couple of pages or I'm pretty much out. But every now and then, there's a book that keeps my attention enough to where I'll read it cover to cover. You've gone 21 years. Never read a book.

[C]

Now, in conversation, do you kind of feel out of place if people are talking? Because I love reading books and talking to people. Bert and I were just talking about Bono's new book and Harry Potter and all these different things. Do you feel like sometimes you can't kind of keep up with conversation?

[G]

Not really. I mean, if it's a good book, I'll read the summary of it just so I know I'm talking about it if other people are talking about it. But I've tried going to the bookstore and reading.

[A]

The whole thing's starting to break up.

[F]

She doesn't read.

[A]

I would say read the manual and your owners get the owner's manual, but you'll never get through it. More than one. More than one call.

[B]

Because I was gonna say most of the best books are made into movies anyway, so why do they need to read, you know?

[A]

Good morning. You're on all the hits. Q100. Hello?

[G]

Hello?

[A]

Hi, who is this?

[G]

Cecilia.

[A]

Hi, Cecilia.

[G]

Hello.

[A]

You two have never read a book cover to cover?

[C]

Nope.

[A]

Come on now, how old are you?

[G]

28.

[B]

28.

[E]

And did you graduate from high school?

[G]

Nope.

[E]

When did you leave school?

[G]

10Th grade.

[E]

You left school in 10th grade, but never as a child? Never a children's book? Cover to cover, never any books.

[A]

Can you read?

[G]

Yeah, I can read. I can read. I'll read like magazines and stuff, little pages, but not all the way through. I just never in school I'd read, but I would lose interest, so I just put it down and never read it all the way through.

[F]

What the hell are you talking about? Bur can I read?

[G]

Come on, I can read.

[E]

What do you do?

[A]

Don't mean to offend, just it's an obvious question.

[F]

I got the whole back of a carton of camels memorized. I read that like breakfast.

[G]

My kids read books, but I don't read them.

[E]

So you've never read a book with your kids cover to cover either?

[D]

Nope.

[E]

The first lady just fell over.

[A]

Even when I put my kid to sleep at night, I mean, there are these six or seven page books that I read with him. You've never sat down and read that from COVID to cover?

[G]

My kids don't keep books. You give them a book, they'll read that my oldest reads. He'll read it, he'll read it to me, but then he puts it down and my 4 year old will take the book and he'll tear it up. They will never keep a book. Any book I buy them or Any book they get from Happy Meals and Chick Fil A or something, they will sit there and literally, like, two weeks ago, my son was just tearing. My daughter had a book, and he was just tearing it up in the backseat.

[F]

Did you say. Did you just say you were getting your kids books at Chick Fil A?

[G]

You know, Chick Fil A, when you go in there and buy a Happy Meal, they don't give you a toy. They give you a book and a Happy Meal.

[B]

That's good, though.

[A]

I didn't know that.

[B]

Yeah, that's good, though.

[A]

Well, it's good if they're reading it. It's not so good if they're tearing it up. Tearing it up.

[E]

It doesn't sound like they have respect for the books.

[G]

I have to open the book and give it to them. If not, they'll take the book out and say, it's not a toy and they'll throw it away. Or if I open it up and give it to them, my daughter will look through it and my other kids will get a hold of it and they'll tear it up and throw it away.

[C]

So why don't you sit down and actually try reading it with them?

[E]

Maybe.

[G]

I guess I'll have to. I mean, I guess I can. I just never. When y' all said that on the radio and said, nobody's gonna call, y' all said, somebody ain't. Somebody else hasn't done. I said, well, shoot, I really haven't done it. So that's why I called to let y' all know that, I mean, it's been done. I can read. I'm a. I'm like a speed reader. I read real fast. Like, I'll read Maggie's Life. I'm reading a magazine. Or if I'm reading a newspaper, my kid will say, read it to me, mom, and I'll read it to him real fast. Better than that. I don't get into novels. I don't get. My mom gets into novels, but I don't get into book novels.

[A]

What kind of magazines are you reading?

[G]

Like, them things that have Britney Spears and, like, Kevin Federline, all the stuff about them in there. Or about Jessica Simpson, her and Nick, her husband.

[B]

Right.

[A]

I'm sorry.

[G]

Because that's interesting. But books is interesting to me.

[F]

What about damn Harlequin Novels? You read that money, Jeff?

[B]

Now there's. I mean, there. The phone lines are lit up, though.

[A]

I mean, well, now it's mostly people going, I can't believe these people.

[B]

I thought, I cannot believe all the phone Lines are blinking, but yeah, but wait. I mean, there's two right there.

[A]

Thank you very much.

[G]

You're welcome.

[A]

Bye. Bye. I feel sad for her, I really do.

[C]

Her, the kids. The whole situation's kind of.

[A]

Because you pass that down to your kids and all, you know. Good morning, Brian. You're on all the hits. Q100.

[F]

Hey.

[H]

Hey, how's it going?

[A]

All right, sir. What's up?

[H]

Well, I hear that you guys are pretty surprised that no one in this country has read a book or somebody in this country hasn't read a book, right? Yeah, well, I've never read a book.

[D]

Cover to cover you need it.

[A]

How old are you?

[H]

29.

[E]

Okay, question. Did you go to high school?

[H]

Yeah, I finished high school. I went to college. I worked on computers for a living. I do programming and computer build and specialty computer builds. I've used books as references. You know, I know programming and I can work just about any piece of software. I've been working in Photoshop for about eight years. I've been doing flash for a long time.

[B]

Yeah.

[H]

And I have 165 IQ. I've been tested, but I've never read a book cover to cover.

[C]

Do you have any kids?

[H]

No, no kids. I have two dogs.

[B]

Why, why do you think you haven't read a book? I mean, does it bore you or. I mean, even as a kid, I.

[H]

Think it just bores me. And I think it probably has a lot to do with the fact that I was never really driven towards reading books when I was a kid. Only people I see who read all the time, their parents were real into getting them into reading books.

[B]

Not to stereotype. But you're a computer guy. You never read Lord of the Rings, you never read.

[F]

Come on, you're disappointed.

[B]

You're my fellow geek. What are you doing?

[H]

Not only am I a computer guy, but I'm also a fitness trainer. So I'm fit too. I'm not a fat computer guy. I'm a fit computer guy.

[B]

Not all computer guys are.

[A]

I'm just curious how far along in the longest book that you've ever read have you gotten?

[H]

I've never read more than a chapter at one time.

[A]

One chapter and that's it?

[H]

Yeah. I mean, now if you were to take some of the reference books that I, that I have, that I use for my learning purposes and count up all the chapters in the book, I may have gotten, I don't know, almost half book.

[C]

What do these people do when they're laying on the beach?

[B]

Because that's When I read, I don't think he's laying on the beach.

[C]

No.

[F]

Maria.

[A]

Good morning.

[F]

Good morning.

[G]

How are you guys doing?

[A]

Shocked.

[G]

I know, I am too. I read like three books a week. But the reality is that, I mean, I know quite a few folks who don't read. My sister never reads, so I'm the one who reads to my nephews. It's just amazing to me because reading cultivates an imagination and a vocabulary that you don't have if you don't read. And you know, people get into watching TV for entertainment purposes. And for me, I think it's very limiting. I think that you can, you can get a lot out of reading in the same way as far as entertainment value. I read like three books a week and it doesn't matter if it's something as trite as, you know, a Danielle Steele novel. I don't know, it's just amazing to me.

[B]

Only somebody who reads three books a week would say trite.

[F]

Yeah, right.

[C]

That's right.

[A]

Hey, the Birch Show. All right, so while I'm taking off and I'm gonna be going to San Diego for reunion, Melissa Carter is leaving.

[B]

This weekend also I'm leaving this afternoon. I'm flying to New York City. And the odd thing is I'm a 35 year old woman and it's the first time that I have ever been to New York. And to see the reaction of people when I say that, because I've been to most every other, you know, I was trying to think every other major US City because my friends reactions have caused me to really think about the fact that I haven't been to New York yet. And it's just there is an intimidation for some reason to New York. Like I, I have no problem going out west, going to the Midwest, you know, going south. But for some reason, I guess, and I told this story earlier about When I was 17, my sister and I had gone to Toronto just to hang out and experience the city. And when we did, and this was back when I had a much thicker Southern accent and my sister has a thick Southern accent. And we were really treated rudely in Toronto based solely on our accents. And I'm not making is the truth. And for some reason I thought, well, you know what? I'm never going to New York until I know someone who lives there. Because I thought I do not want to be this tourist lost in New York and then have to endure what I did in Toronto asking questions and people, you know, like judging me based on my Southern accent. So at 35, I finally know people that are locals in New York that have been there a while. And so I'm actually flying up there this afternoon and spending the weekend in New York and experiencing the city for the first time.

[A]

These are fun because I have one of these also. If you have one of these experiences that you haven't done and you tell people, look, I have never blanked or I've never gone to New York. And in my case it's, I've never drank. I've never had a full can of Coke. I've had sips, like in rum and Coke, but I have never had an entire soda.

[F]

And if you ever have soda out of the can, you've never finished, Never finished bottom. A can of soda?

[A]

Yeah, essentially like Coke or Pepsi. To me, it's just like caffeine just to keep me going for the next couple of hours. So I'll have a couple of sips of it and get my high off of it and then move on. But I've never had a full can of Coke. We just didn't have it in the house when I was a kid, so I've never had it. But I think most people have one of these experiences that everybody else has had that you haven't had that just make you kind of bizarre.

[F]

Most movies that everyone has seen, I have never seen.

[C]

That was mine.

[F]

Like, oh, shut up. Get out of here.

[A]

Cauliflower.

[F]

I said it first.

[A]

I did that with E.T.

[F]

Name any movie.

[A]

Star Wars.

[F]

Seen it.

[B]

Top Gun.

[F]

Seen it.

[A]

Rocky, Pretty Woman?

[F]

Never in its entirety.

[C]

Godfather?

[F]

Seen Godfather.

[B]

Sixteen Candles.

[F]

Never seen it.

[A]

Really? Breakfast Club.

[F]

Never seen it.

[E]

Really?

[F]

Yep.

[A]

I could see you being one of these rebellious guys who are like, you know what? It's been out. Made 1500 million dollars. I'm the only one in the country that has never gonna see it.

[F]

Raiders of the Lost Ark? Never seen it.

[A]

Titanic.

[F]

Titanic. I did watch on video.

[A]

For me, it was E.T.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

And then when we had that E.T. viewing a billion years ago, it sucked.

[B]

Rebellion?

[A]

No. Like, did it get to a point where it's like, oh, yeah, yeah. And then we watched it and I was like, this is it. That's what I was all stoked about.

[F]

What are the follow up movies? Did Star Wars. Because I've never seen those.

[A]

Star Wars 2, 3, 4, 5 Star Wars.

[F]

No, the ones. The two that came out when the real Star wars came out.

[C]

Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi.

[F]

Never saw those.

[A]

Good morning, Kyle.

[H]

Yeah. I've never flown on a plane before.

[B]

Really?

[E]

Ever.

[H]

I'm 23 years old. My dad's actually worked at the airport for 25 years, and I've still never flown on an airplane.

[A]

Never flown on an airplane.

[B]

Is there a reason? I mean, are you resisting?

[F]

No, no.

[D]

I'd love to.

[H]

I would, but no. I just never have. I've never even been out in the Southeast, really, so.

[B]

Wow.

[H]

I've never, I've always driven.

[A]

Melissa, have you ever been out of the country?

[B]

Not beyond this, I mean, you know, this continent. No.

[A]

I wonder if there's somebody listening that's never been out of Georgia.

[E]

I'm sure there is.

[B]

Because I think, I mean, like, for me, for instance, my family was not. We didn't travel that much. I mean, in all my growing up, we took two big trips, and those were still within the United States. So, I mean, I, I, the thought of traveling is not something that came into my mind until really here, because you guys travel all the time. And this is probably the first time in my life that I actually can afford to travel to different places, you know?

[A]

404-741-1005 I wonder if there's anybody listening outside the perimeter that's never been inside or vice versa.

[F]

We did that before. I remember that woman called up and so we brought her. We got, like, the fur bus. We brought her in. She did all sorts of naughty things.

[A]

She did. She had never been inside the perimeter before.

[F]

And she ended up like, yeah, she went home a filthy, filthy woman.

[E]

She should have stayed otp.

[F]

Yeah, she, like, she got inside the perimeter and saw it.

[B]

Like, did she get a Charlie Horse?

[A]

Got more than that. Hey, Andy, you're on all the hits. Q100.

[F]

That was his name. Yeah.

[H]

I've never chewed a piece of gum before.

[E]

Really?

[A]

Why is that?

[H]

It just grosses me out.

[D]

Like, I can't stand it when people.

[H]

Like, chew it and then, like, if you're about to eat and they take it out and, like, put it on their plate. I don't know, just the whole, I don't know, everything about gum just grosses me out.

[A]

I thought it was going to be the kind of thing where, like, your parents didn't have gum in the house and then your teachers obviously wouldn't let you have it in school.

[H]

So you just know all my brothers and everything. I mean, love it, but I just, I've hated it ever since I was real little. I don't know what still is.

[A]

Never had.

[C]

I've never had seafood. Grosses me out.

[A]

Never had seafood. Not one shrimp.

[C]

I've been a Vegetarian since I was nine. But the seafood thing, never ever I would sit at the dinner table for like eight hours. My mom's like, you're not getting up.

[B]

Till you eat that.

[C]

And I'd be like, okay.

[A]

Really?

[C]

I'll just sit here. Yeah. Can't do it.

[A]

Morning Brooke. You're on all the hits. Q100.

[G]

Hi. I'm never eating a hamburger.

[A]

How is that possible?

[G]

Or a cheeseburger.

[A]

How is that possible living in this country? You're not even American. Tommy.

[G]

They gross me out. They smell so bad.

[E]

How old are you?

[G]

18.

[E]

You're 18, you've never had a hamburger? Have you been a vegetarian your whole life?

[G]

No, I just, I eat chicken and stuff. I just don't eat hamburgers.

[C]

Oh, it's gross.

[B]

I've never had a corn dog ever.

[A]

Oh really?

[F]

Thank you.

[B]

Yeah, I don't know when she said that. Yeah, I've never. Yeah, I never had a corn dog.

[A]

It's like going through your toddler years without a hamburger is unheard of. I mean the only logo that Hayden knows is McDonald's.

[E]

Really?

[A]

You know? Yeah. It's the only thing he will eat. That's amazing.

[C]

I never liked him.

[F]

Yeah. Jessica doesn't like hamburgers. Like she in every like year or two she'll have a bite of one that I'm having. But the thing that weird her out is the combination of bread and meat. Like she can't eat meat on bread. Like she'll eat ground beef. Like she'll eat meatloaf, you know, and that she's fine with that. And she'll eat like even as a kid she didn't just doesn't it, I mean it make to the point where it makes her gag weird.

[A]

Trisha?

[G]

Yes, hi. I don't have a cell phone and I've never had one and I'm 30.

[A]

You've never had a cell phone? I held out pretty long on that one also.

[F]

You did?

[A]

Yeah, really long. Like this is only like the third cell phone I've ever had.

[E]

Really?

[F]

Uh huh. I remember that because I remember you actually considering not getting one here.

[A]

Yeah, they wouldn't allow it. I had to get one here because they wouldn't allow it.

[F]

Really?

[A]

Yeah. I went that long.

[F]

I remember when we came here because we got ours at the same time. Remember we got our matching numbers.

[A]

I do remember that. Sweet.

[C]

Sweet.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

Andrea.

[G]

Hey. My fiance's never seen the ocean or like the real mountains.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

My babysitter's husband was the same way. They went to the beach for the very first time a couple of weeks ago and went to Charleston. Never seen the ocean. It is like, after she told me that he had never seen the ocean, I almost thought about, like, getting a bus full of people from Atlanta that had never been to the ocean before and bringing them there for the weekend. Because to not see the ocean your whole life, you're so missing out.

[G]

I don't know. It's beautiful.

[F]

Wow.

[A]

Okay.

[B]

I bet there's a lot of people in this country, though, especially in the Midwest, who the drive, like, if they can't afford to fly to the coast, and then the drive is horrendous from, you know, because at least in the Southeast, it's a. It's not a bad drive to get to the coast.

[A]

But if you've been in somewhere like Iowa your whole life.

[B]

Yeah.

[H]

Yeah.

[A]

You can understand. Good morning, Lane. And you're on the Burt Show. Hello.

[G]

Hey.

[H]

How's it going? How you guys doing?

[A]

Good, thank you.

[H]

Good. I just want to say, I'm 23. I've been to college for five years. Just graduated. I've never had a beer before. Party all the time, but just can't stand it.

[A]

So you will try it?

[H]

Oh, I mean, I've had a sip, but I've never finished a complete beer before. My friends make fun of me all the time. Put $100 table, $100 bill on the table.

[D]

I won't touch it.

[A]

Isn't it funny when you have one of these how people just want to, like, tempt you? Come on, dude. Here's $100. Have a beer.

[F]

Yeah, but does anybody really.

[H]

Not gonna do it?

[F]

Does anybody really take that first sip of beer and go. I love it. That was. That hit the spot.

[B]

So refreshing.

[H]

Yeah.

[A]

I still don't like the taste of it. I'll drink it just for the sake of drinking it, but I still don't like it.

[E]

You know who did fresh at, like, 2 years old?

[B]

This isn't his baby bottle. Yeah, yeah.

[A]

Oh, this one's good. Hey, Brandon.

[H]

Yes, sir.

[A]

What's up, man?

[H]

Not too much. I've never eaten anything green.

[B]

Never.

[F]

Oh, I worked with a guy like this.

[B]

Like lettuce and broccoli.

[H]

It's the texture. I cannot stand the texture of anything green.

[A]

But different green things have different textures.

[B]

Yeah.

[G]

To you.

[H]

Not to me. I can't stand anything that's crunchy and green.

[A]

Especially no cheese. No salad.

[H]

No.

[E]

Not broccoli. No pickles.

[F]

No.

[D]

No way.

[B]

But you'll eat carrots and stuff, but you won't Eat a cucumber.

[H]

Actually, I won't even eat carrots. I eat just about no vegetables whatsoever.

[C]

Do you take some sort of vitamin supplement?

[H]

No, I take cheeseburgers.

[B]

Dude, he must be in the Steve.

[F]

McCoy, I hate vegetables category.

[H]

Basically, yes, I'm the opposite of vegetarian.

[A]

Thank you for calling. Bye Bye.

[E]

That makes my heart hurt.

[C]

I know. The guys just hit the floor right then.

[E]

Yeah, my valves hurt just listening.

[A]

The Fruit Show.

[F]

Hello, Good afternoon. May I speak with Sarah Brittany, please?

[G]

That's me.

[F]

My name is Duncan Gishink and I am with the admissions office.

[G]

Okay.

[F]

And we were looking at your transcripts and whatnot for getting you into graduate school here, and I've got a touch of bad news for you. You are by our math 28 undergraduate credit short in order to be a part of the graduate class here.

[D]

That's impossible.

[G]

No, no, that's been a mistake.

[F]

I see you transferred in 130 credits, which is actually 10 more than we require.

[G]

Yes, exactly.

[F]

But we're only going to count 92 of them that you actually transferred in, which leaves us short 28 credits. So I just need to know how you want to make those credits up.

[G]

It doesn't make any sense. I had my transcripts before I left.

[F]

Right, you transferred in 130. But we did not like 38 of those. So gone.

[G]

You didn't like them.

[F]

Right.

[G]

I don't understand how that works.

[F]

Well, we just take a look at the courses and the coursework and the names and stuff and just if it doesn't sit well with us, we just cross it off.

[G]

You know, if it doesn't sit well with you. Oh, goodness.

[F]

We have an academic standard here. We're just trying to maintain it.

[G]

I meet that academic standard.

[D]

Thank you.

[F]

Well, you don't.

[G]

I really do.

[F]

You don't because you took 28 frivolous credits. It wrote.

[G]

They're not frivolous credits. They went towards my major. Trust me, I know. I took them.

[F]

Right, At Neal Outdoor College.

[G]

Yes, at Nellard or college.

[F]

Now, is that a legit deal or is that like a mail order school or how does loud or college work?

[G]

Oh, my God, you are unbelievable. Okay, you know what?

[F]

Can I ask where you are right now?

[G]

I'm at the library.

[F]

You're at the library now? Do you think? A couple of things. One, do you think maybe you're talking a little bit loud to be in the library? And two, I'm gonna have to ask you to step out of the library until we resolve this. We can't have you on Campus property, especially.

[G]

I'm gonna go take care of my paperwork, and I'll get it to everybody, and I'll clear it up, and it won't be an issue. Okay?

[F]

Okay. Well, until then. Are you leaving the library right now?

[G]

No, I'm not.

[F]

Okay, we're gonna need you to leave the library. I don't want to have to call security.

[G]

Can I talk to you, supervisor?

[F]

You're clearly becoming belligerent, and if I mean my supervisor.

[G]

I'm not being belligerent. You are being rude and you're being insulting.

[F]

My supervisor is going to tell you the same thing I'm telling you.

[G]

Let me talk to the supervisor and ask them.

[F]

Okie doke. Hold, please. Hi, can I help you?

[G]

Yes, my name is Sarah Meeders, and I was just speaking to one of your. I don't know, your employees, and they were telling me that I am 28 credits short on my. In my transcripts to become a graduate student. And the reality is I have 130 credits. I know that I had it checked before I came here. I know that there isn't a problem with my credits. I tried to tell him that I would deal with my paperwork, and he was very insulting and very rude to me, and I don't appreciate it. I would deal with my paperwork, bring it in, and clear everything up. And he asked me to leave campus.

[F]

Right, well, when do you think you'll be able to clear it up? Because we have you being 28 credit short, so we will need you to step off campus until we resolve this.

[G]

Kidding me?

[F]

I mean, if you have the paperwork with you, you could go to.

[G]

Is this the same guy?

[F]

What's that?

[G]

Is this the same guy I was just talking to?

[F]

You asked to be transferred to a supervisor, ma'.

[D]

Am.

[G]

Yes, I know I do, but it doesn't sound like anybody different.

[F]

This is the supervisor.

[G]

Are you the supervisor? I am, and you were just talking to me before you transferred me.

[F]

No, I was not, ma'.

[H]

Am.

[G]

Okay, so now you're lying to me.

[F]

No, ma'. Am.

[G]

This is absolutely unbelievable. I am not leaving the campus. I'm not leaving campus. I paid to be here. I am not leaving campus. My credit. My credit scout and I will take care of it.

[D]

Hey, Sarah, what are you gonna do?

[G]

Send a security guard over for me? Give me a break.

[F]

Hey, Sarah.

[G]

Yes.

[F]

Security has had their way, okay?

[G]

Yeah, right.

[F]

And they're bringing your boyfriend, Brian. This is actually Jeff with the Burt Show. We're a radio show here in Atlanta. You can't say that in the library?

[D]

Sure.

[G]

You had my heart going a thousand miles a minute. I can't believe. I couldn't believe somebody would talk to me like that. We will.

[F]

We will scam you.

[E]

Get it?

[A]

The bird show. Okay, we've been talking now about getting Darren on for a couple of days now. And this is a website that specifically targets married people that are looking for relationships outside of their marriage. And I signed on yesterday to take a look at it, and I found out. Female seeking men. There are about a thousand profiles from Georgia available for you. That means a thousand men, if I'm interpreting this right, have gone on, filled out an application. And if you're a woman looking for a married man in Georgia to have a relationship with, you've got the pick of about a thousand different profiles there. Man seeking a female. 145 profiles. So there were 145 married women in Georgia that went to this website or on this website. Right now they're saying, look, I'm married, but I certainly am willing to date outside of my relationship.

[E]

So.

[A]

Hey, Darren, how are you today?

[D]

Good morning. I'm well. How about yourself?

[A]

Good. Darren is the operations manager at this website called AshleyMadison.com. let me give the phone number out now. 404-741-1005. And as I'm reading your website yesterday, Darren, there are some things about your website that I don't completely disagree with.

[D]

Okay.

[A]

And that's kind of like the. I think your whole website is based on the myth of monogamy.

[D]

I mean, yes, the myth of monogamy, but also I think it's just realizing and recognizing human nature and the human condition and accepting it as it is and accepting us for who we are. We're flawed human beings.

[A]

Okay, Explain that theory of the myth of monogamy.

[D]

Well, I mean, in as much as a lot of people would like to believe that we have the ability to stay loyal and that we should be loyal, I think biologically it just flies in the face of convention and that it's just too difficult that men were meant to spread their seeds, so to speak, and that we were meant to propagate the species. And also because we weren't meant. Another reason we may not be meant to be with just one person on an ongoing basis is that hundreds and hundreds of years ago, we barely lived past age 25 or 30. So it was pretty easy to be with somebody your whole life. Now that we're living to be 80, 90, 100 years old, the type of person we are at 25 is not the type of person we are. At 45, we change. And it's quite possible that our needs for a mate change as well.

[A]

All right, Melissa, here we go.

[B]

Where do I begin? Well, I think first of all, a surprise to a lot of our listeners. I actually think more of men than you do. I mean, I think that it's basic, take responsibility for your actions. If you choose to be married, you made that choice to be monogamous. Now, whether it's human, blah, blah, blah, excuse after excuse about human nature and all this stuff, biological blah, you know, you make choices in your life. If you know you're a man who really cannot settle down with one woman, then don't commit to one woman. Live your lifestyle the way you know you are. But if you are getting married, that's where it infuriates me, that that is a choice that you have made. And if you cannot stand, stay with that choice. And if you violate that choice and that trust, that is your fault and your fault alone. Not God's, not biological, not your DNA. That is your choice and your fault.

[A]

Here's, here's the, here's where I disagree with you. Like, I do believe in what he's saying about the myth of monogamy. Like, I think natural instinct is to want to be, at least for a man, to be with a lot of partners. I believe that. But I also believe you can control that.

[D]

I mean, what you both say is correct and you can control it. But what ends up happening in many circumstances is that people get into a relationship. And there's no question that marriage is a very strong institution and that a lot of people are very convention bound in our society and would like to be married. But you don't know what you don't know getting into it. And you don't know how you're going to feel seven years down the road. And when that time comes and you're leading a life of quiet desperation and you don't want to get divorced for many reasons, then a lot of people do look outside the relationship for fulfillment. And that's just how we are.

[E]

I just don't understand why in a society where, you know, Brit was saying that these affairs are so acceptable. Well, divorce is also pretty acceptable in our country nowadays. And I think that there's not as much stigma on you as a divorce person now as there used to be. Why, you know what, why provide this for people that are already married and not to people that are divorced? Because you don't have to stay married I mean, if you have the seven year itch and you're like, I've gotta be with other people, you don't have to stay married. I don't understand why.

[D]

Well, you don't have to stay married, but obviously divorce is not an option for a lot of people. And that could be. Well, because there's children to consider, there's religious beliefs, there's cost. It's very expensive and acrimonious to divorce if somebody just feels that they have something in their system that they gotta get out of their system. And it's not worth leaving the relationship for. Because many people have affairs and go back to their relationship because the grass wasn't greener on the other side, but they had to get it out of their system.

[E]

What I don't understand is how if your children are so important and your religious beliefs are so important that you won't get a divorce, but they're not important enough not to go to your website and find somebody to have an affair with.

[D]

Well, it's not even just our website. I mean, the majority of affairs spawn from the workplace.

[E]

But you're enabling that.

[D]

Well, it's not enabling it because people will cheat where there's an opportunity to do so if they're predisposed to it, if they want to cheat.

[A]

But you're saying everybody is predisposed to it.

[D]

I'm saying everybody could become potentially predisposed to it. And yes, everybody is implicated. If in your life, somehow, some way, the emotions are triggered. If you're not happy, if you're not fulfilled, if you feel that your relationship should have been more than it is and you want to get more out of life. For example, many women stray because they feel that they're not being fulfilled in their relationship, and they always stray with somebody that they deem to be trading up to.

[A]

Jeff, with this. The same argument that you had last week when we talked to that woman that was creating those greeting cards specifically for people that were going outside of their marriage. You said, look, how can you blame the greeting card people? They're just providing a service. Would you use the same rationale for this?

[F]

Yeah, I mean, he's a little more callous about the whole thing and a little more shallow about it. Like I. More up.

[D]

Probably more up front as well.

[F]

Yeah, more direct about it, unfortunately. You know. You know, if I were you, I would change my rhetoric a little bit. But he is addressing a need that that's out there, and if you really want to break it down, he is providing a safer way for somebody to do something. I mean, if you want to go down to the bare bones and guys just need to spread their seed and have sex and get out there then, you know, and drag your knuckles. He's providing a, you know, a safer environment rather than, you know, fighting a prostitute or something like that, or picking up a random, you know, chick at a bar and having some drunken, you know, not events. So, I mean, do I agree with what he's doing? No. Do I think cheating's good? No. Do I fault him for finding a way to make money out of something that's wrong with society? No, not really.

[D]

I mean, we made our business model when we researched and found out that as many as 30% of people that sign up for singles dating services were attached. So they were already using the anonymity of the Internet to pursue their objectives. And additionally, if we felt that we were somehow potentially perpetuating infidelity and creating a market, then we probably wouldn't do what we're doing. But we know that we're just servicing an existing marketing that appetite.

[A]

Hold on to your thought there, Melissa. We're going to be a while.

[B]

Yeah.

[A]

No doubt you have heard hundreds of stories like this. So I guess my question to you is, how are you waking up every morning going, you know what? I can feel pretty good about the cash that I'm putting in the bank.

[D]

Well, listen, I mean, I have sympathy for Amber and I'm sorry to hear what happened with your family, but the reality is your husband didn't even need our website to pursue his objective. Somehow, some way, he chose to stray, and he chose to stray for a reason. And I'm not casting dispersions on your relationship or yourself, but he did. He did stray, and it's going to happen in society. And he didn't even use our website.

[B]

Well, first of all, it's not just men that cheat, you know, and secondly, because she brought that up and it's been brought up a lot, the women use this website, too. But the thing about. And it kind of goes on, what Jeff just said about Darren and the way he's explaining all this, like, you know, it's one thing if you said, look, there's a lot of people in society doing this and we're just providing a service. But you started off the conversation justifying it. You started off the conversation saying that. And I guess it's on your website, which I haven't seen, about the myth of monogamy and how it's, you know, especially in men, they have to sow their seeds and stuff. Like you are justifying it and then you turn around and say you're not.

[A]

Hey Darren, before you answer that, let me just read off of your website here because I feel the same way Melissa does. Like I think you're justifying, you know, screwing around in your relationship because of the myth of monogamy. And you've got a lot of statistics on your website that prove this. But let me just read this. Statistics suggest that the majority of North American and European adults do not maintain permanently monogamous or closed relationships. In fact, it's estimated that some 50 to 60% of men and 40 to 50% of women will engage in an extramarital affair or romantic tryst at some point. Anthropologists have found that there are fundamental physiological changes that take place during the course of a relationship that contribute to the lack of long term fidelity. Extramarital affairs and open spousal relationships offer an opportunity to re experience the excitement and stimulation of associated with dating and courtship.

[E]

We're all attracted to other human beings, but that's what makes us human beings, is that we have the mental capacity to make decisions above and beyond our animal instincts. Give me a break. We are not just animals. I mean we, we are at a most basic level, but we have brains, we have decision making power, we know right from wrong. And we can make those decisions with our brains and not just our bodies. Because I mean, I think everybody will agree whether you believe in monogamy or not, you've got, you've got sexual urges that attract you to people that are other than the person that you've decided to commit your life to. But you also have a head on your shoulders that can help you make those decisions. Make the right decisions. Not to put yourself in the wrong place at the wrong time, you know, or on the wrong website.

[C]

Why get married in the first place?

[E]

Right.

[D]

Listen, that may be. And with, and if and when people come to that realization and don't feel that at the moment they couldn't help or control themselves and they stop straying, then I guess we'll go find another business model. But it's not the case and it never has been the case.

[F]

Yeah, you're getting mad at the wrong person.

[D]

Yeah, I mean, it's almost like suggesting that we should stop working together, that males and females should not be allowed to work together because affairs started.

[E]

That's what I'm saying.

[B]

And that's not just the opposite of what she said.

[D]

We shouldn't go out every day looking our best Lest we accidentally get somebody to.

[A]

That's not what she's saying. She's saying that we're all attracted to other people, but we have the capacity to say, absolutely not. It stops here.

[D]

Well, then if we. Then in that circumstance, let's not let men and women work together, because that's your.

[B]

That's what your argument is.

[D]

They might have. That's not our office. Although I wouldn't. I don't know. I guess it's possible, but the reality is that people mistake the intensity of the work project for that of a. Of personal relationship and get caught up. But I'm not making excuses for people. And, you know, they're going to find their own way no matter what. And if people, you know, somehow, some way stop cheating and stop behaving like human beings and the way we were programmed, then I guess it would be, you know, there would be a different outcome. It would be a different world. But it's just not that case.

[A]

Darren, let me ask you this question, okay? Because your wife's got to be a little bit freaked out. I mean, you are representing a website that basically says, look, it is instinct for me to screw around on you. So you've already justified in your own relationship that infidelity is a real possibility.

[C]

He just said it was gonna possibly be a situation he has to deal with.

[A]

So how does your wife feel about this?

[D]

The situation I had to deal with would have been with my child. That changes with respect to Sharon's comment. But, I mean, if my wife cheated on me. Well, I certainly. Was that your question?

[A]

No, I think you cheated on your wife. I think my question is more if.

[D]

I cheated on my wife.

[A]

Yeah. I mean, she's got to be a little freaked out. I mean, basically you're saying it's okay to screw around because it's only animal instinct.

[D]

No, I'm not saying it's okay to screw around. I'm just saying that people do screw around. People do cheat on their spouses. And for those people, we want to offer a safe forum to explore those feelings. But if I cheat on my wife, it certainly would have nothing to do with a website. It would have to do with a breakdown in our relationship that I wasn't willing to handle or couldn't handle or moved on after trying to handle. But it certainly wouldn't do just because I suddenly had access to Ashley Madison. Or maybe I've always had access to Ashley Madison and now there's a sale going on at Ashley Madison. It really has to do more with my Relationship.

[A]

Hey, Angela.

[G]

Yeah.

[A]

Good morning. You're on with Darren.

[G]

Hey, guys.

[F]

Hi.

[G]

I think this guy's an idiot. I mean, an absolute idiot idiot. He's talking about he doesn't enable people. But that's exactly what his website does. I mean, I'm on here right now, and it's just I've discovered many women in unfulfilled relationships looking for satisfaction. I mean, why don't these people just get divorces instead of going online and finding a safe, quote unquote way to cheat?

[F]

Then you need to talk to them, not to him.

[G]

Well, but he's on there offering this. I mean, he's like the drug pusher on the streets who says, ooh, I'm just out here selling crack to people who are going to do it anyway. I mean, that's ridiculous.

[F]

There's a difference. Crack is illegal.

[G]

Yeah, well, social cheating. I mean, look at all the cheating causes.

[B]

I mean, he doesn't stop to think.

[G]

About what the causes are of this website and of enabling people to go out there and cheat on their spouses. I mean, I work for an aid service organization and I see women in my office all the time who their husbands went out and cheated and guess what they brought home. Hiv, syphilis, gonorrhea. I mean, it's ridiculous. He's not enabling these people. Yes, the hell he is. Why doesn't he go on the other side of it and try to come up with a website to help people stay in their marriages? Or hey, how about get a divorce?

[F]

Because there's no money in that, right?

[A]

I mean, that's the honest answer. There's not nearly as much money in that right there.

[D]

A lot of people make money on divorce. There are many divorce lawyers. But to a lot of people, divorce just isn't an option. And people that are going to stray, these people are like ideas whose time has come. They're going to be become resourceful. They're going to find ways to do it. They're going to find venues and excuses and they're going to learn how to juggle balls and they're even going to be willing to fund the affair, which is not a cheap proposition. I mean, once somebody. I mean, you've got to consider this. You have situations where people like former President Bill Clinton or even Prince Charles have cheated. And these are men who had everything in the world to lose by cheating and getting caught, yet they still did it. What compelled them. So the average person on the street like us, who decides to cheat and doesn't even have as much to risk or lose and yet still does it. There's something there. There's just something compelling them. And they're going to do it no matter what.

[A]

Good morning, Sherry. You're on all the hits. Q100.

[G]

Yes, my question is, and it's a very personal question, but has Given ever dealt with betrayal or someone cheating on him or that pain of what you go through?

[D]

Absolutely. No question. I've been cheated on and I have cheated on past relationships and I've been through those emotions.

[A]

Yes, well, annoying with the pain that goes through all that then how can you feel good about facilitating a website like this?

[D]

Well, I'm offering a service for somebody who needs and wants to use. It says America, you're right here.

[G]

Bless your heart. That's all I have to say. Bless your heart.

[D]

What about relationships that break up because of gambling or alcoholism? Both are legal.

[C]

What?

[D]

But people abuse it, or people don't do something in moderation, or people don't talk about their problems. Listen, there are a lot of vices. There are a lot of opportunities in society to abuse our freedoms and to abuse our choices, but it happens all the time.

[C]

The gambling websites are not saying, hey, cheat on your wife right here and spend 20 bucks.

[D]

If I had a fraction of the budget the casinos and the online casinos do, then I'd be retired.

[C]

They're not asking people to get cause for divorce.

[F]

Well, but it is for divorce.

[D]

I think they stick at you until they clean you out.

[A]

I'm curious how much it costs to be a member.

[D]

On ashleymadison.com the minimum would be $55. That would buy you 100 credits and you would redeem the credits as you utilize features of the system that allow you to communicate directly. And those features are things like mail messaging and instant messaging, Winks.

[A]

Winks and stuff like that.

[D]

Winks are free.

[A]

And how, how expensive can this get? You said the bottom line is 50 something bucks, right?

[D]

That's the minimum. And once you would go through your credits, it would be up to you to reload. So it depends on how much time you spend on there, how many people that you communicate with, how often, whether you leave and come back again. The average sale is about $77 and the average lifetime revenue per paying subscriber is 1 47.

[A]

And the feedback that you're getting because you have a section on here where you can actually read some of the emails that came into you, I'm guessing you're kind of selectively posting the ones that are all positive. But you must Be getting some negatives also.

[D]

I mean, it's not a bulletin board. It's not an open bulletin board for people to post messages to. It's comments from our users. We do get our share of hate mail, no question. But admittedly, we do get much more mail offering praise and kudos than we do condemning our actions or condemning what we do. Because I think a lot of people truly understand that if somebody's going to cheat, they're going to do it anyway. And that would be comparable to even taking the motel operator to task, because the couple checked in there every single week to, you know, to have their afternoon.

[A]

It's not the same thing. Totally not the same thing.

[E]

You know what I feel like? What's that movie with Al Pacino where he's really the devil?

[C]

Devil's advocate.

[E]

Devil's advocate. That's what I feel like. Darren's gonna morph into the end of this conversation, and your eyes are gonna have, like, fire in the middle of him. It's like. It's like he looks really good and slick in that suit, but underneath it, I just. I just don't know how you sleep at night, man. I don't know how you do it. I know you're trying to make money, and I know you got a niche thing going on, but I don't know how you sleep at night.

[B]

I guess my.

[D]

I'm frustrated because we know. We truly know these people would do it. Not only would they do it anyway, but many of the people that come to our website are people who have cheated in the past.

[A]

I think we've pretty much.

[D]

They're already predisposed.

[A]

We're gonna talk about the same things over and over and over again. Just how many members do you have so far?

[D]

I think we're around 535,000.

[A]

535,000 members. It has never been more accepted to have an adulterous relationship than it is right now.

[F]

It's a new cool thing to do. It's like a little baby chihuahua in your purse.

[A]

All right, Darren, we'll see you. Thank you very much for handling all those calls with me.

[D]

It was a pleasure.

[A]

Thank you. Appreciate it.

[D]

Thank you for having me on.

[A]

You're on the Burt Show.