Podcast Summary: "The Coming 2021 Cancellation with Dave Rubin"
The Charlie Kirk Show | December 28, 2020
Host: Charlie Kirk
Guest: Dave Rubin (The Rubin Report)
Episode Overview
This episode features a candid conversation between Charlie Kirk and Dave Rubin, delving into the rise of "cancel culture," the ideological shifts on the American left and right, the dangers they perceive in "wokeism," and the looming threat of mass deplatforming by tech giants in 2021. The discussion also explores personal experiences with lockdowns, political realignments, threats to free speech, and concerns about America’s cultural and institutional future.
Key Discussion Points and Insights
1. California Lockdowns & Migration to “Free States”
- Dave Rubin shares his recent escape from California to Florida, marveling at the basic freedoms available there (eating at a restaurant, interacting with people) compared to strict lockdowns in California.
- [01:33] Dave: “Last night I went to a place... a stranger... asked me what I wanted to eat, and 15 minutes later, she came back with that food. And I ate it and paid for it and left. It’s magic.”
- Both discuss the exodus of their friends from California due to restrictive policies and quality-of-life issues, not just high taxes.
- [02:26] Dave: “If everything is closed down ... and you walk down just the main boulevards, and every restaurant is boarded up... well, then at some point, you’re like, well, at the human level, forget the money. ... What am I doing?”
2. The “Collapse of Liberalism” & Redefining Conservatism
- Dave discusses his political evolution from a liberal to a conservative, arguing the term “liberal” has lost all real meaning as the left has been overtaken by "woke" ideology.
- [06:08] Charlie: “You’re a conservative and you’re also gay. Just for our listeners.”
- [06:25] Dave: “Defending liberalism is now a conservative position. ... The woke left are just the excesses of liberalism. Liberals have no defense... they have let the parasite in.”
- They agree that now, loving America and believing in free speech effectively makes you a conservative.
- [07:10] Charlie: “Basically, if you love this country ... and you like the freedom of speech thing, you’re conservative. That’s basically the definition, right?”
3. The Power and Spread of "Woke" Ideology
- They analyze how “wokesters” have gained disproportionate control over American institutions (media, academia, government, corporations) even though most Americans dislike these ideas.
- [12:20] Charlie: “The institutions are all infected... but the ideas are generally very unpopular.”
- Dave describes wokeism as an internal ideological hostage situation where accusations of extremism escalate, paralyzing dissent within the movement.
- [11:46] Dave: “It’s not what you’re doing to them, it’s what you’re doing to yourself. ... Ultimately, you’re painting yourself into an intellectual corner.”
4. Political Correctness, Identity Politics, and “The Oppression Olympics”
- Pete Buttigieg’s cabinet appointment is mocked for being about “diversity and equity” over actual expertise.
- [13:38] Dave: “I don’t care if he’s gay... None of that matters. Can you do the job?”
- Dave refers to identity politics as the “oppression Olympics,” criticizing the focus on intersectional checkboxes.
- [13:58] Charlie: “This is the oppression Olympics you’ve been talking about for years.”
5. Social Media Censorship & the Coming “Year of the Bannings”
- Both voice deep concern over the silencing of conservative viewpoints by Big Tech—especially Twitter and Facebook. Dave details changes like forced “double retweeting” before the 2020 election, intended to slow the spread of information damaging to the left.
- [17:00] Dave: “You had to press retweet twice to retweet... They did something to fundamentally change the speed we can get information.”
- Dave predicts 2021 will be the year of mass deplatforming, with Big Tech empowered by politics, and warns conservatives to prepare for digital exile.
- [17:58] Dave: “I think 2021 is going to be the year of the bannings. ... They gave speeches and nobody did anything.”
Notable Quote
[18:44] Dave: "If Biden is president ... now you’ve got the institutional elite and the swamp... Why not? Why leave Charlie Kirk on Twitter? Why leave anyone against lockdowns on Twitter? ... I think we have a world of hurt coming in the next year."
6. Alternatives to Big Tech: Launching Locals.com
- Dave shares the motivations and structure of his platform, Locals.com—built for creator autonomy, subscription only, fostering non-toxic, censorship-resistant communities.
- [19:51] Dave: “We build digital homes for creators. You own the content, you set the rules, it’s your data. It’s everything that big tech is, but reverse.”
- He urges everyone with a public voice to secure their digital presence off mainstream platforms to hedge against upcoming bans.
- [24:03] Dave: “If you have some stuff that’s online, you better figure out where to put it pretty quick, because it’s coming... And they’ll come for you.”
7. Dystopian Future: Economic & Societal Fallout
- Charlie and Dave joke about San Francisco’s rising crime and homelessness ("building extensions on homeless encampments"), tying it into a metaphor for failed progressive governance.
- [22:23] Dave: “The homeless encampment by me... they’re now putting extensions on their houses. ... What counts as a house?”
- They foresee financial and civil rights blacklisting ("should Republicans be allowed to bank, fly, or cross borders?") as the new frontier of cancel culture.
- [24:43] Dave: “At some point, what we will get to is, why should Republicans be allowed to bank?... This is not—I know this sounds like a dystopian future, but this is where we’re headed in six months.”
8. The Threat of National Disunity or “Divorce”
- The conversation touches on America’s fraying social fabric and the notion of a peaceful “national divorce” along ideological lines, referencing viral memes like “Jesus Land.”
- [26:52] Dave: "The answer would be no, the place where freedom would be free... would be that place [the Midwest]. ... They don’t have a real understanding of what reality is."
9. Warnings for 2021: Revolution, Resilience, and Hope
- Dave foresees the US entering, or already being in, the early phases of a “revolution”—not by choice, but as a struggle to preserve American values.
- [28:15] Notable Quote:
Dave: “I really do think that we are either in the first steps or perhaps the middle and we don’t know it yet, of some kind of revolution. ... There are forces at play right now that are trying to undo everything that is good about America.”
- He warns that lockdowns and encroachments on civil liberties won't end soon, encouraging listeners to resist passivity.
- [29:40] Dave: “We all did [comply]. ... There’s nobody. I mean, a sliver of people, mostly Trump supporters, are fighting it, but for the most part, we’ve all taken it.”
Notable Quotes & Moments
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On the new conservative coalition:
[07:38] Dave: "I'm trying to conserve the fact that I think America is the greatest country... we have something worth conserving here."
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On digital censorship:
[17:58] Dave: "I think 2021 is going to be the year of the bannings... nobody did anything… If Biden is president ... Why not leave Charlie Kirk on Twitter?... We have a world of hurt coming in the next year."
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On personal loss for support of Trump:
[14:26] Dave: "It’s come with a major cost... family, friends, business opportunities... I regret not doing it earlier."
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On American unity and disunity:
[26:03] Dave: "If the unity thing is frayed now, where someone like me can’t live in Cali, well, then what happens when Cali truly bottoms out... Are the people of Texas going to suddenly be like, yes, we would like to bail them out? No, they're going to be at war with them."
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On the tech threat:
[24:03] Dave: “If you have some stuff that’s online, you better figure out where to put it pretty quick, because it’s coming... And they’ll come for you.”
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On the “revolution” to come:
[28:15] Dave: “I really do think that we are either in the first steps or perhaps the middle and we don't know it yet, of some kind of revolution.”
Important Timestamps
- 01:33 – Rubin describes experiencing freedom in Florida vs. California lockdowns
- 06:08 – Dave discusses his evolution from liberalism and coming out as conservative
- 13:01 – Critiques Biden’s “diversity & equity” picks, identity politics
- 14:26 – Dave reflects on professional and personal costs of supporting Trump
- 17:00 – Twitter’s election interference, tech censorship, prediction for 2021
- 18:44 – Dave warns about coming digital bans
- 19:51 – Explains Locals.com and why alternatives are essential
- 22:23 – Satirizes San Francisco homelessness crisis
- 24:43 – Predicts financial and travel censorship for conservatives
- 26:52 – Memes and the idea of "Jesus Land" and partition
- 28:15 – Dave's warning: We are at the beginning or middle of a revolution
- 29:40 – How Americans complied with lockdowns, worries about future
Tone and Style
The conversation balances humor and gravity: they joke about Californian misery, Twitter habits, and meme culture, but often pivot to dire warnings about freedom, censorship, and American decline. Both speakers are direct, unapologetically conservative, and at times self-deprecating—especially Dave Rubin, who openly reflects on his personal journey and regrets.
Conclusion
Charlie Kirk and Dave Rubin offer a dark forecast for 2021, warning listeners to prepare for censorship, increased polarization, and perhaps a societal inflection point in the United States. They encourage resilience, alternative platforms, and a clear-eyed view of the stakes in America’s cultural and political battles.