1 00:00:21,723 --> 00:00:25,023 S1: A whole bunch of right wing influencers received millions of 2 00:00:25,023 --> 00:00:29,403 S1: dollars from Russia in return for promoting pro-Russian talking points, 3 00:00:30,573 --> 00:00:34,293 S1: which is hilarious to me since their whole narrative is like, 4 00:00:34,323 --> 00:00:38,823 S1: I don't believe anything. I'm skeptical. I'm discerning except when 5 00:00:38,823 --> 00:00:42,543 S1: it comes to obvious Russian propaganda. Here's another way to 6 00:00:42,573 --> 00:00:46,503 S1: think about it. And I did some Intel in the Army. 7 00:00:46,503 --> 00:00:52,233 S1: I'm not, like heavily Intel trained, but I did have 8 00:00:52,233 --> 00:00:54,393 S1: a decent amount of exposure to it and worked in 9 00:00:54,423 --> 00:00:57,933 S1: like the Intel Group or whatever. But the thing about 10 00:00:57,933 --> 00:01:02,853 S1: this here are probably two unrelated phenomenon. One, we know 11 00:01:02,853 --> 00:01:05,973 S1: for absolute certain that Russia is trying to use its 12 00:01:05,973 --> 00:01:09,933 S1: significant propaganda capabilities to influence the right wing in the 13 00:01:09,933 --> 00:01:13,803 S1: United States to be pro-Russian into Ukraine, that we know 14 00:01:13,803 --> 00:01:17,613 S1: for absolute certain. Like that's not even debatable. They are 15 00:01:17,613 --> 00:01:22,743 S1: really good at this, and they are spending at least 16 00:01:22,743 --> 00:01:25,683 S1: tens of millions of dollars, probably hundreds of millions of dollars, 17 00:01:25,683 --> 00:01:30,443 S1: probably not billions. So I'm guessing tens of millions to 18 00:01:30,473 --> 00:01:33,923 S1: hundreds of millions of dollars they are spending on doing this. 19 00:01:34,613 --> 00:01:37,583 S1: And they're really good at it because it's essentially like 20 00:01:37,583 --> 00:01:43,433 S1: the evolution of the KGB. Second point, which is probably unrelated. 21 00:01:43,433 --> 00:01:47,033 S1: The right wing in the United States is now completely, 22 00:01:47,063 --> 00:01:51,953 S1: almost completely pro-Russian Anti-ukraine. And some people reached out to 23 00:01:51,983 --> 00:01:54,413 S1: me and they're like, that's not true. That's not true. 24 00:01:54,743 --> 00:01:57,323 S1: I should have went and found some data and linked 25 00:01:57,323 --> 00:01:59,873 S1: to it. I read the data all the time. I 26 00:01:59,873 --> 00:02:02,903 S1: read the data all the time in polling, where it's like, 27 00:02:02,903 --> 00:02:09,923 S1: how much of the Republican Party, when polled, are actually pro-Putin? 28 00:02:09,953 --> 00:02:12,653 S1: The numbers are ridiculous. I'm sorry, I don't have the 29 00:02:12,653 --> 00:02:15,923 S1: link here. I should have put it in there, but 30 00:02:15,953 --> 00:02:19,793 S1: it's it's pretty easy to Google and you'll find it yourself. 31 00:02:19,793 --> 00:02:22,163 S1: It's actually better if you find it yourself than if 32 00:02:22,163 --> 00:02:25,403 S1: I feed you the link. Just Google that. Look for 33 00:02:25,403 --> 00:02:31,473 S1: your look for the stats, the polling. It's ridiculous. And 34 00:02:31,473 --> 00:02:34,023 S1: a brief political aside. So this is an example of 35 00:02:34,053 --> 00:02:37,023 S1: a little breakout piece. So I already know I'm going 36 00:02:37,053 --> 00:02:39,483 S1: to get hate mail about the point above, because I'm 37 00:02:39,513 --> 00:02:42,213 S1: a crazy liberal and I post a lot of other 38 00:02:42,213 --> 00:02:49,413 S1: stuff that's like anti-left far left and their idiocracy or idiocy. 39 00:02:49,413 --> 00:02:52,623 S1: And I get tons of comments about being way too 40 00:02:52,653 --> 00:02:57,513 S1: right from the left because I attack the left and whatever, 41 00:02:57,513 --> 00:02:59,373 S1: and I just now attack the right, and they're going 42 00:02:59,403 --> 00:03:02,013 S1: to be like, oh, you're too left wing. So I 43 00:03:02,013 --> 00:03:04,893 S1: ask you to consider another possibility, which is I'm actively 44 00:03:04,893 --> 00:03:10,503 S1: considering each position from first principles, not perfect. I could 45 00:03:10,503 --> 00:03:13,053 S1: be wrong, but I put a lot of effort into 46 00:03:13,083 --> 00:03:15,873 S1: having my own opinions that are not part of a 47 00:03:15,873 --> 00:03:19,983 S1: tribe of pre-approved options. So perhaps the best way to 48 00:03:20,013 --> 00:03:23,313 S1: sum me up right now is that I'm liberal in 49 00:03:23,313 --> 00:03:28,563 S1: my goals, and somewhat conservative in my approach for how 50 00:03:28,563 --> 00:03:34,233 S1: to achieve them. So meaning, I want a planet full 51 00:03:34,233 --> 00:03:38,723 S1: of lots of different colors and ethnicities of people all 52 00:03:38,723 --> 00:03:43,613 S1: thriving together. A secular society that encourages any religion but 53 00:03:43,613 --> 00:03:47,213 S1: doesn't allow any of them to infringe on government or 54 00:03:47,213 --> 00:03:52,613 S1: the ideals listed here. Gender identity, private sexual behavior between 55 00:03:52,613 --> 00:03:58,553 S1: consenting adults, all personal choices and nobody's business. Basically, the 56 00:03:58,553 --> 00:04:01,253 S1: freedom for everyone to strive to be the best versions 57 00:04:01,253 --> 00:04:04,733 S1: of themselves that they can be, and a society that 58 00:04:04,733 --> 00:04:09,533 S1: sees that as simultaneously a matter of personal responsibility, but 59 00:04:09,533 --> 00:04:16,193 S1: also helps people along that path. So free speech, the 60 00:04:16,193 --> 00:04:21,203 S1: ability to offend people with difficult ideas and have those 61 00:04:21,203 --> 00:04:25,493 S1: debates and be controversial and be offensive, right. The concept 62 00:04:25,493 --> 00:04:32,063 S1: of meritocracy, the emphasis on personal responsibility. Okay. And those 63 00:04:32,063 --> 00:04:36,383 S1: are kind of like currently those are considered like right wing. Right. 64 00:04:36,383 --> 00:04:40,903 S1: But also the acknowledgement that some people in groups need 65 00:04:40,933 --> 00:04:44,833 S1: help getting to this point where their personal responsibility can 66 00:04:44,833 --> 00:04:48,883 S1: actually take root and help them thrive, and that it 67 00:04:48,883 --> 00:04:55,003 S1: is society's responsibility to give that to them. And that's 68 00:04:55,003 --> 00:04:58,963 S1: where it's liberal. So in other words, if everyone had 69 00:04:58,963 --> 00:05:04,063 S1: the same opportunity, I'd be fiercely all about meritocracy. But 70 00:05:04,063 --> 00:05:08,413 S1: not everyone has the same opportunity. And that's the role 71 00:05:08,413 --> 00:05:12,943 S1: of society and charity and kindness to help them get 72 00:05:12,943 --> 00:05:16,783 S1: to the place where their hard work can actually benefit them. 73 00:05:17,653 --> 00:05:20,983 S1: So the problem right now, in my mind, is that 74 00:05:20,983 --> 00:05:26,023 S1: the far right and the far left are in opposition 75 00:05:26,833 --> 00:05:30,043 S1: to that model I just laid out. The far right, 76 00:05:30,043 --> 00:05:32,773 S1: because they actually want the wrong things, and the far 77 00:05:32,773 --> 00:05:35,083 S1: left because they are so confused about how the world 78 00:05:35,083 --> 00:05:40,573 S1: works that they're causing more harm than good. So anyway, 79 00:05:40,573 --> 00:05:43,813 S1: that's a short version of where I currently stand. And 80 00:05:43,813 --> 00:05:46,313 S1: if you ever get confused about, like, if I'm crazy 81 00:05:46,313 --> 00:05:50,813 S1: right or crazy left? Just go read that. And here's 82 00:05:50,813 --> 00:05:54,173 S1: a really important point. I also consider you to make 83 00:05:54,173 --> 00:05:58,253 S1: your own North Star paragraph or set of bullet points 84 00:05:58,253 --> 00:06:03,293 S1: like I just did, and have that be your thing 85 00:06:03,293 --> 00:06:08,723 S1: and then realize that this, this, the left narrative or 86 00:06:08,723 --> 00:06:12,803 S1: the right narrative or centrist narrative with all these different narratives, 87 00:06:12,803 --> 00:06:14,903 S1: they don't really matter. What matters is what is your 88 00:06:14,933 --> 00:06:18,353 S1: North Star look like? Like I just laid out. And 89 00:06:18,353 --> 00:06:21,023 S1: then what you'll find is, like all these different narratives 90 00:06:21,023 --> 00:06:25,373 S1: and tribes and everything they might have. Venn diagram overlaps 91 00:06:25,373 --> 00:06:28,703 S1: with some part of your thing, but they shouldn't be 92 00:06:28,703 --> 00:06:32,213 S1: your thing. If you have a perfect Venn diagram, overlap 93 00:06:32,213 --> 00:06:38,093 S1: with the extreme right or the extreme left, you don't 94 00:06:38,093 --> 00:06:41,633 S1: have your own opinions. You are using someone else's opinions 95 00:06:41,633 --> 00:06:46,013 S1: and that's a problem. So North Star plus First principles 96 00:06:46,013 --> 00:06:49,133 S1: is far better than picking a tribe and endorsing everything 97 00:06:49,133 --> 00:06:49,883 S1: they say.