1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:27,639 Speaker 1: Ridiculous Histories, a production of iHeartRadio. Welcome back to the 2 00:00:27,640 --> 00:00:31,280 Speaker 1: show Ridiculous Historians. Thank you, as always so much for 3 00:00:31,360 --> 00:00:38,080 Speaker 1: tuning in. That's our super producer, mister Max Williams, Ben Bullen. 4 00:00:38,479 --> 00:00:43,919 Speaker 1: Noel Brown is part two, very special series for us. 5 00:00:44,000 --> 00:00:47,559 Speaker 2: Noel, it's right we are joined once again, already in 6 00:00:47,640 --> 00:00:50,960 Speaker 2: progress with aj Bahamas Jacobs, the author of the Year 7 00:00:51,000 --> 00:00:54,160 Speaker 2: of Living. Constitutionally, I think we should just jump right in. 8 00:00:54,960 --> 00:01:00,000 Speaker 1: So this vagary we're talking about cruel and unusual punished 9 00:01:00,400 --> 00:01:03,880 Speaker 1: is an excellent example. It leads us to the current 10 00:01:03,960 --> 00:01:07,760 Speaker 1: ongoing debate about things like the death penalty, things like 11 00:01:07,840 --> 00:01:13,920 Speaker 1: mandatory sentencing. But it also I think you're talking about 12 00:01:14,040 --> 00:01:20,240 Speaker 1: these vague qualifications of things. Like you said, these are 13 00:01:20,520 --> 00:01:24,840 Speaker 1: big pages, but they are four big pages. They are 14 00:01:24,840 --> 00:01:31,039 Speaker 1: not eight thousand pages listed in depth. The stuff these 15 00:01:31,120 --> 00:01:35,160 Speaker 1: guys were trying to go for. They purposely made the 16 00:01:35,240 --> 00:01:43,240 Speaker 1: amendment process really difficult. And you also found another unsung 17 00:01:43,440 --> 00:01:48,120 Speaker 1: hero for amendments. And I think you know, I don't 18 00:01:48,160 --> 00:01:52,800 Speaker 1: know about everybody listening here, but usually if you're most Americans, 19 00:01:52,840 --> 00:01:55,080 Speaker 1: when you think of amendments, you just think of the 20 00:01:55,080 --> 00:01:59,760 Speaker 1: Bill of Rights. You're like yeah, the they made the 21 00:01:59,800 --> 00:02:03,400 Speaker 1: first document and then they fixed it exactly. 22 00:02:03,640 --> 00:02:07,280 Speaker 3: Yeah, the first ten are definitely the stars, although in 23 00:02:07,320 --> 00:02:10,280 Speaker 3: my book I get into the fascinating history of those 24 00:02:11,240 --> 00:02:13,880 Speaker 3: that we might not even have time to talk about. 25 00:02:13,880 --> 00:02:18,840 Speaker 3: But they were very differently conceived back then. But here's 26 00:02:18,880 --> 00:02:22,280 Speaker 3: what's interesting is when Madison was the one who came 27 00:02:22,360 --> 00:02:23,720 Speaker 3: up with that list of ten. 28 00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:27,480 Speaker 1: Basically, so he's like, Madison is our Moses. 29 00:02:28,000 --> 00:02:31,040 Speaker 3: Yeah, I would think so. I mean, he's often called 30 00:02:31,040 --> 00:02:36,639 Speaker 3: the father of the Constitution. But originally there was twelve, 31 00:02:37,000 --> 00:02:40,720 Speaker 3: so there were twelve instead of ten, but two didn't 32 00:02:40,760 --> 00:02:44,480 Speaker 3: get through. One of the two was actually quite interesting. 33 00:02:44,520 --> 00:02:48,760 Speaker 3: It was that there should be more congress people or 34 00:02:48,960 --> 00:02:52,079 Speaker 3: at the time, congressmen. So if that one had passed, 35 00:02:52,320 --> 00:02:54,919 Speaker 3: it would be a different mathematical formula and we would 36 00:02:54,960 --> 00:02:58,720 Speaker 3: have six thousand people in Congress, like we'd have to 37 00:02:58,760 --> 00:03:02,359 Speaker 3: hold it in Madison Square, So that would be interest 38 00:03:02,360 --> 00:03:04,880 Speaker 3: So that would never pass. But then there was another 39 00:03:04,960 --> 00:03:08,160 Speaker 3: one that never passed because it didn't get enough states. 40 00:03:08,160 --> 00:03:10,320 Speaker 3: You need three quarters of the states to say yes, 41 00:03:10,360 --> 00:03:13,840 Speaker 3: and they only got like there were thirteen states and 42 00:03:13,880 --> 00:03:17,520 Speaker 3: they only got like six of them. I guess seven maybe, 43 00:03:17,720 --> 00:03:19,800 Speaker 3: So they needed a couple more, and that one was 44 00:03:20,000 --> 00:03:25,080 Speaker 3: it was relatively tame. It wasn't that controversial. It said, 45 00:03:25,360 --> 00:03:29,880 Speaker 3: Congress cannot give itself a raise immediately. I can't say, oh, 46 00:03:30,040 --> 00:03:33,560 Speaker 3: we should be paid five million dollars a year starting now. 47 00:03:34,000 --> 00:03:36,480 Speaker 3: It had to be you could pay get a raise 48 00:03:36,520 --> 00:03:40,360 Speaker 3: for the next Congress. So that was a little less corrupt. 49 00:03:40,760 --> 00:03:44,200 Speaker 2: The idea being that you would not necessarily be re elected, 50 00:03:44,320 --> 00:03:46,360 Speaker 2: or that you'd be like benefiting by somebody else and 51 00:03:46,440 --> 00:03:49,520 Speaker 2: not yourself immediately directly right. 52 00:03:49,480 --> 00:03:54,240 Speaker 3: Exactly, so that never back in seventeen nineties, it was 53 00:03:54,280 --> 00:03:58,080 Speaker 3: not passed, but it never died fully. It was sort 54 00:03:58,120 --> 00:04:01,880 Speaker 3: of a zombie amendment. And there was this young man 55 00:04:02,080 --> 00:04:05,840 Speaker 3: who is a University of Texas student in nineteen eighty 56 00:04:05,880 --> 00:04:09,440 Speaker 3: two who wrote a paper for his policy class saying, 57 00:04:10,080 --> 00:04:13,080 Speaker 3: you know what, this is still alive. If we get 58 00:04:13,080 --> 00:04:15,640 Speaker 3: three quarters of the current states to vote for this 59 00:04:15,720 --> 00:04:18,960 Speaker 3: could be the next amendment, the twenty seventh Amendment. His 60 00:04:19,080 --> 00:04:23,040 Speaker 3: teacher said, you're an idiot and gave him a wow. 61 00:04:23,200 --> 00:04:25,159 Speaker 3: I can't remember a C or an F, but she 62 00:04:25,279 --> 00:04:29,799 Speaker 3: was like, terrible idea. So out of spite he said, 63 00:04:30,120 --> 00:04:32,440 Speaker 3: as soon as he got that grade he said, I 64 00:04:32,520 --> 00:04:36,520 Speaker 3: am going to make this an amendment to the US Constitution. 65 00:04:43,400 --> 00:04:46,480 Speaker 3: And he went on a ten year journey. He wrote 66 00:04:46,560 --> 00:04:50,080 Speaker 3: hundreds of letters to state congress people, and he finally 67 00:04:50,160 --> 00:04:52,800 Speaker 3: got he got mained the state of Maine to pass it, 68 00:04:53,040 --> 00:04:55,479 Speaker 3: and then he got enough that was whatever it was, 69 00:04:55,560 --> 00:05:02,560 Speaker 3: thirty seven other states and it became the twenty seventh Amendment. 70 00:05:02,400 --> 00:05:03,440 Speaker 1: To the Constitution. 71 00:05:03,760 --> 00:05:08,400 Speaker 3: So he, out of spite did something wonderful. And Greg 72 00:05:08,640 --> 00:05:11,880 Speaker 3: Greg Watson, I talked to him, and he's a great character. 73 00:05:12,279 --> 00:05:15,039 Speaker 3: By the way. He reminded me several times he is 74 00:05:15,120 --> 00:05:18,919 Speaker 3: looking for a job. So if you want someone with tenacity, yeah. 75 00:05:18,760 --> 00:05:21,640 Speaker 4: Boy, yeah, he will researcher. 76 00:05:21,960 --> 00:05:26,160 Speaker 3: Yeah. So anyway, I loved that story, but he himself 77 00:05:26,240 --> 00:05:29,080 Speaker 3: is worried that his will be the last amendment for 78 00:05:29,120 --> 00:05:30,360 Speaker 3: a long, long long time. 79 00:05:30,760 --> 00:05:34,599 Speaker 2: How did that that, you know, him being able to 80 00:05:34,640 --> 00:05:36,520 Speaker 2: make that happen. How did that not lead to like 81 00:05:36,640 --> 00:05:40,320 Speaker 2: a book deal or like some bigger, higher profile situation 82 00:05:40,480 --> 00:05:41,640 Speaker 2: for this Greg fellow. 83 00:05:41,839 --> 00:05:44,640 Speaker 3: Great point, maybe that's his job. 84 00:05:44,760 --> 00:05:45,280 Speaker 4: I just wonder. 85 00:05:45,680 --> 00:05:47,400 Speaker 2: I'm surprised I haven't heard of him or it wasn't 86 00:05:47,440 --> 00:05:48,559 Speaker 2: a bigger news story. 87 00:05:48,720 --> 00:05:50,000 Speaker 4: That's that's kind of a big deal. 88 00:05:50,279 --> 00:05:53,960 Speaker 3: You know what, that is a perfect like Netflix like 89 00:05:54,400 --> 00:05:57,440 Speaker 3: sort of like unfrosted or whatever the Jerry sin will want. 90 00:05:58,160 --> 00:06:00,320 Speaker 3: Oh my god, you're right right, So. 91 00:06:00,320 --> 00:06:02,599 Speaker 1: Let's do it twenty we just call it twenty seven. 92 00:06:03,040 --> 00:06:05,720 Speaker 2: Can he gets a meeting with this Greg, let's let's 93 00:06:05,760 --> 00:06:07,400 Speaker 2: the three of us option this question. 94 00:06:07,400 --> 00:06:10,160 Speaker 4: I'm not I'm kind of not joking, you know, people, 95 00:06:10,200 --> 00:06:10,800 Speaker 4: I'm not either. 96 00:06:11,600 --> 00:06:15,560 Speaker 2: Maybe we cut this part out so we. 97 00:06:15,600 --> 00:06:20,599 Speaker 1: Got to keep it in. This great idea and good hustle, Greg, 98 00:06:20,760 --> 00:06:26,279 Speaker 1: especially considering what you told us earlier, ajuh that the 99 00:06:26,400 --> 00:06:31,120 Speaker 1: attrition rate for let's call the amendment pitches he is 100 00:06:31,160 --> 00:06:34,560 Speaker 1: so high. And Noel, I think you're right on the 101 00:06:34,720 --> 00:06:41,800 Speaker 1: idea here of following Greg's story. And all I ask is, 102 00:06:43,880 --> 00:06:49,760 Speaker 1: I'll say fifteen percent. Okay, twelve, we'll call it thirteen. 103 00:06:49,920 --> 00:06:54,760 Speaker 1: How about you got twenty All right, terrible, let me go, I. 104 00:06:54,800 --> 00:06:57,960 Speaker 3: Say we all have twenty seven percent combined. 105 00:06:58,400 --> 00:07:01,720 Speaker 1: Oh my gosh, yeah, okay, no one sweat the math 106 00:07:01,920 --> 00:07:07,960 Speaker 1: if you're writing this down, stop So so there there 107 00:07:08,080 --> 00:07:14,800 Speaker 1: is a great deal. I think of real world contemporaneous context. 108 00:07:15,600 --> 00:07:19,440 Speaker 1: When we look at any document, we must realize the 109 00:07:19,480 --> 00:07:23,680 Speaker 1: time in which that document was written. My favorite dumb 110 00:07:23,840 --> 00:07:27,240 Speaker 1: joke about the founding Fathers is, of course, the right 111 00:07:27,320 --> 00:07:30,880 Speaker 1: to bear arms. There were many more bears at the time. 112 00:07:31,760 --> 00:07:33,720 Speaker 1: We don't know the fashion of the day. 113 00:07:33,760 --> 00:07:36,160 Speaker 4: It was coming. It was never it was inevitable that 114 00:07:37,920 --> 00:07:40,560 Speaker 4: it was holy. But a goodie, thank you. 115 00:07:40,640 --> 00:07:43,240 Speaker 1: Yeah, be careful with that joke. It's an antique. 116 00:07:45,160 --> 00:07:48,240 Speaker 2: I just it conjures such a delightful image, the right 117 00:07:48,280 --> 00:07:50,880 Speaker 2: to bear arms. You know, it's like I'm gonna wear 118 00:07:50,960 --> 00:07:54,040 Speaker 2: these bare sleeve arms part of the costume, but only 119 00:07:54,040 --> 00:07:56,880 Speaker 2: the arms, and then menace people are you know? 120 00:07:56,960 --> 00:08:03,760 Speaker 1: You can't tell me. So America being a very a 121 00:08:03,920 --> 00:08:10,880 Speaker 1: very strange and ambitious experiment which continues today, very young country. 122 00:08:11,080 --> 00:08:17,600 Speaker 1: In the Grand Scheme, it also granted rights that would 123 00:08:17,680 --> 00:08:20,200 Speaker 1: technically be considered crimes. 124 00:08:21,120 --> 00:08:23,520 Speaker 3: Well, yes, we all know the right to free speech, 125 00:08:23,560 --> 00:08:26,160 Speaker 3: the right to bear arms, as you said, but there 126 00:08:26,200 --> 00:08:30,960 Speaker 3: are other rights in the constitution that are surprising because, 127 00:08:31,000 --> 00:08:35,720 Speaker 3: as you say, they were very contemporarying, they were very 128 00:08:36,320 --> 00:08:37,120 Speaker 3: of their time. 129 00:08:37,480 --> 00:08:39,920 Speaker 2: They and their loves, which the right to bear arms 130 00:08:40,000 --> 00:08:41,680 Speaker 2: is too. I love to get a little bit more 131 00:08:41,720 --> 00:08:43,320 Speaker 2: into that in a minute, but just continue. 132 00:08:44,480 --> 00:08:48,200 Speaker 3: And yeah, so some of the languages is almost eternal 133 00:08:48,320 --> 00:08:52,880 Speaker 3: like equality and equal protection liberty. But then you get 134 00:08:52,920 --> 00:08:55,640 Speaker 3: to a part like section in Article one, Section eight, 135 00:08:55,760 --> 00:09:00,920 Speaker 3: Congress can give private citizens they right to be a pirate, 136 00:09:01,480 --> 00:09:06,040 Speaker 3: basically illegally government sanctioned pirate. 137 00:09:08,520 --> 00:09:11,880 Speaker 2: Yes, it gives it an air of legitimacy. Right, I'm 138 00:09:11,880 --> 00:09:14,000 Speaker 2: not a pirate, I'm a privateer. 139 00:09:14,200 --> 00:09:17,400 Speaker 3: Right, and the privateers would would object to be calling 140 00:09:17,640 --> 00:09:19,920 Speaker 3: being called a pirate. But it's a very similar idea. 141 00:09:20,000 --> 00:09:24,240 Speaker 3: It's basically, if you have a fishing boat, government, the 142 00:09:24,280 --> 00:09:26,280 Speaker 3: government could say, all right, you can put a bunch 143 00:09:26,280 --> 00:09:30,599 Speaker 3: of muskets on your fishing boat, go out and confront 144 00:09:31,320 --> 00:09:35,880 Speaker 3: enemy ships, capture them, seize their booty whatever that was. 145 00:09:36,040 --> 00:09:37,840 Speaker 3: That could be guns, it could be sherry. 146 00:09:38,160 --> 00:09:40,400 Speaker 4: They had a lot of little pinch just give a 147 00:09:40,440 --> 00:09:44,000 Speaker 4: little pants good one. 148 00:09:44,480 --> 00:09:46,959 Speaker 1: Next, can I get a can I get a little 149 00:09:47,040 --> 00:09:51,560 Speaker 1: like quiet storm moment here? Because I picture Ben Franklin 150 00:09:51,640 --> 00:09:54,320 Speaker 1: coming in and saying, let him get the booty. 151 00:09:54,559 --> 00:09:58,280 Speaker 2: You know, he was a booty snatcher, was a naughty 152 00:09:58,520 --> 00:10:03,319 Speaker 2: dirgy dog, Miss liberty. But but aj this is a 153 00:10:03,320 --> 00:10:07,160 Speaker 2: product of a wartime, right, right, I mean they were 154 00:10:07,200 --> 00:10:11,840 Speaker 2: they were basically allowing themselves to create a seafaring militia. 155 00:10:12,000 --> 00:10:12,760 Speaker 4: Right, that's it. 156 00:10:12,880 --> 00:10:15,800 Speaker 3: And yes, I think that they are unsung heroes of 157 00:10:15,800 --> 00:10:20,680 Speaker 3: our country because they were huge. The privateers were huge 158 00:10:21,080 --> 00:10:24,839 Speaker 3: in the revolution. We did not have much of a navy. 159 00:10:24,880 --> 00:10:27,959 Speaker 3: America had a very meager navy, so they outsourced it. 160 00:10:28,000 --> 00:10:31,320 Speaker 3: So they said, here, you fisher people and whalers, you 161 00:10:31,360 --> 00:10:34,160 Speaker 3: go out and capture the British ships. And they did. 162 00:10:34,280 --> 00:10:39,000 Speaker 3: They caught almost two thousand British ships and without that 163 00:10:39,400 --> 00:10:42,960 Speaker 3: we probably would not have won the war. And what 164 00:10:43,160 --> 00:10:45,480 Speaker 3: is fascinating to me is you don't hear a lot 165 00:10:45,520 --> 00:10:48,720 Speaker 3: about them. You know, they're not a lot of statues 166 00:10:48,720 --> 00:10:49,959 Speaker 3: of privateers and. 167 00:10:50,240 --> 00:10:53,439 Speaker 2: The famous one like who were some big names. They 168 00:10:53,440 --> 00:10:55,880 Speaker 2: were basically the blackwater of the day. 169 00:10:56,040 --> 00:10:56,280 Speaker 4: Right. 170 00:10:56,360 --> 00:10:59,679 Speaker 1: They were a mercenary army, exactly mercenary navy. 171 00:10:59,800 --> 00:11:02,160 Speaker 3: And they had well that's the thing. They had a 172 00:11:02,200 --> 00:11:06,040 Speaker 3: mixed motive, so they were patriots, but they also had 173 00:11:06,040 --> 00:11:10,520 Speaker 3: the profit motive. But but people are complicated, so I 174 00:11:10,559 --> 00:11:14,120 Speaker 3: think even though they were also out for themselves, we 175 00:11:14,200 --> 00:11:16,720 Speaker 3: still should be thankful, or else we might not have 176 00:11:16,760 --> 00:11:19,600 Speaker 3: a country. And there is another I talked to a 177 00:11:19,640 --> 00:11:24,400 Speaker 3: good the expert, Eric J. Dolan, a great historian on privateers. 178 00:11:24,800 --> 00:11:26,800 Speaker 3: He told me a lot about them. But yeah, so 179 00:11:26,920 --> 00:11:31,199 Speaker 3: there are I say, let's put up some statues of privateers. 180 00:11:31,200 --> 00:11:34,359 Speaker 1: Why not. Yeah to the earlier question, are there statues? 181 00:11:34,559 --> 00:11:36,800 Speaker 3: You know, it's a good question. I don't know of 182 00:11:36,840 --> 00:11:39,120 Speaker 3: any personally. Maybe there are a couple of random ones, 183 00:11:39,440 --> 00:11:42,360 Speaker 3: but they're certainly not. There's not like a memorial like 184 00:11:42,600 --> 00:11:44,000 Speaker 3: Jefferson or Lincoln memoirs. 185 00:11:47,040 --> 00:11:53,360 Speaker 1: There's there's no like Tomb of the Unknown Pirate. Oh geez. 186 00:11:53,480 --> 00:11:57,360 Speaker 2: So that language is still in though, right, Well, how 187 00:11:57,400 --> 00:11:59,280 Speaker 2: does that translate to the modern day? 188 00:11:59,559 --> 00:12:02,920 Speaker 3: Well, as part of my book. So my book was 189 00:12:03,240 --> 00:12:05,360 Speaker 3: sort of a few things. It was a crash course 190 00:12:05,400 --> 00:12:08,439 Speaker 3: in the Constitution, which I needed and I hopefully can 191 00:12:08,480 --> 00:12:12,280 Speaker 3: make entertaining for readers. But also I tried to express 192 00:12:12,320 --> 00:12:15,040 Speaker 3: my rights, like I said, carrying a musket, and I 193 00:12:15,080 --> 00:12:18,920 Speaker 3: was like, this isn't the constitution. Uh, there hasn't been 194 00:12:19,640 --> 00:12:24,840 Speaker 3: a privateer licensed since eighteen fifteen, but it's still in there. 195 00:12:25,160 --> 00:12:26,520 Speaker 1: So I be the change. 196 00:12:26,640 --> 00:12:28,520 Speaker 4: Yeah. Yeah, I went. 197 00:12:28,600 --> 00:12:32,600 Speaker 3: I met with a congressman wrote Conna from California, and 198 00:12:32,679 --> 00:12:35,680 Speaker 3: I presented him with my application for a letter of 199 00:12:35,720 --> 00:12:38,559 Speaker 3: marked and reprisal as it's called and at first he 200 00:12:38,720 --> 00:12:41,440 Speaker 3: was like, great, let's make this happen, and then he 201 00:12:41,559 --> 00:12:44,520 Speaker 3: was then he was like wait, wait, what is this again? 202 00:12:44,760 --> 00:12:46,560 Speaker 4: Sorry? Oh jeez, he. 203 00:12:46,480 --> 00:12:48,640 Speaker 3: Didn't really realize what he was agreeing to. 204 00:12:49,160 --> 00:12:51,920 Speaker 4: And then he's got tell us about our law makers. 205 00:12:52,360 --> 00:12:53,000 Speaker 4: Oh gosh. 206 00:12:53,040 --> 00:12:55,040 Speaker 1: She went back and he went back and. 207 00:12:54,960 --> 00:12:56,839 Speaker 4: He did read it. 208 00:12:57,000 --> 00:12:59,880 Speaker 1: Yeah, a little article one section. 209 00:13:01,000 --> 00:13:03,760 Speaker 2: He just stopped at this point or what like he 210 00:13:03,840 --> 00:13:06,280 Speaker 2: goes to you gave you the slow fade or was 211 00:13:06,280 --> 00:13:08,320 Speaker 2: there like an actual moment of denied. 212 00:13:09,640 --> 00:13:12,000 Speaker 3: No, it's still in it. It's still open, according to 213 00:13:12,200 --> 00:13:14,319 Speaker 3: I mean he is. I actually am a big fan 214 00:13:14,679 --> 00:13:16,360 Speaker 3: because he hooks. 215 00:13:17,040 --> 00:13:21,200 Speaker 1: If you are listening now, please we're gonna have AJ 216 00:13:21,440 --> 00:13:24,880 Speaker 1: say the name of this congress person again. Please write 217 00:13:24,960 --> 00:13:30,680 Speaker 1: to this congress person join our petition. Yes, demand uh, 218 00:13:30,880 --> 00:13:35,679 Speaker 1: demand uh the respect for Article one section eight of 219 00:13:35,720 --> 00:13:40,520 Speaker 1: the Constitution such that we can get a letter of 220 00:13:40,640 --> 00:13:45,560 Speaker 1: mark and reprisal for AJ Bahamas Jacobs Congress again. 221 00:13:45,840 --> 00:13:50,760 Speaker 3: Roe Conna from Silicon Valley, California. Lovely man, and I 222 00:13:50,800 --> 00:13:53,600 Speaker 3: think he he could have kicked me out. I met 223 00:13:53,640 --> 00:13:57,880 Speaker 3: him at a hotel restaurant and he but but he 224 00:13:57,960 --> 00:14:00,520 Speaker 3: did lot. I explained the concept of my book and 225 00:14:00,559 --> 00:14:04,319 Speaker 3: he's a constitutional fan, so he thought it was interesting 226 00:14:04,559 --> 00:14:07,040 Speaker 3: and he said he would bring it up with Congress, 227 00:14:07,280 --> 00:14:10,600 Speaker 3: and he said he's having trouble getting traction. I'd say 228 00:14:10,640 --> 00:14:15,480 Speaker 3: that my most my biggest success is his assistant emails 229 00:14:15,520 --> 00:14:18,920 Speaker 3: me as Captain Jacobs. So I have been promoted, right, 230 00:14:19,600 --> 00:14:20,400 Speaker 3: that's something right? 231 00:14:21,280 --> 00:14:24,520 Speaker 1: Okay, So we're we're added to the legend and we 232 00:14:24,600 --> 00:14:29,000 Speaker 1: are cooking live. This is this is actual stuff that 233 00:14:29,080 --> 00:14:29,800 Speaker 1: could happen. 234 00:14:29,960 --> 00:14:31,200 Speaker 3: We're gonna make it happen. 235 00:14:31,680 --> 00:14:38,520 Speaker 1: Question, and this may be to tangential if one were 236 00:14:38,640 --> 00:14:44,720 Speaker 1: to secure a letter of mark and reprisal, does this 237 00:14:44,960 --> 00:14:50,800 Speaker 1: also grant impunity to the crew? Like if if I 238 00:14:50,920 --> 00:14:55,120 Speaker 1: join you, if if Max and Noel, if we all 239 00:14:55,160 --> 00:15:00,240 Speaker 1: go jolly Roger and I guess do we get a pas? 240 00:15:00,680 --> 00:15:05,200 Speaker 3: Oh? Yeah, please join join me. I have I borrow 241 00:15:05,520 --> 00:15:08,200 Speaker 3: my friend who has a waterski boat said he would 242 00:15:08,280 --> 00:15:10,120 Speaker 3: lend it to me and we can go wherever we want, 243 00:15:10,200 --> 00:15:14,400 Speaker 3: Taiwan straight you name it, and yes you would be. Uh. 244 00:15:15,600 --> 00:15:18,640 Speaker 3: It's granted to the entire ship, So whoever is on 245 00:15:18,680 --> 00:15:22,680 Speaker 3: the ship is considered a patriot as well. So yeah, 246 00:15:22,800 --> 00:15:25,080 Speaker 3: I'm in like signed up. 247 00:15:25,000 --> 00:15:28,520 Speaker 1: This so like a great idea. I see absolutely no 248 00:15:28,800 --> 00:15:30,240 Speaker 1: problem with any of this. 249 00:15:30,640 --> 00:15:34,840 Speaker 2: Yeah, no, potential international incidents are brewing whatsoever. 250 00:15:35,600 --> 00:15:36,480 Speaker 3: I don't see it either. 251 00:15:37,040 --> 00:15:41,360 Speaker 1: I also do in ridiculous history cinematic universe. I'm now 252 00:15:41,480 --> 00:15:46,960 Speaker 1: picturing a thing where we operate as a pirate crew 253 00:15:47,680 --> 00:15:51,960 Speaker 1: at the Taiwan like in Taiwan in the Pacific Theater, 254 00:15:52,680 --> 00:15:55,600 Speaker 1: and we think the whole thing is about potato chips, 255 00:15:56,320 --> 00:16:02,960 Speaker 1: and so I'm in visioning this sort of dude wears 256 00:16:03,000 --> 00:16:04,000 Speaker 1: my car. 257 00:16:05,320 --> 00:16:05,960 Speaker 4: Situation. 258 00:16:07,720 --> 00:16:09,200 Speaker 1: I see you're on board. 259 00:16:09,400 --> 00:16:12,120 Speaker 2: H I love it speaking of a dude wears my 260 00:16:12,200 --> 00:16:16,440 Speaker 2: car situation. You know, the founding fathers were quite fond 261 00:16:16,520 --> 00:16:23,520 Speaker 2: of vices, were they not. They loved their smoke, their drink, 262 00:16:23,920 --> 00:16:28,320 Speaker 2: you know, their cavorting. In fact, I believe a party 263 00:16:28,960 --> 00:16:32,920 Speaker 2: thrown for George Washington in Philadelphia in the last few 264 00:16:32,960 --> 00:16:37,800 Speaker 2: weeks of the Constitutional Convention. You procured a bar tab, 265 00:16:38,520 --> 00:16:42,840 Speaker 2: an official document, a historical bar tab for this event, 266 00:16:42,920 --> 00:16:45,400 Speaker 2: and it was quite the to do. 267 00:16:52,440 --> 00:16:56,760 Speaker 3: Oh yeah, no, this was impressive. And they were not teetotalers. 268 00:16:55,960 --> 00:17:01,720 Speaker 3: They were day drinkers, night drinkers, morning drinks. And yes, 269 00:17:01,840 --> 00:17:06,240 Speaker 3: you mentioned this bar tab, which is like fourteen frat 270 00:17:06,240 --> 00:17:11,400 Speaker 3: parties combined. So this is for fifty five people. George 271 00:17:11,440 --> 00:17:15,880 Speaker 3: Washington was the was the guest of honor, and they 272 00:17:15,960 --> 00:17:20,440 Speaker 3: drank fifty four bottles of Madeira, which is their favorite. 273 00:17:20,200 --> 00:17:25,800 Speaker 2: Booze fortified wine from so basically like Mad Dog twenty 274 00:17:26,080 --> 00:17:29,120 Speaker 2: or whatever that is, hobo. 275 00:17:28,840 --> 00:17:32,640 Speaker 3: Wine, hobo. But that was just the start. Sixty bottles 276 00:17:32,680 --> 00:17:35,320 Speaker 3: of claret, eight bottles of whiskey, twenty two bottles of porter, 277 00:17:35,760 --> 00:17:38,760 Speaker 3: eight bottles of hard tider, twelve bottles of beer only 278 00:17:38,800 --> 00:17:41,800 Speaker 3: twelve beer, and seven bowls of alcoholic punch. 279 00:17:42,040 --> 00:17:43,280 Speaker 4: So that's the kicker there. 280 00:17:43,320 --> 00:17:46,000 Speaker 2: See, at first I was like there, yeah, honestly a 281 00:17:46,080 --> 00:17:47,959 Speaker 2: little bit light for fifty five, but then you get 282 00:17:48,000 --> 00:17:51,760 Speaker 2: to that seven the bowls of alcoholic punch, which contained 283 00:17:51,800 --> 00:17:52,600 Speaker 2: all the booze. 284 00:17:52,600 --> 00:17:55,119 Speaker 4: They didn't even give you the tab for the booze 285 00:17:55,160 --> 00:17:57,439 Speaker 4: that went into the punch. That's just to catch all 286 00:17:57,480 --> 00:17:57,600 Speaker 4: of it. 287 00:17:57,720 --> 00:18:00,399 Speaker 2: And we know that George Washington's recipe for egg nog 288 00:18:00,760 --> 00:18:03,280 Speaker 2: is just booze in a little egg, yolk and cream. 289 00:18:03,480 --> 00:18:05,879 Speaker 2: It's like ten different kinds. Do you have a sense 290 00:18:05,880 --> 00:18:08,359 Speaker 2: of what might have gone into the alcoholic punch? A 291 00:18:08,400 --> 00:18:12,400 Speaker 2: lot of rum probably, I don't know if that's also remember. 292 00:18:12,400 --> 00:18:15,960 Speaker 1: Also going back to the idea of vague language. How 293 00:18:16,000 --> 00:18:17,120 Speaker 1: big are those bottles? 294 00:18:17,240 --> 00:18:18,600 Speaker 3: Great point, great point. 295 00:18:18,680 --> 00:18:22,880 Speaker 1: Yeah they could be cute back room champagne bottles or whatever. 296 00:18:22,920 --> 00:18:27,119 Speaker 3: Yeah, well they We do have Martha Washington's rum punch 297 00:18:27,200 --> 00:18:30,120 Speaker 3: recipe which I made. I made and I handed out 298 00:18:30,119 --> 00:18:33,360 Speaker 3: on election day because that was part of election day 299 00:18:33,400 --> 00:18:35,879 Speaker 3: at the time. It was very festive, a lot of 300 00:18:36,000 --> 00:18:38,680 Speaker 3: rum punch and a lot of cake. So I tried 301 00:18:38,720 --> 00:18:41,280 Speaker 3: to bring back the cake more than the rum punch. 302 00:18:41,359 --> 00:18:45,479 Speaker 3: I feel we need cake. And so yes, it has 303 00:18:45,640 --> 00:18:51,280 Speaker 3: orange and lemons, juice and rum, dark and light rum, 304 00:18:51,400 --> 00:18:55,160 Speaker 3: and I can't remember what else, but yeah, it's it's hefty. 305 00:18:55,359 --> 00:18:55,720 Speaker 4: Oh yeah. 306 00:18:55,760 --> 00:18:57,879 Speaker 2: A couple of historical punches. There's a famous one from 307 00:18:57,920 --> 00:19:00,280 Speaker 2: around our neck of the woods called the chat Them 308 00:19:00,400 --> 00:19:04,399 Speaker 2: Artillery punch out of Savannah, Georgia, which was a very 309 00:19:04,480 --> 00:19:06,280 Speaker 2: important obviously port city. 310 00:19:07,000 --> 00:19:07,560 Speaker 4: So that's the. 311 00:19:07,560 --> 00:19:11,560 Speaker 2: Drink that you can get there in Savannah, which has 312 00:19:11,560 --> 00:19:16,720 Speaker 2: been around the colonial era southern cocktail staple, and it 313 00:19:16,880 --> 00:19:20,359 Speaker 2: was let's see, the Chatham Artillery, which was formed in 314 00:19:20,359 --> 00:19:22,640 Speaker 2: Georgia in seventeen eighty six. So that's you know, roughly 315 00:19:23,040 --> 00:19:25,600 Speaker 2: in the same universe. But then you've got a recipe 316 00:19:25,640 --> 00:19:29,760 Speaker 2: for George Washington's punch, which is one quart strong brewed 317 00:19:29,840 --> 00:19:34,600 Speaker 2: English breakfast tea sweetened, one gallon good quality bourbon gallon 318 00:19:34,880 --> 00:19:39,560 Speaker 2: one gallon sherry, one quarte sweet vermouth, one pint best 319 00:19:39,640 --> 00:19:44,080 Speaker 2: quality Jamaican rum, one pint yellow or green chartreuse, four 320 00:19:44,160 --> 00:19:49,160 Speaker 2: bottles of champagne or more to taste, twelve lemons, each 321 00:19:49,200 --> 00:19:53,680 Speaker 2: cut into four wedges. One quart Marischino cherries without stems 322 00:19:53,720 --> 00:19:54,840 Speaker 2: but with their juice. 323 00:19:55,040 --> 00:19:56,560 Speaker 4: Combine the first six ingredients. 324 00:19:56,600 --> 00:19:58,359 Speaker 2: When it is time to serve the punch, add the 325 00:19:58,440 --> 00:20:01,280 Speaker 2: champagne as much as you wish, Add lemon, wedges and 326 00:20:01,359 --> 00:20:03,960 Speaker 2: cherries to the punch, and serve. The punch is much 327 00:20:03,960 --> 00:20:06,960 Speaker 2: improved if allowed to stand for at least one week 328 00:20:07,240 --> 00:20:10,159 Speaker 2: before serving, so the fruit really gets soaked up. And 329 00:20:10,200 --> 00:20:15,240 Speaker 2: this is from something called the Academy of Domestic Pursuits website, 330 00:20:15,240 --> 00:20:18,560 Speaker 2: which appears to be historical recipes and things. 331 00:20:18,680 --> 00:20:24,400 Speaker 1: I love the idea of trial and error in that recipe, 332 00:20:24,480 --> 00:20:27,560 Speaker 1: in all these recipes right that. I love the idea 333 00:20:27,960 --> 00:20:33,200 Speaker 1: that someone put the stems in with the cherries such 334 00:20:33,280 --> 00:20:36,280 Speaker 1: that it has to be specified, and someone like drank 335 00:20:36,320 --> 00:20:37,240 Speaker 1: this and said. 336 00:20:37,200 --> 00:20:39,000 Speaker 4: What's with all these stems? 337 00:20:40,200 --> 00:20:43,879 Speaker 1: The you know, like you go into we see the 338 00:20:44,080 --> 00:20:47,280 Speaker 1: I would say, we see the constitution or the attempt 339 00:20:47,440 --> 00:20:52,359 Speaker 1: to embark upon experiments like rule of law. We see 340 00:20:52,359 --> 00:20:56,800 Speaker 1: that in microcosm. If you go to, for instance, public 341 00:20:56,880 --> 00:21:01,720 Speaker 1: business and there's an oddly specific so you know, we 342 00:21:01,720 --> 00:21:05,040 Speaker 1: were used to no shirt, no shoes, no service, things 343 00:21:05,119 --> 00:21:07,919 Speaker 1: like that. But you walk in and you see something 344 00:21:07,960 --> 00:21:16,000 Speaker 1: that says no inebriated lamas, and you know something happened. 345 00:21:15,640 --> 00:21:19,560 Speaker 3: Something happened. Fascinating. Well, I was just gonna say I 346 00:21:19,760 --> 00:21:22,240 Speaker 3: love that. I mean, I think the fact that you 347 00:21:23,040 --> 00:21:26,520 Speaker 3: made a bigger figured out a bigger point about America 348 00:21:26,560 --> 00:21:31,560 Speaker 3: from this crazy Maraschino cherry, I think is brilliant and true. 349 00:21:31,920 --> 00:21:37,600 Speaker 3: They were very into experimenting, and not just in like Booze. 350 00:21:37,840 --> 00:21:42,040 Speaker 3: They the American government was considered an experiment. This was 351 00:21:42,080 --> 00:21:46,120 Speaker 3: the American experiment. Ben Franklin. He loved experiment and they 352 00:21:46,200 --> 00:21:50,320 Speaker 3: loved changing their minds. So that is one thing. They 353 00:21:50,440 --> 00:21:53,600 Speaker 3: had a lot of flaws, as we know, but one 354 00:21:53,680 --> 00:21:57,320 Speaker 3: virtue that I do love is that they were willing 355 00:21:57,359 --> 00:22:01,639 Speaker 3: to change their mind. Ben Franklin said, the older he 356 00:22:01,720 --> 00:22:04,879 Speaker 3: gets the less certain he is of his own opinions. 357 00:22:05,040 --> 00:22:06,920 Speaker 3: I thought that was nice. He said that I feel 358 00:22:06,960 --> 00:22:08,800 Speaker 3: that way me too, I really do. 359 00:22:09,160 --> 00:22:11,600 Speaker 2: Some people think it's the opposite, and we certainly know 360 00:22:11,800 --> 00:22:14,600 Speaker 2: people that the older they get, the more obstinate they get. 361 00:22:14,640 --> 00:22:17,800 Speaker 2: But I find the older that I get, the more 362 00:22:17,840 --> 00:22:21,640 Speaker 2: I'm willing to broaden my thinking great and to know 363 00:22:21,760 --> 00:22:23,720 Speaker 2: the things that I don't know and be very aware 364 00:22:23,760 --> 00:22:24,000 Speaker 2: of that. 365 00:22:24,119 --> 00:22:25,800 Speaker 4: I always say this, and I'll say it again. 366 00:22:26,000 --> 00:22:28,120 Speaker 2: Self awareness, I think is one of the most important 367 00:22:28,160 --> 00:22:31,720 Speaker 2: qualities of any human person, you know, because once you 368 00:22:31,800 --> 00:22:35,000 Speaker 2: lose that objectivity, I just don't have any time for you. 369 00:22:35,080 --> 00:22:38,520 Speaker 2: It's just you're no fun to talk to. And I 370 00:22:38,560 --> 00:22:41,000 Speaker 2: really just I kind of feel like, why bother? 371 00:22:41,320 --> 00:22:45,000 Speaker 3: You are very Franklin esque. I love well, he said. 372 00:22:45,240 --> 00:22:47,240 Speaker 3: Right after he said that, he told a little joke. 373 00:22:47,400 --> 00:22:49,560 Speaker 3: He liked the jests, so he told a little like 374 00:22:49,680 --> 00:22:52,959 Speaker 3: parable and he said, this was at the convention, and 375 00:22:53,000 --> 00:22:57,000 Speaker 3: he said, there's this French lady who said to her sister, 376 00:22:57,880 --> 00:23:01,200 Speaker 3: it's so strange, why is it that I'm the only 377 00:23:01,280 --> 00:23:05,159 Speaker 3: person I've ever met who is correct on every single issue? 378 00:23:06,400 --> 00:23:08,800 Speaker 3: And that this is Yeah, it's a good one, and 379 00:23:08,960 --> 00:23:09,639 Speaker 3: it's that whole thing. 380 00:23:09,680 --> 00:23:11,520 Speaker 2: Yeah, it's that whole thing about like it must be 381 00:23:11,560 --> 00:23:13,080 Speaker 2: everybody else's problem. 382 00:23:13,160 --> 00:23:16,119 Speaker 4: I can't be, you know, And that's that's great. I 383 00:23:16,160 --> 00:23:16,560 Speaker 4: love that. 384 00:23:16,640 --> 00:23:21,359 Speaker 1: One thing I think also, one thing I think would 385 00:23:21,440 --> 00:23:26,560 Speaker 1: be incredibly informative to people is that, look, the most 386 00:23:26,600 --> 00:23:29,680 Speaker 1: boring folks to talk to are people who only talk 387 00:23:29,720 --> 00:23:33,600 Speaker 1: about themselves, right, And the problem is that most people's 388 00:23:33,640 --> 00:23:38,880 Speaker 1: favorite subject is themselves. In any language, the favorite word 389 00:23:39,000 --> 00:23:43,480 Speaker 1: is whatever equates to me. And the founding fathers were 390 00:23:44,080 --> 00:23:48,639 Speaker 1: despite their gross imperfections, they were trying to think of 391 00:23:49,040 --> 00:23:54,320 Speaker 1: or to imagine other people and building consensus. And I 392 00:23:54,480 --> 00:23:58,840 Speaker 1: was fascinated with the year of living constitutionally a j 393 00:23:59,200 --> 00:24:03,920 Speaker 1: I genuinely did not know the idea of coup presidency. 394 00:24:04,520 --> 00:24:06,600 Speaker 1: I had no idea that might have been a think. 395 00:24:07,000 --> 00:24:11,000 Speaker 3: I loved learning that too, and what it came about 396 00:24:11,160 --> 00:24:17,040 Speaker 3: because they were very nervous about having another tyrant or 397 00:24:17,080 --> 00:24:21,520 Speaker 3: a king. So during the start of the Constitutional Convention, 398 00:24:22,040 --> 00:24:27,399 Speaker 3: everyone agreed, maybe we should have these three branches, the judicial, legislation, executive, 399 00:24:27,400 --> 00:24:30,640 Speaker 3: but how do we set them up? So this guy, 400 00:24:30,760 --> 00:24:34,960 Speaker 3: James Wilson stands up from Pennsylvania. He says, I think 401 00:24:34,960 --> 00:24:37,800 Speaker 3: we should have a single president. We should have one 402 00:24:37,840 --> 00:24:41,520 Speaker 3: guy at the top. And several of the delegates said, 403 00:24:42,160 --> 00:24:46,760 Speaker 3: are you jesting. That's insane, that's a terrible idea. We 404 00:24:47,840 --> 00:24:50,240 Speaker 3: just fought a war to get rid of a monarch, 405 00:24:50,280 --> 00:24:52,920 Speaker 3: and now you want to install what they call the 406 00:24:52,920 --> 00:24:56,320 Speaker 3: fetus of monarchy. One president, They said, is the fetus 407 00:24:56,320 --> 00:24:57,520 Speaker 3: of monarchy. 408 00:24:57,119 --> 00:24:58,919 Speaker 4: The fetus of monarchy. 409 00:24:58,960 --> 00:25:00,840 Speaker 3: Oh, it's going to just grow, go and grow into 410 00:25:00,880 --> 00:25:03,120 Speaker 3: a little baby and be born and then turn into 411 00:25:03,119 --> 00:25:05,680 Speaker 3: a teenager. And and so they. 412 00:25:05,600 --> 00:25:08,440 Speaker 2: Said, no, we need we're talking back to you. 413 00:25:09,480 --> 00:25:12,440 Speaker 3: So we need more than one president. We need three, 414 00:25:12,800 --> 00:25:16,880 Speaker 3: a group of three presidents so that they can consult 415 00:25:17,000 --> 00:25:20,240 Speaker 3: and make a decision. Ben Franklin mentioned twelve presidents. What 416 00:25:20,280 --> 00:25:23,840 Speaker 3: about twelve presidents? And it was actually a debate for weeks, 417 00:25:24,400 --> 00:25:26,879 Speaker 3: and in the end the single president won because they 418 00:25:27,440 --> 00:25:30,639 Speaker 3: they convinced the other side it would be too much infighting. 419 00:25:31,760 --> 00:25:32,439 Speaker 1: But it was not. 420 00:25:32,720 --> 00:25:36,840 Speaker 3: It was seven states said single president, three states said no. 421 00:25:37,320 --> 00:25:40,479 Speaker 3: Three or more presidents so two. If two states had 422 00:25:40,560 --> 00:25:44,600 Speaker 3: voted differently, if like whatever, it's ten people had voted 423 00:25:44,680 --> 00:25:50,000 Speaker 3: a different way, we might have Biden Trump rfks Junior 424 00:25:50,240 --> 00:25:53,440 Speaker 3: like hanging out in the oval office, which I don't 425 00:25:53,480 --> 00:25:56,920 Speaker 3: think is a great idea, so that would be quite 426 00:25:56,960 --> 00:26:01,200 Speaker 3: a sitcom. But I do like their basic idea of 427 00:26:01,240 --> 00:26:04,600 Speaker 3: constraining the presidency because they saw that this might become 428 00:26:05,080 --> 00:26:09,800 Speaker 3: a problem. And I would say the fetus, the fetus 429 00:26:09,880 --> 00:26:12,520 Speaker 3: is a toddler at least, and I'm not talking about 430 00:26:12,680 --> 00:26:17,239 Speaker 3: I'm talking about both Democrat and Republican presidents. Absolutely so 431 00:26:17,359 --> 00:26:21,080 Speaker 3: much more powerful then. And just to give you one statistic, 432 00:26:21,800 --> 00:26:28,040 Speaker 3: George Washington issued eight executive orders. Obama and Trump both 433 00:26:28,160 --> 00:26:31,880 Speaker 3: issued over two hundred and fifty executive orders, so they 434 00:26:32,440 --> 00:26:36,600 Speaker 3: both It is so much more powerful this one person 435 00:26:36,720 --> 00:26:39,400 Speaker 3: than it was meant to be by the founding fathers. 436 00:26:39,880 --> 00:26:42,639 Speaker 2: But again, just a matter of decorum. It's just a 437 00:26:42,680 --> 00:26:47,040 Speaker 2: matter of like flexing that power or choosing to be restrained, 438 00:26:47,640 --> 00:26:50,400 Speaker 2: you know, as maybe the founding fathers would have would 439 00:26:50,400 --> 00:26:52,719 Speaker 2: have hoped, you know that the folks in that position 440 00:26:52,760 --> 00:26:55,560 Speaker 2: would have would have done right, exercise a little self control, 441 00:26:55,880 --> 00:26:57,760 Speaker 2: exactly exactly, so true. 442 00:26:58,359 --> 00:27:04,240 Speaker 1: And it's weird too because the Constitution is pretty anti 443 00:27:04,880 --> 00:27:10,960 Speaker 1: aristocracy in its founding right. So the idea, I love 444 00:27:11,040 --> 00:27:18,080 Speaker 1: this concept of authoritarian power growing the fetus as you said, 445 00:27:18,119 --> 00:27:23,240 Speaker 1: growing to a teenager and then becoming a dictatorship, right, 446 00:27:23,359 --> 00:27:27,800 Speaker 1: removing the rights of the people of the concept of democracy. 447 00:27:28,160 --> 00:27:32,120 Speaker 1: Can tell us a little bit about why you think 448 00:27:32,160 --> 00:27:36,159 Speaker 1: the Constitution has a bad vibe against monarchs. That's a 449 00:27:36,280 --> 00:27:40,680 Speaker 1: very softball question under sort of lob and that when underhanded. 450 00:27:41,240 --> 00:27:44,720 Speaker 3: Well they did though they hated they did them nobility, 451 00:27:44,800 --> 00:27:47,520 Speaker 3: they hated royalty. I mean, they had just fought a 452 00:27:47,640 --> 00:27:51,560 Speaker 3: war to get rid of them. And so there is 453 00:27:52,680 --> 00:27:56,760 Speaker 3: a clause in the Constitution that says government cannot bestow 454 00:27:56,880 --> 00:28:00,320 Speaker 3: titles of nobility. There will never be a Duke of 455 00:28:00,440 --> 00:28:03,960 Speaker 3: New Jersey or an Earl of Arkansas. 456 00:28:04,480 --> 00:28:08,400 Speaker 1: And more than dang it, we're gonna have to We're 457 00:28:08,400 --> 00:28:10,600 Speaker 1: gonna have to keep doing this show. If Earl of 458 00:28:10,720 --> 00:28:11,520 Speaker 1: Arkansas is. 459 00:28:11,480 --> 00:28:16,200 Speaker 3: Out, I'm sorry to ruin your career aspirations. So, yeah, 460 00:28:16,359 --> 00:28:20,359 Speaker 3: that was And what I love too is they purged 461 00:28:20,920 --> 00:28:23,959 Speaker 3: the language. They tried to purge the English language of 462 00:28:24,000 --> 00:28:31,040 Speaker 3: this aristocratic and monarchical tinge. So they had King's College, 463 00:28:31,400 --> 00:28:33,760 Speaker 3: they changed it to Columbia College, So that's why it's 464 00:28:33,760 --> 00:28:37,359 Speaker 3: called Columbia King's. There was a King Street in many cities. 465 00:28:37,400 --> 00:28:42,160 Speaker 3: They changed it to Congress Street King's The King's Minuet 466 00:28:42,240 --> 00:28:46,040 Speaker 3: Dance was now called the Congress Minuet Dance, and I 467 00:28:46,200 --> 00:28:48,920 Speaker 3: love that, and I think we've backslid a little. I 468 00:28:48,920 --> 00:28:51,280 Speaker 3: think it's so weird. And I love my wife. I 469 00:28:51,320 --> 00:28:55,960 Speaker 3: love her to pieces, but she's obsessed with the British 470 00:28:56,040 --> 00:28:59,800 Speaker 3: monarchy and buys the people magazines about you know what is. 471 00:29:00,360 --> 00:29:02,480 Speaker 2: Well, it's a soap opera playing out, you know, in 472 00:29:02,480 --> 00:29:03,240 Speaker 2: the public eye. 473 00:29:03,400 --> 00:29:05,400 Speaker 4: I think it's a I kind of get it. 474 00:29:05,480 --> 00:29:08,720 Speaker 2: I it's also sure it's so toothless though too right, 475 00:29:08,800 --> 00:29:10,360 Speaker 2: like I mean, well, I will say that I do 476 00:29:10,440 --> 00:29:14,360 Speaker 2: think it's very odd that they're just this landed gentry 477 00:29:14,400 --> 00:29:17,160 Speaker 2: that forever are living off of the backs of like 478 00:29:17,240 --> 00:29:19,560 Speaker 2: the taxpayers over there, and they just the amount of 479 00:29:19,600 --> 00:29:23,360 Speaker 2: property that is owned under the British crown, the manners 480 00:29:23,400 --> 00:29:26,800 Speaker 2: and all of this ostentatious living is beyond absurd. 481 00:29:27,240 --> 00:29:29,000 Speaker 4: But I get it as sort of like. 482 00:29:28,920 --> 00:29:32,760 Speaker 2: A real life reality show, kind of like you know 483 00:29:32,920 --> 00:29:34,960 Speaker 2: that level of right, You're right it is. 484 00:29:35,400 --> 00:29:37,080 Speaker 4: I think what the obsession is, you know. 485 00:29:37,440 --> 00:29:41,560 Speaker 3: Absolutely, and but what about this fact? What about I 486 00:29:41,920 --> 00:29:45,760 Speaker 3: during my year, I said, we got to capture some 487 00:29:45,840 --> 00:29:51,400 Speaker 3: of that early American anti monarchy fever, because look around 488 00:29:51,400 --> 00:29:55,200 Speaker 3: our pop culture, like Disney with all their princes and 489 00:29:55,360 --> 00:29:59,280 Speaker 3: princesses kings. Let's make it the Disney instead of the 490 00:29:59,360 --> 00:30:06,280 Speaker 3: Disney king them the Disney Republic. Let's bring back. Yeah, 491 00:30:06,320 --> 00:30:08,920 Speaker 3: they did not respond to my brilliant idea when I 492 00:30:09,080 --> 00:30:09,800 Speaker 3: sent them a letter. 493 00:30:09,880 --> 00:30:11,760 Speaker 4: You filled out that comment card at Disney World. 494 00:30:11,800 --> 00:30:16,080 Speaker 3: Hey, hey, they haven't responded yet, Thank you, Ben. I 495 00:30:16,120 --> 00:30:19,560 Speaker 3: love the optimism, a very good American characteristic. 496 00:30:19,640 --> 00:30:22,200 Speaker 1: Of course, America is a very much as we said, 497 00:30:22,520 --> 00:30:26,280 Speaker 1: hold my Beer country, I mean, just the voting we did. 498 00:30:26,920 --> 00:30:30,520 Speaker 1: We did a couple of episodes a while back about 499 00:30:30,560 --> 00:30:36,160 Speaker 1: the practice of cooping, which was, you know, essentially press. 500 00:30:35,880 --> 00:30:40,840 Speaker 2: Gangging people, rounding people up and forcibly intoxicating them and 501 00:30:40,880 --> 00:30:44,160 Speaker 2: then essentially holding them hostage and forcing them to the 502 00:30:44,200 --> 00:30:47,680 Speaker 2: polls to vote for whomever you know you want. 503 00:30:48,040 --> 00:30:51,080 Speaker 3: Yeah, no, you're absolutely right. Yeah, we don't want to 504 00:30:51,120 --> 00:30:54,880 Speaker 3: go back to nineteenth and eighteenth century voting because, yeah, 505 00:30:54,960 --> 00:30:58,320 Speaker 3: you had cooping, you also had voting by voice, so 506 00:30:58,440 --> 00:31:00,000 Speaker 3: you would they didn't do the secret. 507 00:31:01,240 --> 00:31:02,760 Speaker 4: That was what you just waled. 508 00:31:03,120 --> 00:31:06,880 Speaker 1: You just walked into a room and said, yeah. 509 00:31:06,120 --> 00:31:09,640 Speaker 3: That's exactly right, and as actually I tried to do 510 00:31:09,720 --> 00:31:13,320 Speaker 3: that for my book. I said, I walked in last 511 00:31:13,360 --> 00:31:16,880 Speaker 3: November and I said, I want to vote for Kathy 512 00:31:16,920 --> 00:31:20,360 Speaker 3: Hochel for governor. And they freaked out, the election workers. 513 00:31:20,120 --> 00:31:21,800 Speaker 4: Like, sh you can't say that. 514 00:31:21,800 --> 00:31:23,959 Speaker 3: You can't, I said, but this is the way they 515 00:31:23,960 --> 00:31:26,320 Speaker 3: did it in the seventeen hundred. Well that was a 516 00:31:26,360 --> 00:31:30,040 Speaker 3: while ago, so I wasn't able to do that, but 517 00:31:30,160 --> 00:31:34,280 Speaker 3: as I did mention, there's one part of eighteenth century 518 00:31:34,360 --> 00:31:37,560 Speaker 3: voting that I do love, and that is the idea 519 00:31:37,600 --> 00:31:42,320 Speaker 3: of it as this festival, this all inspiring rite that 520 00:31:42,520 --> 00:31:46,000 Speaker 3: they had never had. So they were really at least 521 00:31:46,280 --> 00:31:49,920 Speaker 3: the privileged few, the white males who could vote. So 522 00:31:50,600 --> 00:31:55,800 Speaker 3: huge asterisk there, but it was election day was like 523 00:31:55,840 --> 00:31:59,760 Speaker 3: a festival, and so I did try to as part 524 00:31:59,800 --> 00:32:03,560 Speaker 3: of my book, I brought back this election cake and 525 00:32:03,640 --> 00:32:07,200 Speaker 3: I had people all over the country. I went on Facebook, 526 00:32:07,200 --> 00:32:10,200 Speaker 3: which I know is not eighteenth century, but it is 527 00:32:10,240 --> 00:32:14,120 Speaker 3: one of the older platforms. That was so I felt, 528 00:32:14,240 --> 00:32:17,280 Speaker 3: you know, maybe, and I got people, one hundreds of 529 00:32:17,280 --> 00:32:20,040 Speaker 3: people in all fifty states to bake these election cakes 530 00:32:20,680 --> 00:32:23,760 Speaker 3: and bring them to the polls to remind people that 531 00:32:23,840 --> 00:32:27,400 Speaker 3: democracy is sweep that was our catchphrase, no pun left 532 00:32:27,400 --> 00:32:27,960 Speaker 3: and behind. 533 00:32:28,200 --> 00:32:31,120 Speaker 2: Like you say, I have one of those pins on 534 00:32:31,200 --> 00:32:32,720 Speaker 2: my back exactly. 535 00:32:40,600 --> 00:32:46,360 Speaker 1: And so we are reaching the beginning. I won't see 536 00:32:46,400 --> 00:32:50,120 Speaker 1: the end. That's an American. We're reaching the beginning of 537 00:32:50,240 --> 00:32:55,360 Speaker 1: our exploration of the history and how this country got 538 00:32:55,400 --> 00:32:59,400 Speaker 1: to hear. One of the questions that everybody's going to 539 00:32:59,480 --> 00:33:01,680 Speaker 1: want to know, we were talking about this off air 540 00:33:01,840 --> 00:33:07,040 Speaker 1: AJ the Electoral College. It's confusing to explain to people 541 00:33:07,120 --> 00:33:09,840 Speaker 1: who are not in the United States, and you know, 542 00:33:09,960 --> 00:33:13,920 Speaker 1: full disclosure, it's kind of confusing to be an American 543 00:33:14,040 --> 00:33:15,280 Speaker 1: attempting to understand this. 544 00:33:15,440 --> 00:33:18,360 Speaker 3: Oh yeah, no, it is a It is a bizarre system. 545 00:33:19,000 --> 00:33:21,400 Speaker 3: And just to back up, part of the reason why 546 00:33:21,440 --> 00:33:25,000 Speaker 3: it came about is because the founders had a very 547 00:33:26,000 --> 00:33:30,560 Speaker 3: They were very mixed about this idea of democracy, so 548 00:33:31,320 --> 00:33:35,040 Speaker 3: that they on the one hand, the Constitution was like this, 549 00:33:35,480 --> 00:33:39,160 Speaker 3: as one professor says, the big bang of democracy. It 550 00:33:39,280 --> 00:33:42,600 Speaker 3: was the first time in thousands of years people could 551 00:33:42,600 --> 00:33:46,680 Speaker 3: elect their own leader. On the other hand, the founders 552 00:33:46,760 --> 00:33:50,720 Speaker 3: were very skeptical of the rabble of the hoyploy of 553 00:33:50,760 --> 00:33:54,160 Speaker 3: the mobs. One of the most famous toasts of the 554 00:33:54,200 --> 00:33:59,640 Speaker 3: era was freedom from kings as well as mobs, and 555 00:33:59,680 --> 00:34:03,400 Speaker 3: not the mafia mobs. They weren't talking about them. Yeah, 556 00:34:03,480 --> 00:34:07,600 Speaker 3: they were talking about sort of the uneducated masses, and 557 00:34:07,680 --> 00:34:12,000 Speaker 3: they were elitists. They did not like that. So in 558 00:34:12,040 --> 00:34:16,840 Speaker 3: addition to having some democracy and people voting, they also 559 00:34:17,000 --> 00:34:22,000 Speaker 3: built in these mechanisms that were anti democratic, that were 560 00:34:22,040 --> 00:34:26,960 Speaker 3: anti that were anti counter majoritarian is the fancy word. 561 00:34:27,200 --> 00:34:31,080 Speaker 1: Counter but geor ary. Yeah, that's my first time hearing 562 00:34:31,160 --> 00:34:31,560 Speaker 1: this word. 563 00:34:31,680 --> 00:34:34,279 Speaker 3: I love that it makes me sound smarter than I am. 564 00:34:36,239 --> 00:34:38,600 Speaker 3: But yeah, So the Senate is an example of that 565 00:34:38,800 --> 00:34:42,960 Speaker 3: because there are only two senators per state, which meant 566 00:34:43,520 --> 00:34:47,239 Speaker 3: that the small states have more power so that the 567 00:34:47,280 --> 00:34:51,200 Speaker 3: majority cannot just take over. And the other another big 568 00:34:51,239 --> 00:34:54,400 Speaker 3: one was the electoral college. And part of the reason 569 00:34:54,560 --> 00:34:57,120 Speaker 3: there are several reasons that they wanted it, but part 570 00:34:57,160 --> 00:35:01,439 Speaker 3: of it was the electoral college. Were these actual men, 571 00:35:01,600 --> 00:35:06,000 Speaker 3: they were electors, So they were these educated men from 572 00:35:06,120 --> 00:35:09,040 Speaker 3: each state who would actually do the voting. They would 573 00:35:09,120 --> 00:35:12,799 Speaker 3: take what the people said, consider it, and then they 574 00:35:12,880 --> 00:35:16,200 Speaker 3: were the ones who voted. And part of the reason 575 00:35:16,239 --> 00:35:20,359 Speaker 3: they wanted that was because they were afraid that the 576 00:35:20,680 --> 00:35:26,160 Speaker 3: uneducated masses might vote for a demagogue, might vote for 577 00:35:26,200 --> 00:35:29,960 Speaker 3: someone who just flattered them and said, I'm going to 578 00:35:30,120 --> 00:35:31,320 Speaker 3: give you whatever you want. 579 00:35:31,880 --> 00:35:36,680 Speaker 4: Jeez, that sounds. 580 00:35:35,320 --> 00:35:40,120 Speaker 3: And well, that's what's interesting is that they built this 581 00:35:40,920 --> 00:35:44,400 Speaker 3: to stop a demagogue. Because the idea was, say the 582 00:35:45,800 --> 00:35:51,400 Speaker 3: uneducated masses voted for this demagogue. These electors, these sophisticated 583 00:35:51,480 --> 00:35:54,560 Speaker 3: gentlemen would come in and say, Okay, no, no, we 584 00:35:54,600 --> 00:35:57,759 Speaker 3: don't want that. We really want this guy who's not 585 00:35:57,840 --> 00:36:01,520 Speaker 3: going to become a tyrant, and they would overturn the 586 00:36:01,600 --> 00:36:08,040 Speaker 3: popular election and they would elect the proper person. But 587 00:36:09,040 --> 00:36:13,680 Speaker 3: what has happened now is the electors cannot just choose 588 00:36:13,719 --> 00:36:16,399 Speaker 3: to vote, and I mean there has been controversy where 589 00:36:16,400 --> 00:36:20,600 Speaker 3: they've tried to vote their own and even the most 590 00:36:20,680 --> 00:36:23,399 Speaker 3: radical people are saying, no, no, you've got to vote 591 00:36:23,440 --> 00:36:28,359 Speaker 3: whatever the state says. But what this means is that 592 00:36:29,200 --> 00:36:33,920 Speaker 3: we've had people who've lost the popular vote but who 593 00:36:34,080 --> 00:36:37,600 Speaker 3: won the electoral vote. And so instead of doing what 594 00:36:37,760 --> 00:36:42,080 Speaker 3: it was meant to do, which was stop this demogogue, 595 00:36:42,120 --> 00:36:48,839 Speaker 3: it's actually enabled demagogues. So it is something that I 596 00:36:48,880 --> 00:36:52,080 Speaker 3: would love to see changed. And it's very hard, as 597 00:36:52,120 --> 00:36:55,239 Speaker 3: we talked about, so hard to change the constitution. But 598 00:36:55,440 --> 00:37:00,600 Speaker 3: one interesting idea is this, there's a lot that's not 599 00:37:00,960 --> 00:37:04,120 Speaker 3: in the constitution that we assume is in the constitution, 600 00:37:04,760 --> 00:37:10,640 Speaker 3: and we assume that if a president wins Pennsylvania, he 601 00:37:10,760 --> 00:37:14,960 Speaker 3: gets all of the electoral votes. That's not in the constitution. 602 00:37:15,840 --> 00:37:18,800 Speaker 3: The states are allowed to divide the electoral votes however 603 00:37:18,840 --> 00:37:23,319 Speaker 3: they want. Two states have a different system. Nebraska and 604 00:37:23,520 --> 00:37:28,480 Speaker 3: Maine split the electoral vote. So if a candidate wins 605 00:37:28,800 --> 00:37:31,160 Speaker 3: some part of the state and the other candidate wins 606 00:37:31,160 --> 00:37:34,360 Speaker 3: the other, they split. So say they have eight votes, 607 00:37:34,400 --> 00:37:36,800 Speaker 3: I can't remember what it is, they can give five 608 00:37:36,880 --> 00:37:39,600 Speaker 3: to one candidate and three to another. So if all 609 00:37:39,719 --> 00:37:43,440 Speaker 3: fifty states did something similar, wow, that would be a 610 00:37:43,480 --> 00:37:48,040 Speaker 3: way to circumvent the electoral college. And I am a 611 00:37:48,080 --> 00:37:51,240 Speaker 3: fan of that. I think that is it's time because 612 00:37:51,239 --> 00:37:55,759 Speaker 3: this idea of the purpose that it was created for, 613 00:37:56,040 --> 00:37:58,319 Speaker 3: it is not serving that purpose at all. 614 00:37:58,760 --> 00:38:02,440 Speaker 2: Here here hazah, And what is it the thing about 615 00:38:02,480 --> 00:38:08,319 Speaker 2: mobs as well as kings, Yeah, kings, kings as well 616 00:38:08,360 --> 00:38:09,000 Speaker 2: as mobs. 617 00:38:09,560 --> 00:38:10,600 Speaker 4: Well, that's super. 618 00:38:10,440 --> 00:38:13,240 Speaker 2: Educational on my end because I've always struggled with even 619 00:38:13,360 --> 00:38:17,840 Speaker 2: like how the electoral college came about and what function 620 00:38:18,040 --> 00:38:20,719 Speaker 2: does it serve? You know, in our modern day, and 621 00:38:20,760 --> 00:38:24,839 Speaker 2: I answered that I think perfectly it doesn't serve much 622 00:38:24,880 --> 00:38:25,640 Speaker 2: of one. 623 00:38:25,880 --> 00:38:30,960 Speaker 1: And also again going back to the idea of this 624 00:38:31,440 --> 00:38:35,879 Speaker 1: these United States, as they used to say, going back 625 00:38:35,920 --> 00:38:42,760 Speaker 1: to the idea of this ambitious, imperfect experiment we continues today. 626 00:38:42,880 --> 00:38:46,319 Speaker 1: We call it ridiculous history. But indeed, as we are 627 00:38:46,400 --> 00:38:50,680 Speaker 1: learning with the electoral College here, it might be ridiculous present. 628 00:38:51,160 --> 00:38:54,280 Speaker 1: You know what I mean at this point, because history 629 00:38:54,320 --> 00:38:56,520 Speaker 1: is always closer than it appears in. 630 00:38:56,440 --> 00:38:58,000 Speaker 4: The rear view mirror. 631 00:38:59,120 --> 00:39:03,400 Speaker 1: A j one last question, as we wrap up our 632 00:39:03,440 --> 00:39:09,560 Speaker 1: time together, what do you think would have most surprised 633 00:39:10,320 --> 00:39:15,200 Speaker 1: the founding fathers? Like, what thing that we don't not policy, 634 00:39:15,440 --> 00:39:20,040 Speaker 1: but right, what thing, regular day to day twenty twenty 635 00:39:20,080 --> 00:39:22,560 Speaker 1: four life thing. What do you think would have just 636 00:39:22,640 --> 00:39:23,760 Speaker 1: baffled them the most? 637 00:39:24,280 --> 00:39:29,160 Speaker 3: Well, there's so much, I mean just I mean the Internet. 638 00:39:29,239 --> 00:39:31,600 Speaker 3: I think Ben Franklin would have loved the Internet. 639 00:39:31,640 --> 00:39:32,600 Speaker 2: He would have had a ball. 640 00:39:33,600 --> 00:39:36,560 Speaker 3: And yeah, aside from other things like you know, people 641 00:39:36,600 --> 00:39:40,359 Speaker 3: walking around with literal bare arms, which would have shocked them, 642 00:39:40,719 --> 00:39:43,560 Speaker 3: and bare legs and bare midriffs. I don't think they 643 00:39:43,600 --> 00:39:44,280 Speaker 3: would have been. 644 00:39:44,520 --> 00:39:45,120 Speaker 4: Pleased with that. 645 00:39:45,400 --> 00:39:48,520 Speaker 3: But on is more serious now, I do think that 646 00:39:49,360 --> 00:39:55,239 Speaker 3: they had this very serious idea of virtue, and as 647 00:39:55,280 --> 00:39:57,879 Speaker 3: we've talked about with the asterisk, they had a lot 648 00:39:57,920 --> 00:40:01,080 Speaker 3: of flaws and were hypocrites in many ways, but they 649 00:40:01,200 --> 00:40:05,640 Speaker 3: also tried to think about the greater good. The general 650 00:40:05,719 --> 00:40:09,160 Speaker 3: welfare is the phrase in the Constitution. So you have 651 00:40:09,400 --> 00:40:12,759 Speaker 3: this list of rights, but you also had an implied 652 00:40:12,840 --> 00:40:16,400 Speaker 3: list of responsibilities. They just never wrote them down. But 653 00:40:16,640 --> 00:40:19,239 Speaker 3: I think if they had known that we would be 654 00:40:19,360 --> 00:40:23,080 Speaker 3: so obsessed with our own individual rights, they probably would 655 00:40:23,120 --> 00:40:26,399 Speaker 3: have done a bill of responsibilities or bill of obligations. 656 00:40:26,719 --> 00:40:29,640 Speaker 3: It was just implied that you were part of the community. 657 00:40:29,800 --> 00:40:32,919 Speaker 3: So whether that's the bucket brigade, so if you there's 658 00:40:32,920 --> 00:40:35,759 Speaker 3: a fire, everyone gets out there and does the buckets, 659 00:40:36,239 --> 00:40:40,920 Speaker 3: or every male of a certain age was in the militia. 660 00:40:41,280 --> 00:40:44,200 Speaker 3: And I don't want the militia to come back necessarily, 661 00:40:44,520 --> 00:40:47,640 Speaker 3: but the idea is you would sacrifice your time. Every 662 00:40:47,680 --> 00:40:50,600 Speaker 3: three months, you would go and train to protect your 663 00:40:50,600 --> 00:40:54,200 Speaker 3: state and country. I think they would be in favor 664 00:40:54,239 --> 00:40:56,480 Speaker 3: of something like, you know, maybe it's a month doing 665 00:40:57,200 --> 00:41:01,600 Speaker 3: teaching in America or whatever. So that to me, I 666 00:41:01,640 --> 00:41:05,799 Speaker 3: think they would be shocked by the lack of focus 667 00:41:06,040 --> 00:41:11,640 Speaker 3: on the greater good and self sacrifice, and and so 668 00:41:11,760 --> 00:41:15,879 Speaker 3: I love that. I will say one of my favorite 669 00:41:16,160 --> 00:41:19,960 Speaker 3: I read Ben Franklin's autobiography, which I love, and it 670 00:41:20,120 --> 00:41:24,160 Speaker 3: has his day. He goes through his day and he 671 00:41:24,360 --> 00:41:25,279 Speaker 3: starts his day. 672 00:41:25,520 --> 00:41:25,840 Speaker 4: Yeah. 673 00:41:25,960 --> 00:41:28,120 Speaker 3: I mean he doesn't mention the like, you know, the 674 00:41:28,160 --> 00:41:30,080 Speaker 3: flirting with married ladies. 675 00:41:30,120 --> 00:41:32,680 Speaker 1: Yeah, but he talks about the air bath. 676 00:41:33,560 --> 00:41:36,560 Speaker 3: He does he is a fan of which is basically 677 00:41:36,600 --> 00:41:40,560 Speaker 3: just standing naked around and he went there. Yeah he 678 00:41:40,680 --> 00:41:43,839 Speaker 3: thought that was fair. But all right, so I don't 679 00:41:43,960 --> 00:41:47,680 Speaker 3: I'm not a big air bath fan, but I would 680 00:41:47,719 --> 00:41:51,880 Speaker 3: say he says, you should start every day by asking 681 00:41:51,920 --> 00:41:55,080 Speaker 3: yourself what good shall I do today? And then at 682 00:41:55,080 --> 00:41:57,880 Speaker 3: the end of the day, what good have I tried 683 00:41:58,000 --> 00:42:00,960 Speaker 3: to do today? And I love that so much. I 684 00:42:00,960 --> 00:42:03,040 Speaker 3: wrote it with my little quill pen and put it 685 00:42:03,080 --> 00:42:07,440 Speaker 3: over my desk because it is so grounding. And I 686 00:42:07,480 --> 00:42:10,239 Speaker 3: don't not even from like a you know, holier than 687 00:42:10,280 --> 00:42:13,120 Speaker 3: thou Saint Lee point of view. Is just for my 688 00:42:13,280 --> 00:42:17,520 Speaker 3: own happiness, because I'll put something on Instagram and it 689 00:42:17,520 --> 00:42:20,840 Speaker 3: gets two likes, and I'll start to get angry. What 690 00:42:21,080 --> 00:42:23,880 Speaker 3: is the matter with people? Why are they such idiots 691 00:42:23,880 --> 00:42:26,080 Speaker 3: that they don't see the brilliance of this. And then 692 00:42:26,120 --> 00:42:29,120 Speaker 3: I'll look at my little singing and I'll say, all right, well, 693 00:42:29,360 --> 00:42:31,800 Speaker 3: is that really what I should be spending my time 694 00:42:32,160 --> 00:42:35,760 Speaker 3: obsessing about? No, Like, how can I make the world 695 00:42:36,120 --> 00:42:38,680 Speaker 3: just a tiny bit better? And that's better for my 696 00:42:39,280 --> 00:42:45,399 Speaker 3: psychological health? And so I am a fan of Ben 697 00:42:45,480 --> 00:42:48,040 Speaker 3: Franklin's point of view, and I think, yeah, the at 698 00:42:48,120 --> 00:42:51,920 Speaker 3: their best, the Founders have that all of them have 699 00:42:52,080 --> 00:42:55,320 Speaker 3: that same idea, how can we help others? 700 00:42:55,640 --> 00:42:57,600 Speaker 2: Well, I can't think of a better way to wrap 701 00:42:57,680 --> 00:42:59,879 Speaker 2: this two part episode with you, age. 702 00:43:00,800 --> 00:43:02,759 Speaker 4: I think that was just really poigning and sums up 703 00:43:02,800 --> 00:43:03,160 Speaker 4: kind of. 704 00:43:03,480 --> 00:43:05,400 Speaker 2: A lot of the exploration that you had in your 705 00:43:05,440 --> 00:43:08,000 Speaker 2: book and questions that we had and the nature of 706 00:43:08,040 --> 00:43:11,399 Speaker 2: this crazy experiment that is the United States, sometimes for better, 707 00:43:11,480 --> 00:43:12,400 Speaker 2: sometimes for worse. 708 00:43:13,000 --> 00:43:13,640 Speaker 4: But at the end of the. 709 00:43:13,680 --> 00:43:16,040 Speaker 2: Day, we all still have to live here together and 710 00:43:16,120 --> 00:43:18,440 Speaker 2: try to do a little good and not be so 711 00:43:18,680 --> 00:43:21,759 Speaker 2: you know, up our own backsides, you know, in the 712 00:43:21,800 --> 00:43:24,880 Speaker 2: social media muck and meyer of it all. So I 713 00:43:24,880 --> 00:43:27,279 Speaker 2: think I'm gonna maybe not with my quill, but I'll 714 00:43:27,480 --> 00:43:29,800 Speaker 2: write that on a next card perhaps and stick it 715 00:43:29,840 --> 00:43:31,759 Speaker 2: over my desk too, because I think that's really great. 716 00:43:32,160 --> 00:43:34,680 Speaker 2: Can you tell folks where to find all of your 717 00:43:34,760 --> 00:43:39,520 Speaker 2: various literary pursuits on the Internet and elsewhere. 718 00:43:39,120 --> 00:43:42,040 Speaker 3: Of course, And by the way, I thank you you 719 00:43:42,120 --> 00:43:47,520 Speaker 3: both and Max make good every day you are making 720 00:43:47,560 --> 00:43:50,440 Speaker 3: the world better. So thank you for your delightful podcast 721 00:43:51,000 --> 00:43:54,440 Speaker 3: and work. As for me, the book is called The 722 00:43:54,480 --> 00:44:00,439 Speaker 3: Year of Living. Constitutionally, I also have a podcast here 723 00:44:00,480 --> 00:44:04,040 Speaker 3: on the iHeart network called The Puzzler, And if you listen, 724 00:44:04,400 --> 00:44:08,040 Speaker 3: first go to Ben and Knowle's episodes because they are 725 00:44:08,080 --> 00:44:08,680 Speaker 3: by far the. 726 00:44:08,640 --> 00:44:11,080 Speaker 4: Best, Oh my gosh. 727 00:44:11,200 --> 00:44:14,560 Speaker 3: And then it was a lot of fun. And I'm 728 00:44:14,600 --> 00:44:18,640 Speaker 3: also because I am trying to keep like the founders, 729 00:44:18,680 --> 00:44:21,799 Speaker 3: trying to keep up with the times, I'm starting a 730 00:44:21,800 --> 00:44:27,359 Speaker 3: substack called experimental living. Experimental living, so that's a very 731 00:44:27,400 --> 00:44:28,959 Speaker 3: American idea as well. 732 00:44:29,520 --> 00:44:29,759 Speaker 4: Well. 733 00:44:29,760 --> 00:44:33,480 Speaker 1: Aj, we can't thank you enough. We're going to do 734 00:44:33,560 --> 00:44:37,680 Speaker 1: some attempts. As you know, we shot you out in 735 00:44:37,719 --> 00:44:43,359 Speaker 1: the show. You do have several hoterrifics. Don't tell the constitution, 736 00:44:43,800 --> 00:44:46,399 Speaker 1: but we do call you the Puzzler, we do call 737 00:44:46,440 --> 00:44:49,120 Speaker 1: you Bahamas. We are not going to explain the latter. 738 00:44:50,280 --> 00:44:56,400 Speaker 1: We are so excited to learn more about experimental living 739 00:44:56,560 --> 00:45:00,279 Speaker 1: and folks, if you are listening to Ridiculous History, if 740 00:45:00,280 --> 00:45:04,960 Speaker 1: you have any passing interest in the concept of America 741 00:45:05,000 --> 00:45:11,200 Speaker 1: and the Constitution hashtag no hyperbole there, please do check 742 00:45:11,239 --> 00:45:13,560 Speaker 1: out the book. It's one of the it's one of 743 00:45:13,600 --> 00:45:19,319 Speaker 1: the best, I would say, meditations upon where we are 744 00:45:19,360 --> 00:45:22,160 Speaker 1: as a country, how we got there, and where we 745 00:45:22,239 --> 00:45:25,160 Speaker 1: may go in the future. Big, big thanks, of course 746 00:45:25,200 --> 00:45:29,040 Speaker 1: to our super producer mister Max Williams Alex Williams, who 747 00:45:29,040 --> 00:45:33,480 Speaker 1: composed this bang in track that we're hearing right now, 748 00:45:33,719 --> 00:45:34,839 Speaker 1: and who else, who else? 749 00:45:34,880 --> 00:45:35,239 Speaker 4: Who else? 750 00:45:35,239 --> 00:45:38,960 Speaker 2: Ah geez that Eve's Jeff Coots and christopherrasciotis. 751 00:45:38,080 --> 00:45:38,720 Speaker 4: Here in spirit. 752 00:45:39,040 --> 00:45:40,799 Speaker 2: We already thanked you, Aj, but we thank you at 753 00:45:40,800 --> 00:45:42,719 Speaker 2: the end of every single episode. 754 00:45:42,760 --> 00:45:45,680 Speaker 4: AJ Bahamas Jacob's the Puzzler. 755 00:45:45,680 --> 00:45:50,399 Speaker 2: And his soon to perhaps have a face off Archie 756 00:45:50,400 --> 00:45:51,399 Speaker 2: Nemesis so that. 757 00:45:51,320 --> 00:45:52,080 Speaker 4: You're unaware of. 758 00:45:52,560 --> 00:45:55,600 Speaker 2: But as far as our law is concerned, Jonathan Strickland, 759 00:45:55,800 --> 00:46:00,200 Speaker 2: the quiz still. 760 00:45:58,880 --> 00:46:00,920 Speaker 4: Quiz a quiz and puzzle off. 761 00:46:00,719 --> 00:46:03,799 Speaker 2: Between you two, and it's gonna be a doozy. But yeah, 762 00:46:03,840 --> 00:46:06,319 Speaker 2: I just you know, thank you again, AG for hanging 763 00:46:06,360 --> 00:46:07,400 Speaker 2: with us. It's been a delight. 764 00:46:07,600 --> 00:46:10,759 Speaker 3: Oh well, huzzah for history, and huzza for democracy and 765 00:46:10,800 --> 00:46:11,200 Speaker 3: thank you. 766 00:46:12,160 --> 00:46:13,480 Speaker 4: We'll see you next time, folks. 767 00:46:20,440 --> 00:46:24,279 Speaker 2: For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, 768 00:46:24,320 --> 00:46:26,480 Speaker 2: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.