1 00:00:01,720 --> 00:00:03,240 Speaker 1: Cool zone media. 2 00:00:05,600 --> 00:00:10,480 Speaker 2: Grinder. I hardly this is it could happen here where 3 00:00:10,520 --> 00:00:14,320 Speaker 2: today the it is gay flirting and or harassment, and 4 00:00:14,480 --> 00:00:17,960 Speaker 2: the here is Milwaukee, Wisconsin. During the twenty twenty four 5 00:00:18,360 --> 00:00:23,000 Speaker 2: Republican National Convention. I'm gare also known by my undercover 6 00:00:23,079 --> 00:00:27,960 Speaker 2: alias Garrison Davis, and I was lucky enough to be 7 00:00:28,200 --> 00:00:31,920 Speaker 2: one of our on the ground RNZ correspondence. A few 8 00:00:31,920 --> 00:00:35,080 Speaker 2: weeks ago. We provided daily coverage of the GOP Coronation 9 00:00:35,200 --> 00:00:39,120 Speaker 2: festival based on our conversations with delegates, lobbyists, and think 10 00:00:39,159 --> 00:00:42,720 Speaker 2: tank ghoules, and reported on the general trends in rhetoric 11 00:00:43,000 --> 00:00:46,159 Speaker 2: used by popular speakers at the event. We'll have some 12 00:00:46,200 --> 00:00:48,560 Speaker 2: more in depth episodes about those topics in the weeks 13 00:00:48,560 --> 00:00:51,320 Speaker 2: to come, using more of our recorded interviews we collected 14 00:00:51,360 --> 00:00:54,640 Speaker 2: at the convention. But on top of our regular coverage, 15 00:00:54,960 --> 00:00:57,880 Speaker 2: I also had a special assignment that I'm more or 16 00:00:57,960 --> 00:01:01,840 Speaker 2: less assigned to myself. On this show, we often talk 17 00:01:01,880 --> 00:01:05,680 Speaker 2: about right wing extremism and issues facing gay and trans people, 18 00:01:05,840 --> 00:01:09,080 Speaker 2: including the various ways conservatives and Christian nationalists are trying 19 00:01:09,080 --> 00:01:11,679 Speaker 2: to make life harder for queer people, whether through legislation, 20 00:01:12,080 --> 00:01:16,440 Speaker 2: online harassment, and physical violence as These are two of 21 00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:19,960 Speaker 2: our most frequently covered topics. Being at the Republican National 22 00:01:20,040 --> 00:01:24,160 Speaker 2: Convention provided me with the perfect opportunity to investigate the 23 00:01:24,200 --> 00:01:30,760 Speaker 2: intersection between conservatism and homosexuality. For years, I've heard rumors 24 00:01:30,800 --> 00:01:35,240 Speaker 2: and urban legends about a massive influx of Republicans flocking 25 00:01:35,280 --> 00:01:38,640 Speaker 2: to the gay hookup app Grinder to get laid during 26 00:01:38,680 --> 00:01:42,640 Speaker 2: the RNC. Whether they be twenty year old Republican twinks 27 00:01:42,640 --> 00:01:46,280 Speaker 2: from Miami or fifty three year old self hating, closeted 28 00:01:46,280 --> 00:01:51,000 Speaker 2: gay men from Idaho trapped in loveless marriages, curiosity has 29 00:01:51,120 --> 00:01:54,240 Speaker 2: often gotten the better of me, and I needed to 30 00:01:54,360 --> 00:01:58,720 Speaker 2: know how many homosexual Republicans were actually logging onto Grinder 31 00:01:59,600 --> 00:02:02,600 Speaker 2: in case if you're unfamiliar, Grinder is technically a dating 32 00:02:02,680 --> 00:02:07,000 Speaker 2: app that serves the LGBTQ community, but in actuality, it 33 00:02:07,120 --> 00:02:09,600 Speaker 2: is a mediocre hookup app that mostly serves as a 34 00:02:09,600 --> 00:02:13,000 Speaker 2: way for strangers in their forties to completely unprompted send 35 00:02:13,000 --> 00:02:16,840 Speaker 2: you unflattering pictures of their penis. Grinder was launched in 36 00:02:16,840 --> 00:02:19,800 Speaker 2: two thousand and nine and is arguably the largest and 37 00:02:19,840 --> 00:02:23,560 Speaker 2: most popular gay dating app, especially among men. Grinder has 38 00:02:23,560 --> 00:02:27,160 Speaker 2: only been around for two In person RNCs prior to 39 00:02:27,200 --> 00:02:30,320 Speaker 2: this point twenty twelve and twenty sixteen, since all convention 40 00:02:30,400 --> 00:02:34,080 Speaker 2: activities moved online during twenty twenty for the pandemic. So 41 00:02:34,200 --> 00:02:38,120 Speaker 2: this July, for the first time in eight years, Republicans 42 00:02:38,160 --> 00:02:40,840 Speaker 2: from all around the country could gather in one city 43 00:02:41,160 --> 00:02:43,960 Speaker 2: and once their wives fell asleep, log on to Grinder 44 00:02:44,800 --> 00:02:47,160 Speaker 2: and this episode, I'm going to tell you about my 45 00:02:47,440 --> 00:02:52,840 Speaker 2: RNC Grinder experience. Before traveling to the city that was 46 00:02:52,880 --> 00:02:55,160 Speaker 2: about to be invaded by all of the weirdest Republicans 47 00:02:55,160 --> 00:02:58,280 Speaker 2: in the country, I needed to do some prep to 48 00:02:58,360 --> 00:03:02,440 Speaker 2: help ensure safety and success in my investigative endeavor. I 49 00:03:02,480 --> 00:03:06,040 Speaker 2: hope you queers liked that terrible pun. Based on the 50 00:03:06,160 --> 00:03:09,960 Speaker 2: massive increase in violent anti trans rhetoric coming from the GOP, 51 00:03:10,400 --> 00:03:12,040 Speaker 2: I already knew that I would be dusting off my 52 00:03:12,080 --> 00:03:16,040 Speaker 2: old boy motor skills and going undercover as a cisgender male. 53 00:03:16,680 --> 00:03:19,840 Speaker 2: Although my ability to pass as a straight mail is debatable, 54 00:03:20,040 --> 00:03:23,400 Speaker 2: I can at least easily pass as a not quite 55 00:03:23,600 --> 00:03:27,600 Speaker 2: straight male. My trans feminine fashion taste has been skewing 56 00:03:27,600 --> 00:03:30,359 Speaker 2: more mask lesbian in recent years, so clothing wasn't really 57 00:03:30,400 --> 00:03:33,520 Speaker 2: an issue. I packed up basically all my button up 58 00:03:33,520 --> 00:03:36,600 Speaker 2: collar shirts, three ties, two black suits, and a beige 59 00:03:36,640 --> 00:03:39,840 Speaker 2: London fog trench coat. Basically, the vibe I was going 60 00:03:39,920 --> 00:03:44,160 Speaker 2: for was half young Republican, half Roman towel boy dressed 61 00:03:44,160 --> 00:03:47,280 Speaker 2: as a nineteen fifties FBI agent. I refer to this 62 00:03:47,360 --> 00:03:50,960 Speaker 2: as Dale Cooper Moting. I was unwilling to cut my 63 00:03:51,000 --> 00:03:53,960 Speaker 2: hair to match most of the young Republican frat boys, 64 00:03:54,440 --> 00:03:57,600 Speaker 2: so I settled on styling my wavy blonde locks like 65 00:03:57,680 --> 00:04:01,760 Speaker 2: Baron Trump meets Total Swinton. In Constantine. I was kind 66 00:04:01,760 --> 00:04:05,240 Speaker 2: of Gabriel maxing for most of the convention, and though 67 00:04:05,280 --> 00:04:08,960 Speaker 2: most attendees were unable to pick up on my diikish undertones, 68 00:04:09,440 --> 00:04:11,720 Speaker 2: the one day I wasn't wearing a tie, I did 69 00:04:11,720 --> 00:04:14,240 Speaker 2: get she heard by the Secret Service when entering the 70 00:04:14,280 --> 00:04:18,760 Speaker 2: convention through a security checkpoint. They're going woke. So that 71 00:04:18,880 --> 00:04:22,080 Speaker 2: was my general look for the convention. I also completely 72 00:04:22,160 --> 00:04:26,040 Speaker 2: remade my Grinder profile for the RNZ For simplicity's sake, 73 00:04:26,080 --> 00:04:28,719 Speaker 2: I got to emphasize my twinkish past and removed the 74 00:04:28,760 --> 00:04:33,960 Speaker 2: explicitly non binary transgender aspects of my profile, replacing some 75 00:04:34,040 --> 00:04:37,400 Speaker 2: of my more trans coded photos with pictures of my 76 00:04:37,520 --> 00:04:41,920 Speaker 2: light yagami and Dale Cooper cosplay. Perhaps next rn C 77 00:04:42,160 --> 00:04:45,040 Speaker 2: I can experiment with discovering how many of the RNC 78 00:04:45,120 --> 00:04:48,040 Speaker 2: attendees are chasers. But for safety's at sake, I went 79 00:04:48,080 --> 00:04:51,600 Speaker 2: to more stealth, both online and in person at RNZ 80 00:04:51,760 --> 00:04:55,400 Speaker 2: related events. For my main profile picture, I chose a 81 00:04:55,400 --> 00:04:58,479 Speaker 2: pretty basic photo of me with disheveled hair, wearing a 82 00:04:58,520 --> 00:05:01,120 Speaker 2: light gray shirt and thin black tie, I looking just 83 00:05:01,320 --> 00:05:06,520 Speaker 2: frankly exhausted. I chose the simple yet elegant user name Twink, 84 00:05:07,040 --> 00:05:11,120 Speaker 2: and for my bio wrote gen z in town for Convention, 85 00:05:11,839 --> 00:05:14,560 Speaker 2: which I thought was pretty funny and signals to people 86 00:05:14,640 --> 00:05:17,559 Speaker 2: that yes, I am here for the RNC, but leaves 87 00:05:17,600 --> 00:05:22,160 Speaker 2: the exact reason why still a bit mysterious. So this 88 00:05:22,400 --> 00:05:25,440 Speaker 2: was my bait. On my way to the airport, I 89 00:05:25,560 --> 00:05:28,039 Speaker 2: was already dressed for the part, as I suspected the 90 00:05:28,080 --> 00:05:30,919 Speaker 2: flight from Atlanta to Milwaukee would be part of the 91 00:05:30,960 --> 00:05:35,080 Speaker 2: whole RNC experience. I arrived at the gate and the 92 00:05:35,279 --> 00:05:39,440 Speaker 2: vibe shift was immediate. Older white men with even whiter 93 00:05:39,600 --> 00:05:43,200 Speaker 2: hair wearing a mix of poorly tailored suits and country 94 00:05:43,240 --> 00:05:46,760 Speaker 2: club polo shirts fit for the driving range. They all 95 00:05:46,960 --> 00:05:50,839 Speaker 2: kind of looked like my Republican grandfather. The women, meanwhile, 96 00:05:50,880 --> 00:05:54,280 Speaker 2: regardless of age, were all cause playing their favorite female 97 00:05:54,320 --> 00:05:57,760 Speaker 2: Fox and News anchor with bleached blonde hair. There were 98 00:05:57,800 --> 00:06:01,400 Speaker 2: a handful of delegates as well as Republican super fans 99 00:06:01,480 --> 00:06:05,039 Speaker 2: wearing Trump buttons and mega hats, just really excited to 100 00:06:05,080 --> 00:06:07,440 Speaker 2: be going to the convention, the way a NERD would 101 00:06:07,440 --> 00:06:10,520 Speaker 2: be excited to go to San Diego Comic Con. Others 102 00:06:10,520 --> 00:06:12,960 Speaker 2: at the gate were more subdued, perhaps not wanting to 103 00:06:13,000 --> 00:06:16,719 Speaker 2: attract too much attention in the Atlanta airport, but I 104 00:06:16,720 --> 00:06:19,839 Speaker 2: could still overhear them getting into quiet small talk about 105 00:06:19,880 --> 00:06:24,320 Speaker 2: their RNC expectations and in hushed tones, asking others at 106 00:06:24,320 --> 00:06:28,480 Speaker 2: the gate if they were going to the convention. And 107 00:06:28,520 --> 00:06:31,359 Speaker 2: that's what everyone called it, not the Republican Convention, not 108 00:06:31,440 --> 00:06:36,560 Speaker 2: the GOP convention or the RNC the convention. As I 109 00:06:36,640 --> 00:06:39,400 Speaker 2: was bording the plane, an older woman with straw like 110 00:06:39,440 --> 00:06:41,880 Speaker 2: blonde hair, sitting a few rows in front of me 111 00:06:42,279 --> 00:06:45,479 Speaker 2: waved me and asked, young man, are you going to 112 00:06:46,080 --> 00:06:50,559 Speaker 2: the convention? I gave my best yes, ma'am, took my seat, 113 00:06:50,600 --> 00:06:53,240 Speaker 2: and then heard her remark to her friend about how 114 00:06:53,279 --> 00:06:56,640 Speaker 2: happy she was that more young people are attending the convention. 115 00:06:57,200 --> 00:06:59,760 Speaker 2: And I would suspect she would be quite disappointed to 116 00:07:00,040 --> 00:07:02,760 Speaker 2: learn why I was attending the convention and what I 117 00:07:02,800 --> 00:07:05,960 Speaker 2: was doing there, mainly trying to collect as much information 118 00:07:06,320 --> 00:07:10,880 Speaker 2: about these weird RNC Grinder Republicans as I can. And 119 00:07:10,920 --> 00:07:14,360 Speaker 2: you will hear more about those weird Grinder RNC Republicans 120 00:07:14,680 --> 00:07:17,320 Speaker 2: after the break. This episode is brought to you in 121 00:07:17,360 --> 00:07:20,880 Speaker 2: part by the top Gun soundtrack, which I was listening 122 00:07:20,880 --> 00:07:23,440 Speaker 2: to as I was coming out from adderall while writing 123 00:07:23,480 --> 00:07:26,640 Speaker 2: the second half of this episode, as well as these 124 00:07:26,800 --> 00:07:41,760 Speaker 2: products and sponsors. Okay, back to the Grind. Most convention 125 00:07:41,880 --> 00:07:45,600 Speaker 2: activities took place in the Peiser Forum, which it took 126 00:07:45,640 --> 00:07:49,040 Speaker 2: about four days to learn how to pronounce. This venue 127 00:07:49,080 --> 00:07:52,400 Speaker 2: is usually home to the NBA team, the Milwaukee Bucks, 128 00:07:52,960 --> 00:07:54,560 Speaker 2: and this is where I would do most of my 129 00:07:54,640 --> 00:07:57,720 Speaker 2: Grinder cruising so I could see other profiles within the 130 00:07:57,800 --> 00:08:01,280 Speaker 2: radius of the convention area. Every time I walked into 131 00:08:01,320 --> 00:08:03,640 Speaker 2: the Pfiser Forum, which was multiple times a day for 132 00:08:03,720 --> 00:08:06,040 Speaker 2: four days in a row, I would find a little 133 00:08:06,040 --> 00:08:08,320 Speaker 2: corner or a place to sit and discreetly boot up 134 00:08:08,320 --> 00:08:10,920 Speaker 2: Grinder and refresh my feed to see what profiles were 135 00:08:10,920 --> 00:08:14,960 Speaker 2: in my proximity. Now, if you're unfamiliar with Grinder. One 136 00:08:14,960 --> 00:08:20,679 Speaker 2: of its more terrifying features is the proximity detector, telling 137 00:08:20,720 --> 00:08:23,760 Speaker 2: you what users are near you, whether that be five 138 00:08:23,800 --> 00:08:27,480 Speaker 2: miles away or five feet away. Every night, when I 139 00:08:27,520 --> 00:08:30,680 Speaker 2: got back to the hotel after recording with Robert and Sophie, 140 00:08:30,880 --> 00:08:33,079 Speaker 2: I would once again check a Grinder to see if 141 00:08:33,080 --> 00:08:35,880 Speaker 2: any unlucky delegates were put up in the hotels by 142 00:08:35,920 --> 00:08:38,880 Speaker 2: the airport. The hotel we were staying at was also 143 00:08:38,960 --> 00:08:42,640 Speaker 2: home to the Idaho and North Dakota delegates, and though 144 00:08:42,679 --> 00:08:45,480 Speaker 2: I don't believe anyone from our hotel was on Grinder, 145 00:08:45,679 --> 00:08:49,480 Speaker 2: save for maybe an anonymous profile or two, there definitely 146 00:08:49,559 --> 00:08:53,000 Speaker 2: were RNC attendees at some of the nearby hotels roughly 147 00:08:53,040 --> 00:08:57,000 Speaker 2: fifteen hundred feet away from my bed. The Grinder proximity 148 00:08:57,040 --> 00:08:59,880 Speaker 2: detector was quite useful to me and locating profiles act 149 00:09:00,240 --> 00:09:02,560 Speaker 2: around the footprint of the r and C, as well 150 00:09:02,600 --> 00:09:05,520 Speaker 2: as when sorting through all my messages back home to 151 00:09:05,600 --> 00:09:08,280 Speaker 2: confirm who attended the rn C from out of state. 152 00:09:08,800 --> 00:09:11,880 Speaker 2: Because Milwaukee is about six hundred and fifty miles away 153 00:09:11,880 --> 00:09:15,800 Speaker 2: from Atlanta, if someone's distance marker was substantially different from that, 154 00:09:15,880 --> 00:09:17,840 Speaker 2: I could assume that they were in Milwaukee for the 155 00:09:18,000 --> 00:09:19,760 Speaker 2: r and C from out of state, even if I 156 00:09:19,840 --> 00:09:23,520 Speaker 2: wasn't able to confirm through any brief text exchange. I've 157 00:09:23,559 --> 00:09:25,840 Speaker 2: also done my best to follow up with certain profiles 158 00:09:26,040 --> 00:09:29,800 Speaker 2: to rule out possibilities of secondary traveling or other random 159 00:09:29,840 --> 00:09:32,960 Speaker 2: reasons for why their distance markers might not line up exactly. 160 00:09:33,200 --> 00:09:36,800 Speaker 2: And I think they have it narrowed down pretty well. Okay, 161 00:09:36,800 --> 00:09:39,160 Speaker 2: you've been very patient, and now I think it's time 162 00:09:39,360 --> 00:09:43,200 Speaker 2: to read through the highlights from my grinder in box. 163 00:09:43,640 --> 00:09:45,800 Speaker 2: And I gotta say I think I started off pretty strong. 164 00:09:46,200 --> 00:09:49,440 Speaker 2: While attending the RNC kickoff party the night before the 165 00:09:49,480 --> 00:09:52,280 Speaker 2: convention officially started, I got one of the very first 166 00:09:52,320 --> 00:09:55,640 Speaker 2: messages I received from a twenty one year old Republican 167 00:09:55,720 --> 00:09:58,360 Speaker 2: with the profile picture that's just a close up picture 168 00:09:58,840 --> 00:10:02,120 Speaker 2: of a dark suit with a dark blue shirt and 169 00:10:02,240 --> 00:10:06,080 Speaker 2: vgenta tie, already horrendous vibes. He asked me if I 170 00:10:06,120 --> 00:10:10,120 Speaker 2: was quote unquote with the GOP and I said I 171 00:10:10,120 --> 00:10:12,920 Speaker 2: was attending with friends, and then I got no further response. 172 00:10:13,440 --> 00:10:16,120 Speaker 2: I saw this guy online throughout the convention, and then 173 00:10:16,400 --> 00:10:19,320 Speaker 2: after the convention was over, he moved like three hundred 174 00:10:19,360 --> 00:10:21,680 Speaker 2: miles away, so I'm pretty sure he was there for 175 00:10:21,800 --> 00:10:25,400 Speaker 2: the RNC. I got a message from someone who identified 176 00:10:25,480 --> 00:10:29,679 Speaker 2: himself as a local conservative quote but not a hardcore 177 00:10:29,760 --> 00:10:33,559 Speaker 2: Republican unquote, and he was excited the convention was in town, 178 00:10:33,880 --> 00:10:37,880 Speaker 2: hopeful that he would quote meet my future husband unquote. 179 00:10:39,000 --> 00:10:43,000 Speaker 2: The first chaser I encountered with the bio looking for 180 00:10:43,080 --> 00:10:46,600 Speaker 2: some lady dick to feel in my ass, saw through 181 00:10:46,640 --> 00:10:50,800 Speaker 2: my sister gender disguise and messaged me cock question mark. 182 00:10:51,600 --> 00:10:54,120 Speaker 2: I got one other message from a chaser who was 183 00:10:54,160 --> 00:10:56,559 Speaker 2: pretending to be Tea for Tea, who asked me if 184 00:10:56,559 --> 00:11:00,360 Speaker 2: I was in town for Kitsu Khan an Anima in 185 00:11:00,400 --> 00:11:04,400 Speaker 2: Green Bay. A nice local messaged me, quote hope you're 186 00:11:04,440 --> 00:11:07,640 Speaker 2: finding what you're looking for, smiley face, which was very 187 00:11:07,720 --> 00:11:10,160 Speaker 2: nice and just kind of amusing if you consider that 188 00:11:10,400 --> 00:11:12,920 Speaker 2: he thought I was just a gay Republican looking for 189 00:11:13,040 --> 00:11:17,520 Speaker 2: some other gay Republican. Another local with the name older 190 00:11:17,720 --> 00:11:21,319 Speaker 2: for young sent me the message quote boomer, who will 191 00:11:21,360 --> 00:11:25,480 Speaker 2: talk politics with you or we can just fuck. I 192 00:11:25,600 --> 00:11:29,520 Speaker 2: asked him if the quote unquote talk politics pickup line 193 00:11:29,840 --> 00:11:33,600 Speaker 2: works very often, and he replied quote less often than 194 00:11:33,600 --> 00:11:38,440 Speaker 2: I would hope for On here zero unquote, he mentioned 195 00:11:38,440 --> 00:11:41,400 Speaker 2: that he had noticed some convention attendees on the app 196 00:11:41,480 --> 00:11:45,440 Speaker 2: telling me that they have infiltrated Grinder. He then asked 197 00:11:45,480 --> 00:11:47,280 Speaker 2: me what exact hotel I was staying at. So that 198 00:11:47,400 --> 00:11:50,360 Speaker 2: was the end of that conversation. A minority of the 199 00:11:50,400 --> 00:11:54,840 Speaker 2: Milwaukee locals who messaged me identified themselves as conservatives and 200 00:11:54,920 --> 00:11:58,520 Speaker 2: were largely excited that the RNC was in town. They 201 00:11:58,600 --> 00:12:01,600 Speaker 2: vicariously questioned me about how the convention was going, as 202 00:12:01,640 --> 00:12:05,480 Speaker 2: most were disappointed that they themselves cannot attend. One such 203 00:12:05,520 --> 00:12:10,200 Speaker 2: fellaw who described Trump's first RNC entrance as electric and 204 00:12:10,559 --> 00:12:14,520 Speaker 2: a very emotional moment for him and the entire crowd unquote, 205 00:12:15,160 --> 00:12:17,560 Speaker 2: would have liked to attend, but he was busy working 206 00:12:17,640 --> 00:12:21,720 Speaker 2: at the hospital because they needed quote extra staffing just 207 00:12:21,880 --> 00:12:27,080 Speaker 2: in case unquote. Now, the worst profile picture I found 208 00:12:27,679 --> 00:12:30,240 Speaker 2: was an older guy wearing a baseball camp and one 209 00:12:30,240 --> 00:12:33,600 Speaker 2: of those half faced skull masks like Adam Offfen used 210 00:12:33,640 --> 00:12:36,400 Speaker 2: to wear. He said he was from Florida and claimed 211 00:12:36,400 --> 00:12:39,120 Speaker 2: to be in town not for the RNC but to 212 00:12:39,200 --> 00:12:43,440 Speaker 2: visit family, and mentioned that Vance had completely sold out 213 00:12:43,440 --> 00:12:47,640 Speaker 2: his morals for the VP spot. This guy's politics were impenetrable. 214 00:12:47,720 --> 00:12:51,760 Speaker 2: Maybe this was just like your average Florida Independent. Very 215 00:12:51,760 --> 00:12:56,200 Speaker 2: baffling fella. A younger guy messaged me, asking you're a 216 00:12:56,200 --> 00:12:59,400 Speaker 2: Republican and I said not really putting it lightly, and 217 00:12:59,440 --> 00:13:01,679 Speaker 2: he never got back to me. I did find a 218 00:13:01,840 --> 00:13:04,240 Speaker 2: thirty one year old chaser named Greg who I do 219 00:13:04,320 --> 00:13:08,199 Speaker 2: believe was attending the convention and his bio read quote Anon, 220 00:13:08,559 --> 00:13:14,560 Speaker 2: come drain me trans CD as crossdresser sissy fem to 221 00:13:14,720 --> 00:13:18,160 Speaker 2: the front of the line. I asked, you like trans 222 00:13:18,640 --> 00:13:23,120 Speaker 2: and he responded yes. We had no further conversation. I 223 00:13:23,160 --> 00:13:24,880 Speaker 2: did talk with two other people who happened to be 224 00:13:24,920 --> 00:13:27,600 Speaker 2: covering the convention, including one guy who thought I was 225 00:13:27,600 --> 00:13:30,719 Speaker 2: with CNN because the Grinder proximity sensor put me near 226 00:13:30,760 --> 00:13:33,959 Speaker 2: the CNN area when I was actually using Grinder at 227 00:13:33,960 --> 00:13:38,679 Speaker 2: the Heritage Foundation party. And lastly, really the only guy 228 00:13:38,840 --> 00:13:42,600 Speaker 2: I saw who openly claims to be attending the RNC 229 00:13:42,720 --> 00:13:45,680 Speaker 2: in his public bio was a thirty two year old 230 00:13:45,720 --> 00:13:49,880 Speaker 2: from Shreveport, Louisiana with the user name suck me Off 231 00:13:50,920 --> 00:13:55,520 Speaker 2: one Word. He described the convention as exhausting but awesome 232 00:13:56,040 --> 00:13:59,079 Speaker 2: and told me he was quote proud to support President 233 00:13:59,120 --> 00:14:04,000 Speaker 2: Trump unquote and called Trump's speech on the final day amazing. 234 00:14:05,200 --> 00:14:08,000 Speaker 2: A lot of the RNZ speakers, including Trump, talked about 235 00:14:08,080 --> 00:14:10,440 Speaker 2: Corey Compretour, the man who was killed at the Trump 236 00:14:10,520 --> 00:14:15,360 Speaker 2: rally during the attempted assassination. So after mister suck me 237 00:14:15,400 --> 00:14:18,960 Speaker 2: Off talked about how awesome Trump's speech was, I just 238 00:14:19,000 --> 00:14:23,440 Speaker 2: replied to him, poor Corey, and he messaged me back 239 00:14:24,440 --> 00:14:27,200 Speaker 2: Corey who, and that he told me what exact hotel 240 00:14:27,240 --> 00:14:30,560 Speaker 2: he was staying at. Now, part of the danger of 241 00:14:30,720 --> 00:14:33,840 Speaker 2: trying to use Grinder directly in the middle of the RNC, 242 00:14:34,120 --> 00:14:37,880 Speaker 2: even discreetly, is that even if I'm hunched over on 243 00:14:37,920 --> 00:14:40,560 Speaker 2: my phone, there is a non zero chance that some 244 00:14:40,640 --> 00:14:43,800 Speaker 2: passer by or person sitting right above me might catch 245 00:14:43,800 --> 00:14:46,880 Speaker 2: a glimpse of an unsolicited dickpic that fills my phone 246 00:14:46,920 --> 00:14:49,640 Speaker 2: screen as I try to check my messages. And this 247 00:14:49,760 --> 00:14:52,800 Speaker 2: is simply a non negotiable part of the Grinder experience. 248 00:14:53,240 --> 00:14:58,240 Speaker 2: Whatever you do, grainy, unflattering, bizarrely angled photos of some balding, 249 00:14:58,280 --> 00:15:03,520 Speaker 2: forty three year old married man will appear in your inbox. Ordinarily, 250 00:15:03,560 --> 00:15:05,800 Speaker 2: I would check the profile first to see who might 251 00:15:05,840 --> 00:15:09,040 Speaker 2: be sending me a photo, to weed out the undesirable 252 00:15:09,080 --> 00:15:13,239 Speaker 2: prospects before even considering to open up a DM. Unfortunately, 253 00:15:13,360 --> 00:15:16,000 Speaker 2: multiple factors prevented me from doing this. For one, this 254 00:15:16,200 --> 00:15:18,200 Speaker 2: was research, so I needed to collect the most amount 255 00:15:18,240 --> 00:15:22,040 Speaker 2: of data possible. But moreover, even if I still wanted 256 00:15:22,080 --> 00:15:25,760 Speaker 2: to vet for applicable profiles in my dms, this was 257 00:15:25,960 --> 00:15:30,080 Speaker 2: impossible without opening up each DM individually and clicking through 258 00:15:30,080 --> 00:15:32,600 Speaker 2: to their profile from the chatlog. Due to one of 259 00:15:32,600 --> 00:15:36,240 Speaker 2: the many glitches I experienced using Grinder at the RNC, 260 00:15:37,240 --> 00:15:40,560 Speaker 2: about halfway through the week, the app started crashing pretty frequently. 261 00:15:40,960 --> 00:15:42,680 Speaker 2: But the main glitch I had to deal with, which 262 00:15:42,680 --> 00:15:45,640 Speaker 2: has since been fixed, is that I could not access 263 00:15:45,760 --> 00:15:48,720 Speaker 2: anyone's profile from the DM's page. I had to click 264 00:15:48,800 --> 00:15:52,840 Speaker 2: into each individual chat log to open up a user profile, 265 00:15:53,280 --> 00:15:55,560 Speaker 2: which meant I had to look at a lot more 266 00:15:55,640 --> 00:15:59,960 Speaker 2: unsolicited Dick pics before even being able to check anyone's profile. 267 00:16:00,520 --> 00:16:03,760 Speaker 2: So there I was watching Ted Cruise's speech, sitting underneath 268 00:16:03,800 --> 00:16:07,160 Speaker 2: about fifty Republicans and right next to both of my bosses, 269 00:16:07,480 --> 00:16:10,680 Speaker 2: scrolling through an endless stream of dick pics to see 270 00:16:10,680 --> 00:16:12,320 Speaker 2: who was local and who was here for the R 271 00:16:12,400 --> 00:16:16,960 Speaker 2: and C, hoping that whatever Republican voter from Alabama wasn't 272 00:16:17,040 --> 00:16:21,360 Speaker 2: looking over my shoulder at the plethora of dimly lit hog, 273 00:16:22,320 --> 00:16:25,000 Speaker 2: but I was far from the only one reporting issues 274 00:16:25,000 --> 00:16:27,960 Speaker 2: with the app during the r and C. Around midday 275 00:16:28,000 --> 00:16:30,560 Speaker 2: on Tuesday, the second day of the convention, over one 276 00:16:30,560 --> 00:16:34,040 Speaker 2: thousand users reported a Grinder outage in the Milwaukee area 277 00:16:34,240 --> 00:16:37,800 Speaker 2: on the website down Detector. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel wrote 278 00:16:37,960 --> 00:16:40,040 Speaker 2: on the final day of the r and C that 279 00:16:40,160 --> 00:16:43,480 Speaker 2: quote reports that the Grinder app crashing increased by more 280 00:16:43,520 --> 00:16:46,400 Speaker 2: than ninety percent in the past forty eight hours across 281 00:16:46,400 --> 00:16:50,000 Speaker 2: the country unquote. The down detector heat map showed grinder 282 00:16:50,040 --> 00:16:53,520 Speaker 2: outages in Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York, as well 283 00:16:53,600 --> 00:16:56,440 Speaker 2: as a hot spot of outages in Milwaukee near the 284 00:16:56,560 --> 00:17:00,160 Speaker 2: end of the convention, indicating users were experience and some 285 00:17:00,320 --> 00:17:04,399 Speaker 2: issues with the app, possibly due to an increase in activity, 286 00:17:05,400 --> 00:17:08,240 Speaker 2: and you will hear more about that activity after this 287 00:17:08,359 --> 00:17:11,159 Speaker 2: ad break. This episode of It Could Happen Here is 288 00:17:11,160 --> 00:17:15,040 Speaker 2: brought to you in part by the Challenger's soundtrack remix 289 00:17:15,240 --> 00:17:18,840 Speaker 2: by Boys Noise, which I was listening to as I 290 00:17:18,960 --> 00:17:21,800 Speaker 2: wrote most of this episode while on the plane back 291 00:17:21,840 --> 00:17:25,000 Speaker 2: to Atlanta. This episode is also brought to you by 292 00:17:25,040 --> 00:17:38,920 Speaker 2: these products and services. We once again returned to the grind. 293 00:17:39,520 --> 00:17:41,840 Speaker 2: We got to keep on grinding. We're almost done, but 294 00:17:41,880 --> 00:17:44,080 Speaker 2: we got to grind a little more. Just one more 295 00:17:44,119 --> 00:17:46,560 Speaker 2: grind bro I swear about addictors. One more grind broachs, 296 00:17:46,600 --> 00:17:50,359 Speaker 2: one more grind. During the influx of reports about the 297 00:17:50,400 --> 00:17:53,960 Speaker 2: Grinder app breaking during the RNC, a post from the 298 00:17:54,000 --> 00:17:58,280 Speaker 2: Twitter account for the Halfway Post went extremely viral, bolstering 299 00:17:58,320 --> 00:18:02,439 Speaker 2: claims of a massive increase in activity. Quote breaking, an 300 00:18:02,520 --> 00:18:06,320 Speaker 2: executive of the gay dating app Grinder says, the Republican 301 00:18:06,400 --> 00:18:12,159 Speaker 2: National Convention is quote basically Grinder's super Bowl unquote. This 302 00:18:12,280 --> 00:18:15,680 Speaker 2: quote from a Grinder executive went super viral, prompting discussions 303 00:18:15,720 --> 00:18:19,080 Speaker 2: all over the Internet about five different articles and even 304 00:18:19,240 --> 00:18:22,679 Speaker 2: disgraced former New York Congressman George Sentos commented on the 305 00:18:22,680 --> 00:18:26,080 Speaker 2: phenomenon content warning, gay Republican. 306 00:18:26,240 --> 00:18:30,600 Speaker 3: So Grinder executives are calling the R and C Convention 307 00:18:31,400 --> 00:18:38,919 Speaker 3: the Grinder super Bowl. Folks. Look, I'm openly gay, no 308 00:18:39,119 --> 00:18:43,720 Speaker 3: qualms about it. Proud conservative Republican. I met my husband 309 00:18:43,920 --> 00:18:46,960 Speaker 3: on Grinder and we've been together for six years going 310 00:18:47,000 --> 00:18:50,719 Speaker 3: on seven, married for almost three. Let me tell you something. 311 00:18:51,520 --> 00:18:55,440 Speaker 3: Just come out the closet, boys, come on it's fun. 312 00:18:55,640 --> 00:18:59,800 Speaker 3: You can be gay and conservative, but look, Grinder's already 313 00:19:00,440 --> 00:19:02,720 Speaker 3: anyway based on the hits, and guess who's in town. 314 00:19:02,960 --> 00:19:05,240 Speaker 3: It's all you conservatives. 315 00:19:04,560 --> 00:19:09,360 Speaker 2: By now, I certainly did observe a lot of blank 316 00:19:09,440 --> 00:19:12,320 Speaker 2: or anonymous profiles, at least more than I'm used to. 317 00:19:12,720 --> 00:19:16,600 Speaker 2: I also received messages containing variations of hey sexy from 318 00:19:16,640 --> 00:19:20,159 Speaker 2: at least five accounts that have since been deactivated. And 319 00:19:20,280 --> 00:19:22,680 Speaker 2: this does line up with a report from a Milwaukee 320 00:19:22,680 --> 00:19:25,760 Speaker 2: area Grinder user who spoke with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel 321 00:19:25,840 --> 00:19:29,520 Speaker 2: saying that he noticed a major bump in anonymous users. Quote. 322 00:19:29,840 --> 00:19:31,800 Speaker 2: On any given day, you'll go on there and see 323 00:19:31,800 --> 00:19:34,720 Speaker 2: a headless torso or a blank profile, said the source, 324 00:19:34,760 --> 00:19:37,280 Speaker 2: who did not want to be named. The Grinder user said, 325 00:19:37,320 --> 00:19:40,040 Speaker 2: on a normal day, you'll encounter maybe ten users with 326 00:19:40,080 --> 00:19:43,080 Speaker 2: no public profile. But Thursday, when he checked the app, 327 00:19:43,359 --> 00:19:48,560 Speaker 2: he said he stopped counting at fifty blank profile photos unquote. Now, 328 00:19:48,560 --> 00:19:51,480 Speaker 2: we don't have any official data yet on Grinder usage 329 00:19:51,600 --> 00:19:53,919 Speaker 2: near the twenty twenty four R and C only the 330 00:19:53,960 --> 00:19:57,640 Speaker 2: down detector reports which our user submitted, but we do 331 00:19:57,720 --> 00:20:01,119 Speaker 2: at least have data from the last in person convention 332 00:20:01,320 --> 00:20:04,400 Speaker 2: in Cleveland, Ohio all the way back in twenty sixteen, 333 00:20:05,080 --> 00:20:08,000 Speaker 2: a Vice article by Candice Brian spoke with sources from 334 00:20:08,040 --> 00:20:11,400 Speaker 2: Grinder and wrote that quote, Grinder usage near the Quicken 335 00:20:11,480 --> 00:20:15,200 Speaker 2: Loans Arena showed a sixty six percent increase during the RNC. 336 00:20:15,680 --> 00:20:19,920 Speaker 2: Other active destinations including Times Square, Capitol Hill, Disneyland, South Beach, 337 00:20:19,960 --> 00:20:25,600 Speaker 2: and Trump Tower showed no comparable increase in active users. Unquote. 338 00:20:25,640 --> 00:20:28,560 Speaker 2: Many of the local twinks and trans folks certainly were 339 00:20:28,600 --> 00:20:33,080 Speaker 2: concerned about possible RNC freaks hiding on the app. People 340 00:20:33,119 --> 00:20:35,800 Speaker 2: would often first ask me if I was a Republican 341 00:20:35,880 --> 00:20:37,959 Speaker 2: or why I was in town before trying to hit 342 00:20:38,000 --> 00:20:41,359 Speaker 2: on me. One such twink told me, quote, I would 343 00:20:41,359 --> 00:20:43,679 Speaker 2: be surprised if you were a delegate or something, but 344 00:20:43,720 --> 00:20:47,959 Speaker 2: I had to check. As the week progressed, more locals 345 00:20:48,000 --> 00:20:50,120 Speaker 2: told me that they had found a handful of out 346 00:20:50,119 --> 00:20:54,240 Speaker 2: and proud patriots online, but really not many. In fact, 347 00:20:54,440 --> 00:20:58,000 Speaker 2: multiple Milwaukee locals I chatted with on Grinder did claim 348 00:20:58,040 --> 00:21:02,040 Speaker 2: to notice an uptick in users, but mostly recognizable local 349 00:21:02,119 --> 00:21:04,760 Speaker 2: users who were online for the same reason I was 350 00:21:05,280 --> 00:21:08,040 Speaker 2: to see if there was an influx of closeted Republicans. 351 00:21:08,400 --> 00:21:11,440 Speaker 2: Someone told me quote for the record, it's like three 352 00:21:11,480 --> 00:21:14,640 Speaker 2: times busier here than normal. Everyone is out to see 353 00:21:14,640 --> 00:21:17,320 Speaker 2: what the Republicans are up to, and the chasers have 354 00:21:17,359 --> 00:21:20,840 Speaker 2: come out of the woodwork unquote. Far from being the 355 00:21:20,880 --> 00:21:24,840 Speaker 2: app's super Bowl. According to Weiss, the twenty sixteen rnc's 356 00:21:25,000 --> 00:21:28,560 Speaker 2: sixty six percent bump in activity is less than one 357 00:21:28,760 --> 00:21:31,920 Speaker 2: half of the increase in Grinder activity that was seen 358 00:21:32,040 --> 00:21:35,800 Speaker 2: at the last in person DNC, an event which was 359 00:21:35,840 --> 00:21:40,640 Speaker 2: also a whole day shorter i'lade from Wess. Quote. However, 360 00:21:40,720 --> 00:21:43,879 Speaker 2: from Sunday to Monday, the week of the Democratic National Convention, 361 00:21:44,240 --> 00:21:47,240 Speaker 2: there was an even higher one hundred and forty eight 362 00:21:47,280 --> 00:21:52,480 Speaker 2: percent increase in activity around the Wells Fargo Arena in Philadelphia. Quote. 363 00:21:53,280 --> 00:21:56,520 Speaker 2: It's also worth noting that of that sixty six percent 364 00:21:56,560 --> 00:21:58,600 Speaker 2: increase in activity around the twenty sixteen r and C, 365 00:21:59,359 --> 00:22:02,840 Speaker 2: only about forty percent of those users were visiting Cleveland, 366 00:22:03,200 --> 00:22:07,240 Speaker 2: most were locals. Meanwhile, sixty percent of Grinder users active 367 00:22:07,320 --> 00:22:11,560 Speaker 2: near the DNC in Philadelphia were visiting the city. Oh 368 00:22:11,640 --> 00:22:14,639 Speaker 2: and that quote from a Grinder executive calling the RNZ 369 00:22:15,119 --> 00:22:18,080 Speaker 2: Grinder's a super Bowl, as well as George Sandos's other 370 00:22:18,080 --> 00:22:21,800 Speaker 2: claim about Grinder purposely outing gay conservatives. Both of those 371 00:22:21,880 --> 00:22:25,119 Speaker 2: claims originate from Twitter satire accounts. 372 00:22:25,560 --> 00:22:29,480 Speaker 1: It is totally made up, pure fiction. It's fiction. It's fiction. 373 00:22:29,960 --> 00:22:31,720 Speaker 3: We made it up. We made this one up. 374 00:22:31,840 --> 00:22:32,760 Speaker 2: It's a made up tail. 375 00:22:32,920 --> 00:22:35,320 Speaker 1: It's a total fabrication. It never happened. 376 00:22:36,240 --> 00:22:39,679 Speaker 2: It's an urban legend that never happened. So no, the 377 00:22:39,840 --> 00:22:43,680 Speaker 2: RNC is not Grinder's a super Bowl. I got messages 378 00:22:43,720 --> 00:22:46,879 Speaker 2: from over one hundred and fifty different people. Over ninety 379 00:22:46,920 --> 00:22:51,040 Speaker 2: percent of the messages I received and profiles visible online 380 00:22:51,119 --> 00:22:55,120 Speaker 2: even while inside the Pfizer forum were from locals completely 381 00:22:55,200 --> 00:22:58,840 Speaker 2: unaffiliated with the rn Z and any boost activity that 382 00:22:58,840 --> 00:23:01,600 Speaker 2: can be attributed to people this for the RNC is 383 00:23:01,640 --> 00:23:04,920 Speaker 2: a minuscule drop in the bucket compared to the proverbial 384 00:23:05,160 --> 00:23:08,919 Speaker 2: orgy festival of out of town gay Democrats who travel 385 00:23:09,000 --> 00:23:12,920 Speaker 2: to the DNC and like, if you think about this logically, 386 00:23:13,640 --> 00:23:16,720 Speaker 2: this shouldn't at all be surprising. The Republican Party has 387 00:23:16,760 --> 00:23:19,480 Speaker 2: spent the past two years screaming about how all drag 388 00:23:19,560 --> 00:23:22,600 Speaker 2: queens are child groomers, and though this was the first 389 00:23:22,720 --> 00:23:25,720 Speaker 2: year the GOP has removed opposition to gay marriage from 390 00:23:25,720 --> 00:23:29,520 Speaker 2: their party platform, they have massively increased their opposition to 391 00:23:29,680 --> 00:23:32,919 Speaker 2: and attacks against trans people, and really any display of 392 00:23:32,920 --> 00:23:36,359 Speaker 2: a visible queerness, like come on, this is the Republican Party. 393 00:23:36,960 --> 00:23:41,160 Speaker 2: There's this kind of fucked up cultural conception that homophobic 394 00:23:41,200 --> 00:23:45,439 Speaker 2: politicians must be so because they are secretly gay. And 395 00:23:45,520 --> 00:23:49,199 Speaker 2: while there is the occasional like Lindsey Graham or repressed 396 00:23:49,400 --> 00:23:54,000 Speaker 2: homosexual preacher, this is not the norm and all Republicans 397 00:23:54,000 --> 00:23:58,680 Speaker 2: being secretly gay is not the driving force of legislative homophobia. 398 00:23:59,080 --> 00:24:02,080 Speaker 2: It is an idea log drive largely in furtherance of 399 00:24:02,119 --> 00:24:05,879 Speaker 2: hegemonic Christian nationalism, and now for people like Elon Musk 400 00:24:05,920 --> 00:24:10,359 Speaker 2: and more young Republicans of fascistic notion of reproductive futurism 401 00:24:10,400 --> 00:24:14,119 Speaker 2: built on fears that young people white people aren't having 402 00:24:14,280 --> 00:24:18,359 Speaker 2: enough white babies, which they partially attribute to society becoming 403 00:24:18,440 --> 00:24:21,600 Speaker 2: more accepting of gay and trans people, resulting in people 404 00:24:21,680 --> 00:24:26,200 Speaker 2: having less reproductive or heterosexual sex. Never mind the fact 405 00:24:26,240 --> 00:24:29,680 Speaker 2: that queer and trans people oftentimes can and do have children, 406 00:24:30,119 --> 00:24:32,960 Speaker 2: which still doesn't seem to please these conservatives, as it 407 00:24:33,000 --> 00:24:36,080 Speaker 2: doesn't align with their traditionalist view of the family unit. 408 00:24:36,800 --> 00:24:40,240 Speaker 2: So No Grinder wasn't flooded with closeted Republicans because there 409 00:24:40,240 --> 00:24:42,879 Speaker 2: simply isn't that many closeted Republicans that are going to 410 00:24:42,880 --> 00:24:45,960 Speaker 2: be attending the RNC. And while there may not be 411 00:24:46,359 --> 00:24:50,040 Speaker 2: as many Republicans as I thought there might be, I 412 00:24:50,080 --> 00:24:52,920 Speaker 2: do believe that I have the bump in activity, albeit 413 00:24:53,000 --> 00:24:57,320 Speaker 2: a smaller bump than rumored. Basically figured out based on 414 00:24:57,400 --> 00:25:00,199 Speaker 2: my anecdotal experience and the reports of a handf of 415 00:25:00,240 --> 00:25:03,200 Speaker 2: local Grinder users and journalists I talked with who were 416 00:25:03,200 --> 00:25:06,440 Speaker 2: online during the twenty twenty four rn C, and considering 417 00:25:06,480 --> 00:25:10,040 Speaker 2: the twenty sixteen Grinder data, I can report that merely 418 00:25:10,080 --> 00:25:14,960 Speaker 2: a small minority of activity was due to ordinary RNZ attendees. 419 00:25:15,600 --> 00:25:19,360 Speaker 2: The majority of activity was from locals who either regularly 420 00:25:19,440 --> 00:25:23,000 Speaker 2: used Grinder or were specifically curious about who might be 421 00:25:23,119 --> 00:25:27,800 Speaker 2: online during the RNC. I observed two more groups that 422 00:25:27,840 --> 00:25:32,240 Speaker 2: would contribute to any noticeable increase in activity. Not everyone 423 00:25:32,280 --> 00:25:35,479 Speaker 2: who attends the RNC are guests or delegates. A lot 424 00:25:35,560 --> 00:25:38,320 Speaker 2: of people work at the convention center or work tech, 425 00:25:38,920 --> 00:25:42,800 Speaker 2: and a sizeable chunk of people are like myself, researchers, pollsters, 426 00:25:42,920 --> 00:25:46,600 Speaker 2: or journalists who attend conventions like this for work. And lastly, 427 00:25:47,119 --> 00:25:50,800 Speaker 2: the final group that fills out the bump in Grinder activity, 428 00:25:51,280 --> 00:25:53,760 Speaker 2: one that for some reason didn't really expect to see 429 00:25:53,840 --> 00:25:58,720 Speaker 2: upon arrival, but in retrospect makes total sense. Are cops 430 00:25:59,359 --> 00:26:03,080 Speaker 2: so many? There were so many cops online at the RNC, 431 00:26:03,760 --> 00:26:06,320 Speaker 2: just like delegates or reporters. They are coming to town 432 00:26:06,400 --> 00:26:09,359 Speaker 2: from all around the country. There was cops or state 433 00:26:09,400 --> 00:26:14,160 Speaker 2: troopers from Texas, Ohio, Tennessee, Georgia, North Carolina, California, Indiana, 434 00:26:14,480 --> 00:26:17,639 Speaker 2: and many more states, as well as US Capitol Police, 435 00:26:17,720 --> 00:26:21,920 Speaker 2: Secret Service, TSA, DHS, and FBI. They were all in 436 00:26:22,000 --> 00:26:24,920 Speaker 2: town as a part of the security detail. A few 437 00:26:24,960 --> 00:26:27,439 Speaker 2: of the guys that messaged me I can absolutely confirm 438 00:26:27,480 --> 00:26:30,520 Speaker 2: are one hundred percent police or some kind of military police. 439 00:26:31,080 --> 00:26:34,040 Speaker 2: A thirty three year old cop or military guy quote 440 00:26:34,240 --> 00:26:39,000 Speaker 2: looking for sexy bottoms with the tags jock, Military, discreete 441 00:26:39,040 --> 00:26:41,800 Speaker 2: and weightlifting, as well as many pictures of him in 442 00:26:41,880 --> 00:26:44,320 Speaker 2: the gym. Said it in his bio that he was 443 00:26:44,440 --> 00:26:49,359 Speaker 2: quote really into slim, skinny toned, and muscular people. He 444 00:26:49,440 --> 00:26:54,040 Speaker 2: messaged me saying, Hey, now, I got a lot of 445 00:26:54,520 --> 00:26:58,520 Speaker 2: haze in my inbox, which is not unusual for Grinder. 446 00:26:59,040 --> 00:27:01,800 Speaker 2: You will pry mostly get hay as a message as 447 00:27:01,800 --> 00:27:03,639 Speaker 2: well as just like, you know, a picture of someone's penis, 448 00:27:03,840 --> 00:27:06,240 Speaker 2: but between a penis and hey, those are probably the 449 00:27:06,280 --> 00:27:09,600 Speaker 2: two most received messages you will get on Grinder. There 450 00:27:09,640 --> 00:27:13,520 Speaker 2: was another guy with a username DL military who said 451 00:27:13,520 --> 00:27:16,000 Speaker 2: in his bio he was working security for the week 452 00:27:16,320 --> 00:27:19,479 Speaker 2: and that Grinder messages had completely broke for him and 453 00:27:19,560 --> 00:27:23,800 Speaker 2: to instead message him on Snapchat. The DL in DL 454 00:27:23,840 --> 00:27:27,200 Speaker 2: military stands for down low. It's a tag that only 455 00:27:27,320 --> 00:27:31,080 Speaker 2: the worst people on Grinder will use, mainly like self 456 00:27:31,160 --> 00:27:34,880 Speaker 2: hating gay men who are closeted, and it's download because 457 00:27:34,880 --> 00:27:37,280 Speaker 2: they don't want to be like publicly seen being gay. 458 00:27:37,480 --> 00:27:40,720 Speaker 2: Just absolutely the worst. We do not fuck with DL, 459 00:27:40,880 --> 00:27:44,480 Speaker 2: both literally and figuratively. There were a bunch of other 460 00:27:44,680 --> 00:27:48,919 Speaker 2: non locals who I would describe as cop types. I 461 00:27:48,920 --> 00:27:51,920 Speaker 2: can't one hundred percent say for sure that they are cops, 462 00:27:52,359 --> 00:27:55,359 Speaker 2: but they have like the look, you know, like the 463 00:27:55,480 --> 00:27:58,080 Speaker 2: look the cop look. I don't know. They could also 464 00:27:58,119 --> 00:28:01,480 Speaker 2: be like a bodyguard, a working private secure but one 465 00:28:01,480 --> 00:28:05,560 Speaker 2: of these cop looking guys message to me asking if 466 00:28:05,600 --> 00:28:07,760 Speaker 2: I was a trans guy, which I always love to see. 467 00:28:07,800 --> 00:28:10,480 Speaker 2: It means I'm doing gender very well. And a few 468 00:28:10,520 --> 00:28:14,879 Speaker 2: other cop types sent relatively boring messages so yeah, a 469 00:28:14,880 --> 00:28:17,679 Speaker 2: lot of cops, which is not completely surprising considering the 470 00:28:17,720 --> 00:28:20,480 Speaker 2: fact that basically half the cops in the country were 471 00:28:20,640 --> 00:28:24,320 Speaker 2: at the Republican National Convention in some form or another. 472 00:28:25,320 --> 00:28:28,199 Speaker 2: A few final notes, Now, this didn't really make up 473 00:28:28,240 --> 00:28:32,439 Speaker 2: a sizeable chunk of the Grinder population, but after saying 474 00:28:32,480 --> 00:28:35,720 Speaker 2: I was just covering the RNC, a couple people on Grinder, 475 00:28:35,840 --> 00:28:39,240 Speaker 2: just completely unprompted, told me that they were attending the 476 00:28:39,320 --> 00:28:42,360 Speaker 2: protests against the RNC. Please do not do this. That's 477 00:28:42,400 --> 00:28:45,880 Speaker 2: a horrible idea for multiple reasons. You gotta stop talking 478 00:28:45,920 --> 00:28:49,480 Speaker 2: about your political activities on dating apps, especially Grinder, especially 479 00:28:49,520 --> 00:28:55,640 Speaker 2: at the RNC. Horrible idea. Do not do this. And 480 00:28:55,680 --> 00:29:00,560 Speaker 2: despite my lazy attempt at a young Republican disguised online profile, 481 00:29:01,040 --> 00:29:03,160 Speaker 2: a few too many people did recognize me from Twitter 482 00:29:03,280 --> 00:29:05,120 Speaker 2: or the pod, but they were very nice. They gave 483 00:29:05,160 --> 00:29:07,320 Speaker 2: me some recommendations for what gay bars to check out 484 00:29:07,440 --> 00:29:10,560 Speaker 2: after convention hours, and one person told me this interesting 485 00:29:10,600 --> 00:29:13,600 Speaker 2: anecdote that I'd like to share. Quote, I don't think 486 00:29:13,640 --> 00:29:16,240 Speaker 2: Trump is going to win. I can missed for Hillary 487 00:29:16,240 --> 00:29:19,600 Speaker 2: in twenty sixteen, and at least here it doesn't feel 488 00:29:19,640 --> 00:29:22,760 Speaker 2: the same. Unquote I thought That was a little interesting 489 00:29:22,840 --> 00:29:26,000 Speaker 2: tinbit that I received at probably round three am on grinder. 490 00:29:26,400 --> 00:29:31,040 Speaker 2: So there you go. Anyway, that was my RNC grinder experience. 491 00:29:31,520 --> 00:29:34,120 Speaker 2: I'm sorry to report it is not the hotbed of 492 00:29:34,280 --> 00:29:37,920 Speaker 2: closeted Republicans that we mean it to be. It's mostly 493 00:29:38,080 --> 00:29:41,680 Speaker 2: local gaze, a few reporters and a few more cops. 494 00:29:42,480 --> 00:29:45,840 Speaker 2: I do not think I'll be reporting on the DNC grinder, 495 00:29:46,200 --> 00:29:49,120 Speaker 2: but I am curious to see if there is a 496 00:29:49,520 --> 00:29:54,520 Speaker 2: sizeable increase in activity as compared to the RNZ grinder, 497 00:29:54,640 --> 00:29:56,640 Speaker 2: So I guess I will maybe posted by that on 498 00:29:56,640 --> 00:30:00,640 Speaker 2: Twitter at Hungry bow Tie if you want updates on that. Anyway, 499 00:30:00,680 --> 00:30:03,320 Speaker 2: Stay safe out there. Be careful if you're ever on grinder. 500 00:30:03,400 --> 00:30:07,440 Speaker 2: Please especially don't tell someone covering the RNC that you're 501 00:30:07,480 --> 00:30:10,080 Speaker 2: attending any protests. But in general, be careful on these 502 00:30:10,080 --> 00:30:12,440 Speaker 2: types of dating apps and I will see you on 503 00:30:12,560 --> 00:30:19,400 Speaker 2: the other side. Message from Quickie Grinder said you were 504 00:30:19,480 --> 00:30:24,800 Speaker 2: super close yesterday. Wasn't stalking? I promise? Message from birthday 505 00:30:24,800 --> 00:30:29,560 Speaker 2: present emoji. I almost thought you were Josh Thomas. Message 506 00:30:29,560 --> 00:30:34,200 Speaker 2: from anonymous wait are you pro or anti Republican? I'm 507 00:30:34,240 --> 00:30:36,640 Speaker 2: not gonna lie. I mainly asked your politics because I 508 00:30:36,640 --> 00:30:38,200 Speaker 2: thought you were cute, but I didn't want to hit 509 00:30:38,240 --> 00:30:43,040 Speaker 2: on a Trumper message from older for young. Aren't all 510 00:30:43,080 --> 00:30:49,320 Speaker 2: the delegates propositioning you? You're cute? Message from anonymous? Why 511 00:30:49,440 --> 00:30:52,760 Speaker 2: establish a totalitarian state if I can't breed? It's a 512 00:30:52,800 --> 00:30:59,040 Speaker 2: dictator message from suck me off. I'm down for anything. Lol? 513 00:30:59,200 --> 00:31:01,160 Speaker 2: Are you supporting? Ha ha? 514 00:31:06,760 --> 00:31:09,240 Speaker 1: It could happen here as a production of cool Zone Media. 515 00:31:09,320 --> 00:31:12,000 Speaker 1: For more podcasts from cool Zone Media, visit our website 516 00:31:12,040 --> 00:31:15,160 Speaker 1: coolzonemedia dot com, or check us out on the iHeartRadio app, 517 00:31:15,200 --> 00:31:18,560 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to podcasts. You can 518 00:31:18,560 --> 00:31:21,280 Speaker 1: find sources for It Could Happen Here, Updated monthly at 519 00:31:21,280 --> 00:31:24,520 Speaker 1: coolzonemedia dot com slash sources. Thanks for listening.