1 00:00:00,240 --> 00:00:04,680 Speaker 1: From UFOs to psychic powers and government conspiracies. History is 2 00:00:04,760 --> 00:00:09,080 Speaker 1: riddled with unexplained events. You can turn back now or 3 00:00:09,200 --> 00:00:12,079 Speaker 1: learn the stuff they don't want you to know. A 4 00:00:12,200 --> 00:00:25,680 Speaker 1: production of I Heart Radio. Hello, welcome back to the show. 5 00:00:25,760 --> 00:00:28,280 Speaker 1: My name is Matt, my name is Noel. They called 6 00:00:28,280 --> 00:00:31,360 Speaker 1: me Ben. We're joined as always with our super producer 7 00:00:31,480 --> 00:00:36,080 Speaker 1: Alexis code named Doc Holiday Jackson. Most importantly, you are you. 8 00:00:36,080 --> 00:00:39,440 Speaker 1: You are here, and that makes this stuff they don't 9 00:00:39,560 --> 00:00:42,760 Speaker 1: want you to know. This is our first listener mail 10 00:00:42,960 --> 00:00:48,279 Speaker 1: segment of one or the first we're recording in one, 11 00:00:48,760 --> 00:00:56,040 Speaker 1: and we have a cavalcade of strange stories and fascinating 12 00:00:56,200 --> 00:00:58,880 Speaker 1: feedback from the best part of the show, your fellow 13 00:00:58,920 --> 00:01:01,560 Speaker 1: listeners before or we begin. Guys, I know I told 14 00:01:01,560 --> 00:01:05,959 Speaker 1: you about this off air, but for years, and I 15 00:01:06,040 --> 00:01:10,080 Speaker 1: mean years, since I started at this job as an intern, uh, 16 00:01:10,240 --> 00:01:13,800 Speaker 1: how stuff works and I Heart Now have been kind 17 00:01:13,840 --> 00:01:16,640 Speaker 1: of in a low level prank war. Sometimes will come 18 00:01:16,640 --> 00:01:19,119 Speaker 1: in and things will just be a little weird. One 19 00:01:19,160 --> 00:01:22,000 Speaker 1: time we smuggled, uh. I think we used this example 20 00:01:22,000 --> 00:01:23,640 Speaker 1: on the show before, so it's okay to say it. 21 00:01:23,760 --> 00:01:26,400 Speaker 1: One time we smuggled a very large elvis impersonator in 22 00:01:26,640 --> 00:01:29,680 Speaker 1: to prank our boss. We did a ghost like remote 23 00:01:29,680 --> 00:01:34,640 Speaker 1: control operated whoopee cushion back in the day. And today 24 00:01:34,800 --> 00:01:37,880 Speaker 1: I snuck into the office to get some coffee and 25 00:01:38,040 --> 00:01:39,840 Speaker 1: I was drinking out of this cup or I was 26 00:01:39,880 --> 00:01:43,000 Speaker 1: about to when my paranoia paid off and I looked 27 00:01:43,040 --> 00:01:46,200 Speaker 1: at the bottom to see someone had popped. How would 28 00:01:46,240 --> 00:01:48,160 Speaker 1: you describe that was It looked like a six, maybe 29 00:01:48,160 --> 00:01:50,280 Speaker 1: a nine. Yeah, it depends on which way you hold it. 30 00:01:50,280 --> 00:01:51,840 Speaker 1: But it's like they did it with like the the 31 00:01:51,920 --> 00:01:57,640 Speaker 1: pointy end of a compass or something, you know. Yeah, 32 00:01:58,000 --> 00:02:01,160 Speaker 1: some stabby implements of some kind. Precise work. I gotta 33 00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:05,520 Speaker 1: give them props. Everyone listening, you have to know that 34 00:02:05,800 --> 00:02:08,640 Speaker 1: most of these things happened to Ben for some reason, 35 00:02:09,120 --> 00:02:14,359 Speaker 1: so that's not true. Everybody gets everybody gets it. NOL 36 00:02:14,480 --> 00:02:19,080 Speaker 1: got a weird uh got a weird stalkery parrot thing. Yeah, 37 00:02:19,160 --> 00:02:21,840 Speaker 1: we had these little like squishy ball things for stress 38 00:02:21,880 --> 00:02:24,200 Speaker 1: and they're shaped like the I Heart Radio parrot, which 39 00:02:24,240 --> 00:02:26,920 Speaker 1: is apparently our mascot, which I wasn't aware of. But 40 00:02:26,919 --> 00:02:29,040 Speaker 1: they're just littered all over the office and someone collected 41 00:02:29,080 --> 00:02:31,040 Speaker 1: a whole bunch of them and lined them up next 42 00:02:31,080 --> 00:02:34,160 Speaker 1: to each other and snipped off their little parrot faces 43 00:02:34,360 --> 00:02:37,280 Speaker 1: and lined those up in front of their little parrot bodies. 44 00:02:37,320 --> 00:02:38,840 Speaker 1: And I don't know if you guys know this about me, 45 00:02:38,880 --> 00:02:41,760 Speaker 1: but not a fan of birds, so it felt very threatening. 46 00:02:41,760 --> 00:02:43,200 Speaker 1: It was sort of like a horsehead in the bed 47 00:02:43,280 --> 00:02:46,320 Speaker 1: kind of situation. No, dude, they were whoever this was, 48 00:02:46,600 --> 00:02:49,440 Speaker 1: I'm sure they love you very much, and they were 49 00:02:49,440 --> 00:02:55,200 Speaker 1: trying to show you that the birds were neutralized. Like, uh, 50 00:02:55,440 --> 00:02:59,359 Speaker 1: they're teaching you to hunt sponge stress birds. But you 51 00:02:59,400 --> 00:03:03,040 Speaker 1: know you've found out who that was. Investigation was successful. 52 00:03:03,520 --> 00:03:07,200 Speaker 1: Uh yeah, but they like they denied it vehemently for 53 00:03:07,240 --> 00:03:11,400 Speaker 1: a time and then finally came clean and that had 54 00:03:11,440 --> 00:03:14,360 Speaker 1: a happy ending. So on the off chance any of 55 00:03:14,400 --> 00:03:17,360 Speaker 1: our co workers listen to the show, and on the 56 00:03:17,360 --> 00:03:21,880 Speaker 1: off chance whomever is responsible for this uh is listening 57 00:03:21,880 --> 00:03:24,920 Speaker 1: to this show, then all I have to say is nice, 58 00:03:24,960 --> 00:03:27,960 Speaker 1: one close call. You almost got me. But you're talking 59 00:03:28,000 --> 00:03:30,840 Speaker 1: about one of the most paranoid people in our network. 60 00:03:31,240 --> 00:03:33,400 Speaker 1: I did, Matt, I want to be honest, I did 61 00:03:33,440 --> 00:03:37,640 Speaker 1: suspect you at first, like from the jump. Well, I mean, 62 00:03:38,280 --> 00:03:40,880 Speaker 1: I generally I'm not the kind of person that would 63 00:03:40,920 --> 00:03:45,920 Speaker 1: do that, So you know. Yeah, Okay, that's you're generally 64 00:03:45,960 --> 00:03:52,000 Speaker 1: not but what about specifically we Okay, we digress, We digressed. 65 00:03:52,040 --> 00:03:53,920 Speaker 1: But it was heartwarming, you know, because I think a 66 00:03:53,920 --> 00:03:57,280 Speaker 1: lot of us had a tough time over the holidays, 67 00:03:57,320 --> 00:03:59,200 Speaker 1: not being able to be with the people that we 68 00:03:59,320 --> 00:04:03,320 Speaker 1: usually see towards the end of the year. Uh. We 69 00:04:03,320 --> 00:04:06,480 Speaker 1: we typically get together at least once as a group 70 00:04:06,560 --> 00:04:09,880 Speaker 1: at our local dive bar or someplace and we just 71 00:04:10,000 --> 00:04:12,880 Speaker 1: grab a couple of drinks and wax on about the 72 00:04:12,920 --> 00:04:16,000 Speaker 1: world in the state of things. Uh So, yeah, this 73 00:04:16,160 --> 00:04:18,760 Speaker 1: these pranks were nice, but I'm I'm gonna find who 74 00:04:18,839 --> 00:04:22,120 Speaker 1: it was. I have a strong suspicion based on an 75 00:04:22,160 --> 00:04:26,120 Speaker 1: off air lead. I wish you're the best of luck. 76 00:04:26,520 --> 00:04:30,680 Speaker 1: Thank you, thank you. And likewise, uh So, today we 77 00:04:30,760 --> 00:04:35,359 Speaker 1: want to share some amazing stories from your fellow listeners. 78 00:04:35,920 --> 00:04:38,840 Speaker 1: We have some stuff at the very forefront of medicine, 79 00:04:38,960 --> 00:04:42,720 Speaker 1: or depending on who you ask, very ancient medicinal practices. 80 00:04:43,520 --> 00:04:49,000 Speaker 1: We have some stuff about uh, very big brother level surveillance. Uh. 81 00:04:49,040 --> 00:04:50,839 Speaker 1: And then we have a story that may not be 82 00:04:51,000 --> 00:04:52,800 Speaker 1: I'm just gonna be honest with you, folks, may not 83 00:04:52,880 --> 00:04:57,040 Speaker 1: be a suitable for all listeners. Uh. Taking place in 84 00:04:57,080 --> 00:05:01,320 Speaker 1: the United Nations. So where do you think we go? First? Guys? 85 00:05:01,360 --> 00:05:05,320 Speaker 1: What do you think? Mmmm? Why don't we begin at 86 00:05:05,360 --> 00:05:08,159 Speaker 1: all the stuff that we do on the internet and 87 00:05:09,080 --> 00:05:13,400 Speaker 1: who's been looking at it since the turn of the millennium, 88 00:05:13,440 --> 00:05:16,160 Speaker 1: Because you know, we are two decades now in we're 89 00:05:16,160 --> 00:05:20,839 Speaker 1: in the third decade already. How weird is that? Uh, 90 00:05:21,480 --> 00:05:25,800 Speaker 1: we're in the third decade of the two thousand's. Okay, 91 00:05:24,360 --> 00:05:28,600 Speaker 1: that's really quickly though, So we're not in the oughts anymore? Right? 92 00:05:28,760 --> 00:05:31,120 Speaker 1: Or wait? No, what are we in now? What do 93 00:05:31,200 --> 00:05:34,840 Speaker 1: we call it the teens? Maybe? Don't I don't think 94 00:05:34,839 --> 00:05:37,680 Speaker 1: it's been coined yet. No, wait, we can't call it 95 00:05:37,720 --> 00:05:41,919 Speaker 1: the teens because that was like it's it's we're in 96 00:05:41,960 --> 00:05:46,800 Speaker 1: the twenties. This is the new twenties. Get me a 97 00:05:46,800 --> 00:05:51,120 Speaker 1: flapper dress and feed me some moonshine. Looking at the 98 00:05:51,120 --> 00:05:56,760 Speaker 1: parallels pandemic and the rory nineteen twenties. Uh, let's say 99 00:05:56,839 --> 00:05:58,960 Speaker 1: you have you have about eight or nine years to 100 00:05:59,040 --> 00:06:03,200 Speaker 1: prepare for whatever version of the thirties. Are students of history, 101 00:06:03,920 --> 00:06:09,960 Speaker 1: you will you will doubtlessly appreciate that gloom and doom. Uh, 102 00:06:10,000 --> 00:06:12,840 Speaker 1: I don't know, shout out to human tragedy and its 103 00:06:12,880 --> 00:06:16,720 Speaker 1: cyclical nature. Yeah, and in that spirit, let's look back 104 00:06:17,279 --> 00:06:20,160 Speaker 1: at the turn of the millennium and just get a 105 00:06:20,240 --> 00:06:26,640 Speaker 1: quick story from someone who called in. Could that be okay? Um? So, uh, 106 00:06:26,680 --> 00:06:31,080 Speaker 1: my brother was kind of a death deed sort of 107 00:06:31,600 --> 00:06:36,680 Speaker 1: by the CIA in the early two thousands because he 108 00:06:36,800 --> 00:06:40,960 Speaker 1: was too good at computers and so he was getting 109 00:06:41,080 --> 00:06:45,159 Speaker 1: international recognition and picked him up face, Hey, you have 110 00:06:45,320 --> 00:06:48,839 Speaker 1: to come with us, otherwise we're gonna put you into 111 00:06:48,960 --> 00:06:52,760 Speaker 1: tention because he was being national security risk and they 112 00:06:52,800 --> 00:06:56,640 Speaker 1: put him into a fold working lit on the t 113 00:06:56,920 --> 00:07:02,479 Speaker 1: i A program Total Information Earnest. I'm curious asked to 114 00:07:02,920 --> 00:07:07,680 Speaker 1: whether or not you guys has done episode on t 115 00:07:07,960 --> 00:07:11,960 Speaker 1: i A before and what happened to ask her. It 116 00:07:12,080 --> 00:07:16,640 Speaker 1: was supposedly disbanded by Congress. The entire time my brother 117 00:07:16,800 --> 00:07:21,200 Speaker 1: was working for at CIA, he could not talk to anyone, 118 00:07:21,640 --> 00:07:27,040 Speaker 1: including family or his wife for his children about what 119 00:07:27,080 --> 00:07:30,360 Speaker 1: he was doing. And then when Congress expanded that he 120 00:07:30,480 --> 00:07:34,440 Speaker 1: was able to talk to people. I'm wondering what happened 121 00:07:34,520 --> 00:07:38,080 Speaker 1: after that? Um, he was taken out of this program 122 00:07:38,120 --> 00:07:40,720 Speaker 1: and put in a different cell where he was still 123 00:07:40,760 --> 00:07:45,640 Speaker 1: doing the same information and programming that he was before that, 124 00:07:46,400 --> 00:07:48,880 Speaker 1: but it was given different names and they didn't have 125 00:07:49,120 --> 00:07:51,920 Speaker 1: access to any of the other cells. So I assume 126 00:07:52,000 --> 00:07:57,560 Speaker 1: it's just like presumed to go on under different nomenclature. 127 00:07:58,480 --> 00:08:04,880 Speaker 1: I assumed that the government's watchful eye over our doings 128 00:08:05,280 --> 00:08:10,560 Speaker 1: on the Internet as long and like to a degree 129 00:08:10,760 --> 00:08:15,480 Speaker 1: that we will never be able to comprehend as as ordinary. 130 00:08:16,160 --> 00:08:26,440 Speaker 1: Joe snow Layman pre Okay, that's perfect. Hey, hey, it's cool. 131 00:08:26,560 --> 00:08:34,040 Speaker 1: Everybody uses incognito mode on your Chrome browser. That totally works, right, Yeah, 132 00:08:34,360 --> 00:08:37,360 Speaker 1: Comcast a d T everybody, we're all good. Your internet 133 00:08:37,440 --> 00:08:43,920 Speaker 1: service provider not looking at that stuff. Yeah, so my goodness. 134 00:08:44,160 --> 00:08:46,760 Speaker 1: First of all, thank you for calling us with that 135 00:08:46,760 --> 00:08:51,880 Speaker 1: that story. UM, it's it's incredible that this saga touched 136 00:08:51,920 --> 00:08:55,120 Speaker 1: so close to home for you with your brother and 137 00:08:55,320 --> 00:09:01,720 Speaker 1: his involvement in this program that you mentioned Total information awareness. Now, 138 00:09:02,280 --> 00:09:04,640 Speaker 1: I cut out a couple of pieces of your voicemail 139 00:09:04,720 --> 00:09:06,520 Speaker 1: just so you know, and so you guys know that 140 00:09:06,640 --> 00:09:09,800 Speaker 1: I did that, UM for clarity. And one of the 141 00:09:09,840 --> 00:09:12,360 Speaker 1: things that our color was asking was whether or not 142 00:09:12,400 --> 00:09:14,920 Speaker 1: we've covered anything like this before in the past, and 143 00:09:14,960 --> 00:09:18,599 Speaker 1: we most certainly have discussed both the n s A 144 00:09:19,440 --> 00:09:24,480 Speaker 1: and their activities. We've discussed prison before, and a couple 145 00:09:24,520 --> 00:09:29,440 Speaker 1: of other information awareness programs that are both aimed externally 146 00:09:29,480 --> 00:09:32,120 Speaker 1: to the United States by the United States, as well 147 00:09:32,160 --> 00:09:34,840 Speaker 1: as programs that are in other countries that are aimed 148 00:09:34,920 --> 00:09:38,040 Speaker 1: at the United States, including Stellar Wind and couple of 149 00:09:38,040 --> 00:09:40,120 Speaker 1: other things we've talked about. But I figured this is 150 00:09:40,120 --> 00:09:42,360 Speaker 1: a great opportunity to really break some some of that 151 00:09:42,400 --> 00:09:45,800 Speaker 1: stuff down and to start back at the total Information 152 00:09:45,880 --> 00:09:50,680 Speaker 1: Awareness program that was going to be in effect. There 153 00:09:50,679 --> 00:09:53,559 Speaker 1: were there were attempts to put this program into effect, 154 00:09:53,600 --> 00:09:58,280 Speaker 1: and it did begin in fact functioning, but a name changed, 155 00:09:58,320 --> 00:10:02,400 Speaker 1: as our color mentioned is there, and you know, the 156 00:10:02,480 --> 00:10:07,360 Speaker 1: situation changed, just like what his brother experience where he 157 00:10:07,440 --> 00:10:10,520 Speaker 1: was working inside a black box somewhere on this thing 158 00:10:10,559 --> 00:10:13,160 Speaker 1: that they called total Information Awareness. Then they changed the name. 159 00:10:13,200 --> 00:10:16,120 Speaker 1: Then he moved somewhere else, essentially doing the same work. 160 00:10:16,679 --> 00:10:19,040 Speaker 1: So I'm gonna jump to an article from the a 161 00:10:19,120 --> 00:10:22,240 Speaker 1: c l U called Q and A on the Pentagon's 162 00:10:22,240 --> 00:10:27,720 Speaker 1: Total Information Awareness program. Yeah, it's it's really good, and 163 00:10:27,760 --> 00:10:29,840 Speaker 1: I'm gonna over read some of this verbatim. Some of 164 00:10:29,840 --> 00:10:31,560 Speaker 1: it you can go and check out on your own 165 00:10:31,679 --> 00:10:35,079 Speaker 1: if you wish. But if you know you're being asked 166 00:10:35,120 --> 00:10:37,040 Speaker 1: what it is, this is how the A c L 167 00:10:37,080 --> 00:10:39,800 Speaker 1: you would describe it. It's the closest thing to a 168 00:10:39,840 --> 00:10:43,760 Speaker 1: true Big Brother program that's ever been seriously contemplated within 169 00:10:43,760 --> 00:10:48,040 Speaker 1: the United States. First of all, that's saying something and yikes, 170 00:10:48,240 --> 00:10:52,680 Speaker 1: alarm bells right, um. It's what it will do, or 171 00:10:52,720 --> 00:10:55,800 Speaker 1: what it was planning on doing, was pulling together as 172 00:10:56,040 --> 00:11:00,199 Speaker 1: many different things and as many different sources of one 173 00:11:00,240 --> 00:11:05,120 Speaker 1: information that people generate every day into a huge database. 174 00:11:05,600 --> 00:11:09,720 Speaker 1: So bank transactions, things that you buy at your story, 175 00:11:09,720 --> 00:11:14,800 Speaker 1: your credit card, transactions where you go, what you search online, 176 00:11:14,920 --> 00:11:16,800 Speaker 1: all kinds of things like that. It's gonna put all 177 00:11:16,840 --> 00:11:19,840 Speaker 1: of that into a big database and then attempt to 178 00:11:20,720 --> 00:11:23,040 Speaker 1: to then go through and look through all of that 179 00:11:23,120 --> 00:11:28,240 Speaker 1: data to find terrorist activity. I'm doing air quotes here, um, 180 00:11:28,280 --> 00:11:34,000 Speaker 1: to identify possible terror terrorism leanings. These are all terrible 181 00:11:34,240 --> 00:11:37,400 Speaker 1: ways to put it, but the whole point is to 182 00:11:37,600 --> 00:11:40,800 Speaker 1: combine public and private information to see who you are 183 00:11:40,840 --> 00:11:43,680 Speaker 1: and what you do and pick out the bad guys 184 00:11:43,720 --> 00:11:48,760 Speaker 1: amongst us. Now, it was begun by DARPA, a group 185 00:11:48,760 --> 00:11:51,600 Speaker 1: that we talked about a lot, the Defense Advanced Research 186 00:11:51,640 --> 00:11:56,920 Speaker 1: Projects agency, and um, there's a guy named John Poindexter 187 00:11:57,520 --> 00:12:01,320 Speaker 1: who was I think he was a National Security advisor 188 00:12:02,120 --> 00:12:04,959 Speaker 1: at the time. I can't remember if he was the 189 00:12:04,960 --> 00:12:07,400 Speaker 1: the National Security Advisor at the time or back during 190 00:12:07,800 --> 00:12:11,040 Speaker 1: Ronald Reagan's presidency, but I know he was at one 191 00:12:11,080 --> 00:12:13,760 Speaker 1: point because he was involved in Remember the Iran contrast 192 00:12:13,800 --> 00:12:15,600 Speaker 1: scandal you ever heard of that we've talked about on 193 00:12:15,640 --> 00:12:18,360 Speaker 1: this show. He was a big part of that U 194 00:12:19,080 --> 00:12:21,120 Speaker 1: And according to the A C. L U and history, 195 00:12:21,520 --> 00:12:24,440 Speaker 1: he stated at that time, during the Iran contra scandal 196 00:12:24,559 --> 00:12:27,720 Speaker 1: that it was his duty to withhold information from Congress, 197 00:12:28,120 --> 00:12:32,120 Speaker 1: you know, for their protection, for America's protection, for national 198 00:12:32,120 --> 00:12:37,760 Speaker 1: security reasons. He literally called total information awareness a quote 199 00:12:37,800 --> 00:12:41,360 Speaker 1: Manhattan project for counter terrorism. So in his mind, the 200 00:12:41,400 --> 00:12:46,400 Speaker 1: secrecy is part of it. Well, think about it on paper. Theoretically, 201 00:12:46,880 --> 00:12:51,520 Speaker 1: gathering all that online information could could very very well 202 00:12:52,040 --> 00:12:56,280 Speaker 1: find people who are leaning towards, you know, doing something wrong. 203 00:12:56,520 --> 00:13:00,480 Speaker 1: Maybe it could, but but it also means that everybody 204 00:13:00,480 --> 00:13:03,600 Speaker 1: else gets caught up in the dragnet. And then one 205 00:13:03,800 --> 00:13:07,600 Speaker 1: one agency or multiple agencies who are sharing the information 206 00:13:07,760 --> 00:13:12,200 Speaker 1: have access to everybody. They've got literally a profile like 207 00:13:12,320 --> 00:13:16,679 Speaker 1: a like a school what is it the school record 208 00:13:16,840 --> 00:13:21,160 Speaker 1: that you are always permanent record, permanent record. Everybody's got one, 209 00:13:21,640 --> 00:13:24,040 Speaker 1: and you know used to be only the worst, the 210 00:13:24,080 --> 00:13:27,760 Speaker 1: worst people had their FBI Dossie Hayes or whatever a 211 00:13:27,760 --> 00:13:33,360 Speaker 1: file on them. Exactly, thank you. UM. But you know, 212 00:13:33,440 --> 00:13:37,520 Speaker 1: now through this program in the early two thousands, every 213 00:13:37,559 --> 00:13:42,240 Speaker 1: every American citizen would have one UM and this thing, 214 00:13:43,840 --> 00:13:46,360 Speaker 1: this thing was put of, This was put into a bill. 215 00:13:46,800 --> 00:13:50,760 Speaker 1: I believe it was the Homeland not the Homeland Security Act. Uh. Yeah, 216 00:13:50,800 --> 00:13:53,720 Speaker 1: it was the Homeland Security Act that this the t 217 00:13:53,840 --> 00:13:57,120 Speaker 1: i A was put into. And eventually it was taken 218 00:13:57,160 --> 00:14:00,319 Speaker 1: out because there were so much you know, negative sponse 219 00:14:00,360 --> 00:14:03,320 Speaker 1: towards this. Obviously, if you're thinking person, this feels like 220 00:14:03,360 --> 00:14:08,760 Speaker 1: an overstep and overreach. UM. And, as our caller said, 221 00:14:09,160 --> 00:14:13,560 Speaker 1: didn't necessarily go away. It kind of changed names as 222 00:14:13,920 --> 00:14:18,480 Speaker 1: as new UM security acts went through Congress and through 223 00:14:18,520 --> 00:14:23,400 Speaker 1: the White House, this kind of gathering of information continued, 224 00:14:23,880 --> 00:14:26,720 Speaker 1: and then we found out through Edwards Snowden and several 225 00:14:26,760 --> 00:14:30,720 Speaker 1: other whistleblowers that this thing was very much alive, you know, 226 00:14:30,760 --> 00:14:34,160 Speaker 1: two thousand, seven, thousand eight and onwards. Yeah, it's a 227 00:14:34,240 --> 00:14:38,960 Speaker 1: it's a dragnet that never ends, and it has no um, 228 00:14:39,000 --> 00:14:42,960 Speaker 1: it has no constraints in terms of length of time 229 00:14:43,200 --> 00:14:46,480 Speaker 1: of observation. Right, there's no there's nothing in there that 230 00:14:46,520 --> 00:14:48,920 Speaker 1: says we can only watch people from nine to five 231 00:14:49,320 --> 00:14:51,560 Speaker 1: Monday through Friday. I gotta give you, guys problems for 232 00:14:51,640 --> 00:14:53,760 Speaker 1: using the word dragnet. I don't hear that used in 233 00:14:54,040 --> 00:14:57,040 Speaker 1: regular conversation very much. It's a great word. But yeah, 234 00:14:57,120 --> 00:15:00,520 Speaker 1: I'm kudos to for bringing it back. It's a great vision, ull, Right. 235 00:15:01,120 --> 00:15:04,040 Speaker 1: If you imagine that you're fishing, that's literally what this is. 236 00:15:04,240 --> 00:15:08,720 Speaker 1: You just everything gets like dragging the lake, you know, 237 00:15:08,840 --> 00:15:12,200 Speaker 1: looking for a body. Uh. And I'm gonna read really 238 00:15:12,280 --> 00:15:15,520 Speaker 1: quickly to you guys from a New York Times opinion 239 00:15:15,680 --> 00:15:21,560 Speaker 1: piece written by William Sapphire maybe s A or sefury 240 00:15:21,320 --> 00:15:24,120 Speaker 1: U s A f I R E. It's from November fourteenth, 241 00:15:24,200 --> 00:15:28,200 Speaker 1: two thousand two. And this is what what he stated 242 00:15:28,600 --> 00:15:31,520 Speaker 1: if the Homeland Security Act is not amended before passage, 243 00:15:31,800 --> 00:15:33,960 Speaker 1: that this is when the t I A was in there. 244 00:15:34,320 --> 00:15:37,320 Speaker 1: Here's what will happen to you. Every purchase you make 245 00:15:37,360 --> 00:15:40,400 Speaker 1: with a credit card, every magazine subscription you buy, and 246 00:15:40,560 --> 00:15:43,960 Speaker 1: medical prescription you fill, every website you visit, an email 247 00:15:44,000 --> 00:15:47,480 Speaker 1: you send or receive, every academic grade you receive, every 248 00:15:47,480 --> 00:15:50,200 Speaker 1: bank deposit you make, every trip you book, and every 249 00:15:50,240 --> 00:15:54,240 Speaker 1: event you attend. All these transactions and communications will go 250 00:15:54,280 --> 00:15:58,280 Speaker 1: into what the Defense Department describes as a virtual centralized 251 00:15:58,360 --> 00:16:03,600 Speaker 1: grand database. Um. Just to really put that, when it 252 00:16:03,600 --> 00:16:06,000 Speaker 1: when it's combined like that in one long list, it 253 00:16:06,120 --> 00:16:12,200 Speaker 1: just feels so icky. It should feel like. The crazy 254 00:16:12,240 --> 00:16:15,000 Speaker 1: thing is this isn't the only one, right, this isn't 255 00:16:15,040 --> 00:16:18,360 Speaker 1: the only fish of its fin in the sea. Uh. 256 00:16:18,400 --> 00:16:23,360 Speaker 1: And there's also from what I understand, it's not only 257 00:16:23,520 --> 00:16:28,280 Speaker 1: increasingly easy to create something like this, but it's increasingly 258 00:16:28,400 --> 00:16:34,440 Speaker 1: difficult for the average Jane or John citizen to fight 259 00:16:34,480 --> 00:16:37,840 Speaker 1: against it, to opt out, you know, and and not 260 00:16:37,920 --> 00:16:41,040 Speaker 1: to not to dump too hard on the US. If 261 00:16:41,080 --> 00:16:44,640 Speaker 1: you don't think that other countries are doing this, if 262 00:16:44,680 --> 00:16:47,200 Speaker 1: you don't think your country is doing this, you are 263 00:16:47,240 --> 00:16:52,560 Speaker 1: being willfully naive. I was just I was just listening 264 00:16:52,600 --> 00:16:57,080 Speaker 1: to some of the recent news and research about sesame credit, 265 00:16:57,520 --> 00:17:02,480 Speaker 1: particularly inspired by the rumors about the disappearance of the 266 00:17:02,680 --> 00:17:08,360 Speaker 1: Chinese billionaire ma I say, rumors about his disappearance. Uh. 267 00:17:08,400 --> 00:17:10,840 Speaker 1: And then I learned some really disturbing things, not just 268 00:17:10,920 --> 00:17:15,879 Speaker 1: about sesame credit, but about how so much control over 269 00:17:16,440 --> 00:17:20,719 Speaker 1: user generated internet forums like Reddit, so much of that 270 00:17:20,800 --> 00:17:25,600 Speaker 1: stuff is coming from a single US Air Force space. No, 271 00:17:26,280 --> 00:17:28,840 Speaker 1: a lot of it. A lot of it was uh 272 00:17:28,920 --> 00:17:31,280 Speaker 1: and I can send you guys the links. But I 273 00:17:31,640 --> 00:17:36,720 Speaker 1: think we have this illusion of safety or privacy, and 274 00:17:36,760 --> 00:17:39,480 Speaker 1: privacy as we understand it, We've said it before, didn't 275 00:17:39,520 --> 00:17:43,600 Speaker 1: really exist for a long long time. You know, like 276 00:17:43,680 --> 00:17:47,720 Speaker 1: in ah in days of your way, before the internet, 277 00:17:47,760 --> 00:17:51,280 Speaker 1: way before radio, way before television. Uh, they still didn't 278 00:17:51,280 --> 00:17:54,399 Speaker 1: have what you might consider privacy today. People were living 279 00:17:54,440 --> 00:17:58,680 Speaker 1: with their entire families in a single room on the farm, 280 00:17:58,800 --> 00:18:01,240 Speaker 1: and you could hear what your parents were up to 281 00:18:01,400 --> 00:18:05,000 Speaker 1: at night. That's stuff very private. Uh. So I think 282 00:18:05,040 --> 00:18:09,479 Speaker 1: we're fooling ourselves when we have this idealized version of privacy. 283 00:18:09,520 --> 00:18:12,040 Speaker 1: But I think we're also fooling ourselves if we say 284 00:18:12,080 --> 00:18:16,600 Speaker 1: it's worth it to catch a potential terrorists it's about control. 285 00:18:16,880 --> 00:18:19,800 Speaker 1: I think, well, it is about it is about control. 286 00:18:20,119 --> 00:18:23,000 Speaker 1: I I would just say, you know, the feeling of 287 00:18:23,040 --> 00:18:26,720 Speaker 1: privacy was just a little a little different. I would say, um, 288 00:18:26,800 --> 00:18:28,960 Speaker 1: and maybe it is all well that we pulled over 289 00:18:29,000 --> 00:18:32,600 Speaker 1: our own eyes in in belief that such a thing exists. 290 00:18:32,960 --> 00:18:36,640 Speaker 1: But it certainly felt different in the fifties sixties prior 291 00:18:36,760 --> 00:18:40,000 Speaker 1: to that, when you know that the communication that you're 292 00:18:40,040 --> 00:18:44,520 Speaker 1: having with someone that is far away with especi communication 293 00:18:44,560 --> 00:18:48,440 Speaker 1: is probably one of the most vital things. Transactions are occurring, 294 00:18:48,920 --> 00:18:51,399 Speaker 1: if you're making them at a local bank right or 295 00:18:51,480 --> 00:18:54,440 Speaker 1: through a check the scent, through the mail system. I'm 296 00:18:54,480 --> 00:18:57,480 Speaker 1: just trying to think of other things electronic communications happening 297 00:18:57,480 --> 00:19:01,040 Speaker 1: over a phone, that's really it. Well, I mean, Matt, 298 00:19:01,080 --> 00:19:03,520 Speaker 1: do you think the expectation of privacy is just a 299 00:19:03,600 --> 00:19:05,879 Speaker 1: thing of the past, Like, I mean, everybody knows that 300 00:19:05,920 --> 00:19:07,800 Speaker 1: if you're banking or if you're like you know how 301 00:19:07,840 --> 00:19:10,919 Speaker 1: certain records are publicly available or whatever, and there's no 302 00:19:10,960 --> 00:19:13,520 Speaker 1: expectation of privacy in that, um, you know, to keep 303 00:19:13,520 --> 00:19:15,840 Speaker 1: people honest, I guess, but you know, with things like 304 00:19:15,920 --> 00:19:19,120 Speaker 1: phone calls or the mail or whatever, Like, there's been 305 00:19:19,119 --> 00:19:21,960 Speaker 1: this sort of kind of waning sense of like, oh, 306 00:19:22,040 --> 00:19:24,399 Speaker 1: I have the right to privacy. But do you think 307 00:19:24,440 --> 00:19:26,560 Speaker 1: there's gonna be a new generation where that's just not 308 00:19:26,640 --> 00:19:29,439 Speaker 1: on people's minds anymore and people just understand that if 309 00:19:29,440 --> 00:19:32,280 Speaker 1: they're communicating that it's it's it's pretty much fair game 310 00:19:32,320 --> 00:19:37,120 Speaker 1: that someone's listening. Yeah, Ben, And I'll let you continue 311 00:19:37,119 --> 00:19:38,840 Speaker 1: with this, but I would just point out in the 312 00:19:38,920 --> 00:19:42,240 Speaker 1: nineties seventies you had programs like Echelon that we've talked 313 00:19:42,240 --> 00:19:46,440 Speaker 1: about before. UM Promise software came out around that time. 314 00:19:47,200 --> 00:19:49,240 Speaker 1: I don't know if we've talked about bal Ernie, but 315 00:19:49,359 --> 00:19:52,119 Speaker 1: I know we hit a couple of these other programs 316 00:19:52,119 --> 00:19:54,880 Speaker 1: so that we're meant to pull in any and all 317 00:19:55,119 --> 00:20:00,679 Speaker 1: electronic communications. And they've been doing that for a long time. UM. 318 00:20:00,760 --> 00:20:05,280 Speaker 1: So now now that we know about Stellar Wind, and 319 00:20:05,320 --> 00:20:10,200 Speaker 1: we know about PRISM, we know about all these newer programs. Uh. Yeah, 320 00:20:10,240 --> 00:20:13,679 Speaker 1: I think privacy at least to the upper echelons of 321 00:20:13,720 --> 00:20:16,879 Speaker 1: the intelligence agencies within the United States if you're a 322 00:20:16,880 --> 00:20:19,920 Speaker 1: citizen here UM as well if you're a citizen anywhere 323 00:20:19,920 --> 00:20:23,639 Speaker 1: else on the planet. UM, I think our expectation of 324 00:20:23,640 --> 00:20:27,919 Speaker 1: privacy to them is gone. And also and also to 325 00:20:28,119 --> 00:20:34,000 Speaker 1: telecom agencies. Are companies, conglomerates whatever, um E Corp. And 326 00:20:34,040 --> 00:20:36,600 Speaker 1: F Corp. And whichever other corps. They've got it all 327 00:20:37,000 --> 00:20:39,480 Speaker 1: because we do it all through their services, and we 328 00:20:39,480 --> 00:20:43,080 Speaker 1: we pay them for it. Yeah, and every cup, like 329 00:20:43,119 --> 00:20:46,080 Speaker 1: if that's a service, every cup we buy has these 330 00:20:46,119 --> 00:20:48,520 Speaker 1: holes in it. You know what I mean. It's a 331 00:20:48,640 --> 00:20:51,960 Speaker 1: leaky cup because there's no expectation that your cup will 332 00:20:52,000 --> 00:20:54,919 Speaker 1: hold your liquid anymore. It's a sieve. And you know 333 00:20:55,000 --> 00:20:57,840 Speaker 1: we didn't. We didn't start today's episode planning to do 334 00:20:57,920 --> 00:21:01,520 Speaker 1: prop comedy. That was just Bob Ross happy accident. But 335 00:21:02,119 --> 00:21:05,119 Speaker 1: you're right. I would advance though that they're they're a 336 00:21:05,160 --> 00:21:08,320 Speaker 1: couple of other dangers here too, that the a c 337 00:21:08,480 --> 00:21:13,080 Speaker 1: L you clearly outlines, right, and uh, the first, it's 338 00:21:13,160 --> 00:21:17,679 Speaker 1: much easier for a government agency of any government to 339 00:21:17,760 --> 00:21:20,280 Speaker 1: do this kind of thing now because you don't have 340 00:21:20,359 --> 00:21:23,080 Speaker 1: to build the infrastructure. You just have to buddy up 341 00:21:23,119 --> 00:21:26,119 Speaker 1: with a telecom that already has it and say send 342 00:21:26,200 --> 00:21:29,199 Speaker 1: me your stuff, and you can make a law that 343 00:21:29,240 --> 00:21:31,760 Speaker 1: says they have to do so. And it's gonna be 344 00:21:31,840 --> 00:21:34,720 Speaker 1: hidden somewhere. It's gonna be very difficult for other citizens 345 00:21:34,720 --> 00:21:37,160 Speaker 1: to care about it, right because who has the time. 346 00:21:37,359 --> 00:21:41,399 Speaker 1: I gotta get back to clubhouse and TikTok. I would 347 00:21:41,440 --> 00:21:43,679 Speaker 1: love a clubhouse invite if someone wants to send us 348 00:21:43,760 --> 00:21:46,160 Speaker 1: a clubhouse. Has that a beta situation I just heard 349 00:21:46,160 --> 00:21:48,639 Speaker 1: about this today. It's like an audio based social media 350 00:21:48,760 --> 00:21:51,360 Speaker 1: kind of right. Yeah, yeah, A lot of a lot 351 00:21:51,400 --> 00:21:54,760 Speaker 1: of listeners have reached out to me and maybe to 352 00:21:54,840 --> 00:21:58,440 Speaker 1: you guys as well, saying, hey, why are you on Clubhouse? 353 00:21:58,480 --> 00:22:00,840 Speaker 1: Are you guys gonna do something on club abouts, to 354 00:22:00,920 --> 00:22:03,520 Speaker 1: which the responses I guess, just send us an invite. 355 00:22:04,000 --> 00:22:06,600 Speaker 1: It's still kind of you know, the way that Facebook 356 00:22:06,640 --> 00:22:10,439 Speaker 1: originally was invite only and one had to go to 357 00:22:10,520 --> 00:22:13,720 Speaker 1: a specific series of schools. I'm really glad that you 358 00:22:13,760 --> 00:22:19,000 Speaker 1: brought Facebook up. Yes, yes, because I've I've got another 359 00:22:19,080 --> 00:22:22,439 Speaker 1: danger for you too, and it's very much related to it. Okay, 360 00:22:22,520 --> 00:22:25,479 Speaker 1: maybe this, maybe this sets you up even better. So, uh, 361 00:22:26,080 --> 00:22:30,679 Speaker 1: people who are in the realm of technology and ethics 362 00:22:30,720 --> 00:22:34,080 Speaker 1: and the dangers of social media are doubtlessly familiar with 363 00:22:34,600 --> 00:22:37,920 Speaker 1: the kind of one of the fathers of virtual reality, 364 00:22:38,040 --> 00:22:41,199 Speaker 1: Jarren Lanier. He I think he may have appeared on 365 00:22:41,280 --> 00:22:44,280 Speaker 1: Social Dilemma. I can't remember, but he speaks widely about 366 00:22:44,960 --> 00:22:47,840 Speaker 1: the dangers of social media. And I proposed to you 367 00:22:47,840 --> 00:22:52,679 Speaker 1: guys that these are these are inextricably linked with total 368 00:22:52,760 --> 00:22:58,560 Speaker 1: information awareness type programs, because look, so far, what we've 369 00:22:58,600 --> 00:23:02,399 Speaker 1: been talking about is the idea that t I A 370 00:23:02,680 --> 00:23:06,080 Speaker 1: type stuff. These things are known as sig ads I 371 00:23:06,119 --> 00:23:12,600 Speaker 1: believe right, these signal intelligence collection dragnet things they are. 372 00:23:13,119 --> 00:23:19,400 Speaker 1: They're presented to us as passive monitoring programs, right, monitoring 373 00:23:19,560 --> 00:23:24,600 Speaker 1: and analyzing data points and then trying to prevent crime. 374 00:23:25,119 --> 00:23:28,800 Speaker 1: But what we have to remember is that when social 375 00:23:28,840 --> 00:23:34,960 Speaker 1: media emerges, there's also a huge amount of research put in, brilliant, 376 00:23:35,160 --> 00:23:40,760 Speaker 1: if evil research put into changing people's behavior. You are 377 00:23:40,880 --> 00:23:44,880 Speaker 1: part of a behavioral experiment every time you log on 378 00:23:45,160 --> 00:23:48,760 Speaker 1: to Twitter, to Instagram, to Facebook, anything like that. You 379 00:23:48,800 --> 00:23:52,119 Speaker 1: know what I mean, because there are different parties that 380 00:23:52,160 --> 00:23:57,720 Speaker 1: are gathering your habits and they want to please their advertisers, right, 381 00:23:58,040 --> 00:24:02,800 Speaker 1: so they can grad trually push you toward something and 382 00:24:02,920 --> 00:24:05,479 Speaker 1: you will not be aware that your behavior is changing 383 00:24:05,600 --> 00:24:09,399 Speaker 1: unless you were very um, very I I don't know, 384 00:24:09,600 --> 00:24:13,520 Speaker 1: very paranoid about it, constantly questioning why you believe something 385 00:24:13,600 --> 00:24:16,080 Speaker 1: or where that belief came from. So I think Jaron 386 00:24:16,320 --> 00:24:18,639 Speaker 1: Lanier is right, and I think it ties into this. 387 00:24:19,080 --> 00:24:23,000 Speaker 1: I'm setting up a world where it's possible. In this conversation, 388 00:24:23,000 --> 00:24:25,879 Speaker 1: we're saying up a world where it's possible for someone 389 00:24:25,960 --> 00:24:29,040 Speaker 1: in charge of a CIGAD to do the same thing 390 00:24:29,119 --> 00:24:33,119 Speaker 1: the FBI did when they were trying to radicalize members 391 00:24:33,119 --> 00:24:35,840 Speaker 1: of the Islamic faith. You know, when the FBI tried 392 00:24:35,880 --> 00:24:39,320 Speaker 1: to manufacture terrorists that really happened, And with stuff like this, 393 00:24:39,400 --> 00:24:41,400 Speaker 1: I'm not saying this happened yet, but with stuff like this, 394 00:24:41,920 --> 00:24:44,640 Speaker 1: it is feasible that they can do. So there you go. 395 00:24:45,760 --> 00:24:49,399 Speaker 1: Sorry's stepping off the soapbox here, but I want to 396 00:24:49,440 --> 00:24:52,480 Speaker 1: give some dates and bring it back to Facebook. So 397 00:24:52,960 --> 00:24:56,960 Speaker 1: in two thousand three two, well really throughout the two 398 00:24:56,960 --> 00:25:01,520 Speaker 1: thousand's and after September eleven, two thousand one, UH, a 399 00:25:01,680 --> 00:25:05,359 Speaker 1: type of dragnet program like t i A was in development. 400 00:25:05,560 --> 00:25:09,000 Speaker 1: The thought of it being created was there, and it 401 00:25:09,040 --> 00:25:12,200 Speaker 1: needed to get approved by Congress. You know, I told 402 00:25:12,200 --> 00:25:15,040 Speaker 1: you it went through that Homeland Security Act and it 403 00:25:15,119 --> 00:25:17,960 Speaker 1: was a part of it, but it was struck down. 404 00:25:18,119 --> 00:25:21,720 Speaker 1: In two thousand three, Congress officially cut off funding to 405 00:25:21,880 --> 00:25:24,880 Speaker 1: this program. UH. I think it was called the Information 406 00:25:24,880 --> 00:25:29,000 Speaker 1: Awareness Office, Correct me if I'm wrong there. Now you 407 00:25:29,040 --> 00:25:31,920 Speaker 1: know it was in development in two thousand three, Facebook 408 00:25:32,040 --> 00:25:36,119 Speaker 1: the Facebook, and in two thousand four, in February, the 409 00:25:36,240 --> 00:25:41,800 Speaker 1: Facebook launched. Now instead of some government dragnet going through 410 00:25:41,840 --> 00:25:44,520 Speaker 1: and picking up where you go, where you eat, how 411 00:25:44,560 --> 00:25:46,920 Speaker 1: you know who your friends are, with whom you interact, 412 00:25:47,000 --> 00:25:50,120 Speaker 1: what you do on a regular basis. At that time, 413 00:25:50,160 --> 00:25:52,680 Speaker 1: I don't think they were taking your billing information or 414 00:25:52,760 --> 00:25:58,240 Speaker 1: collecting data about spending early on in Facebook's career, but 415 00:25:59,160 --> 00:26:02,120 Speaker 1: they were collecting almost all of the information that these 416 00:26:02,200 --> 00:26:08,199 Speaker 1: dragnets were pulling from UM. And we were users began 417 00:26:08,359 --> 00:26:12,400 Speaker 1: in droves to give willingly their information to this other 418 00:26:13,240 --> 00:26:16,119 Speaker 1: weird system that didn't need a dragnet, it just needed 419 00:26:16,280 --> 00:26:18,199 Speaker 1: it needed a box in which you could place all 420 00:26:18,240 --> 00:26:21,360 Speaker 1: that stuff and then send out to somebody. And it's 421 00:26:21,400 --> 00:26:25,480 Speaker 1: really interesting just to see that even though Congress, via 422 00:26:25,560 --> 00:26:28,320 Speaker 1: the representatives of the citizens of this country, decided that 423 00:26:28,359 --> 00:26:31,159 Speaker 1: this was a bad idea to give all of this 424 00:26:31,240 --> 00:26:33,919 Speaker 1: information away, to pull in all of this information and 425 00:26:34,000 --> 00:26:38,320 Speaker 1: keep it all track it all, we chose as individuals 426 00:26:38,520 --> 00:26:43,840 Speaker 1: collectively to give almost all of that away willingly. And 427 00:26:44,400 --> 00:26:47,080 Speaker 1: we give away our bank information or credit card information 428 00:26:47,119 --> 00:26:49,879 Speaker 1: to third parties through apps all the time. We do 429 00:26:50,000 --> 00:26:52,399 Speaker 1: that all the time. I wouldn't do anything nefarious with it. 430 00:26:52,440 --> 00:26:56,639 Speaker 1: I mean, it's all encrypted, right, that's it's all trustworthy. 431 00:26:56,720 --> 00:26:59,639 Speaker 1: In the end, it's weird. It's data points. It doesn't 432 00:26:59,720 --> 00:27:02,960 Speaker 1: matter if anyone or some company or some app has 433 00:27:03,040 --> 00:27:05,439 Speaker 1: access to exactly what you spent your money on and 434 00:27:05,480 --> 00:27:09,600 Speaker 1: where they you know, the meta data within that information 435 00:27:09,640 --> 00:27:11,960 Speaker 1: is sometimes more powerful. Yeah, it paints a picture of 436 00:27:11,960 --> 00:27:16,399 Speaker 1: a person then then then can be bought and sold persona. 437 00:27:16,560 --> 00:27:19,520 Speaker 1: It's literally called that in marketing. UH. It can also 438 00:27:19,640 --> 00:27:23,320 Speaker 1: be used to um. It can be used in a 439 00:27:23,320 --> 00:27:26,439 Speaker 1: lot of sticky ways, like the dystopian version of this. 440 00:27:26,600 --> 00:27:29,879 Speaker 1: The closest we have to a dystopian version that is 441 00:27:30,000 --> 00:27:33,919 Speaker 1: real now is what's sometimes called sesame credit or sema 442 00:27:33,960 --> 00:27:39,840 Speaker 1: credit in UH in China, and recently the public has 443 00:27:40,000 --> 00:27:42,960 Speaker 1: grown very concerned there because we called it. We said, 444 00:27:43,000 --> 00:27:45,280 Speaker 1: it's not always going to be opt in. Now there's 445 00:27:45,320 --> 00:27:49,480 Speaker 1: another version that's for corporations. Recently, I think just a 446 00:27:49,480 --> 00:27:53,520 Speaker 1: few weeks ago, a nine year old girl was found 447 00:27:53,640 --> 00:27:58,800 Speaker 1: liable by court for her dead father's debts and she 448 00:27:58,920 --> 00:28:02,360 Speaker 1: was punished under in a social credit system because she 449 00:28:02,359 --> 00:28:07,120 Speaker 1: couldn't pay those debts because you know, she's nine. So 450 00:28:08,280 --> 00:28:10,880 Speaker 1: this has this has sparked a little bit of public outcry. 451 00:28:10,960 --> 00:28:14,680 Speaker 1: But the proverbial horse may have already left the barn here. 452 00:28:14,880 --> 00:28:18,960 Speaker 1: And the problem is that the advantages of a surveillance 453 00:28:19,000 --> 00:28:22,360 Speaker 1: state for anybody wants to maintain the status quo. That's 454 00:28:22,400 --> 00:28:26,680 Speaker 1: ultimately what we're talking about. Preventing terrorism, sure, but also 455 00:28:26,720 --> 00:28:32,600 Speaker 1: preventing dissident activity, right and and no freethink right, none 456 00:28:32,640 --> 00:28:35,560 Speaker 1: of that. Uh. And then also you can imagine this, 457 00:28:35,680 --> 00:28:40,960 Speaker 1: imagine the insider trading capabilities you have with this. You're 458 00:28:41,000 --> 00:28:46,440 Speaker 1: you're one of the government heads of this program. How 459 00:28:46,520 --> 00:28:49,440 Speaker 1: far away are we from a world where you can say, 460 00:28:50,040 --> 00:28:54,280 Speaker 1: I have a lot of stock in uh l A lights. 461 00:28:54,600 --> 00:28:56,600 Speaker 1: Those are the shoes that light up right, and you walk, 462 00:28:56,880 --> 00:28:58,520 Speaker 1: I have a lot of stock in l A lights. 463 00:28:58,640 --> 00:29:01,640 Speaker 1: Let's just let's bring those back. Let's bring back l 464 00:29:01,680 --> 00:29:04,080 Speaker 1: A lights. And then you just fiddle some gears. You 465 00:29:04,120 --> 00:29:07,920 Speaker 1: got some science noise going on the background, booperoooo, and 466 00:29:07,960 --> 00:29:10,960 Speaker 1: the likes start pouring in and the ads start selling, 467 00:29:11,400 --> 00:29:14,400 Speaker 1: and then you are in l A light the bloomin 468 00:29:14,480 --> 00:29:17,680 Speaker 1: ear that's too much. You're nell A Lights tycoon, It's possible. 469 00:29:18,000 --> 00:29:23,480 Speaker 1: Or you know, you have a lot of stock in Microsoft, Yahoo, Google, Facebook, YouTube, 470 00:29:23,640 --> 00:29:27,000 Speaker 1: a O L Skype, Apple, and you're just you know, 471 00:29:27,560 --> 00:29:31,040 Speaker 1: because those companies are working directly or we're working directly 472 00:29:31,160 --> 00:29:36,400 Speaker 1: with the PRISM program. That was just siphoning information off 473 00:29:36,480 --> 00:29:40,560 Speaker 1: to the n s A. So yeehaw. I'm pretty sure 474 00:29:40,600 --> 00:29:43,120 Speaker 1: you could trade your butt off if you had all 475 00:29:43,160 --> 00:29:47,320 Speaker 1: that info. Yuck. Hey guys, Um, there's more to talk 476 00:29:47,360 --> 00:29:49,640 Speaker 1: about here, but I think we should move on. Is 477 00:29:49,680 --> 00:29:53,080 Speaker 1: that all right? I think it's the only uh sane 478 00:29:53,440 --> 00:29:56,600 Speaker 1: solution for the moment. Yes, it's the new year. It's 479 00:29:56,640 --> 00:29:59,200 Speaker 1: the new year. The government's still taking all your stuff 480 00:29:59,440 --> 00:30:01,160 Speaker 1: keeping up the wait you mean you mean you mean 481 00:30:01,240 --> 00:30:04,440 Speaker 1: flipping over to one didn't just like solve all our problems. 482 00:30:04,560 --> 00:30:07,680 Speaker 1: That's the bummer. It's all good, it's all good. But hey, 483 00:30:07,880 --> 00:30:10,800 Speaker 1: thank you so much anonymous person who told us that 484 00:30:10,920 --> 00:30:14,360 Speaker 1: cool story and made this discussion happen. We hope you 485 00:30:14,440 --> 00:30:16,960 Speaker 1: enjoyed that, and uh, we will see you all after 486 00:30:17,000 --> 00:30:26,640 Speaker 1: this quick word from our sponsor. All right, and we're back, 487 00:30:27,080 --> 00:30:30,800 Speaker 1: um with a slightly more offbeat story, a little bit 488 00:30:30,880 --> 00:30:35,160 Speaker 1: less of a you know, Dystopian nine four on steroids 489 00:30:35,240 --> 00:30:39,440 Speaker 1: kind of situation that Matt's story painted a pretty very 490 00:30:39,520 --> 00:30:42,760 Speaker 1: vivid picture of. It's important stuff to know, but good lord, 491 00:30:43,480 --> 00:30:46,040 Speaker 1: sometimes I just feel like we're like fighting against the current, 492 00:30:46,080 --> 00:30:49,320 Speaker 1: you know what I mean, Like, my goodness, gracious. But 493 00:30:49,520 --> 00:30:53,760 Speaker 1: here's the thing. All of these dystopian ideations that I 494 00:30:53,760 --> 00:30:56,720 Speaker 1: think we're all subject to now, they can bring about 495 00:30:56,800 --> 00:31:01,600 Speaker 1: some pretty serious mental struggles. I think we've all experienced 496 00:31:01,600 --> 00:31:04,560 Speaker 1: it during COVID and during being isolated, and you know, 497 00:31:04,600 --> 00:31:07,680 Speaker 1: things like anxiety and depression are on the rise. And 498 00:31:07,880 --> 00:31:11,360 Speaker 1: certainly these are things that one can be predisposed to, UM, 499 00:31:11,440 --> 00:31:14,080 Speaker 1: but it's also something that your environment can just kind 500 00:31:14,080 --> 00:31:17,120 Speaker 1: of bring bring on, or just your circumstances. And I 501 00:31:17,120 --> 00:31:19,680 Speaker 1: think we've all been been struggling in our own ways 502 00:31:19,760 --> 00:31:24,600 Speaker 1: with the circumstances dumped on us. UM. But there's good news, 503 00:31:24,880 --> 00:31:29,680 Speaker 1: my friends. There's good news because there are some substances 504 00:31:29,720 --> 00:31:34,800 Speaker 1: that have in the past been highly regulated, outlawed, and 505 00:31:34,920 --> 00:31:39,360 Speaker 1: maligned that are kind of seeing a new a new day, UM, 506 00:31:39,680 --> 00:31:43,160 Speaker 1: a new future where they could potentially be used legally 507 00:31:43,480 --> 00:31:45,040 Speaker 1: to help us with some of these things that I'm 508 00:31:45,040 --> 00:31:47,520 Speaker 1: talking about. And to hear about that, we will hear 509 00:31:47,640 --> 00:31:51,040 Speaker 1: the experience of a listener named Steve who called in 510 00:31:51,080 --> 00:31:53,640 Speaker 1: to tell us his story. He guys, I just wanted 511 00:31:53,680 --> 00:31:56,240 Speaker 1: to call and been calling a lot lately, but UM, 512 00:31:56,240 --> 00:31:59,040 Speaker 1: This is Steve from Denver, and I just wanted to 513 00:31:59,040 --> 00:32:01,280 Speaker 1: call to talk about solocybin. It's been a while since 514 00:32:01,280 --> 00:32:04,760 Speaker 1: I've heard something about it from you guys. Um. I 515 00:32:04,800 --> 00:32:08,360 Speaker 1: was straight edge for my whole life, literally never did anything, 516 00:32:09,240 --> 00:32:12,440 Speaker 1: and then when I was about forty, depression was hitting 517 00:32:12,480 --> 00:32:15,680 Speaker 1: me so hot. I didn't want to do pharmaceuticals or 518 00:32:15,720 --> 00:32:19,000 Speaker 1: any of that junk. And so after fifteen years and 519 00:32:19,160 --> 00:32:23,160 Speaker 1: looking into UH psychedelics and and such, I decided I 520 00:32:23,160 --> 00:32:24,960 Speaker 1: was going to try and mushrooms as a remedy to 521 00:32:25,000 --> 00:32:28,880 Speaker 1: my depression and anxiety. And it worked. My first trip 522 00:32:29,080 --> 00:32:32,479 Speaker 1: was pretty incredible, and my wife and I took our 523 00:32:32,480 --> 00:32:36,080 Speaker 1: first trip together, and nothing but positive stuff about it. 524 00:32:37,080 --> 00:32:39,160 Speaker 1: Since then, it's every two to three months, I would 525 00:32:39,200 --> 00:32:41,000 Speaker 1: say that I need some kind of a reset. I 526 00:32:41,000 --> 00:32:44,280 Speaker 1: don't micro dose. I do a lot of psilocybin at once, 527 00:32:44,320 --> 00:32:47,000 Speaker 1: and I basically go out of space and fight my 528 00:32:47,040 --> 00:32:50,360 Speaker 1: demons while riding a rocket made of UH drugs. I 529 00:32:50,440 --> 00:32:54,360 Speaker 1: guess anyway it works for me. I'd be interested in 530 00:32:54,360 --> 00:32:57,360 Speaker 1: you guys taking a new look at the new outlook 531 00:32:57,400 --> 00:33:00,520 Speaker 1: on psilocybin and other drugs as to treat action and 532 00:33:00,560 --> 00:33:05,600 Speaker 1: depression and things of that nature. Thanks for the show, Steve. 533 00:33:05,680 --> 00:33:08,080 Speaker 1: I was really hoping you were gonna say a rocket 534 00:33:08,200 --> 00:33:11,560 Speaker 1: made of unicorn tears or or something like that. But 535 00:33:11,720 --> 00:33:15,480 Speaker 1: drugs is also fine. That's the thing, this idea of drugs, 536 00:33:15,520 --> 00:33:17,760 Speaker 1: you know, the war on drugs, and the idea of 537 00:33:17,840 --> 00:33:21,760 Speaker 1: drugs being something that is maligned and and treated with 538 00:33:22,320 --> 00:33:25,240 Speaker 1: uh disdain by the powers that be, and the idea 539 00:33:25,320 --> 00:33:28,920 Speaker 1: that like, you know, substances that grow naturally from the 540 00:33:28,960 --> 00:33:32,960 Speaker 1: earth should be uprooted and regulated and kept from people. 541 00:33:33,200 --> 00:33:37,040 Speaker 1: And um, there's a really fantastic documentary called, I think 542 00:33:37,040 --> 00:33:40,160 Speaker 1: it's literally called Fantastic Fun Guy that just came out 543 00:33:40,240 --> 00:33:42,600 Speaker 1: that um, I've only seen a little bit of and 544 00:33:42,640 --> 00:33:44,040 Speaker 1: I can't wait to watch the whole thing. But it 545 00:33:44,080 --> 00:33:47,400 Speaker 1: goes into a lot of the new uses for psilocybin 546 00:33:47,560 --> 00:33:49,320 Speaker 1: that that Steve was talking about and that we've talked 547 00:33:49,320 --> 00:33:51,080 Speaker 1: about on the show in the past, and that we 548 00:33:51,120 --> 00:33:53,240 Speaker 1: actually have an updepth coming episode we're gonna go into 549 00:33:53,240 --> 00:33:55,800 Speaker 1: it a little deeper. But um, I think we can 550 00:33:55,840 --> 00:33:59,280 Speaker 1: stick for the purposes of this um conversation maybe to 551 00:33:59,360 --> 00:34:01,640 Speaker 1: just the way that tied is turned in the way 552 00:34:01,680 --> 00:34:04,400 Speaker 1: that Steve is talking about, and you can measure that 553 00:34:04,920 --> 00:34:06,600 Speaker 1: in a couple of ways, but one of them is 554 00:34:06,680 --> 00:34:11,040 Speaker 1: with money I p o s by pharmaceutical companies and 555 00:34:11,080 --> 00:34:16,600 Speaker 1: pharmaceutical companies getting invested in magic mushrooms to treat things 556 00:34:16,640 --> 00:34:22,279 Speaker 1: like depression, UM or even neuropathic pain. And this all 557 00:34:22,360 --> 00:34:27,080 Speaker 1: comes from a recent study by Johns Hopkins University that 558 00:34:27,440 --> 00:34:31,400 Speaker 1: looked at the effects of psilocybin assisted therapy on major 559 00:34:31,480 --> 00:34:35,720 Speaker 1: depressive disorder UH and it found in a randomized clinical 560 00:34:35,760 --> 00:34:39,960 Speaker 1: trial of twenty four participants with major depressive disorder that 561 00:34:40,080 --> 00:34:44,920 Speaker 1: those who received immediate psilocybin treatment compared with delayed treatment 562 00:34:45,000 --> 00:34:48,840 Speaker 1: showed improvement in UM what they referred to as blinded 563 00:34:48,880 --> 00:34:54,120 Speaker 1: clinician radar assessed depression severity UH and also in self 564 00:34:54,160 --> 00:34:57,279 Speaker 1: reported secondary outcomes. So that's sort of a fancy way 565 00:34:57,320 --> 00:35:01,080 Speaker 1: of saying they got better quicker those that that took 566 00:35:01,120 --> 00:35:05,399 Speaker 1: the psilocybin UM And when you get these studies like this, 567 00:35:05,760 --> 00:35:08,480 Speaker 1: UH not immediately, but I just like I said that 568 00:35:08,680 --> 00:35:11,920 Speaker 1: the tide seems to be turning with things like marijuana 569 00:35:12,200 --> 00:35:16,560 Speaker 1: legalization and now psilocybin legalization that was just made completely 570 00:35:16,640 --> 00:35:20,280 Speaker 1: legal in UH Oregon. And if I'm not a mistake 571 00:35:20,320 --> 00:35:24,080 Speaker 1: in Portland, ore Agon just like legalized like all drugs. 572 00:35:24,239 --> 00:35:27,000 Speaker 1: Did I make that up? It's something, Yeah, that's the thing. 573 00:35:27,600 --> 00:35:31,120 Speaker 1: Um So with psilocybin in particular, it's like, obviously recreational 574 00:35:31,200 --> 00:35:33,480 Speaker 1: use is fun and that people enjoy doing that to 575 00:35:33,880 --> 00:35:36,200 Speaker 1: you know, trip on mushrooms and listen to music, go 576 00:35:36,280 --> 00:35:38,640 Speaker 1: to a concert. But it turns out that all of 577 00:35:38,680 --> 00:35:41,960 Speaker 1: the things you've read, people like Terence McKenna and all 578 00:35:42,040 --> 00:35:45,520 Speaker 1: these psycho knots you know, from throughout you know, modern history. Uh, 579 00:35:45,560 --> 00:35:50,000 Speaker 1: it does make some interesting neurological connections that can help 580 00:35:50,040 --> 00:35:53,680 Speaker 1: people deal with things like depression or end of life 581 00:35:54,239 --> 00:35:58,640 Speaker 1: or the more clinical kind of uh, use of treating pain. 582 00:35:59,200 --> 00:36:04,360 Speaker 1: And they're actually is a brand new upcoming initial public 583 00:36:04,520 --> 00:36:09,960 Speaker 1: stock offering from a company in Canada called Trip Pharmaceuticals 584 00:36:10,560 --> 00:36:15,080 Speaker 1: and James Coo, who is the CEO of the California 585 00:36:15,120 --> 00:36:17,600 Speaker 1: based Trip Therapeutics, rather than the name of the company, 586 00:36:18,080 --> 00:36:23,960 Speaker 1: he is expecting to go public on the Canadian Securities Exchange. Uh, 587 00:36:24,000 --> 00:36:27,120 Speaker 1: and that happened. This article was from let's see, this 588 00:36:27,239 --> 00:36:31,000 Speaker 1: article was from the seventeenth of December, so that will 589 00:36:31,040 --> 00:36:35,080 Speaker 1: have happened by now. And he believes that his company will. 590 00:36:35,680 --> 00:36:39,000 Speaker 1: They're they're not interested in in recreational they're jumping off 591 00:36:39,040 --> 00:36:41,279 Speaker 1: of studies like this John hop Johns Hopkins study, and 592 00:36:41,320 --> 00:36:44,280 Speaker 1: they're interested in being kind of the you know, standard 593 00:36:44,280 --> 00:36:48,759 Speaker 1: bearer of using psilocybin to treat these conditions that we're 594 00:36:48,800 --> 00:36:52,240 Speaker 1: talking about. So it feels like the tide is turning. 595 00:36:52,400 --> 00:36:54,759 Speaker 1: And I think we've probably all heard the term micro 596 00:36:54,840 --> 00:36:57,800 Speaker 1: dose thrown around so much lately. Um it's something that 597 00:36:57,840 --> 00:36:59,880 Speaker 1: people very casually do and it doesn't make you like 598 00:37:00,160 --> 00:37:03,040 Speaker 1: messed up. It's just kind of, you know, grounds people 599 00:37:03,080 --> 00:37:05,880 Speaker 1: a little bit, and it's something that's very very popular, 600 00:37:06,040 --> 00:37:08,720 Speaker 1: almost to the point of being becoming becoming a bit cliche. 601 00:37:09,120 --> 00:37:13,160 Speaker 1: But I just think the future of psilocybin um you 602 00:37:13,200 --> 00:37:18,319 Speaker 1: know therapy is absolutely fascinating. Yeah, it's it's a smart move, right. 603 00:37:18,520 --> 00:37:24,239 Speaker 1: It certainly functioned really well for the burgeoning cannabis industry 604 00:37:24,440 --> 00:37:29,120 Speaker 1: and uh IN in normalizing cannabis use across the United States, 605 00:37:29,160 --> 00:37:32,600 Speaker 1: like putting it as a medicinal use first and then 606 00:37:32,960 --> 00:37:38,080 Speaker 1: transitioning eventually into more you know, open use of the substance. 607 00:37:38,560 --> 00:37:43,160 Speaker 1: I'm looking at this website for Theistal, another another company. 608 00:37:43,600 --> 00:37:45,640 Speaker 1: Then there are many of these other companies that are 609 00:37:45,640 --> 00:37:49,960 Speaker 1: attempting to find ways to introduce psilocybin into some kind 610 00:37:49,960 --> 00:37:52,880 Speaker 1: of medical treatment, and it is, as you said, usually 611 00:37:53,120 --> 00:37:56,680 Speaker 1: aimed at anxiety depression, the state in which many of 612 00:37:56,760 --> 00:38:00,880 Speaker 1: us find ourselves in a pretty constant basis. Um. I 613 00:38:00,880 --> 00:38:05,560 Speaker 1: think it's nice to imagine it being more ubiquitous in 614 00:38:05,680 --> 00:38:09,640 Speaker 1: that realm, rather than rather than some kind of medication 615 00:38:09,800 --> 00:38:12,680 Speaker 1: that's in a pill form that you know, some company 616 00:38:12,760 --> 00:38:15,680 Speaker 1: is going to make just billions of dollars a year 617 00:38:15,719 --> 00:38:19,600 Speaker 1: off of until they get sued to oblivion because they 618 00:38:19,640 --> 00:38:24,600 Speaker 1: started some kind of epidemic. Well, yeah, we see. Also, 619 00:38:24,800 --> 00:38:30,520 Speaker 1: you know, similar things happening with marijuana decriminalization and legalization 620 00:38:30,600 --> 00:38:35,040 Speaker 1: and started with medicinal urge. I would have step back here, um, 621 00:38:35,040 --> 00:38:38,239 Speaker 1: just to address several things, uh, Steve. First off, thank 622 00:38:38,280 --> 00:38:41,319 Speaker 1: you so much for sending in this awesome voicemail. And 623 00:38:41,360 --> 00:38:44,799 Speaker 1: you're right, we have heard you, we have heard from you, 624 00:38:44,920 --> 00:38:48,200 Speaker 1: and I am I can't remember if you've told us 625 00:38:48,200 --> 00:38:50,839 Speaker 1: about this in a past call, but I fell into 626 00:38:50,880 --> 00:38:55,200 Speaker 1: a rabbit hole figuring out your accent. Steve. I think 627 00:38:55,200 --> 00:38:57,160 Speaker 1: it's super cool, so I would love to I would 628 00:38:57,160 --> 00:38:59,479 Speaker 1: love to hear about your journey there. I would also 629 00:38:59,600 --> 00:39:02,760 Speaker 1: pause it that I would ask, Rather, I would ask 630 00:39:03,280 --> 00:39:08,239 Speaker 1: is this the forefront of new medicine or is this 631 00:39:08,400 --> 00:39:13,080 Speaker 1: the resurgence of ancient medicine. We did some previous work 632 00:39:13,360 --> 00:39:21,799 Speaker 1: on the possible relationship between early religious experiences and hallucinogens, 633 00:39:21,800 --> 00:39:24,360 Speaker 1: and there are a lot of great writers out there, fringe, 634 00:39:24,440 --> 00:39:28,520 Speaker 1: but great writers who will argue that hallucinogens have played 635 00:39:28,520 --> 00:39:33,160 Speaker 1: an integral role in our cognitive development or our social development. 636 00:39:33,160 --> 00:39:37,040 Speaker 1: Maybe it is a better way to put it over time, uh, 637 00:39:37,239 --> 00:39:39,840 Speaker 1: I think was Bill Hicks has this great piece on 638 00:39:40,480 --> 00:39:43,640 Speaker 1: the use of hallucinogens. We do want to say, I 639 00:39:43,680 --> 00:39:45,840 Speaker 1: think this speaks to your point just made Matt. We 640 00:39:45,880 --> 00:39:49,600 Speaker 1: do want to say that psilocybin, magic mushrooms, they're not 641 00:39:49,719 --> 00:39:53,439 Speaker 1: the same thing as LSD, They're not the same thing 642 00:39:53,640 --> 00:39:59,400 Speaker 1: as some other hallucinogens like uh, like ayahuasca is going 643 00:39:59,440 --> 00:40:03,480 Speaker 1: to give you different experience in comparison to something like 644 00:40:03,640 --> 00:40:06,880 Speaker 1: d MT or something like psilocybin. So a lot of 645 00:40:06,880 --> 00:40:12,120 Speaker 1: these laws being relaxed are specifically I believe this is correct, Well, 646 00:40:12,160 --> 00:40:16,160 Speaker 1: they're specifically for psilocybin, right, They're not all halluciness. It's 647 00:40:16,239 --> 00:40:18,919 Speaker 1: very specifically for psilocybin and take it even stuff further, 648 00:40:19,040 --> 00:40:23,000 Speaker 1: there are companies working on developing synthetic psilocybin, which is 649 00:40:23,040 --> 00:40:26,200 Speaker 1: a whole new class of of drug for treatment of 650 00:40:26,239 --> 00:40:32,359 Speaker 1: these same things, especially these neuropsychiatric disorders. And and it's 651 00:40:32,400 --> 00:40:36,239 Speaker 1: weird because public opinion is a little bit divided. Well, 652 00:40:36,880 --> 00:40:40,080 Speaker 1: public opinion is very divided here in the United States 653 00:40:40,560 --> 00:40:45,120 Speaker 1: because everyone alive in the US has in some way 654 00:40:45,239 --> 00:40:49,239 Speaker 1: been affected by what's called the War on drugs. If 655 00:40:49,280 --> 00:40:52,839 Speaker 1: not directly, your mind has been affected because like how 656 00:40:52,840 --> 00:40:54,839 Speaker 1: many people have just heard us say the phrase war 657 00:40:54,920 --> 00:40:57,239 Speaker 1: on drugs and had a p s A played in 658 00:40:57,280 --> 00:40:59,600 Speaker 1: their heads? What did you guys get whatever? I got 659 00:41:00,040 --> 00:41:02,360 Speaker 1: the egg? I get the egg too. That way you 660 00:41:02,400 --> 00:41:05,880 Speaker 1: got um. It wasn't the egg because it wasn't a 661 00:41:06,000 --> 00:41:07,719 Speaker 1: video or anything or a p s A. It was 662 00:41:07,760 --> 00:41:12,640 Speaker 1: just people in my face as a child telling me 663 00:41:12,719 --> 00:41:18,520 Speaker 1: how bad drugs are. Just people, they're just like drugs 664 00:41:18,560 --> 00:41:23,840 Speaker 1: are bad. We talked about it before. I don't know 665 00:41:23,880 --> 00:41:26,200 Speaker 1: we talked about before, but I had someone coming to 666 00:41:26,200 --> 00:41:29,440 Speaker 1: my school with a giant suitcase full of every drug 667 00:41:29,760 --> 00:41:31,640 Speaker 1: And I think we've then and I we've we've mentioned 668 00:41:31,640 --> 00:41:32,919 Speaker 1: that it just kind of was like, oh, I won't 669 00:41:32,960 --> 00:41:36,040 Speaker 1: try that one, and try and try that, but it 670 00:41:36,120 --> 00:41:38,080 Speaker 1: was just kind of a funny little technique that they use. 671 00:41:38,120 --> 00:41:40,040 Speaker 1: I don't think it quite went the way they were hoping. 672 00:41:40,400 --> 00:41:42,480 Speaker 1: I don't think so either, But I did love I 673 00:41:42,480 --> 00:41:45,560 Speaker 1: always love a good presentation and a science terrified because 674 00:41:45,560 --> 00:41:49,080 Speaker 1: it's one of those like trifold cases, right yeah, and 675 00:41:49,200 --> 00:41:52,000 Speaker 1: prop comedy. I know you're a fan of Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, 676 00:41:52,040 --> 00:41:56,440 Speaker 1: regular carrot Top. Our local DARE program was I'm kidding. No. 677 00:41:56,719 --> 00:41:59,239 Speaker 1: They they their hearts were in the right place. They 678 00:41:59,239 --> 00:42:01,680 Speaker 1: were doing the best it could, but just like an 679 00:42:01,680 --> 00:42:05,759 Speaker 1: abstinence program, statistically we see the results don't bear out. 680 00:42:06,239 --> 00:42:09,880 Speaker 1: We also should shout out the fantastic work that Robert 681 00:42:09,960 --> 00:42:13,799 Speaker 1: Lamb and Joe McCormick have done on hallucinogens and psilocybin, 682 00:42:13,880 --> 00:42:17,280 Speaker 1: specifically over its stuff to blow your mind. I would 683 00:42:17,280 --> 00:42:20,120 Speaker 1: recommend checking them out if you haven't already yet. Steve 684 00:42:20,520 --> 00:42:22,600 Speaker 1: Um and I think we could. I think we could 685 00:42:22,640 --> 00:42:26,799 Speaker 1: dive into this further because psilocybin has also been used 686 00:42:26,800 --> 00:42:31,200 Speaker 1: in experiments with esp I think uh it's been used 687 00:42:31,200 --> 00:42:35,239 Speaker 1: in experiments to help people, uh break bad habits. Such 688 00:42:35,280 --> 00:42:39,000 Speaker 1: as smoking tobacco or I believe it's also hasn't been 689 00:42:39,040 --> 00:42:41,080 Speaker 1: you am I thinking of psilocybin when I say it's 690 00:42:41,080 --> 00:42:44,239 Speaker 1: been used in alcoholism treatment, just addiction period. It's it's 691 00:42:44,239 --> 00:42:47,960 Speaker 1: a great way of like breaking habits, breaking patterns. Uh. 692 00:42:48,040 --> 00:42:50,560 Speaker 1: And those patterns might be physical, and a lot of 693 00:42:50,560 --> 00:42:52,680 Speaker 1: them are mental. Uh And and that's sort of what 694 00:42:52,719 --> 00:42:56,520 Speaker 1: depression is. It's negative mental patterns and cyclical thinking and 695 00:42:56,560 --> 00:42:58,480 Speaker 1: a lot of it, you know, is just getting caught 696 00:42:58,560 --> 00:43:00,840 Speaker 1: up in your own story and not being able to 697 00:43:00,920 --> 00:43:04,080 Speaker 1: like see the big picture. And hallucinogens are often credited 698 00:43:04,120 --> 00:43:07,200 Speaker 1: and letting giving people kind of like this uh spiritual 699 00:43:07,320 --> 00:43:09,560 Speaker 1: step back to kind of like zoom out and see 700 00:43:09,600 --> 00:43:11,640 Speaker 1: the whole picture and and be able to kind of 701 00:43:11,640 --> 00:43:13,719 Speaker 1: see where they fit into it instead of like being 702 00:43:13,800 --> 00:43:16,040 Speaker 1: so myopic, you know, and everything they do because it's 703 00:43:16,040 --> 00:43:18,320 Speaker 1: really easy to get get pigeonholed and like in a 704 00:43:18,400 --> 00:43:21,600 Speaker 1: rut that way. Um. But one last thing on my 705 00:43:21,760 --> 00:43:26,320 Speaker 1: end um. They are seeking FDA approval and it's going 706 00:43:26,400 --> 00:43:30,080 Speaker 1: quite well as as it turns out. Trip Therapeutics in 707 00:43:30,120 --> 00:43:33,480 Speaker 1: the past through several rounds of venture capitalists, you know, 708 00:43:33,560 --> 00:43:36,800 Speaker 1: just fundraising, I guess raised one point five million Canadian 709 00:43:36,840 --> 00:43:40,560 Speaker 1: dollars through two rounds over the past UH eight or 710 00:43:40,640 --> 00:43:43,520 Speaker 1: nine months, and they are looking at this upcoming I 711 00:43:43,640 --> 00:43:48,359 Speaker 1: p O to help fund the development of an oral 712 00:43:48,760 --> 00:43:53,160 Speaker 1: formulation of psilocybin that would be used to treat soft 713 00:43:53,239 --> 00:43:58,160 Speaker 1: tissue sarcoma UH and they've already started the process of 714 00:43:58,160 --> 00:44:04,000 Speaker 1: seeking FDA approval and they treat to treat cancer, to 715 00:44:04,160 --> 00:44:07,440 Speaker 1: treat I would imagine the pain that goes along with cancer. 716 00:44:08,040 --> 00:44:11,319 Speaker 1: And they're confident that they will be able to get 717 00:44:11,520 --> 00:44:15,600 Speaker 1: FDA approval eventually after this I p O. Kuo, who 718 00:44:15,640 --> 00:44:18,440 Speaker 1: is the I believe the CEO of Trip Therapeutics UM 719 00:44:18,560 --> 00:44:21,279 Speaker 1: said they can enter directly into a second phase of 720 00:44:21,280 --> 00:44:27,239 Speaker 1: clinical studies UM before getting official FDA approval because we've 721 00:44:27,280 --> 00:44:30,960 Speaker 1: already seen efficacy and in these in these drugs UM. 722 00:44:31,040 --> 00:44:32,880 Speaker 1: And he says, since these drugs have been proved to 723 00:44:32,880 --> 00:44:35,400 Speaker 1: be safe to use during the first phase of the 724 00:44:35,400 --> 00:44:37,960 Speaker 1: trial UH. And here's a quote, UM, there are two 725 00:44:38,040 --> 00:44:40,480 Speaker 1: things you need to show for any drug to be approved, 726 00:44:40,719 --> 00:44:43,799 Speaker 1: safety and efficacy. We can answer that it's safe, but 727 00:44:43,880 --> 00:44:48,759 Speaker 1: still need more data to prove its efficaciousness UM and 728 00:44:48,880 --> 00:44:51,400 Speaker 1: studies like that Johns Hopkins Studies is a step in 729 00:44:51,440 --> 00:44:54,399 Speaker 1: the right direction towards doing that, and I think that's 730 00:44:54,440 --> 00:44:59,879 Speaker 1: specifically addressing the treatment of existential distress for the cancer PIACE. 731 00:45:00,000 --> 00:45:05,880 Speaker 1: That's the fear of death haunts us all. Uh. There 732 00:45:05,880 --> 00:45:08,680 Speaker 1: there are some objections or a couple of objectors of 733 00:45:08,680 --> 00:45:12,120 Speaker 1: a couple of people I wouldn't say they're going full 734 00:45:12,280 --> 00:45:16,239 Speaker 1: nine were on drugs opposition to this, but they are 735 00:45:16,360 --> 00:45:21,160 Speaker 1: saying we should slow down because we don't know enough 736 00:45:21,320 --> 00:45:25,320 Speaker 1: about it. That's one of the big arguments, right Michael Pollen, 737 00:45:25,480 --> 00:45:29,880 Speaker 1: you might recognize him from the Omnivore's dilemma. He acknowledges 738 00:45:30,080 --> 00:45:35,279 Speaker 1: that psilocybin is. First off, it is weirdly safe in 739 00:45:35,400 --> 00:45:39,239 Speaker 1: terms of a medicine. It is weirdly safe. There is 740 00:45:39,440 --> 00:45:44,719 Speaker 1: no known lethal dose. Yet nobody that we know of 741 00:45:44,800 --> 00:45:48,399 Speaker 1: in history has ever taken ingested is so much psilocybin 742 00:45:48,600 --> 00:45:52,120 Speaker 1: that they die from that. But of course, steve to 743 00:45:52,200 --> 00:45:56,399 Speaker 1: your comments about the rocket of drugs on high enough, 744 00:45:56,480 --> 00:45:59,560 Speaker 1: those people will have badly impaired judgment and may do 745 00:45:59,800 --> 00:46:04,680 Speaker 1: theyings that are incredibly dangerous. And when we uh, when 746 00:46:04,719 --> 00:46:08,520 Speaker 1: we talk about the researchers John Hopkins, London, other places 747 00:46:08,560 --> 00:46:14,480 Speaker 1: who are gathering volunteers these very important, these crucial clinical trials. 748 00:46:14,760 --> 00:46:18,759 Speaker 1: We have to realize they're screened very very carefully because 749 00:46:18,760 --> 00:46:22,200 Speaker 1: we're talking about mental conditions in many ways, you know, 750 00:46:22,320 --> 00:46:25,560 Speaker 1: and when we talk about mental conditions, we're going into 751 00:46:25,600 --> 00:46:29,000 Speaker 1: a realm that we even the experts in our species 752 00:46:29,160 --> 00:46:32,279 Speaker 1: do not fully understand. And how does that compound with 753 00:46:32,400 --> 00:46:37,200 Speaker 1: other drug interactions. If someone is saved, for instance, on 754 00:46:37,360 --> 00:46:39,920 Speaker 1: a treatment plan for psilocybin, while they're also on a 755 00:46:39,960 --> 00:46:44,200 Speaker 1: treatment plan for an antidepressant of some sort, right, what's 756 00:46:44,480 --> 00:46:47,479 Speaker 1: is well buttured and antidepressant. Yeah, but it's also works 757 00:46:47,480 --> 00:46:50,879 Speaker 1: really well for smoking cessation, which is interesting. Okay. Yeah, 758 00:46:50,960 --> 00:46:53,120 Speaker 1: So so we don't know all the effects. So just 759 00:46:53,200 --> 00:46:55,640 Speaker 1: to give a voice to the people are saying not 760 00:46:55,800 --> 00:46:58,440 Speaker 1: so fast. The weird thing that I see is I 761 00:46:58,520 --> 00:47:01,799 Speaker 1: don't see anybody saying no, stop, don't do it ever. 762 00:47:02,239 --> 00:47:04,480 Speaker 1: I just say, people say, we need to do some 763 00:47:04,520 --> 00:47:06,840 Speaker 1: more homework. Well. I also, it's funny to say not 764 00:47:06,960 --> 00:47:09,920 Speaker 1: so fast for a substance that's literally been around since 765 00:47:10,440 --> 00:47:13,279 Speaker 1: the Stone Age, you know. I mean, people have been 766 00:47:13,320 --> 00:47:16,239 Speaker 1: taking psychedelics as long as they've been growing out of 767 00:47:16,280 --> 00:47:18,960 Speaker 1: the ground. So it's like I think the proof is 768 00:47:18,960 --> 00:47:20,920 Speaker 1: in the pudding, you know. And you're right. I think 769 00:47:21,000 --> 00:47:24,319 Speaker 1: they were like things like go ask Alice, that very 770 00:47:24,480 --> 00:47:28,720 Speaker 1: very not real but seeming autobiography of a young woman 771 00:47:28,800 --> 00:47:32,479 Speaker 1: taking drugs who have spoiler alert for a propaganda piece 772 00:47:32,520 --> 00:47:35,040 Speaker 1: of propaganda that they make you read in high school. Uh. 773 00:47:35,800 --> 00:47:37,600 Speaker 1: I think she ends up throwing herself off a building 774 00:47:37,600 --> 00:47:39,759 Speaker 1: at the end on a bad trip or something like that. 775 00:47:40,080 --> 00:47:42,319 Speaker 1: But I mean, it's it's like refor madness kind of 776 00:47:42,360 --> 00:47:44,560 Speaker 1: you know, a lot of it really is just trumped 777 00:47:44,640 --> 00:47:50,080 Speaker 1: up kind of worst case scenario fearmongering that uh you know, 778 00:47:50,160 --> 00:47:52,319 Speaker 1: and look, look, look we're talking about here. We're talking 779 00:47:52,320 --> 00:47:55,600 Speaker 1: about a substance that can treat pain in the way 780 00:47:55,640 --> 00:47:59,440 Speaker 1: that things like OxyContin treat pain, you know, and OxyContin 781 00:47:59,560 --> 00:48:02,239 Speaker 1: is havely addictive, and so many things that big farm 782 00:48:02,280 --> 00:48:04,480 Speaker 1: up pushes are heavily addictive, which I think is the 783 00:48:04,600 --> 00:48:07,960 Speaker 1: large drive behind why these things have been illegal for 784 00:48:08,000 --> 00:48:11,319 Speaker 1: so long. So interested to see where this goes, I 785 00:48:11,360 --> 00:48:15,759 Speaker 1: think it's high time it was not on purpose. But 786 00:48:15,840 --> 00:48:17,399 Speaker 1: let's take another quick break and then we'll be back 787 00:48:17,440 --> 00:48:29,400 Speaker 1: with another message from you, and we have returned, folks. 788 00:48:29,440 --> 00:48:32,440 Speaker 1: Fellow conspiracy realists. As I said at the top of 789 00:48:32,480 --> 00:48:35,880 Speaker 1: the show, one of these segments may not be appropriate 790 00:48:36,360 --> 00:48:40,280 Speaker 1: for all listeners in the audience. The following will contain 791 00:48:40,920 --> 00:48:46,840 Speaker 1: graphic and completely true accounts of some very disturbing things. 792 00:48:46,920 --> 00:48:51,120 Speaker 1: So with in the interest of time, without too much prologue, 793 00:48:51,440 --> 00:48:55,760 Speaker 1: let's let's roll the final piece of listener mail today. 794 00:48:56,000 --> 00:48:59,160 Speaker 1: A call that we receive from an anonymous source with 795 00:48:59,239 --> 00:49:02,879 Speaker 1: a very good question. Hey guys, longtime listener of the show, 796 00:49:03,160 --> 00:49:05,960 Speaker 1: quick question, have you all ever done an episode of 797 00:49:06,000 --> 00:49:10,359 Speaker 1: the U N SAX scandal? I think it's uh. I 798 00:49:10,400 --> 00:49:12,920 Speaker 1: was looking at it earlier and found something on Reddit, 799 00:49:13,000 --> 00:49:16,080 Speaker 1: but I wasn't able to get in to read more 800 00:49:16,200 --> 00:49:19,960 Speaker 1: articles due to the pay walls and etcetera, etcetera. But 801 00:49:20,040 --> 00:49:23,440 Speaker 1: it seems like a charity work scandal where it says 802 00:49:23,520 --> 00:49:27,040 Speaker 1: over sixty thou women and children have been breaked over 803 00:49:27,080 --> 00:49:30,200 Speaker 1: the past decade. If you all have, please let me 804 00:49:30,239 --> 00:49:32,680 Speaker 1: know and I will be really interested in listening to 805 00:49:32,760 --> 00:49:37,600 Speaker 1: it or um, you know, discuss it on the show. Thanks. 806 00:49:38,880 --> 00:49:41,719 Speaker 1: Thank you so much for calling for reaching out to 807 00:49:41,840 --> 00:49:46,640 Speaker 1: us with this incredibly important point. Anonymous. First, I've been 808 00:49:46,680 --> 00:49:49,120 Speaker 1: aware of this. I believe that we I believe that 809 00:49:49,160 --> 00:49:51,600 Speaker 1: we all are somewhat aware of this. We have not 810 00:49:51,719 --> 00:49:54,040 Speaker 1: done a show on this. It is a very real thing. 811 00:49:54,560 --> 00:49:59,600 Speaker 1: It's a very real series of conspiracies, not conspiracy theories. 812 00:50:00,800 --> 00:50:03,560 Speaker 1: So it dates back to I think it first hits 813 00:50:03,600 --> 00:50:08,360 Speaker 1: the news around ten. There's an investigation by the Associated 814 00:50:08,400 --> 00:50:13,920 Speaker 1: Press that goes public and shows that more than one 815 00:50:14,080 --> 00:50:20,480 Speaker 1: hundred UN peacekeepers we're running a sexual abuse ring, specifically 816 00:50:20,560 --> 00:50:24,840 Speaker 1: in Haiti for over a decade and they were never jailed. 817 00:50:25,640 --> 00:50:31,439 Speaker 1: That's that's the headline. There have been more than more 818 00:50:31,480 --> 00:50:36,440 Speaker 1: than a thousand allegations of similar abuse and exploitation by 819 00:50:36,520 --> 00:50:41,880 Speaker 1: UN peacekeepers UH and other personnel across the planet over 820 00:50:41,920 --> 00:50:46,440 Speaker 1: the twelve years before that. The US ambassador to the 821 00:50:46,560 --> 00:50:50,160 Speaker 1: u N at the time, someone named Nicki Haley, urged 822 00:50:50,239 --> 00:50:53,799 Speaker 1: all these countries to try and hold US peacekeepers accountable 823 00:50:53,920 --> 00:50:58,640 Speaker 1: for this kind of abuse. And when we say abuse, 824 00:50:58,680 --> 00:51:03,520 Speaker 1: we're talking about things like worst sex work out now, kidnapping, 825 00:51:03,600 --> 00:51:10,320 Speaker 1: and sexual assaults. UH. Rapid increases in these terrible events 826 00:51:10,360 --> 00:51:17,120 Speaker 1: in countries like not just Haiti, but Cambodia, Mozambique, Kosovo, Bosnia. 827 00:51:17,320 --> 00:51:21,279 Speaker 1: After the u N and NATO peacekeeping forces moved in. 828 00:51:21,840 --> 00:51:24,640 Speaker 1: There is a clear correlation. And of course we're not 829 00:51:24,680 --> 00:51:27,799 Speaker 1: saying that. I hope everybody knows that when we talk 830 00:51:27,840 --> 00:51:31,400 Speaker 1: about these things, we're not saying the entire entirety of 831 00:51:31,440 --> 00:51:36,880 Speaker 1: the U N peacekeeping forces, but we're definitely happened. Uh 832 00:51:36,920 --> 00:51:40,000 Speaker 1: And like so many things, it got reported and then 833 00:51:40,040 --> 00:51:42,080 Speaker 1: it sort of fell from the public eye. Do you 834 00:51:42,120 --> 00:51:44,800 Speaker 1: guys remember hearing about this a few years back. I 835 00:51:45,280 --> 00:51:47,960 Speaker 1: never did, which is really surprising because I mean, I'm 836 00:51:48,000 --> 00:51:53,000 Speaker 1: familiar with ox Fam, largely because Radiohead. We're always a 837 00:51:53,080 --> 00:51:55,640 Speaker 1: huge supporter of ox Fam, and like Tom York like 838 00:51:55,920 --> 00:51:59,600 Speaker 1: auctioned off some handwritten lyrics um to you know, the 839 00:51:59,640 --> 00:52:02,880 Speaker 1: proceeds going towards towards Oxfam, and they're like a hugely 840 00:52:03,560 --> 00:52:06,640 Speaker 1: respected and influential charity in the UK. And and that's 841 00:52:06,719 --> 00:52:09,480 Speaker 1: really mostly what I've what I've known about them, I've 842 00:52:09,520 --> 00:52:11,440 Speaker 1: not I can't believe I haven't heard any of this. No, 843 00:52:11,560 --> 00:52:16,280 Speaker 1: I didn't realize um miners like children twelve and thirteen 844 00:52:16,320 --> 00:52:20,040 Speaker 1: year old kids were involved. That's I mean, the whole 845 00:52:20,040 --> 00:52:22,360 Speaker 1: thing is already disturbing, just the fact that sexual abuse 846 00:52:22,360 --> 00:52:24,960 Speaker 1: of any kind was taking place, and it seemed to 847 00:52:24,960 --> 00:52:27,319 Speaker 1: be institutionalized by at least one I think they called 848 00:52:27,360 --> 00:52:31,080 Speaker 1: it one boss right at least in the recording um. 849 00:52:31,120 --> 00:52:34,680 Speaker 1: But then there were numerous other staff members. Oh god, yeah, 850 00:52:34,800 --> 00:52:38,719 Speaker 1: I'm now you can. You can find reporting about this. 851 00:52:39,040 --> 00:52:42,840 Speaker 1: The Guardian has an excellent timeline. Uh. There there are 852 00:52:42,880 --> 00:52:46,960 Speaker 1: a number of other deep dive works of journalism on 853 00:52:47,000 --> 00:52:54,520 Speaker 1: this analysis. In addition to this widespread systematized abuse, there 854 00:52:54,800 --> 00:52:57,960 Speaker 1: was also, as as you alluded to, met, there was 855 00:52:58,000 --> 00:53:01,920 Speaker 1: also definitely a cover up. I believe you are referring 856 00:53:01,960 --> 00:53:07,800 Speaker 1: to the country director in Haiti, Roland van how raman H. 857 00:53:08,080 --> 00:53:12,120 Speaker 1: He was. He was in charge of ox Fam activities 858 00:53:12,160 --> 00:53:16,160 Speaker 1: in Haiti at the time. He was instrumental in this 859 00:53:16,360 --> 00:53:19,359 Speaker 1: cover up. It seems to be the case we would 860 00:53:19,400 --> 00:53:22,080 Speaker 1: have to dive in and do more research to make 861 00:53:22,120 --> 00:53:25,800 Speaker 1: a full episode to really get a sense of him. Uh. 862 00:53:25,840 --> 00:53:28,880 Speaker 1: But a lot of this happened following the two thousand 863 00:53:28,880 --> 00:53:33,760 Speaker 1: and ten earthquake, which greaked enormous chaos upon the country 864 00:53:33,760 --> 00:53:38,759 Speaker 1: of Haiti, which already had infrastructure problems, resource extraction problems, 865 00:53:38,840 --> 00:53:41,719 Speaker 1: and so on and so on. No one thing that 866 00:53:41,760 --> 00:53:44,680 Speaker 1: stands out to our student listeners here is we've talked 867 00:53:44,680 --> 00:53:49,480 Speaker 1: about UN peacekeeping forces. And we've talked about ox FAM. 868 00:53:49,640 --> 00:53:54,480 Speaker 1: Ox FAM is the charitable organization you're talking about anonymous, 869 00:53:54,560 --> 00:54:00,000 Speaker 1: and it is a nonprofit leviathan. It's a nonprofit octopus. Uh. 870 00:54:00,120 --> 00:54:05,880 Speaker 1: It's made of twenty different independent charitable organizations that all 871 00:54:06,480 --> 00:54:10,000 Speaker 1: sort of team up in an Avenger's Justice League way 872 00:54:10,239 --> 00:54:15,840 Speaker 1: in nineteen forty two to alleviate global poverty. They have 873 00:54:16,360 --> 00:54:20,959 Speaker 1: offices around the world. They have done a ton of 874 00:54:21,800 --> 00:54:25,600 Speaker 1: they have done a ton of really solid, inarguably important 875 00:54:25,680 --> 00:54:30,840 Speaker 1: and beneficial work. Uh. They have also they they have 876 00:54:30,960 --> 00:54:35,560 Speaker 1: also clearly covered up these sexual abuse scandals, not just 877 00:54:35,640 --> 00:54:39,880 Speaker 1: in Haiti but in Chad in other countries. And what's 878 00:54:39,960 --> 00:54:43,520 Speaker 1: strange here and what what should disturb people is the 879 00:54:43,920 --> 00:54:47,879 Speaker 1: lack of accountability because think about this. If you are 880 00:54:47,920 --> 00:54:51,000 Speaker 1: a predator the way that some of these people definitely were, 881 00:54:51,520 --> 00:54:55,560 Speaker 1: then you are naturally going to look for people who 882 00:54:55,560 --> 00:54:59,799 Speaker 1: are already having a terrible, terrible time, you know what 883 00:54:59,880 --> 00:55:03,240 Speaker 1: I mean. Like I would say, also, just to further 884 00:55:03,600 --> 00:55:07,120 Speaker 1: draw a bright line around this, ox FAN was doing this. 885 00:55:07,440 --> 00:55:10,960 Speaker 1: UN peacekeepers were doing this too. So ox FAM does 886 00:55:11,040 --> 00:55:14,520 Speaker 1: work with the UN, but the people who are peacekeepers, 887 00:55:14,560 --> 00:55:19,040 Speaker 1: who are the on the ground soldiers and forces. Those 888 00:55:19,080 --> 00:55:22,360 Speaker 1: folks were doing this too. This is very dirty, very quickly, 889 00:55:22,960 --> 00:55:28,320 Speaker 1: and it's it's terrible because UN staff like that number 890 00:55:28,400 --> 00:55:32,600 Speaker 1: you made up anonymous sixty thousand events over the course 891 00:55:32,640 --> 00:55:34,880 Speaker 1: of a decade. That number is very real. That comes 892 00:55:34,880 --> 00:55:38,320 Speaker 1: from an estimate from a former senior official of the 893 00:55:38,400 --> 00:55:42,160 Speaker 1: United Nations, one Andrew McLeod. And it's just strange to 894 00:55:42,200 --> 00:55:45,839 Speaker 1: me that we don't hear too much about this now. 895 00:55:46,360 --> 00:55:49,440 Speaker 1: We know that in nineteen as far back in the 896 00:55:49,520 --> 00:55:52,040 Speaker 1: UN did a study about this which you can read 897 00:55:52,080 --> 00:55:55,560 Speaker 1: online called the Impact of Arms Conflict on Children, And 898 00:55:55,600 --> 00:55:59,480 Speaker 1: then they said the UN, NATO, ox FAM, you know, 899 00:55:59,520 --> 00:56:02,799 Speaker 1: they had their own investigations. Um. And there's a bit 900 00:56:02,800 --> 00:56:05,480 Speaker 1: of a bad apple argument here, which is that we 901 00:56:05,560 --> 00:56:09,720 Speaker 1: can't throw out all the good work that these organizations 902 00:56:09,719 --> 00:56:16,520 Speaker 1: are doing because of the actions of a few bad actors. 903 00:56:16,560 --> 00:56:19,720 Speaker 1: But the question of like how many is a few? 904 00:56:20,000 --> 00:56:23,279 Speaker 1: You know what I mean? Where is where is the 905 00:56:23,360 --> 00:56:27,919 Speaker 1: accountability and where is the justice for these people who 906 00:56:28,080 --> 00:56:32,000 Speaker 1: are suffering? Yeah? Um, I was looking at this in 907 00:56:33,080 --> 00:56:37,120 Speaker 1: that Guardian article, been the one ox fans disgraced Haiti 908 00:56:37,280 --> 00:56:41,080 Speaker 1: official left earlier post over sex parties. Uh, this is 909 00:56:41,080 --> 00:56:43,680 Speaker 1: a separate article that's linked off the one we were 910 00:56:43,680 --> 00:56:48,879 Speaker 1: looking at. Apparently that guy what's his name, Van hammer 911 00:56:49,080 --> 00:56:54,080 Speaker 1: not van Hammerstein, van Howard Miren. Uh, he apparently had 912 00:56:54,120 --> 00:56:59,279 Speaker 1: to leave another charity organization because of allegations that he 913 00:56:59,840 --> 00:57:03,759 Speaker 1: was apparently having sex parties. That's is a quotation from 914 00:57:03,760 --> 00:57:08,120 Speaker 1: the sex parties with local women while operating. Uh. And 915 00:57:08,400 --> 00:57:12,240 Speaker 1: I think Liberia following the timeline, it seems like ox 916 00:57:12,280 --> 00:57:15,560 Speaker 1: Fam at large investigated this with about the same like 917 00:57:15,719 --> 00:57:19,720 Speaker 1: fervor as the Catholic Church investigated child sex allegations. For 918 00:57:19,760 --> 00:57:22,120 Speaker 1: a time, you know, it felt like our real sweeping 919 00:57:22,160 --> 00:57:24,080 Speaker 1: under the rug kind of situation. You know, all this 920 00:57:24,160 --> 00:57:27,400 Speaker 1: happened back in two thousand eleven or the investigation rather, 921 00:57:27,720 --> 00:57:29,840 Speaker 1: and it was just kind of well, what are we 922 00:57:29,880 --> 00:57:34,640 Speaker 1: gonna do? Kind of Yeah, eventually was forced to resign, 923 00:57:35,040 --> 00:57:37,880 Speaker 1: But that's not the same thing as going to jail, 924 00:57:38,120 --> 00:57:40,200 Speaker 1: is it. We shall also say, you know, the u 925 00:57:40,360 --> 00:57:44,480 Speaker 1: N regularly partners with ox FAN to do what they 926 00:57:44,520 --> 00:57:49,000 Speaker 1: call implementation of programs and operations. But you're right now, 927 00:57:49,000 --> 00:57:53,840 Speaker 1: well this for something to have been going on this long, Uh, 928 00:57:53,880 --> 00:57:56,080 Speaker 1: there's no easy answer, and it does seem like there's 929 00:57:56,120 --> 00:58:00,440 Speaker 1: collusion within the organization, or at the very least, either 930 00:58:00,760 --> 00:58:04,400 Speaker 1: a huge lack of oversight to a level of incompetence 931 00:58:04,440 --> 00:58:08,640 Speaker 1: that is difficult to believe, or a tacit agreement to 932 00:58:08,680 --> 00:58:10,640 Speaker 1: look the other way. Man. This is the kind of 933 00:58:10,640 --> 00:58:15,120 Speaker 1: stuff that it's no wonder that something like Pizza Gate 934 00:58:15,560 --> 00:58:18,640 Speaker 1: gained so much traction, because there are real stories like 935 00:58:18,720 --> 00:58:21,480 Speaker 1: this that come out all the time, where like we're 936 00:58:21,480 --> 00:58:24,120 Speaker 1: talking about we told you guys already twelve thirteen year 937 00:58:24,120 --> 00:58:26,640 Speaker 1: olds were caught up in the stuff going on in Haiti. 938 00:58:26,880 --> 00:58:29,680 Speaker 1: We're I'm looking now at the stuff in two thousand 939 00:58:29,760 --> 00:58:33,640 Speaker 1: four in other countries where there were young there were 940 00:58:33,680 --> 00:58:38,880 Speaker 1: young people, not necessarily children, but very young people being 941 00:58:38,920 --> 00:58:41,680 Speaker 1: caught up with these same individuals who are all working 942 00:58:41,720 --> 00:58:46,720 Speaker 1: for charity to literally save the children, um and and 943 00:58:46,840 --> 00:58:51,480 Speaker 1: doing this um. You know, if the people who are 944 00:58:51,520 --> 00:58:54,400 Speaker 1: supposed to be doing some of the most noble and 945 00:58:54,840 --> 00:58:57,600 Speaker 1: best things that you can possibly do, this kind of 946 00:58:57,680 --> 00:59:01,280 Speaker 1: charity work, this kind of giving to somebody else who 947 00:59:01,320 --> 00:59:03,640 Speaker 1: doesn't have as much as you that you know, you 948 00:59:03,680 --> 00:59:05,640 Speaker 1: imagine that's some of the best people in the world. 949 00:59:05,680 --> 00:59:08,080 Speaker 1: But good God, for someone who's able to do that, 950 00:59:08,240 --> 00:59:11,760 Speaker 1: and this other thing simultaneously. It's just it boggles the 951 00:59:11,760 --> 00:59:15,200 Speaker 1: mind to the point where it makes you question every 952 00:59:14,600 --> 00:59:19,560 Speaker 1: human I mean that level of of taking advantage. You know, 953 00:59:19,640 --> 00:59:21,760 Speaker 1: when you're in a position where you're supposed to be 954 00:59:21,840 --> 00:59:24,520 Speaker 1: the helping hand that takes someone who's in a in 955 00:59:24,560 --> 00:59:27,080 Speaker 1: a bad place, and you're supposed to be that arm 956 00:59:27,160 --> 00:59:30,480 Speaker 1: that extends out and instead you reach out and slap them. 957 00:59:30,560 --> 00:59:33,280 Speaker 1: It's disheartening, is what it is. But I don't try 958 00:59:33,280 --> 00:59:35,440 Speaker 1: not to let it like wreck my whole view of 959 00:59:35,520 --> 00:59:37,840 Speaker 1: human because I know good people. They're good people, and 960 00:59:37,800 --> 00:59:39,240 Speaker 1: there are people that are doing good work and this 961 00:59:39,400 --> 00:59:42,920 Speaker 1: isn't representative of all of them. But God, when you 962 00:59:42,960 --> 00:59:45,520 Speaker 1: hear stories like this, it makes you take a pause. 963 00:59:45,960 --> 00:59:49,680 Speaker 1: So one thing I have founds that maybe um somewhat 964 00:59:49,720 --> 00:59:52,960 Speaker 1: mitigating news for you, anonymous and for all of us 965 00:59:53,080 --> 00:59:57,800 Speaker 1: listening along at home, is I looked into the history 966 00:59:57,800 --> 01:00:02,720 Speaker 1: of that figure, right the sixty over a decade. It's 967 01:00:02,760 --> 01:00:05,520 Speaker 1: definitely it's a large number of people over a long 968 01:00:05,600 --> 01:00:08,480 Speaker 1: amount of time, but when we look into some of 969 01:00:08,480 --> 01:00:12,880 Speaker 1: the specifics, it gets a little bit dodgy. So McLeod 970 01:00:13,080 --> 01:00:15,600 Speaker 1: the man we had said, the former senior official, he 971 01:00:15,680 --> 01:00:20,080 Speaker 1: came up with that figure. He originally he originally came 972 01:00:20,120 --> 01:00:22,560 Speaker 1: up with it in an interview in the Sun and 973 01:00:22,600 --> 01:00:25,800 Speaker 1: when the BBC asked him to walk through the calculus 974 01:00:25,840 --> 01:00:29,240 Speaker 1: of that, he hears what he did and he explained 975 01:00:29,240 --> 01:00:32,680 Speaker 1: it to him. It's pretty transparent. He said, okay. In 976 01:00:32,720 --> 01:00:37,800 Speaker 1: two thousand sixteen, the UN internal reports say that there 977 01:00:37,800 --> 01:00:41,440 Speaker 1: were about three hundred and eleven cases of sexual abuse 978 01:00:41,480 --> 01:00:46,160 Speaker 1: by peacekeepers during that year. And then he saw additional 979 01:00:46,280 --> 01:00:50,560 Speaker 1: UN research that said these numbers are probably higher. This 980 01:00:50,600 --> 01:00:52,680 Speaker 1: is this just the stuff that made it through the 981 01:00:52,720 --> 01:00:56,800 Speaker 1: reporting process, and so he decided he would double that 982 01:00:56,960 --> 01:01:02,000 Speaker 1: annual figure six and twenty two, right, and then he 983 01:01:02,120 --> 01:01:06,600 Speaker 1: decided he would multiply that by ten because generally only 984 01:01:06,600 --> 01:01:11,120 Speaker 1: about ten per cent of these sorts of cases are 985 01:01:11,480 --> 01:01:15,240 Speaker 1: reported in general, and that's what brought him to six 986 01:01:15,320 --> 01:01:18,480 Speaker 1: thousand and then he multiplied that by ten again to 987 01:01:18,640 --> 01:01:23,800 Speaker 1: cover a ten year period. Other people in the international 988 01:01:23,840 --> 01:01:26,840 Speaker 1: development and a community have they have a tough time 989 01:01:26,840 --> 01:01:29,360 Speaker 1: with this methodology, you know what I mean, because one 990 01:01:29,360 --> 01:01:31,840 Speaker 1: of the things we have to be very careful about 991 01:01:32,120 --> 01:01:35,920 Speaker 1: whenever reporting on crimes like this is not to be 992 01:01:36,080 --> 01:01:39,840 Speaker 1: too sensationalistic. That's That's how you get to your point, Matt, 993 01:01:39,920 --> 01:01:42,720 Speaker 1: That's how you find yourself at these sorts of Pizza 994 01:01:42,800 --> 01:01:47,200 Speaker 1: Gate situations. The stuff with the Catholic Church definitely real. 995 01:01:47,560 --> 01:01:51,760 Speaker 1: The Detro affair definitely real, and the Belgian government was 996 01:01:51,920 --> 01:01:54,560 Speaker 1: in on it. Not for nothing. Did three hundred thousand 997 01:01:54,640 --> 01:01:58,160 Speaker 1: people marched in that country. And this stuff, this hawks 998 01:01:58,200 --> 01:02:02,120 Speaker 1: fam um and stuff, it is real. It did happen. 999 01:02:02,560 --> 01:02:07,040 Speaker 1: But we owe it to the survivors of these horrendous 1000 01:02:07,040 --> 01:02:11,560 Speaker 1: events to be accurate, you know what I mean. It 1001 01:02:11,600 --> 01:02:15,560 Speaker 1: doesn't It doesn't help to turn it into some sort 1002 01:02:15,600 --> 01:02:22,880 Speaker 1: of sensationalistic, uh yellow journalism line unless we we have 1003 01:02:23,120 --> 01:02:27,000 Speaker 1: the proof, and we need the proof as a species, 1004 01:02:27,400 --> 01:02:30,320 Speaker 1: because we have to arm ourselves with information to prevent 1005 01:02:30,440 --> 01:02:35,640 Speaker 1: things like this from happening again. We cannot emphasize this 1006 01:02:35,880 --> 01:02:39,560 Speaker 1: enough before These people have been victimized. They're living in 1007 01:02:39,640 --> 01:02:43,640 Speaker 1: some of the most challenging situations on the planet, and 1008 01:02:43,680 --> 01:02:47,960 Speaker 1: many times they've been born into these situations. It's stunning 1009 01:02:48,000 --> 01:02:51,480 Speaker 1: to me because to your point, the entire, the entire 1010 01:02:51,560 --> 01:02:55,360 Speaker 1: mission of these people on paper is to help make 1011 01:02:55,400 --> 01:02:59,160 Speaker 1: the world a slightly better place. How dare you do 1012 01:02:59,280 --> 01:03:05,600 Speaker 1: the opposite now? Well, said Ben, Well, sorry, gosh, you 1013 01:03:05,640 --> 01:03:08,840 Speaker 1: know what, maybe it's maybe it's a all the coffee 1014 01:03:09,320 --> 01:03:12,120 Speaker 1: actually a little on the fence. This is one of 1015 01:03:12,160 --> 01:03:14,720 Speaker 1: those that's important for us to cover. It's very much 1016 01:03:14,760 --> 01:03:17,440 Speaker 1: the mission of the show. It's a conspiracy, it's a 1017 01:03:17,480 --> 01:03:22,600 Speaker 1: cover up. It's real. Um. But also it's a very 1018 01:03:22,720 --> 01:03:26,280 Speaker 1: terrible thing. You know. We go back and forth sometimes 1019 01:03:26,520 --> 01:03:30,200 Speaker 1: on episodes like this. You know, if we make these 1020 01:03:30,200 --> 01:03:34,439 Speaker 1: full episodes on what what we can do in an 1021 01:03:34,480 --> 01:03:38,280 Speaker 1: our position on this little podcast of ours, are we 1022 01:03:38,320 --> 01:03:41,600 Speaker 1: are we helping this situation? You know what I mean? Um, 1023 01:03:41,800 --> 01:03:45,160 Speaker 1: that's a question that we try to address in each case. 1024 01:03:45,320 --> 01:03:50,680 Speaker 1: But all to say you are correct, Anonymous, The story 1025 01:03:50,720 --> 01:03:55,000 Speaker 1: you read about is unfortunately very real. For ox FAM's part, 1026 01:03:55,920 --> 01:03:59,560 Speaker 1: ox FAM in specific, you can visit ox Fam America 1027 01:03:59,680 --> 01:04:03,080 Speaker 1: dot org and you will see that they have acknowledge 1028 01:04:03,800 --> 01:04:07,240 Speaker 1: the events in Haiti at least. They have also instituted 1029 01:04:07,320 --> 01:04:12,040 Speaker 1: some significant steps to address the problems that they say, 1030 01:04:12,200 --> 01:04:15,440 Speaker 1: quote allowed the events in Haiti to happen. So they 1031 01:04:15,440 --> 01:04:19,120 Speaker 1: have a commission reviewing cases of sexual misconduct, abuse of power. 1032 01:04:19,680 --> 01:04:23,840 Speaker 1: They're putting more resources into keeping people safe, uh, and 1033 01:04:23,960 --> 01:04:27,120 Speaker 1: they're working with other people and the other peers and 1034 01:04:27,200 --> 01:04:30,240 Speaker 1: groups in the development sector to try to tackle this 1035 01:04:30,360 --> 01:04:34,160 Speaker 1: kind of abuse overall. You can also read a full 1036 01:04:34,240 --> 01:04:39,360 Speaker 1: copy of their final internal report on the events UH 1037 01:04:39,400 --> 01:04:44,320 Speaker 1: and the sexual misconduct and other behavior during this time 1038 01:04:44,360 --> 01:04:48,840 Speaker 1: in Haiti. So I would say also just a brief 1039 01:04:49,440 --> 01:04:52,760 Speaker 1: word of thanks and encouragement to the people who are 1040 01:04:52,800 --> 01:04:57,240 Speaker 1: compiling those reports. To the people who are doing this, UH, 1041 01:04:57,400 --> 01:05:00,200 Speaker 1: who have done this, look into their own organization and 1042 01:05:00,280 --> 01:05:04,080 Speaker 1: think about every think about every show about an institution, 1043 01:05:04,160 --> 01:05:07,000 Speaker 1: whether it's a very large religious one like the Catholic Church, 1044 01:05:07,080 --> 01:05:10,520 Speaker 1: or whether it's a institution like law enforcement. The people 1045 01:05:10,520 --> 01:05:13,640 Speaker 1: who are internal affairs, who have to go in and 1046 01:05:13,680 --> 01:05:16,080 Speaker 1: ask questions of their own people, they're always kind of 1047 01:05:16,120 --> 01:05:18,680 Speaker 1: the bad guys, right Like that's how they're depicted in 1048 01:05:19,120 --> 01:05:23,480 Speaker 1: What the Wire and countless other cops shows. UH. So 1049 01:05:23,520 --> 01:05:25,400 Speaker 1: these folks are doing the real life version of that. 1050 01:05:25,680 --> 01:05:28,360 Speaker 1: I'm grateful that these kind of things are around, but 1051 01:05:28,800 --> 01:05:31,800 Speaker 1: we have to do better and with that we know 1052 01:05:31,880 --> 01:05:34,360 Speaker 1: we're running along when it gives space. We didn't want 1053 01:05:34,360 --> 01:05:37,600 Speaker 1: to be this last story to be something thrown away 1054 01:05:37,640 --> 01:05:39,520 Speaker 1: at the end, but we didn't want to save it 1055 01:05:39,600 --> 01:05:42,920 Speaker 1: for that disclaimer. We would like to hear your experience 1056 01:05:43,080 --> 01:05:47,440 Speaker 1: if you have worked in international development, if you have 1057 01:05:47,720 --> 01:05:50,640 Speaker 1: worked with in G O S or if you've worked 1058 01:05:50,680 --> 01:05:53,760 Speaker 1: with ox FAM, what is the culture like, what was 1059 01:05:53,840 --> 01:05:56,840 Speaker 1: your experience? How much of this story we're just taking 1060 01:05:56,840 --> 01:05:58,320 Speaker 1: a brief look at it now, how much of it 1061 01:05:58,360 --> 01:06:02,040 Speaker 1: has been sensationalized by the media. Are we not hearing 1062 01:06:02,080 --> 01:06:05,960 Speaker 1: the whole story? Still? If so, let us know. I 1063 01:06:06,120 --> 01:06:09,360 Speaker 1: think you also to Steve, let us know about your 1064 01:06:09,400 --> 01:06:13,440 Speaker 1: experience with psilocybin another hallucinogens in so far as you 1065 01:06:13,480 --> 01:06:17,640 Speaker 1: are comfortable, uh, And we would we would love to 1066 01:06:17,680 --> 01:06:20,800 Speaker 1: hear it, especially if it helped you address depression, if 1067 01:06:20,800 --> 01:06:25,360 Speaker 1: it helped you address addiction of some sort. Uh. We 1068 01:06:25,400 --> 01:06:28,280 Speaker 1: would just love to love to hear your personal experience. 1069 01:06:28,560 --> 01:06:32,960 Speaker 1: And also, hey, if you're working for UH. If you're 1070 01:06:33,000 --> 01:06:38,240 Speaker 1: working for was it musculature? Yeah, if you're worry of 1071 01:06:38,440 --> 01:06:42,720 Speaker 1: muscular your former employee of of one of one of 1072 01:06:42,800 --> 01:06:46,520 Speaker 1: the Five Eyes programs, then I don't know, do you 1073 01:06:46,560 --> 01:06:48,360 Speaker 1: need to let us know? Like do we even need 1074 01:06:48,400 --> 01:06:50,840 Speaker 1: to tell you where to find this? You already go? Yeah, 1075 01:06:51,040 --> 01:06:54,080 Speaker 1: just you know, show yourself on one of our screens 1076 01:06:54,120 --> 01:06:57,320 Speaker 1: matrix style one night in UH yeah, Gilli will hang 1077 01:06:58,080 --> 01:07:01,760 Speaker 1: um good Gali. Hey, I'm gonna I'm gonna do the 1078 01:07:01,760 --> 01:07:04,920 Speaker 1: phone number. Okay, sorry, this this thing has me in 1079 01:07:04,920 --> 01:07:08,560 Speaker 1: a dark pit. Let's let's keep going. Um. If you 1080 01:07:08,600 --> 01:07:11,440 Speaker 1: want to get in touch with us, like like your 1081 01:07:11,480 --> 01:07:14,400 Speaker 1: fellow listeners did today, please call our number. It is 1082 01:07:14,480 --> 01:07:18,240 Speaker 1: one eight three three std w y t K. You've 1083 01:07:18,280 --> 01:07:20,320 Speaker 1: got three minutes to leave a message. You can leave 1084 01:07:20,360 --> 01:07:23,720 Speaker 1: as many as you want. Uh. You know it's helpful 1085 01:07:23,760 --> 01:07:28,360 Speaker 1: for us from a time perspective if you leave one concise, 1086 01:07:28,640 --> 01:07:33,160 Speaker 1: really powerful message that we we would appreciate that if 1087 01:07:33,160 --> 01:07:35,720 Speaker 1: you could do that. If you don't want to call us, 1088 01:07:35,840 --> 01:07:38,960 Speaker 1: you can always find us on social media and one 1089 01:07:38,960 --> 01:07:41,600 Speaker 1: of the best places there's on Facebook, believe it or not. 1090 01:07:41,640 --> 01:07:44,680 Speaker 1: After we just talked about giving all your your info 1091 01:07:44,760 --> 01:07:47,720 Speaker 1: up to them, check out here's where it gets crazy, 1092 01:07:48,200 --> 01:07:53,240 Speaker 1: our community page. It is fantastic, amazing mods, great community. 1093 01:07:53,360 --> 01:07:55,520 Speaker 1: We love hanging out and talking there and you can 1094 01:07:55,520 --> 01:07:58,439 Speaker 1: talk with your your fellow listeners about this in any 1095 01:07:58,480 --> 01:08:00,919 Speaker 1: other topic we've discussed on the show. If you don't 1096 01:08:00,920 --> 01:08:02,600 Speaker 1: want to do that and you're a little bit more 1097 01:08:02,680 --> 01:08:04,960 Speaker 1: find yourself in sort of more of an old school zone, 1098 01:08:05,200 --> 01:08:06,520 Speaker 1: You can get in touch with us on the Internet 1099 01:08:06,840 --> 01:08:10,280 Speaker 1: via a more old fashioned way that is via email. 1100 01:08:10,480 --> 01:08:32,920 Speaker 1: Where we are conspiracy at iHeart radio dot com. Stuff 1101 01:08:32,960 --> 01:08:34,840 Speaker 1: they Don't want you to know is a production of 1102 01:08:34,920 --> 01:08:37,880 Speaker 1: I heart Radio. For more podcasts from my heart Radio, 1103 01:08:38,040 --> 01:08:40,839 Speaker 1: visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever 1104 01:08:40,920 --> 01:08:42,240 Speaker 1: you listen to your favorite shows.