WEBVTT - 091623 What Have We Learned in 3 Years? (Part 2) 0:00:00.400 --> 0:00:02.240 If you're just tuning in Civic scipher, I'm your host, 0:00:02.279 --> 0:00:05.720 Rams's Jack, he is Ram's Jah, I am q Ward 0:00:05.760 --> 0:00:09.040 and you are tuned into Civic e sciphe, indeed you are. 0:00:09.039 --> 0:00:11.000 This our three year anniversary episode. 0:00:11.039 --> 0:00:12.600 Three year anniversary sounds crazy. 0:00:12.640 --> 0:00:15.720 Yeah, man, We've been doing it for a while and 0:00:15.760 --> 0:00:17.239 we still have a lot more in store for you, 0:00:17.280 --> 0:00:19.520 So be sure to stick around because we are going 0:00:19.600 --> 0:00:23.960 to be discussing the most important thing we want people 0:00:24.000 --> 0:00:29.000 to know after three years. Things things. Okay, we'll do things. 0:00:29.360 --> 0:00:31.479 We haven't had this conversation before and so we're going 0:00:31.560 --> 0:00:34.879 to have it organically for your benefit. This is kind 0:00:34.880 --> 0:00:36.479 of the spirit that the show was born and for 0:00:36.560 --> 0:00:39.760 us to have honest conversations, black conversations in front of 0:00:39.800 --> 0:00:43.080 an audience of non black allies and potential supporters. So 0:00:43.120 --> 0:00:46.159 that's what we're going to do today, and we have 0:00:46.200 --> 0:00:49.520 a whole lot more in store as well. We're really 0:00:49.520 --> 0:00:56.200 excited about a brand new Baba and so we're going 0:00:56.280 --> 0:00:57.960 to be working this into the show moving forward. So 0:00:58.000 --> 0:01:02.080 let's get to that right now. Today's Baba is sponsored 0:01:02.080 --> 0:01:04.440 by Unknown Union. The fashion now situated at the intersection 0:01:04.520 --> 0:01:06.840 of meaning, innovation and culture. For more info, check Unknown 0:01:06.880 --> 0:01:11.400 Union dot com and we're going to shout out Friends 0:01:11.440 --> 0:01:15.920 of the Movement. I want you to remember this website 0:01:16.280 --> 0:01:20.520 FOTM as in Friends of the Movement Fotmglobal dot Com. 0:01:20.640 --> 0:01:25.680 Fotmglobal dot Com. At FOTM, they're not just an organization. 0:01:25.760 --> 0:01:29.040 They're a movement with a mission to provide unity, social justice, 0:01:29.040 --> 0:01:31.759 and economic empowerment within black and brown communities. And they 0:01:31.760 --> 0:01:36.200 want to reward ally companies that support black and brown 0:01:36.240 --> 0:01:41.280 communities as well. Fotm's robust platform empowers individuals like you 0:01:41.440 --> 0:01:43.880 to drive real change, empowering you to vote with your 0:01:43.880 --> 0:01:48.040 wallet every day, everywhere, every time. This world has witnessed 0:01:48.040 --> 0:01:50.760 the global marches and protests. But now it is time 0:01:50.800 --> 0:01:52.800 to put your money where the movement is. There is 0:01:52.840 --> 0:01:55.600 no more excuses. It's not just about words, it's about 0:01:55.640 --> 0:01:59.760 taking action. They've got a complete buyout sorry, buycott solution 0:02:00.040 --> 0:02:03.800 bycot I like that work solution that includes game changing 0:02:03.840 --> 0:02:07.760 technology of designed to close the wealth gap. All right, 0:02:08.280 --> 0:02:11.840 So what's in this offering? First, Our Money United, a 0:02:11.919 --> 0:02:15.120 groundbreaking campaign that encourages allies black and brown communities to 0:02:15.160 --> 0:02:18.600 actively support black businesses. This is not competition. It is unity. 0:02:18.960 --> 0:02:23.120 FOTM guarantees you never seen a more convenient and effective 0:02:23.120 --> 0:02:26.040 way to send America a powerful message through your spending choices. 0:02:26.200 --> 0:02:29.000 That's just the beginning. The voter wallet is their cutting 0:02:29.040 --> 0:02:31.560 edge technology that lets you vote with your wallet at 0:02:31.560 --> 0:02:34.480 the cash register, supporting companies that align with your values. 0:02:34.639 --> 0:02:38.160 It's about shaping our future through everyday choices. So let's 0:02:38.200 --> 0:02:43.040 not talk about change. Let's make it happen. Visit fotmglobal 0:02:43.120 --> 0:02:45.840 dot com again. That's FOTM as in Friends of the 0:02:45.919 --> 0:02:49.960 Movement Fotmglobal dot com and become a friend today. Download 0:02:49.960 --> 0:02:53.600 the free voter wallet to invite friends and merchants. Remember, 0:02:53.919 --> 0:02:56.040 we must be the change you want to see in 0:02:56.080 --> 0:03:08.880 the world. Okay, so three years, three years, I know 0:03:08.919 --> 0:03:12.280 where I want to start. Please, it's kind of where 0:03:12.280 --> 0:03:16.320 we left off. We had a conversation during the last election, 0:03:16.760 --> 0:03:21.120 the last election cycle with Charlotmagne to God, and he 0:03:21.240 --> 0:03:26.960 pointed out this sort of disenfranchisement of voters tired of 0:03:27.000 --> 0:03:29.960 being left out, tired of being lied to, tired of 0:03:30.000 --> 0:03:33.440 being let down. A lot of black people have just 0:03:33.480 --> 0:03:34.360 stopped caring. 0:03:34.960 --> 0:03:40.120 They've completely you know, unplugged, disconnected and thrown their hands up. 0:03:40.720 --> 0:03:42.840 My voice doesn't matter. My vote doesn't count. 0:03:42.960 --> 0:03:46.480 Even when the people I want elected get elected, they 0:03:46.520 --> 0:03:48.880 don't carry through on the promises that they made, and 0:03:49.240 --> 0:03:50.680 I don't see. 0:03:50.840 --> 0:03:53.720 The benefit of my vote. 0:03:53.920 --> 0:03:57.520 And because we are not, you know, as black people, 0:03:57.640 --> 0:04:03.080 a part of a monolith, we do have varied opinions 0:04:03.080 --> 0:04:07.119 and varied positions on things. And because of that, when 0:04:07.120 --> 0:04:10.960 it comes time to elect officials, both you know, state, local, 0:04:11.000 --> 0:04:15.000 and federal, we are at a disadvantage because the other 0:04:15.160 --> 0:04:19.160 side has a tempole that they all subscribe to. It's 0:04:19.360 --> 0:04:23.440 upholding white supremacy and all the stuff they disagree about, 0:04:23.440 --> 0:04:25.360 all the little stuff that's after that, they don't care. 0:04:25.880 --> 0:04:28.160 They will march together and run to the polls. 0:04:28.200 --> 0:04:32.360 The least educated of us, the most hateful of us, 0:04:32.440 --> 0:04:36.720 the least informed of us, scream the loudness and vote 0:04:36.720 --> 0:04:40.640 the most and us, as educated as we are, spend 0:04:40.680 --> 0:04:44.960 a lot of time debating each other, adopting contrarian platforms 0:04:44.960 --> 0:04:47.719 so that we can flex our intellectual muscle and show 0:04:47.960 --> 0:04:50.800 that we don't subscribe to group think, while the other 0:04:50.920 --> 0:04:54.359 side collectively goes out and votes against our best interests, 0:04:54.400 --> 0:04:57.479 sometimes even against their own best interests. Just as long 0:04:57.520 --> 0:05:01.240 as they're also against ours and they get results to 0:05:01.320 --> 0:05:04.640 the tune of tens of millions of people showing up 0:05:04.680 --> 0:05:08.320 to the polls. So the number one thing that I 0:05:08.640 --> 0:05:11.520 like people to react to with regards to civic sipher, 0:05:11.560 --> 0:05:15.400 our listeners and our message is somehow finding something that 0:05:15.440 --> 0:05:20.160 we can unite on and finding someone who can carry 0:05:20.200 --> 0:05:22.440 that message for us, because another problem that we have 0:05:23.000 --> 0:05:31.239 is a lack of followable dates. 0:05:31.680 --> 0:05:35.440 Can I jump in here please? Okay. So in the 0:05:35.440 --> 0:05:39.120 first half of the show, we were talking about how 0:05:39.160 --> 0:05:42.479 having a new president makes it a little easier to 0:05:42.600 --> 0:05:47.599 be black and I work with We live in Arizona, 0:05:47.720 --> 0:05:50.479 so a lot of the people this used to be Mexico. Literally, 0:05:50.560 --> 0:05:52.200 so a lot of the people that live here are 0:05:52.800 --> 0:06:01.560 Mexican of Mexican descent, recimply moved to the US. It's 0:06:01.560 --> 0:06:04.720 not like they've lived in the US because their family 0:06:04.839 --> 0:06:08.040 was here when this became the US. They first generation. 0:06:08.040 --> 0:06:10.680 That's the word I'm looking for, thank you. So all 0:06:10.800 --> 0:06:13.840 types of Hispanic people, and I know that for a 0:06:13.880 --> 0:06:15.920 lot of them it feels very different too. And that's 0:06:16.000 --> 0:06:19.400 the reality that in which I live, where human beings 0:06:19.400 --> 0:06:25.760 are affected negatively by the hate and the divisiveness of 0:06:25.839 --> 0:06:29.159 one man who has been elected, and that I feel that. 0:06:29.400 --> 0:06:30.800 I mean, if you listen to the show for any 0:06:30.839 --> 0:06:33.719 length of time, you know I'll be feeling some stuff. Man, 0:06:33.800 --> 0:06:34.880 I'm crying all the time. 0:06:34.920 --> 0:06:35.160 I can't. 0:06:35.400 --> 0:06:36.920 Man, I wish I was different, but this is who 0:06:36.960 --> 0:06:38.279 I was supposed to be, So this is what I 0:06:38.279 --> 0:06:44.159 can be. Right, So a different president changing how things 0:06:44.240 --> 0:06:47.000 feel and that mattering and that going a long way. 0:06:47.440 --> 0:06:53.719 That's definitely something that I'm proud that we all have accomplished, 0:06:53.839 --> 0:06:55.680 those of us who want to see a world that 0:06:56.160 --> 0:06:58.080 is more equitable, where people are treated a little bit 0:06:58.080 --> 0:07:06.400 more fairly. But as you talk about candidates, I again, 0:07:06.440 --> 0:07:08.520 I'm not one of those people that looks at the 0:07:08.520 --> 0:07:11.480 current president Joe Biden is like, oh Biden, is this Biden? Hey, 0:07:11.520 --> 0:07:14.760 Look he's doing the job better than the last guy. 0:07:14.960 --> 0:07:17.760 That's all I really needed right now. Okay, But the 0:07:17.800 --> 0:07:20.160 fact of the matter bar the low bar. But the 0:07:20.160 --> 0:07:22.280 fact of the matter is that what I the person 0:07:22.320 --> 0:07:26.280 I wanted was Bernie Sanders. I'm that I'm a good 0:07:26.320 --> 0:07:30.440 friend of our sinbatt. He calls me a bleeding heart liberal, right, 0:07:30.560 --> 0:07:32.360 and I didn't know it. I still really don't know 0:07:32.400 --> 0:07:34.400 what it means, but it sounds cool because it has 0:07:34.440 --> 0:07:35.760 the word heart, you know what I mean, And I 0:07:35.840 --> 0:07:38.000 know that that's that's who I was supposed to be. 0:07:38.040 --> 0:07:41.320 I tried to be tough guy or whatever it is, 0:07:41.360 --> 0:07:43.560 not man, come on, seriously, I mean, if I need 0:07:43.560 --> 0:07:45.280 to be those things, sure, But for the most part, 0:07:45.320 --> 0:07:47.560 I know that I was meant to feel what it 0:07:47.600 --> 0:07:52.040 is that I feel and to try to bring kindness, happiness, love, 0:07:52.600 --> 0:07:55.840 fellowship into this planet. So that's what I'm going to do. 0:07:55.880 --> 0:08:01.200 I don't know how to be any different. Bernie Sanders 0:08:01.360 --> 0:08:07.280 was a little bit closer to what I would envision 0:08:07.360 --> 0:08:12.320 the best of us, what it would be. With that 0:08:12.440 --> 0:08:18.880 in mind, I understand that feeling that a lot of 0:08:18.880 --> 0:08:22.320 people have, which is, you know, what does my vote 0:08:22.360 --> 0:08:22.720 count for? 0:08:22.880 --> 0:08:23.160 What is it? 0:08:23.200 --> 0:08:25.840 You know? But where I came back to and where 0:08:25.840 --> 0:08:28.160 I had to kind of where I got disappointed when 0:08:28.320 --> 0:08:30.680 it was Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, and Bernie was 0:08:30.720 --> 0:08:33.280 looking like he was that dude, and then all of 0:08:33.280 --> 0:08:36.920 a sudden there was some behind the scenes stuff. I 0:08:36.920 --> 0:08:39.319 couldn't tell you about it right now, but I remember 0:08:39.400 --> 0:08:40.640 at the time I was like, wait a minute, what 0:08:40.679 --> 0:08:43.840 happened because Bernie had this whole swell and then all 0:08:43.880 --> 0:08:50.199 of a sudden, Hillary Clinton emerged as the nominee. This 0:08:50.360 --> 0:08:55.520 was back when Donald Trump was first running. I felt 0:08:55.520 --> 0:08:57.079 like that was very unfair, and I was kind of 0:08:57.120 --> 0:09:01.839 disappointed in Democrats and obviously disappointed and everything that Donald 0:09:01.840 --> 0:09:05.000 Trump was talking about at the time. So I felt like, well, 0:09:05.040 --> 0:09:07.640 what what is this for? This long before Saivic Cipher, 0:09:07.679 --> 0:09:13.080 by the way, So yeah, in that moment, I felt 0:09:13.160 --> 0:09:17.760 kind of deflated. But what I what reoriented me was 0:09:17.840 --> 0:09:20.880 that I don't think it's just the lesser of two 0:09:20.920 --> 0:09:25.640 evils argument that we use a lot, and and sometimes 0:09:25.640 --> 0:09:28.400 it's that, and that's not accurate, but that's how it's 0:09:28.480 --> 0:09:30.440 that's how it's funn yeah, and and and we have 0:09:30.520 --> 0:09:33.720 this conversation sometimes. But what I think it is is 0:09:33.760 --> 0:09:41.240 it's more like, which one of these two options more 0:09:41.360 --> 0:09:49.320 closely aligns with the type of world that I would 0:09:49.400 --> 0:09:54.720 like to see for all of us? And one side 0:09:55.200 --> 0:09:57.839 and I'm not gonna I'm not gonna make any pronouncements here, 0:09:58.240 --> 0:10:02.320 because there's a side that effectively says eat or be 0:10:02.400 --> 0:10:06.120 eaten and another side that says live and let live. 0:10:06.600 --> 0:10:09.240 You know what I mean or I know those aren't exact, 0:10:09.240 --> 0:10:12.319 but you get what I'm trying to say. There's two philosophies, 0:10:12.360 --> 0:10:14.600 neither which is wrong or right, but one of them 0:10:14.640 --> 0:10:18.400 is a little bit more in line with This is 0:10:18.400 --> 0:10:21.080 what I'm saying right now. I'm trying to be fair. 0:10:21.480 --> 0:10:24.320 I'm gonna let you have it, but one of them 0:10:24.440 --> 0:10:28.840 is more in line with what I believe the best 0:10:28.880 --> 0:10:30.920 of us is. I don't believe the best of us 0:10:31.000 --> 0:10:32.640 is eat or be eaten. I believe the best of 0:10:32.720 --> 0:10:36.560 us is live and let live. Of those two philosophies, right, 0:10:37.400 --> 0:10:41.960 And so, while not being necessarily a fan of any candidate, 0:10:42.880 --> 0:10:45.040 I know that in terms of a political party, in 0:10:45.080 --> 0:10:49.559 a political affiliation, there is one side that feels more 0:10:49.960 --> 0:10:53.800 in tune with what the best of us can be. Now, 0:10:53.840 --> 0:10:56.720 the other side might say, Okay, they're not realistic, this 0:10:56.880 --> 0:11:01.000 is impossible. You're always gonna have these problems. Sure, sure, 0:11:01.040 --> 0:11:02.960 But in terms of where are we going, what are 0:11:02.960 --> 0:11:05.760 we trying to pursue, what are we trying to engineer 0:11:05.800 --> 0:11:09.320 into our society, these people seem like they got the vision, 0:11:09.400 --> 0:11:12.280 and these people are trying to batten down the hatches 0:11:12.360 --> 0:11:14.720 and whether whatever storm we're dealing with right now. And 0:11:14.800 --> 0:11:16.760 I'm a little bit more of an optimist, and so 0:11:16.880 --> 0:11:20.760 that's where my political allegiances lie. So it compels me 0:11:20.800 --> 0:11:23.880 to continue to engage in the democratic process. And I 0:11:23.920 --> 0:11:25.960 hope that you've learned something from that because cues about 0:11:25.960 --> 0:11:26.559 the Hypney part. 0:11:27.080 --> 0:11:28.840 No, I'm not going to rip you apart. I'm just 0:11:28.840 --> 0:11:30.960 gonna say something that I feel to be true. Okay, 0:11:31.000 --> 0:11:35.360 But neither party has an ideal position. Yeah, that's fair. 0:11:35.800 --> 0:11:38.400 Neither party is really looking to deliver much for us 0:11:38.440 --> 0:11:38.800 at all. 0:11:38.960 --> 0:11:39.760 Sure, that's fair. 0:11:39.840 --> 0:11:44.880 That's the problem. One of them is quite flagrantly and 0:11:44.920 --> 0:11:49.320 demonstrably worse than the other. But what has gotten so 0:11:49.400 --> 0:11:52.240 many people to unplug and disconnect and just check out 0:11:52.240 --> 0:11:55.240 altogether is that neither of them is really doing anything 0:11:55.320 --> 0:11:58.199 for us. There's a lot of you use the word. 0:11:58.360 --> 0:12:03.160 I use the word socialism not as a pejorative, right. 0:12:03.200 --> 0:12:06.120 One of our parties does because the idea of the 0:12:06.160 --> 0:12:10.120 government helping everybody has to be an awful concept, and 0:12:10.160 --> 0:12:11.800 they sell it that way, except they do a lot 0:12:11.840 --> 0:12:14.520 to help themselves, and they do a lot to use 0:12:14.600 --> 0:12:17.880 our systems and our tax dollars to help themselves. So 0:12:17.920 --> 0:12:20.040 they get people to take to the streets marching and 0:12:20.120 --> 0:12:23.240 raising their fist against socialism. But if your house catches 0:12:23.280 --> 0:12:26.000 on fire, you call nine to one one and your 0:12:26.040 --> 0:12:28.760 neighbour's tax dollars pay for those people who come to 0:12:28.800 --> 0:12:31.000 put the fire out. So they don't even believe in 0:12:31.040 --> 0:12:34.200 the things they claim to right, that's socialism when they 0:12:34.200 --> 0:12:36.440 feel like it, And especially for those who already have 0:12:36.840 --> 0:12:39.439 they're rich and wealthy, practice socialism with and for each 0:12:39.480 --> 0:12:42.760 other constantly. So when you have two parties neither of 0:12:42.800 --> 0:12:45.160 which seem to be serving its people, a lot of 0:12:45.160 --> 0:12:47.120 the people just throw their hands up and say, forget this. 0:12:47.600 --> 0:12:51.000 The problem is that one of those parties is actively 0:12:51.120 --> 0:12:54.959 trying to destroy us. So having that lesser of two 0:12:55.080 --> 0:12:57.839 evils concept, that's really where that discussion comes from. It 0:12:58.320 --> 0:13:00.160 is not really a lesser of two evils. One of 0:13:00.200 --> 0:13:02.440 them is very much status quo, the other one is 0:13:02.520 --> 0:13:06.920 actually evil. And I think in order to continue to 0:13:06.960 --> 0:13:09.800 stir up their supporters in the way that our former 0:13:09.840 --> 0:13:12.600 president did, a lot of these things that are happening now, 0:13:12.640 --> 0:13:16.719 I think started as pr campaigns. I don't think they 0:13:16.760 --> 0:13:19.439 ever really intended to get rid of Roe v Wade. 0:13:20.240 --> 0:13:22.120 I think they just knew if they talked about it 0:13:22.320 --> 0:13:29.840 that the Evangelical and Roman Catholic supporters would support someone 0:13:29.840 --> 0:13:33.160 who was trying to do away with abortion. It just 0:13:33.200 --> 0:13:35.040 got so much of a swell and so much support 0:13:35.080 --> 0:13:37.440 that they saw it through. But I think initially it 0:13:37.520 --> 0:13:39.800 was just a talking point. Right, we don't we are 0:13:39.880 --> 0:13:44.640 not christian like at all, but we have a hot 0:13:44.679 --> 0:13:48.040 button topic that if we say we're against it, the 0:13:48.080 --> 0:13:50.920 Evangelicals and the Christians and the Catholics will support us. 0:13:51.080 --> 0:13:53.160 And that's if we come out here and say we're 0:13:53.160 --> 0:13:58.360 against abortion. And they're right. Some of the worst people 0:13:58.400 --> 0:14:02.720 to ever exist campaign on the Bible belt on that 0:14:02.960 --> 0:14:05.319 single topic, and as long as they're on the right 0:14:05.320 --> 0:14:07.760 side of that topic to get that base, they get it, 0:14:07.960 --> 0:14:10.520 no matter what their actual politics are like, no matter 0:14:10.520 --> 0:14:13.280 how they actually feel about that topic. So it's just 0:14:13.320 --> 0:14:16.960 become such a game that our politicians play with the 0:14:17.040 --> 0:14:22.520 less informed of us, and unfortunately the more informed of us. 0:14:23.720 --> 0:14:26.000 It rather it begins to us and check out. They 0:14:26.080 --> 0:14:27.360 see this rigged against. 0:14:27.080 --> 0:14:31.320 Us, and in order to flex again that intellectual muscle, 0:14:31.920 --> 0:14:36.040 they turn contrarian and try to talk everyone else out 0:14:36.080 --> 0:14:37.000 of engaging too. 0:14:37.680 --> 0:14:40.240 So while we're being divided and arguing amongst ourselves. 0:14:40.320 --> 0:14:42.760 They are united and they're pushed to keep us under 0:14:42.800 --> 0:14:44.760 their boot, and they take to the polls and they 0:14:44.840 --> 0:14:45.880 vote every time. 0:14:46.560 --> 0:14:48.600 I want to end mass. I want to say this. 0:14:49.240 --> 0:14:53.200 I think that this is something that is worth saying. 0:14:54.360 --> 0:14:58.960 Everything that you said I agree with. But follow me 0:14:59.000 --> 0:15:03.440 for a second. We mentioned a dear friend of ours, 0:15:05.200 --> 0:15:15.760 Steve Earnhardt. Steve Earnhardt is a white man. He's older 0:15:15.800 --> 0:15:16.280 than we are. 0:15:17.840 --> 0:15:18.520 Whole lot. 0:15:18.560 --> 0:15:20.640 I wouldn't guess his age, you know, but I know 0:15:20.680 --> 0:15:24.600 that he's older than we are. He's in a position 0:15:24.640 --> 0:15:32.080 of power, and he based on his values or his 0:15:32.200 --> 0:15:34.640 tax bracket, if it's your values, I'm a little bit 0:15:34.680 --> 0:15:41.200 more okay with that. But based on his values, feels 0:15:41.600 --> 0:15:48.640 more aligned with the Republican Party, the Republican Party of 0:15:48.680 --> 0:15:52.000 our childhood, not today. But this is what I'm trying 0:15:52.000 --> 0:15:55.760 to say. I'm trying to separate the party from the people. Okay. So, 0:15:57.000 --> 0:15:59.040 because there's a lot of people we have, believe it 0:15:59.120 --> 0:16:00.880 or not. I learn this, and we haven't had this 0:16:00.920 --> 0:16:04.480 conversation before, but I learned this. We have a lot 0:16:04.520 --> 0:16:08.800 of people who are conservative in their views that listen 0:16:08.880 --> 0:16:15.520 to our show and every so often they'll engage, and 0:16:15.800 --> 0:16:17.840 you know, a letter will make its way to me, 0:16:17.920 --> 0:16:20.000 and you know, I just we just haven't had these conversations. 0:16:20.000 --> 0:16:21.840 But I've I've thought, once upon a time we should 0:16:21.880 --> 0:16:24.840 have like a conversation about this on the air. But anyway, 0:16:25.680 --> 0:16:32.400 Steve is a person that doesn't feel politically the way 0:16:32.400 --> 0:16:35.400 that we feel about a lot of things. I'm me 0:16:35.560 --> 0:16:38.320 being a bleeding heart liberal. I couldn't even hide it 0:16:38.400 --> 0:16:40.680 if I wanted to, you know what I mean. I 0:16:40.720 --> 0:16:44.640 don't think that I'm capable of that. He had to 0:16:44.680 --> 0:16:47.480 know that the moment he talked to me, and then 0:16:47.480 --> 0:16:50.640 obviously over all the meetings. He knows exactly who I am, 0:16:50.680 --> 0:16:53.000 where I stand for. But I believe that the reason 0:16:53.040 --> 0:16:55.160 he gave us the keys to the kingdom in a 0:16:55.200 --> 0:16:57.880 manner of speaking, and gave us the framework to grow 0:16:57.920 --> 0:17:01.000 this show is because he believed than the human element, 0:17:01.520 --> 0:17:03.040 he believed that it was the right thing to do. 0:17:03.920 --> 0:17:10.000 And despite us having conversations that we believe are based 0:17:10.040 --> 0:17:13.240 in truth, we know we're based in truth, we have video, 0:17:14.280 --> 0:17:15.800 and the fact of the matter is that the truth 0:17:15.840 --> 0:17:21.760 has a very very strong liberal bias to it. He's 0:17:21.800 --> 0:17:25.520 been one of our biggest cheerleaders and supporters, and so 0:17:25.720 --> 0:17:27.560 I wanted to add that to what you were saying, 0:17:27.640 --> 0:17:34.760 so that we don't conflate Republicans with the Republican Party 0:17:35.600 --> 0:17:40.840 too much, because there are a a significant conservatives with 0:17:40.880 --> 0:17:42.560 the republic That's okay, That's what I'm trying to say, 0:17:42.520 --> 0:17:44.919 is it's more conservative the very party. 0:17:44.960 --> 0:17:46.760 The party is kind of not kind of the party 0:17:46.800 --> 0:17:47.359 is out of control. 0:17:47.400 --> 0:17:50.000 Now, yeah, yeah, So that's that's that's and that's the 0:17:50.080 --> 0:17:52.720 reason this show was born. That's the that you know, 0:17:52.760 --> 0:17:55.439 and we've and and it's it's it's sad that we 0:17:55.560 --> 0:17:58.000 have to refer to it by name as the Republican 0:17:58.080 --> 0:18:00.840 Party because it's just that thing where I've lived in 0:18:00.880 --> 0:18:04.399 this country and have had to deal with conservativism my 0:18:04.520 --> 0:18:08.040 whole entire adult life, even before I became an adult, 0:18:08.080 --> 0:18:09.879 because I'm black and you have to grow up a 0:18:09.880 --> 0:18:14.320 lot faster if you're black. And this is true. If 0:18:14.359 --> 0:18:16.240 you don't know that for yourself, take our word for it. 0:18:16.240 --> 0:18:17.960 We would not lie to you about something like that. 0:18:19.760 --> 0:18:27.280 But it wasn't until this show, around the time when 0:18:27.280 --> 0:18:29.000 the show was born, when we just kind of reached 0:18:29.000 --> 0:18:32.240 its boiling point, like what is this. Why are these 0:18:32.359 --> 0:18:36.080 people so hateful? Why are they so supportive of this 0:18:36.200 --> 0:18:39.879 man who is so clearly hateful. His whole platform is 0:18:39.920 --> 0:18:44.640 based on hate and device literally divisiveness. Build that wall, like, yo, 0:18:44.800 --> 0:18:48.840 what is going on? Why does everybody love this? And 0:18:48.880 --> 0:18:51.080 why are so many of us standing up for him? 0:18:51.320 --> 0:18:53.520 That was the moment, And that's another part that I 0:18:53.640 --> 0:18:54.000 no one. 0:18:53.960 --> 0:18:58.600 Care about standing up on this idea that I'm pretending 0:18:58.640 --> 0:19:01.919 I don't know I do. He was not a regular politician, 0:19:02.560 --> 0:19:05.080 and for a lot of people that was enough. He 0:19:05.600 --> 0:19:08.680 was not the status quo. So again on that contrarian 0:19:08.800 --> 0:19:13.640 mindset where there's no real backbone to it, right, contrary 0:19:13.680 --> 0:19:15.840 and for the sake of being so, I'm just thinking 0:19:15.880 --> 0:19:17.880 outside the box. And like I said, I don't subscribe 0:19:17.880 --> 0:19:20.280 to group thinking. Yeah, you say the sky is blue, 0:19:20.320 --> 0:19:21.160 but how do we know that? 0:19:21.640 --> 0:19:21.800 Man? 0:19:21.840 --> 0:19:25.480 It was just crazy talk. Yeah, but he did not 0:19:25.680 --> 0:19:29.160 fit the cookie cutter politician and a lot of people 0:19:29.240 --> 0:19:32.240 were here for it, even though it was grossly hateful. 0:19:31.960 --> 0:19:38.920 Device Yeah, and it really harmed a lot of people, 0:19:39.160 --> 0:19:43.040 and it really was hurtful, and he showed the worst 0:19:43.440 --> 0:19:46.560 of us, true of ours, true colors. 0:19:46.720 --> 0:19:48.960 I had some relationships that didn't survive his presidence. 0:19:49.040 --> 0:19:53.200 Oh me too. For like former friends of mine, if 0:19:53.200 --> 0:19:54.919 that name would have never came up, we'll still be 0:19:54.920 --> 0:19:57.080 fine today. As soon as it came up. I'm like, man, Listen, 0:19:57.520 --> 0:20:00.199 we had a whole episode, remember early on, where we 0:20:00.280 --> 0:20:02.639 had to discuss whether or not we should use the 0:20:02.640 --> 0:20:05.240 black button. I'm personally a big fan of the black button. 0:20:05.320 --> 0:20:08.960 It works, keeps you peace of mind, keeps your brain 0:20:09.040 --> 0:20:12.080 from being cluttered. Black button is an amazing tool. Listen, man, 0:20:13.280 --> 0:20:15.840 But not to harp on that. There's another couple of 0:20:15.840 --> 0:20:18.000 things that I do want to shout out because these 0:20:18.000 --> 0:20:21.440 have been topics that have been very important that we've 0:20:21.440 --> 0:20:26.000 been able to cover over the past few years. The first, 0:20:26.119 --> 0:20:30.600 we've discussed that black on black crime is a myth 0:20:33.600 --> 0:20:35.879 right and and and not a myth. Obviously, there's a 0:20:35.920 --> 0:20:38.480 black person that can commit a crime against another black person, 0:20:38.520 --> 0:20:42.520 but it's it's a marketing ploy is a myth right, 0:20:42.560 --> 0:20:44.520 That's what I'm trying to say. So we've talked about 0:20:44.520 --> 0:20:47.840 that at length. We have actually some content up on 0:20:47.840 --> 0:20:50.400 our social media again. Follow us at Civic Cipher you'll 0:20:50.440 --> 0:20:52.320 be able to see some stuff there. A lot of 0:20:52.320 --> 0:20:55.960 people are talking about that. We were able to have 0:20:56.080 --> 0:21:01.159 conversations dispelling the myth that black fathers are absentee and 0:21:01.200 --> 0:21:03.639 not involved in their children's lives. So when the fact 0:21:03.760 --> 0:21:07.080 is is that the data shows from the CDC, there's 0:21:07.200 --> 0:21:10.480 articles written even this year. The study came out about 0:21:10.480 --> 0:21:14.679 ten years ago, but there's still articles being written that 0:21:14.720 --> 0:21:17.480 are documenting this. The black fathers actually are the best 0:21:17.520 --> 0:21:21.280 fathers of all, most involved and so forth. And what 0:21:22.040 --> 0:21:25.399 gaps you see has to do with incarceration rates and 0:21:25.440 --> 0:21:27.840 things like this, But in terms of like unmarried black 0:21:28.040 --> 0:21:32.760 all that stuff is just a fabrication. And I want 0:21:32.760 --> 0:21:34.960 to read this before we go. What do we want. 0:21:35.200 --> 0:21:37.560 We want to in qualified immunity. We want to end 0:21:37.560 --> 0:21:41.400 for profit prisons. We want to overhaul police unions, demilitarize 0:21:41.400 --> 0:21:44.040 the police. We want to end cash bail. We want 0:21:44.119 --> 0:21:50.480 citizens oversight of police. We want cameras on all the 0:21:50.520 --> 0:21:53.240 time and to be monitored by the community. We want 0:21:53.280 --> 0:21:57.520 to remove racist police officers, retrain and de escalation, no 0:21:57.640 --> 0:22:01.320 needs to chest, no chokeholds, and we need to affirm 0:22:01.359 --> 0:22:02.680 the black lives matter and. 0:22:02.760 --> 0:22:03.679 Over and over again. 0:22:03.880 --> 0:22:04.840 And that's it for us. 0:22:04.920 --> 0:22:07.560 So three years, three years, man proud. 0:22:07.320 --> 0:22:09.800 To have done it with you, I wouldn't have chosen 0:22:09.840 --> 0:22:14.280 to do it with anyone else. I'm grateful that well. 0:22:14.480 --> 0:22:16.639 Q and I we've known each other long for this show, 0:22:16.720 --> 0:22:18.760 and we're going to know each other long after this 0:22:18.840 --> 0:22:21.719 show is passed on to whatever next generation comes. 0:22:23.119 --> 0:22:24.720 And I know there's been some moments along the way 0:22:24.760 --> 0:22:26.640 where we may not have been certain that we would 0:22:26.640 --> 0:22:29.880 have made it this far, last years long, but here 0:22:29.920 --> 0:22:35.400 we are. Here we are, man, hopefully we got three, six, nine, twelve, fifteen. 0:22:35.400 --> 0:22:37.840 Whatever it takes twenty more years of this to go. 0:22:39.600 --> 0:22:42.160