[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] I like him too. We've hung out on multiple occasions. He came to my house. Chris Reagan, right? Chris Reagan. We've collaborated before on some videos. Oh, I didn't know that. Interesting. Yea, on the meme channel. Oh, okay. He did a video on the meme channel too, where we reacted to a really horrible song.


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[Assistant] Uhm, but uh, from this rapper named Uncle Adams, you should try to get him on the show, fucking Uncle Adams, he's a big Canadian rap meme.


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[Assistant] The last night and uhm, I was just like breaking his balls, I told him that uh,


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[Assistant] I feel like if him and Lacey Green have a baby, that baby could unite the two factions. It could either, it could, it could do one of two things. It could either unite the two factions and like, you know, bring the alt-right and bring Antifa and bring, you know, the regressive left together because, you know, sort of the beauty of the baby like melts everybody's hearts or like makes their hearts grow three times their size like the Grinch.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] These two people from two different alien races which are currently warring and they get together and they have a baby and then they're on the run because they're being like, you know, manhunted because they decided to love each other and like have a baby.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] That's fine. Also let me check myself for calling the Beastie Boys white. Can I just call them white? Can I just call them straight white? Am I allowed to call the Beastie Boys white?


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[Assistant] And that's the thing, you just kind of feel dumb doing it like that because it's not how you kind of came up or it's not kind of like what you grew up in.


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[Assistant] Yeah, I don't hear rap music and I'm like, man, I'd really like to say the N word right now. You know, or it's like, you know, what's also funny is like there are a lot of rappers that I like that are black that don't use that word at all. You know, it's, I think it's like, uh, or barely use that word so to speak, you know, and the thing is like, it's, it's so funny because I think it almost like is based on this, um,


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[Assistant] You know, sort of this false assumption that like saying that word somehow makes rap music make sense or you need to use that word to make rap music or it's like it's somehow like inherent to the genre despite the fact that, you know, we have years and years and years of music before the 90s in rap music where that word was not quite as common as it did once hardcore hip hop kind of came into play.


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[Assistant] I'm, I'm sort of, uh, you know, sort of going, uh, on a bit of a detour here, but you know, even when that word started seeping a little bit, like it's, it's, it was not as widely used then as it is now. Right. You know, where it's essentially you're just like rhyming the n-word with the n-word to like complete bars, you know, essentially at this point.


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[Assistant] No, no, I mean, I guess my parents, both my parents growing up were actually conservative. Uhm, my mother...


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[Assistant] Kind of philosophically I would say is more right wing, but I think he's generally just kind of like disinterested in politics because he thinks all politicians are trash and that the whole system is, you know, kind of like, uhm, impossible to work with and, uh, you know, nothing good can really kind of come out of putting effort into it or caring about it. I think like around,


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[Assistant] Like I didn't know a lot of what they were talking about, but I did get the sense that what they were singing about was a political thing. They were like singing about the world, you know.


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[Assistant] Moments like that where it was like, woah, you know, music can be political, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Uhm, you know, and I think uhm, since then I've kind of always had an interest in, I mean, not necessarily the political process as it is right now, but just kind of like what drives political and philosophical ideas. Uhm.


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[Assistant] And that's why, you know, sort of like having a conversation with a guy like Milo Younopoulos is essential. You know, and that's why it's like, I feel like the less you know and the less you understand about Milo, the


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[Assistant] Right. Uhm, you know, like once you actually kind of get into his ideas or what he thinks is important or what he thinks should actually be like instilled, like it's a lot of bullshit that either is a total pipe dream, as much a pipe dream as like, you know,


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[Assistant] You know, because like, and I had a funny conversation with my wife about this because she was saying, uh, I love how...


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[Assistant] That's the horseshoe theory again. That's to say that when you go so far, no matter what side of the spectrum you're going on, you end up having more in common than you actually do. Because right now I feel like a lot of the


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[Assistant] Honestly, it's my philosophy that, uh, and my assumption and my theory that a lot of these alt-right kids are really fucking liberal. And the only reason that they're considering themselves to be alt-right is because they don't like SJWs. They don't like the idea of like some kind of blue-haired feminist telling them what to do or what to think.


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[Assistant] That's what they think it is. And not to say that, you know, it's feminist faults or, you know, to blame it squarely on them. Because, you know, partially this is...


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[Assistant] Free college platform. Can you put in the living wage platform? Like all of those things didn't end up in her platform until that happened.


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[Assistant] You know, like, she was only sort of, you know, if you look back into the early announcement of her campaign,


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[Assistant] There's that infamous video of her talking to those Black Lives Matter supporters saying to them like, well, you know, honestly, like you really just need to be advocating better to your, you know, to your represent, your local representatives and da da da da. I basically


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[Assistant] I can't do anything for you. You know, whereas like down the road she was like totally on that bandwagon. You know, so it's like she's just as opportunistic as any other politician. You know, if she really cared about those issues, the moment that she had those young black kids in front of her sort of telling her how important this was to them.


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[Assistant] Then she would have listened and she would have heard and she would have cared and she would have like, you know, acted interested in it from the get go as opposed to just like passing the buck onto, you know, somebody else or saying that


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[Assistant] Uh, because they're in the situation that they are, the blame must lie on them. Right. Uh, because they hadn't, you know, talked to the right politician or they hadn't, uh, you know, voted the right way or they hadn't, you know, done the right activism or something. You know, whereas like, you know, we're talking about like,


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] You know, there's nothing that you could lay onto the backs of black people that, as far as responsibility goes, that had anything to do with like, you know,


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[Assistant] You know, there's nothing that black people have done as a community that


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[Assistant] Uhm, you know, that, that, that warranted that or created that, you know, that kind of atmosphere. You know, that's just like a product of, you know, our broken system and the fact that, uhm, you know, police officers can get away with doing things like that with little to nothing in the way of punishment.


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[Assistant] Uhm, you know, it's the mere fact that there's no repercussions for that kind of thing that allows it to go on.


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[Assistant] You know, it's like if you put anybody in that situation where they're basically above the law, lo and behold, you know, you're going to see people abusing the law. You know, you're going to see people acting like they're above the law. You know, sure you're going to have


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[Assistant] You know, some or maybe even most of the time, people who will benevolently, you know, not abuse that power, but there's gonna be enough of them for it to be a trend and for it to be a really ugly trend too, especially in a day and age where everything's caught on camera, everything's uploadable to the internet.


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[Assistant] You know, which instantaneously, you know, that's just one guy dying. But the thing is like when everybody sees it, it seems like so much more of a big thing, you know, and it should be a big thing. It's a horrible thing.


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[Assistant] You know, but it's watching that video and watching that context of it, it's almost like watching a hundred thousand people dying.


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[Assistant] I think if there's like, you know, honestly, I think it's good to keep people aware of it, but I think if there's anything to, that people need to learn in response to these things, it's that


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[Assistant] Changing this sort of thing does not and will not and probably cannot, I mean just from what I know about how our government works, cannot change at the federal level. Like the president can't just come in and just be like, okay,


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[Assistant] 100, if you get 200, if you get 500 people in the door who weren't planning on voting before voting, you know, for somebody who might actually go in there and do some change, you could sway that person in there because local elections, barely anybody fucking votes. You know, you're talking about even midterm elections, like the voter rates just like drop off completely. Like that might be,


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[Assistant] But, you know, again, the, the good news side of that is really good news. That, you know, very little people vote in local elections and it's really easy to influence them if you get organized. But all you have to do is get organized and once you are, you become an unstoppable force.


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[Assistant] I have thought about it a lot, and you know, it's just like, at this point,


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[Assistant] I guess it's something that if I were to ever kind of get involved in, I guess what's kind of keeping me from doing it right now is it would be a serious sacrifice to my family.


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[Assistant] Because not only would it put me in the public eye more,


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[Assistant] It would also mean like, I'd be in a position where, you know, the YouTube channel's going incredibly well. I don't want to put my family in a position financially, especially in a day and age when


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[Assistant] A single unexpected healthcare, you know, sort of a issue can bankrupt you almost overnight at the end of the month, you know, depending on what it is.


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[Assistant] Uhm, I would rather my family be in a position where I can sort of afford that kind of thing, you know, because that sort of is scarier to me. If there was more of a safety net there, it would make more sense if, you know, and that's sort of, I think, another kind of a,


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] An ugly part of our system. I feel like a lot of people are kind of less incentivized to get involved in.


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[Assistant] Sort of dabble in not even just politics, but you know, other enjoyable kind of, uh, uh, you know, activities because uhm, there is kind of that fear there of, you know, there is no support there. You know, something horrible could happen to you or, you know, some loved one could get cancer and you have no means of paying for it.


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[Assistant] You know, uhm, you have no means of keeping that person alive or whatever. You know, you have some kind of pre-existing condition and, you know, either you're getting kicked off your insurance or the premiums under Obamacare because there's no market controls under Obamacare because it's, you know, just like a bullshit legislation that, you know, originally


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] It's just a healthcare mandate. Right. You know, you're just forcing everyone to buy healthcare. Hopefully the prices go down and sort of stabilize because everybody is in the system as opposed to just some people having healthcare. Right. Which was originally an idea that Mitt Romney had, originally an idea that Bob Dole had. It's a Republican healthcare plan.


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[Assistant] That's essentially what it is. You know, and it just was marketed by a democratic president. Right. It's a bullshit plan.


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[Assistant] He doesn't know how any of it works, he's made that painfully obvious, you know, and he's even said on multiple occasions, he said that Scotland has great healthcare, they have socialized medicine. Right, yeaah. He said that, uh, he went down to Australia and was hanging out with the Australian Prime Minister and he said, you guys have great healthcare.


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[Assistant] You know, we don't have good healthcare right now, but you guys have great healthcare. Yea, guess why the fuck they have great healthcare? You know? Uhm, he doesn't know how the system works. You know, right now he's just doing the bidding of the Republicans. He's just a figurehead at this point.


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[Assistant] What he's going to do to Obamacare is just whatever the Republicans want to do to Obamacare.


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[Assistant] I literally think that he thought he was going to get into office and just be king. Because, you know, over the course of his, you know, election, uh, cycle, you know, he did say things consistently like, you know, we're going to...


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[Assistant] Renegotiate, uh, NAFTA. We are going to, uh, make sure that these business owners bring their money back over here. We're gonna make sure that they bring their jobs back over here. And the thing is, once you get into the presidency, you actually have to have a Republican administration willing to carry that out for you.


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[Assistant] That is not in the interests of the Republican party at all. Not only that, but the Democrats are bought out by many of the very same interests that the Republicans are. There are barely any Democrats that wanna, uh, renegotiate NAFTA. I mean, NAFTA went through under a Democratic pres- a Democratic presidency.


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[Assistant] You know, so it's like, you know, these trade deals that, you know, basically benefit corporations and that's it. You know, it's like, you're not gonna go in there and sort of change that. You know, it's like, you have to actually, like, create interest in changing that.


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[Assistant] You know, and Donald Trump isn't the type of person who I think actually like wants to care about, you know, actually like creating change. I think he just wants to be liked and go with the flow.


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[Assistant] Yeah, no, I think it sort of depends on who, who he's trying to get to like him. You know, he's trying to like, suck up to truck drivers. He's trying to suck up to coal miners. I mean, those are the kinds of groups of people that, you know, you put them on a pedestal, you take advantage of them as kind of like a photo op.


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[Assistant] Eventually they would have to admit they're wrong, you know, but unfortunately at every turn he just keeps proving them right.


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[Assistant] You know, there's only so much that you can kind of bullshit yourself into believing that, you know, exes...


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[Assistant] Why? Before you just kinda realize that like, hey, you know, it's like, uh, I feel like, you know, I feel like this past election really kinda put


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[Assistant] The Obama years into perspective, and I just kind of feel like it was this presidency about nothing. You know, it's like, if your key legislation,


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[Assistant] In two foreign interventions, we expanded that to seven.


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[Assistant] We had the Arab Spring where you had Hillary Clinton basically like playing the Middle East like a chess board. Uhm, you know, NSA spying increased like how ever a fold, two fold, three fold, ten fold. Right.


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[Assistant] Uhm, you know, there were so many commentators that were like, that was when he became presidential.


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[Assistant] Uhm, when it's like, yeaah, okay, so he became presidential the moment he started just like hurling bombs at some country that didn't attack us. Like that's presidential, that automatically gets you into the presidential club. Uhm, that and the moment that...


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[Assistant] Uh, you know, the wife there grieving in front of Congress, in front of everybody and crying and applauding and da-da-da-da-da. You know, that was another moment I think, uh, uh, commentator on CNN, Van Jones, was like, he became presidential in that moment, you know, where essentially he turned, you know, some grieving widows


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[Assistant] Uh, uhm, you know, loss of her husband into pro-war porn for the rest of the country to eat up and be like, oh, you know, this is just like so justified, despite the fact that when you look at the actual logistics and casualties and the numbers of that raid,


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[Assistant] You killed an eight year old girl, you didn't get the guy that you went in there originally to get, you got no intel, and most of the people that you killed weren't even terrorists. Right. So it's like, you got nothing out of it, virtually nothing, except the death of an American soldier that you basically just like put up on a pedestal to justify what.


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[Assistant] Show of like, we're really progressing as a country, despite the fact that


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[Assistant] Uhm, not only did, you know, the Republicans do their best to obstruct almost everything he wanted to do, but also you had a good wing of the corporate side of the Democratic Party, which, you know, are really just like Republican light. Uhm, standing in the way of real, like, economic progress and change too, because, you know, over the course of, you know, Obama,


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[Assistant] Sort of advocate for something for so long before, you know, the representatives just kind of like actually have to do something in order for it to kind of like actually.


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[Assistant] Right. You know, because if it is a representative democracy, you're seeing people demand something, it's like you have to, you know, but the thing is what they're representing are their donors. You know, they're not representing the demands of, of, of the people, they're just representing their donors and that's it. Uhm, for the most part, you know, there are people who do stand out and, you know, there's kind of a,


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[Assistant] New movement on the left called Justice Democrats where you do have kind of a lot of these people who, you know,


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[Assistant] The philosophy is there in terms of like, hey, let's get a living wage, let's get, uhm, you know,


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Healthcare, you know, uh, Medicare for all, you know, uh, let's end it with the foreign wars and like, you know, reinvest that money over here. Let's get better education. Uhm, you know,


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] That's all part of the platform generally, but like, you know, but that's almost secondary to the idea that they take no donor money, no PAC money.


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[Assistant] And some of them are successfully already primaring some of the more corporate and conservative Democrats, you know, that are, you know, uh, in, in Congress, uh, in the House and the Senate. You know, they're starting to like, ramp up doing some of these campaigns.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Disagree with philosophically because some of them do sort of hang on that more, you know, super progressive side of the party, but the thing is like I feel like once we do and if we can get


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[Assistant] All or either a bulk of the money out of politics, then I feel like we can actually have a legitimately authentic


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[Assistant] You're financially incentivized not to, you know, sort of get or understand the solution. And I kind of understand, you know, from the perspective of these politicians, you know,


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[Assistant] Why? Because, you know, I was doing like a little research online about like how much do these motherfuckers get paid? You know? Like, and honestly like some of them don't make that much. You know? And you're talking about these guys who they have to live in DC either away from their families who live back home. So they have to like make enough money to


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[Assistant] Pay for them to live, you know, some rent or some mortgage over there. Or you move all their asses out to DC, which is also really fucking expensive. So it's like, you know, and probably move them into a private school because you're talking about your kids kind of being


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] In the public eye and like politically connected because you know, and honestly like all these people, unless you're like some kind of high ranking like official or you know, you're some kind of high ranking senator or something, you don't get security.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] You know, kinda like with that Steve Scalise thing. Yeaah. Like, uhm.


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[Assistant] He was the only person there during that baseball practice who had security. And had he not been there, there would have been no security. So it's like all those, you know, politicians would have been totally just like sitting ducks to that dude if he just decided to unload on all of them.


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[Assistant] Um, so it's like, you know, you're really out in the open and there's not really much incentive for you not to take money from lobbyists. You know, it's actually super easy to be taking money from lobbyists.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Exactly, and not even that much, you know, it's just like, just to, just to offer them like, you know, 10% of their income, you know, it's actually like, you know, it's funny, like,


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] You know, and it's just like, wow, you know, if I give so and so like $6,000, can I decide politics too? It's just like way too easy to like buy into the system. Right. You know, it's just like way too easy to take advantage of it for like fucking $6,000. Like that's it.


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[Assistant] Uhm, now, you know, of course there are like, you know, other ways that some of that dark money, you know, sort of comes in, you know, maybe that's just publicly what we're seeing, you know, exchange hands.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Uhm, you know, and honestly that's like probably not anything I would involve myself in because I don't think I could really kind of like sway politics to benefit my music reviews in any kind of way. Like if I could kind of draconianly force everyone to watch them by some kind of decree from Donald Trump or something.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Okay, well maybe, then maybe it'll happen then. You know, but I mean, politics is interesting, but I think like, you know, again, it's like having a...


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Politics is interesting, but I think for most people having a real conversation about politics is not interesting. Right. You know, like uhm, like I said, when I was on that dude's stream who was a part of the skeptic community, some black guy, shout out to some black guy, when I was talking about something as radical as like,


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[Assistant] You know, we were like, fuck you, you liberal cuck, you fucking libtard. And, uh, you know, it's just like something as simple as like thinking like, hey, uh, you know, maybe people shouldn't be kicked off their health insurance just because they, uh, have, uh, someone with, uh, breast cancer in their family or something like that, you know, or they have someone with diabetes in their family.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Exactly. You know, it's like just to be like compassionate, you know, towards somebody else's like, you know, problems. And you know, that's to my earlier point when you were talking about, you know, sort of a Hillary Clinton kind of placating or, you know, like trending toward the side of like, you know, far left politics. I mean,


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[Assistant] You know, honestly, the response to me to this problem of like, hey, are there like a lot of ugly, very extreme voices popping up on the left? Sure. You know, but the answer to that is not to abandon ship and jump to the right.


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[Assistant] So if you, if you want to repeat of the Bush years, do that retarded strategy. You know, if you want to actually fix the left, you have to stay in there because, you know, not only are you not fixing the problem by jumping to the right, you're actually giving the extreme left more power because you've left the area. You've given them more sway. You've said, okay, well, it's all yours.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Uhm, I don't know, honestly, because like, while you do kinda have like these weird pockets of extremity,


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[Assistant] Uhm, you know, among some of these leftists, you know, take into account the fact that


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[Assistant] What's sort of unique about a lot of these college protests and why these protests continue to thrive and happen on these college campuses is because the colleges allow them to happen and the reason that they allow them to happen is because you're essentially talking about


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] It's almost like a customer revolt because at the end of the day the colleges are going to placate these kids and they're going to give them whatever they want or at least, you know, try to make them happy because they don't want them to unenroll because that's less money in their pockets. Like they'll listen to these kids protests all day, uhm, about, you know, uh,


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Uhm, you know, if you're under the impression that these colleges really actually care about what you think, you're fucking wrong. They're listening to what you have to say because you're a dollar amount to them.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Uhm, and if they give you what you want, it's, again, it's not because you're right and it's not because you had a point, it's because you're a dollar amount to them. Okay. Like, I would love to see these people, uh, outside of a legit, like, police station, like, you know, uh,


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] protesting like, you know, because again, what we just talked about with Philando Castile, that's still going on right now. That has not changed.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Because the moment that you do that, a bunch of cop cars are gonna roll up and they're gonna gun you down. And that's gonna be the end of that. And the way the news is gonna portray it, they're gonna be like,


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] A bunch of extremists did this and it was apparently okay. You know, it's like they're not going to, they're going to frame it in, in, in such a way the cops look good. You know, it's like you can't pin down a cop like that in the way that you can pin down the president of the university. It doesn't work like that. And that's why they do it. Cause it's easy. You know, it's an easy, it's an easy win that doesn't actually do anything.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Do you have a bunch of dumb questions there on the computer?


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] What kind of shit? Like ehm, like relationship ending shit? Or just like, just like him finger in his butthole or something?


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Oh it has, because Trump is elected now and he had that whole, uh, you know, pedophilia thing that did not look good.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] I watched that podcast that he said that on the day that he said it.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] I mean, maybe that might not have been his intent, but the way that he put it, it was like really callous.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Yeah, it is. And I think, you know, he was joking about it in a way, and honestly, like, I think he, he did sound very serious. He did sound very serious, and it did sound like he was definitely, you know, like, uh, not being as satirical as he claimed he was being, you know, afterwards.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] I could too, you know, and that's the thing, it's like to me, when I, when I saw that originally, I didn't see that and think, oh, well he's done now. You know, I thought like, well this is just kind of one more thing in a string of like crazy shit that he always says. Right. You know, like he's uhm, you know, you would think at this point he would be sunk.


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Merely by the fact that, you know, early on before he was kind of getting started with the whole GamerGate thing, like he was uhm, you know, talking about how, uh,


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Uhm, you know, it's shameful to be gay, and uhm, you know, I'm ashamed of being gay, and uh, you know, the gay lifestyle is, you know, not good, and da-da-da-da-da, you know, it's caused me to be, so uh,


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Gay people should do X, Y, or Z, you know, he was almost like, you know, trying to shame gay people out of being gay or something. Right. Uhm, you know, and you'd think that would have sunk him or that would have done something to hurt his career, but uhm, you know, for some reason it's been this one thing that, you know, sort of took him down. And it was like, it was almost like it was,


[User] Please transcribe this text

[Assistant] Yeah, exactly. To like, to like saying what Milo said that would like, you know, we, we, we would get over just like chanting the N word like it was a fucking sports chant or something.


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[Assistant] Yeah, I don't think there's many like talented graphic designers in the pedophile community.


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[Assistant] It does feel like it's fictitious. I mean, personally, I don't know a lot about it. I have seen like some journalistic reports and you know, not like from Breitbart or anything like that, you know, talking about how.


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[Assistant] You know, you basically have these, uh, just like, just like over here in America, you know, when you have youths who...


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[Assistant] Right. Are unemployed and they don't have anything else to do because the economy is just like garbage and you know, they're basically, they don't fit into the culture, they don't fit into the inner workings of the country economically. They're going to be disenfranchised and they're going to lash out and they're going to act in, you know, other ways, you know, that don't benefit themselves.


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[Assistant] Every podcast I've done recently has just like turned political at some point and I'm just kinda used to it at this point.


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[Assistant] That's interesting as long as you're talking to an interesting producer or producer has a unique sound.


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[Assistant] You know, like if I was probably having a conversation with Flying Lotus, I don't think politics would come up once.


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[Assistant] Yeah, in the middle of a lean haze, you're just like, so who'd you vote for? Who'd you vote for?


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[Assistant] So if you've made it all the way through the podcast, 100 dicks.


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[Assistant] Youtube.com slash The Needle Drop, twitter.com slash The Needle Drop, Instagram, Afantano.


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[Assistant] Instagram, don't have a fucking, uh, no, Snapchat, don't have a fucking Snapchat.


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[Assistant] He is, he'll be a much better Snapchatter than I will be any day.


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[Assistant] Spare us a copper, miss. Go away. Spare a copper for the gypsies.


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[Assistant] I can see nothing at all extraordinary in him. I do not care whether I meet him or not. Except of the two I would rather not.


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[Assistant] To children and small animals like little dogs that don't bite.


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[Assistant] Brothers and sisters, brothers and sisters, I was a sinner. I chewed tobacco and I drank liquor.


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[Assistant] So you must be dying then to become... We never said the word, and I couldn't frame it now. No, that's just Carlisle. He would never do that to someone who had another choice.


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[Assistant] He looked at the now dark road and I could feel the subject closing again. And Emmett and Rosalie? Carlisle brought Rosalie to our family next. I didn't realize till much later that he was hoping she would be to me what Esme was to him. He was careful with his thoughts around me. He rolled his eyes. But she was never more than a sister. It was only two years later that she found Emmett. She was hunting.


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[Assistant] Yes, he murmured. She saw something in his face that made her strong enough, and they've been together ever since. Sometimes they live separately from us, as a married couple. But the younger we pretend to be, the longer we can stay in any given place. Forks seemed perfect, so we all enrolled in high school. He laughed.


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[Assistant] I suppose we'll have to go to their wedding in a few years, again. Alice and Jasper? Alice and Jasper are two very rare creatures. They both developed a conscience, as we refer to it, with no outside guidance. Jasper belonged to another family, a very different kind of family. He became depressed and he wandered on his own. Alice found him.


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[Assistant] Like me, she has certain gifts above and beyond the norm for our kind. Really, I interrupted, fascinated.


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[Assistant] But you said you were the only one who could hear people's thoughts. That's true. She knows other things. She sees things. Things that might happen. Things that are coming. But it's very subjective. The future isn't set in stone. Things change. His jaw set when he said that.


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[Assistant] And his eyes darted to my face in a way so quickly that I wasn't sure if I only imagined it. What kind of things does she see? She saw Jasper and knew that he was looking for her before he knew it himself. She saw Carlisle and our family and they came together to find us. She's most sensitive to non-humans. She always sees, for example, when another group of our kind is coming near.


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[Assistant] Only those like us who've given up hunting you people, a sly glance in my direction, can live together with humans for any length of time. We've only found one other family like ours in a small village in Alaska. We lived together for a time, but there were so many of us that we became too noticeable. Those of us who live differently tend to band together. And the others? Nomads for the most part.


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[Assistant] We've all lived that way at times. It gets tedious like anything else. But we run across the others now and then, because most of us prefer the north. Why is that? We were parked in front of my house now, and he turned off the truck. It was very quiet and dark. There was no moon. The porch light was off, so I knew my father wasn't home yet. Did you have your eyes open this afternoon? He teased.


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[Assistant] Sure, give me your light. Aw.


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[Assistant] You okay, Kanata? Yeah. It's nothing.


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[Assistant] Only I am worthy of the glory of the Mirage card. It will be mine, even through force if necessary.


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[Assistant] Activate Spinocrystal Dragon Spiritus from my hand! Spinocrystal Dragon Spiritus to center!


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[Assistant] Now it's my turn! Draw! Charge and draw!


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[Assistant] I cast! Enhancement! Gauge goes up one, and I draw one card.


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[Assistant] And I cast! Dispersion! Draw two! This is what it's all about. Winning is the only goal.


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[Assistant] Your last life point's gone. Just try and take it! Rizzling on the right! Attack the fighter!


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[Assistant] Yes, but Kanata can still attack two more times. And Hispiritus has a critical of two! I figured you'd do something like that, gal. Now, Rizzling on the left, attack the fighter! Commencing attack!


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[Assistant] What's wrong? Thought you said I was done for. You escape this time, but won't on my next turn. Let's see what you got.


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[Assistant] Ditto, I don't want this to end. This buddy fight, I mean. But it has to.


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[Assistant] On my next turn, I'll take your life point away. And I'll defeat you. Challenge accepted! I can hang on for another turn and win! Just watch me! My turn is over!


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[Assistant] We can take whatever they dish out and wait for our turn. I disagree. I draw. Charge in. Aaaaah!


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[Assistant] Athora, I knew we'd have another chance to fight alongside one another.


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[Assistant] This will be our last turn. I'm relying on you.


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[Assistant] He is amazing. He has gotta be the greatest Buddyfighter ever!


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[Assistant] But that doesn't matter cause I'm still gonna win! Athora, double attack! Right! Here we go!


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[Assistant] Okay. Well, this is it, Athora. Hey, Gao, a great match. It was. I did the best that I could until the end. My turn's over. You win, Gao.


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[Assistant] Yeah, and now I understand what disappointment feels like. Let's Buddyfight again sometime, K-PAL! Yeah, but next time, I win.


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[Assistant] And bots, you are amazing. Oh, don't tell him that. He's arrogant enough. Aren't ya, bots?


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[Assistant] Most humans instinctively shy away from us are repelled by our alien-ness. I wasn't expecting you to come so close. And the smell of your throat. He stopped short, looking to see if he'd upset me. Okay then, I said flippantly, trying to alleviate the suddenly tense atmosphere. I tucked my chin, no throat exposure. It worked, he laughed.


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[Assistant] He raised his free hand and placed it gently on the side of my neck. I sat very still, the chill of his touch a natural warning, a warning telling me to be terrified. But there was no feeling of fear in me. There were, however, other feelings. You see, he said, perfectly fine. My blood was racing, and I wished I could slow it, sensing that this must make everything so much more difficult.


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[Assistant] The thudding of my pulse in my veins, surely he could hear it. The blush on your cheeks is lovely, he murmured. He gently freed his other hand. My hands fell limply into my lap. Softly he brushed my cheek, then held my face between his marble hands. Be very still, he whispered, as if I wasn't already frozen.


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[Assistant] Slowly, never moving his eyes from mine, he leaned toward me. Then abruptly, but very gently,


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[Assistant] He rested his cold cheek against the hollow at the base of my throat. I was quite unable to move, even if I'd wanted to. I listened to the sound of his even breathing, watching the sun and wind play in his bronze hair, more human than any other part of him. With deliberate slowness, his hand slid down the sides of my neck. I shivered, and I heard him catch his breath.


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[Assistant] But his hands didn't pause as they softly moved to my shoulders and then stopped. His face drifted to the side, his nose skimming across my collarbone.


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[Assistant] He came to rest with the side of his face pressed tenderly against my chest, listening to my heart. Ah, he sighed. I don't know how long we sat without moving. It could have been hours. Eventually the throb of my pulse quieted, but he didn't move or speak again as he held me. I knew at any moment it could be too much, and my life could end.


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[Assistant] So quickly that I might not even notice, and I couldn't make myself be afraid. I couldn't think of anything, except that he was touching me. And then, too soon, he released me. His eyes were peaceful. It won't be so hard again, he said with satisfaction. Was that very hard for you? Not nearly as bad as I imagined it would be, and you?


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[Assistant] Something I dreamed of constantly since the first day I'd seen him. Don't move, I whispered. No one could be still like Edward.


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[Assistant] He closed his eyes and became as immobile as stone, a carving under my hand. I moved even more slowly than he had, careful not to make one unexpected move. I caressed his cheek, delicately stroked his eyelid, the purple shadow and the hollow under his eye. I traced the shape of his perfect nose, and then, so carefully, his flawless lips. His lips parted under my hand.


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[Assistant] And I could feel his cool breath on my fingertips. I wanted to lean in to inhale the scent of him. So I dropped my hand and leaned away, not wanting to push him too far.


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[Assistant] Darling, you mustn't feel that way. Let me talk to you.


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[Assistant] I know that you will have faith in me and do what I ask without asking why I ask it. That's for an uneven rights double talk. I'm fine and I haven't disappeared. But he has.


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[Assistant] I don't know whether I've chosen wisely in casting my lot with this particular group, but whether I have or not, the die is cast. Oh dear. It does sound rather ominous, doesn't it?


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[Assistant] Father, of course it's real. Bops's remarks are...


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[Assistant] Oh, don't pretend you're so innocent. After all, I'm not a child.


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[Assistant] Debbie, where have you been? St. Louis. Again.


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[Assistant] And how about the flying? And how about a little of your favorite tune? Not today.


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[Assistant] I'm afraid you are. Ah, what? Dead. You too, eh? You're just as crazy as-


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[Assistant] No, the way I feel, somebody's got their wires crossed. Somebody's made a mistake. A mistake? Utterly fantastic. What did you do? Your occupation? Oh, musician? No, no, that's just a hobby. Like flying. I'm Joe Pendleton. The flying pug, they call me.


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[Assistant] I'm trying to tell you, fellas, I'm not ready for this place yet.


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[Assistant] On Pendleton Joseph, the official record says both his parents are happily withdrawn and awaiting his arrival.


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[Assistant] Gotta keep my body in the pink. Come on, let's go, Mr. Pendleton. If you don't mind.


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[Assistant] Glad to meet you, Mr. Jordan. And thanks for straightening everything out for me. Not at all. I'll be seeing you fifty years from now, if you're still on the job.


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[Assistant] Come along, Joseph. Wait a minute, where to? I'm taking your bag. Yeah, but you can't.


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[Assistant] Didn't we just tell you I haven't got a body anymore? What of it? I'll get you another body. You'll do what? Another body. Well that's what I said.


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[Assistant] Joseph, I promise you we'll keep looking until we find the body you like. Now that's fair enough, isn't it? Well, I don't want any more than's coming to me. I just want what I was and what I was gonna be, no more, no less. But I expect you to make good, Mr. Jordan.


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[Assistant] I thought that messenger was pretty good at getting around, but you're terrific. Russia, Australia, South Africa, and now New York. How do you do it? Oh yea, I know.


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[Assistant] She worships him. She's no match for those buzzards. She needs help. She's in trouble. You better go to work.


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[Assistant] Yeah, but that overcoat, that'll be Farnsworth. That's what she'll see.


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[Assistant] At Playboy Farnsworth, I'd have to give up everything. Crack at the title and... No, I couldn't do it, Mr. Jordan. I'd like to help, but not that way. There's no other way. You think it's fair to put me in a spot like this?


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[Assistant] Before I take a step like this, I gotta do some figuring. Make up your mind. Look, what if I did it? Only temporary. Suppose I was Fonz with just for a little while.


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[Assistant] If there were no mystery left to explore, life would get rather dull, wouldn't it? You got an alibi for everything. We can get away with this down there. We're terrific. You'll get more terrific by the minute, Joe.


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[Assistant] Well, you know how it goes, they, they, for instance, if you want to change overcoats...


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[Assistant] Alright, I did. But I didn't have anything to do with it. I can explain it to you.


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[Assistant] You better get me out of this, this overcoat and let's get moving, Mr. Jordan. She is wonderful, though, isn't she? Yeah. Yeah, I'd give my right arm if I could.


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[Assistant] Hmm. No wonder I wasn't getting the breaks. Couldn't have my lucky sack so long.


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[Assistant] Pardon me, sir, but, uh, I never saw that before. That's it? Uh, tell that, uh, what's his name to come down here, will you? Who, sir? You know, that, that secretary. Mr. Abbott? Yeah, Abbott, that's it. Get him down here right away, will you? Yes, sir. I knew I'd start clicking with you around.


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[Assistant] Are you sure you feel quite well, Mr. Farnsworth? Yeah, I feel fine. And I'm gonna stay that way. Why, of course.


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[Assistant] Let's get down to business. I got something kind of important on my mind. Boy, I have a memo from Given, sir. He thinks we should buy ten million bushels of July wheat. Oh. Oh, he does, does he? Immediately.


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[Assistant] I have your little joke, sir, but surely we can't ignore- Well, never mind about that. I'm only interested in one thing, that's this Logan business. I've been talking it over with a friend of mine. You mean JB, of course. No, no, just Jay. Doesn't sound so good. I want to get it straightened out.


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[Assistant] I want to get Mr. Logan out of jail. A fraud pinned on him like this? Pinned? Well, who pinned it on him? Well, naturally. That's what I thought. So let's unpin it. Anything, only get him out.


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[Assistant] I know what you mean. When you make a discovery like that, it's pretty important, isn't it? More important than what two people look like or who they are or anything else.


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[Assistant] And even if she was a- Well, and he could be- Wouldn't make any difference what he was. The other thing is all that matters.


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[Assistant] Wait. Will I see you again?


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[Assistant] Oh. Yeah, that Australian guy. If you recall, yes. Well, wait a minute. I can't do that now. Why not? But don't you see Mr. Jordan? She likes me the way I am.


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[Assistant] If I go runnin' off to Australia and pull a swish just when I get a use to this Farnsworth, I might lose her. I don't want to take a chance on that, don't you see what I mean? Yeaah. Look, Mr. Jordan, this Farnsworth was about my age.


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[Assistant] He had a pretty good body. Once you said he played polo, why couldn't I build up physically like I did me? Why not? Yeah. Exercise, playing food, plenty of fresh air.


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[Assistant] Then I got the title and I got her too. Mr. Pendleton, is this final? You bet it's final. I'm gonna stay like I am. Here's Farnsworth.


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[Assistant] Thanks, Mr. Jordan. So long. Goodbye, you. I won't have to see you again. Thank goodness. Ditto.


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[Assistant] Max, you old son of a gun, I'm glad to see you. How are you? You, uh, know me? Certainly I know you, you dumb ox. Well look, Mr. Flansworth, I got this telegram. Yeaah, I know about that. Take a good look, Max.


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[Assistant] Sure I know you. Everybody knows you, Mr. Farnsworth. Oh, what's the matter with your eyes, you big sap? I'm not Farnsworth. I'm Joe Pendleton. You're Joe. You're nuts, Mr. Farnsworth. Wait a minute now, Max. I know I don't look like Joe, but I'm him, just the same. And it's your fault.


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[Assistant] Oh I forgot, you can't see him. Well maybe if I had a good stiff drink- You can't see him cause you're not dead yet.


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[Assistant] This is Farnsworth's body because you burnt mine, you big stiff. Wait a minute, I'll prove it to you.


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[Assistant] Max, I want to tell you why I sent for you. They're talking about matching KO Murdoch with Gilbert. Yeah? Who did Murdoch have to fight before he got a crack at Gilbert's title? Joe, uh, you. All right. I want you to fix it for me to fight Murdoch. You're crazy. KO would never fight Farnsworth. Tell him what the Registral discovered, Joe. Yeah, that's right. Is he talking again? Yeah. Max, I'm gonna let you in on something. I'm the next champ. It's in the book.


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[Assistant] Nothing can change it. Is that what he said? That's what he said. And he knows. Will he insure any bets? Max, I'm telling you what you got to do.


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[Assistant] What'll it take? I dunno, 25 grand at least. That's a lot of money. Why, just have your secretary write him a check, Joe.


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[Assistant] And after you get it fixed, give me a call. I'll wait to hear from you if I have to stay up all night. Okay. Is your friend here?


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[Assistant] Thanks very much, Mr. Jordan. That about takes care of everything. And you're quite happy. Oh yeaah, everything's swell. I'm getting hard as nails and, and then there's Miss Logan. She's gonna stop in here for a few minutes tonight on her way to the theater. She's got some papers of her father she wants me to attend to. She likes me a lot, Mr. Jordan. Well, that's nice. Yeaah, it's a little gummed up. I can't even see her. Here I am supposed to be married and she can't visit me and I can't take her out for the same reason.


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[Assistant] People might talk. You'll work that out, Joe. Yeah. Yeah, I gotta make some changes around here. I gotta make them quick. Well, I gotta get a bath and some rest. I'm in training, you know. You don't mind. Of course not. I have to be leaving myself.


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[Assistant] I mean exercising. Sparring around, punching the bag.


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[Assistant] Plenty of road work, lots of sleep. You, you, uh, might even call it training.


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[Assistant] Well, I thought I might get an idea. You know how you get ideas? I might get a notion that I'd like to do some fighting. Some real fighting, right in the ring.


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[Assistant] Well, I know people would talk, but if I wanted to do it, why couldn't I? Except for you. Except if you didn't like prize money.


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[Assistant] It wouldn't make any difference, would it? I mean, you told me the important thing was how people were inside, no matter what they did. That's still true, isn't it?


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[Assistant] I'm trying to memorize your face. I'm trying to memorize everything about you so that no matter what happens, I won't forget you.


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[Assistant] You wouldn't forget. I mean, the thing you said you saw in me. You remember you said you saw something in my eyes? Well, if someday somebody came up to you, it might even be a fighter, and acted like he'd seen you someplace before. You'd notice the same thing in him. Even if you thought you did, you'd give him a break. Cause he might be a good guy.


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[Assistant] But why, why, now that we got everything going great? After all the trouble we've been in. I can't give up Fonz with now. Joe.


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[Assistant] No. You're not gonna play tricks with my life again.


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[Assistant] I'm gonna stay like I am. You cannot change the course of your destiny. We'll see about that. You think you can pry me loose from Farnsworth? You go ahead and try it.


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[Assistant] Wait a minute. Will it be on the radio? I don't know. Well then I can hear it. I'd like to ask you a few questions, Mr. Abbott.


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[Assistant] Hey, give me that. You didn't have it when you climbed in. I always have that, all my fights.


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[Assistant] Murdoch's not gonna fight anymore. What are you talking about? Well, you're perched on top of the world. I'm not perched anywhere. I don't even know where I'm going from here. He's woozy.


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[Assistant] World champion. Oh no, not me. Murdoch is. Oh, I don't mind helping them out, Mr. Jordan, but now get me out of this. Joe? Yeah?


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[Assistant] If it's all the same to you, Mr. Jordan, you and I'll keep going till we find the right guy.


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[Assistant] Will you ever be sure he's the right guy, Joe? Oh, of course I will. You wait till I get a shower and get some clothes on, and you and I'll get started. I'll be right with you, Mr. June.


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[Assistant] Joe Pendleton? Yeah, sure. Killed in an airplane crash.


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[Assistant] Yeaah, that's right. It was a tough break. Nice fella. Strictly on the level. Certainly was. I understand you are too. How'd you like to manage me, Corkle? How do you get that way?


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[Assistant] Funny you're turning up at just the right time, Corkle. You and me gonna do all right.


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[Assistant] Yeah, sure. Hey, what's the matter with you? You look like you had a bad dream. Come on, snap out of it.


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[Assistant] If you want me to hack five miles through the jungle before sundown, you better start leading the way, I said acidly. He frowned at me, struggling to understand my tone and expression. He gave up after a moment and led the way into the forest. It wasn't as hard as I had feared. The way was mostly flat.


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[Assistant] And he held the damp ferns and webs of moss aside for me.


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[Assistant] When his straight path took us over fallen trees or boulders, he would help me, lifting me by the elbow, and then releasing me instantly when I was clear.


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[Assistant] His cold touch on my skin never failed to make my heart thud erratically. Twice when that happened.


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[Assistant] I caught a look on his face that made me sure he could somehow hear it.


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[Assistant] Occasionally he would ask a random question that he hadn't gotten to in the past two days of interrogation. He asked about my birthdays, my grade school teachers, my childhood pets, and I had to admit that after killing three fish in a row, I'd given up on the whole institution. He laughed at that, louder than I was used to.


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[Assistant] That bell-like echo is bouncing back to us from the empty woods. The hike took me most of the morning, but it never showed any sign of impatience.


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[Assistant] The forest spread out around us in a boundless labyrinth of ancient trees, and I began to be nervous that we would never find our way out again. He was perfectly at ease, comfortable in the green maze, never seeming to feel any doubt about our direction.


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[Assistant] After several hours, the light that filtered through the canopy transformed, the murky olive tone shifting to a brighter jade. The day had turned sunny, just as he'd foretold. For the first time since we'd entered the woods, I felt a thrill of excitement, which quickly turned to impatience. Are we there yet? I teased, pretending to scowl. Nearly, he smiled at the change in my mood. Do you see the brightness ahead?


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[Assistant] He smirked, maybe it's a bit soon for your eyes. Time to visit the optometrist, I muttered, his smirk grew more pronounced. But then, after another hundred yards, I could definitely see a lightning in the trees ahead, a glow that was yellow instead of green.


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[Assistant] I picked up the pace, my eagerness growing with every step. He let me lead now, following noiselessly.


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[Assistant] I reached the edge of the pool of light and stepped through the last fringe of ferns into the loveliest place I had ever seen. The meadow was small, perfectly round, and filled with wildflowers, violet, yellow, and soft white.


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[Assistant] Somewhere nearby, I could hear the bubbling music of a stream. The sun was directly overhead, filling the circle with a haze of buttery sunshine. I walked slowly.


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[Assistant] Still under the dense shade of the canopy at the edge of the hollow, watching me with cautious eyes.


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[Assistant] Only then did I remember what the beauty of the meadow had driven from my mind. The enigma of Edward and the sun, which he'd promised to illustrate for me today. I took a step back toward him, my eyes alight with curiosity. His eyes were wary, reluctant. I smiled encouragingly and beckoned to him with my hand, taking another step back to him. He held up a hand in warning and I hesitated, rocking back onto my heels.


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[Assistant] And then he stepped out into the bright glow of the midday sun.


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[Assistant] He was innocent, wasn't he? So you had to go and confess your sins publicly. Cause that's what people will read between the lines.


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[Assistant] I've got strong thoughts on that. We'll get everybody's thoughts later in the show.


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[Assistant] Alright, we're gonna start today's show by talking about Nick Chubb. Is there? I don't know guys if there's a better player.


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[Assistant] Person combo in the NFL. I just think Nick Chubb, if you could go into the lab and build the perfect football player, all aspects, mind, heart, body,


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[Assistant] Work ethic and his compassion for his teammates. The guy loves everybody.


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[Assistant] He loves everybody so much, so listen to what he said about Baker Mayfield.


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[Assistant] He said this I think two days ago, the first day of OTAs. He said he'll still always be one of my best friends. Not my friends guys, he said best friends. He's a great guy. I know with his intensity and his attitude wherever he lands, he'll be ready. Now granted they came in together the same draft class. They had some success together. They had some highs and some lows.


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[Assistant] But then just when you start thinking he's in team Mayfield, he has this to say about new quarterback to Sean Watson, the guy who, by the way, ran his best friend out of town. He's a great guy to be around. We all love him. He's a natural leader. He's been here since OTA started. He took us on a trip. I think those things bring in trust.


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[Assistant] I think the bottom line here is Nick is the guy that any of the 32 head coaches would love to have on their roster. What I love most about him is he's humble. He has superstar status in this game.


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[Assistant] And I think, I think if he was used differently and a little more aggressively, he could be the premier offensive player in the game that wasn't a quarterback. I believe he's that good.


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[Assistant] I think we've only scratched the surface on what he can be, but we're lucky to have him guys. And we know the window for running backs and the NFL is pretty small. So let's just enjoy the heck out of this guy while we have him.


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[Assistant] In that Walter was just the epitome of class. I think one of the most prestigious awards in the NFL given every year is in his honor. And I think that's appropriate. Nick Chubb to me is cut from that same Walter Payton cloth.


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[Assistant] Be on the wrong side of the law. They're not guys that you're gonna see, you know, spouting off at fans or losing their temper. Very even keeled.


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[Assistant] And superstars on the field, but I think superstars off of it as well.


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[Assistant] We talked about a deal between the Browns and the Panthers that sounds like it was really close to happening, but the moving parts of the deal


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[Assistant] Carolina wanted the Browns to pick up between 13 and 14 million dollars of his 18 million dollar salary. About 75% of that.


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[Assistant] I was, uh, and I asked this person if they would come on the show and be a guest and he wasn't, he wasn't willing to do that. So I didn't know like how much of this are you gonna, are you gonna claim? He said, well, I'm not, I'm not gonna go on TV and say it, but it's a former player, then executive, now media member.


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[Assistant] Who, I was just spitballing my theory, and Brad, you've cosigned on it, that, well, what if there's a huge suspension? And I wanted to know his thoughts on that. And he said, the Browns and Baker Mayfield are irrevocably broken.


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[Assistant] They cannot repair that bridge. And I said, well, under what scenario could you ever see him wearing an orange helmet again?


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[Assistant] And we've always been, we've been talking about what if there's a big suspension for Deshaun Watson, he does become this insurance policy.


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[Assistant] He did, he does not think that, uh, Deshaun Watson's suspension would put Baker Mayfield under center. So I said, then you're saying there's no scenario where that could happen. And then he gave me a scenario that I hadn't thought of, and I don't know if the Browns have thought of this, but he said there's one way Baker Mayfield plays for the Browns again. And that's if the injury is to Deshaun Watson. If the injury is to Deshaun Watson,


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[Assistant] And it's a catastrophic one that has cost him the season, which he's had one of those before.


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[Assistant] If, if that scenario happens, the Browns then, even though they'd have to pivot because their backup quarterbacks that they've brought in are more in the mold of running the Deshaun Watson offense than Baker is. He said that's the only scenario.


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[Assistant] That I could ever see Baker Mayfield taking another snap because now he has more information on this than I do. He said no, they're they're not fixing it.


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[Assistant] There's no chance he plays if there's a healthy Deshaun Watson, even if there is a lengthy suspension. He thinks, I said, what if he gets eight games? He said, it doesn't matter. Baker's not taking another step.


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[Assistant] Under that scenario, he said the players in the locker room, there's no rift between Baker and the players. That's what he told me. He said the players would open him with


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[Assistant] Open arms, primarily because they want to win. They want the best available player. And if you put Deshaun, Baker, Jacoby in a lineup,


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[Assistant] Deshaun would be the first pick. He said, even though you don't know the difference between Jacoby and Baker, he said that Baker would clearly be the second pick, and then Jacoby, but he said it just depends who you ask. If you ask the team, the players, they would like to have him back.


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[Assistant] He doesn't know he hasn't had this conversation with Stefanski. He believes Stefanski would definitely welcome him back. But he said, I don't know where the front office is and more importantly, ownership. Because as you guys know,


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[Assistant] So we just don't know. It's all hypothetical. And I hate that hypothetical too because when I read the text that said, what if D gets hurt?


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[Assistant] My heart sank. I can't, I can't even, I can't even stop to think about that.


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[Assistant] Okay, uh, I love this next story because I think that as great as LeBron James is as a basketball player.


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[Assistant] I think his impact on society is way greater off the court. And I know that's, that sounds like hyperbole, but I visited the, I promise school about a month ago. I think you've been there, Brad. I know we all know the work that goes on there.


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[Assistant] I had read extensively about the I Promise School. I had seen videos of what goes on there.


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[Assistant] When I experienced it and I walked through the building and I talked to the kids and I experienced my day there.


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[Assistant] It blew away my, my greatest expectation for what he was doing there.


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[Assistant] First of all, these kids are, a lot of them second chance kids. They've had problems in some area of their life, be it family life, school, whatever. These kids,


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[Assistant] They were one of the, as a group, most well adjusted kids that I've been around in a very long time. They were respectful. They were polite. They were happy. I saw nothing but smiles.


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[Assistant] I've been to other schools where you don't see a whole lot of smiles and it breaks my heart.


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[Assistant] LeBron yesterday decided he was going to have a surprise visit at the I Promise School. And I promise you this.


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[Assistant] Even if you're not a LeBron James fan. When you see this video.


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[Assistant] You cannot disparage this guy as a person because it's clear from the reaction to the kids what he means to them. Watch this. Stevie?


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[Assistant] And I think that model, Brad, I know you're in politics. When I spent my day there, I was asking some folks that are with the LeBron James Family Foundation, how is it that we haven't


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[Assistant] replicated this model. They don't get federal funding, guys.


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[Assistant] That's one of the best run, cleanest, most impressive schools I've ever been in. And they're doing it with private donations, corporate donations and big checks from LeBron James.


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[Assistant] The thing that was so impressive to me that I didn't know about, I didn't know the depth of how far he went. LeBron himself said it's so important that we help the kids first and foremost. But you have to understand the kids are the product.


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[Assistant] You have to fix the problem. So you know what he did? He's got in place an entire team of people to help the parents.


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[Assistant] With literacy. Right. Getting jobs.


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[Assistant] Making sure they're taking advantage of all the social resources that are available that most of them don't know are there or how to get.


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[Assistant] They, legal services, if they need legal services, they're in a battle and they're trying to keep custody of their kid or whatever the case may be.


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[Assistant] Because when I asked the LeBron James Family Foundation people this, Stephanie had told me, I said, why isn't this being done?


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[Assistant] Who wants to be in broadcasting? I asked him, what's your grades? He said all A's and B's. I said, that's fantastic.


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[Assistant] 15 minutes later, he came up to me and he said, Jay, I'm not making that up. I really do get good grades. And I said, no, I believe you do. I believe you do. But he said, I didn't always, but I do now. And then he asked me, can I have your phone number? I want to text you.


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[Assistant] The Cleveland Guardians. Guys, we're watching the season slip away before our very eyes and they're not in a division that I don't think anybody's going to run away from any other team and hide.


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[Assistant] But at this point in the season, they're now 18 and 23 and they look like, I mean, they can't get past the Tigers the last couple of nights.


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[Assistant] We're at the quarter poll of the season and we're asking this question because at the quarter poll, we like to hand out grades. It's like the first nine week grading period. We've got one quarter in the books or one nine weeks in the books. What grades are you giving? I want you to grade the offense, the pitching.


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[Assistant] That's all we're doing, right? Offense and pitching. Overall. Overall. Overall. What are your grades, Bull? Alright.


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[Assistant] And said he loved the aggressiveness. It's tie game in the eighth. You've got to, you've got to at least a runner on first with Jose coming up behind him, who by the way, got a base hit that was to right field, which would have put him on third, first and third, one out. And I know that's hindsight, but that's a simple base running mistake you can't make.


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[Assistant] I think, I think help is coming there. I don't know, we've heard that. But the deal's not, the deal's not finished, so the new owner can't chip in. And quite frankly, I don't think Dolan has


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[Assistant] They were great in the past. They've been average to below average this year. Here's my grades, uhm, and I gave a second, I'll have a final grade on just a second. I think the pitching for what we expected has been


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[Assistant] The reason I gave it a C was because I do think the bullpen has been very impressive. This guy, Mackenzie, has been awesome.


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[Assistant] Pilkington who pitched, I think he made his second start last night. He shows real promise in the future. And the guy they brought in, the young kid, looks like he's a junior high.


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[Assistant] So I give them a C there. Hitting was an A plus I thought early on. They've completely fallen off the table with the exception of Jose. So I'll give them a C, overall a C, but I want, I had to give one more grade. I want a grade ownership.


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[Assistant] 12,000 fans is the average attendance right now. That is, uh, that is 26 in baseball. That's near the bottom. I'm giving owners a D because they're not doing right by the fans.


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[Assistant] I want to separate ownership, the guys who write the checks from the front office. I think the guardians front office.


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[Assistant] I wouldn't trade them for anyone. They've consistently done more with less. I'll give you that. The way they've developed pitchers, they're the envy of the other 29 major league franchises. They just are. They're incredible at how they have hit on not...


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[Assistant] Organizations are thrilled if they can hit on one every five years.


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[Assistant] To give the best manager and the best front office in baseball what they need to compete. And that's a crime.


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[Assistant] They got so many injuries. This is a heart yardstick game to me. How much heart does Miami have?


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[Assistant] Alright, very good. We're gonna take a break, uh, when we come back. We're gonna talk about the, the kicker in the fifth round. Is that, is that a, uh, a good, it's fourth round, right? Fourth round. Fourth round. Yeah, I'm thinking of the Bengals who took McPherson in the 50 year before. Fourth round, you use draft currency on a kicker. Good move, bad move, we'll debate that when the Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show comes right back. Stay with us.


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[Assistant] Hi, my name is Jay Crawford. I am a lifelong Cleveland sports fan. I have carried my fandom every city I've ever lived in.


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[Assistant] People have always asked me, why are you so die-hard about Cleveland? Because I'm from here.


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[Assistant] And we know how much our teens mean to us. Most of us know that because of our parents. In my case, my father was just a huge Cleveland sports fan. It was really part of our life. It was woven into everything we did. And it was our connection throughout his life.


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[Assistant] This argument though is fascinating to me because pro football focus with their rankings and I love looking at them because they make great fun.


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[Assistant] They actually have OBJ ranked higher than Amari Cooper in their wide receiver rankings.


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[Assistant] Well, he also had the best receiver in football on the other side.


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[Assistant] G. Bush, OBJ is a complimentary receiver. Yeah, that's fine. That's fine. Amari Cooper is the gem in the, in the crown with the Browns here with the Browns right now.


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[Assistant] They do live too much in a fantasy world. I will, I will say that I think PFF is great. I love the rankings. They're fun to look at, but


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[Assistant] If you ask 32 head coaches right now, do you want Cooper or do you want OBJ?


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[Assistant] No, I think what Paul was trying to say was the great quarterbacks can throw receivers open and can make bad receivers better than they are.


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[Assistant] We don't, we don't use that. We have more tight ends on the field than wide receivers sometimes. Right. So I mean, so Bull is saying, you know, I think maybe part of the blame, the blame needs to be shared. I think it's a three-way problem and I don't know who's to blame necessarily. Stefanski system did not fit what OBJ does.


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[Assistant] Baker wasn't effective in getting him the ball enough. I think there's enough blame to go around for everyone, but it wasn't a good fit.


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[Assistant] Video from yesterday. This, this again is from yesterday's OTA and I don't know if you've had a chance to look at much of it, but the one thing that really jumps out to me


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[Assistant] Obviously the ball just comes out of his hand different. Quick decisions, snappy throws, but also this is a luxury to have after watching Baker. He's able to throw the ball down to his receivers. What, what does that mean? What is it?


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[Assistant] The coaches in Indy were. I think a smart coach will look at the personnel. Everybody has a system. Everybody has, I'm a 4-3 or whatever it is, 3-4, but if you have a player with an extraordinary skill set.


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[Assistant] Like yours, like Odell when he was here, I think it's incumbent upon the coaching staff. Somebody on that staff needs to step up and say to Kevin, yo coach, this guy's a Mercedes and we're using them like a Volkswagen.


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[Assistant] Let's make sure we get him the ball. And that didn't happen here.


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[Assistant] The locker room and the chemistry and everything moving forward. Dequel, we're going to have a debate right now about drafting a kicker in the fourth round. So the Browns had their eyes on Cade York from LSU. They weren't sure if he was going to be around in the fifth round, so they just went ahead and


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[Assistant] Took the kicker with the fourth round. It addresses a major need because as you know, without Dawson in a Browns uniform, this team has struggled mightily just like they had to find a quarterback to get that position right.


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[Assistant] Do you think that's too high to take a kicker? I love that. I saw it. That is great. Do you think it's too high to take a kicker or did they do the right thing by


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[Assistant] The fact of the matter is your Bengals were in the Super Bowl last year because you addressed your need at kicker and you got a great one.


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[Assistant] You're in a division that has the best kicker ever to do it perhaps in Justin Tucker.


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[Assistant] You've got Chris Boswell with the Steelers, a top flight kicker. Evan McPherson, guys, in one year, Evan McPherson,


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[Assistant] Broke postseason kicking playoff records. He was 14 of 14 in playoff games. That is a new record. And the 14 makes ties Adam Venetary for the most makes in a postseason. Bull, you know this as well as anyone because they're your team. He won games for the Bengals that if he didn't make those kicks, they don't go to the Super Bowl.


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[Assistant] So, the reason I'm saying that this was a good pick, and history will tell us whether or not this was a good pick, but in the here and now, they had a glaring need for a kicker, and I think that the stats that jumped out most to me, first of all I love the fact that he kicked


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[Assistant] At a school where there were high pressure kicks. He won a national championship. He played in huge games and he was trotted out there to make kicks that were make or break kicks. In fact, he beat Florida and your guy McPherson with like a 52 yarder in the fog that was one of the great kicks I've seen in college football history. Couldn't even see the uprights.


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[Assistant] The numbers that really jumped out at me about, about Cade York.


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[Assistant] And DeQuil, this is, I think, what really changes the game.


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[Assistant] He was 15 of 19 on kicks greater than 50 yards.


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[Assistant] I just think it brings so many more scoring opportunities to a team when you've got a guy that you can throw out there and not hope that he makes it, but you've got numbers that can say, he should make this kick.


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[Assistant] Where are the teams that need kickers? Right. Have they already addressed the other needs that they have in the draft, in this draft? And if so, they made the calculated decision that he might not be here in the fifth round.


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[Assistant] So they went ahead and they took them. I want to quell. We can cap this debate with one question. Are kickers football players? Absolutely. Absolutely.


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[Assistant] She is in this relationship every bit might equal on everything.


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[Assistant] Decisions about career. Where are we going to take this job? Are we going to move here? House we're going to buy? Cars we're going to drive? How we raised our kids? How we spend our money? I don't spend money. I really do not spend money. I will say something out loud.


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[Assistant] I love that pair of shoes. Or, you know, I'd really like to have this. And it's unbelievable. I'm married to the greatest woman in the world. Within two days, it shows up in my house from Amazon.


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[Assistant] She knows that I really don't buy things for myself. I don't, but all I have to do is mention out loud I want something and it shows up.


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[Assistant] Okay, I'm, the way I answer the question of coolest, like, like chicks dig the long ball. Right. So I'm at the, the, I want to say like, if you're talking coolest, I'm thinking which position gets the most chicks. Yeah. Goalie is in my top 50.


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[Assistant] Boom. That's it. That's it. I will let us go to number one real quick. Wait, before you give number one, I want to, oh, you're too late. I was going to ask DeQuel to guess where you were going to go. Why receivers are cool.


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[Assistant] I think the coolest athlete of all time was probably Joe Naiman. I, I just thought that.


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[Assistant] There's like three or four of them, right? I love flip side burgers. They're always perfect. They have one they put like jalapenos on and the thing comes it's like this big you can barely fit it in your mouth.


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[Assistant] We'll have that blog out tonight. Make sure you subscribe to it. I'm glad you mentioned that because we're doing the weight loss challenge and Tuesday is the weigh-in. I'm really interested to see what kind of discipline you guys have over the Memorial Day weekend.


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[Assistant] Hi, my name is Jay Crawford. I'm a lifelong Cleveland sports fan. My favorite all-time Cleveland sports moment. You're not going to believe this. It was Rajay Davis's home run in game seven that tied the score.


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[Assistant] What matters most to me is family. Sometimes you don't realize how important it is until you're away from them.


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[Assistant] I think the thing that most impresses me about Betsy is her versatility. Give her any assignment that involves going in front of a television camera and she's gonna knock it out of the park.


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[Assistant] Mine's sort of along that vein. We're getting ready to go into Memorial Day weekend. And that's typically the beginning of summer. It's the unofficial beginning of summer.


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[Assistant] Gee Bush, you said you're going to a family picnic this weekend. A lot of people will.


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[Assistant] And I just want to take a brief second to remind everybody that life is short, it's fleeting, and tomorrow is not guaranteed.


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[Assistant] One of the teachers that was shot and killed in Texas as her husband was making arrangements for a funeral, he had a heart attack and died. They have four kids, Tuesday,


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[Assistant] Those four kids woke up and their life was perfectly normal, not in their wildest nightmare. Could they ever imagine that just three days later, they'd wake up without parents. So hug your kids, hug them a little extra tightly this weekend, kiss them, tell them you love them. Tomorrow's not guaranteed.


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[Assistant] Live every day like it's your last, and I promise you, you'll have no regrets when it's time to leave.


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[Assistant] Have a great weekend, guys. I hope you do. Have a great weekend. Enjoy your families. Mikey.


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[Assistant] Anthony Stevie behind the glass. You guys enjoy your families. Everybody out there. Have a great weekend. Be safe. We're back on Tuesday. We're off Monday for the holiday weekend, but Tuesday Serena win winners of the Cavs is going to join us. She's now a regular. So is Aditi Kikwabala. Did I get that right? Kikwabala. Kikwabala.


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[Assistant] We're thrilled she's gonna be here every Tuesday and Thursday, and we're gonna ask this question. Browns?


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[Assistant] Number one defense? Did you hear Greg Newsom's comment? I did hear Greg Newsom's comment. It's a little lofty.


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[Assistant] We're going to try to put it into perspective and find out exactly where this defense will fit in to the NFL structure. They're going to be good. I don't know if they're going to be the number one defense. If they're the number one defense, what you said earlier is 100% true. It's going to be the most fun season we've ever had as Browns fans. Have a great weekend everybody. Thanks for spending time with us. Enjoy your family and we'll see you on Tuesday.


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[Assistant] Here in Germany, most car owners still prefer to drive, even to distant holiday destinations.


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[Assistant] When it comes to road safety, tires are of course of paramount importance.


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[Assistant] More than 50 million are sold each year in Germany alone. It's a multi-billion dollar business. But where do these tires come from? And under what conditions are they produced?


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[Assistant] The tires of my family car are well past their prime. They're getting old and are a bit brittle.


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[Assistant] The need to replace them ahead of a family vacation has got me thinking about the origin and sustainability of tires on the market.


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[Assistant] Reifen Stiebling, a family-run business, is one of the biggest independent dealers in Western Germany.


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[Assistant] I'd like to buy a set of new summer tires and want some advice. The store stocks, the standard brands, they're all good quality. But I have a different question on my mind.


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[Assistant] Made in China, Japan, the Czech Republic. Tires are clearly produced all around the world.


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[Assistant] But the sales advisor is convinced that his products meet sustainability standards.


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[Assistant] We want to make our own assessment, so we head off for Southeast Asia.


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[Assistant] Over the last 30 years, production here has grown by 300%.


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[Assistant] Even from the car, it's clear what a big role the tire industry plays in Thailand.


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[Assistant] After all, it's not just natural rubber that is produced here, but many tires are too. They're then shipped around the world in containers. But it's not easy to get a glimpse inside the business here.


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[Assistant] Our first stop is in Kao Kamau District, southeast of Bangkok.


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[Assistant] The plantation begins right behind his house. For the first time we see how rubber is harvested.


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[Assistant] The rubber latex drips out of an incision in the bark of a tree. It can be harvested in a liquid state


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[Assistant] Or through the addition of vinegar, as they're doing here, to get the rubber to solidify and harvest it in solid pieces.


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[Assistant] Later we will discover what kind of conditions they live in.


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[Assistant] Bowser Pot has just planted new rubber trees, despite a glut on the market that's driven a steady drop in the price per kilo.


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[Assistant] If the plantation owner himself is feeling the pinch, what about his workers?


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[Assistant] On the edge of the plantation we find their decrepit huts.


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[Assistant] The workers all come from neighboring Cambodia. They're willing to work for lower wages than Thais.


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[Assistant] With just head torches for light, they slice deeper and deeper grooves into the tree trunks to keep the milky latex flowing.


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[Assistant] Nah has been working on the plantation with her family for the past seven years. The 23 year old can't read or write.


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[Assistant] When it gets light, Na's daughter heads off to school. She only gets to see her mother briefly. The rest of the family is going to bed.


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[Assistant] Outside is Nas' brother. His job today, spraying herbicide.


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[Assistant] He's using the extremely toxic product Paraquat. Long outlawed in Europe.


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[Assistant] What the 25 year old doesn't realize is that paraquat can also be absorbed through the skin and can lead to severe kidney, liver and heart damage.


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[Assistant] He should by no means be working without protective clothing in shorts. But no one has told him that.


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[Assistant] The chemicals remain in the ground for months. Not a single worker here is wearing protective gloves.


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[Assistant] After the harvest, Boa Supat sells his rubber to the woman who controls the trade in the area, a broker. She dictates the price. As tradition has it, he has no right to negotiate.


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[Assistant] She calls to ask whether she can disclose their name, but the company prefers to remain anonymous.


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[Assistant] Undeterred, we decide to follow a truck. We want to know who processes the rubber.


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[Assistant] Our journey ends outside the gates of the Tai Hua Rayong rubber factory, which is mainly in Chinese hands.


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[Assistant] We ask for permission to film, but we're immediately turned away.


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[Assistant] And told in no uncertain terms that a written request is also pointless.


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[Assistant] From above, it's possible to get an idea of the scale of the factory that supplies the processed commodity to manufacturers worldwide. Then unexpectedly, we do get a chance to look around a rubber factory, although it's considerably smaller. The owner shows us around.


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[Assistant] They carry on, hoping for better times.


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[Assistant] So the employees are not employees, but get a share of the profits.


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[Assistant] Behind the factory is the factory's own rubber plantation. Amid the trees a ramshackle hut.


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[Assistant] Clint Supa and his wife live in grinding poverty.


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[Assistant] But Japanese multinational Bridgestone, the world's biggest tire producer, declines our request for an interview.


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[Assistant] We contacted them several times before our arrival asking for an interview, but most requests went unanswered just like this one.


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[Assistant] Continental, which is based in Hanover, is the world's fourth biggest tire producer. And so it has a particular responsibility when it comes to determining working conditions in the sector.


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[Assistant] We hear that the living conditions of people on rubber plantations in neighboring Cambodia are even worse than in Thailand. So we decide to head there.


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[Assistant] Like in Thailand, there are rubber plantations as far as the eye can see.


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[Assistant] With the help of our interpreter, we try to arrange a visit to a rubber processing plant.


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[Assistant] We made several written requests for permission to film. And while we don't get that, we are allowed to watch production.


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[Assistant] Here too, the natural rubber is delivered in either solid or liquid form.


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[Assistant] The people running the factory tell us they supply their product to all parts of the globe.


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[Assistant] Factory workers are usually better off than plantation workers. Here they even have their own bathroom and a kitchen of sorts.


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[Assistant] One of these villages is Kak, by the Tonle San River.


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[Assistant] Until recently the people here worked their fields and lived modestly, but, well, in accordance with their own traditions. But those times are over.


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[Assistant] Big international companies bought the land from the government, land that had been in the community's hands for generations.


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[Assistant] The village chief and 65 year old Puyen show us their land.


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[Assistant] Here, where their crops once grew, we find a lunar landscape ready for planting new rubber trees.


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[Assistant] Like many other villages, they're demanding the return of their land, but they don't have much hope.


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[Assistant] They house women and men who have moved to the area to work on the rubber plantations. They too live in desperate conditions.