What Hasidic Jews, Amish & Native Americans Know That We Don’t | Peter Santenello
3h 2m 41s
The host, a traveler and content creator, documents marginalized and niche communities around the world through a strategy of quiet curiosity and cultural infiltration. Unlike traditional journalists, he avoids agenda-driven storytelling, instead building trust with locals through authenticity and non-confrontational presence. His experiences in places like Iran, Pakistan, Ukraine, and the Amish communities reveal both the dangers of cultural intrusion and the deep humanity found in isolated communities. He shares harrowing close calls—such as being followed by Iranian security forces or facing threats in Karachi—highlighting the risks inherent in his work. Despite these dangers, he remains committed to showing real, unfiltered perspectives, emphasizing that true understanding comes from listening, not preaching. He critiques the modern cultural climate, noting widespread apathy, economic anxiety, and a shift toward appearance-based success, contrasting it with the resilience and community-driven values of traditional, off-grid lifestyles. While his work has brought attention to these communities, he warns against commodifying or exploiting them, stressing the importance of privacy, consent, and personal boundaries. Ultimately, his journey reflects a deep belief in the power of curiosity, personal risk, and genuine human connection to understand the world beyond stereotypes and media narratives.
Our guest today has taught us that all you need to gain access to the most guarded communities in the world is a disarming smile and a head like an undercover cop. While most journalists sit in studios arguing about what America's really like, this motherfucker actually goes outside from the Amish of Ohio to the Hesitim of Brooklyn to the Chicanos of East LA to the Howard's of Appalachia from Iran to Ukraine and all the way back to the native reservations of America. He's got no security, no backup, no exit strategy, just the camera curiosity and the unshakeable confidence of a man who genuinely has no intention of taking advantage of you. He's what happens when you combine the thirst for knowledge of Anthony Bourdain with the threat assessment of a toddler. Ladies and gentlemen, get up for Peterson. I've been watching your videos for a very long time. I imagine when you meet people who recognize you, they have a similar reaction. Most of the most, I have never had a knock on wood, never a negative reaction. But I need to know, given the nature of your travels, and maybe you didn't put it in the video, but is there a near death experience? Is there a close call? Is there something you can share with us? Because usually you show this beautiful, positive side of these niche cultures. It's amazing. But I can't believe there isn't a scenario where, you know, yeah. Okay, I'll give you two quick stories. One Pakistan Karachi in Liyari. Liyari is the hood of Karachi and Karachi is a rough city. So it's already rough? It's already rough and then you go into the interior donut of roughness. And look, these are very tribal places. I'm the one dude that looks like no one else, obviously. And I'm in with a camera and I look like a cop as you were saying. So my goal is to get there because they have a big wrap culture and boxing culture deep in there. So my goal is to find the wrappers and boxers, which I actually did, which was almost impossible. So happy about that. And then I start shooting and all the dude start looking at me. Like, do not get that camera anywhere near a woman. Do not have a woman in the frame. So I finally managed to get the guys wrapping in front of me. He's got a wrap going. And then there's a woman like coming around the back side and having to put the camera. I got this dude looking at me. This gaze coming here. And it's just like a line. A lot of these places, you're sort of on a line. You know, you overstep, it can go really bad. But the good stuff is right on that edge. Right. And so that would be, I mean, that's a long story. But that'd be one example. A government story would be Iran. Yeah. Because I've gotten in Iran twice. Wow. I got in as an Italian because I'm a Italian citizenship. Oh, so the reason being Americans, I don't think any Americans go in that may be on a government tour. But they need government-minded tours. Yeah. So you're getting this North Korea tour, everything's great sort of tour. Yeah. And I got in as an Italian citizen. I had full rain to the whole country. And I was filming. And the first day, the IRCG got my phone. These dudes and with the uniforms, the full camo came by and a mop had ripped my phone. And then they were following the street. On the street. Okay. And they're aware of you. They're aware of me. Yes. Okay. So when I got my visa in Keevue, Crane, because that's where I was living in Ukraine, I said to the enemy, say, look, I'm American. I was born in America. Any problems? No. You're a Italian citizen. And so I went in, I wouldn't do it again. Obviously, I was a little bit younger. Yeah. Yeah. But that's how the channel started. You sort of have to take some risks to get in. Right? What are my views? Smash the sandwich in New York and say, this is my video. What year was this? He went to Iran. That was seven years ago. That was 18. My second time, my shot videos was 18. And so they were following me around the whole country. I'd be at the front desk of a hotel. Wow. And I'd hear farcey, did it, did it, did it, did it, American, Santanella, did it, did it, did it. I talked to the receptionist afterwards. I said, what's going on now? Yeah. They want to know where you're going. What you're doing. And then you hear, it gets into your head. When a government is so top-down, powerful, controlled society fully. Yeah. In my hotel room, I hear the military boots come down the hall, loud stomp. They stop in front of the door. All these things race in your head. It gets inside your head. It turns into a paranoia. And you're followed. And when those wheels lifted up out of Tehran, when I landed in Keevue, Crane, I felt like it. I'm free. That's the best thing ever. You got Ukraine, Iran, Pakistan. Are you CIA? Yeah. I don't know. I'm just fringe. I've always been a little rogue and just curious, like you're saying. It's just when you're curious enough and you want to see around every corner, eventually you end up in Tajikistan or Iran or Syria. Yeah. Because you're like, what's that like? And then you hear something about this next one. What's that like? And I designed my life to do this. Right. I saved up a lot of money. I went around the world for two years in my 20s, 50 countries. I saved up 20 grand. I worked nights working restaurants, days, detailing cars, and I just had this goal to see the world. And that changed everything. That's a great cover store. Yeah. I get it a lot in when I was in Ukraine. I'm a YouTube blogger. I have to have a camera around. You're also throwing them for a loop because like you're in Iran watching like Girl's skateboard. And the RGC is like, what the fuck is going to do? Right. They gave a great skate culture. Female skate culture. I saw that. I saw that video. Yeah. There was a thing that you brought up just now about like the, I think you were in Syria from that mistake and you had a cabbie and he was asking you about Bush. Yes. Good memory. And then you were like, you were like, you know, obviously didn't like the war in Iraq. And then once you said that to him, he really kind of opened up. And he like, well, it was interest flying in from Moscow to Damascus two in the morning green lights, all the tops of the mosques, right? Yeah. Had no plan, nothing there, except getting into Damascus. And I had it three weeks there. I wanted to meet Iraqi refugees because I was 2008. They're all coming into Syria. Yeah. And so I got into the taxi. And the guys like feeling me out. What do you think of George deputy Bush? Because obviously very tense time. I said, look, I'm no fan of GWF F Bush to make him happy. And he's like, hi, he's all excited. And I said, what do you think of Bashar al-Assad? Yeah. They're leader. And his jovial ways just got really serious. His jaw clenched and he's like, I like Bashar al-Assad. And you realize the guy obviously hated Bashar al-Assad. But they're so controlled. You control the speech of a place and you dominate the people. And that's the story over there. And then it went into civil war right after I left not long after. Not CIA. What a coincidence. I know. What happened or not? What happened if you live? And what about Ukraine? Oh, oh, yeah. Yeah. Where are you going next year? I was in the Renaissance period there. Yeah. 16 to 20. It was a great time to be in Ukraine before the war. Yeah. Because their visa travel opened up in Europe. You have all these young Ukrainians going to Italy, UK for the first time. Yeah. You'd have like a white guy starting an Indian restaurant. They were so excited with the world they wanted nothing to do with the Soviet Union in Russia. And they were just looking west and looking to experience what seven years ago. Yeah, I was 16 to 20. I was there around that time. You were. Yeah. Where were you? Keith, did you like what do you think? I was pretty cool, man. Checking out his museums and stuff. You like the art? The art was incredible. They got your history trying to support the economy's best I could directly. Money in the hands of the people. That's really what it's about. You know, you got to put the money in the hands of the people because there's corruption there. You don't want to put the hands of the people. The middle men. The middle men will take it, and then it's not getting directly to people. But if you hit it directly to the people, they're so grateful. Yeah, it is. Okay, you got me. What were you there for? You literally just went to hang out for a weekend. We thought it'd be interesting. No, I think it was cool. No, no, no, we just to hang out. We just went to hang out. I don't even for prostitutes. I didn't even know that there's a culture of that. Is there a culture of that? Oh, I must be mistaken. No, no, no, no, no. You must be thinking of Columbia, right? That place that you like to come. No, no, no, no, no. But I think I had some friends traveling Europe. Yeah. So they were already in Europe, and they're like, I think we're going to go. And then we're like, this is awesome. I think this is after they, is this after Crimea? They're coming. It was 14. Yeah, so this is after Crimea. And we went, and it was funny, like Expedia. This is back like with Expedia when they're sending you, right? And they warned us that we were trying to, they warned us. They're like, by the way, this is a, you know, there's a war zone going on. And then at the end of the warning, it was an advertisement for car rental.
>> He's like some more zones to just be careful, but also like, do you need a mod semi-ata
for your trip?
>> Don't rent a car in Ukraine.
>> Don't.
>> Did you rent one?
>> I don't remember.
You got to clean it when you're done and they're going to hit you with something.
>> Oh really?
>> You got to not leave it clean, actually wash it, go through a car wash, vacuum it.
>> No, he didn't do that.
>> Wait, really?
>> Yeah.
>> Unless he was detailed car-brain, go ahead.
>> Yeah.
>> He always does.
>> He always does.
>> No, my wife and I, we rented a car around the country and decided that experience with
that.
>> That's not every.
Avis isn't going to do that, but a lot of them.
Ukraine's, it's really, when I went, it's adventurous enough, but it's not Pakistan.
>> No.
>> You know what I mean?
It's like, it's Western to some degree, but it has these pagan roots.
It's different.
Western Europe is somewhat boring compared to the more East you go.
>> For adventure travel.
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah, they seem wild.
Every time I see a video from Russia and the captions are in Russian or Ukrainian, it's
going to be some type of guy almost dying, like jumping off something, swinging off a building,
flying off a ramp.
>> Yeah.
>> They have a real kind of--
>> Live for the day.
>> Yes.
>> And live for the day.
>> Yeah.
>> Because you never know, and still today, you never know what tomorrow brings.
I mean, you don't know anywhere, but really, it's baked into the cake there.
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah.
>> So, live it up.
Where Americans, I'd say, it's recently changed, but we were more like, "Hey, I'm planning
this for 10 years.
I want to be doing this sort of thing."
And like, we had the stability to always plan it out.
>> Well, I think people were into America for future.
>> Yeah.
>> The whole idea is about long term, long term, and how amazing your future is going to
be.
>> 100%.
>> And if people don't feel future prospects, or they look at like what their grandparents
are living like, they're not that stoked to see.
So, yeah, it's going to change your mindset.
You're going to go, I'm going to fucking get after it, this club until seven in the morning.
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah.
>> And they like to get after it, too.
>> They do.
>> Yeah.
>> Did you find any, like, Soviet coldness?
Like, we went to Moscow, and like, people just wouldn't smile, really.
But they were friendly, but they wouldn't smile.
>> Here's my theory behind that, in Ukraine, worst geography ever, Russia, Europe, you're
smashing between.
It's just that we're fading armies going on forever, right?
So, whoever looks different than you is usually your wife and burning your house, metaphorically
speaking, right?
So you have to, anything that comes to work, that's a harsh metaphor, right?
>> That undercover cop is coming up right now.
>> I mean, if you look at their history, it's so hardcore, anything that came over the hills
that looked different, was a threat.
So it keeps the very cold, that's why it's like, hey, how you doing in Ukraine?
Welcome to Ukraine, you're not getting that.
But once you get in, beyond the shell, then they open up and are great.
>> That's where I felt, I mean, it sounds so cliche, but vodka played this huge part in
the culture.
It opens them up, and all of a sudden, you understand why there's all this, like, poetry
and great emotional writing that comes out of these places.
It's the Irish are like this, too.
If you're in Dublin during the day, it's dour.
>> Yeah.
And then the Guinness at night, it is the most, like, jovial, happy, beautiful, warm place
on the fucking planet.
>> Yeah.
>> So, like, some cultures, like, the alcohol has a responsibility.
>> It does.
Yeah, it really finland the Nordic country.
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah.
>> The fins open up.
They're really stoic and cold, and then they really fire open.
>> It's alcohol.
>> But you have to get naked immediately with them, which is a bit awkward if you're not
into it.
I was in Finland last summer.
>> That sucks.
>> It's like a sauna with a bunch of guys you just met.
>> It's amazing when you're hangin' out there.
>> There's no black people in your culture.
>> Isn't it amazing?
Like, hey, let's just--
>> No insecurity.
>> Let's just pull our nicks out and hang out together.
One guy from Nigeria is up, and it's like, I think we got to change this stuff.
>> I think we got to change this stuff.
>> We're gonna come very sober.
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah.
>> It's good to towel.
>> It's all like, you should have to fill in it immediately.
>> I met these guys, and yet we went out to the sauna, and the sauna is the traditional
hangout in the bathhouse with the guys.
>> I might have loose, but one in Rome, you got to do it.
>> You got to do it.
>> Were they packed up?
>> I wasn't looking.
>> I mean, you're gonna see it.
>> It's like--
>> Yeah, I was really worried.
>> It was really hard not to.
>> So you were just lookin' up.
>> Yeah, pretty much.
>> Yeah.
>> Wasteline up, trying.
>> Yeah.
>> But there was never just like, oh, it was as a finished digger in there.
Like--
>> I knew that.
When I'm in a foreign country, I'm lookin' over.
I'm lookin' over.
>> Just to see.
>> Yeah, it's different in that sense though.
>> There's why.
>> Yeah, tell me.
>> Tell me why.
>> We're all like Jews here, right?
>> We're SNPs.
>> We're SNPs.
>> Yeah, yeah, yeah.
>> So when you see the raincoat, it looks a little awkward.
You're like, that seems unnecessary, but then--
>> For natural, yeah.
>> Yeah.
>> The way God wanted to be.
>> He's on the circuit.
>> Oh, okay.
>> His dick just looks like it.
>> Yeah.
>> We're maybe perfectly in his image, and then we change it.
>> But imagine you're in a sauna.
It's like, it's already hot and all shriveled up, and then--
>> I would say.
>> It's just like the little hats they were, you know, it's more healing on your head.
>> Yeah, dude.
>> All right, so fair enough.
So you were just head out in the sauna, and they were just like, whoa, what the fuck is
that?
>> I don't think they're looking at you now.
>> They're not.
It's just, but back to clothes now.
>> No, no, I'm going to go down this one.
>> That is the reason that you're praying.
>> Sorry, we got off track.
>> Yeah, we're just, it's just a metaphor.
>> It's just a metaphor.
>> Yeah, it's just a metaphor, dude.
>> Yeah, it's just a metaphor.
>> [LAUGH]
>> [LAUGH]
>> No, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, that is the reason that you claim.
>> That's true.
the hoods. I like going into the hoods. Tell me why. They're interesting. And most people
are cool. Yeah. Yeah. Most people are just interested. You're interested in them.
And you go and know that you just, I'm going to ask in questions. I have, I have no narrative
to fill in any of these videos. I just want to learn. Yeah. And so you learn, there's,
there's pros and cons obviously. But I do say the community in some of these hoods is pretty cool.
Tell me. Everyone knows everyone. In that sense. Yeah. Now what's not cool is,
crime, bad habits, nobody likes the criminals.
You know, it's a minority that causes most of the problems.
>> Yeah.
>> Oh, there's a little bit of a soul in there.
I don't know how to say it.
>> Yeah, I don't know.
>> Yeah.
>> Yeah, I'm going to rock away tomorrow. Shoot a video because that's in New York. Nobody
>> You hear from the hood.
>> What?
>> Yeah, I don't know what you think about where you're from.
knows of I think for the most part. You do obviously. Yeah, but very few people. But even
most man hat nights wouldn't know the rockaways. They just know the beaches. They don't know
a far rock away. Yes, you have a gated community out there, much Irish, right? Gated off doing
their own thing. Don't really want anyone in from what I've heard, but I'm getting
in all the way at the top. Yeah. And then you have the projects and everything in between.
The projects that are beachfront. Yeah. It's a fascinating. You all know it is a fucking
>> No, no, no, no, this is called beachfront projects, they're not.
>> They're back.
>> There's a couple of bills.
There are beachfront housing projects.
This is a fascinating thing about New York City, Manhattan as well.
There are projects lining the water, yeah.
So and there's a reason for this, but like the most beautiful, expensive views that exist
on the planet.
Yeah.
The real estate that they don't make any more of is waterfront.
Yeah.
And we've lined Manhattan, which is the crown jewel of, you know, human civilization with
projects.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
They gave that waterfront to their best people.
That's what they did.
Yeah.
I have a great way of looking at it.
There's projects that go forever.
There's a big conglomerate of blocks.
I figure what they're called.
Projects.
Yeah.
Projects.
But what do they have a name for?
the East New York. I've had those. Oh yeah, East is, but yeah, like nature. But look,
>> Yeah, like nature.
>> It's the kids you got to watch out for.
The 45 year old is scared of the 15 year old.
Unfortunately, the rules have changed.
>> Yeah.
>> Back in the old Bloods and Crippestays, there was order.
It was like the mafia.
There was top down hierarchy.
Now it's the 15 year old or TikTok reign that spun out with a gun.
Everyone's scared of that kid.
>> That's what you're really.
>> So I was in Compton and the kid brings out the gun, brings it across my face.
>> What?
>> But it's just a test.
It's like how, if I show fear, it's over.
Like I'm going to get nod on.
I'm going to get robbed or something.
I don't think I'm going to get shot, but I'm just like, cool gun.
>> Inside, I'm like, shit.
But outside, I just, you know, Iran taught me this.
Or Pakistan.
These are the skill, what I learned in the world, I'm bringing back to this content.
So not to say I'm bulletproof or like, you know, I can't, I can.
>> You got a good poker face.
>> You got a show poker and you just got to, you got to operate sometimes without language.
It's, it's non-verbal.
It's in what I learned overseas.
Because there were times where I was stuck in the mountains of Tejji.
Because Sam, I couldn't speak with anyone.
You know, I'm a little bit more.
Alicia guys pulling me over. And once I made a joke with them in Russian, we're in. They got me protected. The dude with steam coming out from his beard with his AK. You have any problems you talked to me. Also, I'm on the road. If you want to come see one hour of standard comedy, no more, no less. Right on the dot, I finished the show one hour. If you want to come see it, I've great news. I'm going to be in Detroit, Michigan, December 17th and 18th. I'm also going to be in Salt Lake City in the new year, January 8th and 9th. A lot of people been saying that, yeah, it's pretty good. So come on out to the show. Mark Jagger on live. I'll see you all there base. My point is that stuff was like training for the hood or any awkward situation I'm in where I'm like, definitely the outcast and it could go either way. So it all ended up like I had no idea I was going to get into this. I wanted to show Americans the world that fell through. Yeah, multiple times. And then YouTube's was a thing and I started in the world and then the pandemic brought my wife and I back to the US from Ukraine. Yeah. And I was thinking, what's in the US to show? I know my country been across it a few times, lived in some different places. Yeah. Totally wrong. It's been six years, head full on sprint. You know, what was the first video that popped? That was, I think that his civic juice in Brooklyn, the Burrow Park one. Yeah, I think so. I came back to the US and right when the money was almost out and I'm just like, I have to make this work. And I'm telling everyone around me, hey, they're like, what are you going to do? I'm like, I'm going to go to New York and shoot videos with acidic juice and go to the hoods and talk to people there. And they're like, yeah, cool. What are you going to do for work? And I was like, I got it. And it was right when it was just like all the money was almost gone where it took off right in that month almost. Wow. Where the New York series hit because it was out of time six years ago, there wasn't really any stuff showing the has the aesthetics from the inside. Yeah. Other than just smashing them down. Yeah. Yeah. Or with the awmish necessarily. Yeah. In with the awmish. Or in the hoods, there was some stuff, but I'm just, it was somewhat novel. And what I've liked about watching your videos is it doesn't feel like there's an agenda going into it, genuinely curious. Yeah. So you're letting people, you know, you know, show you their culture the way that they see it. Instead of like entering the place with a notion and then proving that notion. Right. And that's become very popular. Well, that's most traditional media. I mean, for two reasons. One, I mean, we're in the times we're in everything is ideological. Yes, of course. And two, it's like from efficiency of shooting a story and like telling your producer you got a story. Yeah. You got to be like, here's what we're doing. This is what we're going and getting. Yeah. And then it's got to sell. I don't have any of that. Yeah. So it's like what I'm curious in and luckily there's an audience. A lot of Americans are just fatigued at this point. I think you're right. Both sides are just exhausted. Don't preach to me anything. If someone says something I don't agree with in front of the camera, I don't guess it's not my role to tell them they're wrong. Right. You the viewer can decide, hey, I agree or disagree. Yeah. Yeah. Just get red and a little quiet. You what? You just get red and a little quiet when someone says something wrong. I don't think I put the camera on. Some stuff I vehemently disagree with, but that's the point is to learn. And I don't have to. And I'm not from that place. You know, I don't have. As you've gotten, you know, super, super successful and popular have people started to, to like place responsibility outside of just your curiosity on your content. Yeah. Some people want really want to push you to a side. Yeah. And just like you have a, you know, yeah, I don't like that. I've always been feral. I've always been independent. I don't have any feelty towards any of these people. Yeah. And I'm not going to change in that sense. So what about the communities that you're filming with now that the profile has gotten bigger. Do you find that they're now like playing to the camera more or they are people trying to get in on the videos because they know there's a platform whereas before they're like, oh, this is just a guy with the camera. That's the tough part. So getting the right people and the ingredients, just like a podcast. Yeah. You're, you're the cook. Yeah. You need the ingredients. Yeah. And I have to find the right people. That's going to make the story or not. So sometimes yeah, I filter through I call personally, I don't have anyone do it. It's just me and my wife. So I film my wife edits and everything. All operations are, are me and I'm calling and I'm trying to sort of suss it out. If someone's cool or what's the intention, they might be trying to sell something. Recently, I had a guy that was sort of, I don't know pathological liar. Maybe. Oh, wow. Yeah. Just like saying stuff that was totally incorrect. And luckily I did my research and off on the area. And I scouted it out enough where I could sort of save the video because I could push back and like knew what he was wrong and right on. So it's challenging. What was he angling like this particular guy just saying stuff that was totally false like to give the neighborhood a bad rap or like business or something. Yeah. Bad rap, I would say. But just totally fall like blatantly false information. We're here. And I just like if you say one incorrect thing, anyone that knows what's going on in this area is going to call BS. And then the rest of the video is smoked. Right. Because you're not credible. And look, I'm not always going to get it right. And I'm an outsider. It's why I rely on people on the inside. But it's messy. How do you assess like a fixer? Like the person showing you around like a line of questioning to know if they're the real deal. You got to you got to you got to feel it out. I mean, I made my mistakes. Get it going in a place like the Rockways tomorrow. Am I saying that right? Rockaways. Yeah. Okay. Um, I got a little bit far rock and Rockways. So the Rockways, the Rockways. I got a guy that's from there. Okay, born and raised. And so I try to do that. The born and raised. He's got the old school accent, old school in New York. He seems like a no BS type guy. But you never know until that thing is posted. Oh, really? Like Eve shoot. I don't know how I might have the best conversations. I meet up in person. They fall sort of short. They go nervous around the camera. Yeah. Or they they suck on the phone. I'm barely going to do it. I'm like, I don't know. But I think so. And then they perform really well. Yeah. If you need me to put a call and make sure you say. All right. All right. And then it's a lot of half the videos or that style meet up with a fixture half our. I'm going in rogue. I have a plan where I'm going. But it's the locals I meet along the way. And those are the locals. It's just fishing all day long. Like, what's up? What's up? What's on man? How are you doing? How are things in town? And that's the beauty of America. People want to talk. Yeah. Like people want to share their stories. Now I got it that far. Now are they saying something that's interesting? Okay. We got there. Now I got to say, Hey, I'm shooting a YouTube video. You're cool being on it. And I might have gotten the best person. But they're like, nah, I don't really want to be on it. Last thing I want to do is shoot someone out in the streets. They speak openly about something and they don't want to be online. Yeah. I'm not going to do that. Yeah. So some days are better than others. New York is great. When New York's really hot, it's tough because people don't want to stop and talk. You know, we're enjoying the summer, man. No, but when it's hot, no, when it's hot, like you're sweating so hard you want to get inside. Yeah. What this, what I'm saying is the more I do it, it doesn't get easier. You think the more you do something, it's easier. Yeah. It's not. Yeah, there's still just an element of chance. So much chance. What about the sedum? There's such an insular culture that really just focuses on themselves. How do you even break into that community to then document them? I got to with Shlomi Zion. Zion say Shlomi. He hit you up, right? He hit me up. Yeah. So he must have seen another one of your videos. Yeah. He was following the channel. Okay. And he got me in. And is he LeBavish? Is he LeBavish or Sapmar? He's big for he had. No. I think he's Sapmar, but he's like Sapmar light because he's very open. Could you write that down? What are those two things? The two acidic Jewish sex that exist in in Brooklyn. Yeah. They're like dozens of them. Acidic sex. Those are the big ones. Yeah. Sapmar is going to be the most conservative. You know, the most removed from the world, I believe. The most isolated as well. I was talking to Sapmar got three days ago. Yeah. And I was, he was trying to figure out how to sell a van. Yeah. He was like, I got to put it on the street. I got to put a sign up. I was like, you should use Facebook marketplace. Yeah. And he goes, what is that? And I was like, oh, yeah, he doesn't have Facebook. So I was like, you know, Facebook, he goes, yeah, what is that? If a guy, if a guy has a foreign accent and him and his entire family were born here, that's isolated there. It's same thing with the honest. You're like, you're like, yeah, how do you guys have a foreign accent? Or the Chicanos? Yeah, the Chicanos. Yeah, that's a good point. They have a good accent. LeBavish. I met with a woman who shops at Gucci. She's Hasidic, but she shops at Gucci. So you have all sorts of specials. The amish you have. That this is cool. You have the shorts and troopers, which I met up with a shorts and troopers. They didn't let me film them on their face, but they let me film their house and take their audio. This was great access because they didn't know who the president was. The biggest dream for these people, the woman when I was leaving, she's looking up at the sky and she's like, what is it like to fly? That was her biggest dream. Yeah, just like so interested with like, is it like a bird? Then you have the beach.
amish that drive trucks and have microwaves and that was Mark was that isn't Mark. No, that was Josh. Josh, yeah, yeah, yeah. And then so you have that spectrum and there's probably 10 major groups of Amish. And then once you go to beachy, you start with men and I in the men and I are like Amish light. Yeah. They open up even more with technology and like everything is super complicated. And it was cool to watch Josh explain it like that. So Schwartz and Trooper is basically no electricity. Nothing. I thought they were all like that. No, that's the thing that's interesting. Okay. Is that the beachy amish or the the men and nights, they'll use it. But they won't have like a TV at home. And then he like bricks his phone, right? Like, so he doesn't have porn. He doesn't have. So he's limiting it. But he's still operating that Schwartz and Trooper Amish, which are the most conservative of the Amish. Well, so they're like living in 1858 with everything. And they all make like local rules, right? Like each different community will have like a vote on like how they let them around. It's all has to do with their their church. So someone might move a county or even a town over so that now they can have a bailer that has some automation versus just dragging it behind. But it's not like a nationalized like group like each different community has its own rules where they vote in and out. That's my understanding. Exactly. See all the furniture. There's old wooden furniture, well water, kerosene lamps. They made me a hat. The Schwartz and Trooper had. They said I was I had the biggest head they've ever experienced it. It's the shape of an egg and it's massive. I mean, did you feel like they figured it out? I mean, those guys like us though, we're not all the same. You want to be a free spirit to some degree. You want to be on tether to some degree. Yeah. It'd be tough to be in that world. I wouldn't even be able to shave my head like this. Oh, really? Yeah. Wait, what? I'd have to do that. What do you think about that? I can't do it. It's impossible. He wants to hear some circums. And they have the Amish musbeer which is. No mustad. No mustad. Dagestani. It's weird. I mean, I learn a lot through these communities. And as an outsider, I can respect and admire what they're doing. I you know, it's just. I don't know. I think about this stuff all the time. Like what is the best way to go about it all? Well, what are the positives of it? Like, was there anything you were envious of them? They're connected like Aspen trees. Really? They know this guy, that guy, that guy. They're all helping each other. They're health insurance. They all pitch in. They do big foundations and raffles every year and get money in and they do that with home insurance too. If someone's burning down, everyone's chiming into hell. And it feels genuine in the community. It feels genuine. Now, there are problems like any strict commute or any community, but they're obviously problems. But it just, it's clean. It's nice. They're not running up huge credit, you know, to live through life. They're not flashy. It's pretty cool. I mean, they're tied into the land, tied into nature. And they seem happy. I'd say for the most part, yeah, it's always hard to get into someone's head. But. But if you are a free spirit and you want to go out on your own, then that's going to be suffocating. What about our boy, Titus? Titus. Cause he's the epitome of free spirit, right? Titus. Those are the best videos to make. There's so much fun. I mean, that video, I think the first one you did, I think is 21 million views. Yeah. So Titus was the man who legally doesn't exist. He's coming down from the tree. He's swinging from the trees. Yeah. The unfortunate thing is they're a drama in them hills. I don't can tell you really. Yeah, it got it. It got, I was telling Titus, Titus, do not put your phone number on the internet. Do not do that. Titus didn't want to listen to anything I said after I posted that video, swarms of people come, women coming in to marry Titus. Cotide. Whoa. So he was with this one woman for a bit. And I guess that didn't work out. And then there is all this drama that I don't know half of what's true and what's not. And I've stayed away from it. Can you share a little or you're going to have to look online. I don't want to make claims that I don't know 100% true, but. But he got some legal trouble. Yeah. And then he was with the woman and then there was kids issue with another guy and. Oh, yeah. And it got, it got a little hectic out there. And I've just ignored it for the last two years or three years. But when I met him, we had a great time. Or like performance where it's like they let him go off for a little bit. And then rum shringer. That's with the omnishoot, the rum shringer. But he's not. He's not. He's he's just an off the grid. He's seventh day Adventist, which is in the same vein. Basically got it. But he was a religion basically. Or he did. Now he's now he's from understanding he's with his wife. But when you were with him, he was here fully just. Yeah. On his own. Like how were the neighbors? Like they're down the roaders. Yeah. They had 50 acres. It's it's rule out there. Yeah. Well, but it was like truly off the grid. Yeah. Kind of a little sidehouse little pay for stuff. It was really interesting video. And he seemed stoked. I mean, the guy seemed pretty happy with his life. Yeah. And then you made him famous and then women. You can you can control. Lucky if you're if you go big on the internet. Yeah. You can open up your life to the world. Or you can shut it down or you can shut it down. And that's a personal choice. Yeah. And I highly suggest the latter. Yeah. He was taken Amazon gifts from everyone doing opening box. He turned from doing the corn to opening boxes of Amazon stuff every day and making videos and social media influencer in some ways. Yeah. And I told him I came so much advice. Just control your terms. Control your life who comes out your zone. Yeah. Take the good of it. But don't open it fully. Yeah. I'm not going to sometimes it's hard when you get a taste. Yeah. Yeah. This social media attention is kind of like that. It's got to feel like heroin through that. I like that. Yeah. He gets excited. But I know it. But he goes. But it goes. The girls are sending him hits on the fucking internet. Letters from Poland. Letters from all over the world. Wow. Yeah. And they've got pictures in there. Yeah. And he probably hasn't seen those things in a long time. That's crazy. And guys in New York say it's hard to date and look at his guy cleaning up. They're coming out to the hills of Kentucky. And then he's just in a hay bell. And he gets up and there's a Polish chick butt naked just. And he's like in his head. A fever dream. Yeah. Yeah. No, no, but she might be in person. She might show up. I don't know. I don't know if they came that far of it. Yeah, but you know what I mean, you're obviously a massive name. And so you can you're you're going to do the video of you cooking in your kitchen in the morning with your kids? No. Yeah. So that's a choice. Yes. I 100% agree. And you get to it's smart to kind of like limit what people get. And we've been in a situation where we've probably shared more than most people or share our lives more than most people on the planet just through the podcast. You know, but we're also native to it. So we know how things can go sideways. Yes. But if you're living out here in the sticks, you're like, Oh, what can go wrong? It's tough with the kids. Also, you're like, you know, you want to protect them and they didn't ask for that. So yeah, I write protect our identity. But at the same time, there's the coolest things that you want to share. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So what do you guys see in right now in culture? I mean, you're on the front lines. You talk to a lot of people. What's the temperature overall? And that's a wide question. I think that you described it earlier. I think there's exhaustion just, yeah. Apathy. Apathy. I think apathy comes with the exhaustion. It's just like, I need to check out. This is too much. Every single day, it's a new fucking thing. I had people want to escape. Right. And then like a little topping of like hopelessness. A little bit. Yeah. I think a little sense of like, oh, yeah. I think the future is not guaranteed kind of like, almost like that Soviet mindset. So yeah. Let's live for now and get on rich as quickly as possible. Get rich as quickly as possible. And hot. Both. And hot. Yeah. Well, these things are getting hot. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Yeah. These are the looks. Max. I've heard of it. In clear. That's a thing. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. I think this is like, I think this is downstream from a broken economy. Yeah. Anytime men are focusing on their looks, getting successful feels far away. If men feel like they can be successful and meet their ambition, they don't focus on how they look. But if you feel like success is nearly impossible, well, you still need to get laid. So naturally, you're going to go, okay, well, what if I can make myself look a little bit more? He has to be funny, though, right? So people can do that. That's what's harder, though, being funny, or using, wearing some makeup or, you know, using some paper to get in shape.
- Bake up 20, somethings are wearing makeup, guys. - Oh yeah. - That's the, that's the idea behind it. - And it's like, he gets a lot of stuff, but I think that he's actually diagnosing something real. - Right. - Which is like, a lot of kids there, like if I don't hit a parlay, I'm never gonna get rich. - Right. - Well, if I don't hit a random crypto meme coin, I'm never gonna make the money. - Yeah, I'm never gonna be able to buy a house. - So they don't feel the economic opportunity, but they're like, I still need to get some positivity. So what should I do? What is the best haircut from my face? - But why not just work on developing yourself? Okay, here's, I get a, I'm out of the job. - How old are you? - In your 20s? - 'Cause historically that's what women like, is a man who's developed their personality. - Yeah. - They want someone that makes them laugh. - I'm sure if, as you go around the world, the funniest people are the ones that get the most girls. - When you're in Karachi, the funniest guy. - Actually, it's quite effective from what I've seen, but yeah, of course someone would resources, but this sounds crazy, maybe. And I'm not trying to tune my horn in any way, shape or form, but I was like, I don't care about money until 40. - Yeah. - I want as much experience as I can get. I'll figure that out afterwards. As naive as that sounds. I wanted to see the world I wanted to get out as much and experience as much as possible. And I always did things. Made money, came home broke, went in again. No one gave me travel. I went out and got it. But that was my number one interest. I just think you're trying to make a recipe out of when you're gonna get money or by this age, that age isn't realistic, right? - No. - I mean, you gotta be ambitious and go for things, but like, if I didn't do those trips, if I didn't do what I did, there's no way I would have been doing this channel 'cause that was the foundation for doing this and everything sort of leads up. As long as you're not sitting around doing nothing, but if you're working towards something, doing this for a while might add up to what you get to here and you went over here for a bit. I mean, this is no novel. - No, I'm making fun of it. - I think a lot of young people need to hear. I just feel like the pressure is so hard on them. - Yeah, I just think that they feel like the dream is evaporating a bit. - Yeah. - You know, like the existential doom of maybe artificial intelligence. - Is that gonna replace them or take their job? And I don't think they may be see it as it might open up a more lucrative job. They don't, it might not, who knows. But this existential doom is kind of like weighing on them and they're not really sure for their future, their friends future, their opportunity. And then they start to go, okay, well, I gotta get it while I can if that is possible. - Or I just have complete apathy and like, let me take some drugs and have some fun. - Is it in our middle route? - Yeah, I think as things settle, like again, I don't know, but I assume this is like you know, like the data center thing is such a topic of realization. But like I think the data center is like the physical manifest and they're doing a lot of things wrong with the data centers. Like if you were one of these companies, these AI companies, like any place you put a data center, nobody in that area should pay for anything. Like if you know that people are economically struggling and you have the means to not only put the data center in, but make life really easy for people that are struggling. Like that seems like a no-brainer. - Yeah. - But right now, it's almost the opposite where you're like, you want government grants to put the data center for the trillion dollar companies. So the people gotta have higher lesser bills and pay tax money to have the data. It's like, you know what I mean? Like in Alaska with the pipeline, everybody gets a little check. And then they're like, all right, pick some oil. I like that little check, that's kind of nice, you know? So it's like, whatever, but it's the physical manifestation of the existential doom. So if you're like angry at like American imperialism and you see a Columbus statue, you're like, fuck the statue. Even though like Columbus wasn't an American imperialist. - Right, right, right, right. - It's a physical representation of this thing that you believe is causing existential crisis. So you're like, fuck that. - Yeah, that makes sense. I mean, do you get that feeling talking to people? Like maybe the communities you're talking to are so kind of niche that they're not talking about. - Yeah, no, there's that tension underneath. I think most of society right now. And I feel it too. It's like I'm depending on the day or the hour even, right? Sometimes you can feel, maybe I'm more capricious than most, but sometimes you can feel really optimistic about everything. - Yeah. - And then literally six hours later, be like, I don't see how this thing's gonna work out. - If they take 30% off the top of every profession. - Yeah. - Then how does that work out? The checkout, counter person, what are they going to do? Like how is it, I don't see it. And then I get bummed on it 'cause I'm like, you be, I don't think it's the way. People need to go towards something at work or improve or build. Not everyone's gonna pick up a paintbrush. And yeah, there's some hole. Like when I start talking about like this, yeah, pumps me out a little. But then you're like, what's in your power and your control? And if I had, if I was in my younger 20s, I didn't know what I was doing. I'd probably get in a city like here. I wish I did that earlier. I lived in San Francisco for a bit. It's not New York, obviously, as far as the energy and what's going on. But it took me until my 30s to get to that. And maybe I'd go that route? Or maybe I'd be like, look, America still does have real estate that's not crazy expensive. Is it the place you wanna live in? I don't know, but you could live in Little Rock and there are nice parts of Little Rock. I was there last year. I met a dude that made a, he's got a house 160, 180 grand. Great law, nice place. He was like, I got plenty extra money to travel over Europe and my wife. It's great. We love it here. And so you don't get New York. You don't get San Francisco. And it was never that way for me. I moved to Reno, Nevada from Lake Tahoe. I wanted to go to school in San Francisco. I just couldn't afford it. I was paying my own way. So I had to go to Nevada. And I just look at, that's just the, that's the maybe one day I'll get to go there, but that's just the way things work. So I think it's like a combination of a few things. Like yeah, the real estate's gotten higher. Yeah, the AI thing is scary and unknown. But also do you see the guy is much working all day, detailing cars, the deplorable work, right? Doesn't look cool on social media, that's for sure. And waiting tables at night to save and do something. Like working day at night, is there as much of that going on too? I'm sure. You think so? I'm sure there's plenty. I also think that like what people see as making it now is changing a bit. Yeah, yeah, yeah. And I think that that's influencing decisions, right? Like a lot of like making it feels lucky now, right? It's like if you, if you're an influencer because you're like getting ready by putting on makeup in your clothes. Like maybe maybe you're doing it in like a more unique way as another girl is doing it. But it does feel a little bit like, ah, this is just a role of the dice that this person got popular. Whereas like LeBron is singular. Like you know, it's not like accidental, maybe he's been the successful. And maybe when we were younger, like it felt more deserved. The Delta is, was too huge or LeBron example. The gap is too huge. But with YouTube, anyone can post a YouTube video. And it's not anyone, right? It's like what you do is singular, right? You live a GoPro and you're walking around these communities and talking to them and it feels easy because you make it feel easy, right? But gaining access and trust with these people having the courage to go, having the recognition of what a good fixer is versus somebody who is not gonna communicate to the community, editing the videos so that they're entertaining with literally one camera. Yeah. Like these are tricky things but to the outside world that he's, hey, look at me in here today and I'm in the homage country. Yeah, I'd say that that does annoy me sometimes when people think 'cause they can, anyone can post a YouTube video. And it does look super simple. And I want to say I'm doing the hardest thing in the world but it is highly challenging. Yeah. And you got to think of like, what's the story? And I don't want to copy what anyone else is doing online. Yeah. Of course there's gonna be crossover but want to be novel in the content. You got to get to the location. Maybe it's going to rain out. Maybe that person doesn't work out. Yeah. Maybe the story just sucks. But you're right from the outside. It's sort of like, everybody thinks everything is easy now. You know, I'm not dating you here on this one. Go, go. And rush. Of course. Yeah. Everyone air drums in the stands, Neil Perth. Okay. You, everyone looks good air drumming. And then you put those sticks on the kit in the back. Yeah. Do you find there's a connection with the communities that are on social media a lot and like their general optimism or forward outlook? Okay. The communities that are, are. That are not rather. Like if you're with the Amish, do you find that their perspective or their optimism is higher? Or with the hisedum or anyone that's not? I'd say if we're going to do as a whole, a collective, they're mentally in a better place. I would say they're less fragmented. They're more on the same page. But it's interesting that like many people are now practicing. Many people that are plugged in are trying to practice what those communities have been practicing the whole time. Yeah. Which is just. When I started making Amish video at the very beginning, everyone's like, oh, those crazy people, [BLANK_AUDIO]
life. And then the pandemic happened. And everyone's like, I want some of that. I want to hang out with my friends and cook meals and grow my own food. Is it gonna work? Like to the off work a lot? It's a lot. They work a lot. Yeah. Like it's constant. Yeah. And I've done a lot of off-grid living stories because I find them fascinating. And there's part of me that's like, ah, that would be cool to do, right? Yeah. But everything in life, as you guys know, has a honeymoon period. Yeah. And it looks and sounds good, but what's it like? You're three. Yeah. When you're dealing with your chickens and they stink and, you know, you got to take poop off the eggs. Like, it gets for most people, it's not going to work. And it looks great on her. Or living in a tiny home. It's like, whenever I watch those videos, I'm like, oh, tiny home. This is it. It's like, you don't have anything to worry about, whatever. You're listening to your girl push out a shit while you're taking a shot. Yeah. She's fucking six inches from your pillow and you're like, you don't want that. Yeah. Exactly. This is not the ideal life. I did a video with a guy in C. Seville, California. And he pretty much owns the whole town. It's way up north. Trinity Alps. Remove from everything. And he said, what people don't get is they think off-grid is for the easy life. Living in the burbs is the easy life. This is the hard life. But maybe a hard life is a more enjoyable life. Yes. You need some resistance. I think that's what I've realized whenever I watch, like the it's not called a ranch. People who live in Alaska, it's called a homesteading. Homesteading. Yeah. We're watch homesteading. It's like, it looks really hard. But the hard work and that every day having purpose, I think, makes for a better mindset. Yeah. Like if I don't cut this wood today, we freeze. I need to cut the wood. If I don't answer this email from this random person, it's like, yeah. We almost have to fill ourselves up. That's the great thing about kids, by the way, is that kids give purpose and they give me, like you got to feed them. You got to make sure that they're going to be okay and you got to make sure you keep them alive. And they're unpredictable, right? Completely. Completely. It completely throws you like risk assessment off. Like once you have kids, you think twice about like, am I going to Pakistan? Yeah. I'm at that now too. You feel it. I don't do as much sketchy stuff anymore. Yeah. Don't need to. Is there a place that is so sketchy that you're like, oh, I can't. Like you, your heart wants to, but logically, you're like it. My heart doesn't want any of that anymore. But I will say the sketchiest place in the US that I've been to, and you can't put it on a spreadsheet, but there's a feeling and energy. Bell Glade, Florida, near Lake Okeechobee. Okay. When I pulled in there, I was getting the stairs in these, these highly aggressive looks, like just get out. Really? Yeah. Florida. If I go into East New York, and I've been in a few times. What color? What color? People. Black, mostly Haitian. Damn it. I thought we had that one. But it's just, I want to sketchy, let's get you white. But there's a weird story. And that's investigative journalism, which I'm not. Yeah. Because old school investigative journalism, you need a team, you need resources, you need time on the ground. But I think there's a deep suppressed labor sugar story in central Florida that I would love to see someone get. I don't totally know it. What do you mean? What do you mean? The sugar industry is huge in Florida. Uh-huh. You have, I don't know the legality versus illegality. And I think I'm guessing. And I can't say for sure, I don't want to say things for sure unless I know for sure. Yeah. But when you can feel, you know, you take all your data points here and that, that was heavy and hardcore going down that street. And then there's the buses taking them off to the fields. And what's going on here? I don't know. But that needs, we need the old school investigative journalism back. What was the name of that term? Belglade. Belglade. I don't want to put Belglade under the bus or any of these places because there's great people there. There's nice parts of it, like a most American places. Yeah. You can label a place like Memphis. There's great parts of Memphis. Yeah. Yeah. Like beautiful homes and, you know, you've been everywhere. You've talked to so many people. Let's start ranking places. Well, for what? Living or traveling? No, just in your personal opinion, what's the best state? Things have changed so much. So I moved to Florida. Besides New York. 21 from California. That's because San Francisco is at its low point. It's come around. I always want to call a spade of spade. It's, I hear people saying it's so terrible right now. No, it's not. No, actually, they're saying it's not. There's a new DA, a new mayor. It's cleaned up a lot. It's not nearly what it was. It's crazy how literally those two positions can change an entire city. Well, we're, we're going, we're always going off the last bit of information we receive. You'd say Mexico City do a lot of people and they'll think like 20 years ago, Mexico City. Mexico City. It's great. It has always been a world classic. Like London, Paris, New York, Tokyo, Mexico City. Yeah. Is one of my favorite places in the entire planet. But yeah, it's the same. Like New York, the way people not from New York talk about it. They're like, "Oh, the crime. It's so bad." But they're still moving here. Like everybody talks that shit. And then they still show up so shut up. Yeah, the city is thriving right now. Yeah. So I want to call it everything's in a cycle, right? In America, our cycles, our places change quickly. It's not Europe. Europe, I feel, is much slower, especially the more rural you get. But you can be in San Francisco 21 and now and it's a different reality. But most people are going off the last bit information they heard, the last time that we're there. And I'm like, "No, it's changed." So long-winded way to answer your question. I don't know. For pure nature and where I just like detether or like untether from from the world, northern California, way up on the coast or in the redwoods. Big sir. Big sir, central California love that. I used to camp there every year. Love it. Because the nature is so powerful. New York City for as far as cities in America, by far the most interesting. Yeah. Yeah. Like there's nothing in the world. I'll give it. I was just in Tokyo a few weeks ago. Love Tokyo. It's nothing. But I'd like it's so much more going on. It's great. I learned more about Staten Island from his video than my 40 years being in this thing. Shout out Staten Island. No, it's not a dump. No, there's a beautiful like me. My bad Staten Island. I always took your dump. We don't often go to Staten Island. This is the truth with most New Yorkers. Yeah, I heard that. We don't go to Staten Island and then if there wasn't a zoo in the Bronx or the Yankees, we probably wouldn't go to the Bronx and watch either. That is just, that's the unfortunate honest truth. Am I wrong about that? But they got Puerto Ricans at Dominican, so sometimes. But they also travel. They come in. I mean, we wouldn't go to Queens if they didn't have the airport. We wouldn't. Like if I'm being completely. You got the food in Jackson Heights. You got the Rockaway Beach. Rockaway Beach. Rockaway Beach. Rockaway Beach is like Miami Beach. It is. It is. It is. It is. It is. They're the exact. I used to surf Rockaway. Look at you. I've got tomorrow coming tomorrow. No, I'm going to shoot a video. There's a surfing community there. I know. I'm looking for. I found a surfer home. I'm trying to get into who I don't know. I've found on Zilla. Okay. I'm good. It's interesting. It's all done like a surfer home. Surfboards up in the wall. Teak floors. 93rd Street or 96th Street. I think is the sur spot. That's the jetty. Maybe. But yeah, it's a very interesting juxtaposition. You're surfing in front of a project. It's the most New York surf spot ever. And I would be really grateful if I live in the projects on the beach. Like most people go to Boca retire to do that. Right. So I would say people that live in those ozone buildings are going to be upset you calling it projects because they don't consider them projects. I don't consider projects. I just consider the projects one. And those always on beach. I'm talking about the beach one. We're more on the base side. So I don't have a good answer for your question because the beauty of this country, why we're so fortunate. My wife says who's from Ukraine, not from here, loves it. Build your own bowl country. You pick your protein, like pick your climate, your topography, pick your culture, pick your, pick your religion even, pick your politics. You got like a million different options. Yep. And so many countries, you know, in Ukraine, you don't want to be there now. But if you want to make it, you pretty much had to be in the capital city or or the second city where the U.S. we have live how you want to live. So my brother's a chef in Hawaii. He serves every day. He rides his dirt bike private chefs. Simple life lives in a little cabin. This is my mom's from Scotland. It's like immigrants truly understand the greatness of America in a way that Americans could never conceptual us. 100%. And that's okay. It's actually like that's a really cool privilege that you don't realize how amazing you have it. Like us. So how do you get that message to the younger generation if they're feeling really down and out? They got to travel. They got to travel and see what else is out there. I think a lot of times like the younger generation, they might like romanticize Europe in a way, but like and this is someone who loves Europe. Like I like traveling there. I appreciate
But like, we travel to Europe for, in the same way that we go to like museums, right?
We're like enamored by this great history and culture that has been curated for thousands
of years.
And it's like really beautiful what they've put together.
And like the monuments or these lasting legacy to these times in Europe that were absolutely
incredible.
The entrepreneurial spirit that exists in the world right now comes from the United States
of America.
Yeah, simple as that.
It's like the technology is all coming out of here.
I mean, he has maybe some from China that's probably reverse engineered from stealing
our shit.
But it's like, there's a honey pot situation.
There's a honey pot.
A little honey.
You might be honeydicken.
It can be going the other way.
I think he's honeydicken.
Jensen.
Yeah, shout out Jensen going through it.
His wife has got the fucking, she got the keys right now, dude.
Yeah, true.
Anyway, I got Jensen's back.
I'm not taking any Jensen Hwang slanderer.
Do you know what's happened with the idea of cheating on his wife?
Yeah, allegedly.
I don't say anything.
There's not factually.
I don't really know.
He did not.
No, thanks to comment.
So he did not.
I thought he admitted to it.
Dude, men don't cheat, bro.
Especially when their company is holding up the US economy.
Yeah.
You're getting Chinese secrets.
That's what he's doing.
Yeah.
Oh, okay.
God, she was trying to honeypot him, but he was honeydicken.
Yeah.
God, she did not opt to.
All right.
It depends how you look at it.
He knows so much.
He's the victim, actually.
He's the victim, man.
Poor guy.
Yeah.
Yeah, dude.
Poor guy.
Just let him make his chips, dude.
Just let him GPU.
All right.
God, stay a break for a second.
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All right, guys, before we get back in, we got to talk about the biggest story.
Two wongs don't make a right, man, it's a bang bang out, go boy, guys, go boy, guys.
Yeah.
This is a real we too low situation, it's a we too low.
Yeah.
We too low.
What was the next one?
We too low something long.
Yeah, bang, bang out.
Yeah.
It's a fourth one.
Um, you're trying to tell me the CEO of the biggest company in America can't just, you
know, do import export, I mean, that's the job.
That's the job.
That's the job.
Right?
You don't want to be talking to Chinese woman?
That's what his job is.
He has to work with them.
We need someone that's open to that.
Is it crazy that the Chinese shake is too mid for like him to give up secrets?
Like is that crazy?
That's mid.
You thought that she was cute?
They don't really.
That's Alex.
We're not going to do that.
Alex, we're not going to do that.
Have you seen these?
You've seen these ones?
That's not her.
Come on, bro.
But that's, that's, you know, she's the one that you see before Lincoln stay secrets.
So the crazy thing about it was a model.
Nah.
Yeah.
Really?
Yeah.
I mean, we all knew that Jensen was gay.
It's some pun, right?
Like you don't wear fucking leather jackets.
Yeah.
As like the leader of the biggest tech company in the world.
If you're trying to bang your wife.
Yeah.
Um, yeah.
Shout out to Jensen, though, Chow.
Your husband's wearing custom fawns jackets.
Yeah.
If your husband dressed like Sebastian man of scouts, though, I'll keep an eye on him.
I would definitely get his location.
No, no, no.
No, no, no.
Jensen, you're the man, bro.
It sucks that this whole situation happened.
We don't know if his wife and then have a situation.
Also the media is being straight up racist, too, because they labeled her a Chinese honey
pot immediately.
Okay.
And now I think there's more evidence coming out that she's just Chinese.
Well, he was like lobbying super hard, apparently.
This is all ledgerly to get Nvidia to sell megaphone or whatever her company was chips.
All right.
I mean, look, that's not state secrets.
But then when they went to the megaphone office or whatever like that, they had the chips
and boxes ready to ship out, ready to ship the China.
Whoa.
Do you think that's when he flagged it?
That's when he was like, what is this?
Go like this.
And then also, apparently, they told Trump and Trump was like, man, let me give you some
pussy.
Like they already flagged everybody.
Trump's like, at least, yeah, my wife's not a honey pot, of course, full Russian accent.
They're like, nah, nah, nah.
He just sat with it.
What's going on here?
Well, yeah.
So apparently, there's now a new market that was made on college.
All right.
What does it have?
He might be stepping down.
Ain't no fucking way, bro.
They're saying, will he leave before January 1st?
He's not stepping down.
2027.
He's not seven now.
It's gone.
The global economy is pinged to the success of this company.
The green is saying that he's going to step down before the 29th.
And that's it.
Like, there's a 50% chance before 2029, but for 2029, that's a, that's a long time.
And that's a long time.
No, if he was doing treason, then he got to give him a little, give him till 23rd.
You don't think they need to?
Also, what state secrets just buy a chip, bro?
Yeah, but we can't go into chips.
Well, I can't, they just buy them.
You go in Ali Baba, buy a chip and figure out how it works.
You can't, we not letting Ali Baba get these chips.
You know how crazy these chips are, bro?
They're not anyone. We can reverse engineer alien technology. It can't reverse engineer a chip. No, they got small hands.
You think you're doing the silicone by hand?
That's what I have to be in time one.
We can't make a move. We can't. We can't. We're hands are too big. We're too tough and sick and jacked. Yeah.
And then so they're saying you got to step down. You're not going to step down for
2027 is 40 39 percent bro. Yeah what these chips can actually do like what we get you know
like when the government has a technology they give us the shit that's not close to them
yeah in the same way that when we sell like other countries airplanes like we're not selling them
the ones that we got yeah it's like the ones we could take out easily yeah so man what I was told
that the shit that they already got can do.
- Like, what do you mean?
- I'm not trying to get fucking guy.
- I hate when he does this shit.
- Like, they'll say it.
- Like, mind reading, they'll say it.
- There's almost nothing you can tell me
that wouldn't, that wouldn't surprise me.
Like, they can be faster than the way we already have it.
Let's put this one.
Like, let's say password hacking, right?
They could send like 50 million agents at your password, not just randomly checking it,
calling you and having conversations in your language with your accent asking you personal
questions about your family to get a better sense of what the password is.
Password might be like an all out onslaught.
Password.
And that's with like, the version of AI we have now, which is like the shitty version.
Like we're just throwing, we're basically throwing like horse power at the problem.
We don't really have predictive intelligence, right?
We're just, that's why we need these fucking data centers because we just need to churn
through option after option after option.
When you get what they call like SSI, safe super intelligence is what they're calling
it.
That's the shit where it's like, all of a sudden, we don't need that much compute because
it's, it's actually making sense of the objects that you're asking for it to make sense
of.
So it's not guessing.
There's no more guessing.
It's doing what we intuitively do.
So if we pick up a bottle of water, we can imagine bottle of water.
And what we don't need to do is funnel through a million different objects until we figure
out what a bottle of water is.
And once that happens, it's a magical and it's a super intelligence.
I didn't say that.
That's their reframe.
I didn't say it.
I thought it was AGI is that same.
No.
As soon as you learn the words, they switch it.
They switch it.
to keep you dumb. That's the trick. That's like, you think you know what words are? I'm actually doing something totally different. All right. So what do we have? Do the chips allow Jensen just to open a Snapchat account? That way he stops getting caught? Bro, he's not going to get you. Think he's getting hot. How did this come out? Well, and she's in math based on an email. Yeah. Like, what's going on? How did he get? I think he wanted, bro. He wanted. He wanted to get caught. He's a good guy, man. That's what I'm saying. Listen, he's a good guy. He's a good one. He's got a lot of pressure. He's dealing with a lot. He's just trying to sell some chips. There's a lot of people over there. Yeah. No, honestly, if he did treason, then you got it, you know, you got to be, we got to be serious. Yeah, be serious. We got to be serious. You know, they'd be pill-talking, man. You think? Come on, man. I don't know. I don't think this one was a spy. I think she's just a regular one. She said it. What makes you think she's a spy now? What makes you think she's a Chinese spy? Fuck, Mark. What would make you think that she's Chinese? Okay. Right. And you kind of got to be whether you like it or not. What makes you think she's spying? Does she have a spying kind of look on her? Yeah. Why do you think she's not a spy? She looked like the gymnast. She went out, flipped on us and started going for a China. She's a spy, too. The downhill, you know, border? Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah, back to that episode of me, back to that. I believe this sincerely. It's like America offers you the opportunity to be the greatest version of yourself. So it's like, you, I don't know if you could be you if you grew up anywhere else. I couldn't be me. I could be a version of it, but I can be the greatest version of it here. And if you're just already born here, you don't see that as a huge advantage on everyone else. But it is one of those things where if you have like a relative or a parent who's not from here and they're so stoked by what they're able to come here and do, they think it's a cool thing in the entire world. That leads through you as like an immigrant kid, you know. I fully agree. I think if I had one bit of advice, no one asked for, the younger generation get out and travel. And it's not as hard as people think because the world, the world is cheap compared to America right now, even Japan is cheap, which 12 years ago it wasn't when I was there. Now I just went, it was like half price of here. So what I would recommend when you're young, and I can say for young men, because that was my journey, go adventurous, like go get lost in Pakistan or India. >> Staying hostels. >> Staying hostels, it was $10 a day or something. >> But those are where the lessons land, those were all my stories come from. >> But if someone's truly like, I have no idea how to even start this. They're living in like Sacramento, they're making like minimum wage as like a server, a restaurant, they're 20 years old, what do they do? >> So be a server and become a better server, become a, I was at a, I was a waiter in Lake Tahoe at a restaurant, Gavin Newsamund actually. >> No way. >> Yeah, back in the day, plump jacks. And it was a good gig, and I could save money. And so become a better server, get a better gig, those exist, and then figure out some, how you can make more money during the day, set a goal two years out, I'm going. That's what I did, 20 grand. Now that was in 90, no, that was in 2002. So that would be like 40 grand now. But it's doable, I didn't go out, I didn't party, I ate cheap, and just, I just had this maniacal goal. I even met a girl, and I was like, you know, in a year and a half, I'm leaving, so just, just want to let you know. Like we're starting a relationship. They was just absolute focus, if you focus hard enough, it's possible. >> And then how do you pick a place to have an adventure? >> Well, mine was go to Europe, do a, because I used to compete snowboarding, do a winter in the Alps, and then get a do-cadi in Italy, they used one, rip it back, send it back to America and figure my life out. But I went to Europe, and I'm like, I don't want to go home, I'll always figure out the material thing. I might never get this time an opportunity again, flew to the Republic of Georgia. At that time was completely Mofiosa place. I had to pay a bribe to get into the airport. >> How much? >> 20 bucks to get into the airport. To get into the airport. When we landed the plane, all the Mofiosa got off into the BMWs and Benzes, which was everyone of the plane and was just me walking to the airport. And the security guy said, $20, I said, what? For what? He's like, enter the airport. I'm like, I got a visa, it didn't matter. It was that corrupt. I had the best time of my life in that country, a month in that country. I saw where the Russians were coming over, the caucuses, the mountains, and doing night bombing raids. I got into this place, Pengi Sea Gorge, which was like all Islamic fundamentalists. It was just a wild, wild adventure. And then I'm like, that was gateway drug. That was like marijuana. I'm like, what's next? >> Where do you literally sleep? >> No, I'm in Mom and Nassie's house, Nassie. So I got off. I paid my bride, get through the airport. I told the taxi driver, McDonald's, why? Because I knew there'd be an English speaker there. I had no plan set up with it. I went in McDonald's. I got to the front. >> It's the embassy. >> And there was a kid that, it was the embassy. There was a kid that new English. And he's like, let me make some calls. He got some grandma, Mom and Nassie, who I stayed in her house. I cooked every night. She cooked for me every night and stole my toilet paper every day. Because it was so poor at that time that you're just using newspaper. So I'd stock up my bag with toilet paper. And we just had this weird relationship. I knew she was going through my bags and stealing and taking stuff. And I'd eat every night. And I met these locals. And the more out there you get, the more people open up. Like, what are you doing out here? And they want to take you in? The best time of my life. But that's the gateway. Then you're like, where do you go next? I want more adventure. Tajikistan. How do I get there? How does Tajikistan even enter your radar? >> Because you're looking at a map. You're like, this place, Georgia, was wild, right? >> What's wilder? >> You think of going to England after that? Or Italy, it's like, as a young 20-something wanting adventure, it's like, oh my god, put a nail in the coffin. I got to keep going into this adventure. And then you keep going. And you keep going. And that was my journey. At least I went around the world for two years. Got a job in Bangkok teaching English. Told him I had my master's in education. I didn't even graduate college at that time. I said, look, the stuff's under a pile of documents and a storage unit and Reno and Nevada, there's no way I can get to it. And they were short on teachers. I had a job the next day. And I went in teaching these Thai kids. I had no idea what I was doing. So what I'm saying is you start getting a thread. You let that thread go through things. And you can't plan it. And the more you don't plan it, just you need money and time. That's the hard thing to get in life. Rich people have money, no time usually. Poor people have, maybe, you know, their bones, but you need both. And as a young person, you can go work. Your butt off for a couple years in this country and save them. If you have some capabilities, I wasn't doing glamorous work. Save money. I'm out. See and have the faith that you'll figure it out on the other side. Did you ever get robbed? I was robbed and poisoned in Uzbekistan. Yeah. I was trying to get this Tajik visa. I couldn't get in. And there was one guy, Gaffrov in the country in Dushan Bay that was given out of visas. And this woman in Uzbekistan said, she knew Gaffrov through the embassy. And I ended up staying with them. They poisoned me. Took all my money. I took a bus the other day, vomiting with chicken on my feet. And then I ended up at some doctor's house out in the country. Sadduh Uzbekistan who brought me back to life. They had a nurse giving me IVs. I don't know. I was out. How much do they take? They took all my cash, which was probably 300 bucks on me. Are you sure you were poisoned or did you get sick? How do you know it was poison? Because they were nefarious and all my money was gone. And I was out and it was a weird feeling like you weren't sick. So you woke up and you were just I woke up the next day in a day. I got on a bus and I was vomiting across the country. And I'd chicken on my feet. It was like everything in these rural areas was getting transported by the local grass. Did you ask whole hurt? Yeah, it was. It was not feeling well. But they have they have squatter toilets. That helps a little maybe. But they took but a lot of places newspaper that doesn't help. But if you get a bum gun, that always helps with a bum gun, like a little watered water blast. Oh, okay. To the day. Yeah, the day. Yeah. Like it's literally like a little like we need that in the U.S. by the way. Yeah. I don't know what you're talking about. If you drop a cake on the ground here, are you just smearing it with paper? Are you gonna use some water? No, we definitely use some water. Yeah. So why not? It's a more efficient way to get metaphors. It's just a better way of doing it. It's a better way. It's a better way. But you would never rob like all the street like someone coming up to you. No, I can't I can't remember any times. And in the U.S. people asked me all the time making these videos like what happens and knock on wood. You don't have any. Um, she's head at the bottom right now. Yeah, no, I am um, nothing's nothing bad is what happened? Is it because you're vigilant or is it because people are generally pretty they don't want violence and most people are great. You know, everyone's in our bubbles online bubbles right now. So you think everyone's at each other's throat. It's not really
like that in the streets. Most people aren't even that political, to be honest. Nobody's cared ever about that stuff with me. I'd say most people are great. And you have to have street smarts, common sense. I had a pack of kids come off of me on a parking lot and I could just, you know, you know it's around you. The guys in the hood have the best emotional intelligence by far. - Right. - 'Cause I think-- - They're from day one, they have to know. And if you're like a doda, if you grow up in Vermont, in a way, sorry for monsters. I mean, I'm a Vermonter technically. You sort of grew up like a dodo bird in a sense. Like you just don't have, in immunity to threats around you at that level. And so you have to, you have to either grow up in a difficult situation or create the difficult situation for yourself to get those skills, I think. I grew up not in a difficult situation, but I created a lot of difficult environments where you like, you don't have a choice to be lazy with that stuff. 'Cause it's literally your survival. - Traveling internationally as an American right now to people judge you. But do they hear you, do your American be like, "Oh, this fucking guy." - You know what, everyone, if you're a janitor or whatever, if you're fired up and cool with people, I don't think, I think everyone respects that. - But they're not like key checking you on politics, like. - Yeah, really? - I mean, traditionally the Western Europeans are probably the worst at that. Like, what do you think about this president? You know, it's like, "Hey man, I just met you." - Yeah. - Right. - And your system is in going perfect right now either. So don't, don't worry. - So you're welcome for those wars that we won. - Yeah, yeah, so I'm not getting any of it. - Really? - And with the camera out, does that make it easier or harder? - I think harder because it's awkward. It's awkward putting a camera out, it's awkward putting a camera on your face. Is crazy of sounds, I don't even enjoy that. - What do you mean? - I don't even enjoy putting, like, I want to, my job is to go get the story from the locals, bring it back to people in their homes. I'm just the conduit. It's not a story about me. I try not to be. And some of them I have to make it more 'cause I don't have the ingredients, don't have the characters, but it's awkward to me still, like talking to a camera. I'd rather not, I would rather with YouTube, not post a thumbnail or a title. Just be like, my video to the Rockaways and there's like a picture of a picture or something. But you have to, you know how this works. You have to, there's got to be covers. You got to get a curiosity gap, you got to get people interested. - We are parents thinking when you were just like, off-travel. - They checked out because I'm the last of three. So by the time I came around, I mean I was out in a van at 18 right after high school living on a, you know, carved out plumbing van basically with a buddy of mine. - Oh really? - Yeah, with our lawn mowing money checking out the country. - You did a van life? - Yeah, but pre-nice van life. It was a thermarest on the ground, no insulation. - Wow, no video to tell you how to do it. You just made it up. - It was literally like a cargo van with no windows. Like you would think it's a plumbing van. - I lived out of that. - And didn't you have all the country? - How confident you make it? - Not very confident. It was just plastic bins up the side. We had mountain bikes hanging from the top. And it was just, my head was down between the front two seats. And my buddy's head was at the back doors and we basically crossed our body's crossed. Mummy bags, it was tight. - And where the nights were, it was absolutely freezing. - Freezing. And what do you do with this? - Often Wyoming, you go to Seattle and then you get, and then it gets so wet that it's raining inside the van 'cause the top is metal and all the condensation, and you're getting like sniper hits in your ears and stuff. - Damn. - Yeah. - No, didn't you? - But you're like, that day was so freaking cool. - Whatever. - 'Cause you're young. - Yeah. - Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. - And that's what I want to get out. That's what I want to get out to your gin is, he's got to be young, young. - He's fucking 30 years old. - He's old. - He's old. - I'm young there. - 39. - 820-somethings, the 20-somethings. - 39? - Yeah. (laughing) - I think it gets up to you. - Bro, since you've been off your age, you've gotten older, bro. - Yeah. - I'm 35. (laughing) - With the 20-somethings, he got to go out and do that adventurous stuff, I'd say. - Yeah. - 'Cause right now, I don't want to do it. - Yeah. - You lose the, but you lose like the need to comfort. It's nice to chill at home. - What's the craziest person or some of the craziest people that you've met that didn't want to be on camera? And that you were like, "Oh, dude." What you just told me was insane, and I wish I could record it. - Nothing's coming to mind, but it's happened so much. - Like is it to be prominent? - Yeah, sometimes to the best. And everything comes to, everything comes to a line eventually. Like I can get in with the aesthetics, but then there's gonna be a door eventually, like a steel door that I'm not going through. - That they won't allow you into, is that what you're saying? - Yeah, I mean, look, I'm getting into someone's life. They have to want it, obviously. But, you know, the farther I got with the shorts and troopers, I got in the house, but I couldn't put the camera on their faces. - Right. - I went a lofty, they were, they were like straight out of a story book from 1857. - Yeah. - Then what about their faces? (laughs) - Just, you ever opened a history book? - Yeah. - It was them. - Just like, it was them goping. (laughs) - It was like, they have not seen chemical in their food, they have, they have, they have with their teeth. The teeth were white. - Yeah, 'cause they're really-- - And nice, no sugar. - Yeah. - Nothing processed. - Nothing processed. - Is there incest with those communities? - Yeah, I'm sure it happens a bit. - But for fun, though, not fun. (laughs) - Not for whatever reason you're thinking. Just for just cold-fashioned funsies. (laughs) - You know that's the whitest teeth? - Who? - The Uratreans. - Uratrean, Africa. - Oh yeah, the Uratreans, yeah. - They have four flights in and out a day. That is a closed-off country. - Really? - Yeah. - And they, from what I was told, their food is all organic. - Nice sons. - Really straight? Like, their teeth were straight? - Straight, isn't straight. Yeah, straight teeth. - White. - Blinging white, you're like, "Wow, those are the whitest teeth and everything." - Did you go or you read this? - I went there. - Oh, how was? - It was great, it was interesting. 'Cause the Italians colonized us, so they left a lot of Art Deco. - They're gonna, they're-- - Which is a trip and you're at 7,000 feet cycling is the main sport. - Oh wow. - They got like, you can get a nice cappuccino and get on your road bike. - No way. - In fact, yeah, in Africa is what? 56, 58 countries, they're all different. Just like every one of these places. Just like the whole point of the channel and the book, which I didn't mention, thanks for putting it out there, is to tap Americans into a bubble, they might not interact with. 'Cause we're all in our bubbles. Doesn't matter who you are, if you're growing up in the nicest, if you're in Crennage, you're in the hood, you're in an Amish country, everyone's in their own world. Our country's so big and interesting that we got a million different types of existences. And this channel, the whole point, there's a meaning behind it, 'cause a lot of work. The point is to lower the temperature politically, tap into some other type of people that you might not normally hang out with, you'll probably come away smiling, being like, that was sort of cool. Maybe it's not my thing, but it was cool. And we're in a country where it's so big, you can still explore uncharted territory. Example, St. Lawrence Island, Alaska, went there a few years ago. That's in the book, that chapter. Probably the most mystical, interesting place I've been, I'm putting that in the world. - Where is St. Lawrence? - It's, you know, no, Alaska, and then you got about an hour and a half flight off of it. - And it's basically in between Russia. - And you can see Russia. - It's 30 miles away. - Isn't it like split? Doesn't like the island like half Russia or half? - No. - US or something like that? - It's that one. It's three times the size of Maui. It's huge. - Oh wow. - You can't go there as a tourist. - The native Siberian upics have full control of it. You can get invited in. They're two towns. And they're still hunting whales, Walrus, reindeer. - So the people that live here, they're American? - They're American and that's the trip. That's what I try to get in the book in my videos. I'm watching a, what is it called? Enough talk or something? It's like some traditional wedding ceremony. Like I'm in Burma or something. And there's the US flag right there with the USPS underneath. And then you have Miami and those are in the same country. And you're like, what a dream. - I mean, our most diverse country in the world by far. - I think so. And just so cool in that sense. - Yeah. - We can get to Africa quicker from here than there. And that's in the same country. - Yeah. - You know, not telling anyone to go there 'cause they're not gonna be able to go there. - Yeah. - It's basically like you enter a ranch and there are no trespassing signs. - You don't see that. But that's the Lee Galen 11, it's their place. You could technically land in the airport 'cause it's a Laskin State, but you wouldn't be able to leave the runway. - Well, who'd you connect with there to get permission? - Like most of my stuff, some got someone through someone from someone. And that was hard work getting that. And so when I get this stuff first, stuff like this and I put all the time in months of work,
and then some YouTubers are like, "Hey, who'd you go meet?" I'm like, "Ah, man, that's the hard part." Is making all that happen, right? - What about the place in Alaska that the whole town lives in one building? - Wait a year. - Wait a year, Alaska. - Yeah, yeah, it's cool. - It's bizarre, they're all the things. - Have you been in? - Yeah, I did a video there. - Yeah. - How is that? - It's cool, it's a great communal. - You've to get through a tunnel, it's a multi-mile tunnel. - Well, I think I watched your video where there's the person that has the corner store there. - Yeah, yeah, yeah. - Yeah, yeah, yeah. - Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. And why are they all only in one building? Is it good just to-- - It's just space. - There's not, you know, space, harsh climate. I think it's easier to do that. It's a port town. What, it's great. I mean, that's just the point of everything, and I beat at home a million times. But like, you could get lost in this country for a lifetime. It was just on Orcas Island, Washington. What did I know about the island culture in Washington state, nothing? - And? - Until I went there. It was awesome. - And what was-- - Sort of a hippie artistic culture. - Yeah. - Some, if you wanna rip off, live off the land a bit, have a close community, tons of safety, be removed, that's your place. - Is there any community you really wanna get connected to that you've had difficulty doing? - I was trying this last series in Washington to get in with the Hooderites. - What are the Hooderites? - The Hooderites have communal land. They basically have these acreage plots. I don't know, depending on how big the colony is, where they share the land. They have, you know, they're pretty much self-contained with what they do, but they interact with the outside world. They're farming usually, they're selling their goods. - They look like Mennonites, or-- - They do, yep. But the difference is, the land is communal. Nobody owns their own land, from my understanding. So I was trying to get in with them forever, and it's a hard sell. Hey guys, I make videos. Would love to get in with you. - I didn't have the right back door contact, which is what this tough takes. So if anyone out there in your audience, put it on, you know, has those contacts. - What else? What other communities? - In the United States. - Anywhere. - I'm US centric right now because I feel like this is where the most worth and need is in what we're doing. - Yeah. - I know that sounds romantic, but-- - No. - I'm just interested in it. I'm not really interested in the world as much right now. I did the world. I've seen 85 countries, I lived in the world. Four different countries overseas. Now I'm like, when I came back in 20, it was like, wait, you guys are arguing over what? 'Cause I completely separated. I was gone for the Trump years completely. I didn't pay attention to the news once. I was learning about Pakistani politics. Or Ukrainian politics. And so when I came back, that for you, you know when you don't see a kid, niece or nephew or something in four years, you're like, "What happened?" That's how I felt about the country. I was like, "What happened?" Why is it so, there's so much more tension in the air. And then I realized like, this is where we can actually do something. You know, that's meaningful. Again, as corny as that sounds, 'cause it's, if it was just money, I'd probably do something else. 'Cause I'd fry it on this thing. It's a lot of hotel bets. Love hotel bets. Have you ever been like in any groups or cultures where like morally you felt that with like how they conducted themselves? Like maybe like a KKK group or even maybe some of the gangs or things like that? Some of the native stuff. I've done a lot of native reservations, a lot of tribes in this country. We have 576 federally recognized tribes. They're all different. And they're all different socioeconomically. I mean, the default is it's, the rez is harsher for sure. But there are some rezzes that are doing extremely well, monetarily. Like who's doing that? You don't know. Ah, there's someone, there's one in Washington. I forget the name of. The one that you see knows most likely? Because you know, the, the seminars are extremely successful monetarily in Florida. Yeah. Some have figured it out in a way where they're very good business people, entrepreneurs, know how to do it and others don't. And some are highly corrupt. Uh, Bureau of Indian Affairs, depending on the rez can be highly corrupt or not. There's a lot of infighting. There's a lot of money going to the top, no going down to the people. You can go to Cherokee in North Carolina, the Cherokee rez. It's way nicer on the rez than off the rez. Hmm. Usually you go on the rez, it gets a little more beat up. Cherokee gets nicer. It's beautiful. Then why is that? Uh, they own cast stations. I believe they own cast stations. I believe I was watching a big weed operation being built up, but I don't want to say anything for sure. I don't know if they're selling that now or not. Uh, gaming. Casinos usually do well. Yeah. Um, you go to Navajo Nation, it's the size of New Jersey. Well, um, the size of Israel, basically. Right. That's it. It's own country out there. Different situations where like the people at the top don't really look native or you see some people. Oh, yeah. Because look, everything. There are very few native, full natives left. Like native Hawaiians, 100% there aren't many, right? Like everything is diluted down over the times. And so every, every tribes have different blood, blood, quantum, like you can be part of the tribe. If you're one fourth, I believe it's usually one fourth. I believe go up to one eighth. Wow. So you can see a guy that looks totally white, but is native, but is native. And is there any type of like internal combo or conflict with that? I think sometimes, I think sometimes a white guy named Greg and he's making all his money and you're like, well, this is not really what this was about. Yeah. I think it's like, let me say a positive on the rez is you meet some of the best people. They're the best storytellers. You should get a good native guy in here. Yes. They're the best storytellers by far. I got a woman from St. Lawrence, I don't know if she'd come here, but they will like, you know in Jersey, to get your attention, like I was with my cousin Anthony yesterday, old school hobo in Italian American. You stop paying attention for a second. They start hitting you. Yeah. They get louder. Yeah. And they're entertaining. And they get your attention. Yeah. They do the opposite. They're quiet. They start leaving these long pauses and you know, what's coming next? And it like brings you in almost to this hypnosis. I have that writing in St. Lawrence Island, the best storytellers I've come across. Wow. So that's a positive, depending on the person, they're connected to the environment or not. Someone might preach to you about the environment all day and you're standing. His car's over here with oil dripping into the ground. He's junk everywhere and he's talking about mother earth in the environment. You're like, you're trying to square that scene, which is interesting. I have theories, I have, I mean, they were never traditionally natives did not accumulate many things. My guess, and I'd love for the someone in the comments is when things have been taken away, let's say, your defense against that is accumulating as much as possible. Maybe that's it subconsciously. I don't know. I've watched a lot of the native videos we've done and then I've also seen a bunch of the Appalachian videos. And do you see any parallels between all big time? What has happened to those two communities? Big time. I would even say inner city, you can tie that into some of it. Hear me out. I don't want to. You're from the inner city, right? From a beach community. Okay. Okay. Yeah. But I'm from the inner city. This is what the inner city of New York City looks like right here. The project. That's what you live in a beach community. Yeah. Okay. Flip flops and okay. Let me start with that one. Appalachian natives, 100%. Yeah. Because in Appalachia, I find half. They work. I'm no one has the number, obviously, but half work really hard. They're like hardworking, salt to the earth. I'm in the coal mine at five. I'm doing six days this week and half are smashed out on drugs, living off the system. And when did that happen? Do they speak on that at all? Yeah. So you got to think this is that region in West Virginia, Kentucky, Virginia, that region built the country, the industry of this country. So you got to think of these towns. We had all the company towns. They were getting paid in script, company money, that doesn't work outside the company town. But all the money is leaving town and dollars building these cities. So all the steel in this building and every building around us, that's the part of the country that stuff's coming out of. They feel put under the bus. Here's why. Because coal is a pejorative now. Coals the bad thing because it's dirty. But you want steel, you need coal, the blast furnace need coal, the coal limestone. And so there are like a lot of them out there feel like left behind and understandably. So and most people historically have come in Hollywood or whomever, let's put these people under the bus, they're redneck, they're redneck hex and they suck. Right. And so they feel like they've been pushed down a lot. That's why when you go in there with a camera when I first did.
You really had to open them up, get the trust to film them. But I love it out there. So historically they feel like they built the country. Many do. Yeah, because those were the coal mines. I was where the coal was coming from. And then a lot of it. A lot of it. A lot of it. What? Now you're dumb Maga Rednex. So we built the country. You guys need us to win wars and build infrastructure and make this world super power. Make your riches. Make your riches. I'm sure they've been fed those stories where it's like those those buildings in your big New York City and all these other cities would not be erected without the the steel that we're making right here. Yeah. And then what happened? The industry leaves and there it's almost as if there's no gratitude for the sacrifice they made. Like what is what is there? The cultural story changed it politically, let's say. Yeah. Whoever's more pro coal wins, it's that simple out there. So that was more staunchly blue than even here I believe. I think I don't know for sure, but in the Clinton election, I think they went more blue than New York City or very close. So whoever's more coal and think about it, your industry, let's just call it podcasting. You do do a million things. If there's a politician that says no more podcasts, we're going to shut that stuff down. Yeah. Thank God. You get your sleep at an amazing idea. Do that. Great platform. Yeah. I can't speak for everyone out there, but I would say a lot of a lot feel left behind. And I think there's more positive messaging coming out there. It needs attention. They're parts of the country. That be the hoods. The res is deep apple lacha. We need more attention on as a country in my opinion. Yeah. We're associate that with the hoods. The hoods. Okay. So if you're on drugs, I mean, there's a high drug usage out there, probably more in apple lacha, I would say, then the hoods, but I would say economic desperation. But I would say the difference of the hoods. That is actually an advantage over apple lacha. This sounds wildly hear me out. If you can pull your pants up and be educated and motivated, the economy is literally seven stops away on the subway. Where those guys are out there, they're like, how do you change that, though? I don't know, right? Like the basic stuff, people with good parenting, good community are usually going to come out better. Plenty of exceptions, always, but your mom's on meth and your dad's in prison. Good luck. It's going to be harder. But then some of the most badass people do really well because they like, they like eject out of that stuff. Yeah. Yeah. But if they're not near an economic zone or an opportunity zone, it's very difficult. Whereas, like, the hood is always in close proximity to an economic zone. Right. But you got to want to go to an office or whatever. Sure. I never, I was never wired for that. Yeah. It's far, I go away an hour and a half in the city. Yeah. She's not going to be built around a beach like this. No way that that would happen. There's also probably that feeling of like, oh, we contributed to this nation, right? Right. Like a time, especially like in the hood. It's like, okay, like my ancestors were brought here. We built America and then now we're just forgotten about in this project somewhere. Yeah. The same thing happens. Yeah. I wish it was more of a national conversations because I try to bring these stories out for the reason like, hey, you don't, you don't interface with this in your daily life where you're living to say New Hampshire or something, but it exists in our country. We should put attention on these places. Unfortunately, it's not just money. I wish it was. That would be easy. You just throw a bunch of money and fix the problem. It doesn't work that way. Yeah. And I see that you care and you're opinionated. How hard is it to keep your opinions or biases out of the videos you put? Just how do I want to be treated if someone presents something to me, present it how it is? Don't, don't change the course of it until you're liking and let me make my decision. And I try to keep, like, respect my audience the same way. So, like, even if you see they're doing like some type of crime or something negative right in front of you, you don't. Obviously. I'm going to show that. And it, and it, and it throws the audience. Maybe it's what works on the channel. You're doing all this nice stuff and then all of a sudden, someone doesn't see that thing happening immediately and I'm going to show it because literally, there's so much power, as you guys know, in the editing and the camera work. I could go down, I can make the worst New York City video right now. New York is down and out. Everyone's leaving. Easily. It's awful. Look at all these homeless. Yeah. Or I can make the nicest New York and that's all that I want people to know. Those that are in media understand this. But like question everything, every creator, what they're dishing up, like what's the wrangle? What's their audience? What are they trying to serve? I've done border stories during the last four years when the border was insane. And I just want to see what's going on. And I've done Muslims in America stories in Dearborn, that weren't putting them under the bus. So I, I equally piss off both sides and I'm totally good with that. I'm not trying to fit in any group, but of course I have my biases and opinions with things. I try to keep it out as much as possible. And is it really just your wife editing all these? Just her. Outsource it because. Shout out to her. Yeah. That's true. Yeah. The time. The time. The time. The time makes to happen. Respect you. She's the best. She's at home editing right now. She, she enjoys it. I hope that stays that way. But it's like I did a story. The guy, his family came over from Tijuana and then he's showing where his dad was in sort of the swamp area hiding from the feds and he grew up in LA. Here's the nuance that can be left if I'm outsourcing this editing. He said, but I was, but I, but I was born here. So technically he's in America, this citizen, this way or system works. But if I was born here, was left out, a lot of the viewers would say, Hey, here's this illegal guy. Yeah. And you have all these little things that it's really needs a close eye on. If I had a real estate channel, there's like 10 places to buy in New York City, that would be easy to outsource. Yeah. Stakes are lower. Stakes are lower. You can really put people under the bus when you get into the sense of cultural stuff. And that's not the goal. So what kind of role does like spiritualism or religion play, specifically in these types of communities that are a bit more destitute? Do you find that they're more religious? They have more like superstition and it's kind of like mystical thinking? Yeah. Yeah. I would say I run into more Christianity than I thought I would. To be honest, a lot of like firm believers, I never know what's going to come out. I don't like vet strangers before I talk to them on camera. There's a lot more than of that than I thought in America, you're saying in America. And then on the res, it's split the summer Christian, some are more native mystical. It's really split on that front. And does it manifest in their lives, like, are you like, oh, I want to go to this place and be like, oh, you can't go over there. There's like a witch over there. Like, is there like that type of like almost like folklore kind of thing? Yeah. And the rest is you, you have the skin walkers, you have these, I went up near this cave that was sketchy, just sketchy. Like, you feel something like in your bones and maybe you're like, you're like, you're like, you get away from that environment. Really? Oh, yeah. And then there are a lot of traditions. Like, Ukrainian pagan roots, there's a lot of almost similar superstitions. They're very superstitious. I heard something so different. What pagan? I heard you got to mean my wife. I heard pagan. Peggy, go. And I was like, Peter, you're letting loose a long history. My wife has a Ukrainian tradition. It's called pagan. And I respect the culture. Yeah. I don't love it, but it's her life, you know. So pagan, pagan tradition. In the Hogan's and Navajo Nation, you drop your key, you're in the Hogan, you know, the round structure, you drop your keys or something on the ground. Do not go counterclockwise. Oh, go clockwise, even if you got it around the whole thing. There's all these cool little traditions. I like it. Because counterclockwise is some type of insidious. You throw off the spirits. I don't know. They'll have a belief in like, they have different way of saying it. Like little green men, little men, respect them. I was properly creeped out. I stayed in an old infirmary on St. Lawrence Island because there was no housing. I went in with a sleeping bag, thinking I'd be on someone's floor. They put me up in an old infirmary that they all agreed on the island was haunted. And it was wild. I was putting little flowers near my door to hold off the spirits, get a word off the spirit, Sandra. Do you believe in the spirit? A lot of the spirits. The spirit. If you pay attention, they will get in your head and rattle it. So you don't let them get in your head? No. So you put flowers out there and you respect them. Oh, it's like an offering. It's an offering. It's like, hey, I'm not a threat. And so what happened to me? Do you feel like it was haunted? Man. That's, I hate to leave the cliffhanger. It's in the book. It's in the book. It's a great chapter. It's hard to explain. It's some of these things are feelings and they sound really kooky when you're an environment like this. But sometimes when in Rome, you just start to have to go with how things are. Hey, I'm a full lever, dude. Yeah. I believe in spirit. Yeah. It's not going to sound kooky to me.
- He loves Jesus. - He believes in demons. He believes in everything. - That's great. - Yeah, I believe in truth about or cosmic nature, okay. - Yeah, and so they do too. And it does, I mean, I don't know. There's something done. A story that gets passed down generation after generation. We have Christmas and we have some great ones. But I like it. I think it adds to a culture. - Did you see anything in the infirmary? - No. - You felt it. - I heard it. - What do you mean you heard it? - What do you mean you're felting? - Pinging, pinging, pinging. Go for the door handle where the noise is coming from. It's way colder than the air temperature. Why, I don't know, I feel it. - Weird. - Wait a minute. - Mm-hmm. - So you go to open the door. - Telling you go. - And the handle's freezing cold. - Freezing cold way colder than the air temperature. - And then you hear pinging in the infirmary. - Pinging, pinging, pinging, pinging. And everyone in town knows this story and nobody stays there and they gave it to me. - Why the fuck would they give it to you? - 'Cause that was the only thing. - You couldn't just stay in somebody's igloo? - They're packed in. - They're whatever it is. What do they say? - They got little homes above ground because of the permafrost. - Oh, that's right, the piping has to be up. - Yeah, everything to a ground. - Yeah. - Whoa. - They were so cool. Did you sleep at all that night? - I was up and up and down. And then you get so fatigued on these shoots and you're in a totally different environment. You're trying to make videos and you're just exhausted by the end of the day. - Whoa. - Hey guys, we're gonna take a break really quick because I gotta tell you about something. Shoals is not here right now 'cause he had to go take a nap. But I'm not tired at all because I took mod today. 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Okay, but one of the ladies in the travel council accused me of, or was you a member or council, I forget she was in the government there of shooting videos of the soda delivery. Because like what happened here, if you had no stimulants, like there's no alcohol on the island, nothing comes in. The next best thing is Coca-Cola. So when that plane comes in with Coca-Cola, it's Black Friday. - You look crazy. - They go nuts over it. - Well. - And what happens? - It's just bummer-osh towards the Coca-Cola. Yeah, I didn't record it though. I just wanna put that one for the record. - 'Cause they give Paris. - But they would be great. And the pilot, I believe, on the plane recorded, if I was accused of recording that in the beginning, but that was not my goal to go there and put anyone under the bus. - I can like, sounds and stuff, like it's, it's pretty hardcore. - Yeah. - Tell me, tell me, tell me. - I got it now. - I got it now, I got it now. - But check out, they hunt whales. - No, that's cool. - That's cool. - But like the Coca-Cola, the Coca-Cola. - This is one of the most unique cultural experiences that exists the entire world. They know the Coca-Cola plane is coming. Does the plane have like, I mean, monochrome? - No, it's just the food that's coming in. - But it's not about the food. It's about the Coca-Cola. And then when the Coca-Cola palette gets removed from the plane, are they watching? - I just saw it in the store. - Oh, you saw it. - And you saw, you see a huge flocking towards the product. - Wow. - And then, are they limited the amount that they can take? - It goes out. - That's the problem. - And it runs, it runs out. - It's like, for maybe like, I wasn't here for COVID, but toilet paper, I saw the videos. - Yes. - Is there a secondhand market? Are there people like slinging Coca-Cola on the side? - Maybe. I think they do some moonshine there. But look, this is a, the place was awesome. The people were so cool. I don't want to make it look like they're all this racing for Coca-Cola. That's the problem with this stuff. These videos, 'cause yeah, like what's the reflective truth? Like what is the apps? What percentage of that is the truth of the thing? - There might be a 100 people that are stoked, but the rest of people-- - Maybe it was 3% of the whole island doing that, right? But the way the media, I mean, social media works is just like, oh, they're all doing that. That's the hardest thing with what I'm doing, 'cause I try to be as fair as possible. But it's, how do you do that? Right. - Yeah. You don't want to paint them all at the same brush. If it's only 3%. - 'Cause I look at everyone as an individual. Coke. - You know. - That's Coca-Cola. If that is the case, seeing how much joy they get from Coca-Cola, is there a little part of you that would like them to try some other-- - Pepsi? - No. - It's not get crazy. - It's leader. - I've never had a Coke in my life. - What? - I took a sip, I thought it was awful. - And then when you see them, I like chocolate. - Did you bring chocolate? - I did. I brought a whole, like almost a hockey bag full of fruit. I thought they would have loved. So I'm thinking papaya's, mangoes, things, they're not probably not getting up there. And when I gave the gifts to those in government when I was trying to get a permit, they weren't really pleased at first. They're like, "You can't buy me off with gifts." - And did you show up? - That was the vibe. - That was the vibe. I was like, "I got this papaya from South Florida, unbrewed." - And they were not proud of that. - Not at first. But then, look, you always got a wonder. Since you say I'm the CIA or a cop or whatever, right? - Never said that. - What's this dude's intention? He's coming in with a camera. What is this? I think that's where I'll-- - And all the brews papaya? - Yeah, I thought that was-- - No, that's impressive. But also if you're like a customs person, and I'm seeing you come with an unbrewed papaya from Florida. - You're thinking why? - Yeah, something sketchy. This guy's never had Coca-Cola and he can have it whenever he wants. And he's bringing fruits. - You know what I feel like. - I think you have a good time with them. You guys could have some good stories about me on that one. Yeah, it doesn't totally make sense, I know. But I was thinking, what's rare? What are they not getting? - I think that's a very thoughtful gift. - Like how do you get that? - Yeah, go. - No, I could get some target t-shirts or something. - No, no, there's a place I forget where it is. It's like, I don't know if it's Tahiti or something that they love like Fanta Orange. - Yeah, yeah, yeah. - It's something that's like, that's the thing you get. That's what they want and that's the thing you bring and that's the tip with that basically. - Do they ever give you gifts? - Like any of these places are cool. - Oh yeah, yeah. - Like what's one of the more interesting gifts you've got? - I got a truck from the Civil War area, war era, like an old steel truck. This little thing, how toys were made back then. It's like 10 pounds, and this guy was a coal miner. Seventh, no sixth generation, coal miner. Just cool stuff like that that you would never be able to get anywhere else. The sheriff's likes to give me challenge coins. - Yeah, that's cool. - And the sheriff's are great 'cause they'll get you in. - Yeah. - I didn't know about this, police departments? - You can't get access. - Like as a creator, Glendale PD, shout out to Glendale, outside of Phoenix, the only one that let me in. - Interesting. - But they're under city governance where sheriff is under state federal. - No, constituents. We vote in our sheriffs. So they only have to win their vote from the people. They don't care, they're totally detached from all the other stuff. - Oh, interesting. - What the city, what the mayor want?
what this who cares for them. So it's just I didn't know about this. That's why I love doing this because I learn about these things just making these videos. It's a really cool system. Now there's some jurisdictions like King County in Washington state where Seattle is where they've taken that away. So they want the sheriffs under the leadership of the city basically or the county. So sheriffs operate with autonomy big time. So on the border when I was doing those border stories, no one was down there when I started doing those. Customs border protection couldn't get it, you know, they're not going to say anything, police departments, nothing, the sheriffs. They were the they were the spokespeople for everyone down there. How was how wild was the border? Because we get a lot of them saying, give me example. Okay, because we get a lot of information about it, obviously, and people dispute, you know. Yeah, we hear the caravan and then people say nobody's coming in. Right. It's hard to decipher. So I went down five times. I learned everything every time. Obviously I did stories with human traffickers. I met up with customs work protection sheriffs, migrants, super complicated. I'll try to give the distilled version every sector like we have this San Diego sector, like Tucson sector, Uma sector, different jurisdictions. Yeah. The cartels in a way would operate into like the UMAs where all the foreigners were coming in, not Mexicans, like 140 nations for like you're getting Russians in there. Yeah, yes. You're getting guys from the Middle East. A lot of Indians. Yeah. So I got this on one of my videos. We're down on the border wall, the fence out in the middle of the desert. And there's maybe 10 Sikhs from India. Okay. What's their story? They flew Delhi to Mexico City. Mexico City up to Mexico. Cartel picks them up at the airport like Epcot center without the name tags. Bring them to the gap in the wall. Give them a phone down 911 when you get to the U.S. side. Our customs border protection comes in on them. The signal at the time down there. It was the signal over cartel quarter mile, half mile, mile down the run is running all the real dark stuff. Sex trafficking stuff. Just the really heavy, dark stuff. And so they had full operational control. We had to, because of the policies and depending on the country where they're coming from, absorb them. They're a silent claim. All you have to do, if you're, if you know what you're doing, you just claim a silent. The vast majority were not. Right. Right. They see green light. Their cousins got up. Their relatives got up. Here's how you do it. Yeah. And so it was insane. And so I first, I first thought of his hyperbolic. What's the, what's the show on the border? I didn't, oh, we almost wasn't going to go. Right. And then you see right right there in the video, all these, there's all this Chinese ton of Chinese coming over. Oh wow. We had an OTM policy other than Mexican. Which means Mexicans got sent back immediately. That's tribal land right now. You see how the, the wall changes between our jurisdiction and try in the tribe. Why was, can you say that again, though, the other than Mexican? Yeah, other than Mexican. So if you're from Colombia coming up at the time, you, you pay the cartel, depending on the time, maybe six grand, nobody gets in without the cartel. No one's just walking here. Okay. You got to pay off. You got to pay the roof. You got to pay the mob basically. And so they'll navigate you to the right places. You get over. And it just felt so awkward, like, like the cartel let them off, not in this part, but another video off at the bridge. They're walking over with their tote behind luggage. And our buses are going to come in process, put them into the interior. A silent claim, maybe in five years, maybe. Wow. And you just, it just felt it felt weird. It felt off. But Mexicans, our policy was Mexicans couldn't come over. You couldn't, if you walked out, came over to, as a Mexican, you'd get sent back immediately. Why? OTM. A lot of it doesn't make any sense. Let them in there. They're sick. Yeah, it's another one of these topics where they thought it was just all Mexicans and Latin Americans. It was close to border. No, so you, my county, that, they're all Indian right there. And they're, they look like they just got out of the shopping mall with the Starbucks in hand, which basically they did. Like, they're not poor. Wow. I heard and I don't know, I don't know for sure, because these numbers always range. But it was like 50 grand to get from India at that time. Wow. To pay the cartel a full, a full monty to get up here. And I'm sure that something that they pay off. Yeah. And so they have family probably in here. Wow. They need workers. They get their family members in. I can't speak exactly for this family here. I don't know their story, but a lot of it was that. Wow. And it was a free for all. And all our guys here, this customs border protection guy, border patrol guy, he's like spiritually broken. I would hang out with these guys in the hotels. They couldn't speak, but I'd be on the elevator and that you could just see the look on them. And they're like, I'm like, hang in there, man, hang in there. Fuck. Because they're like, wait, my job was to protect our border. Now we're just going green light. My job is to document change diapers and give someone some food. WTF. Now you have to look at this too, like Yuma County, that's one hospital. Their hospital got overrun because America's all about acute care. We don't care about citizenship, legality. And if someone you need it, we give it. We give it. And so we'd have women in Yuma County being like, oh, I got to go go to Phoenix, give birth to our way because our hospital is overrun by people coming across the board. Yes. It was just a call. And this is where the I imagine the narrative comes from. It's like, well, they're receiving Medicare, et cetera. They're just receiving care without having to pay for it because they have no documentation. And you're you're overwhelming the system. So I had I was a bit frustrated when I'd be say in the Northeast, I'd be in Vermont, where my mom lives. And I'd talk about it. And you're not feeling the problem at all up there. Yeah. So they talk down to you. Just because you're not feeling the problem doesn't mean it doesn't exist. And so like most things, most people are in the middle on this stuff. It's the far extremes taking all the all the noise. Yeah. And nobody likes to see a lot of what we've seen. But there needs to be a national conversation. You know, the criminals, obviously, everyone's pretty much on board. Sinara. Yeah. See you later. Yeah. If someone's been here 10 years paid into the system, hasn't committed crimes, that needs to be a national conversation. Yeah. And most people. I mean, look, there are people who are more severe when it comes to it. But I think most people are like, look, it's people working a steady job and actually net positive for the economy. But you could literally start with kicking every criminal. And some people will go like, well, coming across the border legally is a crime. That's how we're talking about. Right. We're talking about violent criminals, drug dealing, these types of things. You kick every single one out and nobody's upset at that at all. I genuinely don't think that single person is giving you pushback. That's rational. No, so we have the border is as close now though. They were doing a wide net. Of course, and also just violating constitutional shit. You can't walk up to people because they have an accent. Be like, exactly. And I saw that in El Paso a year ago, people that voted for Trump. Yeah. Like the border regions voted overwhelmingly for him. Yeah. Because they didn't like the chaos. And then once I saw, yeah, once he's like, we're on a very tight line with tight rope with this right now. Once I get asked because I've lived in El Paso my whole life. Yeah. But I have a little bit of a Hispanic accent. And you're going to profile me FU, which is understandable. I go the same way. Yeah. Did you or have like cartel was actually like running their system to get people over? Yeah. I mean, this, this is a deep, deep, deep rabbit hole, which would take multiple podcasts. And I don't even know if I'm the best expert on it. But it's like the cartels doing it. International organizations are helping. We can look into IOM, International Organization of Migration. You know, there is like, there was sort of a route set up to some degree. But the cartels are the boss here as far as like you get over your pan them. And they're clearing billions. It's better money than fentanyl. Yeah. Right fentanyl blues go for two bucks less I'm not buying to worry about two bucks a pill, right? Like little tab and phoenixes is to a pill that I mean, people can cost up of 50,000. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. You know, so they're, they're banking. They're realizing how weak and chaotic it what we were. And it was just the full on opportunity. And I don't even blame. If I was in Honduras and my cousin just got to New York and he's like, look. Yeah, I mean, eight times as much money. Yeah. And they're actually not even, they're not going to stop you. They're going to, they're going to process you and send you on your way. I'd be as ambitious, young guy. I'd be doing the same thing. I don't. So in a way, they were hoodwinked in the sense that the administration let them in. Hey, we'll give you asylum sort of. Yeah. It's going to be in courts. So they're thinking they're in and now not so much. Yeah. And it's just a cluster.
Yeah, I was talking to a guy, this guy Fernando, who was a coyote for a little bit or like bringing people over. Okay. And you keep going. I guess he was explaining to me that like there's a, they kind of like the cartel is depending on which cartel you're working with would offer like a package. Yeah. Where like you go, you pay the money and like they'll put you up in a house, they'll give you like a work vest, like depending on which border you're paying more. And a lot of the, from my understanding, the Chinese sort of had their own network and some of the stash houses were nicer from what I heard. Oh, really? Yeah. So it's just, it's a migration route of houses and you go to this transport route thing, they give you like this passport and there's like some kids stolen from a tourist or like a visa and like a tourist was out and then like they snatched from them and like a pickpocket thing. And then they just show up at the house. They give you the passport. They give you the job. Yeah. They say you're going over there to do this. You're going to use this person's identity if they ask you these questions. You say this. You like rehearse it and like they'll like practice with them. Oh, yeah. You're claiming a silent, right? You're, you're dealing with religious persecution, you have to leave your homeland. And that's how English wasn't that good. They'd be like, okay, we're going to do two days of English, but like we'll teach you like the words to say, it's like, it's like an all inclusive thing. It's kind of interesting to me how there was so much money being made and it just felt, you know, in things you're around and they just feel wrong. It just felt wrong. Yeah. The whole thing felt dirty and wrong because a lot of, you know, people on the margins are sort of getting used politically to sort of agree always. And then you see like, I'm in Chicago at the police department up there, one of the precincts and it's packed on the floor with Venezuelans because the city isn't figuring out how to deal with it. Yeah. The cops are showing up to work and they're like, literally the whole floor space. And then when you give people things easily, just basic human psychology, they don't appreciate it. So remember this Venezuelan guy, like taking my hat, taking your hat. Yeah. He's like, yeah, man, let me see your hat. And he wanted freestyle. He wanted me to give him stuff and took my hat. I grabbed it back. Yeah. We're talking police stations in Chicago, a lot of migrants were going to places like that because God, it wasn't dealing with it right. Wow. I've heard in the past, you don't consider yourself a journalist, but this is investigative journalism. Yeah, because it's really a, I did a video on Orcus Island the other day, or I'll be just posted it. It's mostly about like old school hippie types playing guitar and music. And I don't look at that as journalism, it's getting a story. But also from the old school in the sense where I'm thinking, if you're doing a true piece on something, you need months on the ground. Many people involved. Many different perspectives, points of views. And when I do my YouTube videos, I can't put those that time or resource in. So that's the reason I don't. I think most people would consider it journalism though, but I'm looking from like, I don't know, old 60 minutes or something. And I'm just thinking, you're lowering the expectation of the video. Not even that, it's like to the viewer, here's a way into this thing, here's one way into it. Yeah. Okay, I could do that story. And here's, I mean, we don't really have much journalism in the sense that the New York Times didn't touch the story until after the election, you know, for the most part. You know, it was a great story. They wrote after the election, but you're like, I could do the story there just on like actual asiles, which did exist and just focus only on that. And that's true. But is it the whole picture now? Yeah. Has your have your videos ever been like used in court or like cited in newspapers or anything like that? School. A lot of schools, a lot of teachers use them. That's right. I haven't sworn in all I try so hard not to because they say in a lot of homeschoolers really. Yeah. A lot of like that is ticked up big time in the country, homeschooling. Oh, yeah. Are you ready? No. No. No. But actually, once you start sending your kids to school and then they just get like sick every single week. Yeah. Okay. You're like, they turned into that homeschooling ends up being homeschool. What do you guys want to see on the channel? What do you interested in? I'm trying to always be on the front line of culture. You got to go to the was state and me and more. Have you ever heard of this? I've been in Miramar, but it's a NARCO state that's like this autonomous zone in me and more up in the mountains. It's technically it's sort of like something triangle. I'm not sure. It's near Thailand up there. It's I think borders China. And they're basically like a Chinese kind of vassal and they produced like at one point like 90% or 95% of the meth that went through Asia. And they were kind of this autonomous like military NARCO state. I won't point it was like funded by the CIA. And then they backed off and then China kind of like, I'm going to live that for the young guys. Yeah. No, you got to get in there. Dude, that'd be sick. It would be sick. But I calculate things a little more these days. Okay. What about? Selfie. Selfie. That's a good idea. Have you gone to South America? What about us. Domestic. We're going to keep it here. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. What about Slab City? Have you done that? I did. And I didn't post it. I went out there. I just I didn't feel it. It didn't work. Really? Sometimes a video. I went out there. We'll set up Slab City for the people. Slab cities is sort of rogue, autonomous zone in Southern California out in the desert. Yeah. It just I don't know. It didn't seem that cool. What I saw seemed like a lot of drugs and it could have been a good video, I guess. I didn't feel it. Sometimes you just don't feel it. And I actually drove. I was staying in Joshua Tree and I drove all the way there and just started shooting. I couldn't find the story and packed up and left. Oh, how often does that happen? Not too often. That's interesting because it has all the elements. It does. And it was also a story that had been done a ton of times. Right. So it's like there's nothing novel here. But is it an actual functioning city or is it like an excuse to go do drugs on a desert? Yeah. I don't know enough. But probably there's a lot of that. I saw a lot of that. God. Now, I did a video on quartz site Arizona, and that turned into a lot more drugs out there in recent years I heard, but there are a lot of people living off the grid out in this BLM land. Uh-huh. Bureau of land management. Yes. People can use BLM. What about like rich gated neighborhoods? Yes. Did New Canaan, Greenwich, Bridgeport show that juxtaposition? That was a, I like wealthy stories, but getting in behind the gate is tough. Yeah. Like are they as anyone talking? They sure want to have gone. I mean, I've done Hollywood Hills stuff. I've done like, I would love to see country clubs and what's happening in those. Oh, yeah. Yeah. That's the problem with with socioeconomics. The wealthy have more to protect. So going to the hood sometimes is just great. They want to talk. They're like, yeah, nobody listens to my story here. They're going to pelt it out. And then those places, they got too much to lose. That's what you got to put the work in with. I know. I do put the work in, but that the gated, they'd be stupid to let you in. I'm just thinking. It's insulting. And also I got the, um, the attorneys come at me more these days when you're bigger. Yeah. I really sucks. Oh, have you ever been sued or, no, I've got the threats for things like that. Who was anything you ever had to like, take down or cut out? Yeah. I did that. I had to do that. What? Oh, man. Um. Yeah. I did. I did. Yeah. That's a long story. I can't talk about that one. It's just a ravage. Uh, yeah. Let me think another one. I had to take down. I want to hear the first. Yeah. That's the first one you think it is. Does the first one take place in America? Yeah. Would we be familiar with it? Like the story. You're so good at this. I'm just asking. I'm just asking. I just never knew. Yeah. I'm just asking. Why do you, you would be great actually. I actually, all of you guys would be great doing this. We did it. Yeah. I know, but like, but like a full time out there. No, we didn't do it as full time, but like when we were on the road, this would be like, explore all the cities and it was just like, do you like doing it? I love it. It's the most fun. It's the most amazing thing. And then with stand up, it's really cool to communicate the observations in front of the people and like, being the fish out of water in a joke is just the most fun to be. It's just. So you, I mean, as, uh, to be as successful as you've, you've become, you have to, you have to understand what's going on around you. And the second you bubble up completely or out of it, yeah. That's the challenge I see with some, some guys, right? They get. I think yeah. They get you bubble up and you have to see these little nuances, these little details that exist. Yeah. And like, I appreciate them like, you know, I admire your curiosity that I, I've always felt just curious, especially like living abroad or traveling. Like I want to get into people's lives and I want to make some tick and I find it fascinating and fun and cool.
- Yeah, so it was always fun to talk about on stage, but also really fun to go experience. Like one World Cup, we went, like France was playing Morocco, and we went to Morocco to watch it, even though they were playing there. - Nice. - But I was like, what if Morocco beats France? - Yeah. - Imagine being with the Moroccans when that happens. - Did they? - No. - And it was so cool to be around the energy of it. - How sad were they afterwards? - Not really, because they knew it was coming. - Yeah, they didn't expect it to do it. - Yeah, so they just moved on. - See, yeah, to be good in any, I think in this space, you have to be naturally curious, there's no other way. - You're gonna win off the hook for the lawsuit. - Oh yeah, so you like how I stood that away? - That was great. - Let's talk about France. - But like, but they, but they knew you, they started, do we know the video that this is related to you? - No, potentially. - Okay, so there'd be nothing, so there'd really be no risk of telling us something. (laughing) - All right. - What about just the hypothetical of why you can't tell us? - Yeah. - Like Broadway. - It's just headaches. - Really? - And this might cause more. - Yeah. - Makes sense. - Just headaches. - So which Jewish community suits you first? (laughing) - They actually, I'm actually in with the hazards. - Yeah, 'cause yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. - Have you noticed they've gotten more nervous recently? - I haven't been paying much attention, but I did talk to my buddy Schlomi last night. - What did you think of him? - Schlomi said, yeah, they're, they feel a lot of pressure right now. - Yeah. - I just, - He said Jews in general right now in New York. - Yeah. - He's like, they feel, they feel the heat. - Yeah. - And I'm like, isn't it more of an anti-Israeli policy, political thing, not an anti-Jew thing? And he's like, no, we feel it on all fronts. I don't know. It's hard to speak for someone else. - Yeah. - But generally, I don't think racist are like very discerning. You know, like if you're someone that's like very anti-something, you're just gonna be like all of it. There's my assumptions, but I don't know. And there's also just like a nervousness in general. I mean, even like I went and did Perum with the Hasidic community this last year. I think it was like November, maybe? I can't remember when. But I don't know, March, I think. But I went and did it and I was just there. Just as me, just like during this big festival. And I had a friend that brought me and kind of showed me everything and it was awesome. But so many people came up to me personally and they were like, why are you here? I was like, oh, I'm just hanging out on my body and he was like, what are you filming? I was like, I'm not filming everybody. I don't even have a camera. But I was like, I'm just hanging out. And they were like, you're not gonna put this on YouTube? And like, they're so nervous about being coming in and misrepresenting the community. That there, like 10 people came up to me independently. Some of them kind of like aggressive. Like, I don't know if you should be here. Yeah, everyone else is really nice. But there was just like nervousness. There's a benefit to being part of the group and then there's also a con to it. Right, that being it. We're near a free solo agent. You're not lumped in with all these other people. Mm-hmm, fair to say. Yeah, mm-hmm. Yeah. I mean, can you go down to the tunnels? I feel like if you could clear up the tunnels. Where in Vegas? No, one's in a- Brooklyn. Ashlomy. Oh, that's a little bit- Can I- Can I- She gets slown here. That'd be a great idea. But- He'll come in the strumble. We need the whole strumble. But I will say, the happiest you will see a human being is in New York City, a acidic Jew on an electric city bike going across Williamsburg Bridge. Yeah. There's no greater coming home. The pay is flopping in the wind. Yeah. The electric city bike, he's a little naughty because he shouldn't be using it, but like he's using it. Right. And he's just- There's like this amazing smile. The greatest slip they've ever made. The greatest. They're on e-bikes now. That's- It's- Yeah. It's taken off. The Amish are too. Right. Yeah. I really. Depending the jurisdiction you're in. I like the little thing that Josh was saying in the Amish video where it's like some of us are okay with using electricity if it came from solar panels. Yeah. Because we are metal. Generating the electricity. Yeah. That's a real smart way to get around the whole electricity thing. Yeah. I like that. There's a lot of justification and things. But it makes sense. Yeah. It's like you're going to let the sun heat up your home. Yeah. All right. So then let the sun heat up your iPhone. Exactly. Okay. Okay. So U.S. ideas. Oh, Chinatown. You have to go into the- have you done that before? Yeah. Hard to get in. They don't speak English very well. Hard to get in. Hard to get in. Any good English speakers? They have tunnels too. They got tunnels. Yeah. That's a whole different world out there. That is, it's the most isolated thing that is right in front of everybody's face. That's what I find. So- I lived in the second Chinatown in San Francisco, Clement Street. Uh-huh. It's in the majority of Chinese. Yeah. I liked it because they always had good produce out and they don't bum. Yeah. Yeah. Chinatown is fascinating. It is. It's its own world. There was like a mall. There was, you know, we used to get our fucking PlayStation's hacked and they would be able to play like the fake games on them. There's an old gang culture. It doesn't really exist anymore. But like through like the 80s and 90s, there were like really strong and active Chinese gangs. Do you have a Japan town here? It's very much- Probably. But it's not much. It's- we just have like sushi restaurants. We got a Koreatown. It's like a block that's fire. And it's cool because it's vertical, meaning like, it'll be like apartment-looking buildings that will have like a nightclub in it. Okay. Or like a carrier. But it'll be on the fourth floor. Right. Like, it's just this one street and it just goes up and, you know, you can get deep into it if you know the right places to be. Yeah. That's cool. That's a video of New York. It's endless. Can you guys not live anywhere else at this point? No. Live other places. But this is the best. It's the best. The winter, January, February, March, if I'm being honest, and April, is hell. Yeah. What about December? December is fun because it's like Christmas and, you know, vacations come in, you're wrapping things up and the city looks beautiful and there's so many tourists and everybody's coming in. January, February, March, April. It's just freezing cold and raining and it's hard. That's the time. I got to say the city is firing on all cylinders. Oh, what's cooking right now? It's cooking. It's cooking. And, you know, look, you always have to get on the ground because you can't trust what you see online at all. Yes. Telling your audience not to trust this video. No. But what I mean by that is when the clear tell is someone that's out in the hinterlands way in the middle of nowhere, and they're telling you exactly how New York City is right now. Yeah. Yeah. And the only way they're getting it is the media, the algorithm, you're being fed. And the amount of people that are like, oh, it's too dangerous right now. It's a bit, a bit wild, to be honest. And in Florida also, on the other hand, is a four-letter word for many parts of the country. What's that? When I say live in Florida. What is that word? It's bad. It's Florida. Yeah, shit. It's a four-letter word. Oh, shit. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Like Florida gets, you know, slammed pretty hard. Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Everybody likes Florida, bro. Do they? Yeah. Why am I shit, dude? Yeah. You like Miami? Love it. Yeah. Miami is one of the greatest expressions of Americana. Unpack that. What do you mean? It still has the delusional optimism that America used to hold. The streets are paved with gold in Miami to this day. People that are going there have this beautiful shamelessness. You go up to the northeast, it's like there's a, there's a old kind of like wasp culture that everybody's trying to live up to the standards of. Yeah. You can't drive an orange car in New York. A Lamborghini Urus in New York. You fucking kidding me? Right? It's an orange car. What are you doing? Yeah. But in Miami, you can get your first paycheck worth a lot of money and buy an orange car. And it's just like, yeah, there's no rules here. We're just making it. We're just excited. Yeah. It's a good way. That's a good way of saying it. It's freedom. There's a, there's a beautiful optimism and freedom. It's a bit naive. Yeah. In that sense. Yeah. Where the wafes, the wafes sold money. They've seen some more things maybe. Yes. They haven't been out a few terms. I don't know if they've been beat down, but there's like a standard of how to operate. Yeah. Which I don't really enjoy either, to be honest. Not of the least enjoyable people, but they make the nicest things. Yeah. Cultural. Like for example, like the wasp, it's like, they don't tell you how they feel. Like Jews and wasp are the opposite. Like Jews will tell you how you feel all the time. It's a little, this couch is too down. To the man. I'm like, yeah, it's a little itchy. You know what I mean? The wasp will just be like, what a pleasant nice place you have here. So nice to meet you. Like silently judge you. Silently judge you. But there's nothing. You're not getting in. You're not getting underneath. Where is that demarcation line? Where does it stop? Where is it starting here going north or it's probably in a 59th street and then everything south from that in America is no longer that. So feel it. Feel it. Feel he's not in that. No, no, no, no, no. South Jersey's not in that. At least Catholic, right? So I grew up in Vermont, very puritanical. At least when I grew up. Yeah.
But it had more of a libertarian streak. - Mm-hmm, yeah. - You work hard, you're all about your work, you're prides in your work, but leave me alone. - Yeah, get out of here. - Yeah, on the list. - It's lost a bit of that in my opinion. - Of course. - Of course. - Yeah. - Yeah, it's much more, I don't have the right word. I'm gonna piss off some fermenters, but I'd say more, one narrative to live by. It feels more that way when I go back. - It's like, we all gotta get in this together. We all have the most sense. - I went to this startup hippie school for a couple of years, my parents sent me to. - Yeah. - Totally disorganized. But every class at the whole school was about critical thinking. So we're gonna helicopter in this third rail issue. Peter, you take this perspective, Andrew, you're gonna take the opposite. - Those days. - 10 minutes, flip it up, argue back and forth. Now we're all gonna talk about it in a big circle in respect. - Those days, yeah. - How do we get that back? 'Cause that's what makes America interesting. - Well, we're in a very unique place. It's like where, when everybody's a Nazi, you can't go like, well, I understand your perspective, Nazi. You, okay, who's saying that, the Nazi thing? - No, like, meaning like every, but when you use the word Nazi to describe everybody, you can't have empathy. - Yeah, but who's doing that? A few, a few fringe people? - Sure, but if the fringe people are gonna kind of control the discourse, then they're gonna scare everybody else. - You're controlling the discourse. - I don't know about that. I don't know if we're controlling anything to be honest with you. I actually, to be honest, it would be much easier to be an ideologue right now. We're living in the time of ideologues. - It is. - And it's looked as weak if you're not. - I think it was looking as evil if you're not. - Huh? - I think it's agree with me, or you are evil. These, these pejoratives that are thrown out. - But that's so dumb. That's a dumb way to operate by. - Well, it depends if you want power. If you want power and control, then you have to make everybody who doesn't agree with you feel shame. - But it's myopic. It's a dumb way of looking at things. Well, like if you're an educated person, why do you want us? - It's dumb to us socially. It's smart if you just want to, you serve power, right? 'Cause what you wanna do is squash down any other way of thinking. - But most people are not looking for that. To your serve power. - Are they not? - I don't think so. - I think people engaging the discourse on some way or, I think it's a power grab. If you're actively engaging in the discourse. - Okay. - They might not be aware, they might not in their brains be going, I want power. But if they're operating on behalf of an ideology, they want to extend that ideology. - Okay, so what we have to do as elder statesmen? - Yeah. - In you entry, because we're older than these guys, right? - I know that they barely did. - 43, barely. - It's pretty old, it's getting up there. - Yeah, 49, I guess you'd be plus six years. - They're good, yeah, it's all due or nine. - So Johnny Sins. - Yeah, you know, they say that in Pakistan. Everyone calls me Johnny Sins there. - Do you know what he's got? - Yeah, they love him. - They love him and they all call me at that. And then they show me their shirts on it. It's actually a real homosexual culture. You ain't say it. (laughing) - In Peshawar, the most conservative part of Pakistan is a place where I got the most guys like cozying up and show me a picture of them. - I love your dig, dude. - No, it was cool. - Showing them naked? - Showing their body shots. - Oh, themselves? - Yeah. So we're the most like. - No, but I am serious. - I am serious and they call me Johnny Sins more than anywhere else in Pakistan. - But we go back to saving America. We gotta go back. - Yeah, this is more important. - Yeah, it's a chance. - Shout out to Charlie, though. - Since I made those videos, it's a bigger background. - I mean, it's a full hero though. - Okay, so I think Arthur. - Okay, but you had, you had a. - I've seen you make it. This is me, naked. (laughing) - Yeah, I didn't play the game with them. I just left, but okay. So you're not far behind me. You're an early millennial. - Yeah. - So I'm the end of Gen X. - Yeah, I'm 83. - So that's pretty similar. - Yeah, pretty nice. - So it was all about, don't be a poser. - I was really. - Stand up for whatever. Who cares what anyone says? - Yeah. - Be honest, be good to people. - Yeah. - Like get in a banter, talk some shit, talk some shit. - Right? And that's what makes it more interesting. - Yeah. - And then you're telling me now, and I've seen it also, that it's like that, my education I was telling you about, ship sailed, not happening. So how did, let's say for example, the where I grew up, went from that, whereas like peak enlightenment, liberal democracy, let's have different ranging opinions, and have a good time with it. Two, I'm taking it so personally, I'm so sensitive. - I can't handle it. - I don't know the sensitivity, it's like, but I think it's truly, if you believe the person you're talking to has evil beliefs, then it's no point to talk to them. But most people, okay, if you're talking about politics, there's a single party. - Let me clarify that. - Issue voters. - I mean, single issue voters. - Nobody in private behaves this way. Public discourse has become good versus evil. These debates, which are all just about trying to expose the other person as having the worst possible beliefs, or having nothing to justify. Private conversation, private discourse is a lot like this. It's like, okay, well, let's talk about the border. - So how do you change that in the public? - I mean, the quickest way to change it is you remove monetization from any type of political talk. And you will find very quickly, people going to talk about movies again. - Okay. - You got some real opinions about hundreds of doomsday the second you can monetize the video. - I think there's more to it. And I'm not, I'm not, I'm not tune my horn here, but this is not that and it's working. - Show don't tell. - It's working though, people are hungry for that. - Yeah. - I feel like it's a lane that can take way more. - I think art cuts through, right? So it's like when you talk about things, you just get people upset and they're kind of trying to scream there. 'Cause most people are looking for confirmation, right? Like we don't want information, we don't want confirmation. I feel this way about the world, tell me why I'm right. So when you communicate ideas through art, it taps into something emotionally where you start empathizing with characters that you maybe weren't supposed to like. I was rooting for Jamie Lannister at the end of Game of Thrones and he fucked his sister and pushed a kid off of a cast. (laughs) Do you know what I'm saying? So it's like art can make you feel things, how things are framed. And it just gives you a little bit more empathy and like snaps you out of your bubble in a way that like facts don't. Like, I don't know if like bench mirror has that thing like facts don't care about your feelings. It's like the opposite. It's like feelings don't care about your facts. So it's like no fact is gonna stop someone from the feeling that they have. - So if art is at the tip of the spear with culture, let's say, I'm just throwing that out there, right? Art Basel three years ago was about as depressing as it came. Like I felt like, you know. - I don't mean that kind of art. - Yeah. - Okay. - That's more a scene-y. - Yeah, like I mean like, like this is art. - Oh well produced. - But art is all the mediums. - Yeah, like that's art. This is art. - I don't think paintings are gonna communicate this type of-- - But it's where the psychology of the culture is. - It's being reflected in art. - Art Basel is? - Well, art Basel, it was so depressing. - 'Cause it's all commodified. - It was the worst. - No, I was just, I just think I had to do with the times. I don't know. I'd like to prove my theory if I go there this year that it's gonna be a little more optimistic. When you look at futurism, like the 20s, 30s, cubism, surrealism, that stuff is all inspirational. It makes you think it's fired up. And so if art I think starts taking a course where it's more optimistic, I just feel like we sort of follow it in cinema, video, music. - I think we'll start to gravitate towards now, and we probably have the last few years, is like hope, escapism. So how can I check out of reality and check into something that gives me hope and distracts me from my essential doom? We won't be watching political thrillers that remind us of our existential doom. - Yeah. - We'll be watching, it could be science fiction, it could be a love story, but it's removing us from these feelings that we have and giving us hope that things might work out. So there's a kumbaya coming for the culture. - I think we want to feel it. Like right now, we're tired of pushing against stuff. We push the walls so far that we can't go any further. - You can kind of say whatever you want to say, you can scream whatever opinion, it's pretty insane. So there's no catharsis in hearing something that's that wilds. Whereas when you live in a more sensorial time, there's a catharsis in hearing something crazy or wild, who that's naughty, that's bad. It's like punk rock is a popular music when everything is like boring and bland. When everything's punk rock, what's punk rock is the thing that's boring and bland, right?
>> Great, I love this stuff, it's fascinating because I don't have the answers. I like just hearing from others that have good opinions on this stuff. But I just feel like I'd say more people from New York are interested in Appalachia. And more people from Appalachia are interested in other parts of the country. Like that, you wouldn't imagine that would be curious. Like what? Like just some guy that's out in the hinterlands that seems really self-sufficient and I'm doing things my ways, but he's a massive fan of the channel and finds the stuff in East New York fascinating. Like just open curiosity. I find there's a lot of bridges being made in that sense, it's maybe because of the world I'm in. But I think before it was state-ier bubble, more now the bubbles, you can access them through the digital at least. >> Yeah. There's another place you can go to that's not far away. >> Yeah. Have you seen this? >> No. >> It's the biggest Hindu temple in America, it's in Jersey, and it's like $100 million temple that they built. >> This isn't Jersey. >> Yeah. >> What? >> And it looks crazy. It's like this beautiful cathedral and it's not that far. I think it's like a couple hours drive, and it's here in New Jersey. I'm not exactly sure where. I'm assuming. Obviously it has like a massive Indian population. >> Wow. >> Jersey is a trip, huh? There's a lot there. I mean, like, yeah, this is, it's crazy. That's just a few hours away. That's in America. And I don't think people realize that there's a whole compound. >> So I would have to get this, like, what's the story? Who's the, like, I got to connect with the right guy that brings me into something interesting there. >> Yeah. >> I mean, you got to talk to the guy who decided to build a $100 million Hindu temple. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. >> But then the challenge is this, maybe that guy is like a PR spokesperson. You want to kill a video? >> You'd have them. They can speech. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. >> It's over in three seconds. My audience doesn't want that. >> Yeah. >> I don't want that. >> Yeah. >> No one who does. >> I'm sure there's someone down there on the ground that knows what's going on. >> Yeah. >> It can show you the whole thing. I mean, it looks crazy. >> Wow. >> Yeah. That's not that far. >> Can't believe this is in Jersey. >> Right? >> That's nuts. >> Yeah. >> This is a motley country. There's everything here. >> It's amazing. It's incredible. >> It's so stimulating. It's not a boring place. At all. >> Yeah. I think that's sometimes maybe the problem with like the algorithm is that it can homogenize the country. Right? It's like you kind of start getting one version of the country and it doesn't have to be that. One of the nice things about New York is whether you fucking like it or not, you're going to see a lot of different shit the second you walk out of your house. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. >> And you walk three blocks that way. You're going to be a completely different neighborhood. Three blocks that way, different neighborhood and yes, and it works and it works, man, because we don't have a choice. We can't escape each other. So now we've got to work it out and then when you've got to work it out, you start going like, oh shit, these Chinese people are open on Christmas. Fuck you. Let's go and try and get some Chinese food on Christmas. I love these Chinese people, you know, and then also you start realizing how your communities are similar. You know, like the Chinese and the Jews had this like camaraderie because they both had nothing to do to earn Christmas and all of a sudden they're like, okay, we can kind of link up here with both like education. And then like the Italians and Chinese had a little beef because the Chinese were growing into the Italian traditional Italian communities. But then all of a sudden maybe there were some things that they understood and the Chinese were like, we invent a pasta and they're like, what? And then they did, you know, so it's like there's these, there's a beautiful little camaraderie that happens in this city. And a, and a closeness that like when you're making fun of somebody, it's usually a more deep-cut joke than like some surface Twitter shit, you know, like if there's a guy, some Italian guy who's upset at like the Chinese or whatever like that, he'll be like, I'm sick of these fucking Mahjong wankons. And it's like, he knows a ancient fucking card, domino game from China to be racist. That's good. But that's like, that's okay right there, but a lot of the cuts just sort of like, almost how much you like a person of some degree. Oh, like my British friends, for example, you give them a ton and they give it to you and it's fun. Oh, yeah. I mean, if you like somebody, you probably even say crazy or shit. Yeah, exactly. Yeah. But it will be new ones in specific ways. You actually know these people and you connect with them. Yeah. Yeah. And you're confronted with it. You have to be around people at all times. Yeah. You can't be holding grudges around here at all, right? I forgot it was that joke. So I wanted to joke because like being racist in New York can be exhausting. Yeah. It's exhausting. Yeah. If you're racist in New York, you're going to be proud. So that's why people in these environments can't understand some of the rule environments, I think. And here's what I mean by that. If you, let's say Mon Valley, South of Pittsburgh, Charlotte Roy, old industrial town, pretty much down and out. When you, when you hit the population, I don't know the, again, I know I always say this, but I don't know the exact number, but a massive influx of migrants overnight, almost overnight. And then the local population is like, we're not, it's not, it's not a racist thing. Here's my point on this. It's a values thing where an American culture, if you stop at the crosswalks in small town America, and then all of a sudden there's is people that come here that don't know that. That's not how they do it there. And they're blazing the crosswalks. You're going to piss people off naturally. And so a lot of, I think a lot of rule, I mean, sorry, urban America can't, because what you said, a hundred, a million times makes sense. But when you change places, small places with small populations very quickly, there's going to be tension and friction in that. >> Yeah, and look, I've raised, obviously, plays a part of everything in every conversation, but it doesn't mean it's the dominating force in it. It could just be a cultural, that's what I'm saying, it's cultural peace. >> Think about it. >> Out in all over Appalachia, like, there are more interracial marriages than people know. They're mixing, it's socioeconomics, but like, nobody makes, nobody makes a big deal of it. When, like, for example, like white people gentrify a black neighborhood, and they, you know, start calling the cops at a house party and they're doing noises like that. >> Yeah, but that pisses off the local, the local neighborhood. >> No one calls it, no one calls it racism when, or no one, no one makes the racial component of it when black people are complaining about it, right, because it's, you're looking at like a cultural incompatibility, or like an oppressor colonizer coming into the thing. And it's looked at more surface level socioeconomic stuff, which is like, they're complaining that they don't have the rules and regulations that exist in these high or socioeconomic tax brackets. But when it is reversed, let's say migrants are moving into a town, it's like, oh, they're just racist. They don't like these migrants. It's like, they might, they might be racist and don't like their culture, they might not be racist at all and don't like the incompatibility. But what you're saying is after talking to them, there's an incompatibility culturally with what's happening. >> There's a friction. >> Yeah. >> And that's okay. And that's okay. And that's life. If you're in where my mom lives, and all the sense she's, you know, here's cherry pop exhausts at night and in reggaeton at 2 in the morning, she's going to be pissed, doesn't mean it's racism, it means their value clashes. >> Yeah, she didn't hate them for the color of their skin in case for their choice of music. You know, like, but I, these can be conversations, though, they don't, the worst is when they go into this passive aggressive area where also like, they can be conversations when you're in private, they're always the conversation. I don't know. >> In New York. >> Oh, yeah. >> And it's not a conversation with the animosity. >> Yeah, it's a great one. >> What happens is when they happen on public platform, the person that's asking the questions feels the responsibility of their audience and what the internet is going to say about them. So now they have to caveat things in much more inflammatory ways to protect themselves and ingratiate themselves to their audience. So now the person they're talking to is immediately defensive because it's not like, I thought we were just having a normal kind of a thought experiment about the situation. Now it's no longer a thought experiment, it's a performance. So now both people are performing and there's got to be a winner now. And when there has to be a winner, there's no way that you're going to reach common ground. And I think that's what's really difficult with this course at like the highest levels. >> Okay. >> You know, smaller channels that can happen because, you know, just not that many people watching. And it gets big. There's whole ecosystems built around making these conversations look as inflammatory as possible. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. And that's why I keep it long form because everything gets taken out of context. What I just said can be taken out of context easily. >> And also like, you're showing what these people want to share. >> Yeah. >> There's nothing you could do. Like, what are they going to say about you in that regard? >> These people are asking you to come to the tent. >> Yeah. >> Yeah, that's the North Star is just let people have a light that typically don't have a light. >> What about like Dominican or Puerto Rican communities? Have you done any videos with them? >> So you got to go to the, I mean, I've done Jackson Heights and Dominican people out there. Forget. >> No.
I tried that in Molokai, but it just wasn't going to go well, I know the Dominicans have it. >> And they have their own lottery, they have their own, see, I don't think they will survive on YouTube. Meaning what? >> Cockfighting? >> No, and you also can't expose it because it's highly illegal and happening. >> Yeah, exactly. >> So I tried on Molokai, the island of Molokai in Hawaii. >> They let you on Molokai? >> Yeah. >> Isn't that the one great? >> That's Niihau. >> Oh, Niihau. Okay. >> Molokai is cool. >> Yeah. >> And what happened with the car for anything? >> I met up with this guy, he was a local, but I just, it was going to get going on YouTube for sure. >> Did you go to it? >> No, I didn't go to it. It didn't really get me too pumped, to be honest. >> Yeah, it's brutal. >> It's brutal. >> Yeah, it's fascinating. >> I went out there with the bird, saw what he was doing, but I didn't go back for the event. >> Yeah. >> What's the worst food you've had? >> I don't want to put these people under the bus because they're great. >> People can be great. Food can be, I mean, the English. >> You know, Raccoon is pretty good. Raccoon's pretty good. >> Yeah, like they always start with a positive. >> Yeah, I think I was in Mississippi and they had a raccoon, like it was a Thanksgiving turkey, like meat falling off the bone, gravy, everything, like the raccoon centerpiece. >> Oh, wow. >> And it was actually pretty good. The neutral rat in the bios of Louisiana, it's sort of a tough, it's pretty clean, mild meat, but if it's got a ton of oil in there, it's a big rat, it's just a mass of rat. I've eaten a tranchella of the size of my hand, that tastes like eggs when you eat the backpouch, but the fried hairy legs are what get you. >> Yeah, it doesn't seem appetizing. >> Yeah. >> Who gave you tranchella, that was overseas? >> That was when I was living in Asia and I was in Cambodia. >> No, Cambodia. >> They'd eat anything, yeah. >> They'd eat it. >> They'd fry it and eat it. >> Just anything. >> They really do, right? Is there anything they don't? >> They're in the bugs, but that is an interesting culture. >> Yeah. >> Is it anything is food? >> Yeah. >> Just this is, maybe that's the right way. >> But pure curiosity, do you think that they would eat people first? If you already will eat anything, tell those people exists, cannibals out there and they're out there. >> Yeah. >> Go to go far for that one, but yeah, I mean, I'm saying the people who are more dietary restricted would eat people last, I feel. >> Yeah. >> This is a benefit of religious laws. >> Also that. >> But also, there's no religious law against eating horse, but usually we don't really do it outside of Montreal. >> Yeah. Japan, they have horse from the sushi menu. >> Where? Well, where are they from? >> Oh. >> They're from. Right? >> They said Montreal. >> No, I said Asia. >> Oh, yeah. >> Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay, catch you. >> But do they eat horse in Montreal? >> Yeah. >> I've eaten horse in Montreal. >> That wasn't. It was like a ragu. >> Mm. >> And? >> Your stripper's name was Horse? >> No. >> No. >> It was delicious. >> It was absolutely delicious. >> How long have you been married for? >> Five years, six years. >> Five years, five year old. >> Yeah. >> I think so. >> Yeah. >> Once you have kids, it's like a reset. >> Yeah, yeah. >> Especially relationship-wise, like. >> No, say that to your wife. I'm sure she'll love it. >> Even like, it starts at kids, really. Like, you know what I mean? Like, you and your wife are married and everything. But like, you could not be and it'll be all right. Like, that's what I've been saying, dude. When we get married to the engagement, then get married when they have kids. >> Yeah. >> And no one gets married at the wedding. >> No, but the wedding is for grandma. >> Yeah. >> Interesting. >> Like, obviously you guys have a business and you'd need to find a new editor, but like, you'd be all right, like. >> That's the problem. >> I got, we got to find that if we, you know, go down this road, who's the person? How do you find that person? >> Who's the person for what? >> Editing. >> Oh, if you guys, if you need an editor, you're saying? >> Yeah. >> I mean, it's almost impossible. >> There's a lot of women in the Ukraine that need more right now, too. >> Can you, you can go back to the source, bro. You can go right back. >> Yeah, I want to go domestic. I want to not outsource. >> You want to not outsource. >> You're saying, like, let's say you and your wife have kids and she needs to take a little time off. >> Yeah. >> I'm sure you can. >> There's editors out there. >> There's someone, dude. >> They're dealing with one camera, right? It's not like you have a crazy setup. >> Yeah, it's just everything. >> Everything's as efficient as possible. >> How do you get audio so good? >> What I mean with someone like you, I'll use DJI wireless. >> If I'm solo ranger, I just have a little foam condom thing on my GoPro. >> And it captures it? >> Yeah, you've got to know where to put it. >> Because I think, I genuinely believe that part, obviously, you're very skilled, but part of the reason why the conversations can be so intimate and the walls can come down is because there's not a crew. And I'm sure this is why it's fine. >> That's the biggest thing right there. If I show up with a GoPro, hey, man, we start talking here, forgetting it's right there. I'm just like this, yeah. >> And once I have that DSLR over my shoulder, there's no way I'm getting into the projects. I mean, some of them I could, but no, like the Hasidics, no way, the Amish, no way. 'Cause I just, it just looks like nothing. That's the psychology behind it. Plus, I travel a lot. I really don't want to travel with a crew. When I'm done shooting a day, I'm exhausted. I don't want to listen, I don't want to talk. Yeah, you know what I mean? I want to go back to my room and zone out. >> Also, you can shoot so much more. >> Yeah, like I go out, we shoot three, we post three videos a month, 11 months here. So we don't post January. So like, for example, this is a short trip. I'll get three videos this week here in New York. That's a month of content, but I was in Washington two weeks. I get six videos. I'm good for two months. I go home. Two weeks go home for a month and a half. 'Cause I don't want to be on the road all the time. >> Yeah, I get it, you know. >> You were done in ayahuasca? >> Yeah. >> How's that? >> I changed my life in the sense I don't drink anymore. >> Why do you stop drinking? >> Ayahuasca. >> But like, why? What about the experience? >> It's just, I can't explain it in natural. >> Like you have an aversion to it now, or do you? >> Yeah, I have no interest. I didn't try to quit. I didn't want to quit. I never thought about quitting. I just can't drink it. >> Have you thought about just giving it another go? >> And then you're like, oh, I was nothing to do with that. >> Ayahuasca, what the fuck is that thing? >> No, I don't suggest it. Like I did it in my late 30s. It is powerful stuff. I know it gets thrown around easily. >> I did it, you just passed some of it for the first time. >> Right, so it's heavy. It's no joke. And I wouldn't have been able to do it in my 20s or even early 30s. So everyone's on their own trip with that stuff, literally. Like you got to figure out, like don't jump in, obviously. But, I did, I think at 38. >> And where were you? >> I was in, I became a Native American for a day because the, what was it? I don't want to put the tribe under the bus. They were given out cards to become a member to do it legally in California. So because it's a religious sacrament. >> Oh, religious. >> Yeah, so I was technically a member of the church. >> Wow. >> This Native church. And we did it and it was really a pretty bad operation. We were packed in like sardines. The guy was freaking out next to me. It was a pretty hardcore. >> How many people? >> Oh, there's probably 60 of us in a tent. >> In a literal tent, like a TV? >> Like a, like a, like a wedding tent. But you're shoulder to shoulder, not the way to do it. Good music, like native music. >> Yeah, pretty sketchy in many ways. But it worked. Like I never drank again after. And like that was the best thing ever. >> And nothing against drinking for anyone in the drink. >> How many ceremonies did you do? Did you drink it one time one? >> Yeah, three. >> Three. >> In one rip. >> Yeah. >> I only did it once. >> And then after that, one was so long. >> You never wanted to taste that, like, I'm so unclear. >> So here's the thing. Before I was, he got to eat a completely clean diet. I forget if it's like a week or two weeks, right? >> I did for a week. >> Yeah, no alcohol, no sugar, no what. You eat really cleanly. >> Okay. >> And then you do the trip. And then you come out the other end. And I had a headache for like a week. I was worried like my head was going to, I guess, going to have a headache for life or something. So then the week after, if someone does it, highly suggests taking the time, the week off afterwards. I wrote down pages of the thought, you come into a lot of things during that experience. And then after that week, I was going to meet up with some buddies. Do you want to get a beer? I'm like, yeah. It went out. I just didn't feel like ordering it. And then another week later. I don't really feel like a month later. And literally what, 11 years later, having drank a sip, but I cheated because I haven't tried to quit. I don't have any cravings. I don't want beer. I don't want drinks. I drink some NBA beer sometimes. >> Did you need to quit before? Like were you interested? >> Now when you're out of it, yes, when you're in it, just like anything, when you're in a relationship, you know, and say it was pretty good or whatever, and there was a great moment, but it goes back and you get out of it and then you, in retrospect, you can look back and be like, yeah, I really needed to be out of it.
that thing. That's how I look at alcohol. But in the moment, you didn't think it was a problem. Not at all. Interesting. But then looking back, you're like, oh, I was messing up in different parts of my life. Big time. I wouldn't be doing at this level now, no way. Whoa. Because at late 30s, I have like two beers and be hungover. Some change in my metabolism. Yeah. I hear that. I hear that. But was it a good experience for you? Oh, it was amazing. But I only sat with it one time. It was a lot. It's happy. Yeah. But then I went to a Jay Z concert and dragged the next day. So I don't think he's been drinking a lot more actually. Wow. Okay. Look, it does. It does what it's going to do. If you're open to the medicine, and I'm sitting like a shaman, if you're open to the medicine, it's going to do what you need. Yeah. It doesn't guarantee you're going to stop drinking or anything. It's like what you need. It's going to give you a window into something. What I saw know during what I got out of it. And I need to get closer to nature. Like that was something that came through. Was the person administering it like the Ayahuasca Doe, were they native? Or was it like, no, who was it? Some random. It was, it was, it was, it was, it was highly sketch. Oh, yeah. They had all the instruments. It's great music. Do you throw up? But I read, I didn't throw up. I remember the guy because it's weird. You're, you're in the most powerful trip there is or one of them. But then you can like, there's a fly on my wrist. I feel that. And I'm like, sober on that thing. I know what's going on. Yeah. Get it off. And then the guy next to me is tweaking and rolling over onto me when I'm on Ayahuasca. And I like stood up and I said, I treated, I treated him like a three year old. I'm like, here's the line. Here's the line. Don't come over the line. And then I started yelling at him. And then I realized the lesson. And that was in life, there are so many things out of your control. You do your best, but you just got to let things go. You know, and then you start rolling around. And then he started rolling by that. No, it was, it's heavy. I don't know. Are you interested or? Yeah. I wouldn't, I wouldn't do it again. Yeah. I mean, right now, I have no need to do it. And I think it's when you're searching, you're really looking for something. That's what I think of this. And right now, I'm on a path that I'm pretty pumped on, but it took me a long time to get to this path and a lot of searching. Yeah. And that was part of it. But we are enjoying it, my brother. Keep crushing it. If we have any good niche communities, we'll hit you and please love to see you explore it. Thank you so much for spending time. That was awesome. You guys, thank you so much.
Podcast Summary
Key Points:
The host gains access to isolated communities through a disarming smile and an undercover-like demeanor, often appearing as a curious outsider rather than a threat.
He has traveled extensively to diverse, often marginalized or hidden cultures—from the Amish in Ohio to the Hesitim in Brooklyn and conflict zones like Iran and Pakistan—without security or backup, relying solely on courage and curiosity.
In high-risk environments like Iran and Pakistan, he faced real dangers, including being followed, having his phone seized, and encountering intense surveillance, which created deep paranoia but also profound cultural insight.
His approach is rooted in genuine curiosity, not bias or agenda, allowing him to build trust with locals and capture authentic, unfiltered perspectives of communities that are often misrepresented in mainstream media.
He emphasizes the importance of cultural respect, cautioning against exploiting or sensationalizing communities, and warns that increased fame can disrupt privacy and personal autonomy.
The host notes a widespread cultural shift toward apathy and existential dread, especially among youth, who feel economic and societal uncertainty and turn to superficial solutions like appearance or social media success.
He observes that many off-grid or traditional communities—like the Amish—offer strong emotional resilience, community cohesion, and a grounded sense of purpose, which contrasts with modern urban alienation.
Despite the risks and challenges, he views his journey as a personal mission of discovery, shaped by a blend of adventure, empathy, and a deep desire to understand human diversity beyond stereotypes.
Summary:
The host, a traveler and content creator, documents marginalized and niche communities around the world through a strategy of quiet curiosity and cultural infiltration. Unlike traditional journalists, he avoids agenda-driven storytelling, instead building trust with locals through authenticity and non-confrontational presence. His experiences in places like Iran, Pakistan, Ukraine, and the Amish communities reveal both the dangers of cultural intrusion and the deep humanity found in isolated communities.
He shares harrowing close calls—such as being followed by Iranian security forces or facing threats in Karachi—highlighting the risks inherent in his work. Despite these dangers, he remains committed to showing real, unfiltered perspectives, emphasizing that true understanding comes from listening, not preaching. He critiques the modern cultural climate, noting widespread apathy, economic anxiety, and a shift toward appearance-based success, contrasting it with the resilience and community-driven values of traditional, off-grid lifestyles.
While his work has brought attention to these communities, he warns against commodifying or exploiting them, stressing the importance of privacy, consent, and personal boundaries. Ultimately, his journey reflects a deep belief in the power of curiosity, personal risk, and genuine human connection to understand the world beyond stereotypes and media narratives.
FAQs
Yes, I've had several close calls. In Iran, government agents seized my phone and followed me around the country, even stopping at my hotel room. In Pakistan, I was warned not to film women, and in Ukraine, I felt the constant presence of military boots, creating a sense of paranoia. These experiences highlight the risks involved in accessing certain communities.
I rely on trust and authenticity—using a disarming smile and appearing like an undercover observer. I often connect with locals through personal relationships, like when a man from Sapmar or a Schwartz and Trooper community invited me in. The key is being genuinely curious and showing respect without imposing an agenda.
In Pakistan, Liyari, I was in a highly tribal area where I was told not to film women. A woman approached with a camera, and I was under constant scrutiny. In Iran, I was followed by government agents who questioned my identity and were aware of my presence, which led to a deep sense of paranoia during my stay.
Yes, especially in places like Iran or Bell Glade, Florida, where there's a strong, aggressive energy and surveillance. In such places, I remain cautious, relying on non-verbal communication and staying aware of the local dynamics to avoid conflict.
I look for consistency, authenticity, and openness. I personally vet individuals by meeting them in person, observing their behavior, and checking if they provide accurate information. If someone gives false or misleading details, I know they're not genuine and avoid working with them.
Yes, in Pakistan, the community members were very protective and warned me not to film women. In Iran, I was followed by agents who questioned my identity, and in some cases, locals reacted with fear, showing how sensitive certain communities are to outsiders.
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