- Sup you beautiful bastards.
I hope you've had a fantastic Monday.
Welcome back to the Philip DeFranco Show.
Today's show is primarily different
because I'm recording it at five o'clock in the morning
from a bathroom because I'm technically on vacation.
And I promised my wife that if I did shoot the show,
it would not interrupt with family time.
So here we are.
Hit that like button for the dedication,
subscribe to join the family,
and let's just jump into it.
And the first thing that we're gonna talk about today,
easily one of the most requested stories,
is this huge backlash that we saw
against Hasan Piker over the weekend.
Now if you don't know,
Hasan is a left wing and socialist streamer
and commentator, and you know,
there's been backlash and controversy in the past,
but that has been focused on things that he's said.
Things about 9/11, things about this or that politician.
But this time we saw a massive amount of pushback
and backlash because it came out
that he had purchased a 3,800 square foot home
in West Hollywood for $2.74 million.
With people arguing that it's hypocritical
and unethical for someone who advocates for socialism
and makes money doing so
to then spend so much money on a house
instead of redistributing that wealth.
With people saying things like,
"do you not see the issue with getting rich
"complaining about capitalism
"and then buying a 3 million dollar house
"in gentrified LA while homelessness is skyrocketing there?"
And, "I don't know man,
"it's just flat out unethical to be profiting off
"of socialism and buying yourself a $3 million home
"in a state that is one of the highest homelessness rates
"in the country."
Right, it wasn't just on Twitter.
There were a ton of articles coming out about this.
You had Fox News covering this.
But also with this,
you had a ton of people defending him
saying one Hasan does not make his money
in an exploitive ways since it comes from Twitch donations.
And two it's okay for a person
to use the money that they make
to buy a house for themselves and their families
and Los Angeles real estate does not come cheap.
This including Ethan Klein who said,
"Y'all really think Hasan shouldn't be able
"to own a nice house and also champion
"for the poor and underprivileged?
"There is a difference between making millions on Twitch
"and paying 50% in taxes
"and Jeff Bezos being worth $150 billion
"and paying no taxes.
"Happy Hasan is crushing it."
With others saying things like
"Hasan can't make bank as a streamer
"while professing leftist values?
"Is bitching about Bernie Sanders selling books
"and having a second house on the agenda next?
"Do we have time for AOC wearing an expensive dress
"on a magazine cover too?
"Get your fucking priorities straight."
Others arguing,
"Anyone that spends 10 minutes looking
"at listings here can see how crazy the market is."
Adding "Hasan fights for workers everywhere,
"pays all his taxes, is very successful,
and bought a house at the expense of no one."
Hasan also eventually chiming in himself saying,
"pretty much what everyone's argument reduces to.
"I live in LA. The housing market here is fucked.
"Why is the argument that I should keep renting
"or that I should go gentrify somewhere else?
"Will this solve the problems?
"No. People are mad cause lefty with house.
"That's it.
"Listen, if you're mad at me,
tax the fuck out of people like me."
Also seeming to know for the people that are like,
why don't you give your money away?
Saying, "I do donate to charity."
But also saying that he doesn't think donating
is also a long-term solution to larger issues
with broken systems.
And also noting that when rich people donate,
it doesn't automatically absolve them
of the way they got their money.
But also with this story and then the debate
that was happening, it opened up another question,
which was why do people donate
to massively successful streamers.
People who you would expect to be multi-millionaires.
Right and that's not a new conversation.
I mean, there's the classic Dr. Disrespect line.
- I've got somebody in the chat says,
donating to a millionaire.
God, your so fucking stupid.
It's multimillionaire. Multi.
- [DeFranco] But with that,
the debate we saw another successful streamer
by the name of Pokimane,
explain why fans might donate to a streamer
regardless of how much money that streamer may have, saying.
- People don't go as far to think,
how much does this person need my money?
It's,
people donate cause they want someone's attention.
And if anything, the richer someone becomes
the more valuable their attention becomes.
I think this is like, we all know why,
because most people don't, you know,
we're not all spend money logically 24/7.
We do things for other reasons.
- And personally, my opinion on these,
people will always hound me for this.
Whether they're looking for a reason to hit me
or where they're just genuinely interested.
Regarding tips and donations in general,
I actually find myself agreeing with Pokimane.
Some people want to support some,
especially for streams,
they want some attention
or feeling like they're a part of the community.
But also regarding the Hasan Piker situation,
because I've gotten a lot of questions
as far as what my opinion is.
I personally find it to be a nothing story at this point.
I think like if you don't want to like Hasan Piker
dislike him because of the things that he says.
Dislike him because of his points of view
that clash with yours.
But I don't personally find there to be anything egregious
about owning instead of renting,
when you have the ability and option.
Even if we want to live in a different society
or change a society for what we seem to be the better,
we still have to exist in it as it is.
And from the outside looking in,
I don't know the ins and outs of Hasan Piker's business.
I don't see a ton of people being exploited.
I see an audience that is supporting with him.
He's rather transparent
with the number of paid subscribers that he has.
But also with that, you know,
it's the Philip DeFranco Show.
I gave you the story,
now some of my opinion.
And whether you agree or disagree with me,
I'd love to know your thoughts on this.
All right, one regarding the Pokimane story,
I think that's interesting.
But also two, regarding a Hasan Piker.
Are you on the side of
no this proves that he's a hypocrite.
I've seen a number of right wing commentators
saying like this proves that he's just LARPing,
he's disingenuous.
Or no are you on the other side of
you don't think that there is actually a story here.
But this is just an attempt to hit Hasan
and when political points,
whether you're a far left or a conservative.
Or maybe you are somewhere in between.
Like you're not bothered by it,
but you feel like something's off.
Any and all thoughts,
I'd love to know what you're thinking
in those comments down below.
But from that,
I want to take a quick second to thank
the fantastic sponsor of today's show, Public
and more specifically Public.com/DeFranco
You know, if you looking to think about your future,
have your money,
do something you want to invest in the stock market.
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Then in COVID-19 news,
it starts with why is this actually news?
Why is this the real world news?
Lead state officials in Mississippi
having to go out and issue a warning on Friday,
asking people to please
stop taking the anti-parasite drug, Ivermectin,
as a treatment for COVID-19
after multiple reports of people getting sick
from taking too much.
With officials, particularly concerned
that 70% of the people getting sick
were taking extra doses of Ivermectin
meant for large animals like horses and cows.
The FDA also followed up
sending out a tweet on Saturday saying,
"you are not a horse. You are not a cow.
"Seriously y'all. Stop it."
You made the FDA say y'all.
Also attach was a deeper explanation
on the dangers of Ivermectin
and a reminder that evidence of the drug's effectiveness
against COVID-19 has been seriously lacking.
Right and in some misinformation circles,
the drug is touted as some kind of dream treatment
for COVID-19 despite the fact that Ivermectin
isn't even approved to treat any kind of virus.
Or as the FDA put it,
"There's a lot of misinformation around
"and you may have heard that it's okay
"to take large doses of Ivermectin.
"That is wrong."
With the agency adding,
"Ivermectin tablets are approved at very specific doses
"for some parasitic worms.
"And there are topical on the skin formulations
for head lice and skin conditions like Rosacea."
Right, Ivermectin for people is pretty uncommon,
but generally speaking, the easiest way to get it,
especially in rural areas,
is to get doses meant for farm animals.
And for the FDA,
that's a major red flag is the formulations
between human and animal drugs are different.
One big variation is the dosage.
With animal variants usually being far more concentrated
on top of larger doses.
With the FDA warning that
"such high doses can be highly toxic in humans."
Additionally, the inactive ingredients can be different.
And inactive doesn't mean that the compound
does not interact with the body,
but that it doesn't have a therapeutic effect,
like an active ingredient does.
The different inactive ingredients
in animal versions of drugs
can drastically change how it interacts with the human body.
So just the TLDR here,
do not take Ivermectin to treat COVID-19.
There is no serious evidence that it actually works
and the downside include possibly killing you.
One of the biggest downsides.
Depending on who you are.
Like, I'd recommend it for the Taliban, but not you.
But yeah, final thing
and I can't believe I'm having to say it,
don't take drugs and doses meant for animals y'all.
But yeah, I mean the FDA had a very busy weekend
including this morning when the agency
fully approved the Pfizer COVID vaccine
for people 16 and older.
Making it the first jab to get full authorization
in the U.S.
Right and this is massive news
because when the vaccine has already been used
under an emergency use authorization.
Some vaccine hesitant Americans use this
as an excuse to not wanting to get the vaccine now.
So now, many experts and officials hope
that the FDA's decision will encourage more people
who are hesitant to get the shot.
And that's not a small group of people
that we're talking about.
According to a survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation,
30% of un-vaccinated adults said
that they would be more likely to get a vaccine
if it got full approval.
And if that's something that they truly believe,
I mean, this could help close the gap to herd immunity
as the US already has over half the country
fully vaccinated.
Also I mean, even before this news,
we've seen vaccination rates actually going up
in recent days amid surging infections
and hospitalizations driven by Delta.
I mean, just this past Thursday
with the Biden administration saying
that there were over 1 million doses administered
in one day for the first time in nearly seven weeks.
And last week, the CDC reported
that the seven day average of vaccines administered
was 823,355, which is more than a 17% increase
from the week before.
But with this, we're already seeing examples
of conservative media trying to find new ways
to sow doubt among their viewers like Fox News,
which decided to frame the move like this.
- For you now, the FDA just giving full approval
to Pfizer's COVID vaccine.
It's the first vaccine to get that full approval.
And in record time too.
That has critics asking if the process was rushed.
Was it?
- Right I mean, yes it's to no one's surprised,
but still to see it.
Which, I mean, I know it's not surprising to anyone
it's exactly what you would expect to happen,
but it's still frustrating,
especially because I mean,
on the topic of conservative media
and the COVID vaccine,
we should definitely talk about Phil Valentine.
If you're unfamiliar,
he was a prominent talk radio host
who died of COVID at 61 over the weekend
after refusing to get the vaccine
and spreading skepticism about the jab.
Right, Valentine had long express doubt
and openly shared misinformation about the vaccine
on multiple platforms.
Repeatedly saying that he had a slim chance
of even getting COVID.
And if he did, it was very unlikely he would die.
Even once claiming in a blog post
that on the off chance he did get the virus,
his chances of dying were probably way less than 1%.
Then last one Valentine announced on Facebook
that he actually got COVID,
though he said he would return to a show soon.
Writing, "unfortunately for the haters out there,
"it looks like I'm going to make it.
"Interesting experience.
"I'll have to fill you in when I come back on the air."
But, less than two weeks after that,
his radio station announced that he was hospitalized.
And what they said was very serious condition
suffering from COVID pneumonia.
And adding Phil would like for his listeners to know
that while he has never been an anti-vaxxer,
he regrets not being more vehemently pro-vaccine
and looks forward to being able to
more vigorously advocate that position
as soon as he is back on the air.
With the station concluding, please go get vaccinated.
But this past Saturday, just a month after that post,
the station confirmed that Valentine had died.
Which of course, spark two conversations on Twitter.
One from people who kind of see this
as someone who got what they deserved
for spreading all the misinformation.
And then others hoping that stories like this
will wake people up to get the vaccine.
Especially with those who haven't gotten the vaccine
for political reasons.
But you know, there is this question
of once the horse has been let loose in the hospital,
can you actually stop it?
Right, because even though we've seen the wake-up calls
getting louder and louder.
And in fact, some conservative figures
or vaccine hesitant figures
changing their tune on getting vaccinated.
It's unclear if that'll actually work.
Right, I mean, over the weekend even Donald Trump himself
at a rally in Alabama on Saturday got booed
when he urged his supporters to get the vaccine.
- You know what, I believe totally in your freedoms.
I do. You gotta do what you have to do.
But, I recommend take the vaccines. I did it.
It's good. Take the vaccines.
But, nah, that's okay. That's all right.
You got your freedoms.
But I happened to take the vaccine.
- Right, while Trump was able to back,
keep the audience with him.
He returned to his usual hits of mocking masks and Fauci.
Really is a concern that Donald Trump
and all these people that have helped
promote this hesitancy,
that they can't un-ring this bell.
But ultimately we're gonna have to wait to see
what actually happens.
I'm going to keep my eyes on it.
I'm gonna keep my eyes on the numbers.
But in the meantime,
I do want to pass the question off to you.
What are your thoughts on this?
You personally see this as a bell
can't be un-rung situation.
Can there be a course corrections?
Is it somewhere in between?
Also, is your opinion on the situation changed?
Especially, I want to know if you're someone
that maybe you were hesitant before,
but was there something that made you go,
oh yeah, I'm going to change my mind.
And if so, what was it?
Any and all thoughts.
I'm just, I'm really fascinated.
But ultimately with this story, or honestly,
anything else that stood out to you today,
I'd love to know your thoughts in those comments down below,
because yes, this is a news show,
but it's also a conversation.
And hey, maybe while you're leaving that comment,
you leave a like, subscribe, join the family.
But as always, my name is Philip DeFranco.
You've just been philled in.
I love your faces and I'll see you tomorrow,
maybe.
We'll see.