I'm afraid he's so dadded. Hello, norcous, Hello, everybody, Welcome,
Hope everyone had a great Labor Day weekend. It's Matt Connerton Unleashed and
we are live from the studios of w m n H ninety five point three
FM and Glorious Downtown Manchester, New Hampshire, also on Comcast channels if you're
in Manchester, and hello to all of our online listeners across the nation and
around the globe. You can go to my website Matt Connerton dot com for
all of your live streaming options, social media links, contact info, show
archives, etcetera, etcetera. And I am not alone, Na. Jenny
is here at the news desk. I am present and accounted for Monday.
No no, no, oh wait, I know. I'm not happy,
Holly kidding. And we have and we have a guest joining us in studio.
She is a New Hampshire state representative. Jody Newell is here. Hello,
heyo, how are you. I'm good, happy to be here,
Thanks for having me. Yeah, welcome, it's your first time on the
show. And uh so we're gonna talk to uh we're gonna talk to the
representative about some things in a moment, but also too, we do have
at the top of the hour Eric Pilcher's classic film review. He wasn't able
to do it for Friday, so we have that today and this week,
or I should say today rather because he'll have another one on Friday. The
subject is The Crazies, the George A. Romero classic from nineteen seventy three.
And if you'd like to get in on the discussion that we're about to
have, the studio line is open six zero three two five zero six zero
seven six zo three two five zero six zero seven. You can also text
me at six one seven nine one seven four four seven six. I'm on
social media at Matt Connerton. You can email me Matt at Matt Connerton dot
com. And of course you can interact endo Pine in the Facebook live chat.
But the best thing to do so that we can hear and enjoy your
dulcet tones is to give us a call at six ZO three at two five
zero six O seven. And uh So, Jody, the thing that and
this is I believe what is what connected you and Jenny online is this legislation
that you were involved. Did you did you write this or what we're about
to talk about or did you sponsor it? Or no, I'm sorry,
I did a terrible job prep for you. It's a federal piece of legislation.
Oh it is, yes, Oh, and that's I sent you a
link to the congressional website with the information on the mad Act, and it's
something that set let me do this, I need to do this. Let
me introduce the honorable Representative Jody knew it that I have been Literally I ended
up fan girling on you and went down a total rabbit hole and found myself
looking at images of you back in twenty twenty or twenty seven, wherever it
was, fighting for these things, fighting for people to have proper care.
I want, I really want people to hear from you how this works,
what this is about, what we're hoping to achieve, and you know why
it should matter to people, especially here at home in New Hampshire and in
Manchester even sure, And I'll tell you honest, since I've become a representative,
it's it's really cool because I get to see how it actually plays out
and and hear it from people who have no idea that I was part of
this, a part of this, And I'll just put it that way,
I can't really take ownership of it, but I was very strongly invested in
it. And so what it is is the mad Act. It was actually
it was prime sponsored by our own UH Senator Maggie Hassan. Props to Maggie
Hassan on this one. And what it is is there's a drug called abuse
bufferine. I still after what three years, I still have to to sound
it out really quickly. But basically it's the generic of sabaxan. And what
it is is essentially in the you know, when it when it first came
out, they put these certain kind of cumbersome rules around it, and so
doctors trying to prescribe it the way that they had to do it, there
were certain things in place that were essentially barriers to two doctors being able to
prescribe it. Now, think about this, right, if there's a doctor
that is a doctor has been through medical school who can prescribe literally anything else,
I mean, I don't know, maybe there's one or two, but
they can prescribe anything thing else. Yet this one drug that is a treatment
for substance use disorder. They call it medication assisted treatment. That's what the
MADI stands for. And so they can prescribe anything else with their you know,
their license, but if they want to prescribe this one drugs box and
abuse boverine, then they have to go through this kind of training process and
they have to be certified and all these kind of things. So it's just
this kind of barrier two doctors being able to prescribe it in the first place,
and especially when you're in a place like New Hampshire and you know,
we have a lot of rural areas where people don't have access to be able
to come in real quick and and you know, find a doctor that they
can get prescribed this through or things like that, it puts it essentially puts
a barrier. So essentially what the mad Act did was it removed those barriers
so that more people could could could could prescribe it, and that in that
way, more people who were uh, you know, navigating the recovery system
and trying to use medications as a tool to be able to get through that,
more people can now use that, which increases the odds that people will
actually be able to be success fall in that effort. Does it allows people
who have addiction issues a way to potentially really get off of the medication that
they're addicted to, or the drug, the street drug that they're addicted to,
Because they can be put on this and then weaned down so they can
be it can be controlled. They can help the person not suffer, not
end up so sick that you know, they hurt themselves or something terrible happens.
It's a way of bringing back a life. It's a way of saving
a life and bringing them back that they can be happy and have a full
life and be able to enjoy their lives and their families. Addiction is a
horrible, horrible thing, and I know a lot of people like to kind
of well, you know, you put yourself there. However, somebody becomes
addicted. It doesn't matter how they got there. The only way to save
their life is to treat them, not incarcerate them. And I know that's
something near and dear to your heart, matright, that you've talked about quite
frequently on the show, Which is why I wanted to bring this up in
the show, is to show you, you know, some of the work
that's being done is actually starting to produce some fruit, and I think that's
vital in the climate that we're living in. I mean, addictions have grown
exponentially over COVID. People weren't able to live life normal and a lot of
some of those folks ended up addicted to drugs and addicted to alcohol. And
we need to handle this crisis that we're in, or we can just pocket
truck and start throwing bodies in it, because that's what's going to happen.
We're just gonna, you know, we're gonna see the fruit of that if
we don't teach. I believe, if we don't treat people now and get
wet, we're almost past that point, if you will, that we need
this. This needs to happen more. Patients need to have access so they
can be weaned off of the medications or the drugs that they're addicted to and
get their lives back. I mean, isn't that what we all want?
Right? Absolutely well? As I always say too, you know, and
I opposed the drug war and a broader sense to begin with, and I
feel that a part of what and by the way, people misunderstand what I
mean when I say that, you know, like I've had people and you
probably have to be. People will say ridiculous things like, oh, so
you think it's fine for someone to go sell crack at a playground, and
that should be legal. No, of course not. I just don't want
to lock up addicts anymore. And and that's really it. Uh, you
know, we should be treating addiction like a medical problem. I mean,
I help people with you know, I'm a hypnotherapist. I help people to
quit smoking, and that's a wide ranging addiction. In this country, millions
of people are addicted to cigarettes. So so that's a great example of why
we shouldn't instead of judging people who are addicted, because most you know,
and most Americans are addicted to caffeine. I've read studies that show that caffeine
addiction is as something like more than eighty percent. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
yeah. So if I could just throw on really quick, because it's
interesting to think about why in the first place, uh, those barriers and
those those kind of strings were put onto it in the first place, as
opposed to any other drug, right, as opposed to being able to prescribe
anything else just fine, as opposed to being able to prescribe the opiates in
the first place. Right, But but really, I think, you know,
coming out the other end, I want to say that that I'm seeing
a positive shift. But where it's coming from is this idea of, uh,
you know, if you're using medication, then that's just a crutch and
you're just enabling people. And this kind of thing, this kind of mentality
that I think we're we are definitely seeing a shift from. And I think
that this is part of that shift, part of acknowledging that shift and that
shift being manifested into our actual policies, you know what I mean, Which
is good, it's great at the end of the day to look at that.
It's it's all part of this kind of shift of mentality when when you
talk to someone who argues in favor of keeping that barrier there what not that
I'm asking you to make somebody else's argument for them, but like, what
are some of the things that you've run into when people say, oh,
no, we need to have this barrier and we shouldn't change the law.
You know, unfortunately, there is kind of and I wouldn't say that this
is common honestly, and and you know, with a bad act. You
know, like I said, anybody that I talked to about it now,
I think people are understanding about it and say, oh yeah, of course
it shouldn't be that way, you know, right, But I think it
comes from from a broader perspective. And you know, I mean there are
some places, there are some groups, and you know, even people who
are very sensitive to and trying to support people through recovery, who who look
at using medication assisted treatment as as cheating. I think that that's not real
sobriety and like I said, not a lot of people. It's it's definitely
a very very small minority at this point, but it is still kind of
ingrained in certain circles. Yeah, we kind of demonize the word taper.
We demonize the word taper. And I victimized myself that way once. I've
been on fentinyl patches twice in my life in the early years, when I
you know, you know how it goes with all of these chronic illnesses and
such, that was like the go to to try and help me when we
were we had pretty much run out of a lot of options. The first
time that I was coming off of the patches, I was just like,
oh, I don't want to I don't want these anymore. And I ripped
the sucker off on my arm. I didn't pay attention to what the doctor
told me to do. And that weekend I suffered. I mean I suffered.
I was so so sick from it. And I had done it to
myself. I had victimized myself because I had demonized the idea't oh, I
don't. I don't want to have to take oxy because that was the drug
to taper off of the fennel is the oxy. I don't want it to
take oxy like so, yeah, I suffered the second time I got put
on fentyl patches after our procedure, I listened to the doctor. I took
the oxy as prescribed, and he put me on this this daily REGI you
take this many on this day and every day you take a certain amount and
it goes over a period of like two weeks at least to completely weaned off.
And I didn't suffer for nothing, and I shouldn't have had to suffer.
I got breast cancer that led to CRPS. I did nothing of a
sort to to deserve anything, because that's the other thing people will say,
what'd you do to deserve it? I didn't do it a dang thing to
deserve it. But I demonized and I victimized myself by thinking taper or awe,
well I don't want to take the oxy. Yeah, and I'll say,
you know, we talk about stigma, right, this is this is
all part and parcel of the stale. Right. But stigma doesn't just come
in one form. Stigma comes in three forms. It's social stigma, it's
structural stigma, and then it is self stigma. And the self stigma is
the internalized that's what you're describing. You're describing saying, oh, well,
I've never heard this, I've never heard this. I mean, it's very
interesting, and in all of them amount to the same thing. Right.
They all feed each other, these things, you know. Okay, so
social stigma is essentially your family and your friends and your community and things like
that. Structural stigma that's wet is manifested in policy, right, and then
there's your individual or a self stigma, I internalized stigma, and all of
these things feed each other. So because of the societal stigma, we implement
these laws and then these laws, you know what I mean, and it
comes back on the on the individual and you know, vice versa, and
they all kind of feed each other. But you know, we're breaking that
down, we're breaking that down. That's what I have to say. And
you know what I just say really quickly because at the end of the day,
thank you Perdue Pharma for making us distrust our doctors, you know what
I mean, Because at the end of the day, what is that there
is a kernel of truth in that that that that was what was happening when
doctors were prescribing it in the first place. Now they didn't know, they
didn't do that intentionally, they were directly led to believe the things that Perdue
Fharma was was giving them in the first place. So all these people kind
of you know, became the face of Perdue Pharma's greed. At the end
of the day, Well can you can you expand on that because I don't
know much about that, and oh yeah, well you got to look into
it. It's it's it's a really really interesting topic because right now the settlements
are coming down, right, and so there are a variety of settlements and
they're from a variety of organizations, right, So not only Perdue Pharma,
who is basically the brainchild of it, you know, and pushing this or
whatever, but then there's also distributors. There's also consultants and there's also you
know, all of these different entities, the pill mills, all these things
that all work together to push you know. Mcdoal County is like the very
classic winner. This is the family that's trying to not be held personally aponsible.
So when this meant, when they came up with this new and brilliant
new drug, they sold the bill of goods to doctors and their salespeople with
sales pitches that this was a great drug to treat pain. It's not addictive,
it's wonderful, your patients will be so much better off. And at
the time too, I think that was right around the time when we were
having pain as a vital sign. So there was this big push and they
the doctors thought that, oh this is great, my patients are doing better,
you know, and they prescribed it. The sales reps would come in
and they give free samples and all them sales kittens or something like that.
They can't do it anymore, but back in the day they could come in
with all kinds of drug stuff. Yeah, and you know, and they
champion. This was the beginning of the thirty day free trial thing, you
know what I mean, where you didn't have to pay for it, and
so they gave out all these packets free child free trials to these doctors.
So these doctors are like, well, we have this priest that this is
wonderful. You know, why suffer for nothing? Why should my patients have
to suffer if they don't need to write? And it was explicitly marketed as
non addictive. Oh okay, so doctors weren't limiting as you know, if
you still had pain, okay, I'll just keep prescribing. But they but
they is the charge against Perdue that they knew is that it has been proven
that they absolute and the reason why you really look into it, that's what
these lawsuits are that she was talking about. These settlements. People are winning
against the company, but the family who started at all is trying to shield
themselves from any fiscal responsibility. And the Supreme Court, as I have something
to say about the Spring Courts, well, but they put the kabash on
this kind of settlement with you know, for the Sackler family that they said,
oh okay, well we'll give you six billion dollars. Okay, we'll
give you six billion dollars, which is a drop in the bucket for the
Sackler right, if if we individually are shielded from any type of lawsuits in
the future, so individually as people, they're going to be fine, which
I mean that explains the comment in the Facebook live chat. Nick Murdoch said
Purdue is going to have to pay for what they did. The Sackler family
isn't going to have to pay for it though, so that makes sense.
Yeah, we have a call. Shannon is on the line. Hi,
Shannon, Hello, Jenny, Hey, And I'm sorry, ma'am I English
name, that's okay, Jody, Jody. Here's another end of the spectrum.
I have a friend of mine who has been at Cyper Center in New
Hampshire Hospital all those places they're for years, and something happens and they're bringing
whatever they snap and they end up at one of these places. But and
once these guys get you for ten days, they don't give you the medication
you take on a regular basis, So basically you're withdrawing. Then they let
you out. Then you just create more havoc because you're withdrawing, you know,
and you have to go back and it's it's it's like a vicious circle.
And I I guess the the PCPs don't have any say once you know,
the that establishment kids, you know, people as patients, right,
yeah, well there's a lot wrong with our healthcare system, and certainly in
the area of mental health, that's for sure. Yeah. I mean you'd
think, okay, well they've been good for the last nine years. They
must be doing something right and something just happened, so let's not take her
off, you know, but they do. Yep, yep, absolutely,
yeah, yeah, all right, I will let you go. All right,
Shannon, I'll be listening. Thank you, all right, thank you
for the call, and that does open up the line for you six zo
three two five O six zero seven six zo three two five OZHO six zero
seven if you would like to join the discussion. So just so I'm clear.
So, so the issue, the issue is not with the medication itself,
but Purdue knew that it was they knew that it was addictive, and
they lied, pushed it, pushed it, pushed it. I mean the
reason I bring up McDowell County specifically, I mean this is in West Virginia.
This is an area that is very economically disadvantaged. I mean, these
towns were built around coal, you know what I mean. And all that
kind of stuff. And now so here you you have kind of the perfect
the perfect storm to bring to bring in something that is going to, uh,
you know, alleviate people's pain in other ways, you know, economic
pain, in being disfinished and things like that. So taking advantage of a
situation where people are already down on their look and then you you know,
put it in there in you know, I mean, that was really the
I would I would think one of the first kind of bell weathers, you
know what I mean that that people were really it was brought to people's attention,
right right. How did you get involved in this issue specifically? What
is it that drives your passion for it? Yeah? I actually so my
kid's father, my fiance at the time this is coming up on fifteen years
ago, it'll be fifteen years on Christmas Eve, and he overdosed on heroin
in our bathroom on the other side of a closed door. I was a
person busting the door, be honest. I mean at this point, this
was brand new. I mean to me, I mean I think I might
have heard, I might have heard something here and there about you know,
the overdose crisis and things like that. But Honestly, at that point,
it was really not on my radar, and it was not on a lot
of people's radar. It was. It was really crazy to see, you
know, people coming in for his wake and his funeral who were just completely
shocked. You were just completely shocked. And then since then, I'll be
honest, I watch a lot of people, you know, man, I
could count off probably thirty thirty five people from my graduating class who who over
Heroin, Oxy's whatever it was. And uh, you know, it just
took everybody by storm. And uh so that's what really you know, so
that that's at the heart of it. But I didn't start really getting active
right away. Right, I thought we had that was right. Obama's getting
elected, Okay, Bama is talking about it on the national level, right,
and we're thinking, all right, well, everybody's going to be an
all hands on deck moment. Everybody's gonna rally, we're gonna figure this thing
out, and we're gonna take care of it, you know, And uh
no, I look back, you know, sixty seven eight years later and
realize it's getting worse and worse and worse, and clearly what we're doing is
wrong, you know. So That was really what got me looking into it
and figuring out, well, what are we doing and how should we actually
look at this, How should we actually approach this so that we're doing the
most to actually save lives. And honestly, at the end of the day,
when it comes down to the war on drugs and the criminalization, I
think that that has a large part to do with it. Now, I'll
tell you Corey. That was my fiance who passed. You know, Corey
was He was pulled over one day by the State Police. This is before
we anybody in our family even knew that he had a problem with her,
right and so he was pulled over by the state police. He had a
whole bunch of pills and he had heroin. And so I get that call.
I get that call from the State Police Police barracks. And I'll tell
you what that phone call sounded like. I have gotten a lot of gotten
probably more than my fair share of calls from jail, okay, just a
completely broken down man. And to hear kind of the way that he was
treated, you know, And I get it, right, I get it
on some level, okay, But to treat someone like that, and then
and then what he had was at first it was a fifteen year mandatory minimum.
Wow, fifteen year mandatory minimum is just the standard equation. Doesn't have
anything to do with his situation, doesn't have anything to do with him or
you know whatever, what kind of harm he would do or anything like that.
What it had to do with it was a standard equation. Yet this
many pills, yet, this many bag, this you know whatever, and
this is this is what that equals because this is just mandatory minimums, right,
That's how it is faceless. So can you imagine we had just had
our first son, okay, my son Corrado, and I was well,
actually at that point I didn't know I was. I was we were going
to have Benny, right, Benny wasn't wasn't a sparkle in my eye yet,
I like to say, you know, but just a couple of months
later found out that I was pregnant with Benny. So can you imagine,
like you're going through this situation and you're looking at having two children that you
are only going to see through glass for the next fifteen years, and then
we tell somebody, yeah, go better, go get better to go to
AA, go to your thirty meetings in thirty days, you know whatever,
and all these kind of things, and when somebody who is who is facing
that situation, especially Corey Man, he was just you know, that kind
of Italian family man, you know what I mean, I was like his
goal and here he is completely broken down from this situation. And then looking
at fifteen years, do you really think that that's going to help anybody in
that situation? Is that is he going to get better? Or are we
going to do okay in that situation? What is this helping? You know
what I mean? And so criminalization, I mean, I guess I have
a certain kind of chip on my shoulder about that feels what happens specifically with
Corey. But no, it needs to be treated as a health issue,
you know. And the more we dig digging our heels as this criminalization,
the worst it gets. We're seeing the numbers rise again, guys, I
mean yeah. And to top off the fact that it doesn't work, it
makes the rest of our world unsafe. It makes us less safe because we
have less room for actual violent offenders who have done horrible things physically to somebody
else or taken a life. We have overcrowded jails because we because we put
addicts in them. That is, that is a fact. That is a
fact up to anybody, any state, check out any penal system. There's
far more in there for drug charges than anything else. Nick Murdock in the
chat room says, and he's being sarcastic of course when he says this.
He says, yeah, but putting someone in jail for fifteen years on a
first offense is important so our private prisons can make money. That is,
that is a big part of the scam. I mean, that's and you
know that's. Uh. They're a very powerful lobby in Washington, the private
prison industry, and they're a big part of making sure that the war on
drugs continues. Yep, yep. We just had a m Were you there
for a jen What it was? Did you come for the rally at the
DA building in Arlington? Oh? When we were out there, No,
I was in with Mark I think I was in with Mark Lee's people when
you guys went there, I had to peel off. Yeah, we just
had so this is you know, with People's Action. We had our convention
there and uh, the last action of the day I was I was actually
got to be a part of the planning team for this, so I was
really really looking forward to it. And what we did was, you know,
we set up we had a memorial wall, you know, and had
speakers in a in a huge rally outside right outside the building. There were
some people who went in to deliver a letter. There are other people who
just stayed outside. And the people who went in came out and joined us
afterwards, but you know, right out on their front doorstep. This is
the fifty year anniversary of the d EA, right, so we wanted to
be there today. You know, fifty years of devastation, fifty years of
tearing communities and families apart. You know, no shade to anybody individually in
the day. I'm just saying, at the end of the day we put
these systems in place. It's like this day when we have the structure we
have to you know, that kind of stuff. But at the end of
the day, we put these systems in place, and then it just goes
it takes on a life of its own, you know. Yeah. Yeah,
Now are you in terms of the war on drugs itself or what would
you do? Because I know that for me and this is something I've discussed
with many people on the show over the years. You know, I I
dig the Portugal model, which I'm sure you're familiar with, where basically,
again, it's not it's not just making it's not making it a free for
all where just everything's legal still illegal to sell it. I believe in Portugal
you can't go out and sell it on the street. That's illegal. But
you're not going to prison if you're caught with something that you're maybe not supposed
to have because you have an addiction. In other words, you know,
they're treating addicts like they have a medical issue, not like criminals. And
that's basically it from my understanding of it. I mean, what's your Is
that kind of similar to what you would like to see happen here? Yeah,
and it's I'll tell you it's really interesting. We I'm on the Criminal
Justice Committee, right and so yeah, for the state of New Hampshire.
And what's what's interesting to me is, you know, we had we had
quite a few bills come in that we're around decriminalization, right and I am
for legalization regulation, uh that kind of thing, right, But certain bills
came in and they said, okay, well, we're just gonna take these
things, you know, we're just gonna do. One was just delete the
Control Drug Act, or there's another one that was just you know, completely
legalizing certain substances and whatever. And at the end of the day, ultimately,
I do think that that is the goal ultimately, but I think that
there has to be a system in place. So I am voting against these
things you know that are decriminalization, Whereas you know, I am very vocal
about the fact that I do think that it should be decriminalized, legalized,
but there has to be a system in place. We do have to make
sure shed there is something so that the the the purity, uh you know,
the potency of things, that we understand what's in it and things like
that. I do think that we need that. You know, it shouldn't
be for people who are under eighteen. I mean, there are you know,
certain things that we still have to have in place. We can't just
completely throw the whole thing out. So on the one hand, I say,
yes, yes we should. Well let me just put it this way.
I did vote for cannably cannabis legalization across the board, basically just taking
that out that was for people over eighteen. Yes, yes, I'm for
that Yeah, with marijuana, go for it. But I'm glad. I'm
glad you explained all that because, like I said earlier, you know,
when you say, you know, if you say you opposed the war on
drugs, people get these wild ideas that that don't comport with what what we're
actually talking about. Our friend Ron is online. Hey Ron? Yes,
and and uh, well what a topic. I wanted to ask your guests.
Now that you know it's it's already happened. Does she think that there
were signs that she missed? I mean, I guess if you're in you
know, person takes heroin unless I've just taken mild amounts, it's a noticeable
thing and effects us so much. I don't know looking back at it.
Do you think there were signs and then she just missed them? Oh?
Absolutely absolutely, Ron. It's funny. I was actually just talking about talking
about this with somebody else. I think I was just kind of you know,
do wide and and you know, it's it's interesting because there were definitely
things that I noticed that were odd, you know what I mean. It's
amazing to me to think that I didn't understand. I just did not even
connect that, you know, he's nodding off. We know that most people
now you say nodding off, and they know exactly what that means. First
in here watching this, and I'm thinking, what's wrong with you? Man?
You know what I mean? Like, I just you know, think
the kind of little little things that you know, I knew, you know,
things weren't he wasn't being completely honest with me, and I would interpret
them in different ways. I thought this man was cheating on me. If
you knew our relationship, you'd be laughing right now. You know. About
the money, yeah, yeah, it was there. You know, did
that show up? You know, and that's that's a deficiencies, you know,
not enough on the account and the money. Yeah, spending was like
wow, what it go? You know? Yeah, it was pretty quickly
like it was. It was right towards the end that he essentially put me
in charge of the money and that was part of kind of him trying to
hold himself accountable. Yeah, and you know, we did have there was
I think one maybe maybe one more where it was just like, oh I
had to take out this money to do this, and blah blah blah and
kind of you know, just covering it up and away and coming up with
stuff and I'm looking at him like, I know when this guy's not telling
me the truth, you know what I mean. But I didn't have kind
of I didn't have the context to be able to understand why. Yeah,
you know, how about you and your kids today? Yeah, you guys,
you sound like you really got it together. You know, your kids
are good and that kind of stuff fog. You know, you'll never get
tasted. But yet you know, with education you are, you're that much
stronger and better off than you were. Yeah, I think, I mean,
you know, we are doing all right. My boys are fourteen and
fifteen now. Still just sounds crazy to say that. And we just had
you know, we just had the Overdose Awareness Day vigil. There was one
and conquered and uh we and you know, we had one in Keen and
to see my son there, you know, my one of my sons didn't
didn't come down for it. But you know, here's my son and he's
sitting there, he's standing there with a Corey's mom and a candle and you
know that kind of stuff. And my kids, listen, My youngest was
born two and a half weeks after Corey passed, so wow Pool boy.
It was a lot, you know, and so what I what I say
honestly is that my kids, my kids grieved with me, you know,
unfortunately they that was the way it had to be. You can't just say,
Okay, I'm gonna take this time. I'm going to set myself aside
and you know, do all this thing. And you know, there were
a lot of things that I did during that time, and you know,
really trying to get through things, you know, and really honestly trying to
impress upon my kids Corey's real character, his true character, you know what
I mean, because you know what the stigma is. And you know,
when they get old enough, they're gonna they're gonna encounter that, you know.
So I did these things like I would just tell stories and stories and
stories, and I just because I wanted them to know who their dad was.
You know, Coado was it, you know, a year old a
little over a year old when he passed, but an he wasn't even born
yet, you know, yeah, And it was amazing to me at one
point, I did you able to find out how I got started? I
mean, you know it's just a recreation thing, or do you find out
how to get started. Yeah, we actually we had lived out in California
for a while. We lived out in the Bay Area, and you know
for the two well, I had lived there for two years before that,
maybe two and a half years before that. He had lived there for a
little bit longer and my brother both moved out there together, and so when
we were out there, we just we just happened to have a connect.
And you know, we were recreational drug users. You know, I don't
know every you know, different people might have their different standards and things like
that, but we we we did use substances as uh, you know,
an experience and Hanser you know that. So there was already kind of that
foot in the door. Now when I became pregnant, that's it. That's
biological imperative. And believe me, I don't I'm not shaming anybody who has
trouble doing that. But fortunately I was able to just cut it off and
be done right. Good Corey on the other hand, because I don't want
to, you know, be a radio hog, but I can say that
probably h and be positive. It seems like everybody knows someone who's has passed
away because of an OD. I know, two people, clearly. One
of them was a straight a student. He hung out with some kids.
They partied, and it wasn't done just rowing. It had to get the
fence and all or whatever. The other kids were able to get help,
and they you know, they knock hand them. But this one particular kid,
he decided to not hang out with the crowd and he was walking home.
So therefore he when you know, when the old took place, you
know, he was all by himself. And uh and that's just like I
said, I know two people. I know two people. I know one
girl. So her parents were loaded and they put her in every treatment center
they could. And I saw her at a company picnic on a Sunday and
she was bragging how she's clean and sober and feeling good. Monday she wasn't
with us. So, oh god, it's like everybody knows somebody absolutely absolutely
all right, Ron, Well yeah, yeah, God bless you and your
family and and everybody else that's listening, you know. All right, thanks
guys, all right, Ron, thank you for the call. Bye bye
bye. Always nice to hear it from our friend. Ron. That does
open up the line for you if you'd like to join the discussion six zo
three two five zero six zero seven six O three two five zero six o
seven. Are you in your first term as a state rep? Yeah?
Okay, yeah, what what drove you to run? I assume this was
one of the issues, right, yep, Yeah, so you know this,
money in politics, healthcare, there are a lot of them, reproductive
friends, Chez. We've seen what's happening with that. You know, there
are a variety of issues, but I would say that the ones that that
I feel like I'm most valuable, you know that I can be most helpful
in are in substitute and recovery and things like that, and you know,
healthcare, reproductive. So yeah, I my my representative was stepping down,
which is funny because now they redistricted. He's not even in my destoy anymore.
But you know, he was thinking about it. I had run for
city council the year before. There's you know, and had been involved with
you know, the Democratic Party, and you know a variety of different things.
I've been an activist, you know, so I've been involved in politics
as as an activist and advocate. You know, however, you wanted to
find those things. So I had already kind of been involved. So when
Sparky was was stepping down, he said, you know, if you're going
to run, that would make me feel a lot better about stepping down.
Yeah, all right, cool sounds good. And so yeah, and I
actually got elected. Surprise, PRIs we have a call. I think this
is I think this is Charles from Florida. Charles is that you? Yeah,
that's me. How are you doing? Hey? You good? How
are you? How bad? First off, Joey is right, all right,
Joey. First off, my condolences feel loss. I know it was
probably a while ago, but my mom passed away twenty years ago and she
was on I would say at least more than a dozen medications from anything from
diabetes to liver failure or kidney failure, just a whole bunch of stuff like
that. I want to ask your opinion in regards to over medicating and doctors
over medicating patients. Do you feel that's an issue going on where they're just
offering drugs to counter the effects of other drugs and other stuff like that,
or do you think that you know where you know that there's nothing really going
on like that. Yeah, I mean, I I let me put it
this way. I haven't really heard a lot from people who are who are
experiencing that. Right, it's not something that I necessarily am aware of with
my constituents coming and talking to me about it or anything like that. That's
not to say that I don't think it's an issue. I'm just saying that,
you know, as far as people reaching out to me particularly, it's
not something that I've necessarily heard in Keen or in Chester County or something like
that, but I understand that it does happen. I would argue that actually,
doctors are less inclined to over medicate in this day and age because they've
been under threat of arrest not just from federal agencies but also state agencies in
previous legislation. So doctors, especially when it comes to older folks, want
to keep that person comfortable, not in pain, able to breathe without having
to struggle with it. And sometimes those medications can look like it's a lot,
but it really isn't. You're not they're not knocking them down. They're
they're lessening their pain, They're making it easier for them to breathe, They're
making it easier for them to be comfortable. That's the object that's the main
goal is to keep that person comfortable and conscious and alert with their family for
as long as humanly possible. When when end of life occurs, the medications
that are given then they're certainly not to knock the person out and not have
them accessible to their family, but to ease their suffering and to help them
have a you know, have care with dignity. Well, it's a great,
great question, not Charles anything to add. Yeah, on top of
that too, kind of like the opinion, Like every other commercial we see
on TV, it's about a brand new drug with like seven thousand side effects?
Do do do you consider that? I mean to me personally, I
get that there's benefits of these drugs, and you know they're not just going
out there and advertising something illegal. But I just feel like it's like the
last thing you hear on these things is why don't you ask your doctor about
this? And there was some there was a comedian that made a point this
is like, you know there's a new drug. Do you go to sleep
at night and wake up in the morning, Well, there's a drug for
you? Like, is it getting too crazy out there where I personally think
they should be illegal if I had my brothers, I wouldn't allow drugs to
advertise. No, they don't do that in other country. No, they
don't. They don't know it is I mean it's no, it's of course
it should. I mean it's just crazy to be marketing. I'm in the
middle of Amsterdam. Guess what. I didn't see drug ads anywhere ever,
like, and people think of that as a place where there's and it really
isn't it really isn't. Yeah, I honestly and truly believe that these pharmaceutical
companies being allowed to market to people the way that they do, they make
them nervous, They make them scared, They terrify them from taking a medication
that could truly save their lives or help them. If I had my choice,
I would make it one hundred percent illegal for these companies to be able
to do the advertising crap that they do that causes more harm than it could
ever cause in good and healthcare. Are all right, guys, that's all
I have. Thank you, all right, Charles. We appreciate the call.
Thank you absolutely good. Topics all right, that opens up the line
for you. Six zo three two five six seven six zo three two five
six zero seven it's gonna hear from Charles because now we have proof of life
that he did. In fact us survived last hurricane flooding. Yeah. Yeah,
Florida's got issues, Yes, big issues. Usheating bacteria up on the
shore, lepers, Yeah, we have a leprosy outwork have not been spread
by the mosquitoes. I'm not making this out. I guess there must be
so much of a stench down there that No'm only kiddingly kidding. Nick Murdoch
said in the chat room. As I understand it, the side effects given
are anything anybody reports during the testing phase, so that's percent true. So
if somebody has a headache, it goes down as a side effect, even
if the headache was caused by something else than the medication. That said,
yes absolutely drug commercials sepsis pointed out in the chat room too. I think
this is regarding the marketing of those drubs. They find a weakness and market
it. But that's the American way. Everyone and everything is a market.
Or create a weakness, you know what I mean, like, or create
the perception that something is wrong. You know, worst part about it,
Oh that's something you know, make you feel self self conscious about something or
make you feel like you were deficient in some way. You don't need their
products with medicine. Yeah, yeah, have you noticed baggy eyes? Have
you made freaking trips? I'm getting to that age now, all of you
algorythms that I'm I'm getting drunk. Seriously, our culture is terrible when I'm
telling you healthcare. No, our friend Ron is back on the line.
Hi, Ron, Hi, I just got one question and I'll take the
answer off the year. Yes, how did Florida slip through the cracks with
the the pharmacies if you just told them, yeah, I got a bad
back. You know, they were they were distributing hey jellus, and it
took forever to crack down, and and I think you know it's under control
now. But I mean, how did they slip through the cracks? It
was just almost I don't think they would be slipping through the cracks. I
think it was a listen. Yeah, no, you know, I'll let
it go and I'll just listen, all right, Thanks, Ron, appreciate
the call. Well, if that would happen anywhere, it would be Florida.
Oh yeah, no kidding. I'm trying to see if I can find
an article on what he was saying. Yeah, I mean some states are
going to have stricter laws than others, but of course has federal laws on
all of this, right, I mean, Okay, so there's an agreement
with CVS Walgreens in Walmart. I wonder if this is part of what he
was talking about. Are the first multi state settlements to hold chain pharmacies a
carnival for their failure to intervene in prescription abuse and drug diversion. In other
words, they'd hand out any prescription. So then so so what that's probably
what he's talking about, I bet. And the something to that is that
that pharmacists were not conferring with the doctor that the prescription was accurate. And
now write aid this is it is so sting at the whole thing, so
now write it. What they do is they will change their headquarters to a
place where they have a sympathetic judge or judges in somebody's pocket or whatever.
They will go to that place Texas apparently that's where it is, So they
will put their headquarters there and then they will claim bankruptcy. I'm sure there's
much more detail than I'm leaving out of this. Very basically they'll declare bankruptcy.
And then once they're bankrupt, then they have less money to be part
of this, to be part of the settlement. Right then they're claiming less
money. And that's what's happening with wright AID right now. So a lot
of these have already settled, a lot of these the chains have already settled.
But now I just saw that like two days ago or something like that.
Right AID is trying to get away with it so that they won't have
to, Oh, okay, contribute enough as much money to the abatement.
Okay, I have to read this comment on Nick Murdock and the chat says,
although drug commercials have given us some awesome ads, like a group of
men driving out to a secluded location to hang out together and sing about how
much they love viagra, I think i've seen that at I know what I
need to find one. There is there that it might be. It's a's
it could be an actual ad though I've seen, you know, on cable
news late at night they have some there. There was one I saw once
and I I think I remember what the medication was, but I'm not gonna
say it because I'm not sure. But you know, I It kind of
got my attention because so I struggle with depression. I don't take any medication
for it, but but I do remember seeing an ad once for depression and
when it got to the part of the end where it lists of side effects,
one of the side effects was may cause suicidal ideations. Yeah, and
that really jumped out of me because I'm thinking, well, if if I
am to go on something, I think the idea is to, you know,
try to keep myself from killing myself. And one of this side effects
of this medication is it might make me kill myself. And that really just
kind of struck me as well. It didn't turn me onto the idea of
going on a medication for it, that's for sure. It's like, oh,
there's something that can go wrong there. So now, are you hopeful
that we're ever going to get to full legalization on cannabis in New Hampshire because
it is embarrassing right We're surrounded by states and Canada where it's fully legal,
but in the Liffrey or Die State, we just can't seem to get there.
You're here. I voted for every cannabis legalization, I even co sponsored
one. It wasn't the one that I even wanted to pass at the end
of the day, but but it was one. So what we have right
now is they came up with a commission. There's commissions and committees, and
I always get them mixed up. That came up with a commission, I
think it is for it's the Commerce Committee, part of the Commerce Committee,
and this is about cannabis legalization. So last year we passed man, I
want to say, two or three bills we passed them, including the outright
legalization for anybody over eighteen. I was very happy I got to do the
floor speech for that. Lick it up. It was fun anyway, and
and even the majority of the House passed that. But then it gets to
the Senate. Yep, that's where it always gets on ye and it goes
down in the center, even when it was a Democratic majority. That's what
blows my mind. Yeah, you know, but I mean it's not now,
but I remember a few years ago and it was a Democratic majority and
it's still that voted down. I'm like, oh, guys, what are
we doing anyway, So they put together this this commission so that they're going
to go through things with fine toothcomb. I think that that's starting up this
this week. It might be next week. I got the you know,
I get the notices for it because I did sign on to that other legalizlation
bill. But and then what they're coming out with this is it's basically bounded
determined to pass it next year. So the the idea is to come up
with some type of solution that is compromised that everybody can get on board with
and so that we can legalize next end. Now when in what form that
comes out, I don't necessarily know. It sounds to me like like there's
very slim chances that homegrow is going to be included in that. Okay,
that's one thing I'm a little bit disappointed about. It sounds like it's going
to go through the state liquor stores, state liquor Commission. Yeah, it's
gonna be added in in that way, isn't Isn't that what's the new news
said? Because he's changed his mind on this right to the extent that he
said he is for the first time I think recently, didn't he say he
actually is willing to sign something in terms of legalization. But that's the thing.
If it goes through the liquor Commission. Is that the condition? Yeah,
yeah, they want it sold out of the liquor stores. Yeah,
yeah, yeah, well, I mean it's it's something it's well you can
remember, yes, Well, now the Liquor Commission is the olden goose of
New Hampshire. You can't. They need to make as much money as they
possibly can make. Yeah, they're the most profitable industry in this state.
Yep mm hmmmmmm. Well yeah, always be a controlled state. I don't
think that'll ever end, because it's not even I mean, legalization isn't even
uh that politically risky anymore, right, because I think recent polling data shows
a majority of Republicans at this point support legalization or at the very or at
the very least decriminalization. I mean, even even some except the people that
stand to lose profit. Now well yeah, yeah, no, I know,
but but I'm just talking. I'm just talking politically. Even very conservative
people at this point, if you say, should we really be putting prison
and people for pot, They'll say, well, no, not really,
we probably shouldn't. I'm just saying I have gotten some u there are groups,
there are individuals who definitely are out there advocating that there are harmful effects
to cannabis, and and that you know, criminalization is you know, I'm
sorry that legalization would be detrimental and these kind of things or whatever. So
there are people who are fighting against it. It's a very small minority minority.
They don't have a lot of data to use to prove their point because
you look at every state that's legal and that didn't happen. Yeah, well,
the exact mongering doesn't happen in these other states. Exactly. The links,
Guys, when somebody puts the citations in it, click the links and
actually read their research, the report that it is, the study that it
is. Because once you actually it just not even dig below the surface.
Just click on the link and read the study, you know, and it's
very interesting. These things fall apart pretty quick. Well, when somebody tells
me too, they oppose it because when they, you know, bring that
argument that it's it can be harmful and whatnot, you know, it's sort
of to me they're coming at it from a position that pre supposes that once
you legalize it, you're going to dramatically increase the number of people who are
doing it, which I find absurd. I mean, I can tell you
when I was in high school. You know, I never I never smoked
it, but my friends who did, you know, none of them were.
Well, let me put it this way, I didn't know anybody who
wanted to but wasn't because they were worried because it was illegal. Well i'd,
yeah, i'd, i'd, i'd smoke with my friends, but it's
illegal, you know, like nobody, nobody thinks about it that way in
those terms. So I don't. And I have heard people say that way
back when, because I think Massachusetts was one of the first states to decriminalize
back in the day, and I remember a lot of people saying that when
they of course, now it's fully legal there, But when they decriminalized,
I remember people observing that it was sort of a de facto legalization because all
of a sudden, when law enforcement, like in Boston, which is obviously
a big college town in Boston, when police could no longer arrest people for
it, but could only issue a citation to them, it just became like,
just why I haven't bother So it was sort of a de facto legalization
in a sense. And I suppose that's probably the same here. But still
it would be nice to get the criminal justice system out of that completely.
Well, I thought it was interesting. We lived out in California for a
little while, and you know, we knew a lot of people who grew
and things like that. Yeah, but in Oakland proper. So California had
been legal since nineteen ninety six, I want to say, so for quite
a long time. Well they were, they were the first day had to
go legal, right, Yeah. And so one thing that I thought was
interesting it was still technically what was it they decriminalize about it? It technically
wasn't you were supposed to have a medical cannabis card. Did but you know,
you're supposed to have a cannabis card and things like that, and so
they would have these uh. They in Oakland City Council they actually passed a
measure that was to say that anything cannabis related was the lowest possible priority.
I mean, passing a measure measure just to make sure to say that,
like we have bigger fish to fry. I mean, yeah, Well,
I'm glad you brought that up too, because I've heard a lot of people
in law enforcements say that regardless of how they feel about it personally, they
it would probably be a better allocation of resources for law enforcement just generally if
they didn't have to waste their time, you know, if they find I
mean, obviously there's always discretion. You don't just because you find somebody with
something that our elected lawgivers and overlords as I like to call them have deemed
that they're not allowed to have. It doesn't mean you have to arrest them.
You can just say, hey, go home, don't do that out
in the open or whatever. But but if they if there were not resources
devoted to that, that might be even better because then law enforcement could work
on, you know, solving actual crime like you know, murders and burglaries
and rapes and whatever else, instead of having to chase down, uh,
you know, people with cannabis. So that's always been my my big arguments
in favor of legalization. We are we are approaching the top of the hour.
Jody, what what? What didn't we talk about that you want to
make sure people know about and any resources that you want people to know about
online websites and where they can find you social media, any of that.
Yeah, well, you can find a campaign page. It's a oh what
is it? Jody Newell for Keen Jody k Newell for Keen. I like
to throw in the cake because I'm named after my great aunt. She was
badass. But okay, yeah I notice on Facebook or go to kan Yeah
yeah, I always throw it in there. Yeah, But let me see
things that I really wanted to talk about. What I'm really focused on right
now is we have the abatement funds, you know, and this is like,
you know, from these settlements that are coming down, and so New
Hampshire and New Hampshire actually did a really really great job before I was even
you know, in the legislature or anything like that, setting establishing a commission
and you know, basically saying this must be used for this and other states,
believe me, it's just kind of like a free for all in other
states and other counties and municipalities. Is there's different levels of how that comes
down. And so my big thing right now is UH is really bringing people
who are directly affected to the table into the conversation so that we actually do
the best thing that we possible, the best that we possibly can and save
the most lives. Right now, the commission is focused on recovery housing,
which is something that we've been lacking for such a long time to talk about
I mean, cull it sober houses, but I you know, I'm not
a big fan of that, of that terminology, but recovery housing, and
we really need to increase access. So right now the Abatement Commission is putting
out a request for grant applications for recovery housing, you know, things where
we can where we can expand capacity. And I'm working on some things that
I'm hoping can increase accessibility. So they're trying to fund people to fund the
organizations that are putting, you know, starting a recovery house. And what
I'd really like to do is focus on making it so that it is affordable
and people can actually get into those houses. So once we have the capacity,
who can actually be there? You know, so for example, Medicaid
covering it, you know what I mean, I think that would be wonderful.
We're talking about a health issue. We're trying to change the dynamic here.
We're trying to change the stigma. We're trying to change the way that
we look at it. Why don't we actually go full more? My mom
was just in the hospital. Who was it? I'm blanking on the guy
who held in earlier. But the guy who called in from Florida talking about
how its done a whole bunch of things, right, yea, So it
is my mom. She's dealing with it with a bunch of you know,
health issues and things like that. She had a major stroke that happened when
she when she was in the hospital, she was ready to leave the hospital.
She went to a rehabilitation facility. She went to a place because she
wasn't able, she wasn't ready yet to go home and you know, be
in a stable position and be you know, recovered well enough from the stroke.
This is the same type of situation as somebody who's dealing going through recovery.
Yeah, you can go to a detox, you can go to a
rehab You're a you're in a kind of a bubble, right, You're not
really going out and doing everything you need to have that other step, This
is the other step that people can still be going out and living their lives,
still be going to works, to have their family and all that kind
of stuff, still be kind of in the community and transitioning to a fully
recovered state. So I think that not only doesn't just make sense in the
broader span but it's reframing the issue as one that is a health and this
is the continuum of care that we need to include in that and of course
medicaid. Who should govern it because at the end of the day, if
people can't afford to pay for it, and we do have wonderful programs,
we have the doorway. Well sometimes give two weeks, grant for two weeks
for people to be able to be in recovery housing. Two weeks is not
enough, right right, Yeah, So I'm working on and I'm trying to
work on things from you know, from the other end of the spectrum,
from the ground up. Excellent. So anybody who wants to reach out to
me about that, that's what I'd really really like to work on. So
if anybody's interested in that, please reach out to me. You can find
my campaign page, like I said, Jody k Newell at uh Jody k
Newell for Keen. So you'll you'll be running for re election obviously, Yeah,
excellent, good, good for you. Good for you. By the
way, Keen, do you do you do you deal much with the free
staters out there? Hey my neighbors, you mean, yeah, you know
what? I like them? Well, I like them, I don't agree
on a lot of suf Well, I was going to say, though there
is common there is there is common ground there in terms of the war on
drugs. Oh yes, they actually so, they put out a gold standard
and this is you know, as you're coming in a variety of organizations that
are going to give you this, this is how we want you to vote
on bills based on, you know, our perspective. If you agree with
us, these are the bills and this is why. And you know it's
all all liberty, liberty minded, you know, the liberty line. And
they actually supported, came in and testified, and they put it on the
gold standard. For my I had one bill that was decriminalizing fentanyl test trips.
At the end of the day, what my bill originally was was to
was to decriminalize testing and analyzing equipment. Because yes, people like New Hampshire
Harm Reduction God Blessing, they'll go out and mail hand out fentyl test trips
and things like that, and it's legal for them to do so. But
if you, as an individual user is carrying one of those, or just
a person who thinks that it's a good idea to have that on them,
like naloxone or you know, something like that. Even if I'm not using
I'm going to take it just in case, dig with me, just in
case I can be helpful to somebody else. Right, if you're stopped with
that, that can be that can be held against you, No kidding,
federally state or now not anymore. The governor actually signed off on it.
Now, what I originally said was testing and analyzing, removing testing and analyzing.
What the compromise ended up being in the Senate and all that kind of
stuff was just taking fentanel test trips and now xylazine test trips, which fortunately
had just come out, was decriminalizing those. So okay, we got a
little bit, we got a little bit of what it was a bare minimum
in the first place. But we also have another bill that's coming up that's
more comprehensive, and I'm I'm going to be on the sun Committee for that,
and I'm hoping that we can that we can pass that as well.
Excellent. So yeah, so they backed up my bill. Hey, hey,
plet to back up my bill sounds absolutely absolutely wonderful. All right,
Well, Jody, thank you and Jenny, thank you for bringing in this
wonderful guest. This is great. Thanks for having me. Oh absolutely,
Jody Kay Newell the absolutely, thank you so much, and uh for those
of you. For the rest of you stick around, We've got Eric Pilter's
classic film review. We're going to go to that right now with whoops and
something else is playing. I have some other audio going here. Sorry,
uh, and this is uh the nineteen seventy three film The Crazies, directed
by George George ar Ram George A. Romero. I can remember, and
then Jenny and I'll be back after this. Don't go away. Plenty more
to come. We never thought it would happen. Nobody gets in or out
of that town? Is that clear? The girls just died. How do
you intend to let the people know about all this? We were asleep.
They dragged us right out of the house. Are we under martial law?
They'll talk to me or anybody else to list you get a voice print check.
Oh knows Proclusen town. Nobody knows what's going on now. Look,
you just can't push us around this way. We've got to get a nuclear
weapon in the air above that town. But what the hell's going on?
Share? You know what I new boy let's go Hi, taking me new
push. Oh man, they started something they can't stop about crazy. There's
something that comments, something that inclames, something that brugal. It's madness unleashed
by human error, the crazy. Can they tame it before time runs out?
I'm a key man on the Christian team, a key man. I'm
one of the developers of that goddamn thing. Now, if you want me
to get the job done, you get me the stuff I needed. You
get the hell a m before the morning over, a small town becomes a
giant stock aide. Evans City must be contained or leveled. We're of concerned
with Evans City, mister hawks. If we have to push the button,
we just say the weapon went off. Get me the President. Three thousand,
six hundred and fourteen people are trapped by an unknown enemy. Five are
on the run. Can they escape the spreading fury of the crazies? You
can make it. I know it. They're coming, David, David,
They're coming to move. We've gotta get out of your pieces. Man,
didn't I want a weaponster So the entire time, this is exactly the kind
of thing with trying to prevent a lethal terror. Snowballs into hell either madness
runs repons we'll dope it out soon earlier, so Earl really the crazy.
It is my belief for horror films to succeed in scaring the viewer, the
evil or villain must be something born out of a real fear. This week's
film combines many multiple fears that we all have biochemical weapons, a major sickness
in the government overreaching in declaring martial law. In our first film honoring George
A. Romero this month, The Crazies was released in nineteen seventy three.
This film takes us to Evans City, Pennsylvania, where a government developed biochemical
weapon codenamed Tricksy has contaminated the town's water supply following an accident. This causes
those infected with the virus to become crazed maniacs before dying. Our first two
scenes will explain the power of the weapon. First, one of the chief
developers of Trixie, doctor Watts, played by Richard French, explains what Trixy
does to its victims and how dangerous it is. Then we hear fighting between
two members of the National Guard that have been sent to quarantine this small town.
Major Writer and Colonel Peckham. They are arguing over what action to take
in the town. These two scenes develop the danger that Trixie is and also
show us a major thread in most of George A. Romero's films, that
is the struggle for control in catistrophic circumstances. That is not evident in just
these two clips, but it is evident throughout the entire film. We don't
have to worry about its being spread by the dog circats or sort of a
consolation that may be to you, that's there any that monkeys hereabouts? The
only ones infect it will be human beings if we catch it in the early
stages. Can it be reversed? Oh? We searched for amount of the
other three years that project was an existence, doctor, No, guys,
how many virgin or e Sorry, don't you know? Underforment? Doctor?
Watch you have a call in the commanders. Yet they told me I could
use the radio on the plane, but it wasn't played through you. What
are you calling you? You're all in a network using the ultimates to avoid
any chance of the leap by precious security. Keep it under wraps it all
costs. Meanwhile, do you realize the blunder that's been made. We can
have you flown back as those who run a complete medcheck and get a clearance
from bussing. That's get started. If you don't have all our equipmenting,
Beautiful, I'm unlife as soon as possed appropriately vague, Colonel, Look,
it's your fake boys who created this thing in the press, Beautiful. I'm
one of the only chances we have. I can't get back to a lab
because you're not equipped to run a medical check, which we wouldn't eat in
the first place. I hadn't have packed up here. The whole operation is
one fat blunder. You talk about blunders. According to the report from your
team, the virus was considered an active said, yes, that's the important
word. Any man on a team of lady that means ninety nine percent.
Maybe that's a standard we don't set, Colonel, that's set by them military.
We're not getting anywhere. Triangle assign Blake and authorizes me back to the
lab. I can't take a chance on breaking the perimeter with somebody that might
be a carrier. Trixie's been in these waters for six days. Some truck
driver could have taken it out of here long before you set up that perime.
Well, we're going to the assumption we've got it container, and then
we want to keep it contain until it runs its course. Its course.
You said it can't stay active in the annultra violet. Yes, it's in
the water man run in the ground. And it's obviously people too. People
are vectors. They carry it about with them unawares the incubation TOI. You
may vary, colonel, but about them, a trixie is gonna spread throughout
this entire town. The town is sealed off. Oh incredible. Look.
Shortly before the funds ran off, two of my technicians caught this bug from
Maurice's monkey. One of them was delirious for two days before he finally died.
The other phased in and out until he finally went hopelessly mad. Those
are the two ultimate effects of this thing. It's not just gonna run its
course and be forgotten. How the hell are you guys gonna explain away a
pound it's either wiped out or reduced to mindlessness. What is this another piece
of information they've got to pass on you guys. Oh, gentlemen, we're
not dealing with a flu virus here. We're dealing with an often lethal,
always debilitating, and syphletic mutation leaves its victims either dead. I'm curably mad
you got that in now fighting between Colonel Peckham in Major Watts. Yeah.
I want to set up a second perimeter and the inside line will continue the
moving towards the downtown area, bringing everything they find with them. I want
the second perimeter two miles inside the first. There's too much speciould be called
a no man's land. Nothing can stay on it, no one can cross
it. Talking about an awful lot of evenstor Well, we'll just have to
get them in here. What do we have now? I've company? Why
did this get down to the last minute? These the plumbert you have been
raid them over here? The initial information was that the vaccine was harmless.
Do you mean they didn't take any precautionary action routing procedure? I got here
the day of the crash, playing went down in these hills above the town.
Investigators reported that the casings wound up in the river. Apparently the water
flows through an underground reservoir, and Evans City is applied with artesian systems out
of that. So I stayed in town or fire. The police and the
town doctor to be on the alert for a high fever sentence of delirium.
Sir. The report was that the Trixie team had deactivated the baser. Trixie
wasn't developed as a vaccine. Trixie was developed as a bacteriological weapon. I
spoke Colm Central, calling Colonel Peckham Colm Central. Colonel peckis specam, Yes,
sir, we have completed your voiceprint check weekend. Let you speak black
cock one whom when we knew the black og was to avoid embarrassment, but
a bio weather never occurred to me. I felt for that storybook line and
sinker that was the idea matter. Colonel Peckham an any's first name Christopher Chris
Chris, Uh, this is Brubaker, Chris. Glad you're there, major
writers. A competent man and a good officer. But I get the feeling
he's hitting the panic but a little too prematurely, mister Brewbak. I wanted
to real evaluate, mister Brubek. I really like out there, mister Browbaker.
I running out of time now. If you want me to get the
job done, you get me the stuff I need, and you get it
back Ellenay Boy in the morning sopa where. What made Romero not just a
horror film maestro but a film directoral maestro is his ability to show the darkness
of humanity amongst chaos. While viewing this film, I found it to be
rife with disturbing cinematography. The opening scene is a man that, while being
crazed, burns down his home with no provocation, with his children preparing for
bed. The residents turn on each other, with it being unknown if it
is due to the virus or fear. That is one way out of many
that Romero is truly one of the greatest. These last two clips show that
darkness and chaos. First, we hear the struggle between the town and National
Guard when the mayor confronts Peckham right before martial laws declared. Then, once
martial laws declared, the town people are gathered up by force. What makes
this scene harrowing is the fact that you can hear the fear and confusion of
the townspeople. Another trick is the ones gathering the people, their voices are
muddled. This was intentionally done by Romero to show the confusion the government throws
at its people during times of unmitigated chaos. Now you listen to me.
Rider Buck's been telling me what's going on here tonight. Well, I don't
mind telling you that I might be done. I'm pushed around like this,
or I know. We just had no way of preparing anybody. It's got
a snowball on us and we were forced to take action. Now you said
it would never come to this. Look, we've cooperated with you. We've
attempted to keep this thing quiet in order not to create a panic. But
Chris Wing never expected this. Neither did we s we're trying to get everyone
into the high school, setting up an Intermary. There are we under martial
law? Yes, sir, well, let me tell you something. You
just can't walk all over the people of Evan City that easy, Major,
and as mayor of this town, I'm protesting your action. In fact,
I'd like to speak to somebody higher up, an attorney. Sir. We
can't let the mean. I don't know how long this quarantine will be in
affair. I'm talking about the lives of listeners into this city. We're also
talking about the lives of many of our own men. Sir, Well,
you're men or you're were we started the people of this town and live major
inst major riity with cal Peckham. I'll take help me service, sir.
At the Interstate Highway, one of the trucks flew up with massive filters.
They have a line of men hurt any civilian casual three night, sir.
Now you just listen to me, mister. In addition to being mayor of
this town, I also happened to be a practicing attorney, and I know
the rights of civil laws. Shut and I want a weaponsters for the entire
town. Yes, that stares included. Confiscate everything. Hold on just a
minute. I'm demanding a rid of habeus car sirff. I've got to take
your weapons now, you just hold off. Don't you get them to him?
You don't have to give them to him. Look, you just can't
push us around this way, don't you do it? Fu me. Finally
martial law takes over the town. I'm gonna listen up, listen up,
twison up. Quarantine, you'll go all under martial law. Will take that
all over the high school. We'll explain it to you over there, explain
it to you over hey. Hey, fine, aren't there, aren't you
tell me what this is all about maybe on the walk, break with you?
What do we want? Work out? Please tell me what they're doing?
Crazy play? How do you tell Mary? But where are we going?
What do I I got? What's cool? Young? What's time?
A question that you might be asking is why did I choose this film first?
Well? I felt this film takes all the elements that George A.
Romero does an exemplary Java, showing people fighting against government control, the unraveling
of humanity amongst chaos, in the battle between science and control by force.
They are all here and presented in a manner that leaves its impression on a
viewer for all time. I wish I could tell you that this film was
a major success, that it won awards, that people fawned over it.
It didn't happen. This film was a box office disaster. It was released
between Marrow's zombie masterpieces, which we will cover later this month, Night of
the Living Dead and Dawn of the Dead. Note there were also two other
films, There Will Always Be Vanilla and the Season of the Witch. We're
also released in between those two heavily favored films. Since being a meteoric box
office failure, much like many of Romero's other films. It has gained a
major cult following and an appreciation amongst not just horror fans, but cinophiles in
general. It even received a remake in two thousand and nine given the pandemic
that the country has endured with COVID. This film digs at the scars of
those memories, but that should not drive you away from viewing this film,
because, after all, that is what horror is for, to have our
darkest fears in memories be realized and come to the surface. I hope you
joined me next week when we will continue our month long tribute to George A.
Romero when we look at Him and Stephen King joining forces for the nineteen
eighty two anthology film Creep Show for WMNH and Matt Connerton Unleashed. This has
been a classic film review with Eric Pilcher les Okay, come on down to
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WMNH rip the Novels. I don't do the drugs, so I've got no
friends to WHOA. I don't get invited to any parties of women ignore me.
I don't even have a real job. Yeah. I've heard some people
say drugs are cool, but they are wrong. Some of them are dead
wrong. W n n h rip the Novels. Welcome back everybody, as
we are well in our number two New Merrow dose of Matt Connerton Unleashed and
we are live from the studios of wm n H ninety five point three FM
and Glorious Downtown Manchester, New Hampshire, also on Comcast Channel six if you're
in Manchester, and hello to all of our online listeners across the nation and
around the globe. You can go to my website Matt Connerton dot com for
all of your live streaming options. Social media links contact in Folk Show Archives,
et cetera, et cetera. Today is Tuesday, September five, two
thousand twenty three. Genius here at the news desk, present and accounted for.
And that that ad I played from rat Rockers Against Drugs. Care to
guess what year that's from? Nineteen eighty eight? Oh, you're close,
nineteen eighty six. Oh, yes, that was pretty good of me.
That was the the Paul Stanley Rockers Against Drugs, and Gene Simmons did one
as well. I'm going to hear the Jeans one. Go for it.
Truths are great. Drugs make me strong, Drugs making me smart, Drugs
make me feel good, Drugs make me cool. Do you believe that crap?
H? Do you believe all that stuff they're handing you about drugs?
You want to believe in something? How about yourself? Don't do drugs.
That's the Gene Simmons one, also from nineteen eighty six. I like the
little space noise at the end there, like yeah, like a UFO was
taken off with them. Yeah, the Rockers Against Drugs. Think you gotta
see the Gene Simmons one. They're both on YouTube. The Gene one is
he's worrying. He's got a mask on his face, and then he rips
the mask off and says, do you believe that crap? It's really really
good. They're legit too, both, you know, they're you know because
sometimes no, yeah, no, I know because sometimes some of those uh
those rock against rockers against drugs commercials you would see in the eighties. Uh,
you know sometimes you know, like like if I'm sure Rozzie did one,
and you know it's like, yeah, okay, but no. But
Paul Stanley and Jean Simmons both very uh Gene Simmons to the Stay claims he's
never even had a sip of alcohol, let alone partaken in any drugs,
and Paul Stanley apparently occasionally we'll drink wine, but he's never done any hard
drugs either. Mike from Queen City Cabinetry on the Facebook live chat is asking
to Keith Richards do one. No, I don't think Keith ever did.
We will outlive us all. Yeah, I don't think. I don't think
Keith did one. Six zo three two five zero six zero seven is the
studio line if you'd like to join us six three two five oz six zero
seven. Also you can text us at six one seven nine one seven four
four seven six. I'm on social media at Matt Connerton. You can email
me Matt at matt Connerton dot com, and of course you can interact end
Opine in the Facebook live chat. But the best thing to do so that
we can hear and enjoy your dulcet tones is to give us a call at
six zo three two five ozho six zero seven. Thank you are to our
friend Eric Pill from Cedar Rapids, Iowa for another great classic film review.
Today was nineteen seventy three's uh the film the director George A. Romero,
The Crazies, And of course in the first hour we were joined by the
honorable Representative Jody k Newell from from Keene. She came and hung out and
we had a great discussion. Really enjoyed that a lot. Now I'm confused
about something though, So she was there at the events you were out in
DC. But yes, but did you did you not actually cross paths with
earlier? We did cross paths that, oh you did at the convention?
Yet oh you did? Okay? Yes? Is that we get to hang
out with our a lot because I had to take a lot of downtime in
my room, so I wasn't really out there for the social events. Oh
okay. I tried to go to as many as the actual imperson events that
I could go. Yeah, we should. Uh. I'd like to catch
up on the Facebook live chat comments. And then I know you have a
an update on your insurance. But let's grab this first. We do have
a call. Hi, Welcome to Matt Connerton Unleashed. Who's this Hi?
This is Tom Sailor. Here is a question about the legalization of marijuana in
our state? Yes, Tom, who? Sorry? What's your name again,
Sir Tom Sailor? Tom Sailor? Okay, Yes, what's your question?
Do you know what the current state of the affairs of the in our
in our state as far as the legalization of marijuana, Well, the current
state of it is there is no legalization, but we have decriminalization. It's
stalled. Yea stalled as usual in conquered it never passes. It usually passes
the House, right, but then it but then it dies in the Senate.
Oh no, we've gotten it passed before and then it gets Vito and
then the Senate will never override a veto, right, I mean they've they've
gotten different versions through the House, but the Senate's verse. That's true,
the Senate version never matches the House version, but the governor always vetos anyway.
Yeah, all of them, no matter whether they were Republicans or Democrats,
they've all given the kabash to a lot of cannabis legislation. Does the
answer your question, Tom, Yes, thanks man, I appreciate it.
Oh, anytime, all right. By one of these days, maybe they'll
get it straight before the rest of the country, although at the rate they're
going I doubt it. But you know what I do think is a possibility
of change when the Feds reschedule. This is a rescheduling that's being talked about
now that in earnest there actually looks like they're really going to do it.
When it is rescheduled, that's going to change everything in a lot of the
states, and in this state there are there are people up in Conquered that
have said if it was rescheduled, they would vote for it, but as
long as it's a Schedule one they won't. Yeah, they're going to move
it from schedule one to Schedule three. It looks like that's probably probably going
to happen, which businesses will be able to bank. Yeah, they can't
bank now. Uh. Six ozho three two five zero six zero seven is
a studio line six zo three two five zero six zero seven. Uh.
Let's we'll go through these Facebook comments quickly because some of them more about our
conversation with Jody, So just some interesting insights from my listeners. Isaac Banks
is in the Facebook live chat and says, hello, hashtag Jody k Newell,
how are you and what's up? Let's see. Sepsis is in the
Facebook live chat. Hello, let's see. I'm gonna some of these are
out of orders. Actually, now we got to see Isaac sing. Yeah,
yeah, we actually got to see Isaac sing. They're very real,
human folks, very real. Some of these are coming up out of order,
so I'm gonna skip some of them. Melanie La Liberty from the Great
State of Vermont joins us and says, hey, guys, but that messes
me up because now they're not boughts, so they are boughts. I don't
know, I don't know how that messes me up. So now I'm confused.
Can you figure out if they're people are bought? Sepsis says, we
all have different chemistry. People that make these products know that. That's referring
to our discussion about the drug commercials that you see on television. Sepsa said,
they find a weakness and market it. But that's the American way.
Everyone and everything has a market. We market dating, music, poverty,
pain, Melanie said. When we were talking about Florida, Melanie said they
got to Santis too. That stuff is super hard to get rid of.
She didn't say stuff, but Sepsa said, everything is up for sale.
There is a solution and business for all your pain and dreams. We are
all living in a massive flea market. Ian venom four, who I'm going
to guess is from Greensboro, North Carolina, said hello, hashtag Matt and
hashtag gen from US and Hi hashtag Jody K from US. What's going on?
We said? Uh? Sepsis said, find your dreams, your weakness
and hold that carrot in front of you. Your identity, your health,
your culture, nothing is nailed down. We are all buying and selling constantly.
The first language in this country is economics. Uh, it's not a
bad insight. Michael Albert joins us in the Facebook live chat. He was
extolling the virtues of staying hydrated on a hot day. Looks like we're getting
one last big blast of summer. Let's see Yan Venom four confirming we are
from Greensboro, North Carolina. Is US. We are a pop singing group
quartet hashtag Joe d k Jan Venom four says for US, we hate heroin
and drugs and also it is bad. We said from US hashtag Matt,
hashtag Jen and hashtag JODK. We say hi hashtag sepsis. How are you
doing? From us? Check out our Facebook like page and post us hashtag
Jen and hashtag met at We will be performing for the event of the Sunshine
Club at Saint Pious, the tenth Catholic Church is Fall Dance at seven to
nine pm indoors in Greensboro, North Carolina. How did I know? I
have Noah? You are psychic? Is that it? No could be?
Could be? Oh? My Miriam Bannish joins us in the Facebook live chat
and she said, thank you for doing this work. Jody absolutely uh.
Ean Venom four says consequences hashtag Jody K. We say from US passed to
be past hashtag Matt. We said from US, I by that and passed
to be passed to you two. Eon venom four, I'm not sure the
past to pass something h Miriam Banish I says so happy the Facebook Live is
back. Yes, absolutely, yeah. If you don't know what Miriam's referring
to. On Friday show, we weren't on Facebook and there was some sort
of a glitch, but it seems to have resolved. Jean venom four wished
us a wonderful evening. Mike from Queen City Cabinetry is in the Facebook Live
chat. Queen City Cabinetry one of our great sponsors here at WMNH, and
of course Mike I get to hang out with every Friday night during Retro Spectrum
Radio with Pauli C. And Mike said, good job, Eric. Another
movie on my watch list, and Eric mentioned Eric Pilcher that that film is
in the public domain, so it is available to watch for free on YouTube.
George A. Romero's The Crazies Let's see j Fed also a very complimentary
toward Eric's revue. Miriam Bannish says, wow, Jean Simmons hasn't had any
alcohol. He puts my I've never been drunk to shame. Yeah, Jean
Simmons has always been always yup, yup, very very straight edge. Absolutely,
let's see. Oh and Scott Robinson said, I was prefer the anti
dr commercial with the egg be in your brain and you put it in the
fry pan and this is your brain on drugs. Yes, yes, that
is a classic to be sure, worked well on our generation, didn't it.
M Let me give you the studio line again. Oh hello to Chris
h from of course the band edgewise in the chat room. The studio line
is open six zero three two five zero six zero seven six zero three two
five six o seven. Oh. Melanie also said, good job, Eric,
And you wanted to give us an update on the insurance. Yeah,
okay, guys, get this. I'm still fighting. So they came time
for them to finally pay the bill, and they did not honor the prior
authorization that they gave all of us, with everything spelled out in it.
They did not honor it. Who do you mean by all of us?
When I say all of us, I mean I have At one point we
had a bunch of activists, reporters, Senator Shaheen's staff, Senator hass and
staff or People's Action staff, all these different people who have been helping with
this fight for those who may be coming in a little late to this.
We've been trying to get my infusions covered that for the last five years have
kept me alive, and my insurance always says it's not medically necessary. And
we did a national national campaign, we did videos, we had over four
thousand signatures on a petition, We had both senators offices speaking on our behalf
on my behalf, trying to get the insurance company to get this right.
And they last gave us a prior authorization with everything needed for my infusions approved
in network to be covered. Should be the end of story. Congrats to
us. Everybody goes away happy. That's what was supposed to happen. Well,
then they comes time and the claim comes up, and they didn't.
They didn't pay what they were supposed to pay. They paid in an out
of network rate, which is way less than what they're supposed to pay,
which means I have to pay way more so out of the entire bill.
They paid a little over two hundred dollars, leaving me on the hook for
at least four hundred or thereabouts. So now I've had to go back and
send this documentation to Senator Shaheen's office and Senator Hassan's office, and the folks
of people's actions, all the people that did all the work to help us
get this far and go. When it came down to them actually putting the
money on the bill, they found another reason to not do it, where
they found another loophole, if you will, to get out of it.
They like to say that this particular doctor is out of network in the state
of New Hampshire. They like to leave out the fact that he's literally the
only doctor in the state of New Hampshire who does my treatments and is a
specialist in my rare disease, but the treatment itself, he's literally the only
m D in the state. And that should mean that all of the insurance
companies cover them, because suppose mostly under law, insurance companies are supposed to
have an adequate network available to you, and if they do not have an
ad network available to you, they are supposed to cover whatever is available as
an in network cost because you got no choice, right, only guy in
town. That's where I'm at, and United Healthcare, or should I say,
let me give you guys the whole name of my health insurance company,
AARP, Medicare Advantage, United Healthcare, Walgreens. These companies are making a
fortune off of all the premiums. I mean, I pay premiums just like
you guys. I pay co insurance, I pay co payments, and I've
keep paying all of the other stuff because I don't know. Sometimes I wonder
what the heck I have health insurance for. It's ridiculous that I'm still in
this fight, guys. But if you remember, I said it a while
back, I wasn't going to believe it until I saw them actually pay the
bill. And I hate that I was right and that here I go and
I can't see them paying the bill. I see them skirting it and putting
it right back on me again as usual, and it's it's depressing. It's
absolutely depressing. Yeah, I really, I really did think we won this
time. I really thought that it's finally over. They declared it medical neces
nessity necessity, medically necessary. I cannot speak. I'm done, all right.
So unfortunately that's where I'm at. That's the update. It feels like
going back to square one every time. It feels like I'm going back to
start all over again. Well, yeah, they're hoping you'll give up.
Oh. The woman actually went so far as to tell me that she knows
that I don't like to go through the process, but that's what we have
to do. And I really really was beyond on that comment to me.
When they say process, what they mean is the appeals process, right,
And I've lost track of how many we've filed since April to cover the treatment
I had on July eleventh. So we started in April for this July treatment.
We're now in September and we're still still trying to get it done.
By the time it's done, it's gonna be time for the next treatment.
I just, yeah, that's depressing. I don't even want to go there.
Yeah, I don't want to go there right now. All right,
Well that's the update. Okay, Well six Z three two five six zero
seven. The studio line is open six zo three two five six zero seven.
Just something. I don't really know what this is about. I didn't
have a chance to preread it, but it jumped out of me. On
media dot com, Elon Musk ruthlessly mocked on his own platform after announcing he's
suing the Anti Defamation League for defamation. It says here after Twitter X.
By the way, this is what I'm noticing. Now people are writing or
saying Twitter X, twitter slash X because nobody wants to just say X,
and it's annoying. But people don't want to be saying Twitter because it's not
Twitter anymore. So now people are calling it twitter X, so says here
after Twitter X. Boss Elon Musk shared the news that he planned to sue
the Anti Defamation League for defamation. There was a predictable response on Twitter X,
pointing out the obvious fact he glossed over in the first place. Musk
ban I'm sorry. Musk blamed a sixty percent drop in advertising revenue on the
Anti Defamation League, claiming that the organization was quote trying to kill this platform
by falsely accusing it and me of being an anti Semitic unquote. Back in
November twenty twenty two, the ADL did encourage advertisers to pause their campaigns on
the platform after Musk took over, why because of a proven rise in hate
speech after Musk reinstated several right leaning accounts in the name of free speech absolutism.
So, while Musk is pointing the finger at the ADL Twitter X users
are gently be directing his finger towards his company's numbers and the policies he instituted
himself. And let's see, Mike, this is at Roth's child MD.
His name is Mike Rothschild and then in parentheses he writes no relation. He
said, I love the implication that the erratic management, mass layoffs incoherent moderation,
destruction of verification, decimated engineering staff, serial unbanning of racists, and
crumbling infrastructure had nothing to do with Twitter losing half its value. Nope,
just the jews. That was from Mike Roth's child. Michael Edison Hayden at
Michael E. Hayden tweeted, It's all kind of vaguely stated, but the
only thing I've gleaned from Elon Musk's public meltdown about ADL and his advertisers this
weekend is that X is not doing very well financially. Maya Wiley, Oh,
yes, familiar with her at my Wiley tweeted a reminder hashtag. Elon
Musk paid four forty four billion dollars for Twitter, decimated the department and leadership
responsible for reducing hate on the platform, and hate including anti Semitism doubled,
according to a peer reviewed study. Online hate doesn't stay online. And there's
some there's some others. But yeah, I guess, uh yeah, Elon
Musk he did. Uh oh, there's quite a few, quite a few
tweets here. I don't want to go through all of them, but we
still call them tweets. I don't know what you call it, but yes,
he's very upset with the Anti Defamation League after for being critical of him
letting all these uh folks back on the platform. Something else that jumped out
of me too, because somebody else finally said something that I've been saying,
and it's the statistician statistician Nate Silver. He used to be with five thirty
eight dot com. In fact, I think he founded at it, but
I think he is separated from them. But this is from The Hill dot
Com. Nate Silver says a McConnell moment for Biden could give Trump a second
term. I've been saying that. I'm the only one who had been saying
it, at least publicly that I'm aware of, that had said that specifically
because I think it's probably considered impolite. But I've been saying that about Joe
Biden. He's just one Mitch McConnell moment away from losing. Because if anything
happens like what's happened to Mitch McConnell, and there's new information on that,
I guess it did have to do it sounds like it did have to do
with his those freeze ups he's been having. They're not seizures per se,
but they had to do with his fall. And anyway, somebody else finally
said it. You know, if something like that ever happens to Biden publicly,
it's over. This is from again, this is from the hill.
Nate Silver, the founder of five thirty eight Okay, he is the founder,
argued today that President Biden's age is a legitimate concern for voters in the
twenty twenty four election, warning that former President Trump could just be one quote
Biden has a McConnell moment unquote away from a second term. Silver wrote,
quote, If the expert class doesn't understand that Biden's age is both a real
concern for voters and a valid concern, they'd better be prepared for getting a
second Trump term instead. This election is probably going to be close, and
Trump might be only one Biden as a McConnell moment away from winning unquote.
The reference to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell comes in the wake of the GOP
leader's second public freeze up in just more than a month. McConnell stared ahead
for about thirty seconds while taking questions from reporters last Wednesday. In late July,
the eighty one year old senator similarly froze for about twenty seconds twenty three
to be precise, during his weekly press conference at the Capitol before being escorted
away. While there is not a massive age gap between Biden and Trump currently
eighty and seventy seven years old, respectively respectively, rather no, respectively,
I said it right the first time, didn't I yeah, I know right,
Silver noted that their age difference is potentially meaningful, pointing to popular population
level data. Silver wrote, quote, the age of Biden and Trump during
their potential second terms corresponds to the infection point. I think that's supposed to
be inflection. That's a typo that that's not me this time. That's a
typo. It says the infection point. Silver. No, it really does.
Silver. When he wrote that, he was probably thinking about COVID in
the back, in the back of his mind, probably, but he clearly
means inflection point. So I'll start the sentence again. The age of Biden
and Trump during the potential second terms corresponds to the inflection point at which the
risk of death begins to increase meaningfully every year. So again, if voters
are diagnosing the candidates just based on population level data, or perhaps based on
their personal experience of being around aging parents and relatives, it's hardly crazy for
them to think the age gap between Biden and Trump is relevant. Unquote,
that is true. It's an interesting observation because, yeah, Trump is only
three years younger, but nobody really talks about his age. I think there
might be a few reasons for that. But yeah, the older, you
know, like the younger you are three years doesn't seem like a big deal,
but when you get to be up around close to eighty three years can
make a huge difference. But the other thing, too, is it's it.
You know, when we talk about this, I feel like it should
be said it is about age, but not exactly. And what I mean
by that is everybody ages differently, and when someone is eighty years old and
you can you can see the difference from how they are now versus just a
couple of years ago, And with Biden, we can. When you can
see the difference and it's appreciable at least, I think, then it's a
concern. But it's it's not about the age itself. It's about how they're
aging. Because I was thinking about it today, it occurred to me Bernie
Sanders. I think he's only one or two years older than Biden, maybe
one. I think he might be eighty one, he might be eighty two.
I'm not sure, although Biden will be eighty one in November. I
think if Bernie Sanders, though we're president right now, yes, we would
be having this conversation about age, but it wouldn't be nearly as big of
an issue as it is. Why because with Bernie, you see Bernie now
and you listen to him, he's pretty much the same guy. But Bernie,
I mean you you've actually you actually got to meet him in DC.
Yeah, yeah, I mean Bernie just I've never met him, But he
has more energy. He's just Bernie's a force of nature. Whether you whether
you like him or not, whether you agree with his politics or not,
He's a force of nature, and he just you know, it's almost hard
to imagine him sort of mumbling or whispering the way Biden does sometimes. It's
he almost can't even imagine it. He really needs to stop that whole whispering
thing. Yeah, he's been doing that for a while. It's awful.
It doesn't help well, especially in the contrast because he kind of does the
old man yelling thing and then goes into a whisper. It's like, oh,
him to be more animated, to have more oomph in his speech.
And that's why I think what you're kind of talking about there. When Bernie
gets up to the mic, He's got it. He's got it. Bernie's
just got the energy he gets going. Well, that's the thing. That's
what I mean. See, if Bernie were president right now, uh,
you wouldn't. Again, age would still be a topic of discussion. It
would still be a concern, but it would be far less of one because
you know, if you I mean, you can say, I mean,
he Bernie looks every every bit his age visually, of course, but if
you close your eyes and just listen to him, he doesn't. He's no
different than he was five years ago, ten years ago. He's the same
guy. There's there's clearly he as far as I can tell, he hasn't
lost anything. So that's what it's really about. It's like it's about age,
but not exactly about age. People want somebody who has more energy.
Yeah, somebody who actually looks like they're going to have the energy to do
what they're saying. Yeah and no, whether you know not, opinions and
stuff doesn't matter. The reason why they've nicknamed President bid and Sleepy Joe because
he is more sedate at the podium. He does that whisper thing so much
that you know, when he stops talking, he never just immediately turns and
turns walks away. He kind of meanders, Yeah, he's got he's got
a little bit of a shuffle. And I hate to say that. I
hate to say that. Does sound like a bad person for saying it,
but reality is. That's why there's a difference when people look at Bernie at
the at the podium than they do Bide And at the podium. Yeah,
it's Bernie. He's all there. He brings the energy you gotta When you're
around him, you kind of feel like you have to keep up to him.
Honestly, I got that feeling from just my short time around him,
but also his staff. They gotta keep he's got a he's got a plans,
he's got things to do, and he's gonna get there and he's gonna
get it done. And when he gets in front of the podium, he's
demanding and he has he has conviction. There's there's this, it's there.
Biden doesn't oomph. He just does it well. He sort of does like
guys. No, he's he's well and well. I disagree. I disagree
in the sense it's sometimes he's not. No, sometimes he has a lot
of it. I mean, I have seen speeches where he's very energetic,
but he's almost like but there's a difference between being passionate and being and just
coming across like an old man yelling and he and when he throws in the
whispering, it's like he goes from being an old man yelling doing mess to
make a point, and it's very jarring. I hate it, and it's
very it's very cringe. It's creepy and uh it's creepy. I'm not creeped
out by I think it's just uh, stop it. You know, we
it was once, but after that it lost its appeal. It's not acceptable,
it's we can't, we cannot have this, uh this rematch. Tom
entered in the chat room, says, my dad was eighty when he retired
as head chef of the Red Arrow restaurant. Well, a head chef at
the Red Arrow. I assume he was quite energetic, Yeah, Miriam says
Bernie. Miriam says Bernie as sharp as attack. Yes, that's the thing
again, if he were president right now, would age be an issue,
Yes, but not nearly as much because it's not really about the age.
And that's part of two why with Trump, even though Trump is only a
few years younger, no one talks about it because Trump seems pretty much the
same. I mean, he kind of he kind of lumbers around when he
walks, but he's heavy and he and he is seventy seven. But there's
no but his thing you can't compare because his thing is this weird cult like
no I know, I know, but I'm just saying, in terms of
presentation, how he is like he doesn't. He doesn't. He doesn't seem
any different. He doesn't seem like he's uh lost any I mean, he
sometimes during Actually I've seen a couple of clips of his speeches there where he
does seem to get a little lost in moments, but not but not everybody
does, but speeches all the time. Well he you know, he just
anyway. But the point being, it's it's not it's nothing, nothing even
approaching the scale of the diminishment that we've seen with Biden. And uh,
you know, I talked on the show last week about how Mark Halpern was
saying on Michael Smerconich's show, and I realized when I went back and listened
to it, actually undersold it when I talked about it the first time.
According to Mark Halpern, Biden's already made the decision to get out, but
he's but he's gonna keep going with the charade until he figures out how to
do this, What's what's the best course of action? And I hope that's
true. Honestly, if Democrats are going to maintain the White House, they're
going to have to run somebody else, because if we have a replay of
Biden and Trump, I firmly believe that Trump will win. I don't firmly
believe that, but I think I shouldn't say firmly, I very strongly believe.
I don't. I wouldn't even say strongly, but I do think that
I don't say strongly, but I do think it's certainly possible. And there's
uh there was a poll out today that shows shows him in a dead heat.
The Trump's biggest problem is he's not He's not going to have expanded his
uh again, all the all the indictments and everything. They make him a
lock now more than ever, according to polling data. They may make him
a lock for the nomination. I mean, he's the rest of them might
just might as well as just drop out right now. And we're not even
at the h We're still four months away from the Iowa caucus. But no,
I mean, it's it's ridiculous. Trump is so far ahead. It's
it's just he is going to be the nominee. I would stake my life
on it. But he doesn't. He hasn't done anything to expand his base
because like I have to. But no, but here's the thing for I'm
talking about for the general election. In the general election, you know,
I can't believe that there's any independence anywhere or even you know, even middle
class college educated suburban moderate Republicans who are sitting around going, you know,
I abandoned Trump in twenty twenty because I was just sick of him. But
ah, you know, with these four criminal indictments, I'm giving him a
second. Look. You know, that's that's not a thing. You're off.
You're off, So you're off. Here's what I think. Those same
people that you're trying to talk about here don't. You're not gonna like what
I have to say, but it's the truth. Gas prices were what when
Trump was in office and what are they now? They were less than two
dollars Now they're what four dollars. People vote with their with their wallets,
they do. And the people that maybe it didn't go with Trump in twenty
twenty, those those moderate Republicans, they're gonna end up going for him because
they want their better life. They want to have more money in their pocket
again. And they're people are stopping to also remember that we also had a
plague and war start and all of these things that had an effect that changed
how things are. But that's not how people look at it. No,
Trump was in the Whitehouse, their gas tank was full, their groceries were
cheaper, and so were their utilities. They're not now, and that's what
he's up against. And that's why I believe that in a rematch, Trump
will win, maybe with moderate Republicans, not with independence though I don't think,
but with moderate Republicans. I mean, you have a point, because
unfortunately Americans view economics are I think generally most Americans are only capable of thinking
about economics through a strictly partisan lens. It's really unfortunate. But I think
that's and I don't know why. I don't know why it's like that,
but it is. Actually, I think Americans look look at most issues through
a partisan lens, but especially economics, and look at it through what they
can do. If I can't put food in my refrigerator and I'm worrying about
paying the electric bill, that's what I'm worrying about. I don't care what
the stock market's doing. Maybe if I have a four oh one K I
might care, yeah, But for the most part, I'm caring about whether
I can keep a roof over my head, food in my stomach, and
gas on my tank. Right, we are about out a time. We
gotta go. Thank you again to Joe D. K Newell. I'm trying
to remember to keep the K in there because she likes the K. The
honorable representative who joined us today for a wonderful discussion in the first hour,
and then we had, of course Eric Pilcher's classic film review George A.
Romero's nineteen seventy three film The Crazies, And did you want to plug your
your website or anything before we go? Absolutely, you can check me out
at gencoffee dot com. J E N N C O F e y dot
com. You can find most of my publications there, but I am spreading
out to a lot of different sites these days. So yes, I'm very
excited about that. Thank you to all the support that I have gotten.
Absolutely. Absolutely. Oh, by the way, just quickly, Melanie said
in the chat room, no way he said to drink bleach. Now,
even I have to defend, as much as I don't like to, I
have to defend Trump on that one. He never said to drink bleach.
Now, what he actually did say that everyone refers to is almost as absurd
and insane. But he never actually said to drink bleach. He just said
that maybe maybe there's a way to ingest it. Close hive, close to
give your lungs. How did he put it? Almost like a cleaning as
he looked over to a horrified doctor. Tempra Burke suits said in her books
she wanted to fall through the floor in that moment. Anyway, we gotta
go. We're out of time. If you miss any partnersan today's show,
it will be up in just a little bit at WMH radio dot org and
my website Matt Connerton dot com. We're gonna leave you with a little bit
of Eons and coded. I love this band. We gotta get them on
the right, I keep saying them. It's one guy who does all the
instruments, but we should get we should get him on the show. This
is called hidden Away. I just happened to listen to this earlier and I
really like it. This isn't the track from him that I usually play,
but we'll hear a little bit of this on our way out. Talking to
y'all a little bit later. By everybody, Bye,