WEBVTT 1 00:00:06.799 --> 00:00:15.560 Get ready for it. And it is the twenty ninth day, 2 00:00:15.839 --> 00:00:18.679 is that right? Twenty ninth Yeah, twenty ninth day of 3 00:00:18.879 --> 00:00:22.039 August twenty twenty four, allegedly, according to that thing we 4 00:00:22.079 --> 00:00:25.640 call a calendar, Sore's Day and all that good stuff. 5 00:00:25.760 --> 00:00:28.239 Welcome to it. It's the O'Kelly effect. And if you're 6 00:00:28.280 --> 00:00:31.039 hearing us live, that's what day it is. But most 7 00:00:31.039 --> 00:00:35.280 of you listen to the podcast, So whatever day it is, greetings, 8 00:00:36.000 --> 00:00:40.079 whatever night it is, Hello. Anyway, here we are on 9 00:00:40.119 --> 00:00:43.320 a Thursday, and before we get to the call in 10 00:00:43.439 --> 00:00:45.359 show on Friday, which I'm sure is going to be 11 00:00:45.399 --> 00:00:51.079 an adventurer this week, we'll see has anything happened in 12 00:00:51.119 --> 00:00:54.200 the news. I don't know, you know what. Everything is 13 00:00:54.240 --> 00:00:57.000 a muddled mess as of late. But I had a 14 00:00:57.039 --> 00:01:00.439 cancelation and was able to grab up somebody who I 15 00:01:00.439 --> 00:01:04.680 haven't had on a while, but strangely enough had a 16 00:01:04.719 --> 00:01:08.560 project that they're doing, a piece of writing they're doing. 17 00:01:09.000 --> 00:01:12.159 And I saw what it was, and I said to myself, gee, 18 00:01:12.239 --> 00:01:14.959 you know, I put about ten years of my life 19 00:01:15.040 --> 00:01:20.599 into something associated to a project this person was. Okay, 20 00:01:20.840 --> 00:01:23.040 I used to make a living. I've said it many 21 00:01:23.040 --> 00:01:25.599 times on this show. I worked for Exxon Mobile. I 22 00:01:25.640 --> 00:01:28.000 tell you guys that all the time, right, But what 23 00:01:28.079 --> 00:01:30.760 was I doing for Exxon Mobile? I talk about personnel 24 00:01:30.840 --> 00:01:33.040 management and all that kind of thing, and how I 25 00:01:33.200 --> 00:01:37.519 could not dig dealing with the edicts coming from Houston, Texas, 26 00:01:38.239 --> 00:01:41.159 which is where the corporate headquarters of Exon was. I 27 00:01:41.159 --> 00:01:44.359 think it still is. But anyway, you know, it was 28 00:01:44.400 --> 00:01:47.719 one of those things. But what was I doing Convenience stores, 29 00:01:48.400 --> 00:01:51.719 gas stations. I worked for Exon and their Tiger Marts 30 00:01:51.840 --> 00:01:55.799 later on on the run stores because when they merged 31 00:01:55.840 --> 00:01:58.760 with Mobile and they had to cross brand and rebrand 32 00:01:58.799 --> 00:02:01.040 and everything else. And even when you guys hear me 33 00:02:01.040 --> 00:02:02.959 talk about, well, yeah, I worked in a sandwich place. 34 00:02:03.000 --> 00:02:05.200 I did this, I did that. I've had some people 35 00:02:05.239 --> 00:02:07.959 say you had a lot of jobs. No, it was 36 00:02:08.039 --> 00:02:11.240 really one job that turned into a bunch of things. 37 00:02:11.280 --> 00:02:15.360 I had to do fuel management, fast food, cash earing 38 00:02:16.080 --> 00:02:19.599 in New Jersey. You have gas attendance, which you know 39 00:02:19.639 --> 00:02:21.360 you might see them in some places where you have 40 00:02:21.400 --> 00:02:24.520 full service gas. Somebody comes out and pumps your gas 41 00:02:24.520 --> 00:02:28.479 for you. By law. You have that New Jersey. Anyways, 42 00:02:29.039 --> 00:02:32.800 back to it, convenience store world. That also included being 43 00:02:32.840 --> 00:02:36.159 a lottery agent and stuff like this. A lot of 44 00:02:36.199 --> 00:02:38.919 things you got to do. And that's what I did 45 00:02:39.080 --> 00:02:41.800 in the nineties going into the two thousands when I 46 00:02:41.879 --> 00:02:45.159 talk about, you know, on nine to eleven, and I 47 00:02:45.240 --> 00:02:47.719 end up sending water to the guys over you know, 48 00:02:47.800 --> 00:02:49.960 digging people out because I tried to get over there 49 00:02:50.319 --> 00:02:54.639 onto the island to help. I'm sending water from my job. Why, 50 00:02:55.159 --> 00:02:58.120 because I was ordering cases of water for convenience stores. 51 00:02:59.199 --> 00:03:01.759 I also happened to be ordering things like gloves, so 52 00:03:01.840 --> 00:03:04.240 I sent over work gloves, I sent over some of 53 00:03:04.280 --> 00:03:07.719 those masks, things like that, in order to give supplies 54 00:03:07.759 --> 00:03:10.719 to people to help out. Because again I had been 55 00:03:10.800 --> 00:03:12.879 in the New York, New Jersey area my whole life, 56 00:03:13.199 --> 00:03:17.159 and there was a very personal aspect to what happened 57 00:03:17.159 --> 00:03:19.280 to the people and the towers falling and all that. 58 00:03:20.280 --> 00:03:22.159 But today's show is not about nine to eleven or 59 00:03:22.199 --> 00:03:25.120 any of that. Today's show, well, you know what, I'm 60 00:03:25.120 --> 00:03:28.039 gonna let the author explain it now that I've given 61 00:03:28.080 --> 00:03:32.319 you this weird, weird setup, and you know what appropriate 62 00:03:32.439 --> 00:03:37.000 weird setup. Why Joseph L. Flatley is with us and 63 00:03:37.560 --> 00:03:40.639 everything he writes is kind of weird and quirky, and 64 00:03:40.800 --> 00:03:43.319 I love it for that reason. I mean, at one 65 00:03:43.360 --> 00:03:47.560 point it was like taking a look at a psychotic 66 00:03:47.639 --> 00:03:50.560 man's art project. For a cover of one of his zines. 67 00:03:51.439 --> 00:03:55.319 We talked about that, you know, evoking the imagery of 68 00:03:55.400 --> 00:03:59.879 the old trope of a candy a van looking for 69 00:04:00.080 --> 00:04:02.960 you know, having candy looking for children, almost when he 70 00:04:03.280 --> 00:04:06.280 releases a picture of something. And what was this the 71 00:04:06.360 --> 00:04:10.439 searchers and all that weirdness? What was it? Satan goes 72 00:04:10.439 --> 00:04:14.319 to the mind control convention, you know, I mean, look, 73 00:04:15.039 --> 00:04:17.279 all of these things sound pretty odd. And I said 74 00:04:17.319 --> 00:04:19.879 to myself, this guy needs to get to know Adam 75 00:04:19.920 --> 00:04:24.480 go rightly. And that's weird enough in and of itself. 76 00:04:25.680 --> 00:04:27.959 And I was right about that. Plus we used to 77 00:04:28.000 --> 00:04:30.800 do a thing on here where he did the strangest 78 00:04:30.800 --> 00:04:34.480 of interviews. What did we call that? 79 00:04:35.079 --> 00:04:38.199 I think that was the Was that the Bad Ideas Department? 80 00:04:38.439 --> 00:04:41.240 Yeah, that was a bad Ideas Department. And it was 81 00:04:41.279 --> 00:04:44.279 just these really strange interviews that him and I would 82 00:04:44.360 --> 00:04:48.680 listen to his interview back and discuss what happened during 83 00:04:48.720 --> 00:04:51.480 a very weird interview, and you came up with some 84 00:04:51.600 --> 00:04:52.879 very unique subjects. 85 00:04:53.519 --> 00:04:59.040 Yeah, yeah, you know, just following my my weird radar, 86 00:04:59.160 --> 00:05:04.759 I guess, but yeah, it's it's crazy and we haven't spoken. 87 00:05:04.839 --> 00:05:05.279 I think. 88 00:05:05.800 --> 00:05:11.600 I think according to Skype July twenty twenty two, is 89 00:05:11.639 --> 00:05:14.959 the last time. Oh yeah, it's been a while. 90 00:05:14.920 --> 00:05:17.279 Yeah, I And back then we would have been talking 91 00:05:17.279 --> 00:05:21.480 about the failed state update, which you know, are you're 92 00:05:21.519 --> 00:05:23.600 not doing that anymore? Are you? 93 00:05:23.639 --> 00:05:28.319 No? So I had to let that drop. You might 94 00:05:28.360 --> 00:05:34.279 remember a constant seam in our conversations. If not, you know, 95 00:05:34.360 --> 00:05:38.399 if not for broadcast and our personal conversations, it's you know, 96 00:05:38.439 --> 00:05:43.160 when you're an independent journalist who're always broke, which led 97 00:05:43.160 --> 00:05:46.920 me to take a full time job repairing lottery machines 98 00:05:46.920 --> 00:05:48.199 for the state of Pennsylvania. 99 00:05:48.680 --> 00:05:51.199 I was like, two years ago, I hit the wall. 100 00:05:51.240 --> 00:05:54.639 I'm like, I can't do this freelance indie journalism thing anymore. 101 00:05:55.279 --> 00:06:00.360 And spent two years repairing lottery machines and hey out 102 00:06:00.360 --> 00:06:04.920 in convenience stores and talk about the bailed statement. 103 00:06:05.000 --> 00:06:06.480 Wait, wait a minute, how the hell do you get 104 00:06:06.560 --> 00:06:10.079 that job? First of all, before we get into the weird, uh, 105 00:06:10.199 --> 00:06:13.480 you know part of invisible America, because this is what 106 00:06:13.600 --> 00:06:16.879 this is, folks. There are parts of America that people 107 00:06:16.920 --> 00:06:20.800 don't do news stories on that, people don't do documentaries 108 00:06:20.879 --> 00:06:24.839 on that. People try to ignore because it's either embarrassing 109 00:06:25.439 --> 00:06:29.000 uh completely incomprehensible to most of the normies in the 110 00:06:29.000 --> 00:06:31.399 world for one reason or another. And it's not because 111 00:06:31.399 --> 00:06:35.040 it's about conspiracy theories or you know, stuff like that. 112 00:06:35.399 --> 00:06:39.839 It's just an uncomfortable, in some cases illegal or gray 113 00:06:39.920 --> 00:06:44.199 zone area of life in general that happens all around you. 114 00:06:44.279 --> 00:06:47.800 In almost any place where there's a population, there is 115 00:06:47.879 --> 00:06:51.240 you know, the criminal underbelly. There is the weird sort 116 00:06:51.240 --> 00:06:54.800 of part of society again that is either ignored on 117 00:06:54.920 --> 00:06:58.800 purpose or accidentally one way or the other, falling between 118 00:06:58.839 --> 00:07:02.240 the cracks, and that ranges between homeless people again and 119 00:07:02.519 --> 00:07:06.000 the embarrassing characters that might be part of the local 120 00:07:06.079 --> 00:07:09.839 scenery one way or another, that might be endemic to 121 00:07:09.920 --> 00:07:14.439 a community but are never really truly acknowledged until something 122 00:07:14.560 --> 00:07:17.879 crazy goes wrong or whatever. Then you might see them somewhere. 123 00:07:18.079 --> 00:07:22.120 But otherwise, these are constants all around you in America, 124 00:07:22.240 --> 00:07:25.160 and they're there whether you know we're thriving as an 125 00:07:25.199 --> 00:07:30.160 economy or not. They're there whether the politics are going 126 00:07:30.199 --> 00:07:34.160 you know, business as usual and on autopilot, or if 127 00:07:34.199 --> 00:07:37.839 we're at a time of great conflict and upheaval. As 128 00:07:37.879 --> 00:07:41.639 we are currently, these things continue to go on. You know, 129 00:07:42.000 --> 00:07:44.040 it's like there's always going to be a drug dealer 130 00:07:44.120 --> 00:07:48.079 somewhere nearby, unless you're in a state where it's legal, 131 00:07:48.120 --> 00:07:50.639 and even in places where it is legal, there's always 132 00:07:50.759 --> 00:07:54.439 pop dealers nearby. There's always somebody to buy weed from, 133 00:07:54.759 --> 00:07:58.040 although you know, maybe not everybody knows who they are. 134 00:07:58.079 --> 00:08:01.680 And again they might be ignored on purpose or accidentally 135 00:08:02.279 --> 00:08:05.079 by everybody in a community and all that good stuff, 136 00:08:05.120 --> 00:08:08.199 and they're sort of the rejected and supposed to be 137 00:08:08.759 --> 00:08:13.600 quietly unseen parts of society, the ignored, the cast out, 138 00:08:14.160 --> 00:08:18.120 the cast aside, whatever. And you will find all of 139 00:08:18.160 --> 00:08:21.959 this converging with the normal people in life and people 140 00:08:21.959 --> 00:08:24.720 who just need gas, or people who just need a 141 00:08:24.759 --> 00:08:27.680 pack of smokes or whatever, or people who just you know, 142 00:08:27.800 --> 00:08:31.839 need something to you know, a tobacco product in order 143 00:08:32.240 --> 00:08:35.519 to utilize tobacco. But really we know they're smoking weed 144 00:08:35.799 --> 00:08:37.720 when they come to buy a pipe or whatever, and 145 00:08:37.799 --> 00:08:41.440 they'll go to that little convenience store that always has 146 00:08:41.440 --> 00:08:45.080 a happy, strange corporate name as opposed to the thing 147 00:08:45.120 --> 00:08:47.440 that's up on the sign. One way or another. Some 148 00:08:47.519 --> 00:08:49.879 of them are chain stores, and some of them are 149 00:08:50.480 --> 00:08:54.919 Jimmy's Groceries, you know, or something like that it's called. 150 00:08:55.440 --> 00:09:00.279 And meanwhile, you know they're not there to sell groceries anyways. Yeah, 151 00:09:00.320 --> 00:09:02.080 so this is part of it. But how do you 152 00:09:02.120 --> 00:09:06.559 get a job going and fixing lottery machines? Again, totally 153 00:09:06.679 --> 00:09:09.679 acknowledged in one way. They happily give you commercials on 154 00:09:09.720 --> 00:09:12.440 the new scratch offs out there, right, get in on this. 155 00:09:12.600 --> 00:09:15.600 It's going to support education in your state. You know, 156 00:09:15.720 --> 00:09:19.279 the usual theme, blah blah blah, blah blah. And you 157 00:09:19.360 --> 00:09:22.159 have scratch off tickets everywhere in that crap that comes 158 00:09:22.200 --> 00:09:26.639 off of that latex stuff everywhere and under some people's fingernails, 159 00:09:26.679 --> 00:09:30.120 almost permanently. And there are people running around who devote 160 00:09:30.159 --> 00:09:33.440 their lives to scratch off tickets, who have a gambling 161 00:09:33.480 --> 00:09:39.200 addiction that's acceptable by society standard. You know, nobody's looking 162 00:09:39.200 --> 00:09:40.879 to break their legs over what they owe to the 163 00:09:40.919 --> 00:09:45.039 lottery tickets. But it gets strange anyways, that's an aspect 164 00:09:45.120 --> 00:09:48.480 of those convenience stores too. But I lived in the 165 00:09:48.519 --> 00:09:50.960 convenience store world and that's a weird place to be. 166 00:09:51.320 --> 00:09:53.200 How do you end up with that job though, as 167 00:09:53.240 --> 00:09:57.919 a guy fixing lottery machines, because I imagine you get 168 00:09:58.000 --> 00:10:01.240 hired as sort of a contract guy, like nowadays, if 169 00:10:01.279 --> 00:10:04.440 you have a cable company or an internet provider, somebody 170 00:10:04.480 --> 00:10:07.120 shows up with, you know, a magnet on the side 171 00:10:07.159 --> 00:10:10.519 of their truck. It's their truck. They were hired, you know, 172 00:10:10.639 --> 00:10:14.799 off the shelf from somewhere usually and they're not you know, yeah, 173 00:10:14.840 --> 00:10:19.519 I'm working for Comcast or Cox or whatever communication company. 174 00:10:19.559 --> 00:10:22.000 But really that's just one of the many jobs they 175 00:10:22.000 --> 00:10:26.320 could be doing in the new gig economy, whereas you know, 176 00:10:26.360 --> 00:10:28.600 the old in the old days, lottery people might have 177 00:10:28.639 --> 00:10:32.000 been assigned, they might have had permanent maintenance people. But 178 00:10:32.080 --> 00:10:35.639 how do you get that job for a while fixing 179 00:10:35.720 --> 00:10:38.879 lottery machines in Pennsylvania, which again is only next door 180 00:10:38.919 --> 00:10:42.320 to New Jersey, so minus the gas attendants. It's the 181 00:10:42.360 --> 00:10:45.799 same kind of convenience store underbelly that I used to 182 00:10:46.039 --> 00:10:51.399 live in. Anyhow, get into it. How do you get 183 00:10:51.399 --> 00:10:51.799 that job? 184 00:10:52.279 --> 00:10:55.320 Well, I knew somebody it was, you know, it was 185 00:10:55.360 --> 00:10:59.879 a you you know you you uh, you nailed it. 186 00:11:00.039 --> 00:11:03.200 So you know, I was a contractor working for the 187 00:11:03.200 --> 00:11:07.679 lottery company who was contracted the State of Pennsylvania, so 188 00:11:07.759 --> 00:11:12.000 it was like twice removed from any like state benefits 189 00:11:12.159 --> 00:11:15.679 or you know state you know, like you know, when 190 00:11:15.720 --> 00:11:17.559 you work for the states, you get the good benefits. 191 00:11:17.559 --> 00:11:19.159 When you work for a company that works for a 192 00:11:19.200 --> 00:11:23.320 company that works for the state, you don't get great benefits, right, 193 00:11:23.159 --> 00:11:24.600 but yeah, you know. 194 00:11:24.879 --> 00:11:28.159 So, so you have this regulatory thing in your state 195 00:11:28.279 --> 00:11:31.120 and it's the Lottery Commission and it's probably got you know, 196 00:11:31.159 --> 00:11:34.600 between five and eight people on it, and that serves 197 00:11:34.759 --> 00:11:37.840 as the core who makes the decisions for they contract 198 00:11:37.879 --> 00:11:40.320 whoever it is that has to build the lottery machines 199 00:11:40.360 --> 00:11:43.320 to that's another thing. They usually put out a contract 200 00:11:43.360 --> 00:11:46.159 thing and somebody bids for it. And in New Jersey, 201 00:11:46.279 --> 00:11:48.759 g Tech is the company that ended up doing all 202 00:11:48.759 --> 00:11:52.240 that technology. And that technology was like, you know, four 203 00:11:52.320 --> 00:11:55.080 years out of date the moment they introduced it in 204 00:11:55.159 --> 00:11:59.360 New Jersey, clunky crap that you know, somebody who's on 205 00:11:59.399 --> 00:12:02.840 the convenience level has to keep running as best they can, 206 00:12:03.039 --> 00:12:06.320 and that's a trip in and of itself. But you 207 00:12:06.399 --> 00:12:10.399 contact the Lottery Commission people. They've contracted everything out from 208 00:12:10.559 --> 00:12:13.080 the people who answer the phones to the repair people 209 00:12:14.039 --> 00:12:17.360 to god. I mean they even had had weird ways 210 00:12:17.399 --> 00:12:21.639 of delivering the rolls of paper and the supplies you need, 211 00:12:21.679 --> 00:12:23.600 you know, those blank sheets that you get to fill 212 00:12:23.639 --> 00:12:26.360 out for the lottery. Somebody has to deliver that stuff, 213 00:12:27.000 --> 00:12:29.679 and you know, and they created different ways and went 214 00:12:29.720 --> 00:12:31.759 through different ways of doing that. But everything is a 215 00:12:31.799 --> 00:12:35.919 subcontracted issue. So the person who shows up and they 216 00:12:35.960 --> 00:12:38.399 deliver signage to you, you know, the cute little signs 217 00:12:38.399 --> 00:12:41.000 you end up with in the window, the giant lottery 218 00:12:41.039 --> 00:12:43.279 ticket that they give you so that you have a display, 219 00:12:43.600 --> 00:12:47.720 blah blah blah. All that stuff is all subcontracted out. 220 00:12:47.799 --> 00:12:52.080 So there's really like hundreds and thousands maybe people that 221 00:12:52.320 --> 00:12:55.159 end up doing the work of the lottery in a state. 222 00:12:55.720 --> 00:12:58.759 But you're one of these subcontractors that they pick up. 223 00:12:58.879 --> 00:13:01.639 And yeah, they don't have to give you benefits, they 224 00:13:01.639 --> 00:13:03.840 don't have to pay attention to you. You just have 225 00:13:04.399 --> 00:13:06.440 you know, we're going to pay this account. You get 226 00:13:06.440 --> 00:13:08.399 paid and that's the end of it. And you don't 227 00:13:08.440 --> 00:13:11.360 really work for New Jersey or excuse me, Pennsylvania in 228 00:13:11.399 --> 00:13:13.720 your case, you don't really work for the lottery. You 229 00:13:13.759 --> 00:13:17.039 work for yourself. But you're there to do their work. 230 00:13:17.159 --> 00:13:19.799 So yeah, so you happen to know somebody and you 231 00:13:19.840 --> 00:13:22.440 got in on this. So anyway, enough of my interruptions. 232 00:13:22.480 --> 00:13:24.279 I wanted to lay this out for people because I 233 00:13:24.279 --> 00:13:26.639 swear to you most people don't give it a second 234 00:13:26.720 --> 00:13:30.200 thought when they see the lottery, and most normal people 235 00:13:30.240 --> 00:13:33.600 don't even think about the lottery until the power ball 236 00:13:33.960 --> 00:13:36.799 or the what's the other one or the Mega millions 237 00:13:36.840 --> 00:13:39.039 is up over one hundred million dollars or close to 238 00:13:39.080 --> 00:13:42.320 a billion. Now, sometimes you know, they don't even think 239 00:13:42.320 --> 00:13:45.240 about it anymore, and unless it's that big, and then 240 00:13:45.320 --> 00:13:48.039 everybody rushes to buy a ticket, and that's all they do. 241 00:13:48.559 --> 00:13:52.080 Nobody considers there's paper, there's the machines, there's all this 242 00:13:52.200 --> 00:13:54.320 other crap that the guy trying to sell you chips 243 00:13:54.320 --> 00:13:58.279 and cigarettes or whatever is also having to manage. So 244 00:13:58.679 --> 00:14:02.360 now they needed to repair. Guy, was there a problem 245 00:14:02.399 --> 00:14:06.080 in Pennsylvania or did you just kind of randomly stumble 246 00:14:06.159 --> 00:14:11.200 into the normal flow of repairs that were required in Yeah. 247 00:14:11.639 --> 00:14:13.480 You know, they there's a fleet. 248 00:14:13.840 --> 00:14:17.240 They have a fleet of guys in white vans that 249 00:14:17.320 --> 00:14:22.519 are just constantly prowling around a rural Pennsylvania looking for 250 00:14:23.559 --> 00:14:27.679 a lottery problems. And the reason I wrote about it 251 00:14:27.720 --> 00:14:31.720 is because, you know, the convenience store, especially when you 252 00:14:31.720 --> 00:14:34.480 get into rural PA or when you get into like 253 00:14:34.759 --> 00:14:41.080 inner city Pittsburgh, and especially some of these independent operations, 254 00:14:41.360 --> 00:14:44.000 it's really like its own subculture. You meet so many 255 00:14:44.039 --> 00:14:45.039 crazy characters. 256 00:14:46.240 --> 00:14:46.440 You know. 257 00:14:47.120 --> 00:14:51.840 William Gibson, the author of Neuromancer, he wrote a one 258 00:14:51.840 --> 00:14:54.679 of his novels was called Virtual Light. It took place 259 00:14:54.720 --> 00:14:57.759 in two thousand and six, which was you know, the 260 00:14:57.799 --> 00:15:00.320 future at the time that the book came out, and 261 00:15:00.360 --> 00:15:05.200 he wanted to highlight like class disparity. So he so 262 00:15:05.320 --> 00:15:08.679 a lot of his novel takes place in convenience stores, 263 00:15:08.960 --> 00:15:11.559 and it's kind of like I was like, wow, I'm 264 00:15:11.600 --> 00:15:12.080 living a. 265 00:15:12.000 --> 00:15:13.159 William Gibson novel. 266 00:15:13.279 --> 00:15:18.360 It was between the bitcoin machines and the weird like 267 00:15:19.200 --> 00:15:22.159 weapons that they're selling behind the counter, and the like 268 00:15:23.159 --> 00:15:29.559 designer drugs, and just the fact that broke people go 269 00:15:29.679 --> 00:15:32.759 there to buy food because they live in food deserts. 270 00:15:33.000 --> 00:15:35.919 You know, it's all very I mean, it really is 271 00:15:36.039 --> 00:15:39.320 a part of the you know, a part of the 272 00:15:39.360 --> 00:15:41.399 failed state project. 273 00:15:41.320 --> 00:15:45.559 Right, and these things thrive based on their surroundings. Convenience 274 00:15:45.559 --> 00:15:49.200 stores in reality, you know, the business of it thrives 275 00:15:49.240 --> 00:15:51.879 on their surroundings. What do I mean by this? You 276 00:15:51.919 --> 00:15:54.639 ever notice that there's a ton of them in poor 277 00:15:54.759 --> 00:15:58.799 areas because, like you said, there's food deserts to start with, right, So, 278 00:15:59.000 --> 00:16:01.600 all of a sudden, a convenience store tries to be 279 00:16:01.919 --> 00:16:05.679 everything to an area because a lot of their customers 280 00:16:05.720 --> 00:16:08.080 are going to walk there on foot. They don't have cars, 281 00:16:09.039 --> 00:16:11.879 even in places where it's almost impossible to live without 282 00:16:11.919 --> 00:16:14.919 a car, so they're not going to the grocery store 283 00:16:15.000 --> 00:16:18.039 that could be you know, twenty thirty forty fifty, one 284 00:16:18.080 --> 00:16:21.840 hundred miles away, even you know, a decent grocery store, 285 00:16:23.120 --> 00:16:25.399 So they try to be a grocery store. But on 286 00:16:25.440 --> 00:16:29.159 top of it, they'll also have toys, and around Christmas 287 00:16:29.200 --> 00:16:32.279 time they'll have more toys, and they try to do 288 00:16:32.320 --> 00:16:35.759 everything for the holidays, and all of this stuff kind 289 00:16:35.759 --> 00:16:39.159 of comes together. In areas where again they're trying to 290 00:16:39.200 --> 00:16:42.559 be a grocery store, they are a gambling outlet now 291 00:16:42.639 --> 00:16:45.279 because the people that live there are not going to travel, 292 00:16:46.200 --> 00:16:49.320 you know, many many miles to go to a casino 293 00:16:49.360 --> 00:16:52.440 which might be nearby regionally, depending on if they have 294 00:16:52.519 --> 00:16:56.519 a Native American tribe nearby or you know, maybe Vegas, 295 00:16:56.679 --> 00:16:59.559 or if they're in Jersey, Atlantic City. The people that 296 00:16:59.639 --> 00:17:01.840 can afford to go to Atlantic City but still have 297 00:17:01.919 --> 00:17:05.960 the gambling bug might be sitting at a convenience store 298 00:17:06.720 --> 00:17:10.359 in a car somewhere scratching off tickets for six seven 299 00:17:10.400 --> 00:17:11.960 hours a day. 300 00:17:12.440 --> 00:17:13.480 Okay, oh yeah. 301 00:17:13.640 --> 00:17:16.319 We have the skill games in Pennsylvania, which are like 302 00:17:16.960 --> 00:17:21.880 they're basically like slot machines, video slots, except there's some 303 00:17:21.960 --> 00:17:27.559 weird so you know, gambling is regulated, but game playing 304 00:17:27.880 --> 00:17:33.240 is not regulated, So they like have these like basically 305 00:17:33.359 --> 00:17:38.200 video slot machines with this like Byzantine rules where there's 306 00:17:38.240 --> 00:17:41.400 a way that you can win it that's not by 307 00:17:41.799 --> 00:17:47.680 random chance, so it's technically not gambling. So it's obviously 308 00:17:47.799 --> 00:17:51.480 like nobody's playing it as a skill game. They're they're 309 00:17:51.519 --> 00:17:56.240 they're gambling. But it's gone to the Pennsylvania Supreme Court 310 00:17:56.319 --> 00:17:59.519 so many times, and the Supreme Court doesn't even want 311 00:17:59.559 --> 00:18:02.400 to deal with this for whatever reason. I don't know 312 00:18:02.400 --> 00:18:06.279 who's getting paid off. So now there's like basically video 313 00:18:06.480 --> 00:18:10.319 slots in like all the gas stations and inconvenience stores 314 00:18:10.359 --> 00:18:13.880 and even like my supermarket down the street. There used 315 00:18:13.880 --> 00:18:16.359 to be a pharmacy there's no pharmacy there anymore, but 316 00:18:16.440 --> 00:18:19.400 you can go in and play play these skill games. 317 00:18:19.960 --> 00:18:21.440 And now you can go in there and blow your 318 00:18:21.480 --> 00:18:23.880 whole paycheck on a Friday night right now. 319 00:18:24.119 --> 00:18:27.519 In the Northeast, this is kind of odd because it's 320 00:18:27.680 --> 00:18:30.720 highly regulated there, even more so than in a place 321 00:18:30.720 --> 00:18:33.200 where I sit. Now. See if I go down to 322 00:18:33.240 --> 00:18:37.200 the local Circle k Okay, which is just as abundant 323 00:18:37.240 --> 00:18:40.519 here as say a seven eleven would be in the Northeast, 324 00:18:41.359 --> 00:18:44.039 maybe on the level of a wah wah almost in 325 00:18:44.599 --> 00:18:49.680 New Jersey but not quite. And in Pennsylvania, it's fascinating 326 00:18:49.720 --> 00:18:52.480 because you have a store that's just like a wah 327 00:18:52.480 --> 00:18:55.759 wah and it's a dear God, they make ice cream 328 00:18:55.799 --> 00:19:00.000 and stuff some farm, oh man, what is the name 329 00:19:00.079 --> 00:19:02.319 to that store, But it's just like a wah wah. 330 00:19:02.359 --> 00:19:05.319 And these are big, fancy convenience stores, and some of 331 00:19:05.359 --> 00:19:07.920 them don't carry lottery at all or games of chance 332 00:19:07.960 --> 00:19:10.799 at all. But like down here a Circle k or 333 00:19:10.839 --> 00:19:14.000 many other types of convenience stores, there's literally like a 334 00:19:14.559 --> 00:19:19.519 video poker sitting there, right But you can't technically just 335 00:19:19.880 --> 00:19:23.039 go there and cash out and play cash for cash 336 00:19:23.200 --> 00:19:26.160 like you can at a video poker machine, saying Atlantic City. 337 00:19:26.920 --> 00:19:30.640 There's all these little workarounds in order so that they 338 00:19:30.680 --> 00:19:33.599 have to get around the regulations. But it's less regulated 339 00:19:33.640 --> 00:19:36.319 in the South, So, believe it or not, video poker 340 00:19:36.400 --> 00:19:40.039 and video slots and things like that are more available 341 00:19:40.079 --> 00:19:43.519 in the South, in the southeastern region than they are 342 00:19:43.519 --> 00:19:47.359 in the northeastern region of the country. So it's kind 343 00:19:47.359 --> 00:19:52.480 of odd that Pennsylvania even has this. But anyway, that's fascinating. 344 00:19:52.519 --> 00:19:54.400 And on Friday nights, if you guys want to talk 345 00:19:54.440 --> 00:19:57.240 to people about the video games in the South, talk 346 00:19:57.319 --> 00:19:59.759 to be Pete, my co host, because he plays that 347 00:19:59.759 --> 00:20:04.200 po poker religiously in North Carolina. But I see it 348 00:20:04.279 --> 00:20:07.359 down here all the time. You're in Georgia, but I 349 00:20:07.359 --> 00:20:09.960 don't play, And that's another subculture of people. 350 00:20:10.359 --> 00:20:13.799 Anyway, people still and it's like I think, on a 351 00:20:13.839 --> 00:20:16.839 state level, it all depends on who's getting paid off 352 00:20:16.960 --> 00:20:20.640 or whose buddy is in office. Like, for instance, we 353 00:20:20.680 --> 00:20:26.480 have the super liberal, you know, skill game situation. But 354 00:20:26.559 --> 00:20:29.240 at the same time, for years, you couldn't buy a 355 00:20:29.279 --> 00:20:33.559 bottle of wine or a beer in a convenience store. 356 00:20:33.559 --> 00:20:35.880 You had to go to like a state owned liquor store, 357 00:20:36.279 --> 00:20:38.359 right for a bottle of wine. And then for a 358 00:20:38.400 --> 00:20:40.480 while they had I sear of got they had these 359 00:20:40.519 --> 00:20:44.039 like robots. They were like these huge display cases full 360 00:20:44.039 --> 00:20:48.599 of wine. And you would go in and you would, 361 00:20:49.079 --> 00:20:52.920 you know, order your wine, and then a screen would 362 00:20:52.960 --> 00:20:56.599 come up and somebody in Harrisburg, the state capitol, would 363 00:20:56.640 --> 00:21:00.519 look at your driver's license through like a web cam 364 00:21:01.400 --> 00:21:03.519 and then you and so and then you have to 365 00:21:03.640 --> 00:21:09.400 like breathe into a breathalyzer and then and then if 366 00:21:09.400 --> 00:21:11.880 you're all clear, then it'll like the robot arm will 367 00:21:11.880 --> 00:21:15.599 give you a bottle of wine. And it's like like somebody, 368 00:21:16.000 --> 00:21:17.920 somebody got paid for that machine. 369 00:21:17.599 --> 00:21:20.599 Because guaranteed and you know. Again, the funny thing is 370 00:21:20.640 --> 00:21:23.599 your neighbor to the east, New Jersey, there is no 371 00:21:23.759 --> 00:21:26.480 alcohol sales. Like in most parts of the country. You 372 00:21:26.519 --> 00:21:29.599 can buy a beer at a convenience store in New Jersey, 373 00:21:29.680 --> 00:21:32.519 you can't. In some parts of New York you can, 374 00:21:32.680 --> 00:21:35.279 and some you can't in New York. But the weird 375 00:21:35.279 --> 00:21:39.039 thing is that they so overregulated it regulated at one 376 00:21:39.079 --> 00:21:43.559 point in certain areas of New York, the near Ithaca 377 00:21:43.680 --> 00:21:47.960 uh near Cornell University, right, the guy ended up opening 378 00:21:48.000 --> 00:21:52.079 something he called the inconvenience store which only sold beer, 379 00:21:52.920 --> 00:21:56.039 because you couldn't sell the beer at the convenience store. 380 00:21:56.160 --> 00:21:58.480 And this and that, Like if you want beer or 381 00:21:58.559 --> 00:22:00.559 wine in New Jersey, you can't get it at a 382 00:22:00.559 --> 00:22:03.640 grocery store. You can't get it at your you know, 383 00:22:03.720 --> 00:22:06.680 Sam's Club or your big box stores, none of that. 384 00:22:07.160 --> 00:22:09.279 You have to go to a liquor store to get 385 00:22:09.279 --> 00:22:11.960 beer in New Jersey, okay, or what they call a 386 00:22:12.000 --> 00:22:15.559 package store. But it's odd. See, the regulations are different 387 00:22:15.559 --> 00:22:18.000 in every place, and they've again had to come up 388 00:22:18.000 --> 00:22:20.640 with a workaround. See. The interesting thing about those games 389 00:22:20.640 --> 00:22:23.759 of chance again though, is just to go backwards in time. 390 00:22:24.200 --> 00:22:29.599 This problem of gambling machines and regulation and corruption and 391 00:22:29.680 --> 00:22:32.240 all the weirdness that goes on. You know, that's been 392 00:22:32.279 --> 00:22:34.759 with us in this country a long time. A lot 393 00:22:34.759 --> 00:22:37.359 of people who don't know the whole history of Jim Garrison, 394 00:22:38.319 --> 00:22:40.960 you know, the prosecutor you know, ended up taking the 395 00:22:41.480 --> 00:22:45.240 clay Shaw trial. Right, you're aware of Jim Garrison. So 396 00:22:45.480 --> 00:22:49.720 one of his big controversies before the JFK case is 397 00:22:49.759 --> 00:22:53.480 he took on people playing the pinball machines. There was 398 00:22:53.519 --> 00:22:58.039 a gambling pinball machine racket that went on in New 399 00:22:58.160 --> 00:23:01.119 Orleans where these machines were technically illegal if they were 400 00:23:01.119 --> 00:23:03.640 for money, but you could set them up and play 401 00:23:03.680 --> 00:23:07.799