WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.520 --> 00:00:03.680 You're listening to Wake Up Call on Demand from KFI 2 00:00:03.839 --> 00:00:11.279 AM six forty. You are listening to the Bill Handle show. 3 00:00:11.679 --> 00:00:16.480 Then he's a hero. You're gonna say postion down to 4 00:00:16.839 --> 00:00:23.839 zoo KFI AM six forty Bill Handle. Here. It is 5 00:00:24.199 --> 00:00:28.600 a Wednesday morning, December eighteenth, and we've got seven more 6 00:00:28.679 --> 00:00:34.600 days until that faithful day Christmas and Hanukkah this year, 7 00:00:34.640 --> 00:00:38.479 both starting the twenty fifth of December. And that doesn't 8 00:00:38.479 --> 00:00:41.479 happen very often. Amy said, the last time was two 9 00:00:41.479 --> 00:00:46.960 thousand and five, right, yep, Oh, it's almost twenty years ago. Okay. 10 00:00:48.640 --> 00:00:51.000 I want to talk a little bit about California and 11 00:00:51.640 --> 00:00:57.159 it's auto emission standards. As you know, California, Gavin Newsom 12 00:00:57.320 --> 00:01:00.719 has declared and this is state law now, by twenty 13 00:01:00.799 --> 00:01:05.840 thirty five, there will only be ev sold. There will 14 00:01:05.879 --> 00:01:09.920 be no gas powered cars sold in the state. So 15 00:01:09.959 --> 00:01:12.439 does that mean there will be no gas powered cars? 16 00:01:12.439 --> 00:01:15.599 Of course not. That doesn't mean that at all, because 17 00:01:16.280 --> 00:01:19.280 you know, people have cars two, three, four, ten years later. 18 00:01:19.359 --> 00:01:22.200 Cars last a long time, so they'll be gas powered 19 00:01:22.239 --> 00:01:27.959 cars for a very long time. And I don't know 20 00:01:27.959 --> 00:01:30.280 how long you can keep a car. I'm assuming the 21 00:01:30.319 --> 00:01:34.519 average car today lasts I don't know, seven, eight, ten years, 22 00:01:34.959 --> 00:01:38.319 if not longer, because they're so reliable. So California has 23 00:01:38.400 --> 00:01:42.879 decided we're going to do all evs. California has also 24 00:01:43.680 --> 00:01:50.040 decided that the auto emission standards that are in place, 25 00:01:50.760 --> 00:01:53.040 because they're getting more and more strict by the year, 26 00:01:54.640 --> 00:01:59.079 are well. They're in place and they can stay in place. 27 00:02:00.000 --> 00:02:02.560 The Supreme Court just ruled, but it's a mixed ruling 28 00:02:02.560 --> 00:02:05.519 because quite often the Supreme Court when it rules, just 29 00:02:05.599 --> 00:02:09.520 allows a company or a person or an entity to 30 00:02:09.520 --> 00:02:12.800 go ahead with the suit. So you file a lawsuit. 31 00:02:13.360 --> 00:02:16.759 The other side then says you don't have standing, you 32 00:02:16.840 --> 00:02:20.840 cannot sue, and then the court decides whether you can 33 00:02:20.960 --> 00:02:22.319 or not. We're not talking about the merits of the 34 00:02:22.360 --> 00:02:24.639 case now, we're not talking about the underlying merits. We're 35 00:02:24.680 --> 00:02:29.319 just talking about the ability to sue. And Wayne comes 36 00:02:29.400 --> 00:02:32.599 up with that and that's a lot. That's many cases 37 00:02:32.599 --> 00:02:35.000 that he comes up with on Monday when we do 38 00:02:37.120 --> 00:02:42.479 the legal segment here on KFI. And so what happened 39 00:02:42.599 --> 00:02:45.360 was there were a bunch of states, sixteen states or 40 00:02:45.400 --> 00:02:52.080 seventeen states that sued California, stripping it of its authority 41 00:02:52.199 --> 00:02:55.960 to adopt vehicle emission standards that were stricter than the 42 00:02:55.960 --> 00:03:01.280 federal benchmarks, saying California doesn't have the ability to pass 43 00:03:01.360 --> 00:03:04.319 its own laws that are stricter than the federal government 44 00:03:04.360 --> 00:03:09.719 because this is a federal issue. That's it. And the 45 00:03:09.759 --> 00:03:15.919 same time, you've got the fuel producers that have sue 46 00:03:15.960 --> 00:03:18.400 that have joined lawsuits. So there are two plaintiffs here, 47 00:03:18.439 --> 00:03:22.800 fuel producers and the states. Well, the Supreme Court just 48 00:03:23.000 --> 00:03:30.280 rules that California, the state of California, they have standing 49 00:03:30.400 --> 00:03:37.680 to sue. They'll just and they'll decide that. Let me 50 00:03:37.680 --> 00:03:42.759 see if I got this right. Ohio California one. And 51 00:03:42.800 --> 00:03:45.199 then it was a challenge up from Ohio and the 52 00:03:45.240 --> 00:03:52.919 state Supreme Court rule that California is prevalent here that 53 00:03:52.960 --> 00:03:56.840 the states do not have the right to sue. Boom Over. 54 00:03:57.840 --> 00:03:59.879 So not the merits of the case, not whether or 55 00:03:59.919 --> 00:04:03.360 not the standards are good or bad, it's just the 56 00:04:03.520 --> 00:04:08.199 states can't bring the lawsuit forward. California's immune to the states. However, 57 00:04:08.240 --> 00:04:14.039 the fuel producers can bring the suits forward. So now 58 00:04:14.120 --> 00:04:18.519 the lawsuit is limited to the fuel producers who are 59 00:04:18.639 --> 00:04:23.800 arguing the same premise that California does not have the 60 00:04:23.920 --> 00:04:28.759 right to have ambissions stronger than more stringent than the Feds. 61 00:04:29.120 --> 00:04:32.680 And why is that Because the fuel producers are saying 62 00:04:32.800 --> 00:04:38.040 those are actual damages to us. The states more broadly, 63 00:04:38.360 --> 00:04:41.399 they states say, well, it's a damage to us by 64 00:04:41.439 --> 00:04:46.759 these standards, these excessive standards that California has. Well, it's California, guys. 65 00:04:46.800 --> 00:04:50.879 What does that have to do with Ohio. Now you 66 00:04:50.920 --> 00:04:55.160 don't have a lawsuit here. You can't prove that California's 67 00:04:55.240 --> 00:04:59.240 law hurts Ohio's law. Because California has more stringent laws 68 00:04:59.240 --> 00:05:03.720 about fuel emits, the fuel producers have a better argument 69 00:05:04.639 --> 00:05:09.759 because they can't point to actual damages in the sense 70 00:05:09.800 --> 00:05:13.639 that the fuel producers are going to sell less fuel 71 00:05:13.839 --> 00:05:18.800 the more stringent the California rules are. And California goes 72 00:05:18.920 --> 00:05:25.120 beyond the federal government all the time. For example, the 73 00:05:25.160 --> 00:05:30.600 amount of pollution the fossil fuels emissions that flow out 74 00:05:30.600 --> 00:05:33.680 of cars that are produced by cars, California is far 75 00:05:33.759 --> 00:05:37.639 more rigid than anybody else. And so you know what 76 00:05:37.720 --> 00:05:42.639 ends up happening. They're fine, California can do it. Because 77 00:05:42.759 --> 00:05:46.360 of the damage that happens to the state because of 78 00:05:46.399 --> 00:05:51.240 fuel imute emissions, carbon dioxide, methane, I mean all of it. 79 00:05:52.639 --> 00:05:54.839 And you know what ended up happening. Why it's become 80 00:05:54.879 --> 00:05:57.680 moot because even though the rest of the company a 81 00:05:57.839 --> 00:06:05.000 country doesn't meet Californifornia standards on car pollution, they manufacture 82 00:06:05.040 --> 00:06:08.480 cars to that standard anyway all over the country. Cars 83 00:06:08.480 --> 00:06:11.519 sold in New Jersey meet the same standards as car 84 00:06:11.600 --> 00:06:13.920 sold in California, because California is too big a market, 85 00:06:15.000 --> 00:06:20.160 so we might as well adopt California's rules. It's that simple. 86 00:06:21.480 --> 00:06:26.839 On the other hand, California also demands a fuel during 87 00:06:26.879 --> 00:06:30.560 the summer, during the summer, the summer blend that produces 88 00:06:30.639 --> 00:06:34.519 less pollution. The other states say, too bad. You know, 89 00:06:34.639 --> 00:06:37.639 you do what you want. So what ends up California. 90 00:06:37.720 --> 00:06:40.600 We can't bring in gas from other states when there's 91 00:06:40.600 --> 00:06:43.920 a shortage of gas here, we can't bring it in. 92 00:06:45.120 --> 00:06:47.680 All we can do is use California refineries. There hasn't 93 00:06:47.680 --> 00:06:50.680 been a refinery built, I don't know, in decades, while 94 00:06:50.680 --> 00:06:55.519 our population has doubled over the last thirty years. So 95 00:06:55.600 --> 00:06:58.560 when there is a shutdown of a refinery, guess what happens. 96 00:06:59.399 --> 00:07:02.480 We have a reduction in fuel. One refinery going down, 97 00:07:02.920 --> 00:07:07.120 one fuel prices go up because the amount of fuel 98 00:07:07.120 --> 00:07:11.680 that is produced in California. Every drop is used because 99 00:07:11.680 --> 00:07:14.680 no one wants a refinery near them. You know, it's 100 00:07:14.720 --> 00:07:17.480 an mb situation. Yes, we need more refineries, not in 101 00:07:17.480 --> 00:07:21.639 my neighborhood, you don't. So it ends up that we 102 00:07:21.680 --> 00:07:24.040 are screwed other states when there's a shortage, you know 103 00:07:24.079 --> 00:07:27.360 what they do. They're pipelines. They just bring in. You know, 104 00:07:27.439 --> 00:07:32.279 for example, you've got let's say North Dakota is short 105 00:07:32.319 --> 00:07:37.160 of fuel because of some reason, maintenance problems, refineries are down. Well, 106 00:07:37.279 --> 00:07:41.000 the South Dakota produces its own fuel and it has plenty, 107 00:07:41.040 --> 00:07:44.319 so they ship it in, not in California. So this 108 00:07:44.519 --> 00:07:49.360 was sort of kind of a win for environmental advocates 109 00:07:49.680 --> 00:07:53.240 and they're cautiously optimistic. Now we have the lawsuit that 110 00:07:53.319 --> 00:07:56.800 is going forward by the fuel producers. Where is that 111 00:07:56.879 --> 00:07:59.639 going to go? We don't know. But the states that 112 00:07:59.759 --> 00:08:03.759 suit ude, they're out. Okay, was that too wonkey? By 113 00:08:03.759 --> 00:08:08.360 the way, do that makes sense? Guys, that's a question 114 00:08:08.399 --> 00:08:12.879 I'm asking you. They're asleep, Okay, thank you, I'll wake 115 00:08:12.920 --> 00:08:17.720 them up. Now. Let's go to seventeen ninety three. A 116 00:08:17.759 --> 00:08:21.839 little bit of a handle history. James Madison, fourth President, 117 00:08:22.560 --> 00:08:26.040 wrote the trust and the temptation would be too great 118 00:08:26.160 --> 00:08:31.680 for any one man. What was he writing about the 119 00:08:31.800 --> 00:08:38.720 ability to declare war, which Congress has solely under Article 120 00:08:38.759 --> 00:08:43.519 one of the Constitution, Congress must declare war. That's it. 121 00:08:44.240 --> 00:08:49.159 When FDR proclaimed on December eighth, a day that will 122 00:08:49.200 --> 00:08:52.559 live in infamy, he asked Congress to declare war on Japan, 123 00:08:52.840 --> 00:08:58.039 he didn't have the ability to do it. Well, now 124 00:08:58.120 --> 00:09:03.960 let's talk about the atomic bomb, nuclear weapons. The president 125 00:09:05.200 --> 00:09:08.879 basically has a sole authority to order a bomb dropped. 126 00:09:09.440 --> 00:09:13.200 Harry Truman, it was his decision. He said, all right, 127 00:09:13.519 --> 00:09:17.519 we're going to bomb Japan. Now it's both. You know, 128 00:09:17.600 --> 00:09:20.559 you can argue that the bombing of Nagasaki and Hiroshima 129 00:09:20.639 --> 00:09:23.919 was a good decision, bad decision. There's a lot of 130 00:09:23.960 --> 00:09:27.679 history there in interpretation, but the bottom line is since 131 00:09:27.759 --> 00:09:30.399 nuclear bombs came into being, it's been the president who 132 00:09:30.440 --> 00:09:34.559 has made that call. And the argument is that's not 133 00:09:34.639 --> 00:09:40.679 a declaration of war. Although you tell me bombing a 134 00:09:40.720 --> 00:09:45.840 foreign country is not a declaration of war, since then, 135 00:09:46.639 --> 00:09:48.799 it's only the president. By the way, the last time 136 00:09:49.080 --> 00:09:53.960 war was declared, and look at the number of fights 137 00:09:54.399 --> 00:10:02.320 of conflicts we've been involved in Vietnam, Korea, you have Granada, 138 00:10:03.000 --> 00:10:06.679 you have Serbia, and those are among the very very 139 00:10:06.679 --> 00:10:13.320 few examples of many, many battles. Not once was war declared. 140 00:10:13.879 --> 00:10:17.080 Last time war was actually declared was December eighth, nineteen 141 00:10:17.120 --> 00:10:22.600 forty one. Korea was a quote police action, which is 142 00:10:22.639 --> 00:10:26.000 still not over. It's an armistice. They're still at war 143 00:10:27.080 --> 00:10:30.440 North and South Korea. And when it came to Vietnam, 144 00:10:31.240 --> 00:10:37.879 Congress did allow President Johnson to fight, but it wasn't 145 00:10:38.159 --> 00:10:42.000 to declare war. It was the Tonkin Resolution, Tonkin Gulf Resolution, 146 00:10:42.120 --> 00:10:47.759 where Lynna Johnson made up an attack on an American, 147 00:10:49.120 --> 00:10:52.919 an American warship that was in those waters, international waters, 148 00:10:52.960 --> 00:10:56.960 he says, And it wasn't and anyway, there's a whole 149 00:10:57.039 --> 00:11:01.039 history there, but it was not a declaration war by Congress. 150 00:11:01.759 --> 00:11:05.320 So now you have an issue where the president, and 151 00:11:05.360 --> 00:11:09.559 this has been going on since nineteen forty five, in 152 00:11:09.600 --> 00:11:12.799 August when the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki took place, 153 00:11:13.240 --> 00:11:16.440 the president makes a sole decision. Congress has nothing to 154 00:11:16.480 --> 00:11:20.879 do with it. And in light of the fear that 155 00:11:21.039 --> 00:11:24.679 Donald Trump is going to be president and he is, 156 00:11:25.639 --> 00:11:28.919 let's say, reacts very quickly and doesn't think things through, 157 00:11:29.519 --> 00:11:32.279 and therefore a lot of people are frightened. I'm not. 158 00:11:33.399 --> 00:11:37.799 I'm not If Kim Jong un does not launch a bomb, 159 00:11:37.960 --> 00:11:42.360 who is far crazier if you run that gets a 160 00:11:42.480 --> 00:11:44.639 nuclear weapon and they're working very hard on it, and 161 00:11:44.679 --> 00:11:47.840 they're within a couple of years. I don't think would 162 00:11:47.879 --> 00:11:52.360 launch a bomb. Certainly Donald Trump would never launch a bomb. 163 00:11:52.360 --> 00:11:56.360 But it comes to an interesting position here and studying 164 00:11:57.480 --> 00:12:01.639 the fact that a president has the ability presses the button. 165 00:12:01.679 --> 00:12:04.279 It's not a button, by the way. What it actually 166 00:12:04.360 --> 00:12:07.639 is is by I think today it would be an 167 00:12:07.639 --> 00:12:12.519 email and a phone call that he says, Okay, let's 168 00:12:12.600 --> 00:12:14.679 launch this thing, and there are some safeguards it has 169 00:12:14.679 --> 00:12:18.600 to go. He actually doesn't order specifically, it's the Secretary 170 00:12:18.639 --> 00:12:21.600 of Defense that actually orders it. But the secretary of 171 00:12:21.600 --> 00:12:24.879 Defense works for the president, so the secretary of Defense 172 00:12:24.879 --> 00:12:29.039 can say no, thank you. So there are some safeguards, 173 00:12:29.519 --> 00:12:33.159 but the decision ultimately is the president's. Now here's the 174 00:12:33.240 --> 00:12:35.720 question I want to throw at you. Is the president 175 00:12:35.759 --> 00:12:40.799 allowed to defensively use nuclear weapons? The reason we have 176 00:12:40.919 --> 00:12:44.240 not gone to war with Russia and used nuclear weapons 177 00:12:44.240 --> 00:12:49.960 we had we had the concept of mad mutually assured destruction. 178 00:12:50.519 --> 00:12:54.200 You launch, We're going to launch right there, I mean 179 00:12:54.240 --> 00:12:58.279 within seconds of us seeing the launching, because a nor 180 00:12:58.360 --> 00:13:02.039 rad up north that can figure out Russian missiles coming in. 181 00:13:02.080 --> 00:13:04.840 They still have that system, by the way, And so 182 00:13:05.120 --> 00:13:08.639 do you wait for Congress to declare war? If launching 183 00:13:08.679 --> 00:13:14.240 an atomic weapon is a declaration of war, that's the argument. 184 00:13:14.320 --> 00:13:16.960 That's what makes this whole thing kind of fun, And 185 00:13:17.000 --> 00:13:20.519 the fact that wiping out the earth in a nuclear 186 00:13:20.559 --> 00:13:22.759 holocaust is kind of fun. I'm one of the few 187 00:13:22.759 --> 00:13:27.159 people that think that's entertaining. But I love discussing the 188 00:13:27.240 --> 00:13:31.360 issue of when is it appropriate for a president to 189 00:13:31.440 --> 00:13:38.320 launch a nuclear weapon? Now if preemptively canny launch can 190 00:13:39.000 --> 00:13:42.679 because of fear of a nuclear weapon by being used 191 00:13:42.679 --> 00:13:48.080 by the other side. Can a president launch and not 192 00:13:48.200 --> 00:13:52.279 in self defense, although you argue self defense but premature 193 00:13:52.279 --> 00:13:55.679 well not prematurely, but launch first. Yeah, a president can 194 00:13:55.720 --> 00:14:00.919 do that. And according to James Madison, that is way 195 00:14:01.039 --> 00:14:04.519 too dangerous. If you look at a president and they 196 00:14:04.519 --> 00:14:07.960 didn't have many nuclear weapons in seventeen ninety three, granted 197 00:14:08.440 --> 00:14:11.799 so he probably wasn't thinking of nuclear weapons, but he 198 00:14:11.919 --> 00:14:16.759 was thinking of Congress having the sole power to declare war, 199 00:14:16.919 --> 00:14:21.879 not the president, only Congress. So you got to think 200 00:14:21.919 --> 00:14:26.000 this one through. I find this fascinating because a preemptive 201 00:14:26.080 --> 00:14:30.879 law launch, is it a declaration of war? And if 202 00:14:30.919 --> 00:14:35.960 it is constitutionally speaking, the president can't do it. On 203 00:14:36.000 --> 00:14:40.440 the other hand, if it's in self defense and Russia 204 00:14:40.600 --> 00:14:44.039 or any enemy knows the president can do that, maybe 205 00:14:44.080 --> 00:14:47.519 it doesn't do that. Or if the law says that 206 00:14:47.639 --> 00:14:50.600 Congress has to meet, well, let me ask you. You got 207 00:14:50.600 --> 00:14:53.679 the congress people driving and flying in to vote for 208 00:14:53.720 --> 00:14:58.240 a declaration of war that takes days, takes twenty minutes 209 00:14:58.879 --> 00:15:05.519 for a launch from Russia or Iran or from North Korea. 210 00:15:07.840 --> 00:15:11.840 Fascinating topic. I love this, And we go back to 211 00:15:12.960 --> 00:15:16.879 is wiping the earth or wiping humanity from the earth? 212 00:15:16.960 --> 00:15:19.960 Is that entertaining? Is that fun? Well? I'm one of 213 00:15:20.000 --> 00:15:22.080 the few people that think, yeah, you know, that's kind 214 00:15:22.080 --> 00:15:27.799 of interesting concept, isn't it. Now here's a stat that 215 00:15:28.840 --> 00:15:33.519 from CNN the median renter in America, the renter has 216 00:15:33.519 --> 00:15:37.559 a net worth of ten thousand dollars. The median homeowner's 217 00:15:37.639 --> 00:15:41.039 networth is four hundred thousand dollars. Now, right off, that's 218 00:15:41.039 --> 00:15:44.080 fairly easy to explain, because a homeowner has equity in 219 00:15:44.120 --> 00:15:46.519 the house for the most part, and anybody who bought 220 00:15:46.519 --> 00:15:49.200 a house even a year ago or two years ago 221 00:15:51.320 --> 00:15:55.200 have seen their property values rise a year ago. When 222 00:15:55.240 --> 00:15:59.480 I decided to buy a house a year ago because 223 00:15:59.519 --> 00:16:03.120 there was no housing and because I had I had 224 00:16:03.120 --> 00:16:05.000 boxes had to be checked out, and I found the 225 00:16:05.039 --> 00:16:09.639 perfect house, well short of a remodel or parts of 226 00:16:09.639 --> 00:16:17.039 it remodeled, I paid top top dollar and realized, you know, 227 00:16:18.360 --> 00:16:20.720 it's not going to get more expensive than this. Property 228 00:16:20.799 --> 00:16:23.919 values have to fall because I've paid an insane price. 229 00:16:23.960 --> 00:16:27.600 The previous owner, who had bought the house a year before, 230 00:16:28.440 --> 00:16:35.039 made astronomical profit on it. Well, my house has risen 231 00:16:35.120 --> 00:16:38.600 twelve percent in value in a year. And I'm going, 232 00:16:38.840 --> 00:16:40.840 wait a minute, now, it didn't matter to me because 233 00:16:40.840 --> 00:16:43.000 I'm going to live there basically forever. I'm going to 234 00:16:43.120 --> 00:16:45.519 end up dying there, probably in the next couple of years. 235 00:16:46.240 --> 00:16:49.600 But let's go, yeah, let's hope. So, but it's just 236 00:16:50.440 --> 00:16:53.480 my value in that house and I put you know, 237 00:16:53.519 --> 00:16:55.840 I put a chunk down. All of a sudden, my 238 00:16:55.960 --> 00:17:00.159 net worth increased twelve percent of the value of the house. Yes, 239 00:17:01.240 --> 00:17:04.680 not bad, And that's what happened. If you're a homeowner, Neil, 240 00:17:04.799 --> 00:17:07.480 same thing. He bought the house, I don't know how 241 00:17:07.480 --> 00:17:10.440 many years ago, and the value of his house has 242 00:17:11.200 --> 00:17:15.799 what gone up fifty percent, doubled maybe, oh easily. Yeah. 243 00:17:16.119 --> 00:17:19.440 And fifteen years ago in our cabin, which we bought 244 00:17:19.480 --> 00:17:24.160 us kind of an investment property as well, within two 245 00:17:24.240 --> 00:17:27.519 or three weeks, I think we gained thirty five thousand. 246 00:17:28.519 --> 00:17:31.319 Yeah, So your net worth is much higher based on 247 00:17:31.400 --> 00:17:34.640 property values. That's for the most part, but there's really 248 00:17:34.720 --> 00:17:39.559 more than that, because, by the way, the stat this 249 00:17:39.599 --> 00:17:44.319 is a wonderful one. The typical homeowner has almost forty 250 00:17:44.599 --> 00:17:48.559 forty times as much wealth as the typical renter, all 251 00:17:48.640 --> 00:17:54.960 based on equity in homes. And not only that, renters 252 00:17:55.920 --> 00:18:03.359 have less positive cash flow. Renters have less debt. And 253 00:18:03.400 --> 00:18:10.119 that's just statistic. Renters are most likely to or excuse me, 254 00:18:10.200 --> 00:18:15.359 renters have less positive cash flow, less positive cash flow, 255 00:18:15.920 --> 00:18:20.519 bigger debt, fewer savings, and more likely to hold the 256 00:18:20.640 --> 00:18:26.200 student loans in in bigger, bigger amounts. So it's it's 257 00:18:26.319 --> 00:18:30.599 a person who can own and afford a home simply 258 00:18:30.680 --> 00:18:34.279 is financially better off than just the value of the home. 259 00:18:35.440 --> 00:18:37.599 It's just someone who can afford a home. Who is 260 00:18:37.599 --> 00:18:43.119 that today? Nobody million dollar homes. I've said this before. 261 00:18:43.680 --> 00:18:46.039 We look out the window of the studio and we 262 00:18:46.119 --> 00:18:49.799 look at these little cracker jack you know, cracker box 263 00:18:50.559 --> 00:18:54.480 houses is that the right word, that are down the 264 00:18:54.480 --> 00:18:58.279 street and they're eleven hundred square feet in their two bedroom, 265 00:18:58.319 --> 00:19:03.599 three bedroom, one bath, a million dollars on loss side. 266 00:19:04.119 --> 00:19:07.160 Yeah, big Teluca Lake is outside the window. 267 00:19:07.400 --> 00:19:09.799 Yeah, but you know there are many There are many 268 00:19:10.000 --> 00:19:13.920 many areas. Woodland Hills is crazy, Sherman Oaks and Sino 269 00:19:14.000 --> 00:19:16.920 is crazy. This is not Beverly Hills, mind you. I mean, 270 00:19:16.920 --> 00:19:20.119 these are very healthy parts of Los Angeles and a 271 00:19:20.119 --> 00:19:23.160 lot of them. And so you got a million dollars 272 00:19:23.240 --> 00:19:26.039 down the street for a little tiny house what used 273 00:19:26.039 --> 00:19:29.400 to be a starter home. And so a million dollars, 274 00:19:29.440 --> 00:19:31.400 you get a loan, you have to put two hundred 275 00:19:31.400 --> 00:19:33.799 thousand dollars down. So now you're sitting after two hundred 276 00:19:33.839 --> 00:19:37.599 thousand dollars after tax money that you're writing a check 277 00:19:37.680 --> 00:19:40.440 for or wiring it in these days, and then you're 278 00:19:40.440 --> 00:19:45.079 looking at an eight hundred thousand dollars mortgage at six 279 00:19:45.119 --> 00:19:49.319 point six percent just came out, and so six point 280 00:19:49.400 --> 00:19:51.880 six percent on eight hundred thousand dollars. What is that 281 00:19:52.160 --> 00:19:55.400 seven thousand dollars a month, and it used to be 282 00:19:55.599 --> 00:19:59.319 four thousand dollars a month thirty five hundred dollars a 283 00:19:59.319 --> 00:20:05.759 month a few years back. So if you're a homeowner, 284 00:20:07.559 --> 00:20:13.319 you're in great shape. If you're a renter, it's tough now. 285 00:20:13.359 --> 00:20:17.759 Some people rent because it's just easier. For example, you know, 286 00:20:17.920 --> 00:20:22.599 and I've told you when I retire, I plan on 287 00:20:23.079 --> 00:20:26.039 living in Italy for part of the year, if not 288 00:20:26.839 --> 00:20:29.599 for the entire year, just moving. I'm never going to 289 00:20:29.640 --> 00:20:31.960 buy a home. I'm going to rent for the rest 290 00:20:32.000 --> 00:20:33.519 of my life. I just don't want to deal with 291 00:20:33.559 --> 00:20:36.759 home ownership because it really has a pain in the ass. Insurance. 292 00:20:37.839 --> 00:20:41.720 Home insurance is the delight, isn't it. Taxes are a delight. 293 00:20:42.440 --> 00:20:47.119 Used to be you could deduct taxes as much as 294 00:20:47.119 --> 00:20:48.960 you paid in property tax. Used to be off your 295 00:20:48.960 --> 00:20:51.880 federal tax Now because of Trump in his previous administration, 296 00:20:52.680 --> 00:20:55.640 Captain at ten thousand dollars is the deduction, by the way, 297 00:20:56.000 --> 00:20:58.640 ten thousand dollars. Oh my god, who pays ten thousand 298 00:20:58.680 --> 00:21:01.720 dollars in taxes? Anybody who has a home that's a 299 00:21:01.759 --> 00:21:08.720 million dollars in value, and that's virtually every home in 300 00:21:08.839 --> 00:21:12.519 southern California. And the reason Trump did that because he 301 00:21:12.559 --> 00:21:17.799 hates California. And the same thing. As far as income, 302 00:21:18.480 --> 00:21:22.480 you pay your state income taxes, that was deductible against 303 00:21:22.799 --> 00:21:26.319 your federal taxes, and that was capped the ten thousand 304 00:21:26.359 --> 00:21:28.440 dollars wide. Because our wages are much higher than the 305 00:21:28.440 --> 00:21:32.640 rest of the country. Because when you buy a house, 306 00:21:32.720 --> 00:21:37.759 for example, in Arkansas, and your car is out in 307 00:21:37.839 --> 00:21:40.319 front and there are no wheels, and it is on 308 00:21:40.440 --> 00:21:45.039 cinder block, on cinder blocks, and the couch is on 309 00:21:45.079 --> 00:21:50.079 the porch, and the springs have sprung, and there's no 310 00:21:50.200 --> 00:21:54.079 dentists within one hundred and fifty miles. Now, wages aren't 311 00:21:54.200 --> 00:22:00.960 very very high, and the home prices aren't very high. Okay, 312 00:22:01.119 --> 00:22:04.440 enough of that. Now tell you about my daughter Pamela. 313 00:22:05.480 --> 00:22:12.000 Pamela and her roommate Harper have been working on a 314 00:22:12.079 --> 00:22:15.759 game for the last over a year year and a 315 00:22:15.799 --> 00:22:18.400 half and I mean a lot of hours. And you 316 00:22:18.440 --> 00:22:20.920 would think they would do an app, right because that's 317 00:22:21.039 --> 00:22:26.480 where you put games. It's a board game, it's not 318 00:22:26.519 --> 00:22:30.960 an app, and you go board games. We can seet 319 00:22:31.039 --> 00:22:34.640 during the pandemic, family sits down. You play Monopoly. In 320 00:22:34.680 --> 00:22:36.799 my case, it was Shoots and Ladders, and I had 321 00:22:36.799 --> 00:22:39.480 a very hard time understanding it. I finally got it. 322 00:22:40.599 --> 00:22:45.720 You've got various games that scrabble, a lot of just 323 00:22:45.759 --> 00:22:48.640 fun games, and then you figure out the pandemic. Okay, 324 00:22:48.640 --> 00:22:51.119 it's done. Now we go back to our reality, and 325 00:22:51.720 --> 00:22:54.759 board games just keep on going and going and going. 326 00:22:55.599 --> 00:22:58.519 And board games or a Monopoly, for example, was created 327 00:22:58.720 --> 00:23:05.079 in the third in the middle of the depression because 328 00:23:05.119 --> 00:23:07.799 it was a money issue, and as we know, people 329 00:23:07.839 --> 00:23:11.319 were completely broken. This was a sort of a sidebar. 330 00:23:11.960 --> 00:23:16.720 Let's play, let's play with fake money. Other games came 331 00:23:16.759 --> 00:23:19.079 in at the turn of the last century. We just 332 00:23:19.160 --> 00:23:25.559 like board games. Now they were losing all kinds of attention, 333 00:23:26.640 --> 00:23:31.079 and the number of people that were playing board games 334 00:23:31.160 --> 00:23:35.440 just really started falling off the radar, especially during the fifties. 335 00:23:35.480 --> 00:23:39.400 I think fifties and sixties started going downhill. And it was, 336 00:23:39.640 --> 00:23:42.759 as I said, during the pandemic, it completely exploded. And 337 00:23:42.799 --> 00:23:44.519 if you were the manufacturer of a board game, you 338 00:23:44.559 --> 00:23:51.480 did just great. So this phenomena is now increasing and 339 00:23:51.519 --> 00:23:57.440 why well, here's what's happening. People are still kind of lonely, 340 00:23:58.000 --> 00:24:03.680 and they still talk on the internet, they're not in person, 341 00:24:03.839 --> 00:24:07.200 so people are sort of desperate to get together. So 342 00:24:07.240 --> 00:24:09.400 you know what's going on, not just board games, but 343 00:24:09.599 --> 00:24:16.279 clubs where people get together to play board games. Again, Pamela, 344 00:24:16.480 --> 00:24:21.079 she does a weekly game of Dungeons and Dragons with 345 00:24:21.160 --> 00:24:25.279 a group of people she never met before. It's sort 346 00:24:25.319 --> 00:24:29.039 of a coffee clatch clotch where they get together, and 347 00:24:29.319 --> 00:24:32.960 that's not unusual. There are thousands of those groups across 348 00:24:33.000 --> 00:24:36.640 the country, particularly in New York. For some reason, New 349 00:24:36.759 --> 00:24:39.720 York is sort of the center of this. You know why, 350 00:24:39.799 --> 00:24:43.319 because New York has had chess clubs forever. When you 351 00:24:43.359 --> 00:24:46.319 look at people in the park playing chess in movies 352 00:24:46.400 --> 00:24:50.200 or TV shows, it's always New York because that's what 353 00:24:50.240 --> 00:24:54.960 they do here. In southern California, you go to Venice 354 00:24:55.160 --> 00:24:59.480 and it's always these bodybuilders who take a lot of 355 00:24:59.519 --> 00:25:05.519 steroid and their balls are the size of raisins. It's 356 00:25:05.559 --> 00:25:10.599 a different culture here there across the Midwest. But the 357 00:25:10.759 --> 00:25:14.759 concept of these New York clubs that play board games 358 00:25:15.000 --> 00:25:19.960 is really rising, and I mean dramatically. By the way, 359 00:25:20.480 --> 00:25:26.759 tabletop board games go back thousands of years. The ancient 360 00:25:26.799 --> 00:25:32.359 Egyptians played board games, and where it really started here 361 00:25:33.119 --> 00:25:35.680 is in the United States, was the nineteenth century, the 362 00:25:35.680 --> 00:25:42.519 eighteen hundreds, where wealthy men would play chess, and then 363 00:25:42.559 --> 00:25:45.599 that expanded into various board games, and then in the 364 00:25:45.640 --> 00:25:53.480 fifties the number of games just exploded. There is in 365 00:25:53.519 --> 00:25:57.920 New York City backgammon clubs held at restaurants in Brooklyn 366 00:25:57.960 --> 00:26:03.720 and Manhattan. Ten dollars per event. Is the admission cost 367 00:26:04.759 --> 00:26:09.559 thirty five hundred people? Yes, is what the number they 368 00:26:09.559 --> 00:26:13.599 can figure out Green Tile Social Club in New York 369 00:26:14.839 --> 00:26:19.480 and Majong Mistress. Okay, they also offer a lot of 370 00:26:19.519 --> 00:26:22.839 other stuff. The Majong Mistress. I thought Majong was only 371 00:26:22.880 --> 00:26:28.359 old Jewish ladies getting together talking to each other playing majan. No, 372 00:26:28.480 --> 00:26:32.440 I mean I've seen majong where they talk to each other. 373 00:26:32.720 --> 00:26:36.279 My son's a docta. No, he's not. He's a dentist. Doctor. 374 00:26:36.680 --> 00:26:40.119 That's not a docta. My son is a real doctor. 375 00:26:42.000 --> 00:26:45.599 My son is a specialist. He is not a doctor 376 00:26:45.680 --> 00:26:49.319 doctor like your son is. Those are my jong games. 377 00:26:51.160 --> 00:26:54.480 It turns out there's a lot more than that. By 378 00:26:54.519 --> 00:26:55.960 the way, if you've ever seen a bunch of old 379 00:26:56.079 --> 00:26:59.559 Jewish biddies playing majong. That's exactly the conversation they have. 380 00:27:02.440 --> 00:27:04.680 So still Chess is at the top of the game, 381 00:27:06.680 --> 00:27:09.720 so to speak. Chess is still the number one because 382 00:27:09.720 --> 00:27:11.839 it's been around a whole long time. And the reason 383 00:27:11.880 --> 00:27:16.480 it has exploded far more than did before is the 384 00:27:16.519 --> 00:27:20.319 mini series in the movie the Queen's Gambit that just 385 00:27:20.359 --> 00:27:25.079 gets things started for Formula one Racing has exploded because 386 00:27:25.079 --> 00:27:29.400 of the Netflix series. I don't miss that series, the 387 00:27:29.400 --> 00:27:31.839 Formula one series. I've been watching it for six years. 388 00:27:31.920 --> 00:27:34.960 What did I care about Formula one until that came out? 389 00:27:35.279 --> 00:27:40.279 So we are susceptible to TV movies and that just 390 00:27:40.359 --> 00:27:47.799 spins us in that direction. So because of the Queen's Gambit. 391 00:27:47.799 --> 00:27:49.119 By the way, you see that movie, I thought it 392 00:27:49.160 --> 00:27:54.519 was tremendous. I loved the Queen's Gambit. Yeah, everybody's nodding. 393 00:27:55.599 --> 00:27:59.680 Neil is nodding, Ann is nodding. Cono is not paying 394 00:27:59.720 --> 00:28:03.720 at ten, Amy is not paying attime. I'm paying attention. Okay, 395 00:28:03.799 --> 00:28:06.720 have you watched what movie? Am I talking about? Queen's Gambit? 396 00:28:07.319 --> 00:28:10.799 She took my words? Oh sorry, Oh we both listening. Okay, Well, 397 00:28:10.799 --> 00:28:15.319 it's a shocker. That's unusual Amy. Did you see the movie? Uh, 398 00:28:15.359 --> 00:28:18.319 it was a series. Actually, remember, Oh, I didn't see 399 00:28:18.319 --> 00:28:20.200 a movie. I watched the series and I thought it 400 00:28:20.240 --> 00:28:23.559 was fantastic. Yeah, watched the movie too, the movie that 401 00:28:23.720 --> 00:28:26.400