Transcript
Speaker: Sometimes the loudest story is just there to keep you from noticing the one that actually matters. We gonna get into it. Let's get it!
Speaker: Welcome. First of all, welcome. This is Unsolicited Perspectives. i am your host, Bruce Anthony, here to lead the conversation in important events and topics that are shaping today's society. stay Join the conversation and follow us wherever you get your audio podcasts. Subscribe to our YouTube channel for our video podcasts, YouTube exclusive content, and our YouTube membership.
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Speaker: On today's episode, it's The Sibling Happy Hour. I'm here with my sis, Jay Andrea. We're talking a WNBA stunt hides a bigger fight over women's sports, Trump and RFK Jr. revive the vaccine autism myth, and I nearly lose a fight with a bike.
Speaker: But that's enough of the intro. Let's get to the show.
Speaker: What up, sis? What up, brother? I can't call it. I can't call it. We're going to be getting into some heavy stuff in the beginning. Okay. And I got a story to tell you at the end. But just little catch up because nobody really knows what's going on with you anymore because we don't, you know, that used to be part of our little diddly-daddling. Yeah. You know, what's good with you? You know, you got a birthday coming up.
Speaker: Birthday's coming up. Yes. So ah that's about it. You got plans for your birthday. Oh, yeah. Nothing major. I'm having dinner with some friends. And then I'm going out to, it's called Rum Punch Brunch.
Speaker: So I'll be there as well. So, yeah, it's go to be fun. I'm excited. You should be excited because it's always fun to celebrate your birthday. I saw something on Instagram. it was real about this. ah I think I sent it to you. Maybe I didn't. Maybe I did. I don't know about this woman that said people in their 40s, because you're about to turn 42 and I'm 46 people in their 40s. It's like being a middle child.
Speaker: Yes. yeah Yeah. You're not the you're not you're you're you're not old, but you're not young anymore. Yeah, that's why they call it middle age. It wasn't really a hot take.
Speaker: Just the way she broke it down was very interesting. Yes. Yes. But yeah, that's why they call it middle age. You're in the middle. You're in the middle. You're not young. You're not old. You're just in the middle. And I love it. Honestly, i wasn't thrilled about being young. like yeah Because it's just like, you know...
Speaker: You're broke. People don't take your opinion seriously because they think you haven't experienced enough. you You barely know yourself. I like being middle-aged. I feel very settled in, like, who I am and in my life. It's a really good time. And then, you know, am I thrilled about getting older?
Speaker: ah To a certain extent, not physically. I'll tell you that. Not physically. You know, because... I mean, you sleep on your neck wrong and your next quarter yeah is ruined.
Speaker: My neck is hurting right now. Yeah. It used to be like, oh, I got crick in my neck. But by the end of the day, it works itself out. not Not anymore. So definitely not looking forward to getting older in that respect. But yeah, i love being middle-aged.
Speaker: I've recently, and a couple people have have pulled my card on it, I've recently been saying, y'all, I'm almost 50. Which is technically true-ish. You're closer to than But I say it,
Speaker: Oftentimes to try and get out of stuff. Like, you know, you trying to go do this? Man, I'm almost 50 years old. Yeah, I'm almost 50. I'm not doing that. violence Oh, I do that all the time. Yeah. yeah But I'm not... all But somebody pointed out, but you're not 50. I said i almost. Almost. it Almost doesn't have... Almost is different than, like, couple and few.
Speaker: yes almost doesn't have a definitive number that's associated with couple is obviously two and few few if few i think it's three you say yeah you can say few or more but but did that almost is just hey almost um almost almost it's almost all right in here almost i consider almost if i if you're closer to 50 than 40 then that's almost like that's That's almost.
Speaker: but I've always liked every every age range that I've ever been in. Because it's just... I've never... No, I hated a teenage girl.
Speaker: Yeah, it's probably little different than being a teenage boy. Definitely hated it. Yeah. You just hate everything and everyone. You just have this horrible attitude and you just... And it's almost like an out-of-body experience. I'm like, why am I so damn sassy today? And I can't, you know? And it's just because you're a teenage girl. would imagine that because...
Speaker: little girls are taught emotional intelligence or starting that process while little boys are not, traditionally speaking, are not allowed to start that process. That when the hormones hit in those teenage years, yeah little boys or teenage boys only have a few emotions that they can really deal with anyway. yeah Whereas kids,
Speaker: Teenage girls are developing even more emotional intelligence at the same time going through hormones. Yes. So so just the breadth of what you can feel, you feel all of it.
Speaker: All the time and different like variations and fluctuations. You're fine one moment, somebody says, boy, one thing, and it's not even like that bad.
Speaker: You know, somebody just breathes breathe a little too loud. And you're like, this is the worst day of my life. Like, it's those extremes that I'm just like... But I'm going to have to experience that again when I'm pre- and then menopausal. so Because I'm seeing my friends go through it. And you're almost there.
Speaker: I'm almost there. Again, almost. like almost Who knows when it's going happen, but it's almost. Almost. I'm closer to it than I am away from it. like right I'm closer to it. So almost. And I'm just seeing like them going from zero to 100% and not being able to control it. And it feels like this out-of-body experience of like, I don't even mean to cuss you out right now. And I am sorry that I'm doing it, but I cannot stop.
Speaker: it's no like So that's going to be fun. That's going to be real fun. This is a horrible transition. okay This is a horrible transition. Because we started off, and I didn't know where we were going to go into dilly-dantling. We started off by talking about the difference between being a teenage girl and a teenage boy and growing up and the differences. And here we are about to transition into a viral WNBA controversy, which is getting a lot of attention.
Speaker: But underneath it is a much bigger conversation. And don't worry, ladies and gentlemen, we're going to have it. But we're going to start with the surface level stuff. And it's about women's sports, fairness, and what could be changing behind the scenes. So what am I talking about?
Speaker: Two dum-dums. Two former NBA players, Royce White, who's actually a GOP Senate candidate, I believe in Minnesota. I believe. You guess it's as as mine. And Enos Kanter, who he was known as an NBA, but gave him added freedom on the last one. A former Turkish NBA player that originally came out talking about the atrocities in Turkey.
Speaker: Mm-hmm. And then when the and NBA was going all to China and doing all this stuff, he said, yeah, wait a minute. I done called out this stuff about Turkey. You had the black athletes talking about, you know, um,
Speaker: are ah the shootings that was happening with, what was the sweatshirt? was a young but Trayvon Martin and things like that. And Enos Cantor at the time was like, yo, LeBron, why are you not talking about the atrocities going to China? Matter of fact, you're going to China to get more money.
Speaker: He started getting applause from right-wing organizations and news because he was calling out LeBron. He wasn't this before, but just as as you just as anybody, you start to get ah applause You lean into it, he's become like a right-wing pundit. So these two dum-dums, former NBA players, have decided to enter in the WNBA draft in 2027 next year because they say the WNBA didn't really say that women, I mean, that they didn't say anything about trans athletes and we identify as women now.
Speaker: So we're going to enter in the WNBA draft. And what they're doing is making a mockery of the policy. They're also making a ah mockery of being trans because... yes
Speaker: And they know what they're doing. Okay. I'm trying not to be pissed off, but I am. No, i want you to be pissed off because I'm going to give you more, right? they they They have always identified as cisgender men. This is a stunt, right? Yes. here's Let's be clear about this, ladies and gentlemen. There are no trans women currently playing in the WNBA.
Speaker: There's no trans women trying to get into the WNBA. None has ever played in Division I women's basketball either. Right? So this is a... In the words of my girl, Evelyn, this is a non-mother-effing factor.
Speaker: Yeah. It's not a factor. The league CBA says women... right, women, but it never defines the word as women. So this is still just theoretical, not something on the court, but let's just keep focusing on the fact that this is creating a solution despite a problem. like there is no There are no transgender women in the WNBA nor in Division I basketball.
Speaker: Yeah. Here's the thing about cishet men. and Okay, give it to
Speaker: it to me. They love manufacturing problems. And it's exactly what you said. It's like, well, what if what if they did this? What if they did that? Nobody's doing that. But what if? But nobody's doing that.
Speaker: So you're manufacturing a problem to prove a point that doesn't exist. Mm-hmm. and it's all a smokescreen, you don't you don't care about this. And that's the thing that pisses me off the most about it is you don't care if there are or are not trans women in the WNBA or Division I basketball. You actually don't care about it at all. You actually probably don't care about the WNBA or Division I women's basketball.
Speaker: So you're trying to prove a point about something that doesn't exist to no one because no one's asking for it. And also, who cares? You don't.
Speaker: And we don't. And if anybody is talking about this as if they do care, Why?
Speaker: Why do you care? Would it be unfair to women? Oh, now you care about fairness to women?
Speaker: Y'all are, y'all are a trip. Hey, if you really care about fairness for women, I have a laundry list of stuff that you can get into. We could start with the wage gap. We could start with women's bodily autonomy. We could start with that. If you really care about unfairness to women, shut up. Like, shut up.
Speaker: And it's so tired. Like y'all, y'all want to be disenfranchised so badly. You want to be disenfranchised. You want to be oppressed. You want to be the victim so, so badly. Because that is literally the only thing that separates you from everybody else.
Speaker: Okay, you must be speaking to cis white men right now because I'm a cis black man and I have been oppressed. Yeah, yeah, that's who I'm talking to. Okay, okay, all right. You just said cis men in the beginning. But the two men, Royce is black and Nina's cancer Turkish. No, the idea of manufacturing problems, that is just cis men in general.
Speaker: Okay. Because, no, because what do I hear all the time? Man, if a gay dude ever pushed up on me, they never have and they never will. Do you want to know why? Because you're ugly. Well, okay, if they're ugly. Because gay men have pushed up on me, but I don't really get... Yes, you're attractive. Yeah, I don't really get offended by it. Well, except for that one time, dude would not leave me alone when I said I didn't want to ride. Well, one likes being catcalled. Yeah, or...
Speaker: or Or when dude said, hey, little man in the pink shirt. I was like, I'm not a little man, but I am wearing a pink shirt. all right But I dig what you're saying. let's Let's get into the legality issue of this. I didn't say that right, but y'all know what the hell I mean. You did say legality, correct? It's just the way it came out. is Look, ladies gentlemen, my speech impediment has been the worst of the day.
Speaker: Don't really know how the show's going to We did the opening take seven times. So, hey, so there was a legal case that was decided by the Supreme Court 63 on June 30th, 2026. It was the West Virginian versus PBJ, which basically stated that states can define school teams by biological sex. Title IX and equal protection don't block it. Limited to two states, but affects about 25 more.
Speaker: But I want to point out There are over 500,000 college athletes. Under 10 of them are transgender.
Speaker: Right. Half a million athletes. Under 10 of them are transgender. And not in the WNBA. ah But when Sophie Cunningham was asked this question, and we talked about it a couple of weeks ago, she says she just wanted to protect girls, and there's been this big hoopla over it, and then Royce and Enidus Kanter jumped in on that. That's where all this is coming from.
Speaker: It's all a smokescreen. I mean, this is a legitimate conversation, and I don't think that it's not a conversation to have if it was an actual thing, right? Yeah. because Unless trans women have gone through the chemical process of completely transitioning, there is a physical aspect for contact sports that is different.
Speaker: so Yeah, I don't think anybody was arguing that. Yeah, so so there is a legitimate conversation to be had about trans athletes in sports that doesn't have to be ah with this vitriol and this hatred attached to it.
Speaker: Right. But I feel like, to me, this is really all a smokescreen. And this is what I mean by that. The Heritage Foundation. y'all know who the Heritage Foundation is, Jay. You know who the Heritage Foundation is? Yeah. Anytime you have, ah even if I don't know specifically, anytime you have something named Liberty, Freedom, Heritage, anything like that, I pretty much assume it's some oppressive white organization.
Speaker: They've been in effect since 1973. And they were small, but they really took off over Obama's administration. Oh, surprise, surprise. Yeah, they preached themselves on conservative values. They're also the authors of Project 2025. And after this ruling by the Supreme Court on trans athletes and college sports, Heritage...
Speaker: foundation dropped the report. The author was Scott Yurnor, and it was titled Title IX's Failed Experiments. Basically, he wants to abolish the equal opportunity mandate because it targets proportionally women slots matching enrollment.
Speaker: His premise was women would rather do yoga then compete, says Title IX harms men's sports and feminine graces.
Speaker: This is a report and push that he's trying to enact in the law. So what does that basically mean? What is Title IX? He is trying very hard to piss me off and he's succeeding. Title IX, ladies and gentlemen, is a rule in college sports that men and women should have the same opportunity in sports.
Speaker: What ends up happening is there are two revenue-driving sports that basically fund everything, and it's college football and college basketball, right? Yes. If you are the University of Kentucky, college basketball is your biggest revenue driver, and it is that money that you make from college basketball that is spread out throughout the all ah throughout the athletic department so that there can be a men's and women's soccer team, that there can be a men's baseball team and a women's softball team, that there can be a women's volleyball team, track and field, gymnastics. Those sports don't really make money. Football and basketball.
Speaker: the reason that those sports exist. And Title IX makes it so that women get their opportunity. What they with the Heritage Foundation wants to do is do away with that and basically say, look, if your sport can't generate money, then you don't get to have a sport.
Speaker: But it's disproportionately going to affect sports that women play. And they really want that because they want women to go back to being, you know what, go to school, become a nurse or a teacher.
Speaker: graduate, maybe you get a job, but be a stay-at-home mom and take care of the kids. That's really what it is. So behind this whole backdrop. But also it isn't, right? Because we also have research that says that men want their woman to also be a financial contributor to the household.
Speaker: Yeah. Well, not let's put it this way. Men in the Heritage Foundation, men that are associated with the Heritage Foundation, got a lot of bread. So they don't really want their woman to contribute to the household. And there's a lot of men who don't because they like having the money and the power that gives them control. yeah um they they They want to push it back.
Speaker: This is why this pisses me off. The whole women would rather do yoga and something about feminine whatever the hell Female women athletes
Speaker: have literally been fighting for equity in athletics this entire time. This entire time, they've been fighting for visibility. They've been fighting for access to resources. They've been fighting for the marketing, the everything, right?
Speaker: They've been fighting for these things, equal pay, or at least ah a living wage. Right. You know, like the U.S. women's soccer team is a good example of this. they so We have been they bringing home gold and the trophies and everything.
Speaker: and and not making nearly what the men are making. Right? And so they had that whole... So when you talk about, well, women don't want this.
Speaker: Please, please do me a favor. And close your eyes and walk toward a flight of stairs. Because you're... you're you're Are you that out of touch? or or are it are you purposefully doing that? Both are bad.
Speaker: Both are bad. both i Either you literally have no idea or you're purposefully mischaracterizing women.
Speaker: And it pisses me... Yoga. Yeah. Women don't want to compete? No, they don't want to compete. That's what the Heritage Foundation say. Then why the hell are we actually doing it? Because nobody is nobody is holding a gun to our head and saying, y'all got to go out there and play some basketball. Nobody's doing that. We had to fight to get the space to do that.
Speaker: You know, there's another bigger issue. of getting rid of Title IX. When you get rid of Title IX and you get rid of a lot of women's college athletics, don't get don't get me wrong. Getting rid of Title IX is going to get rid of some men's programs as well, right? yeah It will.
Speaker: Disproportionately, it will be women. What Title IX did was open up college to a lot of women who might not be able to afford college.
Speaker: might not be able to go to college. They didn't get a full ride. So it changed families. It changed fortunes for not only women, but also some of those women that are extra minorities, like black women. ah and what is Like black queer women. And what is the WNBA made up of primarily?
Speaker: Black queer women. I don't know if it's primarily, but Black women. and queer women. Black and queer women. Yes. So let's let's strip the politics out of it because it's all it's all noise.
Speaker: When you talk about what these two idiots are doing in the WNBA, it is literally trying to take up space in a woman's sport. Yeah. And when you talk about trying to strip away Title IX, it is literally taking something else away from women.
Speaker: where these men aren't affected, right? Yes. And everybody is benefiting from Title IX, both men and women. Yeah, everybody benefited from affirmative action. Everybody benefit. If you... I say it every i say it and damn near every other episode.
Speaker: Mm-hmm. If you focus on... the most vulnerable populations in your society uplifting that it benefits everyone. Yeah. Because if the most vulnerable people have access to resources and the things that they need to not just live, but to thrive, then everyone does. Yeah. Yeah.
Speaker: But if you look again at the world like it's zero-sum game, and if I get a piece for me, then that's taking a piece away from you, then it results in these kinds of policies that disenfranchise whole communities of people, including 51% this population.
Speaker: Ladies and gentlemen, basically what I'm trying to tell you is don't fall for the banana in the tailpipe. Cause that's what they're trying to do to you.
Speaker: Jay, there was an interesting news conference that happened on Monday.
Speaker: Okay. There's a new fight over childhood vaccines and it's bringing up old fears back into the spotlight. One of those old fears is autism. And it's raising bigger questions about science, trust, and how political messaging shapes what parents believe.
Speaker: Because people out here, parents are really trying to believe these politicians. But on Monday, August the 10th, Trump walked into the Oval Office along with Bobby Kennedy Jr., Bobby Kennedy Jr., right beside him and signs an executive order. Get this. The title of the executive order is Delivering Gold Standard Childhood Vaccine Recommendations for Americans.
Speaker: Now, at least there's... always got to make it tacky by adding gold in there. At least he had some better adjectives. Nope. Nope.
Speaker: No, he didn't. No, he didn't. ah well it's It's better than the big, beautiful bill. How about that? Yes. Yeah. It's just a long-ass title for an executive order. But what this basically does is it shakes up the childhood vaccine schedule. And, of course, autism got pulled right back into the conversation. So what does this executive order does? It...
Speaker: The MMR vaccine will be split into three separate single dose shots instead of one combination shot. shot The only problem is those separate shots don't exist in the U.S. market. Kennedy has 90 days to produce a plan to be able to do this. Shots will now be spread over from a year immunization shots, I said it right that time, it will be spread over a year to 18 months. So typically it's a year, but now they want to spread out to 18 months, which means more shots for the little kids, right?
Speaker: Yeah. All kids lists versus at-high-risk only lists. Like, so... They tiered it as all kids lists and then at-risk lists. And the at-risk list kids specifically had to get the RSV vaccination, hemp A and hemp B. That'll be pushed specifically to the high-risk kids. Who the high-risk kids are? i don't know.
Speaker: But they just said high-risk. And it advises states to loosen school mandates. Stay still, hold the power, not him. So yeah oh it's a he had a whole bunch of claims, but just I just want to get your thoughts on first.
Speaker: we have more We've had more measles outbreaks in the last, I think they said, two or three years than we had in the last 30 or 40 years before it combined.
Speaker: But how do you feel about them saying, nah, you ain't got to get these shots? The only reason that we can even debate about the need or the relevancy of vaccines is because ain't a whole bunch of people walking around on leg braces anymore with polio. Yeah.
Speaker: And the reason why is because of vaccines. yeah here You ain't lying.
Speaker: So let's all just be prepared for those things to come back. Because a handful of loud, uneducated people who none of which have medical degrees, but swear up and down they've done their research, but you do not have a medical degree. You are in no way a scientist. I mean, no kind of science.
Speaker: You barely know fractions. Well, to be fair, a lot of people barely know fractions. and Okay. Now, so you you struggle with your left from your right. Okay. That's a little bit better. yeah And you telling me you did your research. You didn't.
Speaker: I guarantee you read no peer-reviewed nothing. And now you've made a proposal. You signed an executive order to do a thing that we don't have. And in 90 days, you are not going to get this accomplished. You want to know why? Because this is the most ineffective administration since the last time Trump was president.
Speaker: They've been pretty effective to get certain things done that benefits them. Like what? um Well, you know, ICE is still funded and still running the streets.
Speaker: All right. he He did get the he did pull money from the tariffs. I don't know where it is. and with it Yeah. that He got us in a war. You know, he did do that. He's he's decreased our stockpiles. But this is yeah is more than the conversation of that. Right.
Speaker: yeah So he's in the Oval Office. He's sign this executive order. And then they start asking questions. And that's the worst thing you can do. It really does not have answers. Neither one of them do.
Speaker: They're both two people that I am sure. Again, not a doctor, purpose but are possibly suffering from dementia.
Speaker: ah Well, Trump, i don't know Bobby is. he you Even though he had He has the shakes. So Trump claimed that... they're required The kids are required now to have 72 jabs. That's what he called it. For kids, that's not the truth. That's absolutely not the truth.
Speaker: It's not the truth. He called the MMR shot quite lethal and explosive. No. but those are How is it explosive? yeah no He said that the vaccines total the amount of a soda bottle and they pour it into a baby bottle.
Speaker: they just pour all that soda bottle vaccine into a baby. no His own advisors told him and Kennedy to drop this before the midterms because this is not popular.
Speaker: At all. It's not popular. there's a fringe segment that this is really for, and it's not popular. And he signed it anyway. He's not even listening to his advisors.
Speaker: Well, I don't think he's ever done, but like... God, I hate this so much. I hate this. like I'm trying to say something intelligent and like all the thing that comes to my mind are curse words. yeah um This is the dumbest, most useless piece of legislation.
Speaker: all right, so dig this here. There was a March court ruling which froze actual schedule changes, so this cannot go into effect right now. The pre-2025 recommendations are still legally the standard today.
Speaker: So the order really, order's real effect this week is rhetorical, it's not operational. But it's confusing the hell out of a lot of people, which is what they want. Because people are talking like, yo, did my pediatrician change? And like, no.
Speaker: Why would your pediatrician, why is that? Like, I'm not a parent, but why would that, why would your pediatrician change? I'm not. I don't think you need to be a parent to understand that this has no impact on your pediatrician.
Speaker: and and And once again, to bring it back to why I originally brought up this this topic is because they tied it to autism. They said that these shots are leading to autism. Robert Kennedy has was been quoted. then I'm paraphrasing this quote, ladies and gentlemen, as saying you have seen as these immunization shots, have you as you develop more immunization shots, the the levels of people getting autism or being diagnosed with autism has has raced the diagnoses yes because we through science continue to understand more and more about neurodivergency
Speaker: That does not mean there are more autistic people. I do not believe that that is the case. I think there's always been autistic people, but we didn't know what autism was. And we had very rudimentary understandings of science and medicine in those times. And those are just people that we would lock away. we We would call them insane and we would lock them away. Mm-hmm. But as time who goes on and we increase our understanding of different ways of being, right, we understand more and more people are being diagnosed.
Speaker: It's not that doesn't equal more people having it. It's just we're recognizing the diagnosis now. Think of how many people died of cancer before we knew what it was. hmm.
Speaker: Okay, you're talking about ah oh oh ah beings who used to think that you could attach leeches to people or bleed people in order to cure illnesses. All right, Jay, let's get to the size part of it.
Speaker: Okay. This can't be... debate it, right? This has completely been debunked about this link of these vaccines to autism, right? This is not a debatable issue. This is not a both sides type question. The link has been tested for the last 25 years and it keeps coming back empty.
Speaker: But where it all started was in 1998. A British doctor named Andrew Wakefield published a study claiming the um MMR shot caused art autism. The whole modern panic traces back to this one paper, and it was built on just 12 women, 12 students, 12 children. Not 12 women or 12 students. It was 12 children. might have been students.
Speaker: And they will might eventually become women. But in this particular study, it was just 12 children. Dig this here. It was a fraud, and it was retracted. The paper was pulled from scientific record because investigators found fabricated data and financial conflicts he never disclosed. He was getting paid in connection with the research. This was not an honest mistake.
Speaker: He was cooking the books. yeah He lost his license. After the fraud came out, Wakefield lost his medical license. The man who started the whole thing can't legally practice medicine anymore.
Speaker: Mm-hmm. So... But you know what what people who... These truthers would say, well, they're just trying to shut down the truth.
Speaker: They're trying to silence the truth. And as Black people, there is a bit of truth and situations where people were speaking the truth and was being shut down by the government. There is truth in that situations like that have happened. Yes. Not this mofoge.
Speaker: No. And also, there is no single source of truth, right? America is not the world. Scientists, doctors from all over the globe are studying autism, trying to, I mean, we know, you know, that it it is hereditary,
Speaker: but a single call, like, they everybody's working on it. Mm-hmm. And if they're all like, yeah, we looked into vaccines, it's not the vaccines.
Speaker: Ladies and gentlemen, it's not the Okay, not global conspiracy because you would have to get people who don't agree to agree on this one thing.
Speaker: Mm-hmm. And that's outlandish. Don't forget that they tried to claim that Tylenol led to autism. That's been debunked as well. Because it don't make no damn sense. Tylenol, people have been using Tylenol since it was made, basically.
Speaker: Yeah. Since it was invented, right? People have been using acetaminophen. Not Tylenol specifically, but acetaminophen, right? Everybody. air Everybody.
Speaker: Everybody. Like, you got to be serious. At some point, you got to be serious. Well, going back to one of your original points, the rates have gone up. It used to be one in every 150 kids. Now it's one in every 36 kids. But that's mostly that is mostly because of better screening and the broader definition of autism. People seem to forget also, we extended autism because now there's a spectrum. Yes. So again, I still think those numbers, it's an increase in diagnoses. I don't think it's an increase in incidences.
Speaker: Yeah. Through all the studies, millions of kids, hundreds of studies, autism has no single cause. Genetics carry the biggest weights, but there are hundreds of genes that are involved in it.
Speaker: and So there's no villain. There's no clean villain. Yeah. There's no clean villain. And so me and my friend were talking.
Speaker: And they were telling me a story about their family member. And basically the gist of this the story the family member was the family member was really self-absorbed and self-centered, all that type of stuff, right? Yeah.
Speaker: And I asked them a question. I was like, well, are they that or are they on the spectrum? And they're like, oh, never actually thought about that because I know a lot of people that are on the spectrum and they're just oblivious to other things, not perfect purposefully.
Speaker: Yes. they're just It's not self-centeredness. Well, it'll come off as that. But it's not that, right? They're not purposely that way. I've talked to a few of them, and I've questioned, hey, what made you say that right there? Well, i don't know. this This is just, you know, so what am I thinking?
Speaker: Yeah, no, what are you thinking in this moment? I don't know, like, why are you asking me these questions? Because I'm trying to understand why you think it's appropriate to say that particular thing, like you're the only person that's in the room.
Speaker: Yeah. Oh, well, I am here. Yes, but there are other people. Do you see them and notice? I mean, of course I see them. Do you acknowledge them? I don't even know. And they can't explain it. It's not deliberate. They're not deliberately trying to be mean.
Speaker: There are people throughout history... who you could be like, that you've come across with, and you'd like, man, this person is just only, the only thing they think about is their self. And because autism is a spectrum, and that's one of the signs of autism, they're probably just stuck, their head their head is wired a certain way.
Speaker: And they can't see everything. And we need to have have more empathy. Now, you know the difference between somebody who is, if you sit down and think about it, you know the difference between somebody who is deliberately,
Speaker: Right. Only thinking about themselves and and people who were just oblivious. And we would call them certain things like they were ditzy or a airhead. Maybe. Maybe. Or maybe they were just on the spectrum. And that's the reason why you go from 150, one in 150, to one in 36. Yeah. It's not because we're doing more immunizations.
Speaker: It's because our understanding of how people... neurodivergent people present, is our our understanding of it has expanded. That's that's it.
Speaker: But we got to be careful because remember, I told you in the last segment, it's never what they present to you. It's always what's behind the scenes.
Speaker: So we're telling you what's behind the scenes, but they're presenting it as and they're framing it as this is parental choice. The parents have the right to choose. And don't get me wrong.
Speaker: It's your kid. Yeah. There should be some parental choice of certain things. But stay in your wheelhouse. When they do, I get annoyed being a former educator or somebody who studied to be in education.
Speaker: When they give parents a voice in what their children learn. Because I know. You don't know how to properly prepare your kid as far as an education is concerned for the future.
Speaker: You don't have any clue. There is more to these subjects than just the subjects themselves. you They're teaching your children how to think and function in the world.
Speaker: Right. Even complex things, you say, I've never used calculus. I have never used calculus. But the problem solving I use every single day.
Speaker: Yes. You have no idea because you haven't gone through the program to learn why it is that we do these subjects. Yes. You should have a say sometimes.
Speaker: You know, if you don't want your kid to learn sex ed, okay. That's fine. You bring a baby home. but But your choice for your kid should not impact my kid.
Speaker: There you go. And so you choosing not to immunize your child. can have consequences for other children. Now, you don't want to immunize your child and you want to homeschool them and keep them in a little bubble or something.
Speaker: That's on you. But when your decision is going to have consequences for other people, it's not just your decision anymore.
Speaker: The whole point of this is public safety. Yeah. Public health. Just like public safety. Yes. It is not about you.
Speaker: It is not about you as an individual. It is about what is the best thing for the collective, for society, for the public. What is the public good?
Speaker: And if that means you got to mask up and socially distance or quarantine and stop, because some of y'all come to the airport just to cough. Like, like that feels like that's the whole reason why you're there.
Speaker: Okay. Y'all pissing me off with that. But if that, if if that's what it means, because it's the interest of the public good, some of y'all need to get out of the way.
Speaker: Because you're not thinking about the public good. You're thinking about your own self-interest. For those of y'all that want to do the straw man, we have other peer nations that do fewer shots. Yeah, okay. That is very, very true. But let's be honest about that. Okay. The schedules differ by disease, burden, and approval timing, which means that other countries have other things that they need to be worried about and don't need to be worried about, just like the United States. Okay. Therefore, there are certain shots that we have to take at a certain time, young children, mind you, so that there's herd iunity immunity.
Speaker: Yes. Each country is different. yeah For example, when traveling to the United States, you do not need a malaria shot. o When traveling other places, you do.
Speaker: See how that's different? That's different. How the world is big and things could be different, different places. And this is what I mean when I say America is not the world. Some of y'all think, Americans, some of y'all think that America is the world. And it's not. That our government's the only government.
Speaker: That our people are the only people. That the way we live is the only way to live. And it is not. The world is quite big. There are bigger countries than ours. There are places with much more people than we have that are making it work.
Speaker: And we somehow seem to be dumb as hell. Also, we ain't the only Americans. We're the United States. Of America. That is of true. Canadians are American.
Speaker: Mexicans are American. All of Central South America are American. It's America. yeah just Just in case you guys forgot. And when you go, they say you're in America.
Speaker: Right. And that you're traveling there from North America. There you go. Yeah. Another straw man are injuries from vaccines. Let's not act like there aren't injuries from vaccines. There are some times where kids or adults are given vaccines and something happens.
Speaker: Yeah. Very, very rare. a system tracks it. and keeps ah keeps on top of these type of situations. so That's why you sign a waiver. Yes. And if you ever read it, it can let you know about potential side effects contraindications contraindication coindications or anything like that. It'll let you know about the particular complications that could potentially arise when taking a vaccine, which I don't read it. Y'all just be signing it and moving on with your life, which is fine, but they, you have to sign a waiver. Yes.
Speaker: And once again, I have to say it as a black American, there is a reason to distrust science. We're talking about Tuskegee. We're talking about forced sterilization and and the everyday dismissal of black pain. and i don't want to make it a racial issue, but we as black people, me and my sister and those in the audience understand a mistrust of medicine.
Speaker: It's not medicine. It's not science. It is the application those things. And that was the point I was going make. You took the words right out of my mouth. Oh, sorry.
Speaker: No, that's all right. That's the reason why we're a team on this one. that's the That's the reason why it's the sibling happy hour. You knew it exactly where I was going go without even us knowing where I was going to go. I just...
Speaker: It just works. It just works. So, yeah and and by the way, when it comes to autism, Black people should be in up arms over everything, right? When it just comes to diagnosing autism, because Black kids are three times less likely to be diagnosed with autism.
Speaker: No, Black kids, it's a behavior problem. Yep. Yep. So we are the ones that really have to be up in arms. But even we understand it's not caused by these vaccines.
Speaker: We trust the science. Like my sister said, we don't trust that application. So this is another thing, just another dumb thing from the Maha movement. I swear to God, these two idiots is going to set us back.
Speaker: They wanted to go back to when America was great again. Whenever it was, don't know when they were talking about it. must be talking about when polio and measles running rapid. Yeah, and typhoid Mary and all of them. And people just had cavities every day and was missing teeth. I don't want to go back to that and was barely washing. Did they even have washcloths back in the time that they was making America great? I don't know. I don't want to go back there.
Speaker: No. Anyway, and gentlemen. am sure Yeah. Anyway, ladies and gentlemen, it's been kind of heavy. We're going to get into a story about something that happened to me yesterday, and we're going get into it next.
Speaker: I, something's happened to me as I'm getting older. You noticed, you were the first one to bring it to my attention when I was in Atlanta last year for a couple of weeks.
Speaker: When, just for the mere fact that I didn't want to go out anywhere. And you like, want to out? don't do nothing. Yes. and i Very unlike you. Yeah. it But it is me now. yeah right Like it's, don't really like going out.
Speaker: A part of it is I'm very immersed, immersed, immersed. You're saying with a French accent, immersed. Immersed. yeah Thank you. Immersed in the show. And I talk and do interviews, whether it's me you doing the show, the them ah the amount of shows that we do, doing interviews and things of this nature.
Speaker: I'm talking to people all the time. Yes. And then my job, job. That's all I do is talk to people all the time. um i I deal with people all the time, so I don't want to deal with them when I have my free time. Right. So don't really like going out anymore like that. But my friends miss me.
Speaker: Yeah. And they want to see me. Okay. So one of my friends, I haven't seen her since Thanksgiving, and the only reason why I saw her on Thanksgiving was because... She was going to a Thanksgiving dinner in my building. It was like, hey, I'm in your building. Are you home? I was like, yeah, I'm home. You mind if I stop by see you? I haven't seen you in long time. was like, hey, stop by see me.
Speaker: yeah That was in November. Haven't seen her for a long time. Her birthday passed, my birthday passed. Haven't seen each other. yeah So I texted her and I was like, we need to finally, because we've been talking about it, we need to get together.
Speaker: She was like, Well, you say you're in this area on certain nights of the week, right? And I said, yeah, I'm there. She's like, well, play volleyball. I was like, yeah, we were I've been talking about coming down and see play volleyball. She's like, come down tomorrow.
Speaker: So last night I was in the area because I had a meeting and I told her I'll come there right after the meeting. Now, my meeting is about a 20 minute walk. 20 or 30 minute walk to where she was playing volleyball. So about half a mile, right? Yeah.
Speaker: Yeah. But the her volleyball game started when my meeting ended. So I was like, how am I going to get there and not miss the majority of the volleyball game? Right. i was like, okay.
Speaker: I used to ride the bike all the time. I rode the bike all around D.C. during the pandemic. I was riding for all around. Key word there is used to, but go ahead. I mean, I still, every now and then I'll still ride the bike, you know, five or 10 miles here or there. The little cap share bikes, they suck because they're only three speeds.
Speaker: wow And let me tell you, trying to hit a hill when it's three speeds. It's difficult. Worse. Yeah. Difficult. Yes. So in my meeting, she's texting me and saying exactly where she's where the field is going to be at the volleyball. I was like, I got it. um I know the area. I find you. like I know what you look like. I know it's been a long time. I don't know look like. Yeah.
Speaker: So I get a little cap share bike, lift bike, whatever it is. Not the electric bike, the pedal bike, because I'm like, I'm going to me a little a little little workout. I've already did my workout for today. I'm to give me a little additional workout.
Speaker: um Not well I can where this is going. Go ahead. ah why Wait a minute. Why? Because you know that we have overactive sweat glands.
Speaker: Yep. Okay. Yeah, we do. And so you have the brilliant idea of not biking home, which would be fine, but to somewhere to meet someone and yeah did not get the electric bike.
Speaker: No, i didn't get the electric bike. And that she's playing volleyball outside. and in D.C. it's like 90 degrees right now and humid. There's a series of bad decisions that they're lining up.
Speaker: m Yeah. It gets worse. It gets worse. Okay. Yeah. So I go to i go to get the bike. It's it's a cap share bike, but you can get it through your Lyft app. You know, Lyft. If you look at your little Lyft app, ladies and gentlemen, there's a bike on there. So you go, you scan it. I do it all the time, right? Get the bike.
Speaker: Try to get the bike. Pay for it. It buzzes. Then release the bike. Okay. The Lyft app tells me There's something wrong with this bike.
Speaker: Choose a different bike. What do you think I decided? Let me guess. What do you think I decided to do? Let me guess.
Speaker: Because here's another thing that I know about you you might not know about yourself. Okay. In addition to being meticulous, that was a new thing that you didn't know about yourself. Right. You are also stubborn over the dumbest things.
Speaker: I am. There was no reason why you should not have heeded that warning, but I already know you didn't. I didn't. I did not.
Speaker: But you know what? It worked out for me because I scanned it again and this time it released the bike. It already warned you. Yeah, it did. Don't take this bike. And you said, I know better than you.
Speaker: Right. that is a That is textbook hubris.
Speaker: I have often said that I suffer from hubris, okay? Often, so I know this. So, jump on the bike. start pedaling to get started on any bike. I'm doing the stand up because I'm a heavy guy, right? yeah So to get it going, I'm not sitting down and starting to pedaling. I'm standing up to try and get it going. And then I sit down. Yes. So I stand up, get it going and sit down and the seat immediately falls down.
Speaker: So you know how you can adjust the seat high or low. I have to sit bring it high because I'm a big guy. The app already told you. Do not take this bike. Right, right, right.
Speaker: I just want to reiterate that i need the audience to know yeah that you are stubborn about the dumbest things. Because were there other bikes? Plenty.
Speaker: Plenty. I know there were. Plenty of bikes. One right next to it. Yeah, I know there were. I knew it. Yeah. And you said, let me try again because I know better.
Speaker: Well, it gets worse. So I tried to adjust the seat. Pull it up. Set it. Tighten it. Good. Get back on the bike.
Speaker: Seat falls down again. At this point. And I'm sorry to interrupt, but at this point, I have given up on the bike.
Speaker: Yeah. ah Not me. Not me. So I tried and realized that the seat is broken, but I've already pedaled a block.
Speaker: At this point. I've given up on the bike. You would turn around and and just go replace the bike. I didn't. I probably don't even need to turn around. There's probably more bikes on the next corner. Yeah, it gets worse.
Speaker: so so lucky So I'm having to ride the bike. I can't sit down. With your knees in your knees. Right. I can't sit down because then I look like Debo riding Red's bike from Friday.
Speaker: Yes. Right? it It looks awkward and it hurts. Yes. So I've got to stand up and pedal, which you would think like, oh, that's what you were doing to start the bike. Yeah, but that is really tough on your legs. It is all quads. So my quads is burning. At the same time, I got a bald head. So I've started sweating.
Speaker: Yeah. You're going to profusely sweat. And here's the thing. Here's what pisses me off about this. didn't even finish the story yet.
Speaker: No, because I'm already pissed off about it. You are choosing the most difficult way to get this done. Yeah.
Speaker: You're making a choice. Mm-hmm. To say, I'm not just going go get another bike, which is just what you should have done in the first place. yeah I'm going to keep pedaling this bike the most difficult way possible, knowing full well that it's hot out here, and I have ah sweat profusely, and I'm headed somewhere.
Speaker: at At first, it's just a light sweat. Because remember, I'm riding, so there's wind blowing. it's just a light sweat. Soon as you stop. Well... So I'm riding and I'm doing okay.
Speaker: Legs burning. I'm like, this is just a good workout. this I'll just get a good little workout. I passed by not one, not two, but three bike stands where I could have exchanged it out. And I said, I ain't got this far. Might as well keep going. I'm almost there.
Speaker: The principal will sometimes have a bicycle seat stuck in your ass. Yeah. Well, this one wasn't stuck in my ass because I couldn't raise it up. I eventually get there, park the bike.
Speaker: It's fine. My legs burning a little bit. But as I park the bike and try to find her, I realize something. I'm sweating profusely. I'm talking about shirt is drenched. You would have thought that I was out there playing volleyball. And mind you, it's hot. There is no cooling off. There is no stopping of the sweat.
Speaker: I remain to sweat the next 45, 50 minutes. Ball head sweat. Sweat pouring in my eye. Moisturizer and sweat burning my eye.
Speaker: Mm-hmm. Shirt sticking to me. Mm-hmm. Also, I brought me a little, you know, a little roadie. Little roadie drink. I put it in my That's gonna Well, this is what happened. So, there was no place to really wash my hands, and I'm not thinking of it. This is the only time in my life where I'm not thinking about washing my hands. So, I'm just opening up the Gatorade. It's Gatorade and, and you know, a little tequila. I just opened up the Gatorade and I have a couple of drinks. Well, what happens when you have a couple of drinks with a Gatorade bottle? Eventually, your hands is going to touch the brim of of the Gatorade, right? The top. So eventually, it started tasting a little weird. All right, what the...
Speaker: hell is that test well no that never happens to me i grab the gatorade where you're supposed to grab it which is around around the rather thing yeah yeah i grab don't hold it at the top of the there's no reason why you should do that i don't know that's just the way i hold my gatorade bottle i don't know why but that's the way i it encouraging you to stop well i learned a very valuable lesson one yeah um you don't have to tough everything out. You can just make a life a little bit easier. Yeah. and And two, grab the Gatorade bottle from the middle, not from the top.
Speaker: Yeah. So, yeah, that's ah awesome that's my story. If you had a you had a backpack, right? Definitely had a backpack. Start carrying a hand towel and a portable fan.
Speaker: No, I'm not going to do that. Okay, well, then you're just going be sweating all over the place. Yeah, I'll just sweat all over the place. But I feel like in the summertime, I i have like a cooling towel. i have In my purse, there are several portable fans.
Speaker: Okay, because I already know it's incredibly humid down here. It's been storming in Atlanta for like the last week and a half. It's incredibly humid. You know when it's humid, you're going to profusely sweat. I'm not going to get on a bike. I don't know why you didn't just get one of the damn scooters and just quickly go half a mile. Because I wanted to get a nice little workout in.
Speaker: Why? When you're going somewhere, it's hot al outside and you know you sweat. Yeah, I know. But it wasn't like, it wasn't, okay, it was stupid. right Yes! It was stupid. That's all I'm trying to get across to you. It was stupid.
Speaker: Yes, I know this. You ain't telling me something don't know. But you know what the problem is, though, Bruce? What? You're going to do something stupid like this again. well
Speaker: You're going to make a similar decision. yeah Because you're going to talk yourself into doing something the most awkward and difficult way possible. Yeah. Yeah. If ain't hard, then ain't worth it, I guess. at That's a terrible expression. really live by no pain, no gain. And it really,
Speaker: You don't have to. You know what? It all worked out, though, because I got to see my friend. She was really happy that I came down there to visit her. I was just a little sweaty. i had How's that working out?
Speaker: i would Because it worked. I mean, because I still got to go see her play volleyball. I got there early enough. You could have did that on one of the scooters or the electric bike. The end result still was good.
Speaker: the Just the journey to get there was dumb. hu No, you know you just got there. Like you made it to your destination, but the end result was not good. You were sweating for 17 hours straight.
Speaker: It wasn't 17 hours. And then the only liquid you had on, you had tequila in it. So you're not even getting any of it back. Tequila and Gatorade, okay?
Speaker: Come on now. Them electrolytes got burned up in that tequila. Ain't no electrolytes in that. Jay, what do want tell the people before we get out of here? We're going stop ragging on me. I just want to tell a story about a defective bike, and then all you did was talk about defective Bruce.
Speaker: just Yeah, because it goes into my larger point. Okay, what's your larger point? Sometimes y'all be doing dumbass things. Yeah. And I encourage you to stop.
Speaker: Well, for me, before we end, there's something connecting all of these stories that I keep coming back to. We live in a time where getting attention is almost more valuable than telling the truth.
Speaker: Two grown men say they're entering in the WNBA, and everybody starts yelling about trans athletes. And meanwhile, nobody stops to ask the most basic question. Has this ever happened?
Speaker: No trans woman has played in the WNBA. These men weren't seriously trying to play basketball. They were putting on a show. And while everybody is staring at the show, there is much bigger argument happening about Turtle Nine and whether we should start rolling back some of the protections and opportunities that help build women's sports in the first place.
Speaker: You can have a legitimate conversation about fairness in athletics. You can believe biological differences matter in elite competition. I'm not going argue with you on that one. That conversation does not automatically make somebody hateful.
Speaker: But the conversation also shouldn't be used as camouflage for something much bigger. Because save women's sports sounds very different when the next move is questioning whether women's sports deserved all that investment in the first place.
Speaker: Then we get to the vaccines. And again, look at where the intention goes. Autism, MMR, too many shots, parents versus experts.
Speaker: But the vaccine autism connection has been investigated for decades. The original study collapsed. Researchers studied millions of children. The evidence did not show the connection people keep being told exists.
Speaker: And I understand why distrust hits differently in Black communities. Our distrust of medicine didn't come from out of nowhere. There's a history behind it. There are people alive right now who have experience being ignored, dismissed, undertreated, and not believed.
Speaker: So I'm never going to tell people to shut up and blindly trust institutions. But here's the uncomfortable part people don't want to talk about. Just because your distrust has been earned doesn't mean everybody trying to use that distrust has earned your trust.
Speaker: Let me break that down again for you because seemed like you didn't get what I was saying. I did not. Just because your distrust has been earned does not mean everybody trying to use that distrust has earned your trust.
Speaker: Meaning that, yes, Black people have earned a distrust in medicine. But the people trying to sew on that distrust, they didn't earn our trust at the beginning.
Speaker: Because while we're being told to fear vaccines supposedly causing autism, Black children are still more likely to have autism missed, diagnosed late, or mistaken for a behavioral problem first.
Speaker: That's the part I don't want to lose. Sometimes the danger isn't just the lie. Sometimes the danger is what the lie gets you to stop looking at. And maybe that's the lesson for today.
Speaker: When everybody is pointing in one direction, look around. Ask what actually happened. Ask who benefits from you being angry. Ask what changed while you were distracted.
Speaker: Because sometimes there really are two clowns standing out front. And while you're laughing, arguing, and fighting with each other over those two clowns, somebody else is in the back tearing down the house.
Speaker: Yeah. And let me get on me too. Speaking on somebody who should have been paying more attention to what's right in front of him. Next time I decide to come hop on a bike that looks like it was built for a sixth grader and I ride across the city in the summer heat. Somebody please take my phone, my wallet, and my bike share membership and throw it and me away. Because apparently the greatest thing to me this week was a politics or Title IX or vaccine misinformation.
Speaker: freedom freedom It was a bicycle where the seat didn't go all the way up. But that's just me being dumb. And on that note, ladies and gentlemen, I want to thank you for listening. I want to thank you for watching.
Speaker: And until next time, as always, I'll holler.
Speaker: That was a hell of a show. Thank you for rocking with us here on Unsolicited Perspectives with Bruce Anthony. Now, before you go, don't forget to follow, subscribe, like, comment, and share our podcast wherever you're listening or watching it to it. Pass it along to your friends. If you enjoy it, that means the people that you rock will willing enjoy it also. So share the wealth, share the knowledge, share the noise.
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Speaker: Thank you. Thank you for listening and watching and supporting us. And I'll catch you next time. Audi 5000. Peace.
