1
00:00:10,805 --> 00:00:15,165
Hello again. It's nice to see you so soon. Here we are between episodes,

2
00:00:15,165 --> 00:00:17,725
and I wanted to do something a little different.

3
00:00:17,965 --> 00:00:22,905
I've recently been trying to optimize the workflow and production process around the show.

4
00:00:23,045 --> 00:00:27,205
And so in full transparency, I thought we'd do an audit together and review

5
00:00:27,205 --> 00:00:31,785
some of the rejected clips that my agentic producer set aside.

6
00:00:32,445 --> 00:00:36,865
Rejected from episode 101. So what we're going to do is I'll play the clip that

7
00:00:36,865 --> 00:00:40,945
was rejected. then I'll review the reason that the agent cut it from the episode.

8
00:00:41,105 --> 00:00:43,165
Of course, I review those as well before the episode.

9
00:00:43,325 --> 00:00:46,225
And then I'd like to see if you agree with them or not. And I think this is

10
00:00:46,225 --> 00:00:48,585
just a nice way to set a baseline to see how this thing is doing.

11
00:00:48,785 --> 00:00:53,165
So we'll start with our first rejected clip from episode 101.

12
00:00:53,865 --> 00:00:59,265
It looks really like it's bottoming because the fundamental story of crypto is quite positive.

13
00:00:59,485 --> 00:01:02,685
This, of course, is Tom Lee back on CNBC once again.

14
00:01:03,045 --> 00:01:09,225
And he's feeling bullish, which Tom, never. DAVOS SHOWS BANKS ARE REALLY.

15
00:01:10,040 --> 00:01:13,900
Embracing crypto there's regulatory bills coming

16
00:01:13,900 --> 00:01:16,540
that are favorable to crypto and in fact

17
00:01:16,540 --> 00:01:19,920
you know we saw announcement even today blackrock is

18
00:01:19,920 --> 00:01:25,200
going into defi he sounds defensive with uniswap i mean that's people might

19
00:01:25,200 --> 00:01:30,400
say that's a degen move it is so crypto has a lot of sort of tailwinds but the

20
00:01:30,400 --> 00:01:34,400
price action is terrible too well it was because it was 67 when he said that

21
00:01:34,400 --> 00:01:37,680
all right so why did the agent cut that clip?

22
00:01:37,920 --> 00:01:41,880
The agent said, well, one, it's too soft, too short, too price call adjacent.

23
00:01:42,540 --> 00:01:45,660
BlackRock and Schwab will make adoption cases better later in the show.

24
00:01:47,480 --> 00:01:51,440
I think it's probably right. We did have a Schwab and BlackRock clip.

25
00:01:51,600 --> 00:01:52,900
We didn't need that Tom Lee clip.

26
00:01:53,080 --> 00:01:56,860
Tom Lee doesn't have a particularly great track record. I would have added that. So it recommended a cut.

27
00:01:56,960 --> 00:02:00,000
It doesn't always recommend a cut, but for that clip, it recommended a cut.

28
00:02:00,120 --> 00:02:02,280
And I think I agree. I'd like to know what you think.

29
00:02:02,820 --> 00:02:08,840
Alright, that was kind of Let's try our next one and see what the agent decided to clip.

30
00:02:09,020 --> 00:02:12,640
This I saw getting passed around a lot on social media this week.

31
00:02:12,720 --> 00:02:14,160
It seemed to really get people excited.

32
00:02:14,340 --> 00:02:19,860
So I definitely had to give this one a couple of considerations before I agreed to cut it.

33
00:02:20,020 --> 00:02:26,300
Because they're so volatile, even small amounts could translate to much larger levels of risk.

34
00:02:26,480 --> 00:02:30,060
This is an educational video that has been released by Charles Schwab,

35
00:02:30,060 --> 00:02:33,760
And it's aimed at their existing customer base.

36
00:02:33,880 --> 00:02:38,260
You probably know who that is. And trying to warm them up to the idea of dipping

37
00:02:38,260 --> 00:02:40,020
their toes into the Bitcoin waters.

38
00:02:40,240 --> 00:02:44,100
Let's look at a quick hypothetical example using Bitcoin.

39
00:02:44,320 --> 00:02:49,320
A theoretical investor with a moderate risk appetite might split a traditional

40
00:02:49,320 --> 00:02:54,840
portfolio 60-40, 60 percent stocks and 40 percent bonds.

41
00:02:55,763 --> 00:03:01,083
Stocks consist of almost 100% of the risk in that portfolio because they're far more volatile.

42
00:03:02,043 --> 00:03:06,283
If that investor decides to add an even more unruly asset like Bitcoin,

43
00:03:06,723 --> 00:03:11,303
they might only want Bitcoin to make up 10% of the portfolio's risk.

44
00:03:11,603 --> 00:03:16,043
According to the Schwab Center for Financial Research, that investor might want

45
00:03:16,043 --> 00:03:20,623
to invest no more than 2.7% of their total portfolio in Bitcoin.

46
00:03:20,623 --> 00:03:26,423
An aggressive investor, say they typically put 96% of their portfolio in stocks,

47
00:03:26,683 --> 00:03:30,563
might be comfortable with 20% of the portfolio's risk in Bitcoin.

48
00:03:31,383 --> 00:03:34,463
That would translate to an allocation of just under 7%.

49
00:03:35,743 --> 00:03:39,143
Other cryptocurrencies like Ether are more volatile than Bitcoin,

50
00:03:39,403 --> 00:03:42,643
so you may want to consider investing even less.

51
00:03:42,963 --> 00:03:47,643
It's a bit non-traditional to think about it from a risk perspective rather

52
00:03:47,643 --> 00:03:49,923
than an overall portfolio percent perspective.

53
00:03:51,208 --> 00:03:55,028
Bitcoin's volatility means it has an outsized risk.

54
00:03:55,288 --> 00:04:01,368
It's an exponential relationship, so small increases in Bitcoin holdings can

55
00:04:01,368 --> 00:04:04,688
lead to larger increases in overall risk exposure.

56
00:04:05,348 --> 00:04:08,728
Cryptocurrencies can be complicated and confusing for beginners.

57
00:04:09,488 --> 00:04:14,068
Start by learning the basics, understanding the risks, and your own risk tolerance.

58
00:04:14,648 --> 00:04:17,668
Remember, if buying cryptocurrencies currencies

59
00:04:17,668 --> 00:04:21,028
themselves is too big of a jump at first you

60
00:04:21,028 --> 00:04:23,748
could consider starting with exchange traded products that

61
00:04:23,748 --> 00:04:26,888
you know let's just go back for a second here the risk right the

62
00:04:26,888 --> 00:04:32,548
risk consider the risk but what is the risk with bitcoin what is it that it's

63
00:04:32,548 --> 00:04:36,808
volatile that it's volatile is that really the risk you don't get growth without

64
00:04:36,808 --> 00:04:42,328
volatility isn't the dollar volatile it just goes in one direction mostly like

65
00:04:42,328 --> 00:04:45,308
that's the risk is the volatility because otherwise there's no sovereign risk.

66
00:04:45,448 --> 00:04:48,168
There's no corporate risk. It's completely decentralized.

67
00:04:49,228 --> 00:04:53,048
It's a fixed issuance schedule. It can't be changed by any individual.

68
00:04:53,628 --> 00:04:57,808
And there's no one particular leader. So the typical risk that you would have

69
00:04:57,808 --> 00:05:02,008
with other assets and other investments are not there, but yet they keep talking about risk.

70
00:05:02,328 --> 00:05:07,608
Risk, risk, risk. It's a risk asset. Consider your risk. What's your risk appetite? How much risk mix?

71
00:05:08,148 --> 00:05:12,168
Risk, risk, risk. But the irony is it's the least risky asset,

72
00:05:12,288 --> 00:05:14,608
it's just the most volatile for these traditional investors.

73
00:05:14,948 --> 00:05:19,308
And I just feel like, yes, there is risk around volatility. But if you're investing

74
00:05:19,308 --> 00:05:23,388
for 10 years, we need to proportionally talk about risk.

75
00:05:23,848 --> 00:05:27,748
Buying cryptocurrencies themselves is too big of a jump at first.

76
00:05:29,486 --> 00:05:33,326
You could consider starting with exchange traded products that include cryptocurrencies,

77
00:05:33,726 --> 00:05:35,926
although those have their own risks as well.

78
00:05:36,146 --> 00:05:40,526
If sovereign ownership of assets is just too scary for you, you know,

79
00:05:40,646 --> 00:05:45,746
like owning a car or a house or maybe having pets or being responsible for another

80
00:05:45,746 --> 00:05:48,886
human life, if that's just too much for you, then we recommend a Tamagotchi.

81
00:05:49,806 --> 00:05:53,966
Never invest more than you can afford to lose, whether you're looking to trade

82
00:05:53,966 --> 00:05:57,706
crypto actively or take it on as a long term investment. Nobody.

83
00:05:58,046 --> 00:06:01,306
I mean, yeah, this is it. That statement right there. Only.

84
00:06:01,686 --> 00:06:04,886
What did he say? Never invest more than you can afford to lose.

85
00:06:05,046 --> 00:06:07,166
That is. That's just for boomers.

86
00:06:07,986 --> 00:06:11,846
Nobody else. I mean, other than people that are very well off already. Like you.

87
00:06:12,526 --> 00:06:17,006
Everybody. The reason why people are aping into prediction markets and shit

88
00:06:17,006 --> 00:06:19,326
coins is because they need outsized returns.

89
00:06:19,526 --> 00:06:22,946
They've got a couple of hundred bucks. They got a thousand dollars if they're

90
00:06:22,946 --> 00:06:24,046
lucky to scrape together.

91
00:06:24,746 --> 00:06:29,886
Right. So, you know, what they can afford to lose, they've got basically nothing to lose.

92
00:06:30,626 --> 00:06:34,106
That's the new investor. The new investor has nothing to lose.

93
00:06:34,626 --> 00:06:36,526
And they just don't get it.

94
00:06:37,226 --> 00:06:41,246
Whether you're looking to trade crypto actively or take it on as a long-term

95
00:06:41,246 --> 00:06:44,446
investment, coming from a risk management perspective can be helpful.

96
00:06:45,086 --> 00:06:48,986
Patience, discipline, and consistent learning. Coming at it from a really vague

97
00:06:48,986 --> 00:06:52,366
perspective can be helpful. To help you introduce crypto into your portfolio.

98
00:06:52,706 --> 00:06:57,046
So all they've done is talk about risk. They've not really this is not educational.

99
00:06:57,446 --> 00:07:00,066
All it tells you is, yeah, you could do some Bitcoin. Just think about the risk,

100
00:07:00,126 --> 00:07:03,466
but maybe consider this much Bitcoin, but consider the risk. What are the risks?

101
00:07:04,630 --> 00:07:09,250
What are they? It's like telling somebody to avoid sexually transmitted diseases. Okay.

102
00:07:09,490 --> 00:07:13,670
Well, what are they? What's sexually transmitted diseases? How many are there? Which ones?

103
00:07:14,250 --> 00:07:17,290
Are some different than others? There's a bit of nuance to it.

104
00:07:17,370 --> 00:07:20,670
Oh, people were loving that video. People were loving that video.

105
00:07:20,730 --> 00:07:21,610
That just got me worked up.

106
00:07:22,610 --> 00:07:25,730
Anyways, here's why the agent cut it. Let's see what the agent says.

107
00:07:26,110 --> 00:07:30,470
Useful educational framing, but repetitive and less newsworthy than actual the

108
00:07:30,470 --> 00:07:31,990
Schwab rollout clip that we'll play earlier.

109
00:07:32,770 --> 00:07:36,070
Don't use both clips. Use one or the other. And that is the part I agreed with.

110
00:07:36,370 --> 00:07:38,770
So I went with the one that was actually, I thought, more useful.

111
00:07:39,559 --> 00:07:42,499
But it is still notable that Charles Schwab is putting that out.

112
00:07:42,859 --> 00:07:47,979
So there is that. Of course, I had lots of clips from the testimony from Kevin

113
00:07:47,979 --> 00:07:50,259
Warsh that I did not play in 101. I didn't need to.

114
00:07:50,439 --> 00:07:53,999
But I did think maybe I should have played this one. I'd like your take.

115
00:07:54,199 --> 00:07:57,719
The agent also thought to cut it. So ultimately, I chose to cut this clip.

116
00:07:58,319 --> 00:08:03,239
Didn't add a whole lot, but maybe just a little bit of insight into how Warsh

117
00:08:03,239 --> 00:08:06,239
is thinking about justifying future rate cuts.

118
00:08:07,039 --> 00:08:11,899
My preferred definition of stable prices is a little different than most academics.

119
00:08:12,399 --> 00:08:18,259
I believe that price stability should be a change in prices such that no one's talking about it.

120
00:08:18,379 --> 00:08:21,419
That's an old-fashioned definition, but I think it's still valid.

121
00:08:21,639 --> 00:08:26,439
The sooner that we can reform the institution, with my colleagues if confirmed,

122
00:08:26,799 --> 00:08:31,919
the sooner we can ensure price stability, and we can have a new set of leaders

123
00:08:31,919 --> 00:08:35,939
atop the institution with high, credible, ethical standards,

124
00:08:36,239 --> 00:08:39,239
to return the Fed to what it should be.

125
00:08:39,459 --> 00:08:44,959
The independence that both Chairman Scott and Senator Warren mentioned, critically important.

126
00:08:45,339 --> 00:08:50,179
But independence has to be earned. And it's earned by delivering on the promises,

127
00:08:50,179 --> 00:08:52,219
the commitments that the Fed has made.

128
00:08:52,479 --> 00:08:56,459
And as the Fed hasn't delivered on those promises, we shouldn't be surprised

129
00:08:56,459 --> 00:08:59,259
that we hear politics that are entering the room at the Fed.

130
00:08:59,359 --> 00:09:03,359
We need to get the politics out of it so the Fed can focus on its day job,

131
00:09:03,599 --> 00:09:06,299
deliver on full employment and stable prices. Okay.

132
00:09:06,979 --> 00:09:09,679
Yeah. All right. So clean, nice.

133
00:09:11,399 --> 00:09:14,279
The agency, this was an optional clip.

134
00:09:14,499 --> 00:09:17,759
I didn't feel like it added a whole bunch other than kind of a vague definition

135
00:09:17,759 --> 00:09:21,559
of, oh, my definition of stable prices are people don't notice the price changes.

136
00:09:22,419 --> 00:09:25,859
Well, that's pretty vague, buddy. That's pretty vague. All right.

137
00:09:25,939 --> 00:09:29,839
Our next cut clip. That one, it labeled optional. This one, it says you should cut it.

138
00:09:30,259 --> 00:09:34,019
This one, it says you should cut it. This is the Wells Fargo CEO,

139
00:09:34,019 --> 00:09:38,979
and he has some pontifications on the macro environment.

140
00:09:39,359 --> 00:09:42,819
Biggest problem the United States is facing now in the financial service world.

141
00:09:42,979 --> 00:09:46,359
The biggest problem that banks have or financial service industry has.

142
00:09:46,499 --> 00:09:49,959
Well, it's separated into kind of two different periods, right?

143
00:09:49,959 --> 00:09:54,819
Number one is we have uncertainty with what's going on with the Iran conflict.

144
00:09:54,999 --> 00:09:59,879
This is at the Economic Club of Washington, D.C., and the typical thing where

145
00:09:59,879 --> 00:10:03,959
they're up there in two leather chairs with a table with a couple of glasses of water between them.

146
00:10:04,999 --> 00:10:10,599
The markets, it's been a bull market for a long time. There's a huge amount

147
00:10:10,599 --> 00:10:11,819
of liquidity in the system.

148
00:10:12,119 --> 00:10:17,919
There is this underlying current that things are going to be fine for a long period of time.

149
00:10:18,519 --> 00:10:22,779
I hate to sound like an old person, but there are a lot of people in the financial

150
00:10:22,779 --> 00:10:26,659
services space, in banks and outside of banks, that have never been through

151
00:10:26,659 --> 00:10:29,579
cycles, like a real cycle in terms of what that means.

152
00:10:30,399 --> 00:10:33,819
There's a point at which that's going to turn, and that's going to have a whole

153
00:10:33,819 --> 00:10:36,919
bunch of impacts that I'm not sure we all really understand.

154
00:10:37,299 --> 00:10:40,799
Lloyd Blankfond always says, you can think all you want, and you have to think

155
00:10:40,799 --> 00:10:43,379
about these things. It's usually something that you didn't expect.

156
00:10:44,159 --> 00:10:47,159
So something's gonna happen but then more long term

157
00:10:47,159 --> 00:10:49,899
it's just the question of the deficit are you worried about the

158
00:10:49,899 --> 00:10:53,159
value of the dollar the dollar has gone down since President

159
00:10:53,159 --> 00:10:57,179
Trump has been office he doesn't seem to be saying as many administrations say

160
00:10:57,179 --> 00:11:00,879
we want a strong dollar or do you think the dollar will I think it's something

161
00:11:00,879 --> 00:11:03,399
you got to be conscious about I think it's something we've got to be conscious

162
00:11:03,399 --> 00:11:08,499
about you know the position the US dollar has in the world we can't assume that

163
00:11:08,499 --> 00:11:11,139
we just have this God-given right to be the reserve currency,

164
00:11:11,932 --> 00:11:17,072
But it's going to take a long time for people to get comfortable with something

165
00:11:17,072 --> 00:11:19,092
else other than the dollar. And it's in our control.

166
00:11:19,292 --> 00:11:22,952
What about the U.S. debt? We have, you know, $39 trillion of debt.

167
00:11:23,172 --> 00:11:24,712
And that's one of the issues that's got to get solved.

168
00:11:25,572 --> 00:11:28,572
And that's just the hard one because you've got people who are in office for

169
00:11:28,572 --> 00:11:32,092
four or eight years. They've got their own agenda on what they want to accomplish.

170
00:11:32,632 --> 00:11:36,652
They're not going to be there to solve that problem. And they don't have the

171
00:11:36,652 --> 00:11:41,932
same kinds of immediate pressures that companies have when they become overleveraged. All right.

172
00:11:42,132 --> 00:11:45,732
So that clip, it recommended a cut and I agreed.

173
00:11:46,012 --> 00:11:49,352
I mean, he has some decent macro caution there, but it's really broad.

174
00:11:49,612 --> 00:11:52,872
The agent noted too, it wasn't specifically tied enough to Bitcoin.

175
00:11:53,072 --> 00:11:56,212
So we didn't really need to get there, which I thought was also true.

176
00:11:56,372 --> 00:12:00,672
And then his observations, in my opinion, were pretty generic,

177
00:12:01,332 --> 00:12:04,572
pretty obvious. You know, the politicians, they're only in there to four to

178
00:12:04,572 --> 00:12:06,952
eight years. So they have more immediate concerns.

179
00:12:07,092 --> 00:12:10,112
But, you know, our problems, they go much longer than 40 years.

180
00:12:10,272 --> 00:12:11,752
Yeah. OK. Everybody knows that.

181
00:12:11,952 --> 00:12:15,692
Right. So this is that's your big macro analysis, Mr. Wells Fargo CEO.

182
00:12:15,972 --> 00:12:17,272
So I agreed to cut that one.

183
00:12:17,952 --> 00:12:20,572
All right. Let's play one more. I've got how many clips?

184
00:12:21,339 --> 00:12:23,839
Let's see, how many clips got cut? Just to give you an idea,

185
00:12:24,159 --> 00:12:28,279
16 clips, and that's after I went through and deleted probably four or five.

186
00:12:28,699 --> 00:12:34,039
So it's just under 20 that were reviewed and considered for this episode but didn't make it.

187
00:12:34,339 --> 00:12:40,199
So let's play one more because this one I considered, but ultimately I'll tell

188
00:12:40,199 --> 00:12:42,639
you why I didn't go with it and we'll see why the agent didn't go with it.

189
00:12:42,699 --> 00:12:47,739
But it does seem like there has been some kind of behind-the-scenes grievance

190
00:12:47,739 --> 00:12:50,499
progress with the Clarity Act.

191
00:12:51,059 --> 00:12:54,579
And it may have not gone the way the banks wanted it to go.

192
00:12:54,779 --> 00:12:58,639
I can understand the banks being upset with Coinbase and other companies because

193
00:12:58,639 --> 00:13:01,539
they were forced to accept this, I think.

194
00:13:01,919 --> 00:13:03,879
I mean, initially, you know, many of the banks are saying, well,

195
00:13:03,939 --> 00:13:05,999
no, you know, we're going to get there, but we're not there yet.

196
00:13:06,579 --> 00:13:09,719
Yeah, look, I mean, really interestingly, we have actually partnership with

197
00:13:09,719 --> 00:13:12,939
some of the biggest banks around the world, including the biggest U.S.

198
00:13:13,059 --> 00:13:16,579
Banks, because they understand the future is tokenization and stable coins.

199
00:13:17,419 --> 00:13:21,039
This is Coinbase's chief policy officer. A partner to build with.

200
00:13:21,439 --> 00:13:26,639
We're excited to be the partner of the biggest banks. So she's asking a very awkward question.

201
00:13:26,979 --> 00:13:31,799
Basically, she's saying the banks are pissed off that you used your ties with

202
00:13:31,799 --> 00:13:33,639
the White House to force us into this position.

203
00:13:33,779 --> 00:13:35,799
What do you have to say to that? Coinbase.

204
00:13:36,219 --> 00:13:40,439
Right. So what's he going to say? Yeah. Well, you know, we got bank partners

205
00:13:40,439 --> 00:13:43,599
that we partner with on business partnership stuff that is super partnery.

206
00:13:44,313 --> 00:13:47,293
The Beltway is a funny place, Maria, as you know. There's a kind of an ecosystem

207
00:13:47,293 --> 00:13:51,853
of people who spend all their time fighting over things in Congress.

208
00:13:52,773 --> 00:13:55,993
There's a bit of a disconnect with what we see in D.C. and what we see with

209
00:13:55,993 --> 00:13:58,733
their business folks. I think we'll be able to resolve that.

210
00:13:59,133 --> 00:14:02,293
The banks are critical as a part of this future, on-chain future.

211
00:14:02,413 --> 00:14:04,073
I think there's a lot of opportunities for them.

212
00:14:04,233 --> 00:14:07,053
We want to help them get there, and I think we're excited about that.

213
00:14:07,213 --> 00:14:12,153
So right now, you can pay. The legislation, as you know, it will be that,

214
00:14:12,293 --> 00:14:15,293
yeah, you can pay rewards if you're part of a membership program.

215
00:14:15,673 --> 00:14:18,953
Real quick, explain where you're expecting clarity to land.

216
00:14:19,333 --> 00:14:23,793
So the law of the land is if a customer has a balance on our account, we can pay them a reward.

217
00:14:24,033 --> 00:14:26,533
The banks have got really concerned about this. They said, no,

218
00:14:26,593 --> 00:14:30,193
no, there has to be some activity before you qualify for the reward.

219
00:14:31,353 --> 00:14:35,073
We've conceded that point. It's just a matter of what the fine print looks like,

220
00:14:35,073 --> 00:14:36,613
and I think we'll get there. Uh-huh. Yeah.

221
00:14:36,953 --> 00:14:40,793
So I think Maria spilled the beans there, don't you? There's going to be like

222
00:14:40,793 --> 00:14:46,573
a Coinbase plus membership perk, right? You become a Coinbase plus member.

223
00:14:47,293 --> 00:14:52,593
And as part of that membership perk, you get, you know, a little extra yield

224
00:14:52,593 --> 00:14:57,593
on your stable coin that sits there in a Coinbase private bank account.

225
00:14:58,973 --> 00:15:03,153
So your Coinbase CBDC, which they co-own with Circle, they're going to pay you

226
00:15:03,153 --> 00:15:05,353
yield once you pay them like 10 bucks a month.

227
00:15:07,053 --> 00:15:10,193
For something that's just melting away with inflation. All right.

228
00:15:10,313 --> 00:15:12,253
So why did the agent cut that?

229
00:15:12,413 --> 00:15:15,613
They recommended a full cut, not just an optional, but a full cut because it

230
00:15:15,613 --> 00:15:19,233
was rambly and more about Coinbase bank politics than Bitcoin.

231
00:15:19,773 --> 00:15:25,273
Not clean enough for the show. True. I felt that way about the Clarity Act the entire time, agent.

232
00:15:25,553 --> 00:15:28,713
But it seems that the market has decided, you know, and this is why I've kind

233
00:15:28,713 --> 00:15:30,613
of stopped talking about it is because the market stopped caring.

234
00:15:31,557 --> 00:15:35,237
And it really stopped having an impact on – for a while, we kept hearing from

235
00:15:35,237 --> 00:15:37,317
investors. I don't know if they were just bullshitting or what.

236
00:15:37,377 --> 00:15:39,837
But for a while, we kept hearing from investors, well, I'm waiting.

237
00:15:39,957 --> 00:15:41,897
I'm waiting to see where clarity goes before I deploy more money.

238
00:15:41,957 --> 00:15:43,537
Well, that doesn't – the ETFs are ripping.

239
00:15:43,697 --> 00:15:46,777
Things are going. So that doesn't seem to have really been a factor anymore.

240
00:15:47,217 --> 00:15:49,877
I use just an idea of a few other clips that were cut.

241
00:15:50,897 --> 00:15:54,697
I cut a couple of FUD clips. I just didn't need to do it.

242
00:15:55,197 --> 00:15:56,357
Probably the biggest one this

243
00:15:56,357 --> 00:15:59,537
week was Ben McKenzie. He went on Jon Stewart's – I think it's a podcast.

244
00:16:00,097 --> 00:16:04,657
It was long. It was partisan, and it would need constant cleaning up.

245
00:16:04,897 --> 00:16:09,997
And I like the way that the agent labeled it. It said it would hijack the segment

246
00:16:09,997 --> 00:16:12,577
into an anti-crypto grievance TV.

247
00:16:13,177 --> 00:16:18,077
It really, I mean, it's, I'll play just a second for you because it's so dumb and so bad.

248
00:16:18,377 --> 00:16:26,597
Last year, a crypto organization estimated, crypto company, estimated that $154

249
00:16:26,597 --> 00:16:30,737
billion of illicit activity was financed via cryptocurrency.

250
00:16:31,877 --> 00:16:35,077
$154 billion last year. And that was a crypto company that made the estimate.

251
00:16:35,477 --> 00:16:40,537
Here's what's fucking crazy about that. Donald Trump is literally shilling for

252
00:16:40,537 --> 00:16:45,197
the product that allows our enemies to avoid our sanctions.

253
00:16:45,517 --> 00:16:51,777
You see where they go here. So number one, $150 billion is chicken scratch compared

254
00:16:51,777 --> 00:16:54,797
to the amount of illicit activity that would be financed in U.S.

255
00:16:54,897 --> 00:16:56,897
Dollars or euros or pounds alone.

256
00:16:57,097 --> 00:16:59,837
Let's be real about that. I mean, it's absolute pocket change.

257
00:17:00,497 --> 00:17:04,117
So there is a lack of perspective in the analysis.

258
00:17:04,377 --> 00:17:08,477
And then they immediately go to a Trump attack. Now, the thing is,

259
00:17:08,557 --> 00:17:10,757
is they're talking about a technology, not a product.

260
00:17:10,937 --> 00:17:13,217
But they refer to it as a product, as a thing, right?

261
00:17:13,457 --> 00:17:17,717
It's like saying TCPIP enables our enemies to avoid our sanctions.

262
00:17:18,297 --> 00:17:23,097
It's just the wrong level to do an analysis. And neither one of these guys is

263
00:17:23,097 --> 00:17:25,197
appropriately equipped with,

264
00:17:25,679 --> 00:17:28,019
to do any of this kind of discussion. Ben McKenzie's a joke.

265
00:17:28,199 --> 00:17:31,199
He wrote a book a couple of years ago after he got rugged on scams that bit.

266
00:17:32,119 --> 00:17:34,979
I believe, and I could be wrong, but I believe the background is Ben McKenzie

267
00:17:34,979 --> 00:17:39,519
was warned by Bitcoiners not to get involved with some altcoins.

268
00:17:40,399 --> 00:17:45,499
Ben mocked them and told them to go to hell. Then Ben got rugged and got butthurt

269
00:17:45,499 --> 00:17:47,699
on the internet and Bitcoiners had a laugh.

270
00:17:48,019 --> 00:17:50,819
And ever since then, he's had a grievance. So that's Ben's angle.

271
00:17:50,859 --> 00:17:52,459
And he wrote a book and he's an actor.

272
00:17:52,699 --> 00:17:55,799
And sometimes for Elizabeth Warren, and he'll go sit in front of a Senate hearing

273
00:17:55,799 --> 00:17:58,999
and he'll talk about how dangerous crypto is. And I've played a clip of that in the past.

274
00:17:59,399 --> 00:18:03,619
The other FUD that I decided not to play, and I agreed with the agent's recommendation

275
00:18:03,619 --> 00:18:05,659
for a cut here as well, was CoffeeZilla.

276
00:18:06,099 --> 00:18:09,259
I mean, it was an interesting video and the agent agrees with that,

277
00:18:09,599 --> 00:18:15,339
but it opens up completely different can of worms around micro strategy and strike and all of that.

278
00:18:15,779 --> 00:18:19,739
And it's extremely monologue heavy. There's sponsor segments that I have to

279
00:18:19,739 --> 00:18:22,939
like sponsor stuff I'd have to weave around and it's not connected to the current

280
00:18:22,939 --> 00:18:27,119
macro arc. So the agent recommend cutting it, and I recommend cutting it too.

281
00:18:27,279 --> 00:18:29,939
I'm generally mostly a fan of CoffeeZilla.

282
00:18:30,379 --> 00:18:33,799
Every now and then, especially since he's been doing the Void stuff,

283
00:18:34,079 --> 00:18:36,939
the CoffeeZilla Void videos, he's kind of just popping off.

284
00:18:37,039 --> 00:18:41,179
And I don't know anything about Strike. Don't know if it's a Ponzi or not.

285
00:18:41,719 --> 00:18:46,599
However, people that do seem to be very smart analysts seem to think there's something to it.

286
00:18:46,679 --> 00:18:51,099
And what I did notice is that he didn't have anything concrete.

287
00:18:51,099 --> 00:18:55,539
He just had vague references to Ponzi schemes and scams and crypto and stuff like that.

288
00:18:55,699 --> 00:18:58,539
He didn't really have anything that he could point his finger to, and it was.

289
00:18:59,482 --> 00:19:02,302
The opposite of a researched piece. It was just off the cuff.

290
00:19:02,462 --> 00:19:06,762
And so ultimately, I decided to cut that FUD busting too. Just didn't need to spend my time doing it.

291
00:19:07,042 --> 00:19:10,302
It just didn't really seem worth it. I was a little disappointed to see it. And I did see it gain.

292
00:19:10,522 --> 00:19:14,822
Sometimes how much something gets spread around the internet also plays a factor

293
00:19:14,822 --> 00:19:19,922
in my decision if I should address it just to help people understand and respond to it. But yeah.

294
00:19:20,562 --> 00:19:24,262
Another one that I thought could be interesting, but went on for too long,

295
00:19:24,822 --> 00:19:27,602
was the Trump's investments in different cryptocurrency projects.

296
00:19:27,602 --> 00:19:29,302
But I think a lot of that's pretty well known.

297
00:19:29,482 --> 00:19:31,822
Didn't really need to retread ground there.

298
00:19:32,462 --> 00:19:37,402
I cut a lot of the AI and other clips and a lot of the political clips for the

299
00:19:37,402 --> 00:19:38,942
worst testimony, but I already talked about that.

300
00:19:39,282 --> 00:19:42,082
So that's kind of a high-level overview. There's a few others in here.

301
00:19:42,222 --> 00:19:47,222
I mean, we almost cut nearly 20, including some AI stuff.

302
00:19:47,742 --> 00:19:50,722
Some AI stuff outside of the testimony, like from Dario and whatnot.

303
00:19:51,242 --> 00:19:54,162
But I'd like to know what you think. If any of those clips that I have played,

304
00:19:54,342 --> 00:19:59,162
should they have made it into the show? And do you disagree with the reasons that they were cut?

305
00:19:59,802 --> 00:20:01,942
I thought it'd be nice to do a review of this, see how it's going.

306
00:20:02,102 --> 00:20:04,942
It's a system I'm going to continue to refine, and I do every week a little bit.

307
00:20:05,162 --> 00:20:08,922
But it's nice to kind of have something go over and do a pass, all of this.

308
00:20:09,002 --> 00:20:12,142
Because as I collect these things throughout the week, at the time I collect

309
00:20:12,142 --> 00:20:13,862
them, I have these ideas and thoughts about them.

310
00:20:13,922 --> 00:20:16,382
But sometimes as the week goes on, it's nice to have these refreshers and have

311
00:20:16,382 --> 00:20:19,962
something go over and collect and kind of give me a take. Something to at least

312
00:20:19,962 --> 00:20:20,822
kind of check against, too.

313
00:20:21,562 --> 00:20:26,642
So I may do this again. We'll see how much of a process this requires to have the agent get it right.

314
00:20:26,642 --> 00:20:30,442
But I thought it was an interesting start and why not be transparent about the

315
00:20:30,442 --> 00:20:34,402
process at the same time alright that's it for me thanks so much for joining

316
00:20:34,402 --> 00:20:35,702
me on an in-between episode.

317
00:20:36,562 --> 00:20:39,702
Let me know what you think which of those clips should have stayed if any or

318
00:20:39,702 --> 00:20:42,702
maybe you think all of them should have gone perhaps you agree.

319
00:20:43,682 --> 00:20:47,822
Thank you very much and I'll see you back here for episode 102.