Latest / Vibes Only / BONUS: Pattie Gonia vs Patagonia (Keith Edwards Full Interview)
Transcript
- 0:00Hey Brian.
- 0:01Hey Glennis, we have a special guest with us this week, our friend and internet provocateur, Keith Edwards.
- 0:09He's our our most frequented guest now for Keith Edwards, our friend, political strategist, internet commentator, and he has one of the fastest growing podcasts right now.
- 0:19I'm excited to get his take on a couple of things.
- 0:21He I think has a very different lane than either of us do And there's a lot of stuff that we just straight up disagree on.
- 0:28So we might have some sparks flying.
- 0:31The girls are fighting.
- 0:33Well sparks flying, flirting, or fighting?
- 0:35Okay.
- 0:39Fists fists flying, no sparks.
- 0:44Okay, Brian, let's get into it.
- 0:51There she is.
- 0:52Hi.
- 0:54Hey Keith.
- 0:56I like this red hat.
- 0:57Are you taking red hats back?
- 0:58It says gay.
- 0:59I don't know if you can see.
- 1:02It says gay somewhere.
- 1:03I think that you are our first three time guest.
- 1:09that's great.
- 1:09I'm excited about that.
- 1:11Hardcore friend of the pod.
- 1:13Yes.
- 1:13we're thrilled.
- 1:14Thank you, Keith.
- 1:15And I cornered you we asked you on only because I'm petty and you didn't respond to my text message.
- 1:23No, I know.
- 1:24And I'm also I'm also teasing.
- 1:26how are you?
- 1:28I'm good.
- 1:29I'm good.
- 1:29I'm really happy to be here.
- 1:31I love hanging out with you guys.
- 1:32But I'm good.
- 1:33I feel like things are good, right?
- 1:35Am I wrong?
- 1:36It feels like it feels like if authoritarianism was gonna happen, it would have happened by now.
- 1:43Right?
- 1:45Am I wrong?
- 1:46isn't it?
- 1:46...In some ways, kind of it it's it's happening.
- 1:52I think that the situation with Trump is as bad as ever, but I think that politically our position is stronger than it's been in a decade.
- 2:03Yeah.
- 2:04there's stories about how Trump is not sure JD Vance can take the mantle.
- 2:08And I'm like, guys, that's a big story because the insinuation there is that Trump is going to leave.
- 2:14You know?
- 2:15So like that's where I'm a little like, alright...
- 2:18okay.
- 2:20But then again I feel confident that the midterms are not going to canceled, that Trump is not going to run again for another term.
- 2:26before we get into news of the week stuff, you are a foremost expert on Donald Trump's ailments.
- 2:35You are like locked into that man's body.
- 2:41Every time there is a bruise, I'm like, I see it only from Keith you.
- 2:46account.
- 2:46Can you tell us how is Donald Trump's health doing these days?
- 2:51Well...
- 2:51as of the time of recording, we have not seen the president in person in six days.
- 2:56Isn't that weird?
- 2:58He did one pre-recorded interview with Fox.
- 3:02With his by the way, we don't talk about this enough.
- 3:04Lara, Lara, however you say her name, I refuse to learn these people's names because that they don't deserve the respect.
- 3:09But his daughter in law doing an interview for Fox, by the way, So ...
- 3:15been almost a week since he's we've seen him in person.
- 3:18Didn't he also just have that medical app like the third medical appointment in like six months?
- 3:22And they're like, he's healthy.
- 3:26Yeah.
- 3:29Right, right, his third annual.
- 3:30Yeah, it's it's very bizarre.
- 3:32I don't know, it's like something feels not right.
- 3:36you're right.
- 3:37what did Judge Judy say?
- 3:38if it doesn't make sense, it's a lie.
- 3:42It's like something like that.
- 3:44I'm paraphrasing Judge Judy.
- 3:45She says it better than me.
- 3:46But I think everyone knows there's something going on.
- 3:50There's something going on with the president's health.
- 3:53And we deserve to know what it I don't understand why the mainstream media is not.
- 3:58going harder on this because it's a big story.
- 4:01And I'm gonna be pissed off if Jake Tapper or Caitlin Collins or someone else comes out with a book in two years and it's like, what was really going on with the president's health?
- 4:12You know?
- 4:12out of my mouth when Jake Tapper's like, Well, we knew at that debate stage, like you knew you wanted to write a book and make money.
- 4:18You didn't do your job for the American people and report on what you were seeing with your own eyes.
- 4:24Did Biden go six days without being seen in public regularly?
- 4:29That sounds like it would have been huge news to me, but I don't remember.
- 4:33I don't remember either.
- 4:35But this happens at the beginning and end of the month.
- 4:38There's like a weird mo there's there's quite often moments where he it's always around this time where he disappears.
- 4:46And it's happened enough now that it's like there's something to it.
- 4:49Sorry, I'm a little like I'm a little like conspiracy pilled around this.
- 4:53that's what I'm fucking talking about.
- 4:55Keith Edwards is locked into this man.
- 4:58in.
- 4:59And like the bruising, they're like it's the handshake.
- 5:01It's like, okay, maybe.
- 5:03But then it now it shows up on the other hand.
- 5:06Come on.
- 5:07it's also like you have a you have a disorder if you're bruising that easily from a handshake and that that's it isn't that like the most mortifying thing for Donald Trump to be like other people are shaking my hand so strongly that I'm bruising from it when he's always trying to like strong arm people.
- 5:20Wait, so the implication being that it's probably from an IV, right?
- 5:24Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- 5:26IVs and we don't know what for what it's treating, what they're looking for, and it's going on both hands now.
- 5:32follow Keith for all of the all of the medical updates.
- 5:36our go to sleuth.
- 5:38I digress.
- 5:39Glennis has obviously a pressing issue for you, Keith.
- 5:42press yeah, I do have a pressing issue I'm on the conference circuit so I actually haven't been as online as I typically am.
- 5:47and I got back online on Saturday and I saw that there was this new uh drama in our, you know, left universe, and you had commented on something and I said, okay, noted There is a lawsuit that is now public between a very established, respected organizer who has done tremendous work, Pattie Gonia a drag performer...
- 6:12She's been in the game for I think over a decade, has done really awesome work for climate activism.
- 6:17Versus Patagonia, the clothing, apparel, outdoor gear brand.
- 6:23Now, people have a lot of opinions on this.
- 6:27Keith, do you have any?
- 6:29Well, what's happened is that Pattie Gonia was selling or had merch that was ripping off Patagonia's logo.
- 6:42And so she's getting sued and I kind of feel like what's the harm, you know, in like a drag queen having a parody logo?
- 6:53that I don't even think she sold for money.
- 6:55I think it was just a mock up.
- 6:57So I don't know.
- 6:59She's getting sued to stop using to for s for copyright infringement.
- 7:03And so I what do you think it is?
- 7:08a drag queen.
- 7:09Like she's a very established company.
- 7:11Like she she makes money as her drag alter ego...
- 7:17And the issue here for me is that it's very clearly in like infringement of the the trademark.
- 7:22Anyone who has a trademark knows that when you file it, you file it for specific purpose.
- 7:26Patagonia had filed the trademark for like outdoor gear, merchandise, et cetera.
- 7:32So therefore Pattie Gonia cannot have that.
- 7:35I think she was trying to sell whether it be the t shirt or like a hydro flask, I think was like the claim in the trademark, you can't do that.
- 7:42I see some comparisons online which I think are good.
- 7:44It's like Trixie Mattel is not trying to sell toys and Trixie has Trixie trademarked or Britta Filter is not trying to sell water filters.
- 7:53And when you start doing that Then you have an issue.
- 7:57And the thing is it protects small businesses too.
- 7:59Like, yes, Patagonia is this like massive company, right?
- 8:01But I do kind of feel that Pattie Gonia like very good PR person, to make this announcement right before Pride Month, and then to have the online masses just totally aligned and coalesce behind her when you know, trademark law does protect small businesses.
- 8:18Like I could I could say, Brian, I'm gonna file a mark for oath.
- 8:21whatever your trademark is in.
- 8:23But if I if I say like, I'm gonna file a trademark for oath but they're gonna be tissues, then I could have it.
- 8:29You're not selling tissues.
- 8:30Yeah.
- 8:31There's like an oath that has a trademark now that's like a pizza brand that we obviously have no issue with because we're not selling pizza.
- 8:38But yes, I feel like the interesting thing here is the information war online because now we're seeing Patagonia release a statement through Instagram and then Patty Gonia will respond with a video and then Patagonia will like make an offer and then Patty- Patty Gonya reacts to it.
- 8:56And it's very interesting.
- 8:57I I don't know that I've ever seen what should uh essentially be a court battle play out literally through Instagram newsfeeds rather than through court filings.
- 9:07It's kind of bizarre.
- 9:09Yeah, and there's only like two outcomes here.
- 9:11Patty like drops the file for the trademark or she loses a lawsuit.
- 9:18So I just feel like No, she could just things she could do and she would be fine.
- 9:26But just not sell outdoor gear I think what's interesting too is a lot of this happened on threads.
- 9:31Like, I think a big part of this was thread.
- 9:33Yeah, threads is how I found out about it.
- 9:35when I originally was looking into it, I was on her side because the way she presented it made a lot of sense to me.
- 9:42And then I read Patagonia's version of things and I was like, uh it kind of feels like you have like you took advantage of the situation.
- 9:53You like took it too far.
- 9:54It sounds like they had like a ba they basically like an agreement that they were totally fine with it.
- 9:59Just don't do these certain things.
- 10:00And then she did.
- 10:02And so I'm a little like just I don't like it seems like they were trying to do the right thing.
- 10:08And if the way that they explained how copyright is like if you don't protect it with everyone, then it makes it hard to protect it when bad actors do it too, because the more parody there is out there, the harder it is for your copyright or trademark to be defended in court.
- 10:27Because they were like, Well, do you really own this?
- 10:29Is this really something you own?
- 10:31So I get that.
- 10:32I just think it's just I actually think it's just so boring.
- 10:36Who cares?
- 10:37there's so much going on.
- 10:38I think it's probably a net Good for both of them to be honest.
- 10:41and also like can we just say Patagonia?
- 10:45They didn't fucking come up with that name.
- 10:48That's like the name of a place.
- 10:50You know, it's like it's that too You know, that's where I'm a little like, come on guys.
- 10:56You know?
- 10:57filing to own I can't believe I'm like defending a corporation, but like they're not filing it to like say we own Patagonia.
- 11:03They just own the name as it relates to their services that they're providing.
- 11:07Like Arizona Ice T doesn't own Arizona.
- 11:10They just own Ice T with the name of Arizona.
- 11:13I hear you.
- 11:14my issue also to Brian's point to zoom out, I didn't realize it started on threads.
- 11:17That makes a lot of sense.
- 11:19A lot of sense.
- 11:21It's just like how the online like Greek choir is just saying all of these things and blindly trusting a person when there's actually law that exists that does protect them as citizens as well.
- 11:33It I think it was an interesting learning moment for like digital media writ large of just like everyone needs to get a grip and take a beat and like read a book or even like something about like how law works in the United States.
- 11:47And then let's move forward.
- 11:48It was giving like a little like MAGA mob energy to me a little bit.
- 11:52Well, I love when people trust creators without any thinking.
- 12:00That's that g that works for me.
- 12:02Yeah You're like when it's me, it's great.
- 12:07Yeah.
- 12:08I know, I know.
- 12:10Whatever, we have belabored the point.
- 12:11mean.
- 12:12Pattie Gonia has been in my DMs.
- 12:13I never responded though.
- 12:14I think she wanted a date.
- 12:15I was just like I don't I don't know.
- 12:18You know, I can't even respond to Glennis, Pattie know! okay, speaking of court cases, I wanna hear if your thoughts have changed at all around the gerrymandering battles, because I feel like you and I have Well, I will say...
- 12:34first off...
- 12:35for everyone everyone listening slash watching, I wasn't aware of this topic until five minutes before recording.
- 12:41I didn't come with any facts or knowledge.
- 12:44Okay.
- 12:45So I am coming into this fresh, no lube.
- 12:48Okay.
- 12:49So all right.
- 12:52I I don't want to debate! but I no.
- 12:54I will just say this.
- 12:56I'm gonna say this, and I really do mean this.
- 12:59You become the thing you are fighting if you try to use the tools the enemy does to win.
- 13:06And I don't think it's the right thing to do.
- 13:08I think that the main criticism of the Democratic Party and the Republican Party is that they're both the same.
- 13:19And when shit like this happens, I'm like, well, you're kind of right.
- 13:22what happened to persuading voters?
- 13:24Why can't we explain to voters...
- 13:27Hey, Republicans are trying to rig this.
- 13:30They don't even want your vote.
- 13:32They're trying to rig it.
- 13:34And we're not gonna do that.
- 13:36Instead, we're gonna try to ask you to vote for us because we do want to change this, but we also know that it's wrong.
- 13:45I that sounds persuasive to me.
- 13:47Maybe maybe I'm dumb.
- 13:48That sounds persuasive to me.
- 13:50I understand why they're doing it.
- 13:51But raw power...
- 13:53this like the like Lord of the Rings is about this.
- 13:57It's like or whatever.
- 13:59just seeking raw power doesn't ever work out in the favor for anyone.
- 14:05So no, I'm against it.
- 14:07A hundred percent.
- 14:08Okay.
- 14:09Yeah.
- 14:10I definitely understand your argument and I think that I was more in that lane before, but I've switched from a means focus to an outcome orientation I want a national ban.
- 14:22I want a national ban on gerrymandering and I'm not being picky about the means to get there.
- 14:29That's all.
- 14:30But how?
- 14:30How are we gonna get there?
- 14:31Because we can't even pass minimum wage legislation.
- 14:35ironically, and it as fucked up as it is, I think that passing a federal ban on gerrymandering is much easier than passing a national uh increase on minimum wage.
- 14:45The minimum wage is the federal minimum wage is seven dollars and twenty five cents.
- 14:49How what aware.
- 14:50But there's so much disagreement about what the change should be that it's actually hard to get consensus on the solution itself.
- 14:58Whereas a ban is a ban is a ban, and you can ever there is broad agreement in the Democratic Party about what the solution to gerrymandering looks like at the federal level.
- 15:08We've already introduced and come very, very, very, very close to passing that legislation many times.
- 15:13now we just need the Senate and White House and we can do it.
- 15:17So are you saying though the means to get there is to gerrymander enough seats so that we have the congressional power to create that legislation?
- 15:26The problematic path is if Democrats are able to flip both the Senate and White House by 2028 and hold majorities in both, but are unable to hold the House of Representatives because Republicans gerrymander every single black district out of their seat between now and 2028, so that we literally cannot get to a majority.
- 15:51without winning, as Keith is saying, we would then need to win districts that are currently Trump plus twelve plus fifteen types of districts.
- 16:00so therefore we couldn't pass a ban.
- 16:02So yes, Glennis, we would want to neutralize the Republican gains in the South through states like Wisconsin and Pennsylvania and Minnesota, by passing new maps in those places.
- 16:13But I get it.
- 16:14Keith, I like I like hear you I hear your your point.
- 16:17Yeah.
- 16:19I just and then what, you're gonna how you're gonna pass it in the Senate?
- 16:22You don't have sixty votes.
- 16:23You don't need sixty.
- 16:25You just need a democratic majority that's willing to suspend the rules to to pass it.
- 16:34Well, the only thing blocking that from happening before was mansion and cinema.
- 16:38My God, I forgot about them.
- 16:40And they're gone.
- 16:41So a new democratic majority, now we have Fetterman.
- 16:45That's that is absolutely correct.
- 16:47Where did he just what show did he just do?
- 16:50Tucker?
- 16:51don't know, probably Steve Bannon.
- 16:52just did Katie Miller's.
- 16:56Right.
- 16:56Oh, be like little media.
- 16:58buy it.
- 16:58Did you know that?
- 16:59They're gonna buy the show.
- 17:00Yeah.
- 17:02Yeah.
- 17:03yeah.
- 17:04You know, everyone's making money.
- 17:06You know, I get views.
- 17:07Where's my money?
- 17:09It's like be on a network like Paramount if they're buying Katie Miller's podcast is fake.
- 17:14awful to get three million dollars.
- 17:18Or whatever it is.
- 17:20Barry Weiss is one fifty million for her ten thousand views per video on her YouTube channel.
- 17:25No, she has no followers.
- 17:26It's it's literally crazy.
- 17:27It's a fake podcast by which they can spew propaganda for their MAGA movement.
- 17:33White nationalist movement.
- 17:34Wait, Keith, that is crazy.
- 17:36I did not know that.
- 17:37Yeah, look into it.
- 17:38I don't know.
- 17:38I just think with gerrymandering I just don't like it.
- 17:43also I feel like you agree, Brian, the parties are getting more extreme.
- 17:47For sure.
- 17:48And s that this is only gonna make it worse.
- 17:52I in part agree with that and in part don't.
- 17:57'Cause then primaries are where you pick your representatives, and primaries are where the loudest democratic voices vote and where people are as progressive or conservative as possible to capture that democratic base.
- 18:17I mean, look at Republican primaries all year long.
- 18:19where you have like the Cassidy seat in Louisiana, you have Cornyn and Paxton, you have the Thomas Massey stuff, like people are trying to be seen as the most extreme MAGA in order to come out of the primary.
- 18:32So I that I do agree with.
- 18:34the actual map drawing gets more complex as to whether you're creating R plus 30, R plus 40, D plus 40 seats, or whether you're creating more plus 10.
- 18:45that's kind of neither here nor there.
- 18:46I agree with you in principle that as the media environment has shifted, tribalism has accelerated, which has accelerated the polarization of Congress, which has increased gridlock.
- 18:59Which has incentivized more polarization among voters.
- 19:03So it it's like this vicious cycle.
- 19:05And I do think that it is pouring gas on that fire.
- 19:08So I'm I'm in agreement there.
- 19:10And the only way that I'm able to see that as the path is to put a very clear, big, bright neon sign on a federal ban in 2029.
- 19:23Well, I think we can all align on the fact that whoever is in democratic leadership, this year, next year and beyond, well, we're looking for some serious accountability and some big moves to be made.
- 19:36Yeah, Keith, leave us with a hot take on AI, data centers, Graham Plattner I don't think most voters care about AI because most voters don't make enough money and they don't work in fields where AI is actually gonna affect them.
- 19:54AI was so supposed to make it so that the people who were boxing the products weren't gonna have to.
- 20:02Actually what's happened is it's come for the graphic designers and the music producers.
- 20:06So I don't know, where I come from, people don't have careers, they have jobs.
- 20:10And I think most people who have jobs aren't so worried about AI.
- 20:14So I think it's a hot topic for us, but I don't think it's a hot topic for the average American worker.
- 20:21and Graham Platner looks hot in the picture.
- 20:26Let's just say it.
- 20:27He looks hot.
- 20:28Like I'm like, okay.
- 20:29I I saw that.
- 20:30I was like, Well Vote secured.
- 20:35Woo! but no one cares about texting anymore.
- 20:38I don't think.
- 20:39I don't think people care about texting like that.
- 20:41for me, I'm just like, you do not have to be perfect to get into office now.
- 20:46That's kind of how I feel.
- 20:48Whatever Donald Trump did, I think he broke a lot of things.
- 20:51I don't I think that's probably one of the better things he broke.
- 20:54We're all people.
- 20:55We all have complicated lives, we're complicated people.
- 20:59We all have histories.
- 21:01That's okay.
- 21:02That's okay.
- 21:03as long as you show growth.
- 21:04Now I don't know if there's been growth there.
- 21:06I don't know.
- 21:07But I certainly don't want shaky ass Susan Collins in there for another six years.
- 21:11Her fucking tremor ass self.
- 21:14I can't.
- 21:14Like get out.
- 21:15You are too old.
- 21:17You are too old.
- 21:17And by the way, she is not like she doesn't believe in anything.
- 21:21She just wants to stay because I don't like I don't understand this thing where people just stay for so long.
- 21:27Like you You are not the only one who can do this job.
- 21:31Maxine Waters, you're not the only person who can do this job.
- 21:35And in fact, you're definitely not the best person to do this job anymore and to be able to recognize that.
- 21:41Yeah, I mean you just like basically in ninety seconds had the conversation that Brian and I had about Graham Platner.
- 21:46my thing is like growth and judgment.
- 21:50Let's see.
- 21:51Let's see.
- 21:52But I mean, whatever.
- 21:55Who cares?
- 21:56Republicans are literally assaulting people and get off the internet.
- 22:00I used to respect you.
- 22:02Like, get off the internet.
- 22:04She's taking swings at everyone.
- 22:06She's responding to accounts that don't have real names or real faces on their profile.
- 22:13Like, what are you doing?
- 22:14I don't even do that.
- 22:16We need to have you back on like later where like strategists or people in the industry feel like they have to step into like the content creator role or like online battle war.
- 22:27And it's very like disingenuous and weird to me.
- 22:30I'm just like, people have their lanes, maybe stay in them?
- 22:33Yeah.
- 22:35If you're in line to serve in the next administration, stay in line.
- 22:38in line.
- 22:39Stay in line.
- 22:40Tanden like your tweets got you in tri I think you are the only person to not get confirmed by the Senate because of your tweets.
- 22:47She's an addict.
- 22:48It's like girl, like baby, get out of the bar.
- 22:51Get out of the bar.
- 22:53Put the drink down.
- 22:54she's a former she was head of CAP, Center for American Progress.
- 22:59Yeah, she's back.
- 23:00She's back there.
- 23:00She's back.
- 23:01Yeah, I mean the thing is if fucking everyone fails up.
- 23:04I want where's my billionaire buying my YouTube channel, Nira Tandon?
- 23:09You wanna help?
- 23:12Turt put the tweets down, get the donors in my phone.
- 23:18Keith, we love you.
- 23:19I didn't say happy pride.
- 23:21Happy pride.
- 23:22Happy Happy pride.
- 23:24Glennis is so performative.
- 23:26I I no I'm not.
- 23:28without Charlie Kirk.
- 23:30Sad.
- 23:31Sad.
- 23:33It won't be the same.
- 23:35rip.
- 23:36Rip.
- 23:36thank you.
- 23:38Gay rights and gay wrongs.
- 23:41Mostly gay wrongs In over here for sure.
- 23:47thanks for coming on, Keith.
- 23:46It's great to see Bye.
- 23:51Okay, Brian, so that's the vibes for this week.
- 23:53come back next week and we'll help you check the vibe of what really matters in American politics and what you can ignore.
- 24:00See ya.
- 24:01See ya.