Latest / Coconut Justice / CJP #91: Ricky Twiggs, Jr.
Transcript
- Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Hey, what's good? Ricky Twiggs Jr. started his first company at the age of 18. He went on to start more companies like the consulting firm that helped bring 3D printing to Louisiana. He went on to get his master's degree in clinical mental health and still provides mental health services to New Orleans and its surrounding areas. All his work in mental health resulted in him becoming a multi award-winning therapist and the pioneer of integrative identity theory. This is my conversation with Ricky Twiggs Jr. Before we get into it, remember to go to CoconutJustice.com to get you some clothes that I think would look good on you. Let's go. As promised, since the cut to the VA, I had to go out and find my own psychotherapist. So I got an award-winning one, you guys. Ricky Twiggs is here. What's up, Rick? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: How you doing, Carlos? How is life out there in Northern California? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): it's beautiful, dude. We're getting ready for El Nino. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yes indeed. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): So it's it's it's crazy because everyone is starting to look at their like at their trees to make sure that they're not gonna fall when the soil gets too wet. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. It's beautiful out up there at this time too. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah, it really is. Right now it's like it's kind of like in the eighties. Well, last week it was kind of cold and rainy, but we're back to the eighties, eighty two, eighty three, right in there. so nice. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, I wish. We're we're boiling down here. We're hitting like hundred Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. How hot is it there? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: degrees, ninety to a hundred degrees, and the humidity makes it insane. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Ooh, and you're in New Orleans, right? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yeah, yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. So yeah, it's not even just hot. It's like steamy. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Steamy. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Ha ha. You were saying before we hit record, you're you're originally from California. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes, yes. I was born in Glendale. I grew up a little bit around Pasadena, but I came here when I was like two or three years old. so New Orleans is really what I know is home. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: and it there's a lot of similarities, I think, between California and New Orleans, you know. that's fair. Yes. Well, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Which part of California though? 'Cause northern and southern are completely different. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: you know, I'm more of the of the Southern California region. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah, yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: So yeah, it it's it it does remind me a good bit of of of like they both remind me of each other a good bit, you know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. Which makes it easy, you know, a good good Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): f feeling. You have to feel good in where you live, otherwise you're wasting time. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, what's the what's the point of staying there? You know? And I think that's that's something that that I love about like politics today, for example, right? It's it's like why are people staying where where they are? And what is the the motivating factor is that keeps them there and what keeps somebody from, you know, running for political office and making a change. and I think Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: we're seeing a lot more young people like millennials, for example, Taking up the baton and and running for their homes, you know, the places that they grew up and the place that they love. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): That's that's what I absolutely love about the younger generation. You know, like growing up and even in my twenties and thirties, everyone was convinced, no, you can't make changes, Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): just the way that it is. And you guys are like, No, no. Give me the reins. I'm here for it too. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. We want it. We want it, man. We want it bad. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: and that's that's something that I've enjoyed witnessing and being part of is this millennial push into politics. And Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: when I ran for mayor last year, it was one of the greatest privileges of of my life. And Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: I noticed that there was a lot of excitement around somebody new to the political arena because we get so inundated by the same people. Constantly. Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Same people. We had a father and son presidents. We can't we don't we don't have any other families. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: We have no other options. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): it's queer queer weird the razy. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: But it's it's like that in a lot of places, you know. Same people, same congress people, same senators, same mayors, you know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): How do you have and this is the this is the the the one of the main questions that I that pops up in my head after talking to so many people that are trying to get into politics Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes, yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): is the normal person, how do you vote time after time after time, 20, 30 years for the same person and things don't change if not get worse? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. And I think that's one of the most disheartening things to watch is that the people that historically have a relatively poor track record being elected constantly. And if you talk to the constituents, they seem to be pretty disgusted by how things are, but they're not voting differently to make the changes necessary, you know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Do you think that's because You know, you know how everything is a a valiant effort to do this one deceitful thing. Do you think people saying, don't talk politics is like a purposeful move to make a taboo so we don't talk to each other and communicate and how these folks are taking advantage of us? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: One hundred percent. I believe that to be absolutely true. I mean, just think about it, like that was one of the more older adages. Like we don't discuss politics, we don't discuss religion, we don't discuss finances Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: and money, right? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: But it seems like the more that we are open to politics, religion, taxes, or money, for example, we start finding that there's incredible disparity, like the women's pay gap, you know. Men are historically Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: paid more than women, right? we see this in religion as well, where there's a lot of religious trauma that occurs to individuals. We notice that within counseling, for example. We especially in the South, you get tons and tons of individuals that have experienced religious trauma. and the same thing with politics. It's something that I believe like social media has really put a spotlight on. It's like, hey, the The promises that these politicians have made have not come to fruition. Why why are we keep voting for these people over and over? Here are some new options. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. The the answer is so simple, it seems difficult. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Just vote for someone else. And then this is this is yeah. And Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolut do do research. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): this is the other thing is we know that money in politics is is one of the one of the things that's like escalating this decline. But then you you continue to vote for the person that continues to make all this money. And I'm not saying like the grassroots people, I'm a fan of grassroots people. I'm Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Not for sure. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): a fan of don't take corporate pack money. I'm a fan of no APAC money. All those all those things. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Same, yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): So I'm a fan of that. But folks continue to vote for the what the entrenched ones that are making money off of running for office. That's their battle plan. That's their career goal, is to run and convince you to give them more money. So someone else can give them even more money on top of that. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's right. It's never enough. And what's so what was so interesting when I was running for mayor, we we had to cap the donation amount to $100. And the reason why I had to do that was because I was receiving a lot of phone calls from corporations, from individuals asking for preferential treatment if I had run a successful campaign. And I discovered very Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): You sons of bitches. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: quickly that they would just drop that money into your account. And kind of expect it. Like, hey, look, we're just gonna do it for you. Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Just like a direct deposit. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Into your campaign bank account. You know, it's like Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: and so we had to make sure that we're being really careful of the financial part. and what we also noticed was that there's just a lot of corporate influence both locally within the state, within the city, but there's also national influence as well being in involved with municipal politics, which Think we're starting to see on a more grand scale, specifically with data centers and the rapid creation and Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: infrastructure development that that's happening with data centers throughout the nation. These are Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: giant corporations that have ties directly to the federal government, that have worked their way into city council politics, municipal politics, and have practically determined what's going to happen without any community involvement. This is something that should alarm. all of us at how quickly this has happened or seemingly how quickly it has happened, but it's been in the works for several years at this point. And now we're just seeing the ramifications, the consequences and the outcomes of those discussions and negotiations. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Takes me back to when Trump lost to Biden Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Mm-hmm. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): and all the MAGA people just bum rushed all the local offices, all the Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): everything. They were going for every position available. Superintendent, school superintendent, Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): secretary, the thing over there. So imagine that, but with like people with nearly unlimited funds. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely. Wall Street size money. And not only Wall Street, but like the Wall Street, the Magnificent Seven, which makes up more than half of the, I believe it's more than half of the S P or just under half. So I mean we're talking gigantic monsters, behemoths of of of industry. and that's the that's the scary thing about it, is a lot of politicians, both on the state level, federal level, municipal level. are signing NDAs, non disclosure agreements, so that way they don't have to discuss or that way their plans aren't released to the public. And I don't think necessarily it's because they're trying to protect competition. I think they're trying to protect against public outcry and outrage. 'cause Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: there's very few people I think that want these data centers near them with very good reason. But as we have seen the city council members Yeah, let's do that. Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Let's run down that list real quick. Why, why is it that people don't want these? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, I think for a big reason it's it's just a lot of noise pollution. That's a big one for a lot of people. That it's gonna disrupt Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: your your quality of life. It's going to make utilities skyrocket. Water is definitely gonna become more unaffordable. utility costs with gas is gonna become more unaffordable, energy costs with electricity is gonna become more unaffordable. And that's one of the biggest problems that we have is we have an affordability crisis topped with an environmental crisis as well. So noise pollution, it's very real. It doesn't just impact us as people, but it impacts animals, wildlife, impacts Yeah, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Me let me cut you off real quick, Ricky Twiggs Jr.: please. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): just because this is the perfect opportunity for this. Do you remember when Trump was talking about how windmills caused cancer and they made all this noise? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Familiar, yeah. Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And now he wants to put these noisy ass data centers everywhere? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely. And not only did they apparently like cause cancer and stuff, but we have with you know, but we we have these data Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): They chava birds, all kinds. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: centers where they're lot by like farm farm life. And what we're noticing is that there's no there's a lot of stillbirths occurring within like cows or goats or animal life like that. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Ooh, really? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yes, I think there is a a young individual running in Texas for attorney general. And that was one of the his main concerns was that a lot of his livestock were having still b stillbirths due to the data center that was built nearby. That was the only new variable was that. And I think that's going to be something that we're going to see a lot more of as well. And we don't really know the depths of the problems that these centers will will inevitably cause. And I think for me, it's like when I when I hear data centers, and we have supposedly you know, Hyperion, the largest metadata center in the world that's being built in Bridgeland, Louisiana. And when I hear about projects like this, it's it's not just enough to hear it. You have to go up there and see it. And I've had the privilege to go up there and to view this thing, and it is it's massive. Like I don't there's really no words. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): From what I understand, there's a lot of light pollution too. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely there is, yes. And w it it almost defies like understanding until you see it. Like physically yourself, drive up Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: to one, put your eyes on it and see it. Like these things are massive. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): It's like a little city, right? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: It's a little city for sure. It is. It is a small and it's almost like like it it all of the companies here, like Entergy, New Orleans. Energy New Orleans, Energy Louisiana, they're all just kind of buckling to to these systems. So they've all signed NDAs, promising and swearing that the energy costs will not be applied to the consumer. but yeah, of course. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Because we know politicians don't ever lie. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: We know that politicians and we also know that corporations always tell the truth, right? And Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): yeah. And they have they have our best interest in mind. Yeah. All the things. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes, they care, truly they care, you know. But it's it's all insanity because we all know that that's not the case. We know that those costs are going to be passed down to the consumers, which are us, the taxpayers as well. So not only are these centers winning on the tax level, but they're also winning on the cost level as well, because we are the ones that are inevitably paying for that infrastructure to be built. It's a double loss for all of us when it comes to data centers. Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): For normal people, yeah. Yeah. Yeah, I I don't I don't get it. Well, yeah, I do. I do get it. I understand why corporations want to tap into or they want to build it close to an established infrastructure. Cause it's cheap, it's just cheaper. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Sure. Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And they don't really care about normal people. That's that's easy. That's Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Fair enough. Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): an easy one. They would and and for me, the frustrating thing is. The American people gave tax dollars that went to developing this technology. And even though we fit the f foot the bill for a lot of the development of this, we still have to pay twenty dollars a month to use the shit. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. One hundred percent. Yep. Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): So we're paying twice. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: By the time we know it, we're paying four or five times over. And what's so interesting too, that's Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. 'Cause electricity goes up, yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: right. It's it's all in the in the fine details, electricity, gas, water, everything on top of that, and multiplied from there, right? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And what's so interesting to me is that when you look at these data centers and how quickly they've popped up and where they're being located at for for example. A lot of them are being pushed into more low populated areas. And now they're starting to look at really big like desert areas to place them. But that also comes at a cost, as you said, right? Because you got to build the infrastructure it's out there essentially. And it is easier to build closer to more like not residential per se, but more cityscapes for Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: for safety purposes or for for their safety purposes rather. and what's fascinating to me is when you look at just technology as a whole, computers started off in very big like buildings. Like they were huge. Computers were massive. And then over the course of time, very quickly they became very s yeah. Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. And then just to let people know, it it used to not even just be floppy disk. They used to have code on cards that you fed into these big ass mainframes. We've come a long way. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely right. And very quickly, too, by the way. We've come a long way very quickly. And I think when we look at the scale of these data centers and the cost that they're going to have on all of us. And you look at the quick rate of computer to laptop, to cell phones, for example, that happened very quickly. And so we're spending all of this money into these big data centers, which are inevitably going to become smaller. over the course of time and technology moves quick. And so it's like we're we've spent all this money on what exactly? Be what we're going to have is a lot of environmental cost because of this quick expansion. And it does make me wonder if there's something bigger occurring in the background. Makes me wonder if there is some type of AI bubble that's occurring, which I do think is very possible. And if that is Is what and not only that, but that's kind of supported by what the Federal Reserve is saying as well. Like there's there is a bubble that's being created around AI, and if that pops, we're looking at the SP greatly dropping. And again, the Magnificent Seven make up such a massive amount of the SP that if that does pop, we're gonna see some devastation that I don't think we're even prepared for, financial devastation, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: economic devastation. And for me, that's the most alarming thing because it's like, why would we invest so heavily into infrastructure? When did we do this throughout history? It was during our worst periods of possible Great Depression, recession, recovery moments, right? That's when we invested Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: into infrastructure. And it does make me wonder if that's what we are leaning on, is if we're leaning on more of the infrastructure side, the development side, and pouring money into that. In order to offset this impending or potential AI bubble that could burst and send us into an economic depression. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): That's scary. That's scary. Cause these guys, yeah, Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's the shit that keeps me up at night. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): like like and these guys, they even though even though they have whistleblowers that are saying whistleblowers that are saying, yay, these guys, this AI thing is getting dangerous. We're starting to see AI escaping and breaking into different people's websites and stuff. And I'm not Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): talking, I'm not talking, you know, the little taco shop down the street. We're talking like important websites that they're Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. We just saw it recently. And that Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: that's the scary part about like the technology itself is not only do we have to prepare for like the technology surviving and and thriving on its own, but we also have to prepare for just the economic devastation if this technology does not produce the economic bounce back that it's it anticipated, or that return on investment. I just don't see it having that return on investment that they are predicting it to have. When we're looking at the Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): What do you Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And I keep cutting you off, but my brain my brain is crazy. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: No, you're good. Go ahead. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I have to ask, otherwise I I lose it. But what Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Please. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): where do you think If we if we let's just trust the powers that be right now. What is it that they see? What is it that they're trying to sell us on? What is their vision that we don't see? Let's say and let's say that they're doing it in a in a beneficial way. What is it that they want us to buy into? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Well, I think Elon has Elon Musk had an interview within the last like two months where he said that people won't work in the next five or six years. And I I I think that's kind if we're if we're gonna give everyone the benefit. Yeah, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Didn't he just get done calling us lazy? stupid? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: literally, yeah. You can't make it up, man. It it it it's all hypocrisy, right? It really is. And I think that's what they're Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): It really is. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: trying to sell us on, is that they're trying to sell us on this idea. that it's going to make life easier. But who's it going to make life easier for? When we when let's think about it, right? Like AI is going to disrupt numerous jobs across job markets, not just within technology, but we're looking at even within the art of psychotherapy, that it could even begin to have some application there as well. Which is also terrifying to begin with, but we'll get to that at another point in time. But if we are going to give them the benefit of the doubt, then that is the area that they will try to sell us on the most. And it it's it's so essentially we could have robots working for us, making an income for us to where we don't have to struggle or or worry about that. We can go back to creating art, making art and engaging in the arts and hanging out and being social and leisurely. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): See, that's the part that that's the part that makes me happy. Being able to, you know, have the time to hang out with well, go go to New Orleans and go hang out with you, get some mufalata. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. Absolutely. That's that's the big sell mark. Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Make a video in a cartoon about it. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That that's that's part of I think what we're missing on the on the American experiment is that we we're missing art. it art is being stripped from us by not just technology now with data centers, but for a very long time it that's not the focus of STEM. It's you know, I mean it's it's it art has become a more of a lost art form and With the rapid rise of social media and the rapid rise of artificial intelligence, I think inevitably that pursuit of that of that instinct to want connection through art with people is going to be something that will ultimately help us to defeat that technology. But that's if that worst case scenario ever happened, I do think that good will overcome that. And I think it'll overcome because we were thirsty for connection. We're thirsting for art. And that's how we connect. We we connect with ourselves through our our writing, through our art. We connect with Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: others through our writings, through our art and through our speech, communication. That's how we connect with people. We don't connect with artificial, artificial methods. and that's that's the scary. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. The easy the we easy way to prove that point is I can sit here and I can talk to you and you understand the inflections and everything. I can Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): send you a text message, you read it the wrong way and you're like, hey, what the hell? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's right. I think you're mad at me, you know? And that's not the case at all. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. I'm like, no, I just said yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: But that's our interpretation because depend it's dependent upon my mood, right? It's dependent upon how I'm viewing the world on that specific day. and that's the that's the scary thing with technology and it the hyperconnectivity has really made us more alone than ever before. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): As an award winning psychotherapist. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Mm. Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Have you noticed a common change in people when you talk to them? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely, I have. I I would say if I am so I work mostly with teenagers and individuals struggling with the disease of addiction. And I've been a licensed counselor for ten years at this point, or working in the field of counseling for ten years. And I have noticed a couple of things that have worried me incredibly deeply, is that the addiction world has only gotten 20 times worse. And feelings of loneliness have risen dramatically. and when I look at the teenagers, the teenagers that I work with, the adolescents that I've worked with throughout the years, loneliness has always been a problem for sure. But the biggest thing that I've noticed with teens is that they don't know where like their meaning or purpose. Like they, they, they can't seem to find it in. One of the biggest things I've heard the most of is like, well, am I even gonna have a job in in five, ten years if AI is around? Like, what am I gonna do? Like, how do I pick a college program, knowing that Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: I it could be taken from me? Right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: so I've noticed that there's been this wave of of of struggling with meaning and purpose within our youth. and I think even that goes a little bit further back to social media. and the rise of social media as well. but I would say those are the biggest ones. Lack of meaning and with our young people and with addiction, feelings of loneliness and isolation. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Does it blow your mind that we have basically legalized gambling and made it so easy? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: So easy. So easy. And yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Isn't it isn't it crazy? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes, it is. And that is one of the things that we have noticed as well is that there's a rise not just in substance use and abuse, but there's also a rise in gambling. And those two go hand in hand. They at they hit the same dopamine. Yeah, like you're releasing dopamine. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Right. Right. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: and it's they're both highly addictive and they're great ways of escapism. And they do isolate you, they make you feel alone, you know, they don't encourage a lot of connection. and that's that's the scary thing is we're starting to see this this attack on on the human condition. so we're still I think we're starting to see a lot more existential existential dread, existential anxiety, existential depression that's popping up. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. And then you mix that with the fact that we're being run by a bunch of rich boys whose parents gave them all their money. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Ha yes, not not just rich, but also socio and psychopathic. It's one thing to be rich and to have that given to you, but it's also another thing to be rich and cruel. And I Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: would say that that's one of the things that we've noticed with this administration in particular, is that there's a lot of rich people that are very cruel, cutting off SNAP benefits, cruel. Talking about an ex naying over four hundred thousand to a million potential Affordable Care Act recipients, cruel. sending ICE agents to schools and to neighborhoods, that is cruel. Funding the genocide in Palestine and Gaza or Gaza, for example, that is cruel. Like what is it exactly that we are what is it that that that we're we're hoping will come back. If we're looking at a karmic thing, that we're we're we're gonna have some bad karma on the way, you know? and that those Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: are those are signs of cruelty. It's not just being rich. It's it's the fact that there is this element of cruelty involved as well and just not caring about people in general. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And some people They like being mean. I mean the Jim Crow era. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yes, indeed. Absolutely. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): All of those things and and I mean the obvious one it well there's a bunch of obvious cruelty what they did to the Native Americans and what they did to the folks that they brought over from Africa Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Mm. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): and then Jim Crow and even in my lifetime, just the way that police treat black and brown kids in the inner city. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And this is the kicker. The people that are making the rules break the law more than you do. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. Yeah. It yeah, we we usually get thrown in prison forever for a financial crime, you know, and they're out here just living life. Like, hey, it's all good. You know, yeah, we can we can defraud. Yeah. Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. Like in Fl in Florida, I like to bring this up. In Florida, what's his name? Rick Scott. He he broke the record for the biggest financial scam, health insurance scam in the history of America. And he's a senator. He's a US senator. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): They get promoted, and we go to jail. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. And sometimes we get put under the jail. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: You know, it this is this is the reality of of I think where my generation, in particular, the millennial generation is is most fed up with. It's like we these older individuals have had their time, they have had their chance, and they have squandered it for all of us. And for 40 years, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): You ruined it for forty years. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: like we the millennials were supposed to be the richest generation. Ever the most prosperous generation that America was supposed to have was us. The nineties started off pretty decent, you know, like we were off to a pretty good start, you know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: 9-11 happens and everything goes straight to hell. And we never have recovered from that specific moment. And Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: millennials, we we remember all of those unprecedented moments before that word was thrown around as freely as it is now. We were We witness those catastrophic events in real time. We we witness all of that happening. And I think for a lot of us we carry that that trauma and we're looking to turn it into something that is healing for millennials and other generations as well. I I think the millennial generation is is truly looking to be the healing generation of our lifetime. And I believe that that's exactly why there's so many running for office right now, because we know there's nobody coming to save us. We have to do it on our own. We have to go out there, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: we have to throw our names in the hat. We have to disrupt, we gotta be loud. And who cares if people are gonna make fun of us or laugh at us or consider us non serious because we're too young? That was the main thing for me was that I was considered too young, too inexperienced within the political realm. Or that was some of the feedback that I had gotten. I I I didn't care. Yeah. Exactly. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): What's experience gotten us to it gotten us to the at this point? You can have all the experience in the world. If someone is writing you a check and handing you the bills that they want you to pass, what Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): are we giving you money for? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Correct. Absolutely right. And and that was one of the spirits that that I definitely made sure to carry was that this insanity, this cyclical problem that we have found ourselves in has to stop. We gotta break the cycle. And until we do that, it doesn't matter if we keep talking about the problems, nothing's gonna change until we put change into those seats. And for me, that's why I'm I'm Really excited about there's two candidates that are running in Louisiana right now. and there's others that are incredible candidates, but these two I've had the pleasure of meeting and getting to know. One of them is Jamie Davis. He is running for Senate against Julia Letlow. So they're going for Bill Cassidy seat. Jamie Davis is a farmer, and yeah, that's exactly what we need. We need we we need to put the working Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): For real. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: people into these seats. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): For real, Ricky Twiggs Jr.: You know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): because farmers are getting it handed to them right now. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes, exactly. And the other one is going for is going against Steve Scalise. And her name is Lauren Jewett. She's a teacher, an educator. That's exactly who we need in these seats. We need the healers. We need the Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yep. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: working the working class in these seats because that as you said before, right? The the rich are only going to look for their friends. They're only going to help their their friends and their family. They're not worried about. Spreading the wealth. They're worried about containing the wealth, making sure that it stays Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: within certain pockets so that way it can just go back and forth, right? It's not going to change until we start to really elect different people for that change. And we have we have the moment coming up with the midterms on the way. This is our chance to disrupt a system that for past two years has not been very helpful for us. On the national level, you know, that this is our chance Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): To say the least. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: to kind of potentially reset that standard. And it's gonna be tough. I mean, this is not gonna be an easy road, even if the Democrats are successful in winning the midterms. It's not gonna be easy either way. But maybe we can help to stop and to reset a few things that have occurred. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): What made you get into psychotherapy? You have this wonderful piece about your voice that's just like the world Ricky Twiggs Jr.: thank you. Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): is going to hell in a handbasket. You're like, we're gonna be fine. We're gonna be good. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: We're gonna be fine. That's right. That's right. You know, psychotherapy is actually really interesting. what led me down this road? It it took a little bit to get here. as a teenager, I struggled a lot with anxiety. when I turned 18 years old, I started a consulting company. And this consulting company started to grow, started to get some legs and started Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): You're eighteen years old. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: started to do very well. Yeah. And I found myself in rooms with people that I had very little in common with. like I'm a poor kid from from New Orleans. You know, I grew up incredibly poor. and Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): What do your parents do? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: so my dad's my parents are disabled. both are are disabled. And it was tough. It was it was a challenge growing up, you know, it was not easy. And through through the grace of kind people was I able to make it through school, you know. and I remember that kindness. Like it's true, like people remember people remember kind people. And I remember the people Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: that were kind to me that helped me along the way, even with my challenges, you know. I had Crohn's disease or I had still have Crohn's disease, but I'm in remission right now, you know, so all is well. But when I was younger, it was not in remission, so it was It was very difficult to pay attention in school, miss a lot of school. it it was a it was a challenge to to stay focused when I have this illness that was actively killing me, you know. racked up God, I can't even tell you how much money for medical debt along the way, you know. and in Louisiana in particular, Medicaid had had was cut. It was part of the Jindles way to save the economy was to cut Medicaid and to close all the public hospitals essentially and convert them into other entities. and I was part of that of that group that was cut off from from from Medicaid support. And so I developed quite the medical bill even even as a young child, you know, like a young teenager, you know, racking up these insane medical bills. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): More more than your more than your student bills? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yeah, actually, yes. Yeah. It it it was Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: it was an unbelievable thing. And so when I Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: turned eighteen, I was like, okay, well, I'm I'm gonna do what I have to do to try to give a better life to my family, you know, my mom and dad in in particular, and for myself too, you know. started this consulting company. again found myself in rooms with people that I I should not have been in with. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): So baller. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. And all it took at the time I knew something that they didn't that they didn't have. I was watching the social media start to become more integrated into businesses and I was like, that's what I'm gonna do. I'm gonna help companies kind of assimilate social media technology into their you know, into their companies, essentially into their business structures. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm. Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: So I started doing that and I found myself doing work for pretty Big individuals. and then I found myself could providing consulting services to contestants that were on the hit TV show Shark Tank. so I was watching, I was paying attention, and I was I was really focused on how can I get this thing, this small consulting company, some legs. and before I knew it, I was really I was getting some some serious legs. And And then I had my first panic attack. and it was uncontrollable for me. And I remember, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): What's that feel like? What's a panic attack feel like? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yeah, it feels like impending constant doom. like something is going to happen or that, you know, I was gonna die like randomly, just like, you know, no logic or reason, just that this Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: is going to happen to me. And Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Is this kinda like your anxiety plus just keeps stacking? Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. Yes. Absolutely. It it just it's like anxiety times thousand. Shortness Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Really? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: of breath, heart racing. you kind of get like tunnel vision a little Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Ooh. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: bit, you know. it's a lot of physical symptomology. The mind kind of runs wild and rampant. and very little is is helpful in the moment. You kind of have to allow the panic to go through your system, and then when you get that. Break period is where you start breathing, you know, and getting it under control and doing what you have to do. But it was the it caught me totally off guard. And I was not prepared for for that. and so you know, went to counseling, went to therapy for it, you know, got some help. and my therapist said something really interesting. she, she, she asked me a question. She was like, Are you are are you Are you able to perform at this level on your own by yourself? Like, is this something that you can do on your own? And at the time, I didn't even think, like, man, maybe I am putting a lot on myself. You know, like maybe I am taking on a little too much, you know? and that was part of that awakening moment for me. It was like, yeah, I am, I am putting a lot of burden on myself. I'm not. I'm not using my community, my resources. I'm not, you know, even growing in the way that I think I'm growing. You you you grow by Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: bringing people in to work with you, to expand together, you know, because they're gonna know shit that I don't know. and so it taught me a lot on how to kind of actually grow in life. and so what I started to do was I started to connect with people that had similar goals and visions on just with technology in in particular. so a group it was a group of three of us and we brought three D printing technology to Louisiana. we did really well with that, continued to scale it from there. and before I knew it, I had I had even more opportunity in jobs. And I wound up just going ahead and and selling a large portion of of that part of the company. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: and I wanted to do something that Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Who's your who is your who's your end client for the three D printing? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: So the we had so many. it it was actually the last client that I had was somebody that wanted a tap. It was a regular person that just wanted a tap created for their in home bar. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): cool. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, it was really neat actually. but that that was a kind of industry like we we worked with regular people all the way up to the big you know, big oil companies on printing like parts that they couldn't necessarily get with relative Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Sure. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: You know, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Okay. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: but we did we did really well. And so I wound up just kind of selling my portion of that entity and focusing on something that I wanted to make a bigger impact with. And that was at first it was like neuroscience, like going for like neurosurgeon, that type of thing. but it it just it didn't it didn't feel right at the time. And I remembered counseling and what it felt like on the opposite end of the chair. And I went back to my therapist and I was like, I I think I want to try counseling as as as a as a field of study. And she was ecstatic. She was like, Yes, like I think he would be really great at it. so I jumped in after I got my bachelor's degree in like 2014, I jumped into counseling program in 2015, graduated in 2017. and man, I've had a lot of unique and fun experiences along the way. I have a a small private practice where I work with teenagers. and I also work at a local addiction rehab, substance abuse rehab. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): cool. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And so that's kind of what I've what I have been doing since 2017, working Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: within those fields, within those industries. the last two years I've been getting more heavily involved in in the political world and noticing that counseling is not just you know, it it's not a field where you can just sit down and counsel people all day individually. Like counselor is really and social workers as well and all mental health people and I believe even nurses and all medical individuals too. I think we have a duty to go out into the world and advocate on a national scale. Not not just national, but municipal, state, national again. Like we like we have to really advocate on behalf of our patients and on behalf of our professions as well. And so that's what I've Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: been doing over the past two years is really h honing in on how to make make an impact on the bigger scale. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And I I'm gonna second your y your comment about needing more therapists and more teachers and more folks that aren't hell bent on being rich. Let's just say it that way. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. I agree. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Because the people that we have that we have had in charge, they just want to make decisions with no repercussions. And we need people that understand if we start a war over there, it's gonna make the prices go up and people are gonna struggle over here. So maybe we don't do that over there. Right. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely right. Yes. And and if we look at it even from like just the more of the national model, for example, right? It's like if you end SNAP benefits, kids are going to be hungry, right? That means that they're going to act out in school. That means that they're not going to be able to retain or to learn very well, which means that. On the counseling end, we're going to be seeing a lot more of that. We're going to see a lot more aggression. We're going to see a lot more kids acting out. We're on the educator level, they're not kids aren't going to be willing to learn or even capable of learning if you're not fed. If you're if you're starving, it's hard to kind of pay attention in the classroom. You know, these professions see the direct impact of what happens in DC. We are seeing the direct impact. We are the first line that starts to see that, okay, something's wrong. And this is the outcome of this legislation that's being passed in D C where people aren't paying attention to the kids out here i in in the lower nine, for example, in New Orleans, you know, it it or they're not paying attention. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And that's simple because it their kids are taken care of. So they their they think their Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, that's right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): job is done. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's right. And our kids are starving. Our kids are in trouble and there's not enough investment to go around to take care of you know? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And if you yeah, and if you think anxiety is bad normally, like imagine, Ricky Twiggs Jr.: God, yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): imagine, imagine being a kid and you're you have like all these chemicals are flowing through you and you're anxious because you have homework and kids over there are picking on you and then mix in the fact that If you don't know where your next meal is coming from, that's going to add to the complications. And if you don't know where your next meal is coming from, that might mean your parents don't know where their next meal is coming from. And Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): they have to, they have to, we just got done talking about driving through traffic. Imagine being a parent with kids in school. You don't know where your next meal is coming from. You just got done getting your ass whipped for eight hours and now you're stuck in traffic for an Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's right. What what we are seeing, I think, like when we look at this affordability crisis, it has real mental health consequences. We are seeing burnout occur across dimensions. It doesn't matter what your profession or job is, you are being burnt out. And we started noticing that or even on a larger scale, like it was highlighted after or during COVID, excuse me. That's when it became extremely highlighted was with the first responders, the nurses, the medical team, the counselors that were witnessing the direct impact of what would happen to people when they were isolated alone. And then afterwards, when things were being lifted, restrictions were being lifted where people could kind of return back to normal to some sort of normalcy, right? We also started to see even more then. It was like, my goodness, like this is what happens when. when people are isolated, alone. And these are this is what happens when kids aren't able to socialize with other kids their age. And I think we've we have a lot of we have a lot of room to grow within this specific industry of healthcare. We are s supposedly the richest nation, but we don't have free healthcare for for anybody. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): sure don't act it. We sure don't act it. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: You know, not at all. It's terrible, man. It's terrible. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: You know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): We we we like to flaunt that we're the richest nation in the history of the earth, but We have incredible homeless problem. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): We have an incredible addiction problem. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): We haven't like there's a small bunch that are doing just fine, even though they have enough money to hide the fact that they're addicted to things. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes, they do. and most of those things are perverse. You know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): They're just as that they're addicted. Yeah. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Look at the Epstein files. That's an addiction too, you know? Messing and yeah, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Period. There you go. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: I mean that's we're witnessing perversion. and yes, perversions can be addictive, you know. If you have Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: it all and you can, you know, buy whatever you want, the thing that becomes the most addictive is the thing that is the most forbidden, right? And that's exactly I think what those Epstein files are. Have shown is and there's still even millions of documents that haven't been released. It it's unreal. And the fact that that hasn't caused more of calls for revolution, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: it it's kind of mind blowing. It's like I understand the idea of of consistent and persistent reform, but after a while you just you have to have a nice little revolution. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. And and for as gross as some of the topics are that are in those files. For me, the big yeah, the bigger issue is that there are a group of people who are working together to screw the planet. And they just so happen to have this fetish for kids. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's exactly right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): They have no boundaries. And at the end of the day, take a look at their behavior. We're talking about I said it, I say, I say this on purpose so people get it. You have a layer of people that are making decisions for all of us who all got their money from their parents. So you explain to me how. People whose answer have all has always been, we'll just ask for more money. How are they gonna balance the budget? I don't want that. I want a Ricky Twiggs in that bitch to be like, no, we're not gonna do that. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's right. No. That's exactly right. And what you have just described is exactly what a systems counselor would say, right? It's like you have to look at how the system operates. The family unit, how does it operate? Well, a kid that is typically rich is going to just ask their family if they are in a rough spot because the family can get them out of that rough spot. And so what happens when the government itself is in a rough spot and we have these individuals of privilege that are put in positions of power at the wrong time? What happens then when when all they're used to is just printing money, asking for money, getting it this way, getting it that way, lying, cheating, stealing, right? That Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: becomes the name of the game. And what we are witnessing is that. We as regular citizens are being taken advantage of. We're being lied to, cheated, and stolen from. And yet that is not enough for some people to completely just say, Yeah, you know what? I was wrong. This individual that is in this position of power is not who I thought they were. And it's okay to be wrong. Like it's better to just admit that you're wrong about something, right? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: When we don't do that, there's it's a sign of like ego and pride, you know? And that's not a helpful way to grow when you think you know it all and you can't be wrong. And those are the people that we have in those positions of power currently. And it's they have what is that? That God complex, so to speak, you know? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah, yeah, yeah. Especially the technology knuckleheads, these Peter Thiels and the Elon Musk and stuff. Like you could be a I I Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I've worked in Silicon Valley. If you're a developer, if you're a programmer, whatever, whatever, you you think you're God. You think you're God, and this is it. So now add more money than anybody else on the planet. That dude thinks he's He thinks he's God. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: absolutely. He he had that crazy interview Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): He thinks he's got Ricky Twiggs Jr.: with I forgot I think it was the it wasn't the BBC, but it was it was a crazy interview nonetheless, where Peter Thiel is is practically asked the question, Do you think humans are are are good for the world or something like that, or should humans continue to live or something? And he like pauses and he's like, What? It's like, hold on, man, like it was a long pause. It was and it wasn't a yes or a no either. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah, yeah, yeah. It and it was a long pause. It was uncomfortably long. It wasn't. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: It's like I don't know about this guy, you know. But you're absolutely right though. Like I I haven't necessarily worked as directly in Silicon Valley, most likely as you have. I have some, you know, proximity with it, nonetheless. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And those individuals that that are in positions of power within these tech companies, they are unreal. Like some of the shit that they would say when I was in board meetings with them. you was unreal. like believing that man, I don't even know if I want to say that, but like they they have some crazy beliefs about not just themselves but about reality and the world. And Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: it's it it's alarming, honestly. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Have you talked to any of the salespeople? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, they're yeah. But yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Half the time they're coked out of their mind. Half the time they're coked out of their mind. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: They are. And w yeah, I mean that's it's I think that's the only way to operate within a system that is that the tech industry is just so sick. It's not even it's not even a healthy industry anymore. You know, it's not about helping people really like liberate people or equal the playing field. You know, it's it's more about all about the money. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. It's all about the money and the power. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yep, absolutely, you know. you remember Napster, like when that when that came out? Like Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: everybody was was all all about that except for the people that have the contracts and the money. They didn't want that out there. I know, buy my album, you know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And the artist, the artist is like, hey, buy my album. This back this yeah, this is still back when CDs were around. Please buy my CD. Now I bet you they want Ricky Twiggs Jr.: that's that's exactly right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): to go back to Napster. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: I bet they do. I bet they do, absolutely. It kinda comes full circle. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. I bet you. Cause there's no money. There's no money in st there's no money in streaming. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: No, not not definitely no money in Spotify, you know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. No, all that stuff is coming back because like Sony said, they're only doing downloadables and now Xbox is doing something to where when you can play Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): a game, they're gonna play ads before you get access back to the game or something, something, something. I'm like, you guys Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): but again, they know that they can do it because they're leveraging people's addiction to those games. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. And they're when you look at like marketing in general too, marketing itself, it it it tells us that we're full of deficiencies. And in order for you to not be deficient, you have to go through this product, right? Like marketing Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: has become so good at selling selling deficiencies. Like or I I say that because really what they're trying to sell is the solution. but they have to make you believe that you are deficient. And that is Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: what marketing has become now. It's it's it's really just about selling, selling, selling. Here's your deficiency, here's how we can fix it, or we'll create a problem and sell you the solution. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Or we'll pay the doctors to tell you the cigarettes are healthy for you. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yeah. Here it takes some pain pills too. I mean that that's that Purdue Pharma, right? Like it it this is Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: this is the real world that that we unfortunately live in. And it is really wrapped around that monetary system. you know, I I I I do believe that like for myself, I can speak really for myself on this. I I'm an anti capitalist for sure. I don't think that it is the best system To help people get out or to have like equality or justice or equity. Like that is not how that works. It it can't work within a system that is so hell-bent on power and money and accessibility. Because really, that's really what people are buying into most of the time is the ability to access something. That that's unreasonable. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Sick people need access to good medical care. Like it doesn't matter who you are, right? Like doesn't matter. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Artistic kids need access to pencils and paper. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes, one hundred percent right. And what happens Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Play. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: when the capitalists you know decide that, well, the most beneficial thing is purely mathematics, right? Or the elimination of the arts within school programs. Like it's unacceptable. That that that cannot happen. It just can't happen. And I have found that the capitalist system is is full of of this thought, of this ideology, that if I am going to have something, I have to make sure that someone else cannot get to it. That's that's the most un American thing I can think of. You know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. And they and talk about marketing. They say that that form of government creates ingenuity and Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Mm-hmm. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): and all this stuff, and that's just not the case. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): They convince you, they tell you. I've gotten into arguments with so many people. They say, well, you know, if everything is equal and then the taxes and all this stuff, well, then I'm just gonna make, you know, if if the tax cutoff is a million dollars, I'm just gonna work till 999,900, right? And I'm like, well, that shows who you are as a person. I'm gonna work no matter what. No Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. No matter what. Exactly. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): matter what. I'm gonna be drawing, I'm gonna be interviewing, I'm gonna be doing this, I'm gonna be doing that. I don't stop. So it'd be cool if I didn't have to worry about my rent or my groceries or anything like that. I'm going to work to improve society. That's just how I've been wired. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That that's exactly correct. And I really think that that is most people. I really do. I think Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: that that is most people, most people, if they were given an equal spot at the table, they would flourish. They would be incredible community members. They would we would have the ingenuity and the innovations that we're looking for. But because of this capitalist system that crushes everything and everybody. it it's just it's just not producing what what we are told that it would produce. And for me that's the most disheartening thing. It's like, yeah, we have kids that are brilliant that will never get the light of day. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And only because they were born in a city or whatever. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): To to parents that didn't you know that didn't grow up to be Congresspeople or whatever the hell whatever the fancy paying jobs are. And if you are an individualist, because that's you know, they say, if you work really hard, blah blah blah, take care of yourself, blah, blah, blah, you can make it, you can make it, right? So if you're an individualist, why the hell do you want the people with money to tell you whether or not your stuff should go to bar? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. Shouldn't you have access to said market? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Wouldn't it be cool if he just develops a p yeah. Wouldn't it be cool if he just had access to that damn market? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And that's for me like the one of the biggest selling points of of like the anti capitalist movement. It's like, shouldn't you don't you deserve a spot at the table? And why don't you? Right? Like why why do you Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Who the fuck are they? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: who are they? Exac who are they? Because they have more money than you and they can put on nicer suits. Like that's the that's that's the thing. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And let me tell you, more money, this is for normal people. More money does not does not mean they're smarter than you. They're not. I work in Silicon Valley or I used to work in Silicon Valley. There's a lot of money out here. And a lot of those people are morons. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. And a lot of those people are also incredibly cruel and sociopathic and psychopathic too, right? And Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: and it's like when we look at it from just like a like a religious perspective, for example, right? And when people say like America was founded on Christian values and you know we're a Christian Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Uh-huh. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: nation and all this stuff. And it's like, well, cutting snap benefits doesn't seem very Christian to me. Denying healthcare to sick individuals doesn't seem very Christian to me. Like Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): wearing a t-shirt that says, I don't care if he is a pedo. I'd that's my Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): president. That doesn't sound too Christian to me either. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That all seemed very Christian to me. Exactly. And it's like h having unhoused people doesn't seem very Christian to me, or shipping them off to different cities or trying to hide them away rather than trying to help them. Yep. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Or a containment camp, yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely. That ICE agents shooting American citizens in the street and rounding up people that aren't even illegal. Or even if they are illegal, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Bunch of bullies. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: it's like, why are we doing that? You know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Don't you know that being a bully is against religion too? It's against the Bible. Being a bully, Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, absolutely. It Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): being an asshole in the street, beating people up for no reason? That's against the Bible. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: No reason. It says, Welcome the stranger. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Why haven't we done that? That isn't that sounds very Christian to me. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Take the shirt off your back. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Take this shirt off your back, right? Don't judge people. There seems to be a lot of judgment occurring from DC right now. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I'm telling ya. I'm telling you. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: You know, and and so when we look at that in in that manner, it's like, well, we're we're definitely not living up to Christian values that are supposedly ingrained into the nation, right? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And it's one thing to it's one thing to say, yes, you know, we're we're a Christian nation and this is what we believe and we're gonna vote a qu you know, the party of God essentially, the Christian party. And then when they act totally counter to that, they will still defend it to the end. And it's like that that is the most un Christian thing that that you can do. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: You know. Jesus was not hanging out with the rich bureaucrats. Jesus was in the streets with the lepers, with the prostitutes, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): He was now. Yep. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: with the people that were hated in society. That's who he went to. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Didn't ask for a copay. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, he wasn't asking for no copay. He didn't bring Lazarus back and then say, hey, look, man, you're gonna have to you owe me like five hundred thousand dollars for bringing you back. You know. Right. Exactly. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah, you gotta put twenty percent down or you gotta are you going back in the hole? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And and the fact that this has been monetized within capitalism religion specifically, the Christian religion has been monetized by capitalism. It's disturbing that pastors have these jets and they can fly wherever they want as their congregation is getting poorer and poorer and they flaunt it. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): They're like, but I gotta spread the I gotta spread the word. I'm like, you heard a zoom? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's right, gotta spread the mission. Right. There are easier ways, my friend, you know. Yes, exactly. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Way easier. You can get a Oculus for way cheaper than that. Just I put that on a preach. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: But that's one of the things that we have entered into is this system of hypocrisy, right? The system that's supposed to create the most innovation, such as capitalism, has not done so. The system that's supposed to be the most Christian nation has not lived up to those moral values. Eventually we have to come to the conclusion that the system itself is not healthy for us. And as a counselor, as a therapist, one of the things that I have noticed is that one of the most common denominators of tension and one of the most common denominators of stress is finances. Having enough just to eat, having enough to pay the rent, having enough for gas, for food, for Like healthcare, all of it. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Isn't it isn't aren't finances like the number one reason divorces happen? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yes. And it I it's also a huge reason why, you know like you said, divorces are happening. It's also a huge reason why people are killing themselves currently, right? Like the there has been an increase in suicidality. That's a huge reason why. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): We were talking about farmers earlier. Who was I talking to? I was talking to someone just within the last few days. There's a lot of farmers that are taking it upon themselves to do that to themselves because they're literally losing the farm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's right. It's it's becoming more I I really feel that that's something that another reason why the counselors, the mental health profession have to speak out because it's literally in our ethics that we do that, that we speak out against things that would hurt our patients. This is something on a national level that's going to hurt our patients. If we don't get ahead of what technology is occur trying to do to us. If we don't get ahead of what this capitalist system has already done to us, it it's only gonna get worse. Prices aren't going down, things are going higher. This is not it's not sustainable. And people are going to get desperate, and people are gonna start doing desperate things. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Desperate things. Yeah. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's right. And desperate things are usually Just catastrophic to families, to people that you that love you, you know, like it it's catastrophic. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Let's talk about white guys. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Let's do it. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I don't Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Let's make it happen. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): what's going on with them shooting up all the schools and stuff? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. That that's man. Yeah. I had I remember when I started working in a school. this was in like I was an intern at a school for I think it was like in twenty sixteen. And we had our first like fire like what do they call it? Gun drill or active shooter drills. it was the first one that I've ever experienced Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Jesus. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: because you know, growing up as a millennial, that was not that was not something that we had. You know, we didn't Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): No. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: have that happen, you know. and yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Let me interrupt you real quick. You know in the seventies they taught us how to duck and cover under our desk because of possible nuclear war. And then you find out that hiding Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I I I have heard it. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): under the desk wouldn't have done anything at all. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, I wouldn't have done anything. You're Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I Ricky Twiggs Jr.: gone, man. If that gets dropped, it's over for Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): You're just Ricky Twiggs Jr.: everybody. No desk will help. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): At all. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: You know, but that yeah, I mean, that's something that, you know, like that's a pretty traumatizing thing too. You know, like Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: the alarms going off, you have to get under your desk. I I remember as a kid, like they were they would they showed us pictures of people, you know, getting under their desk and and staying there for like a nuclear attack during the cold war, you know. and man, like experiencing that active shooter drill. It it was like brain chemistry changing. And it's like, my God, like Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: these children, this is their norm. Like this is what Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: they're used to now. That Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: that is not the the America I grew up in at that specific point in time. Like you had Columbine Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: that inevitably happened, right? But nowhere near to the veracity that it is today. And I think a lot of this is tied directly into mental illness and mental health and not enough resources being devoted to catching these individuals earlier and helping them to navigate their complex emotions as teenagers. because it is complex at that time. During teen years, it you're developing who you are. You know, you're taking your raw personality and making it a little bit more concrete, you know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Not to mention all the chemical reactions that are happening in your body. Just naturally, naturally happening in your body. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Naturally. Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): It's a confusing time. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Very much so. Societally confusing, socially confusing. There's a lot of things. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. You don't know what you're doing with you know, you don't know how to deal with girls when you're twelve, thirteen, fourteen years old, you know, that's that's nerve wracking. Like what if she says no? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. Yep. That that's exactly right. And and I think that's where we have to start to really invest heavily into is our schools and making sure that our schools are actually staffed by counselors and not just like guidance counselors. Like we want to make sure that they're receiving mental health services and And not just being told, hey, look, these are the classes you're gonna go into or where do you wanna go for college? Like that shit's important too. Like, don't get me wrong, but we really do need direct mental health care within the school settings. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I just don't well actually let me say it like this. When I was younger, counseling wasn't for men. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, that's right. Yeah, was not. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Now we're learning. Now we're learning. Guys, you need to go and get brushed up on this stuff. Because Ricky Twiggs Jr.: my god, yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): there are for the simple fact that there are expectations put on us. That sometimes we just can't reach. And it's not our fault. Like how how am I supposed to be a dad that that provides for my entire family when there's no jobs? And then you get home and not for anything. Ladies, I understand. I'm I'm I'm talking from experience. I understand that it's frustrating. I get it. But like there's just sometimes it's it's out of our control. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, and I Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And Ricky Twiggs Jr.: think yeah, go ahead. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): All I was gonna say is, and for men, like we're not we're not trying to we're like we've already conquered the you know, the wild. Like we're not we're not shooting bear anymore. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): So our job description has to change. All the holes have been dug. Like like we've tamed the Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Right. And Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): wild. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yes, and for what's so interesting is like the the change within men's mental health in particular. Like over the last ten years, for example, what I have noticed is that there's this rise in these like I don't even know what to call them. They're essentially it it's white supremacist or white supremacy Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: thinking, white nationalist ideology, right? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That comes off as men's health, right? Like, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: who are the kings of these things? Tate brothers, right? you got many more alongside of them, right? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That tell you how men should be, how you should act, how you should treat women, how you should do this, how you should do that. And they can't even keep a relationship themselves. So it's like, what are you why are you listening to these individuals, right? Like and so I think for like social media, for example, has not been very helpful within Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: true like mental health for men, because these are the individuals that you see constantly. And it it there's a there That is part of like the coding process of a lot of these social media organizations and companies, is that they want to put the most controversial people in front of you so that way you interact, engage with it. So the engagement becomes like the currency essentially. And we notice that it is the most controversial figures that get driven to the top, and then the more moderate figures that get drowned out completely, the ones that are actually. There to help men, not shoot up a a school, you know? Like those are the individuals are not, you know, just off their wives, for example, right? Not beat your wives, right? Like the ones that that endorse these types of behaviors get shot to the top. And it it it's it it's just so mind-boggling to me that again, you know, it's a capitalist thing where these controversial things. What brings the dollars. So we're gonna move Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: them to the top. And also, too, half of them will state that more actually more than half will say that they're Christian or that they're religious, right? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And they're like, Well, you know, sometimes the the the wife, the woman should be inferior, right? We should always be the superior subject in that. And it's it's like, man, here we go. Here we go, man. so yeah, I think that there's a lot of this White supremacist ideology that is very prolific even even in men's mental health, it is prolific in that as well. and it's our job as prof as a profession to fight against this insanity that we are witnessing online. and that is I think that's one of the big reasons that we're having even more violence. than than really ever before within our within our nation. It's these controversial figures that are being shot to the top. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Guys are are falling for it. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yo well, younger men in particular are falling for it, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: right? Like they hit them when they're teenagers, and then by the time they're young adults, that ideology is kind of more s cemented into their minds, right? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And it takes a lot of time to What is the term like? Get the brain washing out. It it takes a lot of time. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. There's a book. There's a book that all those guys need to read. It's called Unfuck Your Brain. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. Yes. Yes. And and that's one of the things. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): It's such a good book. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, that that's one of the things that that they don't particularly want, right? They don't want you to be educated. They don't want that. Like the more ignorant you are, the easier it is for them to manipulate you. And yeah, I encourage like everybody who's out there to read as much as possible, to devour as much diverse content. as you possibly can, because that Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: is how people grow. That is how opinions change. That is how empathy increases. We don't grow more empathetic by living in a bubble. We grow more empathetic by experiencing different realities. That diversity really matters a lot. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I am Pretty convinced. That we have been told that we like controversial content more than we really do. When you are on YouTube, on TV, whatever, do you look for the dating shows where they're al always fighting and arguing and stuff? Or are you Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): looking for more like educational stuff? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Well, I'm I'm the nerd, so I'm going for the educational stuff. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Me too. Me too. So when they say, Well, we make this controversial stuff, we make this ratchet stuff because that's what you guys are asking for, I'm like, No. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: No. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I want schoolhouse rock. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): You know what I'm saying? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Let's get to the real content. Yes. Absolutely. One hundred percent with that. Yep. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Big because I don't care how many times you put Becky's ass on TV. I don't want to watch her fighting and arguing all the time. I get that at home just fine. Yeah. I make my own stupid Ricky Twiggs Jr.: I can encounter those conflicts, right? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): decisions. I start my own stupid arguments. I don't need that on TV too. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): You know, so there's something there. They they they meaning the media companies, I think they want to make that stuff to keep us dumb. I think they want to make that stuff. And then they turn around and say, No, no, no, we're making this because that's what you're asking for. Well, if that's what we're asking for, why do you have so many project managers and managers and all kinds of writers and all stuff in Hollywood? That don't want our opinion on what the hell they want to make. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. And that's it's right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Cause if you ask my opinion, we don't need another, we don't need another Kung Fu panda, goddammit. We don't. You're not asking us at all. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: We don't need another love island either. No, no. And and but that is kind of like the heart of where we just you know circle back to, right? Where these Hollywood executives are kind of hidden, not asking for public input. It sounds just Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: like the city council members that don't ask for their input of their constituents and rather make the decision for them because Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: they are in the pockets of Other people. And I personally love it when there is a city council member that votes no to the data centers or just stands up and walks out because they know that this is insanity and this is not going to help their people. And we need more people to stand up and have some integrity and to stop this train of insanity because that's really what. We are viewing. We are viewing an insane moment in history where NDAs are all happening, where nobody knows what the true deal looks like, where the only people that do are those mega rich corporations and the federal government. That that's not a good mix at all. Like this, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: this cannot realistically lead to anywhere good for us. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. And and again coming back to the fact that this younger generation is saying, no, this doesn't work. We don't want this. Move, boomer. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, yeah. Get out the way, you know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. And I'm proud of you guys because I I wish it was my generation, but my generation, we were we were abused. We were told so we're smacked in the face and told to sit the fuck down. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. And that's I I think that that is happening in a more like economic way right now, where it's like, okay, the a lot of the a lot of the population is trying to do something. So what we're gonna do is we're gonna cut off the snap benefits. Right. Or, you know, the the the other side of that, it's like, okay, well, what we're gonna do is we're gonna increase your utility bills. We're gonna increase your water bills, we're gonna make gas even more expensive, right? That is all part of that game. It keeps us docile. It keeps us busy. Too busy to focus on what we need to do, which is direct, like government making an impact directly within the government. It tires us out, burns us out to where we lack motivation to even go out and vote. And that's exactly what we need to do in mass. And Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: All of that is orchestrated, like redlining, all of that stuff. it's all manufactured to keep us where we are. And that is built upon that capitalist system. And until we until we start moving away from that, we're gonna keep running to the same problems throughout history. The same things are gonna keep popping up every 80 years, you know, until Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: we decide that. We have to change this and how do we do that? What does that look like? And I think that there are reasonable reasonable solutions to that for sure. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Do you belong to any particular party? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: I am registered as a Democrat. that is because the Louisiana government has decided to eliminate independence altogether. so there really is an only two party system in Louisiana. It is either well technically there's three. You could be no party, but you're not on any ballots if you're no party. Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. You might as well. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Right. So you can't go through any primaries or anything like that. The only, the only like if you want to be in a primary, you have to go and be a Democrat or you have to be a Republican. And that was also manufactured too, because I think that there's a massive rise in independence in most Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: of the states. I think that people are tired of the two party system, they're looking for a way to maneuver out of that two party system. And they do not want that at all. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's exactly right. Who was that? George Carlin that said that it's like that's exactly right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): It's a cool kids club and you're not invited. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: You're not invited, you know? yeah, and it's like one hand tells you this and then the other hand tells you that, but really it's it's the same it's the one person holding up both their hands, you know. that that's exactly what we're experiencing currently. And I'm I'm hopeful that That there will be a a riding of the wrongs over the next couple of months. and again, it's not going to be easy, but it can it can be much worse if we're not successful in winning these seats. and for me it's like as a therapist hearing people talk about what they have experienced and from like the the cuts within the federal government and people losing their jobs and coming to therapy to talk with me and you know, and hearing that they were at these jobs for so long and now they don't even have access to like their retirement or like their pension. You know, it's like, man, the there there are serious consequences to the wrong people being in those places. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I know that they they attached healthcare to jobs to motivate people to go get a job. But then the the All these people that ask you that ask the government for tax cuts because they wanna create jobs and stuff, and then they don't. that affects normal people. So if you're a normal person and your job offers you health insurance, then that job disappears. It can happen and it will happen. It happened to me, it happened to a bunch of my friends, and it's about to happen to more of my friends. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): God forbid you lose your job and then you get sick. It's a wrap. It's done. You're done. You're done. You're done. Let's say that let's say let's say that Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And that yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): let's say that you you're like, all right, well, I got laid off. All right, cool. Well technology changed, so I'm gonna go back to school. And you go back to school and you sign up for all these incredibly high tuitions and stuff. You're done. And Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): you don't even know. You don't even know what to study because everything is changing. And then mess around. And Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): then, yeah. And then while you're in school, then you get sick. You just signed up for $150,000 for school and now you got sick. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's exactly right. And that is more common than people are aware of. And like Louisiana for Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. The only reason I have health insurance is the VA. The only reason. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. Yes, absolutely correct. And that is even Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Socialized medicine. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: exactly. And that's a whole nother conversation too, because a VA has its own flaws within its system, right? That makes it Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: quite kind of difficult for veterans to get the help that they need. And Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: that that is a whole different conversation for sure. But to go back to one of your points, like I I do wonder, and I have wondered for a while. It's like, okay, you have a job, you lose that job, and now you're now you're susceptible to like the whims of the world that could hit you and Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: put you in some serious debt or poverty or unhoused or being homeless, right? That is way more common now than ever. Like I think the homeless population within Louisiana has almost like Tripled to be honest with you. People just can't survive right now. And one of the things that I'm also noticing, too, is that mental health is is sometimes not covered by health insurance. It it's sometimes not part of your Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: plan or policy. And so that's a huge Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: it, that's a huge problem as well. And when we're looking at the at the landscape of insurance as as a whole, That the fact that you can be denied coverage and you are paying your deductible, your copay, and all that stuff. And for someone from the insurance company to deny you coverage and care Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: and to tell your doctor that their treatment plan is not appropriate for you, that they know better on paper, is also insanity. And so you're Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: not only hit. If you if you have it or if you don't, you're hitting every direction. If you have it, you're at the whims of the insurance, not getting a wild hair to say, Hey, you know what, we're not gonna cover this for you. We're actually we're gonna switch your entire treatment plan and we're gonna switch what medication that you've been on for 10 years. We're actually gonna switch that now as well because it's not in our formulary anymore. Like complete insanity. And then if you lose your insurance, how do you get help? There's not enough public hospitals anymore to support people to take care of them. Louisiana recently, I think within like the last day or two, just said, if you want Medicaid, you have to work. You have to work forty hours a week to maintain your Medicaid. It's like, okay, well, here we go. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): funny because Mike Johnson doesn't Mike Johnson. Was it Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Exactly, yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): was it you or what who was it? We someone just got done telling me Mike Johnson hasn't worked enough in the past year to qualify for Medicare. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And it's true because that is the reality of the system. The system does not help, as you said, the average everyday American. The system only helps those with privilege and access. That's it. And if you're not part of that club, you are one bad moment away from being homeless, from not having anything at all. And we're all closer to being homeless than we are to being well off. So we should be very cautious as to who we support politically because it matters. And we should also be very careful as to who we support on the celebrity side too, because the influencer, celebrity side, because they're kind of getting some some some some power too, you know. and we have to be Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. There's some importance that's growing there. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yeah, we have to be very careful. of who we are going to hitch our horses to and I just I just don't see it. w I don't I Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: don't see insurance being a universal mandate in America until a millennial seizes power of the White House. Then I think we're gonna have it. I think that a millennial in that seat a little bit younger would push that until the end of time. until their pr until their time was up, they would force that initiative. I really think that's gonna be the key. Is su i we need younger people at at the helm of this political system anyway, right? But if we get a millennial, yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): One hundred percent. One hundred percent. I need someone who grew up with email. I need someone who grew up with email. It if you if you wrote letters with a quill, goddammit, it's time for you to retire. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: It's time. That's right. Yes. I one hundred Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): It's time. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: percent right. And for me, that's gonna be the the deciding factor of like like even Like when when I decide to run again for office, like those some those things are going to matter. It's like, how do we increase Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: access to care? How do we increase these things within the system that we currently have? Because it's very difficult to navigate within that system that we currently have. And I'm hopeful Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: again that we will get enough millennials within the right seats to push this legislation of universal health care to where that at least that burden will be lifted off of all of us. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: The fact that it's not and hasn't been done yet, it's a slap in every American's face. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): It's a straight up money grab. It's a it's a rush it's a rush Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Straight up money crap, yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): on the bank. Someone left a bank door open and all these knuckleheads are just rushing Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): the bank. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's exactly correct. Look at these insurance companies and the profits that they have made, and then look at how many people they have denied coverage and care to while they hail the success of the year. hey, look at how much money we made. But also look Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: at how many people died from lack of care because you wouldn't pay for it. Right? Like there there is Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: coming there is some hypocrisy there too, but again, that hypocrisy is rooted within a system that only truly values power and money and not necessarily helping people, right? Not helping the normal everyday person. It's all about how do we capitalize on people suffering? How do we make more money off of people that Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: are hurting? That's the system that we're in. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Or at least leveraging people's hurt and people's struggle as motivation to go find a job. But again, they aren't there. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: They aren't there. That's exactly right. And what we do is that we use a lot of shaming language. We shame people. you you're you're you're you can't afford this copay. Like we we shame people for not being able to afford health care. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. you don't qualify for that job. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, exactly. you didn't get that job. Right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): No, my uncle didn't give me it to give it to me. Yeah, I didn't qualify because I'm not blood related to Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Exactly. Exactly right. And like the shoulds, right? The oughts, like the that that's Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: all shame language. Like you should have a job by now. Why don't you have that job yet? Haven't you been applying? It's like we use a lot of that shame language and a lot of that shame language is being used within Washington DC currently. It's a lot of shame language and Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Remember when Reagan said welfare queen? That's exactly Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): that's exactly what we're talking about. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's yes. And the biggest welfare queens are who? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mean meanwhile white ladies. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: The corporations. You know. The biggest ones, right? It's Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): yeah. Them too. Them two. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: it's it's the corporations that are the biggest welfare queens. And Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: and that's why like for for example, like out in Texas, you have James Talarico, right? And he's the one that that said that to somebody that was talking about like not wanting to Wanted make sure that people weren't on welfare that shouldn't be on welfare. And it was just a terrible argument. And James Talerco Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: said, Well, the big the biggest welfare queens happen to be your corporations because they always get the bailouts. And what did the American people get? Nothing. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): To pay for it. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And for me, that's that's what scares me the most about these data centers and these and the infrastructure development. It's like, okay, so if the Magnificent Seven experience an AI AI bubble and that SP collapses, they're too big to fail, right? So they're gonna get an exhaustible amount of money. Again, we're gonna witness what happened to the auto industry with the tech companies because now they're too big to fail. That is my concern. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And the banking industry too, in two thousand and eight. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Th yes, that's exactly right. And that's what I'm worried about. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Nobody went to jail. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Nobody. And no one will go for this one either. So and that's kind of what I think is is on the horizon. I really do. I think that yeah, this AI bubble might be very real. And I think that there might be a bailout in order to balance the S P from plunging and to save people's Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: retirements and to save all this other industry. that is my concern. is that we're we may experience some significant economic hardship and it's hard to determine if it's manufactured or Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: if it actually just accidentally happened this way. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Let's dissect that situation. So for for normal folks that might not talk computer talk, what happens, what's been happening is at the end of the day, there's there's these companies that are making really fancy computers that that process things a lot faster. That's literally that's all it is. It's a super fast computer. It started making an imprint in people that were running for office. Slash, there's a lot of people who, a lot of rich people that saw the potential in this. So they all started putting money into it. That's where this bubble starts to form, this cash bubble. So now we're learning that it has environmental impacts. We're learning that. It has societal impacts. We're learning that out of nowhere at Obama school of little girls, you know. So it's not its GPS might be inaccurate, you know, the information that's gonna whatever is whatever's happening. But instead of like pumping the brakes, which is what Bernie Sanders and a lot of these folks at AOC, all those folks, they're saying, Hey, let's take it easy. We need to understand this, but no, all these people see the potential in these big computers. So they keep pushing money into it. And now we're at the point now where we're starting to see the bubble starting to get a little weak in spots. This cash bubble. What is the government, and this is my question to you, Ricky. Can you explain to folks why, governmentally speaking, why this bubble is so dangerous? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Absolutely, because what we are witnessing is that there are seven companies that are considered the magnificent seven. Google, Apple, Nvidia, Meta, they're all part of those of those seven, right? One of the things that inevitably anyone that has like a four one K or has invested in any type of retirement fund is going to be susceptible If a crash happened and the AI went boom and exploded, all of those investments could potentially experience some of the fastest losses that we've ever witnessed. And this happened with the auto industry, where there a bubble occurred and it collapsed. And then Ford, GM were at crisis points and they had to be bailed out. Because they were considered and deemed too big to fail. And I think that that is exactly what people's argument would be with the magnificent seven that are kind of ruled by NVIDIA, to be honest. I mean, NVIDIA controls the chips, so they're kind of at the leisure of NVIDIA for the most part. And they're just kind of passing money back and forth between each other, which is also alarming, too. It's the same like 150 billion kind of being passed around. Also alarming. Right? Not Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah, yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: really any growth because there's really no growth that's happening. What we're seeing is a lot of output of money and capital in building these gigantic data centers. So a lot of the money is being put toward infrastructure. And that's kind of like a key indicator for me too. It's like, well, when when do we invest in infrastructure so heavily and so quickly? When when do we do that? Right. We do it when we are in crisis and inflection points where we have to put the economy and get that money flowing and working, right? And so that's kind of the alarming part for me. It's like, what what would be the everything? Like we're talking about energy infrastructure, we're talking about buildings infrastructure, we're talking about water infrastructure, we're talking about gas infrastructure. These are major infrastructure projects, they're not just tech projects. I mean, ultimately Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: that's the outcome of what gets created. But before that, infrastructure is occurring. And I think that's one of the clearer, clearer signs that there isn't a bubble occurring is by this heavy investment into infrastructure because the Fed has even indicated that there is a danger with AI and how quickly it expanded because it could collapse just as quickly. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And if that happens, the S P is majority built by those magnificent seven. And if that S P were to experience any sort of ripple effect, it would be devastating to our economy. And to me, that's the most scary part about artificial intelligence. It yeah, artificial intelligence is scary on its own because it can create work displacement, job displacement, all and ek environmental issues and crisis and all this other displacement. But what happens when our economy gets hit incredibly hard because of this AI boom or this AI essentially it starts off as a boom and then you have the the bust. And that's Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Pops. Yep. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: the concern for me with this bubble that I think we are on the verge of. that Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And as Ricky Twiggs Jr.: worries me. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And at the end of the day, these data centers, if this AI thing crumbles, which let's get back to that, let's get back to that, but all these data centers are gonna end up Amazon warehouses. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's exactly correct. Or they're going to be warehouses for something that they were not intended to be. And for me, I think the clearest indicator of what they could be, if this does happen, this is kind of like manufactured potentially, because what they could turn out to be are massive surveillance systems. That that is the question. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): That's the one. I think that's what they're building towards anyway. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, 100%. And I think what they're going to do is Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Like all these goofy pictures that you guys are seeing on Instagram, that's just a byproduct. I Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yes, indeed. Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): think what it is is to keep for the flocks and the whatever the axiom I think the other one is. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yep. Yeah. The flocks of the big boys. That's the you know, that's the that's the heavy hitter. And for me, that's the thing that makes the most sense. It's like, okay, well, you have this AI, does kind of well, does sort of what it's supposed to do. Then it collapses and you have all this new infrastructure. And so what happens to it after you bailed out everybody? They kind of are dependent on the government. And we know that the government uses a lot of CIA industry, NSA Tools and all these other spy agencies as well. And I think that's exactly what we would witness is that we would witness a true government takeover of corporate industry. And then then of course it would be used for purely like we know what that it's it's the surveillance state. You know, that that's inevitably what we would be confronted with. And by that time it would be far Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. And if Ricky Twiggs Jr.: too late to stop the surveillance state. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And if you if you think the the the Middle East is barbaric, like if you steal something, they cut your hand off, all that stuff. Over here, they might not cut your hand off, but they definitely put you in jail. What's what's worse? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. Well Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And then they make you work for five cents. What was it that I can't think of her name. I wasn't ready for this. I just had her on. She's from she's from Out There by You. the author. I am so sorry. Anyway, Duh. Anyway. what were you just talking about? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Surveillance state. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): surveillance that yeah. She she was telling me how she's an author that went to jail or went to prison and she said they do it on purpose and they pay you like five cents a day. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Well, what is it? Right? Like what is prison? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And let's remember, let's remember but no no no no. Let's remember yeah, exactly. And let's remember the people Ricky Twiggs Jr.: You know? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): that are putting you in jail are breaking the rules more than you are. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yes, that's exactly right. Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): We're gonna come back to that all the time. They're convincing Ricky Twiggs Jr.: All the time. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): you, they're convincing you that black and brown people are stealing all your stuff. Meanwhile, they're stealing your future. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. And that Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): They're stealing your four one K Ricky Twiggs Jr.: that's what we have throughout I mean predominantly in the South, right? Where black and brown boys are easily profiled, put to prison or jail in the prison pipeline, right? That that's that's what we have here. We have w I can't tell you how many young kids back in the day were put into prison for marijuana charges. It's like that's that's absurd. You know, like that but what is prison? What is that? Well, it's certainly not a place of rehabilitation. It's a place of slavery and labor. These are essentially we've created sanctioned labor camps for people. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And that that is only going to get worse if the surveillance state is what I'm kind of Seen occur or could potentially happen even faster if a Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: I mean who just think about this for a moment, right? Democrats win the midterms. Okay. They start putting out legislation against artificial intelligence. They kind of slow down the data center role, and then the AI bubble pops. They're too big to fail. So both Democrats and Republicans are going to offer money to stop. That failure. But at the end of the day, we know that they are part of the same system. The end goal is going to drive more for that surveillance state. And then you have your opening. That is my concern is that there are many ways in which this can work. There are many ways in which this plan could be successful. And it's an easy path for a ton of money to get dropped. Onto that magnificent seven to make a lot of people incredibly wealthy very quickly. And then for them to make a an exit, so to speak. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): So when we talk about the AI bubble popping or the infrastructure crumbling and all that stuff, like what would w how can I What would it take for AI not to catch on? Does that make sense? Does that question make sense? Okay. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: It does. Yes. I would say that the thing That would make AI not catch on. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Like the subscription fees are too high. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That would be a problem, but I I really think at the end of the day, it's going to be more environmental in utility cost. I think that is the biggest barrier. Like, no matter, even if the technology is good, it's from a capitalist perspective, it won't be as profitable. You'll be losing money on this technology. I mean, you're just you just are. There's just not you can charge a thousand dollars per. You know, per subscription for this thing. But if you are using all that water, you're using all that electricity, you're using all that gas, it's not it's not gonna be profitable. You're not gonna have a return on the investment. Not to mention you're losing money now. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): They're losing money now. They're currently losing a number. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And you're also going to get sued in the couple years when they start really figuring out all this dirty stuff that these data centers are actually doing. to cause more pollution, to cause more sound pollution, to cause in more environmental destruction. I mean, we're talking major lawsuits. I just don't see, I just don't see this being there there has to be some other ulterior motive involved. And I really do think that it's it's it's to point toward a surveillance state. I think that this is almost like a manufactured Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: bubble at a certain point. And I think the the the end goal, no matter which path it goes, is for that surveillance state to be created. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. That's the thing that freaks me out more than anything is that Ricky Twiggs Jr.: think it freaks most people out. You know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. C it's so weird that the people that break the rules are so strict on just normal people. We have crooks running the country and they're putting up cameras to watch you and all you want to do is go to work. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: that's it. That's all that's all you want to do. Or you want to be a kid playing at at the playground and but why is there a flock camera pointing at the playground? Have you seen those videos where there's like a flock camera aimed directly at the playground? It's like, come on now, y'all. There's not even a road. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. I heard a story that they had a I heard a story that they had a flock camera pointed at something that just there was nothing there. There was n it was Ricky Twiggs Jr.: There was nothing there. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): just it was just pointed in some random ass direction. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. That that's part of that of that insanity, right? It's just Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: putting the cameras up wherever you can in preparation for what is to come. And I think that's Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And Ricky Twiggs Jr.: what we're getting ready to see. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I was talking about the Middle East and them cutting hands off and stuff like that. I had gone to Dubai a handful of years now and I had noticed cameras literally everywhere. Everywhere, everywhere, everywhere, everywhere. It was kind of weird. I tell this story all the time. I was walking by this coffee shop and there was a table out in the street in front of the coffee shop with a laptop in it. Just a laptop. And I was like, what the hell? And I was looking around and I was like, okay, yeah, there's a camera there, there's a camera there, there's two over there, there's one in there, there's one over there. Like you can't do not that I was trying to steal anyone's laptop. I got my own goddamn laptop, but I guess that I guess that that style of living maybe sounds attractive to people. The fact that you can leave your laptop out. But but like or or we have a society that takes care of itself and everyone is good. Everyone like people know where their next meal is gonna go. So now Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): they're less likely to steal shit. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's exactly correct. And when you think about it like that, it's like That I think that society is more than possible. I really Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: do. I I just don't think it's possible with the current system that we have. And one of the arguments that I've heard is like we're doing this in the name of safety and protection and all this other stuff, right? But that hasn't stopped people from having access to guns that can cause mass. killings and massacres that hasn't stopped Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: anybody from doing anything evil for the most part, right? So what is it or what will it take in order for that to change? And I think one of those things that is needed is that you have to have some common sense legislation. Common sense legislation means that, you know, maybe if you're going to buy a gun, you have a background check. You know, maybe there's a little background check, maybe there's little element of of what you can you know, like Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Super easy. Super easy. Hey, when you go to drive a car, we wanna make sure you're not blind. We wanna make sure you're not gonna drive into a crowd. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, and if you Right. Yes, that's exactly right. And we also want to make sure that you know how to use the weapon. So maybe there's required classes that you have to take, right? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And I I think that for the most part a lot of our legislation is just not based in common sense. It's it's just kind of thrown at you like, Hey, you you know, you have the opportunity, the the right to do this thing. And it's Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: like, well Yeah, you're you're not wrong, but corporations don't have the rights to stop a treatment plan that is given to a patient from a doctor, right? Like Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: how is it that a corporation is taught to us that they are people, essentially? And Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: that's kind of mind blowing, right? And Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Isn't that crazy? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: it's crazy. It it's it's it's crazy, it's mind blowing. But it goes right back into what is wrong with the system. It's the same thing that allows an individual to buy practically any gun that they want at any point in time that can cause mass killings and massacres Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: no matter where in the US. It's the same thing that allows for people to be denied treatment, life-saving treatment that they need. It's the same system. And that system Is a capitalist system that doesn't care about people. All it cares about is profit. And the way to get profit is to remove as many barriers as possible in order for a person to have access to something. So when we look at it from like the medical point of view, how do they make money? Well, they make money by denying you access to stuff, right? How does a gun manufacturer make money? They make money by giving you access, more access than you need to guns, right? And so that's kind of where where we are. We're in a system that is all about that profit. What gets you the most profit? Well, the insurance companies, it's about denial. And for everything else, it's about surplus and just turning out as much product as you can, hoping that people scoop it up and buy it and buy it and buy it. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And they keep making it cheaper and cheaper. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And they keep making it cheaper and cheaper. Yes. That's that's ultimately the the fight that we're in, you know. It's it's how do we want to be as a society and how do we want to get there because the this way has not worked thus far. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. I get into conversations with folks and they say, Make America great again. And I say, When when was it great for Americans? Like all Americans. Well, Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Exactly correct. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): well and then people are like, yeah. I was like, No, no, no, no, no. We d we've had two hundred and fifty years and we haven't ever done it right. We've done it kind of right for some people. It kind of feels good sometimes, but you know, we just haven't. We haven't. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: No, no, we haven't. No. And and that's the thing, is that America being great is that's that's a goal, right? It's something that we strive for, it's something that we're aiming for. And to say that we're great right now in the face of our deficiencies is is a slap in the face of those that are on the outskirts, that are treated less than, right? And for me, it's so important that remember that making America great is a pursuit. We are pursuing greatness. It's not something that that we automatically have. It we're in pursuit of that thing. And how do we get there? Well we get there by by being creative, by being progressive, by challenging the status quo and making changes and having the rebellious spirit of what created America in the first place. Right. And you like Even the I think even people that are in like the boomer generation, for example, desperately want things to be different, but they feel as though things cannot be different. And so they're settling for what it is because they're somewhat comfortable. Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. They don't want it different your way. They want it different for what makes them comfortable. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's exactly right. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And you know, it's like, yeah, I I I I hear what you're saying, but by doing that, it's kind of like the highlight of the capitalist mindset, right? If I have to share with somebody, then that means I might lose Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: access to it, right? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: And that's that's a tough ideology to to root out. And that's an ideology that I think that really is the inherent part of the competition. dynamic within capitalism. It's like you have to compete constantly to have access to things. And that's that's not I mean that's not true. You don't have to do that. Yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. And that's a similar dynamic I see when say white guys are saying, They're after our stuff. They're after our stuff. And I'm like, I understand that it looks like people are attacking you trying to get your stuff when you have a hundred percent of the stuff. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, exactly right. It kinda looks that way, right? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I'm looking for one percent of the stuff and you feel it you feel like you're being attacked. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. And that's that's that's what it feels like to them, right? Like Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: it it does. And it takes a great deal of of energy to open somebody's mind, right? Like in addiction recovery, for example, we talk about how do you how does a person recover? What is the how of recovery, right? And the how is honesty for the H, open mindedness for the O, and willingness for the W. That's how people recover. That's how people get better. And when people are not honest, when people are not open minded, and when people are not willing, things don't change. They just stay the same. And that's something that I think that millennials have been blessed with is that we were taught very early on to be honest. It was kind of like beaten into us, right? To be open minded, right? To embrace everybody. Cultural differences, to be as diverse as possible, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: and to be willing to change and to hear feedback and to hear criticism and and to just be willing to do the hard thing because it's the right thing to do. That's what we were taught. And that's the complete opposite of what is happening in the world. Like that is Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: not the shit that gets praised or even respected, right? And that's the that's the cultural change that we have to have and i really think that the millennial generation is it it's it's us that can push it that can push that envelope that we know we've lived in both worlds we lived in the pre-tech world and now we're in the well hopefully not the post tech world but we're living in the middle of the tech world right and it's so Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): The definitely the evolution of it. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: the evolution for sure so we have both worlds. We know what things were like when this wasn't so prevalent. That is important information to have. And I really think we are the the best options for making the changes that have to come structurally to the government, to move away from such a capitalist system that really hasn't benefited most Americans. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That is my hope. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Are you you said you're possibly running again? Are you running for mayor again? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: not gonna run for mayor. at least not not yet. I have some other things that I will be entertaining for sure in the next several months. you know, there there's potentially some Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I would love to do that. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): All right. So in the next several months we're gonna have you come back. All right, cool. Awesome. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: I that there's there's some real potential for bigger seats. you know. One of the seats that that we're looking at locally at least, it's not, you know, a bigger seat than I was just talking about, but one of the seats locally would be city council, and Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): cool. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: creating a grassroots movement for a local city council seat, and then moving our way up the chain of command, so to speak. so that is part of that of that process. So constantly looking, making sure that I put myself in the right position at the right time to help. as many people as possible. Even if I am not victorious, that is ultimately that that would be like the the icing on the cake, you know. but really the the cake matters too, right? the journey is just as important and the work to be done after is that's right. The lessons, the work becomes all of it. You know, Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): The lessons, right. The lessons learned. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: it all matters. so have my eyes on a few things for sure. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): boy. That's what I'm talking about. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): It was so nice to meet you, dude. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Carlos, yes, sir. It was great, man. This was wonderful. Thank you for the conversation. You're incredible. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): no, thank you. Thank you. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: You're a great you're great at this, man. You're really good. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I just like talking. I love people. Like I literally love people. the ra crazy ones, the smart ones. I don't I don't care. I'm team human. You know. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Same. Same. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): a AI is a tool. Like it's never gonna compete with our connection, you know? no. And I don't want Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Can't replicate it, that's for sure. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): to. I'm not interested. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Me either. This is really, I mean, like nurturing a person's soul, this it's how you connect with another person. Can you connect with another person? And I can't do that. Can't connect with another person like that, you know. that that's I think that's really important. It can mirror it. Yeah. It certainly can. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): They make it believable. They make it believable. Yeah. But but have a conversation with AI and I'd be like, hey, have you ever been to Yosemite? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, exactly. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And I'm gonna be like, well the trees of Yosemite are blah blah blah. No no no no I don't wanna hear none of that. I don't wanna hear none of that. I wanna hear how you got winded when you're going up the hill and yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: The trees of Yosemite. Yes indeed. What does the sunlight on the beach feel like to you? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I wanna hear the stories, kid. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes, I I completely agree, man. And I I'm a I'm excited. Yeah, I really am. And I'm looking forward to what's to come next. And off the record, so to speak, right? It's like one of the things that we've been looking at is running for governor against Landry here in Louisiana. I feel that we have enough financial resources to do that. and I also feel that I mean, I have more state connections than I do in the city itself. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: and I I think that we could really do some incredible good if we're able to show him that he can be touched, so to speak. You know, I I don't think we would win, but I do think we would make some people be like, Holy shit. Like we need to pay attention. Yes. That's that's Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Turn some lights on in some rooms, huh? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: you know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. And again, we gotta get a g I love old folks, don't get me wrong. I love Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah, cool. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): old folks. I'm one of But Technology moves way too fast. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I l like I said, I worked in Silicon Valley, I l worked in film down in LA, I worked in advertising in Chicago. These kids here, they work. They were they put the slides and they put the kombucha on the on the top and the walls and all that stuff on purpose because these folks work. So when we have an older generation running the country and they don't fully understand what's happening coming out of Silicon Valley selfishly, then when you find out that these sons of bitches are giving all the jobs to folks that don't live here. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And you are getting paid millions of dollars to turn your back on that, it's time it's time to move. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. America first, right? Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): It's time to move. It's time to move on to next batch. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. I I yeah. And that's like this weird thing of like America first, America first. And I think we've had the largest influx and not influx, but like people leaving to to find like the higher outside sources, you know? It's Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Different places to live. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: like, man, that backfired bad, huh? Like even the job market has really changed even more where like I think for the I think we broke the record for most like those answering machine calls, not answering machine calls, like when you call a a corporate entity, I think this is the first time to where I think like eighty five percent of those jobs are outside of the US, you know, and Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: it's only gonna steadily climb because that's what your, you know, our infinite wisdom precedent would do. Hire the the people that make America great. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): 'Cause that's how you make America great, is you set the jobs to everywhere else. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: It's horrible, man. It's horrible and it it's just so tough to have these conversations with like just people in the South. It's it's challenging. A lot of people don't get it. You know, they're like, but Trump's you know, he's against the the machine and he's draining the swamp and I'm like, God in heaven, please Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Guy that's against the machine that just got done selling Bitcoin to Saudi Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Bitcoin. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Saudi princes? That guy? He's against the machine? That guy? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. That guy. He's he he's huge, you know. 'Cause for me it was he's officially the machine. He was writing checks to the machine. Yeah. He does. He was writing checks to the machine. He was funding the machine. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): He's officially the machine. He's officially the machine. He tells you as much. Yeah. He tells you as much. He says I am MAGA. MAGA is me. He says it. He is the machine. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. Yes indeed. And it it's all very concerning. It really is. It is just I don't know. I I really hope that we're successful in the midterms. we have to be, you know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): And I think that's where these conversations that we're having come in handy. Because we don't see these conversations on CNN. We get four imbeciles up there yelling at each other, cutting each other off, saying, Can I finish? Can I finish? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): What are we learning? Ricky Twiggs Jr.: How to fight conflict constantly. You know, like Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I mean constantly. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: constant, man. And and that's not real, like that's not indicative of what real conflict is. Like real conflict, we're not no one's looking to win. We're we're looking to understand each other more so that way we can say, okay, look, I'm not about that, but that's okay. I'm gonna have a boundary Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Mm-hmm. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: here and I'm just not gonna engage with that type of behavior, right? Or It could be, hey, look, I didn't understand where you were coming from, but I do now. And let's work together to make this this happen. Right? Like that's conflict. It's what we see, that shit ain't conflict. That's like that's all show. That's all show. Whatever's gonna sell the ratings. You know? Mm-hmm. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): That's prime time TV, baby. That's yeah, that's prime time TV. That's that gobbling up that we were talking about before. All these yelling Ricky Twiggs Jr.: yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): these yelling dating shows and stuff. That's all those talking head shows are. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: That's is that's all it is, man. All it will all it will be too for a while. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Yeah. Bring back schoolhouse rock. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Bring it back. Yeah. I mean, I I used to love that stuff as a kid. That that that probably really Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Me too. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: helped me, you know, spark like the this like pursuit of of of learning, you know, like it really is like I'm a lifelong learner and I love that. I wish more people were. You know. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah, I can't stop. For real. For real. And the dummies think that they have it all figured out. That's the funny part. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Yeah. yeah, very comfortable in their ignorance for sure. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: You know. Very comfortable. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Ricky Twiggs Jr., my guy, it is again, it's so wonderful to have met you. I'm I'm impressed with your generation and your generation's unwillingness to take the status quo blindly, and the fact that you guys have courage enough to say no, no. Stop shooting in the pool. We wanna swim too. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: E exactly. Yes. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I love it. I love it. Yeah. Yeah. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Give us our chance, man. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): I'm in. I'm in, damn it. Ricky Twiggs Jr.: Hell yeah. Carlos Gomez (Coconut Justice): Again. Thank you again so much, And with that, we're out.