Latest / Black Box Theory Podcast / BBT #15 | The Voting Rights Act, Spirit Airlines, and History Erasure

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BBT #15 | The Voting Rights Act, Spirit Airlines, and History Erasure · Black Box Theory Podcast

• Thomas: Welcome back. Malcolm: What's going on, man? Thomas: Nothing much, man. Episode 15, sound good to me. Malcolm: Episode 15, we recording this live. We just watched the Boston Celtics blow a 3-1 lead to the Philadelphia 76ers. Rest up Jason Tatum, rest up Jaylen Brunson. I mean, I Jaylen Brunson, I'm kidding. Rest up, Jaylen Brown. I will see you in Milwaukee, brother. Your time is over. Yeah, we in crazy times right now, man. I'm blessed to be here, blessed to be back for another episode. Ready, go ahead, jump into it, bro. Thomas: Crazy times for sure. know, just got to, well actually, yeah, I'm just going to jump into disclaimer. So housekeeping. The views expressed in this podcast are strictly our own and do not represent our employers or any affiliated organizations. We are not financial advisors, tax professionals, or legal experts. We're sharing our personal perspectives and deconstructing these industries in real time. I don't like that word deconstructing, but you get what I'm saying. But none of this is professional advice. Always do your own due diligence and consult with qualified professionals before making any major moves. We're learning out loud. Join us with the plays you make are your own. So a lot going on, a lot going on. Like Malcolm said, playoffs, gas prices absolutely crazy. I saw a gas today at Costco, it's 549. ⁓ Malcolm: It is insane. The live ticking average of gas is four, wow, $4.50 a gallon. So $4.45, $4.451 a gallon. That is scary, bro. Thomas: Noah's talking about it. When is this going to be fixed? Malcolm: That is scary, Like, what talking? I'm seeing all these Southern states, bro. They still are in the 380 ranges. Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska. That's kind of Midwest, but they all are still kind of like in the 38, 39 range. I just don't know how you defend this, how you look at anyone else but this administration and the choices they made. Thomas: this. Malcolm: as to blame for this. I don't know how people are still blaming. see real people blaming Biden for the gas, the current gas prices. I'm like, bro, at this point, you just don't want to accept reality ⁓ you'd like to play the blame game instead of, know, like, bro, like ⁓ going to keep feeling it at the pump and grocery stores, on online retailer sites until y'all learn, bro, like we're cooked, man. Thomas: It's good for sure and we got to think those areas the the average pay is a little less as well And I know their gas is usually well don't want to say I know I think the gas is like less than around the $2 mark usually or something below that and these are places where people have to drive to So the country's feeling it food costs are going up. Everything's going up We're gonna talk about it later, but plane tickets are also potentially at risk for going up Malcolm: Mm-hmm. we're gonna talk about that a little later, man. But yeah, everything's just going up, man. We're cooked. But hey, there's always a way around it. ⁓ not gonna sit here and complain. We're going to brainstorm. We're gonna work through it. We're gonna pray. We're gonna stay blessed, ⁓ There's a will, there's a way, for sure. Thomas: Yeah, absolutely, and vote if you can, which we will also talk about. I mean, yeah, vote for sure, but I meant like the redistricting or the gerrymandering that they're doing. Malcolm: No, no, there is no if you can vote bro, like please ⁓ yeah. Ayy, ayy man. Thomas: What's it doing, redlining and gerrymandering? I think, I know what gerrymandering is. Malcolm: Are they not the same thing? I don't want to sound ignorant, but I thought they were. Thomas: Let me see, redlining versus gerrymandering. Redlining and gerrymandering are both discriminatory, map-based practices that systemic based practices that systemic inequality, that doesn't even make sense. ⁓ But they different areas. Redlining restricts financial services based on neighborhood demographics while gerrymandering manipulates electoral district boundaries to dilute voting power. So either way, getting cooked. Malcolm: Yeah, Thomas: But we will cover that as well. So that kind of segues into the first topic today, kindness without history. So just for context, I'm going to paint a story for you. A woman in your life mentions that her niece and the kids around her are being raised to just be kind. that they don't really talk about race, that the goal is to move forward without emphasizing differences. And on the surface, that sounds like progress, but the question underneath is harder. Is raising a generation without the history of why things are the way they are actually kindness, is it a different kind of harm dressed up in good intentions? are we thinking on that? And specifically, paint a picture here, we're talking about, let's say, kids these days in areas where they can be informed on these things, you know, they're not talking about race. They describe their friends as just their name, blah, blah, and they act like things don't exist. For example, if a kid asks, well, is it having a black student union racist? It's a little bit more nuanced than that. Malcolm: Hmm. Yeah man, I Like I said, all parents are going to raise their kids differently. But I think that environment obviously plays a huge factor in what your kids are exposed to on day to day. And it's like for me, I I don't know. Obviously, the goal is to make sure that your kids have better ⁓ life you, more opportunities than you did. They don't have to go through the same struggles or hardships that some parents have to go through. The whole entire end goal was to make sure that your kids have, you know, leave behind a legacy and that your kids have a better life, know, better opportunities than you did. At the same time, I think that it's important, especially for, you know, children of, you ⁓ minority, especially marginalized communities, they need to still know the reality of the world. They may not need to know all of it at once, but I think it's important that, I think, I don't think that sheltering them or putting them in this kind of, you know, superficial bubble and indoctrinating in them that there is no real racism, are no problems in the world, there are no conflicts between race and then everyone just kind of gets along and saw a kumbaya. mean that's a cool story but I mean you can't keep your kid in that bubble for rest of their lives. They're going to have to go out and see for themselves and will see that because ⁓ as parent, you're a parent but you don't have ... full autonomy of what your kid does and sees every day. They have phones, they have the internet, they're going to go to school, they're going to go to elementary school, they're going go to middle school, they're going go to high school, they're going go to college, they're going to have jobs, they're going to have internships, they're going to hang out with different friends. They're going to see things that you don't have, that you can't control the parameters of, right? So it's like, for me, it's like, especially from, I think one of things I kind of want to implement and when I do get to that point where I do have children, a big thing for me is like... Thomas: Mm-hmm. Malcolm: I want to protect my kids from things that they don't need to see at certain ages, but I also don't want to shelter them and make them think that none of this stuff exists because it does exist. it's like, I think when you raise your kids in a way to make them think that these problems that we're talking about and that we see as headlines or news stories, when you make them think that that isn't a thing, when they do and they will see it for the first time in real life, when they do see it in real life, it's going to hit them 10 times harder because they thought it was just so impossible that it just never happened. in their bubble, in their neighborhood, in their community, right? So it's like, that's the parent's job to, you know, know how to share enough with your children in a way that it's digestible, understandable, and something that's gonna stick with them for the rest of their lives and that they know how to kind of carry themselves in those type of situations when they're around people of different ethnicities and backgrounds. But it's like to bring them up and to think that, all you have to do is just be kind in this world and you'll get rewarded. You're crazy, bro. This isn't a movie. crazy. Thomas: I agree 100%. I think there needs to be a balance between the truth and optimism. So for example, I think there's two extremes that people fall into, especially in minority communities, where ⁓ one is you're taught too strong of the history at an early age and you kind of go into that revolutionary standpoint where you're like super pro, ⁓ you know, people. ⁓ Malcolm: Mm-hmm. Thomas: to a fault. There's nothing wrong with being pro your people. I think that's great. You know, we have people like MLK, Malcolm X, Black Panther Party, great things for the people. But then at the same time, you can't be too far on that side to where you're now creating additional conflict. You can't necessarily fight fire with fire there. think the key thing, granted, I don't have any kids, but I think the key thing is making sure kids understand why things are how they are so history does not repeat itself. And also ⁓ educating them to see the world because even if America for example completely forgot about slavery Completely forgot about racism and everything and everyone just looked at each other for their names you go travel to another country They don't do that. You're still gonna get treated like whatever you are whatever you look like, they're gonna treat you like that. So not what you are, but what you look like, what they think you are, is how they would treat you. I think, especially raising up minority children, they need to be aware of how they could be perceived. Now some people say, that's a victim mindset, that's this, that's that, no it's not, it's called... preparation. I would not want to raise my black son to think that he's going to be viewed perfectly equal as every other person on this earth and given the same opportunity and the same grace. And then he goes and walks in a room and thinks it's all peaches and cream. And now he's confused why he's getting treated differently. Malcolm: none. Mm-hmm. And it's, yeah. Exactly. And I remember, and I think a lot of people that look like us have heard this, but one of the first lessons I was taught by my dad, this was before I even realized what it meant, but he was like, as a black man, you got to work twice as hard to get the same opportunities as anyone else. And some people who may not be in our shoes understand what it's like to be in those rooms and be the only one that looks like us. And these are more times than not the same people that kind of advocate for like, oh, you know, people is only be selected based on their merit based on this and that, you know, DEI's can be there. These are usually the same people that have this kind of viewpoint, but it's like, you're not ever going to, you're not going to understand what it's like because it's like we can claw and fight and do everything in our power to get in these rooms. But it's like the fact that we are the only person in that room, it means a couple of things, right? It means that one, it's not as easy as it looks like, because one, we don't have the same... access we don't have the same exposure and two is clearly not as right like because I'm seeing a lot of the same people that look the same way in the same room for some reason I'm the only one maybe one or two of me my brothers and sisters but it's like that that kind of like significant distinction between like who feels that room and who doesn't I think that that tells a story and it's like I think that when you're on the opposite ⁓ side that spectrum for your whole life It's kind of hard to be able to delineate and understand like, okay, maybe this is reality. It's like, let's say we're on the other side. All right, let's say we were the people who was like, we're always in the room. We're always there. It's like, for us, like, we don't ever give thought to not being, to being the minority, to having to work twice as hard because we're always in these rooms. So it's like, when someone does come to us or something like this, like, sounds like madness to us because to us it's just like, know, just do what you have to do and you'll get there. But you know, it's hard for them to, it's hard for other people to put themselves in our shoes and vice versa. for us to them, but it's just like needs to just take a step back and understand that some of this stuff really does have meaning. And ⁓ not just saying this for pity or ⁓ get pity points or ⁓ make people feel sorry for us, but this is a reality. And started race with ⁓ a 152, year, like, Everyone else had a 150, 200 year head start, bro. We started this super late. So we've been playing catch up. And that's why that twice is hard, three times as hard to get the same opportunities. It's still the real thing today. I think people still don't realize that we still aren't that far out from when slavery ended, right? Not to use that as like an excuse, but it's pretty hard to overlook that when we talking about some of the current systematic reasons as to why we don't get included in some of the same spaces. It's all about perspective, man. Thomas: perspective and that's facts. That's why they don't want to acknowledge Juneteenth because ⁓ we're not American in their eyes. Anywho. ⁓ Malcolm: I don't think we got Juneteenth off, bruh. taking it all, that's for sure. Thomas: Moving ⁓ the next one, this relates very closely actually. Many especially in the HBCU community, you might have heard about the South Carolina State University situation with commencement. Man, I don't know what them boys were thinking. But for context, right, for people who don't know, South Carolina State University, a historically black college, or ⁓ HBCU in South Carolina, invited Lieutenant Governor Pamela Yvette Malcolm: ⁓ man! Mm-hmm. Thomas: If I'm saying that right Pam leave as its spring commencement speaker scheduled for May 8 2026 students immediately pushed back an online petition to rescind the invitation received over 2,000 signatures Students held silent protests on campus the core argument inviting a Republican lieutenant governor aligned with trumps with the Trump administration's elimination of DEI programs and abolition of faculty Tenure at colleges would be a disservice to the values and mission of HBCU and the students it serves and just for more context She she was removed as the speaker and in response well actually no for once she called them mobs The silent peaceful protests, I guess anytime black people organize. It's a mob But you know I do remember a group of people did organize and actually riot over a Super Bowl win or a football game anywho, but then they Malcolm: I can think of another riot at one of the nation's most significant buildings or areas. I remember that when people were climbing up into the capital and setting fire to stuff. Thomas: you Hey, those were taxpayers with over a 650 credit score or 750 credit score. mean, those are good people. Malcolm: Of course, of course, of course. are all law-abiding citizens, never did anything wrong. So yeah, yeah, of course, of course. Thomas: And yeah, so I mean, but so she was removed and, ⁓ you know, after clearly proving the point and get, I'm pretty sure I saw that they, forgot who it was. I don't know if it was the governor since she was the lieutenant governor, but basically I think the school is being hit with a funding punishment. But yeah, what are your thoughts on this, man? Malcolm: I think this is ridiculous. think that as a, ⁓ mean, you can't, I don't put any of the blame on students, obviously. I put whoever's on the commencement planning and execution committee, ⁓ the fault goes to them. The chancellor, like ⁓ that C-suite of executives that oversee this commencement. ⁓ like, like, as an HBCU, feel like you need ⁓ anything, We already are, we already get a bad name as it is for. not having housing, not having the same funding for always being, you know, having something going on in the news that's not always in our best light. But it's like, feel like as an HBCU leader, especially at a time as significant as commencement and graduation where all of these, you know, horrible students that then import themselves into these last, you know, into these last four years, like to walk this stage, like the culmination for this one very moment. And I feel like you have to be just... just socially and politically aware at all times as an HBCU because like the things that you do like it's more than just your school I feel like it's a it's it's a stance right for for all people that look like us and it's like when you bring on someone like this and someone like the I've seen some of her videos like just kind of like it's like the pushback for people protesting she's calling the students that are peacefully protesting on their college campus or calling them left She was calling them like left-wing mob members. I'm like, she was like, yeah, if you guys like, she was like, it's just like, it's almost like she is, she enjoys like people going against her because she feels like her points are so just well-rooted and so correct that it's just like, ⁓ if you're going against me, you just hate Trump and you hate our policies and this and that. it's just like, bro, she is literally the, exact opposite of everything that an HBCU stands for. She is the exact opposite of everything that an HBCU stands for. It's just like bro like her entire stance and position it's about making sure that less of the people that come out of this university get into the rooms that she's in. She wants to like she wants to destroy everything that makes up an HBCU. She wants to remove DEI. She's aligned with all of Trump's policies like Why? She wants the cut. And she says so many outright, she says so many outright, just false statements saying that, ⁓ yeah, Trump has provided the most funding out of any president in history for HBCUs. And this is like, I just feel like it's so crazy how like these people just bold-faced lie so plainly ⁓ no fear of getting fact-checked or validated. It's just insane to me. It's just like, I feel like this was really ⁓ miss on ⁓ State. Thomas: Yeah. Malcolm: And everyone that kind of went into that committee, I don't know, what were you thinking? you think she was just going to change her stance because she's coming to talk to a bunch of bi people? If anything, she's going to double down on some of her stances to make it known that like, ⁓ yeah, I'm not with you guys. I feel like that was just a very oblivious... just kind of like missing context, just kind of moment. think that that was very poorly planned and executed by SC State. And I really hope that they bring someone on that embodies the values of an HBCU and of that institution ⁓ a bit more clearly. Thomas: And think just to add, I think this kind of goes into what we talked about last week with giving back to your HBCU. ⁓ understand with public schools, it's a little bit more challenging. It's not like a private school where you can just donate. I don't know exactly how that process goes. mean, I can donate, but it's not, it's different. can't just, you know, ⁓ for-profit institutions and you know, all that stuff. I'm seeing ⁓ South Carolina Republican lawmakers now want to defund South Carolina State. So. If the university was pandering to the current administration, you know, in the hopes of being in good graces, that's clearly backfired. I think, to your point, a lot of ASBCUs have this problem. We need to get out of the Uncle Ruckus mindset. I understand that money comes from somewhere and we do need more alumni to, ⁓ know, provide financial but man, now the school's about to be defunded. because somebody actually stood on their more. So this is exactly what we were talking about with the last point. You have to work two times as hard. We're not allowed to even say this is who we want to speak. You're not allowed to have a political difference. She can go on TV and lie and call people terms. All these kids said is, we want somebody else because she doesn't represent us. That's fine. That's like me saying I don't want, I don't know. some random celebrity to speak at my commencement because I feel like their message wouldn't speak to me, so I'm gonna voice my opinion and say, I want somebody else. And I'm getting punished, like, why, it takes the focus off the kids from graduating. These kids are graduating college, they just want someone to speak to them who actually is for them, not be used as ⁓ ⁓ you know, donations for saying, hey, we support black people. Malcolm: Mm-hmm. Honestly, this probably gives like, would think that, I'm hoping it doesn't make it any better, but I feel like a lot of HBCUs, make decisions like these that aren't directly aligned with their values. Even like the, remember a ⁓ few ago, like with FAMU bringing in new president that had no higher education background, but they brought in someone that was aligned with Trump's policies, I think they were kind of like got. got kind of given like a ultimatum where it's like, you either hire me or we cut your funding. So it's like, I feel like a lot of HBCUs and that's, that's like you said, it ties right back into that point about the importance of giving back to our HBCUs and to our institutions and growing that endowment because a lot of times we get faced with these decisions where it's like, right, hey, where are you going to cut the funding that makes your HBCU that keeps the lights on, or you're going to put these people who aren't exactly aligned with your institution, what you got to stand for, you know, into positions of power at your school, right? So it's either A. we shutting everything down, are you gonna put these people in position, right? So feel like a lot of HBCUs, they kind of have to make decisions like these with their backs against the wall, ⁓ a lot of ⁓ to kind of wiggle because they don't have a ⁓ cushiony endowment, a 50 billion to fall on, like a Harvard or Duke or Stanford, that's not accessible to us. And that's why the advancement of HBCUs and us getting into like... R1 research status or to us to getting like to, different sponsorships and partnerships and just recognition ⁓ it's always going be an uphill battle, right, until we can change that stigma that kind of, just that kind of position of mind that we take as alum of, you know, of our schools. Thomas: Exactly. And before going to the next topic, just want to say I just looked it up. Private universities rely heavily on blah, blah, blah. So basically, can donate to both. Public universities use donations primarily for enhancement, such as scholarship, research, or building, rather than daily operations. So private universities use that money for daily operations, everything. So please consider that. The next topic, this relates heavily as well, the Voting Rights Act just got gutted. So on April 29th, the Supreme Court issued a six to three ruling limiting a key provision of the Voting Rights Act, the 1965 law that is the primary federal protection against racially discriminatory election practices. The ruling struck down Louisiana's second majority black congressional district, declaring it an unconstitutional racial gerrymander. Within one hour of the decision, Florida's Republican-controlled legislator approved an aggressively redrawn map expected to net Republicans four additional House seats. Now, let me say this. I did some research on this. I did some listening. And pretty much, they can get away with this as long as they say they are not doing this to reduce the black vote. If they do not target a specific race, they can get away with this. They can say, we're going after Democrats all we want. This information is coming from New York Times, you the Daily Podcast. And pretty much it's cooked and they're trying to do this in a quick time frame because some ballots have already been cast. And it would be tricky because you have to redo the process and these are legally cast ballots. So now you're messing things up. And for everyone out there who's saying, oh, both sides can, blah, blah, blah. Yes, both sides can do this. And unfortunately, both sides probably will in the areas where they can because if you're the Democrats, you can't just let the Republicans get away with this. So you're gonna do it right back. Malcolm: Mm-hmm. Thomas: None of it is right. I think all of it should be voting and truly give people a voice. Everyone should have the right to a voice, equal number of votes, eliminate the electoral college, and let's just make a popular vote. ⁓ But that's just my Whatever. But the facts is was gutted. What are your thoughts on that? Malcolm: Man, I mean, I'm not surprised, bro. I feel like this is going to be the new thing now, right? Like everyone's just going to keep trying to It's just like, mean, like, why can't we just vote normally with the the the drawing map we already like, why do we have to cheat? I don't want to say cheat. mean, I guess I don't even know why this is legal. But like, why? Right. Like, and I feel like if anything, bro, this should be a just a signal to people that, you know, I think that that side of, you know, the political spectrum is a bit. worried and scared about how these midterms about to turn up because I think that people, I think they're scared that people are finally, this is such a sad thing to say that out there all these years are finally coming to the realization that okay, maybe this is his fault, right? Like maybe he is the root cause behind a lot of these problems that we're facing economically across our, know, we're paying the gas pump, we're paying the grocery stores, we're paying for healthcare, right? So it's like, I think people are finally starting to actually have some direction with the way that they're pointing their fingers. And a lot of this is just kind of like a work back and like a last minute kind of last-ditch effort to try to keep brainwashing the masses. But nah, man, I think that I I expect stuff like this to happen. I just hope that both sides, especially the left side, they just keep fighting fire with fire. And they don't just back down trying to be like the Thomas: Mm-hmm. Malcolm: the nice guy that plays by the rules because playing by the rules hasn't worked for us, unfortunately. So I feel like the only way to win or to compete on equal footing or level ground, you got to do the same things. That's why I'm glad Virginia did what they did, because just don't level the playing field at this point. Thomas: Yeah, no, I understand. Unfortunately, I like be a moral guy and I understand that a lot of people like to be moral too. And if this a movie, the moral side would win and you could really just beat the negativity and the illegal, it's not illegal, guess, but and the actions being taken by one side just by being logical and being factual. But we don't live in a logical society. which goes back to the very first topic we talked about with history. We don't live in logical society. We live in the United States of America. I had a conversation recently where I was bringing up, this lady told me that people in the Midwest are really nice, and I started bringing up all the craziness that happens in the Midwest. I started talking about the people that are from there that have done horrible things. Granted, people from everywhere have done horrible things. And she said, ⁓ I don't focus on those things. And I'm like, well. All it takes is one time for something to go bad. It doesn't need to sit on your mind. It doesn't need to stay with you 24-7. But it takes one time to get caught by the wrong person. One time to run into the wrong person. One time to not vote and then we're in a situation like we are now that's only gonna get worse. So yes, while it's all nice to think positively and be fair, you can't afford it. The cost is too high to do nothing. is, I'm not saying, anyone should do anything crazy. But from a political standpoint, people need to get out and vote. People need to be active. People need to do their part. This is not, just to be clear, this is not a call for action, if people, whatever might mean, ⁓ but a call for people to wake up and be logical, embody your morals, embody your spirituality and what you believe in, and go and do the right thing. as best as you can to fight the bad that is going on because right now, mean good will always win in the end, God wins in the end no matter what, but ⁓ in the earthly world, in America, it's not looking great. Malcolm: You tell him man, you tell him man. like was saying bro, scary times we living in. Thomas: Yeah, scary, scary times, but you know what else is scary, man? LinkedIn. LinkedIn is a scary place. ⁓ Not the app itself, but just what's on the app. Post I saw recently. Leave home, get uncomfortable, get left behind. A LinkedIn post making us rounds. A black engineer from Maryland. Malcolm: Oof. Thomas: shares that he almost didn't take his Microsoft internship in Seattle because he didn't want to leave home, want to be the only black person in the room and was comfortable where he was. He went anyway ⁓ his point in Seattle ⁓ the Pacific Northwest tech corridor, you are surrounded by people in tech. It's ⁓ a niche world. It's the default. He's saying the exposure, the network and the career acceleration he got would have happened if he stayed comfortable. The question here is, There's a few questions actually. Is staying comfortable versus knowing what you want for your life the same thing? Is breaking barriers, you want to call it, whatever that means. ⁓ And also LinkedIn, stuff people get on there and cap, a lot of it's just, what are your thoughts? Malcolm: I mean, don't know, bro. feel like... don't necessarily know. Well, I don't know. I feel like because now I think maybe that that advice would have been a bit more rigid and ⁓ of like applicable like some years ago, like five, 10, 15 years ago. But think now like this is just one of the most dynamic kind of like landscapes, especially ⁓ in tech space, right? Like that we've seen ever in large parts of kind of like this AI revolution that we're kind of going through. But I don't know. I wouldn't say, because I think that, with Microsoft, Microsoft is a very... Like it's a very like, like kind of like flexible and supportive company. And the fact that it's like, it's a global company, right? Like obviously we're headquartered and, you know, like said, we're headquartered in Redmond, Washington, but we have people that work everywhere, in every continent, in every country, right? Everywhere across the globe. Obviously for this, like being a new grad, someone's fresh out of college and like kind of like having that, you know, decision like, hey, staying home and. Thomas: Yeah. locations everywhere. Mm-hmm. Malcolm: or going out to like I I think that me and you are pretty good parallels. It's kind of like those two decisions. And it's like, I think it definitely has its benefits with, you know, kind of like having that, those kind of like in-person interactions that you just can't really replicate elsewhere. And obviously there is a level of comfort, I think, that comes with like staying at home and staying in the place that you're used to. However, I wouldn't necessarily attribute like moving out to a place that you're uncomfortable with like. directly tie that to a quicker career advancement path or like a quicker like, because feel like, and I feel like that's very specific to team, to company, ⁓ to as well because ⁓ I've people that stayed in their cities and stayed in their areas and have moved up the chain just as quickly as someone who moved across the country to work at a company. it's like, I think that's very team. ⁓ industry company and or like just just just very specific. I said, mean like like two things two things can be like like two things can be true in one try like leaving your comfort zone is you know like is something is oftentimes where a lot of like the real growth happens. And it is also kind of like, you know, something to also consider, like, you know, just some of these cities, there usually isn't a high concentration of people that look like us. So it's like, both of those things can be true at once. But I think that, I I think more importantly than anything, it's the quality and output of your work that I think that really moves the needle for a lot of this stuff. mean, I've seen both sides of it, bro. I've seen people that have moved out. across the country, left everything behind to go to the companies. I've seen people that went out there, stayed for a bit, made their mark, came back. I've seen people that have stayed out here for the whole time. I've seen kind of like every one of these kind of like options play out. And from what I've seen so far, like it doesn't seem like any one option is better than the other. you know, it's just like, think that, you know, your path is your path. And I don't think that anyone is in position to say like. going here, going here and making this decision will change your life in this way because everyone's different, everyone has a different path, everyone has a different circumstance as well, right? So, I mean, I think that as long as you're doing what you feel is right for you, whether you're comfortable or not, that's just how you kinda gotta play it and figure it out from there. Yeah, and mean, the theatrics on LinkedIn, I've been talking about this for a while now. ⁓ It's so ridiculous, bro. Like everything on LinkedIn has some type of catch, right? Like nothing is genuine. mean, there are some people who still do. Me personally, I personally only use LinkedIn for career updates or achievements. And like I said, saying that LinkedIn is not like, LinkedIn is a place to share your thoughts, ideas, like write articles, like do any, like it's a very awesome, like kind of professional social platform. But I will say that a lot of the posts I see now are very cliche, very kind of like. It's just always a catch bro. It's always hey, like this post or they write this whole thing, AI written ⁓ subscribe to the newsletter, to get a one-on-one ⁓ consulting with them, resume review. This is always something that's underneath it. ⁓ some type of hidden promotion of their startup. It's a lot of theatrics and fluff. I that floats around on LinkedIn. think that because it just happens so often now, it's become the norm. But ⁓ me personally, always going to... ⁓ Thomas: You Malcolm: I think there's a level of credibility that comes with the type of content that you put out consistently. And me, firstly, this has always been just business, bro. If I make a move, I can get a new certification, if I make this happen, then I'll post it. I feel like I need to share it, but I've never been someone who thinks that they need to share every bit of what's going on to any type of network, whether it's social media or LinkedIn or whatever. Thomas: No, it's facts. I locked down 3 PM internships with this tech company. And I can tell you, book a call with me. I'm doing three free calls for a lucky individual. Malcolm: Yeah, like... Yeah, bro. it's just like, for me, it's just like that, that type of like gatekeeping of information. Like, who are you doing? Like, it's like, obviously, I know everybody got their own business, got their own hustle. And I respect that. Like, I'm not saying stop promoting your business or your hustle, but stop. Like, I hate when people try to come, like, I don't, let me not say hate, that's a strong word, but I don't really like when people try to come off as this genuine, like, I'm doing it for you. I'm doing it for y'all, you know, type of vibe. And it's like... You're doing it, it's contractual, it's transactional with the people that you're posting out to. it's like for me, when people reach out to me on LinkedIn or DM me, bro, I send them back a well thought out response. I'll send them my phone number, we can set up a quick call. I don't do anything. I don't try to charge people. I don't even feel like I'm, like I said, like humbly speaking, think I've done some, I've made some pretty cool moves in my career so far, this early in my career, but I don't think I'm in position to be trying to charge people. tell them how I got where I'm at because my path was my path, right? And it's like not a lot of people come from my background or the opportunities I did to be able to ⁓ my path and everything like that. it's like I try to share or shine some light on what people could do or how they could go about it. But I'm not sitting here trying to hustle folks on LinkedIn, bro, especially not ⁓ people, people younger than me, just trying to find their way and break into the same industry I'm in now. So everybody, people are going to do what they want to do, but. Thomas: It's predatory. and if corporate is so great, why are you trying to build a business off people trying to get in if you love your job so much? Malcolm: Yeah, gang, I just. You filming? Yeah, guys, this is a... Thomas: People disgust, no I'm not gonna say that. But it is pretty gross behavior. If you really cared about people, you would just be doing it for free. And if you wanted to make some money, maybe you would offer highly specialized, targeted, full sessions working with that person, if you really wanted to pay for it, which I still think that's pretty gross. Go make money off other people, not people trying to put food on the table. Spirit Airlines is... Muerto, I believe that means dead, is dead, gone. And your next flight is going to cost more because of that. So Spirit Airlines, I knew it was loading up. It was like a cameo wave where I could like tell. After filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November 2024 and failing to find a buyer, Malcolm: don't need you bro. Thomas: Spirit converted to chapter seven liquidation and ceased all flight operations in early 2025 the plane stopped the routes closed the $29 base fares Wow 29, holy smokes the ones that it made flying accessible for people who couldn't afford the legacy carriers disappeared with it ⁓ Long story short between oil ⁓ all these factors and I'll let Malcolm speak on you know, the price the price point stuff ⁓ spirit ⁓ Malcolm: Mm-hmm. Thomas: I never flew on Spirit, but I know it was a lifeline for many people. man, rest in peace and everybody get your pockets ready. If ever have to travel, whether by car, land, you know, or I mean land A or C, get ready to spend your entire paycheck on it. Malcolm: Yeah, no, I don't think people realize how this is kind of going to ripple through the federal aviation industry. Whether you like Spirit or not, or you think that they're ghetto, or you think they're not a quality airline, they're one of the few airlines ever that have had no fatalities, or no crashes, no passengers that have died on any of flights. So to that, I give them credit. It's like whether you like Spirit or not. What people aren't understanding is that Spirit was really the reason that was like that they were kind of like the barrier between people like behind companies like Southwest and Delta and United upping their fares by whatever they wanted to. Spirit was the budget carrier that could keep like kind of keep these prices at a tame level keep these airline companies from not just ripping people off right so let's like look into some data right so Spirit Airlines, obviously known for its ultra low fares. This means that they're going to be costier tickets on other airlines, right? So a CBS News analysis of Surium data, a provider of aviation analytics, they found that average fares, average ticket fares, jumped 23 % or roughly $60 for a round trip flight when Spirit exited a route. Overall passenger volume also fell 20 % after the carrier left the market. So whether you like Spirit or not, their impact is not to be denied. This is before they went on the business. That means if there were customers, like let's say you're doing a flight from York to ⁓ Ohio, right? That means if Spirit exited this route or they just pulled their planes from this route, fares jumped 23%. This was before Spirit went out on business. Now if they have no low budget competition, What do you think the Southwest, the Deltas, the Uniteds, the American Airlines are going to do the jet... What do think they're going to do to your tickets now? Yo, Spirit, boozy, I never fly Spirit, this and that, this and that. Okay, well, now you don't have to worry about it. we can all enjoy a 20, 30, 40 % souped up fare because ⁓ only thing that was keeping them at bay is now out of business, right? So... Thomas: not looking good. And looking this right now. I don't think this is legit or it wasn't confirmed. But Spirit, for example, I remember there was some talk about them charging for you to have a clean seat in between flights. So you got to pay extra for your seat to get wiped down. ⁓ Malcolm: don't know man. That's crazy. That's got to be like some type of federal regulation law that they're breaking. That can't be right. Thomas: That's true. That has to be fake. I hope it's fake. I just looked into it. I couldn't find any factual stuff. Malcolm: I really do hope that. I certainly hope it's fake, because that's unreal. Thomas: Yeah, that's great. But that's the type of stuff, like for example, if an airline did want to do that because now spirit's out the picture, you you still have Allegiant and all them other ones, but you know, it, spirit was like the, king of cheap. Malcolm: They had access to fly just about anywhere, right? They used to get you with them check bags for sure, but. Thomas: It was just. And I'm connecting flight. That's why I never flew Spear, bro, because you brought a flight. The total flight time would be like 17 hours. Malcolm: Yeah, from like Atlanta to New York, I'm like, hey bro, why do I have an eight hour layover in Tuscaloosa? Because, you know what saying? Thomas: I just I don't know. I think the jokes about spirit man. They killed it man. People people saw soul playing and just ran with it ⁓ peace spirit man, ⁓ know, just be on the lookout for these airfare prices Man and make sure we all looking at tickets turn go on a private browser cookies off me Most people know that already but just sharing that for people who might not have known especially if you're not buying the ticket the first time you look at it because they do Allegedly do some sort of like traffic based increases on tickets like if someone's looking at a ticket They'll boost the price because they know somebody wants it Yeah, man, thank them trips Malcolm: No? No. Shout out to Spare and Mad. Now, I'll really be interested to see if all them Instagram stories I be saying with y'all in countries every other week, I wonder if the frequency of those is gonna go down now. Now we may have to pay full price for something, but I'm saying no, no shame. I hustle gets a hustle you want, but I would definitely be interested to see the frequency of those trips and those all-inclusive resorts that we be at every week or so be, may tone down a bit. Thomas: Spears. Malcolm: No, sir. Thomas: passport photos in the airport. ⁓ Passport photos, know, popping up in the new city, seeing somebody new every week. ⁓ Malcolm: Mm-hmm. Hey man, it's never been my but I'll interested to see you man. I'll tell you that. Thomas: will see. Another thing we will see. New York, the state of New, yeah I think it's the state of New York. Ghost jobs, you've applied to them, you spend hours tailoring your resume, writing a cover letter, tracking the application, and then nothing. Poof, it's gone. Like a magic trick. Not a rejection, not an acknowledgement, just silence. Because the job was never real. Wow, shocker. Companies post... Malcolm: Whoop-de-doo, man. Thomas: Exactly, yeah, yeah. Companies pose these positions. ⁓ have no intention of failing in the near term, sometimes to build a candidate pipeline, sometimes to gauge the market, sometimes to look ⁓ they're growing when they're not. And sometimes, just because taking down a listing requires more effort than leaving it up, it's a practice that costs job seekers time, money, and morale on a massive scale. And that's why we see on LinkedIn, we have people creating platforms where you can just mass apply to hundreds jobs at once because... Malcolm: Yep. Thomas: Throwing your stuff in the garbage. I mean, I'll be honest. I still have applications I'm one getting denied for that I applied to years ago ⁓ applications that are still open that I applied for years ago. Years. Like, what are we... Man, what are your thoughts on this, bro? Because this is crazy. And to New York for cracking down on this. Malcolm: Yeah, mean, think this is, I really think, well, I hope this is a step in the right direction, right? I hope that everywhere else starts to really kind of pursue this. Because I think ⁓ such a, like corporate greed knows no end, bro. Like you guys already break in billions, hundreds of billion dollars of profits, and you're still like, and ⁓ in the worst labor market ever, the worst job market ever, worst hiring ever. And you're putting out these jobs that you know are just going to waste people's time. This is like. It's just like, bro? So I really do hope that this kind of starts like a, this is kind of like the catalyst, like a domino effect for other states to pursuing this federally. This is crazy, like the amount time that I'm sure people are wasting on these fake openings just for to say, we're hiring, just to use this market research data and stuff like that. mean, that's just unfair to people are really... like desperate and really need like an opportunity for employment. So yeah, it's crazy man. think especially so like, I think it's especially relevant, you know, for ⁓ black who are navigating a job market that already has this type of, you know, structural friction. So applications, and we know this is like, there's tons of research on this. not even going to try to ⁓ argue down, but where applications from names, procedures black perceive fewer callbacks, even with ⁓ identical qualifications. that ghost job problem, it just compounds an already uneven playing field. So it makes it twice as hard to get a job where the posting is already fake and they're already looking across you out based on your name and some of information that you input. So I said, like Hope-a-Sephs kind of sets up the blueprint for everyone else, like New York moving first. It doesn't fix the problem everywhere, but it does set, I think, a... a legislative template for other states to follow. And I would definitely, definitely be interested to see which states follow. Yeah, man, I think, you know, I hope like, you know, they're able to kind of get something out of this and, you know, companies, they're just, that's awful, Just putting out these fake jobs and wasting people time and energy. yeah, like salute to those people that are making those type of ⁓ platforms and and companies. that gets you directly to the application where you can just kind of like mass apply. I've seen a ton of variations with it where people have like the swipe right or left, like it's tender. Same people do like the ones where they email you new job recs every day and you can go straight to the website. Yeah, man. Yeah, this is definitely... Thomas: Okay. Malcolm: Yeah, it's cooked, bro. I ain't gonna lie. It's cooked for sure. Thomas: I had to tell this dude I actually had a call earlier with a graduating student who's, know, and props to him. And like I said, this goes back to, you know, just actually talking to people. And I'm not talking about this because like I want to share that I do these things. It's just like the call is applicable because in the conversation, I told him, I was like, look, like he's still trying to find like a full time appointment, plans on doing grad school in a few years, I have to get some experience. I told him, I said, look, man. Malcolm: Bye. Thomas: And I'm thinking about this, I know I'm in a place of privilege where I can say this, but this is honestly what I would do as well if I was in that same position, or if I got laid off and couldn't get another job, God forbid, whatever the case is, go work at Walmart, go work at somewhere. Like literally, I think people need to be humble because the job market is cooked, there's fake jobs, there's companies not looking to hire you. Stuff scary, bro. like if you... Malcolm: care. Thomas: If you're at home just sitting around doing nothing, man, go work at McDonald's, go work at Walmart, because I literally said on the call, said, being a manager at McDonald's is better than doing nothing. So having a manager at McDonald's on your resume for six months is better than a six month longer gap. And I see people on LinkedIn all the time, man. And I repost this stuff sometimes where it's like people saying, know, personal circumstances, I need a job, I need a job. I don't know if they're working or not. They're not putting that on LinkedIn. So I'm not saying. Malcolm: Thank Thomas: that they're not, I don't know, I have no idea, I don't know these people. But I have seen where people are not working, where they're just doing content and talking about how much they're applying the jobs. You need to get up and go apply. regular jobs, mean, everyone wants to be in corporate or have a higher paying job, but... Clearly the system is against you, so don't think you're too good to work at McDonald's, Walmart, wherever you need to, just to get some money. And that experience is still valuable because if you are as intelligent and skilled as educated as you say you are, and you know you are, then you could ⁓ at Walmart, wherever these places are, quickly take over a bunch of responsibilities, and your resume in other areas, and possibly even learn some entrepreneurial skills as well. So you never know. Malcolm: Thank Yeah, that's true. However, I will say the only thing you definitely got to consider is that some, think it's easy to say that when we in our shoes, when we don't really have many allegations outside of ourselves, because there are some people who are getting paid a certain amount ⁓ they have way bigger shoes to fill than us. Where it's like a job at McDonald's, at a Kroger's, just around the way, just to get some bread ain't enough because it's like some people got mortgage. kids to get through school. Some people got a wife, some people got sick family members, people got a car note. So it's like for us, I think it's easy to say because you know, really, we really only kind of providing for ourselves. For like I said, we probably do got like close people that we kind of look out for here and there. But like I said, me you bro, we super young early in our career. So it's like for us, I don't think it be as, I think it's going to be a lot more sensible for us to kind of like just find some just to get back on our feet. But for some people who have been making a certain amount of money. X amount of years and that was just enough to like support the bills and expenses that they had for them to go from that number to go back like the mortgage isn't the mortgage isn't gonna go away just because you you'll say you got laid off unfortunately some of these people they need something that's back in that same kind of like threshold for income like ASAP and that's why they don't they can't settle for something I think that that that's that big of a drop-off because it's like even if they were to get that little bit of bread in their pocket it's not enough to cover like some of the things I got to take care of. So I think that is another thing to be important. But I will say like to your point, bro, at the end of the day, whether it can cover it or not, something's better than nothing. So it's just like, I'd be hustling regardless, you know what saying? praise out there. Anybody that's kind of going through that job search, that struggle right now or has kind of recently experienced some type of layoff or head count reduction at any company. pray this out to you, know, definitely hope that you're able to kind of like, you know, there are definitely better days ahead, man. Stay prayed up. I know it's probably tiring hearing this over and over again, but it's crazy, bro, because I see like real people pouring their hearts out on LinkedIn every day saying like, like, and there's people like, and for a lot of people, it's putting their pride to the side to this. Like a lot of people probably feel embarrassed doing this and say, hey, like begging for a job on LinkedIn. That's probably embarrassing for a lot of people, but it's like, I see these posts every single day, bro. Thomas: Mm-hmm. Malcolm: putting their pride to the side, their ego to side, because they have families to feed, they got mouths to feed, they have kids to feed and take care of, bro. So it's like, I can like, that's the no theatrics side of LinkedIn. That's like the real side of LinkedIn. That's like, all right, I'll try to comment and support for better reach or try to help out where I can. But it's like, there's people really struggling out here, man. So I hope everyone that does have something going on for themselves, you, you holding on to it, you building on it, you saving, you're investing in your owning assets because... It's a very scary time right now, man. And it's just like, unfortunately, like the way that stuff is structured right now, it's like, feel like everyone just kind of has to like always have constant look over their shoulder to make sure that they're going to be okay for the next day. working job like that where you're in constant fear that it won't exist, that your same role won't exist tomorrow, it's hard to operate like that, man. So, ⁓ know, out to anybody that's kind of going through that, that struggle, that process now. There are better days ahead, you know, stay grounded, stay prayed up. And things are gonna work themselves out, man. Thomas: That's facts, yeah, yeah. That's great points. And for everyone out there who says join the military, do this, do that, no, that's not an option for everybody. Some of these people are over the age limit or, like Malcolm said, have families. They can't, or they have disabilities. Malcolm: Yeah. They can't just up and leave and go to Germany or get deployed to Iraq, man. They gotta be around their people, so. Thomas: Yeah, it's rough. Market, everything is cooked. You know, ⁓ don't even know what to say to that, man. Just prayers out to everybody going through that. Malcolm: So. Thomas: But yeah, think, ⁓ one other thing I did want to talk about, ⁓ we talked about a little bit, but ⁓ the NBA playoffs, I know we touched on it. Man, we got to talk about, got to talk about, I'm not even the biggest LeBron guy, like, bro, 41 years old, ⁓ I saw the Jimmy High Roller video, he said, ⁓ Malcolm: Oof. greatest greatest This is great. greatest. Thomas: LeBron forced them into a rebuild almost 10 years ago in the playoffs. He's doing it again. That's crazy. Malcolm: He's doing it again now. My man, like he, like I understand people's point and it's like people always try to discredit Brian. Oh, he's only an all time scorer because he's played this many seasons. Oh, this and that is that. No one else in the history of league will ever do this, bro. And I know people who don't have to compare it, but no 41 year old is putting a team on his back and putting up signature playoff moments. And it's so crazy because I literally watched the narrative change as the series went on. First, like, you, the Lakers were underdogs. Lakers were underdogs this entire series, bro. Especially when Luca ⁓ and went, it was, the Rockets gonna sweep. Bronz up, Bronz up, Bronz up. ⁓ Bronz gonna throw a 3-0 lead. ⁓ Bronz gonna throw a 3-0 lead. now the Rockets weren't even that good to ⁓ begin with. And happens every single time when Bron defies odds or beats a team that he wasn't supposed to beat. It goes from this, these... crazy expectations to owe the team was never that good. There no reason the Rockets should have dropped them games to one man, ⁓ that one man was King James, but it's just like, go live, bro. Playoffs have been peak so far, I feel like Adam Silver, sacrificed, put a trash regular season to give us cinema in the offs, but it's been crazy what I've been seeing so far, Lakers and Rockers was peak. That Timberwolves series was peak. ⁓ I'm glad sent home. Tubby, Jokic man, he needed to be humble, sent home, I'm tired of him. JD McDaniels is demon. Atlanta Nicks. Atlanta needs Atlanta, ⁓ I haven't a whooping that bad in all my bro. I have never seen a team get embarrassed like that in the playoffs like that ever in my life. I saw it at halftime it was like. Thomas: Yeah. sorry. Yeah. ⁓ Yeah. Malcolm: 80 to 83 to like 29. I was like, Jesus Christ. Like y'all were getting just cooked. Yeah, yeah. I'm like, y'all need the number one pick at this one. like, bro, their number one pick is lit as a bum. And it's so quick. That's such an Atlanta thing to get the number one pick in the worst draft ever, Stefan Castle is saving that draft. He sucks. He wasn't getting burned and they was down 50. Thomas: they're not going be able to sit down for a few weeks. Malcolm: He did not get in the game there but he was riding pine down 50 bro. He's cooked. He is cooked bro. I don't know what his future is. That boy is cooked. He's the worst number one pick I've seen personally. I wasn't watching Oden and Anthony Bennett all them dudes. This sucks. How do you not get burned as a number one overall pick down 50 bro. Sorry. Thomas: Anthony Bennett. You I got one of my boys, Paulo Bencaro is the worst number one pick, but I'm like, he's not that, I know he's so, but I feel like Paulo, he's still decent regularly. I didn't watch none of the series, so I don't know, but regular season, usually not that bad. Malcolm: She's sorry. ⁓ yeah, Paulo stink too. Paulo stinks. Paulo stinks. Paulo stinks. He not, but it's like he not where he's supposed to be. He hasn't sniffed one All-Star selection, bro. Thomas: Ferv? He hasn't been on, sir? Malcolm: Apollo's not been an All-Star. Thomas: I thought Apollo was nice. Malcolm: No, bro. It's like this is I hate when people try to do like these these bronc comparisons, bro, he bro. Thomas: No one who's supposed to be broad has been like. Malcolm: I'm sorry. Let me, I'm sorry. He was picked as an all-star. I forgot. He got picked as an all-star reserve. He's a one-time all-star. I'm sorry. He's one-time all-star. Yeah, let me take that back. But I think I'm thinking all-in in the NBA. He hasn't been all-in NBA yet. Sorry. But yeah, I mean, that Orlando Magic, that collapse, I saw, was the worst second half of basketball I've ever seen in my life, offensively. They shot four, I think it was four for like 34 or four for 39 in the second half. Thomas: Okay, I thought he was an all-star before. Malcolm: It was some of the worst basketball I've seen in life. Jalen Suggs should be sent, needs to be locked in a cave. ⁓ need to lock him in the gym. No cell phone, no laptop, no internet access, just basketballs and three meals a day and lock him in the gym, Like he shouldn't, he should not be able to leave the gym until he makes 500 shots in a row. He's sorry. Jalen Dern, whatever supermax he thought he was about to get? No. You're not getting no. Hell no. A-Men Thompson, I he, I saw he was supposed to sound like for like five years, $250 million. 250 mil to suit and dribble aggressively? Hell no. You're not getting that. They just handed out Supermax now, bruh. Supermax done lost his meaning, bro. No. I'm not going, bro. Who else been sorry? Celtic just dropped 3-1. Jaylen Brown, you're cooked. Out of my league, bro. Thomas: 50s credit. Where am I, Malcolm: Milwaukee you go bruh. It's GZ's. I can't believe he held up a finals MVP bro. else been in these odds bro? Thomas: I didn't really hear nothing about the Blazer series at all. Malcolm: That's because Denny was getting that belt, man. Wimby was handing out that premium leather. About to do the same thing next round, bro. So this has been a great off so far, Thomas: Shout out to everyone. Shout out to everyone who participated in the poll we put up. think most people have put up the Thunder. Top two teams with Thunder and Spurs. No one out the East is winning the championship, man. We got two game sevens in the East right now. Well, four actually have a, or three. Malcolm: ⁓ If Demon B says healthy, I like him B. Thomas: He... Malcolm: I like sixers to the finals. I'm calling it now. I like sixers to the finals if NBA stays healthy. Thomas: I think if they can get past the Knicks, then yeah, they got it. Malcolm: is successors with Nick's calves and is another thing that's another series I want to talk about the calves. It's two ⁓ one. This every single year during the regular season Harden keeps he does these regular season performances and he starts they start mentioning his name next to D Wade stop mentioning heart next to D Wade he is the fourth best student guard ever D Wade's best spot at three solidify bro MJ Kobe D MJ, Kobe, D-Wade, and honestly, well, I ain't gonna lie, I got hard no-bra, yeah. I'm not going, me personally, I got hard no-bra, yeah. got hard no-bra, yeah. Thomas: I don't, ⁓ ⁓ no. Harden over Allen, the truth? I mean not the truth, I'm sorry. ⁓ Truth is ⁓ you might call it. ⁓ Yeah, he's the answer. Yeah, I'm cooked. ⁓ truth is Paul Pierce. ⁓ Malcolm: I got hard over here. I have hard over here. Bro, do you... Bro, you can say the nickname all you want. None of them have a ring. He's the answer. Yeah, you stink. You're saying you stink, you stink. No, you stink. You stink. No, you actually stink. Yeah, that's Paul. Yeah, you're showin' it, bro. Thomas: Answer qu- I remember the question's the Reeboks. I know his shoes. Okay, okay. Malcolm: Bro, I don't think, like, I'm not even a Harden Defender. I'm not a Harden fan, but I saw what he did in 2018. Thomas: Ayy bro. did you see what AI was doing in 2001? Malcolm: Bro, Allen Iverson has never had a better season than Harden 2018 season. Ever. Thomas: Okay, that's fine. was extremely inefficient. That's for sure. AI has never, AI, Allen Arverson, was an inefficient player, stat-wise. But like Westbrook was also inefficient stat-wise. You know what I'm Malcolm: Oh yeah. I feel like being a, I don't think being the fifth best shooting guard ever is a, Harden is an offensive like. Please, you don't want to compare stats, bruh. Thomas: No, I'm not looking up stats. I'm looking up if he won. No, he never won it. Did he win an MVP? He had to have won an MVP. Yeah, yeah, won AI, won MVP in 2000, 2001. I think AI's MVP is better than Harden's MVP. think they gave it to him. Bro, Harden, he didn't get the MVP that year. He averaged 30 a game. Was it? Malcolm: No! No! Bro, he got it in, are you, he got it in 20, he got it the year Paul George was top three, he got it in 2018, 2019, Thomas: No, it's 2017-18. OK, he averaged Malcolm: 38 and 5, 65 and 17 record, number one seed. Thomas: Let me look at AI ⁓ MVP season. Malcolm: Oh yeah, 2018, 19, that was the honest, I'm sure. Yeah, no, you're too young. 31, three and four? No. No. Thomas: Oh, Allen Iverson. AI averaged 31.1, 2.5 steals per game. Malcolm: Bro, yeah, you're forgetting the assist. You have you conveniently skipped the boat. Harden average 8.8 assist, bro. Thomas: Hold on. Nah, I'm pulling up the stats, bro. I'm pulling up both. Okay, okay, okay, I got his MVP season up, Okay, so let's look at Assis. is it at, where is it at? Where is Assis not here? Assis, AI averaged 4.6 in two, okay, so let's go step by step. You said hard and average, how many Assis that year? Malcolm: 8.8 almost 9 assists to game bruh. Thomas: Non-assisted game. Okay. So how many steals, yeah, how many steals blocks? blocks, rebounds. So a steal is not important? 2.5 steals a game? That's crazy. Malcolm: We're not talking about steals. Post. are a lot of non-defensive guards that can lead in steals, bro. Thomas: Assist us just because you get an assist don't mean that you. They do matter, they do matter. ⁓ Steals take more effort assist you could just bro I could get you get three assists easy. Fast break just pass the ball to the person up ahead. That's an assist. Pass to the shooter. That's an assist. Malcolm: Assist don't matter. You're putting steals over, you're putting steals over assist. You can play a passing lane and get a steal. Thomas: But it's not how many people, but I'm saying like. Malcolm: So wait, are you trying to say that AI is better because you got, bro. Thomas: No, I'm just saying he averaged more points than Harden. Malcolm: He averaged one more point bro. You understand the difference between their stats in every category. Okay, 30.4 to 31 points. That's very about the same thing. The rest of their stats harden blows out of the water, bro. Thomas: Okay, look at readmouse. How many games did he play that season? Yeah. How many games played? Malcolm: Harden? Bro. All right, let me just pull up the seasons. I'll pull up the MVP seasons like... Thomas: There's a lot of factors that go into these MVP seasons AI ⁓ his body for the love of the game, bro. He played 82 games once in his career. Harden probably has not played all 82 once ever. Malcolm: The MVP seasons Harden played more games. I'm looking. Allen Iverson his MVP, he played 71 games, Harden played 72. Right? AI, also played, he also played, you have to understand, bro, they were, he was, he played seven, AI played 42 minutes a game, Harden played 35. And he's only, he only scored one more point than him per game. Thomas: Wait, wait, you said hard end play 35 minutes a game? Malcolm: No. 35 minutes a game, AI played 42 minutes a game. Thomas: Well, he had to carry his team. Teams cooked. You how bad that team was? Okay, so Harder was cooking because he was up, but AI actually had to put in work. It's like comparing LeBron first MVP season. Malcolm: Yeah, he was winning games, bro. Thomas: But I'm, bro, he carried, but I'm saying like, he carried that team to the finals. AI. Malcolm: Harden carried that team Harden bro Harden bro you're telling me you're telling me AI is bro you know who he played to try to get to the finals bro they were about to beat the 2018-2019 war who did AI play Thomas: The Lakers. Malcolm: Bro, you were putting the Lakers over the 2018 Warriors dog? Thomas: The 2001 Lakers, 2000, 2001 Lakers, they didn't go to finals that year, they, bro. Malcolm: No. The 2018 Warriors, bruh. That's the... Kevin Durant, Steph Curry, Klay Thompson, that's the best team ever assembled ever. Thomas: the Shaq and Kobe three Pete Lakers. Harden wasn't going to no championship, no way. Malcolm: They, he was really a Chris Paul injury away from going to the finals bro. That is a fact. Bro, 31 to 30 points a game. Harden had more rebounds, more assist. The steals aren't even, the difference isn't, Harden average two steals a game. AI had two and a half. Thomas: Chris Paul bailout, does it count? Malcolm: Harden shot better from the field, he shot better from the three, he had a better free throw percentage, a better true suiting percentage, bro. And he had a better plus minus on the court, bro. His plus minus was plus 527, AI's was plus 368, bro. I'm sorry, bro. Thomas: I looked up. I looked up is James Harden better than, and then it filled in LeBron. I don't know who's looking that up. But is James Harden better than Allen Iverson? Harden is better, Harden's better, Harden's, yeah, whatever. Malcolm: You might say it's a crazy gap, AI was like that, no questions asked. But Harden's 2018 season? There are not many guards that will ever reach those heights offensively. Thomas: Okay, it's whatever. I'm rocking with AI. Shout out my boy. Real ones know he be in them casinos, NGM and ⁓ Merlin. He be out there. Real ones know. You seen him. Malcolm: Amen, that's how I done- Thomas: Yeah, sorry, y'all. That segment went a little bit longer, man, for everyone who, you we talked about some heavy topics today. So please enjoy a little banter. If you're still here, please follow our IG in Iraq. Connect with us on YT. That is YouTube. And yeah, man. Love y'all. Malcolm: Man, we'll catch that next week. Peace. Thomas: Peace.