0033 Sir Gene Speaks - Gene Slays Youtuber on Masks!

Gene: 0:14

today We've got a very good special treat We have Brian Brushwood sometimes known as Sherwood who is not only a good friend but also a fascinating person And today we're going to talk about scams and how many of them Brian has been perpetrating Brian how are you doing today

Brian: 0:34

Yes Uh the greatest of all my scams is called provide value for other people And if you do it long enough you become wealthy

Gene: 0:44

that's a good moral of the story I guess obviously I'm making fun of the fact that you hosted a show called scam school for many years

Brian: 0:51

Uh yeah And and continue to host uh it's it's it's um I guess next well next next iteration uh scam nation uh scam scam school is uh owned by another

Gene: 1:04

right That's right We didn't want to promote the other company

Brian: 1:08

whatever Luckily luckily it's at the same address Go to youtube.com/scams Cool It's but but but unfortunately there's a little thing called a global pandemic that sort of Altered the original plan because the original plan was Hey go out to actual bars go out to find real people teach them magic tricks have them do it back to you Uh that gets real hard when when the entire planet is on fire

Gene: 1:35

Yeah Or at least sitting in the home

Brian: 1:37

Yes Well or not going to bars

Gene: 1:40

Yeah exactly Just a drink in the way at home

Brian: 1:45

All the drinks are free when you own the bar

Gene: 1:47

Yeah exactly so obviously the way that I found out about you was actually through scam school and I thought this is A brilliant idea for a show it's essentially teaching magic tricks and release things that can be done by anyone without a whole lot of expensive equipment or even that much preparation But then the spin that you put on it is how to leverage that to get drinks at a bar And I thought that was horribly creative

Brian: 2:18

Well well thank you And and really it's just um the idea of there being a MacGuffin and and in the very earliest episodes you can hear me talking about um you know getting the girl's phone number which is the kind of thing you would be Talking about when you're 29 and less So when you're 46 um and teaching it to your daughter Uh but but but but basically uh what um I feel like a good story A good brand is Two surfaces There's what it pretends to be And then there's what it actually is And you correctly have identified that what scam school is is beginner lessons and magic but you must never ever say that out loud So instead we make it about being the most interesting person in the room Um and how do you do that Well I don't know maybe learn some magic tricks or bar scams uh that that kind of thing Um Things have gotten complicated lately with you know what with most bars being shut down and people uh being a little less extroverted than they used to be Uh but but man I I feel like uh uh the roaring twenties are just around the corner right about now

Gene: 3:29

it's heading that way I think

Brian: 3:32

Yeah So so so where are you where are you at I know that I know that you um Uh you and I had an interesting conversation where we were talking about I've already had COVID the full-blown disease And since then I've also gotten a vaccine So I'm both vaccinated and to have you know all the antibodies of the disease and and you correctly per the science said it's insane That you would wear a mask but I but and and and and scientifically I'm inclined to agree with you However it's also an outward pro-social beacon that I can do that says I mean I mean or as I put it to you uh as we were having dinner one night like man I just don't want to have that argument I don't want to argue about it anymore I'm just going to wear a mask

Gene: 4:23

well that's fair enough I think people do that and the mask just like a ball gag is absolutely a symbol as much of it is something that is meant to have a real purpose right now a lot of people are proud of the fact that they're walking around muzzled and I think that's an interesting Interesting perspective on America that I think 10 15 years ago people would have absolutely never believed whatever happened

Brian: 4:48

happened well and plus also keep in mind the conversation 10 15 years ago was about whether or not it should be illegal for you to wear a mask Because if I said a bunch of people just showed up in masks and it was 10 years

Gene: 5:00

up to no

Brian: 5:01

you you you you you would at best hope it's a bank heist at worst You you'd be afraid of a lynching

Gene: 5:08

Yeah Or jihad or something Yeah It is absolutely bizarre and I'm glad you jumped on this topic because While I have previously interviewed you to talk about your background and all that other fun stuff my goal here today is actually to ignore all of that because we already talked about it but really just focus on some political and philosophical issues And I think you you unwittingly walked right into my little trap

Brian: 5:39

Oh man I wait to find out where this

Gene: 5:42

What about BLM

Brian: 5:46

hard hard left turn uh guy I'm sorry I'm losing you there Jean What's going

Gene: 5:50

Okay So you think they're communists Is that what you're saying Brian

Brian: 5:53

you go Uh look uh I uh it's give me the real trap cause I I know all of this is your leg

Gene: 6:03

there will be cake Brian there will be cake so obviously the thing that besides your entertaining to watch then I think we also shared in common that kind of made me want to reach out to you as well is a love of video games

Brian: 6:20

Yes Go on

Gene: 6:23

and to that matter we're both grown men we're not children these days and yet video games are being played by probably more adults these days than children simply because people have played video games as children just never stopped playing

Brian: 6:40

well you know what's fascinating Cause I've I've I've got various levels of teenage daughters and I I as a kid Have always loved video games going all the way back to an Inn in online video gaming I remember having a 300 baud modem that I used to connect to a copy serve account where I was blown away by the fact that I was playing a trivia game against other human beings Uh when I went to college there uh uh nobody knew how to um play doom doom Couldn't play Uh in a windows environment So therefore all of the computer lab nobody could play doom Uh we figured out that if you hit F eight and then booted to a dos disk and then you know manually installed IPX SPX uh uh protocols then you could load doom and start playing it And uh and and In that moment like one of the one of the texts walked over and was just like how how how did you do this And we're like right You just got to know what you're doing And uh uh apparently just knowing that it was possible was enough to where one week later uh uh laser printed Eight by 10 uh papers all over the place Say no doom nobody played doom Uh it's uh so so I have a deep deep affection for video games but I'm really surprised that that my kids only have more of a casual appreciation for it Uh my my eldest To be honest uh was more into watching other people play video games which I never understood until somebody pointed out well You know when you grew up most of the time you spent playing games you weren't actually playing the game You were just on the couch next to the guy playing the game That's what Twitch is And I was like okay I get it Now I get it now And it it took a bit of becoming familiar with the stories that they have to tell before she started playing uh my my 13 year old um to her this is purely a um A a a side effect of Corona virus She can't go outside and hang out with people but but in the world of Minecraft or of of roadblocks or whatever she she gets to do all that stuff Um and then even my eight year old uh you're running around playing animal jam like you know she's uh it's it's it's the closest thing to going outside that they're going to get um But uh but but I know that for

Gene: 9:17

wait you're your eight eight year old is your youngest

Brian: 9:20

Uh yes correct Correct Yeah

Gene: 9:22

And we first met before she was born because I Would have almost named her If it wasn't for your wife

Brian: 9:34

that's correct That's correct As a matter of fact uh uh you and I became connected because when we found out we were pregnant with our third and we found out it was a female the first thought that popped into my mind was Oh God I got to make some money And so we so I opened up an online store and I said here are some of the various things that uh at various Contribution levels It was an Indiegogo campaign And on the list at with Bonnie's permission which you can't believe she gave permission Now that I look back on it was named Brian's child late middle name seemed fairly disposable uh in a world where oftentimes um uh girls go on to change their names anyway

Gene: 10:20

Yeah that is true But I do remember is because there was this a substantial amount of money I remember sending you a note and saying Hey are you serious And these your wife know about this and I I think rather wisely went for the the highest option that didn't include naming your kid with which was a command performance

Brian: 10:43

uh wisely for both of us because um it turned out that it was wise For uh for me because I didn't have to make good on that threat And it was wise for you because we're still friends And I don't know if it would have gone that way Had you gotten creative with with the middle name of my child

Gene: 11:04

I think the name gene is a great name regardless of what gender the kid is

Brian: 11:08

is Yeah no I actually you know what I take that back If if that was Uh if if gene is to be believed then sure That

Gene: 11:18

but gene has never to be believed So probably would have been my last name would have been your kid's middle name

Brian: 11:24

Kinda cool though Uh

Gene: 11:28

Yes You'd have to learn how to say it and spell it to then in that case But yeah that that was a an interesting way to connect And I think that it worked out quite well because

Brian: 11:38

so what's interesting is to me Um at that point you were a mysterious wizard And uh I understand a mysterious wizard that has money What I didn't understand is a mysterious wizard who is so plugged into the community over at the wizard Academy And it was you sponsoring us Like I don't know that I ever on my own Would have ponied up the DOE to go take a class at the wizard Academy If if if you hadn't had vouched for me and and kinda got me in at a discount

Gene: 12:17

I'm glad that worked out I've certainly tried to get as many people out there it's always like pulling teeth I mean you probably took about six or seven reminders before Coming out there

Brian: 12:28

It's it's also one of those things that's like it's too good to be true you know And and and and keep in mind you don't exactly make it easy to trust you considering that your business card only has your name and the words legitimate businessman on it It's it's uh uh it's it's it's tough to get over that hump but I'm glad I did

Gene: 12:49

Maybe maybe I should have said legitimate wizard out there it is something that one well I look back at the number of people that I first brought over to wizard Academy And by of course by this point I think most of my listeners are going what the hell is really the Academy I will have a link in the show notes to wizard Academy So you guys can get a little bit of an idea of what it is Although I will say that nothing really explains what it is Until you actually come there and on their website it's totally not a cult

Brian: 13:20

which which which only makes it really easy to believe that it's not a

Gene: 13:24

I mean it just it says right there it's not a cold So what how hard could it be to describe what it is It's it's an interesting interesting place

Brian: 13:32

when when I tell people about wizard Academy um I say look there are a lot of people who become successful and there is a circuit of Going and giving talks and they're all in the exact same holiday in ballroom and they all have the same five you know domestic beers available and they're all overpriced and they're all garbage in the same hotel And it's like Uh just basically imagine if all of that was turned on its head where instead of the expert coming to you you went to the expert And when you went to the expert the expert was in a literal wizard's tower surrounded by by you know uh you could see all the way clear to downtown Austin and uh and all the meter uh meals were catered and everything about it was Amazing and randomly it just happened to cost about the same amount as that giant overcrowded stupid holiday in ballroom

Gene: 14:33

that's very true It's actually technically the highest point in Austin It's taller than the Stoney and building when you're on the roof of the wizard tower you're actually at the highest place that you can be in Austin

Brian: 14:49

Uh not only high physically but high-end spirits beyond account of the fact that they start serving wine at 8:00 AM

Gene: 14:56

well that's the best time to start serving wine frankly Purple coffee It's referred to as purple coffee Yeah so it makes the day go nice and smooth but we can reminisce for ages and we certainly do when we're having lunch and I do want to cover two things So before we get off don't let me forget to have you talk about your current projects And channel but before we get to that I'm only half kidding about the political stuff because I know that we've started a number of conversations both at wizard Academy and other places And inevitably either your wife calls or you have to take off because you're a busy man and you're doing all these YouTube shoots and TV shoots and things So I think we've got a little bit of an opportunity here to actually doing a little more of a deep dive right though yeah you'd mentioned that you both had COVID and you got a shot for COVID and you wear masks but because of convenience factor So when did you get COVID and how do you know it was COVID

Brian: 16:03

co-ed Um I got COVID Uh so so we were really good about keeping to our bubble Um there were only two places that existed There were or three I guess there there was home there was HQ where we shoot our stuff And there was the drive-through lane and Chick-fil-A uh those were the only three places in my life for a months and months and months And then um uh uh we went and got a dog up in Waco and along the way and and this this apparently is a point of dispute between me and my comedy partner Justin uh uh we we we stopped exactly once for a pee break Um it was a very crowded um Gas station uh like half the people were unmasked and uh uh uh we had to use the facilities and off we went uh then we went and picked up the dog Uh Justin is convinced that uh we caught it from the the the dog breeders or yeah And he's not wrong First thing I did when I got a puppy was you know essentially Likud you know it's Yeah nuzzle my face in it

Gene: 17:17

Didn't quarantine it for 48 hours before looking at it

Brian: 17:20

at them I immediately hugged it and gave in and said I tweeted out a picture You could see the picture of what may be the moment I'm contracting COVID where I tweeted out a picture of me saying I have a new girl in my life Uh and uh uh sure enough five days to the minute I come down with the first symptoms of what are associated with mild Corona virus uh nausea diarrhea and all that stuff Uh and then um uh just to be safe I was like well let me go get a rapid test Uh spent the a hundred bucks And this is the part where everybody in Canada says a hundred dollars Why isn't it free It's like because it was immediate on demand and and a mile away from my house That's why uh and so uh uh when when I got word that you know yeah you came back positive you could have just knocked me over with a feather And so uh I ended up isolating in one of the rooms of the house and um weirdly Uh luckily we we we know a lot more about the disease now than we did back then Uh all I had to go on was the statistics of being somebody in your mid forties Uh it it it looked like there was like 10% fatality rate Um now granted uh I'm I'm healthier than than most 40 year olds Uh I I'm I'm I'm in shape I have low don't have high blood pressure I don't smoke uh all of those comorbid conditions or whatever but um when you get spun up in an anxiety event Uh logic doesn't have a lot of sway in your mind So I ended up like uh somewhere around two in the morning when I realized that uh you know as I was starting to tremble and um like like I've I've had the chills and fevers before but I've never had full on My legs kinda kicking in places though I was swimming or whatever Uh and around 2:00 AM I realize okay I don't know how much of this is the disease Uh but I know an awful lot of it is the anxiety and just realizing like Oh my God I'm I'm going to be awake until the sun comes up Isn't it And and sure enough it was it was a it was a rough go Um I uh uh to to everybody who is enjoying A simulation of that experience by way of a vaccine Congratulations because you know exactly why that's happening and exactly how low the odds are of of of of you dying overnight Uh I had none of those luxuries and it was a very miserable night

Gene: 20:06

So the issue with as you mentioned with the early reports of co-ed were essentially people that had they gotten the Monya from anything they probably would have died so there was a very strong assumption that COVID is the cause And in reality people are dying with COVID now because of COVID you could certainly argue that code contributed I'm not going to argue against that but that's saying somebody died after they drove with the driver's side window open and they ended up getting a chill as a result of that

Brian: 20:47

that Or or you take somebody who has like um let's say several comorbid conditions and then they run a marathon and then they they they

Gene: 20:56

It's exactly right Exactly It's it's taking whatever recently happened and blaming it's not science is the bottom line It is definitely not science It's superstitious and or superstition

Brian: 21:11

Uh and and and before we wander off too far here um I I I do want to lock in like uh it's a real bummer to me as somebody who is um uh anti authoritarian but pro science uh to see how much of the noble lie We've seen enacted over the last year and change you know like uh w w what is it like three days ago Finally the FDA admitted Yeah Stop wiping down your

Gene: 21:45

well there's a lot of things that aren't helping wearing masks Isn't helping for one and I talked about this and the first so well over a year ago in the first months of COVID mandates starting come in last year because there was a one of the best studies in materials Specifically dealing with prevention of viruses was done by the university of Minnesota about two years earlier And you really have to if you want to if you want to be scientific about it you have to look at studies in all these things that were performed before COVID was a thing because then you're guaranteeing no introduction of bias And if you look at these studies what they compare to wear N 95 masks is the baseline for a good quality product and then testing different masks and different materials a notably funny finding that they had was that a bath towel did a better job of filtering back Virus sized particles than a surgical mask Well I do because this was a study at the university of Minnesota That was peer reviewed

Brian: 23:04

I mean I want I I uh I I want to learn more because part part of my adventure has been Um uh there's a uh mass manufacturer here in Austin um that has manufacturing masks and they they've got the equipment to test uh filtration levels and and um uh you know uh particulates and so on Uh and Uh so so basically we've been playing this horse race game of like okay take all the sports people who are wearing those neck Gators basically pantyhose over there their mouths Okay Uh those those came in at 8% filtration and then almost as a joke we were like well what about my t-shirt And my t-shirt came in at 9% filtration like ah okay

Gene: 23:50

It's a crappy t-shirt I think at the university of Minnesota they had a higher

Brian: 23:53

then it's like uh uh well I've got this this one in 95 mask that was made in China that I've kept in my back pocket for about two weeks It's old and ragged uh that came in at 60% filter filtration And then um uh uh uh spoiler alert you know the the I assume heart surgeons wear surgical masks for a reason And when we when we run one of those through we get like 99.3% filtration the idea that a bath towel is the same that's uh

Gene: 24:26

Well a surgical mask is nowhere near 90 surgical mask was about 27% There are surgical masks are not meant to filter air surgical masks are meant to catch particulates

Brian: 24:38

correct

Gene: 24:38

exhalation of the doctor

Brian: 24:43

Correct So so so if if I'm hearing you correctly what you're saying is um uh because there's not an airtight seal and because you probably have a beard or whatever uh it doesn't matter how good the filtration of the

Gene: 24:57

right but filtration isn't that good to begin with Like it can't be because there isn't a fixed seal If you let's say you start off with a perfect filter Which is just saran wrap Nothing goes through it Not even individual oxygen molecules will go through Nothing goes through it It's perfect Filter You start off with that It forces 100% of your breath to go around the filter Right

Brian: 25:25

Right so so in other words by by virtue of being perfect it becomes

Gene: 25:31

Yeah it's perfect at doing what it's supposed to but what it's supposed to do is not what you actually intend and surgical masks in the same way If the if a surgical mask had the same filtration that an N 95 mask would for example then the surgical mask would force about 80 to 90% of the breath to go outside of the mask and around it And what you actually want is you want that breath going through the mask not made for filtering viruses I mean if you look at the design specs on these things it's not what they're for What they're for is essentially to catch phlegm and sweat and other things that could be exhaled by the doctor and prevent that from going directly into the patient

Brian: 26:20

Which is is awfully close to and correct me if I'm wrong on this one but but like what what you worry about that like the fast best way to catch the bug is to have somebody shouting at you and have those spit particles coming at you and and and and projected directly at you Um even if even if there's leakage on the side I got yeah I mean it's Maybe maybe there's something I I'm I'm not understanding but but uh certainly a surgical mask does a better job than than nothing

Gene: 26:58

It depends on what it does a better job of So if you're talking about preventing spittle and phlegm from hitting you if you're speaking with somebody and you're within the range of that as by the way we have and especially you going to bars a lot have been your entire life Now the fact that you didn't die before COVID Is Testament to the fact that people spitting on you every day all day long doesn't actually kill you

Brian: 27:30

Uh yeah And and you could If you want to go even farther you could make the case that uh by spending 20 years traveling all over the United States and going to all of the bars and and and shaking all of the hands and doing all of the filthy You know interactions uh you you could make the case that that that that has increased my my strength to to to handle those

Gene: 27:57

Oh your immune system is obviously much better from being around crowds That's how your immune systems are built So with No I don't want to stray too far from the original point here which is essentially that wearing a mask if you're truly wanting to not get sick right You don't really need to care about how much of your exhale is blocked What you need is a mask that filters all the air coming into you

Brian: 28:24

you Correct And that that's the difference between a surgical mask and an in 95 and 95 is a little bit more Conforming to the shape of your face Like if you're walking into a room where you know there are infected people that's you're going to want a proper in 95 Uh but if you are going out into the world and want to project the message Hey uh Uh uh I would like you to assume the best about me Uh then a surgical mask is is the way to go Um

Gene: 28:55

if the assumption about being the best sheep then sure

Brian: 28:59

Don't I don't know about sheep Uh the uh uh w what because that's interesting because like I'm

Gene: 29:08

If I'm wearing an N 95 mask and you're wearing a surgical mask do I really give a shit if you're wearing a surgical mask Yeah no

Brian: 29:15

you shouldn't if you're wearing an N 95 then you are concerned with

Gene: 29:19

If I'm wearing a surgical mask and you're wearing a surgical mask and my surgical mask isn't going to prevent me from inhaling a virus and your surgical mask Isn't going to prevent you from exhaling of Iris So the only thing we're doing is we're saying okay I'm really bad at uh spitting at people when I talked to them all the time So this will help And where essentially the whole fucking world is on this on the short bus right now

Brian: 29:50

Uh well so let let me let me try turning that on its head Um what I like about The current place of masks and by the way full full disclosure uh uh I'm I'm straight up selling branded single use masks because uh uh what I what I think is that people who are wearing masks um not Eugene because you're you're immune to judgment but but but many people wearing masks right Uh they they they are worried about being judged uh for the masks not being good enough or whatever So as as more data comes out as far as like what's good mask what's bad masks Um none of that is as interesting to me as a tribal branding in the same way like wearing a tenacious D t-shirt Is like you go to the party wearing that shirt hoping somebody recognizes that that band

Gene: 30:55

Totally totally It's the exact same reason that Germans started wearing armbands with a swastika on them

Brian: 31:06

but my point is

Gene: 31:07

and tribe that's what you're saying Masks are used for I mean you could pick a different tribe

Brian: 31:11

Uh I would say yeah I I it outward it is a simple outward expression So so here's my theory And I've said this a few times There's there's three deadlines There's when we're actually safe There's when the law says we're safe whatever that means And then there's when we feel safe and those three deadlines are going to happen very different times So if they're going to have it at different times w as we go back out into the world even though we've gotten vaccinated even though we have antibodies even though we've already had the disease or whatever um what do I want to project to the world Um I could Take a bandana or a neck Gator or whatever which whether I like it or not says something about like yeah no uh uh I'm only doing this because I have to wear something on my stupid face and and Mike you know I I don't care about the level of filtration or whatever Um so-so I guess I guess I'm thinking about it more Um fashion makes it sound too trivial but but but but but I do believe that that sort of a tribal beacon uh I think would be a fair way to put it That's that's something I'm

Gene: 32:25

exactly what I just said Yeah it is it's really no different than people walking around wearing crosses It's you're you're saying Hey I'm also a part of this religion

Brian: 32:38

Uh and even if you don't really believe in your cross it it certainly says that you are comfortable being seen as somebody who believes in this cross And and and maybe and again this is one of those things like like as we go back out in the world I don't even know that I'm minded Even even if it's all a placebo I kind of don't mind it you know

Gene: 33:03

I don't think it's even necessarily a placebo I think it really is about showing tribal affiliation more than anything else And I think certainly the way you described it I would agree with that You see the guy in the Gator is like he's showing he's the rebel and he's only doing this because he asked to and then you have people that are wearing multiple masks again not because they understand any science behind it but because they want to project this image of I'm looking out for you not just me So there's a there's a big similarity to wearing clothing to having various religious symbols in the end It is all symbolic because if you truly want it to just protect yourself at the very bare minimum you would have an N 95 mask And probably a face shield in front of you And that's the cheap route If you want to get more exotic you'd be walking around with your own portable oxygen because that way you can maintain a positive pressure inside and ensure that there's no chance of any virus getting in it It's essentially what people working in labs

Brian: 34:14

um and I'm not entirely certain I've heard a single moment You and I disagree on anything Uh but but but um uh I I don't mind the idea of just broadcasting I mean look you're talking to a guy that you know put his hair into a hedgehog spikes for 20 years you know So it's like like I

Gene: 34:38

That was a lot of work by the way If you remember that's a lot of work If anyone that hasn't seen Brian back before he had normally here find some older videos uh it just looked like so much work I couldn't believe you were

Brian: 34:49

Uh it it it it uh it was it was about 10 minutes every third day because uh what people don't realize is since I was using um uh bees wax you could sleep on it And when you w when you woke up uh some of them would be kind of sideways but you would just Just move them back into shape and you were good to go Um but but I I have no problem with uh presenting as a certain way and I certainly have no problem uh presenting as Uh Hey uh MRF offers of uh yes we all have to wear masks Uh guess what I judge all of your masks as being a joke and mine I could do a heart open-heart surgery with so eat that you know it's it's almost like the contest thing

Gene: 35:36

It is And this is the same reason that I have a leather mask is because it's a piece of clothing really And it says don't fuck

Brian: 35:45

by the way if anybody has not seen a jeans Bain look Oh my God you look amazing uh in Morton Joe from uh uh mad max

Gene: 35:57

I think it's the a thousand yard stare in my eyes as much as the mask but really that's the reason I got it when I go to HEB when I walk around I don't wear masks I think that That is also projecting something which is fuck all Y'all if you want to play this little game you're more than welcome to but I'm not going to

Brian: 36:18

God Okay I just I can't I can't sign up uh I

Gene: 36:25

what people don't even talk to me No they leave me alone Seriously if you want to have people just stand six feet back and never approach you this is what you need to do how cool is it when you're the only person in the grocery store not wearing a mask and then you run across somebody of the opposite sex not wearing a mask that's like a conversation

Brian: 36:51

So that's interesting I didn't think about like um as as far as like sexual coding like like you're you're essentially saying it's like a uh it's tender for for

Gene: 37:03

it is Yeah It's yeah exactly it is the grocery store not the bar but yeah essentially what you're projecting is I still believe that I'm in control of what I do and not in allowing somebody else to take that control the other issue with mask is this idea that people are wearing masks repeatedly when I've needed to wear masks in order to enjoy a meal or something I always get a disposable mask which I'm going to wear it for no more than about two hours and then it's going in the trash now

Brian: 37:38

which which is the right thing to do And and this is where I'm a total hypocrite and probably why we're having custom masks made so that I can be better about it Um

Gene: 37:49

yeah your masks is going to say Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday

Brian: 37:53

Uh no they're going to say uh where it garbage where it garbage where a

Gene: 37:56

There you go There you go No it's totally true

Brian: 37:59

there'll be disposed of as they're supposed to be Yeah

Gene: 38:02

So if you're going to have anything in front of your face especially something that has a lattice in it that can trap bacteria So the remember we're talking about codes of virus and virtually all these masks are not going to do diddly squat against viruses but they do have sufficient enough fibers and a mesh of them to be able to trap bacteria and fungus's

Brian: 38:26

and and also uh let's say uh uh particles uh

Gene: 38:30

Yeah or just look you're basically exhaling carbon dioxide and a lot of water and paper A lot of people don't realize just how much water vapor you exhale On a typical day you will exhale about two pounds of water vapor That's a lot and you're warming that substrate that mask up to 98 degrees So you have a moist warm environment that you're constantly replenishing it with bacteria What do you think is going to happen there You don't think they're going to enjoy living in your mask Of course they are I've seen a lot of people that have non COVID related issues with bronchitis with more allergies and all these things are tied I'm not gonna say it's the only cause but they're certainly tied to wearing masks instead of using disposable masks So if you're going to be one of the people that actually sticks a mask out and then leaves it on there for hours rather than just putting it on just to make believe then you need to make sure you're using disposable masks because you're literally hurting yourself otherwise

Brian: 39:42

uh what uh your flea streams stress strange a spectrum There is like there's um uh because like like Uh this is what I love about conversations with gene is that there are there are so many things we agree on and it's almost hard to figure out where we disagree because we both we both agree if you're gonna wear a mask uh it's disposable or bust because those are the only ones that do anything You probably should get a shaped in 95 If you're afraid Of incoming uh uh pathogens However it doesn't sound like you're opposed to the social proof of wearing a surgical mask as as an outward projection of I am I am being courteous to you Uh kind of like taking your shoes off

Gene: 40:31

Well it's a projection I just what's called You're projecting that you're a sheep

Brian: 40:35

Oh yeah That's where

Gene: 40:36

It's an it's a negative Yeah You don't mind it I don't really mind it but to me it's kind of a negative That's an interesting way to to phrase it I don't know that I necessarily like it I just don't care if people are antisocial towards me I guess

Brian: 40:58

guess So this probably does play in a little bit with uh you know being the the scam school guy trying to be the most interesting you know uh rack and tour at the bar or whatever part of that is that low grade constant social awareness Um and and I and I do feel like um Uh however popular you can get doing tricks at the bar You could probably do so right now uh and get a little bit more popular Uh if if you happen to be wearing a disposable mask a surgical mask or something that that says uh I'm not I'm not rolling my eyes again like net Gators are lifting up your shirt to me That's like okay you're you are you clearly don't believe in any of this And you want the whole world to know you don't believe in it Uh Jean your solution might be the cleverest Uh your solution might be the cleverest in that it's the baddest ass looking mask and it looks so bad ass that you never bothered to Consider that you're wearing it as costume jewelry

Gene: 42:10

I mean Here's my two alternatives of if I'm going to HEB grocery shopping or something lately I've just not been wearing anything cause it's easier And I've literally never had any kind of negative and not just HEB everywhere I go I don't there's signs all over wear a mask I was at a gas station down in one of the little outlying towns here And the the Bucky's had a sign that said masks tonight No it wasn't wearing a mask and everybody's pretty much walking around with one which I didn't expect that a Bucky's but either way No one's ever said anything No one's ever made any kind of weird comments saying why aren't you wearing a mask You should put a mask on I think people are at least here in Texas understand that if somebody is doing something there might be a reason for it

Brian: 42:56

Uh well uh uh two things Number one Maybe they didn't say nothing but man I guarantee you that there is a fair amount of secret judginess happening And and and and uh I I know that that doesn't bother you one way or the other but uh but uh I've I've got some friends of mine who have moved to Texas recently from California and they were just like it is so weird to drive around and see fully packed Parking lots at bars Like like they just they're just trying to wrap their minds around what they're seeing

Gene: 43:31

Yeah Yeah it is true Now let me also Cabot a little bit of this mass conversation by saying that I actually do have a restaurant that I go to where they require you to wear a mask and gloves And I am totally in support of this and I hope they keep it forever And that is a a Korean buffet that I like And I think that having a bunch of random strangers with no man scan on a hovering around food that you're going to be eating is like That scenario which has been reality up until a year and a half ago is much worse than the alternative that people are now accustomed to which is The you want to go get more food at the buffet put on your gloves put on your mask And it just means that that food is going to be that much cleaner and less caring of pathogens if people aren't sneezing or sweating on top of it So I'm all for that remaining

Brian: 44:36

don't know that in any podcast format I've been able to participate in a more all over the place Nuanced conversation about sex

Gene: 44:47

Well I've spent a bit of time on this

Brian: 44:49

this Yeah

Gene: 44:59

The only other thing well we got onto the political topic which is why I wanted to go because too many times you and I have just had these really brief versions of conversations and been pulled away But yeah no I just wanted to make sure that you cover your current projects before we wrap up because I know a lot of people will know who you are because a lot of mine listeners are no agenda people and no agenda People know you because Adam's been on your show and they probably are fans anyway But for the people that

Brian: 45:27

Justin will murder me if I give any details on it but he hasn't murdered me previously for mentioning that there's something big that we're working on that should come out Uh by the end of the month that's all I can say Uh I'm very proud of it I have already sent you a link to it

Gene: 45:49

Maybe

Brian: 45:50

Okay Okay Well I want to talk to you about it I'm very very pleased with it in the meantime if you want to believe signal that that that you're a modern rogue uh and also tribally signal that that you uh are courteous and and don't mind wearing medical grade Masks are manufactured in an FDA listed facility then head on over to scam stuff That's a reputable website I promise And uh uh that's that's what we're we're we're doing a run we're we're about 60% sold out of of these Um the the idea is Look whenever you want to wear your crap mask wear your crap mask But but when you're stepping out and you want to broadcast that that you're you're wearing actual surgical material And also that that that you're hip to the modern rogue then um uh those are the ones to get

Gene: 46:42

what's the website

Brian: 46:44

stuff Dot com your number one stop for all your medical supply needs

Gene: 46:50

Yeah And lockpicks and what else

Brian: 46:54

Magic tricks and puzzle boxes also uh Jean uh full disclosure financier when we got this started ago now Wow Nine

Gene: 47:08

it's amazing How how much time is a flown since that whole thing got started but yeah right now so what shows are you currently doing right now Like new content being done

Brian: 47:20

uh uh definitely modern rogue If you go to youtube.com/modern rogue um uh if you'll find me and Jason on a quest to be the ultimate gentlemen warrior and scoundrel uh the if you go to youtube.com/scam school you'll see Weirdly not me at the bar and on the street doing scams but instead me teaching my 13 year old daughter how to light matches on her teeth and and cool stuff like that Uh that's uh that's that's another benefit of the Corona virus Uh on Mondays we do a show If you go to chord killers.com that's a show about movies and TV from the perspective of people who want to Cut the cable cord and uh of course weird things is the show uh from three guys who don't believe in big foot but still think he's awesome And uh and then finally we're we're in between projects Uh we we technically ended night attack our comedy podcast uh but Uh but but wow stuffs right now we're just acting like we're in purgatory We call it ghost attack

Gene: 48:37

and just for people that you what are you up to now in terms of subs

Brian: 48:44

Oh uh uh

Gene: 48:46

Yeah Like what

Brian: 48:47

Uh yeah uh uh scam schools scam scam nation is is like 1.93 million And uh uh meanwhile uh most most of the new traction is on modern rogue That's like 1.3 and a half million Um we have some secret modern rogue adjacent projects that we're working on And then um uh and then everything else is podcasts uh about 10,000 a pop

Gene: 49:21

So I guess the the only other question for me is how come you've never had me on any of your shows

Brian: 49:28

because I'm scared of you Jean if anybody has met you you're very intimidating and you wear that bane mask and you look like a Martin Joe and you have a card that says legitimate businessman to be on Cause I'll have you on any of them

Gene: 49:43

you take your pick dude I'm happy to be

Brian: 49:46

be you know what ma maybe maybe maybe let's get you on court killers because uh uh it's it's now now that we're in a place where it's less weird

Gene: 50:05

we don't and you were a guy that had actually paid me five bucks to watch What was that show Legion which

Brian: 50:13

We yeah

Gene: 50:15

it's that first season was killer

Brian: 50:18

that became my new trick is I believe I handed you$20 I said just buy it And if you like it hit me back this 20 and the next week you handed me back 20

Gene: 50:27

it was a it was a five but yeah

Brian: 50:29

You're going to watch Legion And then I stumped the 20 in his pocket

Gene: 50:32

man your memory is not very good It was five bucks and I kept it but yes Um now Legion was a great show and we can certainly I can talk for hours about shows as well all right dude Well I know you got to run I appreciate that you took the time to sit down and have the conversation I hope I brought you to a slightly different conversation than you were expecting and that my listeners were expecting as well but nonetheless a fun one That's true If I was making YouTube videos that would be the headline And then then I would have a little cropped with your face Really scared and frowny and my face Yeah Yeah exactly And then black and red text Yes Thanks Brian