Hello from New York Shitty,
I had been at my headquarters, happily, in Acapulco for just a few days when some events necessitated that I go to New York. I absolutely despise being here but much of the media is here and if I want to get out the TDV message to the American masses I have to come here from time to time.
My trip couldn't have started more apropos. My driver dropped me off at Acapulco airport… one of my favorite airports because it is small and normally incredibly laid back and easy. But, I had never taken a direct flight from Acapulco to the US (Houston). In the past I´ve always flown through Mexico City or Tijuana and then onward but the best flight available, last minute, was a United flight direct to Houston.
I winced, as United is one of my least favorite airlines but decided to book it. Upon showing up at Acapulco airport I noticed a distinct difference between my usual domestic flights within Mexico. As I arrived at the security check I was surprised as I didn´t recognize anyone. I´ve been to that airport hundreds of times so I am almost friends with everyone there. I started to walk through the metal detector when these new people told me to go back. I was confused but stepped back. Then they asked, in Spanish, "do you have a belt on?"
I said yes.
They then told me to take it off. I was confused, they never do that in Acapulco. But, I complied and began to walk through the metal detector when they stopped me again.
"Shoes off please," they said.
I looked around to make sure I was still in Acapulco. But, still quite happy to be in Acapulco, I took it off and gave them a bit of a stern look.
I then walked through and the metal detector didn't even beep but they wanted to use their metal detecting wand on me and were patting down around my legs and feet.
Then a person came up and rubbed some cotton swabs all over my clothes and even my palms. I just stood there in confusion still. I have been in about 50 airports in the last month and continued to look around just to make sure I was in Acapulco. Because this was not normal at the Acapulco airport.
I shrugged it off and then went to the gate and began to board when I was stopped by another woman with some sort of machine that looked like a dustbuster. Another man told me to sit down and take off my shoes. Now I had had enough.
I said, "Is this the US or Acapulco?"
The young man just shrugged as I kicked off my shoes and threw them in his general direction.
"Enjoy looking at my dirty shoes," I said.
As with most Acapulquenos he was non-confrontational and quickly looked over my shoes.
Finally realizing what was going on… that they do this when there is a US direct flight, I said to him, "You are from Acapulco, why are you doing the bidding of the US government?"
He shrugged nicely again and I continued, "This is sad. Acapulco is a beautiful and amazing place… are you going to let it turn into the USSA?"
He handed back my shoes and nodded.
As I walked onto the plane I looked back and said, "Get an honorable job. Don't let this happen to Acapulco."
He nodded and smiled embarrasingly.
I then boarded the United flight and the difference between it and any other Mexican airline was immediately obvious. The plane was about fifty years old and the overweight flight attendant was sweating and looked incredibly stressed. She went up and down the aisles telling people what to do, in English, despite the fact that more than half the passengers were Mexican and obviously didn't speak English.
When one mother of two children didn't understand what she was telling her, the flight attendant just repeated in English louder and louder, yelling at the young mother that she had to put her 3 year old son in a seat with seatbelt and not on her lap. I was just about to interrupt and help the situation when three other Mexican passengers who spoke English all got up and explained to the mother what the flight attendant was saying and tried to calm the flight attendant down as she was almost going into a nervous breakdown that this woman was not complying to her commands that she didn't understand.
We finally took off and I closed my eyes and just tried to forget I was on United and going to the US when, only two minutes after take-off the flight attendant started running up and down the aisles in some sort of frenzy. We were still ascending and so this was quite unusual. And, she had her cellphone out and appeared to be taking photos… something I found strange as she had just spent the last 20 minutes admonishing everyone with a cellphone that they had to turn it off (which, actually, the FAA has finally overturned as a rule a few weeks ago, thankfully). But I didn't feel like informing this insane woman of the news earlier.
Then the plane did a 180 turn and it was quite obvious we were heading back to Acapulco. I can´t say I was overly unhappy about that. I was not looking forward to going to the US despite the business I needed to do. They then instructed us to sit near the gate as they said we may be going at any minute. That minute turned into five hours and I called my wife and asked her if I could just come back home and be happy.
My wife is also an anarcho-capitalist and she said, "No, Jeff, you have to go. It´s for business."
So I sat and waited. Finally I noticed people filtering off and decided to ask the United attendant what was going on.
"Oh, we cancelled the flight. The plane needs maintenance," she said.
I again called my wife and got the same response. I told her that I was supposed to be on Fox Business at 10am and it was already midnight and I hadn't even left yet. She told me to find a way. And, being an anarcho-capitalist myself, I knew I had to find a way.
I checked with the other Mexican airlines if there was any way I could make it to New York before 9am and the AeroMexico attendant was eminently helpful. I explained my situation and she spent 30 minutes calling people and on the internet looking for a way to get me there and finally found a way I could.
She pulled every contact and string she could and we had a nice conversation in between phone calls. She finally, on one phone call, gave me the thumbs up.
She handed me my boarding passes for a way to get me to NYC by 8am and I said, "Thank you so much for all your help. I think, after all that, I am going to go have a cigarette."
She said, "After that I need a cigarette too!"
I asked her if she wanted to join me and she laughed, "I don´t smoke but that was stressful!"
I arrived at New York at 8am and after my taxi driver got into a shoving match with the hotel bellboy over something I didn´t understand I had a 1 minute shower and put on some fresh clothes just in time for the Fox driver to pick me up.
I was then on with Stuart Varney at Fox. I have to defend him somewhat. Every time I am on with him in the YouTube comments everyone says he is an ignorant fool. Having spent enough time with him now I can say he may have no idea about technology nor even money but it is no great sleight against him. What he is, really, is just an actor. I see him before and after each interview and he is just joking around… he doesn´t care. Then, the teleprompters come on and he just reads off it.
In general he is quite a likable guy… but the part I don´t like, but understand, is he really doesn´t let his guests talk for more than about 5 seconds at a time. But, that´s fine, it is just a show and I understand that.
He said the same thing he always talks when discussing Bitcoin with me. He always strongly states, "So, you expect me to give you my HARD, REAL money for a virtual currency?"
And he always cuts me off before I explain that US dollars are as virtual as bitcoin. But, I was happy to see this meme circulating on the internet that someone made after the interview.
I then headed to Central Park to film another edition of Anarchast with liberty rocker Jordan Page and then made my way to Bloomberg for another interview.
This time I was very happily surprised! I was unfamiliar with the host, Mark Crumpton, despite him being with Bloomberg since 1992. He was different than Varney. He really seemed to understand what I was talking about. He was quite stoic, however, and i was unsure if the things I was saying he took negatively or positively. Then the interview appeared to end very abruptly and I thought to myself, "Here we go again, they are cutting me off for saying too much truth."
Here was the interview.
The lights dimmed and he sat silent. I thought for sure he was going to tell me to get out. Then, after all the cameras were off he handed me his business card and told me, "I wish we had an hour to talk about the things you were talking about."
I have to say after decades of being on a multitude of media around the world I really like the Bloomberg people. They aren´t just talking heads for the most part and actually are quite capitalist and think about things. It´s too bad that Nanny Bloomberg turned into such a fascist dictator.
He invited me back and I will be happy to accept the request.
THE POSITIVES
I´ve talked quite negatively about my short excursion to New York but there were a lot of positives. First, as happens almost anywhere I go in the world, a number of TDVers made it out for some drinks. And, I got to hang out with one of my heroes again. We hung out at Galt´s Gulch Chile a lot last week but he was back in his home town and took me out for an interesting night.
The person I am talking about is Luke Rudkowski, the founder of what is fast becoming a global media empire, We Are Change.
I have to say that he is one of the most impressive young men I have ever met. If you are not familiar with him he is this generations top investigative journalist. While most journalists just read off of teleprompters and government press releases, Luke confronts all the "untouchables", from Henry Kissinger to the Rothschilds, Dick Cheney and countless others… and has a large network worldwide, including in Chile, of other people like him who hunt down the aggressors and point a camera in their face and ask the real questions.
This is one of many… but one of my favorites from Luke:
The kid is a hero.
I must be getting old because I may have my first protege… Luke. He is full of massive potential but doesn´t necessarily understand how to monetize what he is doing… something that I´ve known how to do for the last 20 years.
Luke, like me, seems to have a worldwide network wherever he goes. I was invited but couldn´t make it to the We Are Change mansion party in Santiago last week but got to meet many of Luke´s inner circle of freedom fighters last night in NYC.
They took me to their anarchist hangout, Circa Taba, in Soho. It´s the only bar in NYC where you can still smoke and about 20 of Luke´s colleagues joined. It felt very much like sitting in a smoky backroom in East Germany planning the resistance… or like we often do at Mangos in Acapulco, discussing anarchist philosophy. Or, like we did at Galt's Gulch Chile last week, plotting our plans to use jury nullification and the advent of the Just Us movement to remove unjust laws.
As well, another good friend who is becoming the top libertarian photographer, Judd Weiss, was in town. I will likely be seeing him again later tonight in Brooklyn for a libertarian party. He snapped this photo of Luke and I from the streets of New York.
I am extending my stay in NYC for at least one day to hopefully record Anarchast´s 100th episode with Luke Rudkowski. Subscribe to Anarchast's YouTube channel to catch that when it is live.
UNTIL NEXT WEEK
I have been sitting at a typical chain restaurant bar, Ruby Tuesdays, in Times Square as I wrote this and have just come back from the bathroom. On the way up the steps to the bathroom were numerous homeless people sleeping. And a homeless person who looked scared in the bathroom. I then walked outside for a cigarette and numerous homeless and crazy people asked me for cigarettes, which I provided.
This place is really going downhill fast. I am about to step off into the night and walk through the garbage strewn streets and sidestep most of the homeless people and gangsters. I'll be back in Mexico soon, hopefully… all my Mexican friends and family are worried about me being in a dangerous country like the USSA.
Until next week, love your friends and family, help those you can, create wealth and enjoy each day like it is your last. Everytime I see Luke I shake his hand like it may be the last time… because it just might. Unless he moves to Chile or Mexico, which he has told me is his plan… and I have told him I´ll do whatever I can to help when he needs it.
Not that everything is negative here or anywhere in the world… but I see dark clouds gathering… and it may be a thousand black swans darkening the skies in this region. In the end, however, if more people awaken to what is really going on we can mostly survive intact and move on to a world more peaceful and prosperous than we can imagine.
Those are the stakes.
