[00:00:00] We'll have this discussion. Discussion? What discussion? This is a discussion. Combustion. Coming to you from Denver, Colorado, this is Discussion Combustion Podcast with your hosts Kevin Batstone and Arthur Rawe. What is the Bible verse? John 316? Well Alec Henkelman says I just whipped your ass. This is episode 316 Discussion Combustion. Welcome back brother.
[00:00:29] Thanks man, thanks for having me. We've been waiting 315 episodes to do with Stone Cold. Yeah, I'm happy that we got that. That's awesome. That's pretty fucking cool. Welcome back brother. Thanks man, I missed you guys. It's good to see you. You look good. Thank you. You look like you could probably bust my head off in about one shot. Yeah. So it's good to know a guy like that. Yeah, I do my best man. And you got a fight coming up. July 25th. I'm gonna be there. Fingers crossed. Okay. So we'll promote that too down when we get info.
[00:00:59] Yeah, once it's confirmed. And we'll just drop it down below too. Sweet. Yeah. Yeah, it's with Sparta Sports Entertainment. Okay. Stream it, show up, whatever. Nice man. The card hasn't been released so I don't know when I'm fighting yet. Okay. I don't know like what fight I am. Just the date. The date. Which is a Saturday. I signed the contract so. Okay, nice. Right on. This moves in the right direction. If you haven't seen Alec's previous episodes, this is your third time on Discussion Combustion. That's right. And you're more than a guest to me because I purchased both my firearms from you.
[00:01:28] And then Alec actually helped me dial in my Glock and figure out how to actually handle a handgun properly. And I'm forever grateful for you for that. So like, it's really good to have you back on this couch, man. That's dope dude. Yes. I was happy to sell you your first Glock 19. Yes. So yeah. Yeah. And it's quite a piece too. Like, I've had dreams and like, it's like in my mind. It'll last your whole life. Just sitting over there. Just sitting right in the room. Just real close. Mine's in my pocket. Yes. Good man.
[00:01:59] Second Amendment. We love it. Yes. There's some new Smith & Wesson out for you. Really? I gotta come by. Yeah. I gotta come by. Dude, metal frame ones. Really? They're like my customers favorites right now. Also my favorite. They're super nice. Okay. So it's all metal, super heavy, but they're pretty slick. Cause I love the M&Ps. That's mostly what I. That's what it is. That's what it is. Metal frame M&P. Okay. So you're talking about like the bottom part is plastic on some of them. Yeah. Like yours is plastic. Your polymer, your Glock. Yeah. A lot of the lowers kind of have that kind of toy gun feel to it.
[00:02:28] Dude, I think the metal, I like the metal. I'm a sucker for a metal gun. How much heavier is it though than the M&P II? I mean, I don't know like numbers off the top of my head, but it's. It's noticeable. It's significantly noticeable. Yeah. I'm gonna have to try it. So. Yeah. I'm gonna have to try it for sure. I think if I put one in your hand, the shop, you're gonna be like, fuck. I'm gonna be like, I need this. I'm gonna need to. Yeah. They're definitely more expensive, you know, 900 to 1200 bucks or, or somewhere in that ballpark. Yeah. I think I got my M&P II for like seven. So yeah. Versus yeah. The average 700 bucks.
[00:02:57] But I think it's worth it. I think they're awesome. Fuck. Yeah. Yeah. I like the, the Smith and Weston to the concealed that, that I picked up from you as well. So yeah. Yeah. The little shark. Yeah. The shark is what I call it. Yeah. And so you get the CSX. Um, it was the, uh, it's the shield. Yeah. The shield. That's the one. Those are good. I love that. I love that gun, but you got to have the extended mag in there for true comfort, you
[00:03:25] know, or else your pinky's slipping off and you're like, but it doesn't get wily. Cause one of my friends had the concealed, uh, Glock that had like kind of a longer barrel to it. And we were shooting it with the short mag and that thing felt like it was going to fly out of my hand without my pinky holding it. But the shield with the short magazine still felt really sturdy. I think it might be cause that like the grip that it has on the handle. Pretty aggressive grips with the Smiths. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.
[00:03:53] Small gun doesn't mean small kick always. No, it's true. Yeah. Good things come in small packages. That's right. And they can pack a fucking punch. How's business been overall? It's been, you know, feast famine. I mean, it's good. I'm still there. I'm just trying to, you know, keep, keep going. Yeah. So yeah, business was good, uh, this last week and then a bunch of new laws coming out. There's always new laws here in Colorado. Yeah. So that's always super frustrating. It doesn't prevent any crime.
[00:04:22] All it does is nickel and dime my pocket. Mm. It's just frustrating. Yeah. Cause like criminals aren't getting their guns from you anyway. Right. No, you know, if they are, it's few. Yeah. And far and few between. Right. Yeah. Well, I don't know how deep you want to go into this, but there's been some bullshit that's occurred with your business. Yeah. That's a part of the stress, right? Broncos bought the building. Um, I had an existing lease and then they raised the rent by 20%. So when did they come in exactly? I think it was February.
[00:04:52] They finished the deal. Okay. And I signed my lease, uh, last September, September 18th. So, and then that lease started January this year. Okay. And, uh, yeah, I didn't think it was going to be a big deal. I didn't even know the building was first. I mean, I knew that they were gonna sell it or were open to selling it.
[00:05:17] Um, cause I was, I had some loose talks about buying a portion of it or the whole thing. Um, it was an expensive building. So I couldn't, I just couldn't do it at that point in time on my own without like a few other owners or something. So I just passed on it. Then, you know, they sold the building. I'm not, I have a good relationship with the old owner. I don't, I would've done the same thing. I would've done the same thing. I would've taken that Broncos check too, man. I don't know.
[00:05:44] I mean, I'm sure he probably got more than what he was asking. Sure. Potentially. Um, I wasn't involved in that conversation, so I don't really know, but I would hope for him. Right. But it didn't, doesn't make sense that you got, it's weird. It's a local sports team, right? It's like Denver Broncos. Yeah. I'm a Broncos fan. I watched the playoffs with my buddy. Cause he's a Broncos native. Yeah. I was rooting for the Broncos with them. And then they come in and buy my building and they raise my rent by 20%, not honor an existing lease.
[00:06:14] Kinda shitty. Yeah. And you heard the phone conversation, right? I listened to that entire combo twice. I think Art, you heard a piece of it. Yeah. You know, you stood your ground. They just trying to fucking, you know, Oh, well, you know, we didn't raise you. It was this like weird back and forth lingo that just ultimately still screws you in the end. Like, yeah, how does this make me feel any better? It's still 20% or whatever it is. It's 20%. Yeah. Which is a lot. And I'm not the only tenant. There's two other tenants. Their rent got raised the same amount. And I'm sure you've had conversations with them and what their thoughts on shit is.
[00:06:44] They're probably just as pissed, right? Yeah. I bet. Well, it's, it's, it's bullshit because, you know, I don't even really pay attention to sports too much nowadays. Like I'm not watching the seasons or anything, but I did hear that there's approval for a new stadium to get built. Which is right in your vicinity. So yeah. So it's like right where your shop is. And so essentially how I'm seeing this from an outsider is that they need to build a new stadium, which like Invesco field or whatever it's called nowadays, and power and power field
[00:07:14] like that is kind of a new stadium in my mind as well. Like that was built within my lifetime, like less than 20 years ago. So like, and they've been doing all these upgrades. Like one of our friends installed all this wire and fiber optics. Yeah. So it's a nice stadium. It is. They don't really need to build a new stadium. I agree. So I believe that they want a new construction project and it's, you know, for alternative reasons, it's not a need.
[00:07:39] And then what they're doing here is taking a veteran owned business, which you have, and it's a locally owned business. And they're trying to strong arm you out by changing lease agreements that were already in existence prior to them taking over. So like, you know, it seems pretty devious to me. And like all for reasons that I don't even think should exist in the first place. That's what I said on the phone. I said it was bad business. You know, it feels shiesty.
[00:08:08] I've never dealt with this before. And it's, uh, I've had a lot of people with their opinions. They're like, they're just doing that. So you, so you would leave. It's like, but that still doesn't make sense because I've got a year lease. If I wanted you to leave, I'd call me. I'm a 36 year old man that's owned a business for as long as you guys have had the podcast, right? Yep. Seven, eight years, whatever. You could have called me and be like, Hey, I like, listen, you know, I'm sure you've heard about the plans. We bought the building for that.
[00:08:34] You know, unfortunately we won't be able to renew your lease post this year. So we want to let you know now, February, March, you, you know, you can get some stuff and, you know, get up on your way. I would've been like, I understand. No problem. Yeah. And I would have left it out there. I'd be like, Oh, that sucks. Yeah. You know what I mean? But I would've had 10 months to do all that. And then now I'm like putting this spot where I'm crunched on time. And, um, and it's just, it's just shitty, dude.
[00:09:01] And I'm not, you know, I didn't go to the Met Gala wearing a tax to rich dress. Yeah. Right. But like, why are you raising my rent 20% if you're the fucking Denver Broncos? You know, I made a joke to a reporter. I'm like cut bone X's salary by eight grand. Yeah. Fucking won't miss it. I will. He's not even going to notice. Yeah. But that's what they do. I mean, it's a tale as old as time, you know, like got to build a new stadium. So all these small businesses are going to get fucked. It's going to cost 50 plus thousand dollars just to move my store.
[00:09:31] That's crazy. Paying. Well, I'm going to have to pay two rents or a mortgage because I got to have two spaces in the transition. Right. I have to stay open. I have employees that I have to pay money. I've got employees with families and daughters and stuff like that. You know what I'm saying? I've got a wife and kid. You're like, oh, I'm going to close for a month to move. Yeah. I mean, and they're loyal and awesome. They're great dudes. I'm sure they'd come back if I laid them off even for 60 days. But like, I don't, I'm not going to do that. Right.
[00:10:00] I'd rather reach into my savings account and pay them two months. So they're fine and safe. But it's like, they're putting me in a position where I very well could have to do that. I might be out of business for a short period or something, but who knows? No. Like I'm, you know, pulling teeth and doing all this stuff to just get in there and get shit done. And I work a little better under pressure anyway. So I've always seemed to make it work. I feel like it'll work out. But at the end of the day, I just feel like what they're doing, it's unnecessary.
[00:10:30] Oh no, we got a bullshit button right there. Yeah. That's definitely where they hit it. Yeah. That's bullshit. That is some bullshit. Fuck the Denver Broncos. I'm a huge Patriots fans. I'm going to take this opportunity to fucking stomp on them. It's bad business. I'm not, you know, I don't know if Robert Kraft's ever done any bad business like that, but not that I've heard of. Well, let me say this. I don't, I don't even think those people know. Probably not. Robert Kraft, all those people. First of all, why the fuck would they care? Right? Yeah. They don't fucking know. But I think about this.
[00:10:59] Think about all the football players on the team. Where do those guys come from? They're not typically rich guys. You know what I mean? They're poor kids coming out of poor neighborhoods, getting grants to go to college to hopefully make the NFL. And then they do. Imagine doing this to like one of their moms. Yeah. Raising their mom's rent by 20% while they're trying to struggle by and get into the NFL. It's the same thing. You know what I mean? It's like, it is.
[00:11:28] And I feel like if it happened to one of those people, it would, it'd be a little different. Like they'd be able to hear it, but they're not even listening. The people way up there, they're not even, they're not listening. They have no clue. They raised my rent by 20%. And they don't give a shit. And they don't give a shit anyway. Yeah. Because like I said, the tale is old as time. It's always going to be when shit like this goes on, there's going to be a handful of businesses just get fucked. And they, and they don't do what you did that they'll probably just take it and be like, Oh, this is the way it is.
[00:11:57] And, or like, they probably wouldn't even stand up. Like a lot of people just take it on the chin. Yeah. Because like they don't like friction. And I mean, the first thing I did was call a reporter. Yeah. I called a reporter before I called a lawyer. I saw the article. That's how I ended up getting back in touch with you. I was like, dude, what's going on? I was like, we got to get you back on the show. I had a lot of texts over that. I bet. So yeah, I saw it all over the news. I was like, man, we got to straighten this out. So my first thought was you were being targeted because of the style of business of what you do and what you sell. That was my first thought.
[00:12:26] And then I realized my neighbors too. Yeah. Logistically where it is, you know, to this new stadium that they want to build, then it's like, all right, they're just trying to fuck businesses over. My neighbor is just a pottery business and then a gym. Yeah. Interesting. So it's like, that's, that's, it's not style. I think it's fair to be like, Oh, it's cause I'm a gun store, which in a lot of cases I've dealt with that, but not in this case, it's just the whole building, the whole building pottery gym and a gun shop. Yeah. All got fucked. Yeah.
[00:12:54] The story of the small, small business is trying to fight their way through. It fucking sucks, dude. Yeah. It sucks, man. Yeah. It's like all the tax revenue I generate. Yeah. The tax fucking money I generate for this city and state, dude, it's astronomical. Yeah. I just got my federal fucking tax bill. It's crazy, dude. I mean, half, half our life, if you really think about it, half your fucking money goes to taxes. Which is crazy. Which is insane. Yeah.
[00:13:23] We started killing people over 3%. Right. No taxation without representation. Yeah. Income tax is supposed to be temporary. Yeah. And here it is. Long term. With dangling a carrot along the way. Oh, we're going to abolish it at some point and replace it with tariffs. I mean, and I'm not saying we need no taxes country of 300 plus million. You need a fire department. You need a police department. Absolutely. Yes. You need a hospital you can go into, you know, that you can get care and set up a payment plan. Right. You need shit like that.
[00:13:51] Um, no, but they've just been getting away with it for so long and dumbing people down with all the smart devices, with the internet, with, you know, kids on tablets to entertain them since they're infants. Mm hmm. Like the humans are getting dumber. And then like the whole AI thing to where now what is real that we see online? Like, is that footage real footage?
[00:14:19] No, it's AI or it could be, or, you know, so now we're in this extra unsure part of history. Yeah. So there's like all these things coming together and like these data centers getting built. Right. And then building stadiums to, and then moving small businesses as a result. And there's no reason for the Denver Broncos to move. There's no need. No. So what I heard is so they can host Super Bowls. Because they're going to get a dome. Because they're going to get a dome. So that would be, I guess the need, but that then takes away what I think is grassroots football.
[00:14:48] Why can't they get a dome on the existing one? That, there you go. That seems, that seems more practical. It seems, it seems more practical and it seems like an expensive project, but still cheaper than a whole new stadium. Building a whole new stadium. And like redoing 8th Avenue and a fucking highway opening and putting me out of business and all that shit. It's like corruption. People want these contract deals. It's corrupt. I'm telling you, it goes to the upper echelons of our government. It's like corrupted.
[00:15:15] Well, COVID opened a lot of people's eyes to a lot of shit. For sure. All the tax money we pay, dude. I think the waste, fraud and abuse is like overwhelmingly substantial to a point that like, I can't explain the biggest portion of that.
[00:15:44] Not necessarily waste, but the fraud. And I can't help it. Like someone's not going to make 10, 20 million off this stadium. There's going to be fraud within that. Absolutely. I don't think it's tax funded this time, but a lot of cities have tax funded stadiums. Right. What happened with the Bears? Yeah. And then even New Orleans, right? Yep. After the Superdome. Katrina and stuff. That was all tax funded. Yep.
[00:16:11] So it's like, I bet if you like audited all that stuff, you'd find people just lying in their pockets and buying cars and all this stuff. And that's what it is. And that's why I get mad at taxes. I don't necessarily have a problem paying taxes. It's where it's allocated. Because like I said, you need a fire department. You know that stuff. Right. But it's like where it's going. And also, hey, if we make a feel good law to pay taxes and it's not fucking working a year or two later, let's not keep it for seven or eight years. Right. You know what I mean? Like, let's just get rid of it. Right.
[00:16:41] So dragging it out. Dragging it out and just wasting money and time. Because by then it's almost too late. Like you see what's going on in Minnesota with the fraud up there. You know, 1.2 billion or whatever it was. Kind of paraphrasing the number. But it's probably more, dude. It's fucking... You know, our head's actually going to roll. They say that's going to be prosecuted. But is it... Got it. No one's going to get in trouble. No one's going to... Nothing ever happens, dude. No one cares. No one gets in trouble. No one gives a shit. It's bullshit. It's just the same fucking thing over and over again in a different storyline. I may not pay my taxes. Fuck it.
[00:17:12] Fuck them. Yeah, fuck them, dude. I don't know. So when I went tax exempt when I was an idiot, I would use all my extra money for drugs. It's why I was stupid. And look, they waited until the 11th hour to come collect that shit. Like, cause what? After five years it falls off or something like that? And they got you right at the bitter end? On the fifth year. So like, cause I did it for like two or three years, went exempt. And then... You paid zero tax for five years. For three years. Three years.
[00:17:39] And then five years after that, when I'm getting clean and getting my act together, then those bills hit me. They're like, hey, you owe us. Yeah. Fucker. And so they actually garnished my paychecks for a little bit. Like 40% of my paychecks. Yeah, that sucks. I mean, the shit got paid off pretty quick at that point. And you don't have a choice at that point. No. Once the IRS has a hold of your bank account, you're fucked. Yeah. So it's kind of... It's pretty messed up. Like how much we have to pay. And like, I'll give... I'll take taxes out of my checks now.
[00:18:08] And then like, I'll still owe taxes at the end of the year. Like, I don't get it. And then you've got all these rich people that, you know, own the construction company that's going to build the stadium or the lawyer company that employs the lawyers that you talk to. And then they do these frivolous things and then hide behind their LLC and like, don't have to have accountability or they find a loophole in taxes.
[00:18:32] So it's like, there's ways to not pay taxes, but you have to be like very well off and know all the rules. I don't think you have to be well off. I think you just have to know how to spend the money. Yeah. Right. You have to... If you make the $100,000, you've got to find a way to spend it to make it a write off. That's all they did. That's what Trump did. Like in that big, the 2016 election with Hillary, when they tried, they thought they had a gotcha moment.
[00:19:02] They're like, did you use that $918 billion tax? And I was like, yeah, of course I did. So do all of Hillary. So do all of her donors, all these people and people are like, oh my God, what is he saying? Right. And that's what brought this appeal, a lot of big appeal to him. Uh, like or hate the guy, what he said then that was true. I mean, that's what all these people do. Um, I, I wish I took some of Kevin O'Leary's advice probably three years ago. I heard him talk to small business guys.
[00:19:27] He's like, your biggest financial expense you're going to have is fricking taxes. He's like, you got to get that dialed in right away and get it something to help you. Cause I think he's got a program that he sells and helps people with taxes and stuff. Um, and for him, it's a business, right? Right. At the same time, I don't think it's bullshit because I'm actually a big Kevin O'Leary fan. I am too. Yeah. He was always kind of one of my favorites on that shark tank show. I used to binge it. Um, but I think what he's saying is totally true. He's getting it, figure out how to do write offs, right?
[00:19:56] Um, because you can either write a $20,000 check to the IRS that does fuck. Call or you can, I can write, you know, Kevin and Arthur a check for a sponsorship for marketing. And at least you guys get the $20,000. Yeah. Does that make sense? And then you can still write it off as a business. And I write that off and I still get marketing regardless of how well it worked.
[00:20:21] But now, now when I go do my taxes, I have a $20,000 marketing bill and I owe nothing. Yep. So. Yep. There's definitely, there's a will, there's a way. And O'Leary is good at finding some of those things. And I don't know what the fuck I'm talking about. I mean like I'm, I'm fucking still learning as I go. The tax code is so complicated on purpose. Oh yeah. It's designed to fuck people, dude. A hundred percent. Yeah. Because if it was designed for people to succeed, they would lose in the end. And so in some way you're right.
[00:20:48] If you have money, if I can fucking pay you, the accountant to just fucking handle that and figure it out. Yeah. It's a little bit better. Like time. Like time. Yeah. Time. Yeah. It takes time to learn all the rules and like how to engage and. No AI is doing it. And it takes time to stay organized and like keep your, your, all your books. Yeah. Like, and so if you can be organized enough and foresee enough, like the amount of effort
[00:21:12] it takes to be able to start working the system, it's like, I'm sure once you're up and running, it's like an oiled machine, like you're good to go. But that initial learning phase and like having an inch, like it's boring as fuck too. Like none of it's interesting. It's just, we're just interested so we don't get screwed over basically. Right. I'm trying to see why. Yeah. I turned beet red and get sweaty when I do taxes. I get so fucking pissed.
[00:21:39] I started to see, I'm like, what the fuck is this dude? You know? And then even just trying to pay like sales tax, I'm looking at it. Um, you got Denver and you got the state you're trying to write. Cause I do services which aren't taxed with sales tax. And so I'm trying to figure out how to write that in to my gross sales. And it's like complicated. It's just a, it's annoying. Yeah. You know, someone out there might be listening. Like, Oh, I'm a fucking idiot, but you're partially right.
[00:22:09] You know, but at the same time, it's like the Colorado side was more difficult than the Denver side. Interesting. Which I thought was, I found that interesting too. So the state taxes were tougher than local. Their website was better. The Denver side versus the state. And I just figured it out. And then I asked chat GPT. I sent him a picture. I'm like, am I correct? They're like, yeah, it seems right to me. So I was like, all right, that's what I'm doing. That's all they're going to do. That's what I'm doing. Good old chat. They're just going to put it in AI anyway. That's what they're going to do. Yeah. That's where we're at.
[00:22:39] But yeah, O'Leary, great financial advice. Like if you're in the market, you know, when I was trading crypto, which I'm completely out of finally, I like listening to that. And one of the advice that I heard him give recently to the younger generation is the biggest loss that you can do is going out to eat. Oh my God. I'm guilty. Yeah. Like door dashing, going out to eat. Yeah. Those kinds of meals. Obviously treat yourself every once in a while, but he says that is single-handedly the biggest downfall to these kids not being able to save. I used to do a lot more.
[00:23:05] I've recently, I mean, I've always been somewhat of like a health conscious person. I've even become more so. And I think. I feel like you're in better shape this time seeing you than last time. Oh, for dude, for sure. Yeah. When shooting, I was probably a fat fuck. No. Like, like when I gave you DAP and like put my hand, I was like, damn dude, this guy's back right now is fucking. Well, he's been fighting and training. Yeah. If you're feeling it right now, you're looking good, man. Thank you, man. I appreciate it. Yeah. But I do.
[00:23:34] So I buy meal preps. That's good. But I spent $90 on six meals and they're large and it's all my lunches for the week. So now there's no door dash. There's none of that. The seventh day I might just make eggs. Yeah. Maybe I have a cheat meal. I got to be at a certain weight. So if I get like a little too low, I'll eat a cheeseburger or something, but that's just a more of a caloric intake thing. But throughout the week I'm eating, you know, chicken and rice, pork and rice, beef and rice,
[00:24:04] whatever. And then I do kind of limit carbs a little bit. And sugar. And sugar. Yeah. So fucking no sodas. It's all liquid death stuff. If I do that, regular water, liquid IV, it's not zero sugar, but it's not like 76 grams in a Mountain Dew. Dude, Mountain Dew is crazy. Yeah. 76 grams. How's that legal? I know. It's too much sugar. Is that amount of sugar? Fact check me. It's 76, dude. It's crazy. Didn't they change the name to American Dew for this year? I believe they did. No way. For 250, yeah. Yeah. Because that's coming up.
[00:24:35] What do you think about this UFC fight on the lawn Sunday night? I'm excited for it. Are you? I'm having some friends over and stuff. Yeah. I don't even know who's on the card to be honest with you. I don't really follow it that much. Well, Gaethje's on. Gaethje's fighting Teporia. So that's going to be a good fight. I think Gaethje's going to win. Gaethje's hometown guy. He's a Denver guy. Okay. So he trains with a couple of my coaches. Okay. I got to meet him a handful of times. And then there's Alex Pereira who's fighting for the heavyweight title.
[00:25:05] I think it's a title fight. I don't know what's going on with the Tom Aspinall stuff. And that's all I can remember right now on the spot. There's some good fights, man. Yeah. I'll definitely be watching for sure. I like that it's at the White House. You know, have your opinions on the current president. I have my gripes right now. I think he's currently kind of pissing me off. Yeah. He's not really done what he said he was going to do. Yeah, I've lost faith in the political system. But fuck the political. It's all dumb. Well, yeah, I think there is no political solutions is what I've learned. Yeah.
[00:25:34] But I'm pissed because it was, you know, no new wars, all this America first. Yeah, everything. Everything we voted for is what the fuck are we doing? Right. Fucking still send him on to fucking Uncle BB dude over there. Yeah. But I've seen some people gripe about fighting at the White House on how it's unprofessional. I'm like fucking Teddy Roosevelt used to fucking box at the White House. Talk about an American, dude. That guy used to go hunting by himself. He was a rough rider.
[00:26:03] That dude was all American, bad, all American, badass. And it's like, I don't know why we don't have presidents like that anymore. Because like being a full fledged, like man's man is like almost looked down upon in some ways. It's coming back. It is coming back. Slowly. Yeah. I never lost it. I didn't ever. Yeah. I tried not to lose it. It took me a while to find mine. It did. But once you make it. Yeah.
[00:26:28] But I'm like optimistic about where society's at as a whole. I do feel like a lot of people are starting to question things that they used to just trust. Yep. And then like more people are like, ah, I don't know about this. I'm in the middle of my optimism. I was optimistic when Trump won, voted for him. Right. Thought it was. I did too. Definitely the better choice. Right. And I didn't, I don't, I never hated Donald Trump.
[00:26:58] But it's been pretty disappointing to say the least. I mean, that's my opinion. Right. Some people are still forever Trump. And I think that that's kind of weird. Cause it's like, what is your idolizing somebody at that? Yeah. And it's just like, yeah, it's a, it's a weird barrier. We're kind of pedestalize politicians. Yeah. That really don't give a shit. And again, I don't hate everything. Like the white house cards. Awesome. Like I'm glad we're doing that. And he's always been a UFC fan. I mean, there's stories like. It goes back to when it was illegal. He was hosting for Dana at, at Trump because no one else would take him in. And yeah, they're good buddies.
[00:27:28] Yeah. And so, and I respect that Trump has been known to like, he's a good guy in that sense where he's always had people's back and stuff. Um, but I would say I'm disappointed because it's like, we're, where's the country's back? You get our back. Yeah. With what everyone asked. He ran on America first and it's not. No, it just isn't. It's crazy. You know, all this Israel America for Israel signs like that they have in the, the poll and like the Congress. And like, everyone has like these Israel and, and American like little banners everywhere.
[00:27:57] And then like, you see people walk around being like, Hey America first or Israel first. And like, no one even comments. Like you can't say. Dude, that's weird. America first. No, that's weird. They were at, uh, asking a bunch of APAC people. Yeah. The APAC people. Yeah. And so here's the thing is like Israel knows they have the full list. Okay. Like they have the full Epstein list and that's, that's why blackmailing. Yeah. And that's, and everybody is involved to the highest of degrees.
[00:28:26] The whole conspiracy is Epstein was a Mossad guy from the beginning. So, you know, working with Intel agencies in Israel, a part of it. So there's, there's your motive. So there's, yeah. So I don't know, dude, I'm not going to dive too much into that. Cause who the fuck knows? Yeah. But, but it's like, Oh, you're just a conspiracy theorist. It's like, yeah, but I'm just kind of like looking at what I can see with my eyes as the objective truth and trying to connect the fricking dots and wondering why I'm paying 50%, 50%
[00:28:56] of my life goes into taxes, right? Sales tax, property tax, income tax, put it all together. That's half my fucking year. Right. And there's nothing wrong with asking questions. That's really all we're doing. Well, why is that? Where's this coming from? How did that become? Oh, you know, you must be a per this or that. It's like accountability. It's like hard to ask for the government. It's okay. So here's the problem with that is it's either you just blindly follow the story, which is what they want, or then you're like labeled to be crazy. Correct. It's just like COVID. Right. Exactly. It's everything.
[00:29:23] That's the, that's the, um, the, the play, the game plan. Right. The people, I think more people nowadays. Okay. Cause I, I've been talking about the files with strangers in the streets and being like, and being like, and being like, you know, what do you think about this? And blah, blah, blah. And like everyone that I talked to is, is disgusted. Right. Most people are. So, but no one is taking action and not one arrest, not one fucking set of handcuffs, dude. Not in this country. Yeah. It's bullshit. It's yeah.
[00:29:52] I guess Prince Andrew, they threw under the bus. They did. He's the only one because he had that clear as day picture of him with like a 17 year old. I don't know. Whatever. I'm not going to speak on age. Cause I have no clue. Yeah. I don't want to say anything wrong, but it's like, he, like they had to throw him under the bus. What else were they going to do? And then he's still not even in jail. He's just what? Out of the Royal family. Yeah. They just wanted a photo op. Yeah. You know, here, let's get your mug shot and then you're good. You know, you know what? And I heard some people be like, Oh, well we're only given X amount to Israel a year in federal money.
[00:30:21] And I'm like, okay. And then I learned every state, I believe all 50 States contribute on top of that. Netanyahu was just at a state. I don't remember what state it was. It was meeting with the governor to discuss fucking payments to a foreign country. And it's not just state it's cities too. I bet if you paying Israel. Yeah, dude, I'm not, I'm not making that up, but it's like federal government states
[00:30:49] and cities all pay money to that country. Yeah. It's crazy. I'm sure Denver has an Israel budget. I'm sure they do. I think every major city does LA, New York. They all do. Yeah. Especially New York. Yeah. I don't know what Mondami is doing. Didn't he kind of win because he was anti Israel? Well, he's kind of Muslim. So that would naturally. But wasn't that a big reason why he won? Because they asked like, who's going to visit Israel or something? Yeah.
[00:31:17] The big reason he won is because he's a total open Marxist socialist. Yeah. Well, that's also true. I mean, that's why he won people, you know, people, the pendulum swings, free groceries, free health care, free subways. None of it. None of it. No, it's all bullshit. You know what? You know what pissed me off about that is like how disingenuous these fucking some of the people are on that side of the political thing. Because I hate both sides. But me too.
[00:31:43] Kathy Hochul, the New York governor, the whole time during the election could have come out and been like, buses are never going to be free. Like that's not going to happen because you know what I'm saying? And she only said that after he won. She got him elected. And then after he won, she's like, not going to happen. Yeah. We can't do that. We're going to pull that back. It's yeah, it's all a fucking charade. I mean, you see what's going on in Maine? You see the guy that won the Senate primary? No. He's a, he's a Democrat with a Nazi tattoo on his chest. Oh yeah. That's right. So it really fucks up the narrative. Get out of here.
[00:32:13] No. 100%. It's funny. As a Democrat. When you ask the Democrats about it. So it fucks everything up. He got it removed. Yeah. He got it covered up. He got it covered up. Okay. So if I was him, I would have made the excuse like, no, that's the Native American. Like that symbol existed before the Nazis. You know? That's probably not why he put it on there. It's not the best excuse still. That's what I would go with. Not like. But I'm surprised that they're backing them. Dude, they're spineless. They're like, it's, it's. Well, they're just desperate for seats is what it is. Yeah.
[00:32:43] They'll take anything. They'll take anyone who's going to play, play the, play the ball game. And it's such a shit show though. It sucks. I really do believe there's no political solutions. And I think if you're still watching the 5 PM news, you're way behind. Yeah. Unfortunately, it's just garbage being regurgitated night after night. Yeah. You know, something me and my dad have chatted about the only way you could have real change. It's the unfortunate truth, dude. It's violence. Yeah. I was. I've been saying that for years. It's violence.
[00:33:09] It'd be like a massive civil war, World War three, a real pandemic. It would be something like that. That would be so catastrophic. And then you'd have multiple factions against each other and things like that. And then at the end of the day, there'd be some form of government that, that one, and that's the one that would take over. And that, that's the only way you could get change. I agree.
[00:33:35] If you made me collapse king of this fucking place, I'd be like, everybody get out. You're all gone. We're all starting over. Yep. And we're all fucking voting and you can't have been a politician before. I'm only putting people in seats of power who don't want it. Well, that's probably a good thing. How about we only vote for like, let's get a bunch of plumbers, vote for those guys and electricians and hardworking Americans, like people that might make sensible decisions.
[00:34:04] I'm not even convinced that my vote fucking matters. It does. Yeah. That sucks. I feel the same way. I didn't vote in the last election. It was the first time I never voted. Dude, look at LA. They're paying homeless people two bucks to like sign petitions to do votes and they're telling them what name to sign. It's not good. They're getting it on camera. Yeah, it's not good. Like you film one table doing it. Okay. So like at what scale is that happening? Yeah. But if you have people brazen enough to be on a sidewalk and pay you two to five dollars,
[00:34:32] they're paying crackheads and meth heads to do it. Because if you wanted to force me to sign a petition here in Denver and say you're gonna give me five bucks, I'd be like, no, I don't give a fuck. I'm not doing that. Yeah. Fucking. Even if it was for something I wanted, like how dare you tell me what to do? Yeah. Fuck you. Now I'm not signing it. I love telling those guys. That's my new thing when I come out. They're like, you register voter. I'm like the entire system's corrupt. There is no political solution. I just keep walking. I like to say, I just say I'm a registered gun owner. That's fair. That's a good one too.
[00:34:59] But, but like any, any like salesperson, even if they're like standing out front of a store other than the Girl Scouts, I won't say this to the Girl Scouts. I'll buy the cookies. Okay. I won't say this to the Girl Scouts, but I'll be like, you know, if you can help somebody on the Epstein list, go to jail, then I'll be interested in talking to you about whatever you're talking about. And they just look at me. Is that what you told them? I say that to them. I've said it at least five times to people and they're not ready for it. They're just like, Oh shit. They're like, yeah. I'm like, we're not having this conversation. All right. Bye.
[00:35:25] Like I got other things to worry about because I mean, when they say that if everyone is exposed, then the whole system would collapse and then the system keeps going, you know? Right. It's that's what we're saying. It has to be major. Yeah. It's gotta be a fail. It has to fail. Yeah. I don't know what type. I sometimes I do wonder. I'm not saying I don't care about the Epstein files, but at the same time. I'm just over it.
[00:35:52] You know, it's not like it's not worth the conversation, but it's like, is it still worth that conversation? Because we're where the fuck is it going? We are all so curious as to like what's in that can of worms or who's in that can of worms. You know what I mean? And it's just like, I've recently I'm like, I people talk about it. I'm like, yeah, it's hard for me to give a fuck because nothing ever happens. Yeah. Well, you don't want to. It is. I became obsessed and sorry. No, I interrupted.
[00:36:22] But I got I became obsessed for like a couple of weeks and it was not like healthy. You know, so you have to like not care to a certain extent. And I just want to say one more thing. Like they frame Michael Jackson. He was saving the kids. I truly want to believe that. Have you heard? Have you heard that one? I have had that view my entire life. Really? I have always been a Michael Jackson fan. I think I'll butcher it or whatever, but I think Chappelle had a bit where he's like, but it's Michael.
[00:36:51] Even if it's true, it's Michael Jackson. Yeah. I mean, he was on trial. He was acquitted. That's true. Of any wrongdoing. But I mean, look at the I mean, Macaulay Culkin. Yeah, he came out. He said something like you guys like want me to say something like you want me to lie about try to coerce. Yeah, you're like wanting me to say something that's not true. And he's like, I will never hurt anybody that I know of and this that and whatever. Michael just had such a fucked up childhood that he wanted other kids to enjoy life.
[00:37:17] It's hard for you to believe that he was like that because he's a pretty weird guy. But I would think about this like he he had the forethought people thought and I thought it was weird that he always covered up his kids, covered his kids faces. The reason he did that is he gave his kids a normal childhood. If you knew what Michael Jackson's kids looked like, paparazzi reporters, everybody would be swarming his kids at these little parks. So Michael wouldn't go with his kids because he knew he couldn't.
[00:37:47] Michael can't go anywhere in the fucking world without being swarmed by people that he is a once in a lifetime type of person. He's larger than Elvis. Right. Women went crazy and fainted for Elvis, but like not like Michael Jackson. Yeah, that was an American thing. Elvis was an American thing. Michael Jackson was in the entire freaking world. Yeah. So if you think about him covering up his kids just so they could go to the park and play with other kids and be normal.
[00:38:15] And you're gonna tell me that this guy's like it's a molester or something. It's kind of weird for me to think that he would have that that care in him and then also that demon at the same time. Yeah. Yeah. I mean, he did go on to trial. He was acquitted, but we've seen other people get acquitted for different things. True. Well, we've also seen people do money grabs for sure like that, too. And Michael Jackson had all the money in the world. He definitely did. Money was not a factor.
[00:38:42] But then he like abandoned Never Never Land after that. Right. Yeah. That was the end of it after that trial. He now together went back in 2005. They totally drugged him and took him from us. Yeah. Wasn't it? He knew too much. Propofol or something. Yeah. He knew too much. Yeah. Anesthesia. And they just put his ass to sleep for good. I mean, that guy got manslaughter. He got sentenced for that. That doctor. The anesthesiologist or whatever. Yeah. It was a home doctor. The fall guys. Yeah. He was like a fall guy.
[00:39:09] No, I don't know. I I wouldn't say that. Maybe not saying you're wrong, but that's hard. I mean, what's the motive? So like they come to you and they're like, look, you're going to do this for us and we're going to set your family up and you're going to spend the rest of your days in jail. But your family will be taken care of. And they like leverage the family. Definitely. That's when I would just liquidate everything and move to Vietnam. You just move to Vietnam. But it's a global like they have the spiderweb over the whole globe.
[00:39:39] Yeah. Yeah. I don't know. I just don't know why Michael would have to be dead. He I heard a conspiracy that it was linked to Epstein and this and that. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. But I don't I don't know. Same with the Charlie Kirk stuff. I mean, I think I think there was definitely a motive behind that. You know, it's got the one. It's gotten weirder the more that times passed. Agreed. And people have asked me about that when I first saw it.
[00:40:05] I'm not going to sit here and claim that I'm right and I know everything, but I know quite a bit about firearms and I've seen firearms hit. A 30 out six can absolutely go through a person. However, that's not guaranteed. And with it hitting his spine at that angle, it can definitely go down his body, which is what I was told the doctor said had happened. Like, why wouldn't I believe that? So I do think he was shot the whole microphone thing.
[00:40:32] I don't believe I could be wrong. Like someone said that his microphone. Yeah, they said like his mic exploded. Yeah, that's one theory. I and then as I'm watching it, people are trying to tell me something. They're trying to explain what I'm seeing. And I'm like, I don't see that not seeing it. I don't see that same explosion. I see the shock of a 30 out six is quite a bit. It's quite a lot of energy. That thing moves at like 3200 feet per second. Yep. It's only 130 yards.
[00:41:02] That is close. That's not far. And everyone keeps saying that like, you know, as a bullseye shot, I think he shot high or low. I think he shot. I think he missed the head or shot high on the chest. That's my opinion landed in the jugular. Why am I? I'm not going to aim at your neck. Right. Because that's not necessarily guaranteed. Right. It's probably not great for you. Right. But it's not guaranteed. So that's my thought on that.
[00:41:27] Just as far as the actual assassination as to why things come out with turning point. I'm kind of raising my eyebrows and questions it. But I don't know. It's like AI. I feel like I'm in a fucking AI simulation. I honestly don't know what to believe. Anytime something happens, it's a conspiracy theory. Conspiracy. And it's just like, like you said a second ago, I can, I only got like room in my head for so much. I just got to block stuff out and ignore it. And I take a second. And then you see a butterfly and you look at the clouds for a moment.
[00:41:57] You're like, okay. Life's more enjoyable that way. Yeah. Makes you want to fucking just leave. You know, pick your battles, right? Like that's where I do ignore the, ignore the gun laws that are coming out. Cause it just pisses me off. Yeah. Stresses me out. So I just ignore it. Yeah. Colorado is not a great gun law state. Just isn't. No, these people are fucking out of their mind, dude. Well, you got our support. So appreciate it. You know, we don't want to say too much on,
[00:42:20] on the mic, but you know, whatever we can do to help you with anything that will help benefit your gun shop and, and keep your people employed, you know, cause I'll reserve the rest of my statement for off mic, but you get the viewers wondering there, there has to, there has to be solutions out there that are beneficial to our, all parties. And yeah, I think that those do exist for like almost every single scenario. Sure.
[00:42:47] Unless if you got super selfish people on one side of the scenario, that's, that's the only time you can't find a, a, a, a mutual ground is when you got greedy ass motherfuckers. So, so. Which is most of the time. Yeah. I mean, the best thing you could do is buy local, not just high country armory, my store. I'm the best store. I'm the best store. It is the best store. It's the best gun shop in Colorado. Um, I do a great job. I care about my customers. Right. But there's other good stores too. Sure.
[00:43:15] Um, I've been to them, but there really are, there's really good local shops, dude. Of course. Firearms. Yeah. Architectical. They're all good little shops, man. Go, go there. Don't buy your guns online. You know what I mean? We've had to put transfer fees in place just to supplement because 30% of the market's online now, you know, all, all my transfers are coming in from guns.com and stuff. And that's fine. I get it.
[00:43:39] Local stores can't always match their price, but by there, by at the local shops, don't do online, don't do Cabela's, you know, buy your sleeping bags and bullshit at Cabela's, whatever, but buy your guns, buy your ammo, get your training from all the local guys. Plus we know more. I agree. So for sure. I agree. I mean, I'll say, I said it at the beginning. I'll say it again. I hit a hundred with that Glock. Was that when we were out? Yeah. That's right. With your assistance. I remember that. I forgot until you mentioned it. That was, shit was sick. Yeah.
[00:44:09] A hundred fucking yards. Yeah. And that was, that's seared into my mind. That's impressive. I'll always remember that. I hit 184 as my friend. With the handgun. Yeah. My Glock 17. That was the one you forgot that day. I did forget some shit that day. It was like, it reminded me of like when we were kids and I'll be playing with like toys with my friends and like one friend forgot their favorite action figure. Yeah. Like that's how you were acting about forgetting your festival. Because I think I remembered like 30 minutes into the drive and I'm like, damn it.
[00:44:38] Fuck. God fucking damn it. Yeah. I was like, what's going on, man? It's the worst. It's the worst. This one flew by. Yeah. We covered a lot. Yes. In a short amount. It's 45 minutes. Is that it? That was 45 minutes already? Yeah. That's where we're at. Damn. I knew it was going to go quick. Yeah. But yeah, so you're fighting July 25th. I'm going to be there as long as I'm in town. Cool. Sometimes I get pulled different places. Sparta Sports Entertainment. Okay. I'll text you guys links. You guys can share it if you want. Yeah. Once you have that, we'll put it in this episode. People can watch Go, whatever. It's all good. I don't care. I don't really make any money. Yeah.
[00:45:07] I just do it because I got to get my anger out. Yeah. I mean, it's right down the road from me. So there's really no excuse if it's in Castle Rock. They sell booze there. You can get some beers. I don't drink. Well, I don't know. Go fuck yourself. I'll get a sell too. That's fair enough. And on that bombshell, it's time to end. I'm going to be rooting for your round. Yeah. So keep us in touch on that. Yeah, man. And so Epic, support your local businesses.
[00:45:35] If you have selfish stadiums trying to move local businesses out, do what you can to get involved because there's no reason why local businesses should suffer for sports and entertainment. So I want to kind of close on that note. Yeah. And let a rip tater chip. Let a rip tater chip. We'll be back tomorrow for happy Friday. Another great episode coming your way. Summertime. The summer sizzle series is here. Let's go, baby. Let's go. What's your hashtag?
[00:46:05] Stay lethal. Nice. Stay lethal. I like that. Put it on my t-shirts and shit. Fuck yeah. And on that note, be good to yourselves. You deserve it.