Skip to content
The Joe Rogan ExperienceThe Joe Rogan Experience

Joe Rogan Experience #1738 - Ben O'Brien

Ben O’Brien is a writer, editor, and member of the Backcountry Hunters and Anglers Board of Directors.

Joe RoganhostBen O'BrienguestUnknown guest commenterguestJamie Vernonguest
Jun 26, 20243h 29mWatch on YouTube ↗

At a glance

WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT

Joe Rogan and Ben O’Brien Dive Deep Into Hunting, Conservation, Survival

  1. Joe Rogan and hunting writer Ben O’Brien reminisce about past trips, then spend most of the episode unpacking modern hunting, wildlife management, and what it means to remain self-reliant in a cushioned society.
  2. They explain how difficult and technical real hunting is, especially DIY elk and bowhunting, and why it becomes a lifelong craft rather than a weekend hobby.
  3. A major focus is the North American conservation model, especially the Pittman–Robertson Act, where gun, ammo, and gear taxes fund habitat and wildlife management far more than most people realize.
  4. They also wander into related territory: predator–prey dynamics (wolves, grizzlies, mountain lions), ethical debates with vegans, media bias in cases like Rittenhouse, and the idea that hunting—and time in real danger—can be an antidote to modern cultural problems.

IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING

5 ideas

Hunting is a complex craft, not a casual weekend activity.

O’Brien describes spending years learning to call elk, read landscapes, and succeed on public land; Rogan likens his progress to moving from white belt to purple belt in jiu-jitsu—illustrating how deep and demanding real hunting is.

Predator management is necessary, not optional, in modern ecosystems.

They recount grizzly attacks, wolf predation, and overabundant mountain lions in places like California and New Jersey, arguing that without human management, predators overpopulate, decimate prey, and eventually threaten people.

Hunters and shooters quietly fund most American wildlife conservation.

Through the Pittman–Robertson Act and related laws, an 11% excise tax on guns, ammo, and certain gear, plus license sales, bankroll state wildlife agencies and habitat projects—often far more than non-hunting users of the outdoors contribute.

Vegans and ethical hunters start from a surprisingly similar place.

O’Brien’s discussions with animal-rights philosophers and activists reveal shared concerns about suffering and industrial meat; their divergence is over method, not moral starting point, suggesting more room for dialogue than culture war rhetoric implies.

Modern comfort has severed people from the realities of food and survival.

They note that poor people have become obese for the first time in human history, supermarket shelves can empty overnight, and many who condemn hunting still eat factory-farmed meat—signs of a profound disconnect from where food comes from.

WORDS WORTH SAVING

5 quotes

If you can hunt, you can’t have fun. It’s like the Grand Canyon—on one side is ‘I want to hunt’ and on the other side is ‘hunting.’ You need a bridge.

— Ben O’Brien

We’re trying to recreate something that was once essential to human life. You couldn’t separate hunting and life for millions of years.

— Joe Rogan

User pays, public benefits. Hunters, shooters, fishermen are paying into a system that many of them have no idea about—and it keeps wildlife on the landscape.

— Ben O’Brien

I don’t want everyone to hunt, but I want everyone to understand it and make an informed decision—not just eat meat from the store and condemn the people who do the killing themselves.

— Joe Rogan

We were just one branch of the tree that kept growing while others died. Now we’re out here struggling with why we should still do the thing that kept us alive the whole way here.

— Ben O’Brien

Personal hunting stories, trips, and early podcast memories (moose, elk, lanai hunts)The difficulty and craft of DIY hunting and bowhunting (especially public-land elk)Predator ecology and encounters: grizzly bears, wolves, mountain lionsThe North American Model of Wildlife Conservation and Pittman–Robertson fundingEthical debates: hunting vs veganism, animal rights, and public perceptionCOVID-era shifts: surge in hunting, gun ownership, and self-relianceBroader cultural issues: media narratives, polarization, and loss of skepticism

High quality AI-generated summary created from speaker-labeled transcript.

Get more out of YouTube videos.

High quality summaries for YouTube videos. Accurate transcripts to search & find moments. Powered by ChatGPT & Claude AI.

Add to Chrome