The Joe Rogan ExperienceJoe Rogan Experience #1789 - Tom Papa
CHAPTERS
- 0:00 – 1:57
Tom Papa’s bread delivery and TSA smuggling jokes
Joe welcomes Tom Papa, who arrives with homemade sourdough—one regular loaf and one olive loaf. They riff on traveling with bread, TSA suspicion, and how food could theoretically be used for smuggling.
- •Tom’s sourdough starter and the effort to bake-and-fly bread to Joe
- •Olive loaf ingredients (kalamata/green olives, lemon zest, herbs de Provence)
- •TSA/airport security banter and the idea of hiding contraband in bread
- •Joe’s occasional bread indulgence after fights
- 1:57 – 6:08
Fentanyl border bust story and why desperation drives crime
The conversation pivots to a shocking news story about a pregnant drug runner caught smuggling fentanyl internally. They discuss fentanyl’s extreme potency and speculate how authorities detected it, while acknowledging the desperation behind such choices.
- •Fentanyl as a highly potent opioid and tiny lethal dose
- •Pregnant smuggler story and the grim logistics of detection
- •Empathy for people pushed into dangerous situations
- •Dark humor about dogs, secondary inspection, and risk
- 6:08 – 13:34
Airport behavior: drunk passengers, boarding-line chaos, and mask-era flying
Tom recounts an encounter with a loud, drunk fan at the gate who tried to board early. From there they talk about airport drinking culture, line-cutting, and how COVID-era rules (especially masks) intensified conflict on planes.
- •Tom’s ‘team’ encounter with a drunk passenger and gate agent confrontation
- •Why people panic around boarding and lines
- •Airports as socially sanctioned morning drinking zones
- •Mask enforcement and incidents involving passengers vs. flight attendants
- 13:34 – 17:32
Pandemic stress, perspective, and how people mentally ‘come back’
They broaden out into how the last few years pushed many people past their coping limits. Tom emphasizes resilience and small daily tasks; Joe stresses perspective and how hard it is to re-center after a psychological spiral.
- •Lowered bar for ‘being a good person’ amid public stress and conflict
- •Perspective memes and the ‘hardest thing that happened to you’ idea
- •Generational resilience (Depression/war-era attitudes)
- •Learning to focus on small tasks rather than overwhelming macro fear
- 17:32 – 18:24
Ukraine war fears: nukes, Putin’s endgame, and information uncertainty
Joe and Tom dive into the early Ukraine invasion context and the dread of nuclear escalation. They discuss Putin’s limited ‘good’ exits, propaganda/uncertain reporting, and what sanctions or defeat might trigger for a nuclear-armed dictator.
- •Putin’s shrinking options and the danger of escalation
- •Difficulty verifying war information in real time
- •Russia’s demands (Crimea recognition, demilitarization) and why they’re untenable
- •How leadership psychology and ‘saving face’ becomes existential with nukes
- 18:24 – 39:20
Nuclear arsenals, command-and-control anxiety, and the ‘long table’ isolation
They look at rough nuclear warhead numbers and how destructive modern weapons are compared to Hiroshima/Nagasaki. The discussion turns to Putin’s isolation (symbolized by the long-table meetings), and what checks—if any—exist before launch decisions.
- •Russia vs. US warhead counts and the grim logic of deterrence
- •Scale of modern thermonuclear yields and catastrophic casualty estimates
- •Putin’s extreme distancing and health/security ‘bubble’ behavior
- •The unknowns around nuclear authorization processes
- 39:20 – 50:54
Movies as relief: Batman, Christian Bale, and Tom Cruise stunt obsession
After heavy geopolitics, they decompress into film talk: Batman versions, Christian Bale’s transformations, and the insanity of practical stunts. Joe shares fascination with Buster Keaton’s daredevil work and Tom Cruise’s commitment to doing his own stunts.
- •Christian Bale’s acting range (Cheney, The Fighter, American Psycho)
- •Robert Pattinson’s Batman physique controversy and modern film expectations
- •Buster Keaton stunts—what’s real vs. optical illusion
- •Tom Cruise’s high-risk stunts and the real dangers of stunt work
- 50:54 – 53:50
Injuries in real life: Tom’s fall, broken ribs, and brutal fight damage
Tom describes slipping on ice in Fargo and lingering rib pain, prompting discussion of head injuries and recovery. Joe pulls up MMA examples of extreme body damage, including rib breaks and punctured lungs, contrasting everyday mishaps with pro-fighter trauma.
- •Tom’s sudden fall and post-Saget head-injury anxiety
- •How rib injuries feel and what treatment can/can’t do
- •Bellator/UFC injury examples (broken ribs, plates/screws, punctured lung)
- •Joe’s perspective on violence, durability, and recovery costs
- 53:50 – 1:08:06
UFC live experience, Vegas food, elk cooking, and steak technique deep dive
They plan a future UFC event outing and drift into Vegas dining recommendations. Joe and Tom trade cooking enthusiasm—elk recipes, garlic/sauce aromas, and a detailed steak method (reverse sear, cast iron, tallow, Maillard reaction).
- •Inviting Tom to a big UFC card and discussing July 2nd weekend possibilities
- •Vegas steakhouses and Bazaar Meat’s live-fire approach
- •Elk meal ideas (lasagna, chili, breakfast with eggs)
- •Step-by-step sear method: low-and-slow to temp, cast iron, tallow, Maillard crust
- 1:08:06 – 1:27:42
Baseball lockout, sports as proxy war, and ‘phony fan’ spotting
Tom vents about the MLB lockout and how greed alienates fans, while Joe needles baseball as ‘boring.’ They expand into why sports matter socially, how fandom can become performative (World Cup ‘virtue-signal’ types), and Joe’s ability to detect MMA phonies.
- •MLB labor dispute basics and why fans resent it
- •Sports as community ritual and aggression outlet
- •World Cup bandwagon behavior and performative expertise
- •MMA knowledge as a ‘phony detector’ for Joe
- 1:27:42 – 1:37:03
Native American history, disease collapse, Mayan ruins, and lost-civilization theories
Joe explores football’s early Native American history and the darker story of forced assimilation at boarding schools. From there they discuss catastrophic disease impacts on Native populations, Mayan sites like Chichen Itza, and speculative ancient-cataclysm ideas like the Younger Dryas impact theory.
- •Carlisle Indian School and forced assimilation (‘Kill the Indian, save the man’)
- •How trick plays and rule changes shaped modern football
- •Disease as the major driver of Native American population collapse
- •Chichen Itza: engineering, ritual sacrifice lore, and unknowns of ancient cultures
- •Younger Dryas impact theory and civilization ‘reset’ speculation
- 1:37:03 – 2:35:13
Cigars, gambling addiction, body image trends, metaverse bodies, and aging/fitness protocols
They light up cigars and segue into addiction in many forms: gambling, overtraining, and body dysmorphia. The talk ranges from ‘dad bod’ survey skepticism and metaverse avatars to aging fears—spinal discs, joint replacements, testosterone therapy, supplements, diet inflammation, and exercise as mental health medicine.
- •Cigars as a ‘known bad’ vs. denial around other unhealthy trends
- •Gambling addiction stories (sports betting, Pete Rose debate, mob/loan shark risks)
- •Body dysmorphia and ‘bigorexia,’ plus the dangers of extreme leanness
- •Metaverse/VR identity, avatar perfection, and cultural drift toward softness (WALL‑E analogy)
- •Aging mechanics: disc compression, sciatica, artificial joints, bionic athletes
- •Hormone replacement (testosterone), peptides/growth hormone cautions, and inflammation from foods
- •Workout consistency (pushups, kettlebells, yoga) and exercise for anxiety/empathy
- 2:35:13 – 3:09:02
Werewolves, practical effects vs CGI, and why comedy movies disappeared
They wrap with pop-culture: Duncan Trussell updates, Joe’s upgraded werewolf prop, and a deep dive on monster-movie effects (American Werewolf in London vs later takes). The conversation ends on how social media outrage and industry shifts gutted the big R-rated comedy movie pipeline, before Tom plugs tour dates.
- •Duncan Trussell stories and Joe’s new ‘werewolf’ prop by Patrick McGhee
- •Practical effects vs CGI and why some monsters feel ‘real’ on screen
- •Comparing werewolf portrayals: American Werewolf in London, Jack Nicholson’s Wolf, Benicio del Toro’s The Wolfman
- •Comedy film decline: risk aversion, ‘wokeness’ backlash fears, studio economics, streaming shift
- •Tom Papa tour plugs and where to find his shows/podcast
