Joe Rogan Experience #1920 - Dave Portnoy

1. 0:00 – 15:00

   (drumming music) Joe Rogan podcast,…

   1. NANarrator0:00

      (drumming music) Joe Rogan podcast, check it out.

   2. The Joe Rogan Experience.

   3. Train by day, Joe Rogan podcast by night. All day. (rock music)

   4. JRJoe Rogan0:12

      We up?

   5. NANarrator0:12

      Okay. All right. Hello, Joe Rogan. How you doing, man?

   6. DPDave Portnoy0:14

      How's it going?

   7. JRJoe Rogan0:15

      Good to see you, brother. What's going on?

   8. DPDave Portnoy0:16

      Not too much.

   9. JRJoe Rogan0:17

      We were just talking about how, uh, we're a couple of right-wing psychos.

   10. DPDave Portnoy0:21

       Yeah.

   11. JRJoe Rogan0:21

       (laughs)

   12. DPDave Portnoy0:21

       Perceived that way at least. Perceived that way.

   13. JRJoe Rogan0:24

       It's so weird. People just have to lump you into one category or another, and if you're not completely aligned with the left, they'll just lump you in with the right.

   14. DPDave Portnoy0:33

       Yours is pretty easy to figure out, though, because you didn't endorse Bernie Sanders.

   15. JRJoe Rogan0:37

       Did you... (laughs)

   16. DPDave Portnoy0:38

       Right?

   17. JRJoe Rogan0:39

       Yeah. (laughs)

   18. DPDave Portnoy0:39

       So I mean, it- it- it should be, like, all of one second to figure out maybe you aren't.

   19. JRJoe Rogan0:44

       Uh, yeah, but that doesn't mean anything to anybody. It just, uh, it's just, we live in the weirdest time. People just want to categorize people in a tweet. You know, they want to categorize people in 140 or 280 symbols. It's just, uh, they just decide that you're this or you're that, that way they can categorize you as the enemy.

   20. DPDave Portnoy1:06

       Does that bother you at all?

   21. JRJoe Rogan1:06

       No nuance.

   22. DPDave Portnoy1:07

       Do you care?

   23. JRJoe Rogan1:09

       I mean, I wish that they didn't, but what are you gonna do?

   24. DPDave Portnoy1:12

       Yeah.

   25. JRJoe Rogan1:12

       You know, I mean, does it bo- I mean, yeah, if somebody miscategorizes me or mis-, uh, mislabels me, I guess it would bother me a little bit. But that's just on them, you know, it's- it's not who I am. So-

   26. DPDave Portnoy1:25

       Yeah.

   27. JRJoe Rogan1:25

       ... I- I'm a big believer in social programs. I'm a big believer in welfare. I'm a big believer in- in taking care of poor people. I'm a big believer in, like, social programs to clean up cities. And we, there's- there's a lot of shit that we should be doing in this country to- to help people that are disenfranchised, because it's not fair. Anybody thinks it is fair that someone lives in a fucking crime-infested, gang-ridden inner city and that's exactly the same as someone who grew up in the suburbs, that's crazy.

   28. DPDave Portnoy1:52

       Right. So that would go against what I think a lot of people would expect you to say.

   29. JRJoe Rogan1:55

       Yeah, but I also, you know, I'm a v- cage-fighting commentator. I- I, I'm a big believer in the Second Amendment. You know, there's- there's a lot of reasons why they would decide to categorize me as a- a right-wing person. But it's- it's not correct. And also, there's all this ridiculous woke shit that's going on, this bizarre mind virus that's going from universities into- to tech companies and- and the media, and just fucking infiltrating people with these rigid ideas of what you have to say and not say, and what you can and not say. And it's like, th- none of that is liberal. None of th- none of that is really, like, open-minded or progressive. It's all just a, it's a cult. It, and so if you go against it, the only thing you could possibly be is the other.

   30. DPDave Portnoy2:44

       Hm.
2. 15:00 – 30:00

   (whistles) …

   1. JRJoe Rogan15:00

      you thinking that they're a part of that. There's so many of those organizations. So that's, that's, like, kind of a fake charity.

   2. NANarrator15:06

      (whistles)

   3. JRJoe Rogan15:06

      But, like, for, like, let's go to, like, a Red Cross. Like, how much of the money, like, if you donate to the Red Cross, how much of it actually goes to charitable interests?

   4. NANarrator15:16

      Do you care about anything you say?

   5. JRJoe Rogan15:19

      In what way?

   6. NANarrator15:20

      Like, I have one off the top of my head. I don't wanna say it because I, I've heard many times that it's not great with donating, but I'm afraid to say it.

   7. JRJoe Rogan15:27

      Like, what is that? "The Red Cross is proud that an average of 90 cents of every dollar spent invest in delivering care and comfort to those in need. The remaining 10 cents help to keep the entire Red Cross running by supporting routine but indispensable day-to-day business operations." That's fucking great.

   8. NANarrator15:43

      Can I say one? And what, what-

   9. JRJoe Rogan15:45

      Yeah. Yeah.

   10. NANarrator15:45

       ... what if I...

   11. JRJoe Rogan15:46

       Red Cross is fucking great.

   12. NANarrator15:47

       This, yeah, Red Cross. I, I have one-

   13. JRJoe Rogan15:49

       That's great.

   14. NANarrator15:49

       ... that I know, that I've heard is not great.

   15. I'll check.

   16. JRJoe Rogan15:52

       What's the name?

   17. NANarrator15:53

       Wounded Warriors.

   18. JRJoe Rogan15:54

       Wounded Warriors?

   19. NANarrator15:55

       Yep.

   20. JRJoe Rogan15:56

       Really?

   21. NANarrator15:56

       That's the one and why I didn't say it, but I love military causes. We've... But that's one I've heard is not ideal with getting most of the money out.

   22. JRJoe Rogan16:03

       Let's find out. Yeah. I mean-

   23. NANarrator16:06

       I apologize in advance if that's incorrect information.

   24. JRJoe Rogan16:09

       Uh... We'll just edit it out just to avoid trouble if it's incorrect.

   25. NANarrator16:14

       It does, it does, it does say it has a good rating, but it also says scandal, and I have to investigate what scandal means, I guess.

   26. Like, we-

   27. JRJoe Rogan16:19

       Scandal.

   28. NANarrator16:19

       ... we, we move to, um... We, we, well, we've done a bunch. We did Head- we do Headstrong, um, Fisher House.

   29. JRJoe Rogan16:27

       "Wounded Warrior Project's top execs, execs fired ame-" Oh, boy. "Wounded Warrior Project's top execs fired amid lavish spending scandal." Fuck.

   30. NANarrator16:37

       So, it's something there, uh...
3. 30:00 – 45:00

   Sugar Sean's the man.…

   1. DPDave Portnoy30:00

      he wouldn't go.

   2. JRJoe Rogan30:01

      Sugar Sean's the man. Yeah, he's like, "Fuck that. I'm not fucking going there." Yeah, I mean, how much is he offering you?

   3. DPDave Portnoy30:09

      Probably a lot, I would guess.

   4. JRJoe Rogan30:10

      I wonder. Yeah.

   5. DPDave Portnoy30:12

      Because you have to know ...

   6. JRJoe Rogan30:14

      You gotta know.

   7. DPDave Portnoy30:15

      That that ... Right.

   8. JRJoe Rogan30:16

      Yeah.

   9. DPDave Portnoy30:17

      I mean, he's out there shooting guns on his, like, ranch or whatever.

   10. JRJoe Rogan30:19

       Yeah, it's not like ... He's a warlord.

   11. DPDave Portnoy30:22

       Yes.

   12. JRJoe Rogan30:22

       There's not-

   13. DPDave Portnoy30:22

       There's no other way around it.

   14. JRJoe Rogan30:23

       It's not a c- there's no confusion.

   15. DPDave Portnoy30:26

       (laughs) None. None.

   16. JRJoe Rogan30:27

       You're like, maybe he's not. Maybe it's propaganda. You know? It's like when you hear things about Zelenskyy, you know, you're like, "Well, he seem- he started off as a comedian." You know, like there's like, there's room, there's wiggle room. He's being attacked.

   17. DPDave Portnoy30:39

       Yeah.

   18. JRJoe Rogan30:40

       What ... Is there something where Ukraine is cracking down on the media?Somebody sent me something about the UKaine, uh, Ukraine trying to control the media now.

   19. DPDave Portnoy30:50

       Are we anti-Ukraine?

   20. JRJoe Rogan30:52

       They're, they're taking steps... No. No.

   21. DPDave Portnoy30:53

       Oh.

   22. JRJoe Rogan30:54

       No.

   23. DPDave Portnoy30:54

       Why would they crack down on the media?

   24. JRJoe Rogan30:55

       Well, I think because of the war effort. You know, if the media is saying things like, "Oh, you know, Ukraine is corrupt," or, "Oh, Ukraine has done this." (clears throat) Critics say a new media law signed by Zelenskyy could restrict press freedom in Ukraine. Lawmakers who passed the bill said it would help meet European Union conditions for membership, but journalists have denounced it as a move towards censorship. Oh. Imagine if you have to, to join the European Union, you have to fucking... What is that? Some of the law's most stringent provisions were relaxed in response to the criticism. Serious concerns about the independence of the regulatory body remain, domestic and international news media groups said on Friday, noting that they were still receiving details of the final 279-page legislation. The law expands the authority of Ukraine's state broadcasting regulator to cover the online and print news media. That's not good. Previous drafts gave the regulator the power to fine news media outlets, revoke their licenses, temporarily block certain online outlets without a court order, and request that social media platforms and search giants like Google remove content that violates the law. Well, you know, they're doing that over in America. I mean, we found out that because of the Twitter files, when Elon released all the Twitter files, they found that the United States government was actively trying to suppress the voices of certain people that were saying things they found disagreeable on Twitter.

   25. DPDave Portnoy32:20

       Yeah, to me-

   26. JRJoe Rogan32:21

       Like, that's a fact.

   27. DPDave Portnoy32:21

       ... yeah. I... Now, I got attacked for this take. I said that was like a... And I get it, obviously, but I assume... That was like a "no, duh" to me. Like, I, I, that's what I expected. Like, I wasn't... Like, I get suppressed. Like, the second Elon took over, my Twitter... And I'm sure... I don't know if you use Twitter, but mine went way up. Like-

   28. JRJoe Rogan32:43

       I got 900,000 new followers-

   29. DPDave Portnoy32:45

       Yes.

   30. JRJoe Rogan32:45

       ... in like a couple of weeks.
4. 45:00 – 1:00:00

   It's crazy how quick-…

   1. JRJoe Rogan45:00

      for... There's all these stupid fucking phrases that they like to use.

   2. DPDave Portnoy45:02

      It's crazy how quick-

   3. JRJoe Rogan45:03

      Yeah.

   4. DPDave Portnoy45:03

      ... they jump. Yeah.

   5. JRJoe Rogan45:04

      Yeah. But also, they're fucking dying too. Like all those media companies, uh, they're, no one can trust them anymore. And the reason why no one can trust them anymore is because they're not trustworthy.

   6. DPDave Portnoy45:13

      Yeah.

   7. JRJoe Rogan45:14

      It's not, it's like, it's real simple, it's real clear. It's not like fucking, you know...

   8. DPDave Portnoy45:18

      So you l- you lashed that cigar with one light-up, huh? (blows smoke)

   9. JRJoe Rogan45:23

      No, I had to hit it a second time.

   10. DPDave Portnoy45:24

       Okay, good.

   11. JRJoe Rogan45:25

       I hit it with this little lighter. I just, it wasn't as loud. (laughs)

   12. DPDave Portnoy45:29

       That's good.

   13. JRJoe Rogan45:30

       Yeah, it goes out. I think that, uh, you know, it's an interesting time though because it's caused the emergence of, uh-

   14. DPDave Portnoy45:36

       You.

   15. JRJoe Rogan45:37

       Well, the, me, yeah, but also independent journalism. Like guys like Matt Taibbi, guys who were with these corporate news structures who left and now they're doing it on their own. Glenn Greenwald, uh, you know, uh, Krystal and Saagar from Breaking Points. All these kind of people that you can trust because even if you don't agree with them-

   16. DPDave Portnoy45:55

       Mm-hmm.

   17. JRJoe Rogan45:55

       ... you know they're not lying. That's all I need.

   18. DPDave Portnoy45:57

       Same.

   19. JRJoe Rogan45:58

       So you can, you can have opinions that I don't agree with and I, I 100% support your ability to do that. I don't wanna s- I don't wanna suppress people I don't agree with, but I want you to be honest. I want you tell me what the actual data says and I want... And even if your perspective on that data I don't agree with, at least I know you're telling me the truth. That's all I need. And there's not a lot of that in mainstream media and that's why mainstream media is dying. It's too controll- it's controlled by these corporate interests that really care more about money than they do about anything else. Then, then, like, if you think that, like, The Washington Post or The New York Times is really just about getting out the truth, that's not real.

   20. DPDave Portnoy46:35

       No, and those two are extreme examples-

   21. JRJoe Rogan46:37

       Yeah.

   22. DPDave Portnoy46:37

       ... at this point.

   23. JRJoe Rogan46:38

       They're, they have an ideology that they adhere to.

   24. DPDave Portnoy46:40

       But I do. And, and what is str- I don't know what the right word is. I, if I wasn't doing what I was doing, I would still, because I don't pay enough close attention, I would still sort of believe The New York Times-

   25. JRJoe Rogan46:52

       100%.

   26. DPDave Portnoy46:53

       ... was like a, a real thing.

   27. JRJoe Rogan46:54

       Yeah.

   28. DPDave Portnoy46:54

       I just grew up, New York Times, "Oh yeah, why would they have..."

   29. JRJoe Rogan46:57

       If I didn't have a podcast and I didn't talk to people all the time and talked to people from different walks of life and d- different perspectives and d- different careers, I would have no idea. I would have no idea. If I was just a comic, I wouldn't, I would kind of vaguely know that they're probably corrupt, you know, vaguely know that they're full of shit. But if I read something and was like, "Oh my God, this is terrible," I would just take it at face-

   30. DPDave Portnoy47:19

       Yeah.
5. 1:00:00 – 1:11:02

   And that's how you…

   1. JRJoe Rogan1:00:00

      there was a lot going on. But in that moment where I saw him, he was in the, he was 27 years old, he was in the prime of his career, and he was the elite of the elite. And I-

   2. DPDave Portnoy1:00:09

      And that's how you got hooked.

   3. JRJoe Rogan1:00:11

      I got hooked, hooked, hook, line, same thing. I, I went there the next day, I signed up, and I was there every fucking day.

   4. DPDave Portnoy1:00:18

      Huh.

   5. JRJoe Rogan1:00:18

      Every day. Yeah, I became obsessed.

   6. DPDave Portnoy1:00:21

      Interesting.

   7. JRJoe Rogan1:00:22

      So, I didn't want to do anything that fucked me up. And my f- my friend Jimmy, his cousin, was selling coke. And I knew, uh, his cousin Mike from, like, when he wasn't selling coke. Like, he was a mechanic, he was a cool guy, you know, fixed my car for me. He was just a fucking guy from the neighborhood. We'd hang out with him. And then him and his girl got into coke bad. He was selling coke, and then he was just fucking, just emaciated, he looked like he got bit by a vampire.

   8. DPDave Portnoy1:00:47

      Hmm.

   9. JRJoe Rogan1:00:47

      And they would hide in their, they had an attic apartment. They would just go in that attic apartment and do coke every day, and I was like, "Fuck coke." And it-

   10. DPDave Portnoy1:00:54

       That's hardcore to get h- like, hooked like that.

   11. JRJoe Rogan1:00:56

       He got hooked. Well, he was also selling it.

   12. DPDave Portnoy1:00:59

       Yeah.

   13. JRJoe Rogan1:00:59

       So he had all this access to coke. But it was, people in the neighborhood, I saw them doing coke, and they just wanted to do coke all the time. They wanted to get out and do coke. And...... as a kid who was, like, finally ... I was a loser my whole life, and then finally when I was 15, I found this thing that I got obsessed with that changed the way people looked at me. Like, I was ... Now all of a sudden I was good at something, like, really good at something. And then I became state champion four years in a row, and I won the US Open, and I won these national tournaments, and it was a big fucking deal for me. So, I was like, "I am not doing anything to jeopardize that."

   14. DPDave Portnoy1:01:31

       Right.

   15. JRJoe Rogan1:01:31

       And Coke to me was the big one. Like, I knew that that was a ... I felt like if I got drunk, in which I did occasionally, I would feel like shit the next day. I couldn't train well. I was hungover, and, and I'd get beat up in sparring. I was like, "I can't do this."

   16. DPDave Portnoy1:01:45

       Mm-hmm.

   17. JRJoe Rogan1:01:45

       So, I just cut most partying. Like, I smoked pot a handful of times. I got drunk a handful of times during high school and in, in my early 20s. And then, uh, I just ... In the comedy world, Coke was a problem with there too. I saw, I saw all th- ... When I ... I used to work at Nick's Comedy Stop in Boston.

   18. DPDave Portnoy1:02:03

       Yeah, sure.

   19. JRJoe Rogan1:02:04

       Where it was ... And they, (laughs) they offered to pay me in Coke or money. Like, the ... When you worked there for the weekend, like, "You wanna get paid in Coke, or you wanna get paid in money?"

   20. DPDave Portnoy1:02:12

       And even trade? Like, same amount of Coke, but it's all valued?

   21. JRJoe Rogan1:02:14

       Well, some guys went half-half. Yeah, some guys went half-half.

   22. DPDave Portnoy1:02:17

       I guess, uh, if, if you like it, it's easy access.

   23. JRJoe Rogan1:02:20

       But there were so many guys that got hooked on Coke. I knew so many guys that had Coke problems that I was like, "That is a pitfall." Like, I wanted to succeed, and I felt like that was one dr- ... And also it was a drug that got you hyped up.

   24. DPDave Portnoy1:02:31

       Yeah, right.

   25. JRJoe Rogan1:02:32

       And I li- ... I liked being hyped up. And my friend Jimmy said this to me. He goes, "Don't do Coke. You'll like it." I was like, "Oh, no." (laughs)

   26. DPDave Portnoy1:02:39

       (laughs)

   27. JRJoe Rogan1:02:39

       I'll never forget this. It was me and my friend Steve. We were driving home from, uh, Kelly's Roast Beef in, uh, Revere, Massachusetts.

   28. DPDave Portnoy1:02:47

       Yep, overrated.

   29. JRJoe Rogan1:02:48

       And we're ... Yeah, it's a little overrated.

   30. DPDave Portnoy1:02:50

       The beef is, but ...

Episode duration: 3:20:39