And now, a note of hope

Dark times don't have to create more dark times

Joe Rogan is supporting RFK Jr for president.

Not surprising, really. On Monday, I covered the crossover between both of these men. It does say something that a story about dumping a dead bear cub in Central Park comes out and your reaction is, yeah, that’s my guy.

But one thing you quickly learn in the modern world is that logic and rationality have no place over vibes, and to some, RFK is still just a vibe. Given that Rogan stated that RFK is the “only candidate who doesn’t lie to us,” when the third-party candidate has a long, documented history of lying and spreading false narratives, Rogan seems captured by the very misinformation he pretends to be above.

People handle news differently. Perhaps unrelatedly, perhaps not, Rogan’s former Onnit partnert, Aubrey Marcus—who has been fanboying for RFK for months—scrubbed his entire Instagram account earlier this week, save one overly dramatic photo of himself with a caption about going through a “dark time.”

While I have no idea what happened, this reply is within the realm of possibility:

For some, dead bear carcasses are the line; for others, a catalyst to push you over the line.

But we’re all in our bubbles. I’m not immune, you’re not immune, the best we can do is be open to conflicting data and update our understanding what it becomes clear that we’ve strayed. For example, a number of athletes have apologized for initially spreading misinformation that Algerian boxer Imane Khelif is either a man or transgender.

Many others have not, but that’s a different story.

Speaking of refusing to apologize: in most any other configuration of reality, reposting—er, “retruthing”—a racist image of your Black opponent would, in previous generations (not too many, but a few) would get you quickly kicked to the curb. And indeed, given yesterday’s press conference from swampy Florida, Trump appeared like he just climbed out of a gutter. Still, there’s no place in any America I want to inhabit for this:

Which is why the prospect of a Black woman running the country is a welcome change. And the idea of (as has been going around all week) “the father every American wants” as VP is equally enticing. A good friend texted that it’s hard to not get excited right now, and I agree, but the hosts of “Morning Joe” framed it best when remarking that the Harris campaign is bringing joy back into the picture.