The Ben Shapiro Show – Ep. 1813 – How Howard Stern Avoided Cancellation

Intro

In this episode of “The Ben Shapiro Show,” Ben discusses the disparate consequences for public figures and the recent shift of Howard Stern to the left. He also explores the Ukraine-Russia war, Joe Biden’s UN speech, the UK’s online safety bill, and more.

Main Takeaways

Double Standards and Political Alignment

• If you mirror the priorities of the left, you can pretty much do whatever you want, as long as you’re not caught on camera doing it.
• Disparate consequences for public figures: Russell Brand vs Howard Stern.
• YouTube has suspended Russell Brand’s channel from monetization following serious allegations against the creator.
• A public allegation is tantamount to a conviction in the court of public opinion.
• Howard Stern has been making headlines by pushing to the left.
• Howard Stern has a history of making disgusting and disrespectful comments towards women
• Despite this, he is now being viewed as a moral exemplar
• Stern recently criticized Lauren Bober for her behavior, but he himself engages in similar behavior
• Stern is able to get away with this behavior because he aligns with the political priorities of the left

Ukraine-Russia War and Perception

• Vladimir Putin has called the US dollar’s dominance “unrecoverable,” and some countries are turning to local currencies for trade
• Investors and savers are turning to physical gold held in tax-sheltered IRAs for diversification
• Birch Gold is offering a free infocate on how to protect your savings with gold.
• There is a bizarre left-right split in perception of Ukraine in the Ukraine versus Russia war.
• Russia is more socially conservative than Ukraine, despite assumptions to the contrary
• Ukraine was able to gain left-wing support by pandering to American assumptions about their politics
• Zelensky talked extensively about climate change in his pitch for funding, which is unusual given the ongoing war in Ukraine
• Zelensky’s focus on climate change may be an attempt to gain left-wing support and funding
• Ukraine is now using a transgender spokesperson for their military, which may also be an attempt to gain left-wing support.
• Ukraine is not a left-wing country and only 28% of Ukrainians believe that LGBTQ individuals should live freely.
• Ukraine is using a transgender spokesperson, Sarah Ashton Cerello, to gain left-wing support as a propaganda ploy.
• Ashton’s role includes monitoring international media and she was called a “terrible disgrace” by Russian television.
• Zelensky is mirroring the priorities of the left to get access to cash.

Joe Biden’s UN Speech and Censorship

• Joe Biden spoke at the UN and sounded nonsensical.
• Joe Biden spoke at the UN about America’s values of climate change and LGBTQIA+ rights
• These values are not shared by many other countries present at the UN
• Biden emphasized the importance of equal rights for women, indigenous groups, minorities, and people with disabilities
• Kamala Harris suggested that people may not want to have children due to climate change, which is seen as radical by some
• Policy Genius can help you find affordable life insurance to provide financial safety for your loved ones.
• Left-wing prescriptions may lead to censorship of voices that are not aligned with their beliefs
• Former prime minister of New Zealand pursued censorship with enthusiasm and advocated for more censorship at the UN
• Online safety bill in the UK takes a zero-tolerance approach to protecting children and holds social media platforms responsible for harmful content
• Social media platforms that do not act rapidly to prevent and remove harmful content may face significant fines and their bosses may even face prison
• The bill goes beyond illegal activity and includes vaguely defined terms like bullying and inappropriate content, which puts social media platforms in danger of bankruptcy.
• The government setting standards for harmful social media content is concerning as it raises questions about what constitutes harmful content.
• The bill goes beyond illegal activity and includes vaguely defined terms like bullying and inappropriate content, which puts social media platforms in danger of bankruptcy.
• Censorship on issues like climate change and transgender rights is not something most Americans are for, and it creates a barrier to entry for anyone who disagrees with the agenda.

Other Topics Discussed

• Republican enthusiasm for backing Ukraine in the war has declined as it became a partisan issue, and there is currently no money in the House for Ukraine due to the deficit.
• The rise in oil prices poses a new challenge for central banks in their battle against inflation, and the unfriendly attitude of the current administration toward more drilling and refining exacerbates the issue.
• Tesla pays their workers less than Detroit automakers, with the median worker at Tesla earning 34k last year in total compensation compared to 80k at GM and 75k at Ford
• Unions negotiated lucrative contracts that have killed jobs in Detroit, leading to a paid disparity
• The Biden administration is backing the unions again, including the UAW strike
• Every industrial revolution has winners and losers, with workers often being the losers, but investing in workers can make companies more profitable.
• Biden administration is investigating personal benefits provided to Elon Musk by Tesla since 2017 as part of a criminal investigation
• DOJ is going after Elon Musk because he violates the rules and he is the chief competitor to the Detroit three
• Hillsdale College is providing free online courses since 1844 on various topics including US Constitution, free market economics, and book of Genesis
• Hillsdale College is a premier educational institution in the country with traditional viewpoints and classics
• Illegal immigration is facilitated by the current administration with record levels of migrants encountered at the Southwestern border
• Record levels of migrants encountered at the Southwestern border with nearly 9,000 daily average
• Colony Ridge in Texas has become a giant settlement spot for illegal immigrants, with 40,000 to 75,000 people and is in the midst of a rapid expansion
• Much of Colony Ridge is a third-world shantytown where foreign flags outnumber American ones
• Colony Ridge is owned and operated by a developer named William Tray Harris who offers financing arrangements that make it possible for illegal aliens to buy land deep in the heart of Texas, circumventing the usual requirements
• Buyers at Colony Ridge are able to get loans directly from the developer, bypassing traditional mortgages and paying high-interest rates near 15%
• Latest discussions among Republicans are centered around the ongoing Donald Trump cases
• Molly Michael, one of Trump’s aides, allegedly told authorities that Trump attempted to obstruct justice or suborn perjury
• The DOJ has charged Ray Epps with one misdemeanor account of disorderly or disruptive conduct on restricted grounds, leading to controversy among the right
• Pennsylvania has implemented an automatic voter registration program, similar to California’s motor voter law
• The program automatically registers individuals to vote when they get or renew their driver’s license or ID card at the DMV
• Pennsylvania has implemented an automatic voter registration process at DMVs to reduce barriers for legal, eligible voters.
• This adds levels of verification to the voter registration process and saves taxpayers time and money by reducing paper registrations.
• Pennsylvania is the 24th state to implement automatic voter registration.
• Ballot harvesting is a concern for some people, but Pennsylvania’s mail-in voting process has more fail-safes than traditional in-person voting.
• Republicans can either complain about the playing rules or go out and win elections. States with automatic voter registration include both left-wing and right-wing states.
• Dress code in the Senate is important to maintain the sanctity of the chambers, even if some current representatives tend to deface it.
• Israel is viewed as a US partner or ally, but many Americans question whether the two countries share the same interests and values.
• No two countries share identical interests, but the notion that there is no crossover between Israel and the United States in terms of values is obviously untrue.
• The partisan breakdown on whether Israel shares American values and interests has less to do with Israel and more to do with the left view of what American values are.
• Joe Biden’s intervention in Israeli politics and domestic politics has helped to fracture relations between the state of Israel and the United States.
• Joe Biden’s intervention in Israeli politics and domestic politics has fractured relations between Israel and the US

Summary

Double Standards and Political Alignment

Ben Shapiro discusses the double standards applied to public figures based on their political alignment. He highlights the case of Russell Brand, whose YouTube channel was suspended from monetization following serious allegations against him, while Howard Stern, who has a history of making disgusting and disrespectful comments towards women, is now being viewed as a moral exemplar. Stern’s recent criticism of Lauren Bober for her behavior is seen as hypocritical, as he engages in similar behavior. The ability of public figures to get away with such behavior is attributed to their alignment with the political priorities of the left.

Ukraine-Russia War and Perception

Ben delves into the Ukraine-Russia war and the contrasting perception of the two countries. He notes that Russia is more socially conservative than Ukraine, despite assumptions to the contrary. Ukraine has gained left-wing support by pandering to American assumptions about their politics, including talking extensively about climate change in their pitch for funding. The use of a transgender spokesperson for their military is seen as an attempt to gain left-wing support, despite only 28% of Ukrainians believing that LGBTQ individuals should live freely. The role of the spokesperson, Sarah Ashton Cerello, has attracted controversy from Russian television.

Joe Biden’s UN Speech and Censorship

Ben analyzes Joe Biden’s UN speech, which touched on America’s values of climate change and LGBTQIA+ rights. He highlights the discrepancy between these values and the beliefs of many other countries present at the UN. Ben also discusses the potential implications of left-wing prescriptions, such as censorship of voices that do not align with their beliefs. The UK’s online safety bill, which holds social media platforms responsible for harmful content and includes vaguely defined terms like bullying and inappropriate content, raises concerns about censorship and bankruptcy risks for these platforms.

Other Topics Discussed

Ben covers a range of other topics, including the decline in Republican enthusiasm for backing Ukraine in the war, the rise in oil prices posing challenges for central banks, the paid disparity between Tesla and Detroit automakers, the Biden administration’s investigation into Elon Musk, Hillsdale College’s free online courses, illegal immigration facilitated by the current administration, ongoing Donald Trump cases, Pennsylvania’s automatic voter registration program, the importance of dress code in the Senate, and the perception of Israel’s shared interests and values with the United States.

Conclusion

Ben Shapiro provides insightful analysis on the double standards applied to public figures, the Ukraine-Russia war, Joe Biden’s UN speech, censorship concerns, and various other topics. Listeners are encouraged to join the show’s membership program for exclusive content and access to the mailbag.