March 5, 2025 • 39 mins
We kicked off the program with four news stories and different guests on the stories we think you need to know about!
Comedian T.J. Miller brings his Crowd Sorcerer Tour to the Comedy Connection in East Providence, RI on Friday March 7th & Saturday March 8th! T.J. Miller checked in!
National Ladder Safety Month This Month! Mike Van Bree - director of product safety and engineering with a major U.S. ladder manufacturer discussed it with Dan.
The real concern when it comes to black plastics (which was discovered to have high levels of flame retardants) that are used in cooking spatulas, kitchen peelers, and more. With Dr. Tracey Woodruff - professor of reproductive sciences at the University of California at San Francisco.
Trade Wars: What will cost Americans more from sweeping tariffs on Mexico, China and Canada? Lance Thrailkill – Manufacturing expert & CEO of PRINT3D Technologies and All Metals Fabricating based in Texas explained.
Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the new iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!
Comedian T.J. Miller brings his Crowd Sorcerer Tour to the Comedy Connection in East Providence, RI on Friday March 7th & Saturday March 8th! T.J. Miller checked in!
National Ladder Safety Month This Month! Mike Van Bree - director of product safety and engineering with a major U.S. ladder manufacturer discussed it with Dan.
The real concern when it comes to black plastics (which was discovered to have high levels of flame retardants) that are used in cooking spatulas, kitchen peelers, and more. With Dr. Tracey Woodruff - professor of reproductive sciences at the University of California at San Francisco.
Trade Wars: What will cost Americans more from sweeping tariffs on Mexico, China and Canada? Lance Thrailkill – Manufacturing expert & CEO of PRINT3D Technologies and All Metals Fabricating based in Texas explained.
Listen to WBZ NewsRadio on the new iHeart Radio app and be sure to set WBZ NewsRadio as your #1 preset!
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
It's Nightside with Dan Ray on WBZY, Boston's news radio. Well,
thank you very much to call a good evening everyone.
The red light goes on and we are on the
air and it is Yeah, it's a little later here.
It's eight oh eight. My name is Dan Ray. I'm
the host of the aforementioned at Nightside with Dan Ray.
Rob is back in the control room, all set to
(00:23):
do a great job tonight for everyone here on Nightside.
No phone calls until nine o'clock. We have four really
interesting guests with interesting topics and backgrounds, and so let's
just dive right into it. By the way, later on tonight,
we will beginning at nine o'clock talk about the hearings
in Washington today where Mayor Wu Mayor Michelle Woo with
(00:43):
Boston and three other big city mayors were on the
hot seat, the verbal hot seat, and we'll talk about that.
We get to all of that, but not until after
nine o'clock. Joining us is comedian TJ. Miller. TJ. Miller,
Welcome to Nightside. How are you, sir?
Speaker 2 (00:57):
I love it.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
I love being on Nightside.
Speaker 4 (00:59):
I never get to do.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
Well. You're working too hard. That's what's going on. You're
probably at clubs and stuff like that. You got a
tour coming into East Providence, Rhode Island, the crowd Sorcerer Tour.
I think I know what those three words mean, but
I'm sure there's a theme hidden in those three words.
Tell me how you named it the crowd Sorcerer Tour.
Speaker 4 (01:20):
Well, I thought it's funny. You know, a lot of
people are doing crowd work right now, and I don't
really do traditional crowd work. I talk more about the
audience and kind of get my material from them, and
so I just thought that was a fun play on words.
And also, just like you know, it's partly implying like
you're going to be a part of the show. So
every single time I do stand up, whatever the audience is,
(01:43):
they're going to be a part, an integral part of
the show. So every show is different. They're completely part
of it. And it's been really, really fun this entire time.
It's great.
Speaker 1 (01:54):
Now, I've watched you and I've noticed that as a
matter of fact, you walk out there and it's very improvished,
which is a lot of fun. And you also have
to be on your toes and all of that and
have some fun with the audience. What percentage of the
people at one of your shows is happy to be
(02:14):
kind of outed a little bit as an audience member
or whatever you you've you've spot something on them or
you ask them a question. And what percentage of people
like are kind of covering up and hiding their face
when you're trying to get their catch catch their eye.
Speaker 4 (02:30):
I can pretty quickly tell if somebody doesn't really want
to talk to me or be talked about buying. But
I actually say probably ninety five percent of people are
sort of exciting the first thing, go oh, what's going
to happen with it? But then once they realize all
the attention is on them, they kind of like it.
I think people like becoming a part of the show.
So it's great. And also I'm not like, I'm not like,
(02:53):
look at it like stupid out there. Yeah. So I think.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
What I'm saying is you're having fun with them, and
you're you're you're laughing with them, You're not laughing at them.
I think would be a way.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
Yeah, And I and I think, you know, I always
try and like lift up the ladies and he's the
guys a little bit, and it's just really fun time right,
It's kind of all in good fun. I really do
believe that. I think my audience sort of understands that
also and then come to expect it. So some people
do sit in the front road just to hope that
I'm going to talk about and they'll say that to
(03:29):
me afterwards the meet and greet. I wanted to be
I want you to make fun of my hair, you know, Yeah, you.
Speaker 1 (03:34):
Know there's a there's another comedian who I've seen do
a lot of that. Do you are you? And Matt
Rife is his last name? Matt Rife close you know
what I mean?
Speaker 4 (03:43):
I assume yeah, of course, ye, it is Matt right.
And he's excellent. I mean he's really, really, really good.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
And I just I was what I was wondering at
this because I see some similarities in you guys, and uh,
I'm just wondering if it's a competitive thing or if
it's kind of Hey, he's doing his thing, I'm doing
my thing, kind of a new creative comedians. You guys
are not jay letoo Johnny Carson, but you're you're very
you guys are kind of similar.
Speaker 4 (04:10):
I think that's a really really good point. Actually, the
Leno and Letterman analogy. Wow, I know talking about that.
But he's kind of a fan. He had me on
one of his shows that I think maybe is going
on nats Wix, and he's sort of he's just really
really quick. And I think what happens is there's about
(04:30):
ten comedians or so, maybe fifteen, but definitely ten comedians
who can improvise an entire hour. Yeah, and I think
maybe part of the reason he's a fan is I'm
one of the comedians. But I think he's super quick.
There's another comic, Big Jay Oakerson, who he can he can,
(04:51):
he can do crowd. He's like David tel David l
can do the same thing. But he and I sort
of were in this group of comedians and we both agree.
And you know, he is very very fast and very
very funny. But yeah, I mean I think speaking it's
just speaking to Yeah. I think there's no competition. I'm
just kind of like I'm doing my thing. He's doing his,
(05:12):
just two very different styles, and you know, I respect him,
he obviously respects me.
Speaker 1 (05:18):
So let me let me run. Let me run you
back in the in the throwback machine here with the
time back machine. At what point in your life do
you think you sort of thought to yourself, I could
I could make a live in standing in front of
a crowd and having some fun with him. When did
you first think that you could be a comedian, which
(05:38):
you obviously are and a very good at.
Speaker 4 (05:43):
I think I think about the time that I realized
that it was really funny. I just I like making
people laugh, and so I just rubbed him in class,
and it was into that whole thing and uh, you know,
class clown and all those sorts of things. But I
think it was much more about realizing, oh, I'm making
all these kids laugh some comics ghos because I wanted attention.
(06:04):
I love the attention. I think it was more, Wow,
I can really make people laugh and have a good
time and be happy, and to that call of my eye.
Probably I don't know, in junior high school or something,
and then when I.
Speaker 1 (06:18):
Was about to real junior high school teachers must have
loved you.
Speaker 4 (06:24):
Yeah hardly, Yeah, they were they My parents were trying
to feed me riddle in and all that stuff.
Speaker 1 (06:31):
So let me ask you this. Have you ever had
a junior high school teacher show up for one of
your shows and say, hey, remember me, I'm missus Smith,
I was just a f with great homeroom teacher or
something that ever had an experience like that.
Speaker 4 (06:45):
You know what, I haven't. I'm closer to my high
school teachers. But you're right, no teacher has ever said, hey,
you might laugh.
Speaker 3 (06:54):
Maybe they're all kind of.
Speaker 4 (06:55):
Ashamed, not a shame of they're embarrassed if they were
so mean to me. And now I make a living
off that very thing.
Speaker 1 (07:05):
A couple of other quick questions, I don't get to
talk to you know, professional comedians, and people need to
understand it is a hard job being an entertainer.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
Therefore I was radio five nights a week. I don't
have to have people laugh. I try to make people think. Uh,
and and we engage in some more a little bit
more serious stuff. So I'm really enjoying having our conversation
with what you here explain to my audience quickly what
life is like on the road. I mean, if you're
on a tour, you're you're in this city. If you're
(07:34):
going to be in Providence, Rhode Island this Friday night
and Saturday, will give that a plug at the Comedy
Connection in East Providence. So it's going to be I
love it. I love it. Okay, So how how how
many months a year, how many weeks a year are
you out there working your craft in front of a
(07:54):
live audience on tour?
Speaker 4 (07:57):
Well, you know, you say, what's it like on the road?
I think the I say this. I think that it
depends on your outlook. So I think some people and
they're like, oh god, it's so hard being on the road.
And I don't, you know, necessarily know what to you know,
(08:18):
It's just it can be really hard, They'll say. I
think if you like traveling and you think it's interesting,
and you do it right, like it's a practice enough
to get good at it, like a Buddhist practice or something.
And I think, once you do that, I find it
really fun. I get to meet all kinds of people,
you know. I know more, I really like America. I
think America is very interesting, and so I like going
(08:40):
all over the country. And then I have really great
audiences and it has not that hurt. The only two
of things that are hard is it's hard to eat healthy,
especially when all the comedy companies serve like fried food,
not all of them, but a lot of us. And
you get all that for free, and it's delicious, of course,
and it's tough being away from my wife. I really
like my wife. She's a very cool individual. It says
(09:03):
between those two things that say, that's the hardest stuff,
and yeah, the rest of it is just gravy. But
it's it's a grind for sure.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
Yeah, you know, I'll tell you people don't understand that.
They see and they figure it's a great easy life.
It's not an easy life. You got you gotta you
gotta be up every night when when I start my
show and eight oh six or eight oh eight, whatever
the time it is. You got to be pumped up.
Every show has to be your best show ever because
if when you lose that, you're gonna lose the audience.
(09:34):
I don't think you're going to lose that. TJ. Miller Okay,
his crowd Sourcer Retort, Comedy Connection, East Providence, Rhode Island.
By the way, you're on a Boston radio station where
we're heard in thirty eight states. DJ OVERHL No.
Speaker 4 (09:47):
This is a great opportunity to range you.
Speaker 1 (09:49):
Oh no, no, no problem. Wanted to have you on
and uh, we'll have you back at some point if
you if you swing through Boston, I we do everything
remotely now after COVID, so I'm everything's on the phone,
so anytime you want to be back, you give me
a call. I I enjoyed the content, thank you.
Speaker 4 (10:06):
I mean, I played the Wilber Theater when I'm in Boston,
which is, yeah, correct venue. But I have some people
go to my show in Rhode Island and they were
from ASU. Yeah we went and saw you in Boston.
It isn't that an incredible theater? And they go, yeah,
but we didn't have the best steeves. We kind of
brought late. And you know, we we loved the show
(10:31):
in Rhode Island a lot more because it's more like
what you do. It's a smaller venue. You know. We
love the you know, the crowd interaction that you have,
and yeah, it's like that.
Speaker 1 (10:44):
It's you know what TJ is like watching a game
at Fenway Park. I don't care if you're if you're
not a baseball fee and you love the intimacy of
Fenway Park as opposed to some of these other stadiums
where you need to set of batailers to to see uh,
to see home plate. TJ enjoyed the whole Thank you much.
My friend enjoy East Providence, Rhode Island. Okay, we'll have
(11:07):
we'll we'll we'll talk again. I think you and I
got a connection here. I was on the road a
long time as a TV reporter. Now I'm not on
the road, but I'm kind of envious of your ability
to get out there and meet people. That's what. I'm
very much like you in the sense that I enjoy people,
and that's real important to my success and as certain
(11:30):
it's important to yours as well.
Speaker 4 (11:31):
So I gotta agree. Yeah, the irony just really quickly,
Guarany is I'm very you know, envious of you because
you sort of it's not at all a nine to five,
of course, not even close, but it's a it's more
there's more stability, and you get to kind of be
in the same place for longer. I don't envy that
your audience is silent, you know, I think that would
(11:54):
be very difficult. But I really always say, because I'm
a voiceover guy too, you know, I did bigger how
to train and drag and all that stuff. I really
respect radio because you guys are essentially improvising. Yeah, you
have guideposts, but you're improvising for hours you know.
Speaker 1 (12:10):
Yeah. Well, but TJ. Once at nine o'clock we blow
open the phone lines and we have people calling from
all over the country.
Speaker 4 (12:18):
And that would be so fun.
Speaker 1 (12:20):
Oh absolutely, I have people. You name a state, you
name the city, and I give the name of someone
I've maybe never met him or her. But let me
tell you there are people you know. You know, some
of my my most loyal fans are people in Florida, Laurie,
and Idaho. There's a whole bunch of people all around
the country that you know, and so there's some similarities
(12:43):
as well as some dissimilarities. Tej and I enjoyed it
a lot. Best of luck in from peas Father's Rhode
Island at the Comedy Connection this Friday and Saturday night.
Thanks so much, my friend. We'll talk again.
Speaker 4 (12:54):
Great, thank you.
Speaker 1 (12:55):
All right, we come up. We're going to talk about
this month, amongst others, is National Ladder Safety Month. We'll
be back. I think everyone will understand that one really easily.
We'll be back right after this one night. Side Now
back to Dan Ray live from the Window World Night
Sin Studios i WBZ News Radio. All right, Well, March,
(13:16):
of course is the beginning of spring. Spring training baseball
is underway for real flowers in some parts of the
country start to spring. But it's also just as importantly
National Ladder Safety Month. With me is Mike van Vree.
He's the director of product safety and engineering with a
major US ladder manufacturer. Let's get that one out of
(13:39):
the way. What is your major US ladder manufacturer. Let's
let's make sure you get credit here.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
Mike, Well, Dan, thank you so much for having me.
I am I'm with lous Ladder in Louisville, Kentucky.
Speaker 1 (13:55):
I've been to Louisville, Kentucky. It's a beautiful city. Red
Sox used to have a long, long time ago, a
Triple A minor league baseball team in Louisville, Kentucky.
Speaker 3 (14:04):
And those Triple as seem to change affiliation.
Speaker 4 (14:06):
I've noticed.
Speaker 1 (14:08):
Yeah, they do. They change a lot. No, I'm taking
you back to like the fifties and sixties when they
were in Louisville and then they were in Minneapolis and Toronto,
and they move around a lot, trust me, But ladders don't,
except when I try to climb up one. What's the
biggest thing. Obviously, we know you should never walk under
(14:28):
a ladder particularly on Friday the thirteenth. But what's the
biggest safety tip you can give people? Because look, people
are going to use ladders, you know that as well
as I do. And it can be dangerous once you're
off the ground.
Speaker 3 (14:42):
But that's it. The energy potential energy, as we say,
when you're at elevation.
Speaker 1 (14:48):
Yeah, So what's the big thing is that that people
don't sit the ladder on firm ground and they get
on the ladder and the third step up, boom, there
they're flying through the air. What what can you tell people
that will other than let the professionals do it? Like
most guys, wives will say get off the ladder. You
(15:08):
know that's my wife yells at me. But hey, you
got to change a light bulb on an exterior light,
I'm going to use a ladder. What what dance could
we take get from you there?
Speaker 3 (15:18):
There's there's quite a few things that I could I
could certainly talk for a long time on the subject.
I've I've worked in this industry for a while so
have have seen, uh seen quite a few things over
those years. But you know, you bring up the footing
of the ladder, having it, having it set properly on firm,
solid ground, level ground, and that's that's I'm absolutely a consideration.
(15:45):
I think one of the one of the things that I,
I guess I try to highlight whenever we think about
ladders and ladder safety is well. People sometimes make fun
of the labeling on ladders. It is uh. It is
covering those base and reminding people of things that you
probably know but can certainly help you to avoid getting
(16:08):
yourself into trouble. And so I definitely recommend paying some
attention to those to those warnings and instructions. A ladder
is a tool like many others, and and people kind
of have an expectation that it's just a ladder and
I should know how to use it, and generally you
do that. There's some I guess just to hit some
(16:29):
steps maybe to take when you're when you're getting the
ladder out. I can I can certainly run through a
few things to consider all ears well, you know, I
guess these are again all things that are on the ladder.
And I'm not going to, by any means try and
regurgitate all of that. But there's really four key points.
You want to choose the right ladder. You want to
(16:51):
inspect it once you have chosen it, you want to
make sure that it's in good working order, that it
hasn't been inadvertently damaged by somebody else, for example, And
then you need to set it off properly. And the
final thing is to use it safely. And so just
kind of running through each of those just a little bit,
(17:12):
just very briefly. On the selection, you want to make
sure that you are choosing the ladder that is going
to work best for the job. Is that a step ladder,
is that an extension ladder, a leanable ladder? And then
what material is it made out? If you're working around electricity,
you want to be sure you're using a non conductive
(17:34):
fiberglass ladder. Aluminum is a great material if you don't
have electrical hazards to worry about. And then you want
to make sure that the height of the ladder is
going to give you safe access, and that the load
capacity is appropriate for the weight of your weight and
any tools, equipment and such that you might be using.
Speaker 1 (17:57):
So one thing about a step letter, even if it's
like a six foot step ladder, never be dumb enough
to go to the top of the ladder instand a
top the ladder because.
Speaker 3 (18:08):
Well, it's good. Good to hear you've gotten that message. Yeah,
we certainly have had for many decades now labels on
the top step and the top camp not to stand
on those And people ask me why is that, And
the reason is because you can lose your balance. That
portion of the ladder structure is there to give you support.
(18:29):
So whether that's holding onto the ladder with your hands
or whether that's leaning into the ladder, bracing into the
ladder with your legs, your body, that sort of thing
while you're working that that is there so that you're
not just balancing on your feet alone, and so you
don't want to get too high.
Speaker 1 (18:48):
That is so so important. Hey, Mike vanvrie, I enjoyed
the conversation National Ladder Safety Month, and it's called Louisville Ladder. Yeah,
I know, I certainly am familiar with Louisville Slugger, but
now I know someone with Louisville Ladder and I like that.
Thanks so much for being with us.
Speaker 3 (19:07):
Thank you so much. Dan, You have a wonderful evening,
you too.
Speaker 1 (19:09):
Mike, have a great weekend coming up. All right, we
got the news coming up when we get back on
top of doctor Tracy Woodriff. She's a professor of reproductive
Sciences at the University of California at San Francisco, and
we're going to talk about somethings really that's important. Black
plastic cooking, spatchuelas and all of that. They have high
(19:31):
levels of flame retardants, but they can be somewhat dangerous.
We'll get into all of that with Professor Woodriff right
after the break here at the bottom of the hour.
My name's Dan Ray. This is Nightside. By the way,
get the new and improved iHeart app. I've got it,
and you can also get it on presets, So you
make your first preset WBZ, which means anytime, any place,
(19:54):
anywhere in the world. You can listen to us three
hundred and sixty five days a year, twenty four to seven.
Coming back on night It's Night Side with.
Speaker 2 (20:04):
Boston's news Radio.
Speaker 1 (20:06):
Thank you, Nicole. We're about to introduce you to doctor
Tracy Woodroff. Doctor Tracy Woodruff, Welcome to Nightside. How are you?
Speaker 5 (20:14):
I'm good?
Speaker 4 (20:14):
How are you were great?
Speaker 1 (20:16):
You own University of California at San Francisco, Professor of
Reproductive Sciences, Beautiful City, San Francisco, and there's recently as
sometime in January, it's the rain finally stopped out there.
You guys were getting delused with it last week and.
Speaker 5 (20:32):
We were, but it's beautiful right now, so we want
to come visit us.
Speaker 1 (20:36):
Oh yeah, my daughter's out there, so that's why get
get out that way. So I'm going to talk about
the problem with black plastic utensils. When we say black
plastic utensils, we're talking about the things that people use
with at the stove when they're cooking materials I assume,
and they're they're plastic. And what's the problem.
Speaker 5 (21:01):
Well, right, we're talking about spatulists, slotted spoons, even the
sushi trays. So this black plastic, a lot of it
is basically recycled from old electronic plastic and that has
these toxic chemicals and it's called flame retardant chemicals. And
so this is one of the challenges is that they
have you have your electronics, you know, you're black cord
(21:23):
on your floor in your TV, and they say, oh,
recycling is so great, but again, get recycled into these
these new these new products like flotted spoons and spatulasts
that have toxic chemicals in them, and then when you're
using them, say you're using them to flip your food,
whatever food you have in your pan, it can lead
(21:44):
some of those toxic chemicals. So that's why with all.
Speaker 1 (21:49):
Of the regulations we have here with the EPA and
oh yeah, the food, the Food and Drug Administration, how
did this one get by everybody. I'm going to go
downstairs and throw out some of my plastic spatulas. But
what our conversation is through this is serious because it
(22:10):
says that as I understand that some of these they
have flame retardants, which is great, but the flame retardants
have been found, as I understand it, to reduce children's IQ.
That might have what happened to me, But when I
was young, I don't think they had plastic materials. But
boost cancer rates, contribute to thyroid disease. There's some pretty
(22:33):
serious implications here.
Speaker 5 (22:36):
Yeah, I know it is serious. And the sad reality is,
I know everyone thinks they go to the store and
the chemicals that are using these products have been tested
by the government, but that sadly is not true. It
turns out that the laws are actually not doing the
job they're supposed to be doing. To make sure that
all these chemicals, like these flame retardant chemicals that can
(22:56):
cause things like cancer or lower IQ have been tested,
identified by the government and then made sure not to
be in our products that we buy. But that's not
the way the laws set up in this country. It's
really like we're kind of the guinea pigs here. So
why the study is so important because it shows, Wow,
we really need to upgrade what we're doing in terms
(23:19):
of making sure that when we use these materials, they're not,
like you said, making us less smart. I guess there
is another way to think about it.
Speaker 1 (23:27):
Okay, So here's my question, A couple questions, and I
just we don't script this stuff, as you probably realized
by now, it's all questions off the top of my head.
Is there any country in the world of which you
are aware that actually is ahead of us on the
curve here? I mean, I'm assuming it's kind of a
(23:48):
chicken and egg question. If they don't test this stuff
first and say, oh, yay, you want to use some
black plastic, be our guest. Absolutely, we love that stuff.
You're gonna love it. Or are the countries around the
world that are more hip to this stuff and they're
going to say they may be using that stuff in America,
but we want no part of it.
Speaker 5 (24:10):
Well, let me just say some of the chemicals that
were found in here were banned, not all of them,
but some of them have been banned because way now
they're toxic. But the problem is there's a couple of things.
One is, not all the toxic chemicals have been banned
or evaluated. And then the second thing is it doesn't
just because their band doesn't mean all the use is
Like again, recycling plastic is like I've been told, oh,
(24:33):
that's a solution or a plastic problem. But the problem
is it can get recycled into new products, but then
we then basically put on you know, contact with our food,
and then we end up eating it ourselves.
Speaker 1 (24:47):
If you're going to recycle black plastic in a snow shovel,
not likely going to be gnar and on the snowshovel
anytime soon.
Speaker 5 (24:56):
I mean, well, I hope not.
Speaker 1 (24:58):
But you would think that somehow, some way, the all
all of these these agencies and government agencies are going
to protect us, which you know, I hope they do.
When I go to the store, I hope the food
and drug administration has some idea about what they're doing
from flying on an airplane. I want to make sure
that the FAA people, particularly the controllers, were awaken the
(25:18):
control tower. It's crazy to think that in this day
and age that this stuff is still a problem and
it's up for scientists like you to point out the issue.
Do you get pushed back from the either you know,
from the plastics injury industry, or is there a pushback from,
(25:41):
you know, the companies that are selling these I think
the companies that are selling these are the big stores
that all of us know about, you know, Walmart and Target,
all places that most of us go, and we assume
that when you buy stuff there it's it's safe. How
does this what's the dynamic that that allows this to happen?
Is what my question is. They should have gotten to
that question quicker.
Speaker 5 (26:02):
Yeah, but there's a lot to unpack. There isn't there.
So I think the first thing is a lot of
the plates, like you go to your retail store, but
they don't want to sell toxic chemicals right then, don't
want to sell toxic chemicals in their products. But they're
a victim also of the way that the chemical manufactures
they make, the chemicals they control a lot of a
lot of the ways that you know, they've influenced the
(26:25):
laws in the United States in terms of how fast
they're working to evaluate the toxae these chemicals. They can
hide some of their chemicals behind what they call confidential
business reasons, so that the government has a really hard
time getting companies to give them the actual data they
need in order to identify toxic chemicals before they're used
(26:46):
in products and then get onto our shelves. So the
system is not set up. And I know it's kind
of amazing when you hear this, because you think, well,
isn't everything regulated in the United States. No, these these chemicals,
and sadly there's four thousand of them chemical companies can
use in you know, all these different products, and we
(27:06):
know they're using them, and we know we're exposed to them,
and we also know they've not been fully tested for
safety or regulated.
Speaker 4 (27:14):
So I'm not.
Speaker 5 (27:15):
Sure that's going to change right away. Since the cut's
being proposed to the federal agency it's supposed to do
this EPA, and the people they're putting in charge at
EPA come from the chemical industry, So I think we're
in for a rough ride on related to toxic chemicals.
Speaker 4 (27:31):
Anyway.
Speaker 1 (27:32):
Well, you know, it's funny when in the middle of
the summer some little traveling circus or amusement park comes
to town and sets up shop and they got a
ferris wheel. Most of the time you're gonna say, I
think I'll pass in the ferrist wheel because I have
no idea when I was last expected we get that. Okay,
But I can remember in the sixties and seventies when
(27:54):
when some of these big companies, you know, they would
they would do these advertising campaigns we are developing progress
through science, those phrases that you wow, we got progress
and it's through science. What's they cot be a problem? There?
Sounds to me like a lot of problems. I really
enjoyed our conversation, doctor Tracy Woodriff, and hopefully everybody tonight
(28:19):
is going to go and find their black plastic utensils, spatulas,
et cetera that are being used to cook. And we
get some downstairs I know have melted because they I
get again, Yeah, that isn't even worse. They look worse.
Thanks so much for your time. I do appreciate it.
(28:41):
Uh to take the time, and a lot of people
are going to probably act upon the information you provided tonight.
So for that, you've done a good deed. I appreciate
it so far. Thank you, doctor Teresa. When we get back,
we're going to talk about trade wars. What's going to
cost Americans. I think there's a yng a yang to this.
To be honest with you, my guest is Lance Thrailkill.
(29:04):
He's a manufacturing expert and CEO of Print three D Technologies.
We'll talk with him. I think there is a yang
and a yang to this. I don't know where he's
going to come down on it, but we'll talk to
him right after the break here on Nightside. Now back
to Dan ray Line from the Window World night Side
Steos on w b Z News Radio. Well, we've heard
(29:27):
a lot of talk about trade wars in the last
few weeks in the left, particularly the last few days,
also tariffs on China, Mexico and Canada with US as
Lance Trailkill, he's a manufacturing expert and CEO of Print
three D. It is a print three D technology, so printed,
I guess you you pronounced it Printed technologies and all metals,
(29:51):
fabricated fabrication, Fabricating. What is print Printed Technologies? Are you
you guys doing all the three D printing and.
Speaker 2 (30:01):
All that, Yes, sir, yeah, so we're printed. Yeah, you
had it right. Printed. It's a little play on the print.
Three D Printed Technologies is a three D home building business.
We've developed a automated three D home printing system and
that has been designed. It's it's owned by All Metals
Fabricating as fifty percent equity holder in that business. And
(30:23):
we're trying to tackle affordable care, our affordable housecare, our
house housing rather sorry, and disrupt the archaic construction industry
that's been building things the same way for one hundred years.
But okay, tariffs, it's really more applicable to All Metals Fabricating. Sorry,
so yeah, because we import. We don't directly import, but
(30:44):
we buy, along with every other manufacturer in the United States,
is fully dependent on imported raw material from uh, you know,
all over the world, so directly directly impacting us immediately
and has been for since since Trump originally tweeted about
the TIFFs going into effect on Super Bowl Sunday.
Speaker 1 (31:05):
Okay, so, so your company, All Metals Fabricating, give give
us an example of what you're importing and from where
that goes into the h into the three D sort of.
It sounds to me like you're doing sort of producing
housing that's that's affordable for people. Correct.
Speaker 2 (31:24):
Oh yeah, Well let me back up a little bit.
So Printed is just a subsidiary one one customer of
hundreds of customers of All Metals Fabricating. So All Metals
Fabricating is a contract manufacturer. We do sheet metal machining,
powder coating, and electric mechanical assembly. And what that means
is we can take a sheet of metal or you know,
a block of metal and make it into just about
(31:46):
anything and we'll build the print. And so we to
answer your question directly, we you know, we, along with
all other manufacturers, we buy from distributors, domestic distributors that
get material and from international mills all over the world.
And so you know, the mills in the United States.
(32:07):
There's only four aluminum mills in the United States and
not enough steel mills either to even support a fraction
of United States manufacturing. And so the United States is
completely dependent on international mills to that they sell that
they then sell to US distributors.
Speaker 1 (32:28):
Okay, so is it possible that the tariffs might encourage
more companies to invest and build mills here in America.
I mean, we know that we've lost a lot of
the car manufacturers. I think there's some that have actually
left the States and gone to Mexico. And of course,
of course we import a lot of cars from from
(32:49):
South Korea, from from Japan. We bring a lot of
cars into this country. It wasn't that way fifty years ago,
because there's all American made cars. I guess one of
the benefits of the tariffs, according to the Trump administration
is it will it will I guess, encourage put it
(33:11):
in courage things to be manufactured here. Is that?
Speaker 2 (33:15):
Yeah, yeah, that's the narrative. Is the narrative is correct.
So to take it back to the original minute, you know,
his previous administration when he was in office, I think
you know, they had a big, huge plan to you know,
make three or four new mills in the United States,
which once again cannot even support a fraction. Mills have
(33:37):
been you know, we've been for decades and decades and
decades been getting material from overseas. So while yes, the
the idea, just even the narrative of this American made
and restoring that pride has brought a lot of business
and restoring efforts in terms of the manufacturing, but in
terms of the mills, this would take a long, strategic,
(33:57):
decades long plan, uh, with you know, congruent administrations that
being on the same page about that, and hundreds of
hundreds of if not a billion dollars or more by
billions of dollars to actually be able to support United
States American manufacturing. And so what ends up happening is
(34:18):
the international mills mark the material up. They say, we're
not paying this. You guys are paying this. We're passing
it along and by the way, we're not going to
reduce our margins, so they pass on. Now, you know,
if it's twenty five percent tear, if they're passing on
twenty eight thirty percent because they're not going to let
their margin go down, then it goes to the US distributors.
They're not going to let their margin go down. So
by time it gets to the manufacturers, it's you know,
(34:39):
forty percent thirty five forty percent at least, and it
really so then which we pass on to our customers.
Uh So we don't make anything for consumers, but we
make the B to B. So our customer being other businesses,
is you know, having to eat that cost and pushing
back on us and cutting our margins.
Speaker 1 (34:56):
Yeah, and I understand that. But again, if from the
perspective of the national economy, this may impact your industry adversely,
but it would help, uh, certainly the the automotive unions
around the country. If a lot of these car companies
(35:18):
that that have fled the fled the United States and
gone to Mexico, if all of a sudden that say, hey,
let's get back to let's get back to America. I
mean there's I say this sort of a yang.
Speaker 2 (35:28):
And a yang here totally absolutely with everything and and
and what you you keep talking more about the car
manufacturers and so the mills is a different thing where
that's the raw materials that's coming in.
Speaker 1 (35:42):
Yeah. So I just think that that's what I'm saying.
What I'm saying, Linz didn't mean interrupt it. People can
understand that now in terms of the stuff that's being
brought into the country, that's a longer problem. You've you've
articulated that, really, well, how did we lose all of
these mills in the first place. I assume that one
(36:03):
hundred years ago, we were manufacturing this stuff here. I mean,
because the ability to ship stuff, you know, from halfway
around the world is a lot probably cheaper today and
more easily easy to accomplish than that was one hundred
years ago. What what prompted all this stuff to go
out overseas anyway?
Speaker 2 (36:25):
Yeah, I mean, you know, the old mill jobs were dirty,
you know, hard jobs. Now they've moved more towards automated meals,
so you know, it is a lot more attractive, but
it's still you know, not a very attractive job. So
I just think that's in part that you know, and
also just it's as it became a global economy, became
(36:46):
more competitive to get the material from other countries. So
it's kind of a double play there. Let me let
me just back up and say, you know, I am
a conservative. You know, you got to take the good
with the bad. So in the last you know, in
his previous administration, we had our four best years ever,
you know, prior to last year. And so you know,
(37:06):
while these negatively impact US, I do think there's a
need for tariffs, especially on China. Absolutely pro tarif. I'm China,
we don't get any of our where we get very
little of our material from China, none of it directly.
And in other industries you know, I'm just speaking from
a manufacturing standpoint, which in other industries like semiconductors for example,
that that's been a huge push that we've now start,
(37:28):
you know, manufacturing semiconductors here and so that's a great thing.
Speaker 1 (37:33):
Do you know where semiconductors used to be manufactured. They
used to be manufacturing in Puerto Rico and there was
there was a law passed in our Congress in nineteen
ninety six Republicans and Democratic Democrats together push that stuff
off shore. Here's my question, what about what about doing
some carveouts for your industry. Can't you get to the
(37:55):
Trump administration say hey, look, you're hurting us more than
you're helping other people. Give us a carve out here,
and you know, you do whatever you want, but give
us a little bit of a break or maybe eliminate
the tariffs in your particular industry.
Speaker 2 (38:09):
Well, that's certainly what we're hopeful for, at least that
a minimum, you know, would like to see. You know,
the Canada one originally came out and then he rolled
it back. So a lot of you know about forty
percent of US aluminum comes from Canada, and so would
definitely like to see that loosen. I think a lot
of the the tariff around that is due to you know,
(38:30):
letting fetanaohl come in the country. A lot of the
steel comes from Eastern Europe, and so in past he
ended up eventually exempting a lot of these you know, countries,
which I think will happen, and that's our whole part
of the problem is honestly that the mill, the United
States mills have a large lobby presence in Washington, and
(38:50):
what they do is they use this as an opportunity
to jack up their price and so which really is
extremely frustrating. This second that the second that these Trump
tweeted about that even the US mil started increasing their prices,
So that that's the frustrating part.
Speaker 1 (39:08):
But nonetheless, Lin's I'm probably more empathetic to your situation
than you might realize. And maybe we'll talk again a
few weeks from now. As this this story seems to develop,
lyn'ce thrillkill with the other printed technologies and also all
metals fabricating. Thanks thanks, Linnce, I appreciate your time and
your patience with my questions.
Speaker 2 (39:29):
Thank you much, thank you so much to appreciate you.
Speaker 1 (39:31):
Ulcome, You're welcome. We come back on to talk about
Michelle Who's trip to Washington today. It will be it
is going to be a fun ride the next few hours.
Stay with us.
It's Nightside with Dan Ray on WBZY, Boston's news radio. Well,
thank you very much to call a good evening everyone.
The red light goes on and we are on the
air and it is Yeah, it's a little later here.
It's eight oh eight. My name is Dan Ray. I'm
the host of the aforementioned at Nightside with Dan Ray.
Rob is back in the control room, all set to
(00:23):
do a great job tonight for everyone here on Nightside.
No phone calls until nine o'clock. We have four really
interesting guests with interesting topics and backgrounds, and so let's
just dive right into it. By the way, later on tonight,
we will beginning at nine o'clock talk about the hearings
in Washington today where Mayor Wu Mayor Michelle Woo with
(00:43):
Boston and three other big city mayors were on the
hot seat, the verbal hot seat, and we'll talk about that.
We get to all of that, but not until after
nine o'clock. Joining us is comedian TJ. Miller. TJ. Miller,
Welcome to Nightside. How are you, sir?
Speaker 2 (00:57):
I love it.
Speaker 3 (00:57):
I love being on Nightside.
Speaker 4 (00:59):
I never get to do.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
Well. You're working too hard. That's what's going on. You're
probably at clubs and stuff like that. You got a
tour coming into East Providence, Rhode Island, the crowd Sorcerer Tour.
I think I know what those three words mean, but
I'm sure there's a theme hidden in those three words.
Tell me how you named it the crowd Sorcerer Tour.
Speaker 4 (01:20):
Well, I thought it's funny. You know, a lot of
people are doing crowd work right now, and I don't
really do traditional crowd work. I talk more about the
audience and kind of get my material from them, and
so I just thought that was a fun play on words.
And also, just like you know, it's partly implying like
you're going to be a part of the show. So
every single time I do stand up, whatever the audience is,
(01:43):
they're going to be a part, an integral part of
the show. So every show is different. They're completely part
of it. And it's been really, really fun this entire time.
It's great.
Speaker 1 (01:54):
Now, I've watched you and I've noticed that as a
matter of fact, you walk out there and it's very improvished,
which is a lot of fun. And you also have
to be on your toes and all of that and
have some fun with the audience. What percentage of the
people at one of your shows is happy to be
(02:14):
kind of outed a little bit as an audience member
or whatever you you've you've spot something on them or
you ask them a question. And what percentage of people
like are kind of covering up and hiding their face
when you're trying to get their catch catch their eye.
Speaker 4 (02:30):
I can pretty quickly tell if somebody doesn't really want
to talk to me or be talked about buying. But
I actually say probably ninety five percent of people are
sort of exciting the first thing, go oh, what's going
to happen with it? But then once they realize all
the attention is on them, they kind of like it.
I think people like becoming a part of the show.
So it's great. And also I'm not like, I'm not like,
(02:53):
look at it like stupid out there. Yeah. So I think.
Speaker 1 (03:01):
What I'm saying is you're having fun with them, and
you're you're you're laughing with them, You're not laughing at them.
I think would be a way.
Speaker 4 (03:08):
Yeah, And I and I think, you know, I always
try and like lift up the ladies and he's the
guys a little bit, and it's just really fun time right,
It's kind of all in good fun. I really do
believe that. I think my audience sort of understands that
also and then come to expect it. So some people
do sit in the front road just to hope that
I'm going to talk about and they'll say that to
(03:29):
me afterwards the meet and greet. I wanted to be
I want you to make fun of my hair, you know, Yeah, you.
Speaker 1 (03:34):
Know there's a there's another comedian who I've seen do
a lot of that. Do you are you? And Matt
Rife is his last name? Matt Rife close you know
what I mean?
Speaker 4 (03:43):
I assume yeah, of course, ye, it is Matt right.
And he's excellent. I mean he's really, really, really good.
Speaker 1 (03:51):
And I just I was what I was wondering at
this because I see some similarities in you guys, and uh,
I'm just wondering if it's a competitive thing or if
it's kind of Hey, he's doing his thing, I'm doing
my thing, kind of a new creative comedians. You guys
are not jay letoo Johnny Carson, but you're you're very
you guys are kind of similar.
Speaker 4 (04:10):
I think that's a really really good point. Actually, the
Leno and Letterman analogy. Wow, I know talking about that.
But he's kind of a fan. He had me on
one of his shows that I think maybe is going
on nats Wix, and he's sort of he's just really
really quick. And I think what happens is there's about
(04:30):
ten comedians or so, maybe fifteen, but definitely ten comedians
who can improvise an entire hour. Yeah, and I think
maybe part of the reason he's a fan is I'm
one of the comedians. But I think he's super quick.
There's another comic, Big Jay Oakerson, who he can he can,
(04:51):
he can do crowd. He's like David tel David l
can do the same thing. But he and I sort
of were in this group of comedians and we both agree.
And you know, he is very very fast and very
very funny. But yeah, I mean I think speaking it's
just speaking to Yeah. I think there's no competition. I'm
just kind of like I'm doing my thing. He's doing his,
(05:12):
just two very different styles, and you know, I respect him,
he obviously respects me.
Speaker 1 (05:18):
So let me let me run. Let me run you
back in the in the throwback machine here with the
time back machine. At what point in your life do
you think you sort of thought to yourself, I could
I could make a live in standing in front of
a crowd and having some fun with him. When did
you first think that you could be a comedian, which
(05:38):
you obviously are and a very good at.
Speaker 4 (05:43):
I think I think about the time that I realized
that it was really funny. I just I like making
people laugh, and so I just rubbed him in class,
and it was into that whole thing and uh, you know,
class clown and all those sorts of things. But I
think it was much more about realizing, oh, I'm making
all these kids laugh some comics ghos because I wanted attention.
(06:04):
I love the attention. I think it was more, Wow,
I can really make people laugh and have a good
time and be happy, and to that call of my eye.
Probably I don't know, in junior high school or something,
and then when I.
Speaker 1 (06:18):
Was about to real junior high school teachers must have
loved you.
Speaker 4 (06:24):
Yeah hardly, Yeah, they were they My parents were trying
to feed me riddle in and all that stuff.
Speaker 1 (06:31):
So let me ask you this. Have you ever had
a junior high school teacher show up for one of
your shows and say, hey, remember me, I'm missus Smith,
I was just a f with great homeroom teacher or
something that ever had an experience like that.
Speaker 4 (06:45):
You know what, I haven't. I'm closer to my high
school teachers. But you're right, no teacher has ever said, hey,
you might laugh.
Speaker 3 (06:54):
Maybe they're all kind of.
Speaker 4 (06:55):
Ashamed, not a shame of they're embarrassed if they were
so mean to me. And now I make a living
off that very thing.
Speaker 1 (07:05):
A couple of other quick questions, I don't get to
talk to you know, professional comedians, and people need to
understand it is a hard job being an entertainer.
Speaker 2 (07:13):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
Therefore I was radio five nights a week. I don't
have to have people laugh. I try to make people think. Uh,
and and we engage in some more a little bit
more serious stuff. So I'm really enjoying having our conversation
with what you here explain to my audience quickly what
life is like on the road. I mean, if you're
on a tour, you're you're in this city. If you're
(07:34):
going to be in Providence, Rhode Island this Friday night
and Saturday, will give that a plug at the Comedy
Connection in East Providence. So it's going to be I
love it. I love it. Okay, So how how how
many months a year, how many weeks a year are
you out there working your craft in front of a
(07:54):
live audience on tour?
Speaker 4 (07:57):
Well, you know, you say, what's it like on the road?
I think the I say this. I think that it
depends on your outlook. So I think some people and
they're like, oh god, it's so hard being on the road.
And I don't, you know, necessarily know what to you know,
(08:18):
It's just it can be really hard, They'll say. I
think if you like traveling and you think it's interesting,
and you do it right, like it's a practice enough
to get good at it, like a Buddhist practice or something.
And I think, once you do that, I find it
really fun. I get to meet all kinds of people,
you know. I know more, I really like America. I
think America is very interesting, and so I like going
(08:40):
all over the country. And then I have really great
audiences and it has not that hurt. The only two
of things that are hard is it's hard to eat healthy,
especially when all the comedy companies serve like fried food,
not all of them, but a lot of us. And
you get all that for free, and it's delicious, of course,
and it's tough being away from my wife. I really
like my wife. She's a very cool individual. It says
(09:03):
between those two things that say, that's the hardest stuff,
and yeah, the rest of it is just gravy. But
it's it's a grind for sure.
Speaker 1 (09:12):
Yeah, you know, I'll tell you people don't understand that.
They see and they figure it's a great easy life.
It's not an easy life. You got you gotta you
gotta be up every night when when I start my
show and eight oh six or eight oh eight, whatever
the time it is. You got to be pumped up.
Every show has to be your best show ever because
if when you lose that, you're gonna lose the audience.
(09:34):
I don't think you're going to lose that. TJ. Miller Okay,
his crowd Sourcer Retort, Comedy Connection, East Providence, Rhode Island.
By the way, you're on a Boston radio station where
we're heard in thirty eight states. DJ OVERHL No.
Speaker 4 (09:47):
This is a great opportunity to range you.
Speaker 1 (09:49):
Oh no, no, no problem. Wanted to have you on
and uh, we'll have you back at some point if
you if you swing through Boston, I we do everything
remotely now after COVID, so I'm everything's on the phone,
so anytime you want to be back, you give me
a call. I I enjoyed the content, thank you.
Speaker 4 (10:06):
I mean, I played the Wilber Theater when I'm in Boston,
which is, yeah, correct venue. But I have some people
go to my show in Rhode Island and they were
from ASU. Yeah we went and saw you in Boston.
It isn't that an incredible theater? And they go, yeah,
but we didn't have the best steeves. We kind of
brought late. And you know, we we loved the show
(10:31):
in Rhode Island a lot more because it's more like
what you do. It's a smaller venue. You know. We
love the you know, the crowd interaction that you have,
and yeah, it's like that.
Speaker 1 (10:44):
It's you know what TJ is like watching a game
at Fenway Park. I don't care if you're if you're
not a baseball fee and you love the intimacy of
Fenway Park as opposed to some of these other stadiums
where you need to set of batailers to to see uh,
to see home plate. TJ enjoyed the whole Thank you much.
My friend enjoy East Providence, Rhode Island. Okay, we'll have
(11:07):
we'll we'll we'll talk again. I think you and I
got a connection here. I was on the road a
long time as a TV reporter. Now I'm not on
the road, but I'm kind of envious of your ability
to get out there and meet people. That's what. I'm
very much like you in the sense that I enjoy people,
and that's real important to my success and as certain
(11:30):
it's important to yours as well.
Speaker 4 (11:31):
So I gotta agree. Yeah, the irony just really quickly,
Guarany is I'm very you know, envious of you because
you sort of it's not at all a nine to five,
of course, not even close, but it's a it's more
there's more stability, and you get to kind of be
in the same place for longer. I don't envy that
your audience is silent, you know, I think that would
(11:54):
be very difficult. But I really always say, because I'm
a voiceover guy too, you know, I did bigger how
to train and drag and all that stuff. I really
respect radio because you guys are essentially improvising. Yeah, you
have guideposts, but you're improvising for hours you know.
Speaker 1 (12:10):
Yeah. Well, but TJ. Once at nine o'clock we blow
open the phone lines and we have people calling from
all over the country.
Speaker 4 (12:18):
And that would be so fun.
Speaker 1 (12:20):
Oh absolutely, I have people. You name a state, you
name the city, and I give the name of someone
I've maybe never met him or her. But let me
tell you there are people you know. You know, some
of my my most loyal fans are people in Florida, Laurie,
and Idaho. There's a whole bunch of people all around
the country that you know, and so there's some similarities
(12:43):
as well as some dissimilarities. Tej and I enjoyed it
a lot. Best of luck in from peas Father's Rhode
Island at the Comedy Connection this Friday and Saturday night.
Thanks so much, my friend. We'll talk again.
Speaker 4 (12:54):
Great, thank you.
Speaker 1 (12:55):
All right, we come up. We're going to talk about
this month, amongst others, is National Ladder Safety Month. We'll
be back. I think everyone will understand that one really easily.
We'll be back right after this one night. Side Now
back to Dan Ray live from the Window World Night
Sin Studios i WBZ News Radio. All right, Well, March,
(13:16):
of course is the beginning of spring. Spring training baseball
is underway for real flowers in some parts of the
country start to spring. But it's also just as importantly
National Ladder Safety Month. With me is Mike van Vree.
He's the director of product safety and engineering with a
major US ladder manufacturer. Let's get that one out of
(13:39):
the way. What is your major US ladder manufacturer. Let's
let's make sure you get credit here.
Speaker 3 (13:46):
Mike, Well, Dan, thank you so much for having me.
I am I'm with lous Ladder in Louisville, Kentucky.
Speaker 1 (13:55):
I've been to Louisville, Kentucky. It's a beautiful city. Red
Sox used to have a long, long time ago, a
Triple A minor league baseball team in Louisville, Kentucky.
Speaker 3 (14:04):
And those Triple as seem to change affiliation.
Speaker 4 (14:06):
I've noticed.
Speaker 1 (14:08):
Yeah, they do. They change a lot. No, I'm taking
you back to like the fifties and sixties when they
were in Louisville and then they were in Minneapolis and Toronto,
and they move around a lot, trust me, But ladders don't,
except when I try to climb up one. What's the
biggest thing. Obviously, we know you should never walk under
(14:28):
a ladder particularly on Friday the thirteenth. But what's the
biggest safety tip you can give people? Because look, people
are going to use ladders, you know that as well
as I do. And it can be dangerous once you're
off the ground.
Speaker 3 (14:42):
But that's it. The energy potential energy, as we say,
when you're at elevation.
Speaker 1 (14:48):
Yeah, So what's the big thing is that that people
don't sit the ladder on firm ground and they get
on the ladder and the third step up, boom, there
they're flying through the air. What what can you tell people
that will other than let the professionals do it? Like
most guys, wives will say get off the ladder. You
(15:08):
know that's my wife yells at me. But hey, you
got to change a light bulb on an exterior light,
I'm going to use a ladder. What what dance could
we take get from you there?
Speaker 3 (15:18):
There's there's quite a few things that I could I
could certainly talk for a long time on the subject.
I've I've worked in this industry for a while so
have have seen, uh seen quite a few things over
those years. But you know, you bring up the footing
of the ladder, having it, having it set properly on firm,
solid ground, level ground, and that's that's I'm absolutely a consideration.
(15:45):
I think one of the one of the things that I,
I guess I try to highlight whenever we think about
ladders and ladder safety is well. People sometimes make fun
of the labeling on ladders. It is uh. It is
covering those base and reminding people of things that you
probably know but can certainly help you to avoid getting
(16:08):
yourself into trouble. And so I definitely recommend paying some
attention to those to those warnings and instructions. A ladder
is a tool like many others, and and people kind
of have an expectation that it's just a ladder and
I should know how to use it, and generally you
do that. There's some I guess just to hit some
(16:29):
steps maybe to take when you're when you're getting the
ladder out. I can I can certainly run through a
few things to consider all ears well, you know, I
guess these are again all things that are on the ladder.
And I'm not going to, by any means try and
regurgitate all of that. But there's really four key points.
You want to choose the right ladder. You want to
(16:51):
inspect it once you have chosen it, you want to
make sure that it's in good working order, that it
hasn't been inadvertently damaged by somebody else, for example, And
then you need to set it off properly. And the
final thing is to use it safely. And so just
kind of running through each of those just a little bit,
(17:12):
just very briefly. On the selection, you want to make
sure that you are choosing the ladder that is going
to work best for the job. Is that a step ladder,
is that an extension ladder, a leanable ladder? And then
what material is it made out? If you're working around electricity,
you want to be sure you're using a non conductive
(17:34):
fiberglass ladder. Aluminum is a great material if you don't
have electrical hazards to worry about. And then you want
to make sure that the height of the ladder is
going to give you safe access, and that the load
capacity is appropriate for the weight of your weight and
any tools, equipment and such that you might be using.
Speaker 1 (17:57):
So one thing about a step letter, even if it's
like a six foot step ladder, never be dumb enough
to go to the top of the ladder instand a
top the ladder because.
Speaker 3 (18:08):
Well, it's good. Good to hear you've gotten that message. Yeah,
we certainly have had for many decades now labels on
the top step and the top camp not to stand
on those And people ask me why is that, And
the reason is because you can lose your balance. That
portion of the ladder structure is there to give you support.
(18:29):
So whether that's holding onto the ladder with your hands
or whether that's leaning into the ladder, bracing into the
ladder with your legs, your body, that sort of thing
while you're working that that is there so that you're
not just balancing on your feet alone, and so you
don't want to get too high.
Speaker 1 (18:48):
That is so so important. Hey, Mike vanvrie, I enjoyed
the conversation National Ladder Safety Month, and it's called Louisville Ladder. Yeah,
I know, I certainly am familiar with Louisville Slugger, but
now I know someone with Louisville Ladder and I like that.
Thanks so much for being with us.
Speaker 3 (19:07):
Thank you so much. Dan, You have a wonderful evening,
you too.
Speaker 1 (19:09):
Mike, have a great weekend coming up. All right, we
got the news coming up when we get back on
top of doctor Tracy Woodriff. She's a professor of reproductive
Sciences at the University of California at San Francisco, and
we're going to talk about somethings really that's important. Black
plastic cooking, spatchuelas and all of that. They have high
(19:31):
levels of flame retardants, but they can be somewhat dangerous.
We'll get into all of that with Professor Woodriff right
after the break here at the bottom of the hour.
My name's Dan Ray. This is Nightside. By the way,
get the new and improved iHeart app. I've got it,
and you can also get it on presets, So you
make your first preset WBZ, which means anytime, any place,
(19:54):
anywhere in the world. You can listen to us three
hundred and sixty five days a year, twenty four to seven.
Coming back on night It's Night Side with.
Speaker 2 (20:04):
Boston's news Radio.
Speaker 1 (20:06):
Thank you, Nicole. We're about to introduce you to doctor
Tracy Woodroff. Doctor Tracy Woodruff, Welcome to Nightside. How are you?
Speaker 5 (20:14):
I'm good?
Speaker 4 (20:14):
How are you were great?
Speaker 1 (20:16):
You own University of California at San Francisco, Professor of
Reproductive Sciences, Beautiful City, San Francisco, and there's recently as
sometime in January, it's the rain finally stopped out there.
You guys were getting delused with it last week and.
Speaker 5 (20:32):
We were, but it's beautiful right now, so we want
to come visit us.
Speaker 1 (20:36):
Oh yeah, my daughter's out there, so that's why get
get out that way. So I'm going to talk about
the problem with black plastic utensils. When we say black
plastic utensils, we're talking about the things that people use
with at the stove when they're cooking materials I assume,
and they're they're plastic. And what's the problem.
Speaker 5 (21:01):
Well, right, we're talking about spatulists, slotted spoons, even the
sushi trays. So this black plastic, a lot of it
is basically recycled from old electronic plastic and that has
these toxic chemicals and it's called flame retardant chemicals. And
so this is one of the challenges is that they
have you have your electronics, you know, you're black cord
(21:23):
on your floor in your TV, and they say, oh,
recycling is so great, but again, get recycled into these
these new these new products like flotted spoons and spatulasts
that have toxic chemicals in them, and then when you're
using them, say you're using them to flip your food,
whatever food you have in your pan, it can lead
(21:44):
some of those toxic chemicals. So that's why with all.
Speaker 1 (21:49):
Of the regulations we have here with the EPA and
oh yeah, the food, the Food and Drug Administration, how
did this one get by everybody. I'm going to go
downstairs and throw out some of my plastic spatulas. But
what our conversation is through this is serious because it
(22:10):
says that as I understand that some of these they
have flame retardants, which is great, but the flame retardants
have been found, as I understand it, to reduce children's IQ.
That might have what happened to me, But when I
was young, I don't think they had plastic materials. But
boost cancer rates, contribute to thyroid disease. There's some pretty
(22:33):
serious implications here.
Speaker 5 (22:36):
Yeah, I know it is serious. And the sad reality is,
I know everyone thinks they go to the store and
the chemicals that are using these products have been tested
by the government, but that sadly is not true. It
turns out that the laws are actually not doing the
job they're supposed to be doing. To make sure that
all these chemicals, like these flame retardant chemicals that can
(22:56):
cause things like cancer or lower IQ have been tested,
identified by the government and then made sure not to
be in our products that we buy. But that's not
the way the laws set up in this country. It's
really like we're kind of the guinea pigs here. So
why the study is so important because it shows, Wow,
we really need to upgrade what we're doing in terms
(23:19):
of making sure that when we use these materials, they're not,
like you said, making us less smart. I guess there
is another way to think about it.
Speaker 1 (23:27):
Okay, So here's my question, A couple questions, and I
just we don't script this stuff, as you probably realized
by now, it's all questions off the top of my head.
Is there any country in the world of which you
are aware that actually is ahead of us on the
curve here? I mean, I'm assuming it's kind of a
(23:48):
chicken and egg question. If they don't test this stuff
first and say, oh, yay, you want to use some
black plastic, be our guest. Absolutely, we love that stuff.
You're gonna love it. Or are the countries around the
world that are more hip to this stuff and they're
going to say they may be using that stuff in America,
but we want no part of it.
Speaker 5 (24:10):
Well, let me just say some of the chemicals that
were found in here were banned, not all of them,
but some of them have been banned because way now
they're toxic. But the problem is there's a couple of things.
One is, not all the toxic chemicals have been banned
or evaluated. And then the second thing is it doesn't
just because their band doesn't mean all the use is
Like again, recycling plastic is like I've been told, oh,
(24:33):
that's a solution or a plastic problem. But the problem
is it can get recycled into new products, but then
we then basically put on you know, contact with our food,
and then we end up eating it ourselves.
Speaker 1 (24:47):
If you're going to recycle black plastic in a snow shovel,
not likely going to be gnar and on the snowshovel
anytime soon.
Speaker 5 (24:56):
I mean, well, I hope not.
Speaker 1 (24:58):
But you would think that somehow, some way, the all
all of these these agencies and government agencies are going
to protect us, which you know, I hope they do.
When I go to the store, I hope the food
and drug administration has some idea about what they're doing
from flying on an airplane. I want to make sure
that the FAA people, particularly the controllers, were awaken the
(25:18):
control tower. It's crazy to think that in this day
and age that this stuff is still a problem and
it's up for scientists like you to point out the issue.
Do you get pushed back from the either you know,
from the plastics injury industry, or is there a pushback from,
(25:41):
you know, the companies that are selling these I think
the companies that are selling these are the big stores
that all of us know about, you know, Walmart and Target,
all places that most of us go, and we assume
that when you buy stuff there it's it's safe. How
does this what's the dynamic that that allows this to happen?
Is what my question is. They should have gotten to
that question quicker.
Speaker 5 (26:02):
Yeah, but there's a lot to unpack. There isn't there.
So I think the first thing is a lot of
the plates, like you go to your retail store, but
they don't want to sell toxic chemicals right then, don't
want to sell toxic chemicals in their products. But they're
a victim also of the way that the chemical manufactures
they make, the chemicals they control a lot of a
lot of the ways that you know, they've influenced the
(26:25):
laws in the United States in terms of how fast
they're working to evaluate the toxae these chemicals. They can
hide some of their chemicals behind what they call confidential
business reasons, so that the government has a really hard
time getting companies to give them the actual data they
need in order to identify toxic chemicals before they're used
(26:46):
in products and then get onto our shelves. So the
system is not set up. And I know it's kind
of amazing when you hear this, because you think, well,
isn't everything regulated in the United States. No, these these chemicals,
and sadly there's four thousand of them chemical companies can
use in you know, all these different products, and we
(27:06):
know they're using them, and we know we're exposed to them,
and we also know they've not been fully tested for
safety or regulated.
Speaker 4 (27:14):
So I'm not.
Speaker 5 (27:15):
Sure that's going to change right away. Since the cut's
being proposed to the federal agency it's supposed to do
this EPA, and the people they're putting in charge at
EPA come from the chemical industry, So I think we're
in for a rough ride on related to toxic chemicals.
Speaker 4 (27:31):
Anyway.
Speaker 1 (27:32):
Well, you know, it's funny when in the middle of
the summer some little traveling circus or amusement park comes
to town and sets up shop and they got a
ferris wheel. Most of the time you're gonna say, I
think I'll pass in the ferrist wheel because I have
no idea when I was last expected we get that. Okay,
But I can remember in the sixties and seventies when
(27:54):
when some of these big companies, you know, they would
they would do these advertising campaigns we are developing progress
through science, those phrases that you wow, we got progress
and it's through science. What's they cot be a problem? There?
Sounds to me like a lot of problems. I really
enjoyed our conversation, doctor Tracy Woodriff, and hopefully everybody tonight
(28:19):
is going to go and find their black plastic utensils, spatulas,
et cetera that are being used to cook. And we
get some downstairs I know have melted because they I
get again, Yeah, that isn't even worse. They look worse.
Thanks so much for your time. I do appreciate it.
(28:41):
Uh to take the time, and a lot of people
are going to probably act upon the information you provided tonight.
So for that, you've done a good deed. I appreciate
it so far. Thank you, doctor Teresa. When we get back,
we're going to talk about trade wars. What's going to
cost Americans. I think there's a yng a yang to this.
To be honest with you, my guest is Lance Thrailkill.
(29:04):
He's a manufacturing expert and CEO of Print three D Technologies.
We'll talk with him. I think there is a yang
and a yang to this. I don't know where he's
going to come down on it, but we'll talk to
him right after the break here on Nightside. Now back
to Dan ray Line from the Window World night Side
Steos on w b Z News Radio. Well, we've heard
(29:27):
a lot of talk about trade wars in the last
few weeks in the left, particularly the last few days,
also tariffs on China, Mexico and Canada with US as
Lance Trailkill, he's a manufacturing expert and CEO of Print
three D. It is a print three D technology, so printed,
I guess you you pronounced it Printed technologies and all metals,
(29:51):
fabricated fabrication, Fabricating. What is print Printed Technologies? Are you
you guys doing all the three D printing and.
Speaker 2 (30:01):
All that, Yes, sir, yeah, so we're printed. Yeah, you
had it right. Printed. It's a little play on the print.
Three D Printed Technologies is a three D home building business.
We've developed a automated three D home printing system and
that has been designed. It's it's owned by All Metals
Fabricating as fifty percent equity holder in that business. And
(30:23):
we're trying to tackle affordable care, our affordable housecare, our
house housing rather sorry, and disrupt the archaic construction industry
that's been building things the same way for one hundred years.
But okay, tariffs, it's really more applicable to All Metals Fabricating. Sorry,
so yeah, because we import. We don't directly import, but
(30:44):
we buy, along with every other manufacturer in the United States,
is fully dependent on imported raw material from uh, you know,
all over the world, so directly directly impacting us immediately
and has been for since since Trump originally tweeted about
the TIFFs going into effect on Super Bowl Sunday.
Speaker 1 (31:05):
Okay, so, so your company, All Metals Fabricating, give give
us an example of what you're importing and from where
that goes into the h into the three D sort of.
It sounds to me like you're doing sort of producing
housing that's that's affordable for people. Correct.
Speaker 2 (31:24):
Oh yeah, Well let me back up a little bit.
So Printed is just a subsidiary one one customer of
hundreds of customers of All Metals Fabricating. So All Metals
Fabricating is a contract manufacturer. We do sheet metal machining,
powder coating, and electric mechanical assembly. And what that means
is we can take a sheet of metal or you know,
a block of metal and make it into just about
(31:46):
anything and we'll build the print. And so we to
answer your question directly, we you know, we, along with
all other manufacturers, we buy from distributors, domestic distributors that
get material and from international mills all over the world.
And so you know, the mills in the United States.
(32:07):
There's only four aluminum mills in the United States and
not enough steel mills either to even support a fraction
of United States manufacturing. And so the United States is
completely dependent on international mills to that they sell that
they then sell to US distributors.
Speaker 1 (32:28):
Okay, so is it possible that the tariffs might encourage
more companies to invest and build mills here in America.
I mean, we know that we've lost a lot of
the car manufacturers. I think there's some that have actually
left the States and gone to Mexico. And of course,
of course we import a lot of cars from from
(32:49):
South Korea, from from Japan. We bring a lot of
cars into this country. It wasn't that way fifty years ago,
because there's all American made cars. I guess one of
the benefits of the tariffs, according to the Trump administration
is it will it will I guess, encourage put it
(33:11):
in courage things to be manufactured here. Is that?
Speaker 2 (33:15):
Yeah, yeah, that's the narrative. Is the narrative is correct.
So to take it back to the original minute, you know,
his previous administration when he was in office, I think
you know, they had a big, huge plan to you know,
make three or four new mills in the United States,
which once again cannot even support a fraction. Mills have
(33:37):
been you know, we've been for decades and decades and
decades been getting material from overseas. So while yes, the
the idea, just even the narrative of this American made
and restoring that pride has brought a lot of business
and restoring efforts in terms of the manufacturing, but in
terms of the mills, this would take a long, strategic,
(33:57):
decades long plan, uh, with you know, congruent administrations that
being on the same page about that, and hundreds of
hundreds of if not a billion dollars or more by
billions of dollars to actually be able to support United
States American manufacturing. And so what ends up happening is
(34:18):
the international mills mark the material up. They say, we're
not paying this. You guys are paying this. We're passing
it along and by the way, we're not going to
reduce our margins, so they pass on. Now, you know,
if it's twenty five percent tear, if they're passing on
twenty eight thirty percent because they're not going to let
their margin go down, then it goes to the US distributors.
They're not going to let their margin go down. So
by time it gets to the manufacturers, it's you know,
(34:39):
forty percent thirty five forty percent at least, and it
really so then which we pass on to our customers.
Uh So we don't make anything for consumers, but we
make the B to B. So our customer being other businesses,
is you know, having to eat that cost and pushing
back on us and cutting our margins.
Speaker 1 (34:56):
Yeah, and I understand that. But again, if from the
perspective of the national economy, this may impact your industry adversely,
but it would help, uh, certainly the the automotive unions
around the country. If a lot of these car companies
(35:18):
that that have fled the fled the United States and
gone to Mexico, if all of a sudden that say, hey,
let's get back to let's get back to America. I
mean there's I say this sort of a yang.
Speaker 2 (35:28):
And a yang here totally absolutely with everything and and
and what you you keep talking more about the car
manufacturers and so the mills is a different thing where
that's the raw materials that's coming in.
Speaker 1 (35:42):
Yeah. So I just think that that's what I'm saying.
What I'm saying, Linz didn't mean interrupt it. People can
understand that now in terms of the stuff that's being
brought into the country, that's a longer problem. You've you've
articulated that, really, well, how did we lose all of
these mills in the first place. I assume that one
(36:03):
hundred years ago, we were manufacturing this stuff here. I mean,
because the ability to ship stuff, you know, from halfway
around the world is a lot probably cheaper today and
more easily easy to accomplish than that was one hundred
years ago. What what prompted all this stuff to go
out overseas anyway?
Speaker 2 (36:25):
Yeah, I mean, you know, the old mill jobs were dirty,
you know, hard jobs. Now they've moved more towards automated meals,
so you know, it is a lot more attractive, but
it's still you know, not a very attractive job. So
I just think that's in part that you know, and
also just it's as it became a global economy, became
(36:46):
more competitive to get the material from other countries. So
it's kind of a double play there. Let me let
me just back up and say, you know, I am
a conservative. You know, you got to take the good
with the bad. So in the last you know, in
his previous administration, we had our four best years ever,
you know, prior to last year. And so you know,
(37:06):
while these negatively impact US, I do think there's a
need for tariffs, especially on China. Absolutely pro tarif. I'm China,
we don't get any of our where we get very
little of our material from China, none of it directly.
And in other industries you know, I'm just speaking from
a manufacturing standpoint, which in other industries like semiconductors for example,
that that's been a huge push that we've now start,
(37:28):
you know, manufacturing semiconductors here and so that's a great thing.
Speaker 1 (37:33):
Do you know where semiconductors used to be manufactured. They
used to be manufacturing in Puerto Rico and there was
there was a law passed in our Congress in nineteen
ninety six Republicans and Democratic Democrats together push that stuff
off shore. Here's my question, what about what about doing
some carveouts for your industry. Can't you get to the
(37:55):
Trump administration say hey, look, you're hurting us more than
you're helping other people. Give us a carve out here,
and you know, you do whatever you want, but give
us a little bit of a break or maybe eliminate
the tariffs in your particular industry.
Speaker 2 (38:09):
Well, that's certainly what we're hopeful for, at least that
a minimum, you know, would like to see. You know,
the Canada one originally came out and then he rolled
it back. So a lot of you know about forty
percent of US aluminum comes from Canada, and so would
definitely like to see that loosen. I think a lot
of the the tariff around that is due to you know,
(38:30):
letting fetanaohl come in the country. A lot of the
steel comes from Eastern Europe, and so in past he
ended up eventually exempting a lot of these you know, countries,
which I think will happen, and that's our whole part
of the problem is honestly that the mill, the United
States mills have a large lobby presence in Washington, and
(38:50):
what they do is they use this as an opportunity
to jack up their price and so which really is
extremely frustrating. This second that the second that these Trump
tweeted about that even the US mil started increasing their prices,
So that that's the frustrating part.
Speaker 1 (39:08):
But nonetheless, Lin's I'm probably more empathetic to your situation
than you might realize. And maybe we'll talk again a
few weeks from now. As this this story seems to develop,
lyn'ce thrillkill with the other printed technologies and also all
metals fabricating. Thanks thanks, Linnce, I appreciate your time and
your patience with my questions.
Speaker 2 (39:29):
Thank you much, thank you so much to appreciate you.
Speaker 1 (39:31):
Ulcome, You're welcome. We come back on to talk about
Michelle Who's trip to Washington today. It will be it
is going to be a fun ride the next few hours.
Stay with us.
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