May 26, 2024 • 32 mins
Clay and Buck’s early music tastes. Buck’s fancy long weekend. Mike Rowe on the toolbelt generation.
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Speaker 1 (00:01):
Bold reverence and occasionally random The Sunday hang with playing
fuck podcast It starts now.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Let those tunes go across the air with every everybody
knows this song. This was a eighties huge hitting eighty eight,
eighty nine something like that.
Speaker 3 (00:20):
I think it was on the Pretty Woman's soundtrack, not
that I had that CD. I'm just saying the Pretty
Woman's sound direction. Yeah, true story. You know, I says movie,
and I don't call things offensive very often, but if
you actually watch that movie, it's a really like bizarre, depressing,
weird movie. This s guy picks up a hooker on
(00:41):
like Rodeo drive and pays her for the week, and
then the whole thing is very weird.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
Take her to the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. That's the hotel
they put everybody who stays and for work at Fox
Sports in LA used to be. I don't know if
it still is. That place is still filled with hookers,
Like if you high end hookers, but if you go
into the Beverly Wilshire.
Speaker 3 (01:04):
People just dress a little differently. In lam and Tennessee, Clay,
it's hookers.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
The first time I ever went, I'd never seen anything
like it.
Speaker 4 (01:11):
It was like Beverly Hillbillies.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
I set down to get a beer after I'd done television,
and at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, I noticed it's all
girls at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel bar and I'm like
that seems a little weird, and I'm like, whatever, you know,
just give me a beer, finishing up my day. And
then I like, I notice and maybe if you're incredibly
good looking, this happens to you all the time. Most
(01:35):
women don't stare at men, or at least they don't
stare at me. Every woman at the whole bar is
looking at me, and I'm like, this is kind of
a weird vibe. And then they don't look away. Most
women would look away if you make eye contact. And
the bartender came over and I was like, are all
these these are all like these are all hookers, right,
and he was like, yeah, they just it's super high
(01:56):
end hookers. It's all connected to that movie, is what
I was told. That movie was so popular Pretty Woman,
that everybody wants to get their own Julia Roberts that
bar and I'm probably blowing up the Beverly Wilshire right now.
Speaker 4 (02:11):
I don't know if it's still an issue, but.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
They would still they would flood the Beverly Wilshire Hotel
with hookers because of the Pretty Woman connection, which I
wasn't anticipating because I didn't know we were going to be
playing the Fine Young Cannibals. Is that really on the
soundtrack for The Pretty Woman?
Speaker 1 (02:28):
Yes?
Speaker 5 (02:29):
Yes?
Speaker 4 (02:29):
Did you buy the Pretty Woman's soundtrack?
Speaker 3 (02:32):
No, but I've I've looked for the song before on
different Spotify and stuff, and it will come up as
on the Pretty Women's soundtrack. I did not actually own
The Pretty Well. I did buy a do you want
to do this? You want to get It's the most.
Speaker 2 (02:46):
Embarrassing album you've ever bought.
Speaker 3 (02:50):
I mean I bought a cassette tape of Salt and
Peppa that was actually pretty popular. I think I probably
had it was popular time, but in retrospect like wasn't
wasn't great.
Speaker 2 (03:01):
One of my buddies bought Tevin Campbell CD. Do you
remember Tevin Campbell?
Speaker 4 (03:06):
I don't even know what that is.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
Tevin Campbell was like, I like a you know, black,
you know, teenage singer. Back in the day, I had Crisscross,
which I love. Chris Cross will make you jump do
you remember that song that.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Was a class not This is a humble brag that
everybody had criss cross in our age range that Tevin.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Campbell was on the baby Face might have been on
the list of music that you didn't necessarily want to
admit to. Mariah Carey, she was very popular, but for
a man I don't or a young man, I don't
know that you could go with. This is a really
good question. What was the most embarrassing album you owned
or single? Because you used to be able to back
in the day, you'd go into Camelot music. You know,
(03:45):
you'd buy like the single which was you know, the
cassette tape single, which was a big deal before all
the iTunes, all you kids out there with your easy.
Speaker 3 (03:53):
Uh, I didn't got a little savage garden phase? Do
you even remember them? I remember the name Australia. Oh,
I want to stand with you on the mountain. I
want to like be with you and I'm not going
to sing because that's going to make everyone change the stay.
I remember that song. I yeah, I'll give you my answer.
Probably most embarrassing. I had Color Me Bad's album? Do
you remember Color Me Bad? I Adore Me More?
Speaker 4 (04:16):
Sure that song.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
I think that's probably that's up color me bad spelled
with two d's. Probably not at the oh. I had
Milli Vanilly. I had Milli Vanilly before we knew that
Millie Vanilly was.
Speaker 4 (04:30):
That's a collector's item though. That's amazing. That's amazing now
that you probably get a lot of money for that
on eBay.
Speaker 2 (04:35):
Blame it on the Rain classic. I don't know who's
saying it. Blame it on the Rain great song by
Millie Vanilly. I had the Millie Vanilly entire album back
in the day.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (04:46):
I also, what's the big deal? You know, people got
all upset about it.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
It's like, guess what all these people that are writing
books Clay and Buck accepted most of them don't write
a word of their books. So that's okay. You pay
someone to write a book. So they paid someone to
write the not the backup the main vocals.
Speaker 4 (05:02):
I don't know.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
I think I think it's kind of funny where we
draw the lines on these things, all, right, do we haven't?
Speaker 2 (05:07):
Pepe was the good looking one in Salt was kind
of the bigger one, right, I don't. I don't want
to throw them under the bus. If they're listening here.
One of the Salt and Peppa girls was good looking,
the other one not as good looking.
Speaker 4 (05:18):
That's fair to say, right, I remember, I'm not trying
to defer on this. I don't know.
Speaker 2 (05:23):
I think Salt was the good looking one. It's possible
that I'm getting a backwards and I'm just imagining Salt
and Peppa like they're just getting in their car in
New York. They've they've gone all in on They've gone
all in on Trump. Prior to now, they've been huge
fans of Clay and Buck. And then I just obliterated
one of them by saying she was the unattractive one.
And I'm not sure which one she was, but he
(05:44):
was unattracked. She was not as good looking as the
other one. You know, back in the day, like Beyonce
was way better looking than the rest of the Destiny's
Child girls, right and Justin Timberlake was way better looking
than the rest of the dudes.
Speaker 1 (05:57):
Right.
Speaker 4 (05:58):
There was usually like one of other guys, I was
kind of you know, I mean, I think we're being
you know, there.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Was another great or am I I always get I
legitimately get Backstreet boys and in sin confused.
Speaker 2 (06:07):
So he was inn in sync, right, Timberlake, Yes, I
don't know who the most famous. I think all the
Backstreet boys, like none of them became famous, right, Like.
Speaker 4 (06:15):
None of them. I think that's right.
Speaker 2 (06:17):
Yeah, and some of them were actually ugly, like Joey
Fatone was legitimately an ugly dude who happened to be
a bit boy.
Speaker 3 (06:24):
Friday and Clay's just throwing haymakers in the last few
minutes of the show.
Speaker 4 (06:28):
Here you're mentions on Twitter.
Speaker 3 (06:29):
You bet Joey Fatone's probably on X He's probably gonna
have something to say to you.
Speaker 2 (06:33):
Well, a tough break, by the way, to have the
Italian name that actually is just fat one and be
a little bit chubby and the boy band. I mean
that feels like just a really unfortunate combo. Maybe change
the name so that you're not the chubby guy whose
last name is fat one. I mean, it just doesn't
seem like a good move.
Speaker 3 (06:51):
Was Dave Matthews the single most iconic band of your
peer group growing up?
Speaker 4 (06:56):
Would that?
Speaker 3 (06:56):
Would you say that's correct, because for me it would
be Dave Matthews band was the thing that ever everybody
listened to.
Speaker 4 (07:01):
Yeah, that's a good question.
Speaker 2 (07:02):
I mean, I think it depends on if you were
the hacky sack playing small you know, pot smoking kind
of Uh what say, Dave Matthews is South African, right,
You're a kind of person who would go to like
University of Virginia back in the day, like.
Speaker 3 (07:16):
Yeah, he got he got big in Charlotte and Charlottesville
UV the UV A that scene. I just want to
know what the team is. The team was pointing out
to me that I did, in fact pronounce it correctly.
It is not salt and pepper. It is salt, pepper
and pepper E E P A. In case I anyone
wanted to know.
Speaker 4 (07:32):
Ali which one was the good looking one. Ali's not
going to answer that.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Ali will know is either salt or pepper was the
good looking one. I don't think it was confusing.
Speaker 5 (07:43):
I have no idea.
Speaker 4 (07:45):
Maybe I think it would say.
Speaker 2 (07:48):
That, Yeah, I have no idea which one was better looking.
But I know that Joey Fatone, Joey fat One was
the ugly one in the Sorry Joey in the Backstreet Boys.
Speaker 4 (07:58):
In America? Do we have where Buck is leaving?
Speaker 5 (08:02):
Now?
Speaker 2 (08:02):
By the way, there's no telling how this show's gonna end.
He's got to go to the airport in Raleigh.
Speaker 4 (08:05):
That's true.
Speaker 3 (08:07):
Hands Clay's in a mischievous Oh no, a mischievous See
someone told us not to say it wrong.
Speaker 4 (08:13):
A mischievous mood. I like mischievous better. It sounds like, wait,
is it supposed to be pronounced mischievous? Mischievous?
Speaker 2 (08:19):
Yeah, I'm gonna stick with mischievous. I've been pronouncing it
too long, for too long, I will see.
Speaker 4 (08:23):
This is the kind of mood he's in.
Speaker 3 (08:24):
He's going to antagonize the grammar police and the pronunciation
police out there.
Speaker 4 (08:30):
Girl, you know it's true.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
This was an amazing album. Millie Vanilli Bucks left. There's
no telling where the show ends up in the last
ten minutes. Here this was buck Is on his way
back to Miami from Raleigh. We're number one. Appreciate all
of you listening in North Carolina. Even if there were
fake singers, the songs were still good. Point of correction,
(08:54):
got a couple of them here, Wide variety one evidently
Joey if that one was in in sync. Not Backstreet Boys.
I apologize to all the boy band officionados out there.
I actually think that burnishes my street cred. That I
got that wrong. That's one that's good to get wrong.
Unlike yesterday when I got the year that FDR died
(09:16):
and where he died, I got powder springs and warm
springs Georgia mixed up and I had to issue a
correction on that one. That one I wasn't impressed by. Also,
I think that there is another element here. Joe Biden,
as a part of his Howard Stern story, he told
a ton of lies. Ali, you sent me a story
(09:36):
about Joe Biden's athletic career, and Yahoo Sports reported that
he did end up with the third most touchdowns in
his district, or in his division or something in Delaware.
He said he came in second, but that part of
his story, unlike saving all the people's lives and getting
arrested for opposing segregation, all of that or may not
(10:00):
be true, seems unlikely, but he at least was a
wide receiver who scored several touchdowns as a senior. Just
to be fair, I saw this story that has gone viral,
and I thought it's a good Friday story. Potentially a
woman who confronted a teenager at a Utah steakhouse about
(10:26):
her mini skirt being too short. Has been charged with
sexual battery for trying to pull the girls skirt down
longer because she said, your ass cheeks are hanging out.
This is evidently all over the internet. It's been hugely controversial.
(10:48):
A forty eight year old woman in Saint George, Utah,
was standing in line for a steakhouse Sakura Japanese steakhouse
in Saint George, Utah this past weekend and everything fell apart.
She said the skirt was too short. Ali, have you
ever been I'm gonna bring you in as the woman
(11:10):
because I've got a ridiculous story here. I was at
Gondolier restaurant in East Tennessee, near where my in laws
live on Watts Bar Lake. I swear to you I
was standing in line to go eat at Gondolier restaurant.
This is not a high end establishment, good place to eat.
I've eaten there a bunch, but it's probably it's like
(11:31):
an Italian version of like ihop or something like that.
I don't even know if it's a chain. I'm standing
in line there. There's a little bit of a weight
and a woman, you know, like mom aged woman got
into it with a teenage girl. She didn't know, as
we were all standing in line. I wasn't involved in
(11:52):
either party. I was there, I believe, with my kids.
They started yelling at each other about whether the girls,
I think it was her top was showing too much
boob cleavage, and I just thought to myself, Oh my god,
I'm going to be in this situation. These two were
close to getting in a fight, like an actual fight
(12:12):
over this girl's top, and I didn't know what to
do because all I could think was, somehow I'm gonna
get blamed because I just happened to be there when
these two women start fighting over their dress code. And
I was trying to think through what should I do?
Should I say anything? Should I just leave get out
of the restaurant as fast as I can so somehow
(12:33):
I don't end up in this story. Ali, you are
of a mom age. Now, that's not an insult, that's
a fair assessment. You're out in New York City now
a lot. Have you ever thought to yourself while waiting
in a restaurant, what that girl restaurant line, or at
a restaurant, what that girl is wearing is super inappropriate?
(12:56):
Somebody should say something to her. Has that thought ever
gone through your mind?
Speaker 5 (13:00):
Clay living in New York City, the number of times
have wanted to tell someone to pull up their pants?
If you know what I mean, No, you just don't
say anything. You walk, will you? In particular a man way.
Speaker 2 (13:13):
I've never said anything to any woman about her clothing ever,
and I bet there are a ton of men listening
right now who work in places where there are dress codes.
I don't ever have any idea what is appropriate for
a woman to be wearing into an office setting. On
top of that, I would never say if I thought
(13:34):
it was inappropriate, because somehow that would end up being
my fault. Similarly, I've been married for almost twenty years.
I've never told my wife correctly what she should wear
to any event. Yet I am asked every event that
we go to what should I wear?
Speaker 4 (13:51):
And I never know the answer.
Speaker 5 (13:53):
Now, questian does this outfit make me look fat? Is
never one you can answer, and it's never one that
should be asked. Women should not ask the question men
don't answer.
Speaker 2 (14:04):
Can Girard tell it that's certainly true? Does this dress
make me look fat? The answer is always no, even
if the answer is actually yes, right have has Girard
ever been able to accurately tell you what is appropriate
to wear to an event.
Speaker 5 (14:19):
Yeah, he's actually pretty open with me. He'll be honest
with me about it.
Speaker 4 (14:23):
Well, I just I don't even know. I'm not being
like crazy here.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
Like I wear jeans and like a jacket and a
button down to almost anything that I attend, from a
wedding to like until like a dinner. I mean, I
don't ever really dress that much different. But women, they
know the these subtle cues about and what is not appropriate.
I've got no idea, even after twenty years of being asked.
Speaker 5 (14:48):
Yeah, yeah, I in the case that you're talking about
with the two women fighting in the restaurant, you back away.
When it comes to your significant other, friend, partner, it's
okay to tell them, give a little advice, some tips.
I think that's fine. But there's it all depends, I guess,
is the answer. It depends.
Speaker 4 (15:10):
I just definitely told don't put your hands on anybody.
Speaker 5 (15:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (15:14):
My advice is, unless it's your kid or one of
your kid's close friends, you should probably never get involved
in deciding whether somebody's wearing something.
Speaker 5 (15:24):
Absolutely not, even if I think they should pull their
pants up walking down the street. You don't go up
and pull their pants up for them.
Speaker 2 (15:30):
I was at an event. This is a funny line.
I was at an event recently. I've got teenage boys,
and there were the girls and boys that go into
a dance or whatever, and I walked in to pick
up the kids, and the moms were all sitting around
drinking wine. I was the dad there and I walked
in and one of the moms said, I just don't
even know what girls are wearing these days. And she said,
(15:53):
I wouldn't have warned some of these dresses that these
girls have tonight for the dance at my wedding night.
Speaker 4 (15:59):
And I was like, I'm glad you said it, not me.
Sunday hang with Clay and Buck.
Speaker 3 (16:05):
But I will tell you I really enjoyed my time
in sam Balte.
Speaker 4 (16:10):
Me was very French. You arrive and there.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
I don't want to tell people where you were because
it was so fancy. I didn't want. I don't know
how much overlap did you look? He made any of
our listeners in Saint Bart's.
Speaker 4 (16:22):
Oh no, people came up for me. We had a few.
Speaker 3 (16:24):
We had a few people that were a list that's great.
Oh yeah, absolutely oh we had. I was sitting next
to a cop celebrating his retirement with a bunch of
French twenty five years a Chicago police department.
Speaker 4 (16:38):
He's like, hey, I love you and Clay so.
Speaker 3 (16:39):
No, no, it's look, it's a once in a lifetime,
you know, it's a little bit like it's a honeymoon
place or a once in a lifetime I've ever seen
people for other people, it's like they just go down
because whatever.
Speaker 1 (16:50):
I mean.
Speaker 3 (16:51):
You arrive and the French people are like, this island
is uh so expensive. We will take all of your
money and you will thank us for it.
Speaker 4 (16:59):
And it's kind of true.
Speaker 3 (17:01):
It's the most expensive, overpriced place I think you could
possibly find.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
Was the most expensive thing you bought and you were like,
I cannot believe it cost that. Like you went and
had like a sandwich or you went like, no, I'm
not talking about a fancy dinner, just like you were
in disbelief over.
Speaker 3 (17:15):
What something called a tiny thing of some block costs
sixty dollars. No, yeah, yeah, yeah, so it was.
Speaker 4 (17:22):
It was sixty dollars for sunblock.
Speaker 3 (17:25):
Oh oh absolutely, yeah it was. It was very very expensive.
So I will say it's beautiful. But there's a reason
that bezos like arrives there on his super yacht. You know,
it's a look the French. The problem with the French is,
you know, they got something. I'm speaking in the big
generalizations here. They got a little attitude, but they've got
some pretty cool stuff too, Like their food is pretty amazing,
(17:47):
you know, they they've got the French culture is a
lot of fun. So you know, that's why they can
get away with it. But I missed my Crockett coffee,
is what I was gonna say. They did not have
Krockett coffee in that.
Speaker 4 (17:58):
But it's too affordable. It's too affordable.
Speaker 2 (18:00):
I mean, would you get America supply?
Speaker 3 (18:03):
In fact, Davy Krockett would be like, why are you
spending all that money with them, with them frogs when
you could be hanging out with me and drinking Krocket coffee.
That's a very good question. It's a very good question,
David would ask. Crockett Coffee dot com. We love how
many of you are signing up and joining. You're helping
us build a great American brand. Crocketcoffee dot com. Please
subscribe if you buy sixty dollars of coffee or more.
(18:25):
You get free shipping, but the best thing you can
do is subscribe. You'll also get a night's discount when
you become a subscriber. Get it delivered every.
Speaker 4 (18:31):
Month Sundays with Clay and Buck.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
Join now by the host of Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe.
He has done a phenomenal job, writer, narrator, producer, Emmy
Award winning best selling author. And that's a lot of
that's a lot of aspects out here, Mike. We appreciate
you coming on. And we were talking about it a
little bit earlier, and I was even reading, i think
(18:58):
at the Wall Street Journal recently, a story about people
who are younger in their twenties starting to embrace plumbing
and emerting lay Away. Yeah, it's how gen z is
becoming the tool belt generation. Are you optimistic, Mike, that
a lot of people are maybe stepping into jobs that
(19:18):
they didn't foresee twenty years ago, people being interested in.
Speaker 1 (19:22):
Well, it's a little early for a victory lap, although
I'd love to take one. We've been at this for
sixteen years now, you know, trying to challenge the idea
that the best path for the most people is the
most expensive path. Educationally and also trying to shine a
light on about ten million open positions right now, very
few of which require a four year degree. These jobs
(19:43):
require training, vocational education, trade schools, and so forth. So
it's a bit like pushing a boulder up a hill,
or maybe turning around a tanker, you know, in the
middle of the ocean. Pick your metaphor, But it takes
a long time to challenge those kinds of stigmas and
stereotypes that surround the trades. This article got my attention,
(20:04):
and everybody on my social pages all tapped me on
the shoulder and said, look, this is really encouraging. You know,
it's not what a lot of people expect gen Z
to do, right. This is the generation that is most
often targeted, is lazy and entitled and spoiled and all
this other stuff. But it's like they got the memo
(20:27):
and they've looked around and they've seen a lot of
diplomas hanging on a lot of walls and concluded quite
rightly that it's not necessarily an indication of what you've learned.
It's an indication of what you paid. It's a receipt, right,
and one point seven trillion dollars in student loans is
no joke, and gen Z doesn't want any part of it.
(20:48):
They want to learn a skill that's in demand, and
I think that's good news.
Speaker 3 (20:51):
Hey, Mike, where do people who are thinking about there's like,
how you know, if you're somebody who's let's say you're eighteen,
you're senior in high school and you're considering it, what
are the some of the pathways? I mean, is it
just applying to trade school their apprenticeship programs, and how
do people learn more about, for example, what would be
a particularly in demand trade in their area or particularly
(21:13):
high paying trade in their area.
Speaker 4 (21:15):
What are the resources?
Speaker 1 (21:17):
Well, you can't possibly screw up by learning how to weld.
Welding is like the gateway into the skilled trades. My
foundation has trained hundreds of welders. We've helped a couple
thousand people get the training they need to start whatever
trade they're into. So, to answer your question, microworks dot
(21:38):
org shameless plug all kinds of information on my site,
along with a million dollars. Right now we're giving away
next month in scholarships for trade schools. But there's so
many ways.
Speaker 4 (21:49):
To go buck.
Speaker 1 (21:50):
I mean, they're certainly community colleges and they're obvious. Trade
schools all over the place. A lot of big companies
today have their own internal programs. You know, when we
took shop class out of high school forty years ago,
we really kind of unleash the kraken. You know that
that decision removed from view so many vocations, and so
(22:14):
we went through a period where a lot of millennials
didn't even get a look at what work looked like
on that side of the workforce anyway. So it's been
a long road back. But the resources are all over
the place. Companies are falling over themselves to hire. The
opportunities to get training are everywhere. I'm I can't overstate it.
(22:35):
It's been one of the great unreported stories in my lifetime,
the skills gap, ten million open jobs, all that opportunity
sitting around. At the same time we've been told you're
screwed if you don't get a four year degree. It's
literally the opposite.
Speaker 2 (22:53):
I think that's so important, Mike, because you mentioned the
one point seven trillion dollars in student loan debt. Let's
say there's an eighteen year old who's listening to us
right now, and his options are I can take out
tens of thousands of dollars in debt to get an
English major. Nothing wrong with that degree, which is not
necessarily going to lead me towards being better at any
(23:15):
particular profession. Or I can go start being a plumber
at eighteen or nineteen years old. You're stacking tens of
thousands of dollars in assets, and you're starting off when
the college kids coming out at twenty two or twenty
three in tens of thousands of dollars in debt, you
could have tens of thousands of dollars in savings. How
much do you think people are now recognizing that? And
(23:38):
are people still not aware of how much money there
is out there in plumbing or elect doing electrical work
or all these other things you mentioned welding. What else
would you tell people that there is abundant opportunity in
if they'll just go grab it.
Speaker 1 (23:52):
Electricians? Electricians are in super short supply. Plumbers, steam fitters,
pipe fitters, heating and air condition guys. I mean, I
can't even tell you. If you're not making six figures
and you're in that space, you're either just getting started
or you're unwilling to go to where the work is.
But even then, I mean, the work is pretty much everywhere.
(24:13):
The trap clay in your question is really the reason
that I'm not in politics. I can't. I'm sure there
are some eighteen year olds listening right now, but I
don't know who they are. I don't know what their
skills are, I don't know what their attitude is. Right,
and so much of what our elected officials do, and unfortunately,
(24:35):
what guidance counselors do is they paint with a really
broad brush, and you wind up hearing from a lot
of people who have a certain amount of influence that
this is what your kid should do, or this is
what you should do. And I think it's that tendency
to talk in platitudes and paint with a broad brush
that's brought us to the place where we are right now.
(24:56):
We're still a country of individuals, and your kid, your
eighteen year old kid, very likely be wired in a
profoundly different way than mine. So I'm kind of stingy
with advice in terms of telling groups of people what
to do. But you can't ignore the big trends. You
can't ignore ten million open positions right now. You can
(25:17):
ignore you want to hear some really horrible math. The
number that scares me more than one point seven trillion
in student loans, is five every year for every five
tradesmen who retire to replace them. Now, that's been gone
on for over a decade, and when you start to
just extrapolate that out, what you realize real fast is
(25:40):
this is not just a conversation about companies who are
struggling to recruit talent or kids who are struggling to
find a path to prosperity. This is a conversation about
how long Clay Travis and bucksex and want to wait
for a plumber when they need one, or an electrician.
Every single person listening to this has skin in the
(26:00):
game because every one of your audience members shares my
addiction to smooth roads and affordable electricity and indoor plumbing
and a long list of other stuff that we've been
taking for granted long before Dirty Jobs went on the air.
Speaker 3 (26:15):
You know, my uncle is a tradesman and a locksmith,
like a skilled locksmith with the specialty stuff for you know, corporations.
And my brother in law is actually a welder. Carrie's
brothers a welder, and one thing I hear from both
of them is they just don't have the time to
do all the jobs that people want them to do,
which is not a thing you often hear from that manyfolily.
(26:35):
There's so many offers to do different work in different
places that they can't get to it all. So, Mike,
I mean, I'm experiencing that for my own, you know,
extended family, what they're seeing out there, I'm just wondering
to what degree. Also when you're you know, you're the
CEO of Mike Roworks Foundation, you're encouraging young people to
go into this, but you know, entrepreneurship, small business ownership.
I mean, it's been my experience from people I know,
(26:57):
some of who have become very successful business owners, that
a lot of them start by working for a business
in the trades.
Speaker 1 (27:05):
And this is part of the sort of the disaster scenario.
When we took shop Class out, we also impacted not
just the skilled work force, but the entrepreneurial gene. The
path to a small business so often begins with the
(27:25):
mastery of a trade. I mentioned welding before because you know,
I know people who are underwater welders today they make
three hundred thousand dollars a year. I know others who
are tig welders. You know who are making one hundred grand,
and I know some who are making less than that
and are basically punching a clock. But the most interesting
(27:46):
cohort are the welders who hired another welder, or more
likely hired an electrician and some HVAC guys and then
bought a couple of vans and started a mechanical contracting company.
Those guys are everywhere, and they are the engine of
our economy, and their success stories aren't told nearly enough
(28:07):
because they start by doing something that so many parents
have come to believe as a vocational consolation prize. I
don't want my kid to be a welder. The hell
you don't, man, I can give you example after example,
and Buck, just a quick sidebar. I don't know if
you'll remember this, but I saw you ten years ago.
I think you were filling in for Beck, and you
(28:30):
did a story on one of my favorite stories of
all time. Nobody talks about it today, but it was
a message to Garcia. It was a story about initiative,
and it's a story about work ethic, and it's a
story about the willingness to cheerfully take hold of a
thing and lift. That's part of this conversation too. And
(28:53):
my foundation, you know, we award work ethic scholarships because
we're not just looking to fill an existing hole. We're
looking to find people who are willing to show up early,
stay late, take a bite of the crap sandwich, cheerfully,
volunteer for whatever task is at hand that's still for sale,
that still works, and if gen Z is the cohort
(29:16):
that steps up to do that with the tool belt
and a new understanding of what a good job is, God.
Speaker 2 (29:21):
Bless them, Mike. Last question for you. You mentioned parents
are grandparents. How much encouragement do you see from them?
And I know there's a lot of people out there
that are worried their kids are not working hard enough,
maybe they're not making great grades in school, but they
do have that work ethic and they're trying to find
a way. I think most people have no idea that
you can make six figures doing a lot of these jobs.
(29:43):
Do you think parents and grandparents are making their kids
aware enough of that opportunity as well, or do you
think they've been sold the idea that only success comes
through the pathway of college. You can't do anything else.
Speaker 1 (29:56):
Again, I hate to paint with a broad brush, but
the short answer is yeah, by and large, we have
an idea in our head about what a good job
looks like. And look, most parents also want something better
for their kids than whatever they had. The problem is
what is better? Right? I mean, we get to decide
(30:16):
how much debt is good. We get to decide if work,
for instance, is the proximate cause of our unhappiness. There's
a very popular narrative in this country right now that
says that it is. That's why you'll see support for
Bernie Sanders thirty two hour work week crazy. But if
you believe in your heart that the reason you're unhappy
(30:39):
is because you're working too much, or if you believe,
like genuinely believe in your heart that you're going to
be happy when you retire, then you've bought into an
existing narrative that is in fact persuasive. And it's persuasive
because it's mirrored constantly in sitcoms and movies and advertisements.
We are surround by this idea that work is the enemy,
(31:03):
and that you're a failure if you're a parent, if
you don't get your kid into a proper school. So yeah,
I would say to parents who believe that you might
be right. Maybe your kid is exactly wired to do
all of those things, but you might be wrong. Put
all the options on the table, have an honest conversation
(31:23):
about the realities of debt and the advantage of learning
a skill that's in demand. My final thought is, you
know this. I'm holding my cell phone in my hand
right now, and I'm looking at it because that is
a liberal arts education and it's free. All the information
I learned when I was in school in nineteen eighty
four is right there. Man. If you're curious and you
(31:48):
really want to learn whatever whatever floats your boat, you
can watch a lecture on it right now for free
at MIT or Brown or Yale. It's all there. Learn
a skill first, master a trade, go to work, get rich.
Bold reverence and occasionally random The Sunday hang with playing
fuck podcast It starts now.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Let those tunes go across the air with every everybody
knows this song. This was a eighties huge hitting eighty eight,
eighty nine something like that.
Speaker 3 (00:20):
I think it was on the Pretty Woman's soundtrack, not
that I had that CD. I'm just saying the Pretty
Woman's sound direction. Yeah, true story. You know, I says movie,
and I don't call things offensive very often, but if
you actually watch that movie, it's a really like bizarre, depressing,
weird movie. This s guy picks up a hooker on
(00:41):
like Rodeo drive and pays her for the week, and
then the whole thing is very weird.
Speaker 2 (00:46):
Take her to the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. That's the hotel
they put everybody who stays and for work at Fox
Sports in LA used to be. I don't know if
it still is. That place is still filled with hookers,
Like if you high end hookers, but if you go
into the Beverly Wilshire.
Speaker 3 (01:04):
People just dress a little differently. In lam and Tennessee, Clay,
it's hookers.
Speaker 2 (01:08):
The first time I ever went, I'd never seen anything
like it.
Speaker 4 (01:11):
It was like Beverly Hillbillies.
Speaker 2 (01:13):
I set down to get a beer after I'd done television,
and at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, I noticed it's all
girls at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel bar and I'm like
that seems a little weird, and I'm like, whatever, you know,
just give me a beer, finishing up my day. And
then I like, I notice and maybe if you're incredibly
good looking, this happens to you all the time. Most
(01:35):
women don't stare at men, or at least they don't
stare at me. Every woman at the whole bar is
looking at me, and I'm like, this is kind of
a weird vibe. And then they don't look away. Most
women would look away if you make eye contact. And
the bartender came over and I was like, are all
these these are all like these are all hookers, right,
and he was like, yeah, they just it's super high
(01:56):
end hookers. It's all connected to that movie, is what
I was told. That movie was so popular Pretty Woman,
that everybody wants to get their own Julia Roberts that
bar and I'm probably blowing up the Beverly Wilshire right now.
Speaker 4 (02:11):
I don't know if it's still an issue, but.
Speaker 2 (02:13):
They would still they would flood the Beverly Wilshire Hotel
with hookers because of the Pretty Woman connection, which I
wasn't anticipating because I didn't know we were going to be
playing the Fine Young Cannibals. Is that really on the
soundtrack for The Pretty Woman?
Speaker 1 (02:28):
Yes?
Speaker 5 (02:29):
Yes?
Speaker 4 (02:29):
Did you buy the Pretty Woman's soundtrack?
Speaker 3 (02:32):
No, but I've I've looked for the song before on
different Spotify and stuff, and it will come up as
on the Pretty Women's soundtrack. I did not actually own
The Pretty Well. I did buy a do you want
to do this? You want to get It's the most.
Speaker 2 (02:46):
Embarrassing album you've ever bought.
Speaker 3 (02:50):
I mean I bought a cassette tape of Salt and
Peppa that was actually pretty popular. I think I probably
had it was popular time, but in retrospect like wasn't
wasn't great.
Speaker 2 (03:01):
One of my buddies bought Tevin Campbell CD. Do you
remember Tevin Campbell?
Speaker 4 (03:06):
I don't even know what that is.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
Tevin Campbell was like, I like a you know, black,
you know, teenage singer. Back in the day, I had Crisscross,
which I love. Chris Cross will make you jump do
you remember that song that.
Speaker 3 (03:18):
Was a class not This is a humble brag that
everybody had criss cross in our age range that Tevin.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
Campbell was on the baby Face might have been on
the list of music that you didn't necessarily want to
admit to. Mariah Carey, she was very popular, but for
a man I don't or a young man, I don't
know that you could go with. This is a really
good question. What was the most embarrassing album you owned
or single? Because you used to be able to back
in the day, you'd go into Camelot music. You know,
(03:45):
you'd buy like the single which was you know, the
cassette tape single, which was a big deal before all
the iTunes, all you kids out there with your easy.
Speaker 3 (03:53):
Uh, I didn't got a little savage garden phase? Do
you even remember them? I remember the name Australia. Oh,
I want to stand with you on the mountain. I
want to like be with you and I'm not going
to sing because that's going to make everyone change the stay.
I remember that song. I yeah, I'll give you my answer.
Probably most embarrassing. I had Color Me Bad's album? Do
you remember Color Me Bad? I Adore Me More?
Speaker 4 (04:16):
Sure that song.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
I think that's probably that's up color me bad spelled
with two d's. Probably not at the oh. I had
Milli Vanilly. I had Milli Vanilly before we knew that
Millie Vanilly was.
Speaker 4 (04:30):
That's a collector's item though. That's amazing. That's amazing now
that you probably get a lot of money for that
on eBay.
Speaker 2 (04:35):
Blame it on the Rain classic. I don't know who's
saying it. Blame it on the Rain great song by
Millie Vanilly. I had the Millie Vanilly entire album back
in the day.
Speaker 1 (04:45):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (04:46):
I also, what's the big deal? You know, people got
all upset about it.
Speaker 3 (04:49):
It's like, guess what all these people that are writing
books Clay and Buck accepted most of them don't write
a word of their books. So that's okay. You pay
someone to write a book. So they paid someone to
write the not the backup the main vocals.
Speaker 4 (05:02):
I don't know.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
I think I think it's kind of funny where we
draw the lines on these things, all, right, do we haven't?
Speaker 2 (05:07):
Pepe was the good looking one in Salt was kind
of the bigger one, right, I don't. I don't want
to throw them under the bus. If they're listening here.
One of the Salt and Peppa girls was good looking,
the other one not as good looking.
Speaker 4 (05:18):
That's fair to say, right, I remember, I'm not trying
to defer on this. I don't know.
Speaker 2 (05:23):
I think Salt was the good looking one. It's possible
that I'm getting a backwards and I'm just imagining Salt
and Peppa like they're just getting in their car in
New York. They've they've gone all in on They've gone
all in on Trump. Prior to now, they've been huge
fans of Clay and Buck. And then I just obliterated
one of them by saying she was the unattractive one.
And I'm not sure which one she was, but he
(05:44):
was unattracked. She was not as good looking as the
other one. You know, back in the day, like Beyonce
was way better looking than the rest of the Destiny's
Child girls, right and Justin Timberlake was way better looking
than the rest of the dudes.
Speaker 1 (05:57):
Right.
Speaker 4 (05:58):
There was usually like one of other guys, I was
kind of you know, I mean, I think we're being
you know, there.
Speaker 3 (06:02):
Was another great or am I I always get I
legitimately get Backstreet boys and in sin confused.
Speaker 2 (06:07):
So he was inn in sync, right, Timberlake, Yes, I
don't know who the most famous. I think all the
Backstreet boys, like none of them became famous, right, Like.
Speaker 4 (06:15):
None of them. I think that's right.
Speaker 2 (06:17):
Yeah, and some of them were actually ugly, like Joey
Fatone was legitimately an ugly dude who happened to be
a bit boy.
Speaker 3 (06:24):
Friday and Clay's just throwing haymakers in the last few
minutes of the show.
Speaker 4 (06:28):
Here you're mentions on Twitter.
Speaker 3 (06:29):
You bet Joey Fatone's probably on X He's probably gonna
have something to say to you.
Speaker 2 (06:33):
Well, a tough break, by the way, to have the
Italian name that actually is just fat one and be
a little bit chubby and the boy band. I mean
that feels like just a really unfortunate combo. Maybe change
the name so that you're not the chubby guy whose
last name is fat one. I mean, it just doesn't
seem like a good move.
Speaker 3 (06:51):
Was Dave Matthews the single most iconic band of your
peer group growing up?
Speaker 4 (06:56):
Would that?
Speaker 3 (06:56):
Would you say that's correct, because for me it would
be Dave Matthews band was the thing that ever everybody
listened to.
Speaker 4 (07:01):
Yeah, that's a good question.
Speaker 2 (07:02):
I mean, I think it depends on if you were
the hacky sack playing small you know, pot smoking kind
of Uh what say, Dave Matthews is South African, right,
You're a kind of person who would go to like
University of Virginia back in the day, like.
Speaker 3 (07:16):
Yeah, he got he got big in Charlotte and Charlottesville
UV the UV A that scene. I just want to
know what the team is. The team was pointing out
to me that I did, in fact pronounce it correctly.
It is not salt and pepper. It is salt, pepper
and pepper E E P A. In case I anyone
wanted to know.
Speaker 4 (07:32):
Ali which one was the good looking one. Ali's not
going to answer that.
Speaker 2 (07:37):
Ali will know is either salt or pepper was the
good looking one. I don't think it was confusing.
Speaker 5 (07:43):
I have no idea.
Speaker 4 (07:45):
Maybe I think it would say.
Speaker 2 (07:48):
That, Yeah, I have no idea which one was better looking.
But I know that Joey Fatone, Joey fat One was
the ugly one in the Sorry Joey in the Backstreet Boys.
Speaker 4 (07:58):
In America? Do we have where Buck is leaving?
Speaker 5 (08:02):
Now?
Speaker 2 (08:02):
By the way, there's no telling how this show's gonna end.
He's got to go to the airport in Raleigh.
Speaker 4 (08:05):
That's true.
Speaker 3 (08:07):
Hands Clay's in a mischievous Oh no, a mischievous See
someone told us not to say it wrong.
Speaker 4 (08:13):
A mischievous mood. I like mischievous better. It sounds like, wait,
is it supposed to be pronounced mischievous? Mischievous?
Speaker 2 (08:19):
Yeah, I'm gonna stick with mischievous. I've been pronouncing it
too long, for too long, I will see.
Speaker 4 (08:23):
This is the kind of mood he's in.
Speaker 3 (08:24):
He's going to antagonize the grammar police and the pronunciation
police out there.
Speaker 4 (08:30):
Girl, you know it's true.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
This was an amazing album. Millie Vanilli Bucks left. There's
no telling where the show ends up in the last
ten minutes. Here this was buck Is on his way
back to Miami from Raleigh. We're number one. Appreciate all
of you listening in North Carolina. Even if there were
fake singers, the songs were still good. Point of correction,
(08:54):
got a couple of them here, Wide variety one evidently
Joey if that one was in in sync. Not Backstreet Boys.
I apologize to all the boy band officionados out there.
I actually think that burnishes my street cred. That I
got that wrong. That's one that's good to get wrong.
Unlike yesterday when I got the year that FDR died
(09:16):
and where he died, I got powder springs and warm
springs Georgia mixed up and I had to issue a
correction on that one. That one I wasn't impressed by. Also,
I think that there is another element here. Joe Biden,
as a part of his Howard Stern story, he told
a ton of lies. Ali, you sent me a story
(09:36):
about Joe Biden's athletic career, and Yahoo Sports reported that
he did end up with the third most touchdowns in
his district, or in his division or something in Delaware.
He said he came in second, but that part of
his story, unlike saving all the people's lives and getting
arrested for opposing segregation, all of that or may not
(10:00):
be true, seems unlikely, but he at least was a
wide receiver who scored several touchdowns as a senior. Just
to be fair, I saw this story that has gone viral,
and I thought it's a good Friday story. Potentially a
woman who confronted a teenager at a Utah steakhouse about
(10:26):
her mini skirt being too short. Has been charged with
sexual battery for trying to pull the girls skirt down
longer because she said, your ass cheeks are hanging out.
This is evidently all over the internet. It's been hugely controversial.
(10:48):
A forty eight year old woman in Saint George, Utah,
was standing in line for a steakhouse Sakura Japanese steakhouse
in Saint George, Utah this past weekend and everything fell apart.
She said the skirt was too short. Ali, have you
ever been I'm gonna bring you in as the woman
(11:10):
because I've got a ridiculous story here. I was at
Gondolier restaurant in East Tennessee, near where my in laws
live on Watts Bar Lake. I swear to you I
was standing in line to go eat at Gondolier restaurant.
This is not a high end establishment, good place to eat.
I've eaten there a bunch, but it's probably it's like
(11:31):
an Italian version of like ihop or something like that.
I don't even know if it's a chain. I'm standing
in line there. There's a little bit of a weight
and a woman, you know, like mom aged woman got
into it with a teenage girl. She didn't know, as
we were all standing in line. I wasn't involved in
(11:52):
either party. I was there, I believe, with my kids.
They started yelling at each other about whether the girls,
I think it was her top was showing too much
boob cleavage, and I just thought to myself, Oh my god,
I'm going to be in this situation. These two were
close to getting in a fight, like an actual fight
(12:12):
over this girl's top, and I didn't know what to
do because all I could think was, somehow I'm gonna
get blamed because I just happened to be there when
these two women start fighting over their dress code. And
I was trying to think through what should I do?
Should I say anything? Should I just leave get out
of the restaurant as fast as I can so somehow
(12:33):
I don't end up in this story. Ali, you are
of a mom age. Now, that's not an insult, that's
a fair assessment. You're out in New York City now
a lot. Have you ever thought to yourself while waiting
in a restaurant, what that girl restaurant line, or at
a restaurant, what that girl is wearing is super inappropriate?
(12:56):
Somebody should say something to her. Has that thought ever
gone through your mind?
Speaker 5 (13:00):
Clay living in New York City, the number of times
have wanted to tell someone to pull up their pants?
If you know what I mean, No, you just don't
say anything. You walk, will you? In particular a man way.
Speaker 2 (13:13):
I've never said anything to any woman about her clothing ever,
and I bet there are a ton of men listening
right now who work in places where there are dress codes.
I don't ever have any idea what is appropriate for
a woman to be wearing into an office setting. On
top of that, I would never say if I thought
(13:34):
it was inappropriate, because somehow that would end up being
my fault. Similarly, I've been married for almost twenty years.
I've never told my wife correctly what she should wear
to any event. Yet I am asked every event that
we go to what should I wear?
Speaker 4 (13:51):
And I never know the answer.
Speaker 5 (13:53):
Now, questian does this outfit make me look fat? Is
never one you can answer, and it's never one that
should be asked. Women should not ask the question men
don't answer.
Speaker 2 (14:04):
Can Girard tell it that's certainly true? Does this dress
make me look fat? The answer is always no, even
if the answer is actually yes, right have has Girard
ever been able to accurately tell you what is appropriate
to wear to an event.
Speaker 5 (14:19):
Yeah, he's actually pretty open with me. He'll be honest
with me about it.
Speaker 4 (14:23):
Well, I just I don't even know. I'm not being
like crazy here.
Speaker 2 (14:27):
Like I wear jeans and like a jacket and a
button down to almost anything that I attend, from a
wedding to like until like a dinner. I mean, I
don't ever really dress that much different. But women, they
know the these subtle cues about and what is not appropriate.
I've got no idea, even after twenty years of being asked.
Speaker 5 (14:48):
Yeah, yeah, I in the case that you're talking about
with the two women fighting in the restaurant, you back away.
When it comes to your significant other, friend, partner, it's
okay to tell them, give a little advice, some tips.
I think that's fine. But there's it all depends, I guess,
is the answer. It depends.
Speaker 4 (15:10):
I just definitely told don't put your hands on anybody.
Speaker 5 (15:13):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (15:14):
My advice is, unless it's your kid or one of
your kid's close friends, you should probably never get involved
in deciding whether somebody's wearing something.
Speaker 5 (15:24):
Absolutely not, even if I think they should pull their
pants up walking down the street. You don't go up
and pull their pants up for them.
Speaker 2 (15:30):
I was at an event. This is a funny line.
I was at an event recently. I've got teenage boys,
and there were the girls and boys that go into
a dance or whatever, and I walked in to pick
up the kids, and the moms were all sitting around
drinking wine. I was the dad there and I walked
in and one of the moms said, I just don't
even know what girls are wearing these days. And she said,
(15:53):
I wouldn't have warned some of these dresses that these
girls have tonight for the dance at my wedding night.
Speaker 4 (15:59):
And I was like, I'm glad you said it, not me.
Sunday hang with Clay and Buck.
Speaker 3 (16:05):
But I will tell you I really enjoyed my time
in sam Balte.
Speaker 4 (16:10):
Me was very French. You arrive and there.
Speaker 2 (16:15):
I don't want to tell people where you were because
it was so fancy. I didn't want. I don't know
how much overlap did you look? He made any of
our listeners in Saint Bart's.
Speaker 4 (16:22):
Oh no, people came up for me. We had a few.
Speaker 3 (16:24):
We had a few people that were a list that's great.
Oh yeah, absolutely oh we had. I was sitting next
to a cop celebrating his retirement with a bunch of
French twenty five years a Chicago police department.
Speaker 4 (16:38):
He's like, hey, I love you and Clay so.
Speaker 3 (16:39):
No, no, it's look, it's a once in a lifetime,
you know, it's a little bit like it's a honeymoon
place or a once in a lifetime I've ever seen
people for other people, it's like they just go down
because whatever.
Speaker 1 (16:50):
I mean.
Speaker 3 (16:51):
You arrive and the French people are like, this island
is uh so expensive. We will take all of your
money and you will thank us for it.
Speaker 4 (16:59):
And it's kind of true.
Speaker 3 (17:01):
It's the most expensive, overpriced place I think you could
possibly find.
Speaker 2 (17:04):
Was the most expensive thing you bought and you were like,
I cannot believe it cost that. Like you went and
had like a sandwich or you went like, no, I'm
not talking about a fancy dinner, just like you were
in disbelief over.
Speaker 3 (17:15):
What something called a tiny thing of some block costs
sixty dollars. No, yeah, yeah, yeah, so it was.
Speaker 4 (17:22):
It was sixty dollars for sunblock.
Speaker 3 (17:25):
Oh oh absolutely, yeah it was. It was very very expensive.
So I will say it's beautiful. But there's a reason
that bezos like arrives there on his super yacht. You know,
it's a look the French. The problem with the French is,
you know, they got something. I'm speaking in the big
generalizations here. They got a little attitude, but they've got
some pretty cool stuff too, Like their food is pretty amazing,
(17:47):
you know, they they've got the French culture is a
lot of fun. So you know, that's why they can
get away with it. But I missed my Crockett coffee,
is what I was gonna say. They did not have
Krockett coffee in that.
Speaker 4 (17:58):
But it's too affordable. It's too affordable.
Speaker 2 (18:00):
I mean, would you get America supply?
Speaker 3 (18:03):
In fact, Davy Krockett would be like, why are you
spending all that money with them, with them frogs when
you could be hanging out with me and drinking Krocket coffee.
That's a very good question. It's a very good question,
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Speaker 4 (18:31):
Month Sundays with Clay and Buck.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
Join now by the host of Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe.
He has done a phenomenal job, writer, narrator, producer, Emmy
Award winning best selling author. And that's a lot of
that's a lot of aspects out here, Mike. We appreciate
you coming on. And we were talking about it a
little bit earlier, and I was even reading, i think
(18:58):
at the Wall Street Journal recently, a story about people
who are younger in their twenties starting to embrace plumbing
and emerting lay Away. Yeah, it's how gen z is
becoming the tool belt generation. Are you optimistic, Mike, that
a lot of people are maybe stepping into jobs that
(19:18):
they didn't foresee twenty years ago, people being interested in.
Speaker 1 (19:22):
Well, it's a little early for a victory lap, although
I'd love to take one. We've been at this for
sixteen years now, you know, trying to challenge the idea
that the best path for the most people is the
most expensive path. Educationally and also trying to shine a
light on about ten million open positions right now, very
few of which require a four year degree. These jobs
(19:43):
require training, vocational education, trade schools, and so forth. So
it's a bit like pushing a boulder up a hill,
or maybe turning around a tanker, you know, in the
middle of the ocean. Pick your metaphor, But it takes
a long time to challenge those kinds of stigmas and
stereotypes that surround the trades. This article got my attention,
(20:04):
and everybody on my social pages all tapped me on
the shoulder and said, look, this is really encouraging. You know,
it's not what a lot of people expect gen Z
to do, right. This is the generation that is most
often targeted, is lazy and entitled and spoiled and all
this other stuff. But it's like they got the memo
(20:27):
and they've looked around and they've seen a lot of
diplomas hanging on a lot of walls and concluded quite
rightly that it's not necessarily an indication of what you've learned.
It's an indication of what you paid. It's a receipt, right,
and one point seven trillion dollars in student loans is
no joke, and gen Z doesn't want any part of it.
(20:48):
They want to learn a skill that's in demand, and
I think that's good news.
Speaker 3 (20:51):
Hey, Mike, where do people who are thinking about there's like,
how you know, if you're somebody who's let's say you're eighteen,
you're senior in high school and you're considering it, what
are the some of the pathways? I mean, is it
just applying to trade school their apprenticeship programs, and how
do people learn more about, for example, what would be
a particularly in demand trade in their area or particularly
(21:13):
high paying trade in their area.
Speaker 4 (21:15):
What are the resources?
Speaker 1 (21:17):
Well, you can't possibly screw up by learning how to weld.
Welding is like the gateway into the skilled trades. My
foundation has trained hundreds of welders. We've helped a couple
thousand people get the training they need to start whatever
trade they're into. So, to answer your question, microworks dot
(21:38):
org shameless plug all kinds of information on my site,
along with a million dollars. Right now we're giving away
next month in scholarships for trade schools. But there's so
many ways.
Speaker 4 (21:49):
To go buck.
Speaker 1 (21:50):
I mean, they're certainly community colleges and they're obvious. Trade
schools all over the place. A lot of big companies
today have their own internal programs. You know, when we
took shop class out of high school forty years ago,
we really kind of unleash the kraken. You know that
that decision removed from view so many vocations, and so
(22:14):
we went through a period where a lot of millennials
didn't even get a look at what work looked like
on that side of the workforce anyway. So it's been
a long road back. But the resources are all over
the place. Companies are falling over themselves to hire. The
opportunities to get training are everywhere. I'm I can't overstate it.
(22:35):
It's been one of the great unreported stories in my lifetime,
the skills gap, ten million open jobs, all that opportunity
sitting around. At the same time we've been told you're
screwed if you don't get a four year degree. It's
literally the opposite.
Speaker 2 (22:53):
I think that's so important, Mike, because you mentioned the
one point seven trillion dollars in student loan debt. Let's
say there's an eighteen year old who's listening to us
right now, and his options are I can take out
tens of thousands of dollars in debt to get an
English major. Nothing wrong with that degree, which is not
necessarily going to lead me towards being better at any
(23:15):
particular profession. Or I can go start being a plumber
at eighteen or nineteen years old. You're stacking tens of
thousands of dollars in assets, and you're starting off when
the college kids coming out at twenty two or twenty
three in tens of thousands of dollars in debt, you
could have tens of thousands of dollars in savings. How
much do you think people are now recognizing that? And
(23:38):
are people still not aware of how much money there
is out there in plumbing or elect doing electrical work
or all these other things you mentioned welding. What else
would you tell people that there is abundant opportunity in
if they'll just go grab it.
Speaker 1 (23:52):
Electricians? Electricians are in super short supply. Plumbers, steam fitters,
pipe fitters, heating and air condition guys. I mean, I
can't even tell you. If you're not making six figures
and you're in that space, you're either just getting started
or you're unwilling to go to where the work is.
But even then, I mean, the work is pretty much everywhere.
(24:13):
The trap clay in your question is really the reason
that I'm not in politics. I can't. I'm sure there
are some eighteen year olds listening right now, but I
don't know who they are. I don't know what their
skills are, I don't know what their attitude is. Right,
and so much of what our elected officials do, and unfortunately,
(24:35):
what guidance counselors do is they paint with a really
broad brush, and you wind up hearing from a lot
of people who have a certain amount of influence that
this is what your kid should do, or this is
what you should do. And I think it's that tendency
to talk in platitudes and paint with a broad brush
that's brought us to the place where we are right now.
(24:56):
We're still a country of individuals, and your kid, your
eighteen year old kid, very likely be wired in a
profoundly different way than mine. So I'm kind of stingy
with advice in terms of telling groups of people what
to do. But you can't ignore the big trends. You
can't ignore ten million open positions right now. You can
(25:17):
ignore you want to hear some really horrible math. The
number that scares me more than one point seven trillion
in student loans, is five every year for every five
tradesmen who retire to replace them. Now, that's been gone
on for over a decade, and when you start to
just extrapolate that out, what you realize real fast is
(25:40):
this is not just a conversation about companies who are
struggling to recruit talent or kids who are struggling to
find a path to prosperity. This is a conversation about
how long Clay Travis and bucksex and want to wait
for a plumber when they need one, or an electrician.
Every single person listening to this has skin in the
(26:00):
game because every one of your audience members shares my
addiction to smooth roads and affordable electricity and indoor plumbing
and a long list of other stuff that we've been
taking for granted long before Dirty Jobs went on the air.
Speaker 3 (26:15):
You know, my uncle is a tradesman and a locksmith,
like a skilled locksmith with the specialty stuff for you know, corporations.
And my brother in law is actually a welder. Carrie's
brothers a welder, and one thing I hear from both
of them is they just don't have the time to
do all the jobs that people want them to do,
which is not a thing you often hear from that manyfolily.
(26:35):
There's so many offers to do different work in different
places that they can't get to it all. So, Mike,
I mean, I'm experiencing that for my own, you know,
extended family, what they're seeing out there, I'm just wondering
to what degree. Also when you're you know, you're the
CEO of Mike Roworks Foundation, you're encouraging young people to
go into this, but you know, entrepreneurship, small business ownership.
I mean, it's been my experience from people I know,
(26:57):
some of who have become very successful business owners, that
a lot of them start by working for a business
in the trades.
Speaker 1 (27:05):
And this is part of the sort of the disaster scenario.
When we took shop Class out, we also impacted not
just the skilled work force, but the entrepreneurial gene. The
path to a small business so often begins with the
(27:25):
mastery of a trade. I mentioned welding before because you know,
I know people who are underwater welders today they make
three hundred thousand dollars a year. I know others who
are tig welders. You know who are making one hundred grand,
and I know some who are making less than that
and are basically punching a clock. But the most interesting
(27:46):
cohort are the welders who hired another welder, or more
likely hired an electrician and some HVAC guys and then
bought a couple of vans and started a mechanical contracting company.
Those guys are everywhere, and they are the engine of
our economy, and their success stories aren't told nearly enough
(28:07):
because they start by doing something that so many parents
have come to believe as a vocational consolation prize. I
don't want my kid to be a welder. The hell
you don't, man, I can give you example after example,
and Buck, just a quick sidebar. I don't know if
you'll remember this, but I saw you ten years ago.
I think you were filling in for Beck, and you
(28:30):
did a story on one of my favorite stories of
all time. Nobody talks about it today, but it was
a message to Garcia. It was a story about initiative,
and it's a story about work ethic, and it's a
story about the willingness to cheerfully take hold of a
thing and lift. That's part of this conversation too. And
(28:53):
my foundation, you know, we award work ethic scholarships because
we're not just looking to fill an existing hole. We're
looking to find people who are willing to show up early,
stay late, take a bite of the crap sandwich, cheerfully,
volunteer for whatever task is at hand that's still for sale,
that still works, and if gen Z is the cohort
(29:16):
that steps up to do that with the tool belt
and a new understanding of what a good job is, God.
Speaker 2 (29:21):
Bless them, Mike. Last question for you. You mentioned parents
are grandparents. How much encouragement do you see from them?
And I know there's a lot of people out there
that are worried their kids are not working hard enough,
maybe they're not making great grades in school, but they
do have that work ethic and they're trying to find
a way. I think most people have no idea that
you can make six figures doing a lot of these jobs.
(29:43):
Do you think parents and grandparents are making their kids
aware enough of that opportunity as well, or do you
think they've been sold the idea that only success comes
through the pathway of college. You can't do anything else.
Speaker 1 (29:56):
Again, I hate to paint with a broad brush, but
the short answer is yeah, by and large, we have
an idea in our head about what a good job
looks like. And look, most parents also want something better
for their kids than whatever they had. The problem is
what is better? Right? I mean, we get to decide
(30:16):
how much debt is good. We get to decide if work,
for instance, is the proximate cause of our unhappiness. There's
a very popular narrative in this country right now that
says that it is. That's why you'll see support for
Bernie Sanders thirty two hour work week crazy. But if
you believe in your heart that the reason you're unhappy
(30:39):
is because you're working too much, or if you believe,
like genuinely believe in your heart that you're going to
be happy when you retire, then you've bought into an
existing narrative that is in fact persuasive. And it's persuasive
because it's mirrored constantly in sitcoms and movies and advertisements.
We are surround by this idea that work is the enemy,
(31:03):
and that you're a failure if you're a parent, if
you don't get your kid into a proper school. So yeah,
I would say to parents who believe that you might
be right. Maybe your kid is exactly wired to do
all of those things, but you might be wrong. Put
all the options on the table, have an honest conversation
(31:23):
about the realities of debt and the advantage of learning
a skill that's in demand. My final thought is, you
know this. I'm holding my cell phone in my hand
right now, and I'm looking at it because that is
a liberal arts education and it's free. All the information
I learned when I was in school in nineteen eighty
four is right there. Man. If you're curious and you
(31:48):
really want to learn whatever whatever floats your boat, you
can watch a lecture on it right now for free
at MIT or Brown or Yale. It's all there. Learn
a skill first, master a trade, go to work, get rich.
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show News
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Clay Travis
Buck Sexton
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