October 17, 2025 • 22 mins
(October 17, 2025)
Brown, Penn, USC, & MIT decline White House funding compact; everything we know about the federal funding proposal for universities. California made it through another summer without a Flex alert… thanks batteries, experts say. Beyond Meat’s stock collapses after debt deal. Is it okay to decline your airplane seat?
Brown, Penn, USC, & MIT decline White House funding compact; everything we know about the federal funding proposal for universities. California made it through another summer without a Flex alert… thanks batteries, experts say. Beyond Meat’s stock collapses after debt deal. Is it okay to decline your airplane seat?
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
You're listening to Bill Handle on demand from KFI AM
six forty.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
AM six forty Bill Handle. Here it is a Friday,
October seventeenth. All right, I want to talk about what's
going on with the universities and the administration. And I
want to start with a backstory and a premise.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
This is what this story is based on.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
How does the federal government how can it control private
universities since there probably is really no connection, And I'll
tell you how, and that is virtually every university has
federal money involved.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
That's how our government works.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
State government, county government money is given to organizations, to
other governments, to municipal organizations like police departments, and so
much of it is federal money because that's the way
the system goes. We pay the FEDS, and the FEDS
fund of the money funnels into universities or police departments whatever.
(01:06):
This is about universities. And so here's what the Trump
administration has done. This is unprecedented, it's never been done before.
It has written to nine schools and said, tell you what,
We're going to give you a whole list of stuff
that we want you to do, and if you do it,
we're going to fund your university, give you preference, you'll
(01:28):
get money. First, We're gonna give you more money for
research instead of taking it away. And this compact, this agreement,
this is, according to a letter that's sent to the universities,
is aimed at the proactive improvement of higher education for
the betterment of the country.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
The administration is saying, we will decide.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
What you teach and what you don't teach for the
betterment of the country.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
And what do they have to do? Okay, in order
to get this.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
First of all, here's the kind of money that these
universities are getting. And this is in many cases research
money for medical research that the government is yanking in
many cases to schools that do not follow the philosophy,
in some cases the hundreds of millions of dollars, in
(02:22):
Harvard's case, billions of dollars. This is in research, medical research.
We're not talking about ideology. We're just talking about cancer research.
We're talking about research across the board in terms of
diseases and vaccines, et cetera. So here what the universities
were asked to do in order to hit the level
(02:44):
that the government wants. And boy, if you do that,
we're gonna give you a money. We're not going to
stop money from going in. Removing factors like sex and
ethnicity from admissions consideration. I mean, the courts have basically
already done that, and I agree. You know, the city
and sect should not be considered. Foster a vibrant marketplace
(03:05):
of ideas on campus.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
What the hell does that mean?
Speaker 2 (03:09):
Who decides what is a vibrant idea of a marketplace
of ideas? Does that mean no conservative? Does that mean
too many liberals? I don't know what that means, no
single ideology dominant. Okay, then the argument is a lot
of most of the schools are left leaning, and they are,
(03:32):
But who decides where that line is? At what point
does the university cross the line in terms of ideology, Well,
the government's going to make that decision, assess faculty and
staff viewpoints. Adopt definitions of gender. What you're born with
(03:52):
is your gender. There's no such thing as even recognizing
trans people. It's just bottom line, and certainly the schools
can't recognize it because definitions of gender will be according
to reproductive functions and biological processes. I'm assuming it's whatever
you're born with. Commit to reforming or shuddering institutional units
(04:16):
that purposely punish, belittle, and even spark violence against conservative ideas. Man,
I don't know where universities are promulgating or pushing for
violence against conservative ideas. By the way, what is violence protest?
I don't know what violence is. Also a commitment to
(04:39):
grade integrity. Explain that one to me. What is grade integrity?
Some professors are very liberal in what they grade. Others
are really tough. I've had teachers that go both ways
where it was an easy A and an impossible B.
(05:00):
So figure that one out. A five year freeze on
tuition costs. Okay, that's easy to figure out. Now, how
do schools deal with that? Because their costs keep on
going up, up and up. I mean, that's at least specific.
Fifteen percent required cap on international students.
Speaker 1 (05:18):
Well, that's specific.
Speaker 2 (05:21):
The problem is you have sc you have UCLA were
a large part of their budget international students who pay
full retail, they pay the rack rate and they rely
on that. And if the schools agree, they would be
even priority for grants when possible. And here are added attractions,
(05:41):
and you'll have special invitations for white house events and
discussions with officials.
Speaker 1 (05:48):
Boy, that's going to do it.
Speaker 2 (05:50):
You know, you get special invitation to household, to White
House events, and an annual participation in an anonymous poll
to see if the universities are complying with these not
requests requirements, or money is yanked or you're put on
low priority.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
Never been done before.
Speaker 2 (06:12):
Okay, So now of the nine schools, Brown, Penn, USC,
and MIT have told the White House to go pound
sand and we'll see what happens with that. But again,
as I've said, it's just administration pushing the very boundaries
of what is political power, what is presidential power? And
(06:36):
does the president have the right And we don't know.
It'll go to court of course to say no to
research money if the school doesn't comply. Don't know if
that's true. Probably the president does have that kind of power.
You know, the courts have been, especially this Supreme Court
has been very preferential to the president. Has decided over
(07:04):
and over again that the president does have these powers
which the court prior to this conservative court, the six
y three majority on the conservative side, would.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
Never have allowed. All right, so much for that.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
Now, have you noticed that we have not had a
flex alert in a couple of years now. For decades,
we've had these rolling blackouts and calls for energy conservation.
Don't put your thermostat above sixty eight or below sixty
eight or seventy two and when it's hot put it
(07:40):
down or whatever. Try it's been such a long time,
I don't even remember, and I should. Here's what's happening.
We don't have them anymore. The state has undergone a
shift in recent years. The California Independent or System Operator right,
that's cal ISIS hasn't issued at alert since twenty twenty two. Now,
(08:03):
why do you think that's happened? Right? The technology of
moving electricity from place to place.
Speaker 1 (08:11):
Is about the same.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
You've got the transmission lines and during well, during the day, we.
Speaker 1 (08:19):
Use less electricity, or used to.
Speaker 2 (08:22):
At night or during the day we use more because
you've got offices going, you've got a lot more use
of electricity at night. We have air conditioning going as
also during the day. But the bottom line was use
your appliances at night because we don't have solar for example,
(08:46):
because solar is a big deal and has been for years,
but still, what do you do when the sun isn't
out there and we're attached to the grid, we use
a lot more electricity, and what was the problem.
Speaker 1 (08:59):
The problem what do you do to generate electricity.
Speaker 2 (09:03):
When there is no sun or there is no wind power,
which is kind of amd because that's up in the air.
The wind power factor is fairly small. Batteries, batteries were
the technology. Batteries were the answer, and frankly, battery technology
was slow incoming. Science had a very hard time dealing
with batteries that work. The batteries are efficient batteries, the
(09:28):
last bastion of a easy system that allows solar to work.
Speaker 1 (09:37):
Well.
Speaker 2 (09:38):
Battery technology has exploded. California has invested very heavily in
battery technology. It's gotten cheaper, it's become more mature. Right now,
this is a stat battery storage, and that's of course,
battery is all about story.
Speaker 1 (09:56):
Electricity has grown.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
Three thousand percent and six year years from five hundred
megawats in twenty twenty to more than fifteen thousand megawatts.
You know, it was only five years ago when we
had this just record shattering heat wave and the grid
was pushed to a limit and a lot of the
state was pushed into darkness. And that's when state officials
(10:19):
said we're going to go balls to the wall and
we're going to build up our battery inventory. And it
has worked. It has worked. They're becoming more cost effective.
It used to be hideously expensive. Now well, they're actually
right in line with gas fired power plants, and all
(10:43):
of a sudden it makes a lot of sense. Is
there a problem politically, Yeah, the President likes gas fired
power plants, does not like alternative energy. Matter of fact,
he's shut down a major major I think it was
a wind farm in off the shore of New Jersey
that was just about finished and shut it down as
(11:04):
being built with federal money. Now here is an interesting dichotomy,
and this one I love. The President is against alternative energy.
He's made it very clear he is in favor of
fossil fuels being used to provide electricity, burn fossil fuels
gas powered plants. But at the same time he loves
(11:29):
battery production, which is the exact opposite of fossil fuels
power plant. Now, why does he like batteries, Well, because
batteries are on their way in a big way to
be manufactured in the United States right now. I think
eighty percent of our batteries come from China, China, and
(11:52):
we're moving in the other direction.
Speaker 1 (11:54):
We're gonna build them here.
Speaker 2 (11:56):
Same thing with solar panels, which he does not like,
except when they're being built in the United States, and
I think that's going to prevail.
Speaker 1 (12:05):
I mean, I don't think we're going to.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
Go back to let's just do all gas fired plants,
because alternative energy is going to end up being cheaper
than gas fired plants. Forget about the environmental issue, which
a lot of people will feel very strongly about. Let's
just talk about economy, money and money controls. And now
(12:27):
you have people that would rather go to battery powered
or solar systems, where energy is stored in batteries as
well as wind, as well as you've got the wave
business that's coming up. That technology is moving ahead in
a rapid place. And when that becomes cheaper right now
is competitive. When that becomes cheaper, where do you think
(12:50):
we're going to go politically? Forget about the politics. It's
going to go to alternative energy. And already, what is it.
California has thirty percent of solar power that's being used.
I don't think any other state comes.
Speaker 1 (13:05):
Close to it.
Speaker 2 (13:08):
So we're on our way and you're not going to
see any more flex alerts.
Speaker 1 (13:12):
I remember those. Those were crazy.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
Remember we had to bring our temperatures down during during
the summer. It was like, you couldn't go above you
want to keep seventy eight degrees, so you don't put
your air conditioning on.
Speaker 1 (13:26):
Who keeps a house seventy eight degrees? Come on?
Speaker 2 (13:29):
And during the winter, don't put it above sixty eight degrees?
Speaker 1 (13:32):
Come on? Who lives in a house with sixty eight degrees?
Speaker 2 (13:37):
So I was a huge but I have to tell you,
I went on the air and I advocated that policy
while I was ignoring it at home. The hypocrisy that
I was experiencing and I was promoting was absolutely stunning.
Because as I was telling you, don't turn your heat
(13:59):
up beyond sixty eight degrees when it's cold, my heat
was at seventy three seventy two. And when I was
telling you, do not go below seventy eight when we
have hotspells, because that's what the government wants us to
do because of the additional electricity and the overworking of
(14:20):
the system. While I was telling you please set your
thermostat at seventy eight degrees, mine was at seventy two. Hey,
no one ever accused me of not being a hypocrite.
Speaker 1 (14:36):
Hey, can I tell you all right now?
Speaker 2 (14:39):
Beyond Meat first came out plant based meat products. Neil
was a huge fan. We talked about it. He loved it,
and if you paid attention and really enjoyed it. This
was twenty nineteen, you would have paid two hundred and
thirty five dollars per share for Beyond Meat because it
was so successful. If you try to sell your shares today,
(15:02):
you're going to get less than a dollar a share.
If you had bought at the top, you've lost ninety
nine percent of your money. So what happened, Well, Beyond
Meat makes pea based foods mimic the taste of beef, chicken, pork,
(15:23):
And while they were in a huge demand early in
the pandemic, they're now not so much. They're way down
and we're back to animal proteins. We just like animal proteins,
thought we were going to go in the other direction.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
Uh huh.
Speaker 2 (15:41):
Now you also have a lot of rivalry between impossible foods,
which in Redwood they've actually made gains at supermarkets and
maybe because that's available as a opera at Burger King,
But the entire US plant based meat and seafood industry
twenty eight percent.
Speaker 1 (15:59):
Drop year to year.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
Why Well, because these plant based meats.
Speaker 1 (16:06):
Are a lot more money.
Speaker 2 (16:08):
They are more expensive than the animal products. And frankly,
with inflation, we now shop with our pocket book. Now
we always have, but particularly now, it's gotten to the
point where you have these plant based food items. They
had their own displays, you know, they had their own
(16:30):
refrigerators at the end of the end cap of the stores.
Now they're moving him to They're getting rid of those
and moving him to just the meat section where they're
harder to find. It's just going downhill, very very quickly.
So what are they trying to do. They're trying to
get new products. They're trying to use less processed food
(16:53):
because one of the things about Beyond Meat is a
processed food product.
Speaker 1 (17:00):
People are really concerned about that. You buy a steak,
it's not processed, it's a steak. You buy Beyond.
Speaker 3 (17:06):
Meat uber processed. I mean the amount of processing. And
and yes I did say that they were tasty. They
are tasty. They are tasty, But if you listen to
the program, I broke down why I didn't think they
would succeed, and the one of the problems was the
sodium is just as high, if not higher. The only
difference between a plant based patty and nutrition wise and
(17:32):
beef for the most part is cholesterol. Other than that,
they have the same amount of you know, sodium, if
not more. They so people thought they were going to
be a healthy version and they're not.
Speaker 2 (17:44):
And they're not and they're not. So you have that
going south. You have the price, and people just like meat.
I mean for those people that you know, have this
thing about I'm not going to eat anything that has
a face, and I believe in you know, God creates
all animals, all life form. Let me tell you, if
God didn't want us to eat steaks, why would he
make cow? Why would he make cows out of meat?
(18:07):
Is spottom line. We just like our meat. Now, there
is one place where this company, Beyond Meat, is doing
very very well, and that strangely enough, in Afghanistan, because
well it's a new product they're coming out called Beyond
Ground and if Afghanistan that has several different definitions.
Speaker 1 (18:34):
Okay, at least Kono thought that was funny.
Speaker 2 (18:38):
So for those people that think Beyond Meat is still
a good deal, and you bought it at the top.
Speaker 1 (18:48):
Of the heap.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
You bought it at two hundred and thirty five dollars
a share. You don't have to worry about the cost
of meat or plant based meat. All you have to
worry about is the cost of caw food. All right,
we're done. See that talks about Can I explain that
to you?
Speaker 1 (19:08):
Neil? Yeah, I got it? Okay. Now here is the question.
Speaker 2 (19:14):
Is it okay to recline your airplane seat? All right?
First we do a survey, says Neil, airplane. See we're
talking about coach. Yes or no on the reclining No, okay,
cono Yes or no on reclining No, okay, Amy, Yes
or no on reclining, yes, yes, on reclining will who
(19:40):
is not there?
Speaker 1 (19:42):
Yes or no? On reclining? Are you there? Will? Okay?
He's not there?
Speaker 2 (19:47):
And who is sitting out there with Kno? You say
yes on reclining, right, okay? I say yes on reclining
except for the person in front of me. Then it's
a know on reclining, and that is actually a big issue.
I have flown both ways where the seats do recline
(20:10):
and don't recline. You've been on a plane where you
try to push the button and try to get a recline,
It just doesn't move. Plenty of airlines are doing that,
and then I don't even know why they call it reclining.
It's one inch. I mean, it does nothing. They're cramming.
Speaker 3 (20:27):
There's no way to there's no way to do it
without interfering on the experience of the person behind you, which.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
Is right as hell. And what do you do sun
have them recline well?
Speaker 2 (20:36):
And it depends on the length of the plane the
plane ride too, So.
Speaker 1 (20:42):
What do you do?
Speaker 2 (20:42):
Do you tell the person behind you do you mind
if I recline? And what are they going to say? Well,
I'll tell you what I say, do you mind if
I recline? The person in front of me? I say,
do you mind if I fart? And they usually say no.
They it goes both ways or yes on the farting part.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
The bottom line shone on a plane with you before
I know it is very impressive. I know I'd prefer
that you don't.
Speaker 2 (21:09):
You prefer to fly on another plane? Neil and I
have quite a story about that. But the bottom line
is the reclining even an inch actually costs the airlines
because of new material and how they've designed the seats.
The cushions are so much smaller than they used to be.
(21:33):
They can actually get an extra row in, for example,
a seven thirty seven. They've developed enough seating technology to
get extra row, and they say the seats are more comfortable.
Speaker 1 (21:44):
Give me a break. It is impossible.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
So strangely enough, there was a survey done by the
Washington Post and it's half and half fifty percent say yes,
fifty percent say no. Although reclining a seat in coach,
as I said, I don't even know why they call
it reclining because already you're you're dealing with the that
(22:13):
you know, the tray going down and it drives you
out there.
Speaker 1 (22:15):
Will reclining seats on airplanes? Yes or no? Well I
can hear. Sorry, Yeah, I like them. I think they
should recline a lot more than they do.
Speaker 2 (22:24):
Well, yeah, I mean that's a given. They're not going
to recline a lot more than they do. But yeah,
I feel you know, I'm at the I'm up in
the air with that literally how that works? All right,
We're done with that, ending with pretty good pun, not
bad all right. This is KFI A M sixty.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
You've been listening to the Bill Handle Show.
Speaker 2 (22:48):
Catch my Show Monday through Friday, six am to nine am,
and anytime on demand on the iHeartRadio app
You're listening to Bill Handle on demand from KFI AM
six forty.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
AM six forty Bill Handle. Here it is a Friday,
October seventeenth. All right, I want to talk about what's
going on with the universities and the administration. And I
want to start with a backstory and a premise.
Speaker 1 (00:20):
This is what this story is based on.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
How does the federal government how can it control private
universities since there probably is really no connection, And I'll
tell you how, and that is virtually every university has
federal money involved.
Speaker 1 (00:42):
That's how our government works.
Speaker 2 (00:44):
State government, county government money is given to organizations, to
other governments, to municipal organizations like police departments, and so
much of it is federal money because that's the way
the system goes. We pay the FEDS, and the FEDS
fund of the money funnels into universities or police departments whatever.
(01:06):
This is about universities. And so here's what the Trump
administration has done. This is unprecedented, it's never been done before.
It has written to nine schools and said, tell you what,
We're going to give you a whole list of stuff
that we want you to do, and if you do it,
we're going to fund your university, give you preference, you'll
(01:28):
get money. First, We're gonna give you more money for
research instead of taking it away. And this compact, this agreement,
this is, according to a letter that's sent to the universities,
is aimed at the proactive improvement of higher education for
the betterment of the country.
Speaker 1 (01:47):
The administration is saying, we will decide.
Speaker 2 (01:51):
What you teach and what you don't teach for the
betterment of the country.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
And what do they have to do? Okay, in order
to get this.
Speaker 2 (02:01):
First of all, here's the kind of money that these
universities are getting. And this is in many cases research
money for medical research that the government is yanking in
many cases to schools that do not follow the philosophy,
in some cases the hundreds of millions of dollars, in
(02:22):
Harvard's case, billions of dollars. This is in research, medical research.
We're not talking about ideology. We're just talking about cancer research.
We're talking about research across the board in terms of
diseases and vaccines, et cetera. So here what the universities
were asked to do in order to hit the level
(02:44):
that the government wants. And boy, if you do that,
we're gonna give you a money. We're not going to
stop money from going in. Removing factors like sex and
ethnicity from admissions consideration. I mean, the courts have basically
already done that, and I agree. You know, the city
and sect should not be considered. Foster a vibrant marketplace
(03:05):
of ideas on campus.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
What the hell does that mean?
Speaker 2 (03:09):
Who decides what is a vibrant idea of a marketplace
of ideas? Does that mean no conservative? Does that mean
too many liberals? I don't know what that means, no
single ideology dominant. Okay, then the argument is a lot
of most of the schools are left leaning, and they are,
(03:32):
But who decides where that line is? At what point
does the university cross the line in terms of ideology, Well,
the government's going to make that decision, assess faculty and
staff viewpoints. Adopt definitions of gender. What you're born with
(03:52):
is your gender. There's no such thing as even recognizing
trans people. It's just bottom line, and certainly the schools
can't recognize it because definitions of gender will be according
to reproductive functions and biological processes. I'm assuming it's whatever
you're born with. Commit to reforming or shuddering institutional units
(04:16):
that purposely punish, belittle, and even spark violence against conservative ideas. Man,
I don't know where universities are promulgating or pushing for
violence against conservative ideas. By the way, what is violence protest?
I don't know what violence is. Also a commitment to
(04:39):
grade integrity. Explain that one to me. What is grade integrity?
Some professors are very liberal in what they grade. Others
are really tough. I've had teachers that go both ways
where it was an easy A and an impossible B.
(05:00):
So figure that one out. A five year freeze on
tuition costs. Okay, that's easy to figure out. Now, how
do schools deal with that? Because their costs keep on
going up, up and up. I mean, that's at least specific.
Fifteen percent required cap on international students.
Speaker 1 (05:18):
Well, that's specific.
Speaker 2 (05:21):
The problem is you have sc you have UCLA were
a large part of their budget international students who pay
full retail, they pay the rack rate and they rely
on that. And if the schools agree, they would be
even priority for grants when possible. And here are added attractions,
(05:41):
and you'll have special invitations for white house events and
discussions with officials.
Speaker 1 (05:48):
Boy, that's going to do it.
Speaker 2 (05:50):
You know, you get special invitation to household, to White
House events, and an annual participation in an anonymous poll
to see if the universities are complying with these not
requests requirements, or money is yanked or you're put on
low priority.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
Never been done before.
Speaker 2 (06:12):
Okay, So now of the nine schools, Brown, Penn, USC,
and MIT have told the White House to go pound
sand and we'll see what happens with that. But again,
as I've said, it's just administration pushing the very boundaries
of what is political power, what is presidential power? And
(06:36):
does the president have the right And we don't know.
It'll go to court of course to say no to
research money if the school doesn't comply. Don't know if
that's true. Probably the president does have that kind of power.
You know, the courts have been, especially this Supreme Court
has been very preferential to the president. Has decided over
(07:04):
and over again that the president does have these powers
which the court prior to this conservative court, the six
y three majority on the conservative side, would.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
Never have allowed. All right, so much for that.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
Now, have you noticed that we have not had a
flex alert in a couple of years now. For decades,
we've had these rolling blackouts and calls for energy conservation.
Don't put your thermostat above sixty eight or below sixty
eight or seventy two and when it's hot put it
(07:40):
down or whatever. Try it's been such a long time,
I don't even remember, and I should. Here's what's happening.
We don't have them anymore. The state has undergone a
shift in recent years. The California Independent or System Operator right,
that's cal ISIS hasn't issued at alert since twenty twenty two. Now,
(08:03):
why do you think that's happened? Right? The technology of
moving electricity from place to place.
Speaker 1 (08:11):
Is about the same.
Speaker 2 (08:12):
You've got the transmission lines and during well, during the day, we.
Speaker 1 (08:19):
Use less electricity, or used to.
Speaker 2 (08:22):
At night or during the day we use more because
you've got offices going, you've got a lot more use
of electricity at night. We have air conditioning going as
also during the day. But the bottom line was use
your appliances at night because we don't have solar for example,
(08:46):
because solar is a big deal and has been for years,
but still, what do you do when the sun isn't
out there and we're attached to the grid, we use
a lot more electricity, and what was the problem.
Speaker 1 (08:59):
The problem what do you do to generate electricity.
Speaker 2 (09:03):
When there is no sun or there is no wind power,
which is kind of amd because that's up in the air.
The wind power factor is fairly small. Batteries, batteries were
the technology. Batteries were the answer, and frankly, battery technology
was slow incoming. Science had a very hard time dealing
with batteries that work. The batteries are efficient batteries, the
(09:28):
last bastion of a easy system that allows solar to work.
Speaker 1 (09:37):
Well.
Speaker 2 (09:38):
Battery technology has exploded. California has invested very heavily in
battery technology. It's gotten cheaper, it's become more mature. Right now,
this is a stat battery storage, and that's of course,
battery is all about story.
Speaker 1 (09:56):
Electricity has grown.
Speaker 2 (09:58):
Three thousand percent and six year years from five hundred
megawats in twenty twenty to more than fifteen thousand megawatts.
You know, it was only five years ago when we
had this just record shattering heat wave and the grid
was pushed to a limit and a lot of the
state was pushed into darkness. And that's when state officials
(10:19):
said we're going to go balls to the wall and
we're going to build up our battery inventory. And it
has worked. It has worked. They're becoming more cost effective.
It used to be hideously expensive. Now well, they're actually
right in line with gas fired power plants, and all
(10:43):
of a sudden it makes a lot of sense. Is
there a problem politically, Yeah, the President likes gas fired
power plants, does not like alternative energy. Matter of fact,
he's shut down a major major I think it was
a wind farm in off the shore of New Jersey
that was just about finished and shut it down as
(11:04):
being built with federal money. Now here is an interesting dichotomy,
and this one I love. The President is against alternative energy.
He's made it very clear he is in favor of
fossil fuels being used to provide electricity, burn fossil fuels
gas powered plants. But at the same time he loves
(11:29):
battery production, which is the exact opposite of fossil fuels
power plant. Now, why does he like batteries, Well, because
batteries are on their way in a big way to
be manufactured in the United States right now. I think
eighty percent of our batteries come from China, China, and
(11:52):
we're moving in the other direction.
Speaker 1 (11:54):
We're gonna build them here.
Speaker 2 (11:56):
Same thing with solar panels, which he does not like,
except when they're being built in the United States, and
I think that's going to prevail.
Speaker 1 (12:05):
I mean, I don't think we're going to.
Speaker 2 (12:07):
Go back to let's just do all gas fired plants,
because alternative energy is going to end up being cheaper
than gas fired plants. Forget about the environmental issue, which
a lot of people will feel very strongly about. Let's
just talk about economy, money and money controls. And now
(12:27):
you have people that would rather go to battery powered
or solar systems, where energy is stored in batteries as
well as wind, as well as you've got the wave
business that's coming up. That technology is moving ahead in
a rapid place. And when that becomes cheaper right now
is competitive. When that becomes cheaper, where do you think
(12:50):
we're going to go politically? Forget about the politics. It's
going to go to alternative energy. And already, what is it.
California has thirty percent of solar power that's being used.
I don't think any other state comes.
Speaker 1 (13:05):
Close to it.
Speaker 2 (13:08):
So we're on our way and you're not going to
see any more flex alerts.
Speaker 1 (13:12):
I remember those. Those were crazy.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
Remember we had to bring our temperatures down during during
the summer. It was like, you couldn't go above you
want to keep seventy eight degrees, so you don't put
your air conditioning on.
Speaker 1 (13:26):
Who keeps a house seventy eight degrees? Come on?
Speaker 2 (13:29):
And during the winter, don't put it above sixty eight degrees?
Speaker 1 (13:32):
Come on? Who lives in a house with sixty eight degrees?
Speaker 2 (13:37):
So I was a huge but I have to tell you,
I went on the air and I advocated that policy
while I was ignoring it at home. The hypocrisy that
I was experiencing and I was promoting was absolutely stunning.
Because as I was telling you, don't turn your heat
(13:59):
up beyond sixty eight degrees when it's cold, my heat
was at seventy three seventy two. And when I was
telling you, do not go below seventy eight when we
have hotspells, because that's what the government wants us to
do because of the additional electricity and the overworking of
(14:20):
the system. While I was telling you please set your
thermostat at seventy eight degrees, mine was at seventy two. Hey,
no one ever accused me of not being a hypocrite.
Speaker 1 (14:36):
Hey, can I tell you all right now?
Speaker 2 (14:39):
Beyond Meat first came out plant based meat products. Neil
was a huge fan. We talked about it. He loved it,
and if you paid attention and really enjoyed it. This
was twenty nineteen, you would have paid two hundred and
thirty five dollars per share for Beyond Meat because it
was so successful. If you try to sell your shares today,
(15:02):
you're going to get less than a dollar a share.
If you had bought at the top, you've lost ninety
nine percent of your money. So what happened, Well, Beyond
Meat makes pea based foods mimic the taste of beef, chicken, pork,
(15:23):
And while they were in a huge demand early in
the pandemic, they're now not so much. They're way down
and we're back to animal proteins. We just like animal proteins,
thought we were going to go in the other direction.
Speaker 1 (15:39):
Uh huh.
Speaker 2 (15:41):
Now you also have a lot of rivalry between impossible foods,
which in Redwood they've actually made gains at supermarkets and
maybe because that's available as a opera at Burger King,
But the entire US plant based meat and seafood industry
twenty eight percent.
Speaker 1 (15:59):
Drop year to year.
Speaker 2 (16:02):
Why Well, because these plant based meats.
Speaker 1 (16:06):
Are a lot more money.
Speaker 2 (16:08):
They are more expensive than the animal products. And frankly,
with inflation, we now shop with our pocket book. Now
we always have, but particularly now, it's gotten to the
point where you have these plant based food items. They
had their own displays, you know, they had their own
(16:30):
refrigerators at the end of the end cap of the stores.
Now they're moving him to They're getting rid of those
and moving him to just the meat section where they're
harder to find. It's just going downhill, very very quickly.
So what are they trying to do. They're trying to
get new products. They're trying to use less processed food
(16:53):
because one of the things about Beyond Meat is a
processed food product.
Speaker 1 (17:00):
People are really concerned about that. You buy a steak,
it's not processed, it's a steak. You buy Beyond.
Speaker 3 (17:06):
Meat uber processed. I mean the amount of processing. And
and yes I did say that they were tasty. They
are tasty. They are tasty, But if you listen to
the program, I broke down why I didn't think they
would succeed, and the one of the problems was the
sodium is just as high, if not higher. The only
difference between a plant based patty and nutrition wise and
(17:32):
beef for the most part is cholesterol. Other than that,
they have the same amount of you know, sodium, if
not more. They so people thought they were going to
be a healthy version and they're not.
Speaker 2 (17:44):
And they're not and they're not. So you have that
going south. You have the price, and people just like meat.
I mean for those people that you know, have this
thing about I'm not going to eat anything that has
a face, and I believe in you know, God creates
all animals, all life form. Let me tell you, if
God didn't want us to eat steaks, why would he
make cow? Why would he make cows out of meat?
(18:07):
Is spottom line. We just like our meat. Now, there
is one place where this company, Beyond Meat, is doing
very very well, and that strangely enough, in Afghanistan, because
well it's a new product they're coming out called Beyond
Ground and if Afghanistan that has several different definitions.
Speaker 1 (18:34):
Okay, at least Kono thought that was funny.
Speaker 2 (18:38):
So for those people that think Beyond Meat is still
a good deal, and you bought it at the top.
Speaker 1 (18:48):
Of the heap.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
You bought it at two hundred and thirty five dollars
a share. You don't have to worry about the cost
of meat or plant based meat. All you have to
worry about is the cost of caw food. All right,
we're done. See that talks about Can I explain that
to you?
Speaker 1 (19:08):
Neil? Yeah, I got it? Okay. Now here is the question.
Speaker 2 (19:14):
Is it okay to recline your airplane seat? All right?
First we do a survey, says Neil, airplane. See we're
talking about coach. Yes or no on the reclining No, okay,
cono Yes or no on reclining No, okay, Amy, Yes
or no on reclining, yes, yes, on reclining will who
(19:40):
is not there?
Speaker 1 (19:42):
Yes or no? On reclining? Are you there? Will? Okay?
He's not there?
Speaker 2 (19:47):
And who is sitting out there with Kno? You say
yes on reclining, right, okay? I say yes on reclining
except for the person in front of me. Then it's
a know on reclining, and that is actually a big issue.
I have flown both ways where the seats do recline
(20:10):
and don't recline. You've been on a plane where you
try to push the button and try to get a recline,
It just doesn't move. Plenty of airlines are doing that,
and then I don't even know why they call it reclining.
It's one inch. I mean, it does nothing. They're cramming.
Speaker 3 (20:27):
There's no way to there's no way to do it
without interfering on the experience of the person behind you, which.
Speaker 1 (20:32):
Is right as hell. And what do you do sun
have them recline well?
Speaker 2 (20:36):
And it depends on the length of the plane the
plane ride too, So.
Speaker 1 (20:42):
What do you do?
Speaker 2 (20:42):
Do you tell the person behind you do you mind
if I recline? And what are they going to say? Well,
I'll tell you what I say, do you mind if
I recline? The person in front of me? I say,
do you mind if I fart? And they usually say no.
They it goes both ways or yes on the farting part.
Speaker 1 (21:03):
The bottom line shone on a plane with you before
I know it is very impressive. I know I'd prefer
that you don't.
Speaker 2 (21:09):
You prefer to fly on another plane? Neil and I
have quite a story about that. But the bottom line
is the reclining even an inch actually costs the airlines
because of new material and how they've designed the seats.
The cushions are so much smaller than they used to be.
(21:33):
They can actually get an extra row in, for example,
a seven thirty seven. They've developed enough seating technology to
get extra row, and they say the seats are more comfortable.
Speaker 1 (21:44):
Give me a break. It is impossible.
Speaker 2 (21:51):
So strangely enough, there was a survey done by the
Washington Post and it's half and half fifty percent say yes,
fifty percent say no. Although reclining a seat in coach,
as I said, I don't even know why they call
it reclining because already you're you're dealing with the that
(22:13):
you know, the tray going down and it drives you
out there.
Speaker 1 (22:15):
Will reclining seats on airplanes? Yes or no? Well I
can hear. Sorry, Yeah, I like them. I think they
should recline a lot more than they do.
Speaker 2 (22:24):
Well, yeah, I mean that's a given. They're not going
to recline a lot more than they do. But yeah,
I feel you know, I'm at the I'm up in
the air with that literally how that works? All right,
We're done with that, ending with pretty good pun, not
bad all right. This is KFI A M sixty.
Speaker 1 (22:47):
You've been listening to the Bill Handle Show.
Speaker 2 (22:48):
Catch my Show Monday through Friday, six am to nine am,
and anytime on demand on the iHeartRadio app
The Bill Handel Show News
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