To Twerk Or Not To Twerk

We start with a goofy twerking question and end up in a serious debate about privacy, power, and empathy in healthcare. We talk through what makes medical jokes feel human versus cruel, and why community matters more than public pile-ons when people mess up. 

• twerking as a playful doorway into medical culture 
• the Santa Barbara OBGYN clinic video and why it feels violating 
• patient dignity and privacy as non-negotiables 
• intent versus impact when healthcare workers joke online 
• where “coping humor” ends and humiliation begins 
• whether we trust doctors with big social media followings 
• ego, attention, and the time cost of being a healthcare influencer 
• a resident’s drunk public meltdown and losing her residency 
• cancel culture, proportional consequences, and second chances 
• why weed bans in sports feel like policy not science 
• rebuilding trust through community and real-life intervention 

Transcript

Twerking Meets The Medical World

SPEAKER_02 0:00

Alright guys, welcome to Pizza Punchlines. I'm super excited to have you guys here today for this episode, which is titled To Twerk or Not to Twerk. Joining me on this episode is a good friend of mine, fellow comedian Diana Hong. Say what's up.

SPEAKER_03 0:14

Hi. Yeah. Age old question. Yeah, right? To twerk or not to twerk. Right.

SPEAKER_02 0:19

We're gonna put a little twist on it though. Um we're gonna talk about this in the medical setting.

SPEAKER_03 0:24

Oh yeah. That you know, my first instinct is one thing. I feel like at the end of this, I might say something else.

SPEAKER_02 0:31

You might, we don't know.

SPEAKER_03 0:32

Or just what's your first instinct? Well, hmm. If asked.

SPEAKER_02 0:37

To twerk or not. Usually in medical. In medical. Oh, interesting. Um, is uh am I next to a patient or not? Is that my first question. If I'm not, I'm gonna twerk. If not, if I am, maybe not.

SPEAKER_03 0:48

Yeah, yeah, okay. That's that's that's that's a good thing. My first instinct is to say no twerking.

SPEAKER_02 0:54

That's fair. That's fair. We'll we'll we'll we'll we'll see how you feel at the end of the day. Yeah, I think it's gonna change. But the first and most important question I have to ask you is uh who twerks better, doctors or nurses?

SPEAKER_03 1:05

Uh I would imagine nurses.

SPEAKER_02 1:08

Okay, I would agree.

SPEAKER_03 1:09

Um, I think doctors, yeah, I okay. Doctors give me that they're too stiff. Um nurses, honestly. Here's the thing. I think the factually, it's if you look at it, like there's not a lot of you know how comics, there's like a lot of like um trade comedy now. So there's like teachers and uh it's nurses. I don't see really doctors touring. Like I feel like nurses know how to have a good time. Oh, they do. Sure, I feel like nurse on, right? Yeah, yeah, nurse on is like proving it. I feel like also, yeah, because there's the nurses is like the field where I think they um I I don't know how to put it, but it's like, you know, there's there's more minority because it's more easily accessible. I agree, I agree, and so I think those people um are more fun.

SPEAKER_02 1:58

Yeah, I agree. They they they they they hang out with beetle people who can twerk better, I would say.

SPEAKER_03 2:02

Yeah, yeah, for sure. I yeah, because it's actually better twerkers. Do you know how to twerk?

SPEAKER_02 2:07

Uh probably not. I yeah, so I'm not sure. Probably not. You haven't tried? Uh you know, a little here and there, you know. I just like move my body, and if the butt moves, you know, it moves.

SPEAKER_03 2:15

You know what's surprising? I learned I had a friend try to teach me how to twerk. It's more like abs. It's like lower abs.

SPEAKER_02 2:22

Oh, dang.

SPEAKER_03 2:22

So it's not just your butt. So if you're just moving your butt, I it's that that looks like something else.

SPEAKER_02 2:27

So we're that's so we were saying I've already started on like the wrong foot. I think so.

SPEAKER_03 2:32

I think you've proven my case that you don't know how to did you go to medical school, sir. Where's your credentials?

SPEAKER_02 2:38

That's fair. I mean, they don't really have like the twerking class in medical school. Uh, you know, I should have, if they did, I would have taken it.

SPEAKER_03 2:44

What it was it like though, you know, isn't it like the hip bone is connected to the like that type of shit? Like, wouldn't they have taught you that? Like, I feel like that's how you would know how to twerk. It's like this muscle is connected to that muscle. Right. So you move this, it's like a pulley system.

SPEAKER_02 2:58

That's fair. That's fair. Uh we should have thought about that. Uh, you know, for people who are thinking about medical education in the future, you gotta have a twerking class. Like break it down. Oh, yeah. And break down what could happen if it goes wrong.

SPEAKER_03 3:09

Let me let me teach, let me teach doctors. They have like what who they have like classes that break down. There was like, I think a class that did like Missy Elliott lyrics, or was it like little Kim lyrics? I forgot. Like, they have classes that break down hip hop. And I feel like in medical, you should have a class where you learn how to. I feel like if they made these classes more fun, yeah, and like, yeah, we'll teach you how the body moves through dance.

SPEAKER_02 3:35

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 3:36

We would have more doctors instead of influencers.

SPEAKER_02 3:39

That is true. That is true. Oh uh uh, but unfortunately now we have mainly influencers telling people how to live their life. So it is what it is.

SPEAKER_03 3:46

Yeah, and then sometimes they get into the medical field and then leave.

SPEAKER_02 3:50

So we're kind of fucked as a society. Or they're kicked out.

SPEAKER_03 3:53

Or they're oh yeah, that's true.

Nurses Filming Patients Crosses A Line

SPEAKER_02 3:55

Which is a nice transition into what we're gonna kind of start talking about this episode. We both seen the video. Yes. Uh the video I'm referring to is the nurses at the Santa Barbara Clinic who were showing uh the bodily fluid that women at the OBGYN clinic uh left. And then I think they started dancing and kind of making fun of the quote unquote gifts that their patients left them.

SPEAKER_03 4:19

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 4:20

Yeah. Just right off the bat, uh, Diana, how do you feel about that?

SPEAKER_03 4:24

Um, I thought it was really funny that you also asked me before we started that if I seen the movie or the movie I mean, it could be the cinematic. Um if I've seen the the the video and I was like, yeah, of course, I'm a woman. Like people forget just they see lesbian first and forget that means woman who loves women. Um it was it was honestly like very appalling. Yeah. And I feel like there is a line, and the reason that it's because it's like something, it gives they're implying that there is something shameful to what happens naturally in a situation that's very vulnerable. Um, and we also don't really treat women very well in healthcare in general. So that was like that was just so crazy to me. Someone thought that was a good idea because there should be a level of empathy.

SPEAKER_02 5:18

I agree. I it you know, it's crazy because I think there are many, like there are multiple nurses and I think other uh staff who were part of this phase year video. And uh it's crazy, but I'm sure when they're all doing or think about doing it, they're like, Oh, this is a great idea. Like, no one was like, guys, this is maybe not great.

SPEAKER_03 5:38

Yeah, there were it was just really a lack of humanity and it like it was it was kind of crazy because it's like I don't understand how they would if someone did that to them, they would think that's funny, or like it really felt like a violation. Like, why is there any camera in a room with technically if a patient if a patient left something there, the patient's still there, in my opinion. So I think that's kind of crazy what they thought bringing a camera in, period, to a situation like that was appropriate.

SPEAKER_02 6:09

No, no show. And I think like we're both on the same page with this. That was way like it crossed the line. Like the line is here, and they were like here, right? Yeah, right. But it for me, my question though, is that obviously now there's a lot of uh influencers who have a medical background background, whether nurses or techs or even doctors, right? And they will sometimes joke around about different things, and obviously this crosses the limit, but what is the limit? Like, is there a limit to a certain extent? And I don't know how people like fully navigate that. How would you approach it? That and I know you're not in medicine, but how would you, as someone who gets healthcare, gets healthcare, also being a comic, for me?

SPEAKER_03 6:54

The it's all about intent. Yeah, I think that's the determining factor, and we can as an audience we should be able to see intent. But I feel like sometimes when the medical stuff, a lot of times it's um what what is the point of telling the story? Is it to embarrass the patient? Then you it's too far. Um, is it to be like this is how hard it is for these um this field or these workers? Let's show more compassion. That's different, right? Or is it, hey, this happened to somebody, maybe this is something other people can feel relate, like relate to and then not feel as embarrassed. Okay. I feel like a lot of times as comics, what we do is like we share our the deepest and sometimes darkest and most fucked up part of ourselves because we want to not feel alone. We know we're not alone in these experiences and these thoughts. So I think that's why intent is so important to me. I think like what the um the that medical office did was the intent was clearly to make fun of. Yeah. Um, I think when people, I've heard like nurse comedy. The thing is, let's be real, nurse comedy is not for me. Okay. Too many big words. There's too many big words. I've seen a lot of nurse comedy, not for me. I I get why people enjoy it. It's just like one of those things, it's just it's it's not my thing. I um I talk about golf. Uh my fiance does not for her. You know what I mean? Like there's just certain things. Um, and I feel like I get where they're coming from. A lot of the times I do see them coming from the place of like, hey, our our job is hard. We don't get enough credit, especially because doctors do get all the credit. That's fair. So um I don't, yeah, I don't think there's a limitation because like it we are all human and we're supposed to have human connection. I think that's the problem with a lot of things, is like there was a lack of human connection there. Yeah, um, I do agree with that. And so yeah, I I think that it's like as long as you have good intent um to bring people together, um, that that really negates any anything. Of course, like don't name drop, right? Don't be dropping like addresses or anything like that. They live here, yeah. They live here. This is their full government name, um, and then telling something and then telling their whole personal story. So um, yeah, I think that's kind of it. Because yeah, you you do both worlds, so it's like that's your life. You want to talk about it, right?

SPEAKER_02 9:19

Definitely, definitely. And you know, I think what you said that I think is really interesting is the idea of intent behind it. Because, you know, other things that I was thinking about is uh because people in healthcare, doctors, nurses, techs, like so on and so forth, they don't uh they face a lot of different difficult things. Um, they face uh abuse in some ways. Yeah. Uh they also just have patients who are funny and do like silly things. But I do think how you phrase it, the intent behind it is great because you can have a patient who's like being ridiculous, right? And if the intent is to make fun of the situation about that, no harm, no foul. But if the intent is to make fun of and you know, call out this patient by government name, right? It's a little too far. But I also think one of the things you also mentioned is because this job can be very difficult, sometimes being able to make fun of the abuse you receive can be stress-relieving. Um thousand percent. Yeah. And I don't uh I'm not sure if we talked about this as much. Part of the reason why I got into comedy when I took that year off from med school is because I'm like, ugh, I didn't break from this shit. So like I went and like being able to kind of talk about other things on stage was great. Um, and it's kind of a release. I didn't at the time always talk about medicine, but being able to have that opportunity to do that is actually kind of very stress-relieving.

SPEAKER_03 10:35

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 10:36

But I do also think there has to be limitations in terms of what people can what people do talk about. And no one's gonna police this, and you don't want to find out the bad way, like these people do that that's still limit. But also, like it for me, it just kind of baffles me that nobody said this is too far.

SPEAKER_03 10:54

Well, that's the thing that's crazy. I think the thing is like uh things don't live in a vacuum, right? So when that that video came out, I think a lot of what we thought was like what are they saying behind the scenes? That's the thing. It's like with stand-up too, it's like um, I think stand-up is a little different in terms of that, like you are showing them behind the scenes. You are, yeah. Versus when you post things on social media, there's so many steps to get that approved to be there. So when you're doing that and you miss the mark, um, it's it's less forgivable because there's like there's so many people that should have stepped in that was like, that's wrong. But in stand-up, we are trying a lot of comics. Um, their whole thing is to be like, hey, behind the curtain of who I am as a person. So the the it's opposite. So I think that's why you can get away with stuff more in stand up, and also there's the human connection, you can see someone's intent. Um, but in terms of like, yeah, just making a sketch, or when you do a sketch, it's like someone came up with the concept, then there was the recording, then there was the editing, and then there was the copy, and then there was the final post. So there was a whole at least bare minimum five steps of like someone should have been like, that's wrong. A lot of times with stand-up, it's like you get so nervous too that there's no, there's literally no filter. Like there are a lot of fucked up things come out because you're just like, you know, it's kind of hard to describe, but like the number one fear is stand-up over death. So or like public speaking, right, right, is the number one fear. So I think that kind of yeah, I think that says a lot about the difference of like head space. No, that makes sense and why intent is so clear on both like on either side of that.

SPEAKER_02 12:41

Yeah, and I can imagine for them they didn't go through all those steps of just like let's do this.

SPEAKER_03 12:46

Yeah, but and none of that's it's just someone whoever thought of that was crazy that they thought they should show that. But like I said, I guess it could be also different too if they reframed it and was like, hey, I don't agree with this, right? I'm not saying this was gonna be a good idea, but I think it'd be more forgivable if they're like, hey, like this is what happens in an appointment. If it was an educational thing, don't be embarrassed. Like when it comes to childbirth, like we don't know. I never saw the video. Yeah, but like everyone told me, like, oh yeah, it's normal to shit when you're giving birth. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 13:22

You didn't saw the video of childbirth.

SPEAKER_03 13:24

No, I never saw the video of childbirth. Okay, gosh, gosh. And so, like, it's like, yeah, people tell you, like, oh, what and so it's like that type of thing. It's like, oh, so now women are like, when they give birth, they're like, oh, don't be embarrassed. Like we a lot of people that I hear that go into it, they're like, oh, I'm embarrassed of this and this. Yeah. And then they tell stories of how the nurse is like, no, like this is normal. Like, that's what we look for. That makes sense, you know, because we know you've guys seen it all. Of course. So we want to not feel embarrassed of our bodies that we have no control over, especially. So I think if it was framed in an educational sense of like, hey, like this is normal, and like, I don't know how the how they would have done it. I I'm not, I'm not, I'm not here to produce this video again, you know. But I do think that's where I'm like, it's clear the intent wasn't there to educate. And I think that could have been an opportunity.

SPEAKER_02 14:13

Yeah, no, I agree.

Would You Trust A Viral Doctor

SPEAKER_02 14:14

Um, slightly shifting what we're talking about, uh, just a little bit slightly, there are a lot of, like I said, uh, people in medicine who also are influencers now. But how would you like how would you feel if you had a let's say a provider of yours who had uh a pretty big social media like presence? Like, for example, if you had an ENT doc who had an OnlyFans who's like, I'm an ENT, you want to see what that ear, note, and throat do like you know, yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 14:44

It's just like honestly, uh missed opportunity if there's not an ENT that is out there with that tagline. Right.

SPEAKER_02 14:51

If you use that, uh uh you gotta give me credit.

SPEAKER_03 14:53

Uh um, I think OnlyFans is a different social media, but I'm also in the belief of uh sex work is work. Like it's like it you can't be ashamed of something when it's such a billion-dollar industry. Right, right. I think that's very hypocritical. Um, I I wouldn't, I I don't think I I think it kind of goes in line. I think more doctors, I think all doctors and nurses should have OnlyFans. Okay. You guys see all our bodies. That's fair. You should put yours out there. It's only fair, it only makes sense. Like, why are we the only ones out here getting naked for you?

unknown 15:31

Right.

SPEAKER_03 15:32

And we're paying you. That's insane. Right. That is insane.

SPEAKER_01 15:36

Like an egregious amount of things.

SPEAKER_03 15:37

Yeah, it's just ridiculous. And then you all you guys do is tell us what's wrong with our bodies. There's no compliments. Right, right.

SPEAKER_02 15:45

But maybe if we download back from like an OnlyFans, let's say we had like a provider who had a pretty strong social media presence, right? They're posting all the time about like maybe some medicine thing, but like their life, would you see them separately than someone else who also very capable, maybe they had the same reviews online? Would that change your opinion?

SPEAKER_03 16:02

It depends what their content is. I think if it's like educational, they're like they're trying to do good. Um, and I feel like that is uh I don't know. The only reason I'm kind of against it is because I know how much time it takes.

SPEAKER_02 16:19

Yeah, it does take quite a bit of time.

SPEAKER_03 16:21

And uh, why aren't you studying? You know what I mean? Like keep up to date in your field. You don't need to know the latest Adobe premiere features.

SPEAKER_02 16:31

I'm very immigrant parent right now. I would say Asian parent because like all immigrant parents are like why aren't you studying?

SPEAKER_03 16:37

Yeah, I want you to be up to date. Like if you were in this field, I want you to know what's up. I don't want you out here like getting like 10 to 9 as fucking typing away, you know what I mean?

SPEAKER_02 16:47

Well, uh now I know, Diana, that you are very immigrant parent when you think about your doctors.

SPEAKER_03 16:53

Well, yeah, because it's my life. I want you on top of your shit. Like, I feel like if you're gonna spend all your time like editing and like making, you know, posts and all, because I know how much time that is. I'm practically killing myself and I don't have anyone's life in my hands. That's crazy. So I think I think I would like someone if they were to do social media, um, I think uh they should be rich enough to afford someone who can edit. Yes, rich enough, but also like even recording all it's like what's the point of it? Like, do you are you not get because after a certain point it's ego-driven, and it's like I don't want you to have that much of an ego when it comes to my healthcare, because you might be wrong. You should you want to listen to people. So I think depending on the social media, um I feel like I would lean towards no on having someone with the following. Okay. Uh, just because of, you know, I don't I I do worry about ego. I do worry about them as a person because it's like, why do you need that much validation? I know as a comic I'm mentally unwell. I know that. I don't need to know that about my doctor.

SPEAKER_02 18:01

That's fair. Would you be upset if your doctor was funnier than you?

SPEAKER_01 18:12

I think the pause is everything. That never I love the pause. It was like a pregnant pause.

SPEAKER_03 18:20

I'm like upset you suggested that. Um I I do think there's a line.

SPEAKER_01 18:30

I feel like a toxic man.

SPEAKER_03 18:31

I'm just like, it can't be funnier if it's a woman, especially cannot be funnier than me. Could be could be. I want them to have a sense of humor, but not funnier than me. I think that's like where it is. But also I do think um, I mean, like, Kayla is funnier. My fiance is funnier than me. Like, I do think I like people in my life to be funnier than me as long as they don't want to pursue stand-up, as long as you don't become competition. The line is clear. I mean, I I the rule, yeah, uh the rules might not make sense, but the line is very distinct. Uh, and don't cross it. But yeah, I would like I like to banter. And I do feel like sometimes um doctors and nurses, like the people that work in medical fields, are some of the funniest people because you do, like you were mentioning, you have to find any type of stress relief, and humor is the best one, and they have like the darkest sense, and I have a dark sense of humor. So um, I do, I I do think that already by just existing typically, especially the ones that don't realize that they're being funny, like older Filipino women. Ah, shut up. I had one I told her I was gay, and she was like, I don't know how you do it with the AIDS and everything. Whoa. What the fuck? That is the AIDS, and I was like, yo, I you're like, you you were that's crazy. I was like, that's why you're a nurse. Um didn't make it to the doctor because what do you mean? Like the lesbians are worried about the AIDS, but not but like I said, one of the funniest people I've ever like, I I don't think I personally can say anything funnier than that to someone else's face. So um I do I do actually think people in the medical field more more than likely are actually funnier than me. So I'm I'm fine with it. It's nice, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 20:23

That's fair, that's fair. You know what I was thinking about though? Um, like we were talking about the uh the medical staff who got fired from the Santa Barbara office, and yes, they definitely crossed the line. Um, but uh as we also talked about, uh, people in medicine deal with a lot and face a lot, and sometimes they maybe cross a little bit of a line, but like what is the threshold? And

Drunk Resident Video And Losing A Career

SPEAKER_02 20:43

in that kind of vein, uh I wanted you to watch this video about this um blow-up. I wanted to see what um this is a uh I'll just give you the context. It's like a uh a medical resident who's a neurologist like years ago, uh maybe like five to eight years ago, who was having a really bad week, and I think he was having a really bad day, and got into this scenario with this Uber driver where she was drunk. Um and I'll let you watch and we'll you know, we'll we'll post it real time to see it.

SPEAKER_00 21:13

Oh the Uber driver asking people nearby to call police. He was reportedly there to pick up somebody else. What witnesses say Ramkison demanded he take her instead. She needs him, he pushes her away, but she keeps coming back, eventually getting in his car. It would only get worse. She starts throwing things at him, and then she starts throwing more stuff out of the car. Say, but when we knocked on her door, that's well that's a good thing.

SPEAKER_03 22:04

Oh no, she doesn't want to say, Oh, I'm I'm here for the tea.

SPEAKER_02 22:07

That was the interesting part to me.

SPEAKER_03 22:09

What's the neighbor got to say?

SPEAKER_02 22:11

Everyone's got an opinion, right?

SPEAKER_03 22:13

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 22:13

So the context behind that, so she's a fourth-year medical resident. The reason why I specifically say that's because that's your last year of residency. Yeah. Um, I don't know the full context, but apparently she's been she was having like a pretty bad week uh things in her personal life, which we all do, right? She went out, um, she got clearly drunk, um, and she was doing all of that. She got let go from her residency. Um, she worked all that time, and I don't know what's happened to her now, but she got let go of her residency. Um I'm curious um with this, see the video now, um, you know, a bit of the context. Uh do you think that uh what has been done, which is not great, yeah, deserves to essentially lose her job. She wasn't working in the hospital, it just did a shitty thing in a certain context. Um, I don't know. What do you think about that? What do you feel about that? What do you feel about the full situation?

SPEAKER_03 23:09

I I feel really um, I don't know. I think uh I'm a she looked young.

SPEAKER_05 23:15

Yep.

SPEAKER_03 23:15

And I think that's kind of important. I think we say that 18 means you're an adult, but like honestly, I didn't stop being stupid until like maybe 29. Everything before 29, I was stupid. I've been way more drunk than that. Way more drunk. I mean, we can argue that, oh, I decided to be a comic, and before that I was a professional athlete. So my fields um allow me to be that belligerent, right? And um, that is personally why I picked the fields that I picked. Um, but I feel like um if it's a it's it's hard. I think something like that, where um they're clearly that belligerent, I think um she probably should have just, if it's the first time, yeah, uh just a slap on the wrist and maybe some she needs help. Yeah. I think something like that when she, if you're turning to alcohol to cope, which honestly our culture promotes, and we get mad at people for doing that, um, I think it'd be, I think it's responsible that she wasn't trying to drive. Yeah. I think if she was trying to drive, then that's when, yeah, you're not, you lose your life, like you'd lose that, right? Um, also the other thing is like it's sad too, because it's like she didn't have friends to be like I would pull her away. Yeah, I would literally be dead if I didn't have friends. Agree. Um, because I was so stupid. So I I don't, I I don't I think that's a little excessive. I don't think what she did was outside of what normal drunk people do. Yeah, I think that's kind of the thing. It's like, um, should she have been held to a higher standard if she was if she were older? I it doesn't matter. Like it's when you were telling me the story of the craziest shift that you had, it's like crazy that we expect 20-year-olds to be able to hold that emotional and physical um uh that weight and then just live lives like a normal human being. So I I do think like even I don't think we necessarily need to have a higher expectation. I think in terms of like behavior, um, I do think there should be a higher level expectation in terms of empathy and just being a human person. Yeah. And I think um when you're that drunk and you're having a hard day and you're you're in your 20s, yeah. Um, yeah, if she was 40, let her go. That was that's you need to learn how to hold your liquor. You gotta go. Yeah. But like 20 something, you know. She's most like in her 20s. Yeah, let her, let her make mistakes. Let her like she clearly was having a bad day, and she's clearly alone if like she didn't have a community around her. And so that's that's us as people failing to not um be around to take care of other people. Um yeah, I I thought I don't think it's necessary for her to have like lost her whole career. I do think, yeah, there should have been consequences.

SPEAKER_05 26:11

Yes, definitely.

SPEAKER_03 26:12

Um, but if she meant it, this could have been a learning lesson of she's like, damn, like I need to work on myself. That makes sense, maybe have more compassion to like drunk patients or whatever. She could she could have turned this could have been a teaching lesson and she could have been great in what she did.

SPEAKER_02 26:28

No, definitely. Um, I you know, I one of the things that you said, which I I literally not thought about before, is that why is it that she was by herself and where were her friends that were the people who um would just pull her away, being like, this is not a good look. Yeah, you know, we will pull you back, right? There's no one else, and there's others Randos filming in there. Um, I um I I uh I've talked about this with a couple different people is in this particular case. And for me, I didn't think she should have lost her residency. Yeah, like for me, she had regardless of what it's like, I probably am biased because I am in medicine, but she worked so hard to get to that point in the last year. And the thing about people in medicine is that you still live life, you still go through shit that's tough, right? And she wasn't at work, like she was something doing something outside, and you said very well, she wasn't driving, she was actually trying to do the responsible thing, calling an Uber to go home. She was drunk and not aware of what's going on, and maybe she was not as nice in because you sometimes being drunk accentuates certain things, right? Not ideal that she did that, but to whole lose everything, I I didn't agree with that. And I do think there should have not been as harsh of circumstances. But then again, I don't know, we live in an era where people love to cancel people, they love to cancel people, right?

SPEAKER_03 27:46

Yeah, and they they I think there is like a a level of like um, yeah, they want to cancel her. They want to be like, oh, you whatever. I don't know what the lesson was. I think that's the thing that kind of made me be like, oh, I don't think the punishment fit the crime. It's like what was the lesson for her. Right. I mean, people are out here like legit committing murders, legit straight out being racist, right? And they they don't get quote unquote canceled. I don't know what was like what happened with her. That also makes me think it wasn't um maybe just this incident.

SPEAKER_02 28:19

Yeah, that's fair.

SPEAKER_03 28:20

I think that could be, we don't know the other side of it. Um, so it I do think there's like there could be more to it. There could not be. Um, but like I don't know. I also think like, yeah, I've accidentally drank too much, but then I'm like, oh, I didn't, I didn't eat. Like she is tiny, she looked tiny. Like she could have just made a stupid mistake and just had like she even said I'm five, five foot girl. Yeah, five foot girl, and I'm belligerent. Like she doesn't um and then like you you make people you give cre people careers like Snooky, I remember Yeah, Jersey Shore, all of that. We give them careers for being belligerently drunk. Um and maybe it's like the higher expectations, right?

SPEAKER_02 29:00

Once again, like people who are in healthcare have higher expectations of their perhaps how they carry themselves in some ways. And I I don't know, it it makes me think about yes, you don't want, as you said, like, well, you don't want, let's say, your doctor only caring about social media and all these other things, right? And the same, like in the same vein, like you it would be a bad look if your doctor was doing like all this crazy shit all the time, or like in general, you don't want that. However, uh your doctor is still a human and has the same insecurities, same like faults as all we all do, right? So uh is this a high standard that we give to like doctors in that same way fair? I will say, maybe for me, as I think about how that as I said it, I think we're still in an era where it doesn't really matter like probably what field she was in, they would still have come after her and try to get her fired. I think so. Maybe it's not even like a doctor saying it's just like maybe it's the standard.

SPEAKER_03 30:03

I think, I think uh it could be. I mean, it is a little weird to see her have that kind of consequence when she didn't really say anything racist. I mean, she just tried to kick a guy in his balls, which honestly, self-defense for woman 101, that's that's what we're trained to do. A man had her hands on her and she was like, of course I'm gonna kick you in the balls. Let the woman kick him in the balls. Uh, I think so. I I feel like um the higher standard thing is I think it it kind of goes, um, how do I put this? It I think it kind of goes both ways. The reason doctors are held to a higher standard is because you guys um hold yourselves to a higher standard. That's fair, you know, and also um we expect you guys to be more, is it fair? No, but you guys picked that career, right? And you are capable of it.

SPEAKER_02 30:57

I mean, if you're an immigrant kid, sometimes you're like, I didn't have a choice.

SPEAKER_03 30:59

You did, but you stayed with it.

SPEAKER_02 31:01

And you probably chose. I chose it.

SPEAKER_03 31:02

But you're good enough to pass the test, right? That's that's the key thing. Regardless if you wanted to, you're good enough, and that's why you're you're there. Um I also think the reason why we uh there's just like a I think it's kind of the same thing with cops, is like we see so much of the bad stories. Yeah, we see the stories of the doctors ignoring patients and all of that. So when we have an opportunity to, I think as like a pack mentality, an opportunity to be like, oh look, you fucked up. Yeah, we're we're gonna pounce on that because you guys keep telling us that we're crazy and we're not um valued enough as human beings.

SPEAKER_04 31:39

That's fair.

SPEAKER_03 31:39

And uh I think that's where it comes down to. It's a very defense mechanism on both sides. Um, and so I think uh, yeah, I don't think it's fair, but it also I don't think it's fair that healthcare is such trash. I don't think it's fair that we have doctors who are racist and who are sexist, and so it's like for us, I think this is our way of feeling like justified and like in a community sense of being like, see, you guys need to fix yourselves. That makes sense. That makes sense. If is it is are the right are people catching strays? Of course. I feel like in this situation, she may be catch a stray, but of course, it it does sound like there was something on the back end, right? Because if she was incredible at her job, or maybe if she was a white man, I don't know the rules, right?

SPEAKER_02 32:24

She's a brown woman, though.

SPEAKER_03 32:25

She's a brown woman. I feel like could that have been it? Um, so there's so many factors, but I I do think, yeah, you there is a reason why you're held to a higher standard, is because um our lives are in your hands, yeah, literally. And uh to hear so many stories of people being like, oh, they just ignored this time. I've been trying to go get hope and be ignored. Um yeah, I think there's just a lot of distrust on both sides, which is why things get exasperated, and that's where the cancel country culture comes from.

SPEAKER_02 32:55

No, that makes sense. Uh you uh you brought up a point that I'm probably gonna get uh uh uh called off for this, but you know, people uh with people's lives in their hands. Uh what if they were um a dermatologist?

SPEAKER_03 33:08

That's the same. Didn't haven't you heard of skin cancer, bro? What do you mean? You're trying to feel like this field isn't as important? We heard that here first. AK says dermatologist ain't shit.

SPEAKER_01 33:19

No, no, no, no, it's not what I'm saying. He said you're the you were the Navy of doctors. I'm an emergency medicine doctor, right?

SPEAKER_02 33:27

Like for me, it's like like life or death, like same day. Skin cancer can be life or death, but oftentimes it's me seeing it and be like, you should go get that checked out. No, it's not a good thing.

SPEAKER_01 33:38

I'm just saying, I'm trying, I'm I'm trying to make it a little spicy because you're like, okay, like, you know, like life or death.

SPEAKER_03 33:48

If it was a dentist, I'm dead. I'm just saying different field that no one cares about. I mean, is it different but doctors?

SPEAKER_01 33:55

Is it different, right? Is it it like if it was a let's say a trauma surgeon dermatologists again? I'm just saying. So you I have friends for dermatologists.

SPEAKER_03 34:10

Dermatologists are like the bad kids or something. Let's that they can be fuck-ups.

SPEAKER_02 34:14

Dermatologists cannot come after me. They know they they can't do emergency. Oh my god. So I'm just saying.

SPEAKER_01 34:19

I will take this heat, but I'm just saying not realizing. This doesn't change anything. I know it doesn't mean that.

SPEAKER_03 34:25

This is so funny. I didn't every every field has a hierarchy. Every field talk shit. This is so funny. Yes. Uh I feel like as a trauma surgeon, I'm gonna go back into yeah, you if you're if you're you have to depend on reflexes and stuff, yeah. You probably shouldn't drink, period. I think you should give that up because it if it fucks with your reflexes and stuff. Yeah. Um, I don't know. I think like, yeah, with when I was playing golf, one of the reasons I quit too was because I couldn't smoke weed. Because it was considered a performance-enhancing drug.

SPEAKER_02 34:59

Okay, I I kind of want to piggyback

Weed Bans And Who Gets Punished

SPEAKER_02 35:01

on that. This is uh going like different, but uh uh slightly different, but I actually want to talk about that because um the fact that like weed is performance enhancing is baffling to me. Um, so I I say that because I remember do you remember Shikari Richardson? Yeah. Yeah. Like from the I forgot it was the Tokyo. I think it may have been Tokyo. I think it was a Tokyo. Yeah, she I think had a death in her family. It was her mom. There we go. There we go. It was her mom. So it's like huge. And she smoked marijuana. And that idea that marijuana is a performance-enhancing drug is baffling to me, right? And obviously, there is a complex history of even the classification of like marijuana in this country where it's in the same classification as like heroin and other things, is insane. But the idea that she was taken out of the Olympics for that is insane to me. And yes, for some people, it can calm them, but it is not something that gives them, I personally think, from a physiological perspective, enhanced ability to run faster.

SPEAKER_01 35:57

No, especially if you smoke it. Right, right.

SPEAKER_02 36:00

So the fact that it's a performance-enhancing it's sure, but I don't do you I I don't know if within like the Gulf Federation they have reasonings for that, but I don't think I think it's racism. Yeah, I think it is.

SPEAKER_03 36:14

I think it's definitely just down to racism because it's like when you do like uh the expensive version of like beta blockers or whatever, like anti-depression, whatever. They pick so many different ones, like all the blood transfusions Tiger does and all that shit. Like the because all ultimately it's it's um anything that decreases the whatever the stress trigger, whatever that hormone is. Um, but there's so many other ways to do it. So like the rich prescription way is fine, but then the plant way isn't that that to me is like that's some systemastic shit. Yeah, that's not so. I don't think it's performance enhancing. Um even with comedy, like I don't even get that high before I I have like a two-hour window before my set uh dog won't smoke. Um I yeah, I don't think uh I don't know, even if that was the case, like you can smoke cigarettes. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 37:07

That probably more detrimental to me.

SPEAKER_03 37:09

Yeah, and that's also the same stress relief. Yeah, interesting. So, how is that not performance enhancing? That's the yeah, that's so I I personally think it's there's something else behind that.

SPEAKER_02 37:19

I remember toiling over that for such a long time because I'm like, this is not this makes no sense to me, right? But sometimes things don't make sense, sometimes things are unfair.

SPEAKER_03 37:27

No, it's a government conspiracy. It's because uh weed was gonna take out big pharma, watching watch your podcast get canceled on YouTube.

SPEAKER_02 37:35

It's like we can't we are citing this for misinformation, yeah. Um, but yeah, I mean I think maybe ultimately um that may be an interesting kind of conclusion to a lot of these things that we've talked about today, how things may not necessarily always be fair in certain ways, right? Like uh ultimately, like whether um in some instances with the video we watch with the women getting canceled or rather uh fired for maybe having a bad day. Not ideal, not fair, but the world is not necessarily a fair place in many ways, right?

SPEAKER_03 38:12

I mean, she uh the it could have been a lot of different things. Like people say people have a bad day, right? And then they accidentally kill somebody, you know, and they're just like one bad day. It's all relative. There is a scale, so I think we should just like kind of put that into perspective a little bit. She tried to take an Uber, she didn't try to drive, um she didn't intend to try to keep the guy in the balls, yeah. That's and we are that's the thing that's so crazy to me is that like we keep canceling people for being people, but then we keep promoting a culture. Like, if we could promote weed, if she was lit out of her mind, she'd just be taking a nap. Yeah, she wouldn't be kicking people in the balls, throwing paper, she wouldn't be doing any of that. But we as a culture, there's so much money. Another thing that this podcast is probably gonna get suppressed for is there's so much money because there's the whole conspiracy of like why the whole Diddy thing came out, yeah, is because he like pissed off a tequila company.

SPEAKER_02 39:08

There you go.

SPEAKER_03 39:08

And then they're like, oh, well, we'll show you. So that's why it was like it was kind of just like a warning shot. It wasn't like an Epstein blow up where it's like he ended up in a sew, you know? So I think there's like that whole thing, like we are responsible as a people to kind of take a look at like, okay, why do why is cancel culture a thing right now?

Cancel Culture Versus Community Care

SPEAKER_03 39:31

Why do we want that so badly? Um, but also like why are people not well?

SPEAKER_02 39:36

Yeah, that's true.

SPEAKER_03 39:38

I I that's that's up to us as individuals. There's not a sense of community. Yeah, um, I think it's it it's basically everything. Like, yeah, to me, just seeing I've even when my friends are we're mad at each other. If we go out to drink, we all do a roll call, we all make sure, like I legit, like so many times, like I'm pretty sure I got a concussion because I just I was like sitting down and my friends turn over. Next thing they know, I hit my head on the concrete, but they like sat with me on the sidewalk, and then we've been out to pride where we would have to like we found this one girl just like throwing up by herself, and her friends just left her. So it's like we are responsible for this as people and as like friends and family. So um I I do think there is like a life, it's not fair, yeah, but it's not fair because we did that.

SPEAKER_02 40:29

That's fair, that's fair. No, I I think um uh I think another way I'm thinking about this in terms of what you just said is uh perhaps the the best way for us to kind of not say police ourselves, but help us prevent each other from getting to this point where either we're super sick from like the being drunk or we're making videos that we shouldn't be making about an OBJ and clinic is engaging with our community and figuring out like how to like better do things or perhaps prevent ourselves from doing worse things overall.

SPEAKER_03 40:59

And like be don't be afraid of confrontation. Yeah. If one of her friends saw that she was struggling and was like, yo, let me let's figure this out. And I've like called friends out, I'm like, hey, you've I think you're depressed. And that friend never stopped talking to me for like three or four months because they were weren't happy with what I said to them. And then they called me and we talked about it, and they're like, you were you were right. Yeah, and I think it's because even though they were mad at me, it's because I said it, they thought about it. And I think that that is important is like you can't be afraid of like consequences if you have good intentions. That's fair. And people are not afraid of consequences when they do bad things, so it is kind of confusing in that sense, but like yeah, stand up for people too. Yeah, I think it's like we can't be mad about the government and all this shit when it's like that. I guarantee, I mean, this is a little off track, but it's like with ice agents, they have family, they have friends. Those people should be the ones talking to them, right? We as like strangers, us yelling at them, that's not doing anything. But like, I've been in so many positions where like people aren't standing up for what is right in that situation, and it's a it's a micro reaction, it's a micro relationship. It was like small, very like a work situation, for example. You see someone get bullied or you see something not right that doesn't sit with you, instead of just going to that person and being like, I'm totally on your side, stand up for that person. No, that makes sense, and then don't just get on your keyboard or whatever and be like, oh, this is wrong, this is right, yeah. Um, when you're not doing that in person. Right. So I think that goes to everything. It's like, yeah, maybe people, I bet you there's someone in that video that's like really pissed because they're like, Oh, I I didn't feel good about it, but I didn't want to be excluded. Right. Don't be afraid of being excluded. Yeah, that makes sense. It's very temporary because long term it's all gonna work out. So I do feel like it's just like, yeah, more community and more just talking to each other. And then like, I think once doctors and like we bridge that gap of like, because there's the the gap is the insurance companies, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 43:05

Sure.

SPEAKER_03 43:05

So we take that as patients, we take that out on you guys, and then there's that bigger gap. So when we see these videos, we're just like, oh, you see, we're right, you're trash people, yeah. Just like with insurance companies, and that's not oh, when we talk to you in person, when I talk to you about it, it also breaks your heart how you can't help people. Like you just it is just like a a community thing, and like making taking the time to actually talk to people. Oh, that makes sense.

SPEAKER_02 43:30

That makes sense.

Final Take Twerk And Cry

SPEAKER_02 43:31

Um, I think that's like a beautiful note to kind of end on the idea that all of this and the way we kind of think about it and navigate it is kind of and should be through community and how we show up for one one another, or well, in some case, unfortunately, don't show up for one another. Um, but anyways, uh Diana, thank you for coming on the podcast today and talking about this random topic I told you about.

SPEAKER_03 43:50

Thank you so much for having me. And uh, I do think um uh out of all the things we talked about and uh uh saw, I I do think. um uh you should twerk every that out of all the bad things that people bad things people do yeah shaking your ass should not be on that list at all and if it brings you joy you should do it I want to go into a maybe not like walking into an ER waiting room and like seeing the ner the people behind the counter twerking but like on your free time if you just need to twerk and cry are you you guys should be twerking and crying in between shifts.

SPEAKER_02 44:26

I think that should be standard.

SPEAKER_03 44:27

Yeah moving forward I think that sounds very therapeutic actually all right guys it's been Pizza Punchlines we will see you next time bye