Joe Rogan Experience #2517 - Taylor Sheridan
In a Nutshell
Taylor Sheridan and Joe Rogan discuss how Sheridan’s deep knowledge of horses, ranching, and hyperfocus shape both his storytelling and views on self-reliance, while critiquing modern systems like education, nonprofits, and government that reward dependency over earned outcomes. They examine institutional failures including California’s homelessness spending and infrastructure waste, COVID-era policy contradictions, and widespread fraud in programs like Medicaid. The conversation also covers espionage tradecraft, prison reform, advanced military technology, and how direct experience with nature and hard work produces more reliable, capable people than centralized systems.
These notes were generated by AI and may contain inaccuracies.
Joe Rogan notices Taylor Sheridan's expensive belt buckle awarded for winning reserve at the Futurity with his horse Maverick Buzz the Tower. People familiar with horses immediately recognize the significance of these awards, similar to how fight fans recognize championship belts. Sheridan explains that depending on the year, he can identify the specific horse associated with a buckle.
Sheridan describes the depth of horse knowledge, noting genetic lines and inherited tendencies passed from stallions to offspring. He owns several horses by a stallion named Spook's Got a Whiz, which produces incredibly balanced, feely, quick-footed horses with big stops.
These horses have a notable quirk where they periodically lose their minds and decide it's unsafe, either running back to the barn or bucking off the rider. Sheridan compares this to a Corvette that decides to drive home on its own. The trait is passed to offspring. Despite this issue, the horses are otherwise automatic and worth keeping.
Sheridan explains that horses with white faces extending above the eyes are typically deaf due to a specific gene. Deaf horses rely on feeling vibrations rather than hearing. This can trigger spooking when they feel ground vibrations they interpret as something chasing them, which aligns with horses being prey animals.
Deafness can provide advantages in noisy environments like rodeos where crowds screaming won't distract the horse. However, Sheridan recounts an incident where his deaf horse spooked when spectators stomped and beat on the arena sides during an Italian rider's performance, interpreting the vibrations as a herd of elephants.
Sheridan references professional pool player Shane Van Boening, considered one of the greatest pool players ever. Van Boening is deaf and turns off his hearing aids during play to enter a hyper-focused zone of balls and geometry. He has won the US Open five times, matching only Earl Strickland in history. His ability to shut off auditory distractions enhances his concentration.
Sheridan and Rogan discuss how top performers in any field exhibit hyperfocus, often linked to ADHD or autism. Sheridan was prescribed ADHD medication as a child but stopped taking it. He observed a neighbor's child become emotionally flat after being medicated for hyperactivity. Sheridan views ADHD as a potential superpower when channeled toward something one loves.
Sheridan explains he can write scripts for 12 hours straight in busy airports because he hyperfocuses on work he loves. However, he cannot focus on uninteresting topics like the history of Pop-Tarts. He criticizes the modern education system for forcing energetic children to sit still and absorb boring material, originally designed by the Rockefellers to produce compliant workers and soldiers.
Sheridan notes that starting education early allows programming of children's minds with ideologies, whether religious, political, or social causes. He points out that child suicide bombers exist because young minds are more susceptible to manipulation than adults with families. He discusses how foreign funding from Qatar, Russia, and China supports NGOs and nonprofits designed to divide society from within, referencing Yuri Bezmenov's 1984 predictions about ideological subversion.
Sheridan explains the structural problem with nonprofits: if they successfully solve a problem like homelessness, they lose their funding source. Therefore, organizations have incentives to perpetuate problems rather than solve them. California spent $24 billion on homelessness with no accounting, and Governor Newsom vetoed an audit of the spending.
Sheridan criticizes California's high-speed rail project, which has only completed one mile despite costing $100 billion. He contrasts this with practical wildlife crossings over highways that are inexpensive and quick to build in other western states. He mentions a proposed Oregon ballot measure that would ban hunting, fishing, ranching, and agriculture under the guise of stopping animal cruelty.
Sheridan points out the impracticality of outlawing ranching, noting 91 million cattle in the United States. Without human management, these animals would wander highways, with bulls potentially killing people and reproducing unchecked. The proposed law would make Kentucky Fried Chicken and all meat consumption illegal.
The Oregon ballot measure was advanced by a single substitute teacher and vegan from Southern California who collected 135,000 signatures. Rogan and Sheridan discuss the lack of logical consideration behind such proposals and reference Kevin Costner's exchange with a vegan about how cute an animal must be before one cares about its life.
Sheridan notes that agricultural activities like plowing fields and building roads kill countless organisms. He highlights that billions of bees are imported from Brazil annually for almond and avocado pollination and subsequently die. Almonds require approximately 19 gallons of water per almond and 8,800 gallons per pound.
Sheridan explains that early humans observed which almond trees squirrels would eat, selecting non-poisonous varieties. His doctor warned him about high oxalates from regular almond consumption, noting almonds contain roughly 296 milligrams of oxalate per 100 grams. High oxalate foods like kale can contribute to kidney stones if consumed raw in large quantities, such as in green smoothies.
Sheridan discusses how his podcast conversations revealed that much conventional food advice is unreliable. The original food pyramid was influenced by companies like Kellogg's seeking to increase consumption of their products. He notes that industrialized meat production cannot be easily replicated by plant-based alternatives due to economic constraints.
Harris Ranch off I-5 in California represents the closest version of industrialized beef production in the form of a feed yard. Cattle are gathered and fed for 90 to 150 days before slaughter. This approach is inefficient compared to farming, which is a more efficient method of raising cattle. Cattle should only be grazed in areas unsuitable for farming, such as real rocky terrain with native grasses that cannot be tilled.
Cattle excel at converting protein from poor sources and metabolizing it. Grasses actually grow better when grazed, and without grazing, weeds would overtake the land. There is no way to industrialize or centralize grazing operations. The most centralized aspect of the beef industry occurs at the packing house level, where four major packing houses control over 90% of the industry.
COVID proved helpful for smaller farmers and ranchers by enabling them to get products directly to consumers. Small USDA facilities have begun appearing that process around 50 head of cattle rather than 800 per hour. These facilities allow consumers to buy beef directly from ranchers and control the source of their food.
Previously, consumers eating burgers were often consuming meat from Australian killer bulls or Brazilian sources rather than domestic beef. High-quality steaks at steakhouses typically come from Texas, Iowa, Nebraska, or Montana, where ranchers invest significant attention and time.
The Four Sixes Ranch spans 300,000 acres but operates with only 12 cowboys. The ranch is divided into camps, with South Camp responsible for 50,000 acres broken into pastures of 7,000 to 10,000 acres, including one pasture of 14,000 acres. Each cowboy handles responsibility for 35,000 to 50,000 acres.
Yellowstone attracted audiences to the romance of brutal hard work, dedication to a ranch, and the simplistic lifestyle. The show resonated because it portrayed uniquely American values of freedom and self-reliance. Cowboys at South Camp receive a house and string of horses, then work independently for a week or more without corporate meetings.
Towns are 90 miles away, requiring weekly supply runs. Not all cowboys follow this path. Many grew up on ranches, though almost every cowboy on the ranch holds a ranch management degree.
Recommended schools for ranch management include Texas Tech with its phenomenal program, TCU with a strong ranch management program, and Texas A&M. Colorado State excels as a veterinary school for large animal vets, along with Texas A&M and Texas Tech.
The core crew from Wind River continues working together across all projects including Yellowstone, Mayor of Kingstown, 1883, 1923, Lioness, and Land Man. Internal promotions have elevated PAs to first ADs and camera operators to directors. This continuity creates exceptional efficiency.
Traditional TV shows require 12 weeks of prep before filming, while this crew completes prep in four weeks. The approach eliminates unnecessary meetings about script tone and prop presentations. The same Bick lighter is used across all shows to eliminate decision-making overhead.
Land Man addresses serious topics while incorporating unexpected elements like taking elderly characters to strip clubs. Billy Bob Thornton was approached before any writing began. Sheridan described wanting to place the character from Bad Santa into West Texas running an oil company, which Thornton found appealing.
The show educates viewers about oil business operations. Petroleum dependence permeates every aspect of modern life with no viable alternative currently available. Climatologists and engineers identify cold fusion as the best potential replacement, though 30 to 40 years away. Small nuclear reactors the size of coffee pots have been proposed as alternatives.
Individual household nuclear reactors raise safety concerns given human error patterns, including putting metal in microwaves and leaving gas on. The United States maintains presence in Iran partly due to the Strait of Hormuz, through which approximately 40% of the world's oil supply passes. China represents another strategic consideration in the region.
Special Forces conducted an operation in Venezuela involving a high-rise assault against Cuban special forces, using a classified sonic weapon system called the discombobulator. The device disables both personnel and equipment, including Russian and Chinese-made rockets and radar systems. The weapon produces low frequencies causing nausea and incapacitation.
A video exists of Maduro stating "come and get me." The discombobulator represents technology that would have seemed fictional 20 years ago. Technology four generations beyond this is currently in development. Sheridan expresses skepticism about UAP disclosures, suggesting government special access programs involving novel propulsion systems account for many sightings.
Sheridan references Vlad the Impaler and his methods of impaling Ottoman Turks in geometric patterns. Human history demonstrates consistent brutality, though societies have become incrementally less violent over time. Alien civilizations might observe humanity through an adolescent evolutionary phase without intervening, similar to allowing children to learn through mistakes while preventing catastrophic outcomes like nuclear war.
Wealthy societies face debates between self-determination and equity, where equity means everyone receives identical outcomes and works for the collective rather than monetary reward. The collective model requires someone to assign roles, determining who performs undesirable tasks versus prestigious positions. Refusal leads to coercion through force, resulting in dictatorship regardless of initial intentions.
Marxism, Leninism, communism, socialism, fascism, and Nazism share fundamental similarities as variations of collective control. Ann Rand identified these as superficial differences masking the evil of the collective. Groups in power consistently seek to control populations and classify people into categories justifying differential treatment.
Society continues suffering from COVID not through the disease itself but through eroded faith in government, media, and pharmaceutical institutions. The manipulation of the crisis for political power proved effective, leading to continued application of similar tactics.
The military's hearts and minds strategy originated in post-WWII Japan, where the emperor's surrender enabled the approach to succeed. Subsequent applications in Vietnam and elsewhere failed because the foundational premise was flawed. The precedent of defying federal law based on presidential approval creates dangerous erosion of rule of law that applies regardless of which party holds power.
ICE raids involving masked militarized police without identification raise concerns about precedents that could be repurposed by opposing administrations for different purposes. American citizens have been mistakenly detained during these operations. Similar concerns apply to potential future vaccine mandates enforced through arrest, following patterns established during COVID restrictions observed in Minnesota.
The conversation addresses immigration enforcement methods and the precedent being set by current deportation strategies. The approach of using armed enforcement to remove immigrants quickly is acknowledged as effective for rapid removal, but concerns are raised about establishing dangerous legal precedents. The same immigration laws were in place during the Obama and Clinton administrations. The methodology of enforcement raises questions about slippery slopes where tactics used for one purpose could be applied in other contexts later.
Politicians are criticized for focusing only on the next election cycle rather than long-term governance. The lack of internet and social media in earlier eras allowed better concealment of self-serving behavior. Current efforts to eliminate the electoral college, remove the filibuster, and pack courts are viewed as attempts to restructure government for temporary partisan advantage. These structural changes will inevitably be used against the party implementing them once power shifts.
Term limits are proposed as critical legislation, with a maximum of 12 years in Congress and two six-year terms in the Senate considered sufficient time for service.
Nancy Pelosi's reported net worth of $400 million as a public servant is highlighted as evidence of systemic corruption. The mechanism involves politicians receiving early access to IPOs and legislation that benefits specific companies like Visa before public offerings. When confronted by reporters about these stock holdings, denials are issued despite public records showing the transactions. Congressional members earning $175,000 annually becoming multi-millionaires is presented as a widespread pattern across both parties.
Forming informed political opinions is difficult due to the volume of conflicting information across social media platforms. Mainstream news outlets are dismissed as unreliable sources that have abandoned impartiality. A childhood memory of Jack Kemp being introduced during a presidential debate as a "backup quarterback and born again Christian" while other candidates received professional credentials and accomplishments is cited as an early example of media bias influencing public perception.
The 24-hour news cycle is identified as fundamentally damaging to journalism because networks must fill airtime even when no significant news exists. During non-crisis periods, this leads to manufactured stories and opinion-driven content designed to provoke anger and fear to maintain viewership. Corporate sponsors influence coverage decisions, with certain topics avoided to protect advertiser relationships.
Tulsi Gabbard, in her final act as Director of National Intelligence, held a press conference alleging that Anthony Fouchi lied to Congress and used American tax funds to support gain-of-function research through EcoHealth Alliance and the Wuhan lab in China. Major news networks provided no coverage of this announcement. The lab leak origin of COVID-19 is presented as established fact rather than ongoing controversy, with criticism directed at media outlets still framing it as unresolved.
John Stewart's appearance on The Colbert Report is referenced as a notable moment where he pushed back against establishment positions on COVID origins despite Colbert's attempts to interrupt the segment. At the time, suggesting a Wuhan lab origin was conflated with racism by some commentators.
Studies on ivermectin's antiviral properties specifically regarding COVID-19 were available on the CDC website during the period when public health officials were discouraging its use and media figures were mocking people for taking what was labeled "horse dewormer." This contradiction between publicly available government research and official messaging is noted.
As of the recording, major networks including NBC, CBS, and CNN had not covered Tulsi Gabbard's press conference regarding Fouchi. The preemptive pardon granted to Fouchi on Biden's final day in office is discussed, with questioning about why someone would seek such protection without pending charges.
Rand Paul's questioning of Fouchi regarding the definition of gain-of-function research is referenced, with the claim that Fouchi's work met every standard definition despite his denials. Fouchi's background as an ophthalmologist is noted alongside the assertion that medical school training covers the full body before specialization.
RFK Jr.'s book The Real Anthony Fouchi documents Fouchi's role during the AIDS pandemic, which followed the same pattern as COVID-era policies. The Dallas Buyers Club film portrayed Fouchi as the antagonist blocking alternative medications while promoting ACT, a chemotherapy drug previously discontinued due to toxicity that was killing patients faster than AIDS itself. ACT was administered to asymptomatic HIV-positive individuals.
Kary Mullis, the inventor of PCR testing, publicly stated that Fouchi did not understand the technology's proper application. PCR testing was not designed to detect disease in individuals, and excessive cycle amplification produced false positives. COVID testing reportedly reached 80% false positive rates at peak cycle thresholds before adjustments reduced these errors. Similar concerns about false HIV-positive results led to unnecessary ACT administration.
Mainstream outlets are described as treating Gabbard's document release as an unproven political claim requiring further investigation, while right-leaning media presents it as vindication for critics. The ongoing framing of lab leak versus natural origin as a legitimate debate is rejected as factually incorrect.
The politicization of Fouchi's conduct is criticized as unnecessary given his status as a career bureaucrat who served across multiple administrations from both parties over 50 years. His use of identical language describing ACT as "safe and effective" during the AIDS crisis and COVID vaccines is noted. The prediction is made that historical judgment will view Fouchi's decisions as causing widespread harm.
During Trump's presidency, prominent Democrats including Kamala Harris and Joy Reid publicly questioned whether a vaccine developed under his administration could be trusted. These same figures later aligned politically with vaccine mandates, creating what is described as a reversal of positions.
The effectiveness of traditional left-versus-right framing is described as diminishing, with more people recognizing it as a mechanism to maintain division rather than reflect genuine policy differences. The 2020 division tactics are viewed as less viable moving forward.
A correlation is noted between locations of major ICE protests and areas where significant government fraud was documented by investigator Nick Shirley. California passed legislation specifically designed to restrict Shirley's type of fraud investigation activities. The law is referred to as the "Nick Shirley law" in some discussions.
Empty daycare facilities generating millions in government payments despite having no enrolled children are cited as examples of fraud. Video evidence of luxury vehicles departing from such facilities is mentioned, though some footage is acknowledged as potentially fabricated for engagement purposes. Minnesota has publicly admitted awareness of ongoing fraud in similar programs.
A Minnesota politician and her husband were murdered after she voted against legislation providing Medicare benefits to undocumented immigrants. The perpetrator claimed Tim Walz directed the attack, though his credibility as a murderer wearing a mask during the shooting is questioned. The victim was one of few legislators opposing the Medicare expansion.
Elon Musk identified Medicaid and Medicare fraud as among the largest government waste issues during his DOGE work, expressing concern that discussing it could result in retaliation. Fake hospices in California and Somali daycare centers are cited as specific fraud mechanisms. Autism diagnoses increased dramatically to enable billing for autism treatment centers, representing another avenue for fraudulent claims totaling hundreds of billions of dollars.
Barack Obama made public statements about addressing government fraud during his presidency and encountered resistance that prevented implementation of his version of efficiency reforms. The scale of fraud creates powerful incentives for those benefiting to protect the system.
Fraud proceeds are described as flowing into political coffers of both parties, with anyone enabling the system receiving portions of what is characterized as a substantial financial pie.
Gavin Newsom has expressed interest in appearing on the podcast and has made public statements claiming Joe Rogan is not a fan while asserting his own admiration. Newsom maintains his own podcast despite governing California.
California's positive statistics predate Newsom's governorship and stem from existing advantages including weather and San Francisco's established technology sector rather than current leadership. Problems in San Francisco and statewide are attributed to governance failures including failure to enforce laws, inadequate public safety measures, and prioritizing empathy for drug users over families attempting to use public spaces.
Steve Bullock, former Democratic governor of Montana, described the governorship as functioning more as CEO of a large organization than as a position for implementing sweeping personal policy visions.
The job of a state CEO is to take care of the people who live in the state, attract business and tourism, make the state make more money, and improve lives. This includes infrastructure, city management, and people management. A mayor functions as the president of a city and CEO of the city. The core responsibilities are keeping the lights on, picking up the trash, putting out fires, dealing with sewage, keeping it safe, and running the schools.
In many big urban areas, leadership has become agenda-driven and focused on pushing social agendas rather than actually running the cities. This has led to cities running into the ground. San Francisco was a beautiful city that was still great in 2016 when a special was filmed in the Fillmore district. It was normal then with no problems, cool restaurants, and interesting architecture. It became unrecognizable in just ten years due to asinine government.
Homelessness has become an industry where the problem is valuable because more money gets thrown at it without any intention to fix it. Cities are giving out free needles. The homeless population is completely strung out on drugs, particularly fentanyl, appearing as zombies on every corner. This approach is cruel. Instead of giving someone an iPhone and more needles, the proper response is to pick people up off the street, take them somewhere with a curfew, and clean them out of drugs.
Fentanyl was experienced after neck surgery on C6-C7 where a disc was cut down. The high from medical fentanyl administered by an anesthesiologist was described as significantly different and more intense than street use. The surgery occurred about three years ago. Alternative treatments were recommended instead of surgery.
Regenicine (also referred to as Regenicine) is an advanced form of platelet-rich plasma treatment previously requiring travel to Germany. Peyton Manning and Kobe Bryant received it there. Dana White flew to Germany for the procedure. The process involves taking blood, heating it to body temperature to trigger production of natural anti-inflammatory protein IL-1, spinning it in a centrifuge for approximately ten hours to separate protein-rich serum, and injecting the serum directly into the painful joint or tissue. The treatment provided remarkable relief for knee injuries and completely cured a bulging disc in the neck that was causing finger numbness. An office opened in Santa Monica under the name Lifestyle Medicine.
Daily neck decompression is performed using a harness attached to a pull-up bar that straps under the chin, allowing body weight to decompress the neck. A Dex 3 (or Dex 2) inversion device made by Teeter is also used. The user hangs forward from the hips without leg support, allowing the back to decompress with audible pops. One was built at home and two are available at the gym. Decompression is essential after any weightlifting involving deadlifts or squats because of the compressive pressure on the spine.
New treatments being explored include injecting hydrogel into discs. Brigham from Ways to Well is investigating this experimental approach. Cellular Performance Institute in Tijuana has successfully injected stem cells into discs, causing tissue regeneration and increased thickness and health. Shane Dorian, a professional surfer and bow hunter, underwent the treatment and reported 30-40% increase in range of motion and decreased pain within a couple of months. Recovery requires approximately six weeks of limited activity with no weightlifting, similar to post-surgery restrictions.
Back pain killed a stepfather. A family friend had back surgery in Wyoming that made the condition worse. Spine surgery carries real risks. Serious back pain leads to OxyContin prescriptions, creating a clock where use can only continue for so long before addiction takes hold. Painkiller, a Peter Berg Netflix series, depicts how the Sackler family created the opioid crisis. Matthew Broderick played a Sackler brother. The Sacklers generated billions of dollars, killed many people, ruined countless lives, and never went to jail. Generational damage occurs when a parent becomes addicted. The Sacklers are described as real demons who justified their actions through profit.
Fentanyl was unknown fifteen years ago. The opioid crisis served as the gateway to fentanyl. Pain management centers in Florida operated as pill mills where patients received OxyContin prescriptions and could fill them at adjacent pharmacies that carried nothing else. The cartel makes trillions from the scraps of this system.
The Iane initiative (ibogaine) is being pushed by Rick Perry and Brian Huard in Texas. The goal is establishing a right to try for addicted individuals and making treatment more accessible to veterans. Ibogaine comes from the iboga tree in Africa. It is a potent psychedelic with no recreational use. Users experience a 24-hour dark experience that replays their life uncomfortably and rewires addiction pathways in the brain. One dose helps many people quit alcohol, gambling, cocaine, or other addictions. Two doses produce significantly better results.
Rick Perry, formerly staunchly anti-drugs, now focuses his life on promoting ibogaine after experiencing remarkable results himself. The treatment shows neuro-regenerative properties. A pre-treatment brain scan showed age-related atrophy at age 73-74. A post-treatment scan showed 25% less atrophy, and six months later the atrophy was completely gone. Veterans have accessed treatment in Mexico and Costa Rica with strong results. Marcus Luttrell overcame drinking problems through ibogaine. Dakota Meyer and many others on a long list of veterans have had transformative experiences.
The treatment is described as extremely unpleasant, involving diarrhea, vomiting, and horror for about twelve hours. Users report reliving every aspect of their life from other people's perspectives. The pharmaceutical industry opposes the treatment. An attempt was made to bypass the FDA by going directly to Trump, who was open to the idea and signed related documentation.
Most nonprofits are scams. People running homeless programs in LA make extraordinary amounts of money. These are performative entrepreneurs who identify a problem, pitch a solution to government, take the money, and never solve the problem. Solving the problem would eliminate their revenue stream.
Yellowstone resonates with people because it depicts individuals who take pride in hard work and derive deep satisfaction from that life. There is a better way than fraud, nonsense, and political messaging. The simple life of a sleeping bag under the stars, cooking dinner over a fire, and laughing with friends represents what people actually want.
Hunting and outdoor endeavors involve multiple tasks—practice, preparation, hiking in, setting up camp—each completed before the main activity. Completion of these tasks is the reward. Third-generation cowboys have earned ranch management degrees to return and earn $3,000 per month because they could not be happier.
The Werner Herzog documentary Happy People: A Year in the Taiga follows trappers on the Taiga River in Siberia who trap, hunt, and fish exclusively. They have zero mental illness, laugh and drink together, and describe their way of living as real life.
Dick Proenneke lived in Alaska, built a cabin by hand at age 51, and lived there for more than thirty years. He documented his life with a Super 8 camera, made his own tools, hunted, fished, and grew potatoes. He lived alone until age 80-something when he could no longer survive another winter. Alaska requires toughness regardless of location. People there are described as more reliable and sturdier.
A man living near the Arctic Circle since the 1970s has never seen 9/11 in real time and only saw photographs years later. He hunts caribou and stores the meat frozen outside as a natural cooler. A grizzly bear attempted to steal his stash during filming.
Joe Rogan and Taylor Sheridan discuss Himmo's Arctic Adventure, a Vice Guide to Travel series featuring a man living off-grid in Alaska. The episode shows Himmo shooting a caribou, sawing off frozen steaks, and cooking them over wood. He eats only caribou and salmon year-round. The series captures early Vice's adventurous journalism style, when reporters went to war zones with bulletproof vests. Himmo is one of the last people grandfathered in to live in the Arctic Refuge; new cabins are no longer permitted. The video highlights how happy people living close to nature appear to be.
Sheridan and Rogan note that humans still carry the same DNA as people from tens of thousands of years ago. Cities emerged roughly 10,000 years ago. New archaeological finds, such as Göbekli Tepe in Turkey, push timelines back. The site features massive stone circles with 3D animal carvings carbon-dated to around 11,800 years ago and was intentionally buried. Archaeologists debate whether the carvings represent a calendar, an event, or the biblical flood. Discoveries like this challenge established narratives, and some researchers resist updates that diminish earlier findings.
The fossil record is extremely incomplete. Most organisms decompose within a hundred years, and fossils form only under rare conditions such as lava or tar pits. Dinosaur bones represent a tiny fraction of the creatures that existed over hundreds of millions of years. New dinosaur species continue to be discovered. At least four or five humanoid species lived simultaneously rather than a single linear progression from Homo erectus to Homo sapiens. Denisovans and large-headed people found in China are among the examples mentioned.
Dinosaur Valley State Park in Glen Rose, Texas contains 113-million-year-old tracks, including those of Acrocanthosaurus. The tracks were revealed after a drought dried up the riverbed. A local schoolboy discovered some prints in 1908. The impressions were made in what was then mud and volcanic ash that later hardened into stone. The sheer size of the prints next to a human demonstrates the massive scale of the animals.
Most animals that die in the wild are consumed by scavengers within years, leaving no trace. Hunters almost never encounter dead mountain lions despite thousands existing in the wild. The same principle explains why few human remains become fossils. In 1910, people might have described dinosaur tracks as giant lizard prints without modern context.
Archaeological timelines continue to be revised. Human presence in the Americas was once dated to 12,000–14,000 years ago via the Bering Land Bridge; new evidence pushes this back another 10,000 years. 22,000-year-old footprints discovered in White Sands, New Mexico required a flood to expose the sediment layers. Additional modern human fossils have pushed the species timeline back 300,000–400,000 years.
On the ranch where Sheridan grew up, arrowheads appeared after every rain near a stock tank half a mile from the house. His mother took specimens to a Fort Worth museum for dating; some were 2,200 years old, others 4,000 years old. A large point found on another ranch is believed to have been used for fishing due to its size and the limited penetration power of early bows. Ancient people spent hours flintknapping points and using sinew for bowstrings, often while practicing from horseback.
Sheridan drew on his great-great-grandmother's journal documenting her family's 1840s journey from Kentucky to Texas. Additional published pioneer journals describe the extreme dangers of westward travel. Rivers posed the greatest threat because most European immigrants could not swim. Many settlers arrived via Galveston or New Orleans after travel agencies in Germany or Croatia arranged the entire trip, including guides, wagons, and mules. Most had never ridden a horse or fired a gun.
Without rule of law, bandits preyed on wagon trains. Native American conflicts varied by era and location; by the 1880s they were less common in some areas, but lawlessness remained a constant threat. Travelers could easily take wrong routes on the featureless plains, circle repeatedly, and die of thirst. Sheridan notes that lost people tend to walk in counterclockwise loops because small directional errors accumulate without external references such as the sun.
When blindfolded or without landmarks, people consistently curve into large counterclockwise loops. The bias appears individual rather than collective. Sheridan learned to use a compass and the sun for direction early. Facing east at sunrise places west behind you, north to the left, and south to the right. People with no woods experience often panic when disoriented because nature is indifferent to human survival.
Sheridan's great-great-grandmother's journal was notably well-written, reflecting higher literacy standards of the era. Civil War-era letters and World War II love letters from Sheridan's grandfather also demonstrate eloquent expression. Rogan observes that despite having instant answers on phones, many modern people have not internalized knowledge themselves, leading to a decline in articulate personal writing compared with earlier generations.
The discussion begins with the point that asking a machine for an answer means you did not earn the knowledge yourself. The word "earn" is emphasized repeatedly in connection to equity and outcomes. The problem with equity is that you did not earn it, just as having the same results as everyone else without putting in the same effort is problematic.
In the 1800s people often spent blocks of time, typically one to three hours at a stretch, on letter writing. Heavy correspondence could easily take several hours most days. Most people treated correspondence as a regular daily or weekly task similar to a modern email block, except that it took a significant chunk of their time. The mailman was everything back then. A dude on a horse with a bag of letters was critical infrastructure.
Taylor Sheridan discusses how much he enjoys writing different shows. Lioness is not ripped from the headlines but instead involves guessing what is going to happen politically and then fictionalizing it. He was concerned that in season two when he said the cartels had been listed as terrorist organizations it could lead to an 18-month cancel vacation, but then it actually happened and the show came out within weeks of the real event, making him look like a soothsayer.
The show is political but does not choose a political side. It looks at the tradecraft of espionage and how it intermingles with the military, which Sheridan finds fascinating.
1923 is discussed as a fascinating show because it shows Montana in the 1920s with the industrial revolution in full swing. People had washing machines, refrigerators, telephones, and electricity, yet they were still traveling by horseback. The show explores the border of lawlessness where people try to steal land.
Tim Dalton plays the evil rich guy on the show and is described as playing a good creep. His performance was so effective that people forgot it was him. Some scenes were so twisted that even Sheridan wondered about them while writing, calling them evil.
Sheridan assumes the CIA and FBI have a whole team watching what he looks up when researching how to make a bomb or SNM practices in CIA hot regions in the Middle East. He jokes that they are looking at his phone going "Taylor's writing something new." Anyone with influence is probably monitored regardless.
When writing about espionage, Sheridan does not make up the high-tech elements like tracking devices, satellite imagery, and facial recognition. However, a lot of tradecraft is deliberately low-tech because it is harder to trace. The main tools are leverage and manipulation through bribing someone with money or blackmailing them.
The MSAD operation with cell phones and pagers is discussed as an example of playing the long game. They built a dummy company, sold devices to their enemies, and then years later set them off to detonate. Sheridan calls it genius from a tradecraft standpoint, noting the patience, planning, and risks involved in executing it.
Sheridan frequently sees real events in the news that he could not have written because no one would buy them. The Maduro raid is cited as an example that seems too simple. Even the bin Laden raid had a helicopter crash. The recent operation in Caracas where no Americans were killed invading a Venezuelan military base in the middle of Caracas is described as insane.
A line from the upcoming season of Lioness states that operations go "smooth as these things go" because when you start sticking people in helicopters with guns, shit is going to happen. The fact that there were no casualties and no Americans were killed is still incredible.
War is going to change very quickly with drones and AI. Drones are going to alter the landscape of warfare and are getting close to some Terminator-level technology. Drones the size of airplanes can carry devastating payloads. Someone in a ConX in the desert in Nevada can fly a drone halfway around the world, or the drone can be pre-programmed and fully automated to carry out a mission on its own.
Sheridan believes a lot of the UAP phenomenon relates to experimenting with novel propulsion systems. They were working on novel propulsion systems way back in the 1950s and 1960s, including anti-gravity research in the 1960s. He is not convinced they have not made breakthroughs in this area.
Eric Weinstein has pointed out connections between a university in upstate New York with a very overqualified physics department and a hedge fund doing bigger than Bernie Madoff type numbers. Weinstein suggests there may be some sort of undisclosed or above top secret access program going on.
Sheridan wonders why magnetic force has never been tried as a solution to petroleum-based transportation. If you have a vehicle with a positive or negative charge on its base and the road base has a similarly charged metal, the repulsion could potentially lift the vehicle. The main obstacle would be redoing all the roads or embedding the system in the road.
There is discussion of scientists from Los Alamos who went missing or were murdered. Over a course of a few years, 15 scientists in the area died under suspicious circumstances. Some of the cases seem like coincidence, but others are harder to dismiss. One lady was specifically working on spacecraft metallurgy, another on cold fusion.
The justice department is investigating because there might be something there. It is hard to figure out what happened after the fact, especially if someone was hired by another country.
One of the weirder cases involved a woman hiking in the Angeles National Forest outside of Pasadena. She was hiking with a friend who turned around to talk to her and she was gone. Cadaver dogs and search parties could not find her. There was a recent report that her body might have been found.
The mayor of Arcadia, California was a Chinese spy. The discussion notes that if you have recruited enough people, you eventually try to get the mayor of a city like Arcadia with the hope that she could run for state rep and then Congress, potentially even becoming president.
ABSCAM in the 1970s involved politicians including congressmen and state reps who were on the take from Soviet spies. The show The Americans depicted a sleeper cell Russian family pretending to be normal Americans, which reflects real practices. Russian and Chinese agents are still operating in the United States pretending to be citizens.
There have been multiple cases of Chinese scientists stealing materials and operating unauthorized labs. One case involved CCP-linked biolabs in American soil exposing major biosecurity gaps. Another incident in Vegas involved a garage lab with 1,200 samples including pathogen-labeled containers with labels such as dengue fever, HIV, and malaria, along with a thousand mice.
The federal government never tested the items and the CDC made its determination based only on the labeling. The man involved, David He, was charged with manufacturing and distributing misbranded medical devices but not with anything connected to the biological materials. Another man named Ory Solomon was arrested in the Las Vegas biolab investigation but was only charged with illegal possession of a firearm and the case was eventually dropped.
There is so much information coming out through the internet, social media, and phones that none of it seems to have an impact. In the 1990s, a story about a Chinese spy or an Israeli agent would have been major news discussed on Nightline and Meet the Press. Now it is just another drop in the flood of the news cycle.
People are tuning everything out because nothing ever gets done. When people like the biolab operator are released, the public throws their hands up and would rather watch sports.
Sheridan wrote a book and is surprised Simon Sinek did not send Joe Rogan a copy. The book is available on audio and is described as oddly entertaining and informative. The title is "How to Not Die in Prison."
Sheridan explains that when he lived in LA, his gym was on Beverly Boulevard at Beverly and Sweetzer. It was called Buns on Beverly because the treadmills were positioned so that if you got stuck in traffic you were staring at everyone's asses. He and a buddy shared an apartment and would jog down there to work out every
Taylor Sheridan met Tom Nelson while working out at a gym in West Hollywood. Nelson stood out due to his extremely muscular build and extensive tattoos, different from typical fitness aesthetics. They became friends, and Nelson mentioned starting personal training. At the time, he was working at a vitamin shop in his forties. Nelson revealed he had moved to Los Angeles after serving 17 years in prison.
Nelson described himself as a major criminal in Hollywood, involved in drug dealing, armed robbery, and running over a DEA agent. During his incarceration, he discovered fitness and decided to pursue personal training upon release. He eventually opened his own independent personal training gym, which became the largest of its kind in Hollywood.
After Sheridan began working on Yellowstone, Nelson sent him a screenplay about his life, written in a 1990s style celebrating the criminal protagonist. Sheridan passed it to producers, but nothing materialized. During COVID, Sheridan contacted Nelson for gym equipment because the cast was restricted to the Montana ranch. Nelson's gym had closed, so Sheridan purchased equipment from him.
About 18 months to two years later, Nelson called Sheridan in distress. As a single father with a five-year-old child and a 60-year-old felon, he had been diagnosed with colon cancer via X-ray and had no resources. Sheridan arranged medical care in Texas, where the mass was determined not to be cancer and surgery was performed.
Sheridan declined to loan money, citing a 100% failure rate with friends, but instead proposed writing a book together. The concept was a "travel guide to prison for the accidental inmate," modeled after Lonely Planet guides. It would include an overview, glossary of terms, language, food, lodging, and navigation advice for prison life.
The book covers day one processing, navigating the yard, food, commissary, gangs, diseases, prison riots, getting a job, making a shiv, and other survival elements. Sheridan wrote the introductions and structure while Nelson provided the content. He advises readers heading to prison to finish the book beforehand and leave it at home to avoid danger.
Simon & Schuster acquired the book after reading three chapters. The project allowed Nelson to support his child while working with Sheridan. The book is titled How to Not Die in Prison and is available as an audiobook.
Sheridan notes the perspective gained from writing about prison realities compared to entertainment industry frustrations. The U.S. prison system has an 80-86% recidivism rate, creating a four-to-one or worse chance against staying out. The system is described as broken and not designed for rehabilitation, guaranteeing individuals emerge as criminals.
Sheridan and Rogan discussed Justin Gaethje's fight at UFC 308 held at the White House. Gaethje, an all-American wrestler and Division I athlete, demonstrated exceptional striking ability. He entered as a 6-to-1 underdog against Ilia Topuria. The second round featured intense liver shots from Topuria, nearly finishing Gaethje, while Gaethje bloodied Topuria's face, reportedly causing two broken orbital bones and a broken nose.
Gaethje employs a collar tie into an uppercut technique effectively. He is noted for heavy hands, rolling with shots, exceptional durability, and clever setup of openings. Khabib Nurmagomedov stated Gaethje hit him harder than anyone else. The third round saw Gaethje drop Topuria and secure a head-and-arm takedown.
The event included a flyover of eight jets flying in tight formation. Gaethje's underdog victory was described as inspiring. The fight was viewed as surreal and incredible to witness live. Sheridan expressed happiness for Gaethje's win while remaining a fan of Topuria, noting that losses can provide important perspective for fighters.
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