This week, California’s wildfires spark a deeper dive into the state’s ongoing crisis: mismanagement, a questionable climate agenda that’s burning billions without results, and, of course, Gavin Newsom’s fire-proof hair gel. Meanwhile, Trump is using his tiny hands to grab something new for a change. This time, he's eyeing control of Greenland, the Panama Canal, and even Canada. Oh, and Mark Zuckerberg really wants you to think he’s got "masculine energy" — bragging about his martial arts skills on Joe Rogan, ditching Facebook’s fact-checkers, and calling for “more aggression” in our “neutered” corporate culture. And if you were worried that Siri was snitching, you would be correct. Apple agreed to pay $95 million to settle claims that Siri secretly recorded users and shared their private chats with advertisers. In case you didn’t think this episode could get weirder, we’re also taking a detour into raccoon sanctuaries, Lego tariffs, and why male chess players can’t handle deodorant - or women. TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 - Intro 00:45 - California Wildfires 09:29 - Sex Toy Cyber Attacks 12:33 - Trump's Land Grabs 19:11 - Pakistan Airlines' Wild Ad 23:25 - Zuck Goes Full Bro 28:08 - Controversial Chess Rules 31:45 - Siri Snitches 36:40 - NYC's Congestion Pricing 42:51 - Freddy's Property Tax Loophole? 47:39 - See Ya Next Time!

In our exclusive interview, Whitney Tilson, former hedge fund manager turned first-time political candidate, shares his perspective on the challenges facing New York City and the bold solutions he believes are necessary. Tilson presents his case for why fresh leadership is needed — promising to tackle crime, affordability, and economic decline with a pro-business, no-nonsense approach. From cutting violent crime by 50% to building ample affordable housing units, Tilson is doubling down on big ideas and data-driven solutions. As a self-identified political outsider, Tilson shares how his decades of business expertise and advocacy work (from NYC education reform to raising $18M for Ukraine) uniquely position him to lead the city back to prosperity. But can a first-time candidate overcome entrenched political interests and an uphill battle for voter turnout? In this episode, we explore: Making NYC a friendly place for small businesses The challenges of NYC’s affordability and housing crises Strategies for cutting crime and reforming bail policies Lessons from Houston’s success in tackling homelessness Why business-friendly policies are critical for NYC’s comeback and more

Luigi Mangione is finally in custody but that hasn’t stopped health insurers from dialing back recently proposed changes to its anesthesia coverage. Hunter Biden has officially been pardoned by his old man, which makes parents around the world feel at ease about coddling their own children. And they say Gen Z is a f**ked up generation… As if Fartcoin hadn’t already broke everyone’s Stupidity Meter, Bryan Johnson – a real-life Benjamin Button – has launched a betting market for his nighttime erections. Perhaps a wrong way bet on Bryan Johnson’s NTE is what sent Mangione off the rails. Drones have been spotted swarming New Jersey, begging the question of; Why the hell is anyone interested in New Jersey? Undoubtedly a fair question, making the tin foil hat theories all the more legitimate. Following the election, Mark Zuckerberg has come groveling back to The Don, presumably to ask that he call off the cage match with Trump’s new bestie. And as a holiday parting gift, Carson shares a bloody story to prove just how disingenuous Bloomberg can be when it comes to reporting on short selling. From all of us here at Zer0es TV, we’d like to wish everyone a Happy Holidays!

This week, the Zero Fucks Given crew is back! Carson is rubbing his perfect election predictions in everyone’s face while we recap the news stories you may have missed while doom scrolling online. From Chamath's quest to "Make America Healthy Again" to North Korean soldiers discovering premium internet content for the first time, we’ve got the headlines you didn’t know you needed. It hasn't been long since Trump’s re-election, but he's already out here drafting his cabinet for the sequel administration — let’s just say it’s already shaping up to be a circus act. Oh, and Spirit Airlines somehow outdid itself by becoming the literal target of a sky-high drive-by shooting. Just another day in the aviation hell that is a Spirit Airlines flight. Meanwhile, Freddy reacts to two Brazilian influencers who prove that vanity is, in fact, buoyant (except when it’s not). Plus, our financial hot take: Why MicroStrategy’s new ETF is leverage inception on steroids — and a sign we’ve officially entered 2024 chaos mode. All that and more! TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 - Intro 00:58 - Trump 2.0 05:39 - The Fate of Gary Gensler 09:33 - Trump’s Treasure Hunt 15:24 - Chamath Goes Full RFK Mode 20:44 - North Korea’s Hardened Soldiers 24:50 - Naur Social Media For Australia 27:47 - Influencer Tragedy In Brazil 32:48 - Cohoes Gets Served 37:13 - Spirit Flight From Hell 40:38 - Microstrategy Goes Big 44:04: Outro and Episode Disclaimer

The God complex amongst Tech Billionaires has reached a boiling point. To be fair, Elon has taken a page out of the Zer0es playbook and clearly gave zero fucks with his jiggly puff dance at a recent Trump rally. Zuckerberg, on the other hand, is just trying way too hard and it’s apparently caused him to forget the true fate of Julius Caesar. As promised, we have a special announcement here at ZFG and it comes by way of our very first sponsor. South Korea has finally announced that it will abandon the ban on short selling, but not until March of 2025. And just when short sellers thought they were given some breathing room, Spain proves that retardation – or corruption – runs through the highest levels of its market regulators. Speaking of corruption, NYC Mayor Eric Adams has been caught with his hand in the proverbial cookie jar. And after a long hiatus of Freddy’s corner of terrible business ideas, we get real-time footage of a new idea that arguably lands at the top of the list.   Disclaimer Unless the context indicates otherwise, the terms “Muddy Waters”, “we”, “us”, “our” and similar terms refer to Muddy Waters Asia LLC and its respective affiliates, including Muddy Waters Capital LLC. The information provided in this podcast is being furnished for informational purposes only, and does not constitute an offer to sell, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, any securities, including any securities issued by any investment vehicle managed by Muddy Waters.  References to the “Vietnam Fund” or the “New World Order Fund” refer to the Muddy Waters New World Order Fund LP (the “Fund”), which is a private fund being offered pursuant to Rule 506(c) of the Securities Act of 1933. The information presented is subject to a more complete description and does not contain all of the information necessary to make an investment decision in the Fund, including but not limited to, the risk factors, fees, and the investment strategies of the Fund.  Any offering will only be made pursuant to additional documents, including the relevant offering memorandum, a copy of the limited partnership agreement, memorandum and articles of association, or similar organizational documents of the Fund and a subscription agreement, all of which must be read in their entirety.  No offer to purchase interests will be made or accepted prior to receipt by an offeree of these documents, the completion of all appropriate documentation, and the meeting of eligibility (and such other) requirements as may be determined by Muddy Waters.  U.S. persons must, among other requirements, be “accredited investors” and “qualified purchasers,” as defined in the applicable securities laws, before they can invest in the Fund. Please see www.muddywatersasia.com for more information.

​​In this episode of ZFG, Carson and the team our reactions to the presidential debate, how a PhD student's cat fooled Google Scholar, Palantir CEO's odd announcement of their S&P 500 inclusion, the sketchy AI health app claiming to diagnose STIs, and much more. TIMESTAMPS: 00:00 - Intro 00:40 - The Cat Turned Academic Star 05:14 - Presidential Debate Recap 09:01 - Palantir's S&P 500 Inclusion 12:39 - HeHealth Shuts Down 15:18 - Nathaniel Rothschild Invest In Tennor 18:52 - Russia's "Safe Haven: 21:30 - A Slithering Surprise 24:32 - Poisoning the Competition 27:28 - Paris Olympics Recap 33:22 - Outro

In a thrilling return of our Short Story format, Carson Block of Muddy Waters Capital sits down with Edwin Dorsey, Author of The Bear Cave. In this episode, Carson and Edwin break down the charges and allegations underlying the Government’s complaint against activist short seller Andrew Left. Edwin begins by questioning the Government theories of Andrew’s trades in the stock of General Electric (GE). He then goes on to give an example of another prominent hedge fund manager, Dan Loeb of Third Point LLC, and his activities surrounding Herbalife (HLF) in 2013. As Carson shares, there are a myriad of factors that go into a sophisticated investor’s trading activities, only one of which is the investor’s own price objective. Carson then explains why this case is paramount for the future of the sell-side industry, their use of price targets, and all the garbage that goes into Wall Street’s infamous valuation models. Can the SEC really conjure up a new rule that could require Andrew, and possibly other short sellers, to hold positions for five days after publishing a report? Carson analyzes this possibility under the First Amendment explaining why he doesn’t believe any court would grant such an unconstitutional proposal. Will this episode have long-lasting impacts for the behavior of short activists? And what might it mean for the spirit versus the letter of the law as it pertains to investors, corporations, and regulators?

When it comes to the woke agenda, few understand that the Republican Party is the true support system behind the LGBTQ community. Some might say that Freddy is just trying to rag on the US political process but he’s simply providing the facts – Republicans crashed the Grindr app due to a spike in Milwaukee.  Elon Musk continues his exodus from California, announcing that he’s moving X and SpaceX to Texas. And while Gavin Newsom thought it’d be a good idea to take a public swipe, Musk reminded him that if you come at the King, you best not miss.  China, still struggling to stabilize its stock market, has taken a page out of its 2015 playbook by again targeting short selling. Bill Hwang was found guilty on ten out of eleven charges, leaving only one question; Was Bill in Milwaukee during the RNC to perform on-the-ground research for his lengthy stay in prison? And while Gavin Newsom has taken executive action against homeless encampments in California, it appears pirates and nudists are still welcome to slug it out in the streets of San Francisco. TIMESTAMPS:00:00 - Intro00:27 - A wild week in U.S. politics05:06 - Rudy falls at RNC08:25 - Elon's California breakup13:08 - China cracks down on short selling18:20 - Hwang found guilty in fraud trial28:34 - San Fran nudists fight pirate guy 31:27 - Outro 

The other pitched Poober. They are not the same. And just in case there were any lingering debate over who’s cooler – Freddy Brick or Mark Zuckerberg – it’s all been settled over 4th of July wakeboarding. Freddy and Carson go on to discuss President Biden’s disastrous debate performance and whether it marked the end of his re-election campaign.  Politics aside, Carson points to the cheating scandal at Nathan’s July 4th Hot Dog Contest as the singular moment that will mark the decline of our empire. And while Freddy tried to give his best King George impression from Hamilton by asking, “What have you won?”, we can at least rest easy that our national forests are safe from investment bankers.  The US Supreme Court has had a busy few weeks and its most recent Chevron Deference ruling has Carson pondering what this might mean for the Securities Exchange Commission and hedge fund regulation. Blackstone’s SRT’s are giving off vibes of credit crises of the past, while the drop in commercial real estate values are uncovering increasing cases of mortgage fraud. TIMESTAMPS:00:00 - Intro00:41 - US vs. UK08:13 - Hot Dog Eating Contest Scandal12:12 - Investment Banker Caught In Treesome?13:54 - Supreme Court Updates20:43 - Blackstone Gets Risky?27:17 - Real Estate Crackdown 33:40 - Outro

The ongoing feud between James Fishback and Greenlight Capital has been ratcheted up to a whole new level. For the first time in history, a portfolio manager at a multi-billion-dollar firm was awarded a $800k bonus due to his generating ~$100 million in profits. I guess any publicity is good publicity, but James, the math doesn’t add up… Amidst elevated fears over Russian hooligans at Euro 2024, Freddy provides a bit of clarity of what not to do when supporting your favorite football club. Despite the SEC finally cracking down on the MMTLP fraud, the glue sniffers still refuse to accept reality. At what point do Bill Hwang’s attorneys break out the Jerusalem Syndrome defense? And inside stories of the Archegos collapse reveal just how unfamiliar everyone is with Richard Handler’s game. TIMESTAMPS 00:00 - Intro 01:04 - Greenlight's macro lawsuit 04:51 - Euro 2024 hooligans 07:59 - SEC's Meta Materials fraud fine 11:36 - The latest court drama - from Jerusalem to New York

Just when short sellers thought they were in the clear, Roaring Kitty has re-emerged, dealing a major blow to those taking aim at GameStop (GME). Where did Gill get the funds for such a massive position? That’s where the plot thickens… North Korea has apparently given up on its aspirations for an ICBM, that doesn’t explode immediately upon launch, after finding success with slinging trash-filled balloons. Citadel and BlackRock have announced plans for a Texas-based server farm, but Carson expresses skepticism about the true value-add for market participants and society as a whole.Carson then revives an old story of a former New York Yankee slugger whose shown no shame for his forearm workouts. And apparently, the name Joshua carries special significance in the world of legal academia. Some are just intellectually dishonest, while others prefer corruption and sexual misconduct.

In this episode of ZFG, Carson and the team have victory laps to run and news to cover! More specifically, we’re chatting about multiple fraud trials, South Korea’s war against those evil short sellers, DLocal’s stock dip, medical advice from South Park and Google AI, old judges and old mayors (we’re looking at you and your coffee line Rudy Giuliani).

In this week’s ZFG speed run, the crew covers everything from free vodka for hobos, to RFK, Jr’s brain worms, and Bill Hwang’s trial. For those still living in California, we’ve finally discovered where all your hard-earned tax dollars have been going – you’ve been buying rounds at the bar for the homeless. Independent Presidential candidate, RFJ, Jr. reveals what’s been behind, let’s just say some of his more conspiratorial claims – worms have been gnawing away at his frontal lobe. A couple of Stifel employees have taken the whole “naughty maid” script just a tad too far. To be fair, the whole hobos-in-a-hotel idea probably worked better than the latest Furry convention. But in a bizarre twist, Krista spices things up a bit with her own recollection of a cuddly friend after moving to San Francisco. The Archegos trial has begun, and it’s provided a glimpse into the true reason behind Bill Hwang’s “aggressive” trading style – he just couldn’t get enough of SpongeBob SquarePants. And apparently, all this talk of naughty maids and furries has Freddy dimming the lights before we can wrap the show. 

Time to get strapped in for this week’s ZFG speedrun. Ok, to be fair, it’s probably not our best choice of phrasing to use ‘strapped in’ with Harvey Weinstein at the top of this week’s episode. However, the good news for any of his jailhouse prey is that karma has come in the form of a gangrenous d*ck. Carson then weighs in on the recent passage of a bill to force the sale of TikTok. While the data collection aspect is one area of concern, Carson highlights the psychological warfare being waged on behalf of the CCP. Or, as Freddy states, “About f*cking time!” South Korea demonstrates that, once again, they have little imagination for cracking down on fraudulent actors. So, of course, regulators are finding new ways to combat “illegal short selling.” Speaking of short sellers, Trump Media’s CEO Devin Nunes has been bitch slapped by a formal statement from Citadel. Unlike South Korea, B. Riley Financial has a found a rather unique way in finding buyers for its bonds. And given the ZFG commitment to bringing our viewers the hardest-hitting footage of world events, Freddy closes out with a glimpse at how the people of Tel Aviv are handling the ongoing chaos. 

Coming at you with a new spin on the ZFG format, Krista, Freddy, and Carson thought we’d like to get up close and personal. No, seriously Krista, we can see your browser history in the reflection of your glasses… All kidding aside, this new format is punchier and a bit more organized than our usual journey now that Krista can read the cue cards directly on her screen. The SEC is cracking down on the internal use of messaging apps, but that might not be the biggest concern for its Texas-based employees. Freddy is still doing his best Russell Crowe impersonation from A Beautiful Mind, and the new close-up gives us a first-row seat into his lightbulb moment for a new business idea. Krista leads the Rate Forecasting Circle Jerk. Journalists try kicking a billionaire when he’s, well, not down. California has come up with new ways to grab money from the rich. And Carson proposes a new segment titled, Guys Who’ve Done Well in One Part of Life Thinking that They Know Everything About Another Part of Life and Sharing That Faux Wisdom with Everybody. Ok, so it’s a working title…

The only thing better than watching Alex Karp coming unhinged on CNBC is the fact that one of its co-founders, who's also the Chairman of the Board of Directors, has been the one recklessly dumping Palantir stock. Is Peter Thiel a short-seller in disguise?! Surprise, surprise, more crypto has gone missing. Perhaps James Howells could've taught P. Diddy a thing or two about the proper way to dispose of a sensitive hard drive. Who knows, maybe the raids will turn up empty. But just in case, his lawyers should probably go with the Lego defense come time for the lineup. And have you ever thought of gifting a warthog as a pet? Hunting Somali pirates from a yacht is probably the safer bet...

Ever wonder what the children of Texas do in their spare time? After a weekend where Carson and Freddy visited a friend’s ranch, the crew takes a minute to acknowledge the political and societal differences throughout our nation. Maybe throwing axes and dodging ricocheting bullets aren’t your cup of tea. Just be aware, going for a stroll on a beach in California is just as dicey with grandma on patrol. Grandma’s beach lecture isn’t the only baffling story of this week’s episode, as we find out that your cuddly childhood Build-A-Bear Workshop has a dark and dirty side. Ok, well, not as dirty as Vince McMahon but that’s an extremely high bar to clear. And if that doesn’t have you sick to your stomach, just wait until you hear what those restaurant toothpicks are truly designed for. 

When things start and stop working all at the same time. Carson opens our latest episode with a personal struggle that plagues middle-aged men around the globe. As can be expected here on ZFG, we’re asking the hard-hitting questions – Which 5th grader has Gary Gensler assigned to manage the SEC’s cyber security protocols? Freddy, struggling with a bout of insecurity, seeks to set the record straight on SFO’s favorite rabbit. The metaverse continues to prove that it’s nothing more than a breeding ground for incels, but recent headlines appear to raise serious questions about the legality of serving one’s country in Call of Duty. And while we pride ourselves on asking the tough questions, our public service announcements just might save all of humanity. Krista wraps by revealing her first impression of Freddy’s dwarfism which, with the benefit of hindsight, seems to be a complete non-issue in comparison to her roid rage.

Happy New Year! Freddy starts 2024 off with a bang. Not only has he reverted to his 'no shoes' policy, but he kicks things off with yet another new business idea. For those of you who have yet to settle on a New Years' resolution; might we suggest brushing up on your history? The History Channel, Wikipedia, there's a wide variety of sources. But if we're brutally honest, South Park might be one of the best places to start. And in the spirit of the holidays, Carson and Freddy announce a fresh sighting of Frank Timis. After failing miserably as a heroin trafficker, he's trying his hand with African Agriculture Holdings (AAGR). Carson reveals how he survives the depths of boredom - hint, it's not responding to Krista. And for all the crap they give Elon Musk, Carson and Freddy give credit where credit is due.

If you ever find yourself questioning your intellectual capabilities, just remember, Josh Mitts is still a Professor of Law at Columbia Law School. Whatever your feelings about his past work, there’s zero question about the complete lack of academic rigor, accountability, accuracy, intellectual honesty – whatever the hell you want to call it – in his latest research paper Trading on Terror?. Fret not, your favorite short seller is hot on his trail and Carson lays into Mitts’ self-anointed status as Academic Rambo. London has a new exhibit at the Science Museum and its relation to science is about as true as Mitts’ research. In brighter news, Freddy goes on to explain why he’s walked back his love for Robbie Williams faster than the Fed turned its back on ‘Higher For Longer.’ And as we close out the year, Jeffrey Ubben is the unquestionable leader for Retard of The Year. As a parting note, we’d like to wish everyone a Happy Holidays. Be sure to tune in next year. You won’t want to miss our new lineup of Woke Santa Claus, Contra-indicators with Jeffrey Ubben and as always, Monster Alpha!