What is up everybody? I'm bladen Kirk to an as always by my two favorite co hosts of all time and Matthews fine hour in Theo ash and together we are stay hot. The NFL is crazier than ever this season. And we're going to break it all down for you. The only way we know how. With detailed analysis, while takes, amazing guests, and ridiculous banter. Stay hot is available wherever you listen to your podcast and on YouTube every single week. Subscribe today. LA times subscribers are everywhere. You know that friend who does their research weeks before the election or that coworker who has a seemingly Supernatural ability to predict awards show winners. Even your neighbor, whose outfits are, let's face it, aspirational. Yeah, it's easy to spot a subscriber. Once you dive down the rabbit hole of subscriber exclusive content, you'll see why. Get your first 6 months for just $1 at LA times dot com slash subscribe. That's LA times dot com slash subscribe. Ben, Los Angeles. It's a city with a long history of racial tensions. This year we marked the 30th anniversary of the LA riots. But what we heard from Martinez a deal de Leon, the whole conversation also with her era, how much of it is a reflection of where LA stands right now on race. I feel like you're in a better position to reflect on that than I am, man. Take that question for yourself. I should answer it. Sure. What strikes me the most is that there's groups individuals who have been fighting for so long to do black and brown unity and to try to get us past those like petty fights of the past and get us to a better place and you see this. Those people are so dispirited and frankly so pissed off, but what also strikes me though is just how unified the derision is, against those folks, all of that, I mean, there's so many problems to deal with, but there is that hope that's like, wow, this is actually a moment where LA instead of where people are trying to stoke those flames, maybe this is a way to say like, we're not with that anymore. I mean, I definitely see it with younger Latinos, you know, like universes who beat quesadilla who has been calling out anti blackness in the Latino community and that next generation. So it's like, I'm glad people are as angry as they are. I would add one thing that I picked up in this, I'm a relative newcomer to this city. I've lived here for like 7 years. You're a Yankees fan. I'm a Yankees fan. You remind me every time I come on this podcast. But during this recorded conversation, Kevin de Leon keeps saying about Mike bonnan, as they're saying these racist things about his kid, he's from Massachusetts. He's from Massachusetts. You know, Mike Bonnett has lived here for decades. When he worked for tons of political leaders in California, there's also a measure of gatekeeping, I think, about California and what is LA and who represents it. And much of that, I think, stems from a well founded feeling of being excluded for so long. But this is a city that is evolving and changing and new people showing up all the time. And I think that so much of this conversation that we hear is the most blunt discussion of how to preserve what people have gained. And that is something that I can't get past or like I just keep coming back to. And this conversation at leaked just weeks before important election, not just nationally, but especially in Los Angeles. So what are going to be any potential consequences for that? Oh, it's such a good question. I could see a cutting any number of different ways. Let's just lay it out. Karen Bass has been endorsed by Mary Martinez. The entire labor movement basically of the city with the exception of the police and fire unions. But Rick Russo has been supported by Gil se dio. And very quickly on Sunday. We heard from brick saying, this sums up what I've been saying about this city and how messed up and broken and screwed up the culture is of it. It's rotten to the core and I a billionaire mall owner of all things. I'm here to fix it. I think it could really end up fueling that anti incumbent sense. That we all hear on the streets, people mad about homelessness. At the same time, though, there's a world where a unifying voice, a person like Karen Bass, who is known as a creator of coalitions, could maybe be that sort of person who can take the temperature down and what people want right now. It should be stated that both Caruso and bass on Monday called for all of these people to step down. But we're less than a month from election day. So, you know, I'll be interested to see, does Rick Russo cut an ad that includes audio of nurri Martinez along with a photo of her and Karen Bass. I'll be interested to see how Karen interacts with the Latino community. So I'm not sure yet where this goes. This was a Scud missile landing at city hall and sending shrapnel in 88 different directions. Finally, Ben, whether or not these three council members stepped down over the leaked audio, the council, their colleagues, are going to have to do a lot of work turn back the trust and respect of basically everyone in Los Angeles, how lasting is the damage from this incident. God, I mean, very, very long-lasting. I mean, we're going to have a new mayor. We're going to have a new city council president. And we're going to have several new members of the city council. If these people step down, it could really change the sort of coalitions that exist left and right on the council. If we have a special election that needs to occur in these places, if these people do step down it's like, we don't even know who's going to be on the city council by the end of the week. I mean, there's real real anger and I don't know that her