A sociology student on loneliness, capitalism, and what worries her most.

0:00She got even further than that. How long have you been doing this? Um I’ve been doing content for a couple years actually and I made a lot of money in crypto doing content like over 100k and I’ve been around the world but I didn’t really shoot content like this. I was doing podcasting then. And so it’s like but if I had been vlogging imagine right traveling the world vlogging is like way cooler content than the [bleeped] [bleeped] crypto podcast I was doing. Yeah that would be pretty cool bro. You do the same series too just yeah you get so many different perspectives that would be dope. And I was getting them

0:25anyway like I used to talk to people but I wouldn’t like You didn’t get to post it. I didn’t shoot I didn’t record it and it wasn’t like a thought for me like this could be the real archive.

0:32Yeah. You know but You already running? Yeah yeah yeah. Okay so the question was what’s the most pressing issue in the world right now? Yeah my name is Maceo and this is for poidh we’re here with We Them Media. What’s up what’s up what’s up? I’m Edward. It kind of depends there’s like a bunch of pressing issues in the world I think but if I had to name what I personally think is probably the biggest one is I think education inequality is is super big so I think especially like in America you know not very many people get to have access to education but education is

1:02like the pipeline for social mobility especially in our country. So being able to access that I think is really important but there’s these these power structures in place that make it impossible for many people to get access to education. Like I mentioned before how my family’s military that’s the only reason I get to go to school if not then I wouldn’t even know about this. So I would say that’s pretty big. I would say health care’s definitely uh definitely up there um you know people just have worse health outcomes when they hear let’s go this way. Very cool. Uh worse health outcomes when they you

1:33know they don’t feel safe they don’t feel like they have anyone to talk to it’s just bad for your overall health. I think um maybe uh globalization of uh of uh um So I think one of the other biggest ones would probably be like the globalization of capitalism. Let’s wait a second. Probably be the globalization of capitalism. It I’ve been mentioning these like power structures and um capitalism when it spread around the world like this starts to incentivize people to make money instead of being kind of more human I think. Um so for example I’m a sociology student so I study this kind of stuff a lot and

2:26A man with some context. And so you you put these people in these situations where they have to compete with each other. Well I don’t think humans are meant to be on this planet to compete with each other you know. We’re social beings to begin with we shouldn’t really have to compete you know. Like I don’t think there should be a world where that gentleman down the street doesn’t feel like he has the opportunity to go somewhere or be able to find a place to sleep at night or find comfort in community. That should be available to everybody.

2:49Stop playing with him. Dignity for all. Yeah yeah crazy ask for right? I’m I’m so crazy for that. I want men with compassion. Yeah so I don’t know. It’s hard to boil it down to just one thing there’s so many things wrong but each of those are interrelated as everything’s kind of interrelated. But um Yeah I don’t know I think people just have the opportunity to meet other people talk to other people just be in organizations and communities and stuff that can really help to build their perspectives and build their compassion and empathy and I think um that’s something that people can do in their own lives to

3:21you know to fix in the immediate immediate stuff that’s going on. You can’t you can’t change the whole world overnight but you can help yourself in your your local community. So yeah. How are you involved in your community? So like I said I’m a sociology uh sociology student. I go to the University of Colorado Denver. I’m the sociology club president. We just did this event last week.

3:40sniped him off the sidewalk. We did this event last week where we got the school to pay for um are you familiar with harm reduction? Like the idea of harm reduction? No just tell me I’m I’m going to say no and I’m I’m like I’m someone that doesn’t so tell us.

3:52harm reduction is this idea that um for like drugs for example right? So doing drugs is just dangerous. Um like if if especially if you’re doing stuff on the street you know you might not have access to clean needles clean water that kind of stuff you know or hygiene. Um and so our club we got the school to pay for at least donations for the harm reduction action center which is a local organization you should check out but they’re really cool. We got to send like $2500 worth of stuff there and made these like really impactful goody bags. We got a bunch of people to

4:22come together. It was really a big event it was really good really good time honestly. Oh yeah. But yeah just stuff like that you know like I’m just some random guy. I I mean like you know anybody can do what I do I think you know. Just interact with the community in that way or even if you don’t want to be a part of a club you know just talk to your neighbor. I think that a little goes a long way. So yeah. Okay and if you could ask people around the world one question what would you ask everybody? Oh that’s a good question I don’t know.

4:49Um maybe like uh what’s the uh Damn so many good questions. You can ask a couple there’s no we got infinite weeks ahead of us. That’s true that’s true. So maybe like I don’t know what’s the most like transformative moment in your life? I think a lot of people growing up at least I did I had a moment where like my worldview was challenged and it caused me to change and have a more open perspective. I think a lot of people have that. When was that? Um I had that many times but um during COVID I was uh moving cuz my my family’s military so I was moving and I

5:21moved to a new school. I didn’t know anybody there which was just kind of sad and so I was like pretty isolated for a year and it caused me to have to like rethink a lot of like who I was as a person and do a lot of self-reflection. And so I had this moment with one of my family members where we just like went on a beach and we talked for two hours. Changed my life. Him and I don’t even have the same views on the world but just having someone talk to you like that that changed my life. So yeah I think a lot of people have

5:44instances like that. I’d be curious to hear about stuff like that you know. Maybe um what’s the most like fulfilling relationship someone’s had too that’d be another one. I think it’s important to have those types of relationships with people. Yeah just so many questions. Some high some high impact conversations that people have had with us that have helped us evolve as individuals. I think so yeah it’s important to have that. Hell yeah. Yeah. Any other questions you’d ask people? Um You said you had like a little roster so I want you to put them on the internet for us. Uh like other orgs I work with? Other questions you’d

6:12ask the world. Oh yeah yeah. Um maybe like oh what’s your favorite food bro? Okay. Food everybody eats food you know it’s a great way to relate to people and plus I just like food a lot bro I’m I like eating food so you know someone’s putting me on I’ll definitely pay attention to that. Okay I like that. Maybe uh favorite place you’ve ever been? Mhm. I think that’d be a good question so many people around the world can ask that. Um I don’t know. I mean you said you went to a bunch of countries right? What was your favorite? If you could even pick

6:38one I don’t know if I’d be able to pick one honestly. My favorite country that I went to Yeah. is hard to say. I I like being in Japan a lot I was in Japan for a month.

6:48Dude I want to go to Japan. Yeah I would say it was really cool I wish I spoke Japanese though would’ve made it like 10 times cooler.

6:53That’s fair yeah. Cuz I feel like I couldn’t do stuff like this in Japan like some of my sayings as far as I get excuse me. You know. Um so but it was cool to like be in Tokyo and have people who were doing like culture show I went to like a fashion show. I went to like a fashion pop-up in like the Tokyo district that I know for coffee actually which is really cool. Um and I just got to see

7:11fashionable actually it it worked out for you bro. No thanks thanks. It’s it’s one of my few outfits don’t worry. You got to have them on rotation that’s important. Yeah I I’ve learned that recently. The social cues are arriving in real time real time. That’s funny bro that’s funny yeah I got that. Um but I would say that was one of my favorites. One of my close friends is like a child celebrity in Vietnam. Whoa whoa whoa. I went to visit this guy there them there and that was honestly surreal being in Vietnam with like just like this person that everybody turns and looks at. And

7:40they just know? Yeah yeah they speak Vietnamese but it was just like cool to be there with with them traveling around with like around Hanoi a little bit and seeing it. Yeah. So I would say that was probably the most meaningful cuz I’m like my friend is from Hanoi. I’m getting to meet his mom. I had food with him on Christmas [bleeped] like that.

7:55Dude that’s so cool. out for my birthday. That’s so cool. Hey did you just have your birthday recently? End of December so this was 2024 I was there for Christmas and [bleeped]

8:01I see. Happy birthday though. Yeah thanks thanks thanks. but still you know. Yeah but that’s that’s what I would say were two of my favorite places but I was in Africa last year for four months too.

8:10No way. Dude that’s so cool I want to go to Africa. Yeah I mean you know. I want to go to like northern Africa. I’m trying to hit up like Algeria bro. I’ve heard Algeria is so pretty but I don’t know honestly. I’m I’m trying to travel the entire world. If I don’t hit up at least every continent once in my life bro I probably am not doing it right. I think that’s a good vibe man. I think I think the more you travel like the smaller the world gets and like the more you see all the network effects of all the [bleeped] going on. I’m going out of

8:31the country bro. I’m going to Spain this summer. I’m so excited bro. That’s sick. Just Spain are you going to how long you going to be there? Uh like two weeks yeah. I’m having my 21st birthday over there dude. I’m going to it’s going to be so awesome I’m looking forward to it.

8:42or family or school trip? Yeah for school yeah. It’s for sociology. That’s cool. So what are you going to be doing there? What’s the program? So do you know GIS? It’s yeah so we’re going to be doing GIS training there I’m going to get my certificate.

8:52Oh GIS like the mapping stuff. Yeah yeah. Okay. I like Global Institute of Scholars like that’s like where my brain is going. Um so that GIS too because I’m Yeah okay hell yeah. So you know we’re going there there’s like a an internationally recognized um what is it called place there research organization there research center and we’re going there we’re going to be learning getting certified certificate in that in those systems and then we’re just going to be traveling around Spain for another week and learning about the culture in Spain. I’m so excited bro. I’m like Is he good in Spanish? Uh I’m a little

9:22my my family’s Hispanic so I speak a little but I’m not fluent. Okay hablo hablo español. Oh hell no don’t even put me on the spot like that. Yeah you got more than I do I’m sure yeah. But I’m excited I’ll have to learn some before I go I can’t be I can’t be

9:35How how’s your family Hispanic? Argentine and they also some of them are from Spain as well. Okay sick. And Ecuador I guess I mean you know a lot of a lot of a little bit everywhere. But my my mom asked me when I was like four years old like Edward you want to learn Spanish and I was like no that sounds like a lot of work and she was like you’ll regret that and I’m like dude I’m four bro I’m like what do you want me to say? She’s funny. She needed a little bit a little bit more resistance to your resistance up.

9:58Yeah, yeah. I mean, you know. It’s good that she respected your autonomy for a long time. That was nice at least, but I wish she would have just told me to shut up and learn. Yeah, you know, it’s a balance.

10:08Yeah, but you know. Um I think I got to go. I’m about to I’m trying to hit to the park. All right, man. Well, thank you.

10:14So, uh oh