Unlicensed Therapist | Ali A. Rizvi

Kelly Carlin — daughter of the legendary late comedian George Carlin — joins me to talk about her lawsuit against the creators of a fake AI-generated "special" of her dad, the future of AI and human creativity, "manufactured humanity," what her father might have thought about the world today, and the experience of making the HBO Max documentary "George Carlin's American Dream" with Judd Apatow.

Watch Kelly's previous conversation with me, "Humor, Healing, and Hanging On," here: https://www.youtube.com/live/FuXiPTbR...

Get Kelly's memoir, "A Carlin Home Companion: Growing Up With George," here: https://www.amazon.com/Carlin-Home-Co...

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Unlicensed Therapist Theme Music: "Juggi's Gonna Kill It" written and performed by Ali A. Rizvi, Ali Noor, Zameer Rizvi, and Ali Hamza

Mark Zuckerberg outraged Senators and parents in a Judicial Committee hearing by claiming that there is "no causal link" between social media and mental health.

The Senators also made Mark Zuckerberg apologize to the families of children who died or ended their lives because of experiences on social media.

Here's the problem: Mark Zuckerberg is right. And this hearing is just another case of lawmakers and parents shifting the blame for their own failure onto others. Who should really be apologizing?

Let's break it down and dig in.

Resources mentioned in the episode:

American Psychological Association May 2023 report: https://www.apa.org/topics/social-med...

The Forgotten Lessons of the Recovered Memory Movement: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/09/27/op...

Sabine Hossenfelder on the global mental health crisis:    • The Global Mental Health Crisis: All ...  @sabinehossenfelder

Emma McAdam (Therapy in a Nutshell) on self-diagnosis:    • The Essential Lesson You Missed in Ps...  @therapyinanutshell

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Unlicensed Therapist Theme Music: "Juggi's Gonna Kill It" written and performed by Ali A. Rizvi, Ali Noor, Zameer Rizvi, and Ali Hamza

Vishnu Vaka is KILLING it. His clips have gone viral on TikTok and Instagram. Russell Peters (a fan) has taken him on tour. Bill Burr has shared his bits online. He has gotten "passed" at New York's elite Comedy Cellar, one of the world's toughest clubs to get into. If you're one of the few people who haven't heard Vishnu yet, trust me—you soon will.

Vishnu came to the U.S. as a teenager, but kept his Indian accent because he loves it. He faces stereotypes about Indians in America head-on and uses his uniquely smart comedic talents to shatter them. He joins me in this episode to talk about comedy, being Indian in America, his continuing meteoric success, his friendship with Russell Peters, the role of social media in making artists' careers, why he is optimistic about technology (including AI), the personal experiences behind his most viral bits, and lots more. Enjoy!

[As promised, here is the coveted clip behind his Self-Driven campaign—I shall say no more: • Self Driven]

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Unlicensed Therapist Theme Music: "Juggi's Gonna Kill It" written and performed by Ali A. Rizvi, Ali Noor, Zameer Rizvi, and Ali Hamza

In this episode, I speak to May Salam from Gaza. Although she was able to leave, her family is still trapped in the war, living in a tent on a street in Southern Gaza after their home was leveled by Israeli bombing. Her brother is badly injured, with no access to medical treatment. May has had no contact with her family for three weeks. 

You will hear May tell her story as she has seen and experienced it. We talk about what it was like growing up in Gaza, life under Hamas, surviving Israel's bombing, the blockade, living through five wars in fifteen years, resisting the occupation, the deadly consequences of failed leadership, where your aid money is going, the "fees" that Gazans must pay Egyptian brokers to leave through the Rafah border crossing (prepare to be shocked), and the one thing above all else that keeps May going — her unwavering love and commitment to her family.

Read May's story on her GoFundMe page: https://www.gofundme.com/f/averting-leg-amputation-aid-for-gaza-victims

Every dollar helps.

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Unlicensed Therapist Theme Music: "Juggi's Gonna Kill It" written and performed by Ali A. Rizvi, Ali Noor, Zameer Rizvi, and Ali Hamza

The whole world is talking about Israel and Palestine — but what do people on the ground there really think?

In this episode, I speak with Corey Gil-Shuster, who joins me from Tel Aviv, Israel. Corey has spent more than a decade taking a camcorder (and translators as needed) into the cities and towns in the West Bank and in Israel, asking questions to ordinary people on the street sent to him from those on the other side. He records their answers and posts them unedited to his channel.

The results are often surprising and eye-opening. With over 300,000 subscribers, over a thousand videos, and over 130 million views, Corey’s “Ask an Israeli, Ask a Palestinian” project, or The Ask Project, has become one of the most compelling, riveting, and educational channels online today — and his perspective on the situation is unique and informed in a way that very few commentators today are.

Subscribe to Corey's "The Ask Project" YouTube channel here.

You can also follow Corey on Instagram @gilshuster

My 2014 HuffPost article on the conflict: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/pickin...

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Unlicensed Therapist Theme Music: "Juggi's Gonna Kill It" written and performed by Ali A. Rizvi, Ali Noor, Zameer Rizvi, and Ali Hamza

Is Christian Nationalism the biggest threat to America today? James Carville, political guru and strategist who got Bill Clinton elected president twice, thinks it’s "more dangerous than Al-Qaeda." Mike Johnson, Speaker of the House of Representatives, has said the separation of church and state is a “misnomer.” Congresswoman Lauren Boebert thinks it’s “junk.” And the US Supreme Court itself is insidiously inching towards their premise.

With MAGA evangelicals more enthusiastic than ever about the Second Coming of Donald Trump, it’s time to talk about why 2024 could be one of the most defining years in America’s history.

In this episode of Unlicensed Therapist, we speak to constitutional attorney and widely acclaimed author Andrew Seidel — his books "The Founding Myth: Why Christian Nationalism is Un-American" and "American Crusade: How the Supreme Court is Weaponizing Religious Freedom," are essential reading. We also have with us Seth Andrews, the famous podcaster, speaker, and author of several fantastic books, including the eye-opening “Confessions of a Former Fox News Christian.” We talk about the threat of Christian Nationalism, the future of American democracy, and what needs to be done to save it.

Please like and subscribe on YouTube, and give us a rating on Apple Podcasts or Spotify — it will help us a great deal and we really appreciate your support.

Follow Andrew Seidel at @andrewlseidel everywhere.
Follow Seth Andrews by visiting https://www.sethandrews.com/

Get Andrew's "The Founding Myth" here.
Get Seth's "Confessions of a Former Fox News Christian" here.

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Unlicensed Therapist Theme Music: "Juggi's Gonna Kill It" written and performed by Ali A. Rizvi, Ali Noor, Zameer Rizvi, and Ali Hamza

It isn't just a Christmas book — it's a raucous, fun, biting statement on our world at the end of 2023. Christmas Mubarak!

Author Mookie Spitz (American Jew) and illustrator and artist Rusty Yunusoff (Russian Muslim) talk about their fantastic new book about Santa Claus (North Pole Christian).

But that's not all there is to it. Listen and find out.

Get Super Santa here: https://www.amazon.com/Super-Santa-Rise/dp/B0CH25G4DJ

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Unlicensed Therapist Theme Music: "Juggi's Gonna Kill It" written and performed by Ali A. Rizvi, Ali Noor, Zameer Rizvi, and Ali Hamza

After a killer first episode (thanks to all who watched/listened/shared), we’re on to Episode 2 of Unlicensed Therapist, featuring one of my favorite rising standup comedians, Noor Kidwai. You may have seen Noor in one of his viral Instagram sketches with fellow comics Andrew Oporto and Edworld Kim, all of who perform standup together on their Diversity Hires comedy tour — one of the funniest and most brilliant comedy shows in Toronto right now.

I speak to Noor about everything comedy, particularly his biting and hilarious take (as a person of color) on many of the inanities that permeate our discourse on diversity, equity, and inclusion. We will also talk about what it was like for Noor to open for Nick Offerman and perform alongside Sam Morril and other living comedy legends at the recent Great Outdoors Comedy Festival.

Noor Kidwai on Instagram: @noorkidwai

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Unlicensed Therapist Theme Music: "Juggi's Gonna Kill It" written and performed by Ali A. Rizvi, Ali Noor, Zameer Rizvi, and Ali Hamza

Mookie Spitz is the Jewish-American son of Hungarian Holocaust survivors.

I was born to a Pakistani Muslim family and grew up in Saudi Arabia.

In North America, we're friends. Elsewhere, we may not have been.

In the inaugural episode of Unlicensed Therapist, we'll do more than just talk to each other: we will listen.

Join us as we get into how our backgrounds shaped our views on the Israel-Palestine conflict, the current war between Netanyahu and Hamas, and whether peace can provide justice.

Further reading:
Mookie Spitz on Medium: A Message for American Jews from an American Jew about Israel & Hamas
Ali A. Rizvi's latest on Quillette: You Can Be Pro-Hamas or Pro-Palestinian. You Can't Be Both.
Ali A. Rizvi's seminal 2014 HuffPost Piece, 7 Things to Consider When Choosing Sides in the Middle East Conflict

Unlicensed Therapist Design and Branding: Pakkhee
Unlicensed Therapist Theme Music: "Juggi's Gonna Kill It" written and performed by Ali A. Rizvi, Ali Noor, Zameer Rizvi, and Ali Hamza

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Unlicensed Therapist Design and Branding: Pakkhee
Unlicensed Therapist Theme Music: "Juggi's Gonna Kill It" written and performed by Ali A. Rizvi, Ali Noor, Zameer Rizvi, and Ali Hamza

Kelly Carlin is the only daughter of legendary comedian George Carlin and author of "A Carlin Home Companion." Kelly is an inspirational public speaker, a writer of books and screenplays, radio host, podcaster, and a declared asker of big questions, with a graduate degree in Jungian psychology and a refreshingly unique perspective on life and living. In this episode, we talk about personal healing in these pandemic times, secular spirituality, the role of comedy in the age of wokeness, her life as the daughter of a complex comedic icon, and her powerful new coaching initiative, Women on the Verge, among other things. Check it out.

Check out Women on the Verge here: https://womenonthevergecoaching.com/

Kelly Carlin's website: https://thekellycarlinsite.com/ 

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Unlicensed Therapist Design and Branding: Pakkhee
Unlicensed Therapist Theme Music: "Juggi's Gonna Kill It" written and performed by Ali A. Rizvi, Ali Noor, Zameer Rizvi, and Ali Hamza