January 15, 2020

Campaigning for the 2020 Presidency – John McAfee on Christopher Lochhead’s Follow Your Different

Check out the Christopher Lochhead Follow Your Different Episode Page & Show Notes

Back in the 1980s and ‘90s, Silicon Valley was a hotbed of dreams and ideas. Today, however, it’s much, much different.
- “Everyone you met in your circle did something or showed you something which opened your mind to the potential of digital technology. And trust me, that’s not there anymore.” – John McAfee
Steve Jobs only bathed once a month because he was so busy working
Larry Ellison was a womanizer
Although running, John doesn’t care who gets elected as the next President because it doesn’t change anything for the average American
- “It doesn’t matter who you elect President… Thank God it doesn’t ’cause if it did, we would be f*cked. Look at who we vote for.” – John McAfee

John McAfee (@officialmcafee) is a British-American computer programmer and businessman. He founded the software company McAfee in 1987 and ran it until 1994,
- John is currently a 2020 U.S Presidential candidate
Host – Christopher Lochhead (@lochhead)

Back in the 1980s and ‘90s, Silicon Valley was a hotbed of dreams and ideas
- “It was a time of open exchange. No one kept anything close to their breast… You can’t get rich by hiding what you know.” – John McAfee
🎧 John describes the old Silicon Valley as “heaven”
- He’s also candid that he doesn’t know anything about the area now, as he left it over 25 years ago
  - “Everyone you met in your circle did something or showed you something which opened your mind to the potential of digital technology. And trust me, that’s not there anymore.” – John McAfee

🎧 “Steve Jobs, as an example, never f***ing bathed, not to my knowledge. I met him at a party once and I could smell him across the room. That was just his thing; he did not have f***ing time to take a bath. – John McAfee
- 🎧 Similarly, John worked 18 hours a day, 7 days a week for 2 years
  - Why? – “Not because I had to, but because I f*ckin’ loved it. I love what I was doing.“
John also knew Larry Ellison, whom he calls him a “brilliant programmer,” but says he had absolutely no social graces
- At the time of being the third richest man in the world, Larry once went on a dating show: “Larry was not looking for a wife, he was just looking to f*ck ten women a day’ – John McAfee

John, who’s running as a Libertarian, is a 2020 U.S Presidential candidate – this is the second time he’s entering the race
John believes John F. Kennedy was shot for trying to dismantle the CIA
- (The CIA was McAfee’s largest customer)
- John also believes the CIA lied to the President and Congress about Iraq having nuclear weapons
  - Additionally, John believes the CIA often withholds information from the President (so that the President acts in the best interest of the agency)
🎧 John doesn’t care who gets elected as the next President because it doesn’t change anything for the average American
- “It doesn’t matter who you elect President… Thank God it doesn’t ’cause if it did, we would be f*cked. Look at who we vote for.” – John McAfee
- Presidents today don’t have the interests of Americans at heart – they’re simply power-hungry and are willing to spend tens of millions of dollars to get elected

John McAfee almost did a deal with Kim Dotcom, but withdrew the idea after Nolan Bushnell mentioned that Kim was wanted by the U.S. government and any connection could land McAfee in legal trouble
- Kim wasn’t happy about this – the two have a rocky relationship to this day
Mentioned above, John was close friends with Nolan Bushnell, one of the founders of Atari and Chuck E. Cheese
- Fun facts:
  - The word “Atari” means “check” in the game of Go
  - Japanese military dictators (AKA Shōguns) would often play Go instead of going to war to solve disagreements
    - “If you can beat somebody in the game of Go, well, you can sure as hell beat them on the battlefield” – John McAfee