Anyone Who Complains Is Called a Nazi

Comedian and podcaster Joe Rogan targeted topics like COVID vaccines and trans people during his latest comedy special.

Rogan’s new special, “Burn the Boats,” premiered live on Netflix on Saturday night. It amplified some of the controversial views he’s shared before on his podcast. However, he also joked about his own influence on culture.

“That might be misinformation,” he quipped early in the show. “Don’t say you heard it from me, because I am known for that stuff.”

Rogan expressed his skepticism about COVID vaccines early in the special.

“COVID was just so strange,” he commented. “And we lost a lot of people during COVID, and most of them are still alive. There are many people I don’t associate with anymore. Before COVID, I would have said that vaccines are the most important invention in human history. After COVID, I’m like, ‘I don’t think we went to the moon. I think Michelle Obama’s got a dick. I think Pizzagate is real. I think there are direct energy weapons in Antarctica.’ I’m just kidding — I don’t think Michelle Obama’s got a dick, but I believe all that other stuff.”

Later, Rogan addressed the backlash from discussions about COVID vaccines on his podcast, wondering aloud, “If you’re getting your vaccine information from me, is that really my fault?”

Elsewhere in the special, he touched on topics like trans people, following the comedic footsteps of Dave Chappelle and Ricky Gervais. Both comedians have faced criticism for their humor on this topic. Rogan started with jokes about “pregnant men” and shared his view that acceptance of trans people has moved too quickly in American society.

“I’m open-minded,” he said. “I just want to know what happened. It’s almost like a pervert wizard waved a magic spell on the whole world. ‘With a wave of this wand, you can walk into the women’s locker room with a hard cock, and anybody who complains is a Nazi, Abracadabra!’ And it just works! Everyone accepts this as the new reality, and it’s so weird.”

Rogan eventually turned to gay men, saying, “I don’t hate anybody. I love everyone. And I love gay men. But I think about gay men the same way I think about mountain lions: I’m happy they’re real, but I don’t want to be surrounded by them. They’re a bunch of dudes who fuck dudes. I don’t like my chances, okay? They’re not unicorns — they’re just men who screw men. And every man who’s ever lived is a shifty cum salesman, 100%. Especially the ones who say they’re not.”

“Burn the Boats” was recorded live at the Majestic Theatre in San Antonio. It is Rogan’s first comedy special in six years, with his last one being 2018’s “Strange Times.” This marks his third consecutive special debuting on Netflix, a collaboration that began with 2016’s “Triggered.”

Netflix has been developing high-profile live comedy events in the past year and a half. These include Chris Rock’s 2023 stand-up special “Selective Outrage,” John Mulaney’s recent talk show “Everybody’s in LA,” and May’s “The Roast of Tom Brady.”