EPISODE 111 | Us vs. Them: Antisemitism Goes to School Guest: Scott Shay, president of Chai Mitzvah and author of Conspiracy U Hamas forces swept into Israel on October 7, 2023, committing atrocities and taking hostages. Literally the next day, American student groups were blaming Israel. Protests on campuses began to multiply and today the situation seems out of control and pro-Israel and pro-Palestine groups go at one another while school administrations react heavy-handedly. What's behind all...
May 22, 2024•52 min•Ep. 111
EPISODE 110 | How to Be a Fascist People use the term "Fascist" a lot these days, but do they really know what that means? Fascism is a very specific combination of ideas and goals that occurred within very clear historical and philosophical contexts. This is a look at where Fascism came from, Mussolini's rise to power, and variations and offshoots of the first Fascist ideologies. And while not everyone you don't like is a "Fascist", there are some actual fascists out there, and they are not bei...
May 08, 2024•1 hr•Ep. 110
EPISODE 109 | What's in a Name? The Shakespeare Authorship Debate Guest: Scott Jackson, Mary Irene Ryan Executive Artistic Director of Shakespeare at the University of Notre Dame, current vice president of the Shakespeare Theatre Association (STA) and incoming president, actor, director and Shakespeare scholar William Shakespeare wrote at least 36 plays, 154 sonnets, two narrative poems and a few shorter poems - more than 884,000 words total, more than 1700 of which he invented. But just who was...
Apr 24, 2024•58 min•Ep. 109
EPISODE 108 | Swiftboating Redux: Taylor Swift Derangement Syndrome She's the most successful pop star today, yet some people seem to suffer brain meltdowns when thinking about Taylor Swift. Call it TDSD, Taylor Swift Derangement Syndrome, and it takes hold especially in MAGAmaniacs, Trumpeteers, Trad Chads and broflakes. Tracing the conspirasphere's treatment of Swift along with her career and life, including Kanyegate and the Masters Dispute, shows some interesting connections as TDSD spreads ...
Apr 10, 2024•1 hr•Ep. 108
EPISODE 107 | Traces of Reality: Abstract Art and the CIA (World Is Weird 13) Guest: Mandy Theis, founder and director of the School of Atelier Arts , academic director and professor at the Florence Academy of Art Maybe you've walked into a museum or gallery and seen a big white, blank canvas, or a huge circle, and thought, "So, this is art, eh?". But why is there so much of this abstract stuff around? The answer might be surprising - because the CIA promoted it as part of the Cold War. And then...
Mar 27, 2024•53 min•Ep. 107
EPISODE 106 | Suffer the Children: Pizzagate, Wayfair & the Seeds of QAnon "Without a clear indication of the author's intent, it is difficult or impossible to tell the difference between an expression of sincere extremism and a parody of extremism." In the world of the internet, this is known as Poe’s Law, and it’s especially applicable to the weird narrative Gordian Knot known as Pizzagate. The adage applies not just to how absurd some beliefs are, but also to the arguments made by people ...
Mar 13, 2024•1 hr•Ep. 106
EPISODE 105 | Capitol Assets: Weird DC (Travelogue 4) Guest: Fayge Horesh, co-creator, writer and host of the D Listers of History podcast, and licensed tour guide Washington D.C. is an interesting place and, like many cities, has some oddities. We take a look at some of the things around town that might not be obvious at first glance, like (not-so secret) tunnels, ghost cats, strange clocks, hollow domes, street plans, statues, snipers, protected trees, food trucks and more. Like what we do? Th...
Feb 28, 2024•39 min•Ep. 105
EPISODE 104 | Fatal Attraction: Magnet Woo While we use magnets all the time, most of us don’t know some of the subtleties of magnetic fields and the electromagnetic force. This lack of knowledge is the perfect opening for scam artists to sell unsuspecting folks all kinds of sham cures for illnesses and injuries, opening up a wide world of woo and pseudoscientific narratives. Like what we do? Then buy us a beer or three via our page on Buy Me a Coffee . #ConspiracyClearinghouse #sharingiscaring ...
Feb 14, 2024•51 min•Ep. 104
EPISODE 103 | Down in Bermuda, It’s Easy to Believe: The Devil’s Triangle Back in the 70s, the Bermuda Triangle was all over the place but today, not so much. Whatever happened with that? Did it go away? Was it debunked? Or did the woosphere simply get bored and move on to juicer subjects? A bit of both. Plus, the are lots of other supposed interesting/mysterious/dangerous triangles out there. They do have sharp corners, after all. Like what we do? Then buy us a beer or three via our page on Buy...
Jan 31, 2024•48 min•Ep. 103
EPISODE 102 | Conspiracy Thinking in the Middle East (Because Reasons 10) Guest: Adel Aali, creator and host of the podcasts History Behind News and Unravelling the Middle East Conspiracy theories seem to thrive in the Middle East, but why? Adel Aali takes a look at some of the more common CTs, as well as where they come from and why that region might be primed for conspiracy thinking due to its history. Like what we do? Then buy us a beer or three via our page on Buy Me a Coffee . #ConspiracyCl...
Jan 17, 2024•48 min•Ep. 102
EPISODE 101 | Panic! at the Disco: The Jan. 6 Event (World Is Weird 12) On January 6, 2021 at 12:53 EST, a mass of people overwhelmed police on the west side of the US Capitol Building in Washington DC. At 2:11, a window was broken, and they entered the building. What followed was a bizarre scene, with some happy to just wander around, while others had more active plans. When it was over, 5 people were dead, 138 law enforcement personnel were injured (15 needing hospitalization), and an untold n...
Jan 03, 2024•56 min•Ep. 101
EPISODE 100 | Conspirasphere Rising - A Talk w/Derek Arnold (Because Reasons 9) Guest: Derek Arnold, Senior Instructor at Villanova University, where he teaches a course on The Rhetoric of Conspiracy Theories The modern conspirasphere sort of starts with the assassination of JFK, and events in the two decades that follow help shape a growing trend toward conspiracy thinking in the United States. Mr. Arnold teaches his students all about this, and also offers guidance in how to construct a toolki...
Dec 20, 2023•42 min•Ep. 100
EPISODE 99 | A Bridge Too Far: The Mothman Visits Point Pleasant The strange events of 1966-1967 in and around Point Pleasant, West Virginia gave rise to one of America's most enduring legends - the Mothman. It made the headlines and also the careers of Gray Barker and John Keel. But it was more than just a large winged creature. There were visits from the Men in Black, UFOs aplenty, poltergeists and other high weirdness. Like what we do? Then buy us a beer or three via our page on Buy Me a Coff...
Dec 06, 2023•44 min•Ep. 99
EPISODE 98 | Smoke & Mirrors: Unintentional Dangers and Slow Thinking (Because Reasons 8) Guest: Kent Weishaus, licensed clinical social worker, author of Stop Breaking Down: The Secret to Avoiding Overwhelm and Crack-Up Why are there so many adherents to conspiracy theories these days? What are the mechanisms that encourage people to latch onto a particular narrative? We are modern creatures with out-dated brains. Clinical social worker (and former TV guy) Kent Weishaus talks about various ...
Nov 22, 2023•50 min•Ep. 98
EPISODE 97 | Üst akıl: Totally Turkey Turkey is a place with a complex history and a diverse population, which can lead to a sense of uncertainty and instability. Conspiracy theories that offer simple explanations for complex events and interactions, seem to take hold easily there, especially lately. This can make it difficult for people to distinguish between reliable information and propaganda and can contribute to the spread of false information and conspiracy theories. All told, Turkey seems...
Nov 08, 2023•43 min•Ep. 97
EPISODE 96 | Inside Out: Neuroscience & Memory (Because Reasons 7) Guest: Dr. Gary Simonds, neurosurgeon, professor and author of Death's Pale Flag What happens when a lauded neurosurgeon starts thinking about ghosts and the scientific approach to the paranormal? You get a novel like Death's Pale Flag . This is the fictional work by Gary R. Simonds, who spends a lot of his time thinking about the brain, how it works, how it doesn't work, and areas that still need to be explored with open min...
Oct 25, 2023•48 min•Ep. 96
EPSIODE 95 | Bodyguard of Lies: The Ghost Army & Wartime Deception (World Is Weird 11) More than 100 million soldiers took part in WWII, but not all of them were fighting with guns. There was obviously a lot of administration and infrastructure to deal with, there were codebreakers and spies, and there were even some who engaged in secret deception to trick the enemy. This episode is not abouts ghosts, but rather the Ghost Army. No, not a battalion of unstoppable undead like Aragorn brings w...
Oct 11, 2023•48 min•Ep. 95
EPISODE 94 | Peek-A-Boo: Project Star Gate The US military heard the Soviets were working on creating psychic spies, so they started their own program, which would, after many name changes, get dubbed Project Star Gate. This would attract cranks and flim-flammers of all kinds over its 25 year run, resulting in not much useful intel but inspiring some participants to make a number of outlandish claims and starting various conspiracy theories about remote viewing techniques. Like what we do? Then ...
Sep 27, 2023•54 min•Ep. 94
EPISODE 93 | From Sea to Sea: More Canada Mysteries & Histories Guest: Nile Séguin, comedian, actor, writer, French-Canadian Canada, northern neighbor to the United States, a sovereign nation that’s only party sovereign, second largest country in the world by size but 37th by population. It’s a place filled with fairly reasonable people, lots of trees and many mysteries. Like what we do? Then buy us a beer or three via our page on Buy Me a Coffee . #ConspiracyClearinghouse #sharingiscaring #...
Sep 13, 2023•50 min•Ep. 93
EPISODE 92 | Octopus's Garden: Dan Casolaro, INSLAW & Death (WIW 10) A number of unusual deaths, law enforcement software, mob families, casinos, drug running, arms dealing, and a possible nationwide, possible international, conspiracy known as the Octopus – this wild and complicated tale reads like a whole series of thriller novels and is further proof that the world is weird indeed. Like what we do? Then buy us a beer or three via our page on Buy Me a Coffee . #ConspiracyClearinghouse #sha...
Aug 30, 2023•55 min•Ep. 92
EPSIODE 91 | Tartaria Sauce : The Great Tartarian Empire and 15-Minute Cities One day, I wondered if there were any conspiracy theories about architecture, which is something I am quite keen on, so I fired up the laptop and did a Google search, and sure enough, there is. One. One that’s weird and funny and just a little bit sad. While researching this, a new conspiracy pops up on the interwebs, this time about urban planning, another subject I‘m very interested in. And so, between the Tartarian ...
Aug 16, 2023•48 min•Ep. 91
EPISODE 90 | Oh, Canada! The Great White North, the Just Society - Canada is a cold place filled with reasonable people. For the most part. But not even they are immune to the pull of the conspirasphere, and have hatched some wacky ideas all their own. This episode is by request of a Canadian fan of the podcast. So enjoy! Like what we do? Then buy us a beer or three via our page on Buy Me a Coffee . #ConspiracyClearinghouse #sharingiscaring #donations #support #buymeacoffee You can also SUBSCRIB...
Aug 02, 2023•45 min•Ep. 90
EPISODE 89 | JBS BS: The John Birch Society History is full of those who became tyrants or aspired to become one. Even in a country like the United States in the fairly enlightened 20th century, there were those who thought that, well, actually, their vision of how things should be was the best one, and that they should probably just be in charge. And if you opposed them, they said all sorts of disagreeable things about you. And sometimes they just outright lied. Welcome to the John Birch Societ...
Jul 19, 2023•36 min•Ep. 89
EPISODE 88 | Weird AI Yankovic (Not-So-Scary AI Futures) Guest: Josh Bachynski, AI consultant AI is here and it's here to stay. And despite all the hand wringing and doom-and-gloom predictions, the AI-powered future actually looks pretty bright. AI is already being used in a number of applications, and more are on the way. Josh Bachynski and I talk about the inherent ethics of intelligence; AI/robot bees, burgers and beers; AI's predictive capabilities, AI religions, the Singularity and the most...
Jul 05, 2023•57 min•Ep. 88
EPISODE 87 | CSI: Conspiracy: Three Cold Cases (World Is Weird 9) True crime is a popular genre, mainly because people love mysteries. Here are three cases from the conspiracy world that fit the bill, from three different decades and three different countries, where the weird and the unexplained meet head on. We’ll look at the Lead Masks Case from Brazil, the UK’s Zigmund Adamski case (sometimes called the first UFO murder), and the Yuba County Five, also known as “America’s Dyatlov”. Like what ...
Jun 21, 2023•47 min•Ep. 87
EPISODE 86 | The Skynet Matrix: AI Goes Rogue Guest: Josh Bachynski, AI thought leader and programmer AI seems to be everywhere, and plenty of folks have freaked out about it over the years. AI expert Josh Bachynski talks about doomsday scenarios, their likelihood and what's probably coming in the near future. Like what we do? Then buy us a beer or three via our page on Buy Me a Coffee . #ConspiracyClearinghouse #sharingiscaring #donations #support #buymeacoffee You can also SUBSCRIBE to this po...
Jun 07, 2023•49 min•Ep. 86
EPSIODE 85 | Project Pegasus: Mars and Beyond! The United States has secret bases on Mars, which they may or may not share with aliens. This base is there, but also not there, because it might only exist in the future, accessible using time travel technology, or maybe in a bubble universe. People, such as a young Barack Obama, are sent to this base to perform various tasks, like fighting a vast war in space. This is a huge secret, only now coming to light thanks to a few brave "whistleblowers". ...
May 24, 2023•52 min•Ep. 85
EPISODE 84 | Sound Advice: A440 vs. A432 Guest: Andrew Currie, Owner & Lead Sound Engineer of Mechanizer Studios Today, most musicians use 440Hz as the reference pitch for orchestras, but they use to use all sorts of different ones, especially 432Hz. Wow, that’s interesting, I guess. But even something as seemingly innocuous as international musical pitch standards can be fair game for the conspirasphere. Sure, maybe the switch happened because of the physical properties of musical instrumen...
May 10, 2023•44 min•Ep. 84
EPISODE 83 | Play Ball!: Sportspiracies Guest: Mark Fitzhenry, EFL teacher in Prague, co-founder of the Imperfectionists improv group Sport seems to almost lend itself to rumor, innuendo and conspiracy thinking with accusations of wrongdoing, curses that plague a team for years and even the occasional crossover of the geopolitical and athletic worlds. Like what we do? Then buy us a beer or three via our page on Buy Me a Coffee . #ConspiracyClearinghouse #sharingiscaring #donations #support #buym...
Apr 26, 2023•48 min•Ep. 83
EPISODE 82 | Reptiles of the Mind: The Reptilian Conspiracy (Big 'Uns 7) The conspirasphere thrives on the idea that things are not what they seem to be on the surface. And for some, the very people around us are not what they seem. Why, they might not even be human, at all. Some of the supposed “people” you see are actually shapeshifting aliens, possibly from somewhere in Orion, maybe from inside the hollow earth. In their true form, they are humanoid reptiles, and they thrive on pain and suffe...
Apr 12, 2023•58 min•Ep. 82
