1056: Placebo & Nocebo Effects | Skeptical Sunday

Nathan Paul Southern (@NathanPSouthern) and Lindsey Kennedy (@LindsAKennedy) are investigative journalists working to bring awareness to the growing issue of cyber-slavery in Southeast Asia facilitated by Chinese triads with links to local government and law enforcement agencies. What We Discuss with Nathan Paul Southern and Lindsey Kennedy: Aided by corrupt government and law enforcement agencies, organized criminals hold thousands of people in modern-day slavery in Southeast Asia, forcing them to run cyber-scams worldwide. Victims are lured by promises of lucrative online trading jobs, and abducted against their will when they arrive — for a minimum of six months — to work as cyber-slaves. These captives are beaten, electrocuted, and tortured if they try to escape or don't make enough money. Suicides, with victims jumping from balconies to their death, have become commonplace. The Cambodian Prime Minister's nephew has been implicated in the human trafficking trade, which is why embassies have been ignored when they plead for intervention. What those of us in the Western world can do to fight back against these organized crime groups and ensure their dirty deeds can no longer be done dirt cheap enough to turn a profit. And much more... Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/833 This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: jordanharbinger.com/deals Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course! Like this show? Please leave us a review here — even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

9 Touko 20231h 16min

Why are weddings so expensive — and how does the wedding industry sucker us into thinking they have to be? This week on Skeptical Sunday, comedian Michael Regilio joins Jordan to propose the facts on what you’re really getting with a wedding and explore alternatives that won't test the durability of a new marriage with massive debt from day one. On This Week's Skeptical Sunday: The pressure to have an extravagant wedding can sometimes lead to couples investing more in the one-day festivities than in the hard work that goes into the lifelong commitment of a successful marriage. Weddings are becoming increasingly expensive, and the wedding industry is constantly churning out new ways to overcharge its clientele. "Age-old" wedding traditions like diamond rings aren't rooted in history, but in clever marketing schemes that exploit couples' desires for a perfect wedding. Evidence suggests that the more money a couple spends on a wedding, the less likely they are to stay together. Weddings don't have to break the bank — eloping or planning a backyard ceremony are affordable and creative alternatives to traditional weddings. Connect with Jordan on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. If you have something you'd like us to tackle here on Skeptical Sunday, drop Jordan a line at jordan@jordanharbinger.com and let him know! Connect with Michael at his website, Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube, and make sure to check out the Michael Regilio Plagues Well With Others podcast here or wherever you enjoy listening to fine podcasts! Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/832  This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: jordanharbinger.com/deals  Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course!  Like this show? Please leave us a review here — even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

7 Touko 20231h 2min

Gabe regales us with a tale of his disappearing housecat Drake, the frantic four days it took to find him, and the life-changing lessons learned along the way. Welcome to Feedback Friday! And in case you didn't already know it, Jordan Harbinger (@JordanHarbinger) and Gabriel Mizrahi (@GabeMizrahi) banter and take your comments and questions for Feedback Friday right here every week! If you want us to answer your question, register your feedback, or tell your story on one of our upcoming weekly Feedback Friday episodes, drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com. Now let's dive in! On This Week's Feedback Friday, We Discuss: It was no trivial purr-suit when an unlicensed trapper named Gabe went on a confounding quest to rescue his missing cat. But what life-changing lessons did he learn along the way? (If cat stories are not your thing and you want to skip Gabe's gripping tale of woeful loss and profound recovery, you can fast forward to 29:04!)  You've come to realize that many of your past professional and personal relationships were built on transactional and inauthentic pretenses. Now that you're committed to being genuine to others as well as yourself, is it possible to request a do-over? You'd like to have a closer relationship with your grandchildren, but your daughter-in-law's anger issues and cultural differences seem to have landed you perpetually on her bad side. What can you do to smooth things over? As a single lesbian fresh out of a 10-year relationship, you're not ready to become a young first-timer's one-and-only. Should you get over yourself and just go for it, or let her go before you break her heart? A tech recruiter offers more detailed advice to our listener from episode 800 who is so frustrated with their job search that it's affecting their mental health. Have any questions, comments, or stories you'd like to share with us? Drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com! Connect with Jordan on Twitter at @JordanHarbinger and Instagram at @jordanharbinger. Connect with Gabriel on Twitter at @GabeMizrahi. Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/831  This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: jordanharbinger.com/deals  Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course!  Like this show? Please leave us a review here — even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter...See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

5 Touko 20231h 10min

Terry Crews (@terrycrews) is a beloved cinema and television star, furniture designer, artist, philanthropist, activist, former NFL player, and author. His most recent book is Tough: My Journey to True Power. What We Discuss with Terry Crews: How Terry prioritizes mental and physical health through exercise, nutrition, and rest. What Terry has learned about the power of forgiveness and how it can help to break cycles of anger and resentment — on an individual and societal level. How staying true to ourselves and pursuing what we love — even in the face of risking failure or criticism — allows us to make a positive impact on ourselves as well as the world. Terry's views on personal accountability as a crucial component of growth and change, and how taking responsibility for our actions allows us to become the best versions of ourselves. The importance of empathy and understanding toward people with different perspectives and backgrounds, and the need to engage in respectful dialogue while seeking common values. And much more... Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/830 This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: jordanharbinger.com/deals Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course! Like this show? Please leave us a review here — even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

2 Touko 20231h 4min

How might enjoying our favorite sports and supporting our most cherished teams and athletes make us accomplices in the world's most heinous atrocities ever committed? Award-winning journalist and podcaster Andrew Gold joins us for this Skeptical Sunday to explore the PR tactic of sportswashing, in which authoritarian regimes use sports to improve their image on the world stage. (And don't worry, David C. Smalley fans! David will return soon for future installments of Skeptical Sunday!) On This Week's Skeptical Sunday, We Discuss: Sportswashing is a PR tactic used by countries with poor human rights records to improve their image and legitimize their atrocities through sports. Western countries and their businesses are complicit in sportswashing due to the financial incentives they receive. Despite the harm caused by sportswashing, it is difficult to stop due to the lack of accountability and the willingness of individuals and organizations to participate. Golfers have been divided over whether to participate in Saudi Arabia's LIV golf invitation series, leading to a civil war in the sport. Countries with questionable human rights records are increasingly buying sports clubs and sponsoring sports teams, making it important to be aware of where and how we consume sports. Connect with Jordan on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. If you have something you'd like us to tackle here on Skeptical Sunday, drop Jordan a line at jordan@jordanharbinger.com and let him know! Connect with Andrew on Twitter and Instagram, and check out On the Edge with Andrew Gold here or wherever you enjoy listening to fine podcasts! Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/829 This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: jordanharbinger.com/deals Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course! Like this show? Please leave us a review here — even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

30 Huhti 202345min

After building a successful career and family, you've come to realize you'd rather spend your remaining days in the company of men half your age rather than with your wife of 25 years. Now that it's time to retire, should you stay tepidly wed or chase all the young dudes, instead? We'll explore this and more here on Feedback Friday! And in case you didn't already know it, Jordan Harbinger (@JordanHarbinger) and Gabriel Mizrahi (@GabeMizrahi) banter and take your comments and questions for Feedback Friday right here every week! If you want us to answer your question, register your feedback, or tell your story on one of our upcoming weekly Feedback Friday episodes, drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com. Now let's dive in! On This Week's Feedback Friday, We Discuss: After building a successful career and family, you've come to realize you'd rather spend your remaining days in the company of men half your age rather than with your wife of 25 years. Now that it's time to retire, should you stay tepidly wed or chase all the young dudes, instead? Every time you land a career, some global economic catastrophe seems to send you in search of a new one. How can you future-proof yourself against financial displacement if your next chosen field once again goes kaput? How can you resolve a pet custody dispute with an unreasonable ex when your state doesn't have laws to definitively settle such matters? Since being preemptively stigmatized as a potential child molester by your brother-in-law's vindictive ex-wife, you've gone from being an uncle who takes the kids to the zoo and plays board games to the man who leaves the room when your niece enters. How do you handle this situation without punishing your daughter and niece — or running the risk of being baselessly accused of the unthinkable? You've discovered that your neighbors can hear your Zoom therapy sessions through the paper-thin wall between apartments. Should you talk to them about it? Have any questions, comments, or stories you'd like to share with us? Drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com! Connect with Jordan on Twitter at @JordanHarbinger and Instagram at @jordanharbinger. Connect with Gabriel on Twitter at @GabeMizrahi. Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/828 This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: jordanharbinger.com/deals Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

28 Huhti 202359min

Paul Rosolie (@PaulRosolie) is a conservationist, a filmmaker, the director of JungleKeepers and Tamandua Expeditions, and the author of Mother of God: An Extraordinary Journey into the Uncharted Tributaries of the Western Amazon. What We Discuss with Paul Rosolie: How Paul Rosolie and his JungleKeepers team showcase sustainable and profitable alternatives to illegal logging and mining for locals — and their descendants — to prosper. Why many uncontacted tribes in the Amazon react to intrusion by outsiders with extreme violence — even when the outsiders demonstrate the best of intentions. How invasive and inefficient gold mining by armed, organized criminals from places as far away as Russia is turning once lush rainforests into mercury-poisoned wastelands. Efforts being made to harness medicinal compounds unique to the Amazon — and the knowledge to use them — and prevent them from disappearing for good. Even if you need to slim down for beach season, Paul doesn't recommend getting lost in the unforgiving Amazon — where he shed a pound a day simply trying to survive before finding his way back to civilization. And much more... Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/827 This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: jordanharbinger.com/deals Sign up for Six-Minute Networking — our free networking and relationship development mini course — at jordanharbinger.com/course! Like this show? Please leave us a review here — even one sentence helps! Consider including your Twitter handle so we can thank you personally!See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

25 Huhti 20231h 35min

You've come to the conclusion that shoplifting is more than just a savvy life hack for fabulous savings — it also fills you with a rush that makes you feel truly alive. But are the thrill and the thrift of thievery worth their risks when (not if) you inevitably get caught? What can you do when produce pilfering has become an irresistible compulsion? We'll look into this and more here on Feedback Friday! And in case you didn't already know it, Jordan Harbinger (@JordanHarbinger) and Gabriel Mizrahi (@GabeMizrahi) banter and take your comments and questions for Feedback Friday right here every week! If you want us to answer your question, register your feedback, or tell your story on one of our upcoming weekly Feedback Friday episodes, drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com. Now let's dive in! On This Week's Feedback Friday, We Discuss: Are the thrill and the thrift of grocery thievery worth their risks when (not if) you inevitably get caught? And how can you stop when shoplifting has become an irresistible compulsion? [Thanks to clinical psychologist and addiction specialist Dr. Rubin Khoddam for helping us with this one!] Is overemployment — simultaneously holding down more than one full-time job — somehow unethical even if you complete the work required and still have time for your family? After an expensive divorce from a financially clueless ex, you wonder if the equally clueless but exponentially more kind, wonderful, and emotionally supportive handyman you're with now deserves a chance — even though it'll once again put a strain on the resources you've worked so hard to stabilize? When you're already planning on shifting out of your current industry, is it worth trying to make the dynamic with your obnoxious direct manager more tolerable? Or should you just work on shifting out of your industry sooner than anticipated? Why are we so harsh on the Chinese Communist Party when America and capitalism have problems worth investigating, too? Have any questions, comments, or stories you'd like to share with us? Drop us a line at friday@jordanharbinger.com! Connect with Jordan on Twitter at @JordanHarbinger and Instagram at @jordanharbinger. Connect with Gabriel on Twitter at @GabeMizrahi. Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/826 This Episode Is Brought To You By Our Fine Sponsors: jordanharbinger.com/deals Sign up for Six-Minute Networking...See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

21 Huhti 202356min