Decoder Ring - Truck Nutz (Encore)

Decoder Ring - Truck Nutz (Encore)

Truck Nutz is a brand name for the dangling plastic testicles some people affix to the bumpers or hitches of their vehicles. Also sold as Bulls Balls, Your Nutz, and other brand names, these plastic novelties have a powerful symbolic charge and are often associated with a crass, macho, red state audience. But truck nuts are a surprisingly complicated signifier whose symbolic power is increasingly divorced from their real-world usage.


On this episode, we talk to owners and users of truck nuts, investigate the origins of the accessories, and deconstruct the meaning of these oft-joked-about symbols. We’ll also take a tour of other novelty testicle products, including Bike Balls (testicular bike lights), Gunsticles (plastic testicles for guns), and Neuticles (prosthetic testicles for neutered pets), to better understand the maligned symbolism of truck nuts.


Links and further reading on some of the things we discussed on the show:



This episode was written by Willa Paskin and edited and produced by Benjamin Frisch. Decoder Ring is produced by Katie Shepherd and Max Freedman. Evan Chung is our supervising producer.


If you have any cultural mysteries you want us to decode, email us at DecoderRing@slate.com. Or you can also call us now at our new Decoder Ring hotline at 347-460-7281. We love to hear any and all of your ideas for the show.

Want more Decoder Ring? Subscribe to Slate Plus to unlock exclusive bonus episodes. Plus, you’ll access ad-free listening across all your favorite Slate podcasts. Subscribe now on Apple Podcasts by clicking “Try Free” at the top of the Decoder Ring show page. Or, visit slate.com/decoderplus to get access wherever you listen.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Episoder(2977)

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Sore Loser Edition

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Sore Loser Edition

In this week’s Culture Gabfest, our critics discuss the Nobel Prize for Literature's snub of American writers, Tina Fey's pitch-perfect imitation of Governor Palin, and the lack of interest in the rec...

8 Okt 200828min

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest End of Days Edition

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest End of Days Edition

In this week’s Culture Gabfest, our critics discuss the financial meltdown, a trillion and counting, the ominous death of author David Foster Wallace, and more from that lovable comedy duo, Bill Gates...

24 Sep 200826min

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Resistance is Futile

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Resistance is Futile

In this week’s Culture Gabfest, our critics discuss the dissection of Sarah Palin's personal life in the tabloids, the new Rachel Maddow show on MSNBC and the hyper-quirky PC ad featuring heroes from ...

10 Sep 200831min

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Fine Line Edition

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Fine Line Edition

In this week’s Culture Gabfest, our critics discuss the merits and frivolities of Mad Men, the odds that Tropic Thunder will revive Tom Cruise's career, and the new documentary film, Man On Wire. Hos...

27 Aug 200832min

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Twilight of the Idols Edition

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Twilight of the Idols Edition

In this week's Culture Gabfest, our critics discuss the Beijing Olympics and "The Redeem Team," the too-famous-too-fast Seth Rogen and his new film, Pineapple Express, and the death of comedian Bernie...

14 Aug 200830min

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Monopoly Edition

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Monopoly Edition

In this week's Culture Gabfest, our critics discuss Joss Whedon's new web-only musical show "Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog," Starbucks' abrupt move to shutter a sizable number of its stores in the US...

31 Jul 200832min

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Overblown Edition

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Overblown Edition

In this week's Culture Gabfest, our critics discuss the new Batman movie The Dark Knight, the New Yorker Magazine's cover depicting Barack and Michelle Obama as anti-American Mujahideen, and the myste...

17 Jul 200832min

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Community Standards Edition

Culture Gabfest - Slate: The Culture Gabfest Community Standards Edition

In this week's Culture Gabfest, our critics discuss the re-release of Liz Phair's feminist indie rock masterpiece Exile in Guyville, the media’s semi-hysterical reaction to news of a "pregnancy pact" ...

2 Jul 200832min

Populært innen Underholdning

papaya
harm-og-hegseth
enkel-servering
storefri-med-mikkel-og-herman
tore-og-haralds-podkast
tusvik-tnne
konspirasjonspodden
big-5-med-nils-og-harald-2
topp-3-med-wold-og-fladseth
hovla
ma-pa-behandling-med-morten-ramm
folk-flest-med-linn-og-nils
kjendiscrush-med-sofie-karlstad
nare-venner
vitnemal
gi-meg-alle-detaljene
rss-gammal-maiden
feedback-med-egon-holstad
christine-dancke
singel