Bad Blood, Part I: The Factor VIII Scandal

The small town of Circleville, Ohio is, in most respects, a normal place. It has all the usual trappings of a small community: churches, grocery stores... and a few skeletons in the figurative closet. Back in the 1970s, it was terrorized by a series of strange, anonymous letters threatening to expose some of the town's most scandalous secrets. In today's episode, Ben and Matt dive into the mystery of the Circleville letters -- a mystery that remains, to some, unsolved in the modern day. They don’t want you to read our book. They don’t want you to see us on tour.They don't want you to read our book.: https://static.macmillan.com/static/fib/stuff-you-should-read/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

30 Sep 202255min

How many governments has the US overthrown? In today's special episode, we're sharing an excerpt from our upcoming Stuff They Don't Want You To Know audiobook. They don’t want you to read our book. They don’t want you to see us on tour.They don't want you to read our book.: https://static.macmillan.com/static/fib/stuff-you-should-read/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

29 Sep 20221h 1min

In the wake of a horrific civil war, El Salvador found itself confronted with enormously pervasive, deadly gang activity -- it seemed the official law enforcement channels were often incapable of fighting back against the flood of crime. Until, that is, a new organization came out of the shadows -- unaccountable to authorities, unstoppable, and brutal. Today's question: What is La Sombra Negra? They don’t want you to read our book. They don’t want you to see us on tour.They don't want you to read our book.: https://static.macmillan.com/static/fib/stuff-you-should-read/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

29 Sep 20221h 4min

For centuries self-assured academics believed Troy was a mythological city -- until, that is, the ruins were discovered. Over the span of history, the human species has lost people, cities and entire civilizations. Occasionally, governments don't want these lost empires to be found. So what happens when a controversial linguist claims to discover an ancient people spanning Iran to Southern China? They don’t want you to read our book. They don’t want you to see us on tour.They don't want you to read our book.: https://static.macmillan.com/static/fib/stuff-you-should-read/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

27 Sep 202231min

The story began, officially, in 2017 -- multiple US government employees stationed abroad began reporting eerily similar symptoms, ranging from mild discomfort to intense headaches and debilitating ringing in the ears. Soon this became known as "Havana Syndrome." So what, exactly, is it? This question has fascinated Ben, Matt and Noel almost as much as today's special guest, Jack O'Brien. In today's episode, the guys team up to separate fact from fiction in this strange, ongoing saga. (Bonus: We quiz Jack on conspiracies at the end). They don’t want you to read our book. They don’t want you to see us on tour.They don't want you to read our book.: https://static.macmillan.com/static/fib/stuff-you-should-read/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

26 Sep 20221h 17min

A conman in Kansas has just been sent to prison for a long series of illegal autopsy schemes. Self-appointed technocrats float the idea of poor people functioning as NPCs online. The Pentagon, in a stunning damage control initiative, pledges to conduct a 'sweeping review' of their own, ongoing psyop activities -- spoiler, this last story affects you directly. All this and more in this week's Strange News. They don’t want you to read our book. They don’t want you to see us on tour.They don't want you to read our book.: https://static.macmillan.com/static/fib/stuff-you-should-read/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

26 Sep 202258min

Seven shares his inside experience working in the space industry. Alice writes to explain the tricky issue of translation applied to the Quran. Tyler points out the ocean is littered with shipwrecks... and there may be dangerous consequences for this in the future. We end the whole thing with Humorous Harry's handmade, immensely groan-worthy jokes. All this and more in this week's listener mail segment. They don’t want you to read our book. They don’t want you to see us on tour.They don't want you to read our book.: https://static.macmillan.com/static/fib/stuff-you-should-read/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

22 Sep 202236min

Have you ever encountered a place with an inexplicable bad vibe? Do you believe events of the past can leave an intangible mark affecting the present? In some cases, people combat these concerns through spiritually-based cleansing rituals -- but there's more to the story. They don’t want you to read our book. They don’t want you to see us on tour.They don't want you to read our book.: https://static.macmillan.com/static/fib/stuff-you-should-read/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

21 Sep 20221h 1min