267: Epstein Never Died

He built a lucrative seminar empire in the 80s, owned an Italian Villa, founded a “spiritual university,” and travelled the world with a harem of handsome young initiates. Roger Hinkins claimed to be inhabited by another consciousness that he called “John the Beloved” and the “Mystical Traveller,” which taught the secrets of out-of-body experiences. As he copied those teachings from elsewhere, his lies eventually caught up with him. But he told his loyal followers that critics and defectors were infected with an infectious demonic energy called “The Red Monk.” For this self-contained installment of his popular Roots of Conspirituality series, Julian tells the fascinating story the Movement for Spiritual Inner Awareness, and how its leader fooled devotees into thinking he was clairvoyant. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

23 Juni 6min

What dangers does an RFK Jr HHS pose to Americans, really? Derek dives into science writer's Laurie Garrett's work, who spoke to the dangers we're facing today in 1994—and who has raised an alarm about the consequences of destroying public health ever since. Show Notes The Coming Plague — Laurie Garrett Betrayal of Trust — Laurie Garrett Laurie Garrett on This Week in Virology Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

21 Juni 37min

takeover—legacy media and Democratic strategists have the same question on their lips: What is going on with young men? Though Kamala Harris won the overall 18- to 29-year-old demographic, Trump improved his share by 9 points. Men in this age group voted for Trump by 16% more than women did. What explains this? Perhaps this is due to the right inflaming the anxieties and resentments of young men online. Red-pilled, hyper-masculine, anti-woke conspiracy influencers are filling the gap created by the “meaning crisis.” Maybe the left needs its own Joe Rogan!  Not to worry: top political consultants Ilyse Hogue and John Della Volpe have pitched a new research initiative to the Democratic Party donor class.  Their response, the widely derided SAM (Speaking with American Men), comes with a proposed $20M budget. No cap, bro, they'll low-key give center-left corporate politics the rizz it needs to slay the MAGA simps and cape for democracy. Politico: Dems set out to study young men RS: Dems $20M Plan to Win Young Men Less Engaged Voters Were Key To Trump’s Victory Kamala Underperformed with Three Demographics Nation: What Caused Dems No-Show Problem Cooke Report: A Comprehensive Analysis on Why Harris Lost Do Not Split: An Illuminating Look at Hong Kong’s Pro-Democracy Uprising - Human Rights First Show Notes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

19 Juni 1h

In October 2020, three contrarian medical professionals published The Great Barrington Declaration to great applause by the pro-business, anti-closure crowd. One of them, Jay Bhattacharya, now runs the NIH. Things are not going well under his watch. Last week, he was grilled in front of Congress about the $18B in proposed cuts to NIH funding. This happened a day after over 300 people under his guard published The Bethesda Declaration, a document filled with issues occurring under Bhattacharya's leadership. Derek discusses this new declaration and listens in on the Congressional hearing. The Bethesda Declaration An Uproar at the NIH The Disappearing Funds for Chronic Diseases Show Notes Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

16 Juni 7min

Cable travel channels are filled with haunted houses and other paranormal activity, beyond History Channel’s Ancient Aliens and cryptozoology content. The more radicalized Gaia TV has close to a million paid subscribers gobbling up content about yoga, meditation, and psychedelic consciousness alongside accounts of inter-dimensional cryptids, Q-adjacent vampire reptilians, and channeled messages from benevolent ETs. Julian’s talk with Pulitzer-nominated journalist Matt Hongoltz-Hetling about his new book, The Ghost Lab, How Bigfoot Hunters, Mediums, and Alien Enthusiasts are Wrecking Science. In it, he explores the history of ghost hunting and asks if failing trust in educational, religious, and government institutions is fueling a burgeoning obsession with the paranormal. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

14 Juni 40min

From 1999-2002, VH1 ran a show called “Where Are They Now?” The irregularly produced series wondered aloud what happened to former cultural icons like eighties hair metal bands, kid actors, and one-hit wonders. While some people remained surprisingly relevant, most were confined to, at best, appearing at VFWs and regional summer festivals in parking lots or, tragically, gripped by an addiction and dreams of a better time that they couldn’t make last.  Two years ago this month our book, Conspirituality, was published. We called one section Rogue’s Gallery to highlight a range of figures we’ve covered on the podcast. One of those chapters was dedicated to a man named Robert F Kennedy, Jr—don’t say we didn’t warn you. How about the other nine? In our own version of “Where Are They Now,” we’re going to turn back the clock and revisit those other nine chapters. We’ll do it over three episodes in the coming weeks. This week, we begin with famed women’s health expert turned harp-playing conspiracy peddler, Christiane Northrup; self-proclaimed philosopher king, Charles Eisenstein; and former model turned middling new age filmmaker turned anti-vax documentarian Mikki Willis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

12 Juni 1h 1min

Matthew continues the Antifascist Woodshed series with a two-part analysis of an extraordinary cultural event: rebellions within rebellions—or how a ragtag band of writers and worldbuilders Trojan-horsed an antifascist masterpiece into the Empire of streaming content. Seven chapters:  (This past Saturday, main feed:) Space Wizards or Antifascism? Star Wars Culture Wars A Post-Fragmentary Left (Today:) Hope and Love   Tony Gilroy’s Antifascist Field Manual The Used Future Antifascist Parents Are Better than Jedi Parents NB: There will be spoilers for Andor! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

9 Juni 6min

Matthew continues the Antifascist Woodshed series with a two-part analysis of an extraordinary cultural event: rebellions within rebellions—or how a ragtag band of writers and worldbuilders Trojan-horsed an antifascist masterpiece into the Empire of streaming content. Seven chapters:  Space Wizards or Antifascism? Star Wars Culture Wars A Post-Fragmentary Left (Monday on Patreon:) Hope and Love   Tony Gilroy’s Antifascist Field Manual The Used Future Antifascist Parents Are Better than Jedi Parents NB: There will be spoilers for Andor! Show Notes The Mythology of Star Wars with George Lucas and Bill Moyers Special Interview: Nostalgia for the Superego (w/Sam Binkley) — Conspirituality  Movie Review – THX 1138: The George Lucas Director's Cut – A Sci-Fi Geek Looks at George Lucas' First Film 8 women accuse screenwriter Max Landis of sexual, emotional abuse - National | Globalnews.ca 'Star Wars' Actress Amandla Stenberg's 'White People' Remark Sparks Fury - Newsweek  'The Acolyte' Star Amandla Stenberg Cracks Up at 'Gayest Star Wars' Moniker: It's 'So Gay Already!' | Video  Amandla Stenberg Slams Anti-‘Woke’ Attacks And ‘Intolerable Racism’ Over ‘The Acolyte’  Sorry, haters, Star Wars: The Force Awakens’ new characters more than make up for the movie’s sins | Vox Star Wars: The Bad Batch Season 2 - Official 'Omega & Tech' Clip (2023) The Bad Batch: Tech’s death and the neurodivergent community Why Our Autism Community Loves Star Wars - Kerry Magro Virtue Hoarders and the Rejection of Liberalism (w/ Catherine Liu) | The Chris Hedges Report  The problem with identity politics | Counterfire Transcript: Andor: Tony Gilroy on Oppressive Regimes and Popular Revolutions - The Peabody Awards  Star Wars: A New Heap  Music: Brief: Star War fan-made music from Luis Humanoide: Trust Only in the Force  Bonus: Star War fan-made music from Luis Humanoide: Dark Ruins Exploration Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

7 Juni 39min