Shows
A Paranoid's History of the United StatesMOMA Spies Revealed!Discover how the CIA secretly operated as America's “hidden Ministry of Culture” during the Cold War, using abstract expressionism as a weapon against Soviet influence. The episode explores the fascinating paradox of how the CIA championed artists like Jackson Pollock abroad as symbols of American creative freedom while this same art movement faced ridicule at home. Learn about the Museum of Modern Art's crucial role in legitimizing abstract expressionism and how this cultural operation was eventually exposed by Ramparts magazine in the late 1960s.From elaborate funding schemes to Hollywood partnerships today, this story illuminates how intelligence agen...
2025-06-2829 min
A Paranoid's History of the United StatesThe Phantom PatriotIn January 2002, a man in a homemade superhero costume armed with guns, a sword, and smoke bombs broke into the exclusive Bohemian Grove retreat in California. His mission? To save children he believed were being sacrificed to the ancient god Moloch by some of America's most powerful men. This episode tells the remarkable story of Richard McCaslin, aka The Phantom Patriot, whose journey from aspiring superhero to conspiracy-fueled vigilante eerily foreshadowed our current era of weaponized misinformation. The parallels between McCaslin's 2002 raid and the 2016 Pizzagate incident at Comet Ping Pong are striking — both men were convinced they wou...
2025-06-2032 min
A Paranoid's History of the United StatesHavana SyndromeIn 2016, American embassy personnel in Cuba began reporting strange sounds followed by debilitating symptoms - ear pain, headaches, dizziness, and cognitive difficulties. Quickly labeled as attacks by a mysterious sonic weapon, these incidents led to diplomatic breakdowns and accusations against foreign adversaries. This episode explores the science of mass psychogenic illness and how normal physiological responses to stress can manifest as real physical symptoms. And it reveals how institutional failures by government agencies, media outlets, and even prestigious medical journals amplified a narrative that fit political agendas despite contradicting scientific evidence. From the Salem witch tr...
2025-06-1431 min
A Paranoid's History of the United StatesThe Strange Case of Sirhan SirhanOn June 5, 1968, Senator Robert F. Kennedy was assassinated in the pantry of the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles by a 24-year-old Palestinian immigrant named Sirhan Bishara Sirhan. While Sirhan was immediately apprehended and later convicted of first-degree murder, conspiracy theories have persisted for over five decades. These theories center on apparent inconsistencies in the official investigation, including FBI reports suggesting more bullet holes than Sirhan's eight-shot revolver could have produced, autopsy evidence indicating Kennedy was shot from behind at point-blank range while witnesses placed Sirhan in front of him, and claims that Sirhan was "hypno-programmed" and has no memory...
2025-06-0730 min
A Paranoid's History of the United StatesProject MonarchIn 1995, a woman named Cathy O'Brien published a book containing some of the most shocking allegations ever made against the American government. She claimed to be a survivor of Project Monarch, a classified CIA mind control program where she was programmed through systematic trauma to serve as a sex slave to presidents, politicians, and global elites. Her accusations included being hunted for sport by Dick Cheney and having occult symbols carved into her body by Hillary Clinton.This episode explores how Project Monarch emerged at the intersection of documented history and conspiracy theory. While the CIA's MK-ULTRA...
2025-05-3128 min
A Paranoid's History of the United StatesSiegeIn 1986, experimental musician and provocateur Boyd Rice wrote a fan letter that would have devastating consequences. The recipient wasn't a fellow artist, but James Mason — the author of an obscure neo-Nazi newsletter whose violent ideas would soon become known around the world.This episode traces how Mason's newsletter Siege! evolved from fringe extremist literature into a modern blueprint for terrorism. We explore Mason's journey from teenage American Nazi Party member to Charles Manson devotee, and how his concept of “leaderless resistance” — advocating lone wolf terrorist attacks — became the strategic foundation for contemporary white supremacist violence.GUEST: Spe...
2025-05-2432 min
A Paranoid's History of the United StatesThe OctopusIn this episode we look at the death of freelance journalist Danny Casolaro, who was found dead in a hotel bathtub in Martinsburg, West Virginia. This was ruled a suicide, but circumstances surrounding the case raised questions. Casolaro had been investigating what he called “The Octopus,” a sprawling conspiracy that connected intelligence agencies, organized crime, and international arms dealers. The episode also examines the role of Lyndon LaRouche's intelligence network in spreading misinformation (and sometimes, credible information).GUESTS INCLUDE a number of journalists familiar with crimes and conspiracies, including Martin Kilian, Jack Calhoun, and Dan Moldea. We also...
2025-05-1740 min
A Paranoid's History of the United StatesFinding SatanIn this week’s episode, Joseph L. Flatley investigates the infamous Finders case—a 1987 incident where two well-dressed men and six disheveled children in a Tallahassee park sparked nationwide panic about satanic cults and child trafficking. What began as a routine police call transformed into one of the internet's most persistent conspiracy theories, fueled by leaked government documents claiming evidence of “satanic ceremonies” and an international child trafficking operation.Through exclusive interviews with those directly involved, including two of the children (now adults) who were at the center of the controversy, this episode reveals the shocking truth: the Find...
2025-05-1024 min
A Paranoid's History of the United StatesThe Bennewitz AffairDive into the shocking story of Paul Bennewitz, a physicist and military contractor whose innocent observations near Kirtland Air Force Base triggered one of the most elaborate government disinformation campaigns in history. This episode unravels how Air Force intelligence agents deliberately fed Bennewitz false information about alien bases, cattle mutilations, and government-extraterrestrial treaties—ultimately driving him to mental breakdown, while simultaneously creating the blueprint for modern UFO mythology. Whether you're a UFO enthusiast or skeptic, this eye-opening investigation reveals the dangerous intersection of government secrecy, psychological manipulation, and belief formation. Discover how the stories first plan...
2025-05-0326 min
A Paranoid's History of the United StatesAcid is Groovy!From distinguished FBI agent to conspiracy kingpin: Journey inside the mind of Ted Gunderson, whose investigation of the infamous Jeffrey MacDonald murder case launched his transformation from respected law enforcement official to professional conspiracy theorist. This episode of A Paranoid’s History of the United States follows Gunderson's evolution as he chases phantom cults, promotes tales of government mind control, and claims to expose vast underground child trafficking networks. Through interviews with former colleagues and investigators, we reveal how his FBI credentials lent dangerous credibility to outlandish theories that continue to influence American society today.Whe...
2025-04-2626 min
A Paranoid's History of the United StatesBill Cooper in WacoIn 1993, the 51-day standoff between federal agents and the Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas ended in tragedy with 76 people dead, including 25 children. For William Cooper, former Naval Intelligence officer turned conspiracy broadcaster, this wasn't just another government operation gone wrong—it was the smoking gun that validated everything he had been warning his listeners about.This episode examines how Waco transformed Cooper from a UFO researcher into one of the most influential voices in the American militia movement. We explore how Cooper's military background shaped his worldview, his complex relationship with the UFO community, and how his ra...
2025-04-1931 min
A Paranoid's History of the United StatesIntroducing A Paranoid's History of the United StatesA Paranoid's History of the United States is a podcast exploring the murky intersection between documented government conspiracies and fantastical theories, examining how real covert operations have fueled paranoid beliefs throughout American history.CHECK OUT OUR WEBSITE: https://paranoidhistory.comSOCIAL MEDIAhttps://www.instagram.com/paranoidhistory/https://twitter.com/paranoidhistoryHOSTED BY JOSEPH L. FLATLEY. For bonus content and to sign up for my newsletter, check out: http://lennyflatley.substack.com/
2025-04-1503 min
The Ochelli EffectThe Ochelli Effect 8-29-2024 Joseph L FlatleyThe Ochelli Effect 8-29-2024 Joseph L. FlatleyWhat are Convenience Stories? Author and weirdo Journalist Joseph L. Flatley talked with Chuck about his two-year job that gave him an entirely different world to document in the land of The Failed State where the next Scratch-Off Ticket might make you a new King or Queen for a day or two.Thank God for the guy coming to fix the lottery machine.Get Joe's latest substck series and subscribe if you can.https://lennyflatley.substack.com/7 Bucks per month
2024-08-301h 39
Ultraculture With Jason LouvEp. 149: New Age Grifter With Joseph L. Flatley My old friend Joseph Flatley, cult journalist, talks about his recent book New Age Grifter: The True Story of Gabriel of Urantia and His Cosmic Family! A great conversation about cults, magick, hypnosis, cognitive biases and lots more. Here's the official book description: Gabriel of Urantia is the leader of a UFO religion based in the desert of southern Arizona. He has spent the last three decades weaving together his belief system, a tapestry of Eastern spirituality, Born Again Christianity, and New Age doggerel. In a compound near the Mexican border, his disciples tend the garden, take classes, and serve...
2023-03-142h 10
The Ochelli EffectThe Ochelli Effect 6-30-2022 Mike Swanson and Joseph L FlatleyLong Game Played Over UnderThe Ochelli Effect 6-30-2022 Mike Swanson and Joseph L FlatleyChuck was not LIVE for a few days. Sadness and illness have slowed your humble host down this week.The Supreme Court is less Supreme than a Pizza Hut Disc of foodstuff, and more court than a place for a pick-up game of hoops lately.Chuck and Mike discussed the abortion issue and Chuck asked a few personal questions. Is the Legal or spiritual justice for anyone? What might the Bible say about what is happening...
2022-07-022h 00
Failed State Update73. Ravi, Mind Control Victim in Silicon ValleyRavi lives in Silicon Valley, he's a former Google employee, and he’s a Targeted Individual. That is, he believes he has been the subject of high-tech surveillance and harassment.
Whatever the cause of the trauma he has experienced, the trauma is very real. “I felt like committing a crime” at one point, he says. “I felt like avenging what happened to me.” But after learning that there is a whole community of people like him out there, he doesn’t feel so alone anymore. Besides, to do something drastic, he says, would be “in vain.”
Today’s episod...
2022-06-2942 min
The Ochelli EffectThe Ochelli Effect 3-23-2022 Mike Swanson - JG Michael - Joseph L FlatleyChapman Walmart Failed StatesThe Ochelli Effect 3-24-2022 Mike Swanson - JG Michael - Joseph L FlatleyMike Swanson tells stories from trips to Walmart to make Thursday night fly right by. Is every retail establishment full of crazy people?Mike also discussed talking to the SEC. Chuck and Mike also talked about mailing lists and newsletters.MICHAEL SWANSON ONLINE:BE IN THE KNOW: https://wallstreetwindow.comTWITTER: https://twitter.com/tradermike_1999FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/tradermikeBOOKS BY...
2022-03-252h 00Failed State Update65. Edward Ahmed Mitchell on the Private Surveillance of Muslim-AmericansIn this episode of Failed State Update, J.G. Michael speaks with Edward Ahmed Mitchell, Deputy Director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations about a scandal involving CAIR's Ohio chapter and a right-wing outfit called the Investigative Project on Terrorism. There is evidence that IPT has been spying on Muslim-American activists and working with the state of Israel to target American students activists. It's a bombshell story, one that's only going to get crazier as more details emerge.
For more information, check out J.G.'s recent article on Failed State Update: https://roundtable.io/failed-state-update/reports...
2022-03-2441 minFailed State Update64. Failed State Jukebox with Charles Ochelli and J.G. MichaelFailed State Jukebox is a regular item on the Failed State Update website where we look at dystopian pop music. Usually, it's far-right or conspiracy-themed, which is both disturbing and hilarious. These are fun articles, but there's a point to them. The right-wing culture industry tells us something about a sector of the American public usually ignored by the mainstream.
In today's episode of the podcast, co-hosts J.G. Michael and Joseph L. Flatley are joined by Charles Ochelli, the host of The Ochelli Effect, to spin some tunes and discuss the failed state of popular culture.
2022-03-101h 00Failed State Update63. Fuck A War with Eric Draitser, J.G. MichaelRussia has invaded Ukraine, and what more is there to be said, besides: Fuck war and fuck imperialism.
(Well, there is a little more than that to be said, and J.G. Michael has Eric Draitser on the show to say it.)
Eric Draitser is an independent political analyst and host of CounterPunch Radio. You can find his exclusive content including articles, podcasts, audio commentaries, poetry, and more at patreon.com/ericdraitser. He can be reached at @stopimperialism on Twitter.
Please be sure to check out J.G.'s other podcast, Parallax Views. ...
2022-02-2542 minFailed State Update62. Wayne Madsen on Alex Jones, Tucker Carlson, and the Fascist Fourth ReichWayne Madsen is an investigative journalist, the author of twenty-one books, and the publisher of The Wayne Madsen Report. His latest book is The Rise of the Fascist Fourth Reich: The Era of Trumpism and the New Far-Right.
Stories about Wayne Madsen on Failed State Update:
"Did Wayne Madsen uncover a 2016 ‘Stop the Steal’ Plot?"
"Wayne Madsen on the New Fourth Reich"
Make sure you check out J.G.'s other podcast, Parallax Views.
2022-02-241h 15
Failed State UpdateJG and Lenny stop by the Ochelli Communications Worldwide StudioOn February 10, Failed State Update co-hosts Joseph L. Flatley and JG Michael appeared on The Ochelli Effect live to discuss current events, conspiracy theories, JFK, Ozzy Osbourne, and more. Unfortunately, someone messed up the recording of the after-show that we did (that person being Joseph L. Flatley), but we do have the show itself here for your listening pleasure. If you dig it, please check out Chuck Ochelli's podcast, The Ochelli Effect, live at ochelli.com or on your podcast app of choice.
2022-02-1158 minFailed State Update61. the CIA, FBI, UFOs and NICAP... and Jack BrewerWhat do UFOs, the CIA, the conflict in Ukraine, and the Philadelphia Experiment have in common? Tune in to find out!
Jack Brewer writes "The UFO Trail", a blog dedicated to publishing credible info on incredible topics. Brewer's research interests include the UFO subculture, the intelligence community, and related social dynamics, and he's here to discuss all these topics as well as his new book Wayward Sons: NICAP and the IC.
NEW! INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT: https://roundtable.io/failed-state-update/podcasts/cia-fbi-ufo-nicap-jack-brewer
Jack's Blog, The UFO Trail: http://ufotrail.blogspot.com/
Jack Brewer...
2022-02-101h 08Failed State Update60. The Finders: The Movie featuring Boys' Bible Study (the podcast) (BONUS EPISODE)In this episode of Failed State Update, Joseph L. "Lenny" Flatley goes toe-to-toe with the hosts of the Boys' Bible Study podcast. The Bible Boys, as we like to call them, wade deep into the murky waters of the Christian pop culture industry, reviewing the weirdest and most interesting independently produced films with a certain message. Since that message often includes far-right and Christian nationalist propaganda, their reviews should be of particular interest to Failed State Update listeners. Besides, the podcast is really, really fun.
For the Bible Boys' second appearance on Failed State Update we discuss t...
2022-02-081h 01Failed State Update59. Spencer Sunshine on Oath Keepers, militias, and left antisemitismYou're in for a treat! For this edition of Failed State Update: The Podcast, J.G. Michael interviews author and extremism expert Spencer Sunshine on the Oath Keepers' role in January 6, the militia movement in general, and what happens when antisemites infiltrate leftist politics.
Also, Joseph L. Flatley tells you about his recent reporting on sovereign citizens (and Satanists), and JG tells you what you can find on his other podcast, Parallax Views.
Failed State Update: The Website: https://roundtable.io/failed-state-update/
Spencer Sunshine on Twitter: https://twitter.com/transform6789
JG M...
2022-01-271h 21Failed State Update58. Alfred W. McCoy: To Govern the Globe: World Orders and Catastrophic ChangeRegular listeners of Failed State Update are in for a real treat. Our guest, Alfred W. McCoy, is an American historian and educator. Currently the Fred Harvey Harrington Professor of History at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, he specializes in the history of the Philippines, foreign policy of the United States, European colonization of Southeast Asia, the illegal drug trade, and CIA covert operations. His most recent book is To Govern the Globe: World Orders and Catastrophic Change.
And some more big news: Beginning this episode, we are changing up the format. The show now features two ho...
2022-01-111h 06Failed State Update57. John Zerzan: When We Are HumanIs the United States collapsing, or is all of civilization collapsing? To explore that question we bring you John Zerzan, an anarchist and primitivist author whose work has been compared to Unabomber Ted Kaczynski, of all people. His books offer an alternative vision of history that focuses on the destructive nature of technology. And more importantly — and this is why we spoke to him — his work suggests a possible future free of the alienation and control of capitalism-run-amok.
His most recent book is When We Are Human: Notes from the Age of Pandemics (Feral House).
While y...
2021-12-1953 min
Tin Foil Hat With Sam Tripoli#513: The Cult of Gabriel of Urantia with Joseph L. FlatleyThank you so much for tuning in for another episode of Tin Foil Hat with Sam Tripoli. This episode I welcome Author Joseph L. Flatley to discuss his new book "New Age Grifter: The True Story of Gabriel of Urantia and his Cosmic Family" and what he has learned about the deceptive power of Cult Leaders. Hint: We are all in some sort of Cult in one way or another. Thank you for your support. Check out Sam Tripoli Live and grab your tickets at Samtripoli.com: Dec 2nd-4th: San Diego- The American Comedy Company with Sam Tripoli. Howie...
2021-12-011h 36
Failed State Update56. Tom Mellett on Arthur Young, Pseudoscience (or not), and the Cult of UFO TwitterTom Mellett is a retired high school teacher of math and physics who delights in trolling UFO Twitter and Facebook because their emotional maturity is at a 9th grade level (as he puts it). He is also a cat butler in Los Angeles. We got on the phone after my story "The New Intergalactic Cold War" caused a (quite brief) firestorm on Twitter last week, and fortunately I recorded the conversation, because it really is podcast gold.
On this episode of FAILED STATE UPDATE Tom and I discuss the philosopher/engineer Arthur M. Young...
2021-10-3144 minFailed State Update55. Sherry Shriner’s Deadly Anti-New World Order Online Doomsday CultAnthony Russo is the author of Dragged Into the Light: Truthers, Reptilians, Super Soldiers, and Death Inside an Online Cult, and for the next fifty-three minutes we'll discuss his book about Sherry Shriner, an online cult leader in rural Ohio who preached a bizarre combination of reptilian conspiracies, orgone energy pseudoscience, and discredited "bible code" theories. She briefly made headlines in 2017 when one of her followers was murdered by another former follower. Shriner died earlier this year, at the age of 45. Her beliefs were all over the place, but she must have had something going for her, because to...
2021-10-1653 minFailed State Update54. Havana Affair (feat. the CIA, crickets, and conspiracy theorists)Havana Syndrome is back in the news. On the one hand, it's clearly a psychogenic illness that's being misdiagnosed as the result of commie death rays. On the other hand, by treating it as an attack by America's enemies, politicians can use it to help further their foreign policy objectives. Which side do you think the media is going to take?
Robert E. Bartholomew is a native New Yorker who teaches history at Botany College in Auckland, New Zealand. His many books include The Martians Have Landed! A History of Media-Driven Panics and Hoaxes and Outbreak! The...
2021-10-0451 minFailed State Update53. R. Kelly Found Guilty Of Racketeering And Sex TraffickingREPOST: After decades of accusations and a weeks-long federal trial, R. Kelly has been found guilty of charges including sexual exploitation of a child, bribery, racketeering and sex trafficking that will put him in prison from 10 years to life. I figure now is as good a time as any to repost this interview with journalist Jim Derogatis, who did as much as anyone to put him in jail.
For fifteen years, DeRogatis was the pop music critic for the Chicago Sun-Times. It was while there that Jim and his colleague Abdon Pallasch became the first reporters to...
2021-09-2852 minFailed State Update52. The Lyndon LaRouche Cult of Intelligence w/Marley ClementsThe subject of political cults continues with Marley Clements, a writer, producer, and documentary filmmaker whose work includes Active Measures (2018) and QAnon: The Search for Q (2021). Her company Bunker Crew Media is responsible for the Kremlin File podcast.
Kremlin File: https://pod.co/kremlin-file
Erica Duggan on Lyndon LaRouche & the Mysterious Death of Her Son Jeremiah Duggan (Parallax Views podcast): https://parallaxviews.podbean.com/e/ep-62-erica-duggan-on-lyndon-larouche-the-mysterious-death-of-her-son-jeremiah-duggan/
Order my book NEW AGE GRIFTER: https://amzn.com/1627311106/
Sign up for my newsletter: https://lennyflatley.substack.com/
Website: https://www.lennyflatley...
2021-09-2059 minFailed State Update51. MOVE (the cult) w/former member Kevin Price (3/3)MOVE is a radical Black communal organization founded in 1972 in Philadelphia, best known for the 1985 firebombing in which 11 members (including 5 children under the age of 14) were murdered by law enforcement. These days, the group lives on as a "political cult," as former member Kevin Price reveals in his blog, Leaving MOVE. In part one of the series, Kevin gives the true history of the group as it morphed from what was considered to be a Black liberation group to a political cult. In part two, he explains what led up to the 1985 firebombing. He also describes many of the...
2021-09-171h 49Failed State Update50. MOVE (the cult) w/former member Kevin Price (2/3)MOVE is a radical Black communal organization founded in 1972 in Philadelphia, best known for the 1985 firebombing in which 11 members (including 5 children under the age of 14) were murdered by law enforcement. These days, the group lives on as a "political cult," as former member Kevin Price reveals in his blog, Leaving MOVE. In part one of the series, Kevin gives the true history of the group as it morphed from what was considered to be a Black liberation group to a political cult. In part two, he explains what led up to the 1985 firebombing. He also describes many of the...
2021-09-1342 minFailed State Update49. MOVE (the cult) w/former member Kevin Price (1/3)MOVE is a radical Black communal organization founded in 1972 in Philadelphia, best known for the 1985 firebombing in which 11 members (including 5 children under the age of 14) were murdered by law enforcement. These days, the group lives on as a "political cult," as former member Kevin Price reveals in his blog, Leaving MOVE. In part one of the series, Kevin gives the true history of the group as it morphed from what was considered to be a Black liberation group to a political cult. In part two, he explains what led up to the 1985 firebombing. He also describes many of the...
2021-08-3159 minFailed State Update48. New Age Grifter: Joshua Lilly (preview)Joshua Lilly is a former follower of Gabriel of Urantia, the subject of my book New Age Grifter. He’s also something of a “fan favorite,” so — due to popular demand — I am giving him an (almost 2 hours long!) episode of the FAILED STATE UPDATE podcast to tell us about his life and times in (and out of) a religious cult.
This is a preview of an episode for FAILED STATE UPDATE newsletter subscribers. To subscribe for free, go to: https://lennyflatley.substack.com/
My book on the group, titled New Age Grifter: The True Story of G...
2021-08-2617 min
Failed State Update47. New Age Grifter: The True Story of Gabriel of UrantiaNew Age Grifter is the story of Gabriel of Urantia, a self-proclaimed holy man who currently presides over a spiritual community (some call it a cult) in the desert of Southern Arizona. In a fenced-in compound, three generations of the Global Community Communications Alliance soak in Gabriel's teachings as they wait for the end of the world.
My book on the group, titled New Age Grifter: The True Story of Gabriel of Urantia and his Cosmic Family is out today.
Amazon link: https://www.amazon.com/New-Age-Grifter-Gabriel-Urantia/dp/1627311106/ref=sr_1_2
Bookshop.org: https://b...
2021-08-2413 minFailed State Update46. The Socioeconomics of Cults and QAnonLess than a week until my book NEW AGE GRIFTER: THE TRUE STORY OF GABRIEL OF URANTIA AND HIS COSMIC FAMILY is released, and to get you in the mood I'm sharing a conversation that I had today on, of all things, the YouTube Grassroots #YangGang Show. We discussed the book a little bit, as wells things like: "What is the difference between conspiracy theory and conspiracy fact?" "How is Alex Jones a con artist?" And my favorite, "Does poverty lead to cults and QAnon?" Check out the rest of the show here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v...
2021-08-1943 minFailed State Update45. Buckland Museum of Witchcraft & Magick Director Steven IntermillRaymond Buckland founded The Buckland Museum of Witchcraft and Magick in 1966. After visiting the late Gerald Gardner and his collection on the Isle of Man, Raymond was inspired to start a collection of his own. While working for British Airways, he was able to acquire many of the artifacts in this collection from all around the world. He initially displayed his museum on a few shelves in the basement of his Long Island, N.Y. home. However, over time, Raymond’s witchcraft collection rapidly grew to well over 500 artifacts, ranging from Ancient Egyptian ushabtis to documented artifacts from the Sa...
2021-08-1543 minFailed State Update44. Danny Casolaro and the Surveillance StateJoseph Daniel Casolaro (everyone knew him as Danny) was a journalist who died in Martinsburg, West Virginia, thirty years ago this August. He was in town working on a book tentatively titled The Octopus, which promised to tie together damn near every conspiracy theory of the decade: including the October Surprise, Iran-Contra, and the FEMA concentration camps.
When Casolaro was found dead in room 517 of the Sheraton Hotel, his wrists slashed with a razor blade, the medical examiner ruled the death a suicide — a ruling that continues to be controversial.
In this installment of Failed St...
2021-08-0233 minFailed State Update43. Lucien Greaves on multiple personalities, TikTok, and conspiracy therapistsA story crossed my desk recently: "Inside TikTok’s booming dissociative identity disorder community" (Input Magazine, July 6). The author, Jessica Lucas, looks at the unique world of social media influencers with multiple personalities. While it provides a unique look at a fascinating subculture, it does not portray the truth about Dissociative Identity Disorder (the clinical name for multiple personalities) and how the diagnosis has been abused by therapists over the years.
Not only are these conspiracy therapists harming patients, they are a telling example of America's decline.
You can find my response/rebuttal, "Return of the...
2021-07-2834 min
Failed State Update42. Satan Goes to the Mind Control ConventionMy book Satan Goes to the Mind Control Convention: Manchurian Candidates, Recovered Memories, and the Dark Side of Conspiracy Culture is finally available as an audiobook! From the back cover blurb:
Satan Goes to the Mind Control Convention looks at the role that conspiracy theories play in American life and the current political climate. The audiobook begins at a convention for therapists who uncover “memories” of past lives, extraterrestrials, and government mind-control operations. From there, the listener will encounter Pizzagate enthusiasts, conspiracy entrepreneurs, Satanists, flat-earthers, and more. Ultimately, the author cautions that right-wing conspiracy cult...
2021-06-2810 minFailed State Update41. What to expect from President Biden (feat. War and Corruption)In the first half of this episode, I speak with Branko Marcetic, a staff writer for Jacobin magazine and a 2019-2020 Leonard C. Goodman Institute for Investigative Reporting Fellow at In These Times. He is the author of Yesterday's Man: The Case Against Joe Biden.
After the flip, I speak with Jeremy Kuzmarov, J.P. Walker assistant professor of history at University of Tulsa and the author of The Myth of the Addicted Army: Vietnam and the Modern War on Drugs and Modernizing Repression: Police Training and Nation Building in the American Century. His series on Biden's f...
2021-02-1955 minFailed State Update40. Payday Report w/Mike ElkIt's the big FOUR-OH! and today I'm speaking with Mike Elk, labor reporter and the founder (in 2016) of Payday Report, a crowdfunded news agency focusing on labor and union news. In this interview we talk about the importance of independent media, getting past the over-intellectualization of left-labor reporting, and the shocking reality of sexual harassment in unions.
Payday Report website: https://paydayreport.com/
Mike Elk on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MikeElk
Joseph L. Flatley website: https://www.lennyflatley.net
Joseph L. Flatley twitter: https://twitter.com/lennyflatley
Coming soon...
2021-02-0152 minFailed State Update39. Lucien Greaves on that NY Mag whitewash of dangerous pseudoscienceThe notion of "repressed memories" has been widely discredited, yet it stubbornly persists—on trash TV, in poorly researched self-help books, and now on New York Magazine's website. In this episode of Failed State Update, Lucien Greaves, the co-founder of The Satanic Temple, breaks down "The Memory War" by Katie Heaney, a weird example of pro-conspiracy theory agitprop that has more to do with QAnon than legitimate reportage.
"The Memory War" by Katie Heaney: https://www.thecut.com/amp/article/false-memory-syndrome-controversy.html
"Lying For Pseudoscience," Lucien Greaves' rebuttal: https://www.patreon.com/posts/46379921
Lu...
2021-01-201h 02Failed State Update38. Mark Jacobson: QAnon, crisis cults, LSD cults, and moreThe return of Mark Jacobson. We expand on our previous conversation to talk about the zeitgeist. We get into QAnon, the Ghost Dance, and of course, Bill Cooper.
Mark Jacobson on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/palehorseriderbook/
Pale Horse Rider music video by William Cooper (the rapper): https://youtu.be/Mp5pSU5jYC0
Joseph L. Flatley website: https://www.lennyflatley.net
Joseph L. Flatley twitter: https://twitter.com/lennyflatley
Coming soon! My latest book, New Age Grifter. Available for pre-order from BOOKSHOP.ORG: https://bookshop.org/books/new-age-grifter-the-true-story-of-gabriel-of-urantia-and-his-cosmic-family/9781627311106
2021-01-181h 08Failed State Update37. Mark Jacobson, author of Pale Horse RiderWe are living in a time of unprecedented distrust in America…
Faith in the government is at an all-time low, and political groups on both sides of the aisle are able to tout preposterous conspiracy theories as gospel, without much opposition. “Fake news” is the order of the day. This book is about a man to whom all of it points, the greatest conspiracist of this generation and a man you may not have heard of.
A former U.S. naval intelligence worker, Milton William Cooper published his manifesto Behold a Pale Horse in 1991. Since then i...
2021-01-1845 minFailed State Update36. Jared Yates Sexton dissects the face of contemporary fascism (repost!)Jared Yates Sexton has been an important voice decrying the little Hitler in the White House (for one more week) and the future, not-so-little Hitlers that are on the horizon if we don't wise up quick. His message is more important than ever, so I'm reposting two of his appearances here in case you missed 'em the first time...
Check out Jared's Bourbon Talk podcast on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/jsexton3
...and, of course, follow him on Twitter: https://twitter.com/JYSexton
Jared's Muckrake podcast: https://muckrack.libsyn.com/
...
2021-01-151h 28Failed State Update35. Stuart Schrader / Badges Without Borders: How Global Counterinsurgency Transformed American Policing (repost)Stuart Schrader is a Lecturer/Assistant Research Scientist in Sociology at Johns Hopkins University and the author of Badges Without Borders: How Global Counterinsurgency Transformed American Policing. In this episode of Failed State Update, we talk about the little-understood facts that the United States is an empire, and that what our police do at home has a striking resemblance to what our military does overseas. Of course, this has some very serious implications for the current resistance movement that's been so busy on the streets of America since the murder of George Floyd.
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2021-01-1157 minFailed State Update34. Vincent Bevins / The Jakarta Method (repost)Clearly, the American Empire is clocking out — it's anybody's guess whether it will go with a whimper or with a bang, but it seems likely that we'll know the answer to that question relatively soon. But what did it take to forge this empire in the first place, and how can it be that so many Americans are unaware that this imperium even exists? In the latest episode of Failed State Update, I will be speaking with Vincent Bevins, a journalist and the author of the recently released The Jakarta Method: Washington’s Anticommunist Crusade and the Mass Murder Prog...
2021-01-1158 minFailed State Update33. Barbarians at the Capitol Gates w/William Arkin and Vincent Scotti EireneSo, we couldn't go a week into the new year without a constitutional crisis... I'm disappointed in us, but I'm not surprised. In order to help understand what the hell exactly happened, I spoke to William Arkin, veteran national security reporter and prolific author. He's been on top of this story from the very beginning (indeed, from before the beginning) and you can see his reporting in the pages of Newseek or on its website: https://www.newsweek.com/authors/william-m-arkin-1
In this episode I also speak with Vincent Scotti Eirene, longtime peace activist and media provocateur...
2021-01-0852 minFailed State Update32. Get Thee Behind Me, Santa w/Doomsday Prophet Pastor Harry WaltherI didn't set out to present a Christmas episode of this podcast, but when the talk got around to the harmful nature of the Santa Claus myth, I knew I had a timely program. Pastor Harry Walther is the founder of The Church of Philadelphia-Internet and host of Doomsday Talk Radio. I met him in 2012 while filming a series of videos for The Verge about American end times beliefs. In this episode of Failed State Update, Harry and I talk about why The End didn't happen on December 21, 2012, and why it just might be around the corner now. We a...
2020-12-2453 minFailed State Update31. Conversation with a Targeted IndividualThere is an internet community of people that call themselves Targeted Individuals. These people claim that they're being surveilled and harassed by the U.S. government or other unknown entities. Sometimes this activity is called "gangstalking" because, unlike traditional stalking, the harassment involves teams of people. Fears of gangstalking seem to me to be motivated by, among other things, the same anxieties that create UFO abduction narratives and QAnon theorists.
This episode of FSU features a conversation that I recently recorded with a woman who claims to be a victim of gangstalking. She contacted m...
2020-12-1136 minFailed State Update30. State of Emergence(y) w/Antero AlliAre we living in a failed state? And if so, so what? Between the environment, pandemic, and everything else that 2020 has given us, I think it's probably high time that we look at ourselves in the mirror and decide what's really important. And if you're of a spiritual or metaprogrammatical bent, you could probably learn a thing or several from Antero Alli. His latest book, State of Emergence, covers his experiments in group ritual. It's one part Jerzy Grotowski, one part Carl Jung, and 100% mind-blowing.
Antero Alli on Twitter: https://twitter.com/antero1111
2020-12-061h 07Failed State Update29. The Real Story Behind Oliver Stone's JFK w/Fred LitwinIf you know anything about the assassination of JFK, the odds are good that you learned it from Oliver Stone. Even if you haven't seen JFK (1993), the claims made in the film — claims made by the likes of homophobic New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison and antisemitic conspiracy theorist Fletcher Prouty — have kind of seeped into the mainstream and become part of our common understanding of the tragedy. In his latest book, On the Trail of Delusion, author Fred Litwin turns the clock back on the Jim Garrison investigation and makes us reconsider what we think we know about Nove...
2020-11-2246 minFailed State Update28. JFK, Oswald, Norman Mailer, Jim Hougan, and Lawrence Schiller. And MeBy its very nature, the intelligence community holds more sway over this country than we will probably ever know. This reality—which has played a key role in transforming the United States into a Failed State—has its origins in the Cold War and the establishment of the Central Intelligence Agency in 1947. Norman Mailer was one of the most insightful chroniclers of Cold War America, and in this episode I talk to two people who knew him personally and saw him in action as he reckoned with the realities of the CIA and that seminal event in conspiracy culture, the...
2020-11-201h 16Failed State Update27. Paranoids' Game Night!In this action-packed episode of FAILED STATE UPDATE, I break out a certain conspiracy theory-themed trivia board game ("Conspiracy Theory" by Neddy Games) and host an action-packed competition between four fascinating dudes. Come for the conspiracy questions! Stay for the learned discursions! With internet celebrities Joseph Matheny, JG Michael and Jon Marsh (and one international man of mystery, Kirk 'Mad Dog' Cooke).
Conspiracy Theory by Neddy Games: https://shopneddy.com/products/conspiracy-theory-trivia-board-game
Jonathan Marsh on Twitter: https://twitter.com/erieforage
Jon's Construction Dorks podcast: https://www.constructiondorks.com/
Joseph Matheny homepage...
2020-11-171h 07Failed State Update26. The Jeffrey Epstein corner of the conspiracyverse w/Pearse RedmondPearse Redmond is a podcaster, writer, and one of the leading figures of the Jeffrey Epstein research community. For years, when no one in the mainstream media cared, Pearse and his cohort were diving deep into Epstein-world, trying to figure out what the man was up to and how to get him put in the slammer for good. In this episode of Failed State Update, we discuss some of the more bizarre aspects of the Epstein case and why it took the mainstream media so long to catch up with the conspiracy theorists.
Pearse Redmond on Twitter...
2020-11-111h 08
Failed State Update25. More Gunderson, QAnon, et. alBack by popular demand, this episode features more dirt on Ted Gunderson. It starts out pretty straightforward, with digital forensic investigator Ed Opperman talking about his experience with the disgraced former FBI agent. Then public satanist Lucien Greaves talks a bit about his investigations into the Satanic Panic, including his experiences with ol' Ted. Finally, Joseph Matheny comes on for a wide-ranging chat about QAnon, the Finders as metaprogramming, the gameplay-theater-ceremonial magick nexus, and more! Things start out pretty down-to-earth, but by the end of the episode, there is plenty of esoterica for you to chew on. Get ready...
2020-10-221h 08
Failed State Update24. From Satanic Panic to QAnon, feat. Ted Gunderson and the FindersWhat we have here is my first ever presentation to a conference, in which I use the story of The Finders—a small commune unfairly maligned as a "cult"—to discuss the political dimension of conspiracy theories. The talk also covers the story of Ted Gunderson, who went from being an FBI-COINTELPRO guy to a major figure in conspiracy theory culture. And of course, I tie this all back to QAnon. Ends with a brief discussion of Grey Faction, the group that sponsored the conference. There's a lot of interesting, little-discussed history here, suitable for listening during jogs, long car...
2020-10-211h 08Failed State Update23. Suckers for Fascism w/Jared Yates SextonVery excited to once again have author, academic, and political commentator Jared Yates Sexton on the show to address the (failed) state of the union. He has a new book out called American Rule: How a Nation Conquered the World But Failed Its People, and it's one you're definitely going to want to check out, as it lays bare all the myths and falsehoods that Keep America Great Again for the 1%.
Podcast up this episode of FAILED STATE UPDATE to hear about political cults, the Third Reich as an American phenomenon, how Pizzagate has been going on si...
2020-10-041h 00Failed State Update22. cTom's Conspiracy Cinema w/Dylan ColeslawIn this episode of Failed State Update I'm joined by film critic, artist, and social media provocateur Dylan Coleslaw to discuss cTom's 2011 film Song of the Blind Girl.
There are underground filmmakers, and then there's cTom—or Tom Charley, as he's also known (both are pseudonyms, actually). cTom has directed four films, all of which are ham-handed polemics against elite pedophilia and other crimes against the republic. But there are two things that make these films stand out: The fact that they were made a decade before QAnon, and the all-out incompetence of the director's craft. His fil...
2020-09-2152 minFailed State Update21. COVID-19 Brain Candy w/Alexander ZaitchikOn the latest episode of Failed State Update, journalist and author Alexander Zaitchik discusses the profound implications of capitalism-run-amok on the pharmaceutical industry and the battle against COVID-19. It's one heck of a wild ride!
Alexander Zaitchik's website: https://www.zaitchik.com/
Joseph L. Flatley website: https://www.lennyflatley.net
Joseph L. Flatley twitter: https://twitter.com/lennyflatley
Failed State Update Newsletter: https://lennyflatley.substack.com
MUSIC: "5 Million Ways to Kill a C.E.O." and "The Guillotine" by The Coup
2020-09-0846 minFailed State Update20. The Phantom Patriot: A True Tale of Comic Books, QAnon, and the New World Order w/ Tea KrulosIn 2002, Richard McCaslin raided the elite Bohemian Grove campground in disguise as his alter ego, The Phantom Patriot. His plan was to prevent the kind of ritualistic child sacrifice that Alex Jones had talked about in the film Dark Secrets Inside Bohemian Grove. Luckily, there was nothing of the sort going on. He would spend the next six years in jail for the armed raid.
Author Tea Krulos, who knew McCaslin personally, joins me in this episode of FAILED STATE UPDATE to discuss McCaslin, Alex Jones, and the strange turn this country has made over the last ye...
2020-08-311h 06Failed State Update19. Tim Schwab on Bill Gates, the Media, the Covid, and the Public Rehabilitation of Bad BillionairesTim Schwab is a freelance journalist based in Washington DC and 2019 Alicia Patterson Foundation Fellow. Tonight he's visiting the Failed State to talk about his latest for Columbia Journalism Review, "Journalism’s Gates Keepers." In the post-Covid world, where Bill Gates is seen as something of a technocratic foil to Trump's science-blind political posturing, it's important to examine the Gates's eponymous foundation with a critical eye. And that's what' Schwab has been doing, in articles for CJR and The Nation that ask if all that cash the Foundation is spreading around doesn't have some pretty significant strings attached.
...
2020-08-2759 minFailed State Update18. Failed State, Cult State w/Mark LaxerMark Laxer is an author and former follower of the cult leader Frederick Philip Lenz. He broke away from Lenz some time ago, only to realize recently that Trump's base is going through the same process that he went through as a member of a destructive cult.
Mark has written about this in two books: Take Me for a Ride: Coming of Age in a Destructive Cult (1993) and his latest, Rama Trauma Trump: I Left the Cult and Now Look What Happened.
Mark Laxer on Twitter: https://twitter.com/marklaxer
Read Rama Trauma...
2020-08-2354 minFailed State Update17. Portland Police StateI have a trio of great guests on this episode. And we'll need to talk to a lot of people if we're going to get to the bottom of what's happening in Portland with the feds, and the kidnapping, and that sort of thing. KRISTIAN WILLIAMS is the author of a number of great books, including Our Enemies In Blue. He's also a police abolition activist based in Portland. He's able to give us some perspective on who the feds are in the city, what they're up to, and any broader implications there may be. JUNIPER SIMONIS provides a...
2020-07-211h 18Failed State Update16. UFOs, Radical and ConservativeHas "cancel culture" hit the UFO scene? Probably not. But MUFON (Mutual UFO Network) has had a few controversies over the years, including a recent one where the State Director of Vermont and Rhode Island lost his position for some really messed up Facebook posts. To shed some light on what's happening there, I spoke with Eric Smith, a MUFON field investigator based in Rhode Island. He says that the UFO scene is getting increasingly younger and more progressive — and that MUFON doesn't seem to be keeping up. We'll also speak to Andy Gittlitz, host of The Antifada podcast an...
2020-07-131h 01Failed State Update15. Boy's Bible StudyNOTE: I've fixed the wonky audio 30 minutes in and updated the file.
I've always been fascinated by the weird, parallel Christian media universe, so for this episode, I figure we'd consult the experts. Boys Bible Study is a podcast known for its hilarious and insightful reviews of faith-based movies (a fair amount of which involve Kevin Sorbo somehow). In this episode of Failed State Update, I will be joined by the Bible boys: Ash, Julian, and Scott, as we discuss The Reliant (2019). This film ostensibly stars Kevin Sorbo and Eric Roberts, but in reality, it's just two...
2020-07-071h 00Failed State Update14. Josh Lilly on living in (and being kicked out of) a destructive cultFrom my other podcast, The So-Called Prophet From Pittsburgh about a UFO cult in Arizona and its leader, Gabriel. Joshua Lilly (spiritual name: VanMon) was brought into the Global Community Communications Alliance as a kid, kicked out as a teenager, and joined again as an adult. Practically his entire family is still in the group. In this in-depth conversation, Josh relates the path that drew him to Gabriel of Urantia (twice). We also discuss cult members' motivations, cult "mind control" techniques, how the group gets its money, and the spiritual elitism in our culture. At the beginning of the...
2020-07-021h 49
Gabriel of Urantia: The So-Called Prophet from PittsburghBONUS 5: Josh / VanMonJoshua Lilly (spiritual name: VanMon) was brought into the Global Community Communications Alliance as a kid, kicked out, and joined again as an adult. Practically his entire family is still in the group. In this in-depth conversation, Josh relates the path that brought him to Gabriel of Urantia twice. We also discuss cult members' motivations, cult "mind control" techniques, how the group gets its money, and the spiritual elitism in our culture. At the beginning of the episode, I share a little bit about how the GCCA is handling the COVID-19 crisis.
2020-07-021h 49Failed State Update13. Police Cops! w/Stuart SchraderStuart Schrader is a Lecturer/Assistant Research Scientist in Sociology at Johns Hopkins University and the author of Badges Without Borders: How Global Counterinsurgency Transformed American Policing. In this episode of Failed State Update, we talk about the little-understood facts that the United States is an empire, and that what our police do at home has a striking resemblance to what our military does overseas. Of course, this has some very serious implications for the current resistance movement that's been so busy on the streets of America since the murder of George Floyd.
Stuart...
2020-06-241h 02Failed State Update12. The Fascists Are Telling Us Who They AreFor this episode, I spoke with two pretty smart dudes. First off, Jared Yates Sexton (a political analyst, associate professor, and author of the forthcoming book American Rule: How a Nation Conquered the World but Failed Its People) discussed authoritarianism, both in the Trump White House and in the hearts of too many of us. We also covered the role of conspiracy theories in... well, almost everything. After that, my interview with Shane Burley (author of Fascism Today: What It Is And How To End It) covers fascism, anti-fascism, and the George Floyd Protests. This is good content to...
2020-06-181h 00Failed State Update11. Exposing R. Kelly with Jim DeRogatisFor fifteen years, Jim DeRogatis was the pop music critic for the Chicago Sun-Times. It was while there that Jim and his colleague Abdon Pallasch became the first reporters to expose R. Kelly's sex trafficking cult. His book Soulless: The Case Against R. Kelly both exposes what rich people get away with in this country and gives the reader a first-hand account of the work that investigative journalists do. I think it's one of the most important books of 2019.
Jim DeRogatis on Twitter: https://twitter.com/JimDeRogatis
Soulless: The Case Against R. Kelly: amzn.to/32...
2020-06-1053 minFailed State Update10. Protest in the Age of Magickal ThinkingThere's an uprising goin' on. But while the oppressed are uprising, and the cops are knocking heads, right-wing thugs are waiting to take advantage of the chaos for their own fiendish ends. And these ain't your daddy's racists: they believe in meme magick and wear aloha shirts.
In this episode of Failed State Update, I talk to two people who have devoted some serious time and effort to understanding Q Anon, the Boogaloo Bois, and other absurd modern manifestations of the radical right.
Mike Rains is the host of the Poker Politics podcast, for those w...
2020-06-0458 minFailed State Update9. The Battle of PittsburghI'm a veteran of the anti-globalization movement, but sadly these days COVID-19 and some seriously messed up lungs have turned my activism into slacktivism. When I wasn't busy yesterday Venmo-ing my donation to the Pittsburgh Freedom Fund (see "Pittsburgh Jailbreak," below), I spent about 12 hours monitoring Twitter feeds, live streams, and my handy police scanner to try to get an idea of what was going on during the Battle of Pittsburgh.
On this episode of Failed State Update, I will ponder paranoia, provocateurs, the Phoenix Program, and the one weird thing that connects Vietnam to political activism...
2020-06-0146 minFailed State Update8. The Jakarta Method (w/Vincent Bevins)Clearly, the American Empire is clocking out — it's anybody's guess whether it will go with a whimper or with a bang, but it seems likely that we'll know the answer to that question relatively soon. But what did it take to forge this empire in the first place, and how can it be that so many Americans are unaware that this imperium even exists? In the latest episode of Failed State Update, I will be speaking with Vincent Bevins, a journalist and the author of the recently released The Jakarta Method: Washington’s Anticommunist Crusade and the Mass Murder Progr...
2020-05-2858 minGabriel of Urantia: The So-Called Prophet from PittsburghBONUS 4: The Opperman ReportUPDATE: Read the new story "The Cult of CosmoPop" here: https://pleasekillme.com/cosmopop/
Ed Opperman is like a character in a movie: private investigator, native New Yorker, conspiracy researcher, and former Yippie. It was a pleasure to talk to him on his radio show about THE SO-CALLED PROPHET FROM PITTSBURGH (including some new wrinkles in the story, available here for the first time). We also spoke about my new FAILED STATE UPDATE podcast and newsletter.
The Opperman Report website: http://www.oppermanreport.com
Ed Opperman on Twitter: https://twitter.com/oppermanreport
2020-05-2646 minFailed State Update7. The Opperman ReportUPDATE: The latest on the story of THE SO-CALLED PROPHET FROM PITTSBURGH is available now from Please Kill Me Online: https://pleasekillme.com/cosmopop/
Ed Opperman is like a character in a movie: Private investigator, native New Yorker, conspiracy researcher, and former Yippie. It was a pleasure to talk to him on his radio show recently about the UFO cult I'm investigating (including some new wrinkles in the story, available here for the first time). We also spoke at some length about this podcast and my new FAILED STATE UPDATE NEWSLETTER, available at: https://lennyflatley.substack.com/
2020-05-2645 minFailed State Update6. To Live and Die in L.A.Yasha Levine is an investigative journalist and the author of Surveillance Valley: The Secret Military History of the Internet (PublicAffairs, 2018). We spoke recently about the response to COVID-19 in the city of Los Angeles, where he currently lives. Since it's Yasha, the conversation quickly turned to surveillance and empire and the fact that the systemic collapse of the USA (ca. 2020) is largely the result of the chickens coming home to roost — as web 2.0 influencer Ward Churchill might say. After taping that call I decided to expand the discussion a bit by bringing on Anne Orchier, an organizer with NOlympics LA...
2020-05-2456 minFailed State Update5. I Am Seeing UFOs (w/Adam Gorightly)This episode of Failed State Update is about the intersection of government spies and ETs. As far as I can tell (and who can really tell?) the UFO community has been encouraged to pursue and promote some wacko ideas over the years by the United States Air Force to distract them from the shitty things the government is doing (and the scary weapons their government is creating). The best evidence supporting this hypothesis is the story of a defense contractor named Paul Bennewitz who we will discuss here in some detail. But there is also the strange case of...
2020-05-1954 minFailed State Update4. You're Donezo! (w/Chuck Ochelli)I recently appeared on The Ochelli Effect to discuss this podcast and the sorry state of the world in general. I had a great time, so I thought I'd share some highlights of our conversation with you. If you like what you hear, make sure you check out Ochelli.com to listen to the whole two hour conversation. Topics include: rich people/disaster capitalism/Hurricane Katrina, The Day After (again!), my cursory understanding of Jung, the COVID-19 lockdown, and more.
The Ochelli Effect website: http://ochelli.com/
Chuck Ochelli on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ochellieffect
2020-05-1547 minFailed State Update3. Radical politics and the Peoples TempleLaura Johnston Kohl grew up as an activist in Washington, D.C., and watched as many of her heroes were assassinated in the 1960s. She attended college in Connecticut and continued her commitment to work for change and to make a difference. While exercising her civil rights to protest peacefully, she was tear-gassed while protesting the war in Vietnam. After a brief marriage, a visit to Woodstock, and a stint working with the Black Panthers, she moved to California to join her sister. Soon after that, she was introduced to Peoples Temple and spent the next nine years in Ca...
2020-05-1151 minFailed State Update2. Amazon.com and the crisis of meaningIn the second episode of Failed State Update, we check in on Christian Smalls, the ex-Amazon employee who lost his job fighting to protect his coworkers from Covid-19. And then we'll have a wide-ranging conversation with J.P. Sottile, the journalist behind the influential Rundown newsletter, about the strange political and psychological times we've found ourselves in. Topics include the generation gap, fascism, nuclear war, and looking at the bright side of the system's collapse.
[CORRECTION: I'm pretty sure I referred to Christian Smalls as "Christopher" on the podcast. Apologies.]
Christian Smalls on Twitter: https://tw...
2020-05-031h 06
Failed State Update1. Militia Dudes and JuggalosIn the premiere episode, Joseph "Lenny" Flatley talks to J.G. Michael of Parallax Views about the politics of the anti-quarantine movement and the tragic canceling of Insane Clown Posse's 2020 Gathering of the Juggalos music festival. He also speaks to Christian Yingling of the Pennsylvania Volunteer Militia and John "Wagz" Wagner of the PA Lightfoot Militia about the militia movement's response to Covid-19.
NEW! Failed State Update newsletter: http://lennyflatley.substack.com/
Parallax Views: https://parallaxviews.podbean.com/
Joseph L. Flatley on Twitter: https://twitter.com/lennyflatley
Joseph L. Flatley's website...
2020-05-0255 min
Gabriel of Urantia: The So-Called Prophet from PittsburghBONUS 3: True BelieversIn our first podcast episode of the post-COVID-19 world, we speak with So-Called Prophet executive producer K. Gerard about the two major media exposes of the GCCA—the 1998 episode of Dateline NBC titled "True Believers," and the 2011 documentary Kumaré. You'll also hear more from my interview with Shiloh, an ex-member who witnessed the filming of Kumaré firsthand.
2020-04-0630 min
Gabriel of Urantia: The So-Called Prophet from PittsburghBONUS 2: Bryce / AsalenBryce (cosmic name: Asalen) is a 23-year man who was dragged into the GCCA by his mother when he was ten years old. When he heard the podcast, Bryce contacted me to tell his story.In this conversation, Bryce talks about his time in the GCCA, children being utilized for manual labor, and how he came to believe he was on the first "psychic circle" with Gabriel himself. Bryce currently lives in a group home and is being treated for bipolar disorder.
2020-03-1046 min
Gabriel of Urantia: The So-Called Prophet from PittsburghBONUS 1: SanskritaIn this extended conversation with Gabriel's daughter, we'll learn what Sanskrita has been up to since I finished production on the first season. We'll also learn about the lives of the kids in the GCCA and hear about the good and the bad sides of life in Avalon Gardens.
2020-02-2738 min
Gabriel of Urantia: The So-Called Prophet from PittsburghPart 8: Mr. Image ManMy new book about Gabriel of Urantia is available for preorder on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/New-Age-Grifter-Gabriel-Urantia/dp/1627311106
This is the final episode of the series (for now) and probably the best one yet. It's definitely the most upsetting. Topics covered include incidents of sexual abuse and the mistreatment of children in the GCCA. I also take a trip to the guru's childhood home and recount the story of his former son-in-law (and how he wound up in prison).Thanks for listening. And don't unsubscribe, as I'll be uploading plenty of bonus content into the near...
2020-02-1856 min
This WreckagePROLETKULT 6 - Cult vs. Commune w/ Joseph L Flatley + SPACE STRIKEIn this episode of the Antifada sideproject about space, sci-fi, the paranormal, and parapolitical, we talk to Joseph L Flatley -- the investigative journalist behind "The So-Called Prophet from Pittsburgh" podcast.
Through interviews with ex-members, Flatley provides new details about Gabriel of Urantia and his small UFO apocalypse cult in the desert of Tuscon, inspired by psychedelic culture, intentional communities, and a cosmic self-help book of unknown authorship from the twenties. It is a thoroughly "destructive cult," but is there any other kind? We ponder the possibilities through a wide-ranging discussion of Raelianism, Scientology, Posadism, Marxism-Leninism, and...
2020-02-121h 21
Gabriel of Urantia: The So-Called Prophet from PittsburghPart 7: Celestial HealingMy new book about Gabriel of Urantia is available for preorder on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/New-Age-Grifter-Gabriel-Urantia/dp/1627311106
What are the spiritual implications of hydrogen and oxygen? How does the GCCA make its money? And what (or who) does this group have in common with the infamous California rehab cult Synanon? These questions and more will be answered on this episode of The So-Called Prophet From Pittsburgh.
2020-02-1137 min
Gabriel of Urantia: The So-Called Prophet from PittsburghPart 6: David / AlveedMy new book about Gabriel of Urantia is available for preorder on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/New-Age-Grifter-Gabriel-Urantia/dp/1627311106
David (cosmic name: Alveed) was a member of Gabriel's Aquarian Concepts Community from 1999-2009. In this interview, we talk about how he came to join the community, its use of coercive psychology, and how he fled with his son after ten years of cult life.
2020-02-0431 min
Gabriel of Urantia: The So-Called Prophet from PittsburghPart 5: Personal TransmissionMy new book about Gabriel of Urantia is available for preorder on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/New-Age-Grifter-Gabriel-Urantia/dp/1627311106
When Gabriel of Urantia makes contact with the voices in his head, he calls this a "transmission." Sometimes these messages are meant for a particular member of his cult—this is a "personal transmission," and it is quite an honor. In this episode, various members of the Negative Network will give us their theories about the nature of this phenomenon. We will also hear from someone who knew Gabriel in Los Angeles in the 1980s. Lastly, we will me...
2020-01-2834 min
Parallax Views w/ J.G. MichaelThe So-Called Prophet from Pittsburgh (True Crime/Cult Investigation) w/ Joseph L. Flatley
On this edition of Parallax Views, journalist Joseph L. Flatley joins us to discuss his new investigative podcast series The So-Called Prophet from Pittsburgh exploring a New Age UFO religion, or, as other would argue a destructive cult, operating an eco-village in the desert heat of Arizona and led by a man calling himself Gabriel of Urantia. Following in the footsteps of hit podcasts like Serial, S-Town, and Wonderland, The So-Called Prophet from Pittsburgh will appeal to fans of true crime and cult investigations. Joseph tells us all about the pod, Gabriel of Urantia, Gabriel's follower, and...
2020-01-2500 min
Gabriel of Urantia: The So-Called Prophet from PittsburghPart 4: Aquarian ConceptsMy new book about Gabriel of Urantia is available for preorder on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/New-Age-Grifter-Gabriel-Urantia/dp/1627311106
The Global Community Communications Alliance was founded in 1989 under its original name, Aquarian Concepts Community. In this episode, we talk to one early member about community life. We also speak to cult expert Rick Alan Ross about cults in general and Gabriel's in particular, before learning about the revelation that Gabriel has adopted, The Urantia Book.
2020-01-2132 min
Gabriel of Urantia: The So-Called Prophet from PittsburghPart 3: The ShiftMy new book about Gabriel of Urantia is available for preorder on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/New-Age-Grifter-Gabriel-Urantia/dp/1627311106
Sanskrita DellErba is the daughter of Gabriel and Niann, the founders of the Global Community Communications Alliance. In this episode, she tells us where the cult came from and what it was like to grow up in that environment—and shares a lot of stories about her father in the process. We also hear from people who knew Gabriel and Niann before they were the highest spiritual beings on the planet.
2020-01-1443 min
Gabriel of Urantia: The So-Called Prophet from PittsburghPart 2: The Negative NetworkMy new book about Gabriel of Urantia is available for preorder on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/New-Age-Grifter-Gabriel-Urantia/dp/1627311106
The first full-length episode begins with a trip to Gabriel's compound. After that, a former follower and one of Gabriel's most outspoken critics, Laird Scott, talks about discovering, joining, and eventually fleeing the group. Finally, a former colleague of Gabriel talks about working with him in Tucson in the 1970s.
2020-01-0737 min