Checkpoint Charley

Despite what the title says, in this episode, Greg and Andy discuss the history, the kingdom, the power, and the glory of Blizzard Entertainment's marquee franchises: Warcraft and Starcraft. We laugh, we cry, and we learn a few things about how capitalism does its damnedest to try to ruin this good thing too. And if you're still worried, Jigglypuff does make an appearance.

This week of July 4th, Greg goes all Spalding Gray and free associates about what it means to be an American and takes down the legend of the Founding Fathers. Tangents include an update on the latest usage of Ranked Choice Voting and the secret to Jimmy Carter's longevity.

First we have a little update on the Brittney situation, finding a little bit of justice in an unjust world. Then Ash and Greg go on to the main course of the class politics of the mid-nineties darling sitcom, The Nanny. 

It's Ash's favorite topic, True Crime. We have all the fixings: OJ, Casey Anthony, Lacey Peterson. Like he does with everything, Greg makes it less fun by talking about its ethics and implications. Detours include the quaint provincialism of Syracuse.com and the boring parts of being a coroner that they don't tell you about.

When Greg reads about some weird-ass intellectual movement, he just has to comment on it. This week, it's "The Dark Enlightenment", an ideology cooked up by Silicon Valley fedora guys who think inequality is great and Steve Jobs should be king of America. Lenore stops by to add her two cents. Surprise: philosophies that advocate for 21st century monarchies are kind of cooky.

Despite what you may have heard, it's possible to be both a democracy AND a republic. Greg and Ash do their best to lay out some alternative ways for people to vote in America. Surprisingly, outlining different methods of voting is more visual than auditory, but everyone tries their best.

Closing out this trilogy(?) in the CPC podcast, Andy is back to lay out the case against one of cinema culture's prolific racketeers: JJ Abrams. The main points of case are his reboot of the Star Trek franchise and his contributions to the Star Wars sequel trilogy. Honorable mentions go to Lost and Felicity. As Greg and Andy go through the case, they discover that the rot runs deeper than just one man. We are all slaves to JJ's Mystery Box.

Bitcoin, Etherium, and JesusCoin, Oh My! Greg and Andy are back at it again, this time taking on the weird trend of rich people buying things that may or may not even exist. While we can comprehend the mechanics of cryptocurrencies and non-fungible tokens, the cultural fixation with them baffles us. But, like a lot of accidental fads, we find the seeds of a good idea within. We also clear the air about our past issues with Pogs and Magic The Gathering cards.

Baratna Beltalowda! It's another sci-fi episode. This time, Greg's brother, Andy joins to offer his analyses of everything from Battlestar Galactica, The Expanse, and of course, Star Trek. Be careful which TV producers you put your trust in; you might get your heart broken. So say we all.

Somehow a discussion about Christian cults with feet of clay devolves into Ash wondering if she's eaten duck before. Long story short, 19 kids is too many and giving them theme names only makes things harder on everybody.