The school or team mascot. An intentionally selected symbol or  idea representing a team, sometimes providing a rallying cry to  compete, or even fight. And sometimes ... a source of controversy.  With all the talk about potentially offensive mascots, how has there  been no discussion about mascots based on chickens, roosters or hens?  Talk about your red flag!

References:

https://www.nfl.com/teams/
https://www.nba.com/teams
https://www.mlb.com/team
https://www.nhl.com/info/teams
https://www.usnews.com/education/best-global-universities/agricultural-sciences
https://www.espn.com/college-football/teams
https://footyaccumulators.com/news/all-20-of-the-premier-league-mascots
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Australian_sporting_mascots
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Canadian_Football_League_mascots
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jersey_Giant
https://www.olympic.org/mascots

Cold and snow, substantial distance between you and major  cities, a Russian backstory, few distractions, and a location and  climate where no one expects to find a creature like you ... sounds like  a great place for training grounds or maybe a hideout. Yes... today, we  take a look where we might least expect to find insubordinate American chickens.References:https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_states_and_territories_of_the_United_States_by_population_densityhttps://stacker.com/stories/3964/states-most-dinosaur-fossils?page=2https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska_Purchasehttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liechtensteinianhttps://www.businessinsider.com/liechtenstein-map-gdp-per-capita-population-astounding-factshttps://livestockconservancy.org/index.php/heritage/internal/orloffhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trans-Alaska_Pipeline_Systemhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chicken,_Alaskahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Rooster_Combhttps://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/anchorage-alaska-chicken-ordinance.61202https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-41359122

War is hard, without a doubt. War changes people, gets in  their head. Chickens also change people, and get in their head. Don't  believe me? Today, we'll provide historical examples of chickens making  life difficult for humans, and show how chicken farmers have to be among  the strongest among us, physically and mentally.References:https://www.anecdotesfromantiquity.com/the-sacred-chickens-of-rome/https://historycollection.com/sacred-chickens-shaped-roman-policymaking/https://blog.cacklehatchery.com/20-weird-and-wonderful-facts-about-chickens/https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/hares-and-chickens-were-godsnot-food-ancient-britain-180974663/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/apr/10/leap-of-faith-ancient-britons-viewed-hares-chickens-as-gods-easterhttps://furtherglory.wordpress.com/2011/04/12/heinrich-himmer-the-chicken-farmer/https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/58468/most-amazing-lie-historyhttps://millercenter.org/the-presidency/educational-resources/age-of-eisenhower/mcarthyism-red-scarehttps://www.postcrescent.com/story/news/solutions/2020/07/02/joe-mccarthys-approach-politics-clear-early-wisconsin-races/3252626001/https://www.warhistoryonline.com/history/chickens-gulf-war-operation-kuwaiti-field-chicken.html

Can 2020 get any more strange or dangerous? We may need a new word for  all this ... like "strangerous". After all that's happened this year: a  pandemic, economic meltdown, protesting and rioting, an American  Presidential candidate from the Blue Hen state .. And now, one  of the most 'American' vehicles ever created, the Jeep, is back in the  middle of a decades-old dispute involving - yes - chickens.

References:

http://hatchingcatnyc.com/2013/06/22/french-chickens-down-with-titanic/
https://www.timescolonist.com/driving/bill-vance-austin-proved-a-tough-sell-in-north-america-1.24085932
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bantam
https://www.hemmings.com/stories/article/the-jeep-story
http://usabantam.com/
https://millercenter.org/the-presidency/educational-resources/age-of-eisenhower/mcarthyism-red-scare
https://www.postcrescent.com/story/news/solutions/2020/07/02/joe-mccarthys-approach-politics-clear-early-wisconsin-races/3252626001/
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/do-chicks-like-the-color-red.822599/

Did you know ... The United States government keeps millions  of chickens at secret farms in undisclosed locations, protected by  guards and multi-million dollar security systems? Is this some  clandestine operation the public shouldn't know about, or morally  questionable experiments taking place? Or maybe it's just some paranoid  delusion? Today we take a closer look.

References:
https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/27/health/chicken-egg-flu-vaccine-intl-hnk-scli/index.html
https://www.sanofi.com/en/your-health/flu-vaccine-a-race-against-the-clock
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5139605/#!po=22.7273
https://www.cdc.gov/flu/prevent/egg-allergies.htm
https://www.immunize.org/askexperts/contraindications-precautions.asp
https://www.verywellhealth.com/can-you-get-vaccines-if-you-are-allergic-to-eggs-1324082
https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/poultry-vaccines-market
https://www.merck-animal-health.com/species/poultry/


Additional sound effects from https://www.zapsplat.com and https://freesound.org

Ah,  Florida Man ... the internet loves him, and looks forward to another  news story featuring him regularly. How he has entertained us,  challenged us, and concerned us. Today we'll take a look at how Florida  Man and chickens have enriched our lives. 

References: 

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/features/fl-reg-eating-iguana-south-florida-invasive-20180627-story.html https://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2020/01/22/iguana-meat-for-sale-on-facebook/4543262002/ https://www.wptv.com/news/state/iguana-attack-sends-florida-woman-to-the-hospital 

Despite  chickens' attempts to fly under the radar, so to speak, we've smoked  them out and raised awareness of the threat they pose. There is still  work to do, but we have made progress, and truly started to get under  their skin. And, the stakes have been raised.

https://nationaldaycalendar.com/national-chicken-month-septemberReferences:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hQdVrmjBIp0
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwqklRh2irA

Imagine  a world, violent to newcomers, bloody and sometimes deadly, where the  males are essentially warlords who each demand many females. Inhabitants  will turn on each other and sometimes kill their own. Welcome to the  vicious, unforgiving world of chickens.  

References:  http://nwedible.com/you-absolutely-should-not-get-backyard-chickens/  https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/will-chickens-kill-each-other.256298/  https://www.thehappychickencoop.com/how-to-introduce-new-chickens-to-your-existing-flock/  https://www.thespruce.com/do-hens-lay-eggs-without-rooster-3016749  https://www.thehappychickencoop.com/why-you-should-not-get-chickens/  

Today should be a nice change and a real treat. We've received all kinds  of listener feedback, so we're going to let you the listeners speak.References:https://backyardpoultry.iamcountryside.com/chickens-101/wild-chickens-in-hawaii-california-and-the-florida-keys/https://apnews.com/fbfef3965da6452a8bafa6a68647290fhttps://www.image.ie/life/chicken-101-six-myths-debunked-about-the-nations-favourite-meat-114135https://qz.com/1171500/germanys-largest-chicken-producer-wants-to-bring-vegan-meat-to-market/

Chick Fil A's ad campaigns, though just theater, represent just the tip  of the iceberg. Chickens have made enemies with cows, as well as other species, and it's crucial for us to understand the lay of the land.  Today, we'll take a closer look at a possible turf war in the animal  kingdom.References:https://thechickenwire.chick-fil-a.com/inside-chick-fil-a/20-years-of-cowshttps://morningchores.com/chicken-predators/https://animals.mom.me/wild-chickens-eat-1958.htmlhttps://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/how-to-deal-with-australian-magpies-swooping-chickens.930672/https://www.cnn.com/2019/09/15/australia/australia-magpie-death-intl-hnk-scli/index.htmlhttps://morningchores.com/about-guinea-fowl/https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/introduction-to-keeping-guinea-fowl.71990/https://www.thehappychickencoop.com/keeping-guinea-fowl-with-chickens/https://www.backyardchickencoops.com.au/blogs/learning-centre/chickens-and-guinea-fowl-how-to-make-this-quirky-dynamic-workhttps://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jun/10/like-a-stephen-king-movie-feral-chickens-return-to-plague-new-zealand-villagehttps://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/52995921https://farmhouseguide.com/can-chickens-swim/