Matthew takes a break from the news to expand on the possible origins of conspirituality—as being related to intergenerational trauma.

What is conspirituality, if not the mobilization of forced, fragile, and ultimately empty spiritual aspirations, made to temper hypervigilance?

It's also just a relief and a pleasure to spend time away from the feeds, and immersed in this brilliant film.

Show Notes

Dr. Nerurkar on the glorification of trauma

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A few weeks ago, you couldn’t turn to a social media platform without seeing that Joe Rogan was trending. The diversity of topics boggled the mind: COVID disinformation; misogyny, pseudoscience; transphobia; and, of course, racism, thanks to the infamous N-word mixtape. Then a parallel argument came through: fair pay for musicians on Spotify. Given that Rogan was given $100 million for his podcasting contract—a number we’d later find out was closer to $200 million—the economic discussion brought another dimension into the conversation. But given all of the topics being discussed, which dimension should we have focused on?

That thought led Derek to write a series of tweets on the topic, followed by a more in-depth Substack article contemplating the three main issues of concern: scientific misinformation, racism, and fair pay. The tweets led to a lot of pushback, which we’ll be looking at through the lens of conversation and debate, as well as a 2021 Pew Research poll on American political typologies. It also led to today’s guests—infectious disease epidemiologist and science communicator, Jessica Malaty Rivera, and civic product leader and community activist, Daniel Latorre—offering their own views on the topics, first on social media, then here on the podcast. But first, we’ll discuss the implications of intersectionality and progressive politics in a world in which social media can distort as much as it amplifies. Matthew will dish on how much he loathes everything Joe Rogan stands for, and why—but also wonders about how pragmatic his seething hatred is, or could be.

Just a note before we begin. Between our last episode—in which Julian caught up with Sara Aniano and dappergander on current events in the QAnon world—and today, Russia has invaded Ukraine, and all of the news is terrible and terrifying. Since the first rockets hit, we’ve been monitoring how conspirituality influencers are responding, and we’ll bring you that data next week, as it continues to show the adaptability of the movement and the willingness of its influencers to say literally anything to remain at the center of the attention and outrage economy.

Show Notes

Joe Rogan: We are in Kali Yuga

Joe Rogan shares Sadhguru: “It is fashionable to suffer”

Matthew Sheffield on Right-Left “balance” on Rogan.

McInnes appearance on Rogan “instrumental” to Proud Boys’ growth: Rolling Stone

Beyond Red vs. Blue: The Political Typology

Race & Class at Spotify

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The Left-Right political spectrum doesn't really capture the breadth of political sentiment in America. Derek looks at a 2021 study by Pew Research on political typologies—as well as Jean-Pierre Faye's horseshoe theory—to better understand the multivariate dynamics at play, as well as its implications for democracy in America moving forward.

Show Notes

Pew Research: Beyond Red vs. Blue: The Political Typology

Rational Wiki: Horseshoe Theory

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"Freedom Convoy" leader, Pat King, recently live-streamed his arrest on Facebook. His racist public incitements to violence belie claims that the convoy was non-partisan and peaceful. As with other conspiracy-based events, inner circle communications and public relations messaging prove to be contradictory.

From RFK Jr appearing at a Far Right rally in Berlin and militias storming the US Capitol on Jan 6 to anti-vaxxers gathering at the Lincoln memorial and the Ottawa truckers tying up traffic and trade for over a month, QAnon appears everywhere.

This week, Julian pilots solo to interview extremism experts Sara Aniano (who regularly reports on the alt-tech far-right cess-pool, Telegram) and dappergander about recent developments in the Q-adjacent conspiracy sphere, implications for the planned American convoy, and the coming midterm elections in America. They also discuss surviving the emotional toll of their research and offer advice for those trying to help themselves—or someone they love—escape.

Show Notes

dappergander on Twitter

Sara Aniano on Twitter

Grid.News Reporting on Planned American Trucker Convoy

Q-Adjacent Convoy Protestor Arrested in Ottawa Cries Out “I’m  Being “Stuck with a Vaccine” 

Convoy Leader Signs Off Her Speech at Occupation with WWG1WGA Rallying Cry

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They couldn’t be more different: the self-made, self-help guru to the stars, the antisemitic Black-separatist, the blue-blood anti-vax lawyer, and the founder of a science-fiction religion. But in the cult-conspiracy economy, strange bedfellows are often the norm.

Julian investigates how—underneath cultural, racial, political, and even religious differences—opportunistic grifters can always find common cause in the pursuit of wealth and influence. In the end, they’re all carpetbaggers dressed up as pharaohs.

Show Notes

The Lies of RFK Jr’s Medical Racism Documentary

Samoan Measles Outbreak

Somali Measles Outbreak

Measles Outbreak Amongst Brooklyn Orthodox Jews

RFK Jr. At Berlin protest with Neo-Nazis

Weaponizing Racism for Anti-Vax Activism

Werner Erhard: Father of Self-Help

Anti-Vax Infiltrates Nation of Islam 

Scientology Money Project

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When Stephanie Sibbio, owner of Glowing Mama Fitness in Toronto, livestreamed herself harassing workers in her local health food store over COVID policy, the world was introduced to a now-familiar archetype: the petulant anti-masker who cares as little about science as she does about others. Sibbio has since developed this role with gusto, becoming a minor celebrity in the Canadian antivax movement. Recently, she threw her support behind the Occupation of Ottawa.

But everyone comes from somewhere: a family, a network, a circle. Beneath a persona hardened by the social media spectacle, there’s a person to be known, remembered, and perhaps welcomed back.

Today Matthew sits down with four friends who have known and loved Stephanie since junior high school. They share stories of the bonds they nurtured growing up, and how quickly and violently antivax ideology and social media smashed their circle.

An honest and transparent discussion about the emotional and social costs of conspirituality.

Show Notes

Glowing Mama Anti-Masker. Toronto Influencer Socially Toilets in…

The Unbearable Feelings of the Anti-Masker

Oppression Fantasies of White Anti-Vax Moms

That Time When I Was in a Cult and Got a Loving Letter from a Friend

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"An essential pleasure of white liberal identity in Canada is the schadenfreude of looking down our noses when we consider what’s south of us. It’s an unearned pride that says: “We’re not like that.” It’s delusional. We are absolutely like that, with tougher gun laws and the moderating effect of the Parliamentary process—but absolutely like that. We want to say “QAnon  wouldn’t find a foothold here.” and it does. We want to say “We’re a long way off from Jan 6,” but we’re not. Democracy is as fragile as the human body."

An editorial piece from Matthew on a harsh awakening in the Great White Liberal North.

Show Notes

Land acknowledgments meant to honor Indigenous people too often do the opposite – erasing American Indians and sanitizing history instead

Harsha Walia on historical continuity

Ottawa police discover children living in protesters' trucks | The Star

Land Acknowledgement – City of Toronto

Toronto Cops Say They Did 'Tremendous Job' After Beating People, Destroying Homeless Camp

Nearly $2 million spent on clearing encampments should have gone to housing, advocates say

300 people trapped. 4 hours. Pouring rain. The day I was kettled by police in Toronto.

'We regret that mistakes were made': Toronto police acknowledge 'unacceptable' mass arrests at 2010 G20 protests

Lawsuit filed against convoy organizers, seeking damages on behalf of downtown Ottawa residents

We're not Tragically Hip fans — and yes, we're Canadian

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We cover a lot of ground in this episode. But to introduce it in seed form, we want to draw your attention to a 15-second video we’ve posted to our Instagram. It shows a little boy, clearly stressed, sitting in the cab of an expensive black pickup truck with the window open, holding his ears against the incredible noise of the air horns as his mother takes a triumphant pan-shot video of a convoy rally.

The clip encapsulates the surreal chaos of a deceptive, astroturfed, funded-from-outside, social-media-driven catastrophe that is right in line with the worst of the conspirituality world. A torrent of misinformation, co-opted trauma, and “freedom-fighters” LARPing, in which children are weaponized by super-pilled parents, in which we can witness the cycles of social neglect and psychic violence turning in real time.

We open today with a review of the Occupation of Ottawa and what we know so far, and a discussion of how our conspirituality friends are co-opting and distorting events in ways that are not only craven, but will increase the chances that this event will end in violence. Finally, Matthew interviews Elizabeth Simons of the Canadian Anti-Hate Network on the deep background, the big picture, and the horizon.

CORRECTION: Matthew incorrectly stated that The Branches Yoga in Kitchener Waterloo hosted a workshop by Selam Debs. They did not host it, but they did promote it to their community.

Show Notes

Canadian Anti-Hate Network

New Age Healers and Right-Wing Militants Come Together in Ottawa

Canadian Yoga Teacher and Anti-Racism Educator Targetted

The 'Freedom Convoy' Is Nothing But A Vehicle For The Far Right

Mayor of Windsor: “Some occupiers are willing to die.”

A Holocaust Denier Is Travelling Across Canada Building Up The Country's Newest Far-Right Militia Movement - Canadian Anti-Hate Network

Canada's “Freedom Convoy” Is a Front for a Right-Wing, Anti-Worker Agenda

Ottawa police discover children living in protesters' trucks | The Star

Freedom Convoy Brings the Far-Right 

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Despite the binary conversations around vaccinations, healing has never been an either/or dependent on one factor. What works for one person isn't necessarily the correct course of action for someone else. One criticism of modern health care certainly stands out: the ritual of healing has been sacrificed for the convenience of scripts and hasty dialogues between doctors and patients. 

Derek looks at the intersection of healing and ritual through the lens of placebo studies and psychedelics, arguing that regardless of the discipline, "therapy" is a holistic endeavor. 

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Mary joins Matthew for an extended interview about the last year of her husband’s life. Louis died of pancreatic cancer almost exactly a year ago, at the age of 45. Mary—who has asked that her last name be kept off the record for privacy concerns—loved him and cared for him throughout that journey. It was hard, not only for the reasons we all share, but because Louis spent his last months under the influence of quantum chiropractor Joe Dispenza. At one crucial point, he was on the verge of stopping his chemotherapy treatment, believing that a Dispenza meditation technique might be more effective.

Mary is an Applied Psychologist with a science background and an evidence-based mindset. She didn’t share Louis’s beliefs or ideals, and at points was terrified that his death would be hastened by conspirituality. But of course, she loved and served him nonetheless. And it seems he had a good death, perhaps blessed by beliefs that made Mary wonder if they might provide relief for her as well.

If we’ve learned one thing over the course of this project, it’s that we’ll be living and dying together for a long time at the crossroads of data and imagination, science and spirituality, evidence and the unknown. We’re grateful that Mary has shared this love story of how she navigated it all.

Note: If you have recently lost someone close to you, you may find this episode difficult to listen to.

Show Notes

John-Roger, New Age Spiritual Leader in California, Dies at 80 - The New York Times

ARCHIVE Cult Leader John-Roger, Who Says He's Inhabited by a Divine Spirit, Stands Accused of a Campaign of Hate 

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