Critical Nonsense

How do we decide who gets to craft the story of us? And what is the weirdest fringe thing that you have personally encountered? [36:54]

This week, special guest Osei Kwakye joins Joey and Jess to talk about The 1619 Project, cultural literacy, the Cold War and civil rights, experimental archeology, meat glue, and the counter-fringe. Sadly, they don’t talk about Bronies.

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What might change if companies freaked out about their employees' transgressions against them before they went public? And why are we still missing the point with psychedelics? [34:49]

This week, special guest Meron Medhanie joins Joey and Jess to talk about internal activism and accountability, nap pods, organizational sensory systems, the therapeutic aspects of psychedelics, Western and pop culture perceptions of drugs, and recreation vs. treatment. They don’t talk about A$AP Rocky.

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How powerful is Dungeons & Dragons? And how are smooth jazz and chill electronica different? [33:25]

This week, Joey, Aaron, and Jess talk about the educational benefits of D&D, the changing status of "The Nerd," platforming Tolkien, low cognitive load, pleasant white noise, and anti-pop. They don’t talk about how Tears for Fears isn't yacht rock, smooth jazz, or electronic chill—they're just great.

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Hey, what about rituals? And when is it time to get rid of fireworks? [33:21]

This week, Joey and Jess talk about learning from mindless routines, Millennial Rumspringa and the exhaustion of novelty, the mental efficiency of habit, fireworks and gentrification, moderation vs. cancelling, and drones. They don’t talk about using pyrotechnics to ward off heathens.

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How does purpose lead us astray? And when is it okay to talk about aliens? [24:22]

This week, a rerun from the Nonsense Wellspring (archive)!

Again, Aaron and Joey and Jess talk about Disney Pixar's Soul, fridge magnets, the Princess Diaries Series of novels, the Drake Equation and other UFO/UAP talk, tranches, and the science behind wombats' cube-shaped poop. They don't talk about owls relate to any of this conversation.

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What is the state of Pride in 2021?

This week, special guest Dylan Fowler joins Aaron and Jess to talk about the diversity of the queer experience, George Floyd, Harvey Milk, Carl Nassib of the Las Vegas Raiders, police participation, and more inclusive Pride flags. They don’t talk about how Dylan met Kacey Musgraves the other day.

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When and how can cute and powerful co-exist? What is the scale of cute to kitsch, and who gets to decide when things become kitschy? [21:31]

Cutie Corner returns! This week, special guests Nora Mestrich and Ash Casper join Jess to talk about the paradoxical expectations of women's behavior, how cuteness humanizes people, Japanese mascot culture, kitsch vs. tacky, being eclectic, and the shift from minimalism to maximalism. They don’t talk about how cute the word "kitsch" is.

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This week, our inaugural expert guest Dr. Charles R. Chaffin stops by to talk about his new book, Numb: How the Information Age Dulls Our Senses and How We Can Get Them Back.

Dr. Chaffin joins Joey to discuss the attention economy, compassion fatigue vs. empathy fatigue, finding empowerment to combat helplessness, the problem when tools become destinations, designing for addiction, Section 230, and authenticity. They don’t talk about Dr. Chaffin's microwave.

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What is our responsibility as consumers and brands to source products locally and support local economies? And what's the theme of this summer? [33:30]

This week, special guest Fabian Castro joins Joey and Jess to talk about how volume and demand affect supporting local, being a responsible tourist/consumer, monocultures, Chet Hanks, pandemic-influenced summer expectations, and liminal spaces. They don’t talk about how to source local porpoise corpses (or how hard it is to say that five times fast).

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Why are we gravitating toward magic against technology, and is magic winning the cultural conversation? And what's your worst possible ghost food? [30:55]

This week, Joey, Aaron, and Jess talk about the difference between fantasy and SciFi, magic as Big Tech's foil, the Waves of Pocahontas, WandaVision, silphium, ghost foods we currently live with (thanks again, allergies!), and the ultimate pear. They don’t talk about the legend that is Don Hertzfeldt.

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