Fraudsters

Is the Second Amendment, a fraud? For this episode, we discuss how the Second Amendment has been distorted throughout the years. Also, we go through the NRA’s evolution and recall some of Wayne LaPierre's most memorable fraudster moves! Our guest is none other than writer, host and co-creator of Studio 360, and super New Yorker, Kurt Andersen, who shares with us how his book, Fantasyland: How America Went Haywire, became a reality. Tune in as we address how America got armed, how it happened, and when exactly did we lose control.

TIMESTAMPS

(3:30) - What is the NRA? How did it go from a training program for young men at the wake of the civil war to having legislative affairs?

(9:07) - The 60’s, a decade where pivotal events for gun regulation occur. 

(16:07) - People are afraid of armed people! So, what do they do? Buy more guns.

(18:22) - The beginnings of Wayne LaPierre.

(20:51) - The Cincinnati Revolt of 1977 at the NRA convention.

(26:17) - Kurt Andersen shares with us how his book Fantasyland came to be and how the NRA and guns are like a religion or a death cult. 

(33:05) - The evolution of the NRA according to Kurt Andersen.

(38:54) - Take a look at Wayne LaPierre as head of the NRA and a fundraising letter he wrote when the Brady Bill got passed. 

(58:04) - What did the Chief Justice appointed by Nixon mean when he complained that the Second Amendment “has been the subject of one of the greatest pieces of fraud”?

(1:04:28) - Stephen Halbrook and other examples of the type of writing that permeated the entire gun rights community. 

(1:16:13) - The distortion of the Second Amendment and melding with the Supreme Court.

RESOURCES

Jason Bellini on Linkedin

Fantasyland: How America Went Haywire: A 500-Year History by Kurt Andersen

Kurt Andersen’s website

Kurt Andersen on Twitter

Kurt Andersen on Facebook

Allow Me To Retort by Elie Mystal

Elie Mystal on Twitter

Elie Mystal on LinkedIn

www.oyez.org (visit)

Frontline, NRA Under Fire

Frank Smyth, The NRA: An Unauthorized History

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It’s the season finale series and we cannot get enough of Wayne LaPierre and the NRA! But first, let’s talk about the Second Amendment. What was its original intent? How did it get weaponized? We go through some of its backstory to understand where it all comes from, specifically how slavery was actually the real motivation behind the drafting of the Second Amendment. Also, we talk about militias. Who were these guys in the militias? Were they all Rambos? Why did they play a key role in the creation of the Second Amendment? Join us as we uncover the original fraud of the Second Amendment. 

TIMESTAMPS

(1:39) - For our season finale we decided to for the Second Amendment’s case. How did it get weaponized? What was its original intent? Why has the Supreme Court’s interpretation of it shifted over time?

(5:43) - The founding fathers were not fearless, they were fearful and so are current politicians! - How fear has acted as the great mover when an economic or social change is in sight.

(9:44) - The north wants to abolish slavery, the south refuses this and slaves are rebelling. Heads are about to get chopped!

(17:28) - Who participated in the militias? Well, just a collection of ordinary guys. Not soldiers, not marines but Yosemite Sam and Larry the cable guy.

(22:16) - Welcome to the Richmond Conventions! On this side… the Federalists! On the other… the anti-federalists! A unique duel on what to do about the oh-so-powerful militias!

(38:41) - It’s a wrap! The Constitution gets ratified and the anti-federalists lose. So, why did James Madison even bother doing the bill of rights?

(49:17) - The truth about the Second Amendment…there is no right to bear arms in it! But it doesn’t fucking matter because the Supreme Court has voted that’s its meaning. 

RESOURCES

Bless Elie Mystal and his recent book "Allow Me to Retort" which was the inspiration behind this episode. 

Carl Bogus, "The Hidden History Behind the Second Amendment"

Paul Finkelman, "A Well Regulated Militia"

New York City draft riots (visit article)

Carl T. Bogus website

Carl T. Bogus on Twitter

Carl T. Bogus on LinkedIn

Contact Fraudsters podcast on Twitter.

Follow Fraudsters podcast on Instagram.

Want to get in touch with Seena Ghaznavi? Click here or here.

Want to get in touch with Justin Williams? Click here or here.

Do you have a story? Send us an email.

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We are doing a whole episode on poop. Yes, you read that right, poop, and the startup built on it: uBiome. In this episode, we talk about how Jessica Richman and Zachary Apte scammed people with the promise of improving their health. The startup got to a point where it was worth $600 million dollars. Oh sh*t!  But how did they manage to do it? Where did they get the money? How far can a pair of fraudsters go? Tune in and find out how data and citizen science can take a nasty turn if they fall into the wrong hands. 

TIMESTAMPS

(03:16) - Our favorite topic, the grand democratizer… fraudulent capitalism: The power of data and citizen science.

(05:04) - That’s right fellas, there’s a map for sewer system in NYC - Leif Percifield and the “Don’t Flush Me” project.

(07:56) - Information: the currency for today’s economy and all about the startup that was built on shit (literally).

(9:51) - How uBiome started off as a very well and civilized citizen science project in 2013 and funded their pilot project through Indie Gogo (the best and most honest crowdfunding platform…) 

(23:59) - Jessica Richman and Zachary Apte a pair of geniuses that know how to raise the money.

(34:33) - “We’ve got this new microbiome that we can test for! Wanna get a retest?” - The various ways Jessica and Zachary cooked their numbers and kept the money coming in.

(41:22) - A startup full of shit! The great unraveling of uBiome: from insurers flagging it to the vanishing of its founders. 

RESOURCES

Leif Percifield on Twitter

Leif Percifield on LinkedIn

Jessica Richman’s Ted Talk - Could a citizen scientist win a Nobel Prize?

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Sit down Shaun! In this episode, we continue talking about the “progressive” fraudster: Shaun King. Hidden behind an altruistic facade on social media, Shaun King manages to scam millions through ‘fundraising’ and ‘charitable causes’. Not only has he taken advantage of social movements but also cyberbullied people that questioned his actions. Journalist Ernest Owens tells us how King targeted him and several other colleagues. Join us as we try to find out what is the truth behind Shaun King, how he has become so powerful and how we can prevent this type of scam.

TIMESTAMPS

(3:53) - Who’s behind Shaun King’s Social Media? A woman, who accidentally ended up working for King, shares with us all the juicy little details about his scamming empire.

(8:13) - #ShaunKingLetMeDown - The disappointment and sadness of his supporters, and the launching of his “full news website” The North Star.

(22:49) - If there is one thing that Shaun King is famous for is being a cyberbully and falsely accusing people of horrible crimes. 

(26:29) - Clarissa Brooks questions King and gets attacked by his army of internet fans. Also, Ernest Owens shares with us his experience as one of King’s targets.

(36:14) - #SitDownShaun - A bunch of leaders from various movements, journalists, and former members of justice together write an open letter to Shaun King telling him to stop.

(39:14) - Shaun King CREATES his financial review board made up of his friends to overlook all of his finances from August 2014 to 2019. 

(44:49) - The “great” fundraiser - Claiming credit for things he didn’t do and money he didn’t raise. 

(50:10) - Our favorite recent Sean King scams: Asking for a donation so he could move houses, asking people to send money to his wife to “alleviate some pressure,” using Chadwick Boseman’s death to promote his book and starting his own fashion line.

RESOURCES

Ernest Owens on Twitter

Ernest Owens on Instagram

Ernest Owens on Facebook

Clarissa Brooks on Twitter

A Community Word About Shaun King: #SitDownShaun

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In this Race Hustler series fifth episode we talk about everything that went wrong with Shaun King’s Justice Together donation management, delving on the former members’ open letters that revealed he tried to centralize donor support and accused every person who didn’t agree with him to be a white supremacist or a troll. Did he take accountability? How did he react? The answer is just absurd.

TIMESTAMPS

(4:20) - Picking up from where we left off: When Shaun King fundraised in the name of Tamir Rice without informing his family.

(8:28) - Can someone please think about Wal-Mart? Discussing the Justice Together controversy and the need for rioting to get true law reform.

(15:41) - JT30 open letter: The mission to ‘end police brutality in America’ and Shaun King’s lack of leadership.

(23:56) - ‘Fool me once…’: Everything that went wrong with Shaun King’s donation management.

(34:45) - shaunkingtruth.com (yes, this actually happened): How Shaun King reacted to the wave of accusations and open letters against him.

(42:33) - The problem with Shaun King being the most visible fundraiser of the BLM movement (+ a tease for the upcoming episode).

RESOURCES

-Tamir Rice's Mother Blasts Shaun King for Fundraising Off Son's Death: 'You Are an Imposter' (read)

-An Open Letter From Former Directors of Justice Together (read)

-Shaun King Threatens to Sue Activists Who Accused Him on Twitter of Mishandling Fundraisers (read)

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Presenting today’s race hustler Shaun King! With his altruistic personality and charitable causes, he will convince you to donate. But where is all this money going? Who is Shaun King? Where did he come from? How did he get to where he is? In this episode, we go through some of King’s most iconic scams! Such a professional in the field. From building a house in Haiti to raising money for a family that actually never got it. Join as we search for the Shaun King RECEIPTS!

TIMESTAMPS

(02:47) - Presenting today’s race hustler Shaun King! A self-proclaimed controversial Twitter activist and a New York Times bestselling author.

(03:51) - Mike Brown’s Case microanalysis - King’s rise to prominence on Social Media.

(06:53) - Where is the money going? - “The person who paints your house before he steals your car has still committed theft”.

(10:33) - Who is Shaun King? Where did he come from? What happened before becoming an “advocate for African American people and part of the civil rights cause”.

(18:15) - A home in Haiti - King going viral with Twit Change to raise money in support of a home in Haiti.

(30:18) - Hope(Mob) - A non-profit crowdfunding platform where users could vote if they had enough points. And how did they get points? Signing up, donating, and sharing on Social Media. 

(35:09) - Life Goals University - For $49.99 Shaun King is going to help you organize your life! But if you really, really, reaaally want to get organized you can pay $350 or more!

(42:41) - “Personally, I don’t know how you sleep at night” - King raises money for the Rice family but they never get it. 

(47:50) - How Shaun King actually creates value and wealth for himself.

RESOURCES

Hope(Mob) Forbes Article

Life Goals University

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It’s our last episode about Steven Seagal, and honestly, we’re thrilled to be finally done with it! We don’t want to hear to another of his albums or watch one of his movies. It’s been three episodes on him when it was supposed to be one! Why? Well isn’t it clear? Tune in, because in this episode we listen to the exquisite lyrics from his second album and look back on his straight-to-DVD movies. Of course, Seagal is an equal opportunity cultural appropriator and we’ll see him as a Deputy Sheriff, Russian comrade, and Buddhist God.

TIMESTAMPS

(04:11) - It's the 2000s, and Seagal is having a bit of a midlife crisis. Why is that? Could it be that his movies are stuck to one narrative? The racist jokes? Police brutality? Hmmm…

(07:56) - Urban Justice, a 2007 straight-to-DVD movie and Lightning Bolt an “Asian experience energy drink.” Imagine! Seagal packed across Asia in search of the drink ingredients! 

(13:04) - “She that pretty,” “talk to my ass,” “an alligator ass,” “the preacher stole my Cadillac” and some other exquisite lyrics that can be found on Steven Seagal’s second album: Mojo Priest. 

(16:25) - The name is Steven Seagal, that’s right, Steven Seagal Deputy Sheriff. He’s a cop! He.is.a.cop. 

(25:01) - “You gotta push the bullet to the target,” Rob from McDojoLife is back to talk about his favorite Steven Seagal bullshit teaching moment in The Lawman.

(32:11) - The Buddhist God - Hazel had the chance to reach out to some folks who worked on The Lawman and ask how was their experience with Seagal. 

(38:55) - The Lawman was a success with 3.4 million viewers, the most ever for a premiere episode of any series on A&E up until that point. People fucking loved it. So, what went wrong?

(41:48) - Lawman’s resurrection on the cable network Reelz and working with “the worst Sheriff in America.”

(51:51) - “Zen master Steven Seagal to become the brand ambassador for Bitcoin to Jetmaster Zen mess” - Seagal promoting Bitcoin B2G and settling charges with the SEC.

(54:40) - Steven Seagal, Governor of Siberia - Having Russian citizenship and the unfair U.S. propaganda about Russia. 

RESOURCES

Out for Justice trailer

Urban Justice trailer

Lightning Bolt Ad

Listen to Mojo Priest

Lawman Show Season 1 Trailer

Steven Seagal Lawman Shooting Practice

McDojoLife on YouTube

McDojoLife on Instagram

McDojoLife on Facebook 

McDojoLife on Twitter

McDojoLife on TikTok

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It’s the second part of our most quintessential race hustler, Steve Seagal. We start right where we left off: the 90s! Steven Seagal can do no wrong, all his movies are hits! In this episode, we see him as a director (we know, crazy!), a catastrophic SNL host, and singer. We’re reluctant to say it, but he might actually be good at the guitar. But this show is not about talent, it’s about race hustlers! So, what cultures will he appropriate this time? Tune in and find out!

TIMESTAMPS

(02:24) - It’s the 90s and Steven Seagal is doing incredibly well though getting repeatedly lambasted by journalists and hated by critics.

(06:14) - Steven Seagal’s directorial *vomit* debut on Deadly Ground, with a humble budget of $50 million and leaning heavily on native (native according to Hollywood of course…)

(16:11) - The SNL fiasco hosting experience and the true confessions from the SNL cast about having Steven Seagal on the show. 

(26:49) - Swords aren’t his only passion: In 2004, Seagal launches his debut album “Songs from the Crystal Cave.” Oh, and he is Jamaican now…

(36:22) - “Ain’t no black and ain’t no white” - The colorblind blues from his second album and changing ethnicity agaiiin in 2006. 

(38:57) - Bobby Ferrazza tells us something that we might not like buuut it seems Steven Seagal might be a little talented after all.

(44:21) - And he does it again! But this time he links his identity to an African-American one. Quite the cultural vulture!

RESOURCES

Deadly Ground Trailer

SNL Show Seagal

The Glimmer Man Trailer

Steven Seagal’s first album Songs from the Crystal Cave.

Seagal on Arsenio Hall Show for Mark of death

Bobby Ferrazza Oberlin College and Conservatory website

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We're kicking off this Race Hustlers series with the King of Appropriate, the Master of Elbow Breaks, and the Sultan of Lies - Steven Seagal! Tune in to find out who Seagal was before stardom, how he got to Hollywood, and the beginning of the end. Also, this episode’s guest is Rob from McDojoLife who explains to us the art of Aikido. This is the definitive Fraudsters breakdown of one of the world’s most recognizable action movie stars… who is completely full of it.

TIMESTAMPS

(02:56) - It’s all kicks, punches, and breaking of arms! Introducing to our race hustler series… Steven Seagal! Best known for his character Nico Toscani! 

(10:10) - Steven Seagal’s great odyssey to Japan, his path to learning martial arts, and other cinematic and unrealistic articles about him and his heroic actions. 

(22:20) - Above the Law and above the critics: The film turns out to be a box office smash hit in 1988. Also, Seagal to be the next great action superstar and launching his production company in 1990.

(28:18) - The way Steven Seagal took method acting to a whole new level making him the Thanos of identities…

(33:04) - Let’s start with the basics: the photo of a young Steven Seagal and his ambiguous looks. Going to Japan… at what year you ask? Well, it depended on the interview he is in now. 

(38:27) - Back in the ’90s Seagal was interviewed by David Letterman. Listen as the host tries to do everything he possibly can to get his Neanderthal guest to say anything compelling!

(53:28) - “He once chased away a few drunks from the dojo. He was never involved with the Yakuza” - Meet Miyako Fujitani, Steven Seagal’s first wife. 

(1:03:33) - The big martial arts fraud - Rob from the YouTube channel McDojo life shares with us why Steven Seagal is a giant garbage piece of a human being. 

(1:08:52) - Aikido according to Seagal vs. what it actually means - Rob explains how this is a peaceful art that kind of simulates sword attacks but it is not badass stuff. 

(1:26:06) - The really scary stuff about Steven Seagal - Sexual abuse and using his fame as a martial artist to take advantage of people.

(1:31:03) - Acupuncture, the way Steven Seagal met his third wife, how doing this type of eastern healing he would use to sexually assault actresses, and a little more about this shithead’s character.

(1:39:11) - Steven Seagal, a manufactured, CIA agent, “slightly autistic” (his words)    human being, and martial arts master to every powerful person you can think of gets exposed by journalist Alan Richman.

(1:48:52) - Journalist John Conolly breaks down every part of Seagal’s story in his article Man of honor. 

RESOURCES

Above the Law trailer

Shadowman movie trailer

The Late Show with David Letterman, Steven Seagal’s interview.

Steven Seagal Videogame

Steven Seagal on Arsenio Hall 1990.

Sean Connery on Steven Seagal breaking his wrist

Why did Steven Seagal punch John Leguizamo

Steven Seagal and Kelly LeBrock on Arsenio Hall Show.

Steven Seagal on Larry King.

Spy magazine July-August 1993 issue.

McDojoLife on YouTube

McDojoLife on Instagram

McDojoLife on Facebook 

McDojoLife on Twitter

McDojoLife on TikTok

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If someone you love has gotten into NFTs, this is the Fraudsters episode for you.  Seena shares his story of investing in an NFT and getting his money stolen. Yes there's a chance he may get his money back, but it could also NOT happen too! 

NFTs and crypto are a haven for fraudsters, while the underlying software may seem harmless and even altruistic in nature, the scammers use it to take advantage of millions. The entire crypto space is filled with scammers, and while there are rays of hope that the swamp will be drained... it may take a while because for crypto the swamp is as big as the seven seas. 

Special thanks to Mike_Cryptobull of Fight Back Apes, and John Kraski, and Justin Shenkarow of the NFT Heat podcast for sharing their expertise on this episode. 

And huge thanks to Last Podcast Network's own Jackie Zebrowski for doing the lords work.

TIMESTAMPS

(0:45) - This is an intervention - There is an unexpected guest at Fraudsters because sommmeoneee is buying too many NFTs.

(4:52) - What are NFTs? Justin Schenkarow and John Kraski, founders of NFT Thought Leaders, tell us all the “sexy things” these assets have to offer. 

(16:20) - We spoke to @MikeCryptobull about falling into the cryptocurrency rabbit hole. Also, Mike and Seena tell us how they got to know Evolved Apes. 

(25:45) - What is minting? What is a secondary market? Why did Seena and Mike give money to Evil Ape and the Master?

(34:38) - Buying apes and the crocodiles coming to drain the swamp - How Seena and Mike got scammed and how things started to fall down. 

(38:34) - @MikeCryptobull the detective! - Finding out it was a rug pull and the disappearance of $3.3 million.

(44:20) - What can we do? Bringing a little bit of value back to the defrauded community and relaunching the whole thing. 

(38:16) - The Fight Back Apes! A 100 volunteers get together to build a new project. Also, Mike tells us about Fight Back Apes partnership with Daz3D, and becoming a real company. 

(59:53) - How can you find the Fight Back Apes? Can you join the community? Wanna get involved?

(1:04:30) - So, Seena is investing more money into the same place that just took his money. Oh, and this is where it gets a little weird. What is a gas fee? 

(1:06:40) - Learning about the experience - people that got into the Evolved Apes rug pull share their stories. Also, it seems we will not get Seena back from the cryptocurrency rabbit hole. 

RESOURCES

NFT Heat on Apple Podcasts

NFT Heat on Spotify

NFT Heat on Twitter

NFT Heat on Instagram

Evolved Apes video

Daz3D website

@MikeCryptobull on Twitter

Fight Back Apes on Twitter

Jackie Zebrowski on Instagram

Jackie Zebrowski on Twitter

Jackie Zebrowski on Twitch

Page Seven Podcast on Spotify

Page Seven on Patreon

Last Podcast Network

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