"Ugly Laws" were ordinances across the United States disallowed anyone who was “diseased, maimed, mutilated or in any way deformed so as to be an unsightly or disgusting object” for appearing in public places. Not shockingly, this was used to discriminate and dehumanize the poor, needy, disabled, and anyone else that gave the vapors to people terrified of people different than them. All that and talk about Pluribus, Diddy, Star Wars, Frank Gehry, and Mark's debut as a runway model. Enjoy!

This week we take a look into space by discussing the weird interstellar object known as 3i/Atlas, conspiracy theories about what the object may be, and how the original Apollo astronauts figured out their exact location on the moon without the aid of any GPS.  

We're finally back after a two month hiatus, and we threw out the format of the show to see where the conversation took us. The discussion veers from drying off after a shower to AI cats to what g-force actually is, to our final hero of the week: the teacher fired for using fart spray. Enjoy!

It's been a minute, but Mark and Todd are back for an end-of-summer news wrap-up, including great news for promiscuous koalas! (And for those looking for a break from last week's big news story, we don't discuss that here at all, so we're a nice escape from that particular news cycle.) Come hear about Texas's new maggot factory, DOGE's lack of efficiency, Oregon's fallout from Medicare cuts, the Denmark zoo wants your pets, bugs that cause "Kissing Disease", the West Coast's new health alliance, and magic dust that prevent the Amish from getting allergies. Enjoy!

The Unipiper noted that this movie begins like "Stand by Me," but ends up like "Reservoir Dogs." While not exactly right, he's not far off describing this 2000 movie with some legitimately shocking twists and compelling turns. But because this is a movie made around Portland (Vernonia, to be exact), it falls short of being an actual good movie. Find out why on this month's episode.

Our Portland at the Movies server is having issues, so in the meantime, here's the latest episode of PatM, which looks at the 2006 Alan Arkin film "Raising Flagg."

"This month we head out to the Oregon countryside (and St. Helens!) for this family comedy (?) drama (?) about a cantankerous old man (Alan Arkin) healing the relationships (?) between him and his many, many children. Also, there's a lawsuit about sheep piss. Can Glenne Headly or Lauren Holly save this? Cook yourself some organic, fertilized eggs and pull out that rocking chair to find out."

A mile underground under the tiny city of Lead, South Dakota -- a former gold mining town -- is home to one of the most sensitive scientific measurement systems ever created, all to find and measure one of the most abundant and mysterious particle in the universe. So what is a neutrino, and how do you find and measure something practically invisible? Find out on this week's episode.

After graduations, sicknesses, hospitalizations, travel, and more, we're finally back in the saddle catching up on all the news we missed while we were out. Come for the measles, and stay for a bath!

In this exciting all-news episode, we take a look at the dozens of attendees at Idaho's "Heterosexual Awesome Fest," asbestos is back, Washington State's proposed speed laws, Idaho brings back the firing squad, baseball might be coming to Portland, a Star Wars experience at Lloyd Center, a breakthrough for fighting HIV, environmental characteristics turn a male mammal into a female, and much, much more. Enjoy!

Our planned interview fell through for this week, but that gives us an opportunity to catch up on all the news we've been putting off. Come with us as we meander through 250 million bees on the loose, acid leaks and new venues in N. Portland, no more thicc plastic bags, what happens in your brain during an 'a-ha!' moment, RFK Jr.'s "MAHA" report based on non-existent studies, night owls and dementia, a Utah study on trans people finds conservative sponsors of that study wrong, AI resorts to blackmail, and bear cubs raised by people in bear costumes. Enjoy!