Normal Men

Normal Men

By George PearkesNewsNews Commentary
Download on the App Store

Normal Men episodes

  • Episode 29 - Gam-Gam Got Hands ft. Don Moynihan

    The incomparable Don Moynihan (@donmoyn.bsky.social) joins us to talk administrative burden, No Kings gets people in the streets, and there are hijinks in Argentina.

    Chapters:

    0:00 Intro & College Athletics System

    7:22 Podcast Welcome & Admin Burden
    25:02 Psychological Costs & Policy Intent
    34:51 Medicaid Work Requirements Impact
    46:39 AI in Government Services: Promise & Peril
    1:00:23 Government Shutdown & Benefit Attrition
    1:13:09 No Kings March & Cringe Culture
    1:20:02 Media's Trump Coverage & Argentina's Milei
    1:21:29 US Treasury's Argentina Bailout

    Chapters:

    0:00 Intro & College Athletics System

    7:22 Podcast Welcome & Admin Burden
    25:02 Psychological Costs & Policy Intent
    34:51 Medicaid Work Requirements Impact
    46:39 AI in Government Services: Promise & Peril
    1:00:23 Government Shutdown & Benefit Attrition
    1:13:09 No Kings March & Cringe Culture
    1:20:02 Media's Trump Coverage & Argentina's Milei
    1:21:29 US Treasury's Argentina Bailout

    1 hr 33 min
  • Episode 28 - George Takes Portugal

    On the joys of travel, Chinese tariffs and mineral access, and appropriate appropriations.

    Chapters:

    0:00 Portugal: Food, Bread & Fashion Trends

    10:40 Trump's China Tariffs & Market Impact
    16:30 Crypto Market Volatility & Insider Trading
    31:30 US Dependence on Critical Minerals
    42:30 Government Shutdown: Funding & RIFs
    59:00 Empathy, Disability Access & Cuts
    1:09:30 Tech: Immortality & Self-Driving Cars
    1:17:30 Seattle Mariners: Playoff Success
    1:28:00 Baseball Fandom & Episode Outro

    Chapters:

    0:00 Portugal: Food, Bread & Fashion Trends

    10:40 Trump's China Tariffs & Market Impact
    16:30 Crypto Market Volatility & Insider Trading
    31:30 US Dependence on Critical Minerals
    42:30 Government Shutdown: Funding & RIFs
    59:00 Empathy, Disability Access & Cuts
    1:09:30 Tech: Immortality & Self-Driving Cars
    1:17:30 Seattle Mariners: Playoff Success
    1:28:00 Baseball Fandom & Episode Outro

    Chapters:

    0:00 Portugal: Food, Bread & Fashion Trends

    10:40 Trump's China Tariffs & Market Impact
    16:30 Crypto Market Volatility & Insider Trading
    31:30 US Dependence on Critical Minerals
    42:30 Government Shutdown: Funding & RIFs
    59:00 Empathy, Disability Access & Cuts
    1:09:30 Tech: Immortality & Self-Driving Cars
    1:17:30 Seattle Mariners: Playoff Success
    1:28:00 Baseball Fandom & Episode Outro

    1 hr 36 min
  • Episode 27 - Frog in the Streets and a Freak in the Sheets

    A Normal Man returns to take us through the unpleasantness in Portland, we break down the shutdown, and sans George the video game freaks get digital.

    Chapters:

    0:00 Intro & Portlandia Ad

    2:59 Portland Occupation & Absurdity
    13:43 Legal Status of Portland Occupation
    22:39 Fox News & Media Critique
    25:38 Oregon Political Unity & ICE
    32:47 Government Shutdown in DC
    41:44 Shutdown Impact & Future
    50:05 What We've Been Up To
    1:00:13 Outro & Yarvin Quote

    Chapters:

    0:00 Intro & Portlandia Ad

    2:59 Portland Occupation & Absurdity
    13:43 Legal Status of Portland Occupation
    22:39 Fox News & Media Critique
    25:38 Oregon Political Unity & ICE
    32:47 Government Shutdown in DC
    41:44 Shutdown Impact & Future
    50:05 What We've Been Up To
    1:00:13 Outro & Yarvin Quote

    1 hr 2 min
  • Episode 26 - Feckless v Flaccid

    With special guest Eva Cantor (@machete.gay on Bluesky).  George talks us through some real economic growth, Propter breaks down pre-snap federal shutdown reads, Eva talks us through a whole lot of violent extremism, and the gun touchers geek out.

    Chapters:

    0:00 Intro, Eric Adams, and Podcast Setup

    12:24 Economic Growth and Tariffs
    25:58 Government Shutdown and Politics
    45:36 Cheer Wine and Glonzo
    49:24 Extremism: Shooters and Motivations
    1:06:35 Gun Culture and Violence Normalization
    1:18:56 Positive Ideation and Metric System

    1 hr 24 min
  • Episode 25: Arm the Moderate Kimmellites

    Lowtax gives us a report on South Florida and the Very Specific Type of Guy (hint: Jeremy Shockey jersey) that lives there now (0:00-3:15). This week’s main event is Jimmy Kimmel, and the Men review MAGA’s effort to bring everyone who doesn’t salute Charlie Kirk at every opportunity to heel (3:15-32:45). Tom Homan secures the (Cava) bag before a check in on Trump Administration approvals and energy politics (32:45-1:06:30). We also talk about Maine (Ed is from Maine) and the quixotic politics on the margins of the lower 48 (1:06:30-1:21:15). Finally, a brief check in on the biggest embarrassment in the history of South Carolinian football and the run for his money being offered by the UNC Tarheels (1:21:15-1:27:00).

    1 hr 28 min
  • Episode 24 : Cheerwine, Cheers, Whines

    Chapters:

    0:00 Cheerwine & Boston Baked Beans

    9:34 Normal Men Intro & News Preview
    11:34 Charlie Kirk Assassination Discussion
    22:09 Federal Reserve: Lisa Cook Update
    32:13 Hyundai Workers & Korea Diplomacy
    41:17 Ed Becomes a Cyborg: Eye Surgery
    53:22 George's MLS Team Sets Record
    1:03:56 The Joys of Sports Fandom

    Chapters:

    0:00 Cheerwine & Boston Baked Beans

    9:34 Normal Men Intro & News Preview
    11:34 Charlie Kirk Assassination Discussion
    22:09 Federal Reserve: Lisa Cook Update
    32:13 Hyundai Workers & Korea Diplomacy
    41:17 Ed Becomes a Cyborg: Eye Surgery
    53:22 George's MLS Team Sets Record
    1:03:56 The Joys of Sports Fandom

    1 hr 11 min
  • Episode 23: Super Sicario

    The Normal Men are back and covering it all this week. To start (0:00-17:30) we check in on the fighting game community before Soda Chat and learnings about the weird stuff they’re drinking up in Maine. George and Propter reminisce about A&W and the gang laughs at grocery stores. Next up, Elon’s unhealthy obsession with fertility and race, as well as some discussion of the very real shifts in global birth rates around the world (17:30-30:30). Speaker of the House Mike Johnson broke some news this week: the President is a snitch (30:30-42:45) and the all carrot no stick Republican governing theory turns its eye to Georgia manufacturing (42:45-57:30). Our government murdered 11 Venezuelans this week, and the Men discuss, followed by some conversation about movies ranging from the light-hearted to the troubling (57:30-1:19:30). 

    1 hr 20 min
  • Episode 22: Talkin’ ’Bout The Noles

    Join the Normal Men for a break in the midst of Labor Day weekend for some college football chat and a victory lap celebrating Lowtax’s beloved Florida State University Seminoles (0:00-12:00). Next we talk Senate primaries and Senior Maine Correspondent Ed explains why Maine is actually a very large state, George commemorates one of our strongest Representatives, and the Men talk through the doomed logistics of applying tariffs to packages (12:00-42:00). Next up, it’s Glonzo time as Propter leads a discussion about the health of the President (42:00-51:00). Then it’s on to LLMs and why they’re such efficient mechanisms for cooking your brain (51:00-1:19:00). Finally a little Labor Day roundup of how each of the Men intended to spend their day off, including bachelor life, woodworking, grilling, potty training, and an anecdote about how seriously the state of Georgia takes college football (1:19:00-1:31:00).

    1 hr 32 min
  • Episode 21: Duck Duck ICE ft. Musicology Duck

    Kick back with your heavily caffeinated beverage of choice as the boys dive into the world of canned stimulants (0:00 to 20:00). This week we’ve got Musicology Duck on to share some of her experiences from the streets of DC amidst a federal occupation of the nation’s capital (20:00 to 1:03:00). We also dive into President Trump’s efforts to take control of interest rates by an attempt to remove Governor Lisa Cook from the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors (1:03:00 to 1:32:15) before a review of a landmark election result in Iowa (1:32:15 to end).

    1 hr 38 min
  • Episode 20: The Last Great American Occupation ft. Lucy

    The Men start this week talking about our fears, including heights, creepy-crawlies, and amoebas (from 0:00-5:40). Then: we’re going to Swift School this week as the Normal Men get up to speed on Taylor Swift and why we should pay more attention to her career (from 6:00-43:00). Then it’s time to chat about the large number of federal law enforcement officers and National Guard troops who have descended on the nation’s capital (from 43:00-1:05:00. Finally, we are unfortunately putting a few notable Democrats on flub watch. (1:05:00 to end)

    Chapters:

    0:00 Unusual Fears and Water Woes

    4:50 Introducing Taylor Swift
    9:58 Taylor Swift's Impact and Misconceptions
    19:30 Taylor Swift, Kelce, and Master Rights
    33:00 Artistic Output and Political Stance
    42:00 The Federal Presence in Washington D.C.
    53:00 DC: Cosplay, Danger, and Deep State
    1:04:00 Political Cringe: Catabu and Jeffries
    1:15:00 Chris Murphy's DC Comments & Wrap-up

    1 hr 22 min

About Normal Men

From the publisher's feed

Normal Men is four guys talking about the news. We want to help explain what's happening in the world around us and have some laughs along the way. And we think you might enjoy hearing what we have to…