On the Fringe

In this second live episode, Dave and Gavin walk through the Iran War’s effect on the upcoming US midterm election (which is today!)

Over the last six months, the boys analyze what they see as the Trump Administration’s use of the war to share an ever-complex security burden required to stabilize the Middle East—with more partner countries in the region and Europe filling the void. Meanwhile, the has U.S. pivoted back to the Western Hemisphere.

This episode is without a script and notes, and about why we see that the war hasn’t gone to plan. We dive into a few of the secondary and tertiary effects of the war that maybe didn’t get enough attention in the decision calculus, and what this means for the US and the globe moving forward.

If you enjoyed the episode, share, subscribe, and let us know! Comments are always welcome at [email protected]

All the best from both of us!

Dave + Gav

The boys are on tour and this week Gav and Dave send their regards from Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, the land of coffee, socialism, capitalism and some of the nicest people you’ll ever meet.

This week on On The Fringe, Dave and Gavin talk to Erin West, the founder of Operation Shamrock, a global nonprofit uniting law enforcement, industry, and everyday citizens to disrupt the world’s fastest-growing form of transnational organized crime: pig butchering scams.

After 26 years as a prosecutor, Erin now leads a cross-border fight to expose the scam economy, mobilize action, and protect both victims and the trafficked workers forced to run these schemes. She is also the host of Stolen, a podcast that brings listeners inside the darkest corners of the scamdemic, where love is weaponized, billions are laundered, and real people pay the price. On this pod, Erin talks about her work with Operation Shamrock and the realities of the scamdemic, both in Southeast Asia and in the United States.

To learn more about Erin’s work, check out Operation Shamrock https://www.operationshamrock.org

If you enjoyed the episode or got something out of it, shoot us a message at [email protected].

Like, comment, and share. Let’s keep our money in our pockets!

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Join us on a wild language adventure on this quick bonus episode!

Tangent: I (Dave) have been studying Mandarin Chinese for about 6 weeks now. One of my first go-to’s when learning a new language is to utilize information I already know to understand sentence structure and vocabulary. I’ve used maps of the world to learn various scripts and alphabets (Korean, Japanese, Russian, Bahasa Indonesia), and found a map written in Simplified Characters to learn countries names then break them down character by character. For me, it’s been a huge boon to building character recognition, and I can associate them with a picture (and a place) to help remember them.

Back to the episode description.

In this surprise bonus episode we touch on the etymology and some wild discoveries of how Chinese characters are used in a handful of countries’ names. Does this paint a picture of the Chinese view of the world? Or, are we just looking too at this deep?

Got any comments or questions? Shoot us an email at [email protected]

Apologies for getting this out a few hours late—jet lag is real!

All the best from both of us,

Dave + Gav

Hey On the Fringe Community! Gav + I are both on the move. We will be posting a bonus episode tomorrow and then will be back like normal next weekend! Listen for a teaser about it.

Have a great week + all the best from both of us!

Dave + Gav

Hey all! In this episode we welcomed back Joe Barnes, a friend of the podcast and Russia hand. In February 2022, Joe set off on a trip on a trip through the former USSR and visited each one of the fifteen countries, then wrote a fascinating book about his experiences.

In our hour-long chat (it’s a record) we dive into what is happening on the ground in each country, including the cultural and historical dynamics that have shaped the last three decades in each country. In the wide ranging chat, Joe peels back the regional dynamics at play in Eastern Europe, the Caucasus, and Central Asia and shares his deep insight into the vastly different cultural dynamics at play from experiencing these countries on the ground.

After listening, you’ll come away with a much deeper understanding of the former USSR today and why throwing these countries into a single basket (as was done before) makes for a misguided or lopsided view of some of the world’s least understood—and most important places.

Joe’s book is available here and we both wholeheartedly recommend it (and make no commission on this link):

https://www.amazon.com/Farewell-Russia-Journey-Through-Former/dp/B0GPNJXB5B/

If you enjoyed the episode, please do us a quick favor and subscribe, leave us a star rating, and a comment. Or send us an email at [email protected].

We always love hearing from our growing On the Fringe community.

All the best from both of us,

Dave + Gav

Singapore has one of the lowest birth rates in the world. (Sorry, made a mistake 15 seconds in!) And, the local government (as it has done in the past to stop Singaporeans from doom scrolling) came up with a plan to play matchmaker + provide more financial incentives to couples to have kids.

In the episode, Dave + Gav analyze the new policy, and spot an important piece of the puzzle that government is really missing.

If you enjoyed it or learned something, subscribe and shoot us an email: [email protected]

Thanks as always to our growing On the Fringe community!

All the best from both of us,

Dave + Gav

Here’s another example of Singapore’s novel policies in motion

This a quick bonus episode/update about the current war between Pakistan and the Taliban in Afghanistan. Pakistan has signed on to the Makkah Accord, along with Saudi Arabia and Turkiye to come to one another’s mutual defense. Will this agreement do anything to resolve the tit-for-tat conflict? Here’s our take.

In this episode, we dive into what the three countries that have signed on the Makkah Agreement (Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Pakistan) have to offer one another, and why on paper this looks like an effective deterrence against a group like the Houthis or the Taliban. We also dive into why access does not equal utilization. Essentially, why the Saudis are largely left fending for themselves despite having a brand new alliance that looks increasingly more like a paper Megazord.

Thanks, as always, for listening and all the best from both of us!

Dave + Gav

According to CSIS, Intellectual property losses cost the U.S. economy between $225—$600 billion per year. These come from losing trade secrets, illegal technology transfers, and copyright infringement to name a few.

It was recently reported that critical parts to the F-35 fighter jet were shipped commercially between Australia and the U.S. and routed through Hong Kong. Then, China took possession of them.

In this quick bonus episode, Dave and Gavin theorize why and how this happened, and the potential damage to U.S. national security as a rival power now possesses military technology the U.S. has fiercely protected.

If you enjoyed the episode, give us a star rating, leave us a comment, or shoot us an email! [email protected]

Thanks for listening and all the best,

Dave + Gav