Squaring the Strange

This week, we talk about the Blackhawk helicopter crash report, the damage an unfortunate rumor about a college student caused, and the frightening prospect of necessary, useful data being stifled or simply going away. Then, for our main segment, Ben and Kenny go over the infamous Columbus poltergeist case, an incident from 1984 involving, you guessed it, a young woman with some issues who was suddenly haunted by a mysterious force. Tina Resch was consistently underestimated by "experts" who looked into the case after some photos of a flying phone rocketed Tina's adopted family into the national spotlight. The Amazing Randi was not allowed on the property, but we have information from plenty of other sources, including Resch herself, that she was faking the incidents. Still, this self-debunked case has much to teach us about how the sensationalism around a supposed supernatural event can take over lives.

Ben and Celestia are fresh off the boat after heading to the Bermuda Triangle on Skeptoid Adventures! We talk a little on current events, as is our habit, then get to some short-form interviews with some of our skeptical shipmates. We chat with Richard Saunders, Dr. Angela Mattke, Ross Blocher, Susan Gerbic, and Jeff Wagg about their experiences over the years and what challenges (and solutions) are bubbling up in the skeptical vortex these days.

First, Ben and Celestia discuss pediatricians standing up to the CDC, a cloud-surfing Jesus in the Philippines, and needle-spiking mayhem in France. Then we have longtime friend of the podcast Susan Gerbic join us to talk about so many topics she's close to: empathy and how skeptics can approach education with respect; the big-name psychics that she's been a perpetual thorn to; the cycle some women get pulled into to act as no-name psychics with small followings; the UFO community's hate crush on her; Guerilla Skeptics of Wikipedia; skepticamps across America; and how to raise up the next generation of skeptical activists.

The inimitable Richard Saunders joins us to look at a recent documentary focusing on a group of working psychics in New York City. First we discuss the Great Australian Psychic Prediction Project and Richard's more recent work on restoring a video of James Randi in Australia, now available for viewers. The documentary, "Look Into My Eyes," directed by Lana Wilson, follows a group of psychics who also dabble in theater, and draws many parallels between those two worlds. We cover the messages and ambiguity present in the film -- it's definitely not a documentary that aims to test the reliability of psychic predictions, rather it explores how people connect and communicate. The psychics themselves are shown as humble, sincere people who have found purpose in their craft and believe they are helping others. The camera lingers on patrons who are clearly using the psychics as a kind of therapeutical setting, and there's a lot to unpack in terms of ethics and authenticity. We all have thoughts!

First we cover a few things on our radar: Ben is reminded of an old mail-based scam, Celestia gets excited over a few astronomical news items, and we both lament the MAHA report and its seemingly made-up citations. Then Robert Bartholomew joins us to discuss the new book he wrote with Paul Weatherhead, "Social Panics and Phantom Attackers: A Study of Imaginary Assailants." Have you heard of the Mad Gasser, Spring-Heeled Jack, the Monkey Man, Whipping Tom, or any of the pet eaters, needle spikers, drones or zeppelins menacing innocent people? In the right time and place, these attackers seemed not only plausible but terrifying. Bob goes over patterns in these attacker phenomenons, as well as the social function they serve -- often a cautionary tale grounded in current moral context, with a dash of xenophobia and fear of technology thrown in. These attackers, while complete fiction, nevertheless had victims: not just those who believed a scratch or bruise was surely from the evildoer, but those who were mistakenly arrested or beaten by vigilante mobs. The societal cost can also be measured in thousands of extra police hours as well as heightened anxiety and stress.

First we chat about a weird little chupacabra play Ben saw, then discuss the conspiracies that have metastasized from Joe Biden's prostate cancer and the resurgence of our old nemesis the Food Babe. For our main topic, we have esteemed historian of magic Owen Davies, who wrote the book (two, actually) on grimoires. In pop culture we see them in horror movies, comic books and even old children's movies like "Bedknobs and Broomsticks," but real (or "real") grimoires have been an ever-present relic for thousands of years. Grimoires are a mix of magic, marketing, fraud -- and sometimes blood -- and they have evolved along with the changes in ancient information technology, i.e., parchment and the printing press. From the Grand Grimoire of the early 18th century to Lovecraft to the pulp grimoires of the 1960s, magical words and demonic conjurations have gotten around one way or another.

No, Pascual did not get abducted by a UFO ... but neither did three kids in 1969, we're pretty sure. We have Pascual back to explain how his podcasting sabbatical has turned into a retirement, alas. Then we discuss how fluoride is connected to addiction and crime rates, some alternatives to the CDC for accurate public health information, and the viability of reopening Alcatraz as a prison. Our main topic is a ufo abduction incident that occurred on Labor Day weekend 1969 in Massachusetts ... or perhaps (as Ben suggests) the real "incident" occurred in 2018? Three kids were allegedly taken into alien crafts and examined, then returned, in plain sight of hundreds of people -- at least that's the story if you don't look a little deeper. And you know we will.

We start off with a first-ever viewer mail taste test! Then our standard report on the state of public health and government functionality (spoiler, it ain't great). Our main topic is acronyms and some specific word-based folklore. Is the term "OK" really the greatest word ever created? And how was it created? Then, whether it's linking a rock band to Satan or lambasting a large bureaucratic organization, false "bacronyms" are mini stories all unto themselves. Finally, there's maritime and military terms like SOS, FUBAR and SNAFU, as well as the possibly acronym-related origins of Uncle Sam.

After some current events about dire wolves, dire outbreaks of measles, and dire science denial in the White House, we discuss some true (and some not-so-true) tales of people surviving dire circumstances. People have come back alive from the frigid ice of Antarctica, a shipwreck on the bottom of the sea, and the deep jungles of South America. Others have claimed to have survived well-known disasters but been found out as frauds. And still another category intrigues us . . . survivors that never were. In fairy tales from 500 years ago and in earthquakes today, sometimes we humans have a deep psychological need to find hope in the face of disaster and believe that a small child has somehow miraculously survived.

First we hit on a few current events, including a new monolith outside of Las Vegas and a "shadow" CDC website fake. Sharon Hill joins us again, this time to discuss her new "Pop Cryptid Spectator" and all the delightful cryptidabelia that inspires it. She's noticed a rise in paranormal thinking when it comes to cryptids, as opposed to the old-school zoological framing. How has the internet fed into cryptid spread as well as evolution? She also notes that any cryptozoological gatekeepers are now long gone, so it's a wild heyday of "anything goes" as cryptids turn into blobby, cute versions of their old selves and even Skibidi Toilet has a chance at being labelled a cryptid. We touch on snack foods, movies, games, town mascots, and festivals like Pennsylvania's "Squonkapalooza."