The Rob Burgess Show

Hello, and welcome to The Rob Burgess Show. I am, of course, your host, Rob Burgess.

On this, our 13th episode, our guest is Martin Shkreli.

Shkreli, a former hedge fund manager and Turing Pharmaceuticals CEO, became internationally infamous in October 2015 when he purchased Daraprim, a drug used to treat toxoplasmosis. There is a good chance you already host toxoplasmosis, especially if you have a cat, but you may never know it. Only children, pregnant mothers and those with weakened immune systems are at risk for developing symptoms. But for those who do, the symptoms can be severe, even fatal. The medication used to treat patients, pyrimethamine, has been available since 1953.

Shkreli inspired indignation when he upped the price of the drug by over 5,000 percent from $13.50 per pill to $750.

Then, in December 2015, he was arrested by the FBI for securities fraud. He is currently out on bail.

On Feb. 4, Shkreli testified before the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform of the U.S. House of Representatives. You'll first hear Shkreli and Republican Utah Rep. Jason Chaffetz and then Republican South Carolina Rep. Trey Gowdy.

The album you heard mentioned in another story entirely. Starting in 2008, rap group the Wu-Tang Clan spent five years recording an album only one person, one who couldn't legally profit from until 2103. In May 2015, Shkreli was the winner of an auction for the album, paying $2 million. Here's Wu-Tang Clan leader The RZA being interviewed by Jan. 6, by Bloomberg, who broke the story in December 2015.

Later in January, Wu-Tang Clan member Ghostface Killah was asked about Shkreli by TMZ. He responded by calling him a shithead. A few days later, TMZ published a video response from Shkreli, who, stemless wine glass in hand, had three masked men placed behind him.

During his Feb. 3 appearance on Power 105.1's “The Breakfast Club,” Shkreli added fuel to the fire.

A few days later, Ghostface Killah issued a video response that doubled as a promotion for his CBD oil, Wu Goo.

You get the idea.

So, here's how I happened to speak with Shkreli. On May 27, Shkreli tweeted the following: “I haven't been called by the Trump camp. I support him vs. Hillary. He should find a VP candidate who is seasoned in politics, an ugly game.” The same day, Colin Daileda of Mashable published an article titled: “America's most hated man endorses its most hated presidential candidate.” On May 28, Shkreli published his phone number, 646-217-2783, on Twitter and asked people who hate him to call him to prove Daileda were wrong. From there, Shkreli and I tweeted back and forth and I dialed his number on a phone without a redial button I knew of for more than 30 minutes. Finally, I got through.

I want to thank Josh Sigler and Brandon Chapman of the Sounding Off w/Chap & Sig podcast for the shout outs on their last two episodes. If you're into unfiltered sports talk, I highly suggest checking them out on on Facebook, Twitter, SoundCloud and iTunes.

You can help The Rob Burgess Show reach a wider audience by rating, reviewing and subscribing to the podcast on iTunes at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshow.

You can also find The Rob Burgess Show on:

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You can also subscribe directly to the RSS feed at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss.

If you're an Android user visit subscribeonandroid.com/tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss

You can find more about me by visiting my website, www.thisburgess.com.

Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/robburgessshow.

Like the page on Facebook at facebook.com/therobburgessshow.

Follow on SoundCloud at soundcloud.com/the-rob-burgess-show.

The email for the show is: [email protected].

Hello, and welcome to The Rob Burgess Show. I am, of course, your host, Rob Burgess.

On this, our 12th episode, our guest is Kristin Clifford.

Kristin is a Chicago-based comedian who has opened for Cameron Esposito, Todd Barry, and Adam Cayton-Holland. She is a cast member of the prestigious Lincoln Lodge, the nation's longest running independent stand-up show.

She has appeared in the Just for Laughs Festival, Limestone Comedy Festival, Crom Comedy Festival, All Jane Festival, and the Comedy Exposition, and is regularly booked at clubs and shows throughout the Midwest. You may have seen her mentioned in publications like the Chicago Reader, Chicago NOW and many more. Two people have signed up for her email list: her mom AND her dad!

You can find her website at www.kristinclifford.com.

You can follow her on Twitter at www.twitter.com/kristincliff.

As I now have an Amazon Associates account. I'll be posting links to Amazon on the homepage, www.therobburgessshow.com. If you click the links and then purchase that item, I understand I get a small bit back in return. Thanks for the support!

Help the show reach a wider audience by rating, reviewing and subscribing to the podcast on iTunes at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshow.

You can also find The Rob Burgess Show on:

Stitcher at www.stitcher.com/podcast/the-rob-burgess-show.

Google Play Music at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowgoogleplay.

TuneIn at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowtunein.

YouTube at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowyoutube.

You can also subscribe directly to the RSS feed at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss.

If you're an Android user visit subscribeonandroid.com/tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss

You can find more about me by visiting my website, www.thisburgess.com.

Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/robburgessshow.

Like the page on Facebook at facebook.com/therobburgessshow.

Follow on SoundCloud at soundcloud.com/the-rob-burgess-show.

The email for the show is: [email protected].

And now, on to the show.

Hello, and welcome to The Rob Burgess Show. I am, of course, your host, Rob Burgess.

On this, our 11th episode, our guest is Monica Stark.

Monica grew up in San Jose, attended UC Berkeley and graduated in 2004 with a bachelor’s in English literature. At the time she didn’t think she had what it takes to be a journalist. Even then, journalism was a dying profession, and her parents advised against writing as a career — so she decided to enroll in the teaching credential program at Sacramento State. Big mistake! Monica truly loves what she does and can’t imagine doing anything else. She has been in the business for 12 years. As editor of Valley Community Newspapers in Sacramento, California, she has been editing the Land Park News, East Sacramento News, Pocket News and Arden-Carmichael News for 3-and-a-half years. Each of those papers is published twice a month. She is also the editor of the weekly West Sacramento News-Ledger and California Kids! All of these publications rely on community journalism.

As I now have an Amazon Associates account. I'll be posting links to Amazon on the homepage, www.therobburgessshow.com. If you click the links and then purchase that item, I understand I get a small bit back in return. Thanks for the support!

Help the show reach a wider audience by rating, reviewing and subscribing to the podcast on iTunes at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshow.

You can also find The Rob Burgess Show on:

Stitcher at www.stitcher.com/podcast/the-rob-burgess-show.

Google Play Music at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowgoogleplay.

TuneIn at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowtunein.

YouTube at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowyoutube.

You can also subscribe directly to the RSS feed at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss.

If you're an Android user visit subscribeonandroid.com/tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss

You can find more about me by visiting my website, www.thisburgess.com.

Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/robburgessshow.

Like the page on Facebook at facebook.com/therobburgessshow.

Follow on SoundCloud at soundcloud.com/the-rob-burgess-show.

The email for the show is: [email protected].

Welcome to the 10th episode of The Rob Burgess Show. I am, of course, your host Rob Burgess.

This episode is historic. We're now in double digits, and we have our first returning guest. You first heard Jonathan Fowler on Episode 2 of the podcast. Jonathan graduated with a BA in history from Indiana University in 2006. He is an unabashed left-wing political junkie. He has lived and worked in South Korea for over 9 years, trying to help the citizens of that great nation, hopefully, "talk pretty one day."

I have just signed up for an Amazon Associates account. I'll be posting links to relevant products on each episode's page on the show's website, www.therobburgessshow.com. If you click the links and then purchase that item, I understand I get a small bit back in return. Thanks for the support!

Help the show reach a wider audience by rating, reviewing and subscribing to the podcast on iTunes at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshow.

You can also find The Rob Burgess Show on:

Stitcher at www.stitcher.com/podcast/the-rob-burgess-show.

Google Play Music at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowgoogleplay.

TuneIn at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowtunein.

YouTube at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowyoutube, where you'll also find a playlist for the songs discussed on this episode.

You can also subscribe directly to the RSS feed at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss.

If you're an Android user visit subscribeonandroid.com/tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss

You can find more about me by visiting my website, www.thisburgess.com.

Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/robburgessshow.

Like the page on Facebook at facebook.com/therobburgessshow.

Follow on SoundCloud at soundcloud.com/the-rob-burgess-show.

The email for the show is: [email protected].

And now, on to the show.

Hello, and welcome to The Rob Burgess Show. I am, of course, your host, Rob Burgess. On this, our ninth episode, our guest is Benjamin Fowler.

Fowler has been playing the drums since he was 12, and teaching since the age of 17. He graduated from the Indiana University Jacobs School of Music in 2008, with a bachelor's degree in jazz studies and percussion. At school he studied with Los Angeles studio stalwart Steve Houghton. He has also had lessons with veteran New Orleans drummer John Vidacovich, and studied regularly with Indianapolis jazz and gospel great Charleston “Deno” Sanders.

Over the years, Fowler has played the drums in such bands as Community Currency, The Delicious (Joyful Noise Records), Kentucky Nightmare (Standard Recording), DM Stith (Asthmatic Kitty), and Cardboard. He is currently busy with The Jefferson Street Parade Band and Chainsaw Mondays.

Along with the drum set, Fowler also teaches finger picking, rock and jazz guitar, and piano. At the Jefferson Street Music Studio, Fowler coordinates several teachers: They’re all currently active in Bloomington’s music community, and they teach a variety of instruments including trumpet, saxophone, keyboard, banjo, mandolin, vocals and more. Whatever you’d like to learn, the experts at JSMS can help!

Ben is the founder of The Limestone Beaters. The group began in June 2012, as Bloomington’s only independent student drum line. In the summer 2014, Aaron Comforty joined as co-director, and the group blossomed into a full-on student brass band: They just recorded their first full length album at the end of April!

The Jefferson Street Parade Band can be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/jeffersonstparadeband.

The official website for Chainsaw Mondays is chainsawmondays.com and their Facebook page can be found at www.facebook.com/chainsawmondays.

The Limestone Beaters can be found on Facebook at www.facebook.com/limestonebeaters.

The Jefferson Street Music Studio can be found by searching the name on Facebook or at www.facebook.com/Jefferson-Street-Music-Studio-1805077073049281. The studio can be reached by phone at 812-340-9247 or 812-269-6171. The street address is 2051 W. Vernal Pike, Bloomington, IN 47404.

I've compiled a playlist of songs from The Limestone Beaters, The Jefferson Street Parade Band and Chainsaw Mondays. It can be found on the show's YouTube page, which can be found at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowyoutube.

Please rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshow. Once you're signed in to iTunes, hit "Subscribe." Click the tab on the iTunes page near the top that says "Ratings and Reviews." From there, please leave a star rating (hopefully five stars) and click "Write a Review" to leave a review. Thanks again for the support!

You can now also find The Rob Burgess Show on:

Stitcher at www.stitcher.com/podcast/the-rob-burgess-show.

Google Play Music at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowgoogleplay.

TuneIn at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowtunein.

You can also subscribe directly to the RSS feed at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss.

If you're an Android user and you're still not sure how to listen, you can also visit the website subscribeonandroid.com/tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss and if you have a one-click supported app on your Android device, the app will load automatically.

You can find more about me by visiting my website, www.thisburgess.com.

The official website for The Rob Burgess Show is www.therobburgessshow.com.

Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/robburgessshow.

Like the page on Facebook at facebook.com/therobburgessshow.

Follow on SoundCloud at soundcloud.com/the-rob-burgess-show.

The email for the show is: [email protected].

And now, on to the show.

Hello and welcome to The Rob Burgess Show. I am, of course, your host, Rob Burgess.

On this, our eighth episode, our guest is Melanie Samay.

Melanie studied literature at Fordham University in the Bronx and received her Masters in English literature from San Francisco State University. Her thesis was on The Ground Beneath Her Feet by Salman Rushdie and how he creates a literary version of the history of rock & roll by writing his own version of the Orpheus myth. Other favorite authors are: Irvine Welsh, Vladimir Nabokov, Anne Rice, Bret Easton Ellis, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Arturo Perez-Reverte, J. K. Rowling, Charles Bukowski, Zadie Smith, and Chuck Palahniuk.

She sometimes spends too much time reading; other times too little. Samay owns too many books but can't stop acquiring them. She's forever pro-physical books and anti-eReaders. She has a shy, skinny black boy cat named Hermione. She is a staunch defender of the serial comma. Currently she works in marketing for The Contemporary Jewish Museum. When she's not reading, she's walking around the city, sitting in parks with friends, and hanging around dark spaces at night listening to loud music. Read more on her blog about books and book-nerdom at soifollowjulian.com.

Please rate, review and subscribe to the podcast on iTunes at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshow. Once you're signed in to iTunes, hit "Subscribe." Click the tab on the iTunes page near the top that says "Ratings and Reviews." From there, please leave a star rating (hopefully five stars) and click "Write a Review" to leave a review. Thanks again for the support!

You can now also find The Rob Burgess Show on:

Stitcher at www.stitcher.com/podcast/the-rob-burgess-show.

Google Play Music at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowgoogleplay.

TuneIn at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowtunein.

YouTube at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowyoutube.

You can also subscribe directly to the RSS feed at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss.

If you're an Android user and you're still not sure how to listen, you can also visit the website subscribeonandroid.com/tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss and if you have a one click supported app on your Android device, the app will load automatically.

You can find more about me by visiting my website, www.thisburgess.com.

The official website for The Rob Burgess Show is www.therobburgessshow.com.

Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/robburgessshow.

Like the page on Facebook at facebook.com/therobburgessshow.

Follow on SoundCloud at soundcloud.com/the-rob-burgess-show.

The email for the show is: [email protected].

Hello and welcome to The Rob Burgess Show. I am, of course, your host, Rob Burgess.

On this, our seventh episode, our guest is Mallory Willits. Mallory is a student at the Indiana University School of Social Work who is currently pursing her master's degree. Mallory has spent the past two years as a Beginning Social Worker at Fairbanks Substance Abuse Hospital and Adult and Child Mental Health Center. Mallory chose her journey in social work due to her natural ability to talk to people therapeutically and her love for helping others. She thoroughly believes in the power of traveling and lives by the saying, "Jobs fill your pocket, but adventures fill your soul." She has traveled quite a bit of the world, which gave her the opportunity to go to Ghana, where she met her husband, Wisdom.

April 3, Mallory started a GoFundMe page titled, “Who said love doesn't cost a thing?” Here's her description:

“As many of you know, and have been following, I fell in love with a man from another country and the immigration process is nothing short of a financial commitment. Wisdom is worth every penny, but between graduate school and a number of other financial commitments the money just doesn't flow in as quickly as the bills come in. It has been just shy of a year since I last saw the love of my life. My dream is to be able to afford another trip to Ghana after graduation as well as submitting the $1,600 for the next immigration [stage] as quickly as possible so that there is no lapse in the process. At this point, we can commit to one, but not the other due to finances. Immigration is our priority so that there will be permanency with being with one another, but we are hopeful to see each other again soon as well. Many people have individually reached out to me and asked how they can help. It was recommended that I get up a GoFundMe page to help with our journey. Please know that we do not expect you to donate, but that some people have requested a way for them to do so. Every penny helps and is deeply, wholeheartedly appreciated. Thank you for your unwavering support and consideration.”

So far, 17 people have contributed a total of $600 of the $1,000 goal over the past 18 days. If you would like to contribute, visit gofundme.com/malloryandwisdom

Thank you to everyone who went to iTunes and subscribed to, rated and reviewed The Rob Burgess Show. If you haven't subscribed to, rated and reviewed the podcast on iTunes yet, please do so now. Every little bit helps the podcast to reach an even wider audience. You can find it at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshow and once you're signed in to iTunes, hit "Subscribe." Click the tab on the iTunes page near the top that says "Ratings and Reviews." From there, please leave a star rating (hopefully five stars) and click "Write a Review" to leave a review. Thanks again for the support!

You can now also find The Rob Burgess Show on:

Stitcher at www.stitcher.com/podcast/the-rob-burgess-show.

Google Play Music at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowgoogleplay.

TuneIn at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowtunein.

YouTube at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowyoutube.

You can also subscribe directly to the RSS feed at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss.

If you're an Android user and you're still not sure how to listen, you can also visit the website subscribeonandroid.com/tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss and if you have a one click supported app on your Android device, the app will load automatically.

You can find more about me by visiting my website, www.thisburgess.com.

The official website for The Rob Burgess Show is www.therobburgessshow.com.

Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/robburgessshow.

Like the page on Facebook at facebook.com/therobburgessshow.

Follow on SoundCloud at soundcloud.com/the-rob-burgess-show.

The email for the show is: [email protected].

Hello and welcome to The Rob Burgess Show. I am, of course, your host, Rob Burgess.

On this, our sixth episode, our guest is The Kingdom of Sweden. Sweden sits between Norway and Finland and is the third largest nation in the European Union by area. This Scandinavian country is home to nearly 10 million people.

Allow me to explain:

A week ago, I stumbled upon an article by Leslie Horn on Vocativ (later in the podcast I wrongly call it “Vo-active”) with the headline, “I Spent My Morning Calling Random Swedes (And They Loved It.)” Here are the first few paragraphs of that story:

“I spent my morning in an an unexpected way: on the phone with several Swedish strangers. Thanks to the the Swedish Tourist Association, there is a phone number, called the Swedish Number, that will connect you with random Swedes. So I called it. It’s a little bit odd to hop on the phone with someone you’ve never met before. But that’s exactly the point. “Calling Sweden. Soon you will be connected with a random Swede,” is the automated message you hear when you dial the number. It’s either +46 771 793 336 internationally or 301-276-0600 for local rates if you’re calling from the U.S."

I then visited the official website for the project, theswedishnumber.com, where I found this introduction:

"250 years ago, in 1766, Sweden became the first country in the world to introduce a constitutional law to abolish censorship. To honour this anniversary, Sweden is now the first country in the world to introduce its own phone number. Call today and get connected to a random Swede, anywhere in Sweden and talk about anything you want.”

According to the most current statistics on the website, more than 82,271 calls from 173 countries have come in since the line opened April 6, and callers have spent more than 161 days total on the phone, with two minutes and 50 seconds being the average call time. Almost a third of the calls are from America, while the United Kingdom, Turkey, The Netherlands, China, Australia and Russia round out the top seven calling countries.

On a personal note, I want to thank all the Swedes who took the time to speak with with me. I would highly suggest calling The Swedish Number to anyone.

You'll hear one of the Swedes ask if I have a YouTube channel, and at the time I said “no.” Since then I've started one, which you can like and subscribe to at: tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowyoutube.

Thank you to everyone who went to iTunes and subscribed to, rated and reviewed The Rob Burgess Show. You can find it at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshow and once you're signed in to iTunes, hit "Subscribe." Click the tab on the iTunes page near the top that says "Ratings and Reviews." From there, please leave a star rating (hopefully five stars) and click "Write a Review" to leave a review. Thanks again for the support!

You can now also find The Rob Burgess Show on:

Stitcher at: www.stitcher.com/podcast/the-rob-burgess-show.

Google Play Music at: tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowgoogleplay.

And TuneIn at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowtunein.

You can also subscribe directly to the RSS feed at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss.

If you're an Android user and you're still not sure how to listen, you can also visit the website subscribeonandroid.com/tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss and if you have a one click supported app on your Android device, the app will load automatically.

You can find more about me by visiting my website, www.thisburgess.com.

The official website for The Rob Burgess Show is www.therobburgessshow.com.

Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/robburgessshow.

Like the page on Facebook at facebook.com/therobburgessshow.

Follow on SoundCloud at soundcloud.com/the-rob-burgess-show.

The email for the show is: [email protected].

On this, our fifth episode, our guest is Mat Alano-Martin. Mat is a stand-up comedian who comes to comedy from the world of rock 'n' roll, where he spent 10 years touring North America as a member of several unknown bands and as a tour manager for much more successful, well known bands. With a comedic style that bridges the social and political views of his indie-rock background with the attitude and sensibilities of his rural and blue collar youth, Alano-Martin has appeared at comedy clubs, theaters, punk rock dives, redneck roadhouses, casinos, colleges, living rooms and everywhere in between. Alano-Martin’s debut album “Profiled as Such” can be heard on the Sirius/XM Raw Dog comedy channel, and he has appeared on the nationally syndicated The Bob & Tom Show, Laughs on Fox TV and at several festivals and prominent showcases across the country. He is also the co-founder of the Limestone Comedy Festival, which runs from June 2 to 4, 2016 in Bloomington, Indiana, and the Arch City Comedy Festival, which runs from August 25 to 27, 2016 in Columbus, Ohio, and the host of the Strangers On This Road podcast. He has worked for Funny Business Agency, Comedy Zone, Tribble Run and many clubs around the country.

You can find Mat's official website at mat-alano-martin-comedy.com and you can follow him on Twitter at matalanomartin.

The official website for the Limestone Comedy Festival is limestonefest.com. Their Twitter page is LimestoneFest and their Facebook page is LimestoneComedyFestival.

The official website for the Arch City Comedy Festival is www.archcitycomedyfestival.com. Their Twitter page is archcitycf and their Facebook page is archcitycomedyfestival.

You can listen to the Strangers On This Road podcast at sotr.podomatic.com.

Thank you to everyone who went to iTunes and subscribed to, rated and reviewed The Rob Burgess Show. The initial results are in, and the average rating so far is five out of five stars. It doesn't get any better than that! If you haven't subscribed to, rated and reviewed the podcast on iTunes yet, please do so now, so we can keep the momentum going. Every little bit helps the podcast to reach an even wider audience. You can find it at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshow and once you're signed in to iTunes, hit "Subscribe." Click the tab on the iTunes page near the top that says "Ratings and Reviews." From there, please leave a star rating (hopefully five stars) and click "Write a Review" to leave a review. Thanks again for the support!

This week, I also had a question from an Android user asking how they could subscribe to the podcast. So, you can now find The Rob Burgess Show on:

Stitcher at www.stitcher.com/podcast/the-rob-burgess-show.

Google Play Music at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowgoogleplay.

And TuneIn at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowtunein.

You can also subscribe directly to the RSS feed at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss.

If you're an Android user and you're still not sure how to listen, you can also visit the website subscribeonandroid.com/tinyurl.com/therobburgessshowrss and if you have a one click supported app on your Android device, the app will load automatically.

At this point, The Rob Burgess Show should now be listed on most of the major podcast directories, but if you're still having trouble finding it or know of a directory I've missed, please let me know.

You can find more about me by visiting my website, www.thisburgess.com.

The official website for The Rob Burgess Show is www.therobburgessshow.com.

Follow on Twitter at robburgessshow.

Like the page on Facebook at therobburgessshow.

Follow on SoundCloud at the-rob-burgess-show.

The email for the show is: [email protected].

The Rob Burgess Show is now listed on iTunes! You can find it at tinyurl.com/therobburgessshow and once you're signed in to iTunes, hit "Subscribe." Click the tab on the iTunes page near the top that says "Ratings and Reviews." From there, please leave a star rating (hopefully five stars) and click "Write a Review" to leave a review.

You can find more about me by visiting my website, www.thisburgess.com.

The official website for The Rob Burgess Show is www.therobburgessshow.com.

Follow on Twitter at www.twitter.com/robburgessshow.

Like the page on Facebook at www.facebook.com/therobburgessshow.

Follow on SoundCloud at @the-rob-burgess-show.

The email for the show is: [email protected].

On this, our fourth episode, our guest is Michael A. Wood Jr.

Michael is a Baltimore-based police reform activist who, after spending a career in the United States Marine Corps and Baltimore Police Department, has torn down the blue wall of silence. He has become a vocal advocate of a new era of civilian-led policing. While completing his doctorate studies, Michael works as much as possible with grassroots activism on the streets of Baltimore, where his most valuable lessons were learned, and makes media and speaking appearances to further the discussion on police reform and the needs of the people.

You can find him on Facebook and Twitter at michaelawoodjr. You can find his website at michaelawoodjr.net. He is also a speaker for Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. Their website can be found at leap.cc.

The first time I became aware of Michael was June 26, 2015. That day, he took to his Twitter account, and shared the following:

“So here we go. I'm going to start tweeting the things I've seen and participated in, in policing that is corrupt, intentional or not: A detective slapping a completely innocent female in the face for bumping into him, coming out of a corner chicken store. Punting a handcuffed, face down suspect in the face, after a foot chase. My handcuffs, not my boot or suspect. Closed Circuit Television cameras turning as soon as a suspect is close to caught. [Defecating] inside suspects' homes during raids, on their beds and clothes. Swearing in court and [probable cause documents] that suspect dropped [a Controlled Dangerous Substance] during unbroken visual pursuit when neither was true. Jacking up and illegally searching thousands of people with no legal justification. Having other people write [probable cause] statements, who were never there because they could twist it into legality. Summonsing officers who weren't there so they could collect the overtime. Targeting 16- to 24-year-old black males essentially because we arrest them more, perpetuating the circle of arresting them more. If internal investigations were transparent, you would be able to see it all. The records are there. What's really hard to convey is that some things are so commonplace, they didn't register until I was on the other side. I'm one person relying on a flawed memory system. This is an indictment on the culture of the profession, not a witch-hunt. Sorry.”

A quick programming note: The first two minutes or so of this episode were severely damaged by a technical glitch on my end, rendering them of too poor quality to be broadcast. Here is a transcript of what Michael said to kick off the episode:

“I am a Marine Corps veteran. I served 11 years in the police department in Baltimore until I was forced to retire from a line of duty injury. And with the movement growing post Michael Brown, the Black Lives Matter movement, I kept hearing a lot of defense of things that were completely indefensible for police to do. And I decided I was going to … talk about these things whether we wanted to talk about them or not or whether it was going to going to get me in trouble or not or whether it was breaking the code … this has to be addressed, and that got a lot of sensationalism.”

We'll pick it up right there. And now, on to the show...