Episode 123: The Fungus and Mould of The Obscenery

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At the height of their popularity, patent medicine nostrum pushers engaged in so many extreme acts of outdoor commercial vandalism the era was termed The Age of Disfigurement. I describe it in this Episode 123: The Fungus and Mould of The Obscenery.

In this episode, I read from: James Harvey Young's 1961 book, The Toadstool Millionaires: A Social History of Patent Medicines in America before Federal Regulation; the Wikipedia page for Benjamin Brandreth*; and from my quickie dictionary. I play: a bit of Daffy Duck, first from "Ali Baba Bunny", and then from "The Abominable Snow Rabbit"; and a selection from Herman Melville's Moby Dick, read by Michael Bracewell. That selection came from something called the Moby Dick Big Read, where each chapter of the book is read by a different reader.

(I just finished The Big Read series myself; it was hit and miss, depending upon the reader in question. For you fans of Benedict Cumberbatch, though, I highly recommend his reading of the chapter called "Brit"; it is the best interpretation of the series by far. Oh, and you really must hear John Waters read the chapter regarding the whale's penis: it's the chapter called "The Cassock.")

Musically, I play Jahzzar doing "b-rain". I open with KMFDM backing Clark Gable, and close with Mistle Thrush.

I'm releasing this and all my episodes under a Creative Commons 4.0 attribution, share-alike, and non-commercial license.

*I failed to mention both listener Vincent's pronunciation assistance and the Wiki page in the closing credits. I regret the omissions.

Episode 122: A Map Without Utopia

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There's a lot wrong out there, but it's not enough to simply point it out and shout, at least for me. If you insist on wandering through Wrongville, you may never get to leave if you have only this Episode 122's title: A Map Without Utopia.

In this episode, I discuss extemporaneously, without script, free style, a few discussion points, all while showing why my various first titles were just plain unacceptable. I bitch about the lack of an Internal Revenue Service pre-filing preparation service, as is common in many other countries. I groan about the Supreme Court's erosion over time of a workable definition of corruption. I wail about how the big banks, being largely silent owners of pay-day lending operations, pay to keep legislators silent about pay-day lending operations, and mention the movie Maxed Out that discusses just this. I also give a passing whine about how drug distributors made some bank by spreading the geld and redefining how much damage they could do before what they did became illegal. Finally, I quote Oscar Wilde.

I play: the Bee Gees, in reference to Bob and Brooke from On The Media; D. L. Myers, invoking the Powell Movement; and longest-time listener L33t Minion (well, longest-time voluntary listener, at least, with apologies to Bleak Nemesis for not mentioning him more often), who voiced today's "great." KMFDM and Justice John Paul Stevens give the opening, and I close once again with Mistle Thrush.

I'm releasing this and all my episodes under a Creative Commons 4.0 attribution, share-alike, and non-commercial license.