The Conspiracy Skeptic

Episode 110 – Talking Ancient Apocalypse and Graham Hancock with Dr. Ken Feder

27 Oct 2024

Mega friend of the Monster Talk show comes on my podcast to talk about Graham Hancock and Ancient Apocalypse. Are archaeologist really scratching their heads wondering how civilizations emerged separately? No. Not at all. Buy his books at Amazon. As he notes in the show you can email him at his academic email feder@ccsu.edu and get a discount! You don't even have to be old like us.

Episode 109 – Dead Internet Theory and does Google Suck Now with Kyle Polich

31 Aug 2024

Kyle Polich of the Data Skeptic Podcast comes on to talk about the so-called Dead Internet Theory. Is Social Media AI serving up content for AI bots and are humans are now out of the equation?

Episode 108 – Max Azzarello, Self-immolation, and Ponzi Schemes with Carolyn Shuck

2 Aug 2024

Journalist Carolyn Shuck returns to talk about Max Azzarello, the guy who lit himself on fire outside the Trump trial. Is the economy truly a giant Ponzi scheme like he claimed in his manifesto claims?

Episode 107 – The Attempted Trump Assasination and the Complete and Utter Collapse of Everything Sacred in the Universe and Even Worse Stuff Plus Is Your Cat Trying to Kill You? with Dr. David D. Perlmutter

16 Jul 2024

Dr. David D. Perlmutter, a professor of Media and Communication at Texas Tech, returns for a breaking emergency episode about the attempted assassination of Donald Trump and how conspiracy theories are literally playing themselves out, on both sides, right before our eyes. The title might be a little exaggerated but that's the way to get ears and eyeballs! Amiright?

Episode 106 – Higher Strangeness with Eric Bickernicks

21 Apr 2024

New England author Eric Bickernicks is back with a sequel to his 2019 novel High Strangeness. It's naturally called Higher Strangeness. His first novel is stil a free Kindle download but do please consider buying this one.

Episode 105 – Infertility with Dr. Karen Stollznow

17 Mar 2024

Dr. Karen Stollznow comes on to discuss her new book Missed Conceptions. It's a book that looks at Karen's own journey to have a child as well as how history has treated women who are unable to have children. Missed Conceptions is a frank and honest work that anyone who is considering having a child should read.

Episode 104 – Conspiracy Year in Review with Dr. David D. Perlmutter

21 Dec 2023

Dr. Perlmutter and I review some of the key conspiracies that hit the net and airwaves this year and what it says about where society is heading.

Episode 103 – The Risks and Rewards of AI with Darren McKee

25 Nov 2023

If that voice sounds familiar it is because Darren McKee is the regular intro voice of Canada's long running and well regarded Reality Check podcast. When he's not podcasting, he is a policy advisor in Ottawa. Darren has recently published a very timely book on AI called Uncontrollable: The Threat of Artificial Superintelligence and the Race to Save the World (US Amazon link). We talk about his book and AI's past, present, and possible futures. Is AI like a more efficient tractor that will destroy some jobs but create more? Or is it something dot dot dot else? Canadian purchasers see here.

Episode 102 – Antoine Delbast's Journey from Non-Believer to UFO Believer to Skeptic

23 Nov 2023

Continuing in our Canadian trilogy, Antoine Delbast is a long time listener who comes on to talk about being secular celebrant who can marry people in Quebec 100 percent legal like. He talks about his journey from growing up in a secular French Canadian household to his life as a youthful believer in UFOs to his life as a skeptic.

Episode 101 – Creature X Novel Series with Jeff Dupuis

4 Nov 2023

Jeff Dupuis is a Canadian author, based in Toronto, who has written a series of mystery books called Creature X. His books (Roanoke Ridge, Lake Cresent, and Umboi Island) are not just whodunit novels but weave in cryptids and skepticism! He comes on the podcast to talk about his skeptical approach to writing and researching cryptids. Apologies: Jeff's family also comes from my hometown of Windsor so we chat a bit out that. As well, we're a couple Canadian lefties so we side track a bit there too. Canadian readers should check out his author page at Dundurn Press. American listeners, and points beyond, should find his books on Amazon.

Episode 100 - Whatever Happened to Pizza at McDonald's with Brian Thompson

1 Oct 2023

It's finally show 100! Yeah. My very first official guest was Brian Thompson. Back then he was host of the Amateur Scientist podcast. Now he's host of the very funny, very meta Whatever Happened to Pizza at McDonald's. Brian comes on to talk about what he's been up to the last 14 years, the origins of his podcast, and how it mocks, among other things, conspiratorial thinking.

Episode 99 - The Montreal Screw Job with Dr. Dónal Gill and Cian Gill

24 May 2023

Cian Gill hosts an excellent podcast called Wide Atlantic Weird. It's skepticism meets Forteanism. Cian covers a wide range of topics but some of his best are when he brings on his brother Dr. Dónal Gill to talk about pro wrestling. No. Seriously. They come on my show to talk about one of the greatest pro westing conspiracies ever: the legendary Montreal screwjob.

Episode 98 - True Crime with Dr. David D. Perlmutter

24 Nov 2022

Dr. David D. Perlmutter, a professor of Media and Communication at Texas Tech University, returns to talk about the the similarities between the true crime genre and conspiracy thinking.

Episode 97 - Tartaria and Phantom Time with Sean Ondes

18 Jul 2022

Sean Ondes is cohost of the fantastic Wetwired podcast. You really need to add this to your feed! Sean comes on to talk about a nutso conspiracy theory about the hidden history of Tartaria, giants, phanon time, and why old buildings have high ceilings. Hint. It's for giants.

Episode 96 - The Georgia Guidestones II with Blake Smith

11 Jul 2022

Eleven years ago Blake Smith came on to talk about his trip to visit the Georgia Guidestones. Someone blew them up July 6, 2022. Blake and I talk about what we've learned about "America's Stonehenge", who most likely paid for them to be built, and what this bombing says about the modern world of conspiracy cranking. We also spend some time looking how being a conspiracy skeptic, and a skeptic in general, has changed (not for the better) in the last 11 years.

Episode 95 - Comic Conspiracy with Celestia Ward and F Andrew Taylor

17 Mar 2022

Comic book artists and experts Celestia Ward (Squaring the Strange) and F Andrew Taylor (Geek Shock Podcast) join me to talk about comic books, the comic book moral panic, and various conspiracy theories surrounding the early comic book industry.

Episode 94 - In from the Cold War with Dr. Brian Regal

21 Feb 2022

Dr. Brian Regal is a history professor at Kean University in New Jersey. He has become the go-to guy for cryptid topics by the media. Before he started tucking into things with big feet, Dr. Regal was a Cold War warrior. I have him on to talk about his days on the front lines as a tank commander and his experiences as an 18-year old in West Germany staring down the barrel of an M60 tank at T72s. Follow him on Twitter. See his Google page for his vast body of work. Buy one of his books at Amazon!

Episode 93 - NESARA with Aaron Gulyas

28 Jan 2022

Host of Saucer Life Aaron Gulyas has written a book on conspiracies. He returns to this podcast to talk about one of his chapters that delves into one of the weirdest pyrmaid schemes in history (the Omega Trust), a weird fantasy law called NESARA, and a massive conspiracy involving the space brothers and world wide revolution. Get his book new book Conspiracy and Triumph on Amazon. You can also listen to his Saucer Life podcast.

Interview About My Book and the Nature of Conspiracies

17 Jan 2022

Not an audio podcast but I did an interview with my local paper about my book and the nature of conspiracy theoires. Click on this link to read my ever so clever insights and how to defeat the mall gnomes before you have to renew your mortgage: Burlington author tackles conspiracy theories through humorously skeptical lens

Episode 92 - Covid Conspiracies with Dr. Ivor Mectin

11 Jan 2022

Ivor Mectin is a pseudonym of a UK-based author who has written a guide to all manner of unhinged Covid conspiracies and crank ideas. He's come on to talk about writing his book and the many facets of Covid conspiracy thinking. Get his book on Amazon Covid-19: Ultimate Misinformation. You can follow him on Twitter

Episode 91 - Sharon Hill, Geology, and the End Times

10 Oct 2021

Geologist and legendary blogger Sharon Hill comes to discuss the ways aspects of geology is used to totally 100% prove the world is going to end. Not so much. Get her book Scientifical Americans: The Culture of Amateur Paranormal Researchers.

Episode 90 - Science for Hippies

4 Sep 2021

Tom Thumb, world traveler and author, talks about his latest book titled "Science for Hippies: An alternative guide to how we know anything at all". It's a brilliant, approachable book on how we know what we know. You can pick it up at a great price on Amazon in either Kindle or print on demand.

Episode 89 - Gamestop Short Squeeze

25 Jun 2021

Dr. David D. Perlmutter, a professor of Media and Communication at Texas Tech University, returns to talk about Gamestop, conspiracies, and how major institutions are doing themselves no favors by playing into conspiracy perceptions.

Episode 88 - It's a Q, Q Bummer

23 Jan 2021

Biden is president, despite all predictions made my Qanon cranks. What can we expect in the future now that prophesy has failed? Your Conspiracy Skeptic gives his hot take on the group’s future. We can look to apocalyptic cults of times past and see how they fractured. Qanon will probably break a similar way.

Episode 87 - Foundational Crank Documents

25 Nov 2020

Happy American Thanksgiving. In what is an on and off again tradition, I try to release a podcast for my American friends for their Thanksgiving ultra long weekend. In this episode we look at several foundational works that have become core dogma in the world of UFOlogy and conspiracy thinking.

Episode 86 - From Space Brothers to Space Torture with Aaron Gulyas

14 Nov 2020

Aaron Gulyas hosts Saucer Life, a great history podcast about the early days of UFOs. Aaron comes on Conspiracy Skeptic to talk about how the UFO narrative went from kindly space brothres to shadowy conspiracies about aliens here to torture and mutilate us.

Episode 85 - Knights of the Golden Circle with Jerry Drake

09 Oct 2020

Monster Talk vet Jerry Drake returns to The Conspiracy Podcast to fulfill his promise to delve into a Civil War era secret society called The Knights of the Golden Circle.

Episode 84 - Cyber Monday with Stephen Barnes

26 Nov 2019

Stephen Barnes is back to talk about his new expansion pack for his conspiracy themed trivia game called Conspiracy Theory: Trivia Board Game. A perfect gift for your skeptical pal or your Qanon thumping Uncle Frank. Stephen walks us through some choice, fun conspiracies found in his game. It's available on both Amazon and Amazon Canada.

Episode 83 - Whatever happened to Glen Kealey?

21 Sep 2019

Glen Kealey was something of an anti-government folk hero back in the late 80s. For some, an amusing footnote in 80s Canadian politics. He's the man who pressed private criminal charges on Brian Mulroney. Kealey has returned but with a different story, one independent investigator of all things bizarre and frequent Monster Talk guest Jerry Drake has come on to talk about. Or aboot.

Episode 82 - The Conspiracy Theory Trivia Game with Stephen Barnes

25 May 2019

Stephen Barnes has released a conspiracy themed trivia game called Conspiracy Theory: Trivia Board Game. It's an amazingly fun game and, if I can put in a plug, is a great Father's Day present for that hard-to-buy-for father. It's available on both Amazon and Amazon Canada. It's certainly a game True Believers can enjoy but Stephen has cleverly weaved in a helping of skepticism. On Conspiracy Skeptic we talk about the creation of the game, some of his favorite conspiracies, a few interesting Canadian conspiracies that made it into the game. And happy memorial day, American cousins.

Episode 81 - That Time When Conspiracy Theories Were More Fun

11 May 2019

Wes Brown is a fellow fan of the Monster Talk podcast. He comes on to make the point before 2016 conspiracy theories were just a kind of fun. They're not so fun anymore when people in power now base policy on them. We have a wide ranging discussion of conspiracy theories pre and post 2016 as well as we discuss Wes's semi sarcastic theory that MRA types are suffering from a kind of penis theft panic. Warning we do say "penis" quite a bit in this episode.

Episode 80 - High Strangeness with Eric Bickernicks

24 Mar 2019

What if The Demon-Haunted World was written as madcap comedy novel? Eric Bickernicks, along with his covivant Jan Brady, has written a book about UFOs, conspiracy theories, Bigfoot, and pretty much everything else from a skeptical POV... all in the form of a comedic narrative. It's a fun read, a great idea, and currently available for free download at high-strangeness.net.

Episode 79 - The Tagish Lake Fireball with James Scott Berdahl

3 Feb 2019

James Scott Berdahl is a geologist working in Vancouver and points between there and Whitehorse in the Yukon. While researching my eventual book on Canadian conspiracies, I ran across a 2008 MA thesis by Berdahl on a meteor that smacked into Canada's Yukon and some of the conspiracy thinking that emerged from the locals. I got Berdahl to dig back into his academic past and talk about the Tagish Lake Fireball on The Conspiracy Skeptic podcast.

Episode 78 - Archaeology Hides Everything with Jeb Card

27 Jan 2019

Jeb Card is cohost of an amazing podcast called Archeological Fantasies. This podcast will change the way you think. If you spend a lot of time watching Ancient Aliens and go "what the actual fuck?", Archeological Fantasies is the perfect podcast for you. Jeb comes on Conspiracy Skeptic to talk about the podcast, the origins of Qanon, how archeologists don't actually hide skeletons of giants in the basement of the Smithsonian, and just about everything else.

Episode 77 - Water and the Planned Destruction of Canada

2 Jul 2018

Back from the dead. Sort of. This is an early July 4 Conspiracy Skeptic podcast for my American friends about to hit the road or airline security line. I've been working on a book about Canadian conspiracy theories, written specifically for an American audience. This is a sample chapter. I'm about 3 chapters into a book that covers at least 20 chapters. So. Don't except this to hit the shelves of B. Dalton Books anytime soon. Glen Kealey, Shelley Ann Clark, Simon Reisman, Brian Mulroney, and a whole lot more all conspire in the mid-1990s to convince Canada the USA is out to take our water! Oh yeah, it never happened.

Episode 76 - Rigging the US Election with Nigel St. Whitehall

31 Oct 2016

Nigel St. Whitehall returns to lend his knowledge as a historian, loyal party member, and lawyer to discuss how hard it is to actually rig the US electoral system. He also reveals he's cohosting a new podcast.

Episode 75 - The Conspiracies of Australia with Dr. Karen Stollznow

22 Oct 2016

Dr. Karen Stollznow, host of Monster Talk and one of the greatest all around skeptic working today, joins the Conspiracy Skeptic to talk about some surprising conspiracies people of the Land Down Under have cooked up in the last few decades.

Episode 74 - The Black Dhalia Murder with Carrie Poppy

06 Jul 2016

Carrie Poppy from the Oh No Ross and Carrie podcast is on to talk about a supposed conspiracy of silence around the Black Dhalia Murder. As well we talk about her amazing podcast.

Episode 73 - Photojournalistic Icons, Conspiracies and False Histories with Dr. David D. Perlmutter

06 Apr 2016

Dr. David D. Perlmutter is a professor at and Dean of the College of Media and Communication at Texas Tech University. He's on Conspiracy Skeptic to talk about how images are used and misused in history and politics.

Episode 72 - Conversations with a Satanist with Wesley Bonetti

29 Feb 2016

Wesley Bonetti is co-host of the Atheist Nomads podcast. He's also a member of the Satanic Temple. He comes on the podcast to talk about what Satanists are really about. Spoiler: they're not kidnapping babies.

Episode 71 - Conspiracy Theorists Lie: The Movie with James K Lambert

09 Nov 2015

James K Lambert is a documentary film maker and he's recently released a documentary about JFK Conspiracy types call Conspiracy Theorists Lie. He stops in to this podcast to talk about his documentary, the JFK conspiracy theory, and ruminates on why conspiracy theorists think the way they think.

Episode 70- Mass shootings and mind control with Rich Orman

03 Oct 2015

Rich Orman, formerly of Dogma Free American and now host of Supreme Court Briefing podcast, comes on Conspiracy Skeptic to talk about his experience as a DA prosecuting the 2012 Colorado mass shooting and the despicable conspiracy theories that formed after the killing.

Episode 69 - Pluto and beyond?

30 Aug 2015

Dr. Stu is back to talk about participating in the New Horizons mission to Pluto and various conspiracies.

Episode 68 - Talking Freely about Freemasonry with Blake Oates

19 Jun 2015

A real, live Freemason, Blake Oates, turns up to clear things up about Freemasonry.

Episode 67 - A Data Skeptic and the Bible Code with Kyle Polich

21 Aug 2014

Kyle Polich of the Data Skeptic Podcast comes on to talk about The Bible Code.

Episode 66 - Waco and the Skeptical Vegan with James Foley

11 Jun 2014 06:06:07 EDT

James Foley, the Skeptical Vegan, joins Conspiracy Skeptic to talk about the Waco Siege and its implications

Episode 65 - Blood Moon Means We're in for a Bloody Good Time

14 Apr 2014 06:06:07 EDT

Dr. Stuart Robbins, "Stu" to just me, is back to talk about another end of the world prophesy. Do bad things happen when there are four blood moons in a row that fall on Jewish holidays?

Episode 64 - Ye Olde Bitcoin Show with Neil Croll

28 Feb 2014 06:06:07 EDT

Elder Karl Mamer and Elder Neil Croll talk about bitcoin. Does it have legs? Is the government out to crush it? How much snow would we walk through to earn one bitcoin in 1987?

Episode 63 - Eight Men Out, Outted with Mike Bohler

21 Dec 2013

Mike Bohler returns to talk about the conspiracy to game the 1919 World Series. It's about baseball.

Episode 62 - WIFI WTF? with Michael Kruse

26 Sep 2013

Michael Kruse, from Huff Po and Bad Science Watch, gives us a round up on the Wifi Freak Out that's happening in Canada. Is a Canadian University professor right that wifi is a plan to make white suburban people infertile? Have Canadians all gone mad at once?

Episode 61 - The Squirrels of Mars

30 Jul 2013

Dr. Stuart Robbins, host of Exposing Pseudoastronomy, is back to talk about his TAM experience, his new World Net Daily Watch project, and whether or not a spaceship and squirrel were found on Mars. Hint: no.

Episode 60 - The Impossible Bomb with Jakob Thorin

23 May 2013

Jakob Thorin (his last name is not pronounced like you might think) comes on to talk about an odd duck who raged all over the JREF board about the impossibility of building a nuclear (fission and fusion) bomb. Just can't happen. Didn't work in 1945. Won't work today. It's just a money grab, folks.

Episode 59 - There are drugs in the water?

09 May 2013

James Funston is helping get Portlanders on-side with an initiative to fluoridate the water. He's had to take on the whole range of anti-fluoridation arguments and conspiracies.

Episode 58 - A pilot talks chemtrails

08 Apr 2013

There was something in the air that night. The contrails were too bright, Fernando. They were gassing you and me. For population control, Fernando.

Episode 57 - Where the D in D20 stands for The Devil

29 Mar 2013

Your 80s flashback: When we thought role players were baby killing Satanists. Hell, even Tipper Gore thought this.

Episode 56 - Year in Review with Mike Bohler

28 Jan 2013

Conspiracy skeptic podcaster Mike Bohler joins this Conspiracy Skeptic podcaster to talk about a year in Conspiracy and what to look forward to.

Episode 55 - Sovereign Citizens and Freemen

07 Nov 2012

SGU board member and slave to corporations Derek (aka "SkepticalEsquire: Derek-Albertan") comes on to talk about the freeman/sovereign citizen movements springing up in Canada and the USA.

Episode 54 - Ziggurat on the moon? Huh?

17 Sep 2012

Dr. Stuart Robbins returns to talk about Mike Barra's claim there's a Ziggurat on the moon and how all great scientific discoveries start on a zombie themed game board. Science, bitches!

Episode 53 - The Love Conspiracy

30 Aug 2012

Does love avoid you so much it seems like a conspiracy? Imagine being an atheist among Christians. Conspiracy Skeptic talks to Colorado Skeptic Rich Ludwig about finding a relationship in Christian America.

Episode 52 - Is Income Tax Unconstitutional?

31 Jul 2012

Your Conspiracy Skeptic Karl Mamer examines whether or not American and Canadian income tax is unconstitutional.

Episode 51 - Joseph Steinberg on the Roanoke Colony Collapse

31 May 2012

Joseph formerly worked in US Army intelligence and now teaches English in Busan, South Korea. He comes on Conspiracy Skeptic to talk about Roanoke Colony, adding some considerable detail to Brian Dunning's Skeptoid episode on the same topic. Sadly, Joseph died a few years after this episode aired.

Episode 50 - Abbie Smith on the case of XMRV

30 Apr 2012

Abbie Smith, HIV/retrovirus researcher, returns to talk about a bizarre conspiracy involving scientists that should know better. Or why Big Pharma this time around DOESN'T want to sell you expensive drugs.

Episode 49 - Cures They Don't Want You to Know About

13 Mar 2012

Tom and Cecil from the Cognitive Dissonance Podcast stop in to talk about their podcast and the "cures they don't want you to know about".

Episode 48 - The Aetherius Society

27 Feb 2012

Does the UFO religion Aetherius Society really have irrefutable evidence? Karl examines their claims.

Episode 47 - Another year in conspiracy with Michael Bohler

20 Jan 2012

Fellow Invisible Sky Monster guest host Michael Bohler and I go over a year in conspiracies.

Episode 46 - African Americans fought for the Confederacy?

22 Nov 2011

Andrew Philips is a historian and works at a civil war museum. He keeps encountering this over blown claim that slaves and freed men willingly took up arms in defense of the confederacy and their way of life. This knowledge has been suppressed by a vast Yankie Conspiracy.

Episode 45 - The Assassination of Pope John Paul I with Nigel St. Whitehall

29 Sep 2011

Nigel St. Whitehall (and Lady St. Whitehall), come on to discuss the "theory" Pope John Paul I was murdered.

Episode 44 - Doc Stuart Robbins and 2012 in 2011

19 Aug 2011

Stuart Robbins is now a newly minted Doctor. Herr Doctor Stuart Robbins returns to Conspiracy Skeptic to fill us in on more 2012 foolishness, Mars foolishness, Billy Meier woo woo, and more.

Episode 43 - The Gay Agenda with Jeff Syke

26 Jun 2011

Listener Jeff Syke outlines the religious right's claims about a homosexual agenda and differentiates it from an actual gay agenda.

Episode 42 - Is Magic a Conspiracy?

26 May 2011

Jacob Jax is a young up 'n' coming magician/juggler in Vegas. He's a TAM veteran. Jacob stops in on The Conspiracy Skeptic podcast to talk about magic, how to get started in what seems like a secret organization, and we tell war stories about punching above our weight in Vegas.

Episode 41 - The Necronomicon with JoelWhy

14 Apr 2011

JoelWhy is the SGU board's nicest fan of Conspiracy Skeptic. He comes on Conspiracy Skeptic to talk about H.P. Lovecraft and how some people refuse to accept The Necronomicon is not a real book.

Episode 40 - The Georgia Guidestones with Blake Smith

16 Mar 2011

The Georgia Guidestones have been standing in a weird plot of land since the early 1980s. They've increasingly become an irritant to New World Order conspiracy nuts. Monster Talker Blake Smith is here to talk about his own visit to the Georgia Guidestones.

Episode 39 - Secret New Years Track - Zen for the Hot and Bothered

31 Dec 2010

Zen for the Hot and Bothered. A reading from the Book of the Browbeaten. The Book of Revelation. A skit from my campus radio show days, circa 1989. See people were doing skeptical comedy 20+ years ago! Oddly I predict the death of CDs and the rise of MP3 players near the end of this skit.
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Episode 38 - Secret Christmas Track - Zen for the Hot and Bothered

24 Dec 2010

Zen for the Hot and Bothered. A reading from the Book of the Browbeaten. Joseph and his Amazing Technicolor Troop jacket. A skit from my campus radio show days, circa 1988.
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Episode 37 - Ancient Aliens

22 Dec 2010

Skeptics' Guide board user Gurmukh Mongia (aka Parrot) has a blog called The Dumbasses Guide To Knowledge. He's slowly working through the truly horrible History Channel series Ancient Aliens and blogging and podcasting about the crap science found on that show. Parrot comes on Conspiracy Skeptic to talk about Ancient Aliens and the claim this knowledge is being suppressed.

Episode 36 - The Face on Mars

21 Nov 2010

Astronomy doctoral student Stuart Robbins is back to talk about Richard C. Hoagland and his various NASA conspiracies. This is Stuart's last appearance before I have to call him Dr. Robbins. Or maybe Dr. Stu. *tears* I remember him when he was knee-high to a Viking lander!

Episode 35 - Laurel Canyon, mind control, and the Hippies

05 Nov 2010

Amira is a hyper cool Canadian chef who travels the world doing her chef thing. The Skeptical Review will soon have an update on what she does and what makes her so damn cool but for now I need to respect her news embargo. So let's just say she's damn cool. Besides being damn cool, she has a damn cool "kitchen sink" conspiracy about the musicians of the hippie generation and how guys like Frank Zappa and David Crosby were CIA stooges in an MKULTRA mind-control op.

Episode 34 - Jack the Ripper with Charles Smith

14 Oct 2010

Listener Charles Smith made a compelling argument to stretch the "conspiracies of the not too distant past" constraint and do a show about the conspiracy theory around Jack the Ripper. You'll find Smith's show a ripping good time! And if you see him at the next Skeptics in a Pub. Buy him a beer! And the cheese plate.

Episode 33 - ZOG

19 Aug 2010

Neil Croll is a listener and former Canadian neo-nazi skinhead. He's on to talk about his transition to a non-racist middle-aged skeptic and the ZOG conspiracy.

Episode 32 - Crop Circles

28 Jul 2010

Trystan Swale is the host of the UK's Righteous Indignation Podcast. He's been following the whole crop circle thing for a while now. Swale is on to talk about crop circles, croppies, and the wild eyed conspiracy accusations that swirl around croppies and people that actually make them for giggles.

Episode 31 - David Icke

03 Jul 2010

Paul Ganssle, Conspiracy Skeptic Listener and skeptic about town, stops in to talk about David Icke and the Reptilian Conspiracy.

Episode 30 - Conspiracy Con X

23 Jun 2010

Journalist Carolyn Shuck and her friend from the Eastern Establishment came on Conspiracy Skeptic to talk about their experiences at a conspiracy convention. Audio is a bit wonky.

Episode 29 - The Sinking of the HMS Invincible with Nigel St. Whitehall

19 May 2010

Nigel St. Whitehall, blog master of The Skeptical Review, returns with a Falklands War era conspiracy. Claims the Argentinean air force sunk a British aircraft carrier.

Episode 28 - The Protocols of Zion and the Kosher Tax with Jonathan Abrams

13 Apr 2010

Jonathan Abrams is the host of Canada's SGU "Reality Check", a weekly Skeptical podcast produced by the cracker-jack Ottawa Skeptics crew.

Episode 27 - North Korean Conspiracies with Stafford Lumsdem

02 Mar 2010

Stafford Lumnsden of the Seoul Podcast talks about North Korea, Kim Jong-Il, and the $100 super note conspiracy. Plus fan death.

Episode 26 - Satanic Panic with Listener Ryan Davis

18 Feb 2010

Listener Ryan Davis stops in to talk about the Satanic panic of the 1980s and early 1990s.

Episode 25 - Stuart Robbins and the Strange Case of Michael Horn/Billy Meier

26 Jan 2010

Stuart Robbins makes yet another appearance to talk about a claim that Billy Meier predicted Apophis.

Episode 24 - Stuart Robbins Update

12 Jan 2010

Stuart Robbins is back to update us on 2012, a supposed killer asteroid the Russians were yammering about, and a possible supernova neighbor.

Episode 23 - The Family with Steven Cleghorn

7 Dec 2009

Steven is a long time listener of both my previous podcast Seoul Survivors and the Conspiracy Skeptic. He emailed me about this The Family organization many months before the story broke in podcast land. I wanted to have him on for a chat between two regular Joes about The Family, whether it's an example of a real conspiracy, and the implications. If you don't know much about The Family, I'd suggest first checking out D.J. Grothe's interview with the author himself before tackling my podcast.

Episode 22 - Hayley Stevens on the Princess Di Assassination

6 Nov 2009

Hayley Stevens is co-host of a funny and thought provoking skeptical podcast produced in the UK. In her spare time she's also a skeptical ghost hunter. On Conspiracy Skeptic we talk about the claims Princess Diana was murdered or even faked her own death.

Episode 21 - Nigel St. Whitehall on the JFK assassination

5 Oct 2009

Nigel St. Whitehall (a pseudonym) is a mild mannered lawyer from Hershey, PA, creator of the Skeptical Review blog, and a knowledgeable skeptic of claims that Oswald did not act alone.

Episode 20 - Brett Spurr, Money, and China

25 Sep 2009

Brett Spurr returns to shoot the breeze about some economic ideas held tightly by conspiracy types: can/would China wipe out the economy tomorrow by dumping dollars? Is the gold standard the only real form of money? When we import goods, do foreign countries just make the money we send them disappear and it never comes back?

Episode 19 - Charles Morrison and the White Salamander Letter

30 Aug 2009

Charles Morrison stops in to talk about a conspiracy involving the Mormon church.

Episode 18 - Denver Airport Conspiracy with Rich Orman

20 Aug 2009

Rich Orman from the Dogma Free America podcast stops in to talk about one of the greatest high kookin' conspiracy theories ever: the new Denver airport is Reptoid Base Alpha.

Episode 17 - HIV Denial with Abbie Smith

21 Jul 2009

Abbie Smith is a virologist who goes by the moniker ERV. She comes on to talk about HIV denial.

Episode 16 - Moon Hoax and Stuart Robbins Revisited

8 Jul 2009

Stuart Robbins who talked about 2012 on Episode 2 is back to talk about the Moon Landing Hoax in the run up to the 40th anniversary of Apollo 11 and the current LRO mission. And yes I know I pronounce Hare Krishna wrong.

Episode 15 - Roswell

18 May 2009

Brett Spurr of the Long Run Blog (a blog about skepticism and finance) talks about the supposed Roswell cover up.

Episode 14 - The Vaccine Conspiracy

5 Apr 2009

Michael Goudeau stops in to talk about vaccine hysteria, autism, his possible appearance at TAM 7, Penn and Teller's Bullshit, how you (or your boss) can actually hire him to entertain your corporate troops, and a whole lot more.

Episode 13 - 2012 and Planet X

10 Mar 2009

Stuart is a young, gifted astronomy grad student who takes on creationism and pseudoscience in his blog. In this episode, Stuart discusses some of the attempts by pseudo scientists to explain why the universe is going to try and kill us on December 21, 2012 and why that is so much pure crap.

Episode 12 - The Illuminati

10 Feb 2009

Guest host Brian Thompson of the Amateur Scientist Podcast. Still working on the sound quality. I have my mike up a wee bit too high and you can hear my sniffling.

Episode 11 - Holocaust Denial

01 Jan 2009

In an effort to keep Conspiracy Skeptic going and turning out shows on a more regular basis, I'm creating a new format where I interview a skeptical podcaster or blogger. I'm borrowing an idea from the now defunct Reason Driven podcast. The RDP would get a guest to read a chapter from a book called "The Reason Driven Life" and then talk about it. My plan is to get a skeptical podcaster/blogger to come up with his/her favorite conspiracy, research it for a week or two, and then have the skeptic on my podcast to discuss the conspiracy. My former Seoul Survivors podcast cohost Jennifer Booker Young was kind enough to help me do a beta edition to test out the format. The sound quality is pretty crappy on my end. Meh. Still trying to figure out audio on Vista and Skype. Hopefully the Grand Opening podcast with Brian Thompson of Amateur Scientist will have better sound (I bought a USB mike for that one). Anyway, this is a long winded way to say sorry about the crap quality and things will get better. I hope you'll all hang in there with me.

Episode 10 - Canadian Conspiracies

27 Oct 2008

Conspiracy theories in Canada. The Avro Arrow conspiracy and the planned destruction of Canada.>

Episode 9 - The HIV Conspiracy

31 Jul 2008

HIV does not cause AIDS? HIV does cause AIDS but it's a bio weapon? HIV does not exist? WTF is wrong with these people?>

Episode 8 - The Free Energy Conspiracy

03 May 2008

Is there a massive conspiracy to suppress too-cheap-to-meter energy?

Episode 7 - The Big Science Conspiracy

27 Mar 2008

Is there a Big Science conspiracy? Or is Expelled and Michael Cremo fulla crap?

Episode 6b - The Fed is Alright

20 Feb 2008

Is the Federal Reserve system crooked? Comments on the flash film Money, Banking, and the Federal Reserve.

Episode 6 - The Fed is Alright

23 Jan 2008

Is the Federal Reserve system crooked? Comments on the flash film Money is Debt.

Episode 5 - The Moon Landing Hoax

01 Jan 2008

The moon landing hoax. The Phil Plait/Joe Rogan debate revisited.

Episode 4 - Alex Jones and Endgame

04 Dec 2007

Alex Jones, Endgame, the New World Order, and North American Union.

Episode 3 - The Great Cancer Conspiracy

13 Nov 2007

The great cancer conspiracy.

Episode 2 - Conspiracy Primer II

01 Nov 2007

Part II of the conspiracy primer.

Episode 1 - Conspiracy Primer I

22 Oct 2007

Part I of the conspiracy primer.