Carolina Snowflakes Podcast

This week on the Carolina Snowflakes Podcast we’re giving a hip hip HOORAY and a pompom shake to the first amendment of the United States constitution. Nothing says “America Rules” like a heavy dose of FREEDOM. We’ve got the freedom to speak, the freedom to worship, the freedom to assemble, the freedom to press and the freedom to petition. That’s a whole lot of freedom and we’re here for it.

We begin our freedom celebrations by discussing a recent Supreme Court case out of Pennsylvania in which a 14 year old high school cheerleader named Brandi Levy sent out an f-bomb riddled Snapchat message venting frustrations over her failure to make the varsity team. Her salty snap wound up getting her banned from cheering for an entire year and opened up a legal question of how much authority should public schools have in “policing” social media use by students when they’re off campus and when such use happens during non-school hours.  This case is a big deal considering SCOTUS hasn’t ruled on a school speech-related case in over 50 years. In fact, it’s so big that even the Biden administration is weighing in alongside the ACLU and several other heavy-hitting organizations. A ruling by SCOTUS is anticipated later this summer and whatever they decide will become precedent for at least the next 2 to 3 generations. Get your popcorn ready!

Though the Brandi Levy case is interesting, hers isn’t the first time public schools have been questioned for their use of seemingly excessive discipline in punishing students for bad behavior. Such was the case of a high school student who put up a sign on the building of his school asking his girlfriend to prom. He purposefully used paper and masking tape so that the sign could easily be removed and leave no lasting damage, but the school’s administrators weren’t amused. His romantic gesture got him charged with vandalism and thus banned from attending prom all together. As word of his story spread online, the internet blew up and thousands upon thousands of pissed off people called the school and demanded they let the boy go to his prom. After fielding rant-filled phone calls for a few days, administrators relented and withdrew the ban.

These stories are but 2 examples of the increasing collision occurring between protected freedoms and rule enforcement in the 21^st century. Considering technology is only going to continue growing, so too must the regulations surrounding how authorities enforce their own rules. This is called progress and sometimes it’s necessary.

We close this week with an example of such modern technology colliding with antiquated laws in the telling of the story of The Pirate Bay. Perhaps you’ve heard of it. Perhaps you’ve even visited. Even if you haven’t, you’ll be stunned to hear how the creators of the world’s largest piracy index have continued to skirt, dodge and thwart copyright laws for over 17 years. These guys are super smart and very clever.

So tune in to hear this and much MORE cause this week we’re celebrating our Freedom to Cheer!

This week on the Carolina Snowflakes Podcast we’re talking about vaccines and how the U.S. is performing in terms of getting all 328 million citizens vaccinated against Covid-19. Although great strides have been made in getting vaccines into arms here in the U.S., we think the numbers could be better. To be honest, we thought vaccinations would be further along by this point. Even the Carolinas are lagging behind most other states in vaccination rates and red states in general seem to be lagging more than the rest.  Coincidence? Hardly.

In his new book titled “The Premonition: A Pandemic Story”, Michael Lewis reminds us that at one point, the U.S. was deemed to be “the most prepared country on Earth in handling a pandemic crisis”. Y’all, we had a whole team of scientists dedicated solely to figuring out the complexities of how to successfully navigate an entire nation through a global pandemic. But that team of scientists was promptly fired when the Tangerine Tyrant took office and well, we know what happened after that.

So here we are, trying to clean up the mess left behind by an incompetent leader, while in the midst of a still-ongoing global pandemic. We’ve got vaccines that people are afraid to take, a government that many still don’t trust and a group of rightwing nut jobs who genuinely believe their mission is to thwart progress at any cost. All of this is happening within the confines of a pandemic and is happening in a country that just a few years ago was named “most prepared” to handle the mess we’re currently struggling to handle.

Yikes!

We also can’t help but wonder what the future is going to look like. What are we going to do with those who adamantly refuse to get vaccinated? Yelling at them might make us feel better in the short term, but it isn’t going to fix anything or change any minds. We’ve gotta find some common ground and do our best to approach with understanding. To be clear, understanding is not the same as tolerating, which brings up our next question.  Will limits be set on where unvaccinated Americans can go and what they can do? Who will set those limits, if so? Although we don’t particularly like the term “vaccine passport”, will something like a passport be needed to participate in day-to-day activities?

We speculate on these questions plus more. Heck, we even talk about our own experiences and fears surrounding getting the Johnson & Johnson shots. Are we going to grow tails? Have our brains started to pickle yet? We can neither confirm nor deny the possibility.

So tune in to hear our Snowflakey thoughts on the current status of vaccinations plus what we think the U.S. is doing right v. what it’s doing wrong in this week’s episode called “Hot Shots”.

Hey Snowglobe! Enjoy this hilarious bonus bite called “A True Bug Story”. Hear about how in an effort to help remove a bug from Jason’s ear, Amanda nearly killed him.  Whoops!

This week on the Carolina Snowflakes Podcast we’re flexing our untrained and highly unqualified skills in a little bit of armchair psychology. What is more fun than trying to guess what’s wrong with the people around you? Nothing, that’s what.

We begin with a little bit of Snowflake history in telling how each of us came to find the field of psychology to be a point of interest and how we’ve broadened our understandings over many years. No worries, we have a copy of the DSM-5, so we’re practically professionals.

Listen in as we talk about a cool study from 2018 in which researchers examined something called “collective narcissism” and how it shapes Americans’ perspectives on the importance of their own states in defining U.S. history. Indeed this study ended up being SO interesting that the researchers took it even further in a global program. How do residents of different countries rank the importance of their home country in terms of influence over world history? The results of this narcissism study surprised us and we guarantee they’ll surprise you too.

Then we share our theories on how the phenomenon of transference and counter-transference can be used beyond the walls of a therapy setting to explain things like why Donald Trump was our President for 4 years. Though we’d like to think it was simply bad luck, there’s more to it. If anything we’ve learned that gut reactions may not always be “right”, but they tell us a whole lot about the person(s) feeling them. We’ve also learned through systems theory (and watching a lot of Dr. Phil) that “bad apples” rarely occur within a vacuum, but instead are the product of rotten surroundings left festering for far too long.

And finally, we close this week’s episode with a fun game we like to call DSM Roulette. We guarantee you’ll love this game so much you’ll want to play it with your friends and family. Note: we’re pretty sure no conservatives were actually harmed in the making of this game. Pretty sure.   

So pull up a seat and join us this week for a highly entertaining episode called Southern Fried Armchair Psychology!

Reference:

Wan, William. (2018, July 3). “America is a nation of narcissists, according to two new studies”. Washington Post. https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/speaking-of-science/wp/2018/07/03/america-is-a-nation-of-narcissists-according-to-two-new-studies/

This week on the Carolina Snowflakes Podcast we’re getting back to our roots and finally addressing the elephant in the room and the horrible mess it continues to make. What we find most interesting about this elephant’s mess is that it’s been going on for so long and even now with a Donkey in charge of things, the mess has yet to disappear. Chop, chop Donkey! By the way, we’re talking about Republicans here and not actual elephants. Real elephants are cool. Real Republicans are not.

In fact, they’ve been uncool for a really long time. How do we know this? Because it’s measurable. We have actual numbers to reflect the lack of coolness on the part of the Republican Party. Had the minimum wage laws first enacted in the 1930s followed their set trajectory and actually kept up with inflation over the decades, the current minimum wage in the U.S. would be around $30/hr. Yet asking for $15/hr is met with resistance akin to making root canals mandatory procedures for everyone. So what happened? Mainly, the 1970s Republican Party happened. They rolled up in their shiny new Ford Mavericks, rockin’ platform shoes, sportin’ feathered mullet hairdos and proceeded to sh*t all over the place.

And guess what? THEY’RE STILL DOING IT! The elephant in the room just keeps going. Just this week, old Ted Cruz took to the steps of the Supreme Court in protest of the house passing a bill to make Washington D.C. our nation’s 51^st state. Ted’s not one to keep his mouth shut so naturally he flopped open his jaw and spewed some of the most hypocritical BS we’ve ever heard. Honestly, any reason to mock the Zodiac Killer is acceptable in our book, so tune in to hear exactly what he said and why he said it.

And if Ted’s word vomit wasn’t bad enough, did you hear what North Carolina’s Madison Cawthorn did last week? He introduced something he called the “Donument Act” – yes, he named it himself and considering he has no formal education or experience in much of anything other than filing lawsuits, we’re not surprised. This act proposes we make Donald Trump’s great wall a national monument in order to preserve it from wall-destroying Demoncrats. Nice try, kid.

Now we acknowledge that not all elephants are created equal. Indeed, some of the worst ones aren’t even politicians. He might not hold political office, but Mike Lindell (the My Pillow guy) is as vocal and as annoying as it gets. He’s so off his rocker insane that even Fox News cut him off air during his last interview. He now makes his rounds on conspiracy theory YouTube channels and podcasts hosted by sweaty five-shirted guys named Steve Bannon, where he pushes the Republican-held belief that the 2020 election was rigged by the evil, child murdering dirty liberals. In his quest to further this ridiculous rhetoric, this week Mike launched his own social media platform called FRANKSPEECH.COM.  Be sure to listen to hear about what happened when the site went live. Let’s just say it did not go well, but it was incredibly funny nonetheless.

So tune in to hear all about the many messes Republicans continue to make, plus MORE cause this week we’re finally addressing The Elephant in the Room.

This week on the Carolina Snowflakes Podcast we’re talking about a subject few, if any, are willing to tackle. That’s right. This week we’re sharing what we know about underwear perverts and their downslide into murder.

You may be asking yourself ‘How do the Snowflakes know SO much about murderous underwear thieves?’ and we’d agree that’s a valid question. We likely know more than the average flake. Luckily for our listeners, it’s a question we’ll be answering in this episode.

 Admittedly, when we’re not recording this epic podcast, rescuing orphaned kittens, or trolling conservatives online, we’re most likely consuming copious volumes of true crime stories.

What we’ve discovered over the years is that we’re not alone in our obsession. True Crime is a genre that appeals to many and spans multiple generations. For us, the most interesting part of nearly every homicide investigation is the interrogation process. The psychology and techniques used by investigators when questioning suspects is interesting to say the least. And how those suspects respond when under pressure to confess is even more fascinating to watch. Better yet, what happens when cops must interrogate one of their own? We’ve got that covered this week as well.

So tune in as we share some of the most gripping interrogations of crazy underwear-perverts-turned-murders we've ever seen.  Bonus: we’ve also included a few of our underwear-less interrogations as well simply because the stories surrounding the cases are downright crazy.

Since listening to this episode will undoubtedly make you want to watch the interrogations for yourself, we've got you covered. 

The Interrogations:

Russell Williams -- https://youtu.be/lj7QRP37Wn0

Stephen McDaniel -- https://youtu.be/HkRjIq8Cp2A

Stephanie Lazarus -- https://youtu.be/WLSNPkf8RCU

Dalia Dippolito -- https://youtu.be/7JttwV6XZ_I

Daniel Holtzclaw -- https://youtu.be/LLtqVUeGde0

This week on the Carolina Snowflakes Podcast we’re discussing an unusual observation involving powerful men named Andrew. Why do they always turn out to be so bad? Is it the name? Is it the power? Is it a complex algorithm combining the two with a force of nature beyond our understanding? Eh, it’s probably just coincidence, but this week we’re going to pretend it’s a pattern as we examine 4 famous Andrews and their badness.

We begin with the recent scandals surrounding New York governor, Andrew Cuomo (Handsy Andy). Like many Americans we were shocked as one woman after another stepped forward in recent months accusing Andrew of misconduct and questionable behavior towards the females in his life. How could the guy who won an International Emmy for his daily Covid briefings during a time when national leadership was otherwise a joke also be a total dog? Turns out, this ain’t Cuomo’s first rodeo when it comes to questionable behavior.

Our 2^nd bad Andrew in power is the one and only Prince Andrew, Duke of York. We have a soft spot for British folks, but this guy is a real piece of work. In 2019 the Liar Prince sat down with the BBC to explain his longtime friendship with convicted diddler and child trafficker, Jeffrey Epstein. The interview is one of the most cringe-worthy things we’ve ever seen, as Prince Andrew attempts to “explain away” the countless accusations of his own involvement in Epstein’s crimes in a sweaty, stuttering, fumbling mess. Did he really think anyone would believe him? Power seems to make certain Andrews rather delusional.

Our 3^rd Andrew in power, and therefore bad, is the 7^th president of the United States, Andrew Jackson. By far the worst decision Andrew Jackson ever made as president was to sign the 1830 Indian Removal Act, whereby 100,000 Native Americans were forced from their lands in the southeastern U.S. by the federal government and were marched 1,000 miles west. This march would become known as the Trail of Tears as thousands died along the way.

And if you thought the 7^th president was bad, wait til you hear about the 17^th president of the United States, Andrew Johnson. 10 out of 10 historians agree, Johnson is the worst president in American history. Yes, even worse than the tangerine tyrant himself. Johnson was a rude, crude, openly hateful racist from Raleigh, NC, who ushered in a wave of Jim Crow laws following Lincoln’s assassination – arguably causing the multi-generational disparities between white and Black people still witnessed to this day.

Is it the name? Is it the power? Is it both? Andrews in Power. Why so bad?

This week on the Carolina Snowflakes Podcast we’re wondering what happens when white people’s “wokeness” goes too far? We know, we know. You’re thinking ‘Is that even possible?’ and we’d wager that YES, not only is it possible, but sometimes it’s kinda sorta hilarious. And honestly, there’s no better place to see an excessive show of social awareness than in the beautifully progressive city of Asheville, North Carolina.

Now don’t misunderstand. We’re both fans of Asheville and we’re both super lefty liberals with strong progressive views, which we’re coming to terms with, but sometimes all the catering and tip-toeing and safe space holding is a bit much. We start this week’s examination of Asheville’s “performative wokeness” with the telling of a true story involving a missing child from the area. Thankfully, the child was found safe and returned home. However, we noticed the handling of the child’s gender-identity by the local media, police and even the kid’s own mother to be odd at the very least. Granted, it’s hard to know what the right call is during an emergency situation, but is outing or misgendering an otherwise non-out kid the right move? Tune in to learn more about what happened in this unusual story and to hear our thoughts on the matter.

All this said, we acknowledge that there are times when being lefty and woke and vocal about sensitivities is necessary and warranted. Case in point, the firing of Roseanne from her own television show after she got loaded on Ambien and made a racist fool of herself on Twitter. She had it coming. But what about the times when the most vocal of the lot turn their shouting towards individuals who aren’t necessarily making racist fools of themselves, but simply aren’t “woke” enough for the people around them? Where is the consensus in these sorts of “attacks” on white people by other white people? Most importantly, who is benefiting? These are important questions to keep in mind when the Twitter mobs begin their 140-character assaults.

We close this week with another eyebrow-raising Asheville story, except this one is still ongoing and it’s been ongoing for quite some time. We’re talking about the damn Vance Monument. While we applaud the city’s condemnation of the racist man behind the name of the monument, we can’t help but wonder what the heck is taking so long to do something about it. Covering the towering phallic monument with a black condom-looking tarp to the tune of $20,000 is an expensive (and hilarious) way to make the city’s unsightly appendage even more visible. We guess they wanted to play it…safe?

Tune in to hear our laughter-filled takes on these stories plus more as we examine why it’s always funny in Asheville.

References:

Chris Hayes, March 31^st 2021. “Who Gets to Say with John McWhorter”. Why Is This Happening? With Chris Hayes. NBC News. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/who-gets-to-say-with-john-mcwhorter/id1382983397?i=1000514986883

This week on the Carolina Snowflakes Podcast we’re taking a hilarious journey into the Amazon.com jungle. Rich in a variety of purchasing options for consumers and unmatched store-free convenience, this one website has become more than simply “a place to shop”. It’s a regular destination for us Snowflakes, but sometimes we wonder if Amazon’s gettin’ too big for its britches.

Indeed you might even be wondering what Axl Rose has to do with Amazon.com. We can explain! When discussing the good v. bad of Amazon.com, it struck us that many of the positive attributes of this giant marketplace are covered in the lyrics of the Guns n Roses song “Welcome to the Jungle”. Now we know that Axl wasn’t actually singing about Jeff Bezos’ baby, but he might as well have been. We’ll break it down for you in this episode.

And for all the good things Amazon.com has going for it, there are more than a few less-than-stellar things happening as well. If you thought Wal-Mart was bad for small “mom n pop” businesses, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet. Likewise, all the conveniences afforded by Amazon.com to its consumers have made a sticky situation in terms of privacy even within our own homes. We willingly let Bezos’ baby into our homes and now it’s running everything.

What will the future look like when Amazon.com is handling our banking, our shopping and our healthcare? Those ideas may not be fully developed realities yet, but what’s stopping it from happening? Spoiler: nothing.

How did we get lulled into trusting such a massive corporation? We here at the Carolina Snowflakes Podcast wager that politics are at play and it might not be what you’re thinking. Yes liberals, we’re taking a critical look at our own kind. We’re ridiculous sometimes.

This week we’re poking, prodding and laughing at ourselves, Jeff Bezos’ baby, and even old Axl Rose. Hilarity lies within.

Bonus: stick around until the very end of the episode to hear some one-star reviews from our own Amazon.com order histories going back to 2008.

This week on the Carolina Snowflakes Podcast we’re giving a nod to Mike Winkelmann, better known as Beeple, who used something called NFT technology to sell the most expensive piece of digital artwork in history. This recent sale was a first for digital art, a first for Christie’s Auction Company in London and a first for Beeple himself.

Why does this matter? Well, because it’s interesting for starters. Especially considering digital art has been a difficult market to monetize and track in the way that other art is handled. Plus, an NFT or Non-Fungible Token is a brand new system of buying and selling media in a way that has never been done before. This could very well change the way art, in particular digital art, is bought, sold and how records of provenance are maintained.

What makes it even more interesting is the story of the art that was recently sold as well as the artist himself. Beeple hails from Charleston, SC and has designed works for a variety of famous musical acts, plus a slew of big name brands such as Coca-Cola.  His work has been described as sci-fi meets pop culture meets politics. Additionally, for the last 13 years, Beeple has created a new and original piece of digital art each day. This monumental task became known as his “Everydays” collection and at the end of 13 years, or nearly 5,000 days, Beeple combined each piece into one larger mosaic.

Just a couple weeks ago the mosaic was assigned an NFT and sent to Christie’s Auction where the opening bid began at $100. No one knew what might happen and it was a risk for all involved. But boy did that risk pay off. To the tune of $69 million.

Tune in to learn about this new NFT technology and to discover more about the South Carolina artist called Beeple.

References:

White, Avery. (2020, January 3). “Beeple on Creating a Zombie Mark Zuckerberg and Flesh-eating Baby Yoda to examine the times”. The Verge. https://www.theverge.com/2020/1/3/21046790/beeple-mike-winkelmann-interview-everyday-post-apocalyptic-baby-yoda-zuckerberg

Von Baldegg, Kasia Cieplak-Mayr. (2011, October 7). “Creativity is Hustle: Make Something Every Day”. The Atlantic. https://www.theatlantic.com/video/archive/2011/10/creativity-is-hustle-make-something-every-day/246377/#slide15

Business Insider. (2021, March 12). “Beeple Explains the Absurdity of NFTs/So Expensive” [Video]. https://youtu.be/nTmF26NUZTA

Christie’s. (2021, March 11). “Watch Beeple react to the Historic $69.3 Million sale of his digital work at Christie’s”. [Video] https://youtu.be/S8p1B8NHLFQ

Beeple’s Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/beeple

Beeple’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/beeple_crap/