Totally Unrelated: History, books & banter among friends

Totally Unrelated
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A bunch of Eastern European friends blabbing about history, books, labor issues and such. Occasional venting sessions. Episodes drop every other week, on Wednesday. Shoot us an email at the.totally.unrelated.podcast@gmail.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/TUnrelated Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/totally_unrelated_pod/

  1. Fiction, Conspiracies & Lies - From Espionage to Conspirituality

    11/02/2023

    Fiction, Conspiracies & Lies - From Espionage to Conspirituality

    Pavel Coruț was a member of a counter-espionage unit. Then, after the fall of the communist regime in Romania, he started writing spy novels, blurring the line between fact and fiction and introducing a series of conspiracy theories into the public discourse regarding the country's recent past. At the same time, Romanians' appetite for all things religious, spiritual and esoteric was growing at a steady pace. Sensing an opportunity, other former secret service members re-branded themselves as spiritual healers and conspiracy peddlers, becoming key players within the emerging conspirituality movement. 𝕊𝕠𝕦𝕣𝕔𝕖𝕤: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jul/15/russia-kgb-psychic-oleg-kashin https://www.nytimes.com/1977/06/19/archives/emigre-tells-of-research-in-soviet-in-parapsychology-for-military.html https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09668130802630870 https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/nationalistic-spy-novels-strike-chord-in-romania-1506123.html Use a translation tool for the following Romanian-language sources: https://www.scena9.ro/article/niste-bubuli https://www.scena9.ro/article/pavel-corut-conspiratie-biografie https://www.scena9.ro/article/pavel-corut-conspiratii-securitate-carti 𝕄𝕦𝕤𝕚𝕔: Music: Rainy Dusk Groove [Full version] by MusicLFiles Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/11861-rainy-dusk-groove-full-version Licensed under CC BY 4.0: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license Music: Inspiring Noir Piano Waltz by MusicLFiles Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/8785-inspiring-noir-piano-waltz Licensed under CC BY 4.0: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license Music: The Big Adventure by Sascha Ende Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/431-the-big-adventure Licensed under CC BY 4.0: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license Music: Foreign Worlds by Frank Schroeter Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/10862-foreign-worlds Licensed under CC BY 4.0: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

    29 min
  2. Debt-for-Nature Swaps & The Environmentalism of the Rich

    06/22/2023

    Debt-for-Nature Swaps & The Environmentalism of the Rich

    What is conservation financing? And do rich people really care about the environment? We'll explore the story of James Goldsmith, hostile takeover baron who was among the first promoters of the idea of debt-for-nature swaps. Would the face-eating leopard play nice outside the world of business or is nature just business as usual? Watch it on Youtube: https://youtu.be/L4LlmtQuWXc Shoot us an email at the.totally.unrelated.podcast@gmail.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/TUnrelated Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/totally_unrelated_pod/ 𝕄𝕦𝕤𝕚𝕔: The following music was used for this media project: Music: Hard Boiled by Kevin MacLeod Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/3857-hard-boiled License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license The following music was used for this media project: Music: Backbay Lounge by Kevin MacLeod Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/3408-backbay-lounge License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license The following music was used for this media project: Music: An Evil Wynd by Tim Kulig Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/9830-an-evil-wynd License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license The following music was used for this media project: Music: Secret of Tiki Island by Kevin MacLeod Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/4331-secret-of-tiki-island License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license Late Night Radio by Kevin MacLeod Link: https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/7613-late-night-radio License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

    22 min
  3. The Balkanazi on Broadway & His Communist Friends: Nicolae Malaxa

    02/01/2023

    The Balkanazi on Broadway & His Communist Friends: Nicolae Malaxa

    Nicolae Malaxa was the quintessential Romanian robber baron: building his fortune by securing lucrative deals with the state, schmoozing with royalty and fascists alike. Heck, he even took his chance for a few years behind the Iron Curtain, bribing Romanian Communist Party officials. And then, he went to America! Diana and Eliza discuss all the man's shenanigans and how he has benefited from a significant reputation laundering within the current discourse in Romania. Music: Lo-Fi Hip-Hop 03 by WinnieTheMoog Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/7848-lo-fi-hip-hop-03 License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

    48 min
  4. Dragons, Dictators and the Struggle to Improve Society Somewhat

    11/17/2022

    Dragons, Dictators and the Struggle to Improve Society Somewhat

    The news continues to be bad and so, Diana and Irina revisit an old favorite to help them ward off cynicism, hopelessness and a general sense of doom about the future. Re-reading Terry Pratchett's Guards!Guards!, they talk about the horrors we let enter our world, the terrible people we allow into power and how we need to still hope that despite all that, we can still improve society (somewhat). Illustrations by Paul Kidby and David Wyatt (Discworld Emporium) Music: Lo-Fi Hip-Hop 03 by WinnieTheMoog Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/7848-lo-fi-hip-hop-03 License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license The following music was used for this media project: Music: Anguish by Kevin MacLeod Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/3373-anguish License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license Artist website: https://incompetech.com The following music was used for this media project: Music: A Night In The Suburbs by MusicLFiles Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/8209-a-night-in-the-suburbs License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license Artist website: https://cemmusicproject.wixsite.com/musiclibraryfiles The following music was used for this media project: Music: Dark Forces March by Sascha Ende Free download: https://filmmusic.io/song/536-dark-forces-march License (CC BY 4.0): https://filmmusic.io/standard-license Artist website: https://www.sascha-ende.de

    1h 4m
  5. Nutritional Science for the People: Myths About Weight Loss & Health

    10/26/2022

    Nutritional Science for the People: Myths About Weight Loss & Health

    The gap in our knowledge about nutrition might surprise many, especially those who think that their 'common sense' intuitions or prejudices are enough evidence to base their judgements on. Irina and Diana discuss misconceptions regarding weight loss, what it means to be healthy and the difficulties in conducting research into nutritional science. Music Lo-Fi Hip-Hop 03 by WinnieTheMoog Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/7848-lo-fi-hip-hop-03 License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

    24 min
  6. Bodies... And Those That Shame Them

    10/14/2022

    Bodies... And Those That Shame Them

    Diana and Irina have a bit of a venting session regarding people who can't seem to mind their own business. Also, those that are unable to understand the different impact of bad takes 'it's just my opinion, man!' in private versus in the public sphere. A critique of body-shaming, fake feminism and general s****y behavior. As always, with a Romanian twist. Music Lo-Fi Hip-Hop 03 by WinnieTheMoog Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/7848-lo-fi-hip-hop-03 License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

    38 min
  7. Just A Slice of (Working Class) Life

    09/28/2022

    Just A Slice of (Working Class) Life

    From the construction site, into the kitchen and on to other gig work - listen to David recount his journey so far. Going back and forth between Romania and the United States, getting into trouble, making friends and grabbing any opportunity to make a tough life slightly better. Music: Lo-Fi Hip-Hop 03 by WinnieTheMoog Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/7848-lo-fi-hip-hop-03 License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

    48 min
  8. Struggles of a National Flag Carrier and Assorted Airline Drama

    09/14/2022

    Struggles of a National Flag Carrier and Assorted Airline Drama

    National flag carriers have been known to struggle and sometimes even succumb - Malev, Swissair, Sabena - and it seems like the Romanian airlines (TAROM) are going through a three decade-long circling of the drain. And all this even before the pandemic hit! In this episode, Diana and Ioana discuss some of the 'interesting characters' behind the rocky trajectory of TAROM- from Eastern Europe's second largest airline, to a hotbed of nepotism, corruption and debt. === Avtiation enthusiasts can also follow this episode on Youtube where samples from a local plane spotter's collection are included in the video === Photo credits go to ClujSpotting Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/clujspotting/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cluj.spotting/ Music Lo-Fi Hip-Hop 03 by WinnieTheMoog Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/7848-lo-fi-hip-hop-03 License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

    1h 3m
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A bunch of Eastern European friends blabbing about history, books, labor issues and such. Occasional venting sessions. Episodes drop every other week, on Wednesday. Shoot us an email at the.totally.unrelated.podcast@gmail.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/TUnrelated Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/totally_unrelated_pod/

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