Flightless Bird - David Farrier

Latest Episodes:

Bunkers Sep 13, 2022

Show notes

This week on Flightless Bird, David descends underground into the world of preppers and bunkers, learning that 40% of Americans believe that stocking up on supplies or building an underground shelter is a better investment than saving for retirement. Joined my Monica Mouse, David discovers that humans have wanted to live underground for the last 2000 years. David interviews ethnographic researcher Bradley Garrett about the mindset of the American bunker enthusiast since Covid, and finds out why Brad was arrested on the tarmac back in 2012, spending two years marooned in the UK. David finds out about the American man who wanted to buy an nuclear bunker with 56 bedrooms, and calls up a bunker company to find out what’s in their million dollar bunker package.

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Baseball Sep 06, 2022

Show notes

This week on Flightless Bird, David heads to San Francisco to meet the San Francisco Giants. Joined by Wobby Wob, David attempts to learn how to catch a baseball, before becoming distracted by some loud screams coming from the field. It's there he meets the Chicago White Sox's Liam Hendriks, an outspoken Australian with a good arm and lots of opinions. David learns why 16 million Americans play baseball in some kind of organized fashion and talks to bench coach Kai Correa about how to win a game. Farrier then interroates Giants pitcher Logan Webb about pre-game rituals, before watching his first ever baseball game... trying to figure out what he likes more: the game, the drinks, or the food?

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Tipping Aug 30, 2022

Show notes

This week on Flightless Bird, David gets out his wallet and dives into the culture and politics of tipping. Joined by Monica Padman, he sets out to discover why 52% of Americans tip their hairdresser while only 14% always tip their barista. David interviews Mike Lynn, a professor at the Cornell Hotel School, about the social pressures of tipping and why we tip what we tip. David also talks to Saru Jayaraman of “One Fair Wage”, who explains that tipping is a deeply warped version of what Americans brought back from Europe - and that in America tipping has some fairly racist origins - which has lead to power imbalances for the 5.5 million Americans that that rely on tips. David is encouraged to hear that America is at a tipping point for workers, and there may be a future with a decent minimum wage - as well as tips. Unless you’re one of the 4% of Americans who refuse to tip, ever.

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Juggalos Aug 23, 2022

Show notes

This week on Flightless Bird, David dives into the insane world of Insane Clown Posse fans, who called themselves “Juggalos”. David is shocked to discover that due to the criminal enterprises of certain members of the fandom, the FBI decided to classify them as a gang. David talks to one of the first people to document Juggalo culture, Derek Erdman - before meeting another documentary maker who spent years with ICP’s “Violent J” and “Shaggy 2 Dope”, unlocking the magic that makes this band a $10 million-dollars-a-year business. With the annual Gathering of the Juggalos approaching, David learns ICP and their fans tell the story of a very specific part of American culture, that isn’t going away anytime soon. “Woop woop!”

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Amazon Aug 16, 2022

Show notes

This week on Flightless Bird, David prepares to hit “Buy Now” as he embarks into the world of Amazon, the company that notched up 116 billion dollars in sales during the first three months of this year. Joined by Monica, he looks at how this company has slowly inserted itself into the American lifestyle, from TV and film, to products, to Alexa living in everyone’s house, tending to their every need. David interviews Emily West, an Associate Professor of Communication at the University of Massachusets, about how Amazon’s marketing made a brown cardboard box so popular. He also talks to the author of “Fulfillment”, Alec MacGillis, about how Amazon’s various factories are changing the face of America, city by city - as Amazon is now America’s second largest private employer next to Walmart.

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Healthcare Aug 09, 2022

Show notes

This week on Flightless Bird, David sets out to make sense of the very confusing American healthcare system. Joined by Monica, he tries to figure out why some Americans end up paying their own ambulance bill, and why over half of the American population is riddled with medical debt. David talks to Luke O’Neil - the journalist and writer behind popular newsletter "Welcome to Hellworld" - about why it falls on children to raise money for their parents medical bills; and discovers why in the US healthcare system teeth are considered “luxury bones”.

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Diners Aug 02, 2022

Show notes

This week on Flightless Bird, David sets out to understand what makes the American diner experience so special, by travelling to Reno, Nevada. There he meets the staff of Peg's Glorified Ham N Eggs, and meets the regulars who've made the diner their home away from home - including Rainbow Man, a man obsessed with painting human bodies at Burning Man. What makes a diner a diner? How have they changed over the years? David and Monica discuss their various diner experiences, from fights to excessive milkshake consumption.

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Circumcision Jul 26, 2022

Show notes

This week on Flightless Bird, David sets out to discover why America loves circumcision so much, to the point where 115 million American men now find themselves without a foreskin. Joined by Monica, he tries to figure out why this medical procedure became so popular here, leading to some medical diagrams not bothering to include a foreskin anymore. David talks to a man in his 30s who’s furious he got circumcised when he was a baby, and another who’s annoyed he wasn’t circumcised, as he considers getting an adult circumcision. David talks to a doctor who’s carried out hundreds of circumcisions to find out what all the fuss is about, and spends time with Georganne Chapin, Executive Director of Intact America - who wants circumcision to be thrown out the window.

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Football Jul 19, 2022

Show notes

This week on Flightless Bird, David sets out to understand a game that simply doesn’t exist in New Zealand: American Football. He tries to figure out America’s most popular sport and asks why over 100 million Americans watched the Super Bowl. After watching the Super Bowl for the first time, David travels to Seattle to get schooled by NFL Hall-of-Famer Walter Jones, who was drafted by the Seahawks in 1997. He discovers what a locker room smells like, and why some football players love to chew gum so much. Walter also opens up about his theories on the existance of extraterrestrial life.

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Bottled Water Jul 12, 2022

Show notes

This week on Flightless Bird, David sets out to understand America’s obsession with bottled water. Joined by Monica, he tries to figure out why tap water just won’t cut it in many US States, leading Americans to spend billions on bottled water every year. David talks to author and scientist Peter Gleick about tap water myths, and how some bottled water companys have accidentally added things like arsenic and cricket parts to their bottled creations. We discover why a new sports stadium purposefully didn’t install enough public water fountains, and get to the bottom of whether carcinogenic chemicals leech from plastic bottles creating a deathtrap.

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