The Gist

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The Case of the Frozen Trucker Feb 02, 2017

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This week, Democrats are agonizing over how or whether to oppose Donald Trump's first Supreme Court nominee, Neil Gorsuch. Emily Bazelon notes that Gorsuch has been very clear in his opposition to doctor-assisted suicide, but his position on abortion rights is less knowable. Bazelon is a staff writer for the New York Times Magazine, and a co-host of the Slate Political Gabfest.

For the Spiel, Trump finds God and uses the opportunity to ask for better Apprentice ratings.

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Inside the Biggest Pyramid Scheme Ever Feb 01, 2017

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Steve Fishman is one of the few journalists to received access to notorious scam artist Bernie Madoff. His interviews form the backbone of the new Audible series Ponzi Supernova, which goes deep inside the biggest pyramid scheme in American history. Fishman talks about his new series and how Madoff outran federal investigators for decades.

For the Spiel, the folly of adding Iran to Trump's travel ban.

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The New Queens of Satire Feb 01, 2017

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Beth Newell and Sarah Pappalardo are founding editors of the satirical online women's magazine Reductress, publisher of such headlines as "8 Sex Positions That Will Blow His Mind and Destroy His Penis." On The Gist, Newell and Pappalardo discuss their site's blend of feminism and millennialism. Their new book is called How to Win at Feminism: The Definitive Guide to Having It All—and Then Some!

For the Spiel, Americans want their dysfunctional-government-that-isn't-working to at least show up and pretend to work.

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Up in the Air Jan 30, 2017

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The Trump administration's executive order restricting travel to the U.S. set off at least four legal challenges, an international contagion of protests, and the harshest Republican rebukes yet to a Trump White House action. But it's not yet clear how many people have been affected by the ban or exactly what it requires. Ben Johnson, head of the American Immigration Lawyers Association, calls the policy "as ill-conceived as it is wrong."

For the Spiel, we could block out the sun with all the supposed trial balloons for autocracy floated in the past week.

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Yeah, We're Scared Too Jan 27, 2017

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In one tweet, George W. Bush appointee Eliot Cohen became the face for anti-Trump conservatives: "After exchange with Trump transition team, changed my recommendation: stay away. They're angry, arrogant, screaming 'you LOST!' Will be ugly." With the news this week that senior State Department officials have resigned en masse, Cohen says there are reasons to be very worried about America's role on the world stage. Cohen is the author of The Big Stick: The Limits of Soft Power and the Necessity of Military Force.

For the Spiel, more and more reasons to distrust Vladimir Putin.

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Deregulation Nation Jan 26, 2017

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Americans are skeptical of regulation, no matter how much they hate hair in their hot dogs. Why are Republicans winning this argument? Jacob Hacker is director of the Institution for Social and Policy Studies at Yale University and author of the new book American Amnesia. For the Spiel, an ethics scandal hits South Dakota. Yes, South Dakota!

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Don't Mind Us, We're Just Collapsing Jan 25, 2017

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The Dow hitting 20,000 might sounds like great news to you, but to anthropologist Arthur Demarest, it's an ominous echo of what he's seen befall the Maya, the Aztecs, and the Inca: a spectacular apogee followed by collapse. Demarest studies the decline of civilizations. He says his research has shown that societies that avoid total disintegration undergo some other kind of major political or economic crisis.

For the Spiel, good news. We've fixed the Oscars.

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The Problem With Tracking Hate Jan 24, 2017

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The Southern Poverty Law Center rushed to track the surge in reported hate incidents after the election—a surge that appears to have died down. Heidi Beirich explains the SPLC's plans to weed any hoaxes out of its data and why it's a bad idea to minimize incidents of hate just because they don't rise to the level of a crime.

For the Spiel, getting acquainted with Canada's Trump(s).

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The Truth About Vitamin C Jan 23, 2017

Show notes

New Yorker staff writer Maria Konnikova returns to play "Is That Bullshit?" This week, the persistent nutritional myth about vitamin C. The actual vitamin, not the singer. Maria's most recent book is The Confidence Game. Plus, one of Barack Obama's dreams has finally been realized: a plain white t-shirt store is open in Hawaii.

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A Bet Against Reality Jan 21, 2017

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President Donald J. Trump was voted into office by an impatient electorate that had no ability to measure his rhetoric against a political record. Slate political writer Will Saletan predicts that national impatience will not be kind to Mr. Trump. Saletan is the author of Bearing Right: How Conservatives Won the Abortion War.

U.S. Rep. Mark DeSaulnier, D-Calif., joined dozens of his colleagues boycotting the inauguration. He explains what Democrats can do to draw attention to Mr. Trump's conflicts of interest.

Michael Waldman penned two inaugural addresses for former President Bill Clinton. Waldman says Mr. Trump's speech was remarkable for what it didn't include: any mention of the Constitution, liberty, or democracy. "Which is something that presidents do," Waldman said. "It's almost like a religious incantation in these speeches."

For the Spiel, some non-Trump news. How Gambia got its groove and the fight against fake news in Sweden.

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