Why Russia Is Insane (And Starting To Look Familiar)
If you've followed the news recently, you may have noticed the tiny little superpower Sarah Palin can see from her house has emerged from its slumber and re-injected itself into American politics. Not since the Cold War has Russophobia been as much of a part of our daily lives as it is now. Disinformation, strong man tactics and a corrupt and dictatorial turn have spilled into American life in a way that would've seemed like fiction only a few decades ago. What was once the well-trodden territory of black and white "duck and cover" videos and 80s action flicks is now a staple of Twitter feeds and nightly news broadcasts.
So how did we get here, and what the hell does Russia even want from us this time around? That's what Cracked's Robert Evans and Michael Swaim are here to find out on this week's podcast. They join Jack O'Brien for an all-encompassing conversation about the KGB's history of deceit, Russia's methodology for spreading lies and Vlad Putin's psych evaluation. Later in the show, Jack interviews Cracked engineer Tatiana Nam about her experiences growing up in Russia.
Throw on your headphones and click "Play" above, go here to subscribe on iTunes, or download it here.
Our next live podcast is on Saturday, February 11th at 7pm at the UCB Sunset Theatre in Los Angeles. Just in time for Valentine's Day, join Jack O'Brien, Michael Swaim and Teresa Lee as they welcome Dr. Christopher Ryan, author of Sex at Dawn for a discussion about love, relationships and why our sex lives now bear no resemblance to the way our ancestors got down. Tickets are $7 and available HERE.
Footnotes:
Video: Cracked: Why the #1 Fact of Military History is a Lie
Article: Cracked: 5 Conspiracy Theories That Are Real (But Not How You Think)
Article: Cracked: 6 Insane Conspiracy Theories That Actually Happened
Article: NPR: Putin 'Probably' Approved Plan to Kill Spy
Podcast: NPR: Russia's Interference is an Assault on the Western Liberal Order
Video: Press Conference with Bill Clinton and Drunk Boris Yeltsin
Podcast: NPR: Trump Seems Willfully Blind to Putin's Real Goals
Book: Peter Pomerantsev: Nothing is True and Everything is Possible:
