Stuff They Don't Want You To Know

Secrets of the Founding Fathers, Part II

11 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

It's true that the founders of the United States all too often failed to live up to the values they espoused in the Constitution and other related doc...

Listener Mail: Weather Modification, the Denver Airport and a Bizarre Leap through Time

10 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A meteorologist writes in to break down the (very real) science of cloud seeding, as well as chiming in on Ben's dream of lightning achieving sentienc...

Secrets of the Founding Fathers, Part I

09 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Today, the Founding Fathers of the United States are some of the most well-known figures in the country's history. They're memorialized in monuments, ...

CLASSIC: Is taxation legal?

08 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Every year tax activists of one sort or another try to avoid paying federal or state levies -- but why? The answers get... pretty weird. Join Ben and ...

Strange News: The Amazon Protests, the Disappearing Monument and (Another) Murdered Iranian Nuclear Scientist

07 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The monument in Utah that went viral has disappeared - and a copycat monument has surfaced in Romania. Amazon workers in 15 different companies coordi...

The Wide World of Food Conspiracies, Part II

04 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Food is one of the few things that unites the human species -- so it's no surprise the world of food is chock-full of conspiracies. In today's episode...

Listener Mail: Occult Rocket Science and the Mystery of the Lake Vostok Squid Monster

03 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What exactly was renowned rocket scientist Jack Parsons getting up to in his free time... and how did he know Aleister Crowley? Whatever happened to t...

Putin's Strange New Law

02 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The Russian government may soon pass an unusual law giving any former Russian president legal immunity -- not only from any crimes committed while in ...

CLASSIC: The Great Game

01 Dec 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Over 200 years ago the British and Russian empires waged a largely silent war across Eurasia, vying for influence, power and access to resources. In w...

Strange News: The Future of Cannibalism, Green Slime in Canada, and a Mysterious Monument in Utah

30 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Would you eat a steak grown from your own cells? The question may become increasingly plausible in the next few years. What's the story with the bizar...

Did the prison industry push gangster rap?

27 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What makes a genre of music successful? Ideally, the art connects on a personal level with the audience, speaking truth to power, tapping into a unive...

Listener Mail: Standardized Testing, the Terrifying Tale of Georgia Tann, and the Amazing Minds of Corvids

26 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

An anonymous caller shares their story about learning how to learn. A voicemail inspires the guys to explore the terrifying career of Georgia Tann, an...

What on Earth is happening to Britney Spears?

25 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

World famous pop icon Britney Spears has sold millions of records, performed countless times, and regardless of whether you care for her music, you've...

CLASSIC: Neuromarketing: Science or Science Fiction?

24 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Neuromarketers claim that their techniques provide new and profound insights for consumers buying everything from soda to new cars. But can they reall...

Strange News: Laser-guided Lightning, Election Fraud, and Putin Wants to Give Himself Lifetime Immunity?

23 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Humans may soon be able to control lightning, pointing it at targets. Voter fraud (but not the vote you're thinking of). Russian President Vladimir Pu...

The 1969 Berkshire UFO Incidents: What actually happened?

20 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comThey don't want you to read our book.: https://static.macmillan.com/static/f...

Listener Mail: Veterans Targeted, Bitcoin Billionaires

19 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

US veterans find themselves unfairly targeted as they pursue post-combat careers. Questions remain regarding one of the world's largest Bitcoin wallet...

Foreign Investment and the Housing Crisis

18 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In cities across Canada, the US and other parts of the world, the cost of living continues to rise -- and housing becomes increasingly unaffordable. R...

CLASSIC: Deep Underground Military Bases

17 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Is the world really littered with underground military bases? How many are active today? Is it possible to find them on your own? Join Ben and Matt as...

Strange News: Immortal Worms Invade Virginia, Cruise Lines Begin to Reopen

16 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Some cruise lines begin to reopen. In Virginia, locals were astonished to find a bizarre, potentially immortal creature invading -- the infamous (and ...

Operação Prato: Brazil's Bizarre UFO Investigation

13 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

From 1977 to 1978 the Brazilian Air Force investigated a series of alleged UFO sightings, with multiple witnesses, in and around a city called Colares...

Listener Mail: A Mysterious Curse, Conversion Therapy, and the Murder of the Notorious B.I.G.

12 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A caller shares a strange story of a possible curse. The guys explore the dark side of so-called conversion therapy. And a voicemail inspires the gang...

QAnon and Conflict Journalism, with Jake Hanrahan

11 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In this episode, the guys sit down with seasoned conflict journalist Jake Hanrahan to hear his first-hand accounts of covering stories all too often i...

CLASSIC: Cults (You’ve Never Heard Of)

10 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What's the difference between a cult and a religion? What are some of history's strangest cults? Are there any secret cults in the modern day? In this...

Strange News: How To Drop Your Own Charges, The Oreo Doomsday Vault, and City-wide Exorcisms

09 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Confronted with multiple criminal charges, one New Hampshire woman came up with an innovative -- and bizarre -- plan: she impersonated a prosecutor an...

Why does the US let Saudi fugitives flee the country?

06 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

On August 19th, 2016 Saudi national and college student Abdulrahman Sameer Noorah was charged with first degree manslaughter for fatally hitting a 15 ...

Listener Mail: Narconon and Scientology, Getting Kicked out of the Freemasons, and the Disappearance of Rebecca Coriam

05 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Critics allege the rehabilitative program known as Narconon is a front for Scientology. Masons chime in to confirm that yes, you can get kicked out of...

Natural Disaster and Revolution

04 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The history of human civilization is, in many ways, a history of conflict. Empires rise and fall, countries come and go, and humanity soldiers on. Yet...

CLASSIC: The Pineal Gland Conspiracies

03 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Could the pineal gland really have some sort of spiritual significance? What does it do, exactly, and why do so many people believe there's some sort ...

Strange News: COVID-19 Study, Ex-President of Burundi Gets Prison Time for Murdering Another President, and Female Mutant Crayfish are Taking Over the World (mainly Antwerp)

02 Nov 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Former Burundian President Pierre Buyoya received a life sentence in court for the murder of another former President: Melchior Ndadaye. A recent stud...

White Supremacy Infiltrates the Military

30 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The world's most powerful has numerous policies regarding equality -- but how do the policies on paper translate to action? In today's episode, the ga...

Listener Mail: Dangers of the Troubled Teen Industry, How the Sun can Destroy Modern Civilization, and Massive Protests in Nigeria

29 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Multiple listeners reach out to share their experiences in the 'troubled teen' industry. The guys explore the fascinating -- and terrifying -- possibi...

When We Become Our Phones

28 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

It's bizarre to think that -- not too long ago -- the idea of having something as powerful as a smart phone in your pocket would seem like something o...

CLASSIC: Exorcisms: An Introduction

27 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

You're probably familiar with the horror film version of exorcisms: a righteous priest reciting holy verses as a demon-possessed person writhes and ex...

Strange News: A Fake Spy Almost Made Billions, an MC is Arrested for Fraud, the Water Wars Begin

26 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Multiple high-level government officials believed Garrison Courtney was a CIA officer offering them fat cat contracts -- by the time the FBI caught up...

Inside Scientology with Mike Rinder, Part II: The Future of the Church

23 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

How many members does the Church of Scientology actually have? What are they doing in Clearwater, Florida? Perhaps most importantly, what is the futur...

Listener Mail: The Library of Alexandria, Cursed Objects from Pompeii, and How Your Voice gets Hacked

22 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What actually happened to the Great Library of Alexandria, and how would the world be different if it hadn't disappeared? What made an anonymous touri...

Inside Scientology with Mike Rinder, Part I: An Origin Story

21 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Founded in 1953 by L. Ron Hubbard, the Church of Scientology describes itself as a religion that puts its adherents on a path toward complete and cert...

CLASSIC: Ghosts 101

20 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Stories of ghosts predate written history, and cultures around the world believe in one form of spirit or another. But why? If there's no currently ac...

Strange News: Drones and Shotguns, Paris Hilton and the Troubled Teen Industry, Harry Reid Doubles Down on UFOs

19 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The UK goes public with plans to mount firearms on drones. Paris Hilton provides insight on the dangers of the 'troubled teen' industry. Retired US Se...

The Dark Side of the Fashion Industry, Part II: Pollution and Extinction

16 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Everyone loves looking sharp - and saving money in the process. But what if there's a hidden cost to all this fast fashion and these trendy cosmetics?...

Listener Mail: Lyme Disease Conspiracies, Hazards of the Foster System, the Bible and the Bronze Age

15 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Could Lyme disease be man-made? What insights can the Bible give us about the mysteries of the Bronze Age? Just how problematic is the foster care ind...

The Mystery of the Kensington Runestone

14 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Could a mysterious slab of stone near Kensington, Minnesota hold the key to a forgotten piece of ancient history? According to the true believers, thi...

CLASSIC: Could a solar flare destroy civilization?

13 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What would you do if you woke up one day and found yourself in a world without electricity, cellphones or the internet? It sounds like the plot of a s...

Strange News: The US President Has COVID-19

12 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Recently the US -- and the world at large -- learned that the President of the United States tested positive for COVID-19. As reporters and the public...

The Hidden History of Assassins, Part II: The Modern Day

09 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Almost a thousand years after the reign of the original Order of Assassins, you might think assassination tactics would be universally illegal -- howe...

Listener Mail: A Mysterious Website, LEGO Bricks in the Ocean, and Warnings From Anonymous Plastics Scientists

08 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The guys dive into a bizarre website that may be an art project, the ramblings of a lunatic, or something more sinister. For years, LEGO bricks have b...

The Hidden History of Assassins, Part I: An Origin Story

07 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What's the difference between an assassination and a garden-variety murder? Where does the term 'assassin' actually come from, and how did an obscure ...

CLASSIC: Soviet Psychotronics

06 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

It's true - the Soviet government really did have its own parapsychological research program. And, unlike MKULTRA and other US operations, the Soviet ...

Strange News: Building Material on Mars, Sharks and COVID-19, Crows Wage Unending War on Owls

05 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Have scientists discovered a new building material for future Martian colonies? Why might a vaccine for COVID-19 lead to the deaths of thousands of de...

The Mystery of the Bronze Age Collapse

02 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Sometime between between c. 1250 - c. 1150 BCE, civilization as we knew it simply... collapsed. Once-thriving empires fell one after another. Trade ro...

Listener Mail: Ergotism, Social Media and More

01 Oct 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Could the contagious schoolyard panics in Malaysia be caused by ergot poisoning or some other environmental contaminant? Join Ben and Noel as they div...

The Reality of Reality TV

30 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Love it or hate it, there's no denying that reality TV -- also known as unscripted television -- is a titan of the entertainment industry. In fact, if...

CLASSIC: Serial Killer Cults

29 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Serial killers are insane, prone to exaggeration and delusion, and often inveterate liars. Amid some of their wilder claims, several notable serial ki...

Strange News: Revelations from Venus, the FinCEN Leaks, and Facebook Whistleblowers

28 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What exactly did scientists find in the atmosphere of Venus? A former Facebook employee claims the company actively ignored widespread political manip...

Corruption, Conspiracy and Champions: Crime in the NBA

25 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The world of professional sports is a multi-billion dollar industry -- and even the most ardent fans may not know what actually happens away from the ...

Listener Mail: ICE and Hysterectomy, Eternal Blue, the End of the World on YouTube

24 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

As recent allegations of forced hysterectomies surface in the US, Ben alleges genocide. An anonymous caller asks Matt for more information about Etern...

Plastics, Microplastics and Conspiracy

23 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Look around -- how many objects in your immediate vicinity contain plastic? This malleable, durable material has become ubiquitous -- you can find in ...

CLASSIC: Cicadas, Ciphers and Codes: The Weird World of Cryptography

22 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

For much of recorded history, humans beings have been trying to devise unbreakable codes (and break the codes of their rivals). But is there any truly...

Strange News: Orcas Attack, AI Writes Op-eds, and Portland Bans All Facial Recognition

21 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A pod of Orcas is attacking ships. An 'artificial intelligence' writes an op-ed. Portland, Oregon, bans facial recognition. All this and more in this ...

Auras

18 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

For millennia, people in civilizations across the planet have claimed to perceive intangible energy emanating from people, animals, plants -- and even...

Listener Mail: Reiki, Cruise Ships and Iron Mountain

17 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What is life like for the actual staff of a cruise ship? Could Reiki function as physical healing? What exactly is Iron Mountain? All this and more in...

The Flordelis Cult

16 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Flordelis dos Santos de Souza is a politician and cultural icon in Brazil. For a time, she and her husband Anderson Do Carmo were an evangelical power...

CLASSIC: Operation Snow White

15 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What was the most widespread infiltration of the US government? According to some sources, it came from within. Tune in to learn more about the story ...

Strange News: Wildfires, Mysterious Mail Dumps, and How Plants Reveal the Dead

14 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A 'gender reveal' party in California has created a massive wildfire. Someone dumped loads of mail in the parking lot of a beauty salon. Science revea...

The Screaming Girls of Malaysia

11 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Up until July of 2018, 17-year-old Siti Nurannisaa was like many other kids finishing up their last year of high school - she was stressed out by exam...

Listener Mail: Dreams, the Bridgend Suicides, Deaths at Fort Hood, and a Ghost in Gibraltar

10 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Do ghosts wander the tunnels of Gibraltar? Why are so many families (Ben's included) convinced they receive mysterious omens of the future in their dr...

The Mind vs. Matter: Feats of the Mystics

09 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

How much power does the mind wield over physical matter? Could certain human beings, through the force of focused thought alone, walk on fire, lay on ...

CLASSIC: The Placebo Effect

08 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The placebo effect is pretty freaky when you think about it: just believing that a harmless substance is a medicine can really produce measurable bene...

Strange News: The COVID-19 Ghost Ship Tour, an X-files spinoff, and Georgia's Massive Human Trafficking Ring

07 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

An enterprising UK resident has found a new way to profit from the pandemic -- taking people on tours of the nearly-abandoned 'ghost ships' floating o...

Poltergeists: Fact and Fiction

04 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In the world of spirits and apparitions, the poltergeist is a unique type of ghost -- one known for its alleged ability to move physical objects (ofte...

Listener Mail: #freebritney, Surviving the Derecho, and Spontaneous Human Combustion

03 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Is pop superstar Britney Spears really being held hostage? What is it like to witness a derecho firsthand, and live to tell the tale? Can human beings...

What is "Laying On Hands"?

02 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In the ancient days, when medicine and spirituality were inseparable, people often used rituals and invocations to elicit help from divine sources. Th...

CLASSIC: The Mystery of Coral Castle

01 Sep 2020

Contributed by Lukas

After being jilted a day before his wedding and narrowly surviving tuberculosis, Latvian immigrant Edward Leedskalnin spent almost 30 years building C...

Strange News: Gaming and Death, Facebook has Censorship Problem, and North Korea's Leader May Be in a Coma

31 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A tragic homicide seems linked to online gaming. Facebook continues to be under fire for its long-running, previously established issues with censorsh...

Have dreams really predicted the future? Part II

28 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Could human dreams really, in some way, predict the future? At first, it sounds like the stuff of science fiction... but the real-life answer may not ...

Listener Mail: The Secret Gibraltar Base, The Spread of COVID-19 and the Chris Cornell Conspiracy

27 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

What if Chris Cornell -- and Chester Bennington -- were actually murdered? How much do we really know about the early spread of COVID-19 in the US? An...

Have dreams really predicted the future? Part I

26 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Dreams are one of the most mysterious aspects of human existence, and we still don't fully understand the strange phenomenon known as dreaming. For th...

CLASSIC: Can we really lose civilizations?

26 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

From Atlantis to Ciudad Blanca, Troy and Shangri-La, history is full of legends about lost civilizations. But how does humanity lose an entire city, e...

Strange News: Derechos Ravage the US, the Okinawan Sleeping Epidemic, and Someone May Have Solved the Mystery of 'CROATOAN.'

24 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

A brutal derecho has caused somewhere around 4 billion dollars' worth of damage in Iowa. In Okinawa, multiple residents appears to fall sound asleep i...

When did humans reach the Americas?

21 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Did human beings first reach the continents we call North and South America by traversing a land bride across what's now known as the Bering Strait? T...

Listener Mail: Canadian UFOs, Fake Identities and Morphic Resonance

20 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Did a UFO really crash in Jackfish, Canada? What is 'morphic resonance,' and does psilocybin enhance it? Join the guys as they explore these questions...

What happened to Madeleine McCann?

19 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

In 2007, just days before her 4th birthday, Madeleine McCann disappeared from her parent's vacation apartment in Portugal, launching an international ...

CLASSIC: The "Real" Conspiracies

18 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

The guys get a lot of questions, and one that crops up often is this: "Do you ever run into real conspiracies (rather than theories)?" Well, they're f...

Strange News: Magic Mushrooms, a Loch Ness and DNA Detective Work

17 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Canada has officially ruled that terminal patients may legally use psilocybin. Over in Scotland, another alleged photograph of the Loch Ness Monster r...

Could Sea Monsters/Serpents Still Exist?

14 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Since before the dawn of recorded history, humans have been haunted by rumors of monsters beneath the waves -- and, as time wore on, it seemed at leas...

Listener Mail: 5G, COVID-19 as Bioweapon, Standardized Testing as the Genuine Conspiracy

13 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Does a viral infection spread through radio towers? Was COVID-19 somehow designed as the world's most cartoonishly ineffective bioweapon? What are 'st...

The Nunavut Ping

12 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Officially formed in 1999, Nunavut is the newest and most northerly territory of Canada. This sparsely-populated region is home unique wildlife, ancie...

CLASSIC: The Illuminati

11 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Is there really an ancient, shadowy secret society running the world? If so, what's their endgame - and why hasn't anyone conclusively proven their ex...

Strange News: A Crashed Plane, A Drug Smuggling Feline and Strange Seeds from China

10 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Authorities find a mysterious plane in Papua New Guinea -- one that may have crashed due to the sheer weight of the cocaine onboard. A cat has been bu...

Did Milwaukee Police Protect a Child Abuse Ring?

07 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Earlier this year, two children went missing in Milwaukee. Despite the pleas of their parents and loved ones, the local police did not treat these chi...

Listener Mail: Martial Law, Karen Silkwood and Mind-controlling Parasites

06 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Could the United States impose nationwide martial law? What is a Silkwood Shower? Do humans play host to mind-controlling parasites? Join Ben, Matt an...

What is 'Antifa?'

05 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

If you've been watching the news, you've probably heard journalists and pundits throwing around the word "antifa," often in relation to protests. The ...

CLASSIC: Did Nazis really make UFOs?

04 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

After the fall of the Nazi regime, the dirty secrets of WWII-era Germany slowly came to public light. Amid the horrors of the Holocaust and bizarre pr...

Strange News: The Pentagon and Aliens, Psuedocide Foiled by Typo, Man in Prosthetic Mask Robs Casino

03 Aug 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Law enforcement finally catches up with a mysterious grifter using CIA-level prosthetic mask technology. A man attempts to fake his death and forgets ...

The Dark Side of the Fashion Industry, Part 1: The Dark Side of the Loom

31 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

If you're like the vast majority of people, you wear clothes. Clothing is one of the oldest pieces of human technology, and these days it's also a mul...

Listener Mail: July 30th

30 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

Who was the mysterious Ronald Hadley Stark? Just how closely can companies and the government monitor commercial (and, eventually, civilian) vehicles?...

What really sank the Kursk?

29 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

More than 500 feet long and carrying missiles the size of small planes, the giant, nuclear-powered Kursk submarine was an apex predator of the high se...

CLASSIC: The Deceptive Brain

28 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

It's no secret that strong emotions can influence our thought processes, but just how much of a difference can they actually make? Can you trust your ...

Strange News: a Swarm of Ants, Masks in 1918 and a Mysterious Attempt to Murder a Judge

27 Jul 2020

Contributed by Lukas

As swarms of flying ants overtake the UK, radar in multiple cities is overwhelmed, mistaking the waves of flying insects for rain. Anti-mask sentiment...