Diabolical Lies

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com Caro & Katie discuss your questions about: * Whether the “financial independence, retire early” movement is an effective way to Cordyceps-bug (visual below) capitalism for your own freedom or a gateway drug to the life-diminishing tendency to obsess about money * Why Katie would accept Fox News’s radical Marxist label * Caro’s Yesteryear experience and why success sometimes feels like failure * The creative process and whether creating from a place of defensiveness makes for shittier art * The future of Diabolical Lies if you people continue to tolerate us * Politically agnostic friends and the expectation that every element of your personal life conforms to your political ideals * Whether Christianity and feminism are compatible, and if feminism can really be “compatible” with any belief system that evolved under thousands of years of patriarchy * Conspiracy theories we believe in * How to feel generally better about your career under capitalism * The difficulty of “killing the (misogynist, capitalist, etc.) cop in your head” and choosing more fulfilling work that may earn less or no money * Whether we use PowerPoints to present our outlines to one another and how our research process has evolved from our glorified voice notes * Neutralizing the male gaze and self-objectification theory We’ll see paid subscribers again in October for a topical episode that will (probably) be about the never-ending breastfeeding vs. formula culture war.

A quick heads-up: Around 1:34:00, we discuss postpartum psychosis, depression, filicide, and the Lindsay Clancy trial (no graphic descriptions). If that’s not something you’re up for today, take care and skip ahead to 1:40:00. It only felt fitting to wrap up our pre-maternity leave regularly scheduled programming with a conversation that brings our very first episode full circle. Skeptics of the tradwife shtick have long observed that tradwife influencers aren’t actually exposed to the risks of the conservative, traditional lifestyle they’re aestheticizing, because they—presumably—have access to their own money and, with it, some degree of autonomy and optionality. This summer, the years-long discourse has finally landed where it started, with the accusation— you actually have a job —being wielded effectively as a defense— yeah, this is a job, why is everyone calling me a tradwife ? The result is a discursive ouroboros. Many fellow Discourse Vultures have perceived Nara Smith and Hannah Neeleman’s disavowal of the tradwife label in recent interviews whilst wearing top-to-bottom denim as proof that this brand of motherhood is no longer in vogue, and that the reality of Smith and Neeleman’s family dynamics (50/50 partnerships, being a CEO) serve as evidence of that shift. The personal is political, as they say, but how effectively does personal experience really serve as a political defense? Can it nullify the ideological associations of powerful aesthetics, when those aesthetics are already central to American culture? This episode is a close read of three eerily similar themes that appeared across both recent interviews with some ~lite feminist theory~ layered atop them. THEORY Of Woman Born by Adrienne Rich (1977), the original source from which the “mothering as experience” and “motherhood as institution” framework was pulled “ A review of Adrienne Rich’s Of Woman Born : Motherhood as Experience and Institution ” by Alice Braun (2019) “ Institution of Motherhood ” from Encyclopedia of Motherhood , edited by Andrea O’Reilly, Andrea (2010) “ Mothering and Motherhood: Experience, Ideology, and Agency ” by Min Jao from Comparative Literature Studies (2019) “ Racism and Patriarchy in the Meaning of Motherhood ” by Dorothy E. Roberts from Journal of Gender & Law (1992) “ Filicide in the United States ” by Phillip J. Resnick from the National Library of Medicine (2016) Blue: A History of Postpartum Depression in America by Rachel Louise Moran (2024) “ Age, Race, Class, and Sex: Women Redefining Difference ” by Audre Lorde (1984) CLOSE-READ INTERVIEWS “ Nara Smith: Stop Calling Me a Tradwife ” from Call Her Daddy (2026) “ Ballerina Farm is Happy with Her Choices ” by Stephanie McNeal from Vulture (2026) OTHER REFERENCED PRESS HITS “ Tycoon or Tradwife? The Woman Behind Ballerina Farm Makes Her Own Path. ” by Julia Moskin for the New York Times (2024) Alyssa Grenfell , the ex-Mormon YouTuber referenced “ The Un-Trad Rise of Nara Aziza Smith ” by Bianca Betancourt for Harper’s Bazaar (2024) “ How Lucky Blue and Nara Aziza Smith Made Viral Internet Fame From Scratch ” by Carrie Battan for GQ (2024) “ Meet the queen of the ‘trad wives’ (and her eight children) ” by Megan Agnew for The Times (2024) “ Ballerina Farm opens its door to visitors ” from ABC News (2026) “ The ‘trad wives’ leaving high-control Christian nationalist communities ” from CNN (2026) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com

The Democratic Party was facing an identity crisis when Donald Trump began his second term in January 2025. Just two months later, Democratic media Thinkboiz Ezra Klein and Derek Thompson published Abundance . Their theory of the case: We could “solve our problems with supply,” and that to do so, we needed to pursue “a liberalism that builds,” an idea that meant aspiring to “more than redistribution […], more than parceling out the present.” The text of Abundance focuses almost exclusively on examples of government proceduralism and self-defeating obstruction, while at times quoting books like Fully Automated Luxury Communism and even Karl Marx. There’s just one difference between the productive capacity imagined in Fully Automated Luxury Communism and Abundance : only one of these books sees this vision as compatible with capitalism. Over the months that followed its publication, an “intra-left” fight emerged between the “populist left” (represented by figures like Bernie Sanders and the DSA) and the “abundance left.” For a while, it looked like Abundance would set the vision for the future of the party. What happened? Diabolical Lies investigates. All citations and references can be found at diabolicalliespod.com. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com

Alex Cooper is one of the most successful podcast hosts in the country. Alix Earle is one of the most popular TikTok stars in America. The women, who appear to be separated by a single vowel and little else, have become central to a slow-burning pop culture feud representing two distinct, radically divergent archetypes: the Mean Girl™ and the Girl’s Girl.™ Cooper’s storied past includes a messy, public split with her former Call Her Daddy cohost, Sofia Franklyn, which she parlayed into an enormous deal with Spotify and, later, SiriusXM. Earle’s background is simpler and cleaner, involving a seemingly overnight ascent on TikTok and a Teflon-like immunity to controversy. Today’s episode is ultimately a story about the manipulation of discourse and how double standards don’t just exist between women and men, but between women who are, for all intents and purposes, functionally identical. It’s a deep dive into the characters populating the latest girl-on-girl morality play, a spectacle uniquely suited to demonstrate the skill of those seated atop the modern attention capture content creation industry. Enjoy this valiant effort to extract a takeaway other than “wow, maybe the internet really is making all of us stupider.” “ Call Her Daddy’ s Alexandra Cooper Made Her Name Talking About Sex. With Her Massive Spotify Deal, She’s Pushing Beyond That ” by Eliana Dockterman for Time (2021) “ Daddy Issues: Trouble Behind the Scenes of Alex Cooper’s Unwell Media Empire ” by Clara Molot for Vanity Fair (2026) “ Noticing Emily Ratajkowski’s New Essay, Gwyneth Paltrow’s Politics, and Alex Cooper’s Leadership Skills ” from Good Noticings (2026) “ Inside Alex Cooper’s Unwell: Tears, Screaming and Employees Looking for the Exit ” by Ashley Carman for Bloomberg (2026) “ Alex Cooper, Husband Skip Team Meeting After Behavior Complaints ” by Ashley Carman for Bloomberg (2026) “ Alex Cooper Went From Raunchy Podcaster to Gen-Z’s Barbara Walters ” by EJ Dickson for Rolling Stone “ The ‘Call Her Daddy’ Feud: What Happened? ” by Taylor Lorenz for The New York Times (2020) Dave Portnoy’s obnoxious video to “Suitman” on the Call Her Daddy Instagram account during the negotiation breakdown “ The truth about Call Her Daddy ” on Alex Cooper’s YouTube channel “ After Leaving ‘Call Her Daddy,’ Sofia Franklyn is Back with a New Podcast of Her Own ” by Andy Meek for Forbes (2020) “ Dave Portnoy Hates The Way Alix Earle Has Handled The Alex Cooper Controversy ,” also known as a 50-year-old man hosting his favorite series, “Tea by the Sea” Brianna Chickenfry entering the chat “ ‘Call Her Daddy’ Host Alex Cooper Launches the Unwell Network, Inks Development Deals with Influencers Alix Earle and Madeline Argy ” by Todd Spangler for Variety (2023) “ The Alix Earle Effect ” by Véronique Hyland for Elle “ Alix Earle’s ‘Hot Mess’ Podcast Dropped by Alex Cooper’s Unwell Network (EXCLUSIVE) ” by Tatiana Siegel for Variety (2025) “ The Art of the Alix Earle Deal ” by Sara Ashley O’Brien for The Wall Street Journal (2025) The first direct shot , fired by Alex Cooper “ Alix Earle is Bringing Your FYP to TV with New Netflix Reality Series ” by Melanie Whyte for Tudum , the Netflix site (2026) “ The Conservative Star Who Wants to Host the ‘Call Her Daddy’ of the Right ” by Ashley Carman for Bloomberg You know we’re in some rich pop culture territory when the right-wing reactionary framing almost exactly matches the mainstream framing “ Alex Cooper’s Netflix Problem ” by Natalie Korach for Status (2026) This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

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RESTOCK ALERT: Just in time for your summer vacation, the Banned Books tote is back in stock. Alt. title: Katie finally bites off more than she can chew and attempts a nuanced exploration of the Lean In, Girlboss cultural era. 13 years ago, Sheryl Sandberg published Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead . The following year, Sophia Amoruso published #GIRLBOSS . The broad understanding of this period was that—for a few solid years—we widely embraced the edicts of “corporate feminism” or “Lean In feminism” or “Girlboss feminism,” so named for a societal shift that saw a recognition and celebration of women’s career ambition as a decidedly positive thing worthy of support and encouragement or, at the very least, a collection of sassy poly-blend T-shirts. We tried it, and it didn’t work. …but did we? Diabolical Lies investigates. All citations and references can be found at https://www.diabolicalliespod.com. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

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NEW SWAG ALERT 🚨 The Small Government line is back & better than ever. Get yours here . Katie’s back on her metaphoric “What’s Charlie Kirk up to these days?” editorial grind—checking in with one of the hottest new Gen Z Lady Voices taking the middle-aged men of the center-right by storm. In this episode, we check in with a writer we haven’t discussed since one of our very first episodes: Freya India, also known as three Jonathan Haidts in a very hot 26-year-old trenchcoat, just published her first book, Girls®—an excoriation of the modern world and its effects on The Youth (or, more specifically, the pathologies of liberal teen girls , as she often puts it). To hear India tell it, young girls have been Filtered, Diagnosed, Documented, Disconnected, Detached, and ‘Empowered,’ all thanks to the increasingly rapacious incentive structure of a pyramid-shaped economic system that necessitates a constantly growing consumer base wait, sorry, no. That’s not it. Actually, we’re not really sure why. You know what? It’s not important. Let’s move on. What Girls® lacks in explanatory mechanisms, it makes up for in solutions: Logging off, finding God, and starting a family. The ideological project underway here should be obvious to anyone whose brain hasn’t been marinated in a dutch oven full of expired bath salts, so why has this book been endorsed by a gaggle of high-profile, putatively left-wing men? Diabolical Lies investigates. All citations and references can be found at www.diabolicalliespod.com. This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

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Order Yesteryear if you like nice things, have good taste, or don’t want Katie to show up in the middle of the night at your house with a strongly worded remonstration. What does it feel like to spend 10 years of your life pursuing an uncertain dream when the chances of breakthrough success are one in a million? What does it feel like to—finally, at long last—be “the one”? Caro Claire Burke, one-half of your favorite podcast, is publishing her debut novel this Tuesday, April 7. Yesteryear is mouthy, thrilling, important, ambitious, and, as one of my favorite reviews said, “moves like a freight train.” Sound like anyone else you know? Today, I finally get the opportunity to talk to caro claire burke about: * whether publishing your debut novel is a dream come true or a nightmare * who she was before she wrote Yesteryear * her seemingly endless years writing clickbait for a paycheck in the content coal mines of various aggregators * how she felt when we met 🥰 * how I felt when we met 👹 * the psychological experience of feeling like everyone’s looking at you (Professionally™️) and knowing the precise dates and times when your life’s work will be dissected for sport in public lol * to what extent it’s fair to infer someone’s politics from their fiction (a la this piece ) * her Official Stance on separating the art from the artist (compelling tbh) * a spoiler-frenzied discussion of the Next Great American Novel * and a very personal, very special update for Caro This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

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Some quick housekeeping to start this lovely Sunday: If you’ve already pre-ordered Caro’s debut novel Yesteryear, or wish to do so now , Knopf wants to thank you. They’re sending custom, limited edition bandanas to DL Substack subscribers — all you have to do is input proof of your order in this link here , and they’ll ship you the bandana, clean and simple. (This is only for US subscribers.) Thanks so much for the support, y’all! Jeffrey Epstein got away with it because he was richer than God. No — he got away with it because he had a rolodex filled with the most influential and powerful people on the planet. No — he got away with it because of his wiliness, and his almost preternatural ability to charm people. All of these claims have been discussed to death in both mainstream and alternative media, and continue to serve as the prevailing theories for why this man was able to abuse young women at a terrifying scale for decades without suffering legal repercussions for it. Today, we discuss an alternative hypothesis. ”A Young Jeffrey Epstein Made An Impression On His High School Students,” by Cat Schuknecht for NPR “Scams, Schemes, Ruthless Cons: The Untold Story of How Jeffrey Epstein Got Rich,” by David Enrich, Steve Eder, Jessica Silver-Greenberg, and Matthew Goldstein for The New York Times “The Talented Mr. Epstein,” a March 2003 profile by Vicky Ward for Vanity Fair “Jeffrey Epstein: International Moneyman of Mystery,” a 2002 profile by Landon Thomas Jr. for New York Magazine Here’s one of the many, many early pieces of reporting I leaned on from The Palm Beach Post ; not going to link all of them because it would fill Substack’s word count limit but highly encourage poring through their 2005/2006 archives And here’s a pretty interesting FBI transcript of an interview with former Palm Beach Police Chief Michael Reiter, conducted in 2020 And here’s the deposition interview between unproblematic king Brad Edwards and World-Renowned Fucking Loser Epstein: Highly encourage anyone and everyone to read Virginia Roberts Giuffre’s memoir, Nobody’s Girl Here is the deposition Katie and I role-played where a Very Smart Lawyer played Very Smart Gotcha with Giuffre about, checks notes, whether or not she was a bartender in 2007 Here’s where a federal judge decided that Giuffre’s testimony about Epstein’s sex trafficking ring was not relevant to a case about Epstein’s sex trafficking ring Here is a timeline from the Miami Herald on all this gruesome shit; cc looking through their archives, too, as well as the archives for The Tampa Bay Times for any interested armchair sleuths If you liked that timeline by reporter Julie K. Brown, consider reading her book, Perversion of Justice: The Jeffrey Epstein Story ”How JPMorgan Enabled the Crimes of Jeffrey Epstein,” by David Enrich, Matthew Goldstein, and Jessica Silver-Greenberg for The New York Times “Newly Unsealed Epstein Records Shed Light on Years of His Financial Transactions with Wall St. Figures,” by Kara Scannell for CNN Here’s a link to the Epstein email dump, neatly organized in this little faux-inbox Here’s the meta study elaborating on the justice gap , which highlights precisely how fucked survivors of sexual assault are in their efforts to seek justice Read Jessica Knoll’s phenomenal book, Bright Young Women, if you want a highly entertaining and cathartic literary experience to exorcise the fury from your body Thanks (and also sorry???) for listening! This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com If you pay attention to political commentary, you’ll often hear a few pieces of conventional wisdom: — America is “too polarized” — “Both sides” are “too extreme” — Or, most innocuously, that politicians should simply do that which is “popular,” which is itself code for policies that are considered “moderate” But do voters really punish candidates for being extreme? Are most “popular” ideas the “moderate” ones? And, moderate or not, does popularity necessarily indicate merit? The supposed antidote to this handwringing about political polarization is, more often than not, the mythical “centrist” candidate who will appeal to the even-more-mythical “ordinary American.” Centrism is, as the name implies, an ideology that lacks an ideology. Today, Diabolical Lies investigates the myth of centrism. [Full references and citations can be found in the show notes at www.diabolicalliespod.com.]

Little bit of a heterosexual smackdown taking place today! But first, some housekeeping: As a reminder: Caro’s debut novel, YESTERYEAR , is coming out this spring (April 7th, to be exact), and she would love to see you all at the evening launch event in NYC. One can reasonably assume there will be laughter, tears, a book signing, and Caro on a stage looking incredibly sweaty while she talks about all things America, womanhood, tradwives, writing sex scenes in fiction, etc. She’ll be joined on stage by the famed pod duo Claire Parker and Ashley Hamilton as moderators for the evening, which essentially means we have finagled this book launch into a pseudo Good Noticings/Diabolical Lies crossover event. Ur welcome. Also, we’d be so grateful if you humored us with a little anthropological insight by letting us know how you found the pod. Quick survey here. Now, onto the show notes. The Usha-Verse “What Is Usha Vance Thinking?,” by Irin Carmon for The Cut “From Yale to Newsmax, Usha Vance Has Helped J.D. Vance Chart His Path,” by Joseph Bernstein and Katherine Rosman for The New York Times “Usha Vance Tries to Defend her Husband’s ‘Childless Cat Ladies’ Comment,” by Eric McDaniel for NPR “The One Thing You Need to Know to Understand Usha Vance,” by Susan Matthews for Slate …and of course, If Books Could Kill’s Coverage of Hillbilly Elegy The Rama-Verse “The Artist in Gracie Mansion,” by Danya Issawi for The Cut “Artist Spotlight of Rama Duwaji,” by Nasri Atallah for YUNG “Mamdani Names an All-Woman Transition Team,” by Nandika Chatterjee for TIME The Tragedy of Heterosexuality Read the book “The invention of ‘heterosexuality’,” by Brandon Ambrosino for the BBC This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com/subscribe

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com Note : This episode was filmed on Monday, January 19 and the edit was finalized early on Saturday, January 24, before news broke about the second (known) ICE execution in Minneapolis of 37-year-old Minneapolis resident Alex Pretti. Today, we’re talking about a beloved American pastime: killing civilians in the name of public safety. On the right, you’ll watch JD Vance and his trademark charmless sneer explain that this is only happening because civilians are being disorderly. Kristi Noem will tell you—straight from her lying bitch face—that ICE agents are being assaulted every day. And on the liberal side of the aisle, you’re more likely to hear that the problem is that these agents aren’t “trained” to “follow the law.” This conversation examines how media has traditionally been used to manufacture consent, and where new media might be used to undermine its efficacy; where individual identity does and does not matter when it comes to state violence; and what “public safety” and “order” really mean, and what these concepts serve to justify. Strap in.

Have you heard? The men of America are in the midst of an existential crisis. A battle for good, evil, and the future of humanity. Who will emerge out of the darkness to lead the masses to freedom? Enter, stage left: one Scott Galloway. Enter, stage right: two extremely hot and horny hockey players. WHICH OF THESE HEROES WILL SLAY GLORIA STEINHEM RESTORE GLOBAL DIGNITY TO THE MEN? Today, we find out. A note from Caro before we begin: If the details within this episode cause your brain to overheat, I recommend pausing and listening to one of two auditory meditations: * any live version of Praying by Kesha * the West End Girl album from start to finish Worked like a charm for me! Below, you’ll find a summary of the three major debates we wish to have with Galloway, as well as an additional list of resources to pad your intellectual toolkit for your own interior monologue debates, followed by some love for Heated Rivalry to balm your restless soul. Scott Galloway vs. Diabolical Lies, a Debate in Three Parts 1.) On educational biases against men The argument made by Scott Galloway : The crisis of modern masculinity begins in the schoolroom, with young boys falling rapidly behind in the educational system by the time they reach kindergarten. This is largely due to developmental differences and educational biases which put young girls at an advantage, one that carries on through to college and higher ed, where they now have majority representation. TL;DR: Little girls have way better brains and the school system is totally set up for them to win, which is why they’re fully creaming little boys all around the world, and that is bad. The rebuttal, from Diabolical Lies: It’s true that certain studies have shown broad neurological differences between the sexes during adolescence, but these differences do not constitute a monolith. Plenty of other studies have flat-out disputed the premise of neurological differences altogether, alternatively suggesting that the difference in behavior between young boys and girls in classrooms is culturally driven. And anyways, given how men have been known to cut out the frontal cortex of ladies who yap too much, I think we’re licensed to say: Stay the fuck away from our brains regardless, you weirdos! It also seems like an example of profound biological cherry-picking to claim that women have an indisputable biological advantage to young boys during the educational period, when the onset of menstruation during this exact same time period puts women at a proven massive deficit on a global level. An estimated one in five girls globally and one in four in the US end up missing class or dropping out of school altogether because they cannot afford menstrual products. Is that a crisis? How about the fact that unexpected pregnancy is the number one reason young women drop out of school altogether , a stat that translates to millions of educational dropouts globally each year? How about that? Is that a crisis? Additionally, while it’s true that young girls do score higher in class on average, and that they do attend higher education in greater numbers, there’s no evidence that this is due to an educational bias. On the contrary, there is strong evidence to suggest that girls score higher grades in class and go on to college and graduate school in high numbers because they have to . Evidence shows that women need to have at least one more degree than men to achieve pay parity across a number of fields; even then, the pay gap is still stark. And beyond that, it’s worth asking a few questions: are young men no longer going to college because the system discriminates against them, or are they no longer going to college because college is now coded as feminine , and therefore perceived as undesirable? And if we’re going to worry about educational biases, is gender truly the lens we should be examining the problem through, or are race and class far more useful for exploring discrimination in educational outcomes? TL;DR: idk, read a book or something mental health break I HOPE UR FUCKIN PRAYING SCOTT 2.) On men being specifically and exclusively screwed in this current economy The argument made by Scott Galloway: The current economy increasingly punishes the many in favor of elevating the few. In recent decades, the cost of housing, education, and healthcare have skyrocketed, and wages haven’t even remotely kept up with inflation. For the first time in American history, younger generations no longer feel confident they will achieve a higher standard of living than their parents… and this dire economic situation is one that disproportionately impacts men. TL;DR: Men care more than women about manly things like living in homes because rahm emanuel said so The rebuttal from Diabolical Lies: Contrary to popular belief, women are also people, and therefore impacted by broad socioeconomic issues, not the least of which include the affordability and housing crisis in America. This is to say nothing of the childcare crisis. In fact, according to a recent University of Kansas analysis of Bureau of Labor Statistics data, more than 400,000 women left the workforce in the first half of 2025, marking the steepest decline in over 40 years for mothers of young children. The main reason why these women left the workforce? They wanted to be good Christian wives and mothers, of course! Neat little fun fact for you: When something has to give, societally speaking, it is always the woman who gives it. TL;DR: Women also need homes and groceries and money for childcare. Radical concept, I know! mental health break 3.) On men needing women to serve as the “guardrails” of culture The argument made by Scott Galloway: In order to be functioning, contributing members of society, men need a sense of purpose in their lives. They need to feel victorious. And since world war is no longer a reliable failsafe for men feeling purpose, the goal of securing a wife and mother for your children is the best motivator for men to do the stuff they need to do, like stay in school and get a good job. Women like educated men with good jobs! That’s why people got married more in the 1950s: because women found men in uniforms attractive, and because those men in uniforms knew how to behave like gracious, respectful suitors worthy of female affection. That’s what we need to get back to: a 1950s-style of engagement. TL;DR: Women are, as we have discussed in a recent episode , the morality police for society. Their job is to alternately be the carrot and/or the stick to lure or prod men forward as good citizens of society, and that is…a really healthy perspective to have on how men and women should operate! For sure! No downsides detected here! The rebuttal from Diabolical Lies: Ha ha, okay, so just to be clear here :) women did not enter into marriage and motherhood in the 1950s because the men were hotter and nicer back then :) they entered into marriage because they had very few legal rights of their own :) they were property, Scott :) do you know what property is? :) the first no-fault divorce law was passed in 1969 in California :) women were not allowed to access credit or bank loans free of male cosigners until 1974 :) there was no such thing as paid maternity leave until 1993 :) are you picking up what I’m putting down here :) did I stutter :) we had no rights :) and then we got some rights :) and now you’re very politely trying to take our rights :) get the fuck away from our rights, Scott :) TL;DR: Scott Galloway I will drive to your house and lobotomize you myself and you can let me know how much you like a 1950s-style approach to dealing with our problems In conclusion: We win the debate and are just flatly correct but Galloway will still continue to out-earn, out-panel, and out-scream us for the rest of his days, a truly delicious irony for a man who has made a career whining about men falling behind More Galloway-related stats to peruse at your leisure It might be true that there are differences in brain development between the sexes … …but it also might not be ! It’s also been a proven fact for decade that race and class discrimination are far more impactful variables in the educational bias conversation than gender. Consider this NYT summary of a 2025 study on which kids are admitted to the best colleges , and why: “For applicants with the same SAT or ACT score, children from families in the top 1 percent were 34 percent more likely to be admitted than the average applicant, and those from the top 0.1 percent were more than twice as likely to get in.” Moving past education to the workforce: boy, there also sure is a lot of evidence that (in spite of the assuredly profound systemic biases put in place against them) white men still manage to make way more money , serve in more executive positions , occupy the majority of seats in Congress , have larger net worths at the end of their careers , and found more companies ! oh also the gender wage gap has been at a virtual standstill for about two decades now, with women earning 85 cents on the dollar to men Fear not tho, Richard Reeves wants you to consider how nuanced the gender gap really is in both directions, because again, if you are not listening, the boys are struggling in school and ladies live a bit longer and that is the most important thing As an aside you should listen to this IBCK podcast episode on Reeves’ book, Of Boys & Men , where Peter and Michael spend time deconstructing this whole idea of little boys and girls and their brains and their kindergarten teachers, etc. It’s worth noting that affordability crises often lead to the worsening of gender and racial wage gaps . Just one of the many takeaways from this study that we wish Galloway would read: “Both women’s and men’s typical earnings increased in 2023, but women’s increased less than men’s. Adjusted for inflation, the earnings of a typical full-time year-round working woman increased by 1.5 percent in 2023, compared to a 3.0 percent annual increase for a typical man.” As for deaths of despair: It’s true that men make up the majority of these deaths. In fact, the highest suicide rate among any demographic group in America is men 75 years or older—but even this stat contains more nuance than Galloway is willing to consider. First: Young women actually attempt suicide more often than young men. Second: One of the primary theories for why older women commit suicide less than men is because they are the primary caretakers for children and the elderly. Oh, also, this is the date psychology site and YouTube channel I was talking about from which Galloway cribbed the “statistic” he repeats on every daytime television news program. Very legit, very cool! ….now some Heated Rivalry content to soothe your frayed nervous system after learning about the three Ps “Popularity of Heated Rivalry has Surprised Even Television Executives,” by John Koblin for The New York Times “The Delicious Anticipation — and Yes, Release — of Heated Rivalry,” by Naomi Fry for The New Yorker “ Heated Rivalry Is Gay Culture’s Next Frontier,” by Jim Downs for The New York Times This YouTube Q&A with Connor Storrie, Hudson Williams, and Jacob Tierney The Empty Netters Podcast and the What Chaos Podcast Thanks for coming, folks, good luck sleeping at night after so much talk about men The disgusting brothers circle jerk of love The TikTok video primal scream for straight women everywhere “Why Heated Rivalry’s Relationship of Equals Is Revolutionary,” by psychotherapist Leor Ram for Out Magazine This gotcha journalism attack piece by Jessica Winter for The New Yorker: “What Did Men Do to Deserve This?” This is a public episode. 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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com Earlier this month, the Office of the Texas Governor Greg Abbott quietly released a statement that “emphasized the importance of TPUSA Club America chapter enrollment and involvement on high school campuses across the state,” in effect signaling their intent to support after-school programs for right-wing extremism in Texas public schools. This would appear to be your average, garden-variety depressing update relevant only to those living where the Stars At Night Are Big And Bright, except for the fact that Texas has long been a laboratory for approximately half a dozen Christian Nationalists, high from huffing the fumes wafting off their barrels of oil money, to speed-run insane shit that ends up in documents like Project 2025. So what can we learn from studying their playbook and understanding the mechanics of their holy war as ground zero for Christian Nationalism? Diabolical Lies investigates.

This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit www.diabolicalliespod.com Surprise! Caro & Katie react in real time to the programming we all should’ve seen coming: “CBS News Presents: A Town Hall with Erika Kirk.”