Busted Business Bureau

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Join Christian Borkey as she performs dissections (and vivisections!) on various businesses’ scandals, scams and shenanigans. This research-based comedy podcast is for listeners who enjoy densely packed information, white collar true crime, and naturally

Christian Borkey

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    • Mar 6, 2023 LATEST EPISODE
    • every other week NEW EPISODES
    • 57m AVG DURATION
    • 42 EPISODES


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    Latest episodes from Busted Business Bureau

    Hertz

    Play Episode Listen Later Mar 6, 2023 74:31


    If you're looking for a season finale where I nearly spit out my Diet Coke several times, this episode is for you. I'll be honest: I wrote a pretty solid script involving Hertz's century-long history with highlights including consistent overcharging, under-delivering on vehicles, becoming a meme stock, and commiting insurance fraud. However. Meg Harris is the funniest person alive and I forgot to say like half the things in my script. Is this the most research-ey the podcast has ever been? No. But I'm an entertainer, not a journalist, so this is a bangin' episode. Check out They Call Us here: https://www.theycallus.com/ Here's where you can find my Patreon (where I WILL be uploading content during the break before season 5!!): https://www.patreon.com/bustedbizbureau SOURCES: -https://abcnews.go.com/Business/rental-car-place-doesnt-hold-reservation/story?id=40626341 -CASETEXT: Moretti V Hertz: https://casetext.com/case/moretti-v-hertz-corp -https://www.forbes.com/sites/tanyamohn/2016/06/30/rental-cars-now-safer-due-to-new-federal-law/?sh=18bfc9776171 -https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2021-12-02/hertz-mistakenly-took-kate-klonick-for-a-ride -https://americanbusinesshistory.org/john-hertz-his-innovations-touch-millions-but-few-know-his-story/ -https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1994/07/10/oj-and-hertz-the-rise-and-fall-of-a-rent-a-star/fcee117c-d7c1-442c-a46a-da3f3e797488/ -https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mark_Frissora -https://www.sec.gov/enforce/33-10601-s -https://www.forbes.com/sites/erikakelton/2019/05/02/hertz-makes-a-rare-move-by-suing-former-executives/?sh=54f8304c33e7 -https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2021/12/car-rental-shortage-covid/621068/ -https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2022/dec/17/hertz-car-rental-accused-customers-auto-theft

    Southwest Airlines

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 20, 2023 74:02


    Longtime friend, firsttime caller Jon Oppenheimer finally joins my podcast to continue my tradition of not being quite topical by analyzing a months-old news thing: Southwest Airlines! December 2022 was far from the company's only meltdown that caused nationwide disaster. But Jon asked me to make this episode because we all had questions after the incident: why do we have so few choices of air travel yet so few consequences for airlines when they completely boof it? Who is in charge here? Is this how it's always gonna be? The history of commercial aviation in the US is actually fucking nutty, and the road to where we are now is paved with blood. This is a very dense and dry episode, which is kind of a fun twist for moi! Starting with the air mail scandal from the 30s through the airline deregulation act of 1978 through the present, this is a real highlight real of the relationship between the federal government and private airline companies. Also I whip out an incredible Lois Griffin impression about 42 minutes in. What's not to love? Follow @joppenflopper and tell him a better twitter name Also follow @BustedBizBureau on all social media for more fabulous stuff from me. As always if you like the show, I'm on Patreon.com/BustedBizBureau THANKS!! SOURCES: Mixed Emotions After Cemetery Near O'Hare Moved, Phil Rogers, NBC Chicago, April 2013 Supreme Court allows mass grave exhumation to make way for O'Hare runway, Jake Griffin, Daily Herald, Jan 2011 The Air Mail Fiasco, John T. Correll, Air and Space Forces Magazine, March 2008 https://stjohnsfamilyassistance.com/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Berger_Group You can find financial data on how much O’Hare charges airlines for rent by year here: https://www.flychicago.com/business/CDA/factsfigures/Pages/financial.aspx https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_Mail_scandal_accidents_and_incidents A Tiny Line Takes On Braniff in a Price War, NYT Staff, 1973 Southwest Airlines, Keli Flynn, Texas State Historical Association, 2022

    Liz Carmichael: Scammer, Girlboss, Little Rascal

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 6, 2023 56:02


    All I can say is I knocked it out of the park with this one. I'm finally telling my sweet friend Cookie the story of my absolute FAVORITE scammer: Liz Carmichael. This one's got everything: libertarian science fiction, engineering mishaps, three wheeled cars, stock fraud, Unsolved Mysteries, and a woman so magnetic that she girlbossed millions of dollars despite having NO PRODUCT. I sincerely mean it when I say that I am obsessed with her. This episode honestly evades my descriptive writing skills -- in part because I've worked 14 days in a row, in part because it's got so much going on. I promise this is a great one. Go to splitendsfilm.com and watch Cookie's awesome movie! FOOTNOTES: 1) History’s Greatest Automotive Mysteries, Myths, and Rumors Revealed, Preston Lerner and Matt Stone 2012 2) The Strange Case of the Dale, Walt Woron, New York Times Oct 1975 3) Liz Carmichael's Dream Buggy Turns into a Nightmare, People Magazine Staff, 1975 4) The Trans Women Behind HBO’s Tale Of This Mysterious, Audacious Automaker, Dawn Ennis, Forbes 2021 5) https://www.hemmings.com/stories/2021/05/21/dale-cliffts-original-three-wheeler-prototype-emerges-from-hiding-after-decades-heads-to-petersen 6) https://www.hemmings.com/stories/article/1974-twentieth-century-dale 7) People v Carmichael (1980) https://caselaw.findlaw.com/ca-court-of-appeal/1833667.html 8) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayn_Rand 9) The Lady and the Dale, HBO Docuseries, Zackary Drucker and Nick Cammilleri 2021

    RuPaul's Drag Race

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 30, 2023 68:52


    My beloved friend Derry Queen joins me for a real fast-and-loose episode about RuPaul's Drag Race. This one was a very fun episode for me because it's less heavy on the research since Derry has a lot of personal experience relating to the show. The standard working conditions in reality TV are absolutely bonkers, and we talk about some of that history. Don't forget to vote for ME for best podcast in the Chicago Reader, and don't forget to NOT VOTE FOR DERRY as best drag queen. Please vote for Irregular Girl!!! She is fucking awesome. If you like drag and you live in Chicago, you should absolutely check out her work. SOURCES: I made it up -Tired, Tipsy, and Pushed to the Brink, Edward Wyatt, NYT 2009 -Reality TV's Low-Wage and No-Wage Work, Tanner Mirlees, Alternate Routes: A Journal of Critical Social Research, 27. -REALITY’S KIDS: ARE CHILDREN WHO PARTICIPATE ON REALITY TELEVISION SHOWS COVERED UNDER THE FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT?, Adam P. Greenberg, Southern California Law Review 2018 -Reality TV's worker scandal: Shows accused of stealing millions in wages, Josh Eidelson, Salon.com 2013 -Shantay, You Pay: Inside the Heavy Financial Burden of Going On ‘Drag Race’, Rachel Miller, VICE 2021. -PEG countersuit v Adore Delano -Reality TV: The Work of Being Watched, Mark Andrejevic, 2004 -Bussy Queen's season 14 contract review on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=700Nvfa4wHk&t=757s&ab_channel=BussyQueen

    Juul

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 23, 2023 66:44


    Remember when Juul was a verb? The generecized word for vape? I REMEMBER! That business really came and went like a beautiful comet. Joining me to talk about the historic rise and fall of Juul is my dear friend Emma Day! The legal machinations behind regulating cigarettes is FASCINATING, and the status of cigarettes in the law affects the ways we make e-cigs. Also, we just talk about the smoking cessation industry in general, which is a hilarious thing we invented to solve the problem of overproducing unbelievably addictive yet dangerous objects. Emma is so fucking funny, please listen to her podcast Do You Have a Sec? everywhere! SOURCES: Books: The Cigarette: A Political History, Sarah Milov, 2019 The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer, Siddhartha Mukherjee, 2010 Golden Holocaust: Origins of the Cigarette Catastrophe and the Case for Abolition, Robert Proctor, 2011 Web: https://cdn.arstechnica.net/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/MassvsJuul.pdf https://www.fda.gov/news-events/fda-voices/how-fda-regulating-e-cigarettes https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-02991-w https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-vaping-juul/juul-use-more-than-doubled-among-u-s-teens-young-adults-in-one-year-idUSKBN1ZK2SV https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-12-09/juul-to-pay-1-2-billion-in-youth-vaping-settlement https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/nicotine-replacement-therapy-market https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/juul-appeals-block-fda-ban-e-cigarettes-2022-06-24/ PS, I'm nominated for a Chicago Reader Award! Vote for me at this link (under "city life" for "best podcast") https://chicagoreader.com/best-of-chicago/2022-ballot-voting-nominations/#/gallery/357091644/

    The Industry of School Shooting Safety

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 16, 2023 74:22


    Blender Bluid and Amy Do are back on the podcast for a VERY absurd episode. We get into the down and dirty of the free market's response to the very USA-based problem of school-based gun violence. As far as the more grim episodes go, this is one that we tried to bring a lot of levity to (especially about 24 minutes in). First we take a look at the products, then the politics, then profit-based active shooter training programs. There's a lot of ways to make money off of national policy failure and consistent tragedy, apparently. A little note I want to say to everyone: I think this episode is very important, but I beg of you to not inappropriately share this episode every time there is a mass shooting. It's a (relatively) funny one, and I don't think it's appropriate to plug it under inevitable tragedies. That already happened to my NFL episode in the wake of the Damar Hamlin injury, and I just want to say that it makes me really uncomfortable. I'm proud of my work and I'm SO happy people are spreading it, but I want to do my part in being an upstanding and thoughtful creator. XOXO. SOURCES: Methodologies for different school shooting tracking statistics: 1. https://www.gunviolencearchive.org/methodology 2. https://rockinst.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/08/Overview-American-School-Shooting-Study-TASSS.pdf (page 4) 3. https://www.chds.us/ssdb/methods/ Products/Industry Talk: 1. The Free Market Responds to America’s School Shootings, Ben Schott, Bloomberg, July 2022 2. https://fightingchancesolutions.com/ 3. Armored school doors, bulletproof whiteboards, and secret snipers, John Woodrow Cox and Steven Rich, Washington Post, 2018 4. Experts cast doubt on high-tech efforts to stop school shooters, Laura Meckler, Washington Post, May 2022 5. CMS staff warned security system didn’t work. The district expanded it anyway., Annie Ma and Fred Clasen-Kelly, The Charlotte Observer, January 2020 6. School security technology at center of fierce debate after Uvalde shooting, Max Zahn, ABC News, June 2022 7. Schools Are Spending Billions on High-Tech Defense for Mass Shootings, Natasha Singer, New York Times, June 2022 (this is where I got the 3 billion number; the nonprofit is cited here) 8. These Businesses Say They've Got What You Need to Survive a Mass Shooting, Melissa Chan, Time Magazine, Oct 2019 9.

    The Center for COVID Control

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 9, 2023 63:02


    Swiss Miss Ali Fish(er) is on the pod to talk about one of the most prolific COVID testing scam sites in the country. What I didn't realize is how piecemeal our testing infrastructure was over the past 2 years, and this particular scam goes fucking nuts. How can two owners of an axe throwing range wind up as the 12th most federally funded COVID testing site in the country? Why did we regulate those testing sites as businesses and not health clinics? WHAT ARE WE DOING HERE!? I neglected to mention in the episode that all of the information is as of Jan 1, 2023. There may be more charges that befall the fraudsters, but it doesn't look like anything's coming down the pipe any time soon. But if I'm wrong, I'm wrong! That'll teach me to do anything remotely topical. SOURCES: 1. At pop-up COVID testing sites, customers report improper masking and social distancing, lengthy waits for results: ‘It’s kind of the wild, Wild West.’ - Nara Schoenberg and Lisa Schencker, Chicago Tribune, Jan 2022 2. Center for COVID Control under investigation by Oregon DOJ, Better Business Bureau, Grace Hauck, USA Today, Jan 2022 3. COVID-19 Testing Chain Opened Pop-Ups Across The US. Now, It’s Temporarily Closing Amid Federal Investigation And Mounting Complaints, Kelly Bauer, Block Club Chicago, Jan 2022 4. MINNESOTA AG COMPLAINT AGAINST CENTER FOR COVID CONTROL, January 2022 5. OREGON AG COMPLAINT AGAINST CENTER FOR COVID CONTROL, April 2022 6. ARIZONA JUDGE RULING FOR AG COMPLAINT AGAINST CENTER FOR COVID CONTROL, July 2022 7. AG: Center for COVID Control owners barred from doing business in Washington, Fox 13 Seattle, Oct 2022 7. https://www.yelp.com/biz/studio-six-fifteen-schaumburg 8. https://web.archive.org/web/20220113035953/https://www.bullseyeaxelounge.com/2021/01/08/covid-19-diagnostic-testing/ 9. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YyzX0Y0VlAs&ab_channel=MichaelFigueroa 10. https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10414537/Federal-probe-serial-entrepreneur-couple-cashed-COVID-testing-boom.html 11. https://figmic.medium.com/the-center-for-covid-control-scam-or-success-story-b5cdfab4f5b0 11a.

    BBB 2022: A Year in Review

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 2, 2023 44:36


    **REUPLOADED, IDK WHY THIS EPISODE IS GIVING ME SUCH A PAIN IN MY ASS So I just closed out ONE WHOLE YEAR of this podcast! The first episode was January 3, 2022. It's now Jan 2, 2023 (honestly, I thought this episode uploaded but it simply didn't LOL) Here is a self-indulgent, naval gazey episode with me and my roommates. My ex girlfriend and my ex coworker. Don't make this your first episode of the podcast, but if you already like listening to me and want to hear the household dynamic, check this one out. Next week I'm coming back with a big ole scam! Stay tuned! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH for listening to BBB this first year. If you told me a year ago how different my life would be by this time 2023, I would have been so mad at you. But I've cracked a LOT of eggs this past year and now I'm eating omelettes, baby. If you donate on Patreon.com, know that you are helping my journey away from having 15 jobs and into the journey of being a fulltime creative! If you want to join the fray, feel free to hit Patreon.com/bustedbizbureau. If not, plz keep following me on the socials @bustedbizbureau. Thank you love you bye!

    bbb reuploaded one whole year lol here
    The NHL: A Greek Tragedy in Three Acts

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 19, 2022 60:29


    The wickedly talented, remarkably hungover Christian McCann drops back into the pod to talk about his only personality trait: hockey. If you like insurance fraud, broadway plays, or describing labor stoppages using the imagery of an ancient greek myth turned modern broadway musical....you're soooo in luck! This one has three pretty clear acts. Act 1: about 18 minutes of trying our best to choke out any words through the thickened hazy fog of a Disonysian-level hangover. Act 2: The NHLPA's founding executive director, Alan Eagleson, committing a litany of crimes against the players he was meant to represent. Act 3: The introduction of the salary cap -- a move that limits a lot of player's maximum earning potential -- in 2005, as told through poetic and beautiful storytelling. Thanks for listening! Patreon.com/bustedbizbureau is how you can get some behind the scenes and gossip about this episode, or to support me I guess. Cheers! SOURCES: 1. Game Misconduct: Alan Eagleson and the Corruption of Hockey, Russ Conway, 1995 2. How one cantankerous man inspired the creation of the NHL, The Ontario Educational Communications Authority, Jamie Bradburn, 2017 3. The Hockey Lockout of 2004-2005, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Paul D. Staudohaur, December 2005 4. MAN ON A MISSION RUSS CONWAY'S INVESTIGATIVE WORK MAY BRING DOWN A HOCKEY POWER BROKER, Sports Illustrated, Michael Farber, 1995 5. ALL ROB RAY FIGHTS VOLUME 1, Youtube 6. Those Who Doin't Learn Fron History Are Doomed to Repeat It, 2004-2005 NHL Lockout with Bruce Dowbiggin, Agent Provacateur with Allan Walsh and Adam Wylde, October 2022 7. Kelly ousted as head of NHLPA, ESPN News 2009 Wikipedia Pages of -Tim Horton -Clint Malarchuk -Ed Kea

    The NFL (mostly the Washington Commanders)

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 19, 2022 73:27


    World's biggest fact-knower, KP, is back on the podcast to talk a little bit about the National Football League's greatest franchise, the Washington Commanders. Dan Snyder's circus of finding bold, brave, and inventive ways to hork as much money out of patrons as possible. Grab a beer for the urinal, cozy up with some expired airline peanuts, and be sure to pay me 200 dollars to listen to this episode that's probably one of the funniest ones to date. But then it gets pretty awful, sorry about that. If Congress didn't release a whole ass report on the Washington Commanders on Dec 8, 2022, I'd have probably made this a different episode. But here we are! If you like KP's stuff, follow @theycallus on instagram or head to Patreon.com/theycallus If you like Busted Business Bureau, follow @bustedbizbureau on all socials, or hit Patreon.com/bustedbizbureau Sources (not in order, also sorry many of them use the team's old name): 1. Conduct Detrimental: How the NFL and the Washington Commanders Covered Up Decades ofSexual Misconduct, Committee on Oversight and Reform U.S. House of Representatives, December 8, 2022 2. From dream job to nightmare: More than a dozen women allege sexual harassment and verbal abuse by former team employees at Redskins Park, Washington Post, Will Hobson and Liz Clarke, July 2020 3. Daniel Snyder and Washington Football Team: A timeline of his dysfunctional, now full ownership, Sporting News, Vinnie Iyer, 2021 3. A STRANGER TO MANY, BUT NOT TO SUCCESS, Washington Post, Peter Behr and Sandra Torry, 1999 4. Who is Beth Wilkinson? Lawyer leading Washington NFL team’s investigation has high-profile history, Washington Post, Adam Kilgore, July 2020 5. Washington Redskins Cheerleaders Describe Topless Photo Shoot and Uneasy Night Out, New York Times, Juliet Macur, May 2018 6. The Cranky Redskins Fan’s Guide to Dan Snyder, Washington City Paper, Dave McKenna, 2010 7. Raiders Coach Made Racist Comment About N.F.L. Players’ Union Chief, New York Times, Ken Belson, 2021

    The MLB

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 19, 2022 87:23


    We're back! Iconic ex-roommate duo, Danaka and Nic, join me on the pod to go through the history of America's passtime. There's sure as hell a lot of shady business doings here! We'll talk about how labor relations for players have improved (and not!) over pro ball's 100+ year history. My major focus this episode was on Curt FLood, the guy who paved the way for players to be able to ore freely negotiate their contracts, which was NOT a fixture of baseball for a looooong time. Last season was serious as hell, so it's time to get fucking silly! These first three episodes are all a futile attempt at understanding and communicating about sports. Apparently people know a LOT about it, like Danaka and Nic! But if you're a girlypop like me looking for a solid introduction to the sport, here's your chance. Mwah! Patreon.com/BustedBizBureau Sources: 1. Pay Dirt: The Business of Professional Team Sports, James Quirk and Rodney D. Fort, 1992 2. A Well-Paid Slave: Curt Flood's Fight for Free Agency in Professional Sports, Brad Snyder, 2006 3. What is MLB's antitrust exemption? Ted Cruz, Josh Hawley using baseball's century-old golden goose as political cudgel, USAToday, Gabe Lacques, April 2021 4. Happy birthday to baseball’s antitrust exemption, NBC Sports, Craig Calcaterra, May 2019 5. MLB to pay minor leaguers $185 million to settle lawsuit, AP News, Ronald Blum, July 2022 6. Free Agency Facts, MLB Additional Stuff I didn't use because this episode was an hour and a half: 7. Major League Baseball's human-trafficking problem, Vox News, Dara Lind, 2014 8. Crain's Extra: No baseball games are necessary for owners to collect TV money

    Monsanto 8: The Acquisition. The Antitrust Jubilee. The Awards.

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 29, 2022 59:15


    WE'VE GONE AND DONE IT! EIGHT HOURS LATER, THE MONSANTO SEASON IS COMPLETE! This episode goes over Bayer's disastrous acquisition of Monsanto, how the antitrust division of the US government is simply set up to fail, and we have a look back on all of the hee-hees and haw-haws of the Monsanto season. After sitting in that studio for hours on end with Bluid and Amy, I think we deserve a little retrospective as a treat. I hope you're all feeling emotionally ok after this season. Drink some water. Hug your besties. I hope to see as many of you at the live show as possible this Saturday, and if not, I'll catch you in Season 4! Should be out by the end of 2022. Kissies! Follow @BlenderBluid and @HelloAmyDo LIVE SHOW TICKET LINK OCTOBER 1 PLEASE COME! PATREON LINK SOURCES: https://www.justice.gov/atr/case-document/file/1066656/download Bayer Tightens Control Over the World’s Food Supply, Carin Smaller, International Institute for Sustainable Development 2016. Bayer raises Monsanto cash takeover offer to $65bn, Rob Davies, The Guardian 2016 Justice Department approves Bayer-Monsanto merger in landmark settlement, Brian Fung and Caitlin Dewey, WP 2018 How Bayer-Monsanto Became One of the Worst Corporate Deals—in 12 Charts, Ruth Bender, WSJ Aug 2019 Bayer Investor Sues Top Officials for ‘Disastrous’ Monsanto Deal, Chris Dolmetsch, Claims Journal 2020 Seed monopolies: Who controls the world's food supply?, Charli Shield, DW 2021

    Monsanto 7: The Good Fight

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 26, 2022 48:36


    Barehanded honeykeeping, moms-on-facebook, and deadly scientific coverups are all converging to form the final bell toll for Monsanto's mortal time. With all of the doom-and-gloom from past episodes, you're probably wondering how this company...doesn't...still exist, given its titanic political, scientific, and corporate influence. The answer is it's all of it and it's none of it. We're really going through the ringer this episode with a final act that is so heartbreaking that I was, in fact, crying while reading it. Check it out! Please rate and leave reviews on the podcast if you love it; it really helps me out :) Follow @BlenderBluid and @HelloAmyDo LIVE SHOW TICKET LINK OCTOBER 1 PLEASE COME! PATREON LINK SOURCES: The Monsanto Papers: Deadly Secrets, Corporate Corruption, and One Man’s Search for Justice, Carey Gillam 2021 Leydy Pech, the "honey lady" who stopped Monsanto, Beatriz Garcia, Al Dia News 2020 https://www.goldmanprize.org/recipient/leydy-pech/ Mayan Women Fought Monsanto—And Won, Christin Sandberg, Bitch Media 2014 Guatemalan protests against Monsanto Law, Rebecca Griest Swathmore College 2015 https://web.archive.org/web/20151226231418/http://wagingnonviolence.org/feature/guatemala-indigenous-communities-prevail-monsanto/ I Won a Historic Lawsuit, But May Not Live to Get the Money, Carey Gillam, Time 2018 He was drenched in a weed-killer made by Monsanto in a workplace accident. Then he was diagnosed with cancer, Vanessa Caldwell, CBC Docs 2022

    Monsanto 6: PR and Philanthropy

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 22, 2022 58:18


    What would you say the work-life balance is on the Death Star? This episode follows a path down the Monsanto communications rabbit hole. PRAD majors, get your forks! Come eat! Blender Bluid, Amy Do and I try to answer a key question throughout the episode: do the entry/mid-level Monsanto employees....know? Do they know the vibe? To answer that question, we talk about intra-company communication, PR strategies, and track a story straight out of an episode of a Nev Schulman TV show. Oh, we also break into a lengthy discussion on that Lockheed Martin twitter drama discourse; how much ire is appropriate to direct at somebody who works at an evil mega-company? Follow @BlenderBluid and @HelloAmyDo LIVE SHOW TICKET LINK OCTOBER 1 PLEASE COME! PATREON LINK SOURCES Missouri business groups divided on LGBT-discrimination ban, Summer Ballentine, Fulton Sun 2016 Gay? Transgender? Why You Might Want to Work for Monsanto, Lindsay Toler, RiverFront Times 2018 Monsanto Leading the Way for Women in Leadership, Sara Miller, LinkedIn 2018 The Competitive Advantage of Corporate Philanthropy, Michael E. Porter and Mark R. Kramer, Harvard Business Review 2002 Monsanto Discovers a New Social Media, Wilhelm Peekhaus, International Journal of Communications 2010 Monsanto archived website links: https://web.archive.org/web/20100205155240/http://www.monsanto.com/monsanto_today/for_the_record/default.asp https://web.archive.org/web/20091224173230/http://www.monsanto.com/monsanto_today/for_the_record/monsanto_business_practice_indonesia.asp https://web.archive.org/web/20100524063155/http://www.monsanto.com/monsanto_today/for_the_record/india_farmer_suicides.asp

    Monsanto 5: Bovine Growth Hormone

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 19, 2022 72:53


    This one's a banger, no way around it. This one will give a detailed history of Monsanto's relationship with the FDA -- spoilers, it literally goes ALL the way back -- and how the FDA was complicit in the expediting of Bovine Growth Hormone. We also go on a very long tangent on if the father of food safety was a fellow homosexual (Because it's my podcast! And I get to do whatever I want!) This episode is full of such compelling characters; it's a shattering reminder that there are always people fighting the good fight. Hope you're enjoying the season so far! My description-writing game has dramatically weakened. Need to redirect my brain power into the episodes lol. But if you like this podcast, please keep telling your friends! I can tell a lot of you have been already!! Follow the mysterious and hilarious @BlenderBluid and @HelloAmyDo LIVE SHOW TICKET LINK OCTOBER 1 2022 PATREON LINK SOURCES: The Poison Squad: One Chemist's Single-Minded Crusade for Food Safety at the Turn of the Twentieth Century, Deborah Blum 2018 Harvey W. Wiley: An Autobiography, Dr. Harvey Washington Wiley, New York: Bobs-Merrill Company 1930 The 19th-Century Fight Against Bacteria-Ridden Milk Preserved With Embalming Fluid, Deborah Blum, Undark Magazine 2018 The World According to Monsanto, Marie-Monique Robin 2008 Bovine Somatotropin (bST), FDA.gov April 2022 Pushing RBST: How the Law and the Political Process Were Used to Sell Recombinant Bovine Somatotropin to America, David Aboulafia, PACE Environmental Law Review 1998 Monsanto lobbying: an attack on us, our planet, and democracy, Nina Holland and Benjamin Sourice, Corporate EuropeObservatory 2016 Torturing Animals with Monsanto’s Genetically Engineered Feed, Katherine Paul, Truthout 2013

    Monsanto 4: The Roundup Episode

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 15, 2022 69:31


    This is the birth of Modern Monsanto, and it takes quite a turn from the previous episodes. Instead of talking about the diseases and human suffering as a result of the products (like we've been doing at length), we're going to be looking at the sexy, muscular legal arm of Monsanto. Clarence Thomas comes back in this one! PokeMonsanto collection growing every day! :D Thanks again for tuning in and for all of your support. It means the world to me. Follow Amy Do and Blender Bluid on all the social medias @BlenderBluid and @HelloAmyDo LIVE SHOW TICKETS OCTOBER 1 PLZ SUPPORT MY PATREON SOURCES: Monsanto’s Bet, Linda Grant and Alicia Moore, CNN Money 1997 The World According to Monsanto, Marie-Monique Robin 2008 Monsanto’s Technology Agreement, 2008 Safe Or Scary? The Shifting Reputation Of Glyphosate, AKA Roundup; Dan Charles, NPR 2019 Monsanto Vs. US Farmers, Center for Food Safety report 2005 Monsanto vs. US Farmers, 2010 Update, Center for Food Safety Down and Out in Covington, Andy Meek, Memphis Daily News 2006 Monsanto wins $7.7b lawsuit in Brazil – but farmers’ fight to stop its ‘amoral’ royalty system will continue, Beth Daily, the Conversation 2019 WIKIPEDIA PAGES FOR THE FOLLOWING: Flavr Savr

    Monsanto 3: Superfund Sites and Slag

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 12, 2022 54:36


    Hello again, y'all! This episode's all about the ENVIRONMENT and it is a real doozy. If you choose for some reason to start with this one, understand that we'd been in the studio for hours at this point. Blender Bluid, Amy Do and I were all simply transcending the mortal form. Anyways, in this riveting episode we talk about Times Beach Missouri, Anniston Alabama, and Soda Springs Idaho's separate disasters connected to Monsanto. There's a surprising amount of horses and Ronald Reagan, but not related to one another despite the fact that he was really into horses. Fun fact for ya. Cheers! LIVE SHOW TICKETS OCTOBER 1 PLZ SUPPORT MY PATREON SOURCES: Baptized in PCB’s: Race, Pollution, and Justice in an All-American Town, Ellen Griffith Spears 2014 The World According to Monsanto, Marie-Monique Robin 2008 Missouri's Costly Dioxin Lesson, Marjorie Sun, Science VOL. 219, NO. 4583 pp. 367-369, 1983 Monsanto Hid Decades Of Pollution, Michael Grunwald, Washington Post 2002 Pollution, Poverty and People of Color: Dirty Soil and Diabetes, Brett Israel, Environmental Health News, 2012 Monsanto’s Superfund Secret, Bart Elmore, Dissent Magazine 2017 Roundup’s Other Problem: Glyphosate is Sourced from Controversial Mines, Gosia Wozniacka Civil Eats, 2019 Residential zoning at former Monsanto site dangerous for future homebuyers, Sue Stevenson Columbia Daily Herald, 2021

    Monsanto 2: The US Army, Vietnam, and Agent Orange

    Play Episode Listen Later Sep 8, 2022 69:30


    All in all, this is a comedy podcast. But this is definitely one of the darkest episodes I've made. It's really important to me and it's heartbreaking...huge content warning for gruesome body horror. I'm really proud of this one, and despite it all, Amy and Blender Bluid managed to make this one real funny. This episode talks about Monsanto's role in the US imperial machine! We've got warmongering, we've got factories blowin' up, we have a new kind of acne that has literally never been observed before. Hitherto unforseen diseases will unfortunately be a running theme. This episode also tests the limits of what we will put up with when it comes to French people being french. Enjoy! LIVE SHOW TICKETS OCTOBER 1 PLZ SUPPORT MY PATREON FOOTNOTES: Dioxin, Agent Orange, the Facts. Michael Gough, Plenum US 1986 Viktor Yushchenko: Ukraine's ex-president on being poisoned - BBC News, 2018 Agent Orange On Trial, Peter Shuck 1987 The World According to Monsanto, Marie-Monique Robin 2008 Monsanto: A Checkered History, Brian Tokar, The Ecologist 1998 The Children of Agent Orange, Charles Ornstein and Hannah Fresques, ProPublica, and Mike Hixenbaugh for The Virginian-Pilot, 2016 THE AGENT ORANGE SYNDROME, James Nachtwey, Vanity Fair 2007 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operation_Ranch_Hand Kemner v. Monsanto Co., Casetext, 1991 The Little Town That Whipped Monsanto

    Season 3 Update!!!

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 22, 2022 2:28


    Oops! I accidentally wrote an 8 part episode and decided to make it its own season! LOL! Season 3 is coming September 5. Listen to this teaser to find out what the topic will be and the new release schedule. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR LISTENING TO THIS PODCAST! All of your kind words make me so happy! Keep telling your friends about it if you love it. It's about to get real fuckin' coconuts. PATREON: https://www.patreon.com/bustedbizbureau LIVE SHOW TICKETS: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/busted-business-bureau-live-tickets-392610848617 (Dueling Pianos tickets bc me and other christian's show is friday aug 26): https://www.eventbrite.com/e/christian-and-christian-dueling-pianos-tickets-350709189627 Instagram/Twitter/Tiktok: @BustedBizBureau ^My instagram usually has the most updates, twitter has the most drunk shitposts, tiktok has the most Polished Content.

    An Episode About Rats

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 8, 2022 56:05


    Dr. Alex Berr is on the pod to 1) brutally roast me several times and 2) help me think about the questions regarding the business of selling and distributing animals. The question that drives this episode is: Are animals products? We talk about the industry standards for both pet rats and lab rats when it comes to breeding, caretaking, and liability. Dr. Berr got her PhD in biomedical engineering and has PLENTY of experience with mice...it's really cool stuff. While this episode is absolutely hilarious, it's also pretty dark and gross. Don't listen if you're squeamish about animal stuff; this one is simply not for you. I forgot to put a disclaimer up top so consider yourself warned. Anyways, go see Uncontrolled Variables at the Lincoln Lodge this Thursday at 7:30pm! :) FOOTNOTES: Mr. McKnight works to keep on rolling, Liz Such, Kaneland Krier 2013 EVERY DOG CAN HAVE ITS DAY: EXTENDING LIABILITY BEYOND THE SELLER BY DEFINING PETS AS “PRODUCTS” UNDER PRODUCTS LIABILITY THEORY, Jason Parent, Animal Law Review at Lewis & Clark Law School, 2005 Caruso v Crawford Hospital, NY 1979 Bazzini vs Garrant, NY 1982 https://www.criver.com/sites/default/files/noindex/catalogs/rms/brown-norway-rats-us-pricing.pdf Special report: Thousands of mice were euthanized at Rutgers during last year's campus shutdown, Madison McGay and Hayley Slusser, The Daily Targum 2021 The History of the Lab Rat Is Full of Scientific Triumphs and Ethical Quandaries, Sam Schipani, Smithsonian Magazine (This one has EAR RAT in it) https://www.melirats.com/our-rattery USDA uncovers abuse at rodent supplier that PETA claims is used by PetSmart, Russ Wiles, AZ Central 2016 Petco Rats Need Bigger Warning, Jury Told. Ameena Shelling, Courthouse News Service 2016 Busted Business Bureau Live Show Link!: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/busted-business-bureau-live-tickets-392610848617 Busted Business Bureau Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/bustedbizbureau

    BONUS: Second City's "A Red Line Runs Through It"

    Play Episode Listen Later Aug 1, 2022 44:20


    Aasia Lashay is BACK for what I'm calling a bonus episode, but is simply the length of a regular episode. They were in a Second City show years ago that wound up being the centerpiece of a reverse racism discrimination lawsuit. The complaint never went anywhere, so years later, she's on this pod to respond to the allegations! SLAY! FOOTNOTES: 1. Stream Aasia's music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1wL4h8Av9COEVikfmGEtgb 2. Here's the full complaint: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/4041688-Secondcity 3. Second City current performer union efforts: INSTAGRAM @secondcityworkers TWITTER: https://twitter.com/scworkers 4. BUSTED BUSINESS BUREAU LIVE SHOW INFO: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/busted-business-bureau-live-tickets-392610848617

    BetterHelp

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 25, 2022 59:01


    A woman with literally no water signs in her astrological chart through Pluto, Claire Rufin, joins me to throw away any chances I had at getting sponsored by BetterHelp! I'm working through a lot of my own understanding on the subjects in this episode, including how a CEO who is presumably worth millions of dollars would take to Reddit to address a complaints lobbied by a Youtuber named Memeology 101. Anyways, this episode is about privacy, employees' rights, and big data. I could not have formed my understanding on these subjects without Cathy O'Neill's Weapons of Math Destruction: AWESOME book! But yeah, I think this is a unique take on BetterHelp. Claire was great on this podcast, @claireannalee is her instagram, I'm cracking open a daiquiri with a paper straw in her honor tonight. Weapons of Math Destruction, Cathy O'Neill 2016 How Corinthian Colleges, a for-profit behemoth, suddenly imploded, Lance Williams, Reveal News Sep 2016 Are Workplace Personality Tests Fair?, Lauren Weber and Elizabeth Dwoskin, WSJ 2014 When Your Boss Makes You Pay for Being Fat, Leslie Kwoh, WSJ 2013 At Talkspace, Start-Up Culture Collides With Mental Health Concerns, Kashmir Hill and Aaron Krolik, NYT Aug 2020 Eat the Rich episode 90: Online Therapy Platforms https://jezebel.com/the-spooky-loosely-regulated-world-of-online-therapy-1841791137 https://foundation.mozilla.org/en/privacynotincluded/betterhelp/ https://www.polygon.com/2018/10/4/17932862/betterhelp-app-youtube-sponsorship-controversy-explained https://pitchbook.com/profiles/investor/461812-87#overview https://medium.com/@alonmatas/when-betterhelp-found-itself-in-a-youtube-controversy-3fd472229a4e https://www.betterhelp.com/privacy/ https://12ft.io/proxy?q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.rollingstone.com%2Fculture%2Fculture-features%2Fbetterhealth-app-astroworld-travis-scott-1255876%2F https://www.betterhelporg.com/ ("Robust Reporting")

    ceo rich reddit weapons pluto betterhelp math destruction kashmir hill lance williams being fat elizabeth dwoskin memeology
    Johnson & Johnson's Risperdal: For the Boys!

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 18, 2022 71:34


    Dan Carroll, who is one of the boys, joins me for probably the most fucked up episode I've made to date. Medical horror abound, this one is certainly dark. If you think illegally marketing a drug to be used off-label for disabled children is bad, it's literally not even scratching the surface of how bad the rest of it gets. Strap in for the longest episode script I've made thus far all about geriatric abuse, simping for the FDA, and body changes that are so shocking that I waited until 30 minutes in to tell Dan where the episode was going. Oh also, you get some lore about me! Follow @DanCarroll__ on twitter, hug your people tight, and thanks again for listening to this podcast. Love you all! B) FOOTNOTES: 1. America's Most Admired Lawbreaker, Steven Brill, Huffington Post DocuSerial 2016 2. Johnson & Johnson to Pay More Than $2.2 Billion to Resolve Criminal and Civil Investigations, DOJ 2013 3. https://risperdalboys.com/ 4. https://thenationaltriallawyers.org/2014/03/risperdal-lawsuit-montana-5-9-million-settlement/ 5. https://www.drugwatch.com/risperdal/lawsuits/ 6. https://www.pharmaceutical-technology.com/news/jj-janssen-risperdal-lawsuit/ 7. https://web.archive.org/web/20180804183932/https://newbrunswicktoday.com/article/jj-biochemist-testifies-company-never-gave-fda-risperdal-safety-analysis-it-knew-about-years 8. https://web.archive.org/web/20180804183827/https://newbrunswicktoday.com/article/latest-risperdal-verdict-jj-hit-70-million-compensatory-damages 9. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1256452/?page=3

    Buffalo Wild Wings

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 11, 2022 45:58


    Buffalo native and hater-by-trade, Christian McCann, has dropped by the podcast to give us a people's history of the most bizarre restaurant chain: Buffalo Wild Wings! It is kind of crazy how many things Buffalo Wild Wings has entered into our culture. Its origin story is COMPLETELY left field. We also talk about how busted the service industry is. If you like wage theft, polio, or overindulgent descriptions of meat, this is definitely the episode for you. Christian is so near and dear to my heart, follow @c_and_c_dueling_pianos on Instagram or his twitter @CThomasMccann (he thought his handle was @fullonacidtrip, but it is not. he simply lied for attention) FOOTNOTES: https://www.newspapers.com/image/195224567/?terms=a%20Woman%20Worth%20Moving%20a%20Restaurant%20Chain%20For&match=1 https://www.nrn.com/mergers-acquisitions/arby-s-buy-buffalo-wild-wings-29b-deal?NL=NRN-02_&Issue=NRN-02__20171129_NRN-02__134&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_1_1&utm_rid=CPG06000002760274&utm_campaign=20321&utm_medium=email&elq2=4c13e545705c41069634f725a3785a8e https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-03-11/buffalo-wild-wings-sued-by-server-over-tipped-wage-practices https://www.mlive.com/news/flint/2015/10/buffalo_wild_wings_owners_agre.html https://www.fslawfirm.com/blog/current-cases/buffalo-wild-wings-complaint/ https://www.bradleygrombacher.com/blog/2017/september/buffalo-wild-wings-wage-hour-lawsuit-alleges-unp/ https://www.legalreader.com/buffalo-wild-wings-agrees-to-pay-1-5m-ending-lawsuit-over-employee-pay/ https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-04-27/buffalo-wild-wings-cuts-jobs-amid-rising-labor-wing-prices https://www.carlsonattorneys.com/news-and-update/food-poisoning-lawsuit https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ODqkxgg1AM&ab_channel=MattPlapp

    Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812

    Play Episode Listen Later Jul 4, 2022 49:31


    TECH ERROR FIXED! Woman with BFA, Sarah, is back on the pod to talk about the musical that got cancelled to its death on Twitter: Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812! This is my favorite musical ever written that unfortunately was, in fact, a busted business. Bad decisions all the way at the top. I'm not kidding, you should put this on a playlist with all the bangers from the show. If you like controversy, overindulgence, opulence, and Josh Groban, this one's a must-listen! If you're going to listen to one song to get into the show, I think I might recommend sitting down and fully listening to The Ball. Sooooo enchanting. Anyways, plz follow @BustedBizBureau on tiktok and instiegram if you want to see all the Great Comet vids I've posted (of which I've posted many). Donate to the patreon, I guess. Go on Dave Malloy's website, too. You won't regret it. Cheers! :) FOOTNOTES: https://www.papermag.com/beetlejuice-broadway-tiktok-trend-1-2640689936.html https://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/18/theater/how-to-keep-the-great-comet-party-going-on-broadway-dish-out-the-pierogies-and-add-josh-groban.html https://digboston.com/experience/2011/12/from-the-aisle-three-pianos/ https://thehustle.co/the-economics-of-broadway-shows/ scribd.com/book/401397644/I-Wanna-Be-a-Producer-How-to-Make-a-Killing-on-Broadway-or-Get-Killed https://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/21/theater/on-the-town-producers-keep-faith-in-their-investment.html https://playbill.com/article/great-comet-and-ars-nova-say-contract-dispute-resolved https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/14/theater/josh-groban-great-comet.html https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XcTfhMT2_4o&ab_channel=KevinSpaceyTalks https://www.npr.org/2017/05/18/528803081/josh-groban-leaves-big-shoes-to-fill-in-the-tony-nominated-great-comet https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-ohenry-report/id1261146501 https://playbill.com/article/mandy-patinkin-will-return-to-broadway-in-the-great-comet https://deadline.com/2017/07/mandy-patinkin-drops-out-of-natasha-pierre-and-the-great-comet-of-1812-on-broadway-1202138576/

    Bumblebee Foods: The Canned Tuna Conspiracy

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 20, 2022 57:17


    Loyal Piggly Wiggly customer, Aasia Lashay, joins me for a deep dive (haha get it) into the scandalous world of packaged seafood products. You know it's bad when a whole ass CEO genuinely faces consequences for it. If you like scheming, gruesome workplace safety violations, backstabbing, and DOJ antitrust investigations, you better listen ASAP! You'll definitely have stories for your coworkers to break the ice after this one. Anyways, stream ALL of Aasia's music on Spotify (D.A.B.O. is my personal fav), watch the stuff she writes for (What We Do in the Shadows and Upload), and follow her on ALL SOCIAL MEDIAS @euthanAasia! FOOTNOTES: 1. This government price-fixing case makes the tuna industry sound like the mafia, LA Times, Michael Hiltzik, 2019 2. Dairy companies fined for price rigging, The Korea Herald, 김지현 2011 3. https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/4483839/Bunble-Class-Action-Complasint-Copy.pdf 4. The most important details of the Walmart suit against the “big three” tuna companies, Seafood Source, Cliff White 2016 5. Asserting innocence, Lischewski hopes to return to Bumble Bee CEO role, Undercurrent News, Jason Smith 2019 6. Cooked to death in agony for two hours: Gruesome guilty plea by Bumble Bee Foods, My News LA, Stephanie Michaud 2017 7. Chris Lischewski hopes to avoid prison, while prosecutors push for 10-year sentence, Seafood Source, Cliff White 2020 8. Thai Union's Chicken of the Sea blew the whistle on tuna price fixing, Bumble Bee and StarKist replace legal teams, Seafood Source, Cliff White 2017 9. Lischewski — There Was No Price Fixing in the Tuna Industry, Medium, Chris Lischewski 2020 10. https://twitter.com/LischewskiChris/status/1201639711124738049 PS If you live in chicago, I have a comedy/dueling pianos show coming up this Friday, June 24 2022, at the Lincoln Lodge at 6pm! It's called Christian and Christian dueling pianos, you can get tix on eventbrite, and it'll be way fun. Thanks! :)

    The Charles Ponzi Security Exchange Company

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 13, 2022 77:41


    Late bloomer Ari Levin joins me for, I'm not kidding, probably the best episode I've made thus far. THEE Charles Ponzi's scheme has so many twists and turns. Charles Ponzi is a mama's boy, he's a pisces, he's 5'2. He's.....the man of my dreams. While many historians have actually pieced together a pretty cogent puzzle of the life Ponzi lived, none are as brave as I am because none of them acknowledge that he's a total smokeshow. I'm sure you're reading this like "she's doing a joke right now" but I AM NOT. Anyways, huge thanks to Mitchell Zuckoff, whose book on Ponzi is enrapturing. Ari is also absolutely hysterical in this episode, he's the perfect podcast guest. Follow @remlevin and catch him in Trigger Happy at the Annoyance on Wednesdays at 9:30! Or anything he's in. He's a gem! 1. Ponzi's Scheme: The True Story of a Financial Legend, Mitchell Zuckoff, 2006 2. Ponzi's Scheme, Lizzie Peabody, Sidedoor - Smithsonian Institution Podcast, 2020 3. Ponzi: The Incredible True Story of the King of Financial Cons, Donald Dunn, 2004 4. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Charles_Ponzi 5. This Week In History: The Boston Post Takes Down Charles Ponzi, Edgar B. Herwick III, 2014 PS I actually PAID for the books I mentioned because they weren't on Scribd. If you like stuff like this, consider tossing coins at my PATREON! It's patreon.com/bustedbizbureau

    "Climate Certified" Products

    Play Episode Listen Later Jun 6, 2022 49:31


    KP, who invented being funny, has returned AGAIN for an episode about the market’s solution to the pesky idea of consumers hating climate change: “climate certification.” This podcast is certified carbon neutral because I venmo’d someone in France to get an impossible whopper from Burger King. This episode is not doom and gloom, it’s full of scams and glam! It’ll be fun, I pinky promise! Follow @they.call.us everywhere and thanks for the reviews! Keep ‘em coming! I love and appreciate you

    D.A.R.E. America

    Play Episode Listen Later May 30, 2022 50:48


    My brother in christ, Matt McLean, joins for a jaunty-ass personal episode about society's preventative answer to the war on drugs: DARE! Cops certainly did not get this one right, despite receiving an insane amount of funding. Like bonkers. This loosey goosey episode was so fun to record, and if you like drugs, alcohol, and violence, this episode is for you! Stream Matt's music and follow @bustedbizbureau if you're so inclined. :) KISSES! FOOTNOTES 1. DARE Marks a Decade of Growth and Controversy : Youth: Despite critics, anti-drug program expands nationally. But some see declining support in LAPD., Jim Newton, LA Times, 1993 2. DARE takes substance abuse message into classrooms, Mureena Naseer, Journal and Courier, 1999 3. DARE to succeed, Myra Jones, The Bradenton Herald, 2000 4. DARE officers guide our youth, Joe Mazurek, Ravalli Republic, 1996 5. Program DARES youth to resist drugs and violence, Sheryald Cubrey, The Marshall News, 1996 6. Vintage DARE cartoon 7. DARE Scare: Turning Children Into Informants?, James Bovard, 1994, Washington Post 8. A brief history of DARE, the anti-drug program Jeff Sessions wants to revive, Christopher Ingramsen, Washington Post 2017, 9. Local cops defend DARE, Rex Robinson and Phil Rokohor, Southtown Star 1998

    Lockheed Martin

    Play Episode Listen Later May 23, 2022 65:19


    National Organizer at CODEPINK, Danaka, joins me for the girliest episode of Busted Business Bureau: the multibillion dollar weapons company, Lockheed Martin! If you pay taxes, I promise this episode is about you. For a company that's been around so long, you think they'd build less stuff that caught on fire or less stuff that made Vermonter children lose control of their bowels. This one's got explosions, missed deadlines, a bit of the red scare, bribery, and the WHITE MAN'S CAUCUS, which I promise is just as funny as it sounds. Follow @wifeoftoast on twitter or @CODEPINK everywhere! PS, if you live in Chicago, Mike Quigley takes money from Lockheed Martin. Follow @DivestMike and tell him to cut it out! Footnotes: Prophets of War: Lockheed Martin and the Making of the Military-Industrial Complex, William D. Hartung Inside America’s Dysfunctional Trillion-Dollar Fighter-Jet Program, Valerie Insinna, New York Times 2019 Federal Contractors Are Violating Workers’ Rights and Harming the U.S. Government, Center for American Progress Report Sandia National Labs Bribery Scandal, Department of Justice Summary Lockheed Subsidiary (Tools and Metals) Overcharging Scheme, Jerry Seper, Washington Times 2000 Working for Equality: The Narrative of Harry Hudson, Harry Hudson Wikipedia List of Lockheed Bribery Scandals How Lockheed Martin Makes Money, Investopedia Nooses, Symbols of Race Hatred, At Center of Workplace Lawsuits, Sana Siwolap, NYT 2000 Lockheed's Latest Battle: Bias, Greg Schneider, NYT 2000 Remove Labels This Ramadan

    BONUS EPISODE: The Men's Rights Lawyer Who Makes a Killing off a Technicality

    Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2022 24:43


    Chicago improv's biggest hater KP returns to talk about men's rights (and men's wrongs). This men's rights lawyer has unleashed himself upon California to successfully sue people over ladies nights, lesbian gatherings, and Mother's Day baseball promotions. Why is Alfred Rava not a household name? This is literally all I talk about now. TUNE IN! Souces (not enough if you ask me): 1. https://www.dfeh.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/sites/32/2017/12/DFEH_UnruhFactSheet.pdf 2. https://www.nrtoday.com/a-hetoo-movement-fighting-for-men-s-rights-in-california-courts/article_7b2a05db-3e71-542b-a7d9-4f21eabf1fbc.html 3. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2006-may-16-sp-promotions16-story.html 4. https://nypost.com/2018/05/11/woman-sued-by-men-for-discrimination-at-empowerment-events/ 5. https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2016/01/men-rights-unruh-act-women-discrimination/ 6. https://www.latimes.com/politics/la-na-pol-trump-mens-rights-20161027-story.html 7. https://ncfm.org/2018/06/news/discrimination-news/discrimination-against-men-news/ncfm-members-file-lawsuit-against-women-only-tech-scholarships-a-man-tax/ 8. https://caselaw.findlaw.com/ca-court-of-appeal/1887382.html 9. https://www.classaction.org/media/riddick-et-al-v-united-airlines-inc.pdf 10. https://www.espn.com/espn/columns/story?columnist=reilly_rick&sportCat=mlb&id=4247723 11. https://www.scribd.com/document/380009632/Pollister-v-Shlesinger-Et-Al Follow @BustedBizBureau or head to BustedBizBureau.com for more updates! Thanks for tuning in. Season 2 coming soon!

    Six Flags: A Chaotic Retrospective

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 21, 2022 72:06


    Rollercoaster hater Peter Bucci joins the season finale to talk about Six Flags’ insane journey to becoming the world’s largest regional theme park chain. This episode has everything: bankruptcy, a hostile takeover, many gruesome rollercoaster deaths. Also, who knew the politics of parking could be so interesting? Thanks for tuning in, and be sure to follow @BustedBizBureau everywhere for updates on season 2. Footnotes: Angus G. Wynne, © Academic, 2000-2022 Restructuring a Theme Park: The Six Flags Bankruptcy, John Capps and Lauren Sherrell Incidents at Six Flags parks, Wikipedia Six Flags faces buying spree hangover, Sean Murphy, My Plainview 2005 The Atlanta Braves Borrowed Their Parking Scam From Dan Snyder, Dave Mckenna, Deadspin 2016 DEFINITIVE CONSENT SOLICITATION STATEMENT FILED BY RED ZONE LLC, 2005 Large Shareholder Files Against Six Flags Sale NFL Owner Backed By Major Investor, Paul Monies, NEWSOK 2005 Six Flags Files For Chap. 11 Bankruptcy, Forbes 2009 Dakota Hickman and Matthew D’Agostino vs. Six Flags New England, 2019 How you can eat every day at Six Flags Magic Mountain for $150 a year, Mercury News 2021 Six Flags 2018 Annual Report

    ShotSpotter

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 14, 2022 56:53


    Rising star Deanna Ortiz joins to talk about something we spend a stupid amount of tax dollars on in Chicago: ShotSpotter! It’s a national company, but the City of Chicago makes up nearly a quarter of its revenue. What are we spendin’ all that money on? This episode is sooo foolish, we talk about tech bros’ hubris, how good PR can change everything, and who from the company definitely got picked to be the fall guy. FUN STUFF! COMEDY PODCAST! Follow @DeannaOrtiz_ and @Crushes_podcast everywhere!! Footnotes: Shot Spotter: Can a tech startup put a dent in violent crime? Ethan Walters, Wired Apr 1 2007 Interactive Map of where Shotspotters are in Chicago ShotSpotter FAQ Could a controversial gun-surveillance system help tackle Toronto crime? Jeff Gray, 2016 Toronto Daily News Gunshot detection technology raises concerns of bias and inaccuracy, Prince Shakur, Coda 2020 ShotSpotter Sensors Send SDPD Officers to False Alarms More Often Than Advertised, Kara Grant, Voices of San Diego 2020 Courtroom testimony reveals accuracy of SF gunshot sensors a ‘marketing’ ploy, Jonah Owen Lamb, San Francisco Examiner 2017 Impact of ShotSpotter Technology on Firearm Homicides and Arrests Among Large Metropolitan Counties: a Longitudinal Analysis, 1999–2016, Green, Dineen, Doucette, Shapiro, and Rassian 2021 A Partially Randomized Field Experiment on the Effect of an Acoustic Gunshot Detection System on Police Incident Reports, J. Experimental Criminology (2018) Williams Case - Frye Motion An American city’s struggle to police its police: Shots in the Dark, CHAPTER TWO | A HIGH-STAKES GA

    eBay

    Play Episode Listen Later Feb 7, 2022 61:39


    How far would you go to protect your company’s reputation? Is it box-of-live-spiders far? Is it cross-country far? Is it re-enact-a-B-list-80s-movie far? Emily Lindsey joins for this very crime-y episode about the eBay corporate cyberstalking scandal that goes further than you’d imagine. This episode is absolutely nuts; it’s got blogging, it’s got schemes, it's got people who make a preposterous amount of money trying to do crime. Can’t miss this one! Follow @BustedBizBureau everywhere! “Take Her Down”: Inside eBay’s Stalking Campaign against a Natick Couple, Mike Damiano, Boston Magazine, December 2021 Activist Investor Eviscerates eBay Management, Ina Steiner, eCommerceBytes January 2019 eBay CEO Devin Wenig Earns 152 Times That of Employees, Ina Steiner, eCommerceBytes April 2019 FBI Affadavit, Mark Wilson, June 11 2020 Gilbert, Popp, Stockwell and Zea Charging Doc, US District Court of Massachusetts, May 2020 US District Court of Massachusetts vs. Phillip Cooke, July 2021 Pictures of iMessages, Craigslist Post, and Pig Mask, BustedBizBureau Instagram, 2022

    The Ballad of Schwan's Frozen Pizza

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 31, 2022 59:38


    My girlfriend Sarah joins to talk about frozen food, a surprising amount of corporate espionage, and the private company that has a ~70% likelihood of supplying your public school's pizza: Schwan's! The school lunch contract biz is more intense than you'd think. Please follow @BustedBizBureau everywhere! Marvin M. Schwan, John Radzilowski, Immigrant Entrepreneurship 2018 Schwan, Marvin in front of an original ice cream truck, ca. 1977 Ketchup as a Vegetable: Condiments and the Politics of School Lunch in Reagan’s America, Amy Bentley, Gastronomica 2021 Judge Allows Lawsuit to Proceed in $870 Million Schwan Heir Case, AP News 1996 MARK SCHWAN AND PAUL SCHWAN VS LAWRENCE BURDGOF ET. AL, APPEAL FROM SECOND JUDICIAL COURT, MINNEHHAHA COUNTY, SOUTH DAKOTA Corporate Spies: The Pizza Plot, Adam L. Penenberg and Marc Barry, NYT 2000 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT DISTRICT OF MINNESOTA Schwan’s IP, LLC, and Schwan’s Consumer Brands North America, Inc VS Kraft Pizza Company Potato politics, with a pizza side, David Rogers, Politico 2011 Washington pizza sauce fight has deep Minnesota ties, Brett Neely, MPRNews 2011 Leading School Food Supplier, Schwan’s Food Service, Serves Up Industry’s First Portfolio of Products to Meet Proposed USDA School Meal Rules, BusinessWire 2011 City Schools’ Food Program Struggles with Pizza Problems, City Limits 2016 Schwan's Co. v. Cai 12-2-2021

    iO Theater

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 24, 2022 74:58


    KP joins to talk about origins and dramatic sudden closure of iO theater. How can you make a sustainable business off of adults playing pretend? Turns out it’s pretty hard. This episode has everything: improv comedy, wage theft allegations, desecration of human remains. Twists and turns everywhere! Follow KP's incredible project @they.call.us everywhere!!! Footnotes: Behind the Laughs: Community and Inequality in Comedy, Michael P. Jeffries The Funniest One in the Room: The Lives and Legend of Del Close, Kim “Howard” Johnson Chicago Comedy: A Fairly Serious History, Margaret Hicks Skullduggery, Tad Friend, The New Yorker Comedy Guru Charna Halpern Carries On, Achy Obejas, Chicago Tribune The First Comedy Strike, Richard Zoglin, Time Magazine This Unsung Comic Guru Turned Her Passion For Improv Into a Profitable Business INC Magazine, 2016 iO Co-Founder's Controversial Sexual Harassment Comments Spark Debate, Mae Rice, Chicagoist iO Chicago’s move is more than a new address, Chris Jones, Chicago Tribune iO makes a big move into founder Charna Halpern’s ‘dream theater’, Brianna Wellen, Chicago Reader What We Can Learn From Improv Theaters' PPP Loans, Seth Simons, Paste Magazine

    Johnson & Johnson's Transvaginal Mesh Thingy

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 18, 2022 56:54


    My friend Bibi joins to talk about Johnson & Johnson’s transvaginal mesh implant that has been the center of class action lawsuits around the globe. Comedy podcast!! In this episode, we’ll dive into gruesome detail about how your organs sag with age, how some products have tried and failed to alleviate that problem, and how your work emails should never be the subject of court litigation. Follow @BustedBizBureau on all social media! It really helps me out, thanks! Footnotes: The history and evolution of pessaries for pelvic organ prolapse, Shah et al. 2005 FEDERAL COURT OF AUSTRALIA, Gill v Ethicon Sàrl (No 5) [2019] FCA 1905 SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA The People of the state of California vs JOHNSON & JOHNSON, ETHICON, INC.and DOES 1 Case No. 37-2016-00017229-CU-MC-CTL, January 2020 Ethicon complaint reviewer says in J&J trial that patients felt vaginal mesh instructions fell short of explaining risks, Northern California Record 2019 Revealed: Johnson & Johnson's 'irresponsible' actions over vaginal mesh implant, The Guardian Huskey v Ethicon Day 4- Huskey Takes the Stand, Jane Akre, 2014 'Scandal' of vaginal mesh removal rates revealed by NHS records, The Guardian Patient Recruiter and Physician Plead Guilty in Bribery and Kickback Scheme in Connection with Transvaginal Mesh Litigation, DOJ 2021 Orlando doctor facing federal charges banned from performing liposuction after patient death, Orlando Sentinel, 2021

    Kars4Kids

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 10, 2022 48:53


    Karsten Runquist joins for an overwhelmingly deep dive into Kars4Kids. When you donate your car, where does your money go? This question is what inspired me to start this entire podcast. If you like looking through public tax records, learning about real estate speculation, or being frightened by sentient 5-dollar-bill mascots, this one's for you. Follow @karstenrunquist and/or @runquistkarsten everywhere! Listen on Amazon Prime / Audible Listen on Youtube Footnotes: Kars4Kids website, check out the houses and stuff! Pretty fun! Car donation: When it makes sense to seek a charity tax deduction, Peter Gareffa Edmunds Kars4Kids Tax Filings by year, ProPublica Kars4Kids Charity Reneged on Deal, Josh Nathan-Kazis, 2012 Charity in Taxes Tussle, Wall Street Journal, 2012 Kars4Kids Charity Loses Big on Real Estate, Josh Nathan-Kazis, 2012 Court: Oorah is tax-exempt in town of Jefferson, Matthew Mckibben, 2014 Oorah Tax Filings by year, Propublica Did an Orthodox Charity Secretly Buy a Synagogue Just to Avoid Filing a Tax Return?, Josh Nathan-Kazis, 2016 More on Congregation Oorah, Hannah Dreyfus, 2016 Oorah Federal Covid-related Complaint, 2021

    Clothing Donation Bins / Tvind Teachers Group

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 3, 2022 47:05


    Jaxi Alegria joins to talk about commercial clothing donation bins, specifically the ones tied to an international political cult. Big swing for the first episode! We'll talk about troubled teen facilities, international fugitives known for tax evasion, fradulent charities, and how sexy you have to be to commit certain crimes. Listen on Amazon Prime / Audible Listen on Youtube 1. Tvind Alert Website 2. Minneapolis and USagain bins, Grant Wilson 3. Case Summary of Danish Prosecutor vs. Mogens Amdi Petersen 4. FBI Report on Tvind, 2001 5. Former supporters describe charity leader's rise and fall, Chicago Tribune 6. Concerning Tvind, Steen Thomsen 7. Charity Commission Report, 1997 8. Fresh abuse allegations at children’s ‘home of horrors’ with links to ‘cult-like’ group, Tom Bristow 9. Teachers Group: The cult-like group linked to a charity that gets UK aid, BBC 10. US taxpayers are financing alleged cult through African aid charities, Reveal News 11. PlanetAid's 2020 Annual Report, Talks about One World University and Humana People to People 12. Tvind's Website Timeline stating that they founded One World University and Humana People to People

    The Salvation Army's Labor Violations

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 3, 2022 49:04


    Blender Bluid joins to talk about the Salvation Army. NOT THE GAY STUFF. This is about worker’s rights, weird Christians, incredibly lax laws around what counts as “rehab,” and resisting the urge to cry while reading court documents about labor violations. Follow @blenderbluid everywhere! Listen on Amazon Prime / Audible Listen on Youtube 1. The anti-drinking listicle, William Booth 1888 2. Salvation Army ARC magazine write-up, New Frontier Chronicle (now CARING magazine) 3. Charlotte ARC write-up, UNC MediaHub contributors 4. Chaotic De Moines Article, Lee Rood 5. Department of Labor decision, Washington Times 6. "Work Therapy"—How the Salvation Army's Chain of Rehabs Exploits Unpaid Labor, Kenneth Anderson 7. Guy Dixon court summary, Jan 2005 8. California Salvation Army Court Complaint, May 2021 9. Chicago Salvation Army Court Complaint, Nov 2021

    Adelphia

    Play Episode Listen Later Jan 3, 2022 42:36


    Amy Do joins to talk about the meteoric rise and fall of a family cable empire from the 90s. It’s like if Succession took place in a rural company town, had less sexy actors, and added fradulently-funded lesbian arthouse films. Turns out, it only takes one question from a nosy fella to collapse a billion-dollar business. Follow @helloamydo everywhere! Listen on Amazon Prime / Audible Listen on Youtube 1. JohnnyCashRules32 Youtube Page 2. Adelphia Interviews, Dr. Susan Bishop 3. Court Case Summary, District Judge Gerard Lynch 4. SEC vs. Adelphia 5. That damn public Adelphia meeting, NYT 2002 6. Retrospective on Adelphia, NYT 2004 7. Watch Songcatcher for Free, Tubi 8. The Adelphia Story, CNN Money 9. John Rigas First Pitch, Olean Times Herald

    Busted Business Bureau Trailer!

    Play Episode Listen Later Dec 31, 2021 1:26


    Join Christian Borkey as she performs dissections (and vivisections!) on various busted business models. This research-based comedy podcast is for peeps who enjoy densely packed information, white collar true crime, and naturally funny people. :) Thanks for tuning in! Listen on Amazon Prime / Audible Listen on Youtube

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