Speaker
Josh Clark
Appearances over time
7 episodes
Episodes
7
Podcasts
Quotes & moments
Soul Train became the longest-running syndicated television show in TV history, airing from 1971 to 2006.
Enron posted a $14 million loss in its first year (1985), yet within 15 years reported $100 billion in annual revenue — almost entirely built on fraud.
The first Boland Amendment banning CIA and Defense Department funds for the Contras passed the House unanimously — yet the Reagan administration ignored it.
About 6% of children born with a port wine stain birthmark develop Sturge-Weber syndrome, a neurological condition — but 100% of Sturge-Weber patients have the port wine stain.
Chopsticks are estimated to be between 5,000 and 7,000 years old, originally used as cooking tools — not eating utensils.
The first phone directory was published in 1878 in New Haven, Connecticut, listing about 50 subscribers on a single piece of paper.
Over just two years, Saudi Arabia alone donated $32 million to the Contra rebels, giving loosely affiliated factions millions they had no way to spend on arms.
Three Enron traders who manipulated California's energy market pleaded guilty, costing the state an estimated $40–$45 billion in unnecessary electricity costs.
Despite chopsticks' age, the spoon — not the chopstick — was the dominant eating utensil across Asia for thousands of years while millet gruel was the staple food.
After a radio executive told him he had a great voice during a traffic stop, Cornelius quit being a cop and took a 3-month broadcasting course to launch his career.
America secretly transferred 2,000 missiles and missile parts to Iran across 8 separate shipments over just over a year.
In the 6 months before Enron manipulated California's grid, the state had 1 blackout; in the 6 months after, it had several dozen — all artificially created.
The iconic 'Let Your Fingers Do the Walking' Yellow Pages ad campaign launched in 1962, encouraging people to find businesses by phone rather than in person.
Having 6 or more café au lait birthmarks — especially if larger than a dime — may indicate neurofibromatosis (NF1), a nerve condition that warrants a doctor visit.
Despite all the missile sales, only 3 of the 7 American hostages held by Lebanese terrorists were ultimately released.
Blood is never blue — not even when deoxygenated. Veins appear blue because blue light can't penetrate as deeply as red light, so it reflects back to the surface. Red light goes deeper and gets absorbed, making deep tissue appear blue to the eye.
A Syrian child born with an axe-mark-shaped birthmark allegedly recounted memories of being murdered in a past life, naming the killer and the village. Village elders investigated, located the accused, and reportedly obtained a confession and found the buried remains. Documented or not, the story is hard to shake.
A UK birthmark support group described a mother who had explanation cards printed about her child's birthmark because she couldn't always handle strangers approaching to ask about her child's face. The real problem isn't the birthmark — it's everyone else.
Melanoma is widely written off as a minor skin issue you just get removed. In reality, it can spread through the body with terrifying speed and kill. Atypical moles are a key warning sign, and the cultural messaging around melanoma has badly failed the public.
Pulsed dye lasers target a specific wavelength of light absorbed by the pigment of a birthmark but not by the surrounding skin. That light energy converts to heat inside the birthmark, destroying the clustered blood vessels. Multiple treatments can eliminate port wine stains — though it feels like hot bacon grease on the skin.
Café au lait birthmarks — light brown spots that can appear anywhere on the body — are usually harmless. But having 6 or more, especially larger than a dime, may indicate neurofibromatosis (NF1), a nerve condition. It's not a death sentence, but it is a sign to see a doctor.
Port wine stains are the only birthmark type with a partially identified genetic cause: a molecular switch permanently stuck in the 'on' position. About 6% of cases are linked to Sturge-Weber syndrome, a neurological condition — and 100% of Sturge-Weber patients have the port wine stain.
Atypical moles are the ones you want a doctor to examine — they're amorphous in shape, have color gradients, and are associated with melanoma. Most people don't take melanoma seriously, but it can spread through the body faster than almost any other cancer.
Mongolian spots are deep-pigment birthmarks common in African, Asian, and Hispanic babies that appear as bluish-gray patches on the lower back and buttocks. They're easily mistaken for bruising and typically fade by ages 6–7.
The UK organization changingfaces.org advocates for people with facial differences by pushing back on society rather than the individuals. Their message: people with birthmarks or other facial differences aren't cognitively or physically impaired. The rest of society needs to adjust its reaction.
Birthmarks fall into two broad families: vascular (caused by clusters of blood vessels near the skin) and pigmented (caused by concentrations of melanin). Neither type is fully understood by science, but understanding the difference determines how doctors monitor and treat them.
In early 2001, Fortune journalist Bethany McLean published 'Is Enron Overpriced?' — among the first public challenges to the company's finances. Short-seller Jim Chanos had already been betting against Enron since 2000, having noticed that Enron's cost of capital exceeded its return on investment, making it mathematically not profitable. He made hundreds of millions shorting the stock.
While strangling California with fake blackouts, Ken Lay hosted a private meeting at the Peninsula Hotel in LA with Arnold Schwarzenegger — long before Schwarzenegger had declared any political ambitions. The resulting public fury over blackouts fueled a recall election that removed Governor Gray Davis and installed a governor far more friendly to Enron.
Enron began as a boring natural gas pipeline company formed from a 1985 merger, posting a $14 million loss in year one. Within 15 years, hiring Jeffrey Skilling and exploiting federal deregulation transformed it into a $100 billion revenue machine — almost entirely built on financial smoke and mirrors.
Because birthmarks have no known cause, cultures worldwide invented explanations blaming the pregnant mother. Being startled and touching her face, eating too many strawberries, drinking port wine, gazing at fire — all were supposedly capable of marking the unborn child. The X-ray version persisted into the modern era.
Analysis
What they talk about
- History 29%
- Society & Culture 21%
- Business 16%
- Government 16%
- TV & Film 5%
- Health & Fitness 5%
- Science 3%
- Education 3%
- Comedy 2%
Connections
Shows they appear on and people they share episodes with. Drag to explore.
