In this episode, Therese Markow and Adam Morgan discuss Adam's new book, A Danger to the Minds of Young Girls, which explores the life and legacy of Margaret C. Anderson. Margaret was a pioneering figure in modern literature, the founder of "The Little Review" in Chicago, and one of the key figures in fostering the Chicago literary renaissance. They talk about the challenges she faced, despite her initial successes, why her physical appearance often overshadowed her contributions, and the impact on young girls today that Margaret also faced during her time.

Key Takeaways:

• "The Little Review" served as a platform for uncensored conversations about literature and art, including experimental works that were often undiscovered during her time.

• The Comstock Act was a group of federal laws that banned the mailing of "obscene materials" and was upheld, in part, through censorship at what is now the USPS. This resulted in many copies of "The Little Review" being burned or otherwise destroyed before they could arrive at their subscribers.

• We are seeing the same rhetoric used by conservative lawmakers today that was used in the early 20th century against Margaret Anderson, despite no evidence to support it. They argued that if young girls read "obscene literature," they would turn to a life of immorality, prostitution, or partner with people not approved of by their parents.

"She was not a saint, but there were a lot of things to admire about her courage and her sense of agency." — Adam Morgan

Connect with Adam Morgan:

Professional Bio: https://adam-stephen-morgan.com/

Twitter: https://x.com/adamm0rgan

Book: https://adam-stephen-morgan.com/a-danger-to-the-minds-of-young-girls/

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/thefrontlist.org

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/adamm0rgan

Connect with Therese:

Website: www.criticallyspeaking.net

Bluesky: @CriticallySpeaking.bsky.social

Instagram: @criticallyspeakingpodcast

Email: theresemarkow@criticallyspeaking.net

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it.

In this episode, Therese Markow and Elizabeth Burch discuss Elizabeth's new book, "The Pain Brokers: How Con Men, Call Centers, and Rogue Doctors Fuel America's Lawsuit Factory," which exposes a scheme where con artists, attorneys, and rogue doctors exploited women through mass torts involving pelvic mesh implants. Elizabeth explains how mass torts differ from class actions and explains how attorneys earn contingency fees. Throughout the episode, they discuss the ways in which the scheme was perpetuated and how vulnerable women were exploited by a data breach in India.

Key Takeaways:

• A tort is a harm, such as a punch or a car accident. A mass tort is when those harms happen on a large scale.

• Mass torts can be a goldmine for lawyers (and there is a convention held twice a year regarding mass torts in Las Vegas). This can be concerning as more states are allowing law firms to be owned, even partially, by non-lawyers.

• Many of the women involved with this mass tort were conned by people who had their specific information, including birth dates, surgery dates, and other medical information. It created a lot of confusion for many.

"You can imagine that your scam detector would probably go off if someone called you and asked you for that information. But if someone calls you and they already know your birth date and the name of your implanting doctor and the type of mesh that you have and exactly when you had the surgery and where you had the surgery, then all of a sudden it feels a lot more legitimate." — Elizabeth Burch

Connect with Elizabeth Burch:

Professional Bio: https://www.elizabethchambleeburch.com/about

Website: https://www.elizabethchambleeburch.com/

Bluesky: https://bsky.app/profile/eburch.bsky.social

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elizabethcburch/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elizabethcburch/

X: https://x.com/elizabethcburch

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ECBurch/

Pre-Order The Pain Brokers: How Con Men, Call Centers, and Rogue Doctors Fuel America's Lawsuit Factory here: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/The-Pain-Brokers/Elizabeth-Chamblee-Burch/9781668068861

Connect with Therese:

Website: www.criticallyspeaking.net

Bluesky: @CriticallySpeaking.bsky.social

Instagram: @criticallyspeakingpodcast

Email: theresemarkow@criticallyspeaking.net

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it.

In this episode, Therese Markow, Dr. Jerald Kay, and Dr. Joel Yager discuss the various forms of ambition: lack of ambition, mismatched ambition, Machiavellian ambition, and how to deal with malignant narcissists.

Key Takeaways:

• There are biological underpinnings to ambition, but much of what we know about ambition is built on repeated interactions as children.

• Not everyone who is Machiavellian is ambitious. Not everyone ambitious is Machiavellian. But when you have people who have dark triad characteristics, it can mean trouble for those around them.

• There are levels of narcissism. Only some are treatable. The last division of severe narcissism is called malignant personality disorder and is relatively untreatable.

"It's both nature and nurture. We know ambition runs in families. And we know kids that are adopted into families with ambitious parents turn out to be more ambitious than if they weren't adopted into those kinds of families." — Dr. Joel Yager

Episode References: https://journals.lww.com/jonmd/fulltext/2023/04000/ambition_and_its_psychopathologies.1.aspx

Connect with Therese:

Website: www.criticallyspeaking.net

Bluesky: @CriticallySpeaking.bsky.social

Instagram: @criticallyspeakingpodcast

Email: theresemarkow@criticallyspeaking.net

Audio production by Turnkey Podcast Productions. You're the expert. Your podcast will prove it.