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In this bonus episode of The Inner Empire, I read my recent article, “The Uses of Manson,” originally published in Failed State Update. Charles Manson has been used to explain everything from the collapse of the 1960s counterculture to the supposed workings of a CIA mind-control program. But the stories people tell about Manson often reveal more about the storytellers than their subject. In that sense, his story gets at one of the central concerns of The Inner Empire: how beliefs are manufactured, circulated, and eventually mistaken for reality. Be sure to subscribe to Failed State Update at: https://lennyflatley.substack.com/ And be sure to listen to The Inner Empire wherever you get your podcasts.

From Joseph L. Flatley, publisher of Failed State Update. THE INNER EMPIRE is a podcast that pulls together a lot of what I’ve spent years reporting on and thinking about: cults, the occult, conspiracy culture, and the platforms that have inserted themselves directly into our daily life. Here’s the simplest way I can put it: for five hundred years, people have known how to install a belief in someone’s mind: magicians did it with ritual and symbol, cults did it with repetition and isolation, ad men did it with images. What’s changed is that the same basic mechanism now runs automatically, every time you open an app, with nobody at the controls. This show is about tracing that mechanism across history and figuring out how it ended up running our lives without anyone deciding it should. Enjoy this introduction. Be sure to subscribe so you can hear new episodes when are released. Available wherever you get your podcasts. And be sure to sign up for my newsletter, Failed State Update: ⁠https://lennyflatley.substack.com/⁠

The United States is failing fast, taking many of its most storied institutions with it. As a child of the former Soviet Union, occult artist @AnimaNoira has seen this all before. Watch us discuss magick and decline live tonight! Watch this episode on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glqt06mGrco Sign up for the Failed State Update Newsletter: https://lennyflatley.substack.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AnimaNoira Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/anima.noira/ website: https://animanoira.com/

Oki is a Canadian documentarian with a keen eye for unusual subject matter. We spoke to him back in January when he infiltrated a cabal of conspiracy theorists who use hypnosis to "prove" that there is a secret space program operating throughout the universe. His latest doc, The King of Stolen Valor, is a must-see. It is the story of Jonathan "Jack" Idema, a former U.S. Army non-commissioned officer who was found guilty of running a private prison in Afghanistan and torturing Afghan citizens. Idema was posing as a US government-sponsored special forces officer at the time. The US government claims no knowledge of his operations. After spending three years in an Afghan prison, he traveled to Mexico, where he died of AIDS in 2012. Oki's latest doc, The King of Stolen Valor is on YouTube. Oki on Twitter: https://twitter.com/OOHKAYEYE Oki's Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/OkiWeird/  Failed State Update newsletter: http://lennyflatley.substack.com/

Ravi lives in Silicon Valley, he's a former Google employee, and he’s a Targeted Individual. That is, he believes he has been the subject of high-tech surveillance and harassment. Whatever the cause of the trauma he has experienced, the trauma is very real. “I felt like committing a crime” at one point, he says. “I felt like avenging what happened to me.” But after learning that there is a whole community of people like him out there, he doesn’t feel so alone anymore. Besides, to do something drastic, he says, would be “in vain.” Today’s episode of Failed State Update is a conversation between Ravi and Joseph L. Flatley. Be sure to check out our feature article on the Targeted Individual phenomenon called “The Nightmare of Targeted Individuals in the Age of Paranoia” on the Failed State Update website. Failed State Update on Twitter: https://twitter.com/failedstatenews Failed State Update on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCg8ztAapPSlqeHcEKeQAdmA

Long-time friend of the show Lucien Greaves will be on FSU tonight. What will be talking about? The arson at the Satanic Temple's HQ? Probably. Sovereign Citizen death threats? Youbetcha. Satanic Panic? That is to be expected. Lucien Greaves on Twitter: https://twitter.com/LucienGreaves Failed State Update on Twitter: https://twitter.com/failedstatenews Check out Failed State Update, the website: http://failedstateupdate.com Sign up for the newsletter: http://lennyflatley.substack.com

We keep hoping that the Trump administration will become old news, but the stories of its incompetence and corruption keep coming. One of our favorites is Seven Days in January, a new podcast about Mark Burnett and Elizabeth Koch's failed attempt to turn the Presidential Inauguration into a reality series for Amazon Studios. According to our guests, the deal "evaporated as quickly as it appeared, leaving ominous questions to linger around F.T.C. oversight of Amazon’s $8.5 billion MGM Studios acquisition and their knowledge of 20 hours of unaired footage." A new investigative journalism outlet called The Knows got its hand on the audio, and it's airing it on its new podcast for the first time. For more info, check out the website: https://www.theknows.net/ About the guests Rocco Castoro is the editor-in-chief of The Knows and used to be EIC of VICE Media, gaining awards and accolades while peeking behind the curtain of the news and media industry. After he resigned at an ethics conference he was given a five-year non-compete unheard of in media. His experiences forced him to develop unorthodox, yet effective reporting methods. Emily Molli is The Knows’s special projects editor. She started as a wire reporter and photojournalist but quickly adapted to fill various roles in the evolving digital media industry. After dropping out of college to cover the 2016 presidential election, she covered social movements across the U.S., Europe, and Hong Kong. Her visual work has been featured by major news agencies, outlets, and networks as well as in documentaries & feature films. Failed State Update website: https://roundtable.io/failed-state-update/ Sign up for the Failed State Update newsletter: http://lennyflatley.substack.com/  Follow us on Twitter! https://twitter.com/failedstatenews  And be sure to check out J.G. Michaels' other podcast, Parallax Views: https://parallaxviews.podbean.com/

Jack Brewer is a freelance writer with a longtime interest in the UFO genre. He maintains the blog "The UFO Trail," where he posts credible info on incredible topics. Brewer is the author of "The Greys Have Been Framed: Exploitation in the UFO Community," in which he explores how public perception of the UFO phenomenon has been distorted by the intelligence community and suspect researchers. Neither a debunker nor a believer, Brewer integrates objectivity and critical thinking into his writing while keeping an open mind. His latest book is called "Wayward Sons: NICAP and the IC." NICAP is one of the first UFO investigation organizations, and IC stands for "intelligence community." Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hlSQcUGK7hQ Listen ad-free through Substack or Patreon Failed State Update on Twitter: https://twitter.com/failedstatenews Failed State Update website: https://roundtable.io/failed-state-update/

Douglas P. Horne is a former staffer for the Assassination Records Review Board and the author of several books, including Inside the Assassination Records Review Board. In this episode of Failed State Update, J.G. and Douglas discuss Operation Northwoods, the Pentagon's (very real) plan to down aircraft, blow up ships, or possibly kill American civilians as a pretext for an invasion of Cuba. President Kennedy, wisely, thought the whole thing was nuts and prevented it from happening. Northwoods is a bit of a history lesson, but it's an important one. It exemplifies the lengths that the military may go in order to get its way. And as conspiracies go, it's as bizarre as anything Alex Jones has cooked up. And it's all real. NEW! Episode transcript: https://roundtable.io/failed-state-update/podcasts/operation-northwoods-false-flags-in-the-pentagon-transcript J.G.'s other podcast, Parallax Views: https://parallaxviews.podbean.com/ Failed State Update newsletter: http://lennyflatley.substack.com/ The DIY Predator Catchers of Erie, Pennsylvania (article mentioned in the intro): https://roundtable.io/failed-state-update/reports/diy-predator-catchers-erie-pennsylvania

In Tumacácori, Arizona, a stone’s throw from the U.S. border with Mexico, roughly 85 “destiny reservists” await their fate. They are the followers of Gabriel of Urantia. Born Anthony J. Delevin in Pittsburgh in 1946, Gabriel’s life work is a community known as the Global Community Communications Alliance (GCCA). They live in a compound in the desert where they raise animals, harvest hemp, and study their prophet’s teachings. This is all in preparation for the end of this world, and the coming of the next. And the apocalypse, according to Gabriel, is closer now than it’s ever been. Last week, Paladin called the cult’s radio station KVAN-FM last week to address the people of Tucson on the air. “We are living in a transition period,” Gabriel/Paladin says in the voice of the trans-dimensional space creature. On today’s Failed State Update, former GCCA member Joshua Lilly listens to Gabriel's latest broadcast with us and helps us understand both the message and cult psychology in general. But first, J.G. and Lenny discuss Monarch mind-control conspiracies and why they are the perfect myth of our time. This is the subject of Monarch, the debut novel by Candice Wuehle. LINKS: Everything We Know About Gabriel of Urantia on Failed State Update Josh Lilly on living in (and being kicked out of) a destructive cult on Failed State Update The Poetry and Majesty of Conspiracy Theory on Failed State Update Candice Wuehle interviewed on Parallax Views Support J.G.'s work on Patreon Subscribe to the Failed State Update Substack

Daniel Muessig is a Pittsburgh folk hero, mostly because of his over-the-top ad for his law practice: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i_iaugcJW7Q Any day now he will go to prison for five years for conspiring to distribute 100 kilograms or more of marijuana and possession of marijuana. He was busted by an FBI task force who ID'd him through a wiretap. Of course he broke the law, but should we be sending anyone to jail over marijuana? The fact is, even though we live in a world where marijuana is quasi-legal, there's still a prohibition — the illegal pot business is full of very shady people doing very dangerous stuff, which is why the rewards are so great. When Muessig was busted, they found almost half a million dollars in cash. What does it say about this country that someone would have to go to such lengths to pay off their student loans? Here's an epic 2-hour interview of Daniel Muessig conducted by JG Michael. They cover everything from American drug law to the Jewish mob history of Pittsburgh's Squirrel Hill neighborhood, to the details of the man some people are calling a real-life Saul Goodman. NO PARDONS, NO VOTES: https://pardonsnow.com/ J.G. Michael's other podcast, Parallax Views: https://parallaxviews.podbean.com/ Failed State Update Podcast: https://roundtable.io/failed-state-update/podcasts

Wayne Madsen is an investigative journalist, the author of twenty-one books, and the publisher of The Wayne Madsen Report. His latest book is The Rise of the Fascist Fourth Reich: The Era of Trumpism and the New Far-Right. Stories about Wayne Madsen on Failed State Update: "Did Wayne Madsen uncover a 2016 ‘Stop the Steal’ Plot?" "Wayne Madsen on the New Fourth Reich" Make sure you check out J.G.'s other podcast, Parallax Views.

On February 10, Failed State Update co-hosts Joseph L. Flatley and JG Michael appeared on The Ochelli Effect live to discuss current events, conspiracy theories, JFK, Ozzy Osbourne, and more. Unfortunately, someone messed up the recording of the after-show that we did (that person being Joseph L. Flatley), but we do have the show itself here for your listening pleasure. If you dig it, please check out Chuck Ochelli's podcast, The Ochelli Effect, live at ochelli.com or on your podcast app of choice.

What do UFOs, the CIA, the conflict in Ukraine, and the Philadelphia Experiment have in common? Tune in to find out! Jack Brewer writes "The UFO Trail", a blog dedicated to publishing credible info on incredible topics. Brewer's research interests include the UFO subculture, the intelligence community, and related social dynamics, and he's here to discuss all these topics as well as his new book Wayward Sons: NICAP and the IC. NEW! INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT: https://roundtable.io/failed-state-update/podcasts/cia-fbi-ufo-nicap-jack-brewer Jack's Blog, The UFO Trail: http://ufotrail.blogspot.com/ Jack Brewer on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheUFOTrail Failed State Update News: https://roundtable.io/failed-state-update/ Failed State Update on Twitter: https://twitter.com/failedstatenews JG Michael/Parallax Views on Twitter: https://twitter.com/ViewsParallax

In this episode of Failed State Update, Joseph L. "Lenny" Flatley goes toe-to-toe with the hosts of the Boys' Bible Study podcast. The Bible Boys, as we like to call them, wade deep into the murky waters of the Christian pop culture industry, reviewing the weirdest and most interesting independently produced films with a certain message. Since that message often includes far-right and Christian nationalist propaganda, their reviews should be of particular interest to Failed State Update listeners. Besides, the podcast is really, really fun. For the Bible Boys' second appearance on Failed State Update we discuss the film The Finders by conspiracy theorist auteur/New Jersey's own Tracy Lucca. You might recall that in real life, The Finders was an alternative lifestyle commune that got sucked into the satanic panic in the 1980s. The group no longer exists, but its memory is kept alive by a whole generation of conspiracy theorists who claim that the community was actually a cult that engaged in kidnapping and the ritual abuse of children for the CIA. The whole thing is absurd. It's also the mythology behind Lucca's film. Here is some background in case you're curious about the real, actual Finders, as opposed to the myth: Failed State Update: "From the Finders to QAnon": https://roundtable.io/failed-state-update/features/finders-qanon-pizzagate-cia-mind-control-cult-conspiracy-theory Failed State Update: "Children of the Finders Speak!" https://roundtable.io/failed-state-update/features/finders-qanon-pizzagate-cia-mind-control-cult-conspiracy-theory And of course, make sure you check out Boys' Bible Study: https://boysbiblestudy.libsyn.com/