Just Two Good Old Boys

147 What Happens When Memes Meet The Monroe Doctrine

Send us a textThe news didn’t just move fast—it zigzagged. We kick off with an unfiltered look at how Greenland became a very real piece on the policy chessboard, why Europeans bristled, and what “state vs. country” means when NATO and the EU blur lines. From there we head south, breaking down a surgical operation in Venezuela that combined electronic warfare, runway denial, and precision timing to remove a regime figure in hours. The follow-up tanker seizure, a mid‑route flag change, and whispers of a sub escort raise a bigger question: what was so valuable on that ship?We zoom out to the lessons modern conflicts keep teaching—drones eating billion‑dollar air power, intelligence networks deciding tempo, and why small, decisive actions can end stalemates faster than years of trench attrition. Then comes Iran: nationwide internet cutoffs, police siding with crowds, and a cultural turn that could reshape the region if the regime falls. The stakes are bigger than headlines—funding for proxies, energy risk, and whether authoritarian momentum can be reversed when people stop being afraid.Back home, Minnesota turns into a stress test for law, training, and narrative. We walk through the viral ICE‑adjacent shooting frame by frame—tire angle, wheel spin on ice, officer displacement, and the moment shots were fired. Legally justified doesn’t mean optimal; earlier less‑lethal might have saved a life. Alongside that, we dig into daycare and medical fraud patterns, the Hilton franchise blacklisting after refusing federal rates, and a renewed push to bar dual‑citizen lawmakers. It’s all one theme: does authority match accountability?We wind down with human performance and maker culture: fasting that hits harder with age, insulin nudges to manage stubborn glucose, and a quick tour of DIY suppressors—Form 1 pathways, modular builds, and what modern 3D printers can actually deliver. If you like geopolitics with receipts, police tactics without slogans, and tech you can hold in your hand, you’ll feel right at home. Subscribe, share with a friend who loves sharp analysis, and tell us where you stand in the comments—what did we nail, and what should we challenge next? Want to hear old episodes? All subscribers have access to the full back catalog of episodes and specials! Just Two Good Old Boys (Just Two Good Old Boys +) Communicate with us directly on x.com by joining the Good Old Boys community! https://x.com/i/communities/1887018898605641825 Can't donate? Listen to Amy Clare Smith Music Check out Gene's other podcasts -podcast.sirgene.com and unrelenting.show Read Ben's blog and see product links at namedben.com

146 We Came For The Mute Button, Stayed For The Air Horn

Send us a textA new year, a new sound, and a lot to unpack. We kick things off by stress-testing the Rode Streamer X against the Motu and talk through why tiny hardware choices—like a reliable physical mute and smarter onboard processing—change how often we ship. Then the scope widens fast: we tackle the Minnesota fraud scandal and the fragile limits of “tolerance,” pull threads through Iran’s pre- and post-1979 identity, and revisit the strategic misreads around Iraq, WMDs, and missed leverage. It’s policy without the euphemisms—who benefits, who pays, and what norms are worth defending.On the practical side, we map a DIY path to quiet shooting with Form 1 suppressors: serializing thread adapters, 3D-printed baffles, modular hub standards, and why pressure curves matter more than bullet size for lifespan. Expect early scarcity, then a wave of innovation as metal additive manufacturing enables complex, efficient internals that machining can’t touch. If you’ve been suppressor-curious, this is your blueprint.We also get personal. One of us prepares for a two-week fast with a plan to beat the day-two slump and a smarter refeed; the other goes full Lego Enterprise and confesses a utilitarian streak revealed by space-building games. Along the way we trade notes on scaling creator businesses (what to outsource, what to own), call out the costs of performative influence, and celebrate small wins—like fixing foot pain by ditching hard heels.If you’re into audio gear, DIY firearms, geopolitics, fasting, or the craft of making more with less, you’ll find something to grab onto. Subscribe, share with a friend who shares your sense of humor, and leave a review telling us which chapter you want us to go deeper on next. Want to hear old episodes? All subscribers have access to the full back catalog of episodes and specials! Just Two Good Old Boys (Just Two Good Old Boys +) Communicate with us directly on x.com by joining the Good Old Boys community! https://x.com/i/communities/1887018898605641825 Can't donate? Listen to Amy Clare Smith Music Check out Gene's other podcasts -podcast.sirgene.com and unrelenting.show Read Ben's blog and see product links at namedben.com

145 Drones, Deals, And Disillusionment: How Modern Power Really Moves

Send us a textPolitics loves a headline, but incentives write the story. We kick off with a sharp pivot in U.S. leverage: foreign aid tied to UN alignment and public posture. Is that coercive or just honesty about the deal on the table? From there we tackle Europe’s speech controls and the push to block censors at the border—policy turning into travel reality. Even ICE’s trolling PR tells a tale: agencies that message with intent tend to move the field, while others just talk.The conversation gets thornier with the Epstein files and Snowden. Performative redaction—layers you can peel off—looks less like a mistake and more like theater that protects powerful networks. Snowden’s floated pardon has a clean moral case and a messy practical one. You can free a whistleblower, but the secrecy machine he challenged still has teeth. That tension—between ideals and institutions—runs through everything we discuss next: welfare spending that swells without lifting outcomes, and online marketplaces where innovation is copied in months because the platform’s incentives permit it.Abroad, we trace pressure campaigns around Venezuela and the shadow fleet, then wrestle with a gleaming provocation: a “Trump-class” missile battleship concept with hypersonics, lasers, and a railgun. Troll or doctrine? Maybe both—a jobs program for shipyards and a signal to rivals. Meanwhile, drones are rewriting the rules of war in Ukraine, exposing ports and fleets inside their own walls. Counter-drone becomes the new naval religion, above and below the surface. Back home, Chevron’s exit from California collides with boutique fuel mandates, nudging gas toward double digits and reminding everyone that policy choices show up at the pump.We also get practical. Airline lounges aren’t a luxury; they’re leverage. Rebooking power, compensation rules, and flexible routing can turn a lost day into an upgrade. And if you’re shopping on Amazon, small heuristics—Prime fulfillment, “Sold by Amazon,” brand-first buying—can save you from cloned garbage. It’s all the same lesson: understand the incentives, then work them. If that resonates, hit follow, share this episode with a friend who loves geopolitics and life hacks, and leave a quick review—what surprised you most? Support the showWant to hear old episodes? All subscribers have access to the full back catalog of episodes and specials! Just Two Good Old Boys (Just Two Good Old Boys +) Communicate with us directly on x.com by joining the Good Old Boys community! https://x.com/i/communities/1887018898605641825 Can't donate? Listen to Amy Clare Smith Music Check out Gene's other podcasts -podcast.sirgene.com and unrelenting.show Read Ben's blog and see product links at namedben.com

144 Mileage Runs, Lawsuits, And Late Flights

Send us a textTwelve days, 112 hours, and a one‑day court battle later, we unpack the unvarnished playbook: why incorporating in Texas often beats Delaware once you count courtroom costs, and how big-company lawsuits reward remediation and settlement over cinematic wins. From there we pivot to a mileage run threading Chicago’s subzero risk and the strange logic of airline status: when award flights count, when buy‑ups make sense, and why short-haul heavy‑status routes can be upgrade deserts. The goal isn’t perks—it’s time, flexibility, and predictability for the year ahead.Then the stakes rise. We dissect the U.S. seizure of a sanctioned “ghost fleet” tanker and call it what it is—power, not clean legalism. That leads us through EU farmer protests, cultural fatigue, and a bracing definition of revolution as an “elite swap.” We push back on new U.S. visa demands for five years of social media history as another step toward a normalized digital ID regime that spreads fast through allied blocs. In U.S. politics, we scrutinize how public servants become millionaires on salaries that don’t match the math and why attempts to silence critics backfire in the age of receipts.Personal operating systems matter too. One host lays out a disciplined, annual water fast—salt, water, vitamins, and a tough day two and three—for a cognitive reset that outlasts any short-term weight drop. On foreign policy, we argue that funding Ukraine’s government operations without a clear cutoff extends stalemate; a firm date could force negotiations faster than speeches. And because resilience is built before you need it, we dive into off‑grid communications: Meshtastic at 900 MHz, encrypted, store‑and‑forward, even pinging ground nodes from 30,000 feet—no FCC license required. We contrast that with sat phones, Starlink-to-cell potential, and the AI squeeze inflating RAM prices while GPUs and CPUs guzzle power.It’s a wide‑angle episode with one throughline: sovereignty. Choose jurisdictions that protect you. Treat status as a tool, not a trophy. Guard privacy against creeping demands. Build communication that works when commercial networks don’t. If this hits home, follow and share with a friend who loves sharp takes and practical tactics—and drop a review to help others find the show. Want to hear old episodes? All subscribers have access to the full back catalog of episodes and specials! Just Two Good Old Boys (Just Two Good Old Boys +) Communicate with us directly on x.com by joining the Good Old Boys community! https://x.com/i/communities/1887018898605641825 Can't donate? Listen to Amy Clare Smith Music Check out Gene's other podcasts -podcast.sirgene.com and unrelenting.show Read Ben's blog and see product links at namedben.com

Just Two Good Old Boys Christmas Celebration

Send us a textThis is our Christmas card to our listeners and especially to our monthly supporters! Ben and Gene wish you a very Merry Christmas! Support the showWant to hear old episodes? All subscribers have access to the full back catalog of episodes and specials! Just Two Good Old Boys (Just Two Good Old Boys +) Communicate with us directly on x.com by joining the Good Old Boys community! https://x.com/i/communities/1887018898605641825 Can't donate? Listen to Amy Clare Smith Music Check out Gene's other podcasts -podcast.sirgene.com and unrelenting.show Read Ben's blog and see product links at namedben.com