Bad At Magic

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Show Notes

• Ben and Josh talk about death, parenting, making your mark on the world, and present a new framework for analyzing business priorities they call “Ways of the Realm”. 
• Intro & Follow-up (0-15:59)
  • What We Did on Our Holiday (UK)
  • The end of the ‘People I Mostly Admire’ podcast after 5 years
• Bad at Parenting (15:59-38:58)
• Your Pixel in the Grid (38:58-54:04)
  • Jason’s Supra
• Spreadsheets and What I’m Reading (54:04-1:20:55)
  • Spreadsheet discussion on our subreddit
  • Josh: The Shadow Rising – Robert Jordan
  • Ben: Paradise Bronx: The Life and Times of New York’s Greatest Borough – Ian Frazier
• Feature (1:20:55-end)
  • Medieval Barber Theodoric of York (SNL)
• Join in the discussion on:
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BadAtMagicPodcast
  • Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/badatmagic/
  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badatmagic/podcasts
• Check out our website(s):
  • http://www.badatmagic.live
  • Our YouTube Channel
• Support us on: 
  • Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/badatmagic/
• Credits:
  • Bad at Magic Logos by Jonica Rich
  • Transition music by Jarus Rich
  • Outro music from Cascading by Ammon Rich

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Show Notes

• The Bad at Magic Disney Baddie Showdown reaches the Semifinals thanks to a sudden-death tiebreak on Patreon, Ben is bad at parenting (again), Josh’s World of Warcraft characters died to his surprising great dismay, and the hosts set their New Year’s resolutions with the now-customary bingo cards.
• Intro & Follow-up (0-11:03)
  • Patreon Exclusive Bonus Episode: Ursula vs. Hans
  • The 2023 British Protest Film “Paint Drying” by Charlie Shackleton
• Bad at Parenting & Bad at Science (11:03-39:50)
  • “Yes, Some Children May Have Died From COVID Shots” by Benjamin Mazer
  • How Monogamous are Humans? By Helen Briggs
• The Ubisoft Heist & “What I’m Reading” (39:50-1:13:37)
  • The Ubisoft Heist: EXPLAINED
  • What I’m reading:
    • Josh: The Dragon Reborn – Robert Jordan
    • Ben: Empire of the Summer Moon – SC Gwynne
  • Hardcore WoW
•  New Year’s Resolutions (1:13:37-end)
  • Make your own!
  • Hear the story of “The Italian Job” from Ep. 9
• Join in the discussion on:
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BadAtMagicPodcast
  • Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/badatmagic/
  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badatmagic/podcasts
• Check out our website(s):
  • http://www.badatmagic.live
  • Our YouTube Channel
• Support us on: 
  • Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/badatmagic/
• Credits:
  • Bad at Magic Logos by Jonica Rich
  • Transition music by Jarus Rich
  • Outro music from Cascading by Ammon Rich

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Show Notes

• Happy holidays from the Bad at Magic podcast as Ben and Josh revisit last year’s resolutions bingo cards, Josh shares some research on what probably happened to Tiny Tim in the Dickens’ classic, and the guys do a deep dive following Josh’s trip to Walt Disney World.
• Intro & Follow-up (0-15:24)
  • Ben’s Old S’mores Tier Chart (start at 44:46)
  • What’s wrong with Tiny Tim?
• New Year’s Bingo Revisited (15:24-35:45)
• Bad at Husbanding (35:45-52:57)
• Bad at Parenting/Work (52:57-1:16:56)
  • Definition of today’s word/phrase
  • ChatGPT analysis of the Bad at Magic Podcast
• Fleshman Family Vacation to Disney World (1:16:56-end)
  • What I’m Reading: 
    • Josh: The Great Hunt – Robert Jordan
    • Ben: Empire of the Summer Moon – SC Gwynne
  • Eye of The World leatherbound announcement – Brandon Sanderson
• Join in the discussion on:
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BadAtMagicPodcast
  • Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/badatmagic/
  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badatmagic/podcasts
• Check out our website(s):
  • http://www.badatmagic.live
  • Our YouTube Channel
• Support us on: 
  • Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/badatmagic/
• Credits:
  • Bad at Magic Logos by Jonica Rich
  • Transition music by Jarus Rich
  • Outro music from Cascading by Ammon Rich

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Show Notes

• Ben and Josh weigh in on the death of the penny, AI in video game development, the evils of social media, and finally a trip to the Emergency Room over the Thanksgiving holiday for Ben prompts the hosts to share their “Murtaugh List”. 
• Intro & Follow-up (0-32:06)
  • US Mint FAQ on the penny being “suspended”
  • PennyArcade Blog: AI in video game production
• What I’m Reading & Bad at Social Media (32:06-1:20:50)
  • Josh: The Great Hunt – Robert Jordan
  • Ben: Careless People – Sarah Wynn-Williams
  • MUST WATCH: Expensive petroleum!!!
• Feature (1:20:50-end)
  • The Murtaugh List (How I Met Your Mother)
• Join in the discussion on:
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BadAtMagicPodcast
  • Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/badatmagic/
  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badatmagic/podcasts
• Check out our website(s):
  • http://www.badatmagic.live
  • Our YouTube Channel
• Support us on: 
  • Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/badatmagic/
• Credits:
  • Bad at Magic Logos by Jonica Rich
  • Transition music by Jarus Rich
  • Outro music from Cascading by Ammon Rich

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Show Notes

• Ben and Josh discuss why Elon Musk threatened to buy Hasbro Corporation, office potlucks, fender benders, political thrillers that have come true 30 years later, some revisions that need to be made to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), and finally, the new movie on Netflix called ‘A House of Dynamite’ about what could happen if someone launched an Inter-continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM). 
• Intro & Follow-up (0-35:59)
  • Man told employer not to celebrate his birthday. He was awarded $450,000 after unwanted party.
  • Watch ‘Clear and Present Danger’ on Netflix
  • Dungeons & Dragons Rolls the Dice With New Rules About Identity
  • “Why Elon Musk Needs Dungeons & Dragons to Be Racist: The fantastical roots of ‘scientific racism’” By Adam Serwer
• The EU’s GDPR turns 10 years old (35:59-58:59)
  • EU plans to ease GDPR laws and AI constraints in major shift – DW – 11/18/2025
• What I’m Reading (58:59-1:10:44)
  • Josh: The Eye of the World by Robert Jordan
  • Ben: Careless People by Sarah Wynn-Williams
• Main Segment (1:10:44-end)
  • Watch ‘A House of Dynamite’ on Netflix
    • Watch the trailer (2:11)
  • What do the 5 levels of DEFense readiness CONdition (DEFCON) mean?
    • Video explanation 
• Join in the discussion on:
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BadAtMagicPodcast
  • Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/badatmagic/
  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badatmagic/podcasts
• Check out our website(s):
  • http://www.badatmagic.live
  • Our YouTube Channel
• Support us on: 
  • Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/badatmagic/
• Credits:
  • Bad at Magic Logos by Jonica Rich
  • Transition music by Jarus Rich
  • Outro music from Cascading by Ammon Rich

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Show Notes

• Ben and Josh tentatively embrace the newest Magic set (Avatar: The Last Airbender) prior to its release, Josh complains about Daylight Savings Time (again), Presidents do (or don’t) catch fainting people standing behind them, the first round of the Bad at Magic Disney Baddie Showdown “sweet 16” wraps up, and the hosts discuss the scandal surrounding Silicon Valley startup Theranos and its CEO Elizabeth Holmes and COO Sunny Balwani. 
• Intro & Follow-up (0-29:35)
  • Languages most frequently used for web content as of Oct 2025 by share of websites
  • Avatar: The Last Air Bender | Magic: The Gathering – Universes Beyond
  • Check out the Disney Baddie Showdown on the Bad at Magic subreddit
  • Lore Olympus | WEBTOON
• Bad at Daylight Savings Time & Hometown Football (29:35-46:53)
  • Obama catches fainting woman
• What I’m Reading (46:53-1:08:55)
  • Josh: Slay by Laurell K. Hamilton (Anita Blake, Vampire Hunter book #30)
    • Airplane facts with Max
  • Ben: The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands by Dr. Laura Schlessinger
• Main Segment (1:08:55-end)
  • Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup – John Carreyrou
  • The guy at your company who does NOTHING
  • Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes Mad Money Interview, Oct 2015 
• Join in the discussion on:
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BadAtMagicPodcast
  • Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/badatmagic/
  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badatmagic/podcasts
• Check out our website(s):
  • http://www.badatmagic.live
  • Our YouTube Channel
• Support us on: 
  • Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/badatmagic/
• Credits:
  • Bad at Magic Logos by Jonica Rich
  • Transition music by Jarus Rich
  • Outro music from Cascading by Ammon Rich

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Show Notes

• In this potpourri episode, Josh wrestles with Microsoft Corporation, Ben goes camping on Tatooine, Josh has another fast food disaster, the AWS outage turns smart beds into panini presses (#aboringdystopia), join in on the 2025 Disney Baddie Showdown, and hang in there for the first ever post-credits scene in Podcast history.
• Intro & Follow-up (0-27:03)
  • Building the USS Gerald R. Ford (CVN-78)
  • How a U.S. Nuclear Strike Actually Works
  • This Star Wars-Themed Desert Outpost in Utah Is As Strange As It Sounds – Outside Magazine
  • SNAP (Food Stamps) runs out of money Nov 1. States are figuring out how to feed millions of people
• Bad at tech (27:03-1:08:11)
  • Windows 10 End of Life
  • 2025 Amazon Web Services (AWS) US-EAST-1 outage: “It’s always DNS”
    • …which caused a Luxury Smart Bed malfunction
• Disney Baddie Showdown (1:08:11-1:16:26)
  • Check out the Disney Baddie Showdown on our Subreddit
• Bad at Drive-Thru (1:16:26-1:32:08)
• What I’m Reading (1:32:08-end)
  • READ FOR NEXT TIME:
    • Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup – John Carreyrou
  • Lay’s drastically rebrands after disturbing finding: 42% of consumers didn’t know their chips were made out of potatoes
  • Enlightenment Now: The Case for reason, science, humanism, and progress (2018)
• Join in the discussion on:
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BadAtMagicPodcast
  • Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/badatmagic/
  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badatmagic/podcasts
• Check out our website(s):
  • http://www.badatmagic.live
  • Our YouTube Channel
• Support us on: 
  • Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/badatmagic/
• Credits:
  • Bad at Magic Logos by Jonica Rich
  • Transition music by Jarus Rich
  • Outro music from Cascading by Ammon Rich

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Show Notes

• Ben responds to the church shooting in Michigan, Josh faces a Halloween costume crisis, Ben starts Year 2 at Hogwarts, Josh has WORDS about the book he’s been reading, and the guys share their thoughts on the brand-new movie Tron: Ares (SPOILER WARNING). 
• Intro & Follow-up (0-27:25)
  • Church Shooting in Michigan
• Bad at Society (27:25-36:08)
  • Vanity Sizing
• Bad at Tech (36:08-45:45)
  • Waymo update
  • Zoox self-driving car
• Bad at Business (45:45-53:21)
  • LTT reaction to Saudi Public Investment Fund acquisition of EA Games
  • Saudi-owned Professional Golf League: LIV Golf
• What I’m Reading (53:21-1:16:31)
  • Josh: 
    • Ego is the Enemy – Ryan Holiday
    • The priory of the orange tree – Samantha Shannon
  • Ben: 
    • The Dead Hand: The Untold Story of the Cold War Arms Race and its Dangerous Legacy – David E. Hoffman
• Tron: Ares (1:16:31-end)
  • Bad at Magic Ep. 143: The Tron Paradox
  • Tron: Ares Trailer
  • AI References:
    • Kurzesagt: AI Slop is Destroying the Internet
    • Vlog Brothers: The Web is going to die
    • Weekly Show with Jon Stewart: Computer Scientist Geoffrey Hinton
    • The AI Prompt that could end the world
    • We’re not ready for superintelligence
• Join in the discussion on:
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BadAtMagicPodcast
  • Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/badatmagic/
  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badatmagic/podcasts
• Check out our website(s):
  • http://www.badatmagic.live
  • Our YouTube Channel
• Support us on: 
  • Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/badatmagic/
• Credits:
  • Bad at Magic Logos by Jonica Rich
  • Transition music by Jarus Rich
  • Outro music from Cascading by Ammon Rich

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Show Notes

• Josh’s electric car almost burns down his house, Ben gets a “fat guy clap” in the office 5K, the hosts propose a Disney Baddie Showdown (coming soon!), and finally they guys do a retrospective on ‘The Siege’ (1998) starring Denzel Washington and Bruce Willis. 
• Intro & Follow-up (0-25:27)
  • The SCP Foundation
  • The back story behind Ben’s friend who has never seen Star Wars
  • The Mandalorian and Grogu trailer
• Bad at Emotional Intelligence (25:27-41:39)
  • And that’sssss bad?
• Bad at Fitness (41:39-53:43)
• Bad at Technology (53:43-1:12:27)
  • Prius battery replacement video
  • “Johnny 5 need input.”
  • Explorers (1985)
• Board Game Survivor (1:12:27-1:19:37)
  • Magic: the Gathering™ Universes Beyond™ Spider-Man™
• Feature (1:19:37-end)
  • The Siege (1998) trailer
• Join in the discussion on:
  • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BadAtMagicPodcast
  • Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/badatmagic/
  • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badatmagic/podcasts
• Check out our website(s):
  • http://www.badatmagic.live
  • Our YouTube Channel
• Support us on: 
  • Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/badatmagic/
• Credits:
  • Bad at Magic Logos by Jonica Rich
  • Transition music by Jarus Rich
  • Outro music from Cascading by Ammon Rich

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Show Notes

• Ben goes to Disneyland but not without managing to be bad at parenting, Josh creates an intensity metric for the 3rd of the 5 Love Languages (Quality Time) in their ongoing deep-dive series on the topic, and the hosts lament the unfortunate state of political discourse in the United States. 
• Intro & Follow-up (0-9:16)
  • Give us all the CLIX (159 in Roman Numerals):
    • Join in the discussion on:
      • Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BadAtMagicPodcast
      • Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/badatmagic/
      • YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@badatmagic/podcasts
    • Check out our website(s):
      • http://www.badatmagic.live
      • Our YouTube Channel
    • Support us on: 
      • Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/badatmagic/
  • Die Hard With a Vengeance shoplifting kids 
• Bad at Parenting (9:16-21:59)
• Bad at Love (21:59-49:03)
  • The Five Love Languages
  • Quality Time B@M Intensity Graphic | Subtypes Graphic
• What I’m Reading (49:03-1:03:20)
  • Josh: The Eye of the Bedlam Bride by Matt Dinniman
  • Ben:
    • The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne
    • Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
• Political Discourse in America (1:03:20-end)
• Credits:
  • Bad at Magic Logos by Jonica Rich
  • Transition music by Jarus Rich
  • Outro music from Cascading by Ammon Rich