In this fourth installment of A Special Place In Hell, the girls/women clarify a few matters, starting with the meaning of the name of the podcast. They then analyze their Apple Podcast reviews and respond to criticism that the show is a departure from their usual seriousness. Are they’re letting down their diehard fans by trafficking in snark rather than upholding their usual gravitas? (Answer: whatever.)

Meghan announces that she’s putting The Unspeakable podcast on hiatus for the rest of the summer so she can focus on A Special Place In Hell as well as her other projects. She and Sarah agree that it was time they did something light and fun for a change. Plus, they are have such comedic talent. The world needs to know! After taking a few minutes to perfunctorily lament the current state of comedy (their version of land acknowledgements) the girls/women move on to the subject of the July 4 massacre in Highland Park, IL and Tucker Carlson’s much-cited and largely (but not wholly?) misguided rant about why young men become mass shooters. Is it because fathers are absent and female authority figures (aka single mothers and pink-haired English teachers) tell them they’re toxic? Is it because guidance counselors now hand out psychotropic drugs like so many Kaplan SAT course brochures? Is it because whiteness is such a liability that the only choices in life are TikTok stardom or committing mass murder?

Ever the contrarian, Sarah thinks it’s more complicated than that. She reflects on growing up as an immigrant in a lower-middle-class neighborhood and realizing she had more advantages than her troubled white neighbors because, among other things, she had a strong family structure. Speaking of families, she and Meghan then discuss—and even perform—a recent viral tweet thread about the moral obligation to abandon your family of origin if they’re not sufficiently committed to social justice.

Other questions pondered:

* Is Sarah a “trad?” (Kind of)

* Does Meghan have evil in her heart? (Only professionally)

* Is saying you love America the equivalent of carrying a plastic purse? (Depends on your shoes)

Links/Announcements:

* Sarah’s Independence Day Essay: American Pride, American Shame

* Meghan is teaching an opinion writing class on Zoom, four consecutive Mondays, August 8th, 15th, 22nd, 29th (not August 2; she misspoke on the pod). 3-5pm ET. Details here.

* Lean about The Unspeakeasy, Meghan’s community-in-progress for freethinking women, here.

* Like our new theme music? It’s by friend-of-the-pod and Australian rock star Mia Dyson!

BONUS CONTENT (for subscribers):

The girls/women answer some listener questions, including what constitutes a good faith debate, what do they like to cook, and what are their positions on Bitcoin, animé and certain kinds of furniture.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit aspecialplace.substack.com

Ep 71 Adventures in podcasting with your son, finding guests and the life-changing potential of remote work