In Bed With The Right

For this episode of In Bed with the Right, Adrian and Moira return to the year 1933. They continue the story of how Hitler seized power, what it did to society, what it felt like to live through it, and -- as always -- what role gender and sexuality played in events. Reminder: We're going month by month for these episodes. This sixth installment covers August 1 to August 31, 1933. Meaning: This is a summer episode. It finds many of the institutions the Nazis have subjugated on summer break, the ongoing processes of synchronization and Nazification either already completed or about to kick into high gear. So this is an episode about the little stuff, the summer things: what our bodies do as the institutions betray us, how external pressures create coalitions, but also open up fissures, how old identities disappear without anything quite ready to take their place. And of course: what happens to our sense of time at times of peril. It's an episode full of small, interpersonal dramas, nervousness, regret and fear for the future -- punctuated by sudden outbursts of state-sanctioned violence and political cruelty. It is, in other words, a perfect episode for the summer of 2025.

It's taken us forever to do this, but here it is at last: In Bed With the Right's first ever mailbag episode! We asked our Patreon supporters to send in questions, and they sent tons and tons. All of them were brilliant and fun, and because we wanted to answer as many of them, and because we couldn't shut up when answering them, it's only Part 1! This episode delves into how the podcast came to be, our main takeaways from Project 1933, the history of HR departments, identity politics, the "girl code", and what gives us hope for the future (yes, really!).

Historian Quinn Slobodian (Crack-Up Capitalism, Hayek's Bastards, and the forthcoming Muskism: A Guide for the Perplexed) walks Moira and Adrian through the fate of IQ on late 20th century and early 21st century right wing thought. How did this concept bring together the nationalist right and self-described libertarians? How did it become a load bearing self-identifier for many a "gifted" kid of the 1990s? And how did it take hold so thoroughly among the Silicon Valley elite?

For this episode of In Bed with the Right, Adrian and Moira return to the year 1933. They continue the story of how Hitler seized power, what it did to society, what it felt like to live through it, and -- as always -- what role gender and sexuality played in events. Reminder: We're going month by month for these episodes. This fifth installment covers July 1 to June 31, 1933 -- and is devoted entirely to two separate, but intertwined phenomena: Nazi collaborators and the Catholic Church. We cover the different valences of resistance and collaborations in Germany in 1933 -- from culture war stuff, to Nazification, to practices like the Hitler salute. But we also cover the tricky situation of the Catholic Center Party in 1933, and the "Reichskonkordat", a treaty concluded in July that gave the Catholic Church a measure of autonomy within the Nazi state ... but at the cost of an oath of loyalty to Hitler's state.

2025's strangest scandal involves facts that have been known for years and absolutely no new information. And yet it has managed to keep consummate bullshitter Donald Trump seemingly flatfooted. In this episode, Patrick Blanchfield (co-host of Ordinary Unhappiness) joins Moira and Adrian to talk Epstein, the files, the coverup, Trump and the return of the not-at-all repressed. The conversation touches on the gender politics of revelation, conspiracies real and imagined, blood libel, and the long shadow of #MeToo. Lots and lots of trigger warnings obviously!

Moira walks Adrian through the long, twisty story of the Moonies -- a story that, somewhat improbably, brings together North Korea, the Hudson Valley, the murder of Shinzo Abe and New England fisheries. And weddings. Just so many weddings.

We first recorded this episode -- on the gaggle of bizarre right-wing cranks around the German poet Stefan George (1868 - 1933) -- for IBTWR's Patreon. It's one we're very proud of, and it's also an interesting complement to our ongoing Project 1933. Hope you like it!

For this episode of In Bed with the Right, Adrian and Moira return to the year 1933. They continue the story of how Hitler seized power, what it did to society, what it felt like to live through it, and -- as always -- what role gender and sexuality played in events. Reminder: We're going month by month for these episodes. This fourth installment covers June 1 to June 30, 1933 -- above all the role of the stormtroopers, the SA. This one has everything: homosociality, masculinity, red floods, and long knives!Here are the books we refer to in this episode:Daniel Siemens, The Stormtrooper: A New HistoryAndrew Wackerfuss, Stormtrooper Families: homosexuality and community in the early NaziMovementKlaus Theweleit, Male FantasiesDaniel Siemens: Horst Wessel. Tod und Verklärung eines Nationalsozialisten (2009)

Bridget Read, a journalist for New York Magazine and author of "Little Bosses Everywhere," explores the intriguing world of multi-level marketing (MLM) schemes. She uncovers how these companies, from Amway to Herbalife, have influenced American politics and social movements, often targeting women's empowerment while masking exploitation. The conversation dives into the deceptive nature of MLMs, their historical roots, and eerie parallels with Silicon Valley investment practices, revealing a complex interplay of ambition, gender dynamics, and economic inequality.

The discussion dives into the tumultuous events of May 1933, highlighting Hitler’s rise and the resulting societal shifts. Insights from Victor Klemperer’s diary reveal personal struggles amid political chaos. The podcast examines the erosion of trade unions and the women's movement under Nazi influence, as well as the complexities surrounding employment discrimination. Additionally, it reflects on the chilling impact of totalitarianism on truth, social movements, and LGBTQ+ rights, punctuated by the infamous book burnings that targeted progressive ideas.