The Brownstone Show

In this episode of The Brownstone Show, Jeffrey Tucker interviews Tyler O'Neil, author of Making Hate Pay, about explosive new revelations concerning the Southern Poverty Law Center. They discuss the SPLC’s informant program, alleged payments to Klan figures and a Charlottesville organizer, shell companies used for money laundering, and how the organization placed mainstream groups like Moms for Liberty, Turning Point USA, and Family Research Council on its “hate map” alongside actual extremists — all to drive fundraising. From Jeffrey Tucker’s long-held skepticism to fresh insights from the federal indictment, O’Neil breaks down the SPLC’s incentive structure, history of exaggeration, and its impact on free speech, civil society, and public discourse. Key Topics Covered: * The SPLC indictment: Klan informants, Charlottesville funding, and shell companies* How the “hate map” smears conservative and Christian organizations* Fundraising off exaggerated threats and manufactured controversies* Tyler O’Neil’s book Making Hate Pay and years of SPLC reporting* Effects on events, de-banking, Big Tech censorship, and public trust* Intellectual honesty vs. institutional grift in the “hate industry”Tyler O’Neil brings detailed research and firsthand analysis as Senior Editor at The Daily Signal, while Jeffrey Tucker connects it to broader themes of liberty, propaganda, and institutional corruption. This is essential viewing for anyone concerned about weaponized “hate” labels, civil society, and the integrity of nonprofit watchdogs. 👉 Subscribe to The Brownstone Show for more fearless conversations on liberty, ideas, and cultural renewal. Drop a comment: Have you or your organization been affected by the SPLC’s hate map or similar labeling? Get full access to Brownstone Insights at substack.brownstone.org/subscribe

In this episode of The Brownstone Show, Jeffrey Tucker recounts his widely read article on the death of George Washington, who was bled to death by his doctors in 1799. He explores the history of iatrogenic death — death by medical treatment — and draws sobering parallels to modern medical overreach, from bloodletting to COVID-era ventilators and suppressed treatments. Key Topics Covered: * The Death of George Washington — bled to death by his doctors* Jeffrey Tucker’s discovery and public reaction to this hidden history* The long tradition of blind trust in medical protocols* Iatrogenic harm through the ages: bloodletting, mercury, lobotomies & more* Deadly COVID policies: ventilators, suppressed therapeutics, and mandates* Questioning medical authority then and now* Lessons for the future of healing and evidence-based medicine Jeffrey Tucker connects this foundational American tragedy to today’s crises of trust, offering a powerful meditation on why we must challenge medical orthodoxy. This is essential viewing for anyone concerned about public health, medical freedom, and learning from history. 👉 Subscribe to The Brownstone Show for more fearless conversations on liberty, ideas, and cultural renewal. Get full access to Brownstone Insights at substack.brownstone.org/subscribe

In this episode of The Brownstone Show, Jeffrey Tucker sits down with Alan Cassels, one of the world’s leading experts on disease mongering and co-author of the groundbreaking book Selling Sickness, for a revealing conversation on how the medical-industrial complex turns healthy people into patients. From the manufactured panic of COVID to the relentless expansion of “risk factors” into diseases, Cassels exposes the playbook: redefining normal human conditions as illnesses, lowering diagnostic thresholds to create millions of new customers, and pushing lifelong treatments for profit. Key Topics Covered: * The Amish COVID meme and how media hysteria drove the pandemic response* Wellness checkups and the medicalization of healthy people* The cholesterol/statins racket and ever-changing guidelines* Risk distortion, IFR, and how fear was weaponized during COVID* Inventing osteoporosis as a disease and selling fear of bone density* Over-screening with PSA tests, colonoscopies, and more* Female sexual dysfunction, social anxiety disorder, and other created conditions* The GLP-1/Ozempic boom and the medicalization of body size * Why movement, diet, and accepting natural variation are better than drugs Alan Cassels brings decades of research and sharp insight, while Jeffrey Tucker connects it to broader themes of liberty and institutional trust. This episode is essential viewing for anyone tired of being sold sickness and ready to reclaim personal health autonomy. 👉 Subscribe to The Brownstone Show for more fearless conversations on liberty, public health, and medical freedom. Follow Jeffrey Tucker & Brownstone Institute: Website: brownstone.org X/Twitter: @jeffreyatucker Alan Cassels: Brownstone Fellow & Author of Selling Sickness X/Twitter: @AKECassels Get full access to Brownstone Insights at substack.brownstone.org/subscribe

Join Jeffrey Tucker for an edifying conversation with acclaimed author and essayist Ann Bauer. Ann is one of today’s rare masters of prose who turns everyday truths into unforgettable art. In this episode Jeffrey and Ann dive deep into the craft of writing that doesn’t just inform but transforms. Evoking gasps, revelations, and that rare “aha” moment where words hit like a physical force.Ann Bauer isn’t afraid to wield her pen as a scalpel. From her explosive early essay drawing chilling parallels between the COVID hysteria and the mid-20th-century “refrigerator mother” myth that tore families apart, to her fearless exposés on Minnesota’s welfare fraud scandals and the quiet tyrannies of power, Ann embodies the writer’s ultimate duty: to illuminate lies with unflinching elegance. “If you’re not getting to truth, then why do it?” she declares. But as Jeffrey probes, it’s not just courage—it’s an innate compulsion to peel back the curtain on the absurdities we all endure.Ann unveils her new venture: a reading app launching in Northern Kentucky to combat America’s child literacy crisis. Imagine the classics delivered in bite-sized, Netflix-style episodes with cliffhangers that hook tweens like a binge-watch: The Wizard of Oz, Little Women, Treasure Island, Frankenstein.. Built for homeschoolers, libraries, and rec centers, it weaves in discussion prompts (think: “What do the green spectacles in Oz really signify?”) to spark critical thinking and turn reading into a lifelong habit.Catch Ann Bauer live this Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2026 at the Brownstone Supper Club in West Hartford, CT! Tickets: https://brownstone.org/event/brownstone-supper-club-west-hartford-february-18-ann-bauer/Explore more from Brownstone Institute: https://brownstone.orgFollow Ann Bauer: https://twitter.com/annbauerwriterFollow Jeffrey Tucker: https://twitter.com/jeffreytucker Get full access to Brownstone Insights at substack.brownstone.org/subscribe

Jeffrey Tucker & Aaron Day: Bitcoin Hijacked? Epstein Files, Surveillance, and the End of Freedom Money In this episode of The Brownstone Show, Jeffrey Tucker sits down with Brownstone Fellow and researcher Aaron Day to unpack one of the biggest stories in cryptocurrency history. Fresh off major revelations from the Epstein files, they reveal shocking connections between Jeffrey Epstein, early Bitcoin development, MIT's Digital Currency Initiative, and the deliberate "hijacking" of Bitcoin. Its original vision as peer-to-peer digital cash (as outlined in Satoshi's white paper) flipped to a surveillable "digital gold" asset controlled by institutions and governments. Jeffrey Tucker shares his personal journey: from early Bitcoin evangelist in 2013 (when BTC was just $12–$14) to disillusionment after the blocksize wars, SegWit controversies, and the censorship that sidelined scalable use as everyday money. Aaron Day dives deeper into: How Bitcoin went from instant, near-free transactions in the early days to slow, $50+ fees by 2017. The vicious suppression of "big blockers" like Roger Ver (author of Hijacking Bitcoin, foreword by Tucker). Epstein's documented ties to Bitcoin/Tether figures and funding streams that influenced Bitcoin Core. Why Bitcoin is now more traceable than traditional banking (immutable ledger forever!) Ongoing prosecutions of privacy pioneers (Tornado Cash, Samourai Wallet devs) even under "pro-crypto" administrations. The crumbling "digital gold" narrative: miner revenue issues, calls to increase the 21M supply cap, ETF risks, and why privacy coins like Monero & Zano are outperforming. This isn't just crypto history—it's a warning about surveillance, state control, and the weaponization of what was meant to be freedom money. If you're curious about the future of money in a CBDC world, this conversation will change how you see the entire space. 📕 Recommended reading: Hijacking Bitcoin: The Hidden History of BTC by Roger Ver (foreword by Jeffrey Tucker) → https://www.amazon.com/Hijacking-Bitcoin-Hidden-History-BTC/dp/B0CXWBCWDR Subscribe to Brownstone Institute for more uncensored discussions on freedom, tech, health, and economics: https://brownstone.org/subscribe Follow Brownstone Institute on your favorite channels here: https://brownstone.org/connect/ Get full access to Brownstone Insights at substack.brownstone.org/subscribe

Join Jeffrey Tucker on The Brownstone Show as he explores the fascinating and contentious history of vaccines in the United States. Starting with Edward Jenner's groundbreaking 1796 smallpox inoculation using cowpox, we trace the evolution through key milestones, public health policies, and the rise of mandates. Tucker delves into the role of government intervention, the impact of liability protections like the 1986 National Childhood Vaccine Injury Act, and questions whether the vaccine industry could survive without taxpayer-funded support and legal indemnification. Whether you're a history buff, public health enthusiast, or curious about the intersection of science and policy, this discussion offers thought-provoking insights into one of the most debated topics today. Subscribe to Brownstone Institute for more deep dives into public health, philosophy, economics, and social theory: https://brownstone.org/ Follow Jeffrey Tucker on X: @jeffreytucker Follow Brownstone Institute on X:@brownstoneinstFind a Brownstone Supper Club near you! https://brownstone.org/brownstone-events Get full access to Brownstone Insights at substack.brownstone.org/subscribe

Join Dr. David Bell and host Jeffrey Tucker on The Brownstone Show as they dive into two initiatives: REPPARE and IHRP. David and Jeffrey explore the need to reevaluate global pandemic preparedness based on solid evidence and advocate for ethical reforms to the World Health Organization (WHO) to safeguard national sovereignty and human rights.REPPARE (REevaluating the Pandemic Preparedness And REsponse agenda): A University of Leeds initiative, supported by Brownstone Institute, aimed at scrutinizing the evidence behind massive pandemic programs. Led by Garrett Wallace Brown and David Bell, it promotes rational policies over panic, questioning inflated risks and pushing for transparent, data-driven approaches to public health.IHRP (International Health Reform Project): A multidisciplinary effort to redefine international health governance. With contributions from Ramesh Thakur, Elisabeth Paul, and others, it critiques the WHO's shift toward private interests and proposes reforms and alternatives that prioritize ethics, state control, and self-sufficiency to prevent overreach.This episode challenges the status quo, highlighting how current agendas may prioritize profit over people. Whether you're concerned about future pandemics or global health ethics, this conversation offers critical insights for informed debate.Resources:REPPARE Project: https://brownstone.org/reppare/IHRP Project: https://brownstone.org/ihrp/Brownstone Institute: https://brownstone.org/Follow on X: @brownstoneinst| @bell00david| @jeffreytuckerIf you enjoyed this, like, subscribe, and hit the bell for more thought-provoking discussions on public health, philosophy, and social theory. Share your thoughts in the comments—what reforms do you think the WHO needs? Get full access to Brownstone Insights at substack.brownstone.org/subscribe