On the Fringe

(00:00:00) Intro and why we are covering this (00:00:52) Overview of two of the key pieces of legislation moving through Congress (00:03:13) Commonalities between and implications of the bills (00:07:08) Regulatory framework and enforcement (a major weakness) (00:09:13) A key solution the bill lacks--digital literacy and edcuation (00:10:20) Future considerations if the KIDS Act and the Safe Kids...

Five months after the quiet announcement that American troops were being deployed in Nigeria to combat the local IS franchise, an even quieter announcement that the 200-ish deployment has already come to an end. The strategic aims apparently having been met, the US’s engagement, which began with a barrage of Tomahawks on Christmas Day last year, has been wrapped up. Meanwhile, the Nigerian governm...

Hello, On the Fringe Community! Here’s a quick thank you message as we wrap up season.  We appreciate and enjoy your continued support—and we have more on the way! All the best from both of us, Dave + Gav 

Two people with uncommon names find out for the first time what it’s like having a common name + being confused for someone else. In the last couple of years, there have been several other On the Fringe podcasts that have come out. For the first time in both our lives (Dave + Gavin), we are being confused for someone else—and to be honest, it’s kind of weird and funny for both of us.  Since we set...

In this episode, Gav and Dave tackle the continuing problem of bear attacks in Japan by looking at a recent incident involving a smarter than average bear. As rural communities shrink and bears push into populated areas, especially in Tohoku, the country continues to struggle with all of the conflicts that ensue from overlapping habitats.  Dave and Gav discuss why the problem keeps getting worse,...

Canada’s in a sticky situation…and, it’s not from maple syrup! In this episode, Dave and Gav look at the rise of the irrepressible Bishnoi Gang in Canada and what it says about the continuing evolution of transnational crime. They trace how a gang rooted in northern India developed reach far beyond its home turf, and connect that story to scandals surrounding Cricket Canada, where allegations of c...

In recent weeks, autonomous Akıncı drones flown by the Sudanese Armed Forces (and likely the Ethiopians for the RSF) went head-to-head, marking the first recorded event of two autonomous weapons facing off. Both drones came from the same manufacturer, Bayraktar, a Turkish defense company. Listen in and learn why countries are increasingly turning to autonomous weapons on the battlefield, why the S...

Will algorithms be better decision makers than humans when it REALLY counts?  Some countries are betting on it, while others are taking baby steps.  We’ve got a short episode about what autonomous weapons are, what they do, and why they could be consequential to the future of war and humanity, much like other parts of the AI boom that we are living in. Please do us a favor and give us a rating or...

(00:00:00) The Counterfeit: Chinese spy-ops, and a possible future view of America (Feat. Dr. Ralph DeFalco) (00:00:49) Introducing Dr. Ralph DeFalco III (00:02:52) The Counterfeit: A geopolitical thriller as described by the author (00:08:40) Crafting a realistic scenario and characters (00:17:28) Layers of depth and meaning in the novel (00:20:16) How things change: creeping normalcy (00:26:13)...

In recent days, a now former Google software engineer, Michele Spagnuolo, was arrested and charged by the Feds in New York for wire fraud, insider trading, and a laundry list of financial crimes for using information gained from his position to make crooked bets on Polymarket, netting in over $1 million on very long odds.  Why is it so important that the Feds are likely going to throw the book at...

(00:00:00) An introduction to 'Gold Bar Dave' (David Rush) (00:05:32) The craziest part and biggest miss of the investigation (00:08:25) Implications of the breach and why the FBI and IRS should leave no stone unturned In this episode, Dave and Gavin dive into a wild tale, and what may be the biggest publicly acknowledged counterintelligence failure in the 21st century for the U.S. Government that...

(00:00:00) The slower the Strait of Hormuz gets, the faster things move in the Gulf (00:01:11) Podcast Starts here: Barnacles are growing on ships (00:05:37) Ramifications at the ballot box in November if shipping slows more (00:08:34) Changes in regional dynamics in the last three months (00:11:20) Existential issues for Pakistan--and Israel (00:14:09) The Gulf will be hotter and more crowded tha...

(00:00:00) Rebuilding democracy from the ground up: the Digital Democracy Project (Feat. Ramon Perez) (00:00:52) Introducing our guest, Ramon Perez and the Digital Democracy Project (00:03:18) The motivation behind the Digital Democracy Project (00:06:05) Gerrymandering, a major flaw in the current U.S. political system (00:09:10) More gerrymandering leads to more political apathy (00:11:57) Techn...

(00:00:00) How and why you should learn a foreign language (feat. Polyglot David Ramos) (00:00:55) Podcast Starts (00:02:00) How David started his language journey (00:08:01) Using obstacles life throws at you as motivation for growth (00:12:26) Gearing up to more difficult languages (Mandarin, Arabic, Korean) (00:19:57) How to get started learning a language (00:23:48) The long-term impact of lea...

This week, Dave and Gav sit down with Tomasz Nadrowski, author of  Mineral Wars: China’s Quest for Weapons of Mineral Destruction. They dive into chokepoint theory, fragile supply chains and the disquieting reality that modern life is held together by a handful of minerals most people have never heard about until somebody threatens access to them. The conversation digs into how China has built eno...

In this episode, Gav and Dave break down how Pakistan has become a critical piece on the board in the competition between the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. They focus especially on the millions of Pakistani migrant workers whose labor props up huge parts of the Gulf economy while also giving Islamabad a potential Achilles’ heel during moments of regional tension, where visas, remittances,...

On May 1, the UAE left OPEC, the Organization of the Petrolium Exporting Countries. This wasn't a brash move; it was a highly calculated manouver during a critical window for the country's future.  In this episode, Dave and Gav look at how the UAE has drifted away from the consensus politics of institutions like Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and the Gulf Cooperation Council in...

(00:00:00) Mali's Junta is short on time, fuel, and control (Feat. Stuart Bolus) (00:00:55) The Ongoing Crisis in Mali (00:03:40) Another major intelligence failure by the Junta (00:06:51) The Roles of Foreign Powers in Mali (00:14:08) AES to the rescue? (00:15:48) Why the future looks dark for Mali's Junta (00:21:34) Mali's civilians are being squeezed from both sides (00:22:22) What is Mali's ne...

Gav and Dave wade back into the increasingly unhinged world of prediction markets, starting with how Kalshi ended up fining and banning a handful of American politicians for betting on their own elections, which sounds small until you realize it’s basically insider trading with campaign posters. Then, the story gets serious. Jail time serious.  They pivot to the much less subtle case of a U.S. mil...

Americans and international students are losing confidence in higher education in the United States. What does this mean? Gav and Dave are going back to college to explore how the financial crisis affecting higher education segues into a much larger (and arguably more important conversation) about how and why smaller colleges across the country are shutting their doors or taking emergency measures...

What does closing off the Strait of Hormuz mean for flyers to/in Europe this summer? Gav and Dave get their toes wet in jet fuel and try to answer this question. Over the last week, there has been real uncertainty over ships transiting through the Strait of Hormuz, and for European countries, whether they do or do not have enough jet fuel for the upcoming summer travel season. Listen and learn why...

In this episode of On The Fringe, Gav and Dave dig into the sudden collapse of the Board of Peace, because nothing says “stable international order” like an institution quietly disappearing mid-crisis. We trace how internal fractures, economic short-falls, and a complete inability to enforce its own mandates turned the Board of Peace from a conflict-dampening mechanism into another casualty of the...

This week, Polymarket and Kalshi are going to court in California to sort out whether or not the federal government or individual states have jurisdiction over them….and Donald Trump Jr. (a prominent investor/advisor to both and an actual board member of Kalshi) finds out whether or not he’s hit the jackpot. This ruling will affect national security concerns, sports, celebrities, elections, and ot...

When you see something online, do you honestly think it is genuine or has your best interest at heart? In this episode, Dave and Gavin talk with Braden Frame, COO of Modern Cartographers based out of Austin. Braden is a medically retired firefighter and expert digital literacy educator who helps communities across the country stay safe and improve communication, among other things. In the chat, we...

For roughly 6 weeks, Afghanistan and Pakistan have been fighting a hot war that has received very little coverage. Yet the ongoing conflict is impacting (and being impacted by) the Iran War and events in South Asia. We have been following it—and have even made episodes about it that we planned to release—but shelved them because they were stale by the release date. This is a quick update about the...