Totally Unrelated: History, books & banter among friends

Pavel Coruț was a member of a counter-espionage unit. Then, after the fall of the communist regime in Romania, he started writing spy novels, blurring the line between fact and fiction and introducing a series of conspiracy theories into the public discourse regarding the country's recent past. At the same time, Romanians' appetite for all things religious, spiritual and esoteric was growing at a...

What is conservation financing? And do rich people really care about the environment? We'll explore the story of James Goldsmith, hostile takeover baron who was among the first promoters of the idea of debt-for-nature swaps. Would the face-eating leopard play nice outside the world of business or is nature just business as usual? Watch it on Youtube: https://youtu.be/L4LlmtQuWXc Shoot us an email...

Nicolae Malaxa was the quintessential Romanian robber baron: building his fortune by securing lucrative deals with the state, schmoozing with royalty and fascists alike. Heck, he even took his chance for a few years behind the Iron Curtain, bribing Romanian Communist Party officials. And then, he went to America! Diana and Eliza discuss all the man's shenanigans and how he has benefited from a sig...

The news continues to be bad and so, Diana and Irina revisit an old favorite to help them ward off cynicism, hopelessness and a general sense of doom about the future. Re-reading Terry Pratchett's Guards! Guards! , they talk about the horrors we let enter our world, the terrible people we allow into power and how we need to still hope that despite all that, we can still improve society (somewhat)....

The gap in our knowledge about nutrition might surprise many, especially those who think that their 'common sense' intuitions or prejudices are enough evidence to base their judgements on. Irina and Diana discuss misconceptions regarding weight loss, what it means to be healthy and the difficulties in conducting research into nutritional science. Music Lo-Fi Hip-Hop 03 by WinnieTheMoog Link: https...

Diana and Irina have a bit of a venting session regarding people who can't seem to mind their own business. Also, those that are unable to understand the different impact of bad takes 'it's just my opinion, man!' in private versus in the public sphere. A critique of body-shaming, fake feminism and general shitty behavior. As always, with a Romanian twist. Music Lo-Fi Hip-Hop 03 by WinnieTheMoog Li...

From the construction site, into the kitchen and on to other gig work - listen to David recount his journey so far. Going back and forth between Romania and the United States, getting into trouble, making friends and grabbing any opportunity to make a tough life slightly better. Music: Lo-Fi Hip-Hop 03 by WinnieTheMoog Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/7848-lo-fi-hip-hop-03 License: https://filmmusi...

National flag carriers have been known to struggle and sometimes even succumb - Malev, Swissair, Sabena - and it seems like the Romanian airlines (TAROM) are going through a three decade-long circling of the drain. And all this even before the pandemic hit! In this episode, Diana and Ioana discuss some of the 'interesting characters' behind the rocky trajectory of TAROM- from Eastern Europe's seco...

Hustle culture is back at it. Some might say it never went away. From being permanently on your grind - whatever that means - to cranking up your productivity, Diana and Larisa discuss all the dubious work and career-related 'advice' that gurus have on offer (for a fee, of course). Is is actually a good thing to be productive all the time and is procrastination always the enemy? Who are you being...

Communism in Romania, Ceausescu, food shortages, blackouts and general austerity. This is the story we all know and many of those who lived during the last days of the regime experienced. But what led up to this mess? And why are there still Communist nostalgics out there? Was the West just trolling Ceausescu when they called him the 'good communist'? Diana and Ira discuss both stories they've hea...

A bunch of Eastern European friends blabbing about history, books, labor issues and such. Episodes every other week, on Wednesday. If you're not already one of the gracious and lovely subscribers or followers of Totally Unrelated, maybe you might be persuaded to join the flock. If perchance a few episodes in you might find yourself thinking...gosh, I kind of like these silly cows talking about ran...

After the fall of the Iron Curtain, Eastern Europeans had high hopes for the future of their respective countries as they sought to emulate a Western liberal democratic model. A few decades down the line, disdain and resentment have soured the mood. Diana and Irina use Ivan Krastev and Stephen Holmes' book The Light That Failed to discuss the shift in mood towards liberalism since the 1990s, whom...

Diana and Larisa continue their conversation on the minefield that is the recruitment process. What are some of the most annoying or straight-up awkward questions people trying to get hired are likely to encounter? And what creative ways might your future supervisor expect you to use your socks? Find out by listening to this here episode! Music Lo-Fi Hip-Hop 03 by WinnieTheMoog Link: https://filmm...

Many red flags can pop up during job interviews. Some of them reveal a lot of unpleasant things about how your future workplace. Larisa and Diana discuss some of these warning signs and how to avoid wasting your time with employers that mistreat their workers, ask them to perform several roles for meager pay or simply stunt their growth in positions that offer no prospects. Music Lo-Fi Hip-Hop 03...

This episode is all about the practical benefits that a basic understanding of science can bring to your health and well-being. Diana and Irina talk about how being able to distinguish between legitimate sources and quackery can improve your daily life and sometimes even save you from a lot of pain, or weird juicing overdoses. Visit Irina's Web page: https://irinamateies.ro/ YouTube channel: https...

Diana and Irina take a reluctant look at the weird world of political fanfiction. If politics is show business for ugly people, why are some people so eager to get them naked and involved in (sticky) situations? Reading: McDreamy, McSteamy and McConnell , by Samuel Ashworth, Longreads, September 2019 Maggie x Ronald: Dribble-Down-Economics , by Isaacdoesart, maybejude Music: Late Night Radio by Ke...

Diana and Adel discuss Warren Farrell's unfortunate oeuvre from 1993, in which he does a Weininger and discovers that women are bad, actually. We learn that men are the most secretly oppressed group out there, their needs neglected for millennia, and plagued by the many dangers of female attractiveness. On the plus side, the episode also includes some random banter on the topic of pies and balls....

Trains are great and we need more of them. But you know what's not? Railway scandals! Diana and Adel learn about the Strousberg affair, a 19th century railway scandal that acted as a catalyst for a major financial crisis and signaled the less than auspicious birth of the Romanian railways. Trigger warning for Bismarck and the Long Depression ( cries in Millennial tears). Monarchy fanboys/girls/nbs...

Diana and Irina continue their discussion on the healthcare system in Romania. What's med school like and what lies beyond? Lots of weird anecdotes and difficult career choices, it would seem. How bad is corruption within the health system and has anything changed in the past decade? How could we start to fix some of the issues within the system and - most importantly - can 90s euro-dance sensatio...

Diana and Irina talk about the pros and cons of the healthcare system in Romania. What role do the public and private sector play? What is the nature of a true emergency? And why is the privatization of the healthcare system the ultimate wet dream of the Romanian political class? Music : Lo-Fi Hip-Hop 03 by WinnieTheMoog Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/7848-lo-fi-hip-hop-03 License: https://filmmu...

Diana and Adel discuss the role that Poiana chocolate - a popular local chocolate brand - played in Kraft's hostile takeover of Cadbury. They also reminisce about growing up amid Romania's turbulent transition to a market economy in the '90s and contemplate why, sooner or later, everything ends up becoming a Lidl store. Music : Lo-Fi Hip-Hop 03 by WinnieTheMoog Link: https://filmmusic.io/song/7848...

Diana and David talk about Otto Weininger, masculinity and the history of misogyny throughout the 19th and early 20th century. Highlights from Weininger's 'Sex and Character', the magnus opus of one of inceldom's least known Founding Fathers. Sources: Bram Dijkstra - Idols of Perversity Otto Weininger - Sex and Character Françoise Gaillard, Colette Windish - Naked, but Hairy: Women and Misogyny in...

What is noise, actually? How do we define noise pollution? And who is allowed to produce it and why? By the turn of the 20th century, those living in cities began to notice the high levels of noise pollution in their environments, and its impact on their well-being. It was especially the middle classes that would shape the ways in which people experienced public space and the noises that were perm...

Diana, Irina and Bogdan discuss why burnout is so common in the tech industry. What with crunch culture, unpaid overtime, and toxic work environments, it seems like it's not all tits and champagne in an industry that has been hailed by many to be the solution to personal and societal issues alike. There's talk of mental health, working conditions and peculiarities of the tech industries in Romania...

What's all the hubbub about cancel culture? Diana and Irina discuss one of the many, many articles written on the subject in the past few years, and provide their 'very nuanced,' 'highly astute,' and 'definitely correct' ideas on whose head should be on the chopping block. ===TRIGGER WARNING: Mentions of sexual harassment and rape === Article referenced in the episode: The New Puritans , by Anne A...