Scheming Through History: From Charles Ponzi to Your DMs
Three sisters — Lora, Rebecca, and Heather unpack the dark side of MLM companies. Lora opens by tracing the history of financial scams from Charles Ponzi's 1920 Ponzi scheme, to illegal pyramid schemes, to the legally gray world of multi-level marketing.
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponzi_scheme (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ponzi_scheme)
Chrome AI copilot
https://www.youtube.com/c/HannahAlonzo (https://www.youtube.com/c/HannahAlonzo)
14 Oct 2026
Dracula
In this episode of "Is This The Norm?", hosts Heather, Rebecca, and Lora explore the real history behind the world's most famous vampire. Heather traces the story of Vlad III of Wallachia — better known as Vlad the Impaler — from his childhood as a political hostage in the Ottoman court to his brutal reign of terror, including the mass impalements that earned him his infamy. The discussion covers how Bram Stoker borrowed Vlad's name and aura of darkness for his 1897 Gothic novel, the evolution of Dracula on screen from monstrous creature to romantic heartthrob, and how Gothic literature — from Frankenstein to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde — shaped our fascination with the macabre. The episode wraps with a lively debate about why vampires became romanticized while the real history remains far more horrifying than any fiction.
References:
Vlad the Impaler: The medieval Prince who inspired Dracula
https://www.livescience.com/40843-real-dracula-vlad-the-impaler.html (https://www.livescience.com/40843-real-dracula-vlad-the-impaler.html)
Vlad the Impaler
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Vlad-the-Impaler (https://www.britannica.com/biography/Vlad-the-Impaler)
The Impalings of Vlad the Impaler
https://www.medievalists.net/2025/12/impalings-vlad-the-impaler/
7 Oct 2026
The 25th Hour
Sisters Rebecca, Lora (lead host), and Heather explain and explore experiences during the "witching hour" between 3 and 4 AM historically associated with paranormal activity, ghosts, and demons.
Reach and audience
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Apple Podcasts (US)
5.0 / 5
4 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
1 ratings
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