Send us a textGregor MacGregor was a Scottish soldier, adventurer, and con man who invented a Central American country called “Poyais,” in 1820 which he claimed to rule as the “Cazique.” MacGregor attempted to draw British and French investors and settlers to his fictional country. Hundreds invested in Poyaisian government bonds and land certificates, while ... Show More
Oct 25
Who Really Pays for AI Data Centers?
Americans now oppose new AI data centers by roughly three to one, ranking them below coal plants and nuclear power stations, and towns across the country are passing moratoriums faster than tech companies can build. In this video, I look at the data center backlash: what holds up ... Show More
29m 18s
Oct 18
Did Ukraine Just Bomb the Russian Bots?
In October 2026, Ukrainian drone strikes knocked out three of Yandex’s six major data centers, and a viral chart claimed that Russian bots had vanished from social media overnight. They hadn’t. In this video, we look at what the strikes actually hit: Yandex’s search crawlers, Rus ... Show More
36m 23s
Aug 2018
Gregor MacGregor Invented a Country and Convinced People to Invest in It
When His Serene Highness Gregor the First, Sovereign Prince of the State of Poyais and its Dependencies, and Cacique of the Poyer nation visited London, he made a huge impression. Hundreds of people jumped at the chance to buy land in his remote, Central American paradise. There ... Show More
55m 7s
Apr 2025
CLASSIC: Gregor MacGregor Invented a Country and Convinced People to Invest in It
When His Serene Highness Gregor the First, Sovereign Prince of the State of Poyais and its Dependencies, and Cacique of the Poyer nation visited London, he made a huge impression. Hundreds of people jumped at the chance to buy land in his remote, Central American paradise. There ... Show More
57m 5s
Nov 2022
A Mega-Con Man for the Ages: Joseph "Yellow Kid" Weil
Only the greatest con man could take Mussolini for $2M, run a totally fake casino, fix horse races, pose as a well-known mining engineer, and then write a book about it all. Oh, and look super dapper along the way.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
51m 48s
Apr 2024
The Fraudster's Guide to Magic Money
Sam Israel had a problem. The investors in his hedge fund, Bayou Capital, were expecting spectacular returns. Sam himself had spent years proclaiming the fund's brilliant results. But in reality, Sam had been marking his own homework, publishing fraudulent accounts and using thes ... Show More
1 h