The CULTural Zeitgeist

Belle Gibson: The Worst

Wellness influencer Belle Gibson claimed that she had cured herself of malignant brain cancer through clean eating and coffee enemas. But, spoiler alert, she was a huge F*CKING liar.
 
Please Consider Donating To
Cancer Research Institute
Cancer Research Institute’s mission is to save more lives by fueling the discovery and development of powerful immunotherapies for all types of cancer. It holds an A- from charity watchdog CharityWatch for it’s transparency and the amount of money it allocated to actually help fund research.
 
Resources
Donelly, Beau and Nick Toscano. The Woman Who Fooled The World: Belle Gibson’s Cancer Con. Scribble, 2018
Ackerman, Tessa. “Cancer Fraudster Belle Gibson Rejected by Ethiopians.” The Weekend Australian. 24 January 2020
Donelly, Beau and Nick Toscano. “Friends and doctors raise doubts over 'Healing Belle' cancer claims.” The Age, 10 March 2015
Donelly, Beau and Nick Toscano. “Backlash over app developer Belle Gibson's missing charity money.” The Age, 9 March 2015
Weaver, Claire. “Belle Gibson: The Girl Who Conned Us All.” Now To Love, 25 July 2015
 
The sheets I promised to link in the shownotes 

BONUS Episode - Kaitlin Armstrong Murder Trial Update

A quick update on the Kaitlin Armstrong trail, new evidence was presented, petty gauntlets were thrown, a muppet of a man got his foot stomped on by a grown-ass adult. 

The Tragic Murder of Mo Wilson

Moriah “Mo” Wilson was a rising athlete in the world of gravel racing. As a competitive newcomer, she was soon winning races against the seasoned racers, catching the eye of one of gravel racings biggest stars and, unfortunately, the ire of his on-and-off-again girlfriend. 
 
PLEASE CONSIDER DONATING TO
The Moriah Wilson Foundation
Promoting healthy living and community building by supporting organizations dedicated to expanding access to recreation, sports, and educational programs.
 
RESOURCES
Parker, Ian. “A Murder Roils the Cycling World.” The New Yorker, 7 November 2022
Levinson, Eric. “Moriah Wilson Came From a Family of Athletes. The 25-year-old Elite Cyclist Was Preparing For Another Race Before She Was Killed.” CNN, 24 May 2022
Silver, Lauren. “Police: Kaitlin Armstrong lied to guards, took off pants during escape attempt.” CourtTV, 17 October 2023
Follow us on Instagram @spirituallyeffedpocast
 

The Rajneeshee Bioterror Attack

In 1981 residents of Antelope, Oregon found their small conservative town of 40 residents overtaken by thousands of orange-clad strangers. The outsiders came to Oregon looking to create a utopian society dedicated to their leader Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh. But years of investigations would find the Rajneeshees responsible for the first and largest bioterror attack on U.S. soil, and multiple attempted assassinations.
 
CONSIDER DONATING TO
Safe Passage Foundation
The Safe Passage Foundation provides resources, support and advocacy for people raised in restrictive, isolated or high-demand communities, colloquially referred to as "cults".
 
Reference:
Keys, Scott. “A Strange but True Tale of Voter Fraud and Bioterrorism.” The Atlantic, 10 June 2014.
Thuras, Dylan. “The Secret’s in the Sauce: Bioterror at the Salsa Bar.” Slate, 9 January 2014.
Bassett, Andreas. “Fall From Grace: The Story of Rajneeshpuram.” The Pacific Sentinal, 10 May 2018
Kent, Dickon. “ What ‘Wild Wild Country’ Didn’t Say: 57 Answers to Questions About Rajneeshpuram from a Teenage Resident.” Medium, 16 April 2018
Wild Wild Country. Directed by Maclain Way and Chapman Way, Duplass Brothers Productions, 2018. Netflix.
 
 

The Botched Case of Dana Jones

Dana Jones was a kitchen designer and yoga practitioner who died in 2014 as a result of a yoga fall. Doctors and her family suspect the blunt-force trauma to the back of her head had more to do with her husband than her yoga practice, but a shady homicide detective and a corrupt police department thwart all their attempts to find answers. 
 
Spiritually Fucked 
Episode show notes
Instagram: @spirituallyeffedpodcast

Yoga To The People Part 2

In 2019 Yoga to the People founder, Greg Gumucio was on top of the world. His yoga studio chain was a massive success, drawing in thousands of yogis and making him a millionaire. However, when COVID-19 forced their studios to close, an anonymous Instagram account would not only shutter the business permanently but put Gumucio behind bars. 
 
Spirituallyfucked.com
 

Yoga To The People Part 1

In 2019 Yoga to the People founder, Greg Gumucio was on top of the world. His yoga studio chain was a massive success, drawing in thousands of yogis and making him a millionaire. But, when COVID forced their studios to close, an anonymous Instagram account would not only shutter the business permanently but put him on law enforcement's radar.
 
Spirituallyfucked.com
 

Chow Wai Yin A.K.A. Aqua Chow

In July of 2022, Instagram yoga influencer Chow Wai Yin, also known as Aqua Chow planned to travel from Hong Kong to the US for an advanced yoga teacher training, but never arrived for her flight.
 
Spirituallyfucked.com
INSTA: @spirituallyeffedpodcast