This week we discuss the Buffalo Creek Disaster, a disastrous flood caused by the negligence of the Buffalo Mining Company and stockholders, causing 125 people to die and hundreds of others to lose their homes.

But the silver lining of this story is that the survivors banded together and fought back with a lawsuit seeking damages for both their physical losses and mental suffering, and succeeded! We love an underdog story! This week we lay the groundwork for this victory.

Sources:

The Buffalo Creek Disaster How the Survivors of One of the Worst Disasters in Coal-Mining History Brought Suit Against the Coal Company-and Won

By Gerald M Stern

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We are back to talk about the College Admissions scandal.

Last episode we talked about the financial structures that may have helped Rick Singer perpetuate his nonsense .Then we talk about some of Rick's key collaborators at the different schools he was working with, as well as some of the famous parents who joined in on Rick's frauds. Like Aunt Becky and Mossimo Giannulli, Felicity Huffman and William H Macy.

This Episode we are wrapping this thing up finally getting into the DOJ investigation, Rick as a terrible informant, the eventual arrests, and a really wild series of court cases.

Hope you enjoy!

Sources:

“Guilty Admissions: The Bribes, Favors, and Phonies Behind the College Cheating Scandal” by Nicole LaPorte (2021)

“Unacceptable: Privilege, Deceit & The Making of the College Admissions Scandal” by Melissa Korn and Jennifer Levitz (2020)

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We are back to talk about Rick Singer and the College Admissions scandal! Last episode we talked about Rick Singer leaping over the line from unethical lies on applications to setting up a crazy system to cheat on the SAT and using his so-called Side door to bribe coaches for a guaranteed college acceptance.

Rick went from a small scale operation focused on Sacramento, California to a nation/world spanning company called “The EDGE College and Career Network” promising the “Key to Winning the College Game.”

And with every new client Rick's company would move up the social ladder until he was providing his college consulting services to some of the most wealthy and famous people in California.

This episode we will talk a little about the changing financial calculus that created such fertile ground for someone like Rick Singer. Then we will get into some of the celebrities who became accomplices in Singers frauds. Hope you enjoy!

Sources:

“Guilty Admissions: The Bribes, Favors, and Phonies Behind the College Cheating Scandal” by Nicole LaPorte (2021)

“Unacceptable: Privilege, Deceit & The Making of the College Admissions Scandal” by Melissa Korn and Jennifer Levitz (2020)

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We are back this week to continue the story of the College Admissions Scandal and Operation Varsity Blues!

Getting into college is getting harder and more complicated. Many Ivy League Admissions rates have fallen as low as 3% which is nuts. Parents are looking for a guaranteed way for their kids to succeed and get into the best schools.

Wealthy and Powerful Parents have had back door paths to ensure the best education for their kids.Paying for Elite Private Preschools, Kindergartens, and Prep Schools.Hiring Private tutors and SAT Prep specialists. And ofcourse a timely donation to your school of choice.

Because of changes in Applications as well as a growing number of Americans going to college, these tried and true tactics for success began losing effectiveness. Parents start turning to Private college counselors but most refuse to promise 100% that they can get your kid into their #1 School. Everyone except for Rick Singer, College Counselor to the stars. Rick had no compunction about making bold promises about his track record and his ability to get any kid into the most prestigious of schools.

As a College Consultant this tendency to embellish went into overdrive. He taught his clients to Create a brand for themselves by picking the most compelling part of their story and enhancing that truth into something that didn't always resemble reality. And this was just the beginning of his ethically dubious tactics.

This Episode we will dig deep into all of Rick's best shenanigans. We will meet the coaches and administrators who he pulled into his schemes and some of the families who benefited from his frauds.

Sources:

“Guilty Admissions: The Bribes,Favors, and Phonies Behind the College Cheating Scandal” by Nicole LaPorte (2021)

“Unacceptable: Privilege, Deceit & The Making of the College Admissions Scandal” by Melissa Korn and Jennifer Levitz (2020)

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This week we are talking about the 2012-2018 College Admissions scandal. This is definitely a story of the rich and powerful families having all the advantages when it comes to college education. And a Man named Rick Singer who came along for the right price was willing to bend the rules and break the law in order to give his clients just one more edge.

In a world where a regular college degree means less and less and acceptance rates at the elite schools are plummeting, parents are desperately looking for some sure fire way to guarantee a perfect future for their kids.

For years wealthy and powerful parents have been able to pay for the best prep schools and private SAT tutors to help their children get the best possible chances to get into the most prestigious schools.

And when that didn't seem like enough their next step was to turn to a man named Rick Singer. Singer was a Private College Counselor who catered to California's Rich and Powerful parents. Singer offered a one of a kind concierge service to his “clients”. A one stop shop for everything college admissions.

He would set everything up. He calls the Admissions offices, sets up the tours including meetings with key professors. For some he even made car, plane, and hotel reservations.

All of this seems pretty above board and great. And this is similar to what most private college counselors do. But Rick took it much much further into some ethically dubious and then Illegal waters.

At first he was merely embellishing his clients' applications. Changing the kids from players on their basketball team to the Captain of the team.

But pretty soon he was writing essays for the kids and setting really convoluted ways to cheat on the SAT.

And eventually he discovered a side door into elite colleges through athletics departments with some corrupted coaches and athletics administrators. And eventually culminating in A DOJ Investigation called Operation Varsity Blues ending in over 50 convictions of Parents, Coaches, and of course Rick himself. I'm excited to get into another wacky investigation. Eventually Rick gets flipped and starts helping the DOJ do sting operations for a reduced sentence. But that's all a bit later!

This episode we are going to talk about the increasingly intense and crazy college admissions world and the insane helicopter parents that made this scandal possible. Then we will talk about Rick's childhood and early career. Up to him starting his first Consulting company “Future Stars”

Sources:

“Guilty Admissions: The Bribes,Favors, and Phonies Behind the College Cheating Scandal” by Nicole LaPorte (2021)

“Unacceptable: Privilege, Deceit & The Making of the College Admissions Scandal” by Melissa Korn and Jennifer Levitz (2020)

Send us a text! Let us know what topics you want us to cover!

This week we are wrapping up the Jim and Tammy Faye story. We finally get to some water slide action. But this victory is very short lived. The house of cards finally tumbles down.

The allegations against Jim finally begin coming into the light. And at the same time other powerful ministers begin trying to turn the Bakker's downfall to their advantage.

The ministry gets temporarily passed over to Jerry Fallwell a popular Baptist televangelist at the time who is excited to exploit his new found power and riches. But it turns out that PTL is DEEEEEEPLY in debt and has been mis-allocating funds for years.

Eventually the ministry collapses and Jim is sentenced to 45 years in jail for all of his financial crimes. (he only serves around 4 years) and now he is out of jail running a much smaller Doomsday ministry in Missouri where he is selling 5 gallon buckets of apocalypse soup!

So as promised we finally get a bit of modest Downfall!

Enjoy

Sources:

PTL The Rise and Fall of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker’s Evangelical Empire by John Wigger

Bonus:

A Wild Compilation video of Jim Bakker Selling Soup:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2K6uhZCB62k

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The saga of Jim and Tammy Faye Baker continues this week while we get into the building of Heritage USA, using peoples payments from one project to fund the next, and the completion of the water park!

They are getting real footloose and fancy free with their finances and it's about to come back to bite them. Some staff is let go, and others start gathering stories and ammunition for the eventual collapse of PTL.

PTL The Rise and Fall of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker’s Evangelical Empire by John Wigger

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This week we're getting into Jim and Tammy Faye's rise to TV success! Their ministry is expanding, and they're misappropriating funds all over the place! It's not illegal if its for the lord!

We'll also get into the assault of Jessica Hahn and how it will help unravel PTL in the late 80s.

Next week, we build the theme park that will take down the whole operation!

PTL The Rise and Fall of Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker’s Evangelical Empire by John Wigger

Send us a text! Let us know what topics you want us to cover!