Totally Classic

This week, Andy & Brendan chart the history of minstrelsy - from Al Jolson & Bert Williams TO RuPaul & Pabllo Vittar! Why is Drag given a pass for doing all the same TYPE Of things that blackface does? OR why is blackface not given a pass for doing all the same TYPE OF things that drag does? Is this just full-on hypocrisy ("it's not bad cause I LIKE IT") OR is there something fundamentally different here? What do YOU think? originally recorded on 3/31/26

PART TWO OF TWO - Andy & Brendan continue to explore whether ICE are BAD GUYS or FLAWED GOOD GUYS? In a world where "F@%# ICE" and "ABOLISH ICE" are de rigueur, DOES THIS MAKE ANY SENSE? What makes an entire organization prosecuting over 400 laws A BLACK HAT? Are Neighborhood Watches AGAINST Law Enforcement just... the suburban version of "TRAPHOUSE LOOK-OUTS?" OR a modern militia fighting Gov't Illegality? Totally Classic LIVES in the place of - TALK TO PEOPLE YOU DON'T AGREE WITH ON WHAT YOU DON'T AGREE WITH! Asking questions and coming to fresh conclusions is HUMANING 101, and NO ONE HAS THE POWER TO CANCEL DIPLOMACY (and if they TRY, is their goal... WAR?) WHAT do YOU think? AND WHY? originally recorded on 3/17/26

Cops & Robbers. Cowboys & Indians. Chutes &... ladders? Binary good guy/bad guy is fundamental to the stories humans have shared since time immemorial and key to understanding our modes of reckoning, today. Is ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement) the Gestapo of our American Era? Or are they law enforcement officers just doing their job? Is the Anti-ICE sentiment justified or attention & tribal bias? Or a little of both? This week, Andy & Brendan, as always, start from divergent perspectives but mutual affection and strong curiosity about this - why do you think what we do? What is it we exactly think? And IS ANY OF IT TRUE? Originally Recorded on 3/3/26

This week, Andy & Brendan continue (& conclude) their conversation of Religion, Spirituality and the synonymity and potential difference between the two. Can dictionary synonymity prove logical contradiction of the SBNR claim? Can they devise a taxonomy that doesn't have to alter definitions at all? Can one be religious but not spiritual? Is anyone spiritual? How do we determine the difference between morals and feelings? All that and more existential tango on this week's episode of Totally Classic! originally recorded on 2/10/2026

On this episode of Totally Classic, Andy & Brendan explore the question around the zeitgeist adage of our generation - "I'm spiritual, not religious." Is this a coherent claim? Is it a Buddhist Koan or a logical impossibility? They're synonymous terms in Merriam Webster, Thesaurus.com & Roget's alike:) Is this a falsehood that is simply a popularly accepted one? And, perhaps most fascinatingly, where does this very idea ORIGINATE from? Theosophy & entities & Christianity, oh my! originally recorded on 1/27/26

This week, Andy & Brendan examine the recent accusations against job board/social networking site LinkedIn, to get curious about whether the platform is biased against women. Is there evidence besides assertion? What would a non-misogynist algorithm look like? Is bias UNAVOIDABLE? All this and more on this weeks' Totally Classic. TOTALLY CLASSIC is a podcast where two friends with divergent perspectives talk about all the things people scream at each other about:) originally recorded on 1/13/26

In the third and final volley, Andy & Brendan integrate AI analysis to ascertain where they may be suffering from logical or ethical mismatch and if ANY ethical system supports affirmation of subjective self-claim. From freedoms gained to empathy employed to the conclusions empathetic understanding would support, it's all here on both sides of the table... on this week's Totally Classic! originally recorded on 12/23/25

Andy & Brendan dance back into the fray to examine by what means can anyone said to be (or not to be - that is the question!:) "transgender." Is it equivocation or a paradigm shift? Is it semantic colonialism or indigenous linguistic revival? Is it a delusion or is all of society deluded and this is clarity? All this & more on this week's episode of Totally Classic! originally recorded on 12/2/25

This week, Andy & Brendan ask a question of the modern semantic chaos moment where a sentence like "My gender is not my gender, because gender isn't gender, it's gender." exists and CAN have some cogent meaning! Does the claim make a coherent case? Can the modern novel proposal of gender exist and mean the same as transgender and not be self-defeating? Does subcohort "social reality" count as reality? This is a wild yes and no but yes but no but maybe but also... kind of a question!
What do you think?
 
 
Originally recorded on 11/18/25

This week, Chicago-area-met friends Andy & Brendan interrogate the popular regional claim that the city with big shoulders is under being invaded (by ICE). They explore how many actual options there are (and different layers of evidence and proof to assess said options) for who exactly is assaulting the second city. Does novelty, federal intent or citizen action lead the way? What do YOU think? originally recorded on 11/4/25