1378 THE LYME COVER-UP? What They NEVER Told You About Ticks

**Richard Syrett** (0:00)
Alright, let me tell you about something I've been living and breathing for a long time now. If you've ever listened to my podcast, The Rock and Roll Twilight Zone, you know I've always believed there's more going on in rock history than chart positions and gold records. There are shadows, patterns, strange turns of fate that don't quite add up. Well now, I've pulled it all together in my new book, Tales from the Rock and Roll Twilight Zone, Eerie Enigmas and Supernatural Secrets from Rock's Darkest Corners. This isn't just a music book, it's a journey into the unexplained, mysterious deaths, whispered conspiracies, cursed chords, and moments where the veil between this world and something else feels paper thin. It's based on years of research and conversations from the podcast, but expanded, deepened, and taken further than I've ever gone before. The book publishes July 9th, 2026, but you can pre-order right now at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, or directly from my publisher, Trine Day. For all the details, just head over to therockandrolltwilightzone.com.
If you love rock and roll, and you suspect the story didn't end when the music stopped, this book is for you.

**SPEAKER_3** (1:01)
Evening. Buyers Remorse. Buy a new car? I'll be moving in.
Let's get started.

**Richard Syrett** (1:08)
Sorry, I think there's been a mistake. I bought it from Carvana.

**SPEAKER_4** (1:11)
You what? Yeah, great price.

**Richard Syrett** (1:13)
I even have seven days to love it or return it.

**SPEAKER_4** (1:15)
So there's no... No, no Buyers Remorse.

**SPEAKER_5** (1:18)
More like Buyers Rejoice? I guess I'll let myself out.

**SPEAKER_6** (1:23)
Congratulations.

**SPEAKER_5** (1:24)
I mean it.

**SPEAKER_4** (1:25)
Buyers Rejoice.

**Kris Newby** (1:26)
Buy your car today on Carvana.

**SPEAKER_6** (1:27)
Limitations and exclusions may apply. See our seven-day return policy at carvana.com.

**SPEAKER_4** (1:31)
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Ts and Cs apply.

**Kris Newby** (2:04)
I had worked on a Dr. Marion Lyme disease under our skin for five years while I was recovering from the disease myself.
And there were rumors floating around that it was a bio weapon. The outbreak in Lyme, Connecticut is right across the Long Island Sound from Plum Island, which did anti-animal bioweapons research. So the rumors were there, but we were pretty clearly on the documentary team told, if you go down that alley, you'll never get this documentary out.

**SPEAKER_5** (2:35)
Richard Syrett's Strange Planet. Following the truth wherever it leads. Exposing evil and corruption and the secret machinations of powerful elites. Revealing the highest strangeness beneath the surface of our supposed reality. Coming to you from the Great White North and his studio beneath the stairs.
Here's Richard.

**Richard Syrett** (3:01)
Hey there, welcome to Strange Planet. And tonight, we're talking ticks, the tiny bloodsuckers that are quietly spreading across North America, carrying pathogens that can leave victims battling chronic illness for years.
In the United States, the infamous Lone Star Tick has been linked to everything from debilitating infections to the bizarre Alpha Gal Syndrome, which can make people allergic to red meat. Here in Canada, it's the Black Legged Tick that's rapidly expanding its territory, bringing Lyme Disease along for the ride. In fact, the June edition of our Inner Sanctum newsletter is devoted entirely to what I call the Tick Agenda, examining everything from Bill Gates funded Tick research to the growing concern over tick-borne diseases and the unanswered questions surrounding their origins. Which brings us to tonight's guest.
After a single tick bite on Martha's Vineyard turned her life upside down, investigative science writer Chris Newby set out to discover why Lyme Disease remains one of the most misunderstood illnesses in modern medicine. Her search led her to the late Willie Bergdorfer, the scientist who identified the Lyme bacterium and who also revealed his secret work on Cold War bug-borne bioweapons programs.
Was Lyme Disease simply nature taking its course or did something happen behind closed laboratory doors that were only beginning to understand?
Chris Newby is an award-winning science writer, the senior producer of the Lyme Disease documentary Under Our Skin, a 2010 Oscar semifinalist, and the author of Bitten, The Secret History of Lyme Disease and Biological Weapons, which won three international book awards for journalism and narrative nonfiction. She holds two engineering degrees and has worked as a science and technology writer for Stanford Medical School, Apple and other Silicon Valley companies. So tonight, tiny creatures, massive consequences, and a mystery that may be crawling right beneath our feet. Kris Newby, welcome back. It's been a while. How are you?