James Orr & Reform UK

Josh Boerman (0:00)

Imagine the most annoying guy you can.

Good. Now, make him even more annoying. Give him the smarmiest, most studied, public school English accent you have ever heard. Have Peter Thiel drop a giant sack of money on his head, leaving him permanently concussed and sycophantic. Now, as you rotate this man in your mind, install him at the Religion Department of Cambridge University. Picture him at a bucolic property on the River Cam, sipping proper pints with a half-dozen students who also live with him. Oh, and throw Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage and US. Vice President JD Vance in there too while you're at it. Now ask yourself, what's the funniest way this incredibly annoying man could possibly ruin everything he has been building for the past seven years?

My name is Josh Boerman.

June Sternbach (0:58)

My name is June Sternbach.

Josh Boerman (0:59)

This is Ill Conceived, a podcast about natalism. Junior, where are you shirt that says Brooklyn on it? What's that all about?

June Sternbach (1:15)

It's a New York came to Chicago recently. The New York trans girl team.

Josh Boerman (1:22)

New York came to Chicago?

June Sternbach (1:23)

Yeah, New York, the trans girl baseball team, the Brooklyn Bones came to Chicago like two weeks ago.

Of course, because Chicago is the best city in the entire country, in the world. Chicago walloped the Brooklyn team. The Chicago beaches crushed the Brooklyn Bones. But I did buy one of their shirts to support them for coming out. There was like 15 to 20 people that came out. It was an incredible game, one of the best experiences of the summer for me. If I'm remembering correctly, it was 23 to 16

Josh Boerman (1:59)

Those are some high scoring games.

June Sternbach (2:00)

You know, we're all, we're sort of beginners, a lot of us, a lot of the people.

Josh Boerman (2:04)

Nobody knows how to field, is what I'm hearing.

June Sternbach (2:08)

You know, this is the second year for a lot of people. Next year, it's going to be a lot tighter, I think. People are very dedicated. People have been hitting the cages. People have been practicing. It's been very cool.

Josh Boerman (2:16)

And look, I can't really throw stones in this glass house, this house of tricks that we find ourselves in. I'm terrible at baseball.

June Sternbach (2:26)

Yeah, it's hard. It's really, it's a tough game, but people are dedicated.

These women are amazing. They are crushing it. It was one of the best games of baseball ever played. The biggest baseball game ever played.

Josh Boerman (2:37)

I played the best. That's the other thing we could talk about real quick is that I don't know if by the point that this episode releases, it will be out yet, but very soon, if it's not already out, you will be able to listen to me and June on Kill The Computer in an episode that is being cross-posted to the worst of all possible worlds. The most incredible podcast crossover ever, where we talked about Jimmy Beast's new book, The Most Dangerous Games.

June Sternbach (3:05)

And let me tell you, it was the biggest, most dangerous game yet. Yeah, it was horrible. It was so bad. I got genuinely the most mad. I think I have in a while.

Josh Boerman (3:15)

You were so upset. I mean, I've seen you get upset on this show a few times as well, obviously, like when we're talking about some of these really horrible perverts. But like, I don't think I ever see you get angrier than when you are talking about Mr. Beast.

June Sternbach (3:29)

Yeah. I mean, especially with this, because creation of like artistry in that way has always been something I've wanted to do. So whenever I see people engage with that, it's why AI, like generative art kind of pisses me off so much, just because there is such a lack of respect for art as a medium. People are trying to solve art with this shit.

Josh Boerman (3:49)

Yeah.

June Sternbach (3:49)

And Mr. Beast, the way, I'm going to get real puked if I start talking about this again. But in summary, he does not respect the literary form and it pisses me off.

Josh Boerman (3:59)

And it's so galling that like he has these resources at his disposal, and this is what he chooses to do with those resources. It's just infuriating. So if listening to us hoot and holler about Mr. Beast is up your alley, go listen to that episode. Again, should be out. If it's not out already, should be out soon on the feeds for Kill The Computer and The Worst of All Possible Worlds. But before we get into the meat and potatoes of our episode, because again, June, I brought you a pervert today.