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The Curious Middle

The Curious Middle

De : Polina & Yelena
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 You're in the middle of a full life and still asking the biggest questions. So are we. The Curious Middle is a podcast for intellectually curious women who find themselves in the "middle" of everything: midlife, mid-journey, mid-questions, and often somewhere in the messy middle of cultural, social, and political conversations. We're not at the extremes, and we don't want to be. But we are deeply interested in exploring the edges. We are Polina and Yelena, two opinionated, endlessly curious moms having real, unfiltered conversations about the ideas that actually shape how we live. From personal growth and relationships to culture and spirituality, we examine what it takes to live with clarity, awe, and intentions, right now, not someday. Being "in the middle" isn't about being passive. It's about being grounded enough to question everything, open enough to learn from anywhere, and brave enough to push beyond comfortable assumptions.Expect conversations that challenge, entertain, and push you toward a more thoughtful, and wildly better life. Follow us on Instagram @thecuriousmiddlepod or reach out at thecuriousmiddlepod@gmail.com Sciences sociales
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  • What Your Relationship With Money Says About Your Character With Rabbi Daniel Lapin

    What Your Relationship With Money Says About Your Character With Rabbi Daniel Lapin
    Apr 28 2026
    What if pursuing wealth isn't greedy, it's morally good? Rabbi Daniel Lapin has spent decades making that case, and in this conversation he makes it clearly. He's the bestselling author of Thou Shall Prosper, founder of the American Alliance of Jews and Christians, and one of the most practical thinkers on money, character, and how to live well. We get into his Five F's framework: Family, Finance, Friendship, Fitness, and Faith, and why these five areas, arranged in a circle, are the clearest measure of whether someone has their life together. Rabbi Lapin breaks down which F matters most at different life stages, why your relationship with money says more about your character than almost anything else, and how ancient biblical wisdom maps directly onto the way the world actually works. We also talk about why socialism keeps spreading, what the fall of empires has to do with America right now, and why AI is being overhyped in exactly the same way the internet and the automobile were. 90% of Rabbi Lapin's listeners are not Jewish. These are universal principles — and this is one of those conversations you'll want to share. A few of our favorite lines from this episode. It's full of transformative life advice, but you'll have to listen for the rest: "I ask people on planes: what do you do for your fellow human beings? Not what do you do for a living, that's a very self-centered way of looking at it." "Empires end not because of outside invasion — but because of internal collapse. The breaking apart of a common moral shared outlook." If this episode made you think of someone , that's your sign. Stop and share it with them! Follow us on Instagram at @thecuriousmiddlepodFollow our SubstackEmail us thecuriousmiddlepod@gmail.com Timestamps: 0:00 — Intro: why Polina and Yelena are obsessed with Rabbi Lapin and what to expect 3:43 — The Five F's introduced: Family, Finance, Friendship, Fitness, Faith 6:03 — Family defined: all relationships that flow from male-female connection 7:30 — Finance defined: money, ownership, and your professional relationships 8:29 — Faith explained: anything that can't be measured in a lab — including why you paid $64 for jeans 10:43 — Why the Five F's live on a circle, not a ranked list 11:50 — Which F matters most by life stage — counterintuitive advice for men and women 13:45 — Why society is conditioned to see wealth as greedy — and why that's wrong 15:17 — What a man's relationship with money reveals about his character 19:46 — Jewish tradition views the pursuit of profit as morally good 20:45 — Why socialism spreads and why it's dangerous 22:04 — Freedom vs. equality: you can't have both 24:25 — The 250-year empire cycle — and America turns 250 this year 28:43 — Money and God: gold is the eighth thing God calls "good" in Genesis 31:01 — Why half the guests at a Jewish wedding are business connections, not family 33:11 — Yelena's personal question: how do you measure worth when you've stepped away from a career? 35:20 — Why having children above 2.1 is one of the most important contributions to society 37:44 — Abundance vs. scarcity mindset — and why you can't will money into existence 40:05 — The Screw Magazine story: why everyone needs to believe they're doing something of lasting value 42:26 — Whale oil, copper wire, and the pattern of false scarcity throughout history 43:45 — AI is being overhyped — same pattern as the internet and the automobile 47:02 — People need people: why AI won't replace human connection 49:27 — How media has brainwashed us to see business as villainous 51:00 — Perspective check: 1930, 1941 — things have been worse and we got through it 53:45 — What to actually do right now: build your Five F's 56:16 — Closing: happiness is a decision
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    58 min
  • All the News That's Fit to Spin with Ashley Rindsberg

    All the News That's Fit to Spin with Ashley Rindsberg
    Mar 18 2026
    How much power does The New York Times really have , and what happens when that power is used to shape narrative instead of pursue truth? In this episode of The Curious Middle, we speak with Ashley Rindsberg, author of The Gray Lady Winked, about the Times' reporting on some of the most important stories of the last century: the Nazi invasion of Poland, Stalin's Soviet Union, the Holocaust, Israel, the 1619 Project nd more. Ashley Rindsberg is an investigative journalist and author focused on media malfeasance, information warfare, and the hidden systems influencing public discourse. Ashley joins us to explain why he believes the paper has repeatedly protected power, buried inconvenient truths, and helped shape public opinion in ways that changed history. We also talk about the Sulzberger family, the culture inside elite newsrooms, the collapse of trust in journalism, and how listeners can build a healthier media diet today. Follow Ashley's Substack In this episode: What first inspired Ashley to write The Gray Lady WinkedWhy the New York Times is unlike any other media institutionThe Times' Holocaust coverage and what was buriedHow tne NYT Created a Narrative on the Soviet Unioo, Hitler, Cuba, Iraq, Israel and the Intifada,The 1619 Project and narrative-driven reportingThe Tom Cotton op-ed controversy, safe spaces, silencing dissent and newsroom ideologyHow to find better journalism in a fractured media environment More reading: Books: Buried by the Times by Laurel LeffStalin's Apologist: Walter Duranty: The New York Times's Man in Moscow by S.J. Taylor Articles About the NYT Nazi Correspondent from Tablet MagazineNYT journalist Walter Duranty, who downplayed the Ukraine famine. "Committed to protecting his own influence and to a future "greater good" promised by the Soviet regime, Duranty at first dismissed rumors of the Ukrainian Famine. Then he downplayed them. Then he claimed that Ukraine's "food shortages" were the result of local mismanagement and the work of "wreckers" and "spoilers" intent on undermining Soviet progress." More podcasts with Ashley: Ashley on the Coleman Hughes podcastAshley on the Winston Marshall podcast Key Quotes "They set cultural agendas, they set the news agenda, they influence politics, they influence culture." "They didn't want to appear to be the Jewish newspaper that was advocating for Jewish lives or Jewish people. So they did the exact opposite." "You don't bury a story about tens of thousands of people being murdered in Europe by accident." "The narrative was so overpowering for them that it obliterated what was in front of their faces." "It became a culture of silence." Timestamps 05:13: Origin Story of the Book Spark: reading The Rise and Fall of the Third ReichShock discovery: NYT reported Poland invaded Germany (1939)Core question: "If they got that wrong, what else did they get wrong?" 08:42 – Why Focus on The New York Times 11:32 – Ochs-Sulzberger Family Ideology German-Jewish assimilation philosophy: Judaism = religion only (not identity) 14:23 – Holocaust Coverage Critique Only 6 front-page Holocaust stories in 6 years 17:56 – Historical Parallels to Today Narratives like: "Jews cause wars""Israel manipulation" 20:34 – Could Coverage Have Changed History? 21:12 – Fascination with Power / Dictators 24:15 – Ukraine Famine Denial (Walter Duranty) 26:43 – Publishing Barriers Publishers avoided book due to: Fear of NYT retaliationBestseller list control Insight: NYT bestseller list = editorial, not purely sales-based 30:12 – NYT Power Today Less local dominance, more global reach~600 million monthly usersNow a digital ecosystem 32:32 – NYT Lack of Accountability 35:30 – State of Journalism Today 38:48 – Misleading Image Example (Second Intifada) Photo falsely captioned: Palestinian victim → actually Jewish man being saved Example of narrative overriding facts 41:20 – Mohammed al-Dura Case Widely reported killing blamed on IsraelLater forensic evidence contradicted itNYT never corrected narrative 43:10 – The 1619 Project Claim: U.S. founded on slavery, not libertyCriticism: Historians said key claims were false Still: Won PulitzerEntered school curricula 51:54 – Tom Cotton Op-Ed Controversy 57:55 – Future of Media 59:27 – Advice for News Consumers (GREAT CLIP) 🔥 "Unbundle the news like Spotify unbundled albums" 1:01:09 – Closing + Current Work Focus on: Narrative spread across platformsWikipedia, Reddit, AI manipulation Company: NPOV Follow @thecuriousmiddlepod Contact us: thecuriousmiddlepod@gmail.com
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    1 h et 5 min
  • If Iran Breaks Free with Jonathan Harounoff

    If Iran Breaks Free with Jonathan Harounoff
    Jan 21 2026

    In this powerful episode, we sit down with Jonathan Harounoff, British-Iranian journalist and author of Unveiled: Inside Iran's Woman, Life, Freedom Revolt.

    Jonathan takes us inside the Woman, Life, Freedom movement—how it began, why it refuses to die, and why the regime continues to answer peaceful protest with barbaric force. Drawing on years of reporting and deeply personal conversations with Iranians inside the country and across the diaspora, he shares the brutal realities of life under the regime—and the extraordinary courage of people who keep standing up anyway.

    We talk about hunger, fear, and economic collapse. About mothers, daughters, and young people risking everything. About why the regime blames Israel and the West—and what Iranians are actually fighting for: dignity, choice, basic freedom, and a future without constant terror.

    We also ask a question that feels almost unthinkable, and yet possible: What would a free Iran mean for the Middle East, and for the world?

    This is a sobering yet hopeful conversation about sacrifice, resilience, and the power of ordinary people to challenge unimaginable tyranny and change history.

    Memorable Quotes:

    • "There's a very clear distinction between the Islamic Republic and the 92 million Iranians it governs."
    • "This is a proud, resilient civilization with thousands of years of history—and they're not giving it up for a 47-year-old regime."
    • "The regime will blame Israel, the U.S., even 'cloud theft'—anything except its own mismanagement."
    • "Women were deliberately shot in the eyes to leave a permanent mark."
    • "A free Iran wouldn't just transform the Middle East—it would transform the world."
    Timestamps:
    • 00:00 – Why this moment in Iran matters
    • 01:46 – Jonathan's book and the Woman, Life, Freedom uprising
    • 04:08 – Iranians vs. the Islamic Republic
    • 06:22 – Why Israel gets blamed for everything
    • 08:36 – Is this the biggest uprising yet?
    • 10:56 – What Iranians want after the regime
    • 12:40 – How the regime crushes dissent
    • 15:41 – Can the protests survive another crackdown?
    • 17:15 – Do Iranians want Western help?
    • 18:09 – What a free Iran could mean for the world
    • 20:23 – The UN's silence on Iran
    • 21:30 – Stories that changed Jonathan forever
    • 22:36 – How to truly learn Iranian culture
    • 24:51 – Hope for a free Iran

    Please share this episode with a friend:

    • Follow us on Instagram at @thecuriousmiddlepod
    • Follow our Substack
    • Emal us thecuriousmiddlepod@gmail.com
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    25 min
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