We’ve All Heard It Before

Michael Fragomeni and Peter Woods are two linguists trying to make sense of the current political situation.

Episodes

Nov 5, 2025

27 min

In this second part of a two part episode, Mike and Peter discuss Aristotle's Politics in the context of the "No Kings" (peaceful) protests, and the reality that MAGA would actually be okay with a King.  
Michael Fragomeni earned his Bachelor of Arts in History (Magna Cum Laude) and his PhD in Germanic Linguistics both from UC Berkeley.
Peter Woods earned his BA in international affairs of Russia and Eastern Europe from George Washington University and his MA and PhD in Germanic linguistics from UC Berkeley

Oct 28, 2025

18 min

In this first part of a two part episode, Mike and Peter discuss Aristotle's Politics in the context of the "No Kings" (peaceful) protests, and the reality that MAGA would actually be okay with a King.  
Michael Fragomeni earned his Bachelor of Arts in History (Magna Cum Laude) and his PhD in Germanic Linguistics both from UC Berkeley.
Peter Woods earned his BA in international affairs of Russia and Eastern Europe from George Washington University and his MA and PhD in Germanic linguistics from UC Berkeley

Oct 16, 2025

31 min

In this episode, Mike and Peter discuss mispronunciation and other forms of misspeaking. They insist that there are degrees of mistakes in a hierarchical order, driven by context, distinctiveness, and commonality. 
Michael Fragomeni earned his Bachelor of Arts in History (Magna Cum Laude) and his PhD in Germanic Linguistics both from UC Berkeley.
Peter Woods earned his BA in international affairs of Russia and Eastern Europe from George Washington University and his MA and PhD in Germanic linguistics from UC Berkeley

Oct 10, 2025

38 min

In this episode, Mike and Peter do a deep dive into the field of Semiotics and apply it to Pam Bondi, Trump, and MAGA, with some pop-cultural references along the way.
Michael Fragomeni earned his Bachelor of Arts in History (Magna Cum Laude) and his PhD in Germanic Linguistics both from UC Berkeley.
Peter Woods earned his BA in international affairs of Russia and Eastern Europe from George Washington University and his MA and PhD in Germanic linguistics from UC Berkeley

Sep 18, 2025

27 min

In this episode, Mike and Peter discuss the differences between mimicry and mockery and how they're being used in today's political landscape. 
Michael Fragomeni earned his Bachelor of Arts in History (Magna Cum Laude) and his PhD in Germanic Linguistics both from UC Berkeley.
Peter Woods earned his BA in international affairs of Russia and Eastern Europe from George Washington University and his MA and PhD in Germanic linguistics from UC Berkeley

Sep 12, 2025

28 min

In this episode, Mike and Peter welcome Bajun Mavalwalla whose son was arrested by the FBI for peacefully protesting ICE actions in Spokane, WA. This story has far-reaching implications for every American citizen.   
Michael Fragomeni earned his Bachelor of Arts in History (Magna Cum Laude) and his PhD in Germanic Linguistics both from UC Berkeley.
Peter Woods earned his BA in international affairs of Russia and Eastern Europe from George Washington University and his MA and PhD in Germanic linguistics from UC Berkeley
https://www.gofundme.com/f/qq96hr-support-bajun-mavalwalla-iis-legal-defense

Sep 8, 2025

16 min

In this episode, Mike and Peter discuss the influence that professional sports, and primarily the NFL, have had on politics and the American voting psyche.  
Michael Fragomeni earned his Bachelor of Arts in History (Magna Cum Laude) and his PhD in Germanic Linguistics both from UC Berkeley.
Peter Woods earned his BA in international affairs of Russia and Eastern Europe from George Washington University and his MA and PhD in Germanic linguistics from UC Berkeley

Sep 4, 2025

18 min

In this episode, Mike and Peter discuss critical thinking and why it's a diminishing skill in American society.  
Michael Fragomeni earned his Bachelor of Arts in History (Magna Cum Laude) and his PhD in Germanic Linguistics both from UC Berkeley.
Peter Woods earned his BA in international affairs of Russia and Eastern Europe from George Washington University and his MA and PhD in Germanic linguistics from UC Berkeley

Aug 29, 2025

10 min

In this third and final episode on the pronoun "they", Mike and Peter compare its potential capitalization with other languages that capitalize similar pronouns. 
Michael Fragomeni earned his Bachelor of Arts in History (Magna Cum Laude) and his PhD in Germanic Linguistics both from UC Berkeley.
Peter Woods earned his BA in international affairs of Russia and Eastern Europe from George Washington University and his MA and PhD in Germanic linguistics from UC Berkeley

Aug 22, 2025

17 min

In this second of three episodes, Mike and Peter discuss the many uses of the pronoun "they", as well as the controversy of potentially standardizing its capitalization when used to refer to trans and nonbinary people.
Michael Fragomeni earned his Bachelor of Arts in History (Magna Cum Laude) and his PhD in Germanic Linguistics both from UC Berkeley.
Peter Woods earned his BA in international affairs of Russia and Eastern Europe from George Washington University and his MA and PhD in Germanic linguistics from UC Berkeley

Michael Fragomeni

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