In this episode, Robert and guest Austin Train (a stand-up comedian and longtime friend) discuss Absolute Advantage, an economic theory concerning the superior productivity of individuals or nations in specific industries. The conversation shifts rapidly from Adam Smith’s "invisible hand" to the "mortal jealousy" inherent in the comedy world, exploring the dynamics of "fairy godmother" mentors and the struggle of the "door guy" hierarchy at The Comedy Store. They traverse the "grimy" underbelly of Los Angeles, recounting visceral memories ranging from Robert’s childhood walk past the scene of River Phoenix’s overdose to the surreal isolation of Austin’s pandemic lockdown, where he watched a homeless neighbor smoke meth in a recliner on Christmas Day. Topics range from the "performative" nature of Oscar-bait films like The Post and the decline of Joe Rogan from a supportive peer to a "gullible" cog in the "propaganda machine", to the personal toll of addiction, highlighted by Robert’s "sombrero" phase of cocaine use. They conclude by examining the "diminishing returns" of drug use and the tension between the "solitary" nature of the creative process and the demands of parenthood.

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In the thirteenth episode, Robert and guest Matthew Simmons discuss Immanuel Kant’s philosophical theory of absolut, which is a theory regarding the limits of reality and the necessity of looking at the world through specific frameworks like substance and cause. The conversation moves fluidly from the "terror and beauty" of the Kantian sublime to the gritty reality of Robert’s "eating disorder" and the anxiety-inducing guilt of wasting food instilled by his mother. They examine the complex nature of empathy as a form of "double consciousness," questioning whether true understanding of another is possible or if it merely leads to a "pathway to relativism". Topics range from the "waste of time" glory of World of Warcraft and Counter-Strike to the "mundane bullshit" of AI replacing creative arts instead of household chores, and they explore concepts like the "benality of evil" in nature and the "violence" of digital surveillance where the "objective" data profile usurps the subjective self.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE ON CROSS THEORY, EMAIL crosstheorypod@gmail.com.

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In this special 9+ hour twelfth episode, Robert is joined by fimmakers Matthew Rocca (Bullets, Fangs and Dinner at 8) and Brian Patrick Butler (Friend of the World & Hemet, or the Landlady Don't Drink Tea) for a discussion on the absence paradox, a concept that explores the tension between the existence and non-existence of objects. They delve into the philosophical implications of this paradox and its relevance to our understanding of reality. And after the discussion, they share their lists of the 20 best movies of the 21st century.

You can find Matthew's IMDB HERE and Brian's IMDB HERE.

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In the eleventh episode, Robert and guest Brad Kelly (author of the book The Earthen Dark and host of the Method and Madness Podcast) discuss absence, a literary theory by French Marxist critic Pierre Macherey regarding the "significant absences" or unspoken voids within a text that expose its contradictory relationship to ideology. The conversation moves from the psychoanalytic implications of the "dead parent" trope in Disney films to the visceral, sensory reality of Brad’s tenure as a sewer engineer in Detroit. They examine the volatile shifting of political goalposts, where formerly leftist stances on anti-interventionism and pharmaceutical skepticism have migrated to the right, anchored by Robert’s personal trauma regarding the AIDS crisis and the medical establishment. Topics range from the "fatbergs" and slaughterhouse runoff encountered in city sewers to the "cosmic horror" of H.P. Lovecraft’s xenophobia and the frontier philosophy of Cormac McCarthy’s The Crossing. Ultimately, they explore the performative nature of literary realism, the emotional volatility of creative writing workshops, and the necessity of independent publishing in the face of institutional gatekeeping.

You can find Brad's book, The Earthen Dark, HERE. You can find his Podcast, Method and Madness, HERE.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE ON CROSS THEORY, EMAIL crosstheorypod@gmail.com.

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In the tenth episode, Robert and guest Yusef Boulanouar (ZAYD) discuss Abney’s Law, a physics concept describing how adding white light to a spectral color shifts its perceived hue. The conversation moves fluidly from the "dangerous" informality of their past student-teacher dynamic to the modern cat-and-mouse game of detecting AI plagiarism in essays. They examine the "snaky" economics of the music industry, contrasting Yusef’s optimistic "synthy jazz fusion" ambitions with Robert’s gritty memory of a death metal bandmate’s wife fleeing to Las Vegas with their earnings. Topics range from the aesthetic influence of directors like Wes Anderson and Akira Kurosawa to the racial performativity of Robert’s grandfather playing the "bad guy of the week" in classic westerns, and they explore the existential threat of the "infinite slop machine" of generative AI and the cyclical theory that society is drifting into a new "Middle Ages".

You can find Yusef's music on SPOTIFY.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE ON CROSS THEORY, EMAIL crosstheorypod@gmail.com.

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In the ninth episode, Robert and guest Ryan Hartley (Kenneth Ryan Hartley) discuss Abney’s effect, a phenomenon regarding the perceived expansion of light from the center of an illuminated area. The conversation moves fluidly from the technical abstractions of ray tracing and holograms to the gritty reality of the "starving artist" lifestyle. They examine the volatile origins of the online /lit/ community, from 4chan boards to the "incel angst" of young writers, and the necessity of transmuting that rage into mature art. Topics range from the "pissing in the wind" perseverance of writing mentors like Harold Jaffe to Ryan’s harrowing past dealing drugs to pipeline roughnecks in the "no man's land" of rural British Columbia, and they explore concepts like the "slow boiling frog" of societal collapse and the performative nature of political extremism through the lens of personal trauma and survival.

Ryan's writing endevours can be found ⁠HERE⁠.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE ON CROSS THEORY, EMAIL crosstheorypod@gmail.com.

ALL ARE WELCOME. I DON’T CARE WHO YOU ARE OR WHAT YOU’RE SELLING.

In the eighth episode, Robert and his uncle, three-time Super Bowl champion and broadcaster Randy Cross, discuss the Ability to Pay Principle, an economic theory asserting that taxation should be levied according to an individual's means. The conversation bridges academic definitions with the "crazy" realities of modern economics, moving from the theory of tax burdens to the practical shifts of the film industry from Hollywood to Atlanta. Topics range from Randy’s storied tenure with the San Francisco 49ers and his background as a UCLA political science major to the family's deep roots in acting, recalling a father who was frequently typecast as villains in the golden age of television. They examine the surreal contrast between athletic glory and the gritty intensity of a war zone, featuring Randy’s harrowing experience running a 10K at Bagram Air Force Base on the "most mined real estate in the world". And explore concepts like Robert's "weird obsession" with Alexander the Great and the Iliad alongside the visceral terror of the Northridge earthquake and the existential threat of the Yellowstone volcano.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE ON CROSS THEORY, EMAIL crosstheorypod@gmail.com.

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In the seventh episode, Robert and guest Michael "Mikey" Duffy discuss Abel’s Summation, a mathematical concept suggesting that truth is found in the "running total" rather than the "jagged edges" of isolated mistakes, while sharing candid stories of addiction and redemption. Topics range from Robert’s upbringing in Hollywood by heroin-addicted parents to Mikey’s paradoxical life as a 40-year-old resident of The Villages, a Florida retirement community. They examine the devastating "vortex" of the methamphetamine crisis in San Diego and Florida, the shift from free-market economics to the politics of empathy, and the art of hip-hop production, referencing artists from Nipsy Hussle to Kanye West, and concepts like statistical significance versus anecdotal evidence through the lens of sobriety and the influence of fathers who rose from poverty.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO BE ON CROSS THEORY, EMAIL crosstheorypod@gmail.com.

ALL ARE WELCOME. I DON’T CARE WHO YOU ARE OR WHAT YOU’RE SELLING.