105. Read A F*cking Book / The BiChip Scam

In this episode of Worldwide Panic, Lenny and Lucien talk about the realities of surviving as an independent journalist in 2025, including Lenny’s recent move into private investigative work as a way to stay financially afloat without abandoning long-form reporting. They discuss the pressures of audience-building, the exhaustion of social-media performance, and how influencer culture warps both journalism and public trust.Support Lenny’s investigative journalism & PI career: Help cover essential surveillance and reporting equipment by donating via GoFundMe: https://gofund.me/4d367900aThe conversation then unspools into a deep dive on the strange and largely unnoticed BiChip scam—an earlier “Mark of the Beast” microchip grift that quietly helped seed the later COVID-era microchip conspiracy. Lucien recounts bizarre emails, fake conferences, invented cult leaders, fabricated police raids, and a shadow disinformation network that blurred the line between incompetence, belief, and deliberate fraud. Along the way, they trace how recycled Satanic Panic narratives keep resurfacing through pop culture, from award shows to country concerts—and why none of this ever actually goes away.Lucien's original article on the event: https://luciengreaves.substack.com/p/revisiting-the-most-elaborate-displayTheme music: “Satanic Planet” by Satanic PlanetFurther reading: Frederik Kulager's story featuring Lucien (in Danish) (Zetland)“Fear, Uncertainty, and Doubt about Human Microchips” (CSIS)Subscribe to Failed State Update: http://lennyflatley.substack.com/