Hard-hitting historical insight.

Me: “Hey, I just learned something really interesting about occultism and intelligence services during the lead-up to WWI!”

Friend: “What?”

Me: “Well, you know how mysticism and seances and stuff were big deals back then?”

Friend: “Yes?”

Me: “Well, there was one guy who went around Austria, and was widely considered to be a spy for the British. He got stopped and searched a lot, and since he had all kinds of crazy supplies, it always took a while and was a big production. But that was the point! The idea was that he’d go somewhere, be seen, be searched yet again, do his shows, and leave, and the actual spies would note his passing and take it as a pre-arranged signal, without ever actually meeting him or interacting with him in any way.”

Friend: “That’s…convoluted but clever.”

Me: “Yeah! It turns out the medium was the message!”

Friend: “We are no longer friends.”