Podcast Summary: Armstrong & Getty On Demand

Episode: Thank you, My Darling Flower
Date: September 17, 2025
Hosts: Jack Armstrong & Joe Getty

Overview

This episode of Armstrong & Getty On Demand centers around a humorous and insightful exploration of online romance scams—specifically, the notorious “Ukrainian girlfriend” email scam. Joe Getty shares his correspondence with a persistent scammer, walking listeners through the progression of messages and the typical tactics used. The hosts break down the psychology behind such scams, what motivates scammers, and why people fall for these schemes.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

Joe’s Correspondence with a Scammer

• Initiation of Contact:
  Joe recounts receiving an unsolicited email from "Teddy," an alleged Ukrainian woman claiming to seek true love.
  • “I keep wanting to say Ukraine girl, but it's not. She's not from Ukraine. It's probably no she involved. It's probably a computer bot. If there is a human being involved, it's, I don't know, some criminal, criminal gang enterprise that's hacked my email, right. And trying to dupe me into one of these catfish things or whatever you.” — Joe Getty (01:04)
• Joe’s Curiosity:
  Instead of deleting the email, Joe engages out of curiosity to see how far the scam would go, responding with brief, noncommittal answers.
• Escalation of Affection:
  The scammer quickly escalates messages, transitioning from casual greetings to overt declarations of love, complete with lipstick emojis and poetic professions.
  • “My feelings for you have grown into a giant rose of love. True beauty, sweet smells, positive thoughts, feelings, and bright lights at the end of the tunnel.” — Quoted from scam email, read by Joe Getty (05:49)
• Use of Attachments & Changing Photos:
  The emails begin to include attachments—photos of different women, kittens, flowers, and even one purportedly holding a driver's license—all obviously stolen images.
  • “It's a different girl every time though, which is kind of funny. That's not very... you didn't put much effort in here.” — Joe Getty (04:50)
• Scammer Tactics:
  The scam employs "love bombing," frequent, effusive messages, and frequent requests to move the conversation to different platforms or click attachments.

Anatomy of the Romance Scam

• Breakdown of Steps (Jack reads from an article):
  1. Initial Contact: Unsolicited, affectionate email from an alleged foreign woman.
  2. Building Persona: Development of an emotional connection through increasingly intimate language and shared "personal" stories—as well as sending non-verifiable photos.
  3. Moving Platforms: Efforts to push the conversation to less monitored apps (WhatsApp, Telegram) to avoid detection.
  4. Creating a Crisis: Fabricated emergencies requiring the victim’s help—often financial.
  5. The Ask: Eventually requesting money for travel, medical emergencies, or other urgent needs.
• Analysis of Victims:
  The hosts ponder who falls for these scams and why, noting that emotional vulnerability, loneliness, and even depression may be factors.
  • “You would have to be so damn near mentally ill to fall for that. But anyway, go on.” — Joe Getty (07:18)

Host Banter & Audience Engagement

• Jack Coaches Joe:
  Jack suggests Joe continue replying, feigning interest, in order to see what the next “crisis” will be and when the scammer will ask for money.
  • “I would use ChatGPT or just maybe inquire more about the painting and say that sounds nice or something. Make it sound like you're kind of falling for it.” — Jack Armstrong (09:24)
• Joe’s Intentions:
  Joe is eager to see what crisis story the scammer will concoct and jokes about egging them on.
  • “I want to get that part. So how should I respond?” — Joe Getty (08:49)
• Musical Interlude & Recap:
  Hansen, their producer, compiles a humorous song using lines from the scammer’s emails, adding levity to the episode.

Memorable Quotes

• On the ridiculousness of the scam:
  “We really barely know each other. And I mean really barely.” — Joe Getty (05:12)

• On scammer persistence:
  “To my precious diamond, to my love and my destiny. To you, honey. Jack, my sweetheart. I'm a bit sad today because I came to the Internet cafe and. And I haven't found your beautiful letter.” — Scam email, read by Joe Getty (05:15)

• On moving platforms:
  “Oh, WhatsApp. Why do they want you on something like WhatsApp?” — Joe Getty (07:54)
  “It's less monitored, I guess.” — Jack Armstrong (07:59)

• On the eventual “ask”:
  “At this point, the scammer will begin asking for money off and you know, like a wire transfer and whatnot. And then once they get the money, they vanish.” — Jack Armstrong (10:19)

• On the scammer’s poetic language:
  “My feelings for you have grown into a giant rose of love. True beauty, sweet smells, positive thoughts...” — Scam email, read by Joe Getty (06:05)

• Post-song banter:
  “My precious diamond Armstrong.” — Email line in song montage (11:20)
  “That beat is sleazy, isn't it?” — Jack Armstrong (11:23)

Important Segment Timestamps

• [01:04] – Joe introduces the scam story and shares the initial email.
• [01:40] – Details of Joe’s ongoing correspondence & scammer’s responses.
• [03:26] – Lipstick emoji and further bot responses.
• [04:25] – Scammer tries to send audio attachment (potential malware).
• [05:49] – Reading the poetic, love-bombing email.
• [07:18] – Jack analyzes the scam using an article, step by step.
• [09:24] – Jack and Joe strategize about continuing the correspondence.
• [10:17] – Discussion of the impending "crisis" and "ask" for money.
• [11:00] – Hansen’s montage song from the scam email lines.

Conclusion

This episode offers both comedy and a cautionary tale, breaking down the anatomy of online romance scams through Joe’s real-life example. The hosts’ banter, skepticism, and strategic engagement with the scammer provide both entertainment and practical awareness for listeners—reminding everyone to be wary of suspicious, overly affectionate messages from strangers online.