Conspirituality Podcast: Brief: Toxic Masculinity & The Epstein Files

Host: Julian Walker
Date: February 21, 2026

Episode Overview

This episode, led by Julian Walker, dissects the cultural trauma and toxic masculinity exposed in the wake of the DOJ's release of 3 million documents related to the Jeffrey Epstein investigation. Walker centers the discussion on how systemic male power, wellness influencer complicity, and reanimated conspiracy theories all fuel cycles of abuse, disinformation, and spiritual bypassing—particularly in the “conspirituality” world. The episode weaves personal narrative, cultural analysis, and clear challenges to men and the spiritual community at large.

1. The Cultural Fallout of the Epstein Files

[00:57 – 08:23]

• Document Dump and Emotional Shock

  • The DOJ/FBI released a vast trove of disorganized Epstein investigation files, comprising emails, texts, bank documents, survivor accounts, and partially redacted multimedia.
  • Women (especially on Walker’s social feeds) report “grief, anxiety, somatic symptoms, sleep disturbance, and seething rage” [01:43] in reaction to the revelations.
  • Walker highlights the “irresponsible move of the government releasing so many documents with no real context or organizational logic,” which overloads the public and press with fragmented, traumatic information [02:44].
  • Quote:

    “It all stinks of a cover-up, and the injustice of redacting the names of what we can only imagine are powerful men while non-consensually exposing the identities of survivors, twists the knife in the heart of all who value justice…” – Julian Walker [04:38]

• Conspiracy Theories Swell in the Void

  • Lacking curated context, the public turns to “demonic, satanic, sacrificial, and even cannibalistic frameworks” to account for the horror [02:19].
  • Resurgence of “Pizzagate,” QAnon, and Satanic Panic discourse, now pervading new demographics [05:18].
  • Walker’s analysis: “There are no good reasons to believe this nightmare dark fantasy is true, but it is perhaps less terrifying than the ugly everyday reality of institutional power and moral bankruptcy” [05:50].

2. Enablers and Complicity in Epstein’s Circle

[08:24 – 14:39]

• Focus on Peter Attia and Deepak Chopra’s Involvement

  • Files reveal emails between Epstein and figures like wellness guru Peter Attia. In one exchange:
    • Attia responds to a redacted image from Epstein:

      “Please tell me you found that picture online, bastard.” [10:45]

    • Attia says, “the biggest problem with becoming friends with you, the life you lead, is so outrageous and yet I can't tell a soul” [11:01].
  • Walker questions Attia’s defense as “hollow”—it’s not about luxurious parties but willful silence in the face of dehumanizing misogyny [11:26].
  • Attia jokes with Epstein: “pussy is indeed low carb” and gives no pushback to Epstein’s musings about women’s value after reproductive age [11:34].

• Toxic Masculinity and Empathy Deficits

  • Complicity shown not only through criminal acts but also “fawning enablement” and the normalization of misogynistic banter [09:38].

3. Defining “Toxic Masculinity” and Its Many Forms

[14:40 – 19:02]

• A Working Definition

  • Walker cites Cambridge Dictionary:

    “Toxic masculinity defines manhood very narrowly in terms of violence, sex, status, and aggression…. It rules by force and sadism and punishes any sign of emotional intelligence or vulnerability.” [15:35]

  • Toxic masculinity demands identification with the aggressor—dominance is survival, vulnerability is weakness.

• Manifestations in New Age/Wellness Culture

  • Examples from gymbro “stoic” self-help to New Age creators pushing “manifest your reality” and anti-victim consciousness narratives.
  • Analysis of Deepak Chopra’s writings, which deflect from outrage at evil (“the play of these responses is a symptom of why the war between good and evil… is futile” [18:00]).

4. Deepak Chopra’s Emails and Spiritual Bypassing

[19:03 – 21:36]

• Chopra’s Emails to Epstein

  • Notorious quote:

    "God is a construct. Cute girls are real." [19:55]

  • Preceded by:

    "Cells are human constructs. No such thing. Universe is human construct. No such thing. Cute girls are real when they make noise." [20:08]

  • Walker’s gut-punch: “It’s casual but extreme toxic masculinity in the charlatanical language of quantum mysticism” [20:38].

• Spiritual Bypassing & Culprit Influence

  • Chopra trivializes moral outrage and uses spiritual language to sidestep responsibility and minimize evil.
  • Spiritual bypassing is weaponized by both male and female New Age influencers, reinforcing structural injustices under the guise of higher consciousness.

5. What Men Can Do—A Challenge to the Audience

[21:37 – 30:30]

• Toxic Masculinity Harms Everyone

  • Men are socialized to view “vulnerability, emotional attunement… as weak and not manly” [22:12].
  • Homophobia and misogyny are enforced to protect “the boys’ club,” punishing deviation.

• Walker’s Call for Counter-programming

  • “Parents and teachers and influencers and artists should actively encourage precisely that kind of disloyalty to the boys club mentality. We should link the idea of being a strong man with courageous integrity…” [23:00]
  • “Emotionally intact men earn the trust of women and children through respect and kindness. We are enlarged by that trust and love, not diminished or controlled by it.” [23:46]

6. Personal History: Family, Colonialism, and Masculinity

[30:31 – 34:25]

• Walker’s Family Story as Illustration
  • Contrasts his grandfather’s military machismo and “winding you up” humor with his father’s anti-apartheid stance and trauma from racist militarism.
  • “Mike's relational style was derision and domination dressed up as harmless humor. …It was a bit like today's Internet trolls owning the libs.” [32:31]
  • Reflects on the violence of toxic masculinity from his own upbringing, and the culture shock he felt arriving in the US as an emotionally open male artist [33:54].

7. Political Regression: Trump, MAGA, and Gendered Abuse

[34:26 – 36:00]

• 2016 Naivete and Harsh Reality
  • Recalls believing Trump would be defeated by the “grab them by the pussy” tape and that the march of liberal progress was inevitable [34:56].
  • “We have actually gone backwards. MAGA has shown time and again that they don’t care what Trump does or says. And it's not just the men. Republican women will rationalize all of it as locker room talk…” [35:11]
  • QAnon-style conspiracies now emerge on “our” (liberal/progressive) side as well, in the emotional chaos following Epstein.

8. Realities and Myths About Trafficking

[36:01 – 37:52]

• Data and Global Perspective

  • Cites International Labour Organization: 50 million in trafficking/forced labor/marriage, with 6.3 million in sexual exploitation and 1.7 million children [36:55].
  • Most trafficking is “seedy and low-rent,” not the purview of global elites [37:30].

• Authoritarian Drift and Policing

  • MAGA-era politics and institutions like ICE put more women and children at risk.
  • “The earliest version of law enforcement in the Americas took the form of slave catchers… The Nazis would later draw inspiration from America’s Jim Crow laws and eugenics…” [38:19]
  • State violence and male power structures are self-perpetuating, deeply rooted in American history.

9. Final Message: Everyday Resistance and Initiation

[37:53 – End]

• What Men Owe to Women and Themselves
  • “Whenever possible, we must stand up for women and girls. And that's not some kind of mirror-image heroic fantasy of violent retribution. It's in all the everyday ways…” [39:13]
  • Walker advocates for challenging casual misogyny, doing emotional work, and mentoring boys into empathy and relational courage.
  • In spiritual circles, must counter victim-blaming, prosperity gospel, and gender stereotypes masquerading as “sacred masculine/divine feminine” [40:22].
  • “It might make men—men like Peter Attia and Deepak Chopra and others in the Epstein files who… find themselves in their orbits—less prone to going along with their statements and thereby enabling their actions.” [41:15]

Notable Quotes & Moments

• “There are no good reasons to believe this nightmare dark fantasy is true, but it is perhaps less terrifying than the ugly everyday reality of institutional power and moral bankruptcy.” – Julian Walker [05:50]
• “Toxic masculinity defines manhood very narrowly in terms of violence, sex, status, and aggression… It rules by force and sadism and punishes any sign of emotional intelligence or vulnerability.” – [15:35]
• “God is a construct. Cute girls are real.” – Deepak Chopra email [19:55]
  “Cute girls are real when they make noise.” – Deepak Chopra email [20:08]
• “Parents and teachers… should link the idea of being a strong man with courageous integrity that speaks up for and protects the powerless and names and rejects misogyny, homophobia, and abusive power.” – Julian Walker [23:00]
• “We are enlarged by… trust and love, not diminished or controlled by it.” – [23:46]
• “The earliest version of law enforcement in the Americas took the form of slave catchers… The Nazis would later draw inspiration from America’s Jim Crow laws…” – [38:19]
• “Each new generation of boys has to be taught fresh, to be kind, to hold on to their humanity, to treat themselves and their male friends as emotionally whole human beings…” – [41:02]

Key Takeaways

• The Epstein files expose not just individual monsters but a culture of silence, complicity, and toxic masculinity, including among wellness and spiritual leaders.
• Conspiracy theories and spiritual bypassing surge in the context of trauma and institutional betrayal, offering seductive—if false—narratives.
• The solution: men must resist toxic conditioning at every level, from rejecting misogynistic jokes to modeling vulnerability, and challenge spiritual communities to do the same.
• The path forward requires courage, empathy, and clear-eyed activism, even if only in one's own circle.