Show Notes Summer Short: “Don’t Page Me, Bro!” This week Host Dave Bledsoe slaps an old beeper he found in a box in the basement on the bar and asks if “doctors drank for free” (They don’t and he isn’t one.)  On the show this week we are doing a Summer Short about that time in the late 80’s when every kid with the beeper in America was slinging smack. (They weren’t and it was racist moral panic thing.) Along the way we learn about the Worst Summer of Dave’s Life. (He couldn’t drink for a couple of weeks.) Then we dive into the story with the “411” on pagers (but just the basics, this IS a Summer Short) before getting to the meat of the story: how beepers became synonymous with the drug trade. (Was the media involved? You already know the answer!) We then chart the progress from school suspension to felony beeper possession in America’s schools. (Fuck, White People were so scared of Black kids!) We see the fever break thanks to Howard Stern. (We are not making this up) and of course millions of dollars spent by corporations. Our Sponsor this week is Beeper City, your one and pretty much only stop, for all your beeper needs. We open with all the reasons your dad should buy you a beeper and close with Sir Mix A Lot beep beep beeping along. Show Theme: Hypnostate Prelude to Common Sense The Show on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheHell_Podcast The Show on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/whatthehellpodcast/ The Show on Youtube:  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCjxP5ywpZ-O7qu_MFkLXQUQ The Show on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/whatthehellwereyouthinkingpod/ Our Discord Server: https://discord.gg/kHmmrjptrq Our Website: www.whatthehellpodcast.com Give us your money on Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/Whatthehellpodcast The Show Line: 347 687 9601 Closing Music: https://youtu.be/MPZ3cO2zOdQ?si=QGWS2v3qCOZs7mQv We are a proud member of the Seltzer Kings Podcast Network! http://seltzerkings.com/ Citations Needed:  MESSAGE IS OUT ON BEEPERS https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/politics/1988/07/11/message-is-out-on-beepers/58840caa-523e-413b-9224-60ad94d7803f/ Street Smart: Drug dealers turn on to beepers https://content.time.com/time/subscriber/article/0,33009,962483,00.html Schools Silencing Beepers https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-news-and-observer/143472926/ The Forgotten War on Beepers https://newsletter.pessimistsarchive.org/p/the-forgotten-war-on-beepers BEEPER BAN IN SCHOOLS URGED https://www.chicagotribune.com/1988/11/30/beeper-ban-in-schools-urged/ Bad News Beepers https://tedium.co/2023/06/07/pager-schools-negative-reputation-history/ 'Cockroaches of the healthcare system': Why many physicians still use pagers https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/healthcare-information-technology/cockroaches-of-the-healthcare-system-why-many-physicians-still-use-pagers.html Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices