funeral industry

Sure, you've probably laid in one at the store or a funeral home, but how much do you know about receptacles used to bury the dead? We'll bet you'll learn plenty - like the difference between a coffin and a casket - in this classic episode.

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Are you dead wrong to trust the funeral industry in having your best interests at heart when it's time to shuffle off your mortal coil?

Welcome to Skeptical Sunday, a special edition of The Jordan Harbinger Show where Jordan and fact-checker, comedian, and podcast host David C. Smalley break down a topic that you may have never thought about, open things up, and debunk common misconceptions.

On This Week's Skeptical Sunday, We Discuss:

• The average cost of a funeral is over $11,000.
• Lack of regulation and high prices lead to some families not being able to afford funerals. As a result, about 88,000 bodies go unclaimed each year.
• Grieving people may not have the emotional energy or knowledge to compare prices, leading to exploitation by funeral companies — like Service Corporation International (SCI), whose prices are 47 percent to 72 percent higher than competitors.
• 4.3 million gallons of embalming fluid are used in the US each year, which potentially get into the drinking water. 1.4 million cremations recorded in 2017 created CO2 emissions equalling 52,000 cars on the road.
• Funerals.org provides information on funeral arrangements and what is necessary versus what is being sold by funeral homes.
• Connect with Jordan on Twitter, Instagram, and YouTube. If you have something you'd like us to tackle here on Skeptical Sunday, drop Jordan a line at jordan@jordanharbinger.com and let him know!
• Connect with David at his website, Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, and make sure to check out The David C. Smalley Podcast here or wherever you enjoy listening to fine podcasts! If you like to get out of your house and catch live comedy, keep an eye on David's tour dates here and text David directly at (424) 306-0798 for tickets when he comes to your town!

Full show notes and resources can be found here: jordanharbinger.com/793

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And you thought we were done with talking about funeral homes. Well guess again!

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“If death practices reveal a culture’s values,” writes Maggie Jones, the author of today’s Sunday Read, “we choose convenience, outsourcing, an aversion to knowing or seeing too much.”

Enter home-funeral guides, practitioners who believe families can benefit from tending to — and spending time with — the bodies of the deceased.

On today’s Sunday Read, listen to Ms. Jones’s story about the home-funeral movement and the changing nature of America’s funeral practices.

This story was written by Maggie Jones and recorded by Audm. To hear more audio stories from publishers like The New York Times, download Audm for iPhone or Android.

Sure, you've probably laid in one at the store or a funeral home, but how much do you know about receptacles used to bury the dead? We'll bet you'll learn plenty - like the difference between a coffin and a casket - in this episode.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.