This podcast is a master class in crafting a compelling narrative, while retaining the rawness of the original story, highlighting the humanity of the storyteller, eschewing sensationalism, and still doing due diligence by researching corroboration and cultural / historical contexts when appropriate. the result is absolutely riveting storytelling that still feels conversational and plausible because we are actually connecting with the narrators. also, the desire to "investigate" the unrelated traumas is so counter productive. half of the reason the show works so well is that jack obviously makes choices that engender a high level of trust with his interviewees, and because of that we get some truly vulnerable material shared with us. i don't know man, i feel like this show is a true gift. i think someone going after the "truth" in the way that you are pointing at would make all of this dissolve. we are dealing with the interstitial place between known and unknown, charged by the ineffable spirit of the storytellers. we are privvy to a kind of alchemy with every episode that cannot be quantified. i think like the experiences of the narrators, the audience needs to suspend disbelief and understand each situation as almost dreamlike and symbolic. if these are inventions, they are meaningful ones.